Month: February 2016

DO UNTO OTHER WHAT YOU WANT GOD TO DO UNTO YOU (Matthew 18:21-35)

Our word of this week (the end of February and the beginning of March) is not new at all, but the refreshing capability of it is ever new. The word is taken from the book of Matthew, chapter eighteen verses twenty one to thirty five. The words of our reference scripture is very self understanding hence the need to write a laconic commentary. The lesson gained from the word is to give off what you expect of the Lord for you. If you expect forgiveness from God, you ought to offer your neighbor that forgiveness. The title of this week’s word is true in all aspects of our walk with God. If you want God to give you money and prosperity, then be ready to do same unto others.

21 Then came Peter to Him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?…

Read the rest for strength this week. God richly bless you for having the time to listen to His word. Amen.

WARMING UP FOR MARRIAGE

Dearly beloved, when you find that special person you would love to spend the rest of your life with, don’t just spend all the time enjoying each other’s company in dating. This is good and lovely but you also need to put down measures to build character as well as knowing God together. There are a lot to be done before wedding and marriage. So whatever thing that would be helpful in marriage should be looked at and built before you say “I do”. It is not just getting to know each other. Take time to build, in no particular order:
Character
Love
Trust
Understanding
Good communication
Plans for the future (finance, happy home etc)
Take time to know God more and invest time in prayer. Discover your purpose and remain faithful to it. Share your thoughts with one another, communicate frequently and let nothing stand between you two.
Each of you should remain committed to making the life of the other better, I mean add value to his life or her life constantly. Let all that you do be done in true sincerity, out of a genuine heart.
Love is beautiful! It is even more beautiful when love is carefully woven in Christ.
Make Christ the foundation of your relationship. Be more concerned in building a good friendship together. For when all the emotions, love, care, etc dies down, what will keep you going is a good friendship. A good friendship is the foundation of all relationship.
Do not leave the destiny of your relationship and marriage to chance. Take responsibility, create it! Consciously build on the solid foundation that has already been laid who is Christ.
It’s my prayer our marriages will be a model. God richly bless you.

Courtesy: Ameyaw Bernice

A RENEWED MIND

The bible clearly encourages believers to renew their mind. I have looked at ‘Renewal of the mind’ from different angles and I have now come to discover its importance, even in the area of finance. Renewing the mind, from the Christian’s perspective, is a conscious act of training and tuning the mind to discard old convictions and beliefs that aren’t in line with one’s new nature in Christ. “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away, behold all things have become new.”, says the Bible.
Everything on earth; good or bad has to do with the mind, and when faith is added, my goodness! It erases the word “impossibility”. The bible has unveiled this foundation years ago, admonishing Christians to renew their mind. It was interesting to notice that the entire part one of a financial book I’m currently reading talks about the essence of mind renewal. The author of the book calls this a secret. Of course it is a secret. Although I have read it in the bible, I didn’t know of its application to financial prosperity. Truly, every part of the scripture is applicable to all aspects of life. In fact, this is a true manifestation of the claim: The words of the scripture is applicable to every aspect of life.
The author also encourages readers to employ the art of positive confessions or declarations. It is amazing how some Christians criticise fellow Christians who make positive declarations. Their reason being that these are vain confessions because the confessions are not physically manifested. Oh if they know how they’ve robbed themselves off certain blessings by their failure to make positive confessions over their lives. I love how Pastor Chris Oyakilome puts it, “Keep saying it”. Soon your cells will agree with your confession, then mixing it with faith in Elohim it shall surely be established.
What’s my point? My point is Christians have a lot of mysteries in the bible that if we discover and don’t trivialise them, it will lead us to realms we’ve not dream of before. I tell you the truth; all the secrets to success in life is clearly spelt out in the bible.
Search!!!
Courtesy: Ameyaw Bernice Ama

HE WILL DELIVER YOU

(DANIEL 3:17)
“Deliver us from evil…” This is a part of what Jesus Christ has asked us to put in our prayer to the Almighty God. I want to admonish you this day to put all your hopes in Him for He will deliver from everything (evil, shame, childlessness, joblessness, etc.,).
Is it not amazing how Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego echoed into the ears of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 3:17, “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from your majesty’s hand.” They were well aware of the consequences of their words, yet they spoke them because they had confidence in the God they served. I pray that you will be this brave inspired by confidence in the Lord in the name of Jesus.
Let’s walk in the manifestation of this truth today and forever. Not only did Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego boast of the capabilities of the Almighty God, but He also delivered them from the hands of Nebuchadnezzar’s God.
Proclaim it, “He will deliver me from all my weaknesses, enemies, bad habits, evil deeds, evil plotters, etc., in the mighty name of Jesus.” And He will do it beautifully.

LIVING THE NEW LIFE

After one has accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and personal Saviour, he ought to live the new life. For when one is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away behold all things have become new.
The question is how is this new life supposed to be lived? The great Apostle Paul has clearly described how that new life is to be lived in Colossians 3. Let’s check it out.
Become ‘heaven-minded’ (Col 3:1-2). Allow your daily encounter with  the grace of God.
Put on your new nature. What is your new nature? It is Christ! Christ is our new nature. Let Christ be seen in all that you do. You ought to keep learning more of God and put what you learn to practice. Men will see it. Your light, who is Christ in you will be seen in all you do. Men will see you and they’ll see Christ. Then they’ll give glory to God (Col 3:10-11).
Through salvation, we become members of God’s precious family; His holy people, His holy nation. There are certain values that identifies people of this precious family. These include tender-hearted, mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiving spirit, love, peace, thankfulness. Take your time to build up these values in you. Live like a true child of God whose values tell it all. The early church were given the name ‘Christians’ because their lives, values were just like that of Christ (Col 3:12-15)
Let your knowledge of Christ be so rich, desire to know Him more and more. Teach and counsel fellow Christians. Praise and worship God always. Finally, let us live as true ambassadors of Christ. God’s own ambassadors plenipotentiary (Col 3:16-17).
Good luck on your journey of the new life. God bless you richly!

Courtesy: Ameyaw Bernice Ama

LOVE COVERS SIN

1 Peter 4:8-10 NIV
[8] Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. [9] Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. [10] Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

SIN, CONFESSION AND REDEMPTION

Isa 59:1-21
Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt.
Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things. No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil. They hatch the eggs of vipers and spin a spider’s web.
Whoever eats their eggs will die, their cobwebs are useless for clothing; they cannot cover themselves with what they make. Their deeds are evil deeds, and acts of violence are in their hands. Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and destruction mark their ways. The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths.
They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks in them will know peace. So justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but all is darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. Like the blind we grope along the wall, feeling our way like men without eyes.
At midday we stumble as if it were twilight; among the strong, we are like the dead. We all growl like bears; we moan mournfully like doves. We look for justice, but find none; for deliverance, but it is far away. For our offenses are many in your sight, and our sins testify against us. Our offenses are ever with us, and we acknowledge our iniquities: rebellion and treachery against the Lord, turning our backs on our God, fomenting oppression and revolt, uttering lies our hearts have conceived. So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter. Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey.
The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him. He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak. According to what they have done, so will he repay wrath to his enemies and retribution to his foes; he will repay the islands their due.
From the west, men will fear the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. For he will come like a pent-up flood that the breath of the Lord drives along. “The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,” declares the Lord.
“As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.

DANIEL’S PRAYER (Dan 9:4-19)

I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:
“O Lord, you are a great and awesome God! You always fulfill your covenant and keep your promises of unfailing love to those who love you and obey your commands. 5 But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your commands and regulations. 6 We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets, who spoke on your authority to our kings and princes and ancestors and to all the people of the land.
7 “Lord, you are in the right; but as you see, our faces are covered with shame. This is true of all of us, including the people of Judah and Jerusalem and all Israel, scattered near and far, wherever you have driven us because of our disloyalty to you. 8 O Lord, we and our kings, princes, and ancestors are covered with shame because we have sinned against you. 9 But the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him. 10 We have not obeyed the Lord our God, for we have not followed the instructions he gave us through his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has disobeyed your instruction and turned away, refusing to listen to your voice.
“So now the solemn curses and judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured down on us because of our sin. 12 You have kept your word and done to us and our rulers exactly as you warned. Never has there been such a disaster as happened in Jerusalem. 13 Every curse written against us in the Law of Moses has come true. Yet we have refused to seek mercy from the Lord our God by turning from our sins and recognizing his truth. 14 Therefore, the Lord has brought upon us the disaster he prepared. The Lord our God was right to do all of these things, for we did not obey him.
15 “O Lord our God, you brought lasting honor to your name by rescuing your people from Egypt in a great display of power. But we have sinned and are full of wickedness. 16 In view of all your faithful mercies, Lord, please turn your furious anger away from your city Jerusalem, your holy mountain. All the neighboring nations mock Jerusalem and your people because of our sins and the sins of our ancestors.
17 “O our God, hear your servant’s prayer! Listen as I plead. For your own sake, Lord, smile again on your desolate sanctuary.
18 “O my God, lean down and listen to me. Open your eyes and see our despair. See how your city—the city that bears your name—lies in ruins. We make this plea, not because we deserve help, but because of your mercy.
19 “O Lord, hear. O Lord, forgive. O Lord, listen and act! For your own sake, do not delay, O my God, for your people and your city bear your name.”

ARISE, AND DEPART

Micah 2:10
The hour is approaching when the message will come to us, as it comes to all–“Arise, and go forth from the home in which thou hast dwelt, from the city in which thou hast done thy business, from thy family, from thy friends. Arise, and take thy last journey.” And what know we of the journey? And what know we of the country to which we are bound? A little we have read thereof, and somewhat has been revealed to us by the Spirit; but how little do we know of the realms of the future! We know that there is a black and stormy river called “Death.” God bids us cross it, promising to be with us. And, after death, what cometh? What wonder-world will open upon our astonished sight? What scene of glory will be unfolded to our view? No traveler has ever returned to tell. But we know enough of the heavenly land to make us welcome our summons thither with joy and gladness. The journey of death may be dark, but we may go forth on it fearlessly, knowing that God is with us as we walk through the gloomy valley, and therefore we need fear no evil. We shall be departing from all we have known and loved here, but we shall be going to our Father’s house–to our Father’s home, where Jesus is–to that royal “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” This shall be our last removal, to dwell forever with Him we love, in the midst of His people, in the presence of God. Christian, meditate much on heaven, it will help thee to press on, and to forget the toil of the way. This vale of tears is but the pathway to the better country: this world of woe is but the stepping-stone to a world of bliss.
“Prepare us, Lord, by grace divine,
For Thy bright courts on high;
Then bid our spirits rise, and join
The chorus of the sky.”

Courtesy: PC Study Bible Word of 7th Feb. 2016