Category: Gospel

[The Glory Unveiled]

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ( Luke 2:19 )

Joseph of the Old Testament was shown a picture of his future in a dream. Upon waking up, he told his siblings about it, thinking it was a news they needed to know about. The rest of what happened to him is inscribed in the sand of history. In Luke chapter 1, it is recorded that Mary, was visited by an Angel who told her who she was carrying in her womb. And then in this chapter, she got the opportunity to hear again [emphasizing the unchanging nature of what she was told] the glory of her son. But Mary did not go about broadcasting this news of her son’s glory and uniqueness. There are times when we must keep quiet over certain inspired words; brooding over them until the word begins to live itself. Whenever God sends His word, it will perform, but the trajectory of its revelation and confirmation is sometimes dependent on the one to whom the word is sent. Let us learn to keep our mouth shut over the things that are meant to shock the world at their appointed time to the glory of God. Even though there may be the tendency or rather the temptation to want to share with loved ones and sometimes even people who do not seem to like us, so that they will be disappointed, it is wiser to keep quiet [sometimes] until God’s word announces us. Glory!

Prayer_Bead: Omnipotent Father of Mercy and Grace, thank you for the word you sent to me. Thank you for there is a performance of those words. I will keep quiet and watch to see what you will do. Hallelujah!

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace. ( Romans 6:14 )

Through the forbearance of God, we were all brought under the law. The scripture says, let God be true and all men liars. The devil lied to man and the law was given an opportunity to prove to us that we became slaves to sin when we disobeyed God in Adam. And so under the governance of the law, sin was our master so that our consciences could be awakened by reason of our weakness and inability to live according to the demands of God. But then this verse of Scripture also opens our eyes to another strand of revelation. Sin was only our master when we were under the law. As long as we or anyone remains under the law, they are slaves to sin. Sin is a reflection of our positions and not necessarily the acts that result from that position. So, we are already in sin when our hearts are positioned under meeting the demands of the law by ourselves. But on the other hand, sin cannot be our master under grace. Grace means we have come under the governance of Christ and into His life. Grace came by Christ and we enter into Christ by faith. Once we find ourselves in that position, sin is not an issue. For instance when the sinner on the cross changed his position to the side of grace [faith in Christ and His life] sin and death could not claim him. The question is, are you under grace or the law. Where is your trust? In yourself (like the other sinner on the cross) or in Christ like the earlier who said Jesus should remember him? Our positions determine who or what our master is. The grace of God is available. It is not far away. It starts with recognition. Acknowledge that He is Lord and that He took your position so that we can have a place in Him. And then sin cannot have dominion over you because that act puts an injunction on sin. Glory!

Prayer_Bead: Father of all things, Lord of all souls, thank you for making a way for me to you through Christ. Thank you for grace. Sin is no longer my master.

#GNews: Unveiling hearts to Christ.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. ( 1 Peter 4:10 )

The wisdom of God and His love is expressed in all His creations. No wonder the scripture says we are without excuse, we who may say we have not heard the good news. The invisible attributes of God are displayed by the visible creation (Romans 1:20). God has given us two hands but interestingly each exists for the other. Your right hand/arm does not wash itself, it washes the left hand/arm and vice versa. In today’s verse of scripture, the apostle says we should serve others with whatever gift we have. Now, he makes mention of “faithful stewards of God’s grace”. Whatever gifts we have received from God came by grace and not by our efforts and person. And so in using that gift, we must always remember that we are not owners of those gifts but mere stewards. And as stewards of the Kingdom, we must be faithful. Service is the apex of all we could do in the Kingdom. Jesus said to his disciples that whoever wants to be first in the kingdom, must be servant of all ( Matthew 20:27). Service announces people in God’s kingdom more than some of the things we may be busy about for our own selves. You may ask, what if I don’t have any gift? That’s not true. Everyone has at least one gift, be it spiritual or not. But whatever that gift is, we can serve other people in a way that will lead them to the Father. You could start with distributing #GNews to your friends and contacts or just an individual if you still can’t figure yours out. Serve because we shall all give accounts soon.

Prayer_Bead: Faithful Father, thank you for the gift of life. And thank you for trusting me with your gift. Help me to be a faithful steward of that gift/s to the praise of your name. Amen.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, ( Genesis 2:5 )

Our God is a strategist. He does not act haphazardly, in disorder and chaos. Speaking about the beginnings, the Scripture says God did not allow rain to fall on the earth because there was no one to till the land. The Lord did not permit the resources that will cause an increase on the earth; namely rain, because there was no man to work the ground. The earth would have been disorganized and weedy. Before God would allow the shrubs and the plants to grow as a result of giving rain, He would have created a man to take charge of the management of the earth. Likewise God is not allowing increase in certain places because though there may be people, there is no one to manage the resources available. So you’d see that there is no “rain” for increase in such places and institutions. This comes down to individuals. There is no growth, around and in them because they will not manage the little resources entrusted to their care. God does not encourage mismanagement and misuse. Before we pray for “rains” of increase, we must be ready with a management mentality and attitude. So, don’t even pray for the rains, be a manager, and the rain and increase will come.

Prayer_Bead: Lord of the harvest, the giver of increase, thank you for showing me the secret for increase in your kingdom. I receive the spirit of management. I will manage the little entrusted to my care. So help me, Father.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ( James 1:17 )

The world has strategically positioned certain events and occasions for acts of kindness and giving of gifts. Likewise, spiritually, there are gifts that are given to men in their seasons and times. But because the devil will want to corrupt them, an identity tag was put in place to identify which is from God and which is not. And so here in this text of scripture, we are shown how to tell if the gift are from God or not. By this pattern of assessment, we can tell the source of the gift. God gives good and perfect gifts to His children. Goodness is an attribute of God that touches anything He does and releases. So if it’s from God, it must be good. Now, “good” is not necessarily convenient, appropriate, or proper but it is the needful in the sight of God. We are also exposed to another nature of God, His “unchangingness”. God does not change like men do. He is faithful and true to His words. Even though every light casts some form of darkness [shifting shadows], God will not change. We can trust the word of God and His promises and the goodness of His gifts. Hallelujah!

Prayer_Bead:Gracious Father of the heavenly lights, thank you for your consistency. Thank you for the good and perfect gifts. Glory be to your name.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” ( Exodus 33:16 )

The statement that made this verse of scripture, was a concern Moses raised before God. God had told him that he knew him by name and he had found favour before Him. All these were sweet promises from God to Moses but Moses was not satisfied with just the words and what they meant; Moses wanted more than these words. Moses understood that His life only made significant meaning with God. Without the presence of God, nothing about His life will make meaning to the world around him. He understood that he was only distinguished from the rest of the world by the signature of the presence of God. The ever abiding presence of God was the sign that God was pleased with him and the ticket for that was God’s pleasure in them. The presence of God is the power of God expressing the glory of God. Without the presence of God, His glory cannot be seen. And without the glory, we cannot be distinguished from the people of the world. Our desire to make significant impact in the world cannot be without the presence of God. As a result, we must sacredly guard the presence of God in our lives which is the mark of His authority and power. Although the Holy Spirit dwells with us and in us, His presence can only be felt and known (becomes tangible) when He is pleased with us. And Hebrews 11:6 shows us how.

Prayer_Bead: Power and Might belongs to You Father. Omnipotent Lord, thank you for your ever abiding presence. May the world see your glory and power around me because of your presence with me.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

[The Glory Unveiled]

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. ( Psalms 107:1 )

Thanksgiving is probably the most difficult responsibility and privilege of most Believers. Many times, we want to see a number of things before we thank God. But the scripture above did not say we should give thanks for the things He has done. No. Even before God does anything, we are entreated to give thanks. The reason for our thanksgiving is so profound. The Psalmist says we should give thanks because God is good. We are to give thanks for the nature of God; the unchanging attributes of His person. God is good and we see Him release that goodness into His creation. So that at the end of all His creation “days”, the Bible records a comment, “and God saw that it was good.” That statement was the sign of approval for the deed of God. The things were good because God is good. So, in giving thanks for all the things we see and experience, we must understand that those things are extensions of the nature of God. The love of God endures forever. The love nature of God is unchanging. And our thanksgiving must not cease. We must now and always give thanks because God does not change. Glory!

Prayer_Bead: Thank you Father, for your love endures forever. Thank you Jesus for who you are. Thank you for all your goodness and kindness. Glory be to your Holy name.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.