Day 29 Charitableness (Do Not Judge)

Day 29

Charitableness (Do Not Judge)

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

(Matthew 7:1-5)

Charitableness is the 21^st pillar

Charitableness is the 21^th pillar that holds the temple of Truth!

My dear beloved, it is human nature which is marred by sin that prompts us to look down on others. It is especially us who believe, because of God’s mercy over our lives, who tend to look down on others.  We must realize that by His grace alone, God saved us from the world and delivered us from the wrath which is to come, and placed our feet on the Rock which is Christ, a place of safety in a world that is sinking ground.  And by His truth alone, God opened our eyes that we may see.  And now that we can see, we are ashamed of the things we have done in ignorance, but we thank God our Father that through Jesus Christ our Lord, He has forgiven us.  Not only that, God also has forgotten our sins, not because we are now good, nor because we have done any works of righteousness, but for His own sake, God will not remember our sins:

“I, even I, am He who blots out your transgression for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.”  (Isaiah 43:25)

Hallelujah!  Thank You, Father.  We worship You for who You are, a Righteous God, so Great, Mighty, and Powerful, and yet so Kind and Gentle to us sinners, so Loving and Merciful to feeble creatures such as ourselves,

who so often are ungrateful and rebellious.  Yet You love us with an everlasting love.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for bearing our sins on the cross.  Please forgive us our ingratitude at some times, for words cannot express our gratitude to You, oh Lord Jesus, but we can only surrender our lives freely unto You, Lord Jesus, for You are worthy to be praised and worshipped.   Amen!  For it is written:

 “What is man that You are mindful of him,
      Or the son of man that You take care of him?
        You have made him a little lower than the angels;
      You have crowned him with glory and honor,
       And set him over the works of Your hands.
        You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”

         (Hebrews 2:6-8)

And this love that God has for man, in our sinfulness and imperfection, has nothing to do with what man did or will do or even can do, but according to God’s great love; the width and the length and the depth and the height of the great love of God toward man.

For in His divine wisdom, God decided not to wait for us to do any good works, which we could not and cannot do without Him; but rather God decided to love us in our sinful and weak state, so that our relationship with Him should not be based on that which we can do for God, but rather, our relationship with God should be based on God’s great love and mercy toward us, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We should, then, not trust in what we can do for God, but rather trust in that which God has done for us, through Jesus Christ our Lord!  Amen!

No flesh should boast before Him, and none of us should see ourselves as better than the other, for who among us has salvation that we have not received as a gift? And if we did receive it, it means that it is not from us: it is not ours, it was given to us.  Why then do we boast against others who have not yet received or are struggling to receive this gift?  For we all received it, so let us not judge anymore, as if somehow we have done anything to be where we are.  For it is written:

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.”   (Ephesians 2:4-5) 

“For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:6-8)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Therefore, my dear beloved, let us not judge one another anymore.  Let us not find fault toward each other considering who may be the worse sinner, and discussing who is going to heaven and who is not.  The LORD is the Judge of us all.

But rather, my dear beloved, let us bear with one another.  Those who are strong must bear with those who are weak, taking care of those who fall into sin with love and gentleness, teaching them the way of the LORD with all patience and meekness, considering that we ourselves have weaknesses.  But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, is ever patient and gentle with us, correcting us in love with the Truth that we should not perish but be saved.  Even so my beloved, we ought to love one another and bear with one another, and bear each other’s burdens.  Those who are weak and continue to fall into sin, let us not gossip about them, nor speak evil of them.  Let no one chase those who are weak out of the church.  For in due time Christ died for the ungodly, for Christ did not come to die for the righteous, but for sinners: big sinners as well as small sinners.  He died for all sinners.

Now, if a brother or a sister is continually falling into sin, but still continues to come to church, it is because the Holy Spirit is bringing them there and they want to change; however, they may not even know this.  Therefore, what they need is a support system, people who love them, care for them, and understand them, for they are broken and seeking to be loved.  Let us, therefore, put aside all malice and prejudice and give them a big hug, and love them, care about them, find out what their needs are, and what challenges they are facing.  And when we have this mind, the Holy Spirit will give us wisdom concerning what to say or do or how to help.  However, before that happens, we must genuinely love one another and bear with one another, putting others before ourselves and not pleasing ourselves:

“We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves.  Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.” For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” (Romans 15:1-4)

“Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.  Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.  But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load.”   (Galatians 6:1-5)

“And above all things have fervent love for one another, for ‘love will cover a multitude of sins.’ Be hospitable to one another without grumbling.  As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.  If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 

(1 Peter 4:8-11)  

JUDGE NOT!

Judge not, my dear beloved, nor let us be faultfinding with one another, for there is One Lawgiver who will judge us all according to our works.  Let us therefore not judge others or ourselves:

“There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?”  (James 4:12)

My dear beloved, we all belong to God, the weak and the strong, and it is God who decides who is a good servant and who is not, for it is written:

“Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:4)

For if we continue to judge ourselves righteous and others unrighteous, the LORD will rebuke us, for it is written again:

“You who judged your sisters, bear your own shame also, because the sins which you committed were more abominable than theirs; they are more righteous than you. Yes, be disgraced also, and bear your own shame, because you justified your sisters.” (Ezekiel 16:52)

“Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.”  (Romans 2:1)

Finally, my dear beloved, we will all stand one day before the Judgment seat of Christ to give an account of all the things we have done to our bodies, which is the temple of the Holy Spirit.  And not only that, we will also give an account of every evil word spoken against others and all the evil we have committed to others and to ourselves.  Let us, therefore, not judge prematurely anymore.  Let us leave the judgment to God, who in due time will declare who is righteous and who is wicked, for God alone is the Righteous Judge to whom be the glory forever.  Amen!

 “But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: 
      “As I live, says the LORD,
      Every knee shall bow to Me,
      And every tongue shall confess to God.”
So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.”  (Romans 14:10-13)

“Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.”  (1 Corinthians 4:5)

Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.  Amen.

                                                                                                                         

Meditation:   Judge not that you be not judged!

Prayer points:  LORD, please reveal to me who I really am, that I may be merciful to others, considering myself, that it may be well with my soul on the Day of Judgment.  I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Commitment:  I commit myself from today onward, by God’s grace, to put aside all malice and prejudice, all gossip, and judgmental attitude, toward others and myself, and through Christ who strengthens me I will learn to love others just as they are in Christ. And that I will love myself just as I am in Christ.   Amen!

Day 28 Primacy of God’s Kingdom (Seek the Kingdom First)

Day 28

Primacy of God’s Kingdom

(Seek the Kingdom First)

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

(Matthew 6:33)

Primacy of God’s Kingdom is the 20^th pillar

Primacy of God’s Kingdom is the 20^th pillar that holds the temple of Truth!

My dear beloved, we are living in one of the most, if not the most, materialistic era of mankind’s history.  The prophecy that the Holy Spirit spoke through our beloved apostle Paul is being fulfilled right in front of our eyes:

“But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:  For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,  traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

We are living in such a time, my dear beloved, for the desire to be rich has increased tremendously in the hearts of men.  Men are lovers of money and are prepared to do anything to get hold of it.  This is fueled by the desire to have power, for as we say: “money is power.”   Men desire to have power over others, to control others, and ultimately, they desire to be worshipped.

And Satan has placed this evil cancer in the church of God in order to counterfeit the sound doctrine of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who commands us:

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”   (Matthew 6:33)

But the devil is saying through his preachers that you must seek riches first and heaven will be added to you!

My dear beloved in the LORD, if men preach this doctrine to you, of such men turn away, for they do not serve our Lord Christ Jesus, but their god is their belly.  The doctrine of “let us get rich,” sounds tempting to all of us because of all our diverse needs, until we actually study it, for there is an evil spirit behind this doctrine.  The main purpose of this evil doctrine is to remove Christ Jesus our Lord as the center of our faith and the center of our lives. The more we think about getting rich, the less we think about Christ and heaven.  The more we pursue money, the further we depart from Christ.  And this is exactly what the devil wants--our souls to be lost with him.  And because this doctrine is preached prolifically, Christians are yielding to it and are refusing to hear the truth.  Even those who once loved Christ Jesus our Lord are departing from the faith in which they believed at one time and are yielding to these deceiving evil spirits and doctrines of demons, and this fulfills another prophecy of the last days:

 

“Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,  speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron.”  (1 Timothy 4:1-2)

But we, my dear beloved, are the children of God.  Let us, therefore, not give heed to this doctrine of demons, but let us turn to Christ Jesus our Lord, who laid down His life for us out of love, so that you and I may have eternal life.  Let us therefore turn to our first love, even our faith in Christ Jesus our Lord, for the salvation of our souls:

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.  And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”  (1 Timothy 6:6-8)

Let us not be greedy, for it is written:

“But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”   (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

                                                                                                   

My dear beloved, it is time for us to awake from sleep:

“Therefore He says:
      ‘Awake, you who sleep,
      Arise from the dead,
      And Christ will give you light.’

  See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.  And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God.”   (Ephesians 5:14-21)

And again:

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”   (Romans 13:11-14)

As you can see my dear beloved, it is not time for us to set our hearts on riches which we cannot take to the grave. Rather, it is time to seek God with all our hearts, minds, and souls, surrendering our lives to our Lord Jesus Christ completely, so that we may be found in Him on that great and dreadful Day of the LORD.  For otherwise, who can stand?  My dear beloved, let us seek God and lay hold of eternal life which is so freely given to us.  Let us seek God while He may be found, for it is written:

“Seek the LORD while He may be found,
      Call upon Him while He is near.
        Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
      Let him return to the LORD,
      And He will have mercy on him;
      And to our God,
      For He will abundantly pardon.”  (Isaiah 55:6-7)

“For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel:
  “Seek Me and live.”   (Amos 5:4)

“Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth,
      Who have upheld His justice.
      Seek righteousness, seek humility.
      It may be that you will be hidden
      In the day of the LORD’s anger.”  (Zephaniah 2:3)

My dear beloved, hear the Word of the LORD:

“Sow for yourselves righteousness;
      Reap in mercy;
      Break up your fallow ground,
      For it is time to seek the LORD,
      Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.”  (Hosea 10:12)

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having  put on the breastplate of righteousness,  and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;  above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”  (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.  Amen.

Meditation:  Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

Prayer points:  LORD, please teach me to put You first in everything I do.   Please show me the way in which I should walk and help me to walk in it, oh my God, that it may be well with my soul.  I pray in Jesus’ name.   Amen!

Commitment:  I commit myself from today onward to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness with all my heart, mind, and soul, until I find You, oh my God.  I shall seek You, oh God my Father, through Christ who strengthens me, until I find You, oh my God.  Amen!

Day 27 Trustfulness (Faith)

Day 27

Trustfulness (Faith)

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.”

(Matthew 6:25-32)

Trustfulness is the 19^th pillar

Trustfulness, or faith, is the 19^th pillar that holds the temple of Truth!

Trust, my dear beloved, is the most important ingredient in any relationship.  Likewise, trust in God is the most important aspect of our relationship with our Heavenly Father, for nothing pleases God so much as complete trust in Him.  It moves God when a man made of dust, a mere mortal, stands still before Him and looks up to heaven and says, “I put my trust in You, oh my God.  Please help me,” even when everything around him circumstantially is falling apart.

Faith compels God to move, to bless, to protect, to deliver, to heal, to save, to strengthen, and to give all that we need as heavenly citizens abiding on earth.  Like I said before, faith is the currency used in heaven.  If you need anything from heaven, heaven requires faith from you.  Anything that you need, if it is according to God’s will, and you have faith, you will get it in Jesus’ name. Amen! But without faith, you are broke.  You cannot please God; therefore, you cannot be rewarded, and you certainly cannot access all the heavenly resources.

For it is written:

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”  (Hebrews 11:6)

The definition of faith according to the Scriptures is:

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”   (Hebrews 11:1)

And this is derived directly from our Lord Jesus Christ’s teachings.  For He teaches us that whatever we ask our Father in His name, believing, that shall be given to us.  We will receive it:

“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”  (Matthew 21:21-22)

To have faith is to believe that whatever you are asking, God is able to do it, and He will do it according to His will. Trust God with all your heart, mind, and soul even when it doesn’t make sense. Believe that His plans for your life are to do you good, to prosper you in all your doings according to His will.  Have confidence in God, knowing and believing that God is greater than all, and nothing can touch you unless He allows it.  And if God allows it, He will make it work for good to you.  Most importantly of all, we must have confidence in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord when we approach the throne of God our Father, holding on into His promise:

“If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”  (John 14:14)

We must have confidence in the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord, which presents us righteous before God, because if we do not approach the throne of God by the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord, we will remain sinners.  And the Scriptures are very clear:

“Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him.”  (John 9:31)

                                                                                                                         

Therefore, my beloved, let us soak and wash ourselves in the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord, which presents us blameless, approved and acceptable before God, that God may hear us and grant our petitions, in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Again, to have faith is to have total reliance on God and on God alone. That is it.  Your first call for help is to God and your last call for help is to God. There is no plan B when it comes to matters of faith. Your hope must be on Christ and on Christ alone. Now, my dear beloved, the question is: do we have faith in God?  For I bear you a testimony, that God is faithful all the time. And any believer that lives and has ever lived, can and will testify that God is faithful.  He is always there when we need Him, even when we do evil. God is so quick to help us out of trouble.  He helps us first, and corrects us later when we are in safety.  Hallelujah!

Let us make it even more practical to you my dear beloved.  Are you faithful to God?  You can answer this question by examining yourself.

Two things I have noticed about us Christians is that most of the time we are:

1) Ungrateful:

We often come to God asking for help and as soon God has blessed us, we forget about God and are quick to go back to our sinful lives.

2) Lacking faith:

Sometimes we ask God and we forget to exercise faith, because for God to be faithful to our requests, we need to have faith in Him.

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”   (Hebrews 11:6)

Faith is not fate.  Faith is not whatever will be, will be.  No, faith is to stand on the promises of God, for it is impossible for God to lie.  That which God has promised us, God will fulfill; if you stand on His promises by faith in Christ Jesus our Lord, and naturally, if you are not living in sin, God will fulfill His promises in Jesus’ name.  Amen!!!!

                                                                                                                      

 Do you have faith in God?

If you pay close attention to the four gospels in the Bible, you will notice that everyone whom the Lord Jesus helped or healed were those who had faith that the Lord Jesus would be able to heal or help them.  That is why prior to, and even after most miracles, the Lord Jesus said:

“Let it be done to you according to your faith” or “As you believe let it be done to you” or “your faith made you well.”

So whatever you are trusting God for to help you with, God is faithful.  God will grant you the desires of your heart according to His will, but you must trust God, and you must have faith that He is able to help you.  Nothing is impossible to God, but you need to believe, to have faith, and to be faithful to God.

“… But with God all things are possible.”  (Matthew 19:26)

“Jesus said to him, “if you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” (Mark  9:23)

Now my dear beloved, all means all.  Just believe!  Praise the LORD.  Amen!

My dear beloved, there are two dangerous enemies of faith that you must overcome through Christ who strengthens you if you wish access to the promises of God:

A)   Fear

Fear completely destroys and alienates faith.   It is hard to move forward by faith if your heart is full of fear.  The first thing you must do is to deal with your fear.  If you do not deal with your fear, the devil will hold you down, and you will live a defeated Christian life.

My dear beloved, the Word of God gives us seven reasons why we should NOT fear, and I pray that you take them to heart and apply them in your own life in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

1)    Blessings along the journey of life:

“And the LORD appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.”  (Genesis 26: 24)

2)    Supplies in famine:

“And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘The bin of  flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the LORD sends rain on the earth.”  (1 Kings 17:13-14)

3)    Protection in peril:

“So he answered, ‘Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’”   (2 Kings 6:16)

4)    Strength in weaknesses:

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.  Behold, all those who were incensed against you, shall be ashamed and disgraced; they shall be as nothing,
 And those who strive with you shall perish.”  (Isaiah 41:10-11)

5)    Companionship in trial:

“But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, O Jacob,
      And He who formed you, O Israel:
      “ Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
      I have called you by your name; You are Mine.
        When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
      And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
      When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
      Nor shall the flame scorch you.”   (Isaiah 43:1-2)

                                                                                                                               

6)    Overshadowing care:

“But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”  (Matthew 10:30-31)

7)    Life beyond the grave:

“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.”  (Revelation 1:17-18)

The other enemy of faith is doubt:

B)     Doubt:

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”  (James 1:5-8)

Finally my dear beloved:

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.  Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you, Amen!

Meditation:  Without faith it is impossible to please God!

Prayer points:  LORD, please increase my faith.  Please help my unbelief.  Please help me to believe, trust, rely on, and have confidence in You, oh LORD, with all my heart, mind, and soul.  I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Commitment:  I commit myself from today to believe, trust, rely on, and have confidence in You, oh LORD my God, with all my heart, mind, and soul, through Christ who strengthens me.  Amen!

Day 26 Undivided Service

Day 26

Undivided Service

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

(Matthew 6:24)

Undivided Service is the 18^th pillar

Undivided Service is the 18^th pillar that holds the temple of Truth!

Beloved, there is an illusion that comes from the bottomless pit straight into the pulpit which dares to defy God and contradict the words of our Lord Jesus Christ: that we can serve both God and money.  But this is a lie.  Men do not have the ability to focus on two things at once.  If your heart is totally set on serving God, you will not have time to chase money. The reverse is also true.  If your heart is set on money and being rich, you will not have time to serve God with all your heart. The devil knows that he cannot corrupt some godly men to stop serving God and lead them to serve money, so he created the ‘prosperity gospel’—supposedly serving God and serving money all at once.  But this will never work because it will require the compromising of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave a good confession before Satan:

“Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.’
 Then Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.”  (Matthew 4:8-10)

My dear beloved, this would not be a real temptation to the Lord Jesus Christ, if that which the devil was offering was not in his power to give.

                                                                                                            

For it is written again:

“Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, ‘All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.’  And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Get behind Me, Satan!’  For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”   (Luke 4:5-8)

Brethren, in the same way that the devil tempted our Lord Jesus Christ, even so, he is also after us, offering us that which he had offered the Lord Jesus.  Christ refused, and this is the example for us to follow. Even today the devil is saying to us:

“All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”  (Luke 4:6-7)

If riches, money, fame, glory, power, authority, and success are what your heart is seeking, I warn you, my dear beloved, be careful.  For the devil is watching all of us, and if you are yielding to these material things, the devil will make an offer to give you all your heart desires for one condition: that you serve him.  Oh no, the devil does not want you to leave the church, especially if you are a minister of the gospel.  Rather he will tell you what to do: to preach what people want to hear; to entertain the congregation; to make them happy; to tell them Jesus died for them so that they can be materially rich; to preach all things.  But he will tell you not to preach salvation through repentance, the power of the cross for deliverance from sin, and that the Holy Spirit was given to us to convict us of our sins and to teach us to cease to do evil and learn to good by the grace of God.

My dear beloved, this gospel as presented by the devil is very dangerous for the salvation of our souls, because it removes Christ from the center of our faith and replaces Him with material riches.  And yet, this is the gospel that is being preached by some very popular and very rich preachers.

What is it that the devil wants to accomplish with this?

“How you are fallen from heaven,
      O Lucifer, son of the morning!
      How you are cut down to the ground,
      You who weakened the nations!
        For you have said in your heart:
      ‘I will ascend into heaven,
      I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
      I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
      On the farthest sides of the north;
        I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
      I will be like the Most High.’
        Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol,
      To the lowest depths of the Pit.”  (Isaiah 14:12-15)

The devil desires to be like God.  He desires to receive worship.  He wants to be worshiped.  But he cannot achieve this by himself nor even with all his demons, so he has deceived some men to work for him, creating all sorts of religious systems all over the world that separate men from God.  But he is still not satisfied, because he cannot endure the legacy of Christ Jesus our Lord in our hearts, for though he has corrupted the world, there still remain some faithful to Christ Jesus our Lord: men who will not sell their soul for riches; men who refuse to serve money, but choose rather to serve God.

And the devil is angry with such men.  Why?

“Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

(Revelation 12:12)

The second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is at hand.  So the devil is using all his might to destroy the Church of God, which is pillar of the TRUTH that testifies against all his lies.

The devil needs men and women as his mouthpiece, for he cannot talk directly to us.  The devil needs other idols to receive worship, for he cannot be seen by us yet.  So he has set up his kingdom that elevates men to the level of God, and because of this the devil receives worship, for if you depart from God, you will worship the devil.  There is just no neutral ground.   But who is this man that the devil is using to accomplish his evil agenda before the second coming of Christ?

“Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4)

“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders.”  (2 Thessalonians 2: 8-9)

But who will believe the devil?

“And with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”  (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12)

My dear beloved, there are some men who think that they are equal with God, and they desire to be worshiped.  They go around deceiving the people for whom Christ died, and they have a very powerful system of support behind them. They will only succeed if we do not have the love of the Truth in our hearts. Let each one of us, therefore, study the Bible individually.  God will not leave us nor forsake us.  The Holy Spirit will teach us; however, we MUST have the love of Truth in our hearts; a love which comes by studying the Bible daily, in order that our minds may be able to test every spirit whether it is from God or from the wicked one, so that we may not be deceived:

                                                                                           

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”  (1 John 4:1)

Do not underrate them, my dear beloved, for this is a very powerful system.  Many of them are worshipping with us, but are not of us, for they are workers of the beast, to whom the dragon (devil) gave his power and authority.  They are in the church of God to lead us into joining them in worshipping the dragon (devil):

“So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” (Revelation 13:4)

 “All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”  (Revelation 13: 8)

But hear, oh spiritual Israel, the LORD our God is One.  And the LORD our God is commanding us:

“You shall have no other gods before Me.”  (Exodus 20:3)

Therefore, let us depart from such men and women, and serve the LORD our God with fear and trembling through our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave His life as a ransom for us to be saved.  The devil is trying to pervert the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, and we are having the symptoms of the Galatians:

 

 “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.  But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.”  (Galatians 1:6-10)

Finally, my dear beloved, fear not.  The LORD our God is with us.  And greater is God who lives in our hearts than the devil who is in the world. God has promised us, my dear beloved, that He will not leave us nor forsake us.  His protection and blessings will always be over us if we continue in the Truth.

Let us have the love of Truth in our hearts and continue in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ in all sincerity, who alone has immortality, who alone is blessed God forever.   Amen!

“Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”  (Joshua 24:14-15)   Amen!

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you, Amen!

Meditation:  I shall worship the LORD my God, and Him only I shall serve.

Prayer points:  LORD, please reveal Your Truth to me.  Give me the spirit of discernment that I may discern good from evil! I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Commitment:  I commit myself from today onwards to worship the LORD my God, and Him only shall I serve.  Amen!