Heralds Digest

  “ God is the Lord, And He has given us light; Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You .” Psalms 118 : 27 - 28 NKJV Finding the g-factor in all of life’s pursuits is always a rewardable enterprise, whatever is defined as the g-factor. While the g-factor is grass to a lot of people, to some it can be gravel ; and probably the g-factor is gold to a handful of people. Unfortunately, the rewards from grass, gravel, and gold are still perishable and not pure, despite the variation in their strength of endurance in the ascending order. For example, those who are motivated by the momentary appeals, and appetites are rewarded with grass that burns off almost instantly at the heat of the moment. The gravel seekers do delight in the gathering of local appeals and appetites that do not have a far-reaching and wider relevance in the scope of life’s realities. They would have so many records of the ...

  “ 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...

  ““ If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, Then how can you contend with horses? And if in the land of peace, In which you trusted, they wearied you, Then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan? ” Jeremiah 12 : 5 NKJV The cheap defense of low-key independence anniversary by developing nations without sustainable strategy against the monsters of corruption, indiscipline, and absence of nationalism is always detestable. Citizens of these nations are often plagued with inferiority complexes, low self-esteem, and inability to sustain innovative ideas. Unfortunately, ‘footmen’ or unqualified artisans, high-handed development partners, and fraudulent politicians are often given free tickets to weary and worn-out endowed human resources, minerals and potentials whenever nationals failed to recognize  their consignable conquests. Like most developing nations in today’s world, Israel and Judah faced similar detestable realities in her economic and soc...

  “ Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight ” says the Lord.” Jeremiah 9 : 23 - 24 NKJV Except for anyone who can correctly answer and appropriate the question “ What is the meaning of life? ”, life happens to all and not vice versa. For those who appropriate the pursuit of wisdom, weight, and wealth as the meaning of life, the likes of king Solomon had all these metrics and still got lost in the vanity of a lonely life. While a lonely life attracts the wrong crowd of people with conflict of interest in their desired appropriation of the subject’s wisdom, weight, and wealth, only a lovely life can find purpose even in the absence of these worldly metrics. So, when the scriptures say “ Let no...

  “ We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel ” Colossians 1 : 3 - 5 NKJV The root of rendering consistent gratitude is the finding of grace for oneself and then following God by faith, without which it is impossible for anyone facing his inevitable giants in life. Finding grace involves the acknowledgment of Jesus as the embodiment of grace, acceptance of grace that underscores the wholesomeness of the gift, and extending the goodness to others. It is not surprising that gratitude built on this foundation of sustainable grace keeps praise and prayer on the lips of Apostle Paul. And after finding grace is following God (Jesus) by faith, as the only evidence of every believer’s testimony on finding grace. Instead of buying the distractio...

  “ If you faint in the day of adversity, Your strength is small .” Proverbs 24 : 10 NKJV There is no doubt in the sourness of adversity, but the perspective is always personal; and it cannot be generalized for everyone involved in the season of adversity. In one perspective, the season of adversity is all about outward focus on testimony terminators. This outward-focused perspective breeds nothing less than bitterness, anger, discouragement and discontentment. Whereas, when the scriptures say “ If you faint in the day of adversity, Your strength is small ”, it admonishes an inward-focused perspective on the season of adversity. Here, the focus around all the prevailing circumstances of life is centered about the building of the working strength for the race. For example, Joseph needed the services of his testimony testers, including (1) the pit from his envious brothers, (2) the placement in Potiphar’s house by the greedy Ismaelites, and (3) the sentencing into prison by the lo...

  “ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, ” Philippians 3 : 9 - 10 NKJV The understanding of Apostle Paul’s concept of right righteousness is deeper than the ordinary struggle with filthiness or unrighteousness in life. After a believer has had the experience “ and be found in Him ”, the basic experience of grace - God’s righteousness at Christ’s expense - is obtained. But then, deeper than this foundational righteousness is the possible struggle for personal ambition instead of daily surrendering to God’s agenda. Absolute consecration demands the laying down of personal pursuit of relevance, respect, and recognition, even while engaged in all activities at the centre of God’s will. Unfortunately, believers are readily tempted to beg...