Heralds Digest

  “ And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” Colossians 3 : 17 , 23 - 24 NKJV Crèche, as a nursery for formative minds, holds the curriculum for learning the basics about life. Whenever anyone goes to crèche (kids, parents, and teachers, etc) with the understanding of its fundamental purposes, focus on character moulding becomes a priority even in the face of misinformation, misunderstanding, and mismanagement. When Jeremiah found himself in the crèche named Judah with affliction and persecution, he found the precious words of the Lord: “ Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts ( Jeremiah 15 : 16 )”. Likewise, believers ...

  “ But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.” Colossians 3 : 14 - 15 NKJV The peace from God and the peace of God can be used interchangeably as products of the grace of God. Notwithstanding, there is a significant difference or variation in the two concepts of peace. While the peace from God is God-given, the peace of God is man-driven. The former underscores the appropriation of the love of God through the acceptance of His peace; but the latter extends this love of God through a deliberate release of His peace to others. Therefore, when the scriptures admonish “ But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection “, it emphasizes the common experience where many believers claimed the receipt of the grace of God without an evidence of His love extension to others. Unfortunately, believers do readily extend the influence o...

  “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The pride of human engagement or the dignity of labour has a singular motivation in life; the change or transformation from no name to nice name. And with advances in the building of legacy, respect, and honour in the name of a celebrity, human names begin the unhealthy competition against the purpose and counsel of God. Unfortunately, the competition towards the building of a nice name that hedges above the names of others often attracts the game of bitterness, wickedness, manipulation, and all forms of unrighteousness. Whereas, the name above all names has been announced in our Lord Jesus Christ; so that our unhealthy competition can be replaced with healthy consolation. “ And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. ” The highest honour in all of life’s e...

  “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Colossians‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Waywardness is often the evidence of the absence of grace in the hearts. But when grace appears, the hearts are expected to be consistently fed by the word of Christ. Eventually, the words or conversations of everyone who is completely reconciled with Christ are no longer his but Christ the Way. Unfortunately, advances in human wisdom or intelligence often come with some elements of waywardness, the exercise of human liberty, and the expression of rights or privileges. Particularly, in the ensuing competition in our fast-paced world, it is always difficult to contest positions, privileges, and opportunities with wayward elements without the adoption of their wayward approaches. Therefore, believers must be consciously deliberate with the engagement of all activities that ...

  “ And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. ” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Contentment is not really the absence of complaints. It is just the presence of confidence in Jesus Christ and His promises, especially in the midst of disappointment or discouragement. Unfortunately, whenever believers are influenced by the spirit of complaints against a partner at home or workplace and principals in the society or institutional system, personal focus on the regular calls for productivity and progress in life is jeopardized. Therefore, believers with the character of a new man are admonished to focus on contentment in the name of the Lord Jesus, rather than getting sapped by carnal complaints. Little wonder the scriptures encouraged the beloved elsewhere that ‘ all things work together for good to those who love God; and to those who are the called according to His purpose ’. The moment the heart is stayed on di...

  “ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord .” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ A Christian home, work and society life has greater struggles against diver sources of influence in this age of information technology than the preceding ages. Even sincere minds often query the logic behind some scriptural precepts, unless the intervention of the Spirit of God is embraced. And like it was in the garden of Eden, the battleground between God’s word and information from the pit of hell is the heart of man. Gone are the days when anyone can physically prevent the access of corrupting information over self and others within one’s sphere of influence. The scriptural admonition therefore is ‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom... ’. It implies that even when the eyes, ears, and human senses unintentionally feed on words from the Prince ...

  “ and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him ” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ is not merely a stereotypical narrative, it is the reality of our polluted world. The new world of corrupt politics, compromised administration, dishonest partnerships, and disloyal services is strong enough to determine the steady-state attitudes of any honest man. Therefore, putting off the regalia consisting of the list of anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of the mouth can just be a right reformation without the righteous repository. Unfortunately, self-help cannot attain the price for the righteous repository. It is obtained by the work of grace, being the imposition of God’s righteousness at Christ’s expense. Thereafter, even in the blackness of the darkest of corruption, compromise, and carnality, the redeemed of the Lord can constantly reflect the righteousness of God, being the ...

  “ Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” Colossians‬ ‭3:5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Without an inner strength and determination, productive services in a toxic environment is generally abhorrent and almost impossible. Unfortunately, whether at home, workplaces, and in the society, people often proceed into the business of service offering with the mindset of shifting the responsibilities of creating the conducive environment for good services to someone else other than self. Whereas, in spiritual services, people do not just expect to come to a conducive environment for service. We proceed to spiritual service and fellowship with God with our conducive inner environment. Otherwise, the scriptures say our religious, professional and family services become simply idolatry. This is because we are expected to be actively engaged in spiritual service when we physically serve our family members, p...