Heralds Digest

  “ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it .” Matthew 16 : 24 - 25 KJV In all fairness, fruitfulness while following Jesus does appear as a subtraction of personal interest instead of addition. And this is the reason why there is zero chemistry between trusting God and leaning on personal understanding. “ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself ”…of personal interest, intervention and interaction. And then comes the major challenge, how can we access God’s interest, intervention, and interaction when we readily connect emotionally with people, events, and experiences? Jesus responds “ Take up your cross daily, and follow me ”. Every believer’s cross is his deliberate and intentional willingness to ensure his personal interest, intervention a...

  “ And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven .” Matthew 16 : 19 KJV One of the best keys on earth was given to Captain Chesley Burnett Sullenberger III, who skillfully and safely landed a broken U.S. Airways Aircraft on Hudson River on January 15 2009, by the Mayor of New York City. To give someone the keys to a city symbolizes immense privilege, power and authority. Little wonder the feeling of influence and control on the seal of Governors, Presidents, Kings and Prime Ministers; but these earthly privileges are always restricted by jurisdiction and constitution. But when Jesus told Peter, and by extension all believers, “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven“, it is important to underscore that these promised kingdom keys extend beyond earthly jurisdiction and constitution: “whatsoever thou shalt bind on e...

  “ How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? But I have trusted in thy mercy; My heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me. ” Psalm 13 : 1 - 2 , 5 - 6 KJV The uniqueness of Psalms 13 is the comparison of a defiling thought with a delightful deal in real life. The heart is a chessboard where either a delightful deal or a defiling thought is played. That’s why Christ told the disciples elsewhere “ But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man (Matthew 15 : 18 )”. Therefore, those who have truly struck a deal with the Lord Jesus Christ by grace unto salvation do have a privilege to choose delight in the laws of the Lord and meditate only on His promises. It doesn’t matter how long the battle rages,...

  “ The words of the LORD are pure words: As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever. ” Psalm 12 : 6 - 7 KJV There is no doubt that the savour of truth was intended by the Lord when He said elsewhere “ Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men (Matthew 5 : 13 )”. Unfortunately, this ‘post-truth’ era detest the savour of truth with outright freedom, fashion, and frivolity. But as it stands, truth is still the only pure preservative for healing, holiness, and honesty. When believers truly become an embodiment of truth, there will be no safe haven for unrighteousness, wickedness, and hostility at homes, marketplaces, and palaces. For example, the truth was revealed to Joseph in a dream at the age of 17 years; and God helped him to pres...

  “ At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus, and said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him .” Matthew 14 : 1 - 2 KJV The hallucination of  Herod the tetrarch on the  martyrdom of John the Baptist shows that there is no wisdom at all in wicked ways; they are simply wrecked ways. Even after the death of John the Baptist, testimonials of mighty works still attended the truth delivered in his lifetime. Whereas, the tetrarch’s conscience remains wrecked. Unfortunately, the wreck in wicked ways often appears as wisdom while truth is getting established. For example, the acknowledgment of the mighty works in the way of truth spoken by John the Baptist is an obvious call to repentance and reconciliation; but no one can guarantee that Herod the tetrarch ever surrenders his heart to the call for salvation. Whereas, the only wise way and escape from wrecked ways is repe...

  “ Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it .” Matthew 13 : 45 - 46 KJV Life is definitely a puzzle filled with pearls; and without purpose, priorities on the pursuit of these pearls are readily misappropriated. And since Jesus compared the kingdom of heaven to the pursuit of one pearl of great price, it implies that without a guided focus on the kingdom of heaven, earthly agenda and its deceitfulness can easily rob anyone of the required dedication on the pursuit of the pearl of great price or heaven. Inspired by the character Joseph in the Old Testament, Joseph’s relationship with God was his pearl of great price. And for this, he traded fleshly pleasure with Potiphar’s wife, rightly deemed as great wickedness against God. Little wonder, he could relate with earthly circumstances and challenges without losing his precious pearl or the abiding pr...

  “ But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty .” Matthew 13 : 23 KJV The parable of the sower teaches the acceptable responsibilities of the citizens of the kingdom, without questioning the acknowledged reliability of the King. The sower, who is the King, and the seeds that represent His word capture the reliable authority of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Therefore, the responsibilities of children of God in His kingdom do not start with fruitfulness. “ But he that received seed into the good ground“ would have opted for friendship, fellowship, forthrightness, and faithfulness ahead of fruitfulness. It implies that fruitful influences must start with a decision to be a friend of the King by repentance from old practices with the enemies of the King. Amazingly, friends of this King are saved by grace and totally delivered fr...