Month: May 2021

[The Glory Unveiled]

God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not —to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. ( 1 Corinthians 1:28-29 )

Once we have migrated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s marvelous light, we begin an education which seeks to acquaint us with the ways of heaven. The general way of life in the kingdom of God as we all know is faith. Faith is the only means by which heavenly realities become tangible on earth. It is a translation system where we convert invisible, intangible expressions to visible and tangible manifestations. On that tangent let’s see how God does the education. God’s methodology is expressed in our verse of Scripture thus choosing the things which are not in order to nullify those that are. He chooses the weak to shame the strong. And God implores this approach for the reason that no man will glory in themselves but in God. A typical student in this school was Gideon from the Old Testament. Gideon was the lowest, weakest, “non-essential”, unrecognizable person in his family (Judges 6:15). But God chose that weakling and made a mighty warrior out of him. Now, do you think that Gideon will brag about how strong he is? He would have been foolish to do that, knowing from whence he had come. Some of the unbelievable circumstances of our lives are lessons in the faith school. We must stay committed to our lecturer if we will graduate gloriously. So instead of complaining and murmuring, we should focus on the Author and Finisher.

Prayer_Bead: Author and Finisher of my faith, Redeemer and Friend, thank you for calling me into your kingdom. Thank you for calling me from the miry clay and setting my feet upon a rock.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Then the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? ( Genesis 18:17 )

Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets ( Amos 3:7). Before God takes an action that may be consequential to the people on earth or the earth, He reveals it to His servants the prophets. His prophets [messengers] are like the ambassadors of his Kingdom. In Genesis 18, God had planned to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. But God decided to tell Abraham about it because Abraham was a prophet of God and a friend. Eventually, God spared the family of Lot because of Abraham’s intercession. God will not hide His deeds from us but we must posses the traits of His prophets to compel God to reveal His plans to us. Abraham didn’t pray that God should reveal His next plan to him. God decided to tell him because of the intimacy and friendship. God is not partial to restrain this grace from us when we become intimate with Him as His prophets usually are. Intimacy is the passcode to receive the current affairs of heaven as readily released by the Holy Spirit. But whether God will hide what He is about doing from us or not, our closeness to Him by intimacy—constant fellowship (becoming like God) and knowing of God—will determine it._

Prayer_Bead: Father Almighty, Ruler and the Rule for all generations, thank you for this grace to know what you intend to do on earth before you actually execute it. Thank you.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place? ( Psalms 24:3 )

The man or woman who qualifies to ascend the mountain of the Lord has very peculiar qualities. The Psalmist asks “who” because the individual who attends this venture must meet some uncompromising requirements. The question does not end at ascending but also the ability to sustain that ascension in the holy presence of the Holy One. Before we look at the response to this question, let’s look at the man, Moses who had been in the presence of God. Moses had first encountered the Lord on mountain Horeb where God told him to take off his sandals for where he stood was holy ground. Holiness then is a prerequisite for coming to the mountain of God. Another day, when God wanted to meet the Israelites on mountain Sinai, He instructed Moses on how the people should consecrate themselves before they came to the mountain. The verse 4 of Psalms 24 also enlists the same qualities as the requirement that allows a man to come to the mountain of God. “The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.” (Psalms 24:4) Now we know the kind of man or woman that may ascend the mountain of the Lord and stay in God’s Holy presence. Holiness [separation unto God from every other thing] is what is required. And nothing separates us unto God like the blood of His son that carries His life. Glory!.

Prayer_Bead: Holy Father, Prince of Peace, thank you for the opportunity to be called into your family. Thank you for separating me unto yourself through the life of Christ Jesus. I am holy unto God.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the Lord commanded Moses.( Exodus 38:22 )

Moses had just visited Sinai, the mountain of God where he was shown the template of the tabernacle of meeting. God expressly told him to replicate what he had seen when he returned to the Camp. But there was another man at the Camp of the Israelites who had not gone up the mountain with Moses but then God mentioned him as the one to design what God had shown Moses. There are some of us who are destined to serve the destiny (visions) of others while some people are to carry the vision itself. In the scenario above, Moses had the vision, the plan of what should be done but Bezalel was given the ability and the grace to do it as if he had seen the blueprints himself ( Exodus 31:2-5). It is not the destiny of everyone to carry a vision of their own, some of us like Bezalel or Joshua or the disciples of the New Testament are to help carry the visions of other people. So that our part in making the vision of other people a reality becomes our corporate purpose and responsibility. Usually, whoever is destined to support another person’s vision will only be very effective when they do that. They will keep hitting at the rocks when they try to pioneer their own course. Their strength is in helping others. Where is your strength?

Prayer_Bead: Jehovah Adonai, thank you for my destiny and calling. Thank you for my purpose in the corporate purpose of the church. I yield my abilities to the grace of God to do what I have been called to do for the glory of God.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

At this, the [kinsman] guardian-redeemer said, “Then I cannot redeem it because I might endanger my own estate. You redeem it yourself. I cannot do it.” ( Ruth 4:6 )

The verse of scripture for today’s devotion is an excerpt from a conversation between Boaz and the kinsman redeemer of Ruth. Ruth was the daughter-in-law of Naomi, whose husband had died. And according to the custom of Israel then, a close relative had to buy any property of the late relative and if he had a wife, marry her to continue his family lineage. In that line of succession, there was a man who was supposed to redeem the property of Mahlon, Ruth’s dead husband. But because he was only concern about himself and his estate, he rejected Ruth and shunned the responsibility of taking her as wife. He thought marrying Ruth will endanger his estate but that would have rather permanently inscribed his name in the records of Israel and history at large because Ruth became the mother of Obed, grandmother of Jesse [the father of David] and the great ancestor of Jesus Christ. Today, whenever the story of Jesus or David is told, she is mentioned and Boaz who was second in line but took upon himself the responsibility of marrying her is also mentioned every time the story is told. Imagine the dozens of great and life altering opportunities that we turn down because sometimes we are unable to see the bigger picture of destiny. The little, seemingly inconsequential causes of life are the pixels that put together a beautiful picture of destiny. Instead of shunning responsibilities and pushing it around to others, we must muster courage and do what is right.

Prayer_Bead: Eternal Kinsman, Gracious Redeemer, order my steps in your ways. Teach me to take the responsibilities that will lead me to the next phase of my destiny. Thank you for what you will do in my generation through my obedience.

#Gnews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Remove the dross from the silver,
and a silversmith can produce a vessel; ( Proverbs 25:4 )

Therefore “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” ( 2 Corinthians 6:17). The call to being useful to God starts with separation from the world and the desires of the flesh. It is separation from the world unto God. Minerals such as gold or silver will have a fine and brilliant appearance when they are new and free from the contamination of dirt. You’d notice that your necklace and jewelries will begin to lose their brilliance and luster after some time. In order to get your original jewelry back in its shiny form, the dross must be removed. The dross is the dirt and all the things that prevents the jewelry from shining. And before silver or gold can be put to a good use, the impurities (dross) must first be removed. And so, for God, who is the silversmith in today’s verse of scripture to make a vessel or jewelry out of us, the dross of this world must be purged out of us. If the wrong association is the dross in us that prevents the silversmith from doing anything good with us, we must remove it first. But to remove dross, we need fire; the refiner’s fire. We need the baptism of fire [which is sponsored by the Holy Spirit] to purify us for the Lord’s use (Luke 3:16). The Spirit of God is ready and willing to baptize us with fire if we are ready. And then we will be made new and ready for God’s glorious purposes._

Prayer_Bead: Father and God Almighty, creator of all things and life giver, I avail myself to your holy refinery. Purge out the dross that makes me unusable and use me for your glorious purpose and call.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

They laid it [the manna] aside till morning, as Moses told them; and it did not become foul, neither was it wormy. ( Exodus 16:24 )

The Israelites were caught up in the wilderness without food, without water. Even though they had just celebrated the victory of leaving the land of slavery, they are now grumbling and murmuring about Moses’ deliverance because of hunger. And then the glory of God brought them food [Manna] to eat. But there were instructions to the gracious meal; no one was to take more than they could eat for the day. As you would know, some decided to take more than they could eat for the day because they wanted to save for the next day or another day of need. They wanted to have enough so that they wouldn’t need to depend on Moses or the God of Moses for a meal. But the next morning, the manna went so bad that it bred worms. On the day before the sabbath, they had to gather two days portion but the next day, the Manna did not go bad as before. It was because the instructions had come from God [through Moses]. It is God’s word that makes alive or takes away. Something may not be working out well in our lives because we have not keyed into the right instructions yet. When the right instructions are obeyed, the right results are delivered. So, instead of fighting our way into what we desire, we must locate the right instructions under the right circumstances and then we are guaranteed the results.

Prayer_Bead: King of Glory, Lord of lords, you are glorious in majesty and merciful in the earth. Thank you for the wonderful grace to adhere to the instructions of your mouth that yield the right results.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. ( 2 Corinthians 4:10 )

The death of Jesus brought us life. Without His historic and sacrificial death, we would have been held by the clutches of death. But now, because He died for our wrong, we can live His righteous life. And then, we are able to see our light in His light. The death of Jesus is the license that gives us access to the life of Jesus. This is why Jesus said, except a wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone (John 12:24). The multiplication of the life of Jesus to the world was made possible through His death. Before this verse of scripture, the writer of this book mentioned a number of challenges that may confront him, yet he was sure that nothing will happen to him in the midst of all of those things because He carried in His body, the death of Jesus. We must consciously carry about in our body the death of Jesus (Romans 12:1-2) if we will be capable of dispensing the life of Jesus to the world. Carrying His death in our body will come at a cost we may not be naturally willing to pay. But if we want to influence the life of those around us for Jesus, then we must pay the full price of carrying in our bodies like the apostles, His death.

Prayer_Bead: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for paying the ultimate price for my redemption and salvation. Help me to carry in my body your death, so that I can share in your life and help others share in that life also.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commands is what counts. ( 1 Corinthians 7:19 )

Factions may distinguish one denomination from another and give them a peculiar identity. But in the new creation reality, factions and denominational traditions do not matter. This is because, in the new creation reality, faith is our reality. Faith is the background and the bedrock upon which all our transactions are carried out. Without faith, whatever we believe to be true and real only becomes a figment of our imagination; an illusion from our soul. It is upon this kingdom principle that the apostle made the statement of our anchor verse of Scripture. Circumcision was a tag that differentiated the true Israelites from the Gentiles. In the flesh, this distinction will bring a lot of problems to these groups. Circumcision was a law for the Israelites, a mark in their flesh that they belonged to God. But in the kingdom, there is a higher law, that encompasses all the other laws. It is the law of love which is shared abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit—the real seal that we belong to God. The Holy Spirit is the agency by which we live by love and faith in the Son of God. Keeping God’s commands is what counts in the kingdom, and the command is Love. So, instead of discriminating between denominations and churches, we should Love the church—oneness of denominations—and the Lord.

Prayer_Bead: Father in Heaven, thank you for the new way of life in you. Thank you for the grace to love you and the church just as I am. Help me to extend your love to the lost world. In Jesus name.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

But now, do not be distressed and disheartened or vexed and angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me ahead of you to preserve life. ( Genesis 45:5 )

God has a destination for everyone. It is our destiny which is within the framework of our purpose. Joseph’s destination was a prime minister [ruler]. At a young age he had dreams of this destiny which became a motivation for him. One fateful day, [the beginning of the journey to his destiny], his brothers sold him to some Ishmaelites who later sold him to an Egyptian. This was a method God used to get Joseph into Egypt. But apart from fulfilling a personal purpose of his destiny, God also used Joseph to fulfill a cooperate purpose of getting Israel into Egypt, a promise God made to Abraham and Isaac. After many years, our verse of Scripture was the statement Joseph made to his brothers. Somehow, he understood the method and the process. The method was his brothers having to sell him and the process was the lies of Potiphar’s wife that landed him in prison in order to connect him to his destiny helper. You see, it is possible that what you are going through is just a process to put you on the path of destiny. Maybe the pain is a tool that will bring out God’s desired shape of you. Sometimes, we may not necessarily know that what is happening is leading us to where we must be until we are finally there. This is why we must not truncate the processes of God’s dealings. Hold tight, God’s grace will keep us through the journey to our destination.

Prayer_Bead: God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, thank you for the the process that is refining and redefining me, so that I can fit into the purpose assigned to me. Thank you for the privilege to be motivated by the life of Joseph. May your grace, keep me on this path.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.