WHO IS HE?

Where did He come from? Why did He come? What did He teach? Was He God in the flesh? Was He only a man? Why did He die? Did He rise from the dead? Was He born of a woman?

 

A Son who lived even before the foundation of the Earth;

 

A Son spoke about before his birth, by the prophets;

 

A Son, who made the nations anxious to meet and see;

 

A Son, given to us for redemption;

 

A Son, coming into the world like any other but not at all like any other;

 

A Son, so perfect, so pure, so loving and so kind;

 

A Son whose name is Jesus Christ;

 

A Son whose father is the Lord God Almighty;

 

Few will dispute that a man named Jesus lived over 2,000 years ago and that He was a great teacher who impacted the world before and from His time onwards. But He has always been a controversial figure. He made a CLAIM that was BREATHTAKING in its audacity—that He was the very SON OF GOD, the long-prophesied Messiah! Yet the religious authorities in Jerusalem rejected Him, hated Him and eventually thought had succeeded in having Him put to death.

 

Likewise, the local Roman civil authorities also saw Him as a threat and became complicit in His execution. The religions of His day, both Judaism and paganism, opposed the growth of His teachings and used unlawful and violent means to try to destroy the Church He founded. The government of Rome also came to vigorously persecute the followers of this Jewish teacher from Galilee.

 

Today Jesus Christ continues to be a controversial figure who continues to arouse passions. Many believe he lived Discover the true, fascinating story that so few understand—the story of the greatest Man who ever lived and His little-understood message! Many are so stubborn to take him at what he said a follow him

 

This season once again, as many thousands of years as has been celebrated, we once again have the privilege to celebrate His birth and challenge our selves as to why he came and for whom? Why we are celebrating the His birth?

 

He gave himself for us, because of Love, Kindness, Mercy. This Christmas season is our chance to make peace with our enemies, Love those you never ever wanted to love and give or share with everybody, Look beyond the physical and say something good about the next person because they need it.

 

Aaaaaam sooooooooooo excited about Christmas.

 

MERRY MERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A JOYOUS NEW YEAR TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY

"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"

A GLORIOUS CHURCH

EPHESIANS 5: 27

 

THAT HE MIGHT PRESENT IT TO HIMSELF A GLORIOUS CHURCH, NOT HAVING SPOT, OR WRINKLE, OR ANY SUCH THING; BUT THAT IT SHOULD BE HOLY AND WITHOUT BLEMISH.

 

A glorious church is one that is passionate about building the kingdom of God in our communities and in the world. Praise, marked by great beauty or splendor, delightful, wonderful,

 

Song of Solomon 4:7 Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee.

 

Philippians 2:14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, without blemish; without fault; unblemished, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.

 

James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

 

2 Peter 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

 

Jude 1:17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit. But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless without blemish; unblemished before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

 

Revelation 19:6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

 

 

Our theme comes from Ephesians 5:27; therefore, there can be no doubt that God intends for the church to be glorious. The Random House dictionary defines glorious as, "exalted praise, resplendent beauty..." Vine says it means, "held in honor, of high repute"; and, in this context he used such words as "splendid" and "gorgeously"

 

The word is used in the New Testament in reference to other things (nature, the eternal state of the redeemed, etc.); but, we are here concerned only with the church. What do we think when we hear the word "glorious"? It may be that we need to re-mold our thinking along these lines.

 

A glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." Take a careful look at the words, "without blemish", "holy", no "spot", and no "wrinkle". Perhaps these terms need no comment; but, they do show good reason to think of the church as "glorious". However, we need to carry this further.

 

What has God done, how has He designed the church so as to make it "glorious"?

 

The church is glorious because of the equality found therein. This begins with the "every creature" of Mark 16:15, and the "every one that believeth" of Romans 1:16. The gospel terms of pardon apply, absolutely, to every one alike; for, there is no respect of persons with God (Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11). The man of the ghetto or a king on the throne must all obey the same terms in order to be a part of His church. Then, in Ephesians 2, Paul argues the equality of Jew and Gentile in the church. In verse 14, he says, "For he is our peace, who hath made both one..." This equality most certainly exalts the church.

 

The church is glorious because of what holds it together - a bond of love for God, for Christ, and for one another. This gives emphasis to the fact that the church is composed of people, of individuals, individuals who first have a right relationship with God. Perhaps John gives us the best reason for our love of God and of Christ, "We love him because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). Jesus said that we are to love God with all our heart (Matthew 22:37). He who does this will not find it too difficult to love his brethren. Paul said, "the love of Christ constraineth us" (2 Corinthians 5:14); it compels or controls us, and that it should. In Colossians 3:14, Paul refers to love as a "bond"; and the same author says, "love never faileth" (1 Corinthians 13:8). Faith, itself, is to work by love (Gal. 5:6). A while back I read where someone quoted a first-century writer as saying, in reference to persecuted Christians, "Behold how they loved one another!" This love for brethren, of all ranks in life, is wonderful to behold and to experience. Indeed, how wonderful it is to deal with people who no longer lie, steal, cheat, deceive, are envious. or hurtful; but who's love for the truth abounds in their lives and relationships with brethren. Jesus said, "This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you." This bond of love certainly can be seen to give greater honor to the church.

 

Thirdly, our eternal hope is to be found in the church. "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" (1 Corinthians 15:19). Let it be understood, that the church is not the Saviour; Christ is that Saviour. However, Christ saves all accountable people, only through the church. Paul tells the Ephesian Christians that in their past they had no hope and were without God is this world (Ephesians 2:12); but, he goes on to point out that they are now "made nigh by the blood of Christ" and their hope is secure. This hope, which they had heard through the preaching of the gospel, is laid up in heaven (Colossians 1:5). We are urged to put on for a helmet, "the hope of salvation" (1 Thess.5:8). What wonderful hope! It is an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast (Hebrews 6:19)!

 

The church is glorious because the wisdom of our God can be seen, by the world, in observing the church.  

The glory of the church is not something merely to be seen.

 

So it is with the church! It gives one a feeling of awe just to observe this glorious church; but, the real enjoyment comes from getting down off our "observation posts" and sharing in those things that make it a glorious church. Each participant is assisting in demonstrating God's wisdom to the world. What a glorious arrangement God has given!

 

Many do not recognize and appreciate this aspect of God's church. And, this may well be the reason why some are unhappy in the church; and, it may be the reason many see no difference between the Lord's church and the denominations. Let us all labor to remove every spot and blemish (sins), from this great and glorious church, beginning with ourselves. I think I understand what Paul meant by a "glorious church". Do you?

"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"

THANKSGIVING!

PSALMS 100: 4

 

“ENTER INTO HIS GATES WITH THANKSGIVING, AND INTO HIS COURTS WITH PRAISE. BE THANKFUL TO HIM, AND BLESS HIS NAME”.

 

 

One of the great commandments is to give thanksgiving to God, for all He has done for us. In Psalms 100:4 we are taught to, "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name." Christ, himself, was the perfect example of obeying this commandment.

Remember Him and the best way to show true thanksgiving to God is to always remembering Him. Remembering Him means that He is a part of our thoughts, words, and deeds. It is impossible to give gratitude to God if we never think or speak of Him. When we remember Him we are choosing to think, speak, and act as He would have us do. We can also memorize scriptures to help us remember to give thanksgiving to God.

Recognize His Hand, know what he is capable of, know or educate yourself of the bigger picture of what he is about, His hand in our lives. What blessings has he given to you? Think of your life, health, home, city, and country. Ask yourself what, exactly, about your home or country is a blessing? How about your skills, talents, education, and job? Think about those times that seemed like a coincidence, did you overlook God's hand in your life? Did you think of God's greatest gift, His Son, Jesus Christ? You will be amazed at how many blessings you truly have. Now you can show thanksgiving to God for them.

Give Thanksgiving in Prayer; one-way of showing our thanksgiving to God is through prayer. When we communicate regularly with a friend our relationship grows stronger, When should spend more time in prayer, speaking to the father and getting to know him

"Prayer is also an essential part of conveying appreciation to our Heavenly Father. He awaits our expressions of gratefulness each morning and night in sincere, simple prayer from our hearts for our many blessings, gifts, and talents.

"Through expression of prayerful gratitude and thanksgiving, we show our dependence upon a higher source of wisdom and knowledge.... We are taught to 'live in thanksgiving daily.' (Even if you've never prayed before, you can learn how to pray. All are invited to give thanksgiving to God in prayer.

Repentance of Sins alone is an amazing blessing for which we should give thanksgiving to God, yet it is one of the most powerful ways in which we can show unto Him our gratitude. Changing the way we think and looking to Jesus as our savoir

"Gratitude is also the foundation upon which repentance is built.

"The Atonement brought mercy through repentance to balance justice.... Repentance is essential to salvation. We are mortal—we are not perfect—we will make mistakes. When we make mistakes and do not repent, we suffer."

Not only does repentance cleanse us of our sins but it makes us worthy to receive additional blessings, which the Lord is eager to bestow upon us. Repentance truly is a simple, yet powerful, way to give thanksgiving to God.

Obey His CommandmentsOur Heavenly Father gave us everything we have. He gave us our lives, to live here on earth, and the only thing he asks of us is to obey his commandments. "I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning...if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

"And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you"

Serve Others I believe that one of the most profound ways in which we can truly give thanksgiving to God is through serving him by serving others. He told us that, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" (Matt 25:40). Thus, we know that to give thanksgiving to God we can serve Him, and to serve Him all we need to do is serve others.

Express Gratitude to Others,When others help or serve us they, in turn, are serving God. In a way, when we express our gratitude to those who serve us we are truly showing thanksgiving to God. We can easily acknowledge the service of others by saying "thank you", sending a card or quick email, or with just a nod of the head, a smile, or a wave of the hand. It doesn't take much effort to say thank you and the more we do the easier it will be.

9Have an Attitude of Gratitude, The Lord created us to be happy. When we choose to have a positive attitude and to live our lives in joy we are showing our thanksgiving to God. We are showing to Him that we are grateful for our very life, which he's given to us. When we are negative we are not.

"If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues"

 

We can choose to have an attitude of gratitude, just as we can choose to have a bad attitude. Which do you think God would have us choose?

Choose to be Humble, Humility begets gratitude while pride begets ingratitude. In the parable of the pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:9-14) Jesus Christ taught what happens to those who are lifted up in pride and those who are humble. He said, "For every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted" (Luke 18:14). In the face of adversity we must make a choice. We can react to our afflictions by becoming humble and thankful, or we can become angry and bitter. As we choose to be humble we are showing thanksgiving to God. We are showing to Him that we have faith in Him, that we trust Him. We may not know God's plan for us, but as we humble ourselves, especially in adversity, we are submitting ourselves to His will.

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good and His Mercies endureth forever.

"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"

WHEN IS IT TIME TO SAY NO?

PSALMS 38: 1-end

 

We were discussing this topic last week Friday at the Office, and one brother was talking about how his family was going through the Mother to give them money and he was so angry about it and he said he couldn’t take it any more, so he brought  it up during the meeting and asked is it right for him to get emotional?

 

One of the Sister said it is right and I added we are allowed to get emotional cos that’s part of humanity but what you do with your emotions matters, I gave examples like swearing at others, shouting, and getting aggressive, that is not right.

 

Something else came up, it was  this one lady who was once in a higher position of employment and was now looking for a job at our offices, which was for a lower position but because of her poor judgments in that higher position  A brother who knew her said “ I will make sure that she does not get a Job here reason being that I have seen her at that higher level and she made lots of poor judgments, so I think she is not able to apply the rules generally and yet we require somebody who can read the rule and apply them”.

 

I asked don’t you think we are being tough on her? Maybe she needs another chance and she has realized her mistakes so she wants to start over. One asked how we would know whether she has changed? But how could we know unless we gave her a chance?

 

A sister says that she sowed a bad seed and now she is reaping what she sowed, And that was to much for me, and I said that we are Christians and why are we looking at this person the way the world is looking at her, we know better than that, why don’t we look at her just as Christ would look at her. One Brother commented that I was getting Emotional and I said we have all done bad things, bad decisions and if we brought people who know us to come and tell it all where ever we went we would all be rejects in one area or another.

 

They didn’t want to get the point and the meeting was adjourned, I went home, but I was heavy, I said to God am tired of living around people who don’t want to be changed by the word of God, Christians but living like anyone else WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?

 

The Bible says we are supposed to be Christ like One of the first steps in becoming Christlike is to adopt the mindset of Christ. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:” (Philippians 2:5) When we choose to surrender our lives and our will to God, we take a first step on the path towards a Christ like mind. We are using our will to choose God over the world, just as Christ did when He went to the cross for our sakes. Many of the characteristics of Christ-like kindness, goodness, forgiveness, patience and obedience, will be obtained by first using our will to make a decision to change.

 

Once we make a choice to become more Christ like, the Holy Spirit takes us further. “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 3:18) We give our willingness and the Holy Spirit begins the transformation of our spirit to a Christ-like spirit. His work in us is what makes the transformation possible.

 

Our total commitment to Christ is what makes it possible for the Holy Spirit to transform us into Christ-like beings. Look at the example of Matthew: “And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.” (Matthew 9:9) While the other disciples had trades they could return to if they needed, Matthew was a tax collector and when he left his booth to follow Christ, he left behind his ability to earn a living. That took total commitment and faith and that is the kind of commitment we must make to be transformed.

 

 

Choosing discipleship to Christ was Matthew’s way of expressing his total commitment. The point of discipleship is to become like the teacher. “It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord.” (Matthew 10:25a) While Matthew was able to follow the human Christ, we also choose to be disciples and we follow the teachings of Christ. In these teachings we learn what our teacher was like and as His Spirit is revealed to our spirit, we become more like Him

 

Choosing discipleship to Christ was Matthew’s way of expressing his total commitment. The point of discipleship is to become like the teacher. “It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord.” (Matthew 10:25a) While Matthew was able to follow the human Christ, we also choose to be disciples and we follow the teachings of Christ. In these teachings we learn what our teacher was like and as His Spirit is revealed to our spirit, we become more like Him.

 

 

Matthew’s commitment shows us that he made a significant sacrifice to follow Christ. We may be called on for such a sacrifice some day, too. “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.” (Mark 8:35) This is where the rubber meets the road and our true commitment to Christ is revealed. In the U.S., we have not had to make many sacrifices for our faith but in many other countries, Christians have been tried terribly for their dedication to Christ. It bears thinking about how much we are willing to sacrifice for Christ. The answer will reveal a great deal about our commitment and how far we have come in the journey to become Christ-like.

 

 

What characteristics reveal Christ in us? Humility will probably be on the top of the list. “And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:” (Matthew 20:27) God came to us on earth not as a richly robed king but as a penniless teacher, a servant. He suffered shame and degradation for our sakes. Are we willing to suffer the same for His sake? Are we willing to be like Him that even when our sins were so many and so bad he didn’t talk about them with everybody or even with the Angels before he came to die for us and forgave us? Despite our sins he still came as a friend.

 

Many times God tried to reconcile us with him but we still disappointed him until he gave his son, and even now we know what God had to give to save us but we still go back to our old ways, we still sin knowing what great price he paid, the pain He went through, can you imagine he didn’t give up on us! So who are we mere mortals to try and give up on others, looking at them with a judging eye because of what they have done or are doing, Just like Christ why don’t we come with a desire to help.

 

 

If we do, it will show our love for others. Jesus suffered for us because He loved us. He asks us to love each other in return. “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) The progress of our transformation can probably be gauged by our love for others. And, not just the people that are easy to love, but our love for those who have hurt us, too.

 

 

Loving those who have hurt us requires forgiveness. Christ came to us to make forgiveness for our sins possible. We didn’t earn or deserve forgiveness; He gave it to us anyway. He had every right to not forgive us but he forgave us anyway. He is our example of how we are to forgive. “Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.” (Colossians 3:13) Even if we have every right to not forgive, we MUST do it anyway to become Christ-like.

 

Christlike behavior includes spreading the gospel. Jesus came to save us but He also came to teach us. “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19) He passed on the responsibility of teaching to us. Telling the Good News that Jesus brought us carries on His work and makes us more like Him.

 

As we teach we also learn and grow till we no longer find the old dead spirit in us but see Christ in us. “Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, “ (Philippians 3:21a) The change will be gradual and we will slide backwards sometimes. It will not be complete on earth, either, but we should strive to become as much like our beloved Savior as we can while we are in this world. Only in heaven will the work be completed in us: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)

 

We cannot make ourselves Christ-like, we must rely on the Holy Spirit to do that work. Our job is to be willing to change and to walk in the changes the Spirit makes in us. We must be committed to change completely. When we are, the love of Christ will shine from us and we will become forgiving and humble teachers of the Gospel. Remember “…that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: (Philippians 1:6)

  

MORE GRACE FOR YOU BELOVED, IN JESUS’ NAME.

"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"

फॉर थे लोर्ड इस गुड.

FOR THE LORD IS GOOD.

(Psalms 68:4): “Sing to God, sing praises to His name; Lift up a song for Him who rides through the deserts, whose name is the LORD, and exult before Him”.

What can we give to Him? He is the Provider! Shall we give him that which belongs to Him? But we can sing praises to Him, His name, with our voices lifted up, a song for he who passes through the desert so it could rain. Deserts are the unpleasant situations that you are going through, The Lord is riding through the deserts, what will he find you doing? Crying? Cursing? Pitying yourself? Complaining? Waiting for a human being to come help? Criticising? Or blaming everybody else for all your problems, STOP!! Don’t waste your breath, lift up your voice and praise God so that when he rides through the deserts can hear you and come to your rescue.

(Psalm 100:5) For the LORD is good; His loving kindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations.
Our God is so good that He loves us even today after all that we have done knowingly or unknowingly that it is wrong he still listens to us when we call on him, all because of His loving kindness that is everlasting, His faithfulness, to all the promises to us His people and to all generations.
(Psalm 119:68) You are good and do good; Teach me Your statutes.
The Lord is Good and He does good, Let us yawn to know His statues, precepts and his laws so we can learn how to Love him and others, so we can live to see His promises to us come true.
(Psalm 147:1) Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant and praise is becoming.
Praise Our Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God, Every body needs to be praised at some point in life, because of what is going on around them or because they deserve it, Some get jealous/broken down when others are Praised and some become happy when others are praised, When we praise God we are in warfare we are breaking yokes and bondages and satan the enemy is not happy. So don’t stop Praising God and do it with a pure heart.
Praise the Lord our God for He is good and His mercy endures forever.


"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"

BE HUMBLE

"TO LOVE AND TO SERVE"
BE HUMBLE

PROVERBS 15:32-33
If you refuse to learn, you are hurting yourself. If you accept correction, you will become wiser.
Reverence for the Lord is an education in its self. You must be humble before you can ever receive honors.

Whoever makes himself great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be made great..

Oh perhaps you despise his great kindness, tolerance, and Patience. Surely you know that God is kind because he is trying to lead you to repent. But you have a stubborn heart, and so you are making your own punishment even greater on the day when God’s anger and righteous judgments will be revealed.

Happy are those who are humble; they will receive what God has promised.

Having humility, despite of status background, sex, gender, rich or poor, sick or healthy, We ought to be there for one another at all time with the Lord as our Strengthener, provider, director and protector.

Its not about how we feel at certain times, its about sticking to what the word of God says no matter what we are going through and take God at His word reminding him of what He said/promised He would do.

WATCHMEN BE HUMBLE.