LOVE: THE FATHER’S WAY

“And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another” – 2John 1:5

LIGHT FOR NOW: Love-life is God manifesting Himself through you as He lived out Himself through Jesus.

Christianity is founded on love. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. When you received Christ into your life, the nature of God was imparted into you and one of those natures of God that you received is love. This love-life is God manifesting Himself through you as He lived out Himself through Jesus. The bible reveals to us the love of God to a sinner man who doesn’t deserve it; the bible shows us the demonstration of God’s love for the unqualified. It is not a feeling of emotional love within man’s perception, but it is a love that surpasses feelings and emotions; it is a love that is demonstrated in what is done but not what is said. In other words, God’s love was not seen in speeches, God’s love was seen in action. The love of God was revealed in God’s intent and action. The love of God is not reactive but proactive; God’s love for humanity is seen and demonstrated in his foreknowledge.

God delivering Jesus into wicked hands was the love of God in demonstration; he didn’t influence the wicked hands to do what they did on Jesus; his role simply was to deliver Jesus into their hands. Peter says this in Acts 2:23-24 “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.” Hence, God’s plan which he marked out ahead of time (that is, his foreknowledge, determinate counsel), was to deliver Jesus into the hands of the wicked who killed him and to raise him up after he was killed. Therefore, the death and resurrection of Jesus which made salvation available to all men is the love of God. Conclusively, Jesus is the gift of God’s love, Jesus is the revelation of God’s love, Jesus is God’s love dispensed, Jesus is God’s love revealed, and Jesus is God’s love manifest. Glory!

INSTRUCTION: You must manifest your Father’s nature!

CONFESSION: I am a product of love. I am saved because God dispensed His love through His son, Jesus. Just like my Father, love is my nature; therefore, I walk in love always, in Jesus Name, Amen.

QUOTE: Love is God’s love manifest.

DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: ACTS CHAPTER 2 EVENING: EPHESIANS CHAPTER 2

THE CHOSEN VESSEL

 “But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the Children of Israel.” – Acts 9:15

LIGHT FOR NOW: God looks among the people and elects a vessel based on His choice, and not based on human imagination.

The text for today speaks on God’s unwavering love for the lost. Being a vessel for God isn’t a matter of readiness but of God’s choice. In all of God’s choice to appoint men into His service, God takes the task of sieving through the minds of men and appoints the man that suits the available task. This is evident as shown in Exodus 3 as God picked a reluctant man (Moses) to be the valiant man who led the deliverance of the Israelites from the wicked whip of Pharaoh’s oppression. The attitude of God in electing vessels for His use is based solely on grace and not works, lest any man should boast.

Though the Bible speaks of vessels unto honor and vessels unto dishonor, the Bible teaches that God doesn’t make a mistake when He chooses a vessel as he commands the chosen man to remain steadfast in his ways as shown in 1Kings 3:14 where God commanded King Solomon to remain in the path of his father, David. This command was to enable Solomon remain as a vessel fit for the Master’s use. In our placements, God in his grace has made us vessels for His use and if we remain steadfast in His ways, we remain firmly placed in His love and are able to do exceedingly great exploits. Glory!!!

INSTRUCTION: Stay steadfast in God’s ways.

CONFESSION: I stay glued in the ways of God even as I am a vessel for the fulfillment of His plan for humanity, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: God can choose a man even where men refuse to recognize such man’s existence!

DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: JOHN CHAPTER 4 EVENING: JOHN CHAPTER 5

THE BELIEVER’S VICTORY IN CHRIST (2)

“And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” – Revelation 1:17-18

LIGHT FOR NOW: Jesus’ victory is the believer’s victory.

Jesus resurrection is paramount to the Christian faith. Apostle Paul made this clear in 1st Corinthians 15:16- 18. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. Jesus mission appeared to have failed and ended when he died on the cross.

During his earthly ministry, he had told the disciples that he will die but also, will he resurrect. “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:38). On other occasion he said, he would be killed but on the third day he will be risen. The Pharisees knew all necessary measures to keep him in the grave. All the measures taken to keep Christ in the tomb only made His victory over death and the grave very loud. The actions of the chief priest and the Pharisees revealed how afraid they were of our lord Jesus Christ even in his death. However, Jesus victory over the kingdom of darkness was secured on the cross and confirmed by the empty grave. Though Jesus’ humanity died, His divinity was very much alive. In Christ’s divinity, He possessed the power and authority to break the bonds of death. Glory!

INSTRUCTION: Walk in the victory purchased for you by Christ.

CONFESSION: I believe in the victory behind Christ resurrection from the grave, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: Jesus Victory over the kingdom of darkness was secured on the cross and confirmed by the empty grave.

DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: 2CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 4 EVENING: ROMANS CHAPTER 5

WE ARE SAVED BY GRACE

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” – Ephesians 2:8

LIGHT FOR NOW: Salvation is not your work; it is His work. 

The doctrine of salvation has been taught by many with conditions on human performance. Obviously, salvation is not conditioned on human performance; it is what Jesus did in His death, burial and resurrection. Salvation is the pure work of God; and thus man has no contribution whatsoever to it. The only part man has in salvation is to receive what has been provided. Hence, man’s part is to believe in what grace has made available. A man is not saved by good works. Your good works are good but it is not equivalent to faith in Christ. Faith in Christ is the highest good before God. So you are not saved by your good works, rather you are saved unto good works. That is, the good works is not for salvation, the good works are after salvation; it is a proof of spiritual growth. In verse 9 and 10 of Ephesians 2, it reads “Not of works, lest any man should boast, For we are his workmanship created unto good work, which God hath fore ordained that we should work in them”. We are saved by faith in Christ. Good works will be produced naturally as we grow in the understanding of what salvation is because we are created unto good works.

“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:14-16). It is not your salvation that they will see and glorify your Father; it is your good works which is a product of spiritual growth after salvation that they will see. A believer’s understanding of salvation (His Christ realities) is what influences his character or lifestyle. When a believer sees himself enough in Christ, his lifestyle is in tandem to what he is seeing or who he is seeing himself in and that is Christ. So see Jesus, preach Jesus and let Jesus work on your character not you trying to fix it by yourself (morally before God). The highest level of morality before God is faith in Christ. Glory!!!   

INSTRUCTION: Focus on Christ, he saved us.

CONFESSION: Thank you for grace that equips me to walk in the realities of my personality as I look to you, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

QUOTE: When you are conscious of Christ, your consciousness influences your lifestyle.

DAILY READING: MORNING: EPHESIANS CHAPTER 2; EVENING: EPHESIANS CHAPTER 4

OUR VICTORY IN CHRIST (1)

“And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it” – Colossians 2:15

LIGHT FOR NOW: Your victory in Christ is always.

In verse 14, Paul referred to the forgiveness offered by God using two important terms. The first was the legal aspect where the debt and punishment are cancelled. The second is the restoration of the relationship we have with God. Paul also referred to God metaphorically crucifying sin; this implies a total rejection as well as death. In other words, God not only forgives our sins and gives us a restored relationship; He completely destroys and rejects that sin. Here in verse 15, Paul adds that through the cross, Jesus “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame”. These authorities Paul references are likely spiritual authorities, similar to his words in Ephesians 6:12. The context of the passage is entirely spiritual, not political, so Paul’s meaning has nothing to do with shame towards earthly kings or leaders. Rather, he is speaking about the power of Jesus over the forces of spiritual darkness. Rulers and authorities are terms used for spiritual entities in Ephesians 3:10 and 1Peter 3:22.

How did Jesus disarm and openly shame spiritual authorities? According to Paul, “by triumphing over them in [Christ]”. Colossians 2:15 describes Christ’s superiority in defeating sin. This is shown in stark contrast to the failure of the unbelieving world. Paul encourages the Colossians not to be tricked by deceptive arguments. This passage also explains the drastic nature of salvation. Those who put their faith in Christ are “spiritually” circumcised and are identified with God through their faith in Christ. This act of forgiveness by God frees us from the eternally penalty of sin, restores our relationship, and defeats the evil forces fighting against us. Paul emphasizes the way Christ accomplished everything we need to be justified before God. As a result, there is no reason for believers to pursue these false, shallow “shadows”. We have the real substance who is Jesus Christ and we should follow him. Glory!!!

INSTRUCTION: Walk in the victory Christ has purchased for you.

CONFESSION: I declare that my victory is always, in Jesus name, Amen.

QUOTE: God cannot be defeated so you cannot be defeated.

DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: MATTHEW CHAPTER 28 EVENING: 2CHRONICLES CHAPTER 20

CHRIST: THE LOVE OF GOD TO MAN

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

LIGHT FOR NOW: God’s love is sufficient to all men.

God acted for our sake. That means God acted out of His love, to make it possible to remove the separation between us and Him: our sin. To accomplish this, God made Christ, who had never sinned during His life on earth in any way, to become our sin. Jesus’ died, then, paid the price for our sin, removing our guilt and removing the obstacle between us and God. Instead of “being sin” ourselves, those who come to God through faith in Christ are given credit for Christ’s righteous, sinless life. We “become God’s righteousness” and are reconciled in our relationship with Him, by his gift of grace through our faith in Christ. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). God receives Christ’s death as payment for our sin and gave us credit for Christ’s righteousness in return. That’s what it means to be in Christ.

Hence, the love of God is seen in the death of his son. In essence, God’s love was not just intent; God’s love was intent backed up with action. “For God so loved the world” is his intent, “that he gave his only begotten son” is His action, which is the action He took that backed up His intent. The word “world” in John 3:16 is not speaking about the planet earth but rather it is talking about men, human beings; God so loved man. The next statement supports the fact that earth there is referring to man; “that whosoever believeth in him”. It is not the planet that will believe in Him and have everlasting life, it is men. Glory!!!

INSTRUCTION: Keep enjoying the love of God.

CONFESSION: I am secured in God’s love and nothing else matters to me than what His love has made available for me, in Jesus Name. Amen.

QUOTE: God loves you unconditionally.

DAILY BIBLE READING: MORNING: AMOS CHAPTER 7 EVENING: 2KINGS CHAPTER 14

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