Bible In One Year-Day9 (January 9, 2014)

Many will find it boring reading the names listed in chapter10. It is good for us to read and study genealogies. Atleast, one sense we could get from it is that God has a record of family history. A genealogy is a pedigree; i.e. a register recording a line of ancestor, a lineage, history of a family. Through genealogy, traits and patterns of occurrences could be found. As a matter of factor, hidden problems and the root of occurring issues could be discovered. God keeps record and Satan also keeps record. Through genealogy, we could know which of these records are in effect. If that of God is in effect, blessings flow immeasurably;

Proverbs 10:22 “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.”

On the other hand, if Satan’s record is in effect, he will always be using it against the progress of the person unless such record is set ablaze in prayer (deliverance). God in His infinite mercy released good fountain to each lineage but Satan will always take advantage of our weakness to sneak in and pollute it. The secrets behind most problems were not known until Jesus revealed them in His words.

Matthew 13:25 “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and departed.”

These family TARES (bad traits, bad omen, unfavorable evil patterns, curses and bondages, yoke and evil law) are the battles in the families of the earth; ignorance makes it worse. The power of any of these tares is responsible for people putting on sin as cloaks. These tares are the works of the devil and it is the reason Jesus came to the world;

1 John 3:8 “He that committeth sin is of the demon; for the demon sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the demon.”

Jesus is the great deliverer, healer and the Rock of our salvation. Without Him we remain in bondage. Jesus must walk into our lives to break the yoke of family tares and separate us from it. Only Jesus can change the evil law in the family;

Romans 7:6 “But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.”

We were in the bondage of the corruption that was introduced in our adamic lineage, but Christ came to set us free by grace.;

Romans 8:21 “Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.”

Abram was in that bondage, God called him out of it by grace. By grace, God decided to re-brand Abram’s lineage. Abram was given certain instructions before the re-branding could start;

Genesis 12:1 “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:”

Abram got out of his country as instructed by the Lord but carried his kindred (relative) along. As he was increasing, the kindred was also increasing, until he was being choked. Partial obedience to God’s instruction could make a Christian’s life to be miserable. These tares contend with our progress, health, career, spiritual life and all the good things of life. Apart from carrying Lot along, another of Abram’s weakness was that he lied to the Egyptians. Despite his weaknesses, he still walked with God. The righteousness attributed to Abram was not because he was sinless (i.e. never sinned) but because of his faith in God; he always returned to God in his weaknesses. He was the second person to build an altar for the Lord; he was even more consistent than his ancestor, Noah.

Abram trusted in the Lord, we need to trust and obey Him also.

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Refrain

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Psalms 48:14 For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.

Our next reading is Gen 13-15. Keep the fire burning and alive.

Bible In One Year – Day 8 (January 8, 2014)

God started a clean-up process of wickedness in chapter 7. In the lineage of Cain, there was not a dot of righteousness hence the lineage was terminated. Adam had another son after Abel was assassinated by his brother; his name was Seth (Gen4:25). It was in the time of Seth that men began to call on the name of Lord (v26). His ability to start calling on the name of the Lord was counted as righteousness and his lineage continued. As the wickedness of men increased on the face of the earth, God was grieved in His heart and summed up to destroy men for wickedness to cease, Gen 6:5-7. Noah was of the lineage of Seth and the fruit of righteousness was found in him; he found grace before the Lord.

Genesis 6:8 “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”

It is good for us to note that Noah was not born righteous and, again, he wasn’t a saint but a sinner by inheritance; corruption was in him by birth. Noah was part of the men mentioned in Gen6:5;

Genesis 6:5 “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Noah had his weakness also, however, the difference was that he learnt to walk with God in his weakness and that was counted for him as righteousness. He could draw strength from walking with God; he relied totally on God for strength to take care of his weakness. If a man realized his weakness and the weakness kept him on his knees seeking the face of the Lord, then, that weakness is no more in the negative (i.e. weakness) but positive (i.e. strength) and it could be counted as righteousness because he has faith and trust in the Lord for help, i.e. sowing the weakness in prayer.

1 Corinthians 15:43 “It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:”

Apostle Paul had his weakness which kept him on his knees praying for God to remove it, but God’s response was that His grace was sufficient for him.

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said to me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

Our weakness should not take us far from God but keep us walking with Him. Therefore, grace is for those who acknowledge their weaknesses but look unto God for strength; they are always raised in power. Seth knew the defeat in his flesh which moved him to start the process of calling upon the name of the Lord; and anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Noah’s weakness was evident in his drunkenness; perhaps that was his struggles. Our salvation is not by the works of righteousness but by His grace alone;

Romans 3:24 “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:”

GRACE is what makes us to be complete in Christ. Noah walked with God with his heart in his weakness; he was the first person to build an altar to the Lord and  offered a clean sacrifice to the Lord, Gen8:20-22. This gesture was pleasing to the Lord and consequently invoked the blessing of automatic multiplication. It became a law backed up by a covenant symbolized by the rainbow. The history of the church started from here. From the altar to the temple, to synagogue, then the heart; the church is the gathering of children of God, not the building. A pure heart is that which reverence, worship and adore God in love. It is not about the church attendant, but about a pure heart, Ez36:24-30. Your heart must be an altar for the Lord. Any praise from a clean and pure heart is a soothing aroma to the Lord. Those who praise God with a good heart of thanksgiving and deep appreciation will ever have God meeting them at the very point of need. Supplies are well calculated and timely. To such, every season yields profitably, Gen8:22. Noah sowed his weaknesses in prayer and he gained power;

Genesis 9:1-3 “And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.”

The question is “what is your weakness?” Don’t let it push you out of God’s presence but into His presence. Don’t ever imagine that you could take care of it within your human effort. Wickedness has increased like never before and divine direction is the only panacea.

Proverbs 3:5-8 “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.”

I pray that you will find grace in the eyes of the Lord, in Jesus name. We are reading, today, Genesis 10-12. There are two characters I would like you to pay attention to; Abram and Lot. Keep the fire burning and alive on the altar of LOVE.

Bible In One Year-Day 7 (January 7, 2014)

Chapter 3 of Genesis shows us how evil law (flesh to soul to spirit) was established in our members, i.e. the soulish life (soul living according to the dictates of the flesh). The first fruit this sin yielded was FEAR;

Genesis 3:10 “And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

The spirit of fear is from the devil and not from God (2Tim1:7). The presence of this evil spirit robbed mankind of the soundness of mind, God’s nature (which is love) and power over creatures (i.e. dominion). The first singular sin started yielding other fruits.

Romans 7:5 “For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit to death.”

From this moment, anything Adam did became corrupted; even the children that came out of him became corrupted (sinner) by inheritance. Since God is Spirit and to worship Him, we must be spiritual, Adam lost this grace and became carnal; it was no more possible to please God.

Romans 8:8 “So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”

Mark you, beloved, the flesh could be good and could be wicked. Both the goodness and the wickedness of the flesh are not accepted by God.

John 6:63 “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: …”

Only the goodness of the Holy Spirit through man is pleasing to the Lord. This is why Jesus admonished us that unless we are born of water and of the Spirit, none can enter the kingdom of God. Those who are qualified to enter the kingdom of God are those who please the Lord. The good man cannot enter the kingdom of God, only those who are counted as part of Christ by the indwelling of His Spirit are qualified for the kingdom of God. Rapture is not for the good man but for those with the Spirit of Christ in them

Romans 8:9 “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”

Anything done in the flesh will result in WORKS of the flesh (Gal5:19-21). But whatever is done by the leading of the Holy Spirit will yield the fruit of the Spirit, Gal5:22-23. Peter defended Christ in the flesh, he missed it;

John 18:10 “Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.”

Peter manifested in the flesh many times in the scripture with the thought of doing good.

To please God, His nature must be introduced into us which could only be accomplished by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (John14:16:17).The Holy Spirit will not seek for His own but that which is pleasing to God (John16:13-14); the scripture makes us to understand that He even prays for us according to the WILL of God. Even Jesus had to be anointed with the Holy Spirit for the purpose of pleasing the Father (Luke4:18-19);

Acts 10:38 “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the demon; for God was with him.”

Therefore, beloved, no matter how good and kind a man is, if it is not of the Spirit, it is not accepted by God. You may think “how can this be true?”. Yes, it is true. All the attributes of the WORKS of the flesh are always at the background of our actions if not led by the Spirit. They could form the motive behind our actions and these are what make us to count offences against one another. Also, this excerpt gives us some insights to that; “the flesh profits nothing”

1 Corinthians 15:50 “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.”

KJV-R (Webster) 1 Peter 2:11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

Romans 8:13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

We must respect the rule that was on ground at creation, “after his kind” (Gen1:11,12, 21, 24, 25/ 6:20/7:14 etc). Corruption will produce after his kind and incorruption after his kind. It is a rule that ensures multiplying effect in a system. Anything produced out of error will remain in error. Adam left the garden without any apology to God. His son, Cain, also left the presence of the Lord without any apology. Since the ‘law of sin’ was in the member (i.e. the flesh) of Adam, whatever comes out of his loins has that law. We are SINNERS by inheritance and not by what we do. We are sinners by the “law of sin and death”. This is the law that pushes us to commit sins (our conducts).

Romans 7:5 “… the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth (produce) fruit (other SINS) to death.” (Parenthesis my emphasis)

Paul said he wanted to please the Lord in his mind but he found himself unable, because there is another law in his members warring against the law of his mind (Rom7). Beloved, there is a difference between SIN and SINS. Sin is the law in the member (i.e. ‘adamic’ defeated nature) that forces us to commit sins (unrighteous conducts). You can’t find SINS mentioned in the bible (KJV) before Leviticus. To take care of sins, forgiveness is what is needed, but as for SIN, deliverance (from the power of sin) is what is needed. The law that was established in chapter 3 led to the multiplication of sin; murder, hatred, pride, envy and other works of the flesh. By the time we get to chapter 6:5, it has become wickedness in a big form to the point that God regreted ever creating man.

Genesis 6:5-6 “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”

Adam lost communication with God after being sent out of the garden. Cain lost communication with God when he left the presence of the Lord. His son, Lamech (the first polygamist), continued the ministry of murder; his generation was discontinued, even though the evil spirit continued. The saving grace for Seth is that, it was from him that “…men began to call on the name of the Lord” (Gen4:26, Prov18:10, Rom10:13). The cry for MERCY started from Seth. Noah was the first to find grace before the Lord (Gen6:8). You can only find grace in mercy. It is so pathetic that men still run from God when they sin. Beloved, don’t run from God but run to Him; HIS MERCY ENDURES FOREVER.

John 6:37 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest to your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

You can only find rest for your soul in JESUS CHRIST.

Today, we are reading Genesis 7-9. Keep the fire burning and alive on the altar of love.

Bible In One Year-Day6 (January 6, 2014)

Yesterday was the 5th day of this wonderful adventure of reading the Bible in one year in which we read Genesis1-3. Chapters 1 & 2 revealed how life began, dominion power was received and the flow of spiritual communication in man (spirit-soul-body). This means that a man was living in the fullness of a spiritual life and with the fullness of the knowledge of God. The spiritual life is a state, in which man walks in the spirit, i.e. listens to the dictates of the Spirit and not the flesh, did everything as the Spirit leads; the Spirit (God is Spirit) communicates with the man’s spirit, which in turn communicates with the soul and the communication flows to the flesh. So a wonderful relationship with God was in place. The judgment of man (as a spiritual man) was perfect;

1 Corinthians 2:15 “But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.”

In this state, man was in total obedience to God; hence, all creatures submitted and respected him because of man’s righteousness. Adam and Eve were naked but were not conscious of it as they were clothed with God’s glory. Unfortunately, when they disobeyed, they fell short of God’s glory;

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

As soon as man fell short of God’s glory, animals disrespected man and could even violate and be aggressive towards man; insects could bite man and release poisons into the body system. This was something that was not before the fall of man; before the glory departed.

In these 2 chapters we saw that man had freedom of choice. There were 2 trees to choose from. One tree was to feed the spiritual life while the other was to feed the soul. That which feeds the spiritual life was for eternal life. The other which feeds the soul, only uplifts the soul (mind, will and emotion) at the detriment of the spiritual life. He had the choice to eat from the tree of life and live. Unfortunately, he made his choice of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil based on satanic counsel; man chose death rather than life. A lesson learnt is that the longer you interact with the enemy, the more you think God is hiding something from you and, of course, doubt Him. Satan’s argument was to make man doubt the integrity of Jehovah God;

Genesis 3:4-5 “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”

The irony of it was that, as soon as they tasted it, they were stripped of the glory of God and they realized their nakedness. Shame came in, the order of communication or law was changed (flesh-soul-spirit) and a good relationship was broken. This is the law mentioned in Romans 7:23.

Romans 7:23 “But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”

This is the law that makes man fall into diverse sins; man became carnal or natural man and so discerning the things of God or pleasing Him became impossible;

1 Corinthians 2:14 “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness to him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

When a man becomes born again, the law is restored to the original; spirit-soul-body. To be born again, Jesus says it has to be of the water and of the Spirit, John3:3-8.

Chapter3 is a pathetic one. Man became miserable (Romans 7-8 is necessary for us to have a better understanding of the predicament of man). Man was looking for ways of covering the sin. He never taught of repentance or asked for forgiveness. Man did not start the plan of salvation but God did. God initiated it. Sin is horrible. It stripped man of the garment of light and the knowledge of God just as it stripped Jesus of the connection with God on the cross and He shouted “…My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” Sin breaks holy relationship with God and makes demon to violate our lives. Beloved, there was only one sin in the Garden of Eden, but it led to all other sins outside of the garden. The only one SIN in the garden is the permeation of the serpent (satanic nature) into the soul of man which leads to many outward SINS as evident in our conducts doings and actions. The sin (singular form) is the root of other sins (plural form). Wherever you see SIN mentioned in the scripture, carnality or the evil law in the member is referred to. Where we have SINS (plural – deeds of the body), the bible refers to fruit of the SIN, i.e. what the singular sin (evil law in the member) produces; hatred, murder, envy, jealousy, etc. Deliverance is needed for SIN while forgiveness is needed for SINS. Deliverance is to be released from that law of sin and death into the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus;

Romans 8:1-8 “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”

We can’t please God in any other state but the spiritual state. Jesus came with the ministry of reconciliation and redemption. However, He is not going to make another choice for you. If Adam made that wrong and regretful choice that ushered in death, you have the opportunity to make another choice; life or death. Opting for Jesus is choosing life, ignoring Him is choosing death. Satan will not force anyone to hell and Jesus will not force anyone to heaven, IT IS A MATTER OF CHOICE; Adam and Eve will be relieved of any blame on the Day of Judgment.

The next 3 chapters are the result of what happened in chapter 3; murder, hatred, envy, jealousy, etc. The reading for today is Gen4-6. Keep the fire burning and alive on the platform of love

Bible In One Year-Day 5 (January 5, 2014)

So far we have covered the book of Hebrews, from which we could see answers to Jesus as God, the promise of the Father, His blood and as the High priest (Heb5:5-6, 9-10). We read how He became the better covenant (7:22, 8:6-13). Chapter 10 is deep. The law placed some ordinances of sacrifices on ground to bring about perfection. If those things really worked, there wouldn’t have been any need for yearly sacrifices. Instead of bringing about total purging and removal of sin, it became reminder of sins on yearly basis (Heb10:1-3). By this, God takes not desire or pleasure in sacrifices or offerings for sin but in absolute yielding to His will. God prepared Jesus for the purpose of the sacrifice;

Hebrews 10:5 “Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:”

Jesus came to carry out the perfect will of God, 10:8-10. This sanctifies us once and for all. Whoever is in Christ is justified (Matt12:48-50). By grace are we saved. The book of Hebrew is all about Jesus. Many wonder why we had to start this project of bible in one year from the book of Hebrews. The Bible is into two (though one); Old and New Testaments (or covenants). The book of Hebrews gave a summary of both testaments, explained the begining of the old testament or covenant, its termination and the begining of the new. When you read this book with indebt understanding, you will understand the book of Genesis very well. The purpose of this project is to lead us through the understanding of the law, to the knowledge what grace is. For a law to be repealed, another law must be promulgated (Heb7:18-19). The first law, Gen2:15-17, has a reward for its violation which is death (Rom3:23/6:23). The act of violation is SIN. Since this was said by God, it will be unfaithful on His path to say it is no more death. Unfortunately, the fall of man put us under this law of death. Here we needed a Mediator to redeem us. Since all are sinners by inheritance, there was no man qualified to be a mediator. No wonder it was written in the book of Hebrews that the priests are men of weaknesses (7:27-28) who needed to make sacrifices for their own sins first. The animal blood stands for sacrifice sake; it does not take away the sin. The qualifications for the correct Mediator are as stated in Heb7:26;

Hebrews 7:26 “For such a high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;”

Jesus Christ is the only one that fits in. Remember that it was God who prepared that body for Him to fulfill God’s will, Heb10:5. His death (a righteous one) repealed that law and His resurrection established a better covenant of eternal life. Mind you, the law is still there, He has only come to fulfill the demands of the law for us to be set free (Matt5:17, John8:36, Rom8:1-2). As a matter of fact, the law is good; 1 Timothy 1:8 “But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully;” It is the sinful nature in us that makes what is good to become unrighteous. The Holy spiirt is there to help us in this wise. If we, therefore, walk in the spirit, we are no longer under the law. His residence in us changes the law within us and brings God’s holiness in us; hence, we act, think and feel according to the will of God. That is to say, we are no longer condemned because a new law of the Spirit of life (in the soul) has set us free from the law of sin and death;

Romans 8:1-4 “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

This is the state of a born again Christian; having the utmost desire to do the WILL of God and not to satisfy the desires of the flesh.

In this book, you could see the identity of Jesus Christ, His redemption, Faith and love. All these are having their shadows in the Old Testament, Heb13:8. Beloved, the cross of the gospel for us to bear is in Hebrews13 (read with understanding); go outside of the camp, i.e. Christian fold, and bear the reproach of Christ (v13) and always remember to do good as it is one of the basics of Christian sacrifices, especially to those in dear need (v16). Let’s move to the next book to read; Genesis 1-3, which tells about the first Adam. Keep the fire burning and alive.