Heralds Digest

  “and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.” Colossians‬ ‭1:20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The prospect of making it to heaven shouldn’t be a subject of concern for those who are truly reconciled to Christ. Unfortunately, believers are often faced with the subject matter because of the reality of redemption with partial or no reconciliation. Reconciliation suggests a complete yielding of life and its essence to Christ, who fully paid the price of redemption by His blood. Whereas, exposure to the things of this world comes with its attractive influences against the Will of God. Therefore, Apostle Paul and his team would engage in spiritual warfare and travail over the souls of believers in Colosse for radical reconciliation. When believers are fully reconciled to Christ, they no longer have personal agenda, be it at home, career of professional pursuit, or social preferences that constitute con...

  “I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians‬ ‭4:12-13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Accepting the Lord’s command ‘Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me’ is one of the greatest privileges of discipleship. If the Master is gentle and lowly in heart, His obedient disciple must learn how to find perfect rest in lowly living. The concept of learning a lowly lifestyle is a deliberate surrendering of the heart to the prevailing condition at the centre of God’s will, even when the opt-out option is not far-fetched. Unfortunately, many disciples in today’s quest for lively living have perfected a subtle revolt system to the Lord’s command. The yoke rendered in a relationship with the Lord is not just any unpleasant yoke; it is the Lord’s special yoke for effective service delivery. Therefore, lowly living is all about le...

  “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” Philippians‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Truth remains the solid foundation upon which good relationships and services in life can be built. But the search for the true report often requires rigorous investigations, mostly leading to unpleasant findings, unstable discoveries, and unsustainable revelation. It is always true that a true report alone can lead to broken relationships, distressing hearts, and emotional breakdowns, if not handled with the grace of God. Therefore, an acceptable or right report must first be true, and then noble, just, pure, lovely, good, virtuous, and praiseworthy. Unfortunately, no news channels, intelligence gathering, or expert diagnosis in our world can guarantee this type of report; and bel...

  “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Philippians‬ ‭4:4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Since the light in life is seasonal, it is always better to focus on the Source of the light rather than the illumination from the light. Otherwise, there will be no escape from gloom in seasons with darkness. And in the wordings of the present admonition or real rejoicing, “ Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! ”. Why? The rejoice is in the Lord; and not just from the Lord. Only in the Lord comes the true rejoice, i.e. - righteousness, enterprise, justification, opportunities, inspiration, confidence, and excellence , with its attendant peace of mind. These offers in and from God are neither seasonal nor temporal; they abide permanently with all believers, whose hope is in the Lord. As long as Jesus remains the Lord of our lives, His righteousness, enterprise, justification, opportunities, inspiration, confidence, and excellence keep us rejoicing throughout the seasons of life....

  “Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern.” Philippians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The world has never suffered the dearth of patterns. Particularly in the age driven by social media and internet connectivity, the world is currently plagued with over-supply of polluted patterns with its attendant confusion and complications in following. But amidst the confusion and complications in our world, are there perfect patterns anywhere? With insecurity, infidelity, and insincerity in our homes; coupled with carnality, corruption, and carelessness in our private and public institutions, it is easy to understand the cause of despair in the present world. Notwithstanding, when Apostle Paul encouraged the brethren to “ join in following my example” , it was an offer of hope for a perfect pattern in himself…a pattern that shows the walk of perfection, rather than just a talk show. Obviously, we must be prepared to courageously follow the perfect P...

  “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.” Philippians‬ ‭3:7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ One of the achievements of formal training using the elementary curriculum in those days involved essay writing project/assignment on ‘My Future Ambition ’. Fast forward, success in life’s projects, including family, career, ministry, and social relationships, is mostly wired by personal ambition, conviction, and motivation. And like Paul the Apostle before his conversion and change in personal perspective, many of us have clearly defined metrics of success motivating our involvement in the project of life…mostly with little or no reference to divine purpose. Sincerely, at what point in our walk with the Lord can “ But what things were gain to me ”…become “ counted loss for Christ” ? It should be at the point when we no longer see personal ambition, conviction, and motivation for all engagements constituting a conflict of interest to divine purpose. When we can easily get engaged a...

  “and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1:14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The common metrics of confidence in the world are mostly recognized as collateral by the banks. They speak the language of cash currencies, monetary net worth, etc. Although they are usually a replica of the chest confidence that are capable of commanding respect at home, among friends, and within the society, they are easy targets for satanic invasion. Those who build their confidence on the reinforcement of the chest are easily intimidated by fear, and broken by compromise, in the days of strategic confrontations. Whereas, those whose hope or confidence is built on Christ the solid rock are always fearless and bold, even in the shackles of chains and hurtful intimidation. Paul and the brethren in Philippi have this type of chain confidence, because their confidence has now been completely removed from the chest to Christ....