Meditation: February 19

“Not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.” Hebrew 7:16

The High Priest, Melchizedek was a High Priest by the sheer force of resurrection life rather than mere genealogy. This was a different class of priesthood signifying an important future event. God’s promise to us is an endless life. Jesus, who is the Begotten of the Father, was with the Father from the beginning. Those of us who are in Christ have entered into eternal life. He is our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. Nothing of the law could produce it. All of its fleshly commandments could only point out to us our deficiencies. So many are yet trying to compensate for what is lacking, thus giving them a false hope of resolving issues that are too deep for them to even fathom. In Jesus Christ, we have eternal life. To know Him is to take full possession of His promises. We die to our former state and the futile efforts of reforms to preserve our souls. We then rest in Him as being our sufficiency. It is His grace alone that saves us and delivers us from bondage to liberty and life eternal.

Meditation: October 18

“Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and instruction and understanding.” Proverbs 23:23

The price paid for the truth may be the loss of friends and love ones. It may be the loss of the potential of profit requiring the compromise of our integrity. Our integrity is worth more than the things acquired through dishonest gain. Even though they may bring immediate success, but the high cost paid in the end far out measures its temporal benefits. We must be willing to pay the price for the truth. The price of self-denial and sacrifice for the sake of having the character to stand for what is right. This is accompanied with wisdom which comes from above. God can speak His truth to our hearts and there is nothing within us rejecting it. The lust for things not sanctioned by God choke the Word and it becomes unfruitful. It is the fool that despises instructions. The ownership of truth will deliver us from the bondage of greed and self-centeredness. We can then understand what the will of the Lord is and comply with joy because we are enabled to see the benefits of our faithfulness to Him.

Meditation: September 14

“For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land.” Ezekiel 36:24

People who are in exile are a people removed from their place. We see Israel being scattered among the nations and some taking on the character of the nations where they had been forced to occupy. Sin does not ask for our permission, but imposes its character upon those who occupy its territory. A culture of sin produces a people who readily adapt to the environment. It is then difficult for them to remember what God’s original intentions were for their lives. They merely see what others are doing and seemingly enjoying and adjust to their standard of living. But God stands up and makes His Presence known among them. He lets them know that even though they are in a strange place, Israel still carries His name. When His name is hallowed among the nations and a difference is made known by them to the other inhabitants, then deliverance will come. God will bring them into their own land. He is says to us, are we to represent Jesus where we are. Should He only be honored in Church? What about the workplace? The places where His name is profaned require a people who would stand up for Him there. We deny Him when we are in strategic places and are ashamed of the gospel and acquiesce to the lifestyle of others. We must stand up and stand for righteousness regardless of what price we may have to pay. God will then deliver us into our own place of promise if we are willing to take a stand for Him right here.

Meditation: August 20

“And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope.”Romans 5:3-4 (KJV)

A price tag cannot be placed upon the lessons learned in and through troubled times.  We often know how we should feel and respond, but to be honest, the character of that response may not been developed within us yet. Many call this faith while it is actually dishonesty. David, the Psalmist gave expression to his heart, having various trials, set-backs and disappointments, but asked God to work the right response within him. Our mere words alone will not deliver us, but what we are becoming as result of God s; working on us and in us is the aim. “Tribulation worketh patience and patience worketh experience or character. Eugene Peterson in the Message paraphrase puts it this way; “and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary — we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!

It is through our experiences with the Lord that we develop a hope that will not fade when the scorching sun of adversity appear or the dark clouds of disappointments and setbacks obscure our view. There is a hope that continues to rise within us knowing that God is not through with us.  Yet in wonder we anticipate in alert expectancy the next move of God as to what He would do next! There is always a tomorrow for the believer who has put his trust in God. The tribulations are leading to something that awaits us beyond the horizon. When the sun rises again, He will enable us to see what we were unable to see in the dark. It can only be seen in the light of His love.

Meditation: August 19

“And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, Yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner anymore, But your eyes shall see your teachers.  Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” Isa 30:20-21

The departure from the Way is the root cause of the adversity that comes from the Lord. There are challenges that come as result of obedience and challenges that are rooted in rebellion. The difference between the two is the adherence on the part of the challenged to hear the instructions that come from the Lord. He is available to deliver us from all of our trouble, but do we listen to His voice before us to lead or have we left what He has to say to us behind? Their teachers were sidelined and replaced with guides who misguided them. They listened to falsehoods as blind guides led them into pits. But God did not abandon them even though they had abandoned Him. From behind His voice could still be heard. From the rear, the places inhabited and celebrated was the voice of God speaking to them in order for them to return to the old landmarks and to walk in the tried and proven Way. What foundation was the Lord building within you and what is being built upon it now? The wood, hay, and stubble of worldliness are of a different quality from the gold, silver, and precious stones of righteousness, holiness, and sanctification. Though your heart may desire many things, God will often calls us to go back rather than forward in order to revisit what we have left and be restored to the spiritual state we were once in. Those who were there are still there, but the question is, where are you? Can you in this state of mind and heart receive or has the hardness set in so that the journey is determined by feelings rather than faith? God says, “This is the Way, walk in it.”

Meditation: July 24

“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift” 2 Corinthians 9:15

The gift of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the description of His Personhood in words from heaven through vessels of clay yet ordained to carry the message. God uses ordinary people but imparts to them extraordinary power. They are no longer mere men but the Word that they carry changes them into becoming vessels of honor. The message preserves the messenger so that as he partakes of what he has to deliver, his heart is set ablaze with the unction that comes from the Holy Spirit. The gift of Jesus Christ is indescribable, but what is equally indescribable is how God can choose from among the people those whom He wills to chose and use them in such remarkable ways! The sufficiency is not in them, but He continues to remind them that without Him they can do nothing. Thanks be to God for the methodology He has chosen to get His Word to us. And most of all, thanks be to God for a changeless but a life-changing message.

Meditation: July 6

“And to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:10

The posture of the follower of Jesus Christ is anticipation for what lies ahead. The word of God received has lifted his sights above the persecution of trials and the tests that come against him. It has the ability to stabilize us even when the circumstances remain the same. It is word upon word that increases faith and raises the level of expectation for the return of our Lord. Nothing could be more valuable than this. Jesus, whom He raised from the dead provide for us a model of what awaits our future. He was delivered from death through death. The wrath of man measured against us in this world is nothing in comparison to the wrath of God. We must endure the intermediate in order to experience the ultimate. He has delivered us from the wrath to come against all unrighteousness and now we are a part of His kingdom where righteousness reigns. Our deliverance is as result of hearing and obeying the message delivered to us from heaven. It was delivered to us to deliver us from the wrath that is sure to come. As we wait for the return of the Son of God who is in heaven, we must patiently wait for Him to turn the tide in His favor. All things are working together towards this end.

Meditation: February 19

“Not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.” Hebrew 7:16

The High Priest, Melchizedek was a High Priest by the sheer force of resurrection life rather than mere genealogy. This was a different class of priesthood signifying an important future event. God’s promise to us is an endless life. Jesus, who is the Begotten of the Father, was with the Father from the beginning. Those of us who are in Christ have entered into eternal life. He is our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. Nothing of the law could produce it. All of its fleshly commandments could only point out to us our deficiencies. So many are yet trying to compensate for what is lacking, thus giving them a false hope of resolving issues that are too deep for them to even fathom. In Jesus Christ, we have eternal life. To know Him is to take full possession of His promises. We die to our former state and the futile efforts of reforms to preserve our souls. We then rest in Him as being our sufficiency. It is His grace alone that saves us and delivers us from bondage to liberty and life eternal.

Meditation: September 22

“Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.” Jeremiah 24:7

God does not respond merely to needs. He looks for passion. Even when we think we have the passion to press in, we are often disappointed because the passion has not reached its peak. God may measure what we thought to be an earnest prayer as being only a passing fancy. Good thoughts and warm feelings about God are not enough. There has to be the passion exuding from the heart whereas knowing God is desired more than any other thing. Whatever else may be there is in competition with the knowledge of God. It rises up as an idol to compete with what He wills to show us of Himself. These things must be rooted out of our lives and only God can do that. Israel was allowed to be placed in the land and under the government of the Chaldeans. It was their place of learning. But God was not through with them even though they were being chastened there. It was the place of purging, a place where they had to reassess their priorities in order to enter into true worship. Are there idols among us today that are yet to be removed? Maybe that is why deliverance is delayed. God wants us to return to Him with our whole hearts. God measures half-heartedness as using Him as an addendum to our lives and practice. Something else is keeping us preoccupied. He then allows whatever that something else is to be our deliverer. It is incapable of doing what He alone is able to do. He will be our God and we will be His people when we have given all to Him. It’s not too late to do it now!

Meditation: July 6

“And to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:10

The posture of the follower of Jesus Christ is anticipation for what lies ahead. The word of God received has lifted his sights above the persecution of trials and the tests that come against him. It has the ability to stabilize us even when the circumstances remain the same. It is word upon word that increases faith and raises the level of expectation for the return of our Lord. Nothing could be more valuable than this. Jesus, whom He raised from the dead provide for us a model of what awaits our future. He was delivered from death through death. The wrath of man measured against us in this world is nothing in comparison to the wrath of God. We must endure the intermediate in order to experience the ultimate. He has delivered us from the wrath to come against all unrighteousness and now we are a part of His kingdom where righteousness reigns. Our deliverance is as result of hearing and obeying the message delivered to us from heaven. It was delivered to us to deliver us from the wrath that is sure to come. As we wait for the return of the Son of God who is in heaven, we must patiently wait for Him to turn the tide in His favor. All things are working together towards this end.