Avoid worrying over worldly things

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O believer in God, worrying over worldly things is the last thing you ever need to be doing. The world worries over the things of the world and gets into panic and despair. Be not like them, for they are sheep in need of the Good Shepherd. But you are already in the care of the One True Shepherd Jesus Christ. So put your trust in Jesus, instead of banking on your worries.

Jesus said to His disciples in Matthew 6:25-34 the following words about dealing with worry:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? ²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Meditate on the words of Jesus about worry. And you will by faith be able to overcome worry. Act on the words of Jesus, so that you receive true peace!

Tempt no one

Tempt no one to sin ever,
Though you be naive or clever.
Refrain from such a sin,
Lest your hope become thin.

Remember that no tempter is allowed in paradise,
For God’s kingdom detests all vice.
Tempt not for leisure nor treasure nor pleasure,
Lest God’s judgement you’d get in full measure.

Do not entice your friend nor foe nor neighbour,
Lest for your place in Hades you labour.
For its gate is wide and entry much cheap,
And the unrepentant there their torments reap.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea

(Matthew 18:6)

Speak words of faith

Speak words of faith,
Fear not any wraith.
Be bold in the Lord God,
And keep your vision broad.

Speak not fear nor despair,
But of each word be aware.
Guard your heart with full attention,
As life’s issues from it have ascension.

Speak only what is right,
Keep on your tongue wise insight.
Talk to encourage and guide,
Let your speech be courteous and dignified.

Speak never words unseemly and unwise,
Lest good fortune you lose and despise.
May your confession be from God’s word,
That your life be sure and not blurred.

Refrain from taking the Mark of the Beast

Refrain from taking the Mark of the Beast,
For its damnation by the Devil’s yeast.
Sorrow, pain and eternal regret,
If God’s command one does forget.

Trust not worthless idols and images,
Be not part of the world and savages.
Heed what Christ has commanded,
Faithfulness to the end is demanded.

Even if the forces of darkness seem to win,
Take not the vile mark and thus sin.
Trust in God even if faced with death,
Hold on to Jesus of Nazareth.

Though millions may take the Beast’s Mark,
The Gospel if you believe is enough life spark.
Don’t be fearful of sickness and pestilence,
In those times; focus on God’s ordinance.

By the Holy Spirit you live,
And by Christ you forgive.
Let your prayer then remain,
That Jesus Christ come again.

Always speak words wise

Always speak words wise,
That God doesn’t despise.
Always speak words wise,
That goodness you maximize.

Always speak words wise,
That it be good advice.
Always speak words wise,
That kindness you verbalize.

Always speak words wise,
That you’re favored in God’s eyes.
Always speak words wise,
That sincerity you realize.

Always speak words wise,
That avoids any false guise.
Always speak words wise,
That faith in others they energize.

Proverbs 17

17 Better is a dry morsel with quiet
    than a house full of feasting with strife.
² A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully
    and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
³ The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
    and the Lord tests hearts.
⁴ An evildoer listens to wicked lips,
    and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.
⁵ Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker;
    he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
⁶ Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
    and the glory of children is their fathers.
⁷ Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;
    still less is false speech to a prince.
⁸ A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of the one who gives it;
    wherever he turns he prospers.
⁹ Whoever covers an offense seeks love,
    but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
¹⁰ A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding
    than a hundred blows into a fool.
¹¹ An evil man seeks only rebellion,
    and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
¹² Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs
    rather than a fool in his folly.
¹³ If anyone returns evil for good,
    evil will not depart from his house.
¹⁴ The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
    so quit before the quarrel breaks out.
¹⁵ He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous
    are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
¹⁶ Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom
    when he has no sense?
¹⁷ A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for adversity.
¹⁸ One who lacks sense gives a pledge
    and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor.
¹⁹ Whoever loves transgression loves strife;
    he who makes his door high seeks destruction.
²⁰ A man of crooked heart does not discover good,
    and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity.
²¹ He who sires a fool gets himself sorrow,
    and the father of a fool has no joy.
²² A joyful heart is good medicine,
    but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
²³ The wicked accepts a bribe in secret
    to pervert the ways of justice.
²⁴ The discerning sets his face toward wisdom,
    but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
²⁵ A foolish son is a grief to his father
    and bitterness to her who bore him.
²⁶ To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good,
    nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
²⁷ Whoever restrains his words has knowledge,
    and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
²⁸ Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;
    when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent

Avoid the wrong perspective on the end times

One wrong perspective about the end of the world is that it’s going to be all fun and thrills. People feel that they will somehow manage to gain neutral spectator positions from where they will be excluded from all the painful parts of the end times. I reckon, some will be eager to take videos or photos of such events and pass it along for their 15 minutes of fame. Such an attitude won’t do them good. The Bible does tell us about the bitterness of it. Let’s read Revelation chapter 10 which confirms this:

1 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. 2 He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, 3 and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. 4 And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” 5 And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven 6 and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, 7 but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” 10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. 11 And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”

Wrathful nature of the Devil at the end times

Another thing about the end of the world is that the vile hellish serpent also known as the Devil or Satan will be thrown down to earth along with his angels due to their defeat at the hands of the archangel Michael and God’s holy angels (Good angels exist too). Also keep in mind he’s going be around with his wicked angels when he comes around. Since the Devil knows his days are numbered (all thanks to God!), he’s going to be filled with rage against the inhabitants of the earth and the sea as well but mostly towards those who keep God’s commandments and the testimony of Jesus Christ.  The “those” who are mentioned in the Holy Scriptures are Christians! Obviously, this is not going to be a roller coaster ride when the Devil comes to make war.

7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea. (Revelation 12:7-17)

The Anti christ and the False prophet will be there in the end times

Now the Devil will in those days do something not yet done. He will invest his power and authority into a sinister person who will be the Anti christ, also referred to as the Beast. Plus the False prophet who is also called as the Second beast shall arise. This unholy alliance, this evil trinity will try to openly and blatantly enforce worship of the Anti christ and also the image of the Beast. People who are holy shall not worship such wickedness despite the war being waged upon them by the Beast (Many will be killed in such times for refusing to bow down to the Beast and its image). While the others who don’t respect nor believe in the Lord shall end up worshipping the fake god controlled by the Devil who is none other than the Anti christ. You can refer to Revelation chapter 13 in which the whole chapter which confirms this. Don’t assume this will not happen in your beloved nation but only happen in a single nation such as Egypt or Syria, since this will be a world-wide event. People should stop assuming that the end times are happening only due to a certain country and its behaviour towards Israel. Like it or not, the various nations of the world have been playing puppet to the Devil for a very long time! Don’t be shocked if they’d follow the Beast too while staying silent when he causes the true followers of God to be martyred.

The wrath of God in its various forms will manifest in the end times

There are going to various instances of God’s wrath in the end times (refer Revelation chapter 16). This is because a lot of people will not give glory to God but will rather worship the Anti Christ. Here’s a list of a few such punishments mentioned:

• Harmful and painful sores will come upon the people who bore the mark of the Beast and worshipped its image.
• The sun will scorch and kill people with its heat.
• The throne of the Beast, and its kingdom will be plunged into darkness.
• There will be a great earthquake so violent that a great city will be split into three parts, and the cities of the nations will fall, and God will remember Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath.

Conclusion

The end times are anything but fun and games. The Devil’s going to be trying to destroy many at such times. Satan’s henchmen the Anti Christ and the False Prophet will deceive a huge number of people leading into eternal damnation. The wrath of God will work very strongly against all those who worship the Beast and even sinners in general. Dear reader, take such times seriously and act in a holy manner worthy, having full faith in Jesus Christ. Avoid taking causal mannerism towards the end times. Pray that you are found faithful to the Lord now and forever more.

Christ be with you!

 

Related articles:

• Effects and dangers of preaching an incomplete Gospel
• The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin
• The most evil system after hell itself (Babylon)
• Fighting alone for the Lord?

Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart (Proverbs 3:1-12)

3 My son, do not forget my teaching,
    but let your heart keep my commandments,
² for length of days and years of life
    and peace they will add to you.

³ Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
    bind them around your neck;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
⁴ So you will find favor and good success
    in the sight of God and man.

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding.
⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.
⁷ Be not wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
⁸ It will be healing to your flesh
    and refreshment to your bones.

⁹ Honor the Lord with your wealth
    and with the firstfruits of all your produce;
¹⁰ then your barns will be filled with plenty,
    and your vats will be bursting with wine.

¹¹ My son, do not despise the Lord‘s discipline
    or be weary of his reproof,
¹² for the Lord reproves him whom he loves,
    as a father the son in whom he delights.

One mistake to avoid to when waiting for a revelation from God

It’s a good thing for Christians to wait for a revelation from God on what they need to do, when they don’t know what is the wise thing to do. By waiting you show trust in God and avoid any hasty decisions.

Where it goes wrong is when you hold vigils, pray many times a day, fast from food etc in order to obtain a revelation from God which was already mentioned in the  Bible. Sometimes is better that you actually read what the Bible says on your situation and then pray for the faith you need. So when waiting for a revelation from God, if you know already that the final decision on your situation is written in the Bible, then avoid wasting time waiting here and simply do what the Bible says.

Let me give an example so that you know how to apply this. Mr. Jekyll is a judge and has to give the final verdict in a murder case. Just days before the final he is offered a bribe to sway the judgement as per the defendant. Now that bribe would help Mr. Jekyll to pay off his long pending debts and yearns for a luxury vacation in Australia. However he feels uneasy about that.

So, he attends as many church services as he can but doesn’t tell the preacher what the situation is but simply says ‘O minister of the Lord Jesus please give me a revelation today’. However the preacher doesn’t know what to say and tells Mr. Jekyll that he will pray for him instead. So an ‘answer-less’ Jekyll keeps meeting more than a dozen preachers and prophets to gain revelation with the same logic. He even fasts at times. However on the day of the verdict he is not at peace for he still is not sure.

Now for a few minutes just imagine before he did anything else he just decided to read the Bible. And he then got to read the below verses:

• And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of those who are in the right. (Exodus 23:8)
• Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live. (Proverbs 15:27)

So by doing this it would clear in great measure that God’s revelation to Mr. Jekyll is not to take the bribe but instead give a just verdict in the murder case. It would save him a lot of time and heart-break then.

What applies to Mr. Jekyll applies to all believers. It means that we can’t keep the scripture out of our hearts and minds when looking for God’s revelation for ourselves. For doing so won’t help us on our way to heaven!

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Live smart

The person who believes in Christ is called to be smart. Obviously, there is a lot of emphasis in the Bible on being truly smart. In the language of the holy writ they use the word wise rather than smart but it means the same thing.

God’s wisdom calls out to everyone to leave being simple and start to be wise. Read Proverbs 1:20-22 – Wisdom cries without; she utters her voice in the streets: the cries in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she utters her words, saying, How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? …

Again in Proverbs 8:1 – Doesn’t wisdom cry out? Doesn’t understanding raise her voice?

We do hear a lot of people use the term ‘common sense’ whenever they speak or rather give advice to their teenagers and servants too. It’s just that they expect people to do something wise which is so clear and should be quite common to any wise person.

A smart person takes time to get knowledge even if it means to hear someone out. Here we go:

• Proverbs 18:15 – An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
• Proverbs 19:20 – Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future.

Some caution however is to be exercised in classifying anything as true wisdom. Yes, I mean just because you want to enjoy a good time at a luxury resort, you don’t take in bribes though you might be told by someone who says its good money. Not everyone is capable of giving you wisdom. Just imagine a person took a bribe and got caught, would he even be able to enjoy in the resort or would he spend time in jail.

So the hallmark of wisdom is that it gives freedom and won’t land you in trouble. In fact a good part of wisdom is just staying out of trouble, that too undue trouble. A few verses on that:

• Proverbs 24:3-7 – By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches. A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might, for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory. Wisdom is too high for a fool; in the gate he does not open his mouth.
• Proverbs 21:20 – Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man’s dwelling, but a foolish man devours it.
• Proverbs 10:8 – The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.
• Proverbs 15:22 – Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.

Now true wisdom comes from the Lord God who obviously made wisdom. Believe me the Lord gives wisdom too. You don’t need to spend like 25 years on top of a mountain to get wisdom. You instead need to get it from the Lord who gives it freely. The best place to get it is from the Bible. There is much you can learn.

• 2 Timothy 3:16-17 – All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
• Proverbs 13:14-16 – The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death. Good sense wins favor, but the way of the treacherous is their ruin. In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.

The words of Jesus are wisdom and benefit those who follow it but at the same time those who reject his words find themselves in trouble. Jesus himself said, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:24-27)

I would therefore like that every person who stands up for God, stands up in wisdom. Getting wisdom is like getting a blessing. Like in Proverbs 3:13-26 it says, Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. …

Keep yourself away from things that are not wisdom like I said earlier. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ (Colossians 2:8).

Keeping the wisdom of Christ and not of the world is good combination indeed for you can’t walk to the right and to the left at the same time otherwise at sometime a breaking point will appear which might not be so nice. Also concentrating only on true wisdom helps you to utilize your resources more efficiently in the right direction.

Be smart, be blessed.

 

 

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