God & Bible

GOD TEACHES US HOW TO PRAY

2011-08-09T07:30:00.000-07:00

I believe and I have experienced during my still short journey with God that He teaches us life’s most valuable lessons through experience. I gave my life to Jesus Christ on 2^nd February 2004 when I was 17 years old, so I am just 7 and a half year old in Christ. During this short journey He has taught me many wonderful lessons whenever I have learnt just like a child less than 10 year old. One of the most important lessons that God has taught me is ‘How to pray?’

One of the things that I have always struggled with is prayer even though I am aware of the need, importance and power of prayer. It has been easy to pray when everything is fine. But when there is a low tide, I have found that words left me speechless, emotions dried up my eyes and pain choked my heart. It’s not that I didn’t want to pray rather I couldn’t pray. I kept feeling alien to God. I didn’t want to complain, I didn’t have the courage to thank God for the mess, I was scared that I might anger God further, I was too afraid that I might hurt God by using hurtful words. I was like this with people too. If I was sad or hurt or angry with anyone, I would just stop talking. And it was not because I hated them rather it was because I just loved them too much that I was scared to hurt them with my words if I talked. Hardly did I know that I was hurting them more by my silence. My attitude was the same with God. And here it was worse because I love Him more than anything and anyone.

But my heart was uneasy. Every night I would lie in my bed and tears would roll down my cheeks and wet my pillow case. I couldn’t sleep for hours. When I woke up my eyes would be puffy and my heart still in pain. It felt as if I was living and yet, not alive. It was a stressful resistance. God’s love for me versus my love for God. Every night I could hear the Holy Spirit whispering to me, “Talk to God, He is waiting to listen to you”. And I would say quietly, “I can’t. I don’t know how to.”

Every moment I was awake, the Holy Spirit kept whispering to me, “God loves you. You haven’t talked to Him for ‘n’ days. He is sad and He is waiting.” I just ignored the still small Voice. Many a times, I would try to get over it by talking to friends and family or watching recorded soaps like FRIENDS. But that still small Voice never stopped.

Finally, one night it was difficult to sleep as usual. The still small Voice was louder than ever making a ruckus inside me. My heart was pounding madly against my chest. It was difficult to breathe. It was dark except for the streetlight. Tears started trickling down the corner of my eyes and my lips started quivering. I started weeping badly. I was completely broken. I said out aloud, “I know that You love me more than I love You and Your plans for me are much better than the plans I have for me. All I want is to love You, obey You and follow Your will. Please help me.” I don’t know how long I cried before I drifted off to sleep. All I know is that when I woke up the next morning, it was a more beautiful day and my heart felt light and happy. I knelt down beside my bed and poured out my heart telling God everything that had disturbed me during the past few days, I told God about all my doubts and fears. I could feel Him smiling. I know He was happy to listen to me talking and the still small Voice encouraged me not to keep anything from God.

God showed me through the Scriptures that godly men talked to Him. Moses who is considered the meekest man that ever lived openly told God about his doubts and fears and God allayed every storm that rose in Moses’ heart. God taught me that day that He is ever ready to listen to me and allay the storms of doubts, fears, pains and sufferings. The only thing He is not ready for is my silence and distance from Him.

God bless You.

SALVATION IS A FREE GIFT - II

2011-08-07T20:31:00.000-07:00

The word of God says through James 2:26, “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” In the previous part we saw that salvation is a gift and this gift was given away when Jesus died on the cross and rose again from the dead conquering death and sin and Satan and opening the door of Heaven for all mankind. We also saw how to receive the gift already given by believing in Jesus Christ. “Believing” is a big concept and today we are going to see what believing means.

Let me give you an example. Suppose you need a pen. It is extremely important for you as you have your exams. You don’t have the money to buy one and you don’t know anyone who could get one for you. In short, it is humanly impossible for you to have a pen to write with. I sensed this need and urgency and gifted you a good and expensive pen. But what puzzles me is that you still failed in the exams! I try to find the reason and get to know that you did not write the exam. When I ask you why you did not write the exam, you tell me that you did not have a pen. Well, I myself had given the pen to you so you can’t say that you did not have a pen. I want to know the actual reason. There are two reasons: One, you did not think that the pen was good enough to write the exam. And second, you wanted to write the exam with the pen that you bought yourself.

It is the same with the gift of salvation. Jesus Christ died for us on the Cross carrying the burden of our sins when there was no other way of saving us. Romans 5:6 says, “At just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly”. The Bible says powerless and ungodly meaning it was beyond our capacity to save ourselves and Christ did not die for the godly but for sinners. We did not have to be good and well behaved, obeying the Law word by word for Christ to die for us but He died purely out of His incomparable and never fading love for us. God made a way when there was no way and that way is none other than Jesus Christ as He says in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” Read carefully, the Word of God says, “No one can come to the Father except through me.” This clearly shows that there is no other way except Jesus and if we do not choose this way, there is no way. Romans 3:24 says that we are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Mark here, Jesus Christ and no one else redeemed us from the clutches of sin, Satan and death.

I have seen many people addicted to vices like smoking, alcohol, etc. All these are very harmful. They damage lungs, kidney, liver and what not and may even cause cancer. It is not that people are ignorant of the harmful effects of these addictions. It is mentioned clearly in the packs and there are a number of infomercials that convey the message. Yet people are addicted to these and stick to these. They know the facts, then why do they still do it? There can be two reasons just like the pen example: One, they don’t believe it. And second they are stubborn to give up their bad habits. But any of these two reasons can’t stop them from suffering the consequences.

It is the same with believing in Jesus Christ. Earlier, we saw that we receive the gift of salvation already given out once and for all by believing in Jesus Christ. When you have heard the Word of God and you are aware of the truth, you have three options: You believe it; you don’t believe it or you be stubborn. Being stubborn and sticking to your own sinful ways will lead you to hell as sure as not believing it.

Most of the times, stubbornness is the reason why people can’t get the salvation experience. The Israelites were stubborn and kept going back to evil practices. That is why Hebrews 3:7 says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

Let us look to the Word of God. We will meditate on 1 John 2:3-6 and Romans 6:8-14. We say we know Jesus Christ but do we really know Jesus and believe in him. The answer is clear when we read 1 John 2:3-6, “We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”

John says that knowing Jesus is not a onetime process. It is not like a two hour sitting when you talk to the other person to know him. John doesn’t use these words but his intent is the same. Knowing Jesus is a process, a lengthy one, that’s why John says, “We know that we have come to know him...” John doesn’t say, “We know that we know him”, he says, “...we have come to know him...” clearly showing that it is a long driven process. We know Jesus Christ little by little each day as we meditate on the Word of God, as we talk and interact with God’s people and as we believe in Him and are led each day by the Holy Spirit who teaches us (1 John 2:27).

First of all, a person who accepts Jesus Christ is spiritually like a new born child craving spiritual milk to grow up in his salvation (1 Peter 2:2). It is not that the child gets nourished by itself but it is by the Holy Spirit that sanctifies us each day and prepares us for the day of Christ. This is what Paul tells Philippians in Philippians 1:6, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” You are not alone in this project of Salvation. God is with you as Paul says in Philippians 2:12-13, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed – not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence – continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Furthermore, Hebrews 11:40 says, “God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”

Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.” And 1 John 5:3-4 says, “This is love for God: to obey his commands and his commands are not burdensome for everyone born of God overcomes the world.”

Through all these verses I wanted to show you one thing. Everything comes down to one thing from our part and that one thing is “Obedience”. God can work in the lives of those who love him. He has great plans for people who love him. And people who love him obey him. Without obedience there is no love and no partnership. And God cannot work in you in you do not agree with him. How difficult it is when we have to work in groups with people who do not agree with each other! It is much more difficult for God to work in us if we keep rejecting him because he loves us so much.

The day we stop obeying God’s commands, it’s like we stop loving him and once we stop loving him; we stop working with him. And God can’t work alone because only together with us would they be made perfect. Loving God is like loving our Father. If you love your father, you won’t try to do things that might hurt him. Even if you do, you would try to hide it so that your father doesn’t know about it. With God it is impossible to hide things. He knows our every secret and he even knows our every thought. Therefore, the only way not to hurt our Heavenly Father is to keep away from sin and live in obedience to his commands. Many a times, it will be difficult but remember that God remains faithful and He eagerly waits for us to come back as it is written in 2 Timothy 2:11-13, “Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will disown us; if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.”

The only thing He asks of us is “Obedience”. Obedience is a very important quality. Isaiah 1:18-19 says, “...Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land.” Being disobedient means rebelling against God.

Now let us look to Romans 6:8-14

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

As we live in obedience to Christ Jesus, the Holy Spirit keeps working in us and makes us like Jesus, holy and perfect. When we walked in sin, sin had mastery over us. Being under sin is being under law and impossible to be saved. But once we accept Christ and are obedient to him, we are no longer under sin but under grace and we are no longer slaves but free. Once we are under grace, we are no longer slaves to sin and we can boldly say “NO” to sin as Paul says in the letter to Titus 2:11-12, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.” Since, we can say ‘no’ to all the sinful things, it clearly shows that we are no longer under the slavery of sin. You are dead to sin and alive to god in Christ Jesus and sin no longer reigns in your mortal body.

By accepting Christ Jesus, you gain freedom from the penalty of sin and by being obedient to Christ Jesus; you gain freedom from the power of sin. This is learning to exercise your freedom in Christ Jesus by overcoming evil with good (Romans 12:21).

May our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ give us understanding and insight into His Holy Word. Amen.

SALVATION IS A FREE GIFT - I

2011-08-06T21:08:00.000-07:00

A question that bombed me out some years ago keeps looming large in my head whenever I take any evangelistic session. The big question is: What should one do to go to hell? And I am going to ask the same question here again, “What should one do to go to hell?”

Well, if the question has not bombed you yet, the answer surely will. The simple yet very true answer is “NOTHING”.

Doing nothing gives you hell as sure as doing wrong things because the Bible says in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” so much so that “There is no one righteous, not even one;... there is no one who does good, not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12)

Our God is a Holy God and He looks into our innermost parts and knows our every sin. The Word of God says through 1 Samuel 16:7, “...The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” We can deceive man but it is impossible to deceive the all-knowing Father as Bible says in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.”

He is so pure that our acts which we consider good are like filthy rags as the Bible says in Isaiah 64:6, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags...” Filthy rags that try to hide our wrongs and short-comings but they can’t.

Many a times we slander each other and then give offerings. We do all these good deeds so that we can please God and console ourselves that we are good people but let’s see what God says about such offerings in Isaiah 1:13, “Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me.” We disobey God and try to follow the rules and regulations that the church and society imposes to have the false security that we are saved.

But God in His awesomeness, greatness and goodness can see through all these covers of filthy rags and He knows all our secrets. Yet, inspite of our shortcomings, He wants to take us to Heaven with Him so that we can be with Him forever.

God saw through time that no amount of human effort could unite man with God because God’s standards of purity and goodness are unattainable especially because we are slaves to sin and are physically, mentally and spiritually weak to overcome evil. God saw that the law could not stop people from sinning, the multitudes of miracles that God showed His people could not melt their hearts and make them faithful, prophets and warnings could not make the people see the true Almighty God and neither did hardships prove fruitful.

Take a while and think of the good and the bad things you have done. Do you think that at this pace, we are ever going to be in Heaven? We may look at others and say that we are better than them. When Adam and Eve sinned, they were the only people in the entire Universe. Yet sin separated them from God. As we saw earlier that our God is a Holy God, He indeed is very Holy and sin cannot be around Him. Being better than others is not good enough. If you are a sinner, you will be remain separated from God till you remain a sinner.

So, how do you feel now? Rejected? Sad? Sorry?

I did not invite you here to give you the bad news. I called you here and for that matter I believe God Himself called you here to share with you the good news. And the good news is that SALVATION IS A FREE GIFT. See Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Let us open our Bible and meditate on Ephesians 2:1-10.

The Word of God says that you were dead in your transgressions and sins, you followed the ways of this world, you were disobedient, and you were gratifying the cravings of your sinful nature. It is time to think. Are we still there living godless lives? Where are our priorities? If you think that you have never been there in this condition of spiritual death, see what the Word of God says, “All of us also lived among them at one time...” meaning there is no one who has always lived a clean life and therefore as the Word of God says, “we were by nature objects of wrath”. We did not have to do anything to become sinners because we were “by nature” sinners and objects of wrath. We did not have a choice. But out of His rich mercy and grace God made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. And it is not by our effort but by His grace.

Many a times, when we were kids we used to get gifts for coming first in the class or for winning some competition or things like that. In this case, we did not deserve anything because we were still sinners; we were still dead in our transgressions. God knows that man cannot attain salvation by his own effort and therefore God gave us Salvation as a gift as Bible says in Ephesians 2:8, “... it is the gift of God”. We should know now that a gift is always free and it is never asked for. God gave this gift to us not because we were well-behaved but while we were still dead as Romans 5:8 says, “While we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Thus, God has given us this gift of Salvation, of freedom from sins, of eternal life, free and this gift has been extended to all.

Many a times, we think that good deeds may take us to Heaven but we are as wrong about it as we can be for the Bible says in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” Good deeds are not something we do to get brownie points or bonus points. We do good deeds because it is the only right thing to do. God detests when we brag about our good deeds because we were created to do good deeds as it says in Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” In fact, if we do not do good deeds, we sin as it says in James 4:17, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” This is why; Paul says that we have been saved not by works so that no one can boast because he is well aware of human nature that people boast about every single good deed that they do as if it were an added feather on their caps, forgetting or ignorant that good deeds are basic to life.

So, we saw that Salvation has been given as a gift. Now the question that arises is: Have you received it? Every act of giving requires two people – the giver and the receiver. Here, the giver that is God, has already given the gift once and for all as it says in Hebrews 10:14, “because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” But, has the receiver, that is you, received it?

How do we receive the gift already given? Let us look to John 3:1-16.

This part of the gospel of John tells us of a famous incident where Nicodemus comes to Jesus and Jesus tells him how one can enter the kingdom of God. Even today, this gospel passage tells us the same: how to enter the kingdom of God; how to have eternal life; how to accept the gift of Salvation.

And the answer is there in John 3:15-16, “...that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians we saw that all good things are with Jesus Christ. Accepting Jesus Christ is the only way to receive the good things with him. Salvation is with Jesus Christ, it is by His blood, it is in Jesus Christ. You receive it when you open the door of your heart and let Jesus Christ come in and be the master of you; when you let your body be God’s temple which you were created to be (1 Corinthians 6:19).
Let us Pray:
Heavenly Father, I believe in Jesus Christ and the living sacrifice He became for my sins. I offer my life to You. Let me be Yours and Yours alone. Make me new. Forgive my sins and cleanse me. Keep me under Your holiness and use me for Your glory. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

HE IS SHAPING ME AS IT SEEMS BEST TO HIM - II

2011-05-11T23:25:00.000-07:00

The Israelites kept disobeying God and kept prostituting themselves to idols of foreign gods. They kept sinning and walking in evil ways. So do we. We keep going in our own sinful ways and prostitute ourselves to the evil desires of our hearts: hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambitions and the like (Galatians 5:19-21).

But God never changes. Just the way He sent Jeremiah to carry His message of loving kindness and forgiveness, He speaks to us even today and everyday through the same scripture as given above. The message is not about we being at His mercy, when indeed we are but it is about His love and kindness that surpasses everything.

The potter was making a pot but it was marred in his hands. What did the potter do next? A bit of pottery might help here. While a pot is being formed at the wheel, the joints and axles must be tightened and they must function properly otherwise the wheel wobbles and the pot is deformed. As far as the clay is concerned, it should be kneaded properly before putting it on the wheel. The potter never intentionally damages the pot because he will either have to throw away the clay or go through the tedious process of kneading it again before making a new pot out of it. In the illustration from the Bible, the potter doesn’t throw the clay away but goes through the process of making it again.

Even today, His unfailing love is still the same. We judge our success and our prosperity according to world standards. In this mad race, we forget that God’s standards are not world standards. If it were the same, Christ wouldn’t have had to die and there would be nothing called Christianity. Christianity is not a religion but a lifestyle and a relationship. It is the relationship between man and his heavenly father and that’s why we cry, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15)

Through this scripture portion from the book of Jeremiah, God calls us to give up our old sinful ways and trust Him. God loves us so much that good is not good enough. The Word of God says, “But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.” Jeremiah 18:4. Once we get back to Him, He doesn’t just remodel us to be of some use but He makes us as it seems best to Him. Even when God created the Universe and everything contained in it, the Word of God says, “And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:10,12,18,21,25). After God created man and woman, God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1:31) But according to the promise through Jeremiah 18:4, He is going to make you the best if you return to Him. O’ what a great news! Yes, God loves you and has wonderful plans for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future, if only you let Him work in you. God bless you!!!

HE IS SHAPING ME AS IT SEEMS BEST TO HIM - I

2011-05-11T02:47:00.000-07:00

The word of God came to me when I was very depressed and going through a very difficult phase of my life. The message was the same as it came to Jeremiah in the book of Jeremiah, chapter 18 and verses 1 through 10. I would like to first read the verse out to you so that you gain more insight as you go through this piece of writing.

Jeremiah 18: 1-10: This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

Then the word of the LORD came to me: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned, repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

As I ponder into the great and unimaginable goodness of GOD, I always delight and feel blessed to have made that one most important decision in my life, to accept Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour.

Earlier the Word of God from Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” didn’t hold so much meaning and comfort as it does now when I understand much better the illustration and message from Jeremiah 18:1-10.

God works miraculously in the lives of people and especially in the lives of those who trust Him. Isn’t it a miracle that we are alive when thousands around us are dying each day due to wars, accidents, diseases, etc? When I look at the things around me I can’t help but marvel at the wonderful ways in which God works. God’s love is so wonderful and still so wonderful because He loves us even though many a times we fail to love and obey Him. The Word of God says in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us”.

Growing towards fruitfulness

2010-11-21T06:41:00.000-08:00

I prepared this insightful and very important topic for a retreat on how to grow towards fruitfulness in spiritual life. I cannot say that I am perfect but all I can say is that I have given my life to Christ so that He can help me and His Holy Spirit can work on me to make me perfect and fruitful. I hope and I sincerely believe that this discussion will help you grow.
Coming from life-sciences background is kind of a good thing because it helps me look at different aspects in the Bible with a new insight and a different angle and I have found it extremely helpful in understanding the mysteries of His Kingdom and at the same time in helping others understand the same. As we begin this discussion, let me first start with a simple question.
What are the clear distinct life-stages of living things and non-living things?
Anyone can just observe the things around them and say that for a living being the life-stages would be: Birth, Maturity and Death and as far as non-living beings are concerned they remain static. The process that leads from birth to maturity is what we call ‘growth’ and from maturity to death we observe the phenomenon called ‘degeneration’.
Let us now turn to Spiritual life. Do you think that spiritual life is very similar or is it very different? Well, my answer is ‘both’. In spiritual life also, like biological life, we have these three stages but unlike biological life, spiritual life appears to have a different sequence of the three life-stages. If we read Ephesians 2:1, the Bible says, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins” and further the Bible says in Ephesians 2:4-5, “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive...” In a similar fashion, Jesus says in John 3:3-7, “...I tell you the truth; no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again... Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again’”. Going still further, we see in 1 Peter 2:2, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation” and furthermore, Ephesians 4:14-15, “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”
So, through all this we see that initially we are in the stage of spiritual death. By accepting Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour and by accepting and acknowledging the forgiveness and sacrifice of Jesus Christ, our deadened spirit regenerates and we become born again. This born again spiritual being is like a newborn baby and it grows to maturity. However, being born again is being born to eternal life, so there is no further spiritual death. Therefore, the spiritual life-stages are: Dead stage, Born again and Maturity. As we saw, being born again we have to grow. Growth is necessary and the only way forward.
This brings me to an illustration. Take a handful of gram seeds and soak it in water. What do you observe? Initially, you will observe two kinds of seeds: one that would have sprouted and the other that wouldn’t have sprouted. Just leave the seeds that way for a day more. Now what do you observe? You will notice three kinds of seeds now: first, one that had sprouted and that is growing; second, one that had sprouted but is not growing and the third is the one that had not sprouted in the first place. In the case of the seeds, the first category will grow, mature and bear more fruit, whereas, the second and the third category will eventually rot. Thank God that He loves us so much and we are much more than seeds. Amongst human beings too, we can find three categories of people as the seeds: one, those who have accepted Christ and are growing; two, those who have accepted Christ but are not growing and three, those who have not yet accepted Christ. Yet, God does not leave the second and third category of people to rot but He is still pursuing you with His unending love and incomparable mercy to forgive you and give you eternal life. Dear friend, if you have not yet received Christ in your life, take a decision today. The Word of God says in Hebrews 3:7-8, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts...” Christianity is not a religion as many may believe; it is a lifestyle and a relation with a living God who hears when we call, who has given us the right to call him ‘Abba father’ and who loves us like a father. Isn’t it amazing!

I love you and I need you in my life

2010-03-18T23:26:00.000-07:00

This is another amazing love story and of course with a moral.

Once there was a married couple who found themselves quarrelling so much and being so unable to adjust with one another that they found themselves in the verge of a divorce. However, the judge who was to hear their case was a very kind and good hearted fellow and he counselled them a lot before the day of the final hearing.

The night before the divorce, the husband and the wife could not sleep at all. They had a number of things going on in their minds. The husband ruminated over the incidents during the counselling and looked back to the day they were in love and newly married. The wife pondered how to get the divorce finalized because the judge looked bent on persuading them to forget their differences and stay together.

The next day that is the D’day, they reached the Judge’s office. He said, “Before I give my decision, I want you to do one last thing.” He handed both of them some sheets of paper and continued, “Both of you should know the grievances you have for each other. Maybe, you will realize that you should have given your relation a second chance.” They were given an hour to write down their complaints against the other. Both of them started writing. It was like a competition where each was writing as many flaws of the other as they could. They took additional sheets and extra time.

Finally, when they kept gave their sheets to the Judge, he did not even look at it. He handed the wife’s sheet to the husband and vice versa and asked them to read. After a couple of minutes, the wife got up and hugged her husband. There were tears in her eyes and they did not get divorced.

Do you what was on the sheets of paper? The wife had taken utmost care to mention each of her grievances in a chronological order with the dates. There were complaints like: He forgot our anniversary; he came late and did not take me to the movie; he doesn’t keep his shoes in the proper place; he messes up the whole place and I have to do all the cleaning.... But in the husband’s sheet, he had just repeated one sentence: I love you and I need you in my life.

In the Bible, God is referred to as the husband and the people are referred to as the Bride. This is what happens many times in our lives, with God and with people around us. When we are blessed we don’t acknowledge His blessings but when we go through bad times we start cursing God and go astray. We lose faith in Him and want to throw Him out of our lives. But despite all this, His answer is always the same, just like the husband’s in the story: I LOVE YOU AND I NEED YOU IN HEAVEN.

Relationships don’t strengthen when we keep counting the mistakes that the other person makes and keep blaming each other. Relationships strengthen when we forget all the bad things that would have happened between us and just know one thing that we love the other person and need them in our lives. This message goes to say: Let’s acknowledge the love and friendship of all those around us.

You are all precious to me.

God bless you.

Sarita, have you given me all the chocolates...

2010-03-18T01:39:00.000-07:00

Today I am going to tell you the story of Sarita and Saral. The two of them were the best of friends. However, there was something standing between their friendship. It was Saral’s craze for marbles. He had lots of marbles that he had collected meticulously. (I am sure some of you would also have collected marbles when you were kids.) Those marbles were like trophies to him. And his favourite was a bright, big, blue marble that he could touch and identify even in the dark.

Now one day, Sarita got lots of foreign-made chocolates from her grandma. When Saral saw the chocolates, his mouth started watering. He asked Sarita for some chocolates which she gave happily. After all they were friends and Sarita had forgiven him when he refused to even let her touch his blue marble. However, some chocolates were not enough for Saral. Mind you, they were no ordinary chocolates. They were expensive foreign-made chocolates that would melt in your tongue and they were rare. Now when Saral asked Sarita for the chocolates again, she was quiet. When Sarita did not respond for a long time, Saral said, “Ok Sarita, I know, how will you give me all the chocolates if I keep asking you like this. Let’s exchange. I will give you all my marbles and you give me all the chocolates. Is that fine?”

Sarita was amazed that for once, Saral had offered to exchange his marbles for anything. She recalled all the moments when Saral had just ignored her because he got so busy playing with his marbles. Though she too wanted some chocolates for herself, she thought that this was a golden opportunity to throw away the marbles that stood between them. So she agreed and they exchanged their possessions. Sarita gave all her chocolates to Saral. However, Saral kept back his favourite blue marble.

Taking the marbles with her, Sarita turned to go home. But hardly had she taken a couple of steps when Saral called, “Sarita, have you given me all your chocolates?”

Sarita: Yes, I gave you all and I have none.

As she turned to walk again, he called once more, “Sarita, are you sure, you have given me all the chocolates?” She again replied, “Yes, you saw right.”

Again as she started walking, he asked for the third time, “Sarita, are you very sure that you have not kept even one chocolate with you?”

Dear friends, this is not just the story of Sarita and Saral but mine and yours and our relationship with God. When I heard this story for the first time I pondered and found it so very true in my life. Someone asked me why I was writing about forgiveness and my answer is Forgiveness is the best medicine to all your sufferings. You don’t just have to forgive your enemies and those who have hurt you in some way or the other but you need to forgive yourself and forgive God too. It’s only then that you can start trusting Him. Did you find out why Saral could not believe that Sarita had given all her chocolates to him? The answer is very simple. Because he had not given all his marbles to her. We too can’t forgive others completely because we doubt whether they have forgiven us or not. However, it’s other way round. And at the same time, we don’t forgive ourselves and God and deep within we think that we are not forgiven. Do you know why we are so reluctant to start conversation when we quarrel with our closest of friends? Not because of our ego but because of our weaknesses and ignorance about the power of forgiveness.

I don’t know whether forgiveness does any good to the forgiven or not but I sure do know that it takes away a huge burden from the forgiver and releases him from the bondage of hatred. It teaches us to love more selflessly.

Let this Lenten season be a season of forgiveness. Forgive yourself and forgive God for all the bad times you may have had. At the same time, let go off the entire grudge you may have harboured in your heart since ages. Let forgiveness flow...

God bless you.

I thought I could never love...

2010-03-15T04:58:00.000-07:00

There was a loud thump at the door and I was too scared to even open my eyes. Then the noise started. I was so scared that I started crying. The awful noise outside made me sick. My dad was drunk again and I knew that he was beating up my mom. I wanted to protect my mom but I was too scared to even go out. I knew that my room was the only safe place and I was not ready to abandon it. But the noise became louder and louder and then I could hear my mom no more.
For a while, my I could hear nothing but the mad beating of my heart. And then I could not stop myself. I threw open my door and ran downstairs. I saw my mom lying in a heap and my dad beating her up with a thick stick. I ran and pushed my dad aside. For a while, I thought my mom was dead. But the next moment, a heavy blow landed on my head and I started feeling dizzy. I gathered all the strength I could and hit my dad with a metal flower vase. he fell down but I did not care. I dragged myself and my mom out of the house and kept walking till I dropped. And then I cried. I hated my dad with all the hatred I could muster and thought I could never love any man again. I hated all the liquor sellers and makers and all fathers and husbands. I spent the whole night with my mom (who eventually lost all her senses and was paralyzed for the rest of her life).

I didn't know what to do. The next morning, a missionary van saw me on the roadside and they took us with them. I started working in the mission house and met many kids like me who were victims of family violence. And then, the miracle happened. One girl told me that deep down I loved my father and I wanted him to be saved, so I should pray for him. I shouted at that girl and walked off. But she kept telling me about Christ's love and how it flows untamed; how life is in forgiving and looking forward to a heaven where you would love to have your family with you, and how prayer can work miracles.And she told me that she would pray for me.
I was moved that someone had time for me, that someone cared to pray for me and I started praying for my dad.
A couple of days before my mom died, I went to see my dad. I moment he saw me, he came running and hugged me. There were tears in his eyes and he kept asking for forgiveness. I found that he had quit drinking. I told him about mom's condition and he came with me to see mom. Now I am staying with my dad again. I have realized that prayer, love and forgiveness can make anything possible.
This is a testimony of a girl who had a bitter experience in her life. I read about this when I was in my 10th grade and I thought it was impossible to be so good, it was impossible to love when someone has hurt you so deeply. But with time, I realized that with man it is impossible but with God nothing is impossible. The love of Christ compels you to share His love and forgiveness. Forgiveness heals the forgiver more than the forgiven.
This lent, let Christ's love and forgiveness flow from you.
God bless you.

Lent is the time to "Overcome evil by good"

2010-03-15T04:25:00.000-07:00

As we stepped into the lenten season, it is time for each one of us to realise that it is not about feeling guilty for what we have done in the past but to be thankful for the salvation that we receive by believing that Jesus is the Son of God and is the saviour, redeemer and Lord of all and over all. This time, I am going to share with you all the Salvation Way.
Jesus Christ came into this world to save mankind from sin. The important thing to note here is that He came to save us, from the PENALTY, POWER and PRESENCE of SIN and not just only one of them.
When I started reading the Bible and especially the Old Testament, I used to be scared at the punishment inflicted on the people who sinned. The most common and popular story of Adam and Eve and how they were thrown out of the Garden of Eden for disobedience is a classic example of the magnitude of God's anger and hatred towards sin. It was then that I was told that SIN is the most devastating thing one could ever imagine. Sin is self replicating. All of us are sinners, even a child. Nobody teaches a child to lie, still it lies. How? It is because of this evil Sin that flows in us. But the good news is that God is good all the time and He has made provisions for all of us to lead a life free from sin.

When Jesus died on the cross, He bore the sins of the whole world and through that sacrifice, He promises freedom from the Penalty of sin to all those who Believe in Him.
The most important gift that God has blessed us with is the gift of CHOICE. When you believe in Jesus and accept Him as your personal Saviour, He makes you realize the power of this gift of Choice. Titus 2: 11-14, "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to all ungodliness and worldly passions...".
When I first read this verse, I thought it was impossible but with time I realized that I have the power and authority over myself. I am not a pawn but the chess player and it is my life is the sum total of all the decisions that I have made till today. Thus, the grace of God frees us from the Power of sin.
And finally, it gives hope that if you are living a spiritual life today, it is not a waste but the only sensible thing to do. It promises us that there is freedom from the Presence of Sin.
Lent is not just about fasting, avoiding meat or prayer. It is about learning to live Christ's sacrifice in and through our lives and Overcoming evil by good.
God bless you.

Matthew 4:12-25 Part III - Jesus heals the sick

2010-02-04T03:33:00.000-08:00

The third part is the part where most people who think of coming to Jesus look at, Jesus as a healer, healing the sick. It gives me great pain to see how we are so centred to the physical word. Any sickness, any pain has the potential to break us down. The Bible says that the root of all sickness and death is sin. Jesus came to cut that root – sin. However, most of us look upto Him only as a Healer of the body and not the soul. I have a testimony to present before you and praise God that I am here to share this with you.

I was born in a Christian family and I am really blessed with godly parents who not only took care of passing on the Bible stories but also Christianity as a lifestyle. They used to tell us that Christianity is not a heredity passed on from generation to generation. Rather it is your personal relationship with the creator. I was religious but that did not mean that I let God decide things for me or depend on Him until I gave my life to Christ on the 2^nd of February 2004 when I was completely broken down by the problems in family and questions in my own life. It was during an incident shortly after this that God promised me that He has taken away all my sicknesses. And praise God because I have never fallen sick since then.

When you let God take complete control of your life and you put your trust in Him, He will never fail you. Of course, He can heal the sick but why not be healed from all sicknesses forever when He is ready to give you beyond measures.

The choice is always yours. Our God is a loving Father; he will never force Himself on you. You ought to say YES to Him.

Let’s pray:

Loving Jesus, your love is so great that it is impossible to fathom its depth. I believe and I know that you are interested in me and my life. Till today I have struggled to get a good life. Today I come before you with a repentant heart. I am sorry for all the times I have sinned against you. I know that you are the source of all good things. I offer my life to you. Lord, take my life and fill it with happiness, peace, contentment, holiness and all good things. Lord, take away all my sins and weaknesses and fill me with your strength that I can live for you. In your precious and mighty name I pray, AMEN.

Matthew 4:12-25 Part II - Calling of the first disciples

2010-02-04T03:31:00.000-08:00

The second part has been the most heartening part for me. It is the calling of the first disciples. The heartening part is that God doesn’t look at qualifications and worldly success. He chooses people who seem to be rejected by this world. Right from Old Testament times (which we will try to understand later) God has called people of little merit and lifted them up. Here in this passage, Jesus calls fishermen as His first disciples. In the Jewish custom, “Rabbi” is the most high and respected position. And most Jewish boys aspire to become “rabbi” and the “followers of rabbi”.

A bit of Jewish history helps here. To become a rabbi, a person should pass the following three stages. The first stage is known as the “Bits of Saffire”. During this stage, a child is expected to memorise the Torah (first 5 books of the Bible written by Moses). Those who qualify the first stage proceed to the second stage “Bits of Talmud”. This stage requires more vigorous study, after qualifying which a person enters the third stage known as the “Bits of Midrash”. During this stage the rabbi calls the most fit students to follow him. Others who have been rejected at any stage go back to the common way of life choosing their family occupations or something else.

As we see in the passage, though Jesus had never followed any Rabbi, because of His enlightenment, He was addressed a Rabbi and He called fishermen to follow Him. Believe me, if today you feel broken and small, it’s Jesus who is ever ready to lift you up. God does not look at how qualified you are, He just looks at your willingness.

Matthew 4:12-25 Part I - Jesus Preaches

2010-02-04T03:28:00.001-08:00

These verses are divided into three prominent parts in the Bible. The first part is about Jesus beginning to preach. It might be a bit amusing because Jesus would have had to preach to the masses to believe in Him to be saved. It sounds kind of normal when you and I would preach “Believe in Jesus and be saved”. However, strange though it may appear, our God Almighty is a loving God. Remember, the 12^th verse says “When Jesus heard that John (the Baptist) had been put in prison...” I have read the gospel of Matthew a number of times but this is the first time I felt something different. John’s purpose was to prepare the way for the arrival of Jesus. John had to preach repentance and the nearness of the kingdom of God. And what was Jesus’ purpose? All I knew was that Jesus came on this earth as the second Adam to be sacrificed as a sin offering to take away the penalty of our sins forever. Whether preaching was the central theme of Christ’s purpose is still a question for me. If it was, why was He waiting for John to be captured before He could start preaching? Jesus appears to me as a great example of taking up charge and taking up responsibility to fulfil the main goal. Jesus was well aware that everyone should get a chance to repent, everyone should be saved. This is the love of God that He does not want a single soul to perish. When the message of repentance was yet to reach all the people, Jesus takes up charge. Through, this He is calling up you and me to share the gospel of salvation with all people, He is calling us to take charge and help in ushering in the Kingdom of God.

God is always there...

2009-11-13T21:55:00.000-08:00

It is placement season and I know that all of us are filled with anxiety. Our hearts are pumping hard and though we may not admit, we are a bit scared of what's going to come. I am writing this down to share with you the assurance that God has given to all who believe in Him.
This is a story but it's very relevant to our context.

Once there lived a prophet. God asked him one day to go to a far off place and carry God's message to the people there. The place where the prophet was supposed to go was very far and on the way there was a vast desert. The prophet knew that it would take weeks, perhaps months, to get there. At the same time, he was not very sure that there would be no dangers on the way. He was not excited and unwilling to go. God realized this and asked him,"Son, what is it that bothers you?"
The prophet replied hesitantly,"Father, the journey is scary and long. I would go only on one condition that you walk with me."
God agreed to it.
As they started the journey, the prophet was assured that God was with him when he saw two pairs of footprints on the sands. He knew that one belonged to him and the other to God. Though he could not see God, he felt God's presence and kept conversing with Him.
After they had crossed some distance, there arose a sand storm. The prophet panicked. He looked at the sands and could see only one pair of footprints. He grew anxious and scared but he kept moving. When the storm calmed down, he again saw two pairs of footprints.
He was angry and said,"Father, how can I trust you any more. When everything was fine, you were by my side but when the storm arose, you left me alone."
God said,"How can you say that I left you alone?"
The prophet replied angrily,"I can't see you but I kept looking for your footprints. During the storm, there was only one pair, where was yours."
God looked at him lovingly and said,"Son, the footprint you saw was mine. I was carrying you during the storm."
Do not be afraid, God is always there. Some of us may not believe in God but remember that even if you don't see him or his footprints, he is always ready to carry you through when there is a storm.
Let the storm in our hearts and minds calm down so that we can converse with God and feel his presence.
God bless you all...

Matthew 4:1-11: Overcoming Temptations

2009-11-04T02:23:00.000-08:00

Temptations are the biggest hurdles that come in our way of righteous and godly living. In these verses, we find that Jesus was also tempted by Satan and He emerged victorious. You may argue that He is God but remember that He took the form of man and had all the weakness of a man as well. He also felt hungry and felt the pain. We find Jesus in different moods as well in the New Testament. He is happy, sad, angry, agonised...

Jesus could never have been able to free us from the bondage of sin if He were not a man. We see Satan tempting Jesus shortly after Jesus finished his fast and was hungry. But Jesus overcame all the temptations by believing and living according to the Scriptures. As human beings, we are not strong enough to overcome all the temptations that come to us in different forms but the Holy Spirit which God gives us when we give the control of our lives to him is always there to help us in overcoming the temptations that lure us into sin.

God has given us the wisdom to discern good from evil and at the same time he has also given us the power to say NO to the evil. When we stop listening to our conscience and to the voice of God that tries to correct us whenever we go wrong, we lose the control of our own lives and the power to say No. thus, we get tempted and make mistakes that we could have avoided. Remember, the Scripture says that we are tempted by our own evil desires (James 1:14) and we can never be over-tempted (1 Corinthians 10:13). At the same time, 1 Corinthians 10:13 also says that God will provide a way out.

In spite of all this, we still fail because we do not turn to the One who can help us in overcoming temptations. It is time to reflect upon our lives and see how we have lived our days. Is it worthy of the holy life that God has called us for? And it’s time to let God work miracles in our lives and through our lives by letting him take control.

Let us pray:

Heavenly Father, we know that we are weak but You are the most mighty One. You are the creator and redeemer of our lives and know all that we are going through. You alone are capable of strengthening us by your strength. We offer our lives to you. Take our lives and help us in living a holy and righteous life that can be a pleasing sacrifice to you. In the most precious name of Jesus we pray, AMEN.

Matthew 3: The Baptism of Repentance

2009-11-01T20:26:00.000-08:00

In this chapter, we read about John, the Baptist, and the baptism of repentance. Now Jesus had come into the world and according to the prophesies and the plan of God, He was to suffer death to bring salvation to all mankind. Through The sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God has made it easy for man to be saved from the fire of hell. Earlier, there was the law that people had to follow and for going against the law, they had to offer sacrifices. The law demanded a very strict life bordering on servile fear. But our God is a loving God and He wants us to fear Him as His own children and not as slaves. God knows that the law was burdensome for man and thus He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to offer himself as a permanent sacrifice. After Jesus’ sacrifice, there is no more sacrifice required forever and ever. He has paid the penalty for all our sins. But we are still governed by the power of sin and we are still in the presence of sin. We can be freed from the power of sin only when we admit that we are sinners and Christ died for us and ask God to help us overcome our weaknesses and the power of sin.

Therefore, people needed to repent to be saved. Thus, John the Baptist came to prepare the way for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to work in our lives. The Baptism through water is just a sign. Actual baptism is the baptism of the heart when we actually do what we profess. When we confess our sins and try hard not to sin again. When we let God take complete control of our lives so that the forgiveness through Jesus’ sacrifice can be granted to us and we can be holy just as our Heavenly Father is holy.

And John clearly states here that the choice to accept or reject the salvation granted to us through Christ is solely ours. No man will be saved just because he is the descendant of Abraham and similarly no man will be saved just because his parents baptised him when he was born. There is only one way – Jesus Christ. So, it is still time, when the Kingdom of Heaven is near, to accept our sins and to repent for them, to accept Jesus as our Lord, God and Personal Saviour and give the control of our lives to Him.

Let us pray:

Heavenly Father, today as we stand before You, we thank you for loving us so much that you gave your only son Jesus Christ as an atonement for our sins. We believe that He died for us paying the penalty of our sins and by rising up again He has defeated sin and freed us from the power of sin. We are weak but we believe in your strength and we know that by your grace we can be holy like you. We admit our sins (you can tell your sins to God personally with a repentant heart) and we are really sorry for all the wrongs that we have ever done. Wash us and purify us and fill us with your Holy Spirit that we can walk in the path of righteousness. We trust in You. In the Precious and Mighty name of Jesus Christ, we pray, AMEN.

The secret to HAPPINESS #1

2009-10-29T23:56:00.000-07:00

When I started this blog, I said that we’ll try to unravel the secret to Happiness. Though Happiness seems to be a conditional emotion, the Bible shows us that true happiness, as mentioned in the introductory article of the blog that we can master our own happiness. The question is: How is it possible?

I would say, it is not possible as a human; as a human born in sin. According to Paul’s letter to the Galations: “...the fruit of the Holy Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control...”

Therefore, joy or happiness is an outcome of the work of Holy Spirit in our lives. The purpose of discussing the New Testament with references from the Old Testament is to help understand that we can be saved and cleansed of our sins only by believing in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross; by believing that Jesus is the Christ, Saviour, Lord and God of our lives. And mind you, believing is believing through actions. When we give the control of lives in the hands of Jesus Christ, He gives us the Holy Spirit to guide us and help us. Do you feel that you are a unique being? Do you think that death is not an end but a bridge to eternal life? If yes, you are correct. God did not create mankind to die but to live forever. It was sin that brought in death and God wants to save us from the penalty, the power and the presence of sin. He has done his part and now all that we need to do is believe and have faith and let God guide us through His Holy Spirit.

I say this because I have experienced the joy of salvation and I know that He is working on me to make me just like Himself and I have seen the power of true joy and happiness work in the lives of people. Here is a true testimony of God’s happiness:

My first cousin, who was some 7 years younger to me, passes away when she was 10 year old in 2004 due to medical negligence in the hospital. I was in my 11^th grade then. We were very close to each other and her death was a shattering blow. It was the first time I saw the dead body of a loved one. I sat beside her throughout the night looking at her pale face and hoping that she would sit up and say “I wanted you to come home, so I did this” and then hug me close to her. But I was scared that if she did not sit up I would feel worse. Early in the morning, the next day, I saw what happiness and faith meant. I found my Uncle and Aunty sitting on either side of my cousin (she was their only daughter) and having their morning prayers just the way they had done while she was alive and the song they sang translates as “I will praise you Lord for all that you have done”.

There were tears but there were no complaints, no anger, no thought of revenge. There was praise in their lips and faith in their heart that God took away what was rightfully His to a better place in heaven. And praise God, about 2 years later, a child was born to them, who is exactly like the cousin I lost. The only difference is that she appears to have had a foretaste of heaven.

To read a poem that I wrote in memory of my cousin, visit www.amyimapoet.blogspot.com

The poem is: In Memory

(Write to me for any clarifications, questions, further explanations and prayer requests...)

Matthew 2: Prophesies fulfilled. The Birth of JESUS

2009-10-27T23:49:00.000-07:00

In the 2^nd chapter of Matthew the Kingly nature of Jesus is established. We can also safely say that it is an insight into the Godly nature of Jesus. Jesus is no ordinary human. He is a God-man. It was extremely essential for Jesus to become man to defeat and destroy sin just as sin entered the world through man. It was love that compelled God to have mercy on mankind. Jesus became man to bear all the pains and burdens that an ordinary man suffers and much more. We will look into sin and how and why Jesus was the only one who could destroy it a bit later.

The most important points to note here in the 2^nd chapter is the star, the magi and their gifts, the massacre of kids and the guidance of angels.

According to the scriptures and even astronomy, stars hold a very important position. The emergence of a new star denoted a significant event like the birth of an important person like the king as kings were presumed to be chosen by God Himself. The magi knew it was the birth of a king because the appearance of the star matched that of the incident mentioned in a prophesy in the book of Micah. This is how Jesus’ kingship is seen. Herod thought that this meant the birth of a new king who may capture his throne. He did not realize and understand the scripture and thus rose against Jesus.

The magi were learned men. They tracked the star and kept the Scriptures in their mind. These were the people who were enlightened by God and the Holy Spirit to know about the birth of Christ after Mary, Joseph and their family members. And these men were one of the first people along with the shepherds to honour Jesus and see Him, a privilege that is so rare. They kept seeking God and perhaps that’s why they were blessed with the opportunity.

The gifts also symbolize the kingly and Godly nature of Jesus. The gifts that the magi brought were not ordinary. Gold, incense and myrrh are royal as well as holy used in the ark. Thus, Jesus was presented with gifts befitting a king and God.

Jesus’ immense love for children is because of the massacre that took place. It’s not that he didn’t love them earlier. His love for mankind is everlasting and unparallel. His love only increased multi-fold. Multitudes of kids were killed because Herod didn’t know who could take his throne. Thus, to save Jesus and fulfil the prophesy and ultimately defeat sin and Satan, little children became instrumental. It was a sacrifice that was not ordinary. Just as many were killed for Jesus, Jesus ultimately died for the whole world.

And through all this, we again see the Godly hand. The appearance of angels and the way they guided Mary and Joseph through everything so that Jesus’ life could be protected, all show the hand of God.

It’s time for us to examine ourselves. Are we the magi, the shepherds, the little children, the angels or Herod? God has called us to be enlightened. He has called us to walk in the light and guide others when we see them stumbling. He has called us to make small sacrifices so that greater good can happen. It is very rare that He asks men to die for the sake of bringing others into light but the question is: If He calls us, are we ready to follow? He may not call us to die but He may call us to make small sacrifices and at times bigger ones. Are we ready to be used by God? Or are we like Herod, short-sighted, ruthless, proud and power hungry? It is time that we give our lives to God so that He can turn us into stars, angels, magi and little children.

Let us pray:

Almighty father, thank you so much for giving Jesus to us. Thank you for sending Jesus to this earth so that we can all be cleansed and purified by his sacrifice and find salvation by believing in Him. We want to be of use, Lord. Take our lives and make us like the stars and angels that guide; like the magi that are enlightened and like little children who are so selfless, loving, innocent, righteous and full of virtues you like. We ask this in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, AMEN.

Mary: Humility, Faith and Obedience

2009-10-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

Finally, we will look at the life of the fifth woman in the genealogy of Christ, Mary.

Mary was engaged to Joseph to get married. It was before they got married that the Angel Gabriel came to her with the message that God has chosen her to be the mother of Christ, i.e. to bear Christ in her womb. What would this have meant to Mary? Imagine, she was not yet married but engaged; her fiancée and all other people expected her to be a virgin. Angel’s message meant that she was to get pregnant and not from Joseph after marriage but by the Holy Spirit when she said yes to God. People would have taken her for prostitution and stoned her to death. Still, Mary says ‘Yes’.

The only reason that theologians attribute to Mary’s saying ‘Yes’ is that she was a God-fearing woman who knew the scriptures and was waiting for the Messiah to come. Once she knew that this was God’s plan she cast all her fears and burdens upon the God and walked according to His will. She would have realised that it would be extremely difficult for her fiancée and the people to believe her yet she had faith upon God that He would help her under all circumstances. After receiving the message from Gabriel, she did not get puffed up that she was chosen from amongst thousands and thousands of other women but she is humble and is happy at the news that her cousin Elizabeth, who was barren, was pregnant. She goes to Elizabeth’s house to take care of her. This strengthens her faith in God and she realizes that nothing is impossible for God. And she is obedient as well. She follows all that she had been told. She did not have intercourse with Joseph till Jesus was born and she named the child, Jesus as she was told.

Through all this, she is not alone. God helps her. Elizabeth is told of Mary’s conception that Mary’s family members would believe her; an angel tells Joseph about Mary’s conception through the Holy Spirit so that he marries Mary; God provides a shelter to Mary and Joseph in the Cattle-shed during the census in Bethlehem...

Mary’s life is worth emulating. The faith, humility and obedience she displays as she tells “I am the Lord’s servant” is noteworthy and rare. Her God-fearing life and dedication to the Word of God is an inspiration to all of us to lead a life worthy of the calling that God has given us.

With this, we come to the end of the first chapter of Matthew that shows the importance of the 5 women in the Christian history today and at the same time inspires us and calls us to lead righteous lives filled with faith, humility, love, obedience, perseverance...

Let us pray:

Heavenly Father, we believe in the amazing ways in which you worked in the lives of these women and used them for the purpose of giving salvation to all those who believe in your son Jesus Christ. We know that you have plans for us and we pray to you to reveal the plans you have for us and through us and help us to be of use to you and the whole world. We want to emulate the lives of these women in our lives as well that we may be able to lead righteous lives, pleasing to you. In the precious name of Jesus Christ we pray, AMEN.

Bathsheba: Lifted and fallen

2009-10-23T23:14:00.000-07:00

The life of Bathsheba is the story of you and me, in our sinfulness. Well, not because of the way she came into David’s life and what else happened to her, but because she found favour and then lost it.

Bathsheba was the wife of Uriah and this is how she is mentioned in Christ’s genealogy. The reason perhaps is that God wanted Uriah to be remembered more than Bathsheba. Uriah was a Hittite and was in the army. One night, while Uriah was involved in a war with the Ammonites and was away from Bathsheba; David saw her as she was taking a bath and desperately wanted to sleep with her. Being a King, David could fulfil any whims and fancies he had and thus, he called for her and slept with her. Now when Bathsheba got pregnant and informed David about it, he did not want to own up or accept the child. Therefore, he calls for Uriah and asks him to go home to his wife on two occasions. But, Uriah appears to be a true patriot, warrior and just man and does not go home saying that he cannot enjoy at home when the ark, Israel and Judah, Joab and his fellow warriors are camping in the fields. Thus, David sends a message to Joab, the in-charge of the Army, to put Uriah in the position where the battle is fiercest. When Uriah dies, David takes Bathsheba as his wife. But Prophet Nathan comes and rebukes David for his wicked behaviour that had upset God and finally David repents and loses his son through Bathsheba, as God punishes him by taking his son.

Later, Solomon, the wisest king, is born to David through Bathsheba and David promises to her that her son would get the throne after him. Towards, the end of Bathsheba’s story we find that she makes a grave mistake.

When David grew very old and nothing could keep him warm, a Shunammite virgin, Abishag, was chosen to lie with him. Now, before David made Solomon the King, Adonijah, the son of David and Haggith, declared himself king. Later when, David becomes the King, Adonijah comes to Bathsheba and requests her to ask a favour from Solomon to give Abishag as wife to him. Bathsheba, in her extreme vanity and foolishness, asks Solomon for the favour and then we hear no more of her.

Bathsheba appears to be a woman who could never fathom God’s plan or God’s greatness. God favoured her more than the other wives of David by making her son the King after David though Solomon was not the eldest. However, she appears to be vain. She feels that it was her beauty that drew David towards her (which was true) and it was David’s love for her that he couldn’t break his promise to her or grant her wish to make Solomon the King (which may not be true). Further, she thinks that no one could replace her because she was so important. In her vanity, she did not realise that Abishag was also David’s wife. She felt as if she was the only wife of David and not one of the wives of David. It was Solomon who was important because form Solomon’s line Jesus was supposed to come. Getting Adonijah married to Abishag meant making him become Abishag’s husband and David’s replacement. Effectively, it meant making Adonijah the King. This is how she loses favour.

In our lives as well, many a times we find favour in God’s eyes. Just try to ponder and you will realise that whatever has happened to us is a favour. If we were born in a good family. It is not because we deserved it but because God has a plan through it. If we went to good schools and have nice friends, it is again the same. There may be millions of incidents like these. We fall because instead of realizing that we are just instruments in God’s hand and letting God work through us, we start feeling that we are the centre of everything. Instead of being humble, we become vain and lose the game. Let’s take time to look back. Not because looking back is good but because it will help us realize and find out our shortcomings and follies so that we can become better people.

Let us pray:

Loving Jesus, we are sorry for being so self-centred and vain in our lives that we have overlooked the important things in life we should have noticed. We believe that you are our Creator and nothing is hidden from you. We believe that you control everything and you have better and bigger plans for us that we have for us. But in every step of our life, we need your guidance and light. We want to be mighty instruments in your hands so that we can achieve the plans you have for us and the plans you want to accomplish through us. In your mighty name we pray, AMEN.

Ruth: The greatest love story

2009-10-20T21:15:00.000-07:00

The third woman mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus is Ruth, whose life can be read in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament. Many say that the book of Ruth is the best love story every written. But it is not the love story of a man and a woman. The story of Ruth is the remarkable story of sacrificing one’s desires for someone else. In Ruth’s story, that someone else is Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi.

The story goes like this: There was a famine in Judah and Naomi and her husband, along with their two sons, came to live in Moab till the famine got over. However, during their stay in Moab, Elimelech, Naomi’s husband died. During the stay in Moab, her sons married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Unfortunately, Naomi’s sons also died in Moab. Thus, Naomi was left a widow with two widowed daughter-in-laws. As, we saw earlier in the life of Tamar, widowhood and barrenness were the worst things that could happen to a woman, here we have Orpah and Ruth who had the same plight, widowed and without children.

After this, the news reached Moab that the famine in Judah has passed away and thus, Naomi plans to return to Moab amongst her people. Therefore, she asks her daughter-in-laws to return to their own people so that they could be with their own people. Orpah quietly obeyed Naomi but Ruth couldn’t imagine leaving her mother-in-law all alone. Ruth is remembered so much because of the family bonding she created. She placed Naomi’s well-being before herself. She tells that nothing except death could separate her from Naomi. Ruth willingly accepted the Ephrathites (Naomi’s tribe). She sacrifices her desires and leads a holy and respectable life. Her patience and kindness towards Naomi bears fruit. According to the custom of the land, the closest relative gets the right to marry a widow in the family. Boaz happens to be the second closest relative from Elimelech’s side. As a respectable woman she goes to Boaz’s fields to glean during harvesting and ultimately Boaz marries her after redeeming her from the closest kin.

However, the story is not that simple. Ruth is urged by her mother-in-law to meet Boaz in the threshing floor at night. It is not a respectable thing for a woman to go to the threshing floor and that too at night. She must have been scared though it was not wrong. She only intended to ask a favour i.e. to redeem her by marrying her as he was their kinsman redeemer. She would have been scared at the thought of being misinterpreted or being rejected. She would have been scared that people would see her as a prostitute if she was found out. However, she trusts God and also her mother-in-law and ultimately she is rewarded by finding a place in Jesus’ genealogy.

It is her simple but profound faith in God that makes her take the decision to follow Naomi as she plans to return to Judah. It would have been a very risky decision to accept the life of a widow without any dreams of having her own family and mind you she had her whole life in front of her. What would have happened after Naomi’s death? She was in a foreign land amidst strange people. She would have been all alone. Yet she sacrificed her happiness and future for her mother-in-law and instead she was blessed with a better future than she could ever have dreamt of.

We need to question ourselves how do we make decisions. Do we ever think of sacrificing our happiness for someone else if that someone else needs us more? It feels great to receive but the Bible says that it is more blessed to give than to receive. Lets try to come out of our selfishness and become instruments for God’s purpose.

Let’s pray:

Loving Heavenly Father, thank you for the manifestation of great love through the life of Ruth. We pray to you to fill our lives with such immense love and compassion that we may be able to see the hatred and selfishness within us and around us and wash them with the healing power of selfless and all encompassing love. In Jesus Christ’s name we pray, AMEN.

Looking at the life of the 2nd woman, Rahab

2009-10-20T00:36:00.000-07:00

Today we shall look into the life of Rahab (Joshua 2-6). Rahab was a prostitute but she worked according to God’s plan. When Joshua planned to capture Jericho, according to God’s instructions, he sent two spies to sense the city and come back. It was during this time that Rahab helped the spies in hiding and escaping back to Joshua. We also see that though she was not an Israelite or Jew she trusted God. She had heard of all the wonders that God had done for the Israelites and she believed every single word of it. Thus, when the spies came to the city she helped them because she knew that since God himself had risen against Jericho and God was with the Israelites nothing could stop the devastation of Jericho. But Jericho was a heavily fortified city. Rahab had the option of getting the spies captured. However, she did not do that. Instead she helped them and saved her entire family. Along with this, she became the wife of Salmon and the mother of Boaz and etched her name in the genealogy of Jesus, never to be blotted out.

Rahab’s case is not like Tamar. But there is one similarity – Saying YES to God. In the case of Rahab, we see a God-fearing woman with a strong faith that was strengthened just by listening to the many wonders that God had done not for her but for the Israelites. She believed that God was the God of all and not just the Israelites and anyone who turns to HIM could be saved. She was a prostitute but God worked through her. No one is inferior in God’s sight. HE loves everyone equally and is equally inclined to save everyone. There is just one condition; we need to let HIM work in our lives.

Let us pray:

Dear God, thank you for the inspiring life of Rahab and the hope that you have given to all mankind that anyone who believes in Jesus and in you will be saved. We want you to work in our lives. We offer our lives to you that you may come and change us to be more willing, have more faith and keep seeking your grace each day. Help us and bless us that we may know you and help others in knowing you. Help us that we may understand the plans you have for us and help us in fulfilling those plans. We thank you for loving us so much. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, AMEN.

Introduction to Matthew and the 5 women in Jesus'genealogy

2009-10-19T03:39:00.000-07:00

The NEW TESTAMENT begins with the book of Matthew. Matthew was one of JESUS CHRIST’S disciples. He was a Jew and a tax – collector. The study of the book of Matthew reveals that he wrote basically for the Jewish community. His book begins with the genealogy of Jesus. This reveals his writing for the Jewish community. The OLD TESTAMENT reveals that the Israelites and for that matter the Jews had been a very unbelieving community. Though GOD showed innumerable miracles to the people at different phases in their life, yet they kept turning against GOD. Even after Jesus Christ came down to this earth as prophesied in the Old Testament, suffered, died and rose again just the way it said in the Scriptures, the Jews did not believe it. Thus, Matthew starts with the genealogy to show to the Jews that the scriptures that say that the Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah agree with Jesus’ birth in the family of Joseph and Mary.

With this backdrop the New Testament forges a link with the Old Testament thus maintaining the continuity. The first chapter of Matthew is perhaps the most skipped chapters basically because it speaks about the root of Jesus and nobody bothers about his forefathers and forefathers of forefathers. But it is unique as it teaches us to try and understand God’s plan in our lives and believe in God’s plan both in action and truth.

What catches my eye most in the first chapter of Matthew is the mention of only five women in the genealogy. Generally, the names of mothers are not mentioned in the genealogy; however in the genealogy of Christ five women have found place. Why? Have you ever tried to think about it? Bible is a wonderful book because it is not just a book but a story where everyone has a place. These five women, namely, Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Uriah’s wife Bathsheba and Mary are the women in the history who played along with God’s plan and shaped history the way it is now. And for their co-operation they have been rewarded profusely by finding a place in the genealogy of Jesus.

Tamar bore a child for Judah. But Tamar was not Judah’s wife. She was Judah’s daughter-in-law. She did something that no ordinary woman would have ever dared to do. Genesis 38 tells that Tamar was married to Er, Judah’s eldest son. Since, Er was wicked in the eyes of the LORD, the LORD put him to death. Then according to the Law, Judah entrusted Tamar to his other son, Onan, to produce offspring for Er. But Onan acted wicked and spilled his semen as he did not want to obey his father. For this, God put him to death as well. Since, Judah’s youngest son was not old enough to produce offspring for his eldest brother; Judah asked Tamar to wait for him to grow old enough and sent her off to her father’s house. Imagine Tamar’s condition. During those days the worst thing that could happen to a woman was to be either barren or a widow. Tamar was both. At least she was considered both. But in her heart she knew that she was neither a barren woman nor evil and Er and Onan had died because of their wickedness. People spoke numerous things about her. They considered her cursed. Yet she was patient and waited for the day when Judah would call for her. Sadly though, Judah was a coward. He couldn’t stand against his brothers when they planned to kill Joseph; he couldn’t stand for Tamar when she was being ill-treated by his sons and he couldn’t fulfil his promise to Tamar because maybe he too believed that she was cursed. However, it was God’s plan to lift Judah up but how could God do it when Judah was a coward. The best thing about our God is that HE is a loving God and always gives us a choice. HE never forces us to do anything. But HE wanted a brave JUDAH. And Tamar becomes instrumental in making Judah a true leader.

She disguises herself as a prostitute and sleeps with Judah. At the same time, she is witty and brave enough to keep Judah’s cord, seal and staff as a pledge for a goat. When she gets pregnant, she is accused of prostitution. Then she sends the cord, seal and staff to Judah, who recognises them and says that Tamar is more righteous than him. It was the first time that Judah owned up a mistake later to become the leader of all tribes. Thus, Tamar was considered righteous as against being considered evil and cursed; she was no longer considered barren but became the one who provided the link to Jesus by becoming the mother of Perez.

She managed to do so because she said YES to God’s plan. When she would have contemplated having sex with her father-in-law, it would have been painful to her conscience. It she would have been found out, the plan would have failed and she would have further gone down in people’s sight. Yet, she risked everything because she had faith in God’s plan.

Many a times we see people doing wrong. We know it is wrong and we even feel that we ought to try and correct them. But unfortunately, we never try to know what God wants from us and never try to say a YES. We always think that someone else will do it. Tamar stands out for righteousness, patience and faith. Let us pray to God that HE may use us for the good of all mankind.

Let us pray:-

Heavenly Father, we thank you for bring out the life of Tamar before us and inspiring us by her courage, faith and patience that she was considered righteous and along with that she became instrumental in fulfilling your plan to make Judah a true leader. Loving God, we do not have any idea of what you have planned for us and for the world through us. But we want to be instruments in your hands to make a difference. We pray to you to speak to our hearts and enlighten us. And we pray that you speak to all the people in the world that we can all work together for your glory and for the good of all mankind. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, AMEN.

Let’s find out more about God thru’ the BIBLE.

2009-10-18T23:57:00.000-07:00

I was a good girl. I was loved dearly by my parents and friends and my teachers had all good things to say about me. I was happy. I had achieved much in life and I had nothing to complain about. But one day, I got the question: Are you really happy? This question changed my life. I realized as I kept seeking that we are not really happy but we just feel happy when our desires are met or a pleasant surprise springs up...

The question challenged me to be REALLY happy, to REALLY love people around me, to REALLY have peace, to REALLY be kind and patience...

If you ask this question to yourself you will realize that we do not control our situations or our life rather situation controls us. We are happy when people praise us even for our wrong doings but we feel sad if people deface us for the good things we do. Inner happiness and for that matter genuine happiness springs from having the courage to smile and say I am not angry even when people try to pull you down.

Well, I am not speaking something that is new. I am speaking something that is age old and since it is so old people do not care about it. I am speaking about the power to have control over your happiness. Who doesn’t want to be happy always!!! Everybody does and so can you when you realize how valuable you are to God and how God has planned all happiness for you. I do not have answers to all the questions that I had earlier but each day I find answers and I know one day I will have all the answers.

Through this, I want to share with you my journey through the BIBLE – the most awesome story about you and me and everyone in the world; and my journey with JESUS – the only LORD, GOD and SAVIOUR given to all mankind. And the most awesome thing about JESUS is that HE is the most awesome friend you can ever have who loves you just the way you are; who has an amazing way of making insignificant people become significant and special and at the same time who also has the power to grant control over your happiness.

Every day we will be discussing something from the NEW TESTAMENT and we’ll try to find out how it holds true in our life and today’s world as well and finally we’ll end with a prayer. I would be very glad if you join me in this journey towards perfection and towards heaven.

We may not know each other but I am sure that journeying together we’ll surely meet in HEAVEN. Happy journey till then...