Month: April 2016

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What Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me? Power

19th April

“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, He will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.”

Romans 8:11

Did you know that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead after His gruesome and treacherous death, is the same power that lives in us if we have accepted the gift of salvation in our lives.

The book of Romans describes the power that sin had over our lives before the great exchange happened, when Jesus our Lord and Saviour, willingly gave His life as an exchange for our sin, and paid the debt that we owed. Before we accepted this outrageous act of love, we were what Paul describes as dead: dead in our sins (spiritually dead). Yet when we accepted Jesus into our lives, we agreed that the resurrection power of the Spirit of God would come and co-habit our lives. Yes, that same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us. WOW.

The One who made the very breath that we breathe has given us new life. We are alive in Christ because of the Holy Spirit’s work in us! What an awesome opportunity to get to know the person of the Holy Spirit. Yet why does His power live in us? Is it just so we can have a happy life, see signs and wonders, or is it more than that?

Well the answer is all of the above. The Holy Spirit lives in us to open our hearts and minds to what Jesus did for us on the cross and help us to accept the gift of salvation that is freely presented to us, enabling us to have an intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Yet salvation was never meant to be a secret. In fact you are not saved to be an individual locked inside a cushioned room. If the same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us and resurrected you from your sin, then use that power to tell others. Show them that God is real and is longing for a relationship with them!

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What Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me? Grace

18th April

“God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this. It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.”

Ephesians 2:8-9

There was once a little girl who used to disobey her mother. Her mother one day got very angry with her child and scolded her. The little girl knowing she had done something wrong, said ‘I’m sorry mummy, I promise I will never do it again.’ The next day the child did the same thing, then again repeated her words of confession and the promise to not do it again. Sound familiar?

The story of the child’s confession, repentance and promise might sound cute but in actual fact, isn’t that what we find ourselves doing; making promises to live good lives and love God with all our hearts and then failing at every obstacle that comes our way? Yet the ‘trying’ to do good is completely missing the point of what Jesus did for us. Even our best efforts are not enough to be made right with God…!

Paul’s words in today’s verse say that ‘salvation is not reward for your good works’. Salvation is a gift from God. It is a sign of His unconditional and unwavering love for us, His children, His creation. He didn’t wait for us to become good, to deserve His gift, to get our lives on the right track, or to build up an account of good works before He died for us. No, He died for us while we were still sinners. He died when we wereacn’t good and didn’t deserve it. The point of salvation is not in the ‘trying’ or making promises to God you can’t keep, it is in ‘accepting’ that when Jesus died and rose again, He opened an account with our names, and wrote ‘unlimited grace’ next to our names, written in His blood. That is not to say we can live wreck-less lives because God’s grace will cover our sins. It is saying that because of God’s grace, our sins are forgiven and we no longer have to strive to gain God’s favour by the good things we do. Our wrong-doings have been paid, we are un-conditionally loved and free from the pressure of trying to gain God’s favour! 

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Whats Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me?

16th -17th April

Strength

“I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

Philippians 4:12-13

Paul, after his miraculous conversion on the road to Damascus, faced persecution for the rest of his life. He himself, before his conversion, brutally hunted down and persecuted believers for putting their trust in Jesus, yet after his conversion, he went on the receiving end of the persecution. Beaten, imprisoned and starved for boldly declaring Jesus is Lord, became the norm for Paul. Yet every beating he received, he counted as a blessing for the sake of being able to share Christ’s love with the world. It is due to Paul’s bravery that the church grew so rapidly and because of Paul’s teaching that we can know more about God’s character. Yet where did Paul find his strength from? Himself? Absolutely not. His strength came from Christ.

He knew that no matter what situation he faced, even in death, that Jesus would be with him and give him strength. That strength may not have always been a way out of the persecution but strength to go through it without wavering. Paul was a man that knew that on his own, he could accomplish nothing, but with the strength of Christ, he could change the world. Yet Paul’s motives were never that he would be glorified but that Christ would be lifted high. He was a great man of faith and an example to us all, to not put our hope and trust in our own abilities but in the strength that Christ gives us. We too can access as much of Jesus and His strength as Paul did. It is the same Jesus we serve. Our hinderance is the lack of ability to fully trust Him. When we completely surrender to Jesus, He can fully work and equip us with His strength. When we completely rely on His strength, that is when Jesus’ best work is done through us. Will you surrender all to Him and in exchange receive the strength to ‘do all things’ for Him!?

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Whats Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me?

15th April

We Are Loved

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today or our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:38-39

How can we be sure that God loves us? Well, if these verses are not enough to convince you, let’s take a look back in time. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, along with the consequence of their sin (separation from God), sin entered the human nature. We became ‘sinners’ by nature and were only made right with God through faith in Him and through a substitutionary sacrifice to pay for our sins. Yet God, from the beginning of time already had a master plan to fix humanities mess. God in His great love, sent His Only Son, Jesus Christ, to be that sacrifice for us, to take our sins on His shoulders and in doing so, restored the broken communion between man and God.

The wages of our sins is death. The author and creator of life has to hold us accountable for the things we do wrong. The same is in our lives. That’s why we have the law, lawyers, courts and jails. Yet when Jesus came and died for us, He became the payment for our sins. Instead of us having to pay or get punished for our sins, He took it for us. He said ‘don’t punish them, punish me!!’ This sacrifice that Jesus made cannot be matched, can never be rivalled, is final and is for us. Moreover, it is for this reason, that we can have full assurance and confidence that we are loved by God. If He loved us that much to send us His Only Son… then surely we are loved. In addition, if Jesus Himself laid down His life for us even though He knew we would sin, then surely we are seriously, radically and unbelievably loved. You are loved! We are loved! And nothing can separate us from that! What Jesus did is unbreakable, un-changeable and eternal.

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Whats Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me? I Am More Than A Conqueror

14th April

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution of famine or nakedness or danger or sword?. . . No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

Romans 8:35,37

In all things we are more than conquerors.. WOW. That is a big statement. Where is the foundation for such a claim? How can we be sure that we are victorious in all situations? Why? Because of the love of Christ that lives in you and because He was victorious over all things. Because He lives we live too. Because He loves us, we are loved. Because He defeated all things on the cross, we also live in victory. He is our God and we are on the winning side.

Yet what does it mean to be more than a conqueror? Does it mean that we never face persecution, famine, trouble, hardship, danger or nakedness? No, not at all. Paul himself, who wrote this text, said that he always felt in danger for his life; He constantly faced persecution and hardship. However, what he was trying to say is that, there is nothing in the world that is able to tear us away from the love that God has for us. It is because of this that we can find victory, even when we think defeat is before us; We can persevere until the end. We live in the resurrection power of Jesus which means we don’t have to stay beaten down, but can rise in the authority of the cross. We live as warriors for Christ, armed with the might of His power and equipped with His love to persevere!

If God is for us who can be against us?

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Whats Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me?

13th April

Authority

“One day Jesus called together His twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. Then He sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.”

Luke 9:1-2

As believers in Jesus’ resurrection, we too can have power from on High to heal the sick and share the gospel. Jesus says in John 14 that, ““I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in My Name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in My Name, and I will do it!”” Jesus Himself gave us the authority to access Kingdom power whenever we pray in Jesus’ Name. Yet note, there is a condition. Jesus’ power is not for us to build our own images, it is not for us to have a great ministry, is it not for our fame and it is not for our riches and earthly glory. It is to bring glory to the Father and to extend His Kingdom.

Faith in Jesus Christ leads us to a closeness with the Father. As we draw closer to the Father we experience more of His miraculous power in our lives as He slowly chisels away at our sinful nature and makes us more like Him. We then begin to live in the authority of who we are in Him and as we access this authority, it flows out of our lives and into our daily situations. That is what living in the authority of Jesus’ resurrection means. Living our daily lives in Kingdom authority! Bringing Heaven to earth. Showing Jesus in all we do and say. We have been given authority to make Jesus known to all.

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Whats Does Jesus’ Sacrifice Mean For Me? Acceptance

12th April

“But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us, while we were still sinners.”

Romans 5:8

The Apostle Paul, in the book of Romans states that “…the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” (6:23). When we sin we deserve to be punished. Since God is our creator, anything we do against His will, is called a sin and is punishable. In fact, everyone one of us falls into that category. Yet when Jesus died on the cross, He paid the debt that our sin owed and in doing so, made us clean and right before God.

The Apostle Paul words it like this, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins.” (Romans 3:23-24) We deserve death but instead we are given life and life in it’s fullness. Jesus didn’t wait for us to become good people or didn’t wait until we understood and accepted what He was going to do. Jesus died for us while we were still ‘sinners’. Jesus died for the very people who ordered His crucifixion. He died for the people who crucified Him. He died for all the religious priests who wanted Him dead. He died for us even in our lowest points.

So today, do not feel like you are distant from God because of your sin, or like you can’t talk to Him. Your debt has been paid, it has been paid in full. You are free and right in His sight. Accept His grace and love and let His view of YOU change your view of yourself. You are accepted!

 

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The Message Of Christ

11th April

“Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.”

Colossians 3:16

‘Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives’…. Well what is the message of Christ? What is the message of the cross? Simply put, it is about love. It is about a loving, Almighty God, sacrificing His own Son so that He can restore the severed relationship between God and mankind. It is about grace. It is about acceptance. It is about identity and purpose. The fullness and richness of the Gospel is not just Good News, it is Good News that changes lives.

You have been accepted to stand before the Holy throne of God because of what Jesus did for you on the cross. You have been filled with the grace of God who saw it fit to empty Himself for you and lay down His life in your place. His grace now accepts you no matter what you have done or what you will do. Our confession and His forgiveness is integral in that acceptance. Your identity is now not as a ‘sinner’ (although we still sin that is not who we are), our identity is now as a son or daughter of God, a royal priesthood, a chosen people and a loved bride waiting for our King to return.

Friends, the richness and fullness of the message of Christ is ‘life transforming’. That is why we sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in our hearts. Let us continue to encourage each other with the fullness of His message and teach and counsel others too.

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Receiving Power

9th – 10th

Weekend Edition

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8

Jesus said a lot of things to His disciples throughout His lifetime, but these words here in Acts, the final before His ascension, are arguably the most significant words He ever said to them. First, He spoke of the imminent baptism of the Holy Spirit, which would in fact change the dynamics of ‘evangelism’, then, He told them how the gospel would be spread across the world.

The most significant thing in sharing God’s word with others is the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit leads us, guides us, reveals God’s plan for ours and others lives and equips us with the tools (Spiritual gifts) to share Jesus with others. Well what do we share about Jesus? Answer: Everything. Jesus came and showed us how to live, He showed us God on earth and His teachings changed and continues to change the world. His wisdom, His love, His grace, His teachings and His life are a ‘prototype’ for our lives and an example we have to follow and teach others to follow too. Jesus’ own commission to the disciples was that they were to share about Him to everyone, everywhere.

Because of the above reasons, many today and in the past have committed to serving Jesus, following His teachings and making Him their God. The Holy Spirit’s power in equipping people with the tools to share about Jesus with others is as real today as it was on the day of pentecost. Many have been saved but there are still many more people in the world who need to hear about Jesus. May Jesus’ prayer be for you today .. . . .’Go and share Jesus with others: Be empowered by the Holy Spirit.’

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Because He Lives..

8th April

“He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His ancestor David. And He will reign over Israel forever; His Kingdom will never end!”

Luke 1:32-33

The prophecy that Gabriel gave to Mary would have been great news to her and her people’s ears. Israel longed for a King that would endure forever. They longed for a King that would set them free from oppression. They longed for a King to lead them into Godliness and closeness with Yahweh, the One true God. Yet Gabriel’s prophecy was so much more than just an earthly Kingdom. This was a ‘forever’ Kingdom.

Jesus’ ascension into Heaven symbolised and signified that Jesus’ rule was not just limited to His earthly life but His rule was eternal. Jesus returned to Heaven in His resurrected and fully alive state so that we can have 100% assurance that the God we serve is not dead but alive. Isaiah also prophesied of these events, written in chapter 9 verse 7, “His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of His ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!”

What assurance we can have! Jesus’ resurrection was more than just a fulfilment of age old prophecies, but the hope and assurance that our God has passionately committed to us and committed to Jesus’ rule forever. This means that Jesus will stand as our intercessor, as our King, as Groom and as our God forever and ever and there will be no end to His love, grace and mercy for us! Amen, He is alive!