The Passion behind Compassion

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. “

If there is a quest for the source of the desire for expressing love or the root of the passion behind compassion, it would end at finding Jesus Christ who is the personification of love and who came down to explicitly express the Father’s compassion toward a dying world and the deep seated yearning in Him that none should perish (1 John 4:8-9 “God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.”) God Himself is the author of love and the express image of it.  And our capacity to love anyone or the will to be compassionate toward anybody has its genesis in Christ Jesus, who through His Spirit cascades love into our hearts (Romans 5:5 “… because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”)

Compassion is one expression of love just as mercy, grace and empathy might be. Has it ever happened that we’ve tried to show God’s love to some one, comfort someone in their pain, encourage someone is their backsliding, teach someone a spiritual discipline and somehow the action back fired or set in motion completely chaotic events? If we were to honestly check ourselves in that situation, we’d find that we had reached out  because of the enthusiasm of the flesh rather than the urging of the Holy Spirit. When our compassion is led by the prompting of the Holy Spirit within us it won’t have that effect (1 Corinthians 14:33 “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace”). Identifying the driving force or the passion behind our acts of love and kindness to one another is of paramount importance because if we are not careful to direct our actions according to the leading of the Spirit, then we are in the perilous position of switching to default mode- acting to satiate the lusts of our flesh which can have unwanted consequences (Galatians 5:16-17 “ But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do”).

 It is with the very intent of equipping us with the ability to fulfill the greatest commandment- to love God and to love others that Jesus Christ promised us ‘Another Helper’ (John 14:16 “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever”). When not directed by the Spirit, our motivation to show love and offer comfort comes from unconsciously exalting ourselves. We think of ourselves to be in a better position, more enabled or simply wiser than the one we are reaching out to and somehow what is so holy and pure to God as love, comes out as condescension along with a need to be identified or graded for the benevolence. The office of any ministry for God is primarily service. To love someone with God-kind of love requires humility. Only a humble heart that is prepared to serve another can truly love and exhibit the right kind of compassion, without personal goals. God came down from His throne in heaven, was born as an infant much like the rest of us and served His life on a platter to show His love for us (Philippians 2:3-8 “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross“). 

The passion behind our compassion is Christ Jesus, Himself (1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”)  

Being a Christian is not standing on a pedestal, feeling self sufficient in our own ways and exhorting others who may not have fully climbed up yet, with passionate speeches. Rather it is in the going down and accepting that it is the grace of God alone that uplifts us and desperately depending on the Spirit of God to direct our compassion toward people with solid actions (1 John 3:18 “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”). 

God Bless

Hiding in Glory

Psalm 91:1 “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”

Mankind has been seeking a hiding place to harbor deepest fears and darkest secrets since the first Adam sinned and lost the glory covering (Genesis 3:7-8 “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden”). Adam hid himself from God and from the ensuing judgement that would arise as a consequence to his sin and even today people are hiding from God. The real force against which we need to hide ourselves is Satan and his temptations, for he’s constantly on the lookout for a target who will fall prey to his charms (1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”) The enemy’s intent is that we take one step in disobedience and blow our God-given cover and hide from one another and from God Himself instead of in Him!

It is no wonder then that when one thinks of a hideout, they think of a dimly lit or a non-or illuminated, desolate place where no one is likely to discover them. Some are cleverer still and hide in plain sight by displaying their guilt and shame as nothing more than a mundane occurrence in this big bad world where everything goes and no one would give them a second glance. For those of us who know the good news that Jesus won us back our glorious garment, we also know that we are reinstated to our original hiding place:GOD (Ephesians 5:27 “ that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”) The presence of God is better than any other safe-house we can think of on our own to take cover from the principalities and powers of darkness, because in that place is the resounding echo of a victory that has already been won. There is a tune of our escape being at hand in that atmosphere that is not available elsewhere (Psalm 32:7 “You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.”).

It may be called “shadow”, but it is actually radiant with God’s power.

The very Person of God and His presence to which we are freely given free access to because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross, is not a dark dungeon nor is it empty. It is marvelously incandescent with God’s glory and brimming with His awesome power (Habakkuk 3:3-4 “God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth. His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand, where his power was hidden.”) Such is the hiding place God wants us to seek, where the pursuer will be blinded by His light and completely undermined by His omnipotence and so will not be able to touch us.  It is also where God’s glory varnishes us to face our challenger (Isaiah 49:2 “..in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away.”) He invites us to abandon our worldly and self-made hideouts and make Him our refuge. He desires above all that we tuck ourselves under the fetters of His wings instead of trying to be self-reliant or making war and violence our bunkers or using offence as our defense (Matthew 23:37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”)

Our God, seeing that He fashioned us after His own self, has also bequeathed unto us the ability and the means to be a sanctuary to others who are needy and has placed a mighty calling over us that we should be the fetters to His wings taking in a shelter-seeking brother or sister.  For such a ministry as this, He promises that He will light our way and His glory will be our sentinel (Isaiah 58:7-8 “when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.”)

Men of the earth seek refuge to protect themselves from harm’s way (that usually means other men of the earth) and hire the services of armed personnel (again, other men of the earth!) in whom they put their trust to guard them. Buildings have watchmen, people have personal bodyguards, even national leaders have entire departments paid with public monies entrusted with the security surveillance and safekeeping of their lives. But, only the children of God can truly identify the real enemy (Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places”) and also be completely aware that the target of such an enemy- our flesh, is dead, and what life we have is securely hidden in God with the Only Undefeated One – Jesus Christ, and that it is continually preserved in glory (Colossians 3:3-4 “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”)

God Bless.

 

Excellence In Pursuit of Me!

1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord [always doing your best and doing more than is needed], being continually aware that your labor [even to the point of exhaustion] in the Lord is not futile nor wasted [it is never without purpose]. [AMP]

There is a tendency to associate the term “Excellent” with nobility or ‘worthy of admiration’. But to define it more accurately would be to say that excellence is supremacy or above ordinary. All that the Lord God has ever made is nothing short of excellent- think ‘CREATION’!, and all of heaven sings praise (Revelation 15:3… “Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!”). Whenever God ordains His children to embark upon a project, He endues them with His own Spirit that enables excellent work to proceed out of them for His glory- think Noah and the Ark, Bezalel and the tabernacle, Solomon and the temple (Exodus 31:3 “and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship”).

Excellence is not a skill that we cultivate. It is the Person of God who affiliates with us!! 

Therefore, because it is the Spirit of Excellence from God that guides our hand, it is both possible and principle that our plowing in the Lord’s field be of excellent nature. It would do us well to remember that if we don’t allow ourselves to be pursued and infilled with excellence from God, mediocrity has pursued and possessed us. Mediocrity is not backsliding. It is simply not growing. We often mistake lukewarm with growing cold. It is not that there is no heat, but that the heat is not turned up to a fiery crackle. If we settle for where we are at, what we are currently doing in the Kingdom of God without raising the bar in our “seeking of God”, we are lukewarm and the spirit of mediocrity is at large within us and God is not for mediocre, He is the God of Excellence- El Elyon (God Most High) (Revelation 3:15-16 “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”)

The proof of the pudding lies in the eating and therefore we must grow to expect potential opportunities at every turn in our daily lives and ministry in which we will be tested for the excellence of Spirit that the Lord has invested in us. Daniel was a mighty prophet who had several such moments to showcase his excellent spirit, which caused him to find favor with kings (Daniel 5:12 “because an excellent spirit, knowledge, and understanding to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called, and he will show the interpretation”).  It is the portion of every believer to have the indwelling Spirit of God. Daniel did not only possess an excellent spirit but he also walked in the power of that spirit. Too often we are passive in the area of consciously subjecting  our own spirit to the Spirit of God, resulting in the allowance of the flesh to have a mind of its own. For the excellence of God’s Spirit to be evident we must be ready to walk in and work under the anointing purposefully at all times (Galatians 5:25 “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”)

The Holy Spirit can only work with spirit, not with the flesh because they are in constant conflict with each other (Galatians 5:17 “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.”) We generally tend to perceive ourselves as physical beings possessing the Spirit of God within us, the flesh being attributed with the source of our personality (example: Adam- is Canadian, is male, is a father, is a believer and possesses the Holy Spirit inside him). However, if we plan to excel in the godly work we set out to do, our outlook needs to change. We need to recognize that we are spirit-beings, under the influence of the Spirit of God who works His excellence in our desire and in our ability to do His work, and that we have been given physical bodies to carry out that work. All we need do is “Drive Under the Influence” of the Holy Spirit without “unbelief” which can reveal itself in our cribbing and stubbornness every time we hit a speed-bump on the way (Philippians 2:13-14 “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Do all things without grumbling or disputing”)

Shall we then surrender to God, and seek Him in every attempt that we make to do His work. For in the Kingdom business we cannot achieve His targets with our strenuous efforts and our will-power, but only by His mercy that chases us down! (Romans 9:16 “ So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.”)

God Bless

 

 

Get In Touch!

Matthew 9:20-22 “ And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well.”

Our God is REACHABLE!! No matter how crowded it can get, if we are willing to put out our hand in faith we will find that “His Garment” is accessible. The garment of Jesus was typically one of the Jewish attire, just as that of any other Israelite. It was inclusive of the tassels on the corners which consummated the law (Numbers 15:38-39 “Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner.And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them…”)  To the hurting woman the hem of Jesus’ garment represented the fulfillment of all the commandments that she knew she’d not been able to fulfill. After all, she’d been “ceremonially unclean” for twelve years until then and could not be declared as clean until she had made an offering for the cleansing which would require at least 7 days of not discharging any blood.

The woman recognized her need to get in touch with Jesus because she believed that if she would ONLY touch His garment she would be made well. Physical wellness, a sense of wholeness and well-being is most often a motive for reaching out to God. The sick and hurting have been known to throng to places that are great distances away and to experts that are almost unbearably unaffordable, just to receive healing in their bodies. But this woman had realized that her HEALING is both accessible and available at the stretching forth of her hand in faith. To the one who believes that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of ALL the commandments and that His garment (His righteousness) can bring salvation, their faith can and does relieve them of bodily suffering and restores them to perfect health (Romans 10:4 “Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”)

The stigma that would have been attached to the disease the woman was carrying around for twelve years is at best unimaginable. She had to have been looked down upon for her “ceremonial uncleanness” by the society at large. We may be considered as outcast in the midst of our own people because of our circumstances and maybe people don’t want us near them for fear of contagiously acquiring our situation. It might be that we have reached out to people but haven’t found anyone who would want to take our hand or may be we have feared soiling others with our distasteful past and so have steered clear of them. But if we come into CONTACT with the “Living Word” we are purified. Jesus, ‘The Word who became flesh’ cleanses us from every defilement through His Word (John 15:3 “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”) Our spotlessness matters to Him because we are His dwelling place and He is the “Temple Cleanser” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “ Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”)

Twelve years of “Haemorrhoissa”- continuous menstruation would mean that for the entirety of that period she was unable to conceive a child. Her identity as a woman with child-bearing abilities was compromised. Her fertility was masked by her physical condition. We may possess the potential to be productive in something specific but if there is a constant outflow of our time and energy into other causes we are hindered from conceiving God’s purposed gifts for us. But today, if we are ready to reach out and experience the tangible presence of God in our lives and CONNECT with Him in faith, He is ready heal us of our infirmity and end barrenness in our lives (Exodus 23:25-26 “You shall serve the Lord your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you. None shall miscarry or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.”)

Are we prepared to blindly reach our in faith and touch the hem of Christ’s Garment?(Mark 5:56 “..And as many as touched it were made well.” His Righteousness is easily accessible and available. Let’s Put our hands in the hands of the Man from Galilee.

God Bless.

 

 

 

 

 

Anoint the shield

Isaiah 21:5 “They prepare the table, they spread the rugs, they eat, they drink. Arise, O princes; OIL THE SHIELD“

For godly men and women, being engaged in warfare is nothing more than an exercise of  our spiritual office as we are always found in one of three stages – Going into war, in the middle of war, coming out of war (having been victorious or defeated until next attempt).We are called to suit up in the armor of God and be found armed and dangerous at all times not so we can instigate the enemy but to combat the assailant in the face of assault, and above all, to be preserved at the end of it (Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”) Equipment for doing battle is both of the offensive and defensive kind, both of which require anointing. The preparation of arms with oil is done for a three-fold purpose – to preserve them, to polish them and to make them slippery and difficult to be countered by the enemy’s attack.

Now the ointment that we oil our artillery with is the anointing  of the Holy Spirit that is poured out upon us from above. We might have acquired our divine armor and ammunition but it is the heaven-sent anointing that turns it into a mighty spiritual weapon in God to fight our spiritual wars (2 Corinthians 10:3-4 “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.”) 

Two things happen when the Holy Spirit readies us and our equipment for battle- the enemy becomes a visible target and the Lord of Hosts sends an army to take its position behind us

The Enemy : 

It can be difficult at times to perceive what form and shape the enemy takes to come against us seeing as we are not fighting an incarnate (Ephesians 6:12 “or we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”) But it is not the intention of our Heavenly Father that we be in the dark or be uncomprehending about our attacker. When we choose to use our faith under the government of the Holy Spirit, the formless enemy will not only be forced to reveal his identity but will also be unable to counter this deadly combo (Acts 6:8-10 “And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and those from Cilicia and Asia), disputing with Stephen.  And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.”)

The Army:

Seldom are we aware of all the help that God makes available to us in the face of peril. At best we feel ill-equipped with our faith being shaky at the knees and at worst we feel all- alone. But when we in our one-man capacity are willing to partner with God, our enemies are as good as conquered because He chooses to stand by our side and be our army and our ammunition rolled into one (Judges 6:16 “And the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”) But sometimes, we yearn for a physical evidence of support for our cause which we are convinced no one else cares about as passionately as we do (1 Kings 19:14 “He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”) It is then that the Lord pours out His Spirit on us and causes a host of soldiers to be enlisted to back us up, only to comfort us and lift up our morale (Judges 6:34 “But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon; then he blew the trumpet, and the Abiezrites gathered behind him.”)

Dear Church, let us ready ourselves for war-waging. All we need do is seek the instructions of the Commander in Chief of the Lord’s army, polish our armaments with His Anointing and wait and see His Salvation….because the battle belongs to the Lord.

God Bless

 

 

 

 

 

 

Willing for Spirit Infilling

1 Samuel 10:6-7 “Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you.”

God is always so motivated to communicate His presence with us. He longs for us to know that He has plans for us for which He will pour out His Spirit in us to help us carry them out. To get us to realise that a divine infilling is being provided to equip us, He really doesn’t stop at anything to get our attention. He may create a supernatural atmosphere to get us to acknowledge His presence (Exodus 3:2-3 “And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.””) or He may even use the objects of our daily use to speak directly to us (Numbers 22:28 “ Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?””)

In the event of the manifestation of the Holy Spirt, we must take care to DO AS DIRECTED by Him, whatever it is, no matter how crazy or surreal it may look because whether we realise it or not the choice to obey and be a part of God’s masterplan is still with us. Prophets may prophesy over us or we may receive instructions through divine encounters but God still wants for us to agree to take our positions in His grand orchestration out of our own freewill. We can choose to reject acting as the occasion demands by displaying unbelief at the supernatural occurrence (Luke 1:18 “ And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years”) or we can fall in line with God’s plans with an immediate leap of faith (Luke 1:38 “Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.)

The real question is: Are we ready for the power of anointing to fall on us? Are we willing for the Spirit infilling and to do all that we will be led to do in that supernatural occurrence without any hesitation or fear? Are we prepared to be transformed into fully-outfitted vessels to begin our divine and God-purposed voyage?

God Bless.