Heralds Digest

  “ Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved me in my distress; Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer .” Psalms 4 : 1 NKJV Thank God for the first Sunday or Sabbath in the New Year. What a day of rest! Without prejudice to those who are necessarily, or by emergency, must work today, the rest from the Lord is not in the day; but the true rest is in the Lord, who gives righteousness to His people by His grace. Even in the deepest of distress, the psalmist found rest in the God of his righteousness. It implies that rest is not in the absence of hostility, but in the presence of the Holy God in the heart of His redeemed. When He said ‘Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest ’, He meant restful righteousness. Therefore, before you list stuffs on the covenant slip for the New Year, let restful righteousness top the list. When you truly find restful righteousness, you become completely blessed by the Lord to enjoy the best of ...

  “ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1 : 7 NKJV All-round success and breakthrough in life, career and ministry is not limited to the attainment of material riches, political authority, and professional advancement. In fact, the maintenance of human sanity, dignity, and the attained prosperity requires a special kind of wisdom. Otherwise, the fear of losing out completely, even in the midst of affluence, becomes a strong and potent concern. This is the reality and the dilemma of the fools’ fear. The fool can grow in the wisdom and philosophy of generating material and intellectual riches; but this feat is often pursued at the expense of obedience to the commandments of the Lord. Whereas, divine wisdom embraces the fear of the Lord and attentiveness to His instructions, as we interact and manage the challenges with our professional, family, career, workplace, and social activities in the New Year. Beyond God’s...

  “ After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. ” Genesis 5 : 22 - 24 NKJV The relationship of men in the antediluvian dispensation with God can be simply classified into two categories, namely white walk and wicked walk. Based on the consequences of the fall of man, many characters stood out with pride during this dispensation for their passion for unrighteousness, wickedness, and evil. But contrary to the lot on wicked walk, Enoch and Noah stood out with a simple acknowledgment of their white walk as ‘…walked with God!’ ; and God literally took away both of them from the ‘wicked’ lot. As the New Year starts, believers are encouraged to acknowledge the ugly influences of the ‘wicked walk’ in the past year, and begin an amazing ‘white walk ’ with God. When we walk with the Lord in the light of His wo...

  “ Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession. ” Psalms 2 : 8 NKJV Surely, the New Year brings fresh opportunities and the prospect of great possessions. Likewise, the possibilities of diverse interests and alternative sources for guidance and instruction are enormous. The most important question is ‘what is the deep delight for the best possession’?  Only those who can find the answer in Jesus are safe. Unfortunately, the people of the earth are already plagued with deep displeasure through their penchant for vain things. Like it happened to Cain in the Old Testament and king Herod in the New Testament, “ Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? (Psalms 2 : 1 )” couldn’t spare anyone who hasn’t been redeemed from the fall and wouldn’t embrace the express revelation in the divine counsels. Notwithstanding, the New Year still offers everyone a fresh opportunity to access “ The nations for ...

  “ He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalms 1 : 3 NKJV Season’s greetings for the New Year often comes with the rhetoric presentation of opportunities, privileges, and resolutions; but rhetoric presentation will not always translate to realistic performance without a decisive change in perspective. Before getting swallowed into the realms of rhetoric, it is important to underscore creativity as the divine perspective and original design for all humanity. While “ He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season “ is the divine perspective on creativity, sin depravity has served humanity with the natural perspective on destructivity. Instead of enabling creativity through integrity, innovation, and intimacy with God, destructivity is embraced through slandering, slothfulness, and scornfulness with ...

  ““ I will teach you about the hand of God; What is with the Almighty I will not conceal. Surely all of you have seen it; Why then do you behave with complete nonsense? “This is the portion of a wicked man with God, And the heritage of oppressors, received from the Almighty:” Job 27 : 11 - 13 NKJV Like someone rightly said “ It is only when you understand the transcendence of God that you see how amazing his immanence is ”, scriptural evidence presents Job as someone privileged to understand the perfect portion in God. For clarity's sake, the ‘transcendence’ of God means that God exists apart from, and is not subject to the limitations of, the material universe. He is above and beyond, surpassing and excelling, greatly superior to us. On the other hand, the ‘immanence’ of God means that it is possible to experience his immediate friendship. While Job adores the transcendence of God, and he enjoys His immanence, many believers today embrace the partial portion in human intelli...

  “ The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold .” Psalms 18 : 2 NKJV Here comes again the season of reflection on laurels, bounties, and accomplishments in the passing years, amidst the tendencies to reflect on disappointments, challenges, and unwavering battles. Definitely, the common tradition is “ count your blessings, name them one by one! ”; but most times we are disappointed while counting the wrong stuffs. When the psalmist says “ The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength “, he opens the secret of an immeasurable satisfaction in holding unto every believer’s greatest treasure - God. Being alive and spared to keep living for the glory of God is the perfect portion of believers, especially those who are surrounded by the challenges of life. When God truly becomes our perfect portion, and not stuffs, the believer is positioned to influenc...