Take Joshua son of Nun, a man with whom is the Spirit

“Take Joshua son of Nun, a man with whom is the Spirit” (Joshua 27:18)

   God had declared His determinate will that Moses should not lead Israel right into the Promised Land. God had decided that Moses should die and join his forefathers in Paradise before crossing the river Jordan (13v). Moses, the most faithful and obedient servant of God, had immediately submitted himself to God’s will. He did not try to convince God to somehow allow him to enter the Promised Land. He only prayed that God would raise another leader who is worthy and able to lead the people of God to take possession of the Promised Land.

   We have many lessons to learn from this instance. Moses had two sons, Gershom and Eleazer. Yet we see Moses asking God to show him the person who should lead the people of Israel after him. So the first lesson for us to learn here is that spiritual leadership does not and should not come as heredity to anyone. No one should be accepted and appointed as leader of God’s people just because he is the son of a great leader or preacher. Each leader must be selected and appointed by God according to His own sovereign will.

   Secondly, we must consider the first and foremost qualification required to become the leader of God’s people. God did not say “pick up Joshua and appoint him the leader - he is highly educated!” nor did He say “take Joshua and make Him the leader of my people because he is very strong and sturdy!” God did not even say that Joshua should be the next leader because he comes from a great family. None of these is the reason for God to choose Joshua as the successor of Moses.

   God said “take Joshua and appoint him the leader because he has the Spirit!” The first and foremost qualification to serve God is the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

   No man can serve God effectively without the anointing of the Holy Spirit. This truth is so important that it is impossible to over emphasize it. All the men who were used by God in a mighty way have been anointed men. Education, physical health, experience and training are good but they cannot be of any use in the ministry if the minister is not anointed.

   God wants all His children to be anointed. The precious anointing of the Holy Spirit is not meant only for the full time servants of God. It is not meant for evangelists and pastors alone. The leader cannot lead properly if he is not anointed and the followers can’t follow faithfully without the anointing on their heads.

   Let us recognize the importance of the anointing of the Holy Spirit, pray and receive it. May the Lord help us and guide us in our pursuit of this most precious blessing! Amen and Amen!

The Replica of God

"The Replica of God"!

   Man is the crown of God's creation. After creating innumerable galaxies and nebulae, all the stars and milky ways, God was still not satisfied. Because all these beautiful heavenly bodies like stars and planets can never be friends of God. God wanted intelligent beings with whom He could make friendship.

   The Bible tells us that God is love. God's heart is filled with love. He delights in loving others. But in order to love, the recipient of love must be an intelligent and emotional being. You cannot fall in love with a fan or a refrigerator! You may like it very much but you cannot say "I fell in love with my refrigerator"! In the same way God wanted children for Himself. He wanted some intellectual, emotional beings that could fall in love with Him and receive His love. For this reason God said "let us make man in Our image, after our likeness" (Genesis 1:26).

   We must never forget that God had a special purpose and plan for mankind. Even today after all the development in astronomy, scientists still do not know the boundaries of this universe. In this vast universe, man occupies a very special place. God is thoughtful of mankind and loves it in a special way. God has high and lofty purposes for mankind. Unfortunately a great majority of men and women do not realize this glorious fact. They live as though there is no purpose in their existence and there is no goal to be reached. The prime concern of their life is to earn bread and clothing, to fulfill their physical desires. Such an attitude towards life is not worthy of one made in God's image.

   We are made in God's image and in God's likeness. We are destined to be children and friends of God. Animals too are hungry and thirsty and need a creature of opposite sex. But men are more than animals and have a greater need, a hunger for God. Every human soul is thirsty for God. If we ignore the great maker of the universe we are insulting ourselves and degrading ourselves to the standard of animals.

   It may be argued that animals cannot make airplanes, spaceships, computers and automobile vehicles. May be you would like to argue saying "even if man doesn't care for God, he is still superior to animals because he is able to do so many things which the animals cannot". Of course man's intelligence is superior to that of the animals. With all his technological and scientific sophistry, man is still hungry and thirsty. Man, with all his wealth and scientific advancement is not satisfied. And that hunger will not be quenched until and unless he finds peace with his Creator.

   Our highest goal is to reach God. We are created with this purpose. The poorest of the poor who have found God, are happier and satisfied than the richest who have not found God. My dear brother and sister, whoever you are, you are a replica of God. Don't miss the greatest blessing in your life. Don't ignore the hunger of your soul. Don't try to quench the thirst of your spirit with money, physical pleasures and other amusements. Such an attempt is futile. Nothing else can satisfy your soul. You need God and it is possible to have Him as your best friend, through Jesus Christ! Come to God through Jesus. Your future will be glorious.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved

   It is the general rule of this universe that there cannot be a general rule for all situations and individuals. There will be and must be exceptions for every rule. This is the rule that governs the universe – There may be some exceptions even for this rule! All the laws in the spiritual and physical realm are applicable situationally. All the moral and ethical laws are applicable dispensationally and situationally. An act or a deed which is allowed in one dispensation is counted as sin and crime in another dispensation. A thing which is an abomination in a given situation and dispensation will be highly revered and loved in another situation. This is the all embracing law of the universe. Many examples can be given to substantiate this statement.

   Under the Mosaic law of Old Testament it was prohibited for an ordinary Israelite to eat the bread that was in the Holy place of the Temple of God. But we know that David entered into the Holy place and ate the Holy bread of the Temple of God. On the surface level it seemed as though David was breaking and transgressing the law of God. But God accepted the actions of David and blessed him. David was an exception in God’s judgment and assessment. Many more similar examples can be given. God had deliberately commanded prophet Hosea to marry a Harlot. This was actually prohibited for any spiritual leader of Israel. The case of Hosea was an exception. Moses himself gave the commandment of the Lord to the kings and leaders of Israel that they should not marry a woman from gentile nations. But Moses himself had later married a Cushite woman. Moses was again an exception. The list will be long enough almost to write a small book.

   Apostle Paul wrote against the practice of circumcision among the Christians. But we know that he himself got Timothy and Titus circumcised!

   The Lord Jesus said – “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” but we know that the thief on the cross who repented and was saved was not baptized. The thief on the cross was an exception. It is good to see people who strictly want to keep the law of God. There is nothing wrong with that kind of an attitude. It can be even said that such an attitude is highly commendable. But we must also be mentally prepared to allow for some exceptions for every rule and law. All the rules and laws of God were given not only to restrict the freedom of mankind but to teach certain precious spiritual lessons. Let us learn to use the law of God to edify rather than cause harassment for people. May God give us the right perspective in this regard!

The end of all things is near

“The end of all things is near” (1 Peter 4:7)

   The Bible is one incomparable book which speaks about both the beginning and end of all things. Now if I should list out the things which are revealed in the Bible and explain how and when those things have begun and are going to end, this message will extend into a voluminous book. It would be both impossible and unnecessary within the premises of our present purview.

   The Bible speaks about the beginning of sin in human life. The great fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is the beginning of human sin. The sin which had its beginning in the lives of Adam and Eve will come to an end only through the manifestation of the power of the blood of Christ. Every other problem we face as individuals and as a race has its roots in the fall of Adam. Our problems are innumerable. The world is full of problems today. We have problems like unemployment, inflation and uncontrollable epidemics like cancer and AIDS. And we have the problem of racial discrimination which results in war. These are the problems we are facing as a race. We have some individual problems too. Each one knows his/her own problems. Some of us are facing financial problems and some have problem keeping their family intact. Most of the individual problems result in indigestion, acidity and insomnia. No one is really happy in this world; even millionaires and their children are attempting suicide. There’s no peace in the hearts of the people and in the families. These are all the vicious fruits of the original sin in the Garden of Eden.

   But we have good news! The words in 1 Peter 4:7 “the end of all things is near” may sound like an announcement of the doomsday. But it is also a positive announcement of the happy end of this world. When God says that the end of all things is coming, He means that even your problems will come to an end. Jesus, the God of the Bible, can put an end to your sleeplessness. He can put an end to all your physical ailments and sufferings. Jesus came to this world to put an end to all the problems which the devil brought into the human race through the sin of Adam and Eve.

   My dear brothers and sisters, are you living as a slave of secret faults? (Psalms 19:12). Jesus is able to put an end to the misery of double life in you. The devil is the beginner of all human problems and Jesus is the mighty God who ends all human problems and sufferings. Whatever your problem is just talk to Jesus about it and that is the end of your problem.

The ultimate truth

  God is the author of all true science but the devil uses and misuses the science for his own evil and destructive purposes. Devil cannot create anything but can only use what God has created. John 1: 9 tells us that the true light comes into the world and enlightens every person. Because of the enlightenment caused by this divine light there is so much of scientific advancement.

   One of the important branches of modern science is the study of human anatomy. Today we have much information about the different glands in human body. There are so many glands in human body which produce different kinds of chemical fluids which in turn create certain desires and attitudes in us.

   The modern biological science tells us that some people are hyper sexual because of the hyperactivity of certain glands in their body. Certain hormones in the body create the desire for physical sexual relation. If the concerned glands do not function properly and the required hormones are not present in the body, the person becomes frigid and disinterested in sex. The doctors inject the required hormones into the bodies of such people. By and by there is an increasing conviction in the society that glands are the root cause of the individuality of the person.

   But this is only half truth and half truth is more dangerous than a total lie. It is true that glands mould and shape one’s individuality but it is also true that the individuality and the determinate will of a person also rules and guides the conduct of the glands!

   We know that fans create breeze. When fans are rotating they create breeze. But sometimes there is a power cut or the fans are switched off. A powerful natural breeze comes into the room and the blades of the fans are moved and they begin to rotate, though at a low speed. This is a good illustration of the interdependence of human character and human glands.

   When the glands function we have certain desires. But when deliberately oppose those evil desires with our determinate will and intelligently try to create holy thoughts and desires in our minds even our own glands will turnaround and cooperate with our mind. This is the way a Christian must cultivate holy thought life and holy conduct. Praise God that we even have the Holy Spirit to help us in this holy exercise. This is the ultimate truth of the whole matter. May God help us to understand and be guided by truth.

Learning about God

Learning about God

   God is invisible. He is not within the grasp of five senses of human beings. How, then, can we know Him? This is the biggest question in the area of theology. Philosophers around the world, down through the ages, have tried to explain God. With all the explanations, God is still unknown to mankind. God is a mystery and difficult to comprehend.

   Yet we cannot give up our desire to know Him. We exist because of Him and for Him. He made us with a purpose; unless we know that purpose and live up to it, our existence would be meaningless. Unless we know God, we cannot know His purposes for us. Hence our desire is to know Him. Knowing God is most difficult and essential in human life.

   How do we know God? There are various means through which God reveals Himself to us. Firstly we know God by observing the nature. Nature is an expression of God's attributes. Romans 1: 20 says "God's invisible qualities, both eternal power and His divine nature have been clearly seen… in the things that God had made".

   Secondly God reveals Himself through His written Word, the Holy Bible. Every other religious holy book contains a part of the truth about the creator. But the Holy Bible is God's inspired Word and is the ultimate authority on all spiritual issues. Where other books differ with the Bible, the Bible is to be preferred as the only reliable testimony of God. Those who want to know God must know the Bible.

   Thirdly there is the human conscience. One's own conscience is the voice of God, the mouthpiece of God, implanted in the human soul. Our conscience tells us what is right and what is wrong. Even when we think of God our conscience tells us which thought is right and which concept is not right.

   Then the final and the most wonderful revelation of God is His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the final revelation of God and His character. He is the visible image of the invisible God. By looking at Jesus and meditating upon His words and His deeds we know what God is like.

   We cannot know God unless we approach Him through Christ. Any claim saying that someone knew God without accepting Jesus as Lord, is a false claim. Every person who is thirsty to know God must come to Christ.

   Come to the Lord Jesus Christ, read God's holy Word and then study the nature under the guidance of your conscience - this is the right way to acquire the correct knowledge of God. May the Lord give you the wisdom to make the right decision! God bless you

The Secret of Success

The Secret of Success

   These are the days of tough competition. In the field of business there is an ever growing competition. So many children of God are finding it difficult to survive and succeed. Even the educational pursuit has become very tough and full of competition. Students, businessmen and employees and every other section of the society are facing difficult times.

   My dear brother and sister this may be your story; you may be making attempt after attempt and loosing every time. Whoever you are and whatever your profession is or whatever ambition is, you may be facing disappointment every time. You may be a job seeker making every possible attempt but never being selected. I have a good news for you! The Bible guarantees success and prosperity. You need not be the looser, you need not be an unsuccessful person.

   The Bible speaks of an amazing person in 1st Psalm, 3rd verse. It says, "he will be successful in all that he does", what a wonderful promise! What a life to live! I think that is the best promise in the Bible. God says that you'll never be unsuccessful. He promises that you'll succeed in all your attempts. What more can we expect from God? What must we do to inherit this wonderful promise?

   Nothing too difficult! God asks to do something very simple and easy! We must rejoice in the Law of God and meditate upon the Law day and night. That is all God wants from us. We must love the word of God and meditate upon the word of God continuously, day and night.

   Please do this and see what God will do for you. Begin each day reading the Bible. And before you go to bed, read the Bible. And throughout the day whatever you are doing let a section of your mind be fixed upon the holy Word of God. As long as your mind is thinking of the Word of God you'll not commit sin. You'll be able to face and overcome any temptation. You'll know the mind of God and the will of God for your present situation by meditating upon the Word of God. If your heart is filled with the Word of God, it will be easier for you to be guided by Holy Spirit in every situation and in all that you do. If you are filled with the Word and led by the Holy Spirit, you'll automatically do the right thing in every situation. You'll always speak the right word and do the right deed.

   When you do the will of God always, defeat will become impossible for you. God promises your success in all that you do. All God's children must be successful and prosperous. This will glorify God and bless the whole world. It is my sincere prayer that you should be successful in your life. Take hold of this wonderful promise of God. May God bless you.