Faith Capsule: What people say He is matters not but who do you say He is?

Matthew 16: 13-20, Mark 10:46-52

The bible recorded Jesus’ conversation with His disciples, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:13-16)
Who do you say He is?
It does not matter what people say He is but it does count for you to know who He is to you. Who do you say He is? When you know who He is to you, it will determine what you call Him or how you call on Him. Knowing who He is to you will determine how you identify Him.
The Psalmist knows who He is and was able to identify with Him stating, “I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” (Psalm 91:2)
In Matthew 9:27, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, “Son of David, have mercy on us!”  Matthew 15:22 recorded, “a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! …” Knowing who He is will determine how you call on Him.
Blind Bartimaeus, a road side beggar heard that Jesus was passing his way, when he cried out, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” and Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called.” (Mark 10:48-49) When the blind Bartimaeus was crying out to Jesus, every attempt to keep him quiet was in vain. He refused to remain quiet because he was sure of whom he knew. Challenges will try to keep you quiet but knowing who He is shall also the strength of your salvation. Who you say He is will set you up for a great encounter and it will cause you to gain uncommon attention, attention that will cause Him to stand still for you to access Him.
Peter’s response opened up for Jesus to teach the disciples about the church. Peter stated, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:17-18)
Bible identify us as the temple of God (His church 1 Corinthians 3:16) Ephesians 2:20 confirmed Christ as our cornerstone, “having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.” Allow the word to enter so that you may become His building.

Prayer for today: Ask for the word of God to take over your life.

Faith Capsule: God is good and doing good is godly.

Psalm 34

God is good and is identity is good. The word of God is God; His work is His word; His work is good. The bible buttressed, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light that it was good…” (Genesis1:1-4) God saw His work (His word) that it was good. Is doing good your identity? Are you being identified as evil one? Evil ones are wicked ones. Among the identity of the wicked is having the word in the mouth but far from the mind. (Jeremiah 12:1-2) Do you not know that God is good and doing good is godly? What is good is God. The word testifies to the truth that God is good:
Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way. (Psalm 25:8)
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him! (Psalm 34:8) For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You. Psalm 86:5) I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good.” (Psalm 52:9) Indeed, God is good and doing good is godly.
Think about it, no one is immune from seeing his/her good work turned to worse. However, a good deed that is true and genuine before God cannot be altered for worse. Do not be weary of doing good because God will not look away from your doing good. God is faithful to reward. In sincerity of heart, embark and engage yourself in doing good and not evil. It can never be too much in doing what is good; neither can it be too late to reap the fruit of doing good. Be encouraged by His word in Jeremiah 17:9-10, “…I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”
God is true to His word and he will give everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings. (Jeremiah 32:19) The word admonished, “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. (James 3:13) “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” (James 4:17) According to the word of God, to know good and not do is evil therefore, “Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it. (Psalm 34:8)

Prayer for today: Ask God to open your understand not to walk away from doing good.

Faith Capsule: A committed Christ soldier cannot escape hardship in this world of wickedness.

2 Timothy 2

A soldier is defined as a person who serves in an army or anenlistedmanorwoman. Going by definition of soldier, a soldier for Christ can be described as one who serves Christ. To be Serving God demands serving Him diligently. Serving God is seeking God. Seeking God diligently is packed with rewards from God to those who seek Him diligently. Hebrews 11:6 buttressed, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligentlyseek Him.” Are you an acclaimed soldier of Jesus Christ? Do you seek Him first in all that you are seeking? Many seek Him by the word of the mouth but how do you seek Him? It is written, “But seekfirst the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)
Serving (seeking) Him is not a funfair because it comes with pain and challenges. However, with endurance the pain shall yield to unending gain.
An eligible and qualified soldier for Christ has to be a sold out soul for the cause of the cross. Paul, the apostle, admonished Timothy, “You therefore must endurehardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4) The first notable statement in Paul’s illustration for faithfulness is that a soldier (follower of Christ) must endure hardship. Unfortunately, Christian soldiers today do not want to endure hardship, but rather want to engage funfair and worldly pleasures. Endurance can be painful and can possibly generate unwanted suffering. However, enduring hardship is what qualifies a Christian soldier as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Every Christian soldier will have to know how to endure because a committed one cannot escape hardship in this world of wickedness.
Clearly, Christian soldiers who will not have to endure or face any of the challenges of this world are the ones that often entangle themselves with the affairs of this life. The apostle Paul emphasized that no one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life because it is not possible to serve two masters. Are you a Christian soldier by mouth or by act? A Christian soldier need not to be introduced as a soldier because his warlike disposition will always point him out as one who is operating as a sold-out soul for the cause of the Lord Jesus Christ. Are you a soldier who will always need constant introduction as a soldier? It is worthy to live life as good soldier of Jesus Christ that needs no introduction.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to be protected from fleshly lust that you may please One that enlisted you.

Faith Capsule: One that does not know to give will not know to receive.

Genesis 24:1-51

“…He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7) Three kinds of giver are identified. Grudge givers, those who give by necessity and cheerful givers.
Grudge givers:
Those who give grudgingly are the ones that display or reflect reluctance or unwillingness in their giving life styles.
Those who give by necessity:
Let your giving be based on love and not always because of law. This describes the people that will calculate giving to the last penny; their giving is always same for years it never changes (why not try God by increasing your giving or reaching out even when you are yet to receive increase in your income) It is always good to receive back when one gives but it is not necessary that one’s giving should be based on when others give first.
Cheerful giver:
Cheerful giver gives with happy disposition. Cheerful givers are ones that gives in good spirits. Cheerful givers give as if they have more than they actually have. The Good Samaritan could not stop giving even after he left and bible recorded, “ On the next day, when he departed,he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.” (Luke 10:35)
Rebekah fulfilled the description of a cheerful giver. She responded to Abraham’s servant who came in contact with her when he was looking for wife for Isaac. Genesis 24:45-46 recorded, “But before I had finished speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah, coming out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ And she made haste and let her pitcher down from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels a drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels a drink also.” A cheerful giver does not stop giving halfway they give in full. The giving by Rebekah turned the story of her life around and it was never the same because her giving placed her in the center of her life fulfillment. Rebekah’s story sounds like a fiction but it is a story with secret of turnaround in life to fulfill a great destiny. God does not and will never look away from a cheerful giver. The more you give silently the louder you receive from Him. Cheerful giver engages giving steadfastly not only when it is convenient. In life, you will only reap from the way you sow/what you sow. One that does not know to give will not know to receive.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of giving.

Faith Capsule: It is only a thief that wants to reap from where he did not sow.

Luke 10:25-37

Giving involves giving our time to help others or giving out ones belongings voluntarily to reach out others that are in need. For now, let us talk about giving without thinking of money as a gift. (That will keep most to open up and hear) Giving should be a matter of generosity but not a grudging obligation; Giving is engaging doing good to experience the goodness of God
A way to describe giving:
Giving is to present voluntarily and without expecting compensation.
When we look at giving as a voluntary engagement without expecting compensation it becomes kindness.
It is safe to say giving is kind, giving is love. Giving that is extended to others is a giving that connects the giver God. With God there is always a reward for every giving. I perceive that you will agree with me that in giving there will always be receiving! It is important to know and always keep in mind that God alone is the one that measures and matches one’s giving to others.
Evidently, whatever a man gives is what a man gets in return and that describes giving as sowing and reaping. The quality of your sowing is the evidence of your reaping. It is only a thief that wants to reap from where he did not sow. Also, it is not possible to sow an orange and expect to reap a tangerine. As close as they both look alike, it is impossible to reap what is not sown. When we give ourselves to engage doing good where there is a need for doing good, it becomes a chance to experience the goodness of God.
The parable of the Good Samaritan also testifies to engaging doing good as chance to experience the goodness of God. The parable was about a lawyer asking Jesus about what to do to enter the Kingdom of God. Knowing that loving God is what it takes to enter, he pressed further wanting to know who his neighbor is. Jesus narrated the parable of the Good Samaritan. In the parable Jesus pointed out what it means to do good as chance when he stated, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.” (Luke 10:30-31) The chance to do good came for the Levite and the priest but they failed to engage it. It was the Good Samaritan that engaged the chance to connect to God. A connection to God by engaging doing good is a connection to the goodness and mercy.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to know to see and do what is good.