HAS GOD CHANGED?

Written by Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

In the dispensation of God the Father as He appeared in the days of the Old Testament, we learn of His very Nature and Character as God!  As we read the Scriptures, we see a terribly awesome God who desired reverence!  This is documented as He appeared to Moses in the burning bush.

Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Exodus 3:5

As God spoke with Moses, while introducing Himself as Father, the Scripture said that Moses was afraid to look upon Him.  Such describes the magnitude and power of God’s Presence! After seeing the Hand of God as He overthrew Israel’s enemies, Moses was compelled to exclaim… 

“Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders? Exodus 15:11 

God fights for His people – He is the ultimate Deliverer!  He is the ultimate Defender of His people … the people who are called by His Name!  This is God’s personality – His attribute!  He wants Christians to love, and He is the One who vindicates us when persons wrong us. Moses discovered and declared –

The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.  Exodus 15:3

Moses experienced the God Who won battles for him and as he saw God protect the Israelites from the evils that came up against them, he exclaimed –

“Your right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power;Your right hand, O Lord, has dashed the enemy in pieces.And in the greatness of Your excellence. You have overthrown those who rose against You;You sent forth Your wrath;It consumed them like stubble. Exodus 15:6-7

God did not fight for the Israelites in Moses’ day alone, but as we read the Bible we see God fighting for His people through King David, through Joshua, through Jehoshaphat, through all those who He had appointed to lead them and who did so in the fear of God.

You may wonder why would God only fight for the Israelites?  This is because those were His chosen people.  He made the earth and all that it consists and He chooses His creation to will and to do according to His pleasure.

…for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Phillipians 2:13

So He chose Israel to be His people.

Whether they may or may not have known it, this mantle of being God’s chosen came with an awesome responsibility on Israel’s part.  God laid down some guidelines for Israel to follow.  These guidelines have been documented in the Holy Bible so that the generations that would follow would be in the know. 

God’s law stands for eternity.  He remembers His promises to His people and is Faithful to perform them.  If God’s chosen remain faithful to His Word then the benefit of the blessings will be theirs. On the flip side, God is also faithful to His Word if His chosen are unfaithful in doing what He says!

Read His promises to the Israelites in the Book of Deuteronomy chapter 28.  In short, God promised that if they kept His Word, meaning if they obeyed His Word, His blessings will follow them and even overtake them.  However, as you read on in that same chapter, you would discover that God also promised that if they disobeyed His Word, they will fall under some heavy curses. This law stands active for eternity.

He reminded Joshua as he walked in Moses’ stead –

Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.  This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. – Joshua 1:7-8

Should Joshua choose to do differently to what God had commanded, it stands to reason that his way would not have been prosperous and that he would not have good success.

God has a responsibility over His people to protect them and to nurture them but it does not stop there. His people also have a responsibility towards Him – to be obedient to His Word, observing to do it!

Jesus came as God’s Word, being God Himself, with a mandate to graft into the Kingdom of God people like us who are not Israelites. He came to perfect the law and to show us the way back to the Father after the Fall of Adam and Eve! Jesus is the Word of God.  Those of us who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour have automatically become a chosen people just like Israel is to God!  We now have the responsibility, as Israel has, to know or to observe God’s Word and to do it!  What we choose to do will determine whether we reap the blessings or the curses.

In the nation where I live, there is an outrageous spike in crime.  Murders occur on a daily basis. There are also strange deaths as well as gruesome carnage on the roadways, misbehavior in public office, the likes of which was never so evident in the society.  Multiplicity of prayers are continuously being prayed on behalf of the nation, but it seems that there is no end to violence.

This is not isolated to my nation, but across the nations of the world there is violence, unrest, murder suicides of different family members – in some cases entire families are killed by a family member in possession of a gun.  Believers in Christ may be very tempted to ask the question, “Where is the God of the Bible in the midst of this chaos?” 

My question is … Has God Changed?  Does this Great and Magnificent God still require for His people to live according to His Word?  Or does He require us to live by bread alone?  Does He require us to live by our rights, whatever right that is?

Jesus pronounced to believers –

“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4

Are we walking in obedience to that Word so that we can reap the blessings of God?  Or are we rather

living in a manner so as to reap the curses that God promised?  Are we loving one another as God commanded?  Not by loving in the manner that WE believe love should be – but are we loving as God says that we should love one another?  Do we love our enemies enough to be praying for them as He has instructed?

Read the Book of Matthew Chapter 5 and then Romans Chapter 12 and finally 1 Corinthians 13 in order to get an idea as how God commands us to love.  If we are faithful to do as the Scriptures say, then do you think that we will be cursed or will we be blessed?  From what we can see in our nations in this day, are we being blessed of God or cursed?  We cannot be partakers of evil and expect God to bless us!  Also, we must not join with partakers of evil, because they are our friends, or because we can achieve some gain, and expect to be blessed.

I notice that many nations around the world are passing laws which God calls blatant abominations in His sight!  He destroyed two cities because of those same practices.  Is God expected to bless what He does not condone?  In the Book of Numbers Chapter 26 the same God that fought for Israel caused the earth to open up and swallow some Israelites (His chosen people) together with all of their families as well as all their possessions, simply because of their disobedience to His Word!  Has God changed?  I still hear of what we now call sink holes appearing in diverse places today!  What could this mean?

God has promised that if we repent AND turn our faces from evil, He will forgive us our sins and heal our land.  Let us observe to do the Word of God so that we will have good success and bring glory to His Name.

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

DO YOU LOVE ME?

Written by Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

Jesus said these Words to His disciples, 
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

This is an awesome truth and most believers may stop right there with their Christian walk – diligently looking for the “greater works” to be manifested. 

Jesus also said to His disciples,
Matthew 17:20  …If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Other believers camp at this scripture and live there believing God for their physical needs, and exercise all their efforts in getting from God according to their faith.  Both portions of Scripture, as mentioned above, mainly pertain to our faith in Jesus Christ, and this we must possess – but may I introduce us to a higher position that we should take in Christ?  This indeed refers to the Commandment given to Moses in Deuteronomy 6:5 and as re-iterated by Jesus Christ when He came to the earth in Matthew 22:37…

Thou shall love the Lord with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind. 

We could summarize that if we believe and have faith in God, we will see the blessings of God manifested.  However, if we love the Lord, we could have Him and He could have us – blessings included.

As believers, we could say many times over, that we love God.  We could worship Him and get very emotional in expressing to Him that we love Him – and we believe with all our heart that we do love Him.

As we worship the Lord, we remember the number of things that He has already done in our lives

• the many times that He had delivered us from physical death – 
• we remember the fact that by His Grace, He has led us to salvation –
• we remember the times that we got the financial break-through that we were praying for – 
• we remember the times that we were severely sick and that we received a miraculous healing from the Lord 

We are so thankful and indeed grateful as we express to Him that we love Him for the many things that He has done – but do we really love God?

We measure our love for God mostly by the gratitude that we feel after we see the manifestation of the goodness of God toward us.  We do not remember, however, that the goodness of God is supposed to lead us to repentance (Romans 2:4). Repentance means feeling remorse for offending God and  turning away from sin.

God has placed for us in His Word, the measuring stick that He uses to determine whether we love Him or not.  He said through His Son Jesus, the following words in John 14:15  – If ye love me, keep my commandments.

As believers, we must walk in obedience to the principles and the laws of God our Father, if we profess to be lovers of God.  Do you know that our motivation to do the work for the Kingdom of God, in whichever sphere, should be the love that we have for God? Whether it be work as the pulpit minister, or as the choir member or as the sanctuary worker or intercessor, our motivation should be the love for our God!

Yes, we have been born in sin and brought forth in iniquity (Psalm 51:5), but Jesus came to bring restoration to us with the Father.  He has made the way for us to be reconciled with God the Father.  As a matter of fact Jesus is THE way to the Father.  Jesus has gone back to the Father, but the Holy Spirit is available to all believers as our Helper, to assist us in putting off the lusts of the flesh and so live according to the Commandments as laid down by God Almighty. 

He gives us the ability to walk in the love of God because we cannot do it on our own efforts.  All that is required of us is to ask the Holy Spirit’s help as we choose to do the Word of God, and He will help us in the areas where we fall short.  He is faithful to come to our assistance and is always readily available to us.

I therefore leave you with this question that Jesus Christ still asks His disciples today –

“Do you love Me?”

THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITY – PT. 2

Written by Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

2 Thessalonians 2:7

For the mystery of iniquity doth already work 

(King James Version)

 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work 

(New King James Version)

Another example of when the spirit of iniquity is lurking, is when you read or hear doctrine that is contrary to the doctrine that was preached which resulted in your Salvation. If left unchecked against the Word of God, this spirit would take up residence in your heart and you would begin to believe a lie. 

If you believe contrary to the Word of God then you would act contrary to the Word of God.  Iniquity is at work.  When doubt is present, faith is absent.  It is written in the Book of Hebrews that without faith it is impossible to please God!  Do you see the connection?  Do you see the ploy of the enemy at work?

The spirit of iniquity has taken up residence in your own heart when the following sins are manifest in you – Pride, Resentment, Hatred, Bitterness, Envy, Jealousy, Unholy Desires, and the like. 

You would notice that all of these manifestations are as a result of bad heart conditions before God.  These sins are hidden in the heart and nobody is able to detect that iniquity is present and is in operation.  Iniquity can hide behind smiles! It is serpentine!

You may have been treated wrongfully, maybe you were betrayed. Most of the time this is done by someone you are close to, and you may feel justified to harbour anger, bitterness or resentment because you were taken by surprise.  This does not justify your reaction of embracing of the sin of iniquity and thus bearing its fruit.

If you are faced with such a situation, the answer is right there in the Word of God.  Romans Chapter 12 and verse 14 instructs us to bless those people and not curse them.  That is an antidote against the spirit of iniquity.
 
Though these sins are hidden from easy detection by man, they are not hidden from Almighty God, who looks and judges according to the condition of our hearts.  Harbouring these sins would prevent us from making it to Heaven as was written in Galatians 5:17-21.  We must constantly guard our hearts against the fiery darts of the devil see Ephesians 6:16 – “above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.”

As believers it is imperative that we remain attached to the True Vine since sin would always separate us from God.  Only then would we be able to draw from the character and nature of Jesus, and be attuned to the Voice of God.  Only then would we be able to recognize the contrary voice of the spirit of iniquity when it comes lurking, and so be able to immediately cut that spirit off. Only then would we be able to love the brethren and manifest the love of God to others. 

To remain attached to Jesus, the True Vine, we must digest the Word of God and do what the Word says.  In so doing, we would be guarding our hearts against the unclean thing and so prevent the spirit of iniquity from finding a home in us.

To God be the glory.

THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITY – PT. 1

Written by Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

Iniquity is not something that is tangible. It cannot be seen outwardly with the naked eye, but resides within the heart of man. What is iniquity?  Simply put, it is sin of the heart.
 
Paul said in 2 Thessalonians 2:7
“For the mystery of iniquity doth already work”

Paul was cautioning the Thessalonians against partnering with iniquity.  He cautioned the believers in verses 1 & 2 of the same chapter that they should not be swayed by listening to another doctrine which was contrary to what they were already taught concerning the coming of the Lord.  Apparently they had been listening to persons who were circulating a false teaching concerning the Lord’s coming.

There is a spirit of iniquity that constantly tempts the believer to step outside of the will of God. This spirit’s job is to plant stuff into our hearts which opposes the nature and character of God and His Word.

This spirit of iniquity is at work to do satan’s bidding in order to cause us to fall from grace.  It enters believers as well as non-believers through the eyes and the ears, and then it takes up residence in the heart.

One of the ways that it comes through the ears is in the form of gossip.  For example, if an agent of satan comes to you with an evil report about someone, that report enters through your ear and if you receive it, it takes up residence in your heart.

The next time you see that person who was evil spoken of, immediately what got into your heart would manifest in the way that you see or relate to that person.  Iniquity is at work! This could then bear the fruit of resentment or bitterness or hatred in you.  These fruits are not fruits that come from God!

The fruit that comes from God that ultimately and undoubtedly challenges bitterness, resentment and hatred is the fruit of love.  Love is of God and God is Love!  The spirit of iniquity cannot penetrate a heart that loves with the God kind of love.

TO BE CONTINUED...

LISTEN TO THE SOUND

Thanks to Allison Sylvester-Conliffe for this article

Some sounds can be pleasant and other sounds can be discordant.

There is a sound that emanates from Heaven … a distinct sound … a sound of worship unto God, night and day!  The Bible says that the elders and the angels make a continuous sound of worship as they cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy!!”  This sound is as many waters.  It is a beautiful and infectious sound … but there is another sound that emanates from Heaven.  It is the Voice of God! 

Sometimes it thunders and sometimes it is as a still, small voice.  However, when the Voice of God speaks a sound, that sound is directed to His creation, His children.  Therefore after He sounds that sound, He looks for a response from us.  His sound is sometimes one of rejoicing or it may be a sound of lamentation and woe.  How do we know what sound He is speaking to us at any given hour?  The sound that comes from God is always the sound of His Heart.  We must be tuned in 24/7 to hear and identify what His sound is speaking. 

You know that sound speaks don’t you?  Take music for an example.  The sound of music can create an atmosphere of joy or it can speak sounds of lamentation.  Some music can project an awareness of danger and others project fear.  A typical example of this is evident in the sound effects that are created for the movies.

We must be able to identify the sound that we hear from Heaven.  If this is not so, then how would we know when the sound from Heaven is speaking to let us know it is time to intercede?  How would we know when the sound from Heaven is telling us to be militant in warfare?  How would we know when the sound is telling us to be silent? 

The sound from Heaven will usually give us instructions and direction.  There is a sound that emanates from God’s Throne that is speaking to us by the minute.  God speaks to us either audibly or through His Spirit to our spirit. However as we read in John 15, we must abide in Him, so that we will be one with Him and thus be attuned to His Voice … His Sound! 

As God’s children we are His image and likeness in the earth. Therefore we are to echo the exact sound from heaven as the Father dictates to us, so that His will can be done here on His earth. This requires our intimacy with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

As you quiet your spirit and tune in to the sound from heaven, what do you hear?

Love to All!

FROM CAPTIVE TO CONQUEROR – PART 1

ARE YOU A SLAVE?
 
Thanks to Allison Sylvester-Conliffe for this series of articles.

Copyright (c) 123RF Stock Photos

When we fall into habitual sin (going against the will of God), we bring ourselves into captivity….

Then the children of Israel did evil 

in the sight of the LORD. 

So the LORD delivered them 

into the hand of Midian for seven years, 

and the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. 
Because of the Midianites, 

the children of Israel made for themselves 

the dens, the caves, 

and the strongholds which are in the mountains. – Judges 6:1-2

While practicing sin we toil in vain, because the Scripture says that God is the One who gives the increase. God cannot tolerate sin and therefore He is unable to bless.  Sin is a stench to His nostrils.  Therefore we keep ourselves from prospering in the things that we put our hands to. According to Judges 6:4, because of the Israelites’ sin, they lost all of their blessings…. 

So it was, whenever Israel had sown, Midianites would come up; 

also Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. 

Then they would encamp against them and destroy the produce of the earth as far as Gaza, 

and leave no sustenance for Israel, 

neither sheep nor ox nor donkey. – Judges 6:3-4

However, God showed mercy after the Israelites cried unto Him….   

And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD because of the Midianites, that the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel. – Judges 6:7-8a

As we read on, we observe that God always seeks to reconcile, and so He woos us into repentance….

I said to you, 

“I am the LORD your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” 

But you have not obeyed My voice.’” – Judges 6:10

Is there some unconfessed sin in your life? Have you been experiencing frustration because of it? Have you been feeling guilty? Sad? Out of sorts? Unfulfilled? Anxious?

Just as He did with the Israelites, God is wooing you back to Him. If you call to Him He will answer. If you confess your sin, He is faithful and just to forgive you and to give you a brand new start.

To be continued….

JUST DO WHAT HE TELLS YOU

The wedding was in full swing. The guests were having a grand time when suddenly someone realized there was a problem. The wine had run out. What an embarrassing situation for the host! Clearly there was a need. The wedding was not over, and the guests would be expecting to have more to drink. Scripture doesn’t tell why the wine ran out at that wedding in Cana. Maybe that amount was all the family could afford. Maybe the wedding planner underestimated the number of guests.

Mary knew that regardless of the reason for the shortage, her Son could remedy the situation, even though He had gently protested when she brought it to His attention. She called to the servants at the feast and told them, “Just do what He tells you.”

Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. – John 2:7-8

The servants did exactly what Jesus commanded. He told them to fill the waterpots, and they filled them to the brim. He told them to immediately draw out some of the liquid and take it to the master…and they obeyed. They didn’t stop to figure out if it made sense. They didn’t argue or question. They simply did what He told them to do. The result was that potential embarrassment was averted, and a problem was solved…in greater measure than anyone could have anticipated.

Artwork by Kevin Cornell

The world system thrives on compromise. A law is created and people immediately try to find the loophole that would weaken its effectiveness. However, God’s Word has no loopholes. King Saul found that out the hard way. God instructed him to kill all of the enemy, leaving nothing and no one alive. But Saul tried to find a loophole to suit himself.

And Saul attacked the Amalekites, from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. – 1 Samuel 15:7-9

Saul obeyed God’s word only partially, choosing to keep the best things alive. As a result the kingdom was stripped from him and God anointed David to be king in his place. We often do the same thing….giving up the things (behaviors, relationships, attitudes) that don’t matter much, but choosing to hold on to those that are most dear to us.

Is there a situation that you are grappling with? A troubled relationship? Financial difficulties? An ailment? An unresolved issue? There is a remedy for it in the Word of God. God’s solution may not seem logical or even pleasant to your natural mind. However His remedy must be followed exactly as the Lord says, or the results could be disastrous. Regardless of what the situation is that you are facing, I encourage you not to try to look for a loophole or any kind of compromise. Follow the example of the servants at the wedding in Cana and….

just do what He tells you.

MARRIAGE

Thanks to Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

for another powerful article

God instituted Marriage, therefore it is a holy institution and it is sacred … just because it came from God.  He in His Wisdom saw that man should not be alone, and that he should have a help meet, a companion … someone to share himself with, someone to be intimate with, someone who he could love and from whom he could receive love in return.  It should be noted that God made the selection of a wife for Adam.  Adam did not have a choice in the matter at all … and God expected Adam to love her and to be intimate with her … and she with him … regardless.

As I pondered Adam and Eve’s relationship, I realized that God was also included as a part of their relationship.  He was in the midst of it.  The Bible tells us that in the cool of the day God visited them.  Both Adam and Eve were free in God … no secrets, nothing hidden.  You say how do I know that?  The Bible said that they were naked.  That means that all was exposed with nothing hidden. They were free beings in God.  Until … the serpent, our enemy called satan, visited one of them.

We have an enemy folks, and his name is satan.  He is alive today, just as he was alive in the Garden in the day of Adam.  Now whether you choose to believe that or not, would not alter the truth.  Our enemy’s intent and sole purpose is to take us away from close communion with God and from being free in God.

Back in the Book of Genesis Chapter 3 it captures for us, what happens when we refuse to harken unto God’s Word, and when we choose instead to harken unto another voice and so yield to it.  That “other voice”, people, is always the voice of the enemy which is used to entice you to want to please self rather than to be pleasing unto God.  That voice causes you to ignore God’s Word, yield to temptation and do what appeases your flesh. 

In the husband/wife relationship, the enemy just has to whisper into the ear of one of the parties, either the husband or the wife … present a scenario which would appeal to his/or her senses (which is fleshly) and it’s up to the subject to take the bait or not.

It really doesn’t matter to the devil which one accedes to the challenge you know, because he’s looking toward the end result, which is to cause the couple to displease God.  He wants to make a breach in the union which God had sealed.  That is his motive and that is his job … to convince us of his diabolical plan by deceiving us into believing one … just one … of his lies.  Then it would be mission accomplished. All it takes is for him to whisper into the right ear, and so cause that vessel to waiver in his or her faith and he would have his hook firmly set into your jaw and then he yanks it.  This way, you would be totally under his control.

If we take a look at broken marriages, or even divorced couples … you would see a common thread.  In the majority of cases, the reason for the separation was because one of the party’s self dis-satisfaction.  The other person was not doing this right.  It was because the other person was not bringing enough into the relationship to satisfy me.  Not taking me anywhere … not buying me nice things … not making me happy.  But did God’s Word not say that you ought to esteem others more highly than yourself? (Philippians 2:3)  Believing otherwise, or contrary to that Word would tell me that you are disobeying the Word of God. 

It is also recorded in the Word of God as a command, that the husband should love his wife as Christ loved the church … and in return the wife should submit to the husband.  Read Ephesians Chapter 5 again.  The parties who are involved in the covenant of marriage are supposed to concentrate on esteeming the other more highly than their own selves.

Each one should concentrate on loving that other person, cherishing the mate and not looking with expectancy for the mate to esteem and cherish us.  The latter would eventually happen, but it should not be the focus.  The husband’s energies are to be placed in loving the wife and the wife’s energies are to be in loving the husband.  That is the key that we miss as married couples.  In truly loving the other person, we would indeed be pleasing God.

The reason why we were created was to be pleasing unto God.  We were made for God’s pleasure.  We are to please God in our relationships, marital or otherwise.  Loving each other as God wants us to love will bring to each individual the ultimate benefits in God. 

We cannot assume that what we call love is what God calls love.  We have to seek God to know how to love our spouses. Our prayer should be “What should I do Lord, to bring satisfaction to my partner?  Please show me how to love him/her!”  Because what you may call love may not appeal to him or her at all.  Your prayer should never be “Lord, change my partner to be this or to be that so that I could be satisfied”!  Do you see the difference?

Love is selfless, it is a giving of yourself to another, unconditionally.  Just as God loved us so much, even in our wretched state, that He gave the Son that He loved to die in order that we should live.  True love, is really a dying to self.  It is a deep expression towards another.  Love is never selfish, nor does it seek its own.  Love pours outward unto another.

That other thing which caters to self satisfaction, and fulfills me is called some other thing, but don’t call it love at all.  Love is a sacrificial giving of oneself to another.  The pleasure is the joy in seeing the other person happy and fulfilled. Think what would happen if we all approach our marriage relationships in this manner.  In this way, when your spouse feels hurt you will feel hurt too.  Love would seek the welfare of the spouse and this will spill out unto the children too, and they will follow the same pattern in their own married lives.  God will indeed be pleased.

We have to get back to loving God first as He has commanded, before we even attempt to get ourselves a husband or wife and committing to marriage.  Pleasing God should be our motive and this would be reflected in our relationships.  What I have seen is that we go after the physical attraction and breach God’s laws by hitting the sack, then maybe we will get married and because we go after pleasure for our individual selves, there are all sorts of friction and head butting being experienced in the marriage.  This arises because God is not our focus.  We instead, make ourselves the focus and this is wrong.

For those of us who are experiencing turbulence in the marriage, stop for a while and purpose to do things differently.  Instead of wanting to get “whatever” out of the relationship, try putting something in.  Try treating your spouse differently.  Now I did not say that the spouse was deserving of anything.  We are going beyond that. Ask God to show you exactly how to go about it.

Let your creativity loose and start by giving the spouse maybe a granola bar, a box of chocolates, some flowers, a new shirt or a pair of socks.  It may be that you would give of yourself by watching a movie with your spouse, especially if that is not what you would normally do. Be creative and give, because you want to please God.  Remember, that you even have to love the unlovely! Therefore you are without excuse.

Daily, purpose to do some good act in order to bring pleasure to your spouse … no, not to you … to your spouse!! Try this method for the first month.  God in His Wisdom will break down barriers and heal wounds and cultivate a newness in your marriage that cannot go unnoticed.  It is supernatural because it will be all God’s doing.

Visit Romans 13:10 which says –

“Love worketh no ill to his neighbour, therefore love is the fulfillment of the law!”

I summarize by saying that just by expressing love as God wants you to love, will cause you to keep all of the Commandments … in which case you will then be pleasing God … you will also be pleasing your spouse and your spouse will in turn be pleasing you.

God Bless You!

ARE YOU READY?

 Thanks to Allison Sylvester-Conliffe

for another powerful article

Many of us who have been born again can testify of the excitement at the onset.  We go through what we term the “mountain top” experience.  Everything looks new and fresh to us.  We are happy beings at that time, and nothing and no-one can interfere with that joy that we feel.  We are excited to go to the House of God to worship Him, to learn of Him and of His Kingdom, and come into true relationship with God.  Is all this learning and experience to be kept to ourselves?  Are we to bask in this knowledge of God and in the relationship that stems from it all by ourselves?

The great call on our lives after Salvation and as we follow Christ, is to share the Good News of the Gospel with others in our sphere of influence.  We are disciples as we follow Christ and we are called to make disciples.  Jesus told that to His first disciples.

But…I’m not ready!

And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. Mark 1:17

However, there is something in us, which causes us to believe that we are not ready!  We get convinced that this call is for the elders of the church and for the Pastors themselves to pursue – that’s not for me!  What qualifies a believer as being “ready” to share the Gospel with another?  When Jesus sent out the first Twelve, were they “ready”?  As I examine the Word of God, I see those disciples as “green”, afraid and faithless men, but interestingly Jesus called them to go out.  Even in their apparent disabilities, Jesus used them to heal the sick and deliver the oppressed. 

Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases. And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick. And he said unto them, Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece. And whatsoever house ye enter into, there abide, and thence depart. And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them. And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, and healing every where. Luke 9:1-6

When we look at Luke 9:12-17 we see Jesus teaching his first disciples, and us by extension, a great lesson.

 

And when the day began to wear away, then came the twelve, and said unto him, Send the multitude away, that they may go into the towns and country round about, and lodge, and get victuals: for we are here in a desert place. But he said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they said, We have no more but five loaves and two fishes; except we should go and buy meat for all this people. For they were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, Make them sit down by fifties in a company. And they did so, and made them all sit down. Then he took the five loaves and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them, and brake, and gave to the disciples to set before the multitude. And they did eat, and were all filled: and there was taken up of fragments that remained to them twelve baskets.

He taught that the very thing that we possess, when shared, has the ability to multiply itself to reach great proportions more than our minds have the capacity to understand.  If we look at the five loaves and the two fishes that were available, against the multitude who were waiting to be fed, it would seem impossible in the natural scheme of things to feed so many with so little.  Jesus, however, did it and had twelve basketsful in excess. 

Similarly, as our spirits connect with the Holy Spirit of God as He downloads into us, truths and revelation of His Word even as shared from the pulpit, we are expected to share, one on one with others in our sphere of influence.  The sharing of that Word may be to a small audience, but with the Spirit of God in it, if each one tells one, that Word has the capacity to feed many by just our one sharing!

In Luke chapter nine, we see the disciples admonishing Jesus to send the multitude away so that they could get some food since they were all in a desert place.  No food!  Yet Jesus told the disciples to feed them.  But Jesus, there is no food here!  Jesus was obviously talking to the disciples from a spiritual standpoint, but the disciples were listening to Him with the natural ear so they sought out the loaves and the fish.  “Feed them” in this instance may have meant – “teach them”! 

Let us not look at the things of God with the natural eye – nor listen to Him with the natural ear.  We are called to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those who are lost.  We are also called to love them into the Kingdom of God. Let us therefore go forth in the boldness of the Holy Ghost and make disciples with the resources that we have already attained.  The Word is in you!

A CALL TO OBEDIENCE

Other than love, obedience to God was probably the other major principle that Jesus taught about most often. However, we live in a society that is so focused on being “politically correct” that the concept of obedience has become obsolete.

Jesus showed that love and obedience go hand in hand. He said, “If you love Me, keep my commandments.”

There is a belief system out there that subtly encourages and entices us to disobey and disregard God and His commandments. It’s called secular humanism.

According to their website, secular humanists “find insufficient evidence for the claim that some divine purpose exists for the universe. They reject the idea that God has intervened miraculously in history or revealed himself to a chosen few or that he can save or redeem sinners. They believe that men and women are free and are responsible for their own destinies and that they cannot look toward some transcendent Being for salvation.”

Unfortunately, secular humanism has infiltrated the church. Today God’s Word is often treated like a buffet dinner. Many feel that they can choose what they want (blessings and prosperity), and leave out what you don’t want (tribulation and suffering). But obedience is a command of God, not a suggestion. God expects us to obey because He loves us and knows what’s best for us. He knows His plans and He also knows the enemy’s plans and strategies.

How do people disregard and disobey God?

• Compromise – partial obedience. God calls partial obedience rebellion. He says it’s as bad as witchcraft.

• Rationalizing – why it’s ok for you not to obey. Some people reject God’s commands, rationalizing that a loving God wouldn’t punish people for disobeying Him by sending them to hell

• Having your own opinion. The western world is dominated by democracies – governments where the people have a say. But God’s Kingdom is a theocracy – He rules.

• Anger – outright refusal. Jonah refused to obey God’s command to go to Nineveh, because he was angry with them.

• Rejection of the person who delivers the word. Jesus was rejected because many saw Him just as Mary’s son

What are the Consequences of Disobedience

• Judgment from the Father. John 12:47-48

• A ruined life. Luke 6: 49 –  But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

• The wrath of God. Eph.5: 3-6

• Lack of intimacy with God

• Engaging in greater disobedience which leads to even greater bondage to satan

• Loss of the blessings and promises of God

• Loss of eternal life. 2 Thess 1:8-9

Some People who disobeyed God

• Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. They were cast out of Eden and suffered spiritual and physical death

• Lot’s wife disobeyed God’s command not to look back. She turned into a pillar of salt

• Jonah refused to go to Nineveh, and ended up in the belly of a great fish

• King Saul disobeyed God’s command to kill all the Amalekites. He lost the throne as king of Israel and went crazy

Why Should We Obey God?

• It shows that we love Him and want to please Him

• To be a vessel of honor

• To be effective in the work of the Kingdom by setting an example for the next generation. We have disobedient children because we sometimes set an example of disobedience by our own actions

• Obedience to God ensures our effectiveness in spiritual warfare. Disobedience can’t expel disobedience; rebellion can’t expel rebellion

Jesus is our example. He learned obedience through the things that He suffered. Obedience begins in the heart, not with your actions. God knows if you really want to obey Him or not, but thankfully He has provided the Holy Spirit who helps us to obey.

What are the Rewards of Obedience

• Success – Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

• Good health – Prov. 4:20-22 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.  For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.

• The indwelling and empowering of the Holy Spirit – John 14:15-16. If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

• The indwelling of the Father and Jesus – John 14:23. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

• Long life – Prov 10:27. The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.

• Eternal Life – John 5:24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

• Joy – John 15:10-11. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

• Deuteronomy 28 – Blessings wherever you go; your children blessed; your business dealings; your investments; your travel on the roads or by air; protection and victory during the enemy’s attack

Those Who Obey Receive Great Rewards

• Abraham obeyed God. He left everything familiar to him – his home and family. But he became the father of many nations, and the father of faith.

• Moses obeyed God. He rejected the Egyptian lifestyle, choosing instead to follow God’s directives to challenge Pharaoh. He became the deliverer of the Israelites, and was known as God’s friend.

• Joshua obeyed God. He refused to side with the 10 spies who brought back a bad report about Canaan. He obeyed when God told him to go in to the Promised Land. As a result he received not only the Promised Land and all God’s promises.

• Mary obeyed God. It wasn’t easy or convenient for her. Obedience is seldom convenient. However, she became the mother of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

• Jesus obeyed the Father, even unto death on the Cross, and gained salvation for all mankind. As a result all authority was given to Him

I pray that when God gives a command, we will hasten to obey!