Posted on

The Purpose of Christmas

Luke 2:8-10 World English Bible (WEB)
8 There were shepherds in the same country staying in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. 9 Behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people.

The Appearance of Angels

This post will examine the birth of Jesus Christ which is why we celebrate Christmas. Now, the first people outside the family of Mary to hear about the birth of Jesus, were some shepherds. These shepherds were taking care of their sheep during the night, and the Bible says an angel appeared to them.

The Bible does not say that an angel flew to them or anything like that. It says, the angel stood in front of them. This means that even though you may not see it, there are angels around you.

In your life, there are angels who act as God’s bodyguards for you; however, you cannot see them at the moment. Nevertheless, the angel appeared to them and the shepherd boys became terrified. This may be why God does not show everything that happens behind the scenes, otherwise, we’d be scared like anything!

Now when the angel appeared to them, the Word of God says that he told them to fear not. God is always concerned about you. He does not want you to be scared of anything at all! In fact, I wrote an entire post where God’s heart is not for you to be anxious about anything.

Furthermore, as the angel began telling them of Jesus’ birth, he introduced Jesus as good news of great joy to all people.

Good News For Everyone

Did you know that Jesus is nothing but good news? And it is this very good news which is the purpose of Christmas! But God is so good that He includes a few extra words which are key to this passage. He says this good news is of great joy to all the people.

He is good news not only to Christians or Jews but to all people where Jesus can bless anyone with His saving power. If you believe in any other religion. Just ask God to save you from the situation or challenge you are facing and Jesus will show you His saving grace. Jesus is the truth, the way, and the life; when you give your life to Jesus, He will give you eternal life

Whether you are sick, or depressed, or in any sort of state which is bad, call upon the name of Jesus and He will answer you. When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, your life will be transformed by His goodness, you will have the peace which surpasses all understanding.

Psalm 34:8 King James Version (KJV)
8 O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

Saviour of the World

When we celebrate Christmas, we celebrate how our Saviour was born. The angel introduced Jesus as the saviour of the world.

Luke 2:11 World English Bible (WEB)
11 For there is born to you today, in David’s city, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Remember that Christ means “Messiah” or “Anointed One.” Moreover, when you look at the entirety of these wonderful words spoken by the angel, the Bible declares Jesus as the Lord who is anointed to save.

If you need saving in any sort of way, there is a saviour who loves you and is deeply concerned of your well-being. His name is Jesus and He is the reason why we celebrate Christmas. Ask Him, and you will definitely hear a response from Jesus, the God who took all your troubles on Himself when He was crucified, and then after three days, arose from the dead so that He is alive forevermore.

Posted on

The King Who Overcame Anxiety!

There are many types of anxiety. This post will be tackling the topic of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Basically, GAD is a disorder that causes people to worry abnormally and frequently throughout their life.

Now, what does the Bible say about anxiety in general?

Matthew 6:27-30 World English Bible (WEB)
27 “Which of you by being anxious, can add one moment to his lifespan? 28 Why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They don’t toil, neither do they spin, 29 yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, won’t he much more clothe you, you of little faith?

The general topic of this bible verse is anxiety. This is when Jesus tells the people that you should not worry about anything because God is in control.

He says that He will provide. If you are worried about anything, just lay it down at the feet of Jesus. Doesn’t Jesus say in verse 30, that if He put so much effort into the design of flowers, then how much more, will He care for you!

No Longer in Bondage

Romans 8:15 World English Bible (WEB)
15 For you didn’t receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

Paul, influenced by the Holy Spirit, wrote this passage straight from Heaven so that you can truly understand the solution to General Anxiety Disorder. He says we have not received the spirit of bondage to fear. But, what is bondage to fear?

Bondage to fear is when someone is always scared of what’s happening next or what has already happened. It can be seen as constant anxiety, which perfectly matches GAD’s description. So, God tells us through this passage, that if you accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, He will put in you, His Spirit of adoption.

It means that as soon as you believe in Him, He considers you His own child. When you were young, your parents would tell you not to be worried. They would always take care of everything to the best of their ability. I mean, I’ve never seen a child worry about paying the bills or providing food on the table in a functional family.

In the same way, Holy Spirit tells you in this scripture that you have not received a spirit of bondage to fear, but the Spirit of adoption from God, meaning that He see you through the lens of love, as His dear, beloved child, just rely on Him.

God’s Primary Calling to You

Therefore, God calls you to believe in Him and to place your trust in Jesus Christ because He loves you; He wants to do something great in your life, He wants you to be set free from all anxiety as He calls the whole world to Him!

John 3:16 World English Bible (WEB)
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

Moreover, Jesus leaves you with His peace which is not dependant on your situation but on your relationship with Jesus.

John 14:27 World English Bible (WEB)
27 Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, I give to you. Don’t let your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful.

Before Jesus’ crucifixion, He made a promise that He would give us peace. So, accept His promise, He put His Spirit in you and there is nothing that should worry you if the Almighty God is on your side.

You may be saying, “But, Andre, Generalized Anxiety Disorder is a mental illness, it is beyond my control!”

Yet, my response remains the same because it’s supported by scripture, Jesus made that promise of peace for everyone; it is not supposed to be under your control, you just need to surrender it to Jesus. He did not say that His promise of peace is reserved only for healthy Christians, His promise is for everyone and anyone so as long as you decide to 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.

His peace transcends human comprehension; if you suffer from GAD, just ask God for that peace which He promised, GAD should have no place in your life.

You do not need to be anxious about the future, your situation or anything for that matter, but you should remind yourself that Jesus promised you peace. There may be challenges here and there but Jesus will turn your challenges into testimonies.

Therefore, accept His love and enjoy His perfect, wonderful peace.

Posted on

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.

Posted on

December 9, 2019

Psalm 66:4 World English Bible (WEB)
4 All the earth will worship you,
    and will sing to you;
    they will sing to your name.” Selah.

This psalm talks about how one day, everyone will worship God. The psalm says that “All” of the “Earth” will worship the one who created them. It doesn’t say some, but it says all the Earth will worship Him.

But, how? Well, when the Bible mentions this, the Hebrew word for worship in this scripture is ” shachah,” and this verb basically means to bow down. So, all the Earth will bow down and worship God.

And now, we know even according to the New Testament, this will come to pass because the Holy Spirit writes through Paul that there will come a time when every knee will bow, and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!

Philippians 2:10-11 King James Version (KJV)
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

So, even confessing that Jesus is your Lord, is an act of worship. Therefore, worship and praise Him, honour His name, for He truly deserves your adoration!

Posted on

December 8, 2019

John 13:7-8 World English Bible (WEB)
7 Jesus answered him, “You don’t know what I am doing now, but you will understand later.”
8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet!”
Jesus answered him, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with me.”

The night before His crucifixion, Jesus decided to wash His disciples’ feet. At first, Peter opposed this because such a thing was for servants, not for the King of Kings! But, Jesus said that it is necessary for Him to wash Peter’s feet, otherwise, Peter would have no part with Jesus.

This is because Jesus wanted to set an example that He is not only the King of Kings. He is also the Servant King. He never wanted to use His power to oppress people, but to serve people because He loves them.

In the same way, if we want to be true followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, we should ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to serve others all for His glory because that’s what He did for us! We should ask God for true humility; not devaluing yourself, but understanding the God given value of other people.

Jesus was spat on and laughed at for your sake during the crucifixion process, yet, He still pleaded for their forgiveness. Such a loving God humbled Himself for us, so understand how much He loves people, and imitate your Heavenly Father, the Servant King!

Posted on

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!