Heralds Digest

“And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭1:10-11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/mrk.1.10-11.nkjv When a forerunner assignment was assigned to John, many can rightly assume the assignment will be plagued with lack of enthusiasm. But John the Baptist accepted the call with great enthusiasm, even preaching “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose”(verse 7). Unfortunately, many divinely-assigned responsibilities and ministries at home, fellowship and society are easily abused by the passion for power instead of the pursuit of purpose. But by staying on his ministry, John got the approval of God, and better than the commendation of fellow men, by the parting of heaven and the descending of the Holy Spirit upon the Lord Jesus Christ during one of h...

“Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭24:46-47‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.24.46-47.nkjv Focused on the difficult seasons of life is a proven distraction from the wholesome picture of divine purpose for existence. Notwithstanding, it is difficult to see the bigger picture without the inspiration of God. It took the assistance of the resurrected Christ to open the eyes of the disciples to the scriptures from the plague of the setbacks initiated by the arrest, crucifixion and death of their ‘untouchable’ Master and Lord. Partial writ in believers’ family, career, and work life can be a perfect reflection of setbacks, suffering, sacrifices, and sorrows. But it is not wisdom for anyone with a purpose-driven mindset to take long-standing decisions motivated by...

“And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭24:38‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.24.38.nkjv Complexity in handling the dreads of insecurity involves the combined control of the outward terror and the management of the inward torment. When doubts arise, fear sets in and produces torment, thereby preventing useful productivity and fruitful engagements in life. The disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ have had to handle the setback caused by their sense of insecurity from doubts immediately after the arrest, crucifixion and death of their ‘untouchable’ Master. Even with all the several evidences of the relevance of these awful occurrences in the scheme of God’s redemption plan, the dread from doubt subsist. And just like the Saviour asked “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?” and without any response from the disciples, the basis for doubts has always been unfounded. Yet, the dreads from doubts are alwa...

“Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭24:30-32‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.24.30-32.nkjv Since secret things belong to God, several matters in human affairs are partially or permanently shrouded in secrecy, depending on the quality of human relationships with God. Painfully, there are certain depth of relationships that are considered not deep enough to unveil the seal for deeper revelation of the glory of God. For example, while Jesus walked, talked, and expounded the scriptures with these disciples from Jerusalem to Emmaus, they were unable to discover the person in relationship with them. The revelation of Jesus was reserved until they pleaded for a closer r...

“Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?”” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭24:25-26‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.24.25-26.nkjv In moments of confusion and uncertainty, finding the best understanding of mysterious matters can truly be an expensive expenditure. Projects of life can be opened or reopened without clearly defined focus and objectives. For the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, the list of their confusion was long until the company of the resurrected Jesus Christ was unknowingly entertained. Although the disciples were rebuked for being slow of heart to believe prophesies concerning the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, their confusion and uncertainty were removed by their entertainment of Jesus, who turned their rough road to revelation road. Otherwise, inevitable rough roads in the life affairs of these disciples and all ...

“Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ”” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭24:5-7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.24.5-7.nkjv Resurrection story is not just a strange concept to people in our contemporary times, even the disciples who heard the preparatory message before the event did not accept nor believe the story until after the event. Starting with the women who expressed their love and affection with a weekend-long preparation of expensive fragrances and spices as offering to the dead, the 11 disciples who regarded the story as idle tales after receiving the strange news from the women, even to believers and admirers of the bible stories, life expenditures still take an expensive turn to the tune of ou...

“Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of the rock, where no one had ever lain before.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭23:53‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/luk.23.53.nkjv Although life is a compendium of lonely and lousy activities and engagements, notable achievements are often assumed to be determined by lousy portions of human preoccupation. Whereas, the life of Joseph of Arimathea or his engagement towards providing the tomb testimony teaches that soberness and lonely disposition can be the precious ingredients of a great virtue in life. Given the capacity to hew a grave out of the special rock, it implies that Joseph was blessed with material wealth, privileged position and the ability to be engaged in lousy activities. Notwithstanding, the renown public figure chose to be engaged in unpublished activities, as long as they are aligned with his convictions. Unknowingly to Joseph then, his lonely engagement with the body of the crucified Saviour will la...