Christians must serve God during good and bad times. The Creator will reward our unconditional love afterward. God never fails. (more…)
Tags: Absolute Confidence In God, Blessing Your Pastor Scripture, God's blessing, Lesson on A Decision to Serve God in Holiness Every time
A psalmist lamented and voiced his concerns as he witnessed how wicked people prospered on earth.
The man thought God was partial to have allowed the prosperity of such evil people. However, God opened his eyes to reality as he confessed,
“When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.
Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!
They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies” (Psalm 73:16-20 NIV).
Children of God are to focus on receiving their riches from God, and not to envy the wicked people.
Wicked people may prosper today but their prosperity would remain temporal – They will not last, but soon vanish.
People who have made their choice to pursue righteous riches and serve God well should not hesitate their efforts, since they will receive better and lasting success from God.
Bible Declares,
“Who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses. He himself shall dwell in prosperity, And his descendants shall inherit the earth” (Psalm 25:12-13 NKJV)).
Dear God please give me grace to pursue riches that come from you!
Please do these things and more for me!
For in the name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Tags: Bible Lesson On Pride Vs Humility, Charley Pride Christian Songs, Christian Struggling With Pride, God's blessing, lesson on psalm, lover of righteousness, personal achievement, pride, riches, Sermons On Pride Vs Humility
God asked his people – Israelites – to repent from their sin so that they can qualify for his blessings.
God said, “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes.
Cease to do evil, Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless,
Plead for the widow. “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword”; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (Isaiah 1:16-20).
God is more interested in seeing his children repent from their sins than to make them suffer terrible punishment of hell fire.
He will forgive our sins if we confess and repent from them.
Meanwhile, the Creator would be left with no other option than to exert his tough judgment if we refuse to repent from our unrighteousness.
Therefore, no Christian should take God for granted and indulge in sin.
We must operate in openness before God so that he can continue to take pleasure over our lives.
Prayer of Repentance to Enjoy God’s BlessingDear God, my goal and aspiration is to satisfy you with holy living, so that I can qualify for your eternal kingdom.
Help me to genuinely repent from my sins, and empower me to improve my relationship with you.
Anoint me with the grace to spend the rest of my life in a way that satisfies you. Let me walk uprightly before you, and let your Holy Spirit richly dwell in me so that I can remain rapturable!
For in the name of Jesus Christ I make my requests. Amen.
Tags: Blessing Your Pastor Scripture, forgiveness, God's blessing, Lesson on repentance, Praise God Of Whom All Blessings Flow Lyrics, Repentance A Joyful Choice, Repentance And Conversion, Sin
The baptism of the Holy Spirit is God’s special gift made available for all Christians to enjoy and live a prosperous life.
Christians of our days ought to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit just like early days Christians did. Some early Christians received the special blessing as narrated by Paul,
“And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” So they said to him, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?” So they said, “Into John’s baptism.”
Then Paul said, “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.” When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied” (Acts 19:1-6).
Christians should understand what baptism of the Holy Spirit means.
It means empowerment of God’s power through the Holy Spirit.
Baptism of the Holy Spirit is not the same as “Entrance of God’s Spirit.”
The entrance of God’s Spirit comes to all Christians during conversion (when someone becomes born again), but the baptism of the Holy Spirit is especially given to Christians who seek it.
Meanwhile, all Christians need the baptism of the Holy Spirit to faithfully serve God in this wicked world.
The baptism of the Holy Spirit gives someone special strength to stand uprightly when others have fallen flat.
Therefore, all believers should seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit like the early apostles during Pentecost (Acts 2:1-3).
We can pray in church and/or solicit prayers from church elders (like Paul prayed for Ephesus brethren – Acts 19:6).
We can also individually wait on God through prayer and fasting to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
A dedicated prayer is needed to secure the baptism of the Holy Spirit; therefore, believers should pray to have it.
Dear God, I want to receive the baptism of your Holy Spirit.
To qualify for this treasured gift, I confess my sins and repent from them.
Please baptize me with your Holy Spirit to be empowered to walk before you in righteousness.
Let your Spirit turn me to a giant Christian who will live a triumphant life on earth.
Let him enable me with the ability to effectively serve you to bear fruits for your kingdom.
Let your divine Spirit guide me in every aspect of life to enjoy your benefits.
For in the name of Jesus Christ I make my requests. Amen.
Tags: baptism, Faith, Gift of Holy Spirit, God's blessing, holy spirit empowerment, Holy Spirit You Are Welcome Here, Lesson on Holy spirit baptism, power of holy spirit, prayer, worship
Christians are to always pray for God’s blessings because they are meant for them to enjoy. Paul specially prayed for Christians at Ephesus; however, his prayer applied to all Christians – including present days believers.
Paul paraphrased his prayer,
“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:14-21).
Christians are recipients of God’s blessings. We are God’s children, and all his blessings befit us!
Therefore, every Christian should endeavor to claim any blessing that he or she comes across in the scripture.
(We should always pray to claim God’s blessings as much as possible).
No Christian should hesitate to reclaim any of God’s blessings found on the pages of the scriptures.
No child of God should presume that Psalm 23 only applied to King David.
The same God that David served is the one that we Christians serve; therefore the statement,
“The Lord is my shepherd” mentioned in Psalms still means something to the present-day believers.
It means God’s protection and provision would remain available for us.
Truly, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is still the same one that we serve, and we are entitled to all blessings of the scriptures!
Dear God, how awesome you are! You are the best thing that has ever happened to me.
You are my God, my rock, and my fortress! My total life is dedicated to you.
Since you are the same God yesterday, today, and forever, I claim all your promises of blessing mentioned in the scriptures.
May the riches of Abraham abide by me! May the prosperity of Joseph become my portion, and may the victory of David become my testimony!
Since I am a child of God, may his divine favor, riches, and goodness follow me throughout the days of my life!
May all my prayers and heart meditations be granted through the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
