Prophecy is for the Earthly Age

 “And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had taken from mount Ephraim, and renewed the altar of the LORD, that was before the porch of the LORD.”

‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭15‬:‭8‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“Asa heard the prophecy of Azariah son of Obed, took a deep breath, then rolled up his sleeves, and went to work: He cleaned out the obscene and polluting sacred shrines from the whole country of Judah and Benjamin and from the towns he had taken in the hill country of Ephraim. He spruced up the Altar of God that was in front of The Temple porch.  Jesus fulfilled prophecy.  Whenever Jesus addressed the crowds, He always spoke in allegories. He never spoke without using parables. He did this to fulfill the prophecy: I will speak to you in allegories. I will reveal secrets that have been concealed since before the foundation of the world.  God has given prophets along with the fivefold ministry, to the Church, the Body of Christ, to equip and perfect it so that the fullness of Christ may dwell in it.  This is only for the earthly age of our time. Our present knowledge and our prophecies are but partial, but when love’s perfection arrives, the partial will fade away.  Love never fails nor passes away.  Amen!

Life & Immortality Came When Death was Abolished

 “And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭7‬:‭11‬, ‭13‬-‭15‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Shortly afterward, Jesus left on a journey to the village of Nain, with a massive crowd of people following him, and His disciples. When the Lord saw the grieving mother, His heart broke for her. With great tenderness He said to her, “Please don’t cry.” Then He stepped up to the coffin and touched it. When the pallbearers came to a halt, Jesus spoke directly to the corpse, “Young man, I say to you, arise and live!” Immediately, the young man moved, sat up, and Jesus presented the son to his mother, alive!  The Prince of Life was about to enter the gate of Nain when death came out.  There at the gates where life and death meet, life wins and death is defeated.  Just outside of Jerusalem one day, death and life meet again, and life won forevermore.  Jesus felt the deepest compassion for this widow at the loss of her only son, identifying with her grief and carrying her sorrow. Death has been abolished and life and immortality have come to light through Christ.  Amen!

God Always Gives Us Victory Through Christ

 “And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said, LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O LORD our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee. So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled.”

‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭14‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Then Asa prayed to God, “O God, You aren’t impressed by numbers or intimidated by a show of force once You decide to help: Help us, O God; we have come out to meet this huge army because we trust in You and Who You are. Don’t let mere mortals stand against You!” God defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and Judah; the Ethiopians ran for their lives.  Asa, the king of Judah trusted in God and so he prayed and was not put to shame.  His ancestor David prayed such a prayer, “O my God, I trust in You; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.” David triumphed over his enemies.  Paul also encouraged when he said, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”  This is about the Lord Jesus Christ when Isaiah prophesied “So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a Precious Cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.”  Let’s give thanks to God Who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.   Amen!

Apostolic Passion

 “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭KJV‬

After leaving the synagogue, Jesus went into the high hills to spend the whole night in prayer to God. At daybreak, he called together all of his followers and selected twelve from among them, and he appointed them to be his apostles.  Before Jesus made important decisions and before great events in His life, it was His pattern to seek the Father.  Once He saw what the Father wanted, Jesus obeyed as the perfect Son.  So Jesus said, “I speak to you eternal truth. The Son is unable to do anything from Himself or through His own initiative. I only do the works that I see the Father doing, for the Son does the same works as His Father.”  Then He chose the twelve apostles who are the “sent ones”.  They were all different in their personalities and came from different backgrounds.  The people Jesus chooses today don’t all look, act or sound alike.  The first ministry that Jesus established was the apostolic.  May we seek our Father to see exactly what He wants and then to do it, with an apostolic passion.  Amen!

Trusting God Brings Victory

 “Thus the children of Israel were brought under at that time, and the children of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the LORD God of their fathers.”

‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭13‬:‭18‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The army of Israel fell flat on its face—a humiliating defeat. The army of Judah won hands down because they trusted God, the God of their ancestors.  This was one people, one country under God who became divided.  Those who trusted in God and relied upon Him, defeated the others who trusted not in God.  Jesus, just before He was betrayed, comforted His disciples, “Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in Me.”  That is why through Christ we have come to trust in God. And we have placed our faith and hope in God because He raised Christ from the dead and gave Him great glory.  We confess as the prophet Isaiah said, “I will trust in Him and not be afraid. The LORD GOD is my strength and my song; He has given me victory."  Amen!

Only Christ Has the Lawful Authority to Forgive Sins for all Mankind

 “But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭5‬:‭24‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Jesus said, “To prove to you all that I, the Son of Man, have the lawful authority on earth to forgive sins, I say to you now, stand up! Carry your stretcher and go on home, for you are healed.”  Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man many times.  Daniel had a vision where he saw the Ancient of Days and walking before the Ancient of Days was One like the Son of Man Who would be given the right to judge the world.  “I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him.”  Calling Himself the Son of Man was Jesus’s claim to heavenly authority.  It was more of an exalted and heavenly concept than being a human, the “son of a man.”  When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, Am?”  Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Let that be our confession that Jesus, the Son of Man is the Son of God.  Amen!

Being Humble and Patient

 “Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous. And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.”

‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭12‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The leaders of Israel and the king were repentant and said, “God is right.” When God saw that they were humbly repentant, the word of God came to Shemaiah: “Because they are humble, I’ll not destroy them—I’ll give them a break; I won’t use Shishak to express my wrath against Jerusalem.“  It is always good to learn patience and humility from a young age.  If Rehoboam had learned it young, he would have avoided the break up of Israel.  But learn humility, he did.  His own father had said that by humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.  Jesus, the Son of God, humbled Himself to become the Son of Man.  He is our Cornerstone on which we are built to be His Temple.  Jesus told the haughty Pharisees, “Everyone who falls in humility upon that Stone will be broken. But if that Stone falls on you, it will grind you to pieces!”  Let’s be humble and repentant before God lest He grinds to pieces those who are proud before Him.  Amen!

Being Proved by Testing

 “And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭4‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭KJV

From the moment of His baptism, Jesus overflowed with the Holy Spirit. He was taken by the Spirit from the Jordan into the wilderness of Judea to experience for forty days the ordeal of testing by the accuser. He ate no food during this time and ended His forty-day fast very hungry.  The Holy Spirit’s leading is not always into comfort and ease.  The Spirit may lead us, as He did Jesus, into places where we will be proven, tested, and strengthened for our future ministry.  After Jesus’s greatest affirmation from heaven came a great time of testing.  This test was more than proving that Jesus could overcome this ordeal.  It proved that satan was defeated by Christ’s appearing.  Jesus’s baptism and the forty day of wilderness temptations that followed evoke parallels with the historical narrative of the Hebrew exodus through the Red Sea and the forty years of wilderness testing.  As the living Word used the written Word against satan, so we need the revelation of what has been written to stand against satan, the enemy of our soul.  Amen!

Love is Obeying God

 “Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren: return every man to his house: for this thing is done of me. And they obeyed the words of the LORD, and returned from going against Jeroboam. And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and built cities for defence in Judah.”

‭‭2 Chronicles‬ ‭11‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The prophet told the king, “This is God’s word: Don’t march out; don’t fight against your brothers the Israelites. Go back home, every last one of you; I’m in charge here.” And they did it; they did what God said and went home.  Rehoboam continued to live in Jerusalem but built up a defense system for Judah all around.  After a haughty spirit comes the fall, and Rehoboam corrected himself by obeying God.  Jerusalem remained the capital and Rehoboam didn’t fight with the remaining tribes who separated themselves.  When there is true repentance and correction, the outcome is obedience to the Word of God.  The Lord Jesus Christ showed this by example that He was a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered.  Because of that obedience, God exalted Him and multiplied His greatness! He has now been given the greatest Name of all!  Let’s love our brothers and sisters, the children of God, and have a passionate love for God by obedience to His commands.  And this is love: that we walk in obedience to His commands, which is that we walk in love.  Amen!

Repentance, Baptism & New Life

 “Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭3‬:‭8‬ ‭KJV‬‬

John the Baptist spoke to the multitudes who came to hear him, “Then turn away from your sins, turn to God, and let your changed life be proof. Don’t think for a moment that it’s enough to simply be the favored descendants of Abraham. That’s not enough to save you. I’m telling you, God could make more sons of Abraham out of stones if he chose to!”  God values reformation over ritual.  John’s ministry was to prepare people for the appearing of Jesus Christ through repentance and baptism.  Repentance breaks open the heart and changes our attitudes toward God.  Baptism was a burial of those who repented, preparing them for the germination of Christ coming to live within by the new birth.  Repentance and baptism was a prophetic fulfilment.  “I will sprinkle purifying water over you, and you will be cleansed from all the filth of your past. I will wash you clean from the defilement of worshiping false gods. I will graciously give you a new, tender heart and put a new, willing spirit inside you. I will remove your hard heart of stone and give you an obedient, responsive heart instead.”  Thank God for the new life it brings us to.  Amen!