STARTING WELL WITH GOD

It is with great joy that I welcome you to year 2016 our year of EXCEEDING TRANSFORMATION and to the blog of The Glorious Family of Cherubim and Seraphim Movement Church Worldwide, Emmanuel District Branch. We are a growing Church with a vision “to live together and grow together”. There are resources here designed to enrich your spiritual life and we believe you will be blessed as we start our series with “STARTING WELL WITH GOD”

STARTING WELL WITH GOD

How many of you, “would like to have a fresh start in your Christian life?” Many of us have made many mistakes in our lives as Christians. We have experienced many setbacks and failures throughout our lives. Sometimes we allow these mistakes, these setbacks and failures to enslave us to the point that we never enjoy the full Christian life that God has given us to enjoy. 

In John 10:10 Jesus said, “I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” Then he goes on to tell us that there is an adversary, called the Devil that seeks to still, kill and destroy that life. The Devil will remind us of our past in order to keep us from enjoying the life that God gave us to live. The Devil does not want you to have a fresh start in life. 

The good news is, God says, “I want you to have a fresh start in life, I want you to have a new beginning, I want to do something new in your life.” Aren’t you glad that God wants to do something new in your life? Doesn’t it make you excited to know that God desire to give you a fresh start, a new beginning in life in 2016? What all of us here need is a Fresh Start, a New Beginning with God. Last year some of you said, “I am going to grow in my relationship with God. I am going to pray more, read my bible more and get more involved in my church. I’m going to spend more quality time with my family. ” The list could go on. The fact all of us here made some mistakes or we made some bad decision that hindered us from doing those things that wanted to do.

Well the good news is according to Isaiah 43:18 “The Lord says, `forget about what has happened before. Do not think about the past. Instead, look at the new things I’m going to do. ” Listen to what God is saying in this verse. Forget about what’s happened before. He says don’t think about the past. It’s over. The book’s closed on it. 

We need to understand that God is far more interested in our future than He is in our past. Some people think that God is stuck on their past. That all He wants to do is remind them of the things that they have done wrong. God is more interested in your future than He is with your past. That’s where you’re going to spend the rest of your life. He says, “Forget about your past. Forget about the former things. Don’t think about it. Look at the new thing I’m going to do.” 

Israel was being punished for their sins and rebellion against God. God wanted to give hope and encouragement to His people. He wanted them to know that even though they were being punished they were not being forsaken. God wanted His people to understand that the punishment that they were experiencing would not be the end of them. The fact is that God want to give them a fresh start in life, a new Beginning in life. 

Israel no doubt was discouraged because they thought this was the end of them. They had gone too far, they had sinned and rebelled against God to the point that He would no longer be their God. Maybe they thought God would not deliver us again, it’s over. That is when they begin to remember the former things or past deliverances. Israel could remember past deliverances and past victories. They could remember when they were trapped by the Red Sea and had nowhere to go, how God made away for them. They could remember that when the enemy was about to overtake them how He provided protection for them. They could remember the former things, but they couldn’t see their future. That is why God said; “I am going to do something new.

Maybe that is where you are now! You feel that you have made so many mistakes, you have failed God so many times and you have sinned it all away. Now God doesn’t want anything to do with you. You feel and believe that you have no future with God. The good news is, God is saying, “It’s not over, I have plans for your life. I am about to do something new for you. ” 

To be continued....

A PRODUCTIVE AND FRUITFUL CHRISTIAN II

In Philippians 2, we have a checklist of a different sort—qualities of a productive Christian servant. The first several verses of this chapter describe a servant leader as they reveal the mind of Christ and His humility. But then Paul turns a corner and gives a series of personal admonishments. In these verses, we see five characteristics of a Christian servant: 

1. CONSISTENT

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.—Philippians 2:12

As spiritual leaders, isn’t this the verse that we pray for our children, Sunday school classes, church families—those we lead in any area? We desire that their Christian walk would be consistent at all times.

Our own walk should also be consistent! There shouldn’t be a duplicity in who we are “on the job” compared to who we are when we are with our families or alone with our thoughts.

There should be unquestionable, predictable constants in our lives that include integrity, graciousness, humility, and faithfulness.

2. YIELDED

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.—Philippians 2:13

We tend to put a great deal of emphasis on what we do, but this verse reminds us that it starts in what we will. To be who God wants us to be, we must surrender our wills to Him and allow Him to shape our desires.

3. RIGHT SPIRIT

Do all things without murmurings and disputings:—Philippians 2:14

When we find ourselves murmuring about everything and disputing with everyone, we can be sure that our circumstances and our co-laborers are not the problem. It is our heart that needs to be adjusted. Generally, a riled spirit is a sign of an unyielded heart. When I find my spirit is agitated, I do well to remember Philippians 2:13 and yield to the Lord to make me willing for a changed heart.

4. GODLY TESTIMONY

That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;—Philippians 2:15

Do we not live in a crooked and perverse nation? Then we have all the more reason to shine with untainted lights.

Blameless is an interesting and important word. It means unsubstantiated.People can say anything they want to tarnish our character and cast aspiration on our motives—and they do! But it is our responsibility to see that none of it is true.

5. WITNESS FOR CHRIST

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.—Philippians 2:16

Paul’s epistles are rich in athletic metaphors. The picture in this verse is of a runner extending his lit torch while finishing his race. We can’t control the darkness around us, but we can keep holding forth the word of life—we can continue to preach the gospel and invest our lives in eternity.

I look forward to “the day of Christ,” and it is my heart’s desire that I will have run faithfully and laboured fruitfully until that day.

These verses from Philippians 2 challenge me to look past my to do lists and run with a quality of heart that brings honour to the Lord.

A PRODUCTIVE AND FRUITFUL CHRISTIAN

Fruit can be either good or bad (Matthew 7:18; Luke 6:43). Romans 7:5 says, “For when we were in the realm of the flesh . . . we bore fruit for death.” A fruitful Christian will produce better results: “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life” (Proverbs 11:30). Fruit is the direct result of whatever controls our hearts (Matthew 15:19). The fruit of a life not surrendered to Jesus includes “sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage,” and many more evil acts (Galatians 5:19–20). In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit of God is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22–23).

If we are going to be productive and fruitful Christians, then we need to live by the same principles that Jesus taught his disciples. What are the principles that will enable each of us to live a productive life?

God the Father is the gardener (John 15:1), and He desires us to be fruitful. Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). As branches cling to the vine, we cling to Christ, drawing our very life from Him. The goal is “much fruit,” as Christ uses us to bring about blessed, celestial results in a broken, fallen world.

When we have committed ourselves to Christ and live to please Him, the natural result is behavioural choices that look like His. He was clear that true followers of Christ will be recognizable by their fruit: “Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:16–20).

There are many ways Christians can be fruitful. True fruitfulness begins in the heart with the fruit of the Spirit. That inner fruit affects outward actions; our words and our activities will glorify the Lord, and God’s will is accomplished. God’s desire is to transform us into the image of Christ (Romans 8:29) and make us as fruitful as He was. In our allegiance to Him, we want to be characterized by good works (Ephesians 2:10; Titus 2:7;Colossians 1:10), humility (Ephesians 4:2; Titus 3:2), and forgiveness (Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13). We want to always be ready to “give an account for the hope that is within you” (1 Peter 3:15). We desire to be the “good soil” Jesus spoke of in the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13:3–9. The result of spiritual fruitfulness is that God is glorified, we grow, and others come to know Christ—this is the ultimate fruitfulness for a child of God (Matthew 5:16; Acts 20:26–27; Mark 16:15).

ENLARGE THY TENT -PART 2

“Enlarge the place of your tent” means “widen your heart.” God does not want his people to sit around feeling sorry for themselves. He does not want us to be selfish. Sometimes we feel sorry for ourselves for good reasons: we have health problems, marriage problems, financial problems, relationship problems. We find ourselves thinking about ourselves and worrying a lot. Jesus summed up God’s commands by saying, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbour as yourself.” God’s people cannot be self-centred or even family-centred. We must open our hearts to the people around us who need Jesus

Stretch your tent curtains wide. This means, “See God’s vision. A near-sighted person wears thick lenses in his glasses. He can only see what is right in front of his nose. He only looks for things that are for his own benefit. He asks, “What’s in it for me? But God is not near-sighted. He has a vision for the whole world. A barren woman has no need for a bigger tent. But God’s command is to „Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide.“ This tells her that she does need a bigger tent. God’s command–„Enlarge the place of your tent; stretch your tent curtains wide“–tells this sorrowful woman, Israel, to have God’s vision.

Lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. If one makes the place of his tent larger, he must have longer tent ropes and he must hammer the tent stakes deeper into the ground. Firstly, we can lengthen our cords by believing the promises of God and acting on those promises. Abraham began his life of faith when he believed God’s promise, „I will make your name great; I will make you into a great nation; I will bless you and you will be a blessing. “ Abraham caught God’s vision. He believed God’s promise and obeyed God’s word. He left his home country and his family and friends and went to the land God showed him. He lengthened his cords. This was the first step in becoming a father of many nations–the first step in becoming a man with God’s vision. Secondly, we must strengthen our stakes by deep Bible study and much prayer. We cannot do God’s work with human zeal. Even if we catch a glimpse of God’s vision for the world, we cannot do anything unless we learn to depend on God in prayer and learn to listen to and obey his word. God’s word has life giving power and life-changing power. God gave us his word and taught us its power. We have received this legacy. We pray that we may be used to share the word of God, the word of truth with a confused and hungry world.

Prayer lengthens our cords and strengthens our stakes. During the study of Acts, I was moved by Peter’s dependence on the Bible. He based every message on the word of God. In Luke 24:45, Jesus opened the minds of his disciples to understand the Scriptures. Jesus was a Bible teacher. He wants his disciples to also be Bible teachers. When we seek to obey Jesus’ world mission command, God blesses us. Isaiah 54: 3 says, For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities.“ This reminds us of God’s promise to Abraham, „…Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed.“ (Genesis 22:17-18) To be conquered by men is a curse, but to be conquered by God is the way of blessing. Also, God’s people were empty, fruitless and without hope. But God had hope for them and for the world. So they must take hold of God’s hope and not give up. God had and still has hope to evangelize the whole world through his people. Isaiah 54: 5 says, for your Maker is your Husband–the Lord Almighty is his name–the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth.” We are weak and helpless. But our God is great. He loves us like a husband loves his defenceless wife. Israel was once unfaithful to God, he punished them by sending them into Babylonian captivity. But he didn’t stop loving them. He would bring them back. “With everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you, says the Lord your Redeemer.” Our God is the Father of the Prodigal Son. He longs for his people to return to him.

We love God because he first loved us. But sometimes we sin. We love ourselves and the world more, so we are unfaithful to our Husband, God. God is very sorry. We suffer for our sins, but God does not abandon us. He welcomes us. He doesn’t stop loving us. Our lives can be fruitful only by the grace of our true Husband and Redeemer, God. When we are united with him through a vine and branch relationship with Jesus, our lives can bear fruit to God. His Holy Spirit indwells us. When his word is in us and we are in the word, we bear fruit. Let us renew our love relationship with Jesus. Let us rejoice in our true Husband, the almighty redeemer and Lord of all the earth. Let us enlarge the place of our tents and stretch our tent curtains wide. Let us strengthen our stakes and lengthen our cords and be a blessing to the world.

ENLARGE THY TENT

“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back;lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes" Isaiah 54:2

Prophet Isaiah was addressing the people of Israel who had been taken into Babylonian captivity because of their unfaithfulness to God. They had become like a desolate woman. It is amazing that God gave this command and vision to his people Israel at a time when they were at their lowest point. God spoke through his servant Isaiah to plant God’s hope in the hearts of hopeless and despairing people. God is a God of mercy and forgiveness. Furthermore, God still had a purpose and a plan for his people, even though their situation seemed hopeless. His purpose would take a surprising turn. So in verse 1, Isaiah says to this barren, desolate woman, “Sing, O barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labour because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband.” God had a plan to make this desolate people fruitful. He had a plan to save them and bless them and use them to be a blessing to the world.

The people had broken their relationship with God their Creator and true Husband. Before the relationship could be restored, he had to deal with the sin problem. In Isaiah 53, God gave them the promise of the Messiah. “Isaiah 53:4-8 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, … he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed…and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” God’s plan to save his people and the world starts with the promised Messiah who would take all of our sins on himself and give us healing and peace and a right relationship with our God. Jesus would be the great and real fulfilment of this prophesy.

In Isaiah 54, he describes the sorrowful and hopeless situation of the returning exiles. The good news is that he loves them. He would heal their wounds and take away their sins. So, even the sinful people have hope. God’s grace is free to sinners who receive it, but it is costly to God. In Isaiah 54, God plants hope in their hearts, he confesses his love for them and promises to redeem them. So he says, „Sing, burst into to song, shout for joy, because the children of the desolate woman are more than those of her who has a husband, says the LORD. He acknowledges that they are without hope and with joy or meaning in life, then he challenges this despairing woman to do something that seems impossible for her to do. He says, “burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labour;” He promises her that she will not end her life as a desolate woman. He gives her hope and vision. He says, “Enlarge the place of your tent.”

Our broken relationship with our God must be healed. We need to claim God’s promised Messiah as our Saviour, Lord and King. We accept his forgiveness and healing. We accept his love. He is our true Husband. Verse 5 says, “your Maker is your Husband–the Lord Almighty is his Name. He alone gives us freedom. He prayed, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Our hope is in the Risen Jesus who will come again in power and glory to establish his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. This is our ultimate hope. God’s word gives vision and hope.

Isaiah acknowledges the hopeless situation of God’s people. He says that they were like a barren woman. But in spite of their situation God has vision and hope for them.” He is the one who will make them fruitful. He challenges them to sing for joy, and to enlarge the place of their tent. He challenges them to reach out to draw the whole world into the tent of God. When the promises of God come into our hearts, fear, despair, grudges and bitterness go out. May God’s promises and God’s hope come into our hearts. May he help us to enlarge the place of our tents and stretch our curtains wide. May he help us widen our hearts and minds. May he help us embrace the sorrowful and sin-sick people of our world with his love. How can we do this? How can we enlarge the place of our tent and stretch our curtains wide?

DON'T BE DISCOURAGED

“Moses went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens.”
Exodus 2:11

Moses saw the oppression of his people and felt certain that he was the one to deliver them, and in the righteous indignation of his own spirit he started to right their wrongs. After the first strike for God and for the right, God allowed Moses to be driven into blank discouragement, He sent him into the desert to feed sheep for forty years. At the end of that time, God appeared and told Moses to go and bring forth His people, and Moses said – “Who am I, that I should go?” In the beginning Moses realized that he was the man to deliver the people, but he had to be trained and disciplined by God first. He was right in the individual aspect, but he was not the man for the work until he had learned communion with God.

We may have the vision of God and a very clear understanding of what God wants, and we start to do the thing, then comes something equivalent to the forty years in the wilderness, as if God had ignored the whole thing, and when we are thoroughly discouraged God comes back and revives the call, and we get the quaver in and say – “Oh, who am I?” We have to learn the first great stride of God – “I AM THAT I AM hath sent thee.” We have to learn that our individual effort for God is an impertinence; our individuality is to be rendered incandescent by a personal relationship to God (see Matthew). We fix on the individual aspect of things; we have the vision – “This is what God wants me to do;” but we have not got into God’s stride. If you are going through a time of discouragement, there is a big personal enlargement ahead.

POTTER'S HOUSE EXPERIENCE

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord:  “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.”  So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jeremiah 18:1-4

Jeremiah was facing difficult times and the Lord wanted to teach him a special lesson, so that He could understand why such hard times were coming upon the nation of Israel. So He sent Jeremiah to the house of the potter where Jeremiah started to understand God’s truths. Jeremiah saw the skill and wisdom of the potter as he formed and fashioned a pot on his turning wheel – and as he fired and baked the pot in the furnace of fire. Through all the twists and turns of the rotating wheel as well as the heat of baking kiln, the artistry and skill of the potter was used to shape and mould and form and complete whatever vessel the potter in his wisdom chose to make. And if the clay in the hands of the potter was ruined in process – he would set to, to refashion it into another vessel – a good vessel – a vessel that seems right to him

We are like that clay that has been taken up by our heavenly Potter to be fashioned and formed as He thinks best. The daily round of life and the common tasks we face seem to go round in circles – and the fires of affliction and pressures of life at times seem hard to bear. But we are His children. We are the clay in the hands of our Father, Who is shaping, molding, forming and completing us into the person He wants us to be – a vessel fit for His use. Sometimes we think we should be up and doing for the Lord, if we are to become a useful vessel for Him. But the picture of the potter demonstrates that the vessel that stays patiently in the hands of our heavenly Potter, as He carries out His best purpose in our lives, is the one that will be formed and fashioned as is best for us.

Let us trust ourselves into the hands of our heavenly Potters hands for they were wounded for us. He will shape us and mold us and fashion us and form us into the vessel that is best pleasing to Him. But sometimes, as He turns us on the rotating wheel of life – we become dissatisfied with His training. Sometime as He squeezes us into the shape of His choice, it can become so uncomfortable. Sometimes as we are being baked in the fiery kiln of life – the pressures we face become unbearable – When this happens just remember that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.

 

Stay Blessed