FAITH CAPSULE: Are you a conscious or unconscious hypocrite?

John 8:1-12

Once the scribes and Pharisees wanted to be a judge on behalf of God because a woman was caught in adultery. They approached Jesus stating, “…Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned…” (John 8:4-5) A pot calling kettle a black is same as scribes and Pharisees calling out a sinner. Scribes and Pharisees are hypocrites criticizing someone for a fault they also possess. Scribes and Pharisees in the days of Jesus are description of acclaimed believers of today. Jesus responded to the scribes and Pharisees as stated, “…He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” (John 8:7) Jesus’ response shut and turned away the scribes and Pharisees away from taking position to judge sin.
Are you one with lack of patient with quickness in pointing out other with sin or iniquity?
Today, acclaimed believers are finding it difficult to see self’s sin but easy to see other’s sin. Unfortunately, sin such as lying, deception and manipulation are written all over acclaimed believers in their way of living life. Word of God is true speaking to all as stated, “…For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Roman 3:23) All have sinned, yet all are assuming the position of a judge. Again, answers to yourself, are you quick to be judging others for their sin?  The world today is full of sin and sinning but, yet the world is always quick in passing judgment instead of being judged. The word God warned self-appointed judges, “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:1-2) Judging others is not our own assignment. Assessing how we stand in the word of God should be more of our own assignment. As a believer saved by grace, one must be concerned about the plank in his/her own eye before attempting to remove the plank in neighbor’s eye. Bible identified attempting to remove plank in other’s eye while having plank in one’s own eye as hypocrite.
Are you a conscious or unconscious hypocrite? Word of God questioned, “…why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:3-5)
Why not pay more attention to yourself?
The scribes and Pharisees with no sin, but none was qualified as judge. Do not assume the position of a judge allow God to be God over His creation. Answer to what the Lord called you to be.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of answering obediently to the word of God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Disguising against warning of God is not enough to make up for wrong decision.

1 Kings 22:1-40

Decision is the evidence of choice. Every conclusion should be reached after consideration. For real, action or process of deciding something demands to be awake and not be sleeping carelessly.
Sleeping instead of watching can be an indirect open invitation for the enemy to invade and sow evil in man’s lot. Among ways of sleeping which allows enemy to sow in man’s lives is: Making a wrong decision is taking a position at wrong place or engaging wrong company. Are you on the verge of making a wrong decision?
With no doubt, making wrong decision in the place of right decision will open a door for enemy to sow evil. King David made a wrong decision by not going out to battle field at the time when kings go out to battle. The bible recorded that David sent Joab and his servants to war. (2 Samuel 11:1) David’s decision not to go to war opened the door for enemy to sow in David’s lot which caused him to sin against God. David, being in the right place at the wrong time, arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. It was during his walk on the roof that he saw a Bathsheba the wife of Uriah the Hittite bathing. David in his decision sent and inquired about Bathsheba and lay with her. (2 Samuel 11:2-5) Bathsheba conceived for David while her husband, Uriah was at the battle field. Wrong David’s decision allowed seed of wickedness to grow in his lot. Wrong decision of David prompted him to set up Uriah for untimely death at war. Uriah got killed at the battle field and his death counted against David before God. Before God, repentance exists but it is not encouraging for making wrong decision that leads to sin before God. Avoid wrong decision not to make door open for enemy.
Jehoshaphat did not opened door for enemy. It was a good thing for Jehoshaphat the king of Judah to visit the king of Israel. However, it was not a good thing for Jehoshaphat to join with Ahab king of Israel in a battle against king of Syria after having been warned by God’s prophet not to go to war. Ahab decided against warning not to go to war but died at war. Jehoshaphat disregarded against the war and did not disguise himself as a way of self-protection at the war. (1 Kings 22) Jehoshaphat could have died in the war just like Ahab because it was not a war they should have engaged by God’s warning. Jehoshaphat’s and Ahab’s going to war is allowing the enemy to sow wrong in their life. It was a seed of untimely death for Ahab while Jehoshaphat escaped death. Jehoshaphat did not disguise from truth of God’s warning. Disregarding and Disguising God’s word terminated Ahab’s life untimely. Disguising against warning of God is not enough to make up for wrong decision.

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s grace to keep you from wrong decision.

FAITH CAPSULE: Sleeping often takes position in the place of watching and praying.

Acts 12

Sleeping can be a man’s passion. Possibly, sleeping can be a fellowship group’s pattern of living. Above all, followers of Jesus in His days and acclaimed believers of Jesus today has been repeatedly warned to watch and pray. Sleeping often takes position in the place of watching and praying. Among Jesus’ emphasis on issue of watch and pray are recorded, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41) “Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.” (Mark 13:23) “Watch therefore and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass…” (Luke 21:36) Watching and praying will bring believer out of weakness into strength not to be a victim of evil. Watching and praying is certain to make believers become time conscious. Watch and pray as declared by Jesus is a way of escaping all that is set against true believers.
Think about your way of living life for a moment. Identify and stand against whatever the enemy has invested to disrupt good of God which is in place for your good.
Jesus gave a parable of wheat and tares: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.” (Matthew 13:24-25) The point here is that sleeping is what gives enemy the privilege to sow its wickedness on the ground which is meant for good. On a ground where man is awake, it will be difficult for the enemy to invest by sowing evil into man’s life.
Living in this world today demands to be constantly awake. As an acclaimed believer, are you awake or are you asleep? Just as it is possible to be asleep physically, so it is also possible to be asleep spiritually. One that is spiritually asleep will be spiritually at risk. For one who is at sleep, prayer will cease and enemy gaining entrance will become inevitable. Also, sleeping is not only when eyes and mind are shut. Sleeping does not necessary mean when one goes to bed at night. Without doubt, sleeping when time or season calls for man to be awake is extending an invitation to the wicked one. What kind of sleeping that is engaging you in the place of engaging God by watching and praying with attention to God that is waiting to act for those who wait on Him? With understanding, man should know that to be watching and praying is not a fun-fair but a laborious activity with positive answer before God. Individually, watching and praying is certain for self-deliverance. To be actively watching and praying by not living life of sleeping as passion man is set for great exploit to the glory of God.
To be in prayer is to be awake and deny the enemy from sowing evil seed.
Is sleeping your passion? Be awake because the enemy is at work!

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s deliver from sleeping as passion and not become a victim of evil.

FAITH CAPSULE: Let God alone know by crying out to Him alone.

Exodus 3:1-10

It is written, “And the LORD said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them.” (Exodus 3:7-9) Taskmasters represented horrible pit in the life of the Israelites while they were in Egypt. Horrible pit situation is not a beautiful place to be; it is an unpleasant location. Horrible pit is a place of pain, deprivation, and aggravation. In your life are you experiencing a though time, a challenging time under any taskmaster? Horrible pit is not a place for a believer to be quiet but to cry out unto God. To be quiet in the place of horrible pit situation is to have shut one’s door of deliverance. The children of Israel opened up their door to deliverance when they lifted up their voice and cried to the Lord. Psalm 81:10 buttress, “I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.”
The cry of the children of Israel did not find a deaf ear because the Lord inclined His ear to their cry and extended His hand of deliverance through His servant Moses.
Israelites came out of horrible pit situation. God was not, and He is not a partial God when He brought David out of horrible pit situation. Just as the Israel, King David also cried to the Lord God for his deliverance from his horrible pit situation. King David testified, “I waited patiently for the LORD; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.” (Psalm 40:1-2) Crying is not a sign of weakness and tears running down the cheeks is not always a demonstration of crying. God heard King David’s cry and he was brought out of the miry clay. Miry clay is an indication that the horrible pit could also be a place of stagnation or constant falling. Horrible situation can possibly be a place where stability is absent in man’s life. Does your challenging world represent a horrible pit situation? Do not shy from waiting on God by crying out loud to God. Cry out to God!

Prayer for today: Cry out and ask for the outstretch hand of God for your deliverance.

FAITH CAPSULE: Wrongdoing cannot be hidden before God.

Acts 5

Wrongdoing is error. It is an error to violate the word of God and it can be a conscious or unconscious error before God. Wrongdoing (error) is despising the word of God. The bible makes us to realize it that, “He who despises the word will be destroyed…” (Proverbs 13:13)
Have you in any way violated or currently violating the word of God? (I pray that the grace of God will open your eyes to avoid or come out of conscious or unconscious error.)
Before God, there is no excuse for wrongdoing (error). Before God, Adam and Eve committed error by believing the serpent enough to eat against God’s command not to eat from particular tree in the Garden of Eden. They both violated the word of God by their error (a wrongdoing).
When God showed up (just as He will show up on all man) both Adam and Eve attempted to justify their action before God by stating, “Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:12-13) Adam and Eve had no reasonable excuse whatsoever before God for wrongdoing but God placed them under His judge. The error committed by Adam and Eve exposed man to numerous pains today.
Wrongdoing is making choice to lie. Also, to be aware of lying and becoming a part of lying is not an excuse from God’s judgement over wrongdoing. Bible recorded, “But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet.” (Acts 5:1-2) Choice for wrongdoing was the portion of Ananias while Sapphira his wife was aware of lying. With no reasonable excuse, lying and making self-available as a company of lying is a wrongdoing that is not hidden from God. Peter responded to Mr. and Mrs. Ananias and Sapphira’s wrongdoing, “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?  While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” (Acts 5:3-4) Wrongdoing is not of God. Wrongdoing is an act of sin, a disloyalty before God. Ananias and Sapphira appeared in the presence of gathering before God with heart filled with lie. Unfortunately for Ananias and Sapphira, wrongdoing cannot be hidden before God. For Ananias and Sapphira, untimely terminated was the result of wrongdoing.
Wrongdoing is accountable as despising word of God. Despising the word of God is positioning self for destruction.
Watch and pray and not become a victim of wrongdoing before God.

Prayer point: Ask for grace not to become a victim of conscious or unconscious of wrongdoing.