BEING A POSITIVE INFLUENCE

Influence is defined as “the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behaviour, opinions, etc., of others.” As children of God, we are cities set upon hills that cannot be hidden. In other words, we are capable of influencing people who look up to us in one way or another. We must choose to be positive influences. King Ahasuerus, being in a very happy mood, asked that his very beautiful queen, Vashti, be brought before him so he could display to his people and princes. But she refused. She disgraced her husband publicly. Of course, the king got angry and consulted with the wise men on what to do. It was decided, that because she was in a position where she could influence other women and girls in the kingdom, a royal commandment be issued that she never appear before the king again, and that her place was to be given to another (Esther 1). Consciously or unconsciously, you are helping people become better or worse by your actions. Parents, how well have you influenced your children? Teachers, how well have you influenced your students? Bosses, how well have you influenced your subordinates? Leaders, how well have you influenced your followers? Celebrities, how well have you influenced your fans? Listen to me, whatever you do, if you are not influencing people for God you are not doing well. Today, I ask you in God’s name to be a positive influence in your sphere of contact. Being a living epistle known and read by all men is an opportunity we have to lead men in the right way. We must not disgrace God at all. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven. Follow @PastorChinae

STANDING IN THE EVIL DAY

I was a little boy when a very vibrant brother in fellowship abandoned the faith because armed robbers visited his house and took away some of his property. He was angry with God. We all pray for good days and happy times, we confess positively and do not wish for evil days; but we have adversaries! And we must be prepared for his onslaught. If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is little (Proverbs 24:10). Apostle Paul wrote, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:13. Nothing surprises a well prepared man. A well prepared man leaves nothing to chance; long before anything happens, he prepares himself for victory. People rarely succeed accidentally. Every day, you must engage yourself in activities that will enhance success. Put on the whole armour of God: tie the belt of truth around your waist, put on the breastplate of integrity and of moral rectitude and right standing with God, shod your feet with the gospel in preparation to face the enemy with firm-footed stability. Lift up over all the shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God. Praying at all times in the Spirit. Even if all men fall in times of trouble, the one who does the above will say like David, “It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places. He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms. The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.” Psalm 18:32-34, 46. Hallelujah! Follow @PastorChinae

THE LORD WILL RECIPROCATE

There’s nothing that leaves you that will not return to you. Not only that, what leaves you usually returns to you many times more than it left you. It’s only a matter of time; it will definitely come back to you. So, if you give kindness, expect to receive kindness in future; if you give love, expect to be loved in return; sometimes, it happens almost immediately, but at other times, it comes later. Ephesians 6:8 says, “Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord.” In other words, the Lord will reciprocate every action you do. Meaning that, life is like a continually swinging pendulum with our actions going back and forth. We are taught that the time for one complete cycle of a pendulum, a left swing and a right swing, is called a period. The period it takes for the Lord to reciprocate your good deeds may vary, but one thing is certain, it will come back to you. The more reason why we should be careful of the things we do to others! And it doesn’t matter whether someone else notices or not. 1 Timothy 5:24-25 says, “The sin of some are conspicuous (openly evident to all eyes), going before them to the judgment [seat] and proclaiming their judgment in advance; but the sin of others appear later [following the offender to the bar of judgment and coming into view there]. So also, good deeds are evident and conspicuous, and even when they are not, they cannot remain hidden [indefinitely].” Amp. If you’ve been doing well, continue doing well. And if you’ve been doing bad, cheating people, lying to people, using people, abusing people, etc, I think it’s time to give it up. Consider repenting: if you do, the Lord will forgive you. Good morning. Follow @PastorChinae

THE MISSION OF CHRIST

I listen to a lot of preachers (not all), and like many of you, I have my favourites. I have both been blessed and terrified by the so many words I’ve heard over time. About six years ago, I heard a preacher say that his job is not to take men to heaven but to make men prosper. After six years, nothing has terrified me more. If you’ve listened to me for long, you’ll know I believe in prosperity. But prosperity is a by-product of salvation! As a matter of fact, men do not need to be born again to prosper; the world is full of ultra rich unbelievers. Therefore, it cannot be my most important message. I’d rather spend my time and utilize God’s gift to bringing men to Christ, keeping them in faith, making sure that they grow up to be like Christ, and ensuring that they are always ready for His return. Apostle Paul wrote, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Ephesians 5:25-27. The first reason why Jesus came was to reconcile man to God. That He did by purchasing us with His blood. Therefore we are His. Being His, He empowered us so that we might have dominion over Satan, sin and sickness, as well as over any other thing we were subject to in the past. Also, He also purified us, so that we could have a perfect and blissful relationship with God the Father, with Himself and with His Holy Spirit. He justified us, so that we could stand before God without fear, and so that Satan the accuser of the brethren would no longer make us feel guilty. And He beautified us with His divine nature that is holy and righteous, so that God can always be delighted in us. Hallelujah! That’s why He came, and that’s exactly what He did! There are two men who will go back to the world: ungrateful men and men without understanding. When I think of the goodness of Jesus and all He has done, and is doing, and will do for me, my soul shouts hallelujah! And I say, “Thank You Jesus for saving me.” Good morning. Follow @PastorChinae

BEING FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT

Being filled with the Spirit is an experience every believer should have often, but it’s not so; unfortunately. To be filled with the Spirit is different from receiving the Holy Spirit. We receive the Holy Spirit once, but we can be filled with the Spirit again and again (Acts 2:4, 4:31). You can be filled with the Spirit when you receive the Holy Spirit, but it’s got to be continuous. It’s an experience that must be relived. I’ll try to explain what it means to be filled with the Spirit in the best possible way I can. Jesus said to the Samaritan woman, “Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John 4:14. According to John chapter 7 verses 38&39, the water Jesus spoke about is the Holy Spirit. Now, receiving the Holy Spirit is drinking the water, but being filled with the Spirit is having that water springing up within you. Hallelujah! Do you understand? God’s will is for us to be filled with the Spirit all the time. The words of Jesus according to the Amplified Bible is that the water He gives us will become a spring of water welling up (flowing, bubbling) continually in us. Amazing things happen when we are filled with the Spirit: we are filled with boldness (Acts 4:31), we speak with other tongues (Acts 2:4), we do great wonders and miracles (Acts 6:8), we speak amazing words of wisdom (Acts 6:10), our spiritual eyes are opened and we see the glory of God (Acts 7:55), we can issue decrees and say words that come to pass (Acts 13:9-11). As we pray, remain in touch with the Lord and fellowship with the brethren we are constantly filled with the Spirit and we are renewed. You see, a Christian who doesn’t pray will continue to be hungry and thirsty because there will be no flow, no bubbling, no welling up and no springing up. Hmm. No wonder Paul wrote, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but ever be filled and stimulated with the [Holy] Spirit.” Ephesians 5:18 (AMP). Glory to God! Follow @PastorChinae

WALKING IN WISDOM

When we discussed the topic, You Need Knowledge, I defined wisdom as the ability to discern and judge what is right and true. What could be righter or truer than the will of God? That being said, I wish to further state that wisdom is first, understanding the will of God, and then acting or speaking in accordance with it. Ephesians 5:17 says, “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Every day, we meet with entirely new people, we are required to make decisions faster, deal with challenges, solve problems, offer advice, and take actions, and we don’t always have all the time to think things through or pray thoroughly as we ought. What will guide us and enable us make the best decisions and take the right steps is the amount of wisdom available to us. When you know the perfect will of God concerning an issue, it becomes easier to walk in wisdom in that area. There are two ways to know and understand God’s will: through studying the Word of God, and by being taught by the Spirit. The Scriptures contain God’s will; the more we know and understand it, the wiser we become. Colossians 3:16a says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom.” John 16:13, reveals that the Holy Spirit’s job is to guide us into all truth. The Holy Spirit will tell us what is not clearly stated in the Scriptures. As we do the Word and follow the instructions of the Spirit, we will be walking in wisdom. There’s a will of God concerning everything you do: raising children, getting married, working, relating and interacting with people, eating, drinking, giving, speaking, and living, and so on. In other words, the Word of God contains dos and don’ts. The world may consider you to be foolish for doing what God says to do and vice versa, but you will never regret it. Doing God’s will, will prove you to be wiser, and will assure you of peace, promotion, prosperity and protection. Have a fantastic week. Follow @PastorChinae

NO MORE SACRIFICE

I beg you to read this one, even if it will be the last of my writings that you read. We’ve been wrongly taught about righteousness and grace, and many Christians have been endangered as a result of it. We are being told that what we do won’t affect our righteousness before God, or how God perceives us, that God will overlook our sins because Jesus became sin for us and imputed righteousness to us. We are being taught that our past, present and future sins have already been taken care of. But is that what the Bible really teaches? While it is important that we are not held captive by the consciousness of sin, we must understand that wrong teachings won’t set us free. What did Jesus really do? I read a verse some years ago that literally shook me. That verse is Romans 3:25. I encourage you to read the entire chapter, but let’s read from verse 24. “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of SINS THAT ARE PAST, through the forbearance of God.” Notice that it talks about the remission of past sins. The Amplified Bible says God ignored our former sins without punishment. So how about our present and future sins? Romans 6:1-2 says, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” Does it mean we will never sin? No. 1 John 2:1 says, “Sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” If you sin, immediately receive forgiveness. But do not sin wilfully hoping that God will overlook it because of grace or righteousness! Hebrews 10:26-27 says, “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.” Let’s conclude with Ephesians 5:3-6. “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.” Today, I hope that we can genuinely repent and decide to live for Jesus as we ought to, in true appreciation of what God and Christ did for us. Good morning. Follow @PastorChinae