Author: Lawrence Tay

An Ambassador for the Lord Jesus Christ, bearing record of His Light.

THE SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE OF FASTING AND WHY WE SHOULD FAST.

It is with joy that we get to share the Word of God with brothers and sisters around the world.

I would like to start with stating the obvious that the Bible is the most comprehensive.
and logical Book that has ever been written. It is History and it is prophetic. We will look at one example.
of this fact by referencing Isaiah 44 and 45 that predicted that Cyrus the great of Persia would be the
one to set God’s people free from captivity in Babylon. This was about 150 to 200 years before Cyrus.
was born. As prophesied by Isaiah it happened. In Zechariah 4 and Haggai 2 God decided to choose
Zerubbabel to be the one that would lead the captives back for rebuilding the second Temple in
Jerusalem. This too is history because it happened as prophesied by God’s word. Zechariah 4:6-7
reads: “6 So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor
by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts. 7 ‘Who are you, O great mountain? Before
Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of “Grace, grace.
to it!” Amen! Haggai 2:7-9 reads: “7 and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All
Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the LORD of hosts. 8 ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold
is Mine,’ says the LORD of hosts. 9 ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says
the LORD of hosts. ‘And in this place, I will give peace,’ says the LORD of hosts.” Amen! We are privileged.
to have His word given to us to serve a guide or a roadmap in a complex, confused and an evil world. I
want to encourage those listening to make reading and meditating and committing God’s word to
memory a way of life. He told Joshua in Joshua 1:8 what he needed to do to have success. It
is to meditate on God’s word day and night and never allow it to depart from his mouth. Amen!

Today, we will look at the fact that the world we live in is not just physical but also spiritual. The two are
connected with the spiritual controlling the physical. The spiritual is more important than the physical
and that is why in Colossians 3:2 we are told to set our minds on things that are above and not below.
As human beings we are limited because we see only in three dimensions and if the dimension of time
is added we have four dimensions. However, there are N dimensions. We also have two.
Kingdoms according to Matthew 12 that are at war with each other. The Kingdom of God and the
Kingdom of Satan. From the day we accepted the Lord Jesus as our Savior we declared war on the
kingdom of the devil. The battle between these two kingdoms is spiritual and so we cannot see it with
our eyes, unless there is a confrontation like in Matthew 12 when the man having demons and blind.
and mute was delivered by the Lord Jesus Christ. Before we open the word of God, we want to ask His
Spirit to give us revelation. The Spirit wrote the Word, and it is the same Spirit that grants us the
interpretation of His word. In Hosea 4:6 and Isaiah 5:13 we are told that God’s people perish and go
into captivity because of the lack of the knowledge of God. Deuteronomy 29:29 says the secret things
belong to the Lord and the things that are revealed belong to us and our children so we can do them.
Amen! Our God sees and knows all things-physical and spiritual. Our prayer today is that the Lord will.
open our eyes so we can acknowledge the obvious or the reality of the world we live in and that is we?
have an adversary who wants us dead or defeated or who wants us to give up. In John 10:10 we are
told that Satan knows only three things: To steal, to kill and to destroy. But Jesus came that we might
have life and life more abundantly. Amen! In Ephesians 6:12 the Bible says we do not wrestle against
flesh and blood but against powers and principalities and the rulers of darkness of this world in heavenly
places. The good news is that we are also not helpless because in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 we have been
given weapons that are NOT physical but spiritual through God to the pulling down of every demonic
stronghold. Amen!

Fasting is one of the spiritual disciplines for us to follow and it is a good practice, especially if we are
face with a problem that is beyond us physically. It is one way of telling God that we want Him to come
in and help us. I will try to explain based on God’s Word why fasting is important and why it works. I will
not be able to exhaust it since it is impossible to exhaust God’s word. It is like manner from heaven that
is fresh anytime we read it or eat it. So, do your best to ask God to open your spiritual eyes so you can
catch the revelation in His Word as you wait on Him and study it.
The first reference I would like to share is from Matthew 6:16 that says, “When you fast……” Meaning to
fast is a must or a command from God for us to do. It didn’t say “If you fast….” which would make it
optional or conditional. Amen! So, when we fast, we are obeying God’s word. The reason this verse is
important is that when we fast, we are declaring war on Satan and his kingdom. He will fight back and
so when we fast we need to find time to pray too. Fasting will make the devil to attack us and when this
happens we are not to be afraid because we are obeying God’s word. One good example is Jesus after
He was baptized and was led to fast for 40 days in the wilderness. Satan attacked Him. He was tempted
by the devil. You can read this in Matthew 4:1-11. The verse in 2 Chronicles 7:14 is one important
verse on fasting, even though it is not stated there directly but i will explain why. It says “If My people
who are called by My name shall humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked
ways then I will hear them from heaven, forgive their sins and heal their land.” Amen! God gave this
promise to King Solomon concerning His people Israel and by extension us. He gave 4 conditions we
must meet and it begins with Humbling ourselves. Please note that almost every promise of God in His
word is conditional. Here, He expects us to do 4 things before He can respond. God hates it when we
are passive. In other words, do nothing and expect something to happen. One way to humble ourselves
is by fasting. We are made of a Soul, a Spirit and a Body. The one thing in us that always wants to
oppose God is our soul. That is why in Ezekiel 18:20 His word says the soul that sins shall die. So
when we fast, we afflict, or we subject our souls to the Spirit of God. That is why in Leviticus 23:27 &
Leviticus 16:29 God told the children of Israel to afflict their souls or in some Bible translations to
humble themselves and this is done on the day of atonement or Yom Kippur in the Jewish people
calendar that they do up to today. How do they afflict their souls or humble themselves on this day? It
is by fasting for 25 hours. So, fasting is so important because you would notice that it came even before
praying in 2 Chronicles 7:14. It says if we humble ourselves and pray……Amen!

We shall look at examples of this in God’s Word and there are many and we may not be able to list all.
Let’s begin with King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. Judah and Jerusalem were under attack and the
king had no where to turn. He looked up to God from where our help comes (Psalms 121:1). In verse
3 of 2 Chronicles 20 you would see that that he declared a fast throughout the land and it changed the
situation. God intervened and fought their battle for them. They only had to go and face the enemy and
God turned the enemies against themselves (See verses 21-24). Amen! God never told them to run
away from their enemies. He said they should go and face them and that He would lead them. In Psalms
24 we are told that our God is strong and mighty and mighty in battle. We do not solve our problems by
running away from them, rather we do by facing them. In Esther 4 we have another example. In verses
15-16 Esther told her uncle to go and tell all the Jews in Persia to join her for 3 days of dry fasting before
she will go before the king. Haman had plotted to kill all the Jews in Persia, modern day Iran and Esther
being a Jew was the queen. But the problem was that one could only go before the king by invitation. If
you did without an invitation you could get killed. But she decided to wait on God in unity with her people
before going and God intervened. The book of Esther is one of the only two books in the entire Bible
where the name of God is not mentioned even once. The Song of Songs is the other. Yet, Esther’s
action of fasting caused God to intervene to save His people from destruction. The gallows that Haman
prepared to hang God’s people were used to hang himself and his family. One other example of fasting
is in Daniel 10. Many refer to this as the Daniel fast. Daniel had prayed and was expecting a response
from God but nothing was happening. So, he decided to fast for 21 days…not total abstention from food
but he avoided eating certain types of food that he would usually eat. And it opened the heavens for
God to intervene. God had answered Daniel’s prayer, but the Bible says that the prince of Persia,
referring to a demonic power controlling the nation of Persia had prevented the answer of Daniel’s prayer.
from reaching him. Angels had to intervene by fighting that demonic power in order for the answer to
Daniel’s prayer to be released. Amen! Daniel 10:12 says: “Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for
from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your
words were heard; and I have come because of your words.” Amen! You see the word humble again
appearing here because of Daniel’s fasting. Amen! This example is a possible explanation of why Iran
hates Israel so much. Their hatred of God’s people is demonic since they have no reason to hate the
Jews. They do not share a common border and Iranians are not Arabs either. In this example, the Angel
had to do battle with the demonic power for 21 days and a re-enforcement, the Angel Michael, who God
has chosen to keep watch over His people Israel (Daniel 12:1), had to also intervene. In Genesis 1:1
the Bible says in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Meaning we have more than
one heaven. In 2 Corinthians 12:2 Paul speaks about a man who was caught up in the 3rd heaven,
where the throne of God is. So logically, if we have a first heaven (The one that is visible to us from the
earth) and a third heaven then there must be second heaven, and this is where Satan has setup his
kingdom to rival God’s kingdom. Also, in Ephesians 6:12 you see the reference there to heavenly places
where these satanic and demonic forces operate. In Jonah 3:5 going we see another example of how
fasting made God to intervene in the lives of the people of Nineveh. These people were Pagans and
God wanted to destroy that land because of evil. But when they decided to fast and repent God changed
His mind. Another example can be found in 1 Samuel 31:13. King Saul had been killed together with
his son Jonathan and Israel was in disarray without a king. Notice the people’s action after they buried
the king. They fasted for 7 days. Then jump to 2 Samuel and there you would see that David came on
the scene and started fighting on behalf of Israel. If we are not careful, we will think it just happened. The
7 days fasting might have caused the situation to change and for God to intervene. Nothing happens for
nothing in our world. Another good example is the fast declared by the priest Ezra in Ezra 8:21. These
people had been set free and they had to return to Jerusalem but there was danger on the way.
Meanwhile, Ezra was in a dilemma because he had boasted to the king about the God he was serving
and so he didn’t want to ask the king for body guards to take them. What did he do? He declared a fast
and they went and nothing happened to them on the way. Amen!

It is good to give some examples in the New Testament. One is in Acts 13:1-3. Paul and Barnabas were
to be sent out but the Church decided to first wait on God by fasting for direction. And God manifested
and the Holy Spirit led them to select the two of them to be sent on the missionary journey. Amen! In
Matthew 17:20-21 Jesus was asked about why His disciples were not able heal the boy who was
epileptic and He said in some cases like the one they had before them fasting is needed for there to be
a breakthrough. Amen!
The last but not the least we will reference what some people consider the most important chapter on
fasting in the Bible. It is Isaiah 58. Here, God has given us the type of fasting He would accept beginning
from verse 6. Meaning it is not every fast that pleases our God. But when we fast the right way God has
promised nothing but the best for us. Verse 8, for example, says: “Then your light shall break forth like
the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall go before
you” ……. Amen! Verses 10-11 says: “If you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul,
Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday. 11 The LORD will
guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones;
You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
Let me please add that when you have a medical condition, and you are on medication fasting might not
be for you. If you fast you must listen to your body. A day’s fast is good. And from my own experience
3 days is doable but very challenging. Now to go beyond 3 days it would have to be supernatural and
unless that is the case, I would not recommend it.
Our God has told us to call upon Him and when we do He has promised to show us great and mighty
things that we do not know (Jeremiah 33:3). It is my prayer that God will visit you and manifest in your
life and in your situation as you wait on Him through fasting and prayer. In Jesus name, Amen.

BRO JAMES WILLIE, SCHOPFHEIM GERMANY.
17.12.23.

THE PARALLEL BETWEEN PENTECOST AND SHAVUOT AND PRAYING FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT-03.06.23

Words of encouragement and wisdom: We are still praying for the Spirit of Leadership and Vision and Wisdom and Knowledge and Understanding. We always want to keep Hosea 4:6 and Isaiah 5:13 in mind as we approach the throne of grace. He said His people perish because of the lack of the knowledge of God. He has asked us to call on Him and when we do, He has promised to show us great and mighty things that we do not know (Jeremiah 33:3). Amen! Our prayer is that we will be like the children of Issachar, who according to 1 Chronicles 12:32 understood their times and so knew what to do. We are living in the end times and as Christians celebrate Pentecost this week (50 days after Easter), when Spirit of God came down in the Upper Room in Jerusalem, and Jews celebrate the festival of Shavuot, which is also 50 days after Passover we want to look at the connection between the two and the spiritual implication for us, the bride of Jesus Christ. The connection between Jesus, the Passover Lamb and the Passover that was celebrated in Egypt and still celebrated today by God’s people is clear. Then 50 days after they left Egypt, they reached mount Sinai, and our God did something that no other God has been able to do throughout history. It was when God gave Moses the 10 commandments and the Torah, or the first 5 Books of the Bible. Every civilization today is governed by these commandments, even if they acknowledge God or not. Without it there would be no civilization. It was when the Law was given to Moses. The parallel is clear. One thing we said in our faith is clear. Nothing happens for nothing. We may not know the reason, but nothing happens for nothing. In the case of Pentecost, the disciples were gathered in the upper room. Why? Some scholars believed that they were gathered to celebrate the festival of Shavuot. When Jesus Himself walked on this earth He kept all the festivals of the Jews and so this is very possible. On Pentecost the Holy Spirit came down. On Shavuot on Mount Sanai God came down to meet with His people. The only difference is in the case of Mount Sinai the law was given and it was followed by death and in the case of Pentecost it was the Spirit of God that came down under the new covenant initiated by the death of our Lord Jesus Christ and it gave life after the people repented and accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. What is stunning is the number of people who perished or died on Mount Sinai when they worshipped the golden calf and those saved during Pentecost. The same number-3000. Some will say that this too is a coincidence. That there is no connection between the two. God is saying there is no way anyone can keep the law. The law cannot save us. It brings death but grace and the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ under the new covenant brings life. Amen! See Exodus 32:28: “So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.” Amen! And Acts 2:41: “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day of about three thousand souls were added to them. Amen! And Amen!

According to Exodus 19:16-19 God’s presence on mount Sinai was accompanied by fire, smoke, thunder. At Pentecost His presence was accompanied by the sound of wind, tongues of fire and the gift of different languages (Acts 2:1-3). Amen!

God’s presence was symbolized by fire and cloud, which led His children out of Egypt and later God moved His presence into the temple (2 Chronicles 5:7-8 & 13-14). During Pentecost, God’s presence moved into a new temple, the followers of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:9). This was the beginning of Christianity.  Amen!

In the Old Testament the Torah became the teacher of God’s children and at Pentecost the Holy Spirit became the teacher (John 14:26).

The implication for us spiritually today is in Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17: The same Spirit that was at work in the prophesy in Joel 2 was at work in Peter in Acts 2, hence we have Peter quoting the prophet Joel. It says in the latter days God will pour down His Spirit upon all flesh. The question is do we have the Holy Spirit? When we come to Christ, we go through three major phases: We believe in Jesus and we are Justified by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and we are saved, then come Sanctification, where we give up our old way of living and turn to living a holy life and then the baptism of the Holy Spirit. In Martin Luther’s time in the 16th Century, just having justification was going to do because the people then were caught up in the denomination of Roman Catholicism and their belief was in the dogmas that was instituted by that Church-Some thought that having the Cross around their neck would save them, some by burning incense, etc, etc. And God said no, the message was: The Just shall live by faith and not the rituals they were following (Romans 1:17 & Galatians 3:11). Amen! Then came John Wesley and his doctrine was holiness because morally people were having problems living holy lives. God’s message then was clear, without holiness no man shall see Me (Hebrews 12:14). It means in addition to having faith and being justified by it the people needed to be sanctified. Amen! And now we have Laodicea, the 7th Church Age, where the enemy is on the loose and things are falling apart. The implication for us is clear. Without the Spirit of God or the Holy Ghost it will not be possible to overcome this evil age. This is the final Church age, and we need all the three to be able to overcome this age. As it was in the beginning so shall it be at the end. At the beginning of the Church Ages or Christianity God pour down His Spirit at Pentecost. So too at the end time He has promised to pour down His Spirit upon ALL FLESH. Are we ready for this revival? May God help us to tune our minds to His move in the latter days so we can be part of this revival. In Jesus name, amen!

In closing, I will leave you with the priestly blessing taken from Numbers 6:24-26 that reads: 24 “The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you; 26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.” Amen! Shalom!

BRO. JAMES WILLIE, Schopfheim GERMANY.

NICOLAITANISM

Revelation 2:6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.  

Revelation 2:15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.

The word of God is the absolute that direct the path of every true seed. Nicolaitanism is a doctrine adopted into Christianity which has no root in the word of God.

Anything that has no root in God’s word is anti – (the word of God) or simply against Christ. The mystery of iniquity is this: That men put their will above the perfect Will of God. That mystery works in a man mentioned in the Bible as the man of sin or son of perdition. The scriptures out laid that he sitteth in the congregation making himself as God over the church. This is a sign of Apostasy.

 2 Thessalonians 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

This is a character that is manifested in any church or organization that has fallen away from the Truth of God.

 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.

To day many churches or organization will reject the fact of having fallen away from the Truth. The question is, will the pope and his organizations ever accept the fact that they are manifesting a trait of Antichrist?

God’s church is not an organization but an organism. Several unscriptural stands have been embraced in Christendom, even among so many churches who claimed to be in the light of the Message.

Apostle Paul made it clear that the one who plant a church and the one who waters are one. And that there should not be any variation among the brethren.

1 Corinthians 3:5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? 

3 :6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 

3:7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. 

3:8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. 

3:9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.

Among the Early church, that started on the Day of Pentecost, apostle Peter was given a key and this key was manifested when he stood up to preach on the day of Pentecost. Some organisational churches usually use this as a reference point to support the wrong notion that Head Pastor or founder position existed.

Following the account of acts of apostles, apostle Peter never claimed any headship position over the Early church. There was a time when there was a dispute among the disciples, James quickly stood up and declared the counsel of God.

Acts 15:13 And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:

The early church didn’t inhibit the leadership of the Holy Ghost by limiting it to only one man in whom all revelations come from. They honored each persons call, and gift given by the Holy Spirit. Peter will one time confess that Apostle Paul was given hard things to be understood.

2 Peter 3:16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

Now in the early church, there is no denying the fact that there were elderly apostles who were in the Lord before others. Example apostle Paul clearly said that he didn’t receive his call from any man but according to the will of God. But when the need came, he compared his teaching with the teaching with the elderly apostles who were before him. (Gal 2:2)

Paul compared his revelation with men of reputation, does not mean that there were a Chief whom he was obligated. This, also dispute the fact that revelations should always come from headquarters. The enemy has capitalized on headquarters and lead so many churches in to nicolaitanism and organizations.

The prophet, William Braham told his elder to make his Tabernacle like a headquarters do not prove the fact that, it is biblical to have a headquarters. An actual headquarters that the bride can look on to is the Holy Spirit.  The church is not an organization, nor an organized group or sect. Where a headquarters will be call for.

The church is a mystical body of Christ. Schism is a sign a sign of an Apostasy.

1 Corinthians 12:25 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.

This really tells that they respected each other’s call. Apostle Paul who proved to have several revelations and through whom several epistles were written, never made himself as the one who knows it all but submitted himself one to another.

2 Corinthians 11:5 For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles.

(2 Corinth 12:11)Because the LORD Jesus Christ commanded them to clothe themselves with humility. And not to promote nicolaitanism or led in to promoting oneself as being the chiefest.

Mark 10:44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.

There is the fivefold ministry, which consists of the Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastors and Teachers. Each of this gift may be in fifty-fold, hundred-fold and others but that doesn’t put one above to gain pre-eminence over the other. Jesus Christ should be the prominence in all and head of the body.

Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence.

This is the spirit who put ” Arch ” very, senior most, among the clergy.

The gifts and calling of God work in diverse ministrations but are led by the same spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

Though in the vineyard, there are elderly men and men who are given double honor for their work in the vineyard of God, this should never pave way for nicolaitanism in the midst of Believers. This has promoted egoistic preachers who inspire fear and not faith in the camp of Believers. Many of these people, have use the honor given them to claim ownership over the assembly of believers which the LORD Jesus Christ has purchase with His own blood. No elect of God will claim ownership over God’s heritage. (Acts 20:28)

No wonder in this era of the End time, God is gathering his seed and so is the Enemy (Satan), also gathering the tares.

The LORD Jesus Christ in his subsequent letter to the seven churches forewarned the church against NICOLAITANISM. This doctrine of nicolaitanism is Antichrist. Because from the scriptural bases no man taketh this honor by himself as Aaron was. Jesus Christ took the manner not to glorify himself as such but was honored by the will of the Most High.

 Hebrews 5:4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.  5:5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made a high priest; but he that said unto him, thou art my Son, today have I begotten thee.

Nicolaitane come from the word of Nicko, N-i-c-k-o.   Nicko, which means “to conquer or to overthrow.” Nico-laitanes, “overthrow or conquer the laity.” In the early church history   where God had pastors, and the Spirit of God moving by gifts in the Church of the living God, and, they were having a doctrine such that they were going to have some arc- bishops, and popes, and so forth.

 That, God said, He hated! He hates it yet today what do we see? Nico-laitanes, (Nicko, “overcome”) or “overthrow the laity.” The laity is “the church.” To “Overthrow or conquer or take place of the laity.”

The laity, the Holy Spirit, taking out of the church… the resurrected Lord Jesus with signs and wonders among the believers, and put men voted in to be. In other words, an overseer trying to take the Holy Ghost away from the laity and give it to an order called the holy order of men, placing them over the laity.

Simply it is a doctrine that takes the Holy Ghost out as the Leader, and give them a holy order of men, and place them over the laity.

This doctrine has no root in the word of God but rather the Bible spoke against it all the time. If you are an elect of God, would not even dare putting an iota to God’s word.

Many a time you would see a little assembly springing up, at a little time they become so organized and develop into something else. Not taking its grounds on the word. This is the spirit which promotes hierarchical system among the ministers of God.

Jesus Christ said this to his disciples:

 Mark 10:42 But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great one’s exercise authority upon them. 

10:43 But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:  10:44 And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.

Jesus Christ taught his disciples never to assume anyone being the chiefest.

Mathew 23:10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

 23:11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. True servant of God of God never takes this honor for themselves and calling themselves names for you to know how holier or nearer they are to God.

Anyone who assume a position that belongs to Jesus Christ is standing on a dangerous ground.

Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence.

You may call Jesus Christ the Chief shepherd. He is Apostle of apostles, Prophet of prophets, Teacher of teachers and more so the master of the flock.

 1 Peter 5:4 And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

I therefore urge believers to really accord respect to servants of God and esteem them highly but not in a way of unbiblical grounds or tampering with the word of God.

 An organizational spirit will lift a man and not Christ as being the head.

Some of these Nicolaitan names include Pope, Archbishop, Most Reverend, very most Reverend, General Overseer, Senior Pastor(founder), Founder and general Bishop, Chief Warrior and so forth , just to mention a few .

If Jesus Christ hates it, then flee from such heresy.

Shalom

BRO STEPHEN AWITTOR, CAPECOAST GHANA.

DOES LISTENING ALSO MEAN HEARING?

Revelation 2:29 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

You only Hear when you Understand what is said

“Listen” means to pay attention but not necessarily understand the significance of the noise or words. As a result, what was said does not change our behavior.

“Hear” means to be informed by what is said or heard. Your understanding deepens.

What you hear influences your behavior, which is what you do.

DEUTERONOMY 5:1 And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them.

Matthew 15:10 And He called the multitude and said unto them, Hear, and understand.

Hearing must be linked to understanding because hearing has value.

ROMANS 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

You only get faith from the Scriptures that you understand.

Our problem is that we do not know so many of the Bible mysteries which we just try to find superficial and shallow answers for.

HEBREWS 5:11 Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.

“Dull of hearing” means dull of understanding.

To really understand something takes hard work.

To listen is meaningless. We can all listen to a lecture but how many can understand the lecture?

Listening means knowledge goes in one ear and out the other ear.

MARK 8:18 Having eyes, see ye not?

and having ears, hear ye not?

and do ye not remember?

We all listen to the sound of the voice thanks to our ears receiving the sound waves. This is called noise or it may be a code.

But there was certain information being transferred that had to be understood in the mind. That is called the signal or the meaning of the code.

But if you hear what the prophet says then you link his statement to other statements that are in the Bible and you develop a pattern of thought that runs through the Scriptures.

Today we take a superficial view of the Bible and look for shallow meanings in many of the symbols and events because we fear the hard work it will take to seek and dig up the truth.

JEREMIAH 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

May the Lord help us to tune our spiritual ears properly so as to hear properly what the Spirit is saying!

Shalom!

BEWARE OF THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL

Eccl 5:10 He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this [is] also vanity.

Watch out for the Prosperity Gospel.

Did you know Apostle Paul never put emphasis on the Prosperity Gospel that makes rich?

Paul was an inspiring example on how to survive loss and excessive hardship while serving God.

2 Cor 11:24- 27
Of the Jews five times received I forty [stripes] save one.
Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
[In] journeyings often, [in] perils of waters, [in] perils of robbers, [in] perils by [mine own] countrymen, [in] perils by the heathen, [in] perils in the city, [in] perils in the wilderness, [in] perils in the sea, [in] perils among false brethren;
In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.

If Apostle Paul learned to cope with suffering. What about us? There is no shame of being poor.

Mt 5:3 Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Neither is there advantage to be rich.

Lk 18:25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

There must always be a balance in our lives as believers of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Prosperity Gospel preachers are full of excuses to justify their greed.

Let us be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.

Shalom!

WHAT DID JESUS MEAN IN LUKE 12:50?

A brother on WhatsApp asked me this question;  Bro, What did Jesus mean by the saying in Luke 12:50? 

(But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished! )

I guess every believer will straight away assume it to be water or Holy ghost baptism. However, Jesus Christ was filled with the Holy Ghost at the baptism of John the Baptist in the Jordan river 

So why would he refer to another baptism? In Mathew 3:11 

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 

In Mathew 20:18 

Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, 

(22-23) But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, we are able. 

And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. 

So, one would realize we cannot separate the Holy Spirit and fire. The one cannot be present if the other is excluded. The Holy Spirit brings peace and joy; the fire consumes the self-life and causes pain. Just as the fire dwells in the Spirit, so the Spirit dwells in the fire, for God is Spirit, but He is also a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:29)

The fire will make its presence felt immediately after a person has been baptized with the Holy Spirit. If we have known Him and the power of His resurrection, then fellowship with Christ in His sufferings will follow directly. God’s will is our sanctification; but he who wants to do God’s will, soon will feel pain as he becomes a partaker of the sufferings of Christ. God has no pleasure in someone who draws back, who spares himself. The image of Christ comes forth in us as we obey the Spirit. Christ offered Himself for us in the power of an eternal Spirit, and God raised up that great Shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, through the power of the blood of an everlasting covenant. ( Hebrews 13;20)

A lot of believers are enemies of the cross of Christ and try to retain the power of the resurrection, while at the same time rejecting the fellowship of the sufferings of Christ. These would not be worthy of his Kingdom.

Do we put ourselves in this category? 

The Holy Spirit and fire, power, and pain: these are inseparable. God never allows them to be separated. Only ignorance and a desire for fleshly comfort will cause a person to attempt to separate them.  

If we suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him. If we do not suffer with Him, we will not be glorified with Him. The cross is a weapon in our hand. It will keep self-life and fleshly pleasures from taking control. Satan cannot thrive unless you “spare yourself.” The world nourishes the flesh in every possible way, and all sorts of evil spirits flourish in and around worldly people. May we enjoy the fellowship of Christ sufferings. 

Shalom! 

SACRIFICING QUALITY OVER NUMBERS

Friends,

Do you know Numbers don’t really matter with God? He is always interested in Quality.

Let us always be careful not to compromise quality with numbers.

The story in Genesis 18 is a typical example.

The Lord did not mince words when he meant what he said. He emphasized quality-and not numbers

with the father of our faith, Abraham.

Abraham negotiated with God from finding 50 to 10 righteous people.

Interestingly the Lord couldn’t find such in Sodom and Gomorrah. Do you know the days of Sodom and Gomorrah are here with us again?

Would the Lord count you among the few if he should come today?

Lk 18:8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Are we boasting of our numbers, big church auditoriums and not the quality of life of a believer that is in tune with the Spirit of the Lord? Is christ reflecting and centre our lives?

Mind you, broad is the way to destruction and few be that find it.

Mt 7:13 -14 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide [is] the gate, and broad [is] the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

Because strait [is] the gate, and narrow [is] the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

There is a also highway and a way.

Isa 35:8 And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it [shall be] for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err [therein].

May the Lord grant unto grace to find this narrow way and stay in it till he comes again.

Shalom