God was pleased to reveal his son

Weekly Devotion

April 16, 2015

“ But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased  to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him”  ( Galatians 1:14-16)

When we meet Christ, it is never coincidental. It is not by chance neither because it is an inherited faith. Well, maybe you can say , I found Christ through my parents, or through a circumstance of events , no matter what your story is God called you and set you apart  All in Christ are called. The apostle Paul says his calling was God’s grace and God’s grace is poured out to all. But if you feel somewhere deep in your heart  that God has called you into his work  for a specific task, you were in his master plan  and he planned to set you apart from the time even before you were formed  in your mother’s womb. Do you know the Lord Jesus as the son of God, Savior and Redeemer?  Consider yourself  abundantly blessed that God was pleased to reveal Jesus  to you! This is the most special and precious thing that God has done in your life. Jesus is the unsearchable riches of God. Jesus is God’s tenderness ,love,  mercy and compassion and forgiveness . When you see Jesus you see God! As a former Muslim I believed in one God and the Bible also says there is only but one God , but my life was so much far away from God, though I practiced my former  religion whole heartedly,  I walked in darkness and sin.  I had no hope and was lost in the world. This one God revealed his Son to me and my life was drastically changed. I often questioned What was so special about me that Jesus was revealed to me? I realized that I was no special. He sets all of us apart so that we may experience Him. Jesus is everything to me. He is my life , my healing, my Love and comfort , my hope and my savior and Lord. Now all I have been doing is preaching Jesus and telling others how much God loves you too. You can say all about God, know the whole theology of God, but it is only through Jesus that you can experience a “ savior of boundless compassion, infinite patience, unbearable forgiveness and love that keeps no score of wrongs” ( Brennan Manning) .

 Preach Jesus!

God is not dead neither is Satan

God is not dead neither is Satan.

Weekly devotion April 9^th 2015

When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him.  This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain… Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” … the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; (Mark 5: 2-13)

Jesus meets a man who lived in the cemetery. He could not live at home even though he was tied with ropes or chained. He would break free.  He was a vagabond with mental issues. “Night and day he roamed through the graves and the hills, screaming out and slashing himself with sharp stones.” (Msg Bible).  This was caused by an impure or an evil spirit.  Today we would diagnose this as psychosis and prescribe a strong sedative to keep his mind in control. I have worked in psychiatric wards and have met people in my work who are put into such drugs. They life is bounded and “chained” by drugs. But the Bible says this man had an evil spirit. A spirit of Satan.  Satan is real. As D L Moody says “I believe Satan exists for two reasons: first, the Bible says so; and second I’ve done business with him.” 

 I had severe anxiety and fears since I was 18 years of age. I literally could not go out and socialize. Unlike the man described above in the Bible I had to hide myself in my room. In medical school I was put on drugs to calm me. When I met Jesus I was delivered from evil spirits and healed completely .Through prayer of an evangelist demons came out.  The Bible says Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil.  In my Muslim religion we called evil spirits jinn. In my previous religion I would hear of Mullahs visiting people and dealing with spirits from the people. I would be terrified to hear of this as young boy. We would be warned not to urinate under a tree during the time of prayer otherwise we could be possessed by jinn. We believed that bad people had power over us to work evil against us. They could do that by offering us food or just by an evil eye or some kind of evil prayers.  

 There is truth in it. Because there is truly a devil. Satan is real but hides possessing people, influencing culture, religions and knowledge seeking to steal, devour, and kill. “He promises the best, but pays the worst; he promises honor and pays with disgrace; he promises pleasure and pays with pain; he promises profit and pays with loss; he promises life and pays with death.” (Thomas brooks) He steals the joy and peace of mankind. Jesus calls him a liar, a murderer, the accuser and one who can bind people with sickness and cause mental anguish, fear, anxiety and hallucinations. The Bible describes him as the angel in heaven who was called Lucifer who desired to become like God. Jesus said he saw Satan fall like lighting from heaven. Jesus defeated his temptations through GOD’S WORD, his death and resurrection Jesus has given us power over demons through His name and that Jesus in us is greater than Satan in the world. The apostle Paul says that he is a god of the world who had blinded the minds of the unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the Gospel. Jesus has the power to deliver you from Satan. The Gospel is the power of God that can turn you from darkness to light and from Satan to God. Invite Jesus in your heart, repent of your ways. And you will be saved!

The cross or the man on the cross?

The cross or the man on the cross?

Weekly Devotion April 3^rd, 2015

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18)

My first encounter with the Cross was at the age ten when my father put me in the Catholic school . St Joseph’s Primary school . Every morning students assembled and behind the stage was this five foot crucifix of Jesus. . I was fascinated at the dead man hanging on the cross . I would ask my parents about Jesus and they would always tell me that we believe in Him. Period.

As I grew up, I got interested in God and wanted to experience Him. It is like I had this hunger for God since I was a child. I wanted to find Him. Spirituality interested me. I would often go to the catholic bookshop and wonder at the rosary with the cross that was attached to it. I would buy one and  I would remove the cross and carry it my pocket and then much later I would even  wear it with a chain  as a talisman. My Muslim religion had amulets which were given to us to ward of evil. When we had some kind of fear or needed protection from evil , then the mullah could make us one. When my life was filled with anxiety and fears Mullah Akbar my religion teacher had given me one to wear. I even covered it with a pure silver box and wear as necklace .   I also thought the cross could help me .But my sickness fears  and sinful life got worse and nothing could help me.

I have seen crosses everywhere. I have seen people wearing  as necklace or earrings . A lot of people think it is a piece of beautiful jewelry. A lot of houses have it on their walls. I have one in my home office too. The truth is, the crucifix cannot save you. The cross does not save you. It is the MESSAGE  of the cross that saves you.  The message of the cross is the power of the God.  I Stood in front of the cross for three years in the school, I  prayed too  and wore too but it did not  prevent Satan to enter my life . Satan enters also in the churches with all the crosses high on the steeple. But the Message about Jesus Christ who was crucified ( On the cross) and raised from the dead is the one that saves you. When I heard this message the power of God saved me and healed me.  Believe in Jesus and him who died for your sin and by his stripes you were healed. You will be saved!

Only the Cross

Through the centuries many schemes have been propounded for uplifting mankind and “bringing in the kingdom of God.” These grand-sounding schemes have failed because they ignore the greatest power of all—the regenerating power of Jesus Christ in human hearts.

Many years ago, Dr. Lyman Abbott, prominent pastor in Brooklyn, New York, resigned his church. He stated in his letter of resignation: “I see that what I had once hoped might be done for my fellows through schemes of social reform and philanthropy can only be done by the influence of Jesus Christ. There is no dynamo in reform save the Cross of Jesus Christ!”^[1]

---

^[1] Jones, G. C. (1986). 1000 illustrations for preaching and teaching (p. 92). Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

Good works + Good works is not equal to Jesus

Good works +Good works not equal to Jesus.

Weekly Devotion March 26, 2015

“They killed him…but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen….He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." ( Acts 10:39-43)

This passage is the sermon that the Apostle Peter preached when he was called into the home of Cornelius. The Bible describes Cornelius the captain of 100 men in the Roman Army  with eight godly qualities. Devout , God- fearing, generous ,prayed to God regularly and fasted ( KJV verse 30) . Others described him as a righteous and respected by all the Jewish people. In fact God even accepted his prayers, and his gifts to the poor (Acts 10: 4) and angels appeared to him in a vision too! With all these good qualities he still needed to be saved. He was a pagan who had converted to Jewish religion and believed in God but he would still be judged by Jesus. An angel of God appeared to him asking him to call the Apostle Peter who had a message for him. Peter had a problem too; he thought the message of Jesus Christ was for Jews alone. But here is a Roman who is not a Jew but yet believes in Jehovah, yet he needed to hear what all the prophets testified, that is about Jesus; his death, resurrection, and Jesus as the Judge and forgiver of mankind. Well, if you follow the story this is what happened when Cornelius the godly man and his close friends and all his relatives heard the message from Peter -“the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.” Our good works can be a total hindrance to experience the salvation of God. The world with its good and bad people needs to hear about Jesus. Cornelius was told by the angel to send for Peter “He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.” I urge everyone reading this, not to be fooled by good works. Let’s do good works but our eternal destiny depends on Jesus.  Here is a nice story to illustrate further:

At the close of a Gospel service an intelligent-looking man came to the minister and said, “I do not see any necessity for the Blood of Christ in my salvation. I can be saved without believing in His shed Blood.”

“Very well,” said the minister, “how then do you propose to be saved?”

“By following His example,” was the answer. “That is enough for any man.”

“I suppose it is,” said the minister. “And you propose to do just that in your life?”

“I do, and I am sure that that is enough.”

“Very well. I am sure that you want to begin right. The Word of God tells us how to do that. I read here concerning Christ, “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth.” I suppose that you can say that of yourself too?”

The man became visibly embarrassed. “Well,” he said, “I cannot say that exactly. I have sometimes sinned.”

“In that case you do not need an Example, but a Saviour; and the only way of salvation is by His shed Blood.”

—The Chaplain

when your life is measured in a balance

When your life is measured in a balance.

Weekly Devotion March 19, 2015

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners –of whom I am the worst. 16 But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. ( 1 Timothy 1:15,16).

These are the words of a very religious leader -Paul. He calls himself worst of sinners twice!  He was called Saul the Pharisee. His father was a Pharisee too.  He was a religious leader and according to his religion of Judaism, he would be regarded a perfect person who had never done anything bad, righteous as regards the law. He prided himself and could say he was the Hebrew of Hebrews. But when he met Christ , his position of things changed completely. This is what he said in another place ;  “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ…” ( Philipians 3:7-9).In the face of Christ he calls himself a worst of sinner!  All his goodness was rubbish now . He was shown mercy of God ! . This mercy is found in  Jesus death on the cross who shed his blood for forgiveness of all  mankind good and bad , religious and irreligious to  brings us into a good standing with God.

In my own previous religion, I faced a dilemma since childhood. I would feel I am good and then  bad and often a sense of guilt in my heart no matter how many times I prayed. When I am praying five times a day or fasting during  the month of Ramadhan doing my all to please Allah I feel good , but then at the bottom of my heart I would not have the peace with God.  After prayer or after the month of Ramadhan the “holy” feeling would vanish and would feel like I have never prayed or fasted and felt very irreligious and bad . It was a daily struggle. Just like what the Apostle Paul says, I felt I was a worst sinner with no assurance of salvation. Then I met Jesus. He came into my life .  I came to know that he died for me to make me a saint and righteous. Shocking and unbelievable isn’t it? The Bible says  “He became sin who had no sin so that I may become the righteousness of God. That is true mercy! As a Muslim we believed that God was merciful ( Rahim) but I was not sure how his mercy could forgive my sins now ? After I die? Somehow I could see the balance weighing heavy with sin. I was the worst of sinner as Paul says. But then I believed in Jesus who died for me and rose from the dead. Suddenly, I felt the forgiveness and assurance that if I died today I could go to heaven. I wasn’t like Paul very religious but he still needed mercy of God . What about you? Religious and good? You will still need the mercy of God and is found in Jesus alone. We are saved not by merit but mercy. Someone said “ Mercy is unmerited favor from God himself to an erring people who can do nothing to earn it except to hold out their hands”.