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Observing the Beauty of His Holiness

God shares His beauty with us!

The attraction to beauty in this modern age is undeniable. Beauty attracts eyes and ears like how lights attract flies. Humans love the act of observing the beauty of art pieces, movie cinematography, literature, and more. But, what is it that draws people to entertain their imaginations and natural delights with these things? And in this post, we’ll be looking into how beauty can help us to understand God.

The Beauty Around You

As I mentioned earlier, beauty is highly accessible in this day and age. Many embrace the thing called, “Art.” The reason that is so, is because people love to feast their eyes or ears on beautiful things. We, as a human race, adore beauty and want to see pretty things.

That is why there is a business for graphic design and advertising. Our human nature recalls beauty in its most primordial instincts and desires. The human heart loves observing the beauty around us.

As a matter of fact, you may enjoy rap songs, paintings, drawings, sketches, poetry, or anything else art-related. And I encourage you to enjoy art so as long as it fits within God’s boundaries for beauty since it can be very good for your mental health.

But, the main idea of this post is that beauty surrounds you. You don’t need to go to an art gallery to see beauty. Beauty is in the flowers of your garden or in the vastness of grand, ancient mountains. Wherever you are, there’s some sort of beauty surrounding you because at the end of the day, God’s an artist!

Psalm 19:1-4 World English Bible (WEB)
19 The heavens declare the glory of God.
    The expanse shows his handiwork.
2 Day after day they pour out speech,
    and night after night they display knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor language,
    where their voice is not heard.
4 Their voice has gone out through all the earth,
    their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,

Every scene from nature seems to be a divine masterpiece!

Observing the Beauty of Holiness

Psalm 96:9 King James Version (KJV)
9 O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

The Bible says to worship God in the beauty of holiness. Now, worship, if you don’t already know, is the way or the attitudes by which we exalt God in our lives for who He is. So, singing to God out of our love for Him can be a way of worshiping Him. Or giving to the poor because of our love for God, is another way of worshipping Him.

But, the Bible instructs us to worship Him in the beauty of holiness. Why? What does that mean? First, you’ve got to wrap your minds around what holiness means.

Holiness is the way in which we set things apart for very particular purposes. In the context of the Bible, to be holy means to set apart one’s life for God.

So, when the Bible talks about worshipping the Lord in the beauty of holiness, it means to lift Him up in your life by admiring how He is set apart. He is set apart from every other individual on the face of the planet because He is God.

Taking communion’s also an act of worship!

And He, being God, came in the flesh 2000 years ago as Jesus Christ so that He may die on the cross with the punishment for your sins along with my sins; then, He rose again from the dead after 3 days to fully justify our redemption in Him. I talk more about it in this post.

So, if you haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, please do so, now. When you accept Him into your heart, His life flows through you, and you can truly recognize His beauty everywhere you go. Whether His beauty manifests through the creatures He’s made or the natural laws of the universe, His beauty is there nonetheless.

Living a Beautiful Life

Furthermore, there’s another reference to the beauty of holiness in the Old Testament of the Bible.

2 Chronicles 20:21 King James Version (KJV)
21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.

The verse above is a specific situation where singers were chosen in ancient Israel to praise God’s beauty of holiness. Again, there’s a beauty in the fact that He’s set apart from the rest of this world. But, this time, instead of worshipping God for that, they praise Him.

This is different because that means they’re giving thanks to God for the beauty that He’s unique. They’re not just exalting Him in their lives because of their love for Him, they’re thanking Him for the fact that He’s set apart.

So, God puts such importance in His individuality or His uniqueness. He is not like the other kings of this world who demands things from us for their selfish ambitions, He is the one King who cares for each of the people who serve Him and who loves each and every one of us.

Moreover, God has called you to be holy like Him. He made you in His image and now that you believe in Him, He calls you to live a life where your beauty is inwards not just outwards.

1 Peter 3:3-4 World English Bible (WEB)
3 Let your beauty be not just the outward adorning of braiding the hair, and of wearing jewels of gold, or of putting on fine clothing; 4 but in the hidden person of the heart, in the incorruptible adornment of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.

You are set apart for God once you accept Him into your life and that means you don’t enjoy profane forms of art, but instead, art which glorifies the attributes or nature of God.

1 Peter 1:16 King James Version (KJV)
16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

Make His Word, your life source! Be holy as He is holy…

Therefore, live a beautiful life by following the footsteps of God. He is beautiful because He’s not like the others in this world who seek things selfishly and entertain insatiable yet carnal appetites. And so, as He is, so are you. You are holy when you live the life God paid for on the cross. You are truly at your most beautiful state, when you are holy for God. So, don’t stop observing the beauty of God.

By Andre Wijesekera

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The Privilege to Live Eternally in Heavenly Places

You have the privilege to always be with Jesus Christ

Eternity is quite the word. It means “never-ending time.” And that word, that concept is quite the shock when you actually think about it. To believe that time will never cease can hugely affect your perspective on life. It raises a very intimidating question that overshadows your existence. The question which eternity poses, is “Where do I fit it in the context of eternity?” So, in this post, we’ll be exercising the privilege to explore eternity and what that means for you.

The Corruption of Eternity

As made clear in the introduction, time will never cease. But, when did it start?

Genesis 1:1 World English Bible (WEB)
1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

And a verse from the New Testament of the Bible says…

John 1:1 World English Bible (WEB)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

So, as we can connect the two verses above, time began a very, very long time ago. In fact, God does not clarify how long He waited before making humans. God was uninterested in writing a science textbook, but, He was interested in reaching out to us through the Bible.

As a matter of fact, many of the confusions concerning the accuracy of the Bible arise from the flimsy presupposition that the Bible was meant to be a scientific journal or something like that. God was talking to ancient people who did not want to even change their lifestyle, let alone their knowledge of the world around them.

Nevertheless, getting back to the point of this blog, God created time. And so, after that point, if you read Genesis 1-3, you’ll find out that He made the Earth, He made animals, and He formed the first two humans: Adam and Eve. He told them not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 2:17 World English Bible (WEB)
17 but you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”

But, they disobeyed God’s warning by listening to a fallen angel known as the devil, and they ate from it.

Genesis 3:13 World English Bible (WEB)
13 Yahweh God said to the woman, “What have you done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

This event is when eternity shifted gears. God told them that they could eat from any tree in that garden, but they chose the one that God specifically told them not to eat from. And that knowledge of good and evil redefined the human mind, allowing for mental illness, sickness, and more. This is where hell on Earth started.

The Death of the Eternal One

Now, as humanity proceeded down the course of time with a knowledge of good and evil, every single person experienced that knowledge of evil. Knowing that there’s evil means that there’s evil. This accounts for diseases, for natural disasters, and for anything and everything that threatens human life.

So, did God leave us in this place? No, He came down to the Earth in the form of a human being.

John 1:14 World English Bible (WEB)
14 The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Word, also known as Jesus Christ, is God in the flesh. And it was this very same Word, who the Bible says was with God and was God at the same time.

So, He took on the form of flesh to experience what it means to be human. Yet, He never sinned as other humans would because unlike normal human beings, He is mature enough to handle that knowledge of good and evil.

2 Corinthians 5:21 World English Bible (WEB)
21 For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Moreover, the religious leaders of Jesus’ time were jealous of His goodness and led the people to sentence Him to a gruesome crucifixion, but, it was God’s plan.

Jesus had to die on the cross so that when Jesus, the Eternal One, the one who made time, itself, dies on our behalf for our sinful knowledge, we would receive the privilege to call God as our Father just as Jesus did when He was on Earth.

John 1:16 World English Bible (WEB)
16 From his fullness we all received grace upon grace.

Jesus rose again after three days!

The Privilege to Live Eternally

Now, as children of God, you can live forever and not fear it. You don’t have to be unsure of what’s going to happen with you in the future. You just need to trust Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour.

When you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, God forgives all your mistakes and sins because that belief in Jesus Christ credits all your evils to the punishment which Jesus Christ received.

Ephesians 2:4-6 World English Bible (WEB)
4 But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

Now, you have the privilege to live together with Jesus Christ and the privilege to sit with Him in the heavenly places. That means even if you die on this Earth, you will remain alive with Christ Jesus because your spirit is safe and secure in His hands. But, this means you have all the more reason to live on this planet.

Whether you suffer from mental illness or physical infirmities, Jesus Christ promises to heal you.

1 Peter 2:24 World English Bible (WEB)
24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness. You were healed by his wounds.

Furthermore, you can face eternity without worry because you’re not alone. For all of eternity and in the ages to come, He will always be by your side.

Therefore, believe what Jesus Christ says and let the knowledge of His love and grace transform you. He has given you the privilege to never cease existing and to enter a relationship with Him because He is always with you, whether that be on Earth or in heavenly places.

Jesus loves you for eternity

By Andre Wijesekera

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Telling the Truth to Those Who Seek It

Jesus is the Truth, the Way, and the Life

Truth is a vast topic. And to live a mentally healthy lifestyle, I believe it is absolutely necessary to have a healthy understanding of what truth means. Because sadly enough, truth holds varying and inconsistent opinions by most people, today. Thus, it is good to ground yourself in the essence of truth so that you properly grasp your identity. So, in this post, I’ll be telling the truth to those who seek it.

What Does Truth Mean? And What Does It Have to Do With Mental Health?

This first subsection is going to deal with truth’s value, because I know that in your head, the gears must be turning and you may be asking, “So what?”

First off, you’ve got to ask yourself what does it truly mean to be mentally healthy? Well, it means that you can function in life, properly. Furthermore, it means that you can live a life where you’re happy with yourself and you can maintain healthy relationships with people.

But, to live a mentally healthy lifestyle, your mind demands a firm grasp on the truth. If you are going to establish and maintain relationships, people will want to know that you’re telling them the truth. And if you want to consistently be honest with others, you must first understand truth and be honest with yourself.

John 8:32 World English Bible (WEB)
32 You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” Psalm 119:45

Therefore, the stability of your mental health is founded upon truth. Even more, God confirms this attitude where He wants us to tell the truth and to be honest, for our own good.

Proverbs 12:19 World English Bible (WEB)
19 Truth’s lips will be established forever,
    but a lying tongue is only momentary.

And God shows us that if one is wise, it is essential to be truthful, hence why He says to hold onto truth as much as you would in seeking wisdom, which I talk about in another post.

Proverbs 23:23 World English Bible (WEB)
23 Buy the truth, and don’t sell it.
    Get wisdom, discipline, and understanding.

Talking to the Man Whose Name Is Truth

Now, before anything and everything concerning the topic of truth, you must first meet Him. Truth is not only an abstract, it’s a person.

John 14:6 King James Version (KJV)
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

And if you want to live a truthful life, you must first be honest with yourself. Do you want to seek the truth? As Jesus says in the above verse, He is the truth. Everything He does and says is true and there is no falsehood in Him.

If I must compare Jesus to anything, it’s a door. Not just any door, but the door to salvation.

John 10:9 World English Bible (WEB)
9 I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out, and will find pasture.

So, when you connect the above two verses, you see that Jesus Christ is the truth and the door to everlasting meaningfulness. The Heavenly Father is on the other side of that door and when you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, who died on the cross but rose again after three days, you receive the privilege to be His children.

2 Corinthians 6:18 World English Bible (WEB)
18 I will be to you a Father.
    You will be to me sons and daughters,’
says the Lord Almighty.”2 Samuel 7:14; 7:8

Therefore, as children of God, you gain the rights to commune with God and for Jesus Christ, who is truth, to live within you. This is the key to living a life full of truth and meaning; this is where you start if you want to be truthful to others.

John 14:23 King James Version (KJV)
23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Telling the Truth and Living It at the Same Time

Telling the truth to others is not easy at times, as deceit and lies may be very tempting in hard times. But, as children of God, you must walk in truth, no matter what. Let your life be exemplary. And see what John wrote to the Church concerning his Holy Spirit-inspired joy over their truthfulness.

3 John 3-4 World English Bible (WEB)
3 For I rejoiced greatly when brothers came and testified about your truth, even as you walk in truth. 4 I have no greater joy than this: to hear about my children walking in truth.

Honesty is an admirable trait and for your own good, for the sake of your mental health, I urge you to refuse dishonesty. God even says that He’ll release a special blessing on those who walk in the truth because after all, He is the truth and by walking in the truth, you show that you are His children.

Psalm 24:3-5 World English Bible (WEB)
3 Who may ascend to Yahweh’s hill?
    Who may stand in his holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart;
    who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood,
    and has not sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive a blessing from Yahweh,
    righteousness from the God of his salvation.

Therefore, be honest with yourself, be honest with others, and be honest with God. Moreover, God has made you His righteousness so live up to what He’s called you to be by following Him, and lying will become foreign to you.

Follow and seek the Truth!

2 Corinthians 5:21 World English Bible (WEB)
21 For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

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Loving The Invincible and Invisible King of Heaven

Harvest Time

Loving God should be simple, right? He’s wise beyond words, He’s all powerful, He’s infinitely good, He’s the founder/upholder of justice, and more… But, things aren’t so simple. Many of us cannot reconcile the God of the Bible with morality. Many, in fact, see the King of Heaven as wicked, resulting in many who view God as a tyrant. Then, there are those who are indifferent. They either consider themselves as non-religious or as people who have nothing to do with God. And finally, there are those of you who believe in the God of the Bible. However, you might’ve grown up in Church with no actual love for God or you just believe the Bible, but, you can’t feel any type of affection for an invisible God.

To Those Who Hate The King of Heaven

Let’s start with those of you who absolutely hate God or at least the God of the Bible. First of all, why? If there’s anything specific, please let me know in the comments, maybe I can address that. Otherwise, let me give the best which God can give in a subsection of 300 or less words.

From my experience, those who abhor God usually are misinformed about certain situations in the Bible. They accuse God of things like… “God orchestrates evil in this world,” or something along the lines of “God sends people to hell.” These strange ideas about the God of the Bible originate from misunderstandings, bad experiences, and false doctrines.

Now, with the first claim that God orchestrates evil and suffering to happen in this world, it’s a matter of misunderstanding or bad experience. God did not cause sickness, death, natural disasters, or any other conduit to tragedy. He makes that very clear in the following passage.

John 10:10 World English Bible (WEB)
10 The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.

The sad things we witness today come from the devil or “thief” as Jesus said in the above scripture. The devil is the one who brought all evil into the world when Adam and Eve ignored God’s warning so that they may eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. I talk more about this in another post.

The Judge Who Paid The Bail

To deal with the second claim that God sends people to hell, let us delve further into what He says about the topic. He says in the following scripture that hell was not made for humans.

Matthew 25:41 World English Bible (WEB)
41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;

But, when people reject Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, they reject their spiritual parachute. All people sin no matter how great the sin, whether it’s lie or rob. So, God who is all-just is obliged to judge people. Just think about it; you’re standing in the divine courtroom and you’ve lied probably a thousand times, you’ve been jealous here and there, and you haven’t acted like a saint at all. What’s God going to do about it! Someone has to be punished because He’s perfect and by nature, He must punish you for all your sins.

But, what did God do? He took the punishment on the cross… on your behalf. So, when you accept the bail which God paid for, you can be saved from hell. But, if you reject Jesus Christ, then what can God do?

He’s done all He could, He suffered the crucifixion, rose again, made sure all of it was written in the Bible which you have in your hands, He’s made available blogs such as this blog to explain Him to you, and more. It is now up to you to accept His salvation.

For Those Who Are Indifferent

Next off, I’m going to talk to those of you who are indifferent. Indifferent means to not be concerned at all. So, you might be saying “God has nothing to do with me.” If that’s you, hear me out.

You may feel like God has nothing to do with you, but, that cannot be so, because God cares about you very much. You may give very little thought to God, but God thinks the world of you, quite literally.

Psalm 139:17-18 World English Bible (WEB)
17 How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
    How vast is their sum!
18 If I would count them, they are more in number than the sand.
    When I wake up, I am still with you.

God’s thoughts of you are more than there are grains of sand in the world. You try thinking as many different things about somebody, you’d never get close to God’s number even if your thoughts were negative. God thinks good of you and He thinks of the good to bless you with.

He loves you a lot, and I believe it’s only a matter of time before you fall in love with Him. The truth is that God should matter to you, He’s the one who made you, He designed you so that you would feel emotions like love, compassion, kindness, and more. If He designed you to be a personal being, then, He must also be a personal being. And He makes it very clear in the Bible that He wants you to know Him and to be in a relationship with Him.

Ephesians 3:19 King James Version (KJV)
19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.

God seriously loves you. The Bible says that His love even transcends conventional wisdom which is why we sometimes cannot fathom how much He loves us. That is why He died on the cross to receive your punishment for all the mistakes you’ve made in life.

He wants you to accept His gift of salvation and to live a life of fulfillment. But that road to fulfillment starts with Jesus Christ.

For Those Who Believe The King of Heaven

Finally, to those of you who believe in Jesus as the King of Heaven, it is clearly evident throughout scripture that there’s an expectation to love God.

Matthew 22:37 World English Bible (WEB)
37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’Deuteronomy 6:5

To love God, first know that God sees you as loving Him when you listen to Him. As soon as you listened to His Word to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, God started seeing you as a person who loves Him. By the way, when Jesus says “man,” He is talking about women, too, it’s similar to how the word, “mankind” refers to all of humanity.

John 14:23 World English Bible (WEB)
23 Jesus answered him, “If a man loves me, he will keep my word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him, and make our home with him.

So, in the spirit, you already love Jesus. It is just that maybe you have not yet had the opportunity to manifest or express that love to Him.

Communion With The King of Heaven

Anchored in Christ

In that case, you should do what David did and what Jesus advises. You should seek God’s heart. David sought God’s heart through writing psalms (songs to sing to God) and prayer.

Acts 13:22 World English Bible (WEB)
22 When he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, to whom he also testified, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’

Jesus said that when you seek the Kingdom of God, He will add everything to you. So, just spend some time to read His Word and find out what God has in store in His Kingdom.

Matthew 6:33 World English Bible (WEB)
33 But seek first God’s Kingdom and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.

When you spend time with God in His Word in light of His grace and pray to commune with Him, God will lead your heart to manifest the love which you have for Him. Therefore, spend time with the King of Heaven in the way you best can and let Him to do the rest. After all, it’s His love for us which is what brought us to Him in the first place.

1 John 4:10 World English Bible (WEB)
10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

The King of Heaven

By Andre Wijesekera

Posted on

The Model Method To Deal With Stress

Method to deal with stress

We often wonder how wonderful it’d be if there weren’t such a thing as stress. I mean it’s bothersome, cumbersome, and painful. You might be stressing about paying the bills, dealing with your job, taking care of children, and more. The point is that there’s always something to stress about. And if one challenge is resolved, it seems that there’ll always arise a new challenge! Once again, if there’s any issue, God’s Word holds a solution for it. So, keep on reading to find out whether God thinks if there is a method to deal with stress.

Stress is a Deviation of Fear

Life is rife with stressful ordeals and situations. But, what is it in the grand scheme of things? What is the bigger picture when it comes to viewing stress and worry? Well, it means that the person who stresses, myself included, cannot trust what God holds in picture.

Stress is basically a way to express fear. A person starts feeling stress when something they dearly love or value is at risk or in jeopardy.

For King David, he stressed out when he couldn’t hide his affair with Bathsheba. He wanted to preserve his reputation and affair and so, he indirectly murdered her husband, which God really disapproved of. In fact, it led to him suffering a lot since his actions held many consequences.

2 Samuel 12:9 World English Bible (WEB)
9 Why have you despised Yahweh’s word, to do that which is evil in his sight? You have struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 

And King Saul stressed out when God did not want him as king anymore due to his constant disobedience. King Saul wanted to protect his privileges as King of Israel but since that was in jeopardy, he stressed to the point of seeking peace from a witch and that did not end so well.

The Biblical accounts of many historical figures show that people often feel stress and it happens in situations where it’s the person’s fault or when it’s not their fault. Either way, it never leads to anything good and is almost always a contributing factor to failure except in Jesus’ case. But, let’s see and learn from how God dealt with stress.

Remembering How God Dealt With Stress

Now, let’s go the scene of when Jesus Christ was awaiting His crucifixion. It was the night at the Garden of Gethsemane and Jesus knew that Judas was leading the priests and leaders to him so that they may arrest Him and send Him to His grisly fate. Just picture it, He knows what He is going to face and He knows every single detail that is going to take place.

1 John 3:20 World English Bible (WEB)
20 because if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.

He knows how they’re going to make him wait in a cold room in the early morning; He knows how they’re going to literally skin Him alive with every lash of their ancient yet meticulous torturing devices, and He knows how they’re going to carve through his flesh and bones with enormous nails that would even send chills down the spine of the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate.

First and foremost, you must realize this was not something out of His control and if He wanted to, He could have stopped this ordeal immediately. When Peter tried to stop Jesus’ arrest, Jesus reminded Peter that He doesn’t need Peter to defend Him as He has so many angels at His command.

Matthew 26:53 World English Bible (WEB)
53 Or do you think that I couldn’t ask my Father, and he would even now send me more than twelve legions of angels?

Furthermore, the decision was hard for Jesus who is God in the flesh. He had to lay down His life and embrace a fate worse than death. And in that garden, Jesus prayed to Heavenly Father as a model for us.

The Method to Deal With Stress

Matthew 26:39 World English Bible (WEB)
39 He went forward a little, fell on his face, and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from me; nevertheless, not what I desire, but what you desire.”

Jesus did feel stress, He wanted to protect his life from unfathomable pain; He knew it was coming and since He knew the ordeal was going to happen, His fear was well-justified. To save the souls of the world, He’d have to suffer a lot.

And the Bible said that He stressed so much that even His sweat became blood which is an actual medical condition borne out of extreme stress according to modern medical science.

Luke 22:44 King James Version (KJV)
44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Moreover, Jesus still looked at the grand scheme of things, He did something which most of us don’t do when we’re stressed out. He prioritized God’s will and subjected His fate to what God the Father wants which is the right method to deal with stress.

God Stressed Out So You Don’t Have To

Thus, His stress was beneficial for us so that we would not need to stress to accomplish our work as His blood went into the ground to satisfy the curse granted to Adam’s descendants when Adam ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 3:17 World English Bible (WEB)
17 To Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to your wife’s voice,
    and have eaten from the tree,
    about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it,’
    the ground is cursed for your sake.
You will eat from it with much labor all the days of your life.

Of course, this is not split personality, but rather, it is something that Jesus being God in the flesh, wants us to know. He wants us to follow His example and He spoke to Himself as God the Father so we can learn. He has done this earlier and one example of how He does this is seen in the following Bible verse.

John 11:42 World English Bible (WEB)
42 I know that you always listen to me, but because of the multitude standing around I said this, that they may believe that you sent me.”

The Method to Find Peace in a World of Stress

In conclusion, Jesus did fulfill His will and endure the crucifixion for our sakes. With such tremendous power at His grasp, He believed it was better to let hell destroy Him for our restoration.

If you are stressing out, remember that Jesus stressed out, too. And if you want peace, just follow His model, the method to deal with stress. Trust in God’s will, ask Him for the bigger picture and He’ll make things work out for your good. He always makes things work out for our good because He loves us, why else would He suffer so much for us?

Romans 12:2 World English Bible (WEB)
2 Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Renew your mind according to the Word of God. Let His love speak to you and trust Him.

Philippians 4:7 World English Bible (WEB)
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.

Don’t try to understand the peace of God, but just trust God. You are now in the New Covenant with God and unlike the Old Testament, when you believe in Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, He promises to forgive you, save you, and to grant you His peace, so you only need to receive His peace.

Therefore, if you feel stressed out, follow Jesus’ method to deal with stress by asking God to make things work out according to His will, and He will deal with your stress through the peace of His Holy Spirit. He will eventually make all things in your life, whether good or bad, to work out for your good. So you’ll one day see your current stressful situation as a memory and as a testimony of God’s goodness.

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The Messiah Who Crushed the Serpent of Betrayal

God will never abandon you

Betrayal is a very serious thing. And unfortunately, every human being will at some point of time, experience its crippling sting. It manifests itself in marriages, in friendships, and even familial relationships; it hurts the most when the perpetrator of betrayal is someone you trust or love dearly. In this post, I am going to tell you about the Messiah who crushed the spirit of betrayal and what that should mean to you.

Understanding Betrayal

First off, you must realize that betrayal is a very hard thing to experience. Even certain Biblical characters who we would see as tough, experienced betrayal in a very painful sense. King David’s son, Absalom, tried to kill David and become King of Israel by force and this really hurt David, emotionally.

Psalm 55:12-14 World English Bible (WEB)
12 For it was not an enemy who insulted me,
    then I could have endured it.
Neither was it he who hated me who raised himself up against me,
    then I would have hidden myself from him.
13 But it was you, a man like me,
    my companion, and my familiar friend.
14 We took sweet fellowship together.
    We walked in God’s house with company.

The man who took down giants and led a nation acknowledged the bitter sting of what it means to be betrayed. He was betrayed by his own flesh and blood. Later on in his story, we realize that Absalom’s fate is horrid as he is later killed in his quest for power, much to David’s horror.

The point I am establishing is that you could be tough as nails or the sweetest person in the world, betrayal can happen to anyone, in fact, it could even happen to God. It’s just that God handles it in the best way possible.

The One Rule to Follow

I know I mention the story of Adam and Eve in my posts all the time. But, there’s just so many layers to the truth in that divine Biblical narrative that I can’t possibly ignore its lovely wisdom.

Genesis 2:16-17 World English Bible (WEB)
16 Yahweh God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17 but you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”

In the Garden of Eden, God gave everything He could possibly give to Adam and Eve. He loved them and He made them to reflect His image. And God gave them only one rule. Just one simple rule. He told them not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil as a warning to them. He did not want His children to face death, and so, He gave Adam a very clear warning which even Eve would get to know.

God Betrayed in the Garden of Eden

Genesis 3:4-6 World English Bible (WEB)
4 The serpent said to the woman, “You won’t really die, 5 for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took some of its fruit, and ate. Then she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate it, too.

The first humans in the world betrayed God’s trust and they wanted to become like God. Of course, this did not end well as God’s warning was true and death did enter the world. So, not only did mankind betray God but mankind was betrayed by the serpent who represents the devil.

Genesis 3:13 World English Bible (WEB)
13 Yahweh God said to the woman, “What have you done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

God Betrayed in the Garden of Gethsemane

Fast-forward from Adam and Eve 4000 years down the Biblical timeline and we’re at the night of Jesus’ arrest. At this moment, He’s praying for the cup of suffering to be taken away from Him (He’s praying out of fellowship with Father God) but he ultimately decides that the crucifixion is the only way to save humanity, to save His children.

But earlier, Judas Iscariot already decided to betray Jesus and conspire with the hypocritical religious leaders of that time as to how to reveal Jesus’ location to them.

Luke 22:3-4 World English Bible (WEB)
3 Satan entered into Judas, who was also called Iscariot, who was counted with the twelve. 4 He went away, and talked with the chief priests and captains about how he might deliver him to them.

Note something imperative to this text. It says that Satan entered Judas, in other words, the spirit of betrayal or the same serpent that inspired the wretched deed of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden was now influencing Judas to betray Jesus. If someone is betraying you, keep in mind that there’s a spirit from whence that betrayal originates.

Luke 22:47-48 World English Bible (WEB)
47 While he was still speaking, a crowd appeared. He who was called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He came near to Jesus to kiss him. 48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, do you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”

And with a kiss of death, Judas betrayed Jesus. God in the flesh had to endure the pangs of betrayal. Moreover, Judas was someone Jesus trusted as Jesus gave Judas the responsibility of keeping His money but Judas was still the one to betray Him. So, remember that God understands the pains of betrayal in a very real way.

The Messiah Who Died for You

To those of you who have been betrayed by people you love, I want you to know about the Messiah who crushed betrayal. Maybe, you feel hurt and sorrowful because they betrayed you and you feel like you can never be made whole again. But, look to Jesus.

After Judas betrayed Jesus and He was handed over to the religious leaders, He was beaten, flogged, and crucified. He became physically unrecognizable and bore your sin, sickness, and curses on the cross.

John 19:16-18 World English Bible (WEB)
16 So then he delivered him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led him away. 17 He went out, bearing his cross, to the place called “The Place of a Skull”, which is called in Hebrew, “Golgotha”, 18 where they crucified him, and with him two others, on either side one, and Jesus in the middle.

But, God made an example out of Himself. He did not listen to the spirit of betrayal and resent the people who betrayed Him. Instead, Jesus plead for forgiveness on behalf of their account; He forgave those who were crucifying Him while they were crucifying Him.

Luke 23:34 World English Bible (WEB)
34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”
Dividing his garments among them, they cast lots.

The Messiah Who Crushed The Serpent of Betrayal

No one thought that He could rise again. The prophet Isaiah described Jesus as physically unrecognizable due to the abuse people inflicted upon Jesus during His crucifixion process. But, three days after His death, Jesus resurrected Himself, never to die again.

1 Peter 1:3 World English Bible (WEB)
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Even after betrayal, Jesus rose again from the dead. He rose again so you could rise again through His grace and strength. You do not need to wallow in sorrow because someone betrayed you, Jesus understands your pains; He put His resurrection power in you to overcome the grief of betrayal, the moment you accept Him as Lord and Saviour.

Romans 8:11 World English Bible (WEB)
11 But if the Spirit of him who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

No serpent or spirit of betrayal can now destroy you, rather, God’s spirit lives within you. Do not be sad but place your trust in the hands of the Messiah who crushed the serpent of betrayal when He rose again from the dead. Therefore, remember His suffering for you and let Jesus set you free from the betrayal which He understands, too.

Hebrews 4:15 World English Bible (WEB)
15 For we don’t have a high priest who can’t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.

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The Lord Who Cares for You

The Lord Who Cares for You

If there’s anything you get from this post, please, let it be the knowledge of how much God loves you. I am speaking to people from all walks of life because this knowledge is meant for everyone. Whether you are a stay-at-home mom trying her best to raise children, or a university student diligently studying in the hopes of academic success, you must know one thing. You must know that Jesus is the Lord who cares for you. If you find it hard to believe, let this post minister to your doubt. And for those who already believe in God’s love, let this post renew your mind.

The Nature of God

1 Peter 5:6-7 World English Bible (WEB)
6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.

Peter talks to the Church in the above verse about relying on the strength of God. Holy Spirit wants us to cast every worry, not on ourselves, but on Him. And the root of that divine desire is the fact that God cares for you. The reason why God wants you to let Him take care of the things which worry you is because He loves you.

The world might say there is no one who cares about you, except yourself and that you have to make your own way through life. However, this is not the truth; the fact of the matter is that God cares about you. He is the Lord who deeply cares for you. Even if the whole world was to hate you, you would not be outside of God’s unconditional love.

Romans 5:8 World English Bible (WEB)
8 But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

God loves you whether you believe it or not. It is in His nature to love you. And it is for this reason that He died for you on the cross. When Jesus who is God in the flesh died on the cross two thousand years ago, He did it with reason. He did it because the perfect justice of God required punishment for our imperfection. Every small lie, vile thought, and evil intention laid on your spiritual record demanded a ferocious fine. And it is impossible for you to enter the presence of God with such a stained record. Someone needed to pay a heavy penalty for your mistakes.

But, on the cross of Calvary, Jesus Christ, the very embodiment of God’s love, paid to the justice of God so that He could endure your hell for your sake. And three days later, He resurrected victoriously conquering death once and for all. Thus, I urge you to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour if you have not already. I talk more about this divine exchange and its benefits in another post, too.

When you accept Jesus as your Saviour, you allow His work on the cross to save you. When you accept Him as your Lord, you allow Him to take full control over your life so He can bless you and guide you.

The King’s Only Weakness

Now, is it blasphemy to say that God holds a single weakness? I consider it not, for there is truth in such a claim. Let me explain.

1 Corinthians 1:24-25 World English Bible (WEB)
24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God; 25 because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Paul writes that Christ is the power and wisdom of God. When you look at what the Messiah was sent to do, you can see how strong and wise He is. The mission was to reveal God’s love to the world. And Jesus accomplished that, He endured terror beyond imagination during the crucifixion process to save you. But, why was He willing to sacrifice Himself for you?

It was because He is the Lord who cares for you. His love for you is His only weakness. This is why Paul writes that the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men. You can see God’s love for you as strength or as a weakness. It is a weakness in that it caused Him harm. It is a strength because His love for you saved you.

Either way, the point is that you are the weakness of God. His love is so great, so genuine, so sincere that it led Him to lay down His life for you. Whether you’re good or bad, smart or foolish, He loves you and He leaves it up to you if you want to accept Him.

Divine Promise of the Lord Who Cares for You

Romans 8:38-39 World English Bible (WEB)
38 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from God’s love which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There is no person or thing which can separate you from the love of Jesus. You may wonder why He loves you so much. But, perhaps He loves you because He created you, He designed you, He made you in His own likeness.

It is like a father who looks into His child’s eyes and realizes an instinctual affection for His child. It’s not as if the baby has done anything good or bad to earn the love of the father; the father’s love is independent of the child’s performance.

Isaiah 49:15 World English Bible (WEB)
15 “Can a woman forget her nursing child,
    that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Yes, these may forget,
    yet I will not forget you!

God makes a promise that likens His relationship with Israel which represents His covenant people to that of a mother and her nursing child. He points out how even if some mothers may forget their child, He will never forget us. He will always be the Lord who cares for you. His love’s guaranteed.

Therefore, remember how He loves you. If you, for even one second under the influence of situations doubt His love for you, remember what He did on the cross and remind yourself why He did it.

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I am the Lord that Healeth Thee

Luke 14:1-6 World English Bible (WEB)
 When he went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees on a Sabbath to eat bread, they were watching him. 2 Behold, a certain man who had dropsy was in front of him. 3 Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? 4 But they were silent. He took him, and healed him, and let him go. 5 He answered them, “Which of you, if your son or an ox fell into a well, wouldn’t immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?” 6 They couldn’t answer him regarding these things.

So basically, this passage talks about how Jesus went to a leading pharisee’s house for dinner. And when he went there, a man with dropsy stood in front of Him. Dropsy is a disease also known also as, “Edema.” This disease causes a person’s body to swell abnormally with fluid and causes lots of discomfort.  

But, as the passage continues, Jesus healed the man with dropsy, instantly! As soon as Jesus laid hands on that man, the man’s swelled legs and arms became normal. All that excess fluid in his limbs immediately disappeared. That is the miraculous healing power of Jesus Christ.

Now, the Word of God says that Jesus went to this dinner “To eat bread.” Why was the Bible so specific? It was because the bread represents His body, and Jesus was remembering how one day, His body would be broken for our sake so that we could be healed physically, emotionally, and spiritually!

Matthew 26:26 World English Bible (WEB)
26 As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”

Jesus chose to heal the man with dropsy out of remembrance of His sacrifice, which was already decided before the foundation of the world. That is one of the reasons why we take communion, so that we remember Jesus’ sacrifice for us and exercise our faith that Jesus Christ has paid the price for our healing!

Silencing Doubts

Now, you may think that maybe it is not God’s will to always heal, but that is a doctrine with no roots in the heart of the Heavenly Father.

The pharisees found Jesus healing people on the Sabbath day to be unlawful because God had previously said to rest on that holy day in the Old Testament. But, before healing the man, Jesus posed the question to the pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day?”

Yet, no one uttered a word in response. They had asked Jesus the same question before, in Matthew 12:10, when there was a man with a withered hand. In the end, Jesus healed the man and said the very same thing which he would repeat once again after healing the man with dropsy.

He said that if a person’s ox or child fell into a well, that person would surely help the ox or child out of the well regardless of whether it was the Sabbath Day or not, and that same principle applies with God.  In other words, Jesus showed that God loves us enough to heal us, it doesn’t matter what day, what circumstance, what situation you are in, or how you feel about yourself, Jesus still wants you healed.

God Wants You Healthy

You may say, “Maybe God doesn’t want me healed because He wants to teach me a lesson or to discipline me,” but do you think God is so cruel to do that? Where in the Bible, does it show Jesus telling a sick person, “Here, take this sickness, it will make you more mature.” The answer is no where, He always moved with a heart of compassion and healed everybody who came to Him.

John 5:19 World English Bible (WEB)
19 Jesus therefore answered them, “Most certainly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father doing. For whatever things he does, these the Son also does likewise.

If you saw Jesus do it, that is the will of the Father. If Jesus healed people in the Bible without refusal, that is the will of Father God.

Matthew 14:14 World English Bible (WEB)
14 Jesus went out, and he saw a great multitude. He had compassion on them and healed their sick.

Jesus is a compassionate saviour. He wants you to be healthy. The Bible says when He saw the great multitude of people, His heart was moved with compassion and He healed anyone who was sick. There were so many people, definitely, some of them must have been morally bad people, yet Jesus still healed them. When it comes to healing, God does not look for any prerequisite.

God never breaks His promise

If you are still struggling with any health issue, do not worry, just trust in Jesus. Understand that He wants you to be healed and that when He was scourged, beaten, and wounded, He did it for you so that you could be made healthy. Do not be discouraged, but lay hands on yourself and command your body to be healed. Remember that God’s promises will always come about so you can enjoy the full salvation of God.

John 10:10 World English Bible (WEB)
10 The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.

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Righteousness in Christ Jesus

Psalm 17:15 World English Bible (WEB)
 15 As for me, I shall see your face in righteousness.
    I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with seeing your form.

This Psalm is a prayer from the mouth of King David who’s in the Old Testament. Now, what is the Holy Spirit trying to convey through this line of scripture?

First of all, you have to understand what it means to be righteous! To be righteous, means to be right with God. So, for the first line of the verse, David says there’s a time when He can see God’s face because he is righteous.

Remember, David was a man of faults, but a man after God’s heart, nevertheless; he had faith in the coming Messiah as is revealed in Psalm 22.

Our Righteousness? Or His Righteousness?

Now, for us, we are righteous (made right with God) because Jesus, the Messiah, was perfect and without sin, so that when He was punished despite being innocent, our wickedness was transferred to Him, while His righteousness was transferred to us!

2 Corinthians 5:21 World English Bible (WEB)
21 For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Righteousness has nothing to do with your works or how you act. Your works are like filthy rags to God because your standard of morality fails in comparison to God’s perfect morality. So, the only way to be truly righteous is for you to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour.

Isaiah 64:6 King James Version (KJV)
6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Romans 3:23 King James Version (KJV)
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Again, scripture makes it clear that if we know that we are righteous in Christ Jesus, we will not continue committing works of the flesh, but will manifest the righteousness God gave us, in our lives. We will never be able to stop committing works of the flesh, but Holy Spirit will strengthen you with His grace so you can live in freedom from sin.

Galatians 5:24-25 World English Bible (WEB)
24 Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let’s also walk by the Spirit.

Walking With God

Since we become righteous in Christ Jesus, we can then behold the face of God. His righteousness in us, allows us to live free from guilt. We can look straight into God’s face, without any guilt or shame, because we have been made right with God, and now, God considers you His friend!

Exodus 33:11 World English Bible (WEB)
11 Yahweh spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. He turned again into the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, didn’t depart from the Tent.

Moreover, the scripture reveals a sense of satisfaction with seeing God’s form. The Hebrew word for “form,” in this verse, is “Temunah,” which also means likeness.

God uses this same Hebrew word to describe His friendship with Moses, where Moses can see God in His true form.

This is simply wonderful because that means we can see God and talk to Him just like how Moses spent His time with God, only with a New Testament understanding!

Numbers 12:8 World English Bible (WEB)
8 With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, even plainly, and not in riddles; and he shall see Yahweh’s form. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?”

All in all, Holy Spirit wants you to know that when you accept Jesus, and understand you are righteous in Him, you can live a satisfying life with the Almighty God of this universe.

He paid the price so that you can live in relationship with Him; where you can constantly see His manifest presence all the days of your life.

Therefore, live in the understanding of your righteousness in Christ Jesus so you can live in a deep relationship with Him!

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What does the Bible say about depression?

Many people suffer from clinical depression. It is a mental disorder that latches onto one’s mood and tries to put one down for a consistently long time. It is not like any other sense of emotional sadness or sorrow.

Unlike other emotions of sorrow, depression lingers, it makes one sad for a long time, and tries to get one to be consistently sad so that they neglect all of the joys of life.

So, now that we know what depression is, does the Bible say anything about it?

First, what is associated with depression? Depression is often associated with constant thoughts of self worthlessness. A person struggling with depression usually believes or battles thoughts that their life is purposeless.

Romans 5:8 Good News Translation (GNT)
8 But God has shown us how much he loves us—it was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us!

However, the Bible says while we were still sinners, Jesus died for us. That means whether you have accepted Jesus Christ or not, God loves you very much. Furthermore, you are worth the price He paid.

And because He loves us so much, He wants us to accept Him so He can hold a relationship with us!

To God, you hold a worth, and if that meant He paid a price where Jesus Christ died to save your soul, you must be worth very much to Him!

So, if you are suffering from depression and battling thoughts that tell you that you’re worthless, speak audibly to yourself so that your whole being understands that you are priceless! Just say to yourself…

“I am worth the price Jesus paid for me; He loves me very much!”

Now, depression is characterized by a constant gloomy mood.

 But, according to the Bible, if we know how much God loves us, we can be glad no matter what. Challenges and issues may come our way, but He will give us the peace of mind and the strength to overcome challenges.

John 14:27 New International Version (NIV)
27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

And God showed mercy to us. What was God’s mercy? His mercy was when Jesus came to take away our sin so that He would endure the hell experience we deserved by living contrary to Him. So, when we know His mercy, His kindness, His tender love, we will by nature, rejoice and be glad all of our days!

Psalm 90:14 New King James Version (NKJV)
14 Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy,
That we may rejoice and be glad all our days!

When we know that God loves us and His promise to us that we should have the mind of Christ, it is impossible for depression to linger, depression must leave.

So, in conclusion, if you struggle with depression, remind yourself that He loves you, remind yourself that He paid the price where His blood was shed and His body was broken so your mind can be healed.

If you realize how high He values you, then depression better stay away from you because the truth is that you are loved by God, you were chosen by Him, and you are healed by His endless grace.