A bit of Insight from Luke 1…

 

Lk 1:1ff, “Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses… 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.”

Luke wrote to a certain Theophilus; in other words, he wrote to all those who are friends of God - Theophilus, from Theos (God) and Philos (friend). He writes that it seemed good to him to compile an account of all the events and miracles that had taken place in their midst. Likewise, while we are about to close on 2011, it would be good that God’s friends, those who truly love the Lord, take time to look closely into all that the Lord has done for them or around them since January 1, 2011. This exercise will help them know the veracity of the teachings, prophecies and promises that they have received since the beginning of the year.

Lk 1:5-7, “In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah… he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.”

Despite their righteousness, blamelessness and their priestly lineage, Elizabeth was barren and they did not have a child! Maybe you have also obeyed all of the Lord’s commandments and ordinances for this year; yet, time has kept on passing by without you bearing those promises forth and you feel like you are barren. Well, if that is your case, don’t be discouraged: 2011 is not over yet and God can still visit you like He visited Zechariah and his wife. Just remain faithful in your service like Zechariah who faithfully continued his duties in the Temple (vs. 8-9) and remain hungry because He fills the hungry with good things, and sends the rich away empty (vs. 53): the Angel of the Lord can still appear to you.

Just like last week, I pray that we find favour with God. I pray for an angelic visitation before January 1, 2012. I pray that the Holy Spirit will come upon us, and the power of the Most High will overshadow us so that we may conceive and give birth to God’s gift for the nations (vs. 31-35).

Lk 1:26-27, “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin… And the virgin's name was Mary.”

In the 6th month… Some amongst us have been visited during the 6th month and they are sadly ending the year because they think God hasn’t done anything for them; but inasmuch a pregnancy lasts 9 months, they will not give birth before the 3rd month of 2012. I want to say this again: do not be discouraged because God has not finished with you yet. Don’t be disheartened and don’t stop believing even if what you were expecting doesn’t show up by midnight on December 31: keep on scrutinizing the first months of 2012 and keep on believing. The angel rebuked Zechariah saying: "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time." (Vs. 19-20). Indeed, blessed is them who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to them from the Lord (vs. 45).

I wish you a ‘Wonderblessed’ Year 2012. I have placed mine under the banner of entrepreneurship: why not do the same?

In any case, just like in 2011 and in the past, this is certain: the Bible will still have ALL the answers. Prayer will still be the most powerful force on Earth. The Holy Spirit will still move. God will still honor the praises of His people. There will still be room at the Cross. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him and He will still love you!

Take a moment to read or re-read these articles: “What are you expecting from God?” (it was the message for the ending year) and “The art of making good choices.”

See you in 2012, by His Grace.

What is your age? (III)

 

Fathers

John wrote that they know Him who is from the beginning (1Jn 2.13,14). Who is a father? He can be a mature adult or an elderly person; but in any case, he is supposed to be a well of wisdom - 'Let days speak, and many years teach wisdom.' (Job 32:7) A father is someone who has already begotten somebody; he has reproduced himself; he has sons and/or daughters; he is a mentor. Do you have children in the Lord?

I am not talking about converts that we happen to make as we preach the Gospel in the streets and walk our way afterwards without ever knowing what has become of them: Jesus has not called us to make ‘statistics’ but disciples. Have you ever disciplined anyone? Have you ever taken a new convert by hand and led them to imitate your faith and zeal? Has anyone become your follower as you follow Christ yourself? Do you have children in the Lord?

Fathers protect, nourish, train, chastise and take pleasure in seeing their kids make progress, succeed and even do better than them. The least Jesus wished was for us to do the kind of wonders that He did (Jn 14:12). Have you ever protected or nurtured someone else’s faith? Are you correcting or training someone now? Is there anybody whose faith and deeds are an example to many because of your unique impartation and investment in their life?

Fathers have known God; not superficially, but intimately. The Amplified Bible renders it this way: “You have come to know (recognize, be aware of, and understand) Him Who has existed from the beginning.”

Moses told the Lord: “If I have found favour in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favour in your sight.” (Ex 33:13) In other words, he who knows the Lord knows His ways, His way of doing things and can recognise Him behind His multiple facets. But the more we know God, the more we spontaneously know and do what pleases him and thus find even more favour in His sight. Moses understood this well.

Jesus said that eternal life is to know Him, the only true God and Christ, the One He sent (Jn 17:3). This knowledge and this life begin with believing in the only begotten Son of God given to the world as a sacrificial and expiatory offering for sin (Jn 3:16). During this time of nativity, it is good to remember and not lose sight of the fact that Christ Jesus is the Reason for the Season. There can’t be any Christmas without Christ. The real date of His birth really doesn’t matter; the fact is: He was born on a day and Christendom agreed to set December 25 aside to remind the world of His coming and celebrate ‘His Birthday.’

Eternal life is to know God; may we make Moses’ prayer ours and desire to know His ways. Let us desire to understand Him better in order to know Him and live on earth as if already in eternity. Inasmuch as there is a lot of easiness in doing things we understand, there is a lot of ease in serving a God that we understand and know and a lot of enthusiasm in teaching and transmitting what we know.

This period is quite propitious to good resolutions, wishes and all sorts of prayers. It is a time when people ask so many things for the New Year. Before indulging into the exercise, it might be worth (re)reading “Be careful what you ask for...”

In the meantime, I wish you a ‘WONDERBLESSED’ CHRISTMAS. May the Holy Spirit come upon you and may the power of God Almighty overshadow you so that the Christ may be born or reborn in a fresh and special way into your heart and life. He is the Reason for the Season!

God bless you!

What’s your age (II)?

 

The youth

1Jn 2:13,14: “...I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 14 …I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one…”

This period can be divided into two: adolescence and young adult age.

Adolescence is the age of rebellion and contestation. It’s an age when we believe we are equal to adults because of little hairs on our chin or little lumps on our chest. An age when we think parents are old –fashioned and can’t talk sensibly. It is a period when every experience –especially the bad ones- is good because one needs to discover things and not stay stupid. Teenagers also tend to have a higher opinion of who they really are. They like boasting about their achievements, like gossiping and are usually very hard with those who are not part of their circle.

In church, this corresponds to the brother or the sister who has prayed for someone who has been healed or delivered and they are now convinced they have a great healing/deliverance ministry… It is those who spend their time criticizing the leaders’ decisions: ‘‘I don’t think we should be fasting this week;’’ ‘‘I’m not convinced we need a second service;’’ ‘‘No Bible verse forbids me to go clubbing or have a boy/girlfriend;’’ ‘‘You are too spiritual!’’ It is also those who spend more time talking about the sins and trespasses of others, instead of talking about what works and edifies them in the church.

Teenagers should remember that we are instructed not to think too highly of ourselves (Rom 12:3) and to love our brethren; and love covers a multitude of sins and doesn’t recall them: there is no love in gossips. The Lord wants the word that is preached and taught in church to abide in them and renew their mind so that they can overcome the evil one.

The young adult

This age is characterized by strength and passion. It is an age when one begins to be responsible; an age when people determine what they want to become in choosing their field in university; they start working, paying bills and thinking about marriage and kids. The young adult knows where he is going and usually does everything to get there.

It is the zealous age and in the church, these are the Joshuas: those who lift and sustain the arms of their leaders until Amalek, the enemy and evil one is defeated because they love spiritual welfare. They are of all the missions. As teenagers, they used to grouse and balk when it came to service; but they now love to be given things to do. They are always behind the pastor –their model- to find out the secret of his anointing. They are passionate about the things of God and need no booster to come to church, read the Bible, pray or fast: they have overcome the evil one and his tricks.

If you are a teenager, you have not overcome the devil yet and are still at great risk of losing your precious and priceless faith. Walk in the Spirit, be led by Him and He’ll take you to the next phase: the young adult. If you are already a young adult, it is great; but there is more...

At this time of the year, it is good to refocus and re-align our perspective. Why don’t you do so by reading or re-reading the postings on God’s absence and provision?

God bless you with a great and fruitful week: He is GOOD.

What’s your age?

 

Jesus used many examples to show us how nature itself should teach us some obvious things. We are well aware of the physical age of those around us; but we do not seem to realize that we also have a spiritual age which sometimes has no correlation at all with the time that we’ve spent warming church pews. No parent would find their 30 year old child is still having his bottle or wearing diapers; and God also expects His children to finally become sons and daughters worthy of Him. The Lord wants to take us higher; He has important stuff to tell us but as in the days of old, He is often has to note that we just cannot bear them (Jn 16:12).

During the next few weeks, using John’s first letter in which he addresses three types of Christians (little children, young men and fathers), we will be highlighting the main characteristics of each age group to help us appreciate where we are in our walk with Christ individually.

 

Infancy and Childhood

1. The baby

Apart from relieving themselves, babies can do nothing on their own and need constant care and attention. Whenever they want something, they cry or shout. They love cuddles and only feel reassured in their mother’s arms. The only food their digestive system can take in for months is milk; give them fish and chips and you might kill them. Spiritually speaking, these are usually new converts. They don’t know how to pray, fast or read the Bible without guidance and they don’t understand the ‘Pentecostal-charismatical-christian’ jargon. Sadly, many who are supposed to be adults in Christ still gallivant in church in their nappies...

2. The child

This stage is mainly characterized by the followings:

· The need of a tutor or guardian without whom the child could well die. He cannot take care of himself. He needs to be constantly told what to do or not to do because he cannot tell good from evil. He also needs frequent discipline. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin (1Jn 2:1). It’s the age of beacons and railings. This is the one who has been coming to church for ages, has heard hundreds of messages, but still doesn’t know how to put all that knowledge into practice.

· Selfishness or the age of “give me”, “give me”, “give me”, “I want”, “I want”, “I want” prayers. The child only minds what others must do for him and seldomly what he can do for them. He walks in the church as if in a hotel: to be served and not to serve.

· Impatience or fast-food age; God has to answer in a twinkling of an eye. This Christian cannot persevere in prayer and fasting for weeks or months without grumbling, waiting for God to speak. After a few ‘minutes’, they will proceed with their plans.

· Dissatisfaction: the child’s eyes are often bigger than their tummy and they always want more. Moreover, they quickly get tired of what they have so fervently desired: this is the age of whims.

· Irresponsibility: they get loose when the parents are not around and always try to cover or justify their faults: “It’s because of so-so that I…” They are only Christians on Sundays and are very happy to live double life as long as they are not caught: it’s the age of masks. They hardly realize that the Lord always sees and even when they do, it’s not a big deal because they think they’ll find something to calm Him down: “I first sin, and then I confess.” Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth (1Jn 3:18).

· The flesh whose works rule in them: grudges, envy, jealousy, disputes, cruelty, lies… And now, little children, abide in him (1Jn 2:28).

· Fear: they are terrified by every little thing. This is a Christian who is afraid of demons, witches, ennemies, sickness, death, lack etc.; and whose prayers are frequently imprecatory or begging for protection. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (1Jn 4:4)

· Naivety: a child is ignorant, unstable, twists the Scriptures and is easily tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine because he tends to believe that grass is greener elsewhere. Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour… Little children, let no one deceive you … (1Jn 2:18, 3:7)

· The love of entertainment: a child comes to church to have fun. He doesn’t come for God but for pals. Besides, his internet telephone is never far away; so he can quickly run to other friends on Facebook, Twitter or else when he is bored (like during the message, when he has to stop grooving for a little while). Little children, keep yourselves from idols (1Jn 5:21).

The rare occasions when we are actually encouraged to be like children in the Bible are these: “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”, "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven" and, "Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation." (Mat18:3, 19:14; 1Pe 2:2) Why? Because the Lord of heaven and earth has hidden certain things and mysteries from the wise and understanding but has revealed them to little children (Mat 11:25).

Do you fit any of these descriptions? The will of God for you is that you may grow and go to the next stage.

God bless you.

Lessons from a barren fig tree

 

Mk 11:12-14,20, “On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." ("May no fruit ever come from you again!" Mat 21:19) And his disciples heard it… As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots.”

I used to have a lot of difficulties with this passage until I remembered that a causeless curse doesn’t alight; so, if Jesus’ curse worked and the fig tree withered, there was a reason for it. I researched a bit to understand what it was and avoid misjudging the Lord’s reaction as disproportionate.

The fig tree of Palestine (Ficus carica) bears fruits 2 or 3 times a year. The fig season (kermus) normally falls in August ; but at the end of June, there can be an early crop (bikkurah), or “early-ripe fig.” After August, it looses all his leaves, then small buds appear and grow during the winter. With them also come the green or untimely figs (taksh), which always appear before the leaves. Thus, even when it’s not yet the season for figs (August), the presence of leaves implies the presence of taksh. It is also a sign that the tree is not barren and will produce a crop during the summer.

The incident mentioned above took place around the Passover; i.e. around the month of April. The presence of leaves on that fig tree caught Jesus’ attention who naturally expected to satisfy his hunger; but He was unfortunately disappointed. So, since any branch supposedly in Him that does not bear fruit is taken away, withered and is burned (Jn 15.2,6), He cursed the tree. “…I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide…” (Jn 15:16): For Jesus, it is unthinkable for a disciple abiding in Him not to bear fruits because He has given us ALL it takes and ALL we need to be fruitful.

Lk 13:6-7, “And he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, 'Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?'...”

The Lord is patient; but let’s not abuse of it. The fate of this fig tree is a severe warning against barrenness, unfruitfulness and lack of productivity. Like with the parable of minas and talents, we must not bury or leave what God has invested in us dormant.

Mat 23:1ff, « Then Jesus said…2 "The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, 3…they preach, but do not practice… 28So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. »

2Tim 3:1, 2, 5: “…In the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud…5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.”

The fate of this fig tree is also a warning against hypocrisy and false appearances.

The Church is increasingly filled with ‘Christians’ – i.e. little Christs – who outwardly look like Him and hence, fool those who naively believe that they can come to their help in times of need, just like their Master did.

The barren fig tree is the brother who only opens his Bible on Sundays (if he does at all) and who doesn’t know what to say to this relative, friend or colleague who needs an advice regarding an important decision; because he has no prophecy and no word of knowledge or wisdom for them: he only has his flesh...

The barren fig tree is the sister whose only link with Christianity is either the church that she attends from time to time; or her baptism certificate, or her good knowledge of all the prosperity and healing biblical verses; but who is nowhere to be found whenever the Lord is ‘hungry’ and needs her.

We are the Body of Christ: we are the members through which He can and wants to move today. We have no right to behave like incapables sending out to this lost and suffering world, an image of a limping and feeble Christ. May we never cause Him to wonder: “What more was there to do for my vineyard, that I have not done in it? When I looked for it to yield grapes, why did it yield wild grapes?” (Is 5.4) Let’s bear fruit; fruit that remains; a ten, thirty or hundredfold.

Have a ‘wonderblessed’ week in CHRIST JESUS!

‘Breads’ of life...

 

A few years ago, I kept having the same vision for days and sometimes, many times a day. I kept on seeing a loaf of bread hanging in the air and hands of different colours (races) were helping themselves taking pieces of it. The strangest thing is that I knew I was the loaf. A few weeks later, the Lord used John 6 to explain part of the vision to me.

Jn 6:24ff, “…When the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves also entered into the boats and came to Capernaum seeking Jesus. 25 And when they had found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, Rabbi, when did you come here? 26 Jesus answered them and said, Truly, truly, I say to you, You seek Me not because you saw the miracles, but because you ate the loaves and were filled… 30 Therefore they said to Him, What sign do you show then, so that we may see and believe you? What do you work? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert, as it is written, "He gave them bread from Heaven to eat." 32 Then Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Moses did not give you that bread from Heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from Heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from Heaven and gives life to the world. 34 Then they said to him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. 35 And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes on Me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you also have seen Me and do not believe…48 I am the Bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and died. 50 This is the Bread which comes down from Heaven, so that a man may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the Living Bread which came down from Heaven. If anyone eats of this Bread, he shall live forever. And truly the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world… 57As the living Father has sent Me, and I live through the Father, so he who partakes of Me, even he shall live by Me. 58 This is the Bread which came down from Heaven, not as your fathers ate the manna, and died; he who partakes of this Bread shall live forever. »

All this took place right after Jesus had multiplied 5 barley loaves and 2 fish to feed 5000 men (without counting women and children) and it is a very good illustration of the versatility of human nature. Indeed, after witnessing such an event, they still had the guts to ask Him about the signs He performed that they could see and believe!!! Incredible! But Jesus was no fool: He knew that they really didn’t care much about the miracles and were only looking for Him because they ate the loaves and were filled. In other words, they only wanted their hunger to be appeased.

This tells us that people are hungry. Many of those who come to church do not come for the miracle of the transforming and regenerating Word of God; they don’t come to see resurrections, healings etc, –even though they are happy to enjoy them from time to time- they come in hope to satisfy their hunger for marriage, employment, housing, children…

After feeding the crowd, there were 12 baskets of leftovers: 12 like the 12 apostles who could each represent a basket. The Bible tells us that as He is, so also are we in this world (1Jn 4.17)… and I would say, so are we called to be. As He is the Bread of life, so are we ‘breads’ of life: our lives must be broken and shared for the sake and salvation of the multitudes.

Heb 10:5-7, "When Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.'"

He is the bread of God who comes down from Heaven and gives life to the world. And He came down not to do His will, but to do the will of the One who sent Him. We also came down from Heaven to do God’s will and give life around us: that’s the reason why He prepared and formed a body for us. Let us allow ourselves to be eaten!

Let’s die that souls may be saved. Let’s die to give life. Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it will not bear much fruit. Paul told the Corinthians: "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed… So death is at work in us, but life in you." (2Cor 4:8,11) We then need to ‘die’ and accept to be eaten. This has nothing to do with physical death -the bread we have to offer is spiritual- but it’s rather a life that inspires others and serves as a model. We have to use our gifts and talents to satiate the hunger and give life to people around us.

We are loaves of bread that came down from Heaven to give life to the world and save souls. If we eat of the Lord’s flesh as He encourages us to do; if we daily feed on this Bread, then, just as the same sap flows in the Vine and the branches, His life will infuse ours to the point that those who imitate us, eat us and live of our life will not fail to resemble Him and live of His life as well.

Jesus incarnation helps us understand God’s mind for man. By imitating the Christ and living of His life, we show forth the "perfect man". As He is, so are we in this world: He is the Light that enlightens everyone and we are also called the light of the world. He is the Prince of Peace and as His children we are dispensers of peace (Mat 5:14, 9). He is the Christ, i.e. the Anointed One; and we have received the anointing that teaches us everything (1Jn 2:20, 27). Thus, He is the Bread of Life and we are ‘breads’ of life.

Funny enough, Jesus gave this teaching after multiplying a few loaves of bread to feed the crowd. Even today, there is still a hungry crowd in front of us and we are loaves that have been multiplied and now need to be broken and distributed for the salvation of many: ‘breads’ of life! And even today, the Lord is still asking us to feed them ourselves. The task might seem immense; but if we accept the challenge by faith, just as in the past, we will witness a miracle of multiplication.

I pray that our lives may be so Christ-like that they may be relished like a succulent meal. I pray that our lives reflect His to the point that people will want to ‘eat’ them… to live!

"I beseech you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service." Rom 12:1

Have a ‘wonderblessed’ week in HIM who can do all things.

Why do we lie?

 

A little less than a year ago, somebody lied quite stupidly and it got me thinking about the reasons why people lie.

Myth mania (or mythomania, US)

Myth maniacs (mythomaniacs) cannot help lying; but their problem is spiritual:they are under the control of a lying spirit which makes them lie. There is fortunately not that many of them. Their only cure is deliverance.

Ignorance

“Every truth is not good to say.” ‘‘I didn’t want to hurt him…’’ Many people think there are pious, white, small and big lies. They don’t realise that from God’s point of view, a lie is a lie, no matter what they cloth it with. It’s a bit like cancer: as soon as you have a cancerous cell in you, you don’t know it but devastation has already begun. And those with the smallest external appearance like melanoma are often the most dangerous.

Continuing with this analogy, it’s when the cancer (lie) is still very small that we have to deal with it in the most aggressive way (surgery, chemo and radiotherapy) to prevent it from spreading and killing the patient. Furthermore, prevention is the key (smoking, sun exposure…); likewise, lying can be prevented if parents would realize that they are usually the first to teach their children how to become professional liars: “Say that I am not there.” Whereas we are in the room...

“If you don’t do this, I’ll do that to you…” And we don’t do anything thing because we didn’t really mean it in the first place...

“No, it’s not bitter; it’s very nice, you’ll see. Open your mouth…” And then we pour in some Nivaquin®!

The funniest thing is that these same parents are usually very offended when their child starts serving them the same kind of lies: “What are you taking me for? An idiot?”

Immaturity

Most liars fall into this category. They lie out of fear, the fear to face the consequences of their actions. They are running away from their responsibilities: ‘‘I don’t want them to have a bad opinion of me’’; ‘‘I was afraid that they would do this or that to me…’’ However, whatever our age may be, when we lie and refuse to take our responsibilities, it only shows undoubtedly that we are still a child because it’s only kids who are afraid of the rod. And many of us remain ‘eternal’ babies… Let’s look at two biblical characters:

Rahab (read Joshua 2): She hid the Israelites spies on her roof; but when the king’s envoys came to ask her to bring them out, she said: “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went.” This is a perfect example of a ‘pious’ lie. She was not Jew; today, one will say she wasn’t a Christian. She didn’t know that it was bad to lie and God, who overlooks the times of ignorance, forgave her: He spared her during the destruction of Jericho and she is later found in the Lord’s genealogy; meaning that after following the Israelites, she must have adopted their faith and changed her life. Things are entirely different when it comes to God’s people, those who have already known the truth, as we’ll see with the second example.

Abraham: Running away from famine, he went down to Egypt and told his wife: "I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake." Many years later, he did it again. He settled in Guerar and introduced Sarah as his sister – which wasn’t false by the way (Gen 20:12). However, this ‘half-truth’ would have terrible consequences. Indeed, thinking she was free, Pharaoh took Sarai as his wife and the Bible tells that the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife. Similarly, Abimelech, king of Guerar also took her and was nearly killed by God, because she already belonged to someone else. When Abimelech enquired about the reason for that deception, this is what Abraham replied: "I did it because I thought, There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife. Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife. And when God caused me to wander from my father's house, I said to her, 'This is the kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, He is my brother.'" He lied because he was afraid to be killed. You can read the details of these stories in Genesis 12 and 20.

There is no such thing as a small, a half or a pious lie when you are Christian. Jesus said that the devil is a liar and the father of lies and whoever lies only does what his/her father the devil does (Jn 8:41,44). If you say that your little lies have nothing to do with the devil, then you are actually saying that Jesus is wrong and you are right; but the Bible teaches us that in situations like these, God should always be true and every man a liar... So, the devil is the instigator of ALL our lies; and since his only mission is to steal, kill and destroy, this means that no lie is ever as trivial and insignificant as we may think. Abraham’s ‘half-lie’ or ‘half-truth’ almost destroyed two nations. Let’s not forget it.

“…The true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (Jn 4:23-24)

 

Read or re-read “the power of vision”: http://www.lifeflowingpen.com/2011/10/power-of-vision.html

God bless you and give you the courage to live in light and in truth.

Enjoy your week!

God's time

 

I guess many of us are familiar with the story of Joseph -Genesis 37 to 50. In chapter 40, Joseph skilfully used the gift God had given him to interpret the dreams of two royal officers who had ended up in jail. To the one who to whom he had predicted a favourable outcome, he pleaded: "…remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house." (Gen 40:14)

Then things came to pass as he predicted and the guy was released from prison and reinstated in his former job; only, he did not remember Joseph and forgot him (vs. 23).

How many times have we not been deeply disappointed and hurt because someone on whom we were counting to get us out of a difficult situation; people who had promised to act on our behalf had ended up turning their backs and totally forgetting us? Usually, when people want you to do something for them, they will promise you anything; but how many really keep their promises?

If you remember that we do not fight against flesh and blood, you’ll soon find out that Joseph would have been deeply wrong to be angry with this man. The guy did not forget him out of malice, ingratitude or selfishness as we will find out.

Indeed, two years after (vs. 41:1), Pharaoh had some dreams that nobody could explain and the butler remembered Joseph. He told the sovereign: "I must confess today that I have done wrong… You were angry with the chief baker and me, and you put us in prison… A young Hebrew was there with us, a slave of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us" (vs. 9, 10 & 12). Pharaoh sent for Joseph who interpreted the dreams, made some very wise suggestions and was catapulted on the spot from common prisoner to the second in command in the most powerful kingdom of his time.

I am convinced that it is God Himself who shattered Joseph’s hopes and made the cupbearer forget to mention his name earlier. Indeed, if the guy had not forgotten, Joseph would have probably been released, but he would have never become the Prime Minister of Egypt. He could have ended up as a slave to Pharaoh or someone else. It was first necessary that there be a crisis of such a scope that people would be desperate for a saviour in order for everyone to realize that salvation could only come from him. This is how God wanted to reveal him to Egypt, for the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God (Rom 8:19).

Let’s be patient. Many of our problems, blockages and difficulties are for the glory of God and our promotion. Let’s not get discouraged and murmur against men and God because those on whom we were counting have let us down. We have to remember that: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength.” As for the Lord, "He has made everything beautiful in His time"; but we usually do not figure out what He is doing (Jer 17:5; Eccl 3:11). Let’s trust Him: He has a wonderful plan for us.

Have a wonderblessed week!

We do not fight against flesh and blood

 

Eph 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

We’ve all heard or quoted this verse countless times, usually as a reminder to avoid carnal reactions to specific situations; and not to take things personally but to focus on the powers of darkness manipulating people around us instead.

The classic example is that of the Lord and Peter. Jesus had just informed the disciples of His forthcoming death and resurrection but this didn’t match with Peter’s vision and projects; so, he took the Lord aside and rebuked Him saying: "Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you."

Jesus turned back and replied in a very harsh way: "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man." (Mat 16:21-23)

He didn’t say: "Get behind me, Peter," but "Get behind me, Satan!"Peter was not the real issue at stake and it was pointless picking on him. Jesus knew the origin of his words was a power of darkness and He confronted it.

A short while ago, the Lord reminded me that ALL that is visible first WAS… in the invisible; WAS in the spirit. Whether we realize it or not, what we see and do always has a spiritual origin. Since God breathed His Spirit in us, we became living souls: spirits living in a body of flesh. We are spiritual beings and can therefore be easily influenced by what happens in the spiritual world. Satan inspired to Peter the thoughts that Jesus condemned; but just before that, the same Jesus was praising the very same Peter for some other thought and words: "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven." (Mat 16:17)! So, on one occasion God was behind the words of the apostle and on the other occasion, the devil was; but in both cases, it was neither flesh nor blood which had driven him to speak like that.

I’ve also realized that we do not only fight against the powers of hell; but we frequently fight against the angels of light as well. Unfortunately, because we often fail to tell the difference, as soon as things don’t go in the expected direction or as soon as we encounter some fierce resistance, we are usually very quick to blame it on the devil or our neighbours. Yet, the Bible presents a man who thought he was fighting against flesh and blood whereas he was wrestling with an angel of the Lord. Indeed:

Gen 32:24, 28, 30, “Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day.... 28 "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed."… 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered."”

If such an experience had happenned to us, many would have said that a wizard or a witch visited them at night. But Jacob did not wrestle against flesh and blood (i.e. against a sorcerer) or against a demon; he fought against a spiritual entity of another kind. Who is resisting you today? Whom are you fighting against?

Paul told the Ephesians that God raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places (1:20). He also said that we have been raised up with Him and seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (2:6), so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places (3:10). Christ is seated with us in the heavenly places; and the powers of darkness can also be found there: EVERYTHING thus takes place in the heavenly places and the cause of EVERYTHING is first and foremost spiritual.

If we decide to remain seated in the heavenly places instead of spending our time coming down in the physical/carnal realm, we'll quickly notice that on one hand we’ll soon be out of the reach of the dirty tricks of men -flesh and blood- because we’ll be in a place where they have no access; and on the other hand, the attacks of evil spirits will not touch us because we will be hidden in Christ and they’ll have to go through Him to get to us.

I ask again: Who is resisting you today? Whom are you fighting against? If you are dealing with agents of darkness, you have some powerful weapons at your disposal to defeat them; but if you are dealing with God’s envoy, are you certain you can be as strong as Jacob? What is the origin of your struggles? I pray that God enlightens you on these questions.

Have a great week!

Good for you but bad for me

 

Gen 24:2ff, “And Abraham said to his servant… 3 I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, 4 but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac." 5 The servant said to him, "Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?" 6 Abraham said to him, "See to it that you do not take my son back there. 7 The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, 'To your offspring I will give this land,' he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there."… 29 Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban.”

After reading this passage, we can understand that for some reason depending on his alliance with God or perhaps because the Lord had sternly forbidden it, Abraham was scared stiff to see his son going back to the land of his fathers, even if it was just to take a wife. There was no going back to Mesopotamia as long as God had not yet given the land of Canaan to his seed.

A poorly informed observer could have erroneously concluded that God had forbidden Abraham and his descendants never to set foot again in his homeland; but he would have been very wrong. Indeed, many years later, “Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, "You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother's father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother's brother.” (Gen 28:1-2) So, this same Isaac that Abraham would not let return to his home country, was now asking his son, Abraham’s grandson, to go there in person!

This reminded me of how important it is to walk by the Spirit instead of following fashion. We are all different from each other and we all have our individual callings. It is not because someone did this and nothing happened or it even worked very well, that I must also jump on it. And it is not because God has clearly said ‘no’ to my neighbour, that He will necessarily say ‘no’ to me for the same thing: the terms of our covenant with Him are not the same.

God asked prophet Hosea to marry a prostitute; does this mean that pastors and Christians in general should tour the brothels when they start looking for a wife? Of course not!

God asked prophet Isaiah to walk around naked and barefoot; is it enough for you to get up tomorrow and do the same?

Jesus healed a blind man by rubbing a mixture of mud and saliva on his eyes. Are you going to do the same without thinking if you have to pray for the blind? (Hos 1:2-3; Is 20:2-3; Jn 9:6)

These examples merely help us understand that the Lord can sometimes ask us to do things that seem absolutely insane; but it is rarely to set a precedent or start a new doctrine; hence the importance of walking by the Spirit.

Closer to home, I'll take my own example. I don’t and I will never put human hair based extensions or wigs on my head. This is something that God has placed in my heart; I cannot tell you exactly how I received it, but there was a time when I just knew they were not for me. I remember the day when I decided to have my heart set and went to the market to buy a particular kind of extension after asking the Lord that if it was really not His will for me to put this sort of hair, then I should not find what I was looking for. I went with two young ladies who were used to buying such products. We went round in the market for about 2 hours, going to the sellers who usually always had them, but found nothing. As I was ready to leave, one of them asked that we still try some other shops elsewhere. I stayed in the car, saying: "It's pointless; God doesn’t want it. I will not be marching in vain. You can go but you will not find anything." They actually came back empty-handed and could not just believe how a relatively common product had suddenly miraculously disappeared from the stalls. Later on, somebody to whom I had recounted the event said: “But there is nothing wrong with wearing such extensions: Pastor so and so wears them.” I replied: "I don’t know what their contract with God is; and there are certainly things that they are not allowed to do but which are lawful for me. Those extensions might be good for them, but they are not for me. I just cannot put on human hair products. This is somehow part of my vow of a Nazirite."

Thus Samson could not cut his beard or his hair and could not drink alcohol. Compliance with these prohibitions guaranteed the manifestation of the anointing of God on him as a supernatural strength; and the day that the razor blade went in his hair, the presence of the Lord departed from him with the disastrous consequences that we know.

We must learn to be very careful with trends and fads and pay attention to the terms of our covenant with God: not all mouths and stomachs can take the chili.

 

Have a wonderblessed week!

The darkness of deliverance

 

Gen 15:1ff, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great." 2 But Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?" …4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: "This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir." 5 And he brought him outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness. 7 And he said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess." 8 But he said, "O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?" 9 He said to him, "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." 10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. 11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then the LORD said to Abram, "Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for 400 years… 17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates…”

I re-read this passage a short while ago and it gave me a lot to think about. God first promised Abram to give him a child and an innumerable posterity at an age where he no longer expected to have any; and Abram believed Him. Then God promised him the country he was living in as possession; but this time, Abram found it a little hard to believe and asked for a sign.

It is a bit surprising because I would have thought that in his situation, it was easier to believe in the miracle of the land than of the child’s. But then, Abram had more need of a child than of lands and was even wondering perhaps, what he was going to do with all the wealth that he already had and could not leave to a son of his own. Perhaps as well, his desire for a child was such that he was ready to believe in everything that went in that direction. It was sweet music to his ears.

Nevertheless, Abraham wanted a sign, a proof that he would possess the country, especially as so much time had passed since he had first obeyed and left Ur of the Chaldeans. The Lord asked him to get some animals ready for a sacrifice. Abram did so and laid them on an altar. That was the start of a weird series of events to say the very least:

· Birds of prey came down on the carcasses. If you are familiar with wildlife documentaries, you know that it is not easy at all to chase off vultures lurking around a carcass: they’ll keep coming, and sometimes in increasing numbers. Abram had to be extremely vigilant, especially as a deep sleep had also fallen on him. But he managed to get rid of them.

· Then, a dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. The KJV speaks of a horror of great darkness and the Good News Bible says that fear and terror came over him. Then, the sun went down and it was even darker. One French version says it was total darkness. The scene must have been absolutely terrifying.

· Finally, a smoking furnace appeared from nowhere and a flaming torch passed between the beasts and consumed the sacrifice.

This story reminded me of other darkness:

Before the crossing the Red Sea; it is indeed written that, “the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.” (Ex 14:19-20) Before the waters parted to let the children of Israel go through the Sea on dry ground, there was a night during which the Israelites almost died of terror, not knowing what would happen to them.

Before the resurrection of the Lord. Indeed, on the day of His crucifixion, about the sixth hour, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the sun's light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!" And having said this he breathed his last. (Lk 23:44-46) There was a great shock for all those who had followed Him and put their hope in Him. They were lost, frightened and trembling at the thought of what might also happen to them; they were hiding and even denied having been His followers. Yet this gloomy darkness was ephemeral: three days later, Jesus came out of the tomb, free and victorious! 50 days later, the fire came down from heaven and transformed them forever into torches of the Gospel.

God could have acted during the day, but He waited until the sun set and let Abraham go through all kinds of emotions. Maybe you feel like you are in a situation similar to that of Abraham, the children of Israel or disciples of the Lord. Perhaps you have received some promises and when you thought they were about to be fulfilled, everything suddenly started to go wrong and you are now deeply anxious and uncertain about your future. It may also be that this is not your case; but if you were to go through it one day, you must remember this: the darkness surrounding you right now is the darkness of deliverance. Indeed,

“There'll be no darkness for those who were in trouble... 2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined. 3 You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil. 4 For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken … (Now, this is what I call deliverance!)” Isaiah 9:1-4 (MSG vs. 1; ESV vs. 2-4)

 

Have a wonderblessed week: God is Good!

The power of vision

 

Gen 30:25ff, « As soon as Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Send me away, that I may go to my own home and country… 31 He said, "What shall I give you?" Jacob said, "You shall not give me anything. If you will do this for me, I will again pasture your flock and keep it: 32 let me pass through all your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb, and the spotted and speckled among the goats, and they shall be my wages… 34 Laban said, "Good! Let it be as you have said." 35 But that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white on it, and every lamb that was black, and put them in the charge of his sons. 36 And he set a distance of three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob pastured the rest of Laban's flock. 37 Then Jacob took fresh sticks of poplar and almond and plane trees, and peeled white streaks in them, exposing the white of the sticks. 38 He set the sticks that he had peeled in front of the flocks in the troughs, that is, the watering places, where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred when they came to drink, 39 the flocks bred in front of the sticks and so the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. 40 And Jacob separated the lambs and set the faces of the flocks toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban. He put his own droves apart and did not put them with Laban's flock. 41 Whenever the stronger of the flock were breeding, Jacob would lay the sticks in the troughs before the eyes of the flock, that they might breed among the sticks… 43 Thus the man increased greatly and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.”

To build his herd up, Jacob used a trick: branches on which he had laid bare the white beneath the bark in streaks. He then took those sticks and set them in the troughs so that the flocks would constantly have them before their eyes when drinking or breeding and thus bring forth striped, speckled and spotted sheep. I could have written an article on the power of prophetic acts; but it is not today’s topic. According to the customs or superstitions of Jacob’s days, whatever had made a strong impression on the mind of a female at the time of conception and gestation, would have a corresponding influence on the mind or body of the fetus and coincidentally, this was frequently noticed in the case of sheep.

Even though this has not been scientifically proven, the fact remains that mere sheep, animals that have not received the Spirit of God as we have, were able to give birth to that which they had been fixing their eyes upon. What are you looking at?

If God has made you some promises, you can consider yourself pregnant with the Word of the Lord. During the time of this “pregnancy”, what are you beholding? Do you realise that whatever you are focusing on will have a profound impact on what you will give birth to?

Before the pregnancy, at the time of the conception, whenever you are about to receive the Word of God that will become flesh in you; what do you look at?

Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint; or, “Where there is no vision, the people perish” (Prov 29:18, ESV/KJV). When we behold the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image (2Cor 3:18): vision is powerful. That's why we are exhorted to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. What have you fixed your eyes on? What are you gazing at?

Jesus said: “The Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing…” (Jn 5:19-20). What do you see Jesus do? You can do likewise for He will show you how to.

After talking to Abraham, God told him: Lift up your eyes and see… Lift up your eyes like him and see your seed multiply and fill the earth.

Fix your eyes on Jesus walking on water like Peter and also walk on water.

Fix your eyes on Jesus healing the sick and you will do the same.

Focus on Him as He multiplies the loaves and the fish or as He finds money in the belly of a fish and you will never lack of provision.

Don’t lose sight of Him as He casts out demons and destroys the works of the devil; and you will happily trample on all the power of the enemy as well.

See Him alleviating human misery and you will understand that you too have all the necessary resources to do like Him and relieve suffering around you.

The vision of God has the power to bring forth your future. What do you see? What are you looking at? Don’t be distracted by things that can only bear nothingness. Open your eyes; look up and fix your eyes on Jesus.

 

Have a “wonderblessed” week!

“The One Who sees and Who hears”

 

From the time she was able to pray to this day, one of my daughters has always started her prayer with: "Lord, You are the One who sees and who hears..." She even often repeats this several times when she speaks to God. The strangest thing is that no one else prays or has ever prayed like that at home. Furthermore, I do not know anyone else who prays it in this way and have no idea how this came to her; but that's how she seems to better perceive the Lord: He who sees and hears.

Re-reading the 16th chapter of Genesis, I met another woman for whom God also became ''The One who sees and hears.'' Unable to bear children, Sarai had convinced Abraham to go to her servant, Hagar. When she became pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. I guess she now felt superior and more of a 'woman' than her. But Hagar was not long to eat the fruits of her arrogance and had to flee to escape Sarai’s mistreatment.

Gen 16:7ff, “The angel of the lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert… 8 And he said, "Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?""I'm running away from my mistress Sarai," she answered. 9 Then the angel of the lord told her, "Go back to your mistress and submit to her."… 11 The angel of the lord also said to her: "You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery… 13 She gave this name to the lord who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me." 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi (the well of the One who lives and sees me.)”

You shall name him Ishmael. Ishmael means ‘‘God hears.’’ In the desperate situation in which she found herself the LORD promised to hear her and asked her to give her son a name that would always remind them both that God hears. He also promised to make her offspring innumerable (vs. 10). It’s important to keep in mind that Hagar did not choose the name on her own; God Himself gave it to her prophetically. In other words, even if Isaac is the child of the promise, even though he is the one who is born of the Spirit whereas Ishmael is born of the flesh, God still hears and listens to Ishmael and the Ishmaelites…

After all these revelations, she gave this name to the lord who spoke to her: ‘‘Atta El Roi’’, "You are the God who sees me." For she said, “here I have now seen the hinder parts of him that seeth me.”

I don’t know what situation you find yourself in today; I don’t know in what situation you’ll find yourself tomorrow and I don’t know either what kind of situation someone you love is in; but I know one thing: Jesus is alive, God sees and hears. You can address Him like my daughter, "Lord, You are the One who sees and hears..." This is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. (1Jn 5:14-15) In other words, if God has seen and heard you, stop worrying and be assured that you will soon see Him as well. It is a certainty.

 

Have a fruitful “wonderblessed” week!

Should I say or should I go?

 

Usually when we hear of crisis, bankruptcies, increasing unemployment figures or inflation, we start to panic. If in addition, the land regularly falls prey to natural disasters, we tremble more; losoe our sleep and only dream of leaving the country.

Yet, history is full of people who became rich and prosperous during economic crises or wars. These are people who are not discouraged and do not give up because of an unfavorable economic, financial or climatic environment. It is possible indeed to succeed even under extreme conditions. Chapter 26 of Genesis provides us with a good example of this through the life of Isaac.

In the middle of famine, Isaac sowed in a land and reaped a hundredfold because the Lord had blessed him. He became so wealthy and so powerful that people in the country, the Philistines, began to envy him and asked him to leave (vs. 12-16).

So he went to settle in the valley of Gerar, still in the land of the Philistines. In those days of famine, water was precious and hard to find; but Isaac found spring water in all the wells he dug, which further excited the envy and strife of the local shepherds (vs. 18-22). Eventually, their king came to acknowledge that God was with him and that he’d better have him as an ally (vs. 26-28).

And indeed, God was with him and had blessed him; but this was never automatic. He was with him because Isaac had followed His instructions and had trusted Him. Early in the famine, Isaac had been tempted to go down to Egypt with his family. But the Lord had appeared to him saying (vs. 2, 3): “Do not go down to Egypt… Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father.”  Isaac had stayed in spite of the starvation and God kept His promise.

How do you react in times of lack? The most important thing is not just to go to where the pastures seem greener; ‘‘Oh, I'm sure that if I was in Europe, I would…’’; ‘‘If I could get the visa for the United States, all my problems would be over…’’ One just needs to listen to the news to know that Europe and the United States are far from being the Eldorados many dream about. We also just need to open our eyes and look around to see that even in times of crisis, there are people next to us who buy, sell, marry and travel ... as “usual”.

When the time of parting ways with his uncle came, Lot hastened to choose the plain of Jordan which was well watered and then looked like a garden of the Lord. Little did he know that the locals were great sinners against the Lord and that God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah where he had gone to settle. Abraham was left with a country that did not seem attractive at all; yet, it would become the Promised Land, the land flowing with milk and honey. All that glitters is not gold and we tend to rely too much on appearances.

Zambia’s brand new President, Michael SATA, was once a cleaner and a porter in one of the British Rail Stations. He could have chosen to stay in England instead of going back to his country. If he had chosen the European paradise instead of the African hell, he would have retired as a cleaner or something along the line and would have never become a president, with the unique opportunity to influence the course of a country and the lives of millions of people. This is why I say that the most important thing is not to run where there seems to be no famine; but the most crucial thing is rather to seek God's instructions in times of famine and stick to them.

He is able to give water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert so that His chosen people may drink (Is 43:20).

He is able to multiply the few loaves of bread that you have and give you enough provisions to feed more than 5000 people (Mat 14).

He is able to multiply the small amount of oil you have left to help you pay all your debts and start a business (2Ki 4).

He is able to calm the storms and hurricanes that threaten to sweep over your city (Mat 8).

He is even able to order the birds to bring you food on a daily basis (1Ki 17)!

When such a God tells you not to move and stay put, do not rely on your understanding or on what you see: just trust Him. Don’t move and He will be with you as He has been with Isaac and everything you touch will definitely prosper.

 

Have a wonderblessed week!

What do you have in your hand?

 

Man was created to rule over creation, subdue the earth and maintain the Garden of Eden (Gen 1:26-28, 2:8). Aware of his loneliness and of the size of his task, God decided to give him a helper.

Gen 2:18ff, “The LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him."… 21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."”

This passage clearly shows that the very reason why the woman was created is to help the man manage and rule over the creation. That's her purpose, her divine calling. It’s only afterwards that man decided to make her a wife.

I believe that a marriage can only flourish if the husband is clear about his calling, –Adam knew his mission before the arrival of Eve- if the wife is fully fulfilling her role of a helper and if her husband allows her to do so.

I also believe that the world would be a much better place, if everywhere, men would realize that they can make it by themselves and that women were not only created for the kitchen and the children, but have been specially equipped by God to help them subdue the earth and have dominion over the creation.

Indeed, after giving the vision of the Tabernacle to Moses and asking him to build it, God told him: “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri… 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, 4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze…6 And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab… And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you.” (Gen 31.2-6) In other words, “You are the boss; you have the vision and give the direction; but you won’t be able to build the tabernacle, you won’t be able to fulfil your mission without these two men. They are the ones that I have anointed –especially equipped- to help you.” The woman is also especially empowered by God to carry her ‘helping’ mission out. But this is not today’s topic…

Gen 2.21ff, “So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."”

Today, I just want to encourage and exhort you with this simple fact, I just want to remind you that: what you need to fulfil your destiny, to go further or to be successful, is not far. Indeed, because the rib is part of the body, it can represent your internal resources. But if you think of the rib as something that is on the side, then it can allude to that which is beside or near you.

Adam didn’t know that the solution to his loneliness and the help that he needed to carry out his enterprise had always been in him and next to him. Likewise, when God called Moses, He didn’t give him any extraordinary tool; He simply asked him: "What is that in your hand?" And Moses answered, "A staff." (Ex 4:2) Yet, it is this very trivial staff, the staff with which he was tending his father-in-law’s flock, which became the instrument of deliverance for the Hebrews and the cause of incredible miracles.

Unfortunately, very often, too often, we are not aware of what we have or we just neglect what we have received from God. Sometimes, we spend so much time admiring and envying the gifts and talents of others that we end up despising what we have. Finally, just like the bad servants of the parables of minas and talents (Mat 25 & Luke 19) we refuse to use them.

God did nothing and does nothing by chance. The nose, voice, laughter, joy, height, family, friends, qualities, faults, city, country, church, job etc… that we have or are in, are not there by chance: they all work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. When He calls, He equips. We all have something that He has asked us to do; and since He’s not a cruel but a good and responsible Father, He has already put everything He knows we will need to succeed in us, next to us and around us. If the task has become very difficult or if you doubt whether you will ever make it, take a break and ask yourself what is it that you have in your hand? Then, cheer up: you have just found what God wants to use and will use to lift you up.

Inquisitive reading of Genesis 1.

 

I know that many of new-and even old-Bible readers believe the most difficult books of the Bible are those of Leviticus, Ezekiel and Revelation. However, after nearly 20 years of studying the Scriptures, I am beginning to wonder whether the first two chapters of Genesis –and especially the first- are not the most mysterious and difficult passages. Yet they are so important for a proper understanding of the Creation, the world, the existence of man, nature, work and above all, God.

Unlike my previous postings, I will engage myself in a different exercise this time: I call it the art of inquisitive reading. Through a series of ‘inquisitive’ questions, I will demonstrate why Genesis 1 is not as obvious as one might think at first reading,while showing how to find pearls and diamonds in the depths of the Word of God as well.

According to the Merriam-Webster and the Wiktionary,the word inquisitive means “given to examination or investigation, eager to acquire knowledge”.

Gen 1:1-11, 13-19, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. 6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. 9 And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so… 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. 14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so.16 And God made the two great lights--the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night--and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.”

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth: In the beginning of what? He created the heavens; so there is a Heaven (vs 8) and then the Heavens?

Darkness was over the face of the deep: What deep? Where is it from? Was it there before heavens and earth were created, i.e. before the beginning? If so, it boils down to wondering what beginning is mentionned here? And where is the darkness coming from? Was it created ? If so, when and why?

The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters... Waters? What waters? Where are they from? Were they there before the famous beginning?

"Let there be light." What kind of light is it? For it is obvious that we are not talking about the sun or moon that would only be created on the 4th day (vs 16).

God separated the light from the darkness... Does this mean that after the appearance of light and before this separation, darkness and light were a single entity?

God called the light (which was before the sun was) Day, and the darkness (that was over the face of the deep before the moon was, and that had been separated from the light) He called Night. Is it possible then, that 'in the beginning', day and night had nothing to do with what we call day and night today? Do we see the possible repercussions on the real age of the Earth? What then represents or corresponds to this first day?

Let’s go a little further to verses 14 and following; not that the other verses speak for themselves and need no questions or comments, but in order to avoid being too long.

God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. …17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. To give light on the earth??? Does this mean that the initial light did not light? Why would the earth still need to be lightened when the first thing that was, was light? Moreover, I thought He had already separated the light from the darkness and the day from the night since the first day; so, what are we talking about here?

God made the two great lights--the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night… What then, was ruling the day before? What kind of light and day was it then? What then, had been ruling the night since the first day? What kind of night and darkness was it so far? Have there been two episodes of separation? A first one between the initial, primary or even 'primordial' light and the 'original' darkness that were over the face of the deep; and a second one between the secondary light (solar) and the secondary darkness (from the ‘absence’ of sun)?

Finally, it is written that: God set them in the expanse of the heavens (vs. 17). That is to say that He set the sun, the moon and the stars in the firmament created on the second day to separate the waters (above it) from the waters (under it); isn’t it? It is also stated that it was to give light to the earth and to be signs for times and seasons, still on earth. Can we therefore conclude that above the Heaven, the sky, –i.e. in the waters above- there is no light? And that the heavens need neither sun nor moon, nor stars, nor counter of periods and years?

I could have gone on and on, but it was not necessary: you can do it yourselves. I do hope however that in trying to answer these questions, you have realized that these few verses of the Book of Genesis are far more profound that they appear to be. The Bible is infinitely rich, it contains inexhaustible treasures that are within the grasp of who really wants to find them: It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out. (Prov 25:2) Are you a king?

If you read the Scriptures in this way, paying attention to every sentence and every word (because none of them is there by chance), prayerfully asking the right questions and thirsting to understand the mysteries of the Law, you will soon realize that your inquisitive reading will quickly become interactive; meaning that you will no longer be only hearing the sound of your own questions in your mind, you will also be hearing the answers that the Spirit of God will communicate to your spirit. And, is that not the goal?

“Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.” Ps 119.18

Have a wonderblessed week,

Peace!

Scapegoats (II)

 

Last week we saw how the children of Israel continued an absolutely mind-blowing  murmuring against the Lord in spite of all His chastisements and we were left to ponder over the different lessons that we could draw from all those events.

 

1) Signs and wonders are not always enough to change hearts.

If it was possible for people to change their hearts forever, fear God and fear the authority just because of signs and wonders, then the children of Israel would have never needed anything more after the death of the Egyptian firstborns or their crossing of the Red Sea. But inasmuch as the ten plagues of Egypt could not compel Pharaoh and his people to fear God, so were the multiple wounds of the Israelites in the desert incapable of converting them. That’s why Jesus said to the crowd: “You are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” (Jn 6:26) People only care about their stomach.

This should be a serious warning to us. Indeed, if the children of Israel could forget signs such as those they witnessed in Egypt and in the wilderness, then what about us and all the ''small'' miracles that God daily does in our lives? If we are not careful, they will just slide away like water on duck feathers and we will surprise ourselves murmuring at the first test, just like the children of Israel.

 

2) Pay heed to the authority and beware of rebellion

Men want to do as they please. We don’t like having ‘conscience rectifiers’ or ‘direction pointers’ around us. More than Moses and Aaron, it was God Himself that the people were rejecting here. Moses understood it very well when he asked Korah: “What is Aaron that you grumble against him?” (Nu 16:11) Things became obvious a few centuries later when the people demanded a king to Samuel’s great displeasure; but God told him: "they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them" (1Sam 8:7b) Indeed, there is NO authority except from God (Rom 13:1); NONE: i.e. both the good and the bad ones. And the Scriptures ask us to conduct ourselves vis-à-vis them, not according to the fact that they are good or bad (1Pe 2:18), but according to the fact that they represent GOD’s choice and that divine choices are not disputable. It may not be the Leader, the chief or the President that we would have chosen, but he is the one that God, the Master of times and circumstances has established in His wisdom. And if we don’t want to suffer in one way or the other, He tells us:

· Submit yourself (unless you are asked to do something that is clearly contrary to Scriptures). Eph 6:5-6, Col 3:22, Titus 3:1, 1Pe 2:18

· Pray for your authorities. 1Tim 2:1-3

· Do not speak evil of a ruler of your people (Ac 23:5); you will be actually ill-speaking of God whom, according to you, is particularly nut/insane to leave such a person at such a place.

 

3) There is a need for the sense of responsibility.

Whether out of pride, cowardice, fear, forgetfulness or something else, we don’t like to recognize our mistakes and take our responsibilities. We like to believe that we are perfect and project this image outside; thus, as soon as we are in trouble, instead of first looking at ourselves, we often tend to point the finger at others. We are always looking for scapegoats and Christians have an excellent one: "The devil made me do ..." It's never us; we cannot be that bad, can we? We cannot be so vicious, right? We can’t be this deceitful; can we? It is obviously X, Y or Satan who has made us behave that way; isn’t it? Someone said: never forget that when you point the second finger on others, three other fingers are turned against you and point in your direction.

I hope and pray that the misfortunes of the Hebrews in the desert really serve as lessons to us. I had already drawn our attention to these things with the posting: ‘‘Beware, danger.’’ But today, I would particularly like to encourage us to watch over our hearts more than anything else, because therefrom flow the springs of life (Prov 4:23). Let us ask the Lord to change everything that may still be stony in our hearts into flesh (Ez 11:19 & 36:26). Let’s ask Him to give us docile and humble hearts; hearts that love His Word and His commandments (Ez 11:20 & 36:27); hearts that trust Him and believe that His ways are safe, sound and right, hearts that know He only desires their utmost good and welfare.

 

Have a wonderblessed week!

Scapegoats…

 

The book of Numbers is quite fascinating, especially considering how often the children of Israel held Moses and Aaron responsible for their own setbacks.

In Numbers 12 after Aaron and Miriam had murmured against their younger brother Moses, the LORD was provoked to anger, Miriam was stricken with leprosy and had to be excluded from the camp for 7 days. This was known by everybody in the camp and one would have thought it would have taught them a lesson; but not to the children of Israel.

In Numbers 14, after the alarming report given by ten out of twelve spies about their exploration of the Promised Land, the people started murmuring against their leaders again: “Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the LORD bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?" And they said to one another, "Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt."” (vs. 1-4) Once again, they aroused the Lord’s anger and the ten faithless spies died as well as thousands of others who have had the effrontery to stand up against the Amalekites, despite Moses’ strong objections (vs. 37 & 45). And to top it all up, the Lord told them that with the exception of Caleb and Joshua, none of those who came out of Egypt would see the Promised Land; that they would die in the wilderness and wander in it for 40 years (vs. 21-23, 30, 34)! One would have thought it would have taught them a lesson; but once again, not to the children of Israel.

In Numbers 16, Korah, Dathan and Abiram rebelled against Moses and Aaron, dragging 250 men along with them. This was so bad that God wanted to exterminate everybody on site instead of doing it in 40 years as previously told. Thanks to the intercession of Moses and Aaron, He decided against it; but the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up alive with their families and all their possessions. As for their 250 followers, they were "roasted" after daring to bring a strange fire before the Lord. The people fled in terror for fear of being either “barbecued” or buried alive. One would have thought they would have definitely understood the lesson this time; but once again, not the very stubborn children of Israel.

Indeed, “on the next day all the congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and against Aaron, saying, "You have killed the people of the LORD."” (vs. 41) Isn’t it terrible? How daring! The Lord's answer was not long in coming: 14,700 men died and the losses were only limited by the swift intervention of this same Moses against whom the entire people was angry! You reckon the lesson was forever understood at last? Then, you haven’t read Numbers 20...

This time around, they got to Kadesh –i.e. sanctuary-, in the wilderness of Zin; “there was no water for the congregation. And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarreled with Moses and said, "Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! Why have you brought the assembly of the LORD into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink."” (vs. 2-5)

If they really wanted to die with their brothers, why did they flee when they were buried alive? Now they were complaining about an “evil place with no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and no water to drink” and they seemed to have forgotten that they ended up there precisely because they themselves had refused to go where milk and honey flew. They seemed to have forgotten that it was their disobedience, their attitude and their refusal to believe that God only wished them well by asking them to go to Canaan that harvested them 40 years of wilderness. Instead of remembering the real reason why they were there, they found the perfect scapegoats: Moses and Aaron. Unfortunately, on this occasion, Moses lost his temper and his ticket into the Promised Land along with it.

Shortly after, they were back at it and they even dared attacking GOD as well: “From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food."” (Nu 21.4-5) The worthless food was the manna of course: the symbol of GOD’s supernatural provision. Once again, the reaction of the Lord was quick to come. Since they would not stop complaining that they were perishing in the desert, God helped them to really perish by sending fiery serpents against them and many were bitten and died.

Such a series of murmurs, rebellion and disobedience is absolutely unthinkable. What was the problem of these people? What can we learn from this all?

We will talk about this next week; but in the meantime, spend some time pondering over their attitude… and yours.

God bless you.

In Christ…

 

A favourite verse of many Christians is Colossians 1:27: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” However, there are others that I prefer, like: “You have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” or even: “As many as were baptized into Christ, you put on Christ.” (Col 3:3, Gal 3:27)

Before giving you the reason why, let me tell you a story.

Jesus had gone to pay visit to a relatively wealthy Christian. Extremely happy and deeply touched by this divine visit, the guy specially prepared the guest room for Him and made sure He had everything He could need. Deep down in his mind, he knew he had scored really high! However, thieves visited the house that night and left with various items. The next day, the host could not believe his eyes. Stunned, he asked the Lord how it was possible that thieves were able to enter the house with Him around. Furthermore, he wanted to know why Jesus had let them to get away with this act. Jesus replied: "I'm not at home."

The guy said: "Ok, I understand. This night, sleep in my room and I will sleep in the guest room." Jesus accepted the offer without any argument. Remember, He is a perfect gentleman.

That night, the same scenario was repeated and followed with same questions and answer: "I'm not at home."

The guy was now really angry. "What more is it that you want? I have given you my own room. I never thought I could be a victim of burglary with YOU around. Did You not say in YOUR WORD that..."

Jesus let him throw everything he had on his chest and gently said again, "I'm not at home."

The guy began to reflect and suddenly something seemed to click. He got up, took his house and car keys and came back to the Lord saying: “Here are the keys; the car, the house, everything is Yours. Only I have nowhere to sleep tonight, Will you kindly accommodate me?”

"Gladly," replied the Lord; "Take the master bedroom, I will sleep in the lounge."

That night, the bandits who seemed to have found the right address came back to rob the house. When they showed up, Jesus went to open the door and said: "I am the Master of the house, what do you want?" The thugs fell backwards with fright, then got up and scampered off, never to return.

The next day Jesus asked his former host how he had slept. "Oh, very well; like an angel. The night was calm: the thieves did not come."

Jesus said, "On the contrary, they did come; but they ran away as soon as I opened the door. You will never have trouble with them again." You can easily imagine the guy’s joy and relief.

I heard this illustration 6 or 7 years ago. I cannot remember who said it; it could have been during a sermon on consecration, but I am not even certain of that. Anyway, I have never forgotten the image and it has been of great help to me and to others since then.

I love this story for several reasons; however, today it will help me to better explain why I’d rather put on Christ and have my life hidden in Him than simply know that if He is in me, I can hope for glory.

"Christ in you, the hope of glory."Christ in you... This reminds me of the first situation of the host of Jesus. He had Christ in his house and thus, was hoping to enjoy peace, joy, prosperity etc. In short, I'm sure that when he received Jesus, he thought that as long as the Lord stayed in his home, he could rest in peace: his happiness was assured. But as we have seen, his expectations were somehow disappointed.

“…Your life is hidden with Christ in God” and “As many as were baptized into Christ, you put on Christ” on the contrary, make me to think of the final condition of that man. Christ was no longer at his home i.e. ‘‘in’’ him, but he was now the one who was in Christ. It was he who was now living hidden in Christ and not Christ who lived hidden in him.

If an object is plunged and submersed in water, it would have only water all around it and the object will be thus, ‘’hidden or contained’’ in water. Similarly, if we have truly been baptized in Christ i.e. plunged, immersed and submerged in Him, then we should be drowned in Him and His ‘‘substance’’ must be all around us, just like water surrounds and covers whatever is plunged in it. That’s why the apostle can say, "You have put on Christ"; because Christ has become like a garment that entirely covers us, and into which we are hidden.

If Christ is in us, it is already good; but it is not enough because we can still allow ourselves a lot of individualities. From time-to-time (if not often), we may even forget that He is there and may therefore act as if we had never opened the door of our hearts to Him. However, if our life is hidden in His, if we have put Him on, if we are really IN CHRIST, then it will be impossible for us to live a life independent of Him. We will inhale the Christ all the time, think what He thinks, say what He says and do what He does as He Himself only does what He sees the Father do. We, ‘IN Christ’ and Christ in God, so we in God; and there are only benefits to be in Christ. Indeed, “…For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him” to which I prefer the French version that says: “…You have everything in full in Him.” (Col 2:9-10)

Hidden IN Him, living IN Him, we live in the fullness of deity and that’s why we can have EVERYTHING in that position and condition. We have EVERYTHING not only because we bathe in the fullness; but also because it is now impossible for us to desire anything else than what He desires. Indeed, living and hidden in Him, our emotions, sensations, actions and desires are necessarily His: we move together. Has He not said: “If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also” ? (Jn 12:26) In those days, servants and slaves lived with their masters. They didn’t have to worry about their food, their protection, their wedding and so on. They simply stayed where their lord was, always ready to serve him. Those who were not there are either been sent on a mission by their master or were on the run. The servant of Christ lives in Christ, follows Christ because He is One with Him anyway, can do nothing apart from Him and cannot just start craving for the Rolls Royce to which Christ, His Master is not even thinking about.

''Christ in us'' or ''We in Christ''? There is so much that can be said on this; but if you have understood the picture behind the story, you have understood what I –lengthily- tried to share with you today.

As far as I am concerned, ''Christ in us'' or ''We in Christ'' are two levels of spiritual maturity. But it is IN CHRIST that all our veils are lifted and taken away (2Cor 3:14); it is IN CHRIST that heavenly and earthly things are united (Eph 1:10) and it is only IN CHRIST that we are finally a new creation and that everything really becomes new.

 

Have a wonderblessed week IN HIM !