Mission

Mission: To connect every burdened soul to the Lord by the power of the Word and anointed prayers for self transformation and actualisation of divine blessings.

Vision

Vision: A transformed society of believers, basking continually in the glory of Christ Jesus.

Thursday 19 July 2012

THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH

Text: Gal 3:11b, Heb 11:1-39, Rom 1:17, Hab 2:4

The just is the righteous, the upright, the blameless, the faithful, the pure. The just is one who loves righteousness and he lives by faith. His trust is in the Lord and he lives by the power of GOD. He believes the word and what he hears from God and holds on to it. He is the redeemed of the Lord and is always wearing the garment of praise.  Heb 11:1 -2 define faith as belief or trust in God, “Being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see, this is what the ancients were commended for.” That is; they lived by faith. So the just or righteous shall live by believing in God and be hopeful and be certain of what is yet to be seen.
Genuine faith is marked by choosing to trust God even when you know the outcome may be different from what you had ever imagined. You let go of your preconceived notions of how things ought to be. Jesus expects you to have faith and also to live by it. Jesus said in Matt 17:20b to His disciples; “Because you have so little faith, I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, move from here to there and it will move.” When the apostles said Jesus should increase their faith, Jesus said in Luke 17:6 “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and be planted in the sea, and it will obey you.”

Jesus said in Luke 8:48 “Daughter your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” And in Mark 11:22 Jesus said, “Have faith in God.” All these are evidence that you should have faith and live by it. Have faith and exercise it. The outcome is always in line with God’s purpose. Heb 11:6 says “And without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” It is profitable to have faith and live by it so as to be able to please God. Any just person will strife to live by faith so as to please God.
And again Heb 10:38 says; “But my righteous one will live by faith.” May you be among the righteous who will live by faith. Even when additional hands were needed to assist the twelve  disciples, Stephen was among those chosen because he was full of faith and of the Holy Spirit (Act 6:5)

Let us consider some characters who lived by faith in the scriptures.
ABRAHAM
Abraham the man of faith , so was he called because he believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Gal 3:9. By faith Abraham was called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going, but by faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country and lived in tents. He was looking forward to the city with foundations whose architect and builder is God. By faith Abraham lifted his knife to plunge unto Isaac to offer him as a sacrifice at mount Moriah believing that he would still be father of nation as God promised.

NOAH
It is by faith that Noah built an ark in the middle of dry land; Heb 11:7. He built an ark when he was warned about things not yet seen. It was this ark that eventually saved him, his family and some livestock he took along during the greatest flood.
Brethren it is profitable to live by faith. If Noah did not build the ark then, he with the others saved would have perished with the flood.

MOSES’ PARENT
It is by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born and they were not afraid of the king’s verdict; Heb 11:23. Despite the situation and circumstances around the period Moses was born and hostility by Pharaoh against male children born, his parents kept faith and this enabled Moses’ destiny to be fulfilled.
Learn to live by faith. Never allow situations and circumstances dominate your life and existence.

MOSES
When the Israelites told Moses he should have allowed them to remain in Egypt, serve the Egyptians and even die there instead of bringing them to the desert. Moses, with absolute trust and confidence in God demonstrated his faith by saying as in Exo.14:13; “Do not be afraid, stand firm and you will see deliverance the Lord will bring you today”. The Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. V14  “The lord will fight for you, you need only to be still.” This is an act of faith. You should learn to put your trust in the Lord always and act on faith.
GIDEON
When Gideon was called to lead the battle for Israel against Midianites he gathered thirty two thousand men but by faith he reduced them to three hundred when God said; “you had too many men for me to deliver Midianites into their hands” Judges 7:3. He believed the word he heard from God Judges 6:16 and went to war with only three hundred Men and God delivered the Midianites into Gideon’s hands. Believe whatever the Lord has spoken concerning your case or situation and faithfully hold on to it.
RUTH
Despite the bleak future confronting Ruth, having lost her husband, faced with famine, with no hope for the future and despite her mother-in-law’s insistence that she should go back to her parents, by faith Ruth refused to go back but clung to Naomi. Ruth 1:16-17. She demonstrated great faith, love for her departed husband and Naomi. And the future became bright, hope was restored and she became part of Jesus’ lineage. How great is your faith?
THE CENTURION
The centurion’s servant was sick and he informed Jesus, Jesus promised to follow him home to come and heal his servant. By faith the centurion told Jesus; “Speak the word only and my servant shall be healed.” The centurion acted on faith, he believed Jesus need not be present physically before his servant could be healed. He believed so much in the word Jesus would speak. Jesus acknowledged this in Matt. 8:10b by saying “verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no not in Israel.” And Jesus said unto the centurion, go thy way, and as thou has believed, so be it done unto thee.” And his servant was healed in the same hour. This is the kind of faith the Just must exhibit.

What are you trusting God for? Exercise your faith and it shall be well with you.
Advantages of living by faith

1.       You will be among the righteous. Heb 10:38.

2.       You will be able to please God Heb 11:6.

3.       You shall be among the chosen. Act 6:5

4.       You will stand out among others. Heb 11:7

5.       Your destiny shall be fulfilled. Heb 11:28

6.       You shall be saved. Lk. 7:50

Prayer
Father in heaven, I want to please you in all ways and to be among the righteous.
Help me Lord to have faith and to live by it. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

Monday 2 July 2012

SPIRITUAL GROWTH

Text: Daniel 6:10, Luke 2:37-38, Acts 17:11, Eph 5:18-19

Spiritual growth is an act of advancement or development in the things of the spirit.  Spiritual growth is for a lifetime. In John 4: 24 the Bible says; “God is a spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.” Therefore you must desire to grow in the spirit so that you will be able to worship Him in spirit. You have to love the things of the spirit and desire to grow. You cannot remain a kindergarten Christian. God longs for your growth and development in all ways, most especially in the things of the spirit. The Bible says come up higher, that is: move up, grow, develop. Don’t be stagnant. Hence you need spiritual growth.

What are the things of the spirit that you have to develop in? They are: worship, praises, prayer, searching and meditating on the scriptures and witnessing to people every day, offering quality worship and praises and spending quality time with God in prayer and ending it with thanksgiving unto the Lord.
The Bible says in Eph 5:18-19; “But be filled with the spirit. Speaking to yourself in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and  making melody in your heart to the Lord.” The Bible further says that any man that meditates on the word of God day and night shall flourish and prosper in whatsoever he does; Psalm 1:2-3. As you do these daily you will be well established in the things of the spirit and they become your daily routine. As you tithe monetarily in the church  you must also try to tithe the twenty four hours given to you daily just to worship, praise, pray, study and meditate on the word and witness to people. May God help you grow.

Daniel knew what it is to spend quality time with God. Despite all odds he was still praying three times daily. When king Darius made a decree that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days except him shall be cast into the den of lions. Daniel 6:10 says; “Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house, and his windows being open in chamber towards Jerusalem he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime.” Daniel damned the consequences and he was thrown into the den of lions. His God whom he served continually, saved him and kept him from being hurt by the lions. Because God was able to deliver Daniel due to his spiritual activities, king Darius said in Daniel 6:26; “I make a decree, that in every dominion of my kingdom, men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for He is the living God, and steadfast forever and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and His dominion shall be, even unto the end.

Anna was another example of someone who has grown spiritually to the extent that daily she was always in the temple day and night praising, worshipping God with fasting and prayer and witnessing by talking about Jesus to everyone who had been waiting for the promised Messiah. Despite the fact that she was a widow, she dedicated herself to the things of the spirit and daily she was performing the chores and growing day by day. Hence the Bible says in Luke 2:37-38; “And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, who departed not from the temple, but served God with fasting and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spoke of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Brethren, don’t remain a kindergarten Christian. God wants you to soar in the things of the spirit. Offer quality worship and praise daily, spend quality time in prayer, study and meditate upon the word, witness daily and end with thanksgiving always. By so doing you will develop and grow.

Advantages of Spiritual Growth

·         You will be empowered to run the Christian race successfully.

·         You will have desire and ability to handle kingdom assignment.

·         You will love to be in God’s presence always.

·         You will be more intimate with God.

·         You will be bold to proclaim Him anywhere.

·         You will enjoy the peace of the Lord in all circumstances

Prayer:
Father in heaven, as you enable me to grow and develop physically and in other areas, help me to love the things of the spirit and to grow and develop in them in Jesus’ name I pray. (Amen.)