Today Reminder (Patience) – 31 July 2017

A reminder for today

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

How was your weekend, my friend? I am 5 days away from my competition and my diet is tough at the moment. When I am hungry I get cranky so I had a grumpy weekend. It is amazing how the enemy seek out our weakness and exploits it. It takes seconds for us to respond to the lies of the enemy, but several minutes to hear the voice of the Lord and just relax, because He’s got it all under control. We must learn to let go and leave it to Him. 

This passage in 2 Peter we read about the return of the Lord. Now Peter reminds us here in verse 9 that the Lord is definitely not relaxed concerning His return, but He is giving us time to return to Him and turn away from our old way of life so that all may be saved. Many of us are ready for His return, but so many are still lost and heading towards destruction. It is imperative that we use what time is left and tell all about Jesus and give them the opportunity to hear the truth. We must remain patient in this and let the Lord return in His time, yet we know that His time is very close.

As Peter so nicely reminds us in verse 10: But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Come with me today and let us try and save at least one more soul for the kingdom of the Lord. Do not keep this amazing truth for yourself but tell all about the wonder and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. He came and He took away our sin and He defeated death so that we will have eternal life with Him. What more do we need? 

Lord, let us show your love to all around us and in this way, give them the truth and show them the way to you. Let your Holy Spirit guide us and let us help other to find their way back to you. In Jesus name.

Have an awesome day, dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers

Today Reminder (Who is Jesus) – 28 July 2017

A reminder for today

Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. (Mark 13:31)

Who is this amazing God that we worship? How do we know Him and how do we look at Him? Here are a few ideas I read that I would like to share with you.

Jesus is recognized as both Yahweh and Elohim in the prophecy in Isaiah 40:3: “Prepare the way of the Lord [Yahweh]; make straight in the desert a highway for our God [Elohim].” This verse was written in reference to John the Baptist preparing for the coming of Christ (as confirmed in John 1:23) and represents one of the strongest affirmations of Christ’s deity in the Old Testament. In Isaiah 9:6, we likewise read a prophecy of Christ with a singular variant (El) of Elohim: “And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God [El], Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Jesus is Theos. The New Testament Greek word for God, Theos, is the corresponding parallel to the Old Testament Hebrew term Elohim. A well-known example of Christ being addressed as God (Theos) is found in the story of “doubting Thomas” in John 20. In this passage, Thomas witnesses the resurrected Christ and worshipfully responds: “My Lord and my God [Theos]” (John 20:28).

Jesus is called Theos throughout the rest of the New Testament. For example, when a jailer asked Paul and Silas how to be saved, they responded: “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household” (Acts 16:31). After the jailer believed and became saved, he “rejoiced, having believed in God [Theos] with all his household” (verse 34). Believing in Christ and believing in God are seen as identical acts.

Jesus always spoke in His own divine authority. He never said, “Thus saith the Lord” as did the prophets; He always said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you. . . .” He never retracted anything He said, never guessed or spoke with uncertainty, never made revisions, never contradicted himself, and never apologized for what He said. He even asserted, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Mark 13:31), hence elevating His words directly to the realm of heaven.

Most importantly is that His followers worshipped Him as God and when He returned to heaven, they went on and carried the gospel all over the world regardless of persecution and troubles that they faced. This in its own should boost your faith to a new level and now knowing that Jesus is God you should understand more of who Jesus is and the magnitude of what He did on the cross. You are saved and so blessed. Come with me today as we rejoice and praise His name. Our God lives and He is coming back soon.

Lord, let us understand that there is power in your name and let us fully comprehend the nature of who you are. Lord, you are our God and we love you with all our hearts. Let us be victorious and show you to this dark world. In Jesus name.

Have an awesome day, dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers

Today Reminder (Forward) – 27 July 2017

A reminder for today

Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. (1 John 4:15)

There is one constant we can be certain of and that is that life is full of challenges. Yesterday our company announced that they will not pay bonusses this year due to our poor performance. Now in our case this is quite a blow, because both me and my wife works at the same company and this year was a year with a number of unexpected expenses that created a nice debt that we now sit with. It meant we had to cancel our holiday for December which I looked forward too. 

Now, immediately the enemy seizes the moment and despair creeps in. Fear gets a nice hold, because what of the debt that will now only increase due to interest. What do you do when you look at this and you cannot see now you will ever get out of this. 

I got up this morning still a little edgy and uncertain of what to do. Then the Lord came in this morning and He decide that we should write about His solution. The Lord has made it clear in many circumstances and many previous blogs that He is with me. He has been with me through every challenge I faced and He carried me through each one. He reminded me that His grace is enough and His love exceeds all my troubles. He also reminded me that He is greater than the biggest problem I could ever face. He showed me His love in the eyes of my two boys and He confirmed again that He is my God and I have nothing to worry about. He reminded me that we do not need much and that we have more than enough. He also confirmed that He is in control and that He has this one. He made it clear that He has a plan with everything and He will take my worst and turn it into my best. 

So, the Holy Spirit says that we should keep moving forward and stop holding on to our fear. In God, we cannot be afraid, because His majesty surpasses all fear and His mercy exceeds all our burdens. So, I will not fall into despair, in fact I will rise again and shout out His praises, because our God is an almighty God and He is bigger than the world and all its challenges. 

Lord, thank you for reminding us again who you are and that we should stop fearing and start trusting. In Jesus name. 

Have an awesome day, dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers