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]

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