GROWTH

I Peter 2:2- As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

 

A newborn baby is at the mercy of his or her mother.  The only way they can relay what is going on inside them is to cry.  It is up to their mommy to decipher what the cry means.  Pamper changing, uncomfortable, attention, sickness, or fretting is just a few.  But most of the time the cry is for this thing that they cannot do without, “milk.”  Usually, all hours of the night a baby will wake up the whole house to be fed.  I know firsthand!  lol.   

 

To grow in our verse above speaks of spiritually increasing.  As a baby is totally depended upon their mother to survive in this world—Peter encourages us to have a deep inner desire for the Word of God, so that we may survive and thrive in these turbulent times in which we now live.  The Word of God must be our source.  It helps us to grow spiritually, as milk helps a baby to eventually develop towards adulthood.  When we first came to Christ there was a hunger to know as we could learn about Him.  It is this urgency that is typically lost in many Christians.

 

How about you?  Is there an urgent need for biblical truth?  Does your soul hunger, cry, and thirst for God’s Word?  We cannot grow spiritually without it.  

REMEMBER GOD


Eccl 12:1- Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them….

 

It is a shame when people wait until they see trouble before seeking God.  Tragedy must strike before they turn to God?  When 9/11 happened, churches were full the following Sunday.  People saw an urgency to pray.  Weeks afterward, those same refuge seekers went right back to life as usual.  This simply says that their flocking to churches was a temporary reaction to an uncertain future.  How sad!  The incident revealed America’s vulnerability, but for most it turnout to be a mere distraction.

 

A true worshipper does not need a reason to seek God and pray: “Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live” (Ps 116:2).  A true worshipper only needs to think on the greatness of God to give Him praise: O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens (Ps. 8:1).  Remember God even in the midst of your troubles and struggles; and when you call upon Him, He will answer!  Do not wait until you are sick and about ready to die.  Remember God while you are strong and He will not let you down when your body gets weak.

CHOOSE YOUR WORDS WISELY

Ps. 19:14- Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.

Words have been known to start and end wars, dissolve marriages, breakup relationships, end fellowships, etc…you name it. They can shape futures, but also ruin them. The words, “We unconditionally surrender,” would have kept Japan back in World War II from experiencing the devastating destruction of the atom bomb. The deciding factor of getting a job or a new position at one’s company is the choice words they used. A man or woman on death row will wait for the last words of the governor on whether or not he or she should live or die.

Prov. 18:21- Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. A moment to think could save you from a life time of regrets. Anger is one of the major reasons for ill-advised words that are released. Sadly, once our words enter the atmosphere we cannot bring them back. It’s bad enough that even the most thought out words could be misinterpreted! But to deliberately let something foul or foolish from our mouths unleash havoc in the life of someone else by causing pain, misery, or discouragement is just recklessly thoughtless!

Matt. 12:37- For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. Be careful what you say, God is listening. Make sure the words of your mouth please the Lord, and then you can speak with confidence.

HEALING IS THE CHILDREN BREAD

Matt 15:22-27- And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.

28. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

 

Jesus was found by a woman whose faith was solid.  She was from Canaan, which means she was a Gentile.  She sought him for healing for her daughter who was tormented by a devil, and was determine not to leave until her request was answered.  Twelve Jews and the Jewish Savior of the world were in the presence of a desperate woman whose faith did not know how to quit.  If this woman was to see her daughter healed, it would not come by her walking away with her head down; leaving with the very burden for which she diligently sought our Lord.  No!  The silence of Jesus did not quite her.  Even after being insulted, for it was common for the Jews to call the Gentiles dogs, she stayed focus and would not be deterred.  Although she knew Jesus was in covenant relationship with the Jews, she plainly understood that the Gentiles needed food from the Master—even if they received the crumbs!   

 

Be resolved in being persistent.  It gives a leverage that a quitter cannot attain.  As the old saying goes, “A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits.”  Are you jobless?  Don’t give up—keep looking.  Are your bills due but you still don’t have enough money?  Fear not!  Are you a paycheck from poverty?  Proverbs 3:5-6.  “Listen: In everything gives thanks, for this is the Will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (Thess. 5:18).  Keep on praying and do not let go of your faith!  Spiritual, mental, and physical healing is in the plan of God for us.    

SANCTIFICATION


Lev 20:7; [also read - I Peter 1:15-16] 7.Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the Lord your God. 8.And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am the Lord which sanctify you.

 

When we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we were sanctify unto God.  Because of the blood of Jesus, believers are separated from this world and have become the sons of God (John 1:12).  This is the initial sanctification wherein we were inducted into the Body of Christ, and no one can pluck us out of the hands of Jesus (John 10:28).  Notwithstanding, sanctification is also a life long process, still.  It means to be separated; therefore, we proclaim and declare the work done on the inside by separating ourselves from doing the sinful things we once did before coming to Christ.  Making a noticeable change in our lifestyle, the way we talk, who we hang with, and most of all, having a reverential fear for God.

 

Some tend to live by the old cliché, “Once saved, always saved.”  So there is no change in their lifestyle, they use cursing and foul language towards their fellow man, hang around with the wrong crowd, and there appears to be no fear of God in them.  Are we looking at the Word of God as our guideline as to how we should live before God?  Of course change takes time.  But there are some changes that should have been immediately obvious.  Once saved always saved?  Were we ever saved at all?  For holiness is not an option, but a command.  If we really love God, then we will question our motives to see if we are sanctifying ourselves.  Grace cannot abound where sin is dominate (Rom. 6:1).  Also read (II Cor. 6:14-17).

ARE YOU STUCK?


Phil. 3:13- Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

14. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

 

Out of the five faculties of the soul the memory has done, and is doing, a lot of damage too many people.  Unfortunately, for some the damage is irreversible.  Good memories are the comfort of the soul, but bad ones are like nightmares from which we cannot wake up.  Sexual, physical, verbal, or emotional abuse, just to name a few, can hold us hostage without demanding a ransom.  The enemy hired total strangers, or even those we love, to inflict such pain that it seems like we are forever stuck in our horrors of our past.

 

Although we cannot erase our bad memories, Jesus Christ paid the price for you and me to have victory over them.  He has given us the greatest gift, the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).  He has empowers us to prosper; it is what the word blessed really means.  So God does not remove our unwanted horrors of our past, but He has given us the Holy Spirit to see things differently.  What we went through can now be a testimony to help someone else.  Moreover we can shout, dance, and give God praise because our past can no more make us bitter, but better!

 

In our topical verse the word “forgetting” from Strong’s Greek Dictionary means, “To lose out of mind; by implication to neglect….”  This does not say to lose the memory of; but rather, to neglect the bad memories of their power over us; therefore, making our horrid past to have no affect on us.  Laying aside every the weight and the sin that could throw us off course (Heb. 12:1).  Thank God there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1).  So if you have been redeemed—remember your past is behind you, and the prize is before you!       

THIS IS NOT OUR HOME

John 17:15-16, 15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 

 

America is 14.3 trillion dollars in debt.  This debt is so astronomical that only the interest is being paid; and to add insult to misery, the debt is increasing every day!  Many wonder if our country will go bankrupt.  We are paying more on everything and getting less;  our bills are going up but, our paychecks remain the same; taxes are weighing us down, but we are not receiving the services of yesteryears; and millions are just a paycheck away from poverty.  How did a nation once known for its richness get in such a pickle?  Even the rich are concerned.  In a depression, disaster, or total destruction, all men become equal (Rev. 6:12-17). 

 

Speaking of the believers Jesus said, “They are not of this world, even as I am not of this world.”  Yes we live in the world, but we are not apart of its failing system.  “The earth is the Lord’s.”  The resources and richness of this world belong to the children of the Living God.  This is why no present government can fix the gapping hole in the pipeline, so to speak.  Jesus wanted us to know that the problems of the world do not belong to us.  As believers we belong to an everlasting kingdom.  A kingdom whose leader may be a man, but he is also very much God!  So as our Master did for us, let us continue to pray as this world’s system sinks deeper into the abyss from whence there is no return.  And don’t you worry or panic; have faith in God (Mark 11:22-24).  No matter what the reports of the world says, “This World is Not Our Home.”    


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