What is it that Distance Us from Our Destiny? (Part 2)

It was not only Jesus who had this privilege though.

During His three years of ministry Jesus taught His disciples a lot of theory and practical stuff. They really saw and heard plenty of good knowledge. After three years in the best Bible School ever the disciples were well equipped, but were still puzzled:

“Some of his disciples said to one another, "What does he mean by saying....,

They kept asking, ‘What does he mean by ..... We don't understand what he is saying,’ (John 16:17, 18).

And then suddenly...:

“Then Jesus' disciples said, "Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God."

‘You believe at last!’ Jesus answered,” (John 16:29-31). They  had seen  Jesus in action and heard the magnificent teachings, but it  was all on the outside and observed by the natural man. Eventually they believed in Jesus - after three years in His dynamic presence. This was the moment of their rebirth.

But still they were not ready yet. The day came when Jesus got arrested: “Then all the disciples deserted him and fled,” (Matthew 26:56). Shortly after that we learn that Peter denied three times that he knew Jesus.

In Acts 2 we read that these same weak and powerless disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and then the powerful book, The Acts of the Apostles of Jesus Christ, were written. We read that after the message of that same denier, Peter, the following happened.

“Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off--for all whom the Lord our God will call.’

 “With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’

“Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day,” (Acts 2:38-41).

What power! What results! How many Christians today can claim such results? And they were ordinary men as we see later in Acts 4:13: “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.”

What has it got to do with you?

You have the choice what you want from life. Paul said: “‘Everything is permissible for me’--but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible for me’- but not everything is constructive,” (1 Corinthians 10:23).

We can therefore choose to, like any good Christian, live a mediocre life by going about our business in privacy. We may even yield to the danger that goes with mediocrity namely the temptation of the three desires:

=The desire to satisfy his flesh. 

=The desire for power.                   

=The desire for material riches.

Why did Jesus not yield to these temptations? It was because He was completely fulfilled in all his desires through the perfect presence of the Holy Spirit. He simply did not need more than that, because the Holy Spirit’s presence and help in accomplishing his purpose for living, finishing what he was sent for, brought complete contentment and satisfaction. How would you like that?

Our second choice therefore is to, just like Jesus, receive and then fulfill our God given desires through the Holy Spirit. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you and then continuously learn from Him, through the Word and his quiet voice in your heart.

The desire to satisfy the flesh will then change to a desire to satisfy the Lord, through service to our neighbor’s flesh. The desire for power will be satisfied by seeing the power of God in action through love. And finally the desire for temporary, earthly riches will be replaced with a desire for heavenly riches.

The more time we spend with the Holy Spirit, the more we will become and act like Jesus.

Why did Jesus speak so strongly against the power of money (Matthew 6:24)? It is because money fulfills the three desires instead of the Holy Spirit. Let us rather invite the Holy Spirit to fill and fulfill us. Then we will be able to finish the race and complete the task given to us (Acts 20:24, 2 Timothy 4:7) .

Please read Acts 19: 1-6. They were believers, but had no power. It must have been obvious, hence why Paul asked them. 

Have you received the Holy Spirit? If not, pray with me now:

“Holy Spirit, I believe in Jesus, but I have no power. Please fill me with your presence and power so that I can have understanding of God’s Word and hear your quiet voice as a guide in my daily life. I undertake to spend lots of time with you, delighting myself in the Lord so that your desires may become my desires”, (Psalm 37:4).

You may not feel anything right now, but just start chatting with the Lord, reading his Word and see what He does for you.

Holy Spirit, I have written, only you can reveal the truth to the reader. Please do so.

What is it that Distance Us from Our Destiny? (Part 1)

Every year we celebrate Jesus' birth, but one thousand nine hundred and eighty six years ago something happened, something that has slipped the attention of many through the ages, but has more significance than His birth. The reason it is often ignored, whilst Christmas is blown out of proportion, is that the latter fits quite comfortably into the enemy's plans. By using Christmas as a smoke screen and keeping everybody involved under the impression they are okay, the evil one can deceive many into a “form of godliness but denying the power thereof,” (2 Timothy 3:5).

What happened 1,986 years ago? John the baptist was preaching at the Jordan River and baptizing people for the remission of their sins.....  “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John.

But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"

“Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on Him. And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased,’” (Matthew 3:13-17).

At that stage Jesus had knowledge. This was proven by the fact that he astonished the Pharisees and teachers of the law with his knowledge already at the age of twelve. He was, therefore, like any good Christian, living quite a mediocre life by going about his business. It is often assumed that He worked as a carpenter, yet He was called rabbi at several occasions during His three years of ministry.

Since nothing of his life between twelve and thirty years of age has been recorded, it can also be assumed that his parents, having been aware of calling, would have had him formally trained as a rabbi. This would have given him credibility with the people. Part of it would have been the training all Jewish boys had as they approached the age of thirteen, the age at which they had their Bar Mitzvah.

But on that day at the Jordan River, when Jesus decided to be obedient to his heavenly Father and had Himself baptized, He got filled with the Holy Spirit and with the Holy Spirit came the power.....”Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry...” (Matthew 4:1, 2).

Let us just think a moment about these forty days; forty long, lonely days in the tremendous heat of a desert without food or water - and Jesus was just human. Picture yourself in His situation. How would you have experienced it? Following those forty excruciating days came the temptation to the flesh, more than any standard Christian could handle, He was tempted with three desires:

1) The desire to satisfy his flesh.

2) The desire for power.

3) The desire for material riches.

What prevented him to submit to these temptations? It was the power of the Holy Spirit in Him. Through the Spirit He had more and better things to desire and to look forward to,than what Satan had offered Him, and so  have you. You have no need to submit to these same three temptations fired at you all the time.

How long did Jesus have to wait to see the fulfillment of the expectations He had in the Spirit? Not long. From the day He overcame those three basic stumbling blocks of the faith through the power of the Word, many miracles and powerful teachings flowed from his hands and mouth through the power of the Holy Spirit. He simply chose to allow the Holy Spirit's power to work through Him. 

At the time He had much knowledge due to his Jewish training in the Talmud - the Old Testament law and prophets. He could have relied on His knowledge, but together with the Holy Spirit and His intimacy with His Father, came lots of revelation which astonished many people.

It was not only Jesus who had this privilege though. (To be Continued)

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Salt Changing the Earth (Part 7)

Salt purifies

We mentioned earlier that an effective way to get rid of sinusitis is to rinse the sinuses with a solution of salt in lukewarm water. It purifies those canals from all germs and loosens all the muck. We also use saline or salt solution to clean contact lenses.

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges (discerns) the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). The Word, which is living in us and is commanded by us through faith, does the purifying. Jesus said to the disciples: “‘You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you” (John 15:3).

The Greek word used in both these references is “logos” (the written Word or Bible) and not “rhema” (the revealed Word as from the Lord). So what is our task as salt? We need to help clean this earth of all the muck doctrines, ideas, and teachings by proclaiming the truth. For this we use the information and guidance in the written Word to replace and eradicate the false doctrines in people’s hearts. It is the written Word—the scriptures—quickened by revelation and power from God through intercessory prayer that will discern the thoughts and intents of the heart.

As in advertising, the information must be offered continuously in order for it to gradually replace the incorrect knowledge in people’s minds. This is why lifestyle evangelism (showing Christ through your life) on its own is not enough. We need to preach the Word, in and out of season as we read in 2 Timothy 4:2, 3: “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”

We need to do this in boldness. Why do lies such as evolution, New Age and the like get away with so much and grow at such an immense rate? It is because there is not much truth resisting it, proving it wrong. Why is there not much truth? It is because there are too few Christians bold enough to proclaim and command truth as a direct counteraction to these lies. We are scared of unpopularity, persecution, and estrangement. It is low priority since we are busy building our own little kingdoms. The amount of time (if any) that we avail for the sake of Kingdom issues is so small that the work has practically no effect.

Political correctness also forms a barrier, since it is easier to have an attitude of “Let them deceive: I don’t care as long as I’m okay. Why should I get involved and risk persecution?” The problem is that when people are indoctrinated from childhood with false beliefs, it is hard to change. The Word of God calls for people who will sacrifice their lives for the sake of truth and not just exercise religion all the time—people who will fight for truth. If we really trust the Lord, we would not be scared to speak up, because He promised to cover for us if we seek His Kingdom.

Every Christian, not just ministers, needs to proclaim truth of the Word of God at all times. This Word is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). We need to be courageous, speaking this Word at every opportunity—with colleagues, in the grocery line, with other parents at school, with brothers and sisters at church, with yourself and with the devil (“Listen, Satan, about this temptation, the Word of God says . . .). When we pray, we must also speak the Word to the Lord, because praying His Word releases His power. This demands that we know the Word. The only way to get to know it is through reading and memorizing it. Imagine what little influence false doctrines will have if millions of Christians refute it all the time with the truth.

How do we do it? Once again, get the power and direction from Jesus in private prayer, and then simply proclaim truth wherever He shows you. Will I have the courage? “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7). The Greek for spirit is pneuma, which can be translated either as human spirit or Holy Spirit. The new spirit God gave us at rebirth, since our old spirit was dead because of Adam’s sin, is one with the Holy Spirit who is Almighty. So why do we fear?

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