FAITH CAPSULE: The kind of love that counts before God is not seasonal celebration of the birth of Jesus.

1 John 4

The kind of love that counts before God is the kind of love that qualifies man not to miss heaven. Is it the magnitude of seasonal celebration of the birth of Jesus that testifies man’s love for God? To fear God is to love God, living by His word continually is the kind of love that counts before God but not seasonal celebration of the birth of Jesus. Claiming the love for God is obeying His commandments. Apostle Paul pointed out the purpose of God’s commandment, “Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk.” (1Timothy 1:5-6) Apostle Paul was talking about love that counts before God, the kind of love that is worthy to provoke God’s attention to acknowledge one for good.
Love of man under heaven is a love manufactured by man to attain self-interest not God centered love. Man’s love is not the kind of love which counts before God. Under heaven, love manufactured by man is not a pure heart love which rampant and lack of good conscience love. Love manufactured by man is not rooted in faith. Imagine husband, wife, children, extended family, neighbors and all are running around shopping for gift in celebration of Jesus without existence of God’s love among each other. Without God’s love all are not living life for God’s glory? The word of God stated, “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1John 4:20) Does that sound like you?
Man is a mess as agent of wickedness deceiving loving among self. God is true in His testimony about man under heaven as stated in Genesis 6:5-7, “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” There is no evil in celebrating the birth of Jesus. However, man is celebrating with lack of understanding and it relegates before God but not elevate man for the glory of God. Celebrating Jesus should be a non-stop as long there is breath of life. God cannot be deceived and that is the reason God why man should seek Him diligently. Seek God with understanding by loving Him without condition. It is written, “1 John 4:8, “He who does not love does not know God, for God is Love.”  Celebrate Christ reality not celebrating religion.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of understanding and not become a victim of ignorant.

FAITH CAPSULE: Get out of story celebration, get into Christ reality.

John 10

The coming of Jesus is being named, “The Greatest Story that was told.” Indeed, majority inside and outside of church, the acclaimed believers of Jesus only know about Jesus’ story and not know Jesus. Celebration of Jesus as story is clouding man to only know about and not know Jesus’ as source of living life abundantly. Jesus stated the reason of His coming, “…I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (John 10:10-11)
Is celebrating of Jesus’ story limiting you from knowing Jesus? To know Jesus is to be occupied by the reason of Jesus’ coming. What is causing you to have doubt instead of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? With doubt fear will eventually come to place. Where there is fear or when fear is rising, faith will sink. Lack of understanding the coming of Jesus is the evidence of knowing about. Get to know Jesus to deny doubt from living life abundantly as stated by Jesus.
Imagine John the Baptist’s doubt in Jesus. It is written, “And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” (Matthew 11:2-3) John the Baptist was in prison of SELF-DOUBT. John was not sure of knowing Jesus but questioned as a certified one that only know about Jesus. It was John that baptized Jesus but did not know Jesus but knew about Jesus. It is written, “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him” (Matthew 3:13) John the Baptist bears witness of Jesus, “…Behold The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.”’ (John 1:29-30) John also exalted Jesus when he stated that, “He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from Heaven is above all.” (John 3:31) John the Baptist knew about Jesus, when he was in the prison of his life, he doubted Jesus. Remember, you have heard about Jesus and if you will hold on to all that you have known you will depart from doubt. Jesus’ responded to John’s doubt, speaks to all with doubts, “…Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” (Mathew 11:4-6) Get out of story celebration, get into Christ reality to declare Jesus is Lord over your challenge.

Prayer for today: Ask for grace of God to bring you out of the prison of doubt.

FAITH CAPSULE: God’s gift for man is to inherit eternal life.

John 4:1-42

God’s gift for man is to inherit eternal life. Gift of God to man is an indescribable gift! Unfortunately, many are yet to receive or believe fully to accept indescribable gift of God by unwrapping the gift of God to embrace God’s indescribable gift for man. Sincerely, it is serious to know indescribable gift of God for man instead of knowing about. It is crucial for man to be meditating day and night that God wants man to inherit eternal life and not be amiss of eternal life. Jesus alone is the indescribable gift of God. Jesus revealed Himself as the gift of God when a Samaritan woman had an encounter with Jesus. It is written, “Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” (John 4:10) God the giver of all good expects man to give back to Him in appreciation. We are to give back to God an unconditional love for His gift because He is a jealous God.
To fear God is to love God by doing good all through under heaven. Claiming to love God is to always obey His commandments. Apostle Paul pointed out that the purpose of God’s commandment is to love God. He stated, “Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk.” (1Timothy 1:5-6) Paul was talking about love that counts before God. Love before God is love that is worthy to provoke God’s attention to acknowledge obedient ones for His good.
From today, begin to ask self a question as, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life.” It is crucial question to be holding man, provoking man for doing good at best and not at less before God. Living a righteous life is a command from the word of God it is doing good at our best before God. Jesus was speaking, “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:20) It is clear in the documentation of the bible that the scribes and Pharisees were versed in the word but not living life according to God’s word. Are you an acclaimed believer of God that is full of the word of God in the head but far from God in the mind? Evidently mind that is not full of God’s word is far from God living disobediently before God.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to be living life not to miss eternal life.

FAITH CAPSULE: In this time and season, re-assess self-priority before God.

Luke 10:25-37

Focus on time and season we are living not just focusing on this season of Christmas. In this season, what are the questions that are being generated within your heart? Man, that is mindful of the things God does have a need to re-assess own’s priority before God. It is important not to narrow your question to what you are giving or what you are receiving in this Christmas season. However, in this Christmas season, question yourself: What shall I do to inherit eternal life? Throughout the whole bible, the question is repeatedly asked and answered directly and indirectly. There is only one answer and the answer is to Love God. Deuteronomy 6:5 stated it, Luke 10:27 emphasized it, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, ‘and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” Do you love the way of God or the way of the world? (Waiting to be given before giving is a way of loving in the way of the world)
Jesus pointed out in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) about what it means to love in the way of God. To love in the way of God is to know and to do good when and where doing good demands it. James 4:17 buttressed, “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” It is true through the bible that with sin no shall see God. Evidently, ignoring not to do what is good when the chance to do good present itself is a sin. In the parable, when chance presented itself to the Levite to do good he passed it bye. Luke 10:31, “Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.” Giving out in love where there is a need for love is a reasonable sacrifice that is acceptable before God. God is God that no man can deceive by telling lies and manipulating others pretending to love others. God love us so much that He gave to us His beloved son, in whom He is well pleased. (Matthew 3:17)
What shall I do to inherit eternal life?
What you are giving is the determinant of what it takes to inherit eternal life.
God wants us to give Love in full. It is the will of God for us to love. Without the fear of God there is no way to love as commanded by God. The book of Ecclesiastes 12:13 admonishes us stating, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandment, for this is man’s all.”

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to love as it pleases before God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Invite the presence of Jesus to convert mockery to miracle.

Luke 9:10-17, John 2:1-11,

The word of Jesus is recorded for man’s understanding that, “…With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26) Truly, with God there is no impossibility. With God, challenges of past and the present is possible for God to convert all to celebration. With trust and hope in the name and the word of God impossibility will be converted to possibility. With God, all that is named as impossible shall answer as the possibility of God. God is the Ancient of Days, the only God that dwells in unapproachable light is in position to reverse irreversible for good to the glory of God. Absolutely there is no challenge which God cannot change to celebration. In life, no situation is too late for God to settle and establish for good. God alone reverses irreversible if man will trust and hope on God.
Ridicule was in the place to mock wedding in Cana of Galilee, but the presence of Jesus was in place to convert mockery to miracle. Mockery was set to upset celebration when supply of wine suddenly ceased. When the wedding celebration was out of wine embarrassment set itself against the new couple. Is it possible that your marriage is running out of oil that is burning the fire of God which is joy of marriage? Wedding of Cana was set to experience mockery, but presence of Jesus converted challenge to celebration.
At the wedding of Cana of Galilee, the mother of Jesus spoke to Jesus, “…They have no wine” (John 2:3) Jesus responded to her by stating, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” (John 2:4) Jesus’ response was not discouraging enough for the mother to back out of her attempt to help through Jesus. In John 2:5, the mother of Jesus said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” With no doubt, when there is no way Jesus’ direction will give way to expected end. With impossibility in place God is in position for possibility.
At the feeding of five thousand, the disciples asked for the multitude to be sent away because there was no possibility for provision in place at the desert ground. Jesus intervened commanding that the multitudes be fed from five loaves and two fish that was available. The request seemed impossible when Jesus gave His word to His disciples in the place of about five thousand men stating, “Make them sit down in groups of fifty.” (Luke 9:14) Always obey His direction in full to avoid mockery for His miracle. Is there any way you have missed obeying the commands of God?  In Luke 9:15 it is recorded, “And they did so, and made all sit down.” After they had followed His direction, He blessed the five loaves and two fish, and the multitude ate in abundance. With God nothing is impossible.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of trust and hope in your word.