Heralds Digest

“Then Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him.” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭1:17-18‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/mrk.1.17-18.nkjv Fans of any sporting club are proud followers of club activities, especially when the club is responding to their interests and intelligence. Otherwise, powerful but frustrated fans can be a torn in the flesh of club’s management strategies. Whereas, faithful followers of the Lord cannot indulge in frustration, no matter the path the Master choose to lead the way. When Jesus called each of His disciples, He said “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men”. The responsibility to faithfully follow Jesus does not necessarily include the disciples’ reliability after following. While catching the fishes, funds and fellowship of the world requires the tools and intelligence of men, becoming fishers of men for the glory of God alone requires the gifts of the Spirit that comes onl...

“Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭1:12-13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/mrk.1.12-13.nkjv By comparing the account of the temptation of Jesus Christ by Satan by both St. Matthew and St. Mark, anyone can understand the major import of wilderness experience: for wild and not for wafers. While the scriptures clearly clarify that God is not the Architect of temptation in believers’ life, the indispensable wilderness experience before a distinguished engagement in ministry or major assignment in life is always the harbour of evil, wickedness, and temptation from Satan. Either taken by St. Matthew on the intent of being tempted by Satan or perceived by St. Mark on the intent of being inspired by the Spirit, the fact remains that God allowed the wilderness experience for proper preparation for fruitful engagements in Christ’s m...

“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 ...