TRANSFORMED BY THE NEW CREATION for Tuesday May 5th 2015

TRANSFORMED BY THE NEW CREATION

Memorise: And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 1^st Corinthians 6:11

Read: Luke 8:1-3, Bible in one year: 1^st Samuel 5:7, Mark 3:31-4:20

One of the most profound wonders you will find anywhere in the world is the wonder of a transformed life. When a person who was demon-possessed suddenly becomes a vessel unto honour, what wonder can be greater than this? Such a person remains a wonder throughout his or her lifetime. This was the testimony of Mary Magdalene (Luke 8:2). It is wonderful for a demoniac to become a financial backer of God’s kingdom. Another example of a transformed life that become a wonder is the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well (John 4:28-30). From being a promiscuous person, she became a lady evangelist. The Bible in John 4:39n says this about her impact:

“And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.”

Apostle Paul in today’s memory verse, after listing the evil characteristics of the old creation, testified to the transforming wonder of the new creation experience as seen in some members of the Church of Corinth. After I received the grace of God for the salvation of my soul, and I became a pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God, a woman came to the church with her child who had a problem that only a miracle could solve. She requested to see the pastor and to her surprise, it was her ex-boyfriend! On discovering that I was the pastor who would pray for the healing of her child, she said, “You? It cannot be!” However, I told her that what she was seeing was nothing but the transforming wonder of the new creation. I told her of how God saved me, and that the same God could save her also. She believed me, I prayed a simple prayer of faith, and the child got healed. This is the transforming wonder of the new creation. Have you experienced this wonder? If not, today is the day of salvation for you. The Bible in 2^nd Corinthians 6:2 says:

“(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)”

Let today be the day you experience the transforming wonder of the new creation, and all things, including your worn-out hope, will be renewed.

  

Action Point

 Take a bold step of faith by accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and saviour indeed, and you will experience the transforming wonders of the new creation.

THE MIND OF JESUS for Monday May 4th 2015

 THE MIND OF JESUS 

Memorise: Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Philippians 2:5

Read: Matthew 11:28-30, Bible in one year: 1^st Samuel 2:27-4:22, Mark 3:1-30

The Lord Jesus Christ invites us into His rest in today’s Bible text. However, before we can obtain His rest, we must have the same mind as His. To have the same mind as Jesus, we must learn of Him. Many would-be Christians fail realise that what makes Christ unique is not His complexion or stature, but the life that He lived while on the His complexion or stature, but the life that He lived while on the earth – a sanctified life of love, compassion, holiness and perfect obedience of His Father. He said in John 17:19 that:

“And for their sake I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.”

This statement reveals His mind, and the guiding principle of His lifestyle.

Some people desire to know God without first knowing about Him. How can one have the mind of Jesus and get to know him without first learning about Him? Jesus in John 7:17 says,

“If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.”

We are called to learn of Jesus Christ. We should allow Him to teach us through His human agents under the guidance of the Holy Ghost. This is why Bible Study services and Sunday School classes are very necessary. Daily study of God’s word in devotionals like this will enhance your knowledge of Jesus Christ in order to know and have His mind.

What then is the mind of Christ? The mind of Christ is the mind of humility (Philippians 3:5-8). This is an all-encompassing Christian virtue that takes root from the very first day of your conversation. As a matter of fact, the acceptance of the gospel lays the foundation of humility, because you cannot accept that you are a sinner without a humble heart. The natural man tends to either rationalise his evil deeds or assume that sin is not so bad because “everyone else is doing it”. However, when the Spirit of Christ comes upon an individual, He convicts him of his sins (John 16:8-11). This leads to repentance and sets the stage for the process that brings about the formation of the mind of Christ in that individual, even as he or she continues to learn of Christ. Learning of Christ entails imbibing His deals, which many so-called brilliant theologians and churchmen think are no longer valid for the 21^st century Church. My prayer for you is that any knowledge which will invalidate the ideals of Christ as contained in the Bible will not come your way in Jesus’ Name. For you to find rest for your soul, you must have the mind of Jesus Christ.  

 Prayer Point

Father, give me the same mind You gave to Your Son Jesus, and help me, in this evil and perverse generation, to live by the ideals He brought to this world.

THE AGONY OF A BACKSLIDER for Sunday May 3rd 2015

Topic:THE AGONY OF A BACKSLIDER 

Memorise: Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. Revelation 2:5

Read: Judges 16:18-21, Bible in one year: 1^st Samuel 1:1-2:36, Mark 2:13-28

In today’s Bible reading, we see the agony of a backslider manifested in the loss of Samson’s eyes. To lose one’s physical, intellectual or spiritual vision is very agonising. Samson, a Nezarite of God from the womb. Broke the covenant of his calling first as an Israelite and then as a Nazarite. With reference to the inhabitants of the land of Canaan such as the Philistines, God in Deuteronomy 7:3 had thus commanded the children of Isreal:

“Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.”

Contrary to this instruction, Samson went to seek the hand of a Philistine woman in marriage. When his parents tried to guide him back to the right path, he in Judges 14:3 said:

“….. Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.”

“Also, concerning Nazarites such as Samson, God in Numbers 6:6 had thus commanded:

“All the days that he separateth himself unto the LORD he shall come at no dead body.”

But the devil ensnared Samson with honey in the carcass of a dead lion he had killed. In the process of collecting honey to eat, he ended up defiling himself (Judges 14:8-9).

Many children of God are, like Samson, erring in the choice of a marriage partner. Some have been destroyed by their appetite, because they could not resist the devil when he asked them to turn stone to bread by sleeping with a personnel manger to secure a job. To such people, the end justifies the means, but the question is: can this temporary “respite” be worth the agony of backsliding? One lesson we must quickly learn is that, the moment a Christians begins to slide backward into his or her old way of life or into things that God frowns at, he or she loses the power of spiritual vision. Such a fellow beings to wallow in darkness of untold agony. After the last straw that broke the back of Samson’s spiritual camel was engaged, the Bible in Judges 16:20 says:

“…. And awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.”

Alas, the process of Samson’s downfall was complete and his eyes were put out. The worst thing that happened to Samson was that he died with his enemies; hence, he could not be considered a victor. My prayer for you is that you will not backslide in Jesus’ Name.    

Action Point: Search your life to see if there are ways you have been backsliding unnoticed. Make amends and ask God to restore you back to your first love for Him.