when God (not man) establishes our financial integrity, He will entrust us with True Riches to enable us manage whatever Project and Resources (human, material, financial) He (already) planned and designed us for.
Going forward, please expect to read highlights of all published articles for the previous month, praise reports and a preview of upcoming events for the next month from this site.
May I always be a Vessel of Honor. Fit for Purpose. Preserved and Maintained by the Potter
The Word of God does not change because of our situations, circumstances or experiences. But the Word of God can change our situations, circumstances and experiences.
See, all 4 kinds of soil were exposed to the Word. The Seed located a soil as soon as it left the Sower’ hand. Thus giving every soil type an opportunity to do something with the Seed it received. The Word dropped in each heart, say, as a gift. They all heard the Word. Apart from the Wayside heart, the Word seemed promising and full of potential to the other soil types. However, the only soil type (heart) that valued the Word enough and therefore guided it, kept it, protected it (from unbelief, temptations and distractions) was the Good Soil. In addition to protecting the seed-gift, the Good Soil believed the Word, put the Word to work (acting upon it and confessing it) continuously and patiently until the Seed yielded the expected outcome.
The fiery flamed throne in Heaven is exclusively reserved for the ONE whose appearance is like jasper and a sardius stone, whose garment is as white as snow and hair like pure wool. He is the Ancient of Days.
Surrounding His fire-wheeled throne is rainbow, glowing as emerald, the fully-eyed restless 4 living creatures having eyes of a lion/eagle/calf/man, and a sea like crystal at the porch. {Revelations 4; Daniel 7}.
Another group of thrones, 24 in number, are occupied by the 24 Elders graced in white robes and golden crowns, they bow repeatedly to the ONE on the throne at the sound of ‘Holy’ chants by the 4 living creatures and countless number of angels {Revelations 4; Daniel 7}.
The Lion and the Lamb is in the midst of them all, once He looked slain, slain for mankind, He became the Redeemer from sin and the curse, an everlasting redemption He purchased with His own blood, paving the way for mankind to become kings and priests to the ONE seated on the throne. Now He sits fulfilled, satisfied and rested, at the right hand of the Ancient of days, as High Priest and Advocate, patiently awaiting the coming of His Everlasting Kingdom where He will reign as King with His Own; those He bought with His precious blood {Revelations 5; Daniel 7}
Heaven is compartmentalized, there is a hierarchical structure in Heaven, there is orderliness and excellence in Heaven, but Heaven is not divided.
Heaven is not divided in its mission and vision to unite man to God, to restore fellowship between God and man, to give man uninterrupted access to His God and Maker.
Heaven is not divided in bringing the fallen man to repentance, in making disciples of all men, in equipping and gifting the saints for the maturity of the Body of Christ.
Heaven is not divided in soul-winning, Heaven is not divided in water-baptism, Heaven is not divided in pouring out the Holy Ghost to as many as receive Christ is Lord.
Heaven is not divided in converting Saul into Paul to achieve purpose. Heaven is resolute about its vision- Fellowship between God and Man.
Little wonder then that when the disciples of John the Baptist; his stooges and underlings, lacking knowledge of the overall goal and focus of Heaven appeared divisive, ignorantly attempting to disrupt the established pattern for achieving the purpose of Heaven, Jesus looked the other way.
“The Pharisees heard that Jesus was winning and baptizing more disciples than John. (Actually, Jesus himself did not baptize anyone; only his disciples did.) So when Jesus heard what was being said, he left Judea and went back to Galilee”
John 4:1-3 GNB
John the Baptist knew his mission, handed to him from Heaven. He knew Jesus and His mission to redeem man from sin and the curse.
Jesus also knew John the Baptist and what role he was sent to earth to fulfill, there was a level of understanding between the two, but not among the disciples.
The disciples were earthly beings, earthly-minded, insisting on maintaining earthly hierarchical structures, patterns, traditions and doctrines.
“And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified—behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!”
John 3:25-26 NKJV
What were the possible concerns of John’s disciples?…….
John the Baptist gave them a response;
“John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.” You yourself bear me witness that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him. He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. John 3: 27-29. NKJV.
John was clear about one thing; roles were assigned from Heaven for the overall good of mankind. Jesus’ appearance and work were John’s testimony that his mission has been accomplished, his work was done, he has delivered on his given mandate. John was joyful with Jesus appearing on the scene, not intimidated and afraid.
According to John, what his disciples should be looking out for is an assurance that truly Jesus was the expected Messiah, not that ‘people went from him to Jesus‘;
“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.” *Summary: the words of God keeps pouring out of whom he sends. 🙂
John 3:34 NKJV.
As seen in John 3: 27-29, John the Baptist was completely subservient to the Christ, no rivalry, no competition.
However, he knew the mandate he received, he knew his role and position, he knew that ‘he was sent‘ for a specific purpose….not exactly to serve under Jesus, a different purpose for the overall good of mankind.
“John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.” You yourself bear me witness that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him. He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatlybecause of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. John 3: 27-29. NKJV.
John was not arrogant, Jesus didn’t think he was. Jesus’ rebuke of John was towards his display of unbelief and uncertainty about Him being the Christ.
According to Jesus, John should have known better by the outcome of His ministry; there was no division, the mission was the same- redemption of man and restoration of fellowship between God and Man {Matthew 11:2-10}.
John should have been guided by God’s spirit as seen in Luke 11:17;
“But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.”
But Alas, John the Baptist was of the Old Testament, needing both salvation, water baptism and the baptism of the Holy Ghost himself. 🙂
If you are reading this and you have been born into the Kingdom of God by your acceptance and proclamation of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, whatever your gifting is, whatever your calling is, keep it lined up with the vision of Heaven – to bring every man to repentance and to make disciples of all men {Matthew 28:19; 2 Peter 3:9}.
Avoid meaningless segregation, the types that brew division and disharmony. Just like Jesus, walk away from divisions commonly brought about by traditions and doctrines of men, being reminded always of Mark 9:40; “For he who is not against us is on our side“. NKJV.
Serve with your graces and gifting in the local assembly where The Lord plants you, stay committed to your calling.
If you are still unsure about your gifting, ask The Lord to show you, to lead you.
It’s all about the Father’s Business. There is so much work to be done. The time is now. Every one has a role to play and no role is too small.
Almost every time an appliance or machine stops functioning optimally in my home, my husband reaches for the manual first, does some troubleshooting himself before calling in the experts.
A manufacturer’s handbook (manual), helps us set up our appliances, identify and handle simple malfunctions of our machines and ensures optimum output and efficiency, giving us good value for our money.
I have had the privilege of welcoming newly born again Christians into God’s family and I do not fail to introduce them to the Christian Manual for a successful and victorious christian living-The Bible.
You may want to consider the Bible as The Manufacturer’s Manual/Handbook for man’s living assuming that you believe in the existence of a Man-Creator or Manufacturer. If you are more inclined towards evolution or some other theory about man’s creation, then am sure you’ve found a different handbook and the discourse here may not apply to you.
So, why did God give us the Bible (His commandments/words)?
The 10 commandments came into existence to guide and direct Israel’s actions which were becoming intolerable for Jehovah at the time.
In his second letter to Timothy, apostle Paul explains the purpose of every word of God;
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness“. 2 Timothy 3:16. NKJV.
If it is not already obvious, this write-up is borne out of my curiosity on why people are often reluctant to study their Bibles.
I asked a few persons about their opinion on this and got the following responses;
i. ‘there is no time’. too many things to do with so little available time’
ii. ‘probably, people are not clear or do not completely agree with what the Bible says in some cases’
iii. ‘the bible does not give a unified straightforward stand on some issues, and people whip up different dimensions of the bible to support their own perspective on issues.
Hmmm….
Interestingly, nobody really considered or conceded to a likelihood of people thinking the standards in the Bible are too high!
I recently learnt that people generally don’t want to be told what to do. So if the Bible is for reproof, correction, instruction etc, my guess is; people love the freedom of living their lives freestyle!
But are God’s words punitive, prohibitive or protective? I think it’s all 3, with an ultimate aim to protect. I believe that God considered every possible action of man in its entirety (positive and negative outcomes), before giving out His words to guide and direct man aright.
For example, when God says ‘Do not commit adultery’, I believe this instruction goes well beyond the physical attraction and sexual satisfaction one derives through his indulgence in adultery. The end result of a singular adulterous act can mean an end to a longstanding marriage relationship, disruption in the equilibrium existing in a home, or exposure to life threatening sexually transmitted diseases (condoms tear!), and so many other unsavory results.
But you know, God does not force man to do anything. He always leaves the final decision with man but admonishes him to choose life and live. I can tell my young preteen not to spend all his time on games and TVs, because as a parent, I have the foresight of the crucial role hard work can play in determining life’s experiences. And I want the best for my child! I believe God deals with man in a similar way. But then, there is a limit to how much or how long I can control my preteen’s choices. His future experiences rests greatly on his present day choices.
Let us not be like the middle-aged highly educated diabetic man who refused to go to the hospital for professional medical care for fear of what results of hospital investigations on him would reveal. He’d rather die in his ignorance. He immediately reminds me of why the fool has deceived himself into thinking there is no God…because he is corrupt and have done abominable things! (Psalm 53:1). He is threatened by the Bible.
When an appliance or machine malfunctions, it is very unlikely that the problem is with the manual (selah).
“He is in the way of life that heedeth correction, but he that forsaketh reproof erreth” Proverbs 10:17. ASV
Have a lovely day!
