FAITH CAPSULE: Obey the living word of God and live abundantly.

Jeremiah 42

It is one thing to hear word and not receive what is heard. Also, it is another to hear and be able to receive what is heard. Receiving the word God into our life is making a decision to have life abundantly. Jesus, the living word of God came for the purpose of giving life abundantly to those who makes the choice to receive Him. Sometimes, word is possible to be well pleasing or displeasing because it is true and truth can be bitter. However, when it is well received it will always deliver in all ways of life. Once, when the Jews who were left behind after the captivity began to seek for a means of avoiding the challenges from the Chaldeans opposition, Jeremiah was consulted, “…Please, let our petition be acceptable to you, and pray for us to the LORD your God, for all this remnant (since we are left but a few of many, as you can see), that the LORD your God may show us the way in which we should walk and the thing we should do.”(Jeremiah 42:1-3) The remaining Jews after captivity (the remnant Jews) wanted to hear word of direction from God. The Jews promised Jeremiah before inquiring from God, “Whether it is pleasing or displeasing, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we send you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.” (Jeremiah 42:6) Jeremiah went before God and was able to receive a message for the Jews.
The message for them was not to run and dwell in Egypt because they had set their faces to run to Egypt as a safe dwelling ground. God promised in Jeremiah 42:11-12, “Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not be afraid of him”, says the LORD, “for I am with you, to save you and deliver you from his hand. And I will show you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and cause you to return to your own land.” The Jews heard word of direction from God but failed to receive it. The Jews were afraid and it is apparent from their case that to be afraid is to lose the presence of God which delivers. The Jews could not remain in the land; they could not retain the presence of God and as a result, they could not retain life. The remnant Jews disobeyed the word of God; Egypt could not prevent them from dying by sword, by famine and pestilence. Obey the word of God and you will live and not die. 

Prayer for today: Ask God to keep you from any mind blocking agent that can cause man not to receive and live by His word.

FAITH CAPSULE:The operation of His hand cannot be separated from that of His Word.

Jeremiah 1

When God calls you He will back you up. From the time of His calling to the time of answering to His call, the operation of His hand cannot be separated from His word. It is written in Isaiah 6:6-7, “Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged.’” Isaiah was touched before he could hear the word which sounded in his direction. As a result of the touch that came into Isaiah’s life, he became a flaming torch for the purpose of the Kingdom of God. The Book of Isaiah is referred to as the miniature Bible. Just like the Bible, his first thirty-nine chapters are compared to the first thirty-nine books of Old Testament while the last twenty-seven chapters are compared to the last twenty–seven books of the New Testament. The testimony of Isaiah testifies to the truth that the power to prevail and answer to the fulfillment of God’s calling is rooted in the touching hand and powered word of God.
By His touch, Jeremiah and Isaiah carried out great exploits to God’s glory.The hand of God is mighty and cannot be denied in any area of life. In the hand of God there is deliverance and there is preservation. The operation of His hand cannot be separated from that of His Word. When the Lord called Jeremiah, it was through the operation of His hand in combination with His Word. It is written, “Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: ‘Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.10 See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.’” (Jeremiah 1:9-10)In the calling of Jeremiah, the hand of God went forth before the word sounded in Jeremiah’s direction. The word of God was there to be activated for Jeremiah to answer and live for the fulfillment of his calling. Without the touching of God, he would not have been able to see. The Lord put forth His hand to call his attention to what had been deposited in him. It was the touch of God’s hand in the life of Jeremiah that caused Jeremiah’s eyes to be opened up and see. Jeremiah truly saw that day and his life was never the same. Has the word of God located you but you are yet to get a touch to see and hear what the word is saying?

Prayer for today: Ask God for the mercy to know to see and hear when His word sound in your direction.   

FAITH CAPSULE: Sleeping in the place of evil agenda will not excuse any believer from evil occurrence.

Acts 12

A believer that has ceased from praying is a sleeping believer living outside the will of God in Christ Jesus for us. The book of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 states, “Rejoice always,  pray without ceasing,  in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  The importance of prayer cannot be well emphasized more than Jesus’ statement to His disciples on the Mount of Olives, “…Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” (Luke 22:40) Evidently, by virtue of Jesus’ statement, it should be safe to say that, the elimination of prayer is an invitation for temptation. Despite His warning against sleeping, the disciples fell into sleep and Jesus came back and said to them, “…Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.” (Luke 22:46) Jesus repeatedly pointed out that sleeping will lead to temptation.
Paul and Silas were awake and not asleep to access their breakthrough deliverance from their jailers when they prayed, “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.” (Acts 16:25-26)
Prayer is not playing games; it is labor. Jesus’ experience in Luke 22:44 demonstrate prayer as labor. It is written, “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) It is a serious business and it demands a serious investment. God is a prayer answering God and He will not fail to hear the prayer of His children. Just as Peter fell asleep at the Mount of Olives so he did again while he was set in prison for untimely death at the hand of Herod. In the case of Peter, “…Constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.” (Acts 12:5) Prayer delivered Peter from a sudden and untimely death. Wherever there is sleep in place of being awake one is positioned outside the will of God in Christ Jesus.
David knew the consequences of giving in to sleeping rather than prayer when he prayed, “Consider and hear me, O LORD of my God; enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed against him”; lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.”” (Psalm 13:3-4) Why not engage your eyes in prayer rather than engage your eyes in sleeping when it matters? It does not matter how long you have been in the Lord and neither does it matter the title you answer to, sleeping in the place of evil agenda will not excuse any believer from evil occurrence.

Prayer for the day: Ask God for the grace of enablement to engage prayer without ceasing.

FAITH CAPSULE: God continues to be merciful while man often rushes to judge others.  

John 8:1-12

It is written, “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.” (Genesis 6:5) Since the time of Genesis wickedness reigns on earth while evil prevails in the heart of man. Despite the world of wickedness, God continues to be merciful while man often rushes to judge others. Thank God that God alone is God otherwise, the whole world be gone by now as a result of judgment.
The story of an adulteress woman in the book of John 8:1-12 depicts the world rushing into passing judgment instead of the world being rushed into facing judgment.
The scribes and Pharisees attempted to disrupt Jesus’ teaching in the temple when an adulteress woman was brought to Him. “…And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, ‘Teacher, this woman was caughtin adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?’ This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him…” (John 8:3-6) In the case of adulteress woman, the world wanted to rush into judgment. As it has often been, the world which should be judge for sin and sinning turned out took the position of a judge attempting to pass judgment.
Jesus responded to the world (the scribes and Pharisees) when He, “…stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.’” (John 8:6-7) Jesus drew a line in the sand to identify those who had never been a sinner and those who were sinners. Among the world, none could cross the line of “never had been a sinner”. No man has been assigned to be a judge and Jesus spoke specifically to this when He stated in Mathew 7:1-2, “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.”” Evidently, since no one could cross the line that was drawn by Jesus, no one was qualified to cast a stone of condemnation on the adulteress woman. Jesus, our Lord and Savior, declared to the woman, “…neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”(John 8:11) Jesus the only righteous judge commanded the adulteress woman to go and sin no more. Are you a speck vigilante? Jesus admonished, “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 7:5)

Prayer for today: Pray not to take any position outside of the Lords calling upon your life.

FAITH CAPSULE:Whatever you behold will either build you up or bring you down.

2 Samuel 11

The Bible records about King David, “It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.” (2 Samuel 11:1) Ideally, King David was supposed to have been at war. Instead, he was at home walking on the roof and, “…from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. So David sent and inquired about the woman.” (2 Samuel 11:2-3) Assuming that King David’s location at the wrong time played one of the major roles in his crime against Uriah, the issue of “behold” steered him into his crime against Uriah.
Behold actually means: to observe; look at; see. In most cases, whatever you observe might end up serving you the way you receive it. What you look at will end up in attaching you up to serve your desire. What you see will determine what will become of you. The function ability of beholding what goes around us hangs on to our eyes. Eyes and ears are the major route to our hearts where decisions for action take its place.
After beholding the wife of Uriah while she was bathing, King David inquired about her. He could have turned away from what he observed; what he had looked unto. However King David could not keep his heart under control when he inquired more by sending his messenger for her. After sending for her, “she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house. And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, ‘I am with child.’” (2 Samuel 11:4-5)
Beholding another man’s wife; beholding another woman’s husband; beholding what does not belong to one is a direct trap for self-termination. What is it you are beholding that does not belong to you? King David ended up in deep sin. There is always forgiveness where there is repentance. However, the consequence of sin always remains and could be very costly.
In the presence of two disciples, John the Baptist declared, “…Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36) The two disciples who beheld Jesus followed Jesus. The two disciples’ life was transformed; they were built up to possess their inheritance among the sanctified. Whatever you behold will either build you up or bring you down. If what you behold is of good it will build you up for good and if what you behold is of evil you are set for destruction.
Just as the two disciples beheld Jesus, you begin to behold the living word of God to build you up for His glory.

Prayer for today: Ask God to work in you what is well pleasing in His sight.