Tuesday, April 9, 2013

HABITS OF THE HEART


HABITS OF THE HEART
Everyone has certain habits of thought and feeling, some good and some bad. A good habit is saying “thank you” when someone does something nice for you. A Family member may have a good habit of cleaning out the sink after using it.
Some people have superstitious habits. For example, a ball player must wear a lucky hat. For others, it’s not stepping on the crack in the sidewalk. An instinctive habit could be stuttering or scratching an alleged wound after it has already healed. Some of these habits and behavioural responses are relatively harmless; however, others can be serious.
We are not born with these mental and emotional habits. They are acquired as we grow. My Son refused to say “thank you” when I gave him a gift, so her Mother withheld the gift until he said it. Gratitude is an acquired habit. A baby is born with clutched fists and must be taught appreciation.
A habit is defined as a behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition that is reflected in regular or increased performance. The word “habit” comes from a root meaning “clothing that is usually worn” –such as a nun’s habit. Habits may express themselves in simple outward traits, or in complex emotional responses and habitual attitudes toward life ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­--- in habits of the heart.
God promises that fasting can break self-destructive habits. “Is not this the fast that I have chosen?... that ye break every yoke?” (Isaiah 58:6). The Elijah Fast is especially useful in breaking negative attitudes and bad emotional habits.
The Elijah Fast is not a common corrective device to be used for freeing yourself from minor habits. It is called for in severely negative cases of mental and emotional response. It often works because it is a discipline that builds self-discipline and self-esteem. But more important than psychological esteem, the Elijah Fast invites God into the problem. Then in the strength of God, victory is possible.
Habits reflect themselves differently. Because life is a choice, people who have bad attitudes have chosen to have bad attitudes. They get up in the morning grumpy and choose to be irritated at their spouses, children and coworkers. By frequent repetition, they have chosen a constant state of irritation or anger. They have chosen to have negative personalities.
These people won’t be told to “cheer up” or “lighten up”. Some habits have people in bondage-psychological, physical or social bondage. Bondage enslaves people to their habits. When people have spent their lifetimes becoming depressed, they cannot become optimists by listening to one sermon. Nor does one counseling session change a lifetime of bad decisions. The Elijah Fast involves a total response extending for several days, or a one- day fast repeated throughout a specified time frame.

Thursday, January 3, 2013

HOLY SPIRIT PART I


The Spirit of God is God in action within us, upon us, or around us. God’s Spirit is God at work, making things happen in the world. We cannot see the Spirit, but we can see the results of its power. The Spirit of God was present when the world was created. God sent his Spirit to do powerful things among his people, Israel. Later, God sent his Spirit when Jesus lived on earth, and the Spirit has been present with Christians ever since.                                                                   THE SPIRIT IN THE OLD TESTAMENT. There are three different ways in which the word "spirit" is used in the Bible. It is a wind from God, the breath of life, and a spirit that fills a person with strong emotion or power.                                         DESCRIPTIONS. In the book of Genesis, the wind from God was what caused the waters of the Flood to stop rising (Genesis 8:1). This same wind from God blew locusts all over Egypt (Exodus 10:13) and sent quail for the Israelites to eat (Exodus 14:21). God blew wind from his nostrils to part the waters of the Red Sea so that the Israelites could walk across on dry land. In Genesis 2:7, we read that God created man by breathing his Spirit into him. Human beings only have life because of the breath of life, or the spirit, that is within them. God, through his Spirit, is the source of all life, whether animal or human. In the Old Testament the Spirit of God would sometimes fill people, causing them to say or do things that they normally could not do, in order to fulfill God’s purposes. People who were filled with the Spirit were given a great responsibility to fulfill because of the Spirit that was within them. Leaders were recognized by the Spirit within them. In Judges Chapter 3, God’s spirit filled a man named Othniel. He became a judge and was able to win a war and keep the peace in Israel for forty years. God’s spirit also filled other judges such as Gideon and Jephthah. Because of the Spirit of God, they were able to conquer their enemies. Sometimes, as in the case of Saul, God would permitted Satan send an evil spirit to fill someone in order to carry out his plans (see 1 Samuel 16:14-16; Judges 9:23; 1 Kings 22:19-23).     THE SPIRIT AT WORK AMONG THE PROPHETS. The prophets in the Old Testament had the job of giving messages from the Spirit of God to the people. It was important for the people to know the difference between a false prophet and a true prophet of God. The term "Holy Spirit" is used in the Psalms and in Isaiah to set apart the Spirit of God from any other spirit, whether human or from God (Psalm 51:11; Isaiah 63:10-11). A false prophet would not have the Holy Spirit. A prophet that had a message from the Holy Spirit would have the character of a person who was obedient to God. The people could recognize a false prophet by evaluating the prophet’s character as well as the message he was delivering. The prophets wrote about the Spirit in two significant ways. The Spirit inspired prophecy, and it would be known again in the age to come, when Jesus would be on earth. The later prophets, such as Ezekiel, Haggai, and Zechariah, claimed that the Spirit was the inspirer of prophecy. This means that the Spirit gave them the words that they proclaimed and wrote down. The Spirit of God was responsible for everything that the writers of the Bible wrote down. The prophets also wrote that God would show his power through the Spirit in the age to come. Isaiah prophesied that the Spirit would come again to anoint a man who would bring salvation to all people (Isaiah 11:2; Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 61:1). He was talking about Jesus, the Messiah. The Messiah was the king the Jews were waiting for. Through Jesus, the Spirit would be given freely to all of Israel (Ezekiel 39:29; Joel 2:28-29; Zechariah 12:10) as part of a new covenant between God and man (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:26-27). The covenant was a promise from God that he would send his Spirit to deliver his people. The Israelites had broken their old covenant with God because they continued to disobey him. Under the new covenant, God promised to forgive them. Between the time of the Old Testament and the New Testament, it was believed that the Spirit was no longer present in Israel. During that time the Spirit’s voice was no longer heard through the voices of the prophets. But the Spirit was known again when the Messiah, Jesus Christ, came to the earth. To be continue in the next edition. Thank you and remain bless in Jesus name.   
THE SPIRIT IN THE NEW TESTAMENT   CONNECTING THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS
We cannot fully comprehend the New Testament’s teaching on the Spirit without reading and understanding the use of the Spirit in the Old Testament. John speaks of the Spirit as a "wind" (John 3:8), and Paul writes of it as "breath" (2 Thessalonians 2:8). In Revelation 11:11 the Spirit is described as a "breath of life." These same descriptions of the Spirit are found in the Old Testament. Also, the New Testament writers agreed with the prophets of the Old Testament in that the Spirit inspired Scripture (see Mark 12:36; Acts 28:25; Hebrews 3:7; 2 Peter 1:21). The Spirit that the Old Testament writers looked forward to was realized in the New Testament. Just as Isaiah had prophesied, the Spirit came again during the time of Jesus. This "new age" was one in which the Spirit was once again present on earth. Jesus was the anointed or specially chosen one, who came to give salvation. Jesus came and gave his Spirit to those who believed in him. This was the beginning of the Christian faith.                                                                                                             THE SPIRIT IN JESUS’ MINISTRY An important aspect of Jesus’ ministry (his work on earth) and the message of his followers was that the Spirit was already with them that this "new age" was the present. No other Jews of that time, except for a group called the Essenes of Qumran, believed in the presence of the Spirit among them. The prophets and the rabbis of the New Testament were still looking to a future time when a messiah would come. They did not realize that Jesus was the Messiah. Even John the Baptist spoke of one who would come and of the Spirit’s work in the future (Mark 1:8). For Jesus and his followers, the Spirit-filled life was a reality. The first Christians believed they were living in the "last days" because the prophecies of the Spirit’s return had come true in their time. Jesus knew that his teachings and healings were fulfilling the prophecies of the Old Testament (Matthew 12:41-42; Matthew 13:16-17). He also knew he was the one that was specially chosen by the Spirit to bring salvation to mankind (Matthew 5:3-6; Luke 4:17-19). Jesus understood that the power to perform miracles came from God. God displayed his power through Jesus, just as he will in the end times (Matthew 12:27-28; Mark 3:22-26). The Spirit of God was with Jesus as he lived among men. Because so many people were still looking to the coming of the Spirit in the "end times," the writers of the Gospels (the first four books of the Bible) emphasized the role of the Spirit in the birth of Jesus (Matthew 1:18; John 3:34), in his baptism (Mark 1:9-10), and in his ministry (Luke 4:1, 14; Luke 10:21). They wanted to show people that the Spirit was with them, that they were already living in the "end times," and that Jesus’ life was proof of that.                                                                                               THE SPIRIT AT WORK AMONG THE FIRST CHRISTIANS The Christian church began with Jesus’ resurrection. Christians believe that Jesus died to save them from their sin and that he rose again from the dead. Following the Resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples and breathed the Holy Spirit on them (John 20:22). After Jesus was taken back up into heaven, the Spirit was given to the disciples on the day of Pentecost. At Pentecost, the believers were overwhelmed with visions, and they spoke in tongues when the Spirit entered them (Acts 2:2-5, 17-18). They believed that they were entering into the "new age" that was prophesied by Joel. This new age was one in which the Spirit was present on earth, living and working in the lives of Christians. The gift of the Spirit was seen as the power of this new age (Hebrews 6:4-5). The apostle Paul understood the presence of the Spirit in the believer’s life to be a certain sign that that person had been saved from his sins. The believer could be assured that God had granted him eternal life in heaven (2 Corinthians 1:22). Paul taught that it was necessary for a believer to have the Spirit in order to enter God’s kingdom (Romans 8:15-17). The Spirit changes their believers’ lives to become more like Jesus. Becoming more like Jesus is a lifelong process, because every believer is caught in the daily conflict between living in the Spirit or according to sinful desires. The process does not end until the person is brought completely under the Spirit’s power (Romans 8:11, 23).                                                                                                                          

Monday, August 27, 2012

GOD’S EXPECTATIONS FROM YOU


WHAT DOES GOD EXPECT OF US? And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you? He requires you to fear him, to live according to his will, to love and worship him with all your heart and soul, and to obey the LORD’s commands and laws that I am giving you today for your own good. (Deuteronomy 10:12-22)
GOD’S EXPECTATIONS ARE SPECIFIC.
Often we ask, “What does God expect of me?” Here Moses gives a summary that is simple in form and easy to remember. Here are the essentials: (1) fear God; (2) live according to his will; (3) love him; (4) worship him with all your heart and soul; (5) obey his commands. How often we complicate faith with man-made rules, regulations, and requirements. Are you frustrated and burned out from trying hard to please God? Concentrate on his real requirements and find peace. Respect, follow, love, serve, and obey him.
HOW SHOULD OUR EXPECTATIONS BE MEASURED?
 Jesus responded, “Elijah is indeed coming first to set everything in order. Why then is it written in the Scriptures that the Son of Man must suffer and be treated with utter contempt? But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and he was badly mistreated, just as the Scriptures predicted.” (Mark 9:12-13)
OUR EXPECTATIONS MUST NOT LIMIT GOD.
It was difficult for the disciples to grasp the idea that their Messiah would have to suffer. The Jews who studied the Old Testament prophecies expected the Messiah to be a great king like David, who would overthrow the enemy, Rome. Their vision was limited to their own time and experience. They could not understand that the values of God’s eternal kingdom were different from the values of the world. They expected relief from their present problems. But deliverance from sin is far more important than deliverance from physical suffering or political oppression. Our understanding of and appreciation for Jesus must go beyond what he can do for us here and now. Our expectations of what God will do must always include the fact that our perspective is very limited, too.
 Soon a gale swept down upon them as they rowed, and the sea grew very rough. They were three or four miles out when suddenly they saw Jesus walking on the water toward the boat. They were terrified, but he called out to them, “I am here! Don’t be afraid.” (John 6:18-20)
FAITH OUGHT TO INCLUDE GREAT EXPECTATION.
The terrified disciples probably thought they were seeing a ghost (Mark 6:49). But if they had thought about all they had already seen Jesus do, they could have accepted this miracle. They were frightened-they didn’t expect Jesus to come, and they weren’t prepared for his help. Faith is a mind-set that expects God to act. When we act on this expectation, we can overcome our fears.
 One of the things I always pray for is the opportunity, God willing, to come at last to see you. (Romans 1:10)
GOD’S ANSWERS WON’T ALWAYS FIT OUR EXPECTATIONS.
When you pray continually about a concern, don’t be surprised at how God answers. Paul prayed to visit Rome so he could teach the Christians there. When he finally arrived in Rome, it was as a prisoner (see Acts 28:16). Paul prayed for a safe trip, and he did arrive safely-after getting arrested, slapped in the face, shipwrecked, and bitten by a poisonous snake. God’s ways of answering our prayers are often far from what we expect. When you sincerely pray, God will answer-although sometimes with timing and in ways you do not expect.                                                                                                              Children of God, Almighty God is expecting something great from you. Give your life to Jesus Christ wholeheartedly and fear the Lord your God and Obey His Word and also do His will to the end it shall be well with you in Jesus name. Keep on ready this Magazine; I pray the glory of the Lord will continue to shine in your life and the Family in Jesus name.       

For Prayer and Counseling:
Christ Apostolic Church Divine Rewards Ikeja
God’s Glory Zone, Box 263 Ikeja, Lagos. Tel: 08034945702, 08026161601. Jafolayan5@gmail.com