Heralds Digest

  “ Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus .” John 1 : 35 - 37 KJV John the Baptist’ voluntary surrendering of Andrew and his colleague to Jesus Christ is another unveiling of the greatest gift in the Master, besides being the source of the green goodness and gracious glory. While many people would readily see the possession of followership or discipleship as the basis of ministry, John the Baptist not only saw the pursuit of the greatest gift in Jesus, he inspired his disciples to make the ultimate decision to leave his ministry to follow the Messiah. Likewise, many things in our relationship with people in career, family, and ministry go south when we see only personal promotion, affluence, and recognition. Unfortunately, those whose lives’ ambitions are limited to the pursuit of these Greek gifts often do not consider the...

   “ And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” John 1 : 14 , 16 - 17 KJV The reality of life shows that it is the problem of trust that makes most people to settle for less. The grievous glory in all forms of unrighteousness is appealing to the generation of believers today because of mistrust in the gracious glory of Jesus Christ. Whereas, the scriptures, by the inspirational revelation through John the Baptist about Jesus Christ, declared that only the gracious glory is full of both grace and truth. Like John the Baptist did, every believer’s life must be willing to fight for the fullness of the revealed grace and truth to preserve the gracious glory. Little wonder that Jesus Christ, in reference to the courage of John the Baptist, rev...

  “ The righteous also shall see, and fear, And shall laugh at him: Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; But trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness. But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.” Psalm 52 : 6 - 8 KJV The first lesson for students of economics is inescapable. It is the definition of economics, stating that human needs are insatiable. Yes, human needs for basic amenities of life are driven by greedy goodness. The strength of those who trust in the abundance of material properties, financial independence, political position, etc, are measured by relative comparison of success, and not by real contentment in satisfaction. That is why greedy goodness is only concerned about the selective distribution of goodness for selfish gain at the expense of plotting evil and wickedness for others. Whereas, the goodness of God is ever green and sustainable, without...

  “ Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; And uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; And sinners shall be converted unto thee.” Psalm 51 : 12 - 13 KJV One of the beauties of salvation and freedom from sins and all forms of unrighteousness is the possession of the free spirit of God. The free spirit embodies the inspiration of the Most High and ability to operate in the realm of the supernatural. Whenever a believer is privileged to escape mechanical rendering of activities or services and carnal engagement with people, he literally becomes the battle axe and a weapon of war in the mighty hands of the Creator of heaven and earth. Therefore, “ Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; And uphold me with thy free spirit” plea goes beyond grace for salvation unto gift for service for kingdom expansion. And we all need spirit sacrifices to be engaged for spirit services. Unfortunately, most often and like the first apostles of Jesus Christ, we ...

  “ The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: But destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity. The righteous shall never be removed: But the wicked shall not inhabit the earth .” Proverbs 10 : 29 - 30 KJV It is not a surprise that the affluent, influential, politicians, and the prosperous people on earth are considered the lords because of their material strength. What is always strange in our world, and not just a surprise, is the scriptural revelation “ The way of the LORD is strength to the upright” . Even in Christian circles, ‘The way of the LORD ’ versus ‘The way of the lords’ is not a straightforward call. When riches are measured by the metrics of physical prosperity, political prowess, and financial freedom, people will be readily swayed on the path of unrighteousness, evil, and wickedness to attain these metrics. The way of the lords pride itself in the ability to achieve the metrics of worldly riches, especially by undermining all acts of righteousness and t...

  “ And the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dismayed: take all the people of war with thee, and arise, go up to Ai: see, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land: ” Joshua 8 : 1 KJV Ignorance of God’s gifts in life and ministry can readily turn owners to negotiators, beggars and slaves on their birthrights. Israel’s forfeiture of her rights to Ai had previously turned them to victims, until Joshua dealt with the root of discredit, disappointment and destruction. Notwithstanding, Joshua still needed a recovery of confidence to believe that Ai has been restored as one of the gifts from the Lord.  To the New Testament saints, the gifts of the Spirit for accessing possessions include the words of wisdom, knowledge and the discerning of spirit. Unfortunately, ignorance of God’s gifts in life emboldened believers’ enemies to sell the gifts of fear and intimidation freely on their lots. And as long as the hearts are crip...