Dearly Beloved, I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today, is from the book Jeremiah 31:25-27, ” I will give rest and strength to those who are weak and tired. ”After hearing that, I, Jeremiah, woke up and looked around. My sleep was very pleasant. The days are coming, says the Lord, “When I will help the family of Israel and Judah to grow. I will help their children and animals to grow too. It will be like planting and caring for a plant.”
Prophet Jeremiah had lived during the time when the Babylonians invaded Judah, assaulted Jerusalem, and reduced the Mountain Temple into rubble. The chaos caused by the Babylonians was unimaginable. Yet God had not abandoned the people. he same God who planted the garden of Eden and crafted humanity from its soil will replant Judah. God will replant, tend, and nurture human and animal life amid the ashes of Judah, Jerusalem, and the temple.
Jeremiah instructs the children of Israel to follow the road with signposts and landmarks that would guide Israel back to the land and be restored to relationship with their Covenant God. He asks them to set their hearts towards the high way so that they would come back to their first love, which they once had with God. Jeremiah predicts the future prosperity of Judah and Israel. God had promised them that they would return from their exile and Israel would be so blessed and secure in God’s restoration that even the women among them could protect the men and the people as a whole. So he says,“A woman shall encompass a man:”Such would be the power and strength of a woman. The prophet further says, after their return, the government of Israel will be transformed and righteously governed by the Messiah who will make Jerusalem a home of justice, and mountain of holiness.
Jeremiah goes on to say, that the people will dwell safely in Judah itself, and in all its cities together, farmers and those going out with flocks: In that day the Jewish people would not only be blessed spiritually, but also materially. They will be restored in both the city and the country. God promised abundance and satisfaction, to the empty, tired soul. The soul filled with sorrow would be filled with hope and peace. Therefore the Lord says, “ For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul” May be God spoke to Jeremiah in a dream while he was in deep sleep. And when he awoke, he looked around and found that his sleep was sweet. For God had told him that after the people of Israel return from their exile in Babylon, the Lord will increase seed of both the house of Israel and the house of Judah, with men and cattle. And God would keep a direct watch over them. And it shall come to pass, that just as He had watched over them to pluck them, to break them down and to destroy them and to afflict them, in the same manner He will then rise up to watch over them to build and to plant, says the LORD. He will forgive their iniquity, and their sin He will remember them no more. What a great God!
You might have been saved, and received Jesus as your saviour, long time back. And therefore you would have enjoyed His glorious power, His Mercy and Grace. But due to some reason you had, gone astray, from your first love. You began to enjoy the pleasures of this world. The lust of the flesh, the beauty and charm of this world, attracted and enhanced you so much, that you have gone away from the presence of this Almighty God, who led you in the past. As a result you have been cornered from all sides, and taken into captivity by God. May be you are caught up in huge debts, or loss in your business, facing disharmony in your family relationship, Or maybe you are going through shame and humiliation because of childlessness. You might have lost your job all of a sudden, and thus driven into poverty, or you have been attacked by some serious sickness or disease. All these are some kind of captivity, which God purposely thrusts upon you that you may return to your first love with God, as you loved Him in the beginning when you received Jesus as your saviour. Therefore examine yourselves and see if there is any mistake in your life that has separated you from God, and set it right and return to His first love. Only then you can witness the goodness of God in the land of the living. The Lord will give strength to those who return to His first love and bless His people with Peace. He will help you dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Lord we realize how we involve ourselves in the worldly affairs, and thus get into captivity. Father please forgive our sinful nature, help us to return to our first love. Teach us to endure patiently, while we go through trials and learn to correct ourselves from our mistakes. Give us strength to overcome physical and mental struggle that we go through in our daily life.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today is from the book of Genesis 28:15 “Behold I am with you and will keep you wherever you go. And will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
My Dear Brothers and Sisters, wherever we are, we are safe if we have God’s favourable presence with us. The Lord whom we worship respects each one of us. He is a great creator. He is an Almighty God. The Earth or the World could not contain Him. He has authority over heaven and Earth. Such a great God, respects the ordinary man. Or in other words is mindful of man. God likewise expects us to respect others. We are nothing when we compare ourselves to God. Yet He loves us and wants to have relationship with us. We see now a days that man wants to have relationship with similar people. God does not look for status. He has no partiality. He treats the rich and the poor alike.
My Dear brothers and Sisters, We see in the Bible, a young man, Jacob who experiences personal relationship with God Almighty. One day his parents Isaac, and his mother Rebecca, called Jacob blessed him and asked him to go to his uncles place, to make his livelihood. Being young he had to take up some job and help himself for his survival. In those days rearing sheep was the main occupation. Jacob was an obedient son to his parents. He did not receive any money or take his share of wealth or any investment to start his business but just received the blessings of his parents and departed to his uncle’s place. He considered the blessing of his parents more valuable than anything else. We see that the blessing of parents is so important, if one must be blessed by God. The Bible says, he acquired all the blessing from his father Isaac. As a result Jacob feared his brother Easu, who wanted to kill him.
My Dear Brothers and Sisters, Jacob never argued with his parents or questioned his parents about leaving to his uncles place. He honoured and Respected his parents He was a humble man. So God was pleased with him. Whether Jacob knew or not, about the presence of the Almighty, God was with him. He had chosen him even before the foundation of the world. Now that he feared his brother he was in trouble, obliged to flee, so he looked up only to God, to make him dwell in safety. He had to take up a long journey from Canaan to an unknown country. He was prepared to lie down and sleep in the open air, with his head upon a stone. God’s time to visit his people with His comforts is when they are most destitute of their comforts.
My Dear Brothers and Sisters, God gives his people graces and comforts, accommodated to the events that shall be, as well as to those that are. Jacob at that point of time was forsaken by all, even by his own family members. God foresaw what hardship Jacob would face in that strange land especially in his uncles service. So God promises to keep him. God visited him while he was asleep. He saw a ladder, which reached from earth to heaven. The angels were going up and down and God himself, was at the head of it. Christ is the way to God. All God’s favours come to us from God through Christ. All the glad tidings we receive from heaven come through Christ. God assures him saying” Behold I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go. And will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”God was mindful of him. So he says, I will not leave you nor forsake you. Whom God loves, he never leaves. God bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Thank you Lord for telling us the importance of getting the blessing of our parents. Help us to be obedient to our parents and also to honour them. Make us a blessing to others. Teach us to have a personal relationship with God as Jacob had. Accommodate us with your graces and comforts when we are forsaken by all.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
Dearly Beloved, I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today, is from the book of Psalm 84:1-3, How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young -place near your altar, Lord Almighty, my King and my God.
David penned this psalm when he was forced by Absalom his son, to quit his city, over which he lamented his absence from the city not because it was the royal city but because it was the holy city. The psalmist here with great devotion expresses his affection for the holy city. This psalm speaks about the Temple Mount in Jerusalem which was in ancient times, one of the most religiously hallowed places in the world. This Psalm is considered to be an account of the experience of a pilgrim going to the temple in Jerusalem for a religious festival. But what makes going there so “special” is that, this is the dwelling place of the “Lord of hosts. “
This “Lord of hosts” is also the “Living God” , the Holy one who dwells in Zion as one who is dynamic, at work, among men whom he has created. So the excitement is not about going to the particular place, but more about the very presence of God. It is because of God’s presence that the psalmist says, “Happy are those who live in your house.” Even the birds seek to be in the presence of God and thus find homes among God’s altars. People had to pass through the valley of Baca to reach the holy temple. The valley of Baca is known as a notoriously dry place. But God provided springs for the pilgrims to quench their thirst, while they passed through the valley.
Those who experience God’s real presence are brought into a new reality of life, where even a dry valley, can yield springs and be covered with rain. The living God uplifts and empowers through this new reality, in a way, just as God led and sustained his chosen people through the wilderness and into the promised land, flowing with milk and honey. God’s presence may also be found, however, in the dry valleys and journeys of life where one may not expect to find God. Even here the Lord of hosts, who is also the living God, brings springs, rain, and strength to those who seek the ever-abiding presence of the one whose home is among mortals.
The Tabernacle where God dwells is so lovely. When you go in search of God into the tabernacle you will find the presence of God. He will fulfil all that you ask for, when you go to the church. Many do not seek God; hence they fail to receive His blessings.
Dearly Beloved, enter into His presence, to sing, to praise and worship God. And God reveals His power to the people who come to seek him. God knows your pain your sorrow, the shame you go through and all the problems that you face daily. He knows the thoughts of your heart. He takes note of all your problems and records all the details of your mind. You experience the goodness of God in His dwelling place. The Psalmist says, Lord has provided even the sparrow a house and the swallow a nest for herself where she may lay her young ones. When God can provide the sparrow, and swallow, will he not meet your needs? Surely He will bless you if you come into His tabernacle. Hallelujah. ! May God help you to enter His gates with thanksgiving.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Lord we thank you for revealing the importance of tabernacle. We are thankful that You are present in the Tabernacle. Today all the tabernacles are closed. This may be because of our sin in not realizing the goodness of worshiping God. Please forgive our sins and open the tabernacle that we may once again go to the church and worship God in truth and spirit, as those who went to the Mount Temple in Jerusalem as pilgrims.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today, is from the book of Ezekiel 47:12
Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
From the above context we understand the beautiful representation of the healing stream, flowing from the sanctuary of God, and fertilizing the desert as well as changing the bitter waters into sweet, so that they yield abundant fruits to men. One natural fact was this, that there was a fountain connected with the Sanctuary -hill from Heaven and the waters of which fell into the valley east of the city and made their way towards the sea; and the gentle waters of this brook, flowed fast by the oracle of God, Such waters in the east are the source of every blessing to men. The religious idea behind this river is that, Jehovah himself is the giver of all blessings to men, and from his presence all blessings flow. He was now present in his fullness and forever in His Sanctuary.
God came down and dwelt with men; men were not translated to abide with God. But God’s presence with men on earth gave to earth the attributes of heaven. Yet man’s needs remained, and God’s presence was the source of all things necessary to supply them. When the people received the blessings from God, they saw in them the tokens and the sacraments of God’s favour and presence with Him; and when God was near them they were assured that they would want no good thing.
Similarly God says, the blessing for your family will flow from the banks, of the sanctuary of God. And when the river flows from the Sanctuary into your families then you shall obtain new fruits from the trees month on month. When the river of blessing flows from the fountain in heaven, like the word of God poured over you, and through the anointing of the Holy Spirit, being poured upon you, this will enable you to bear fruit in your life. You shall be blessed not only spiritually but also with worldly prosperity.
Many parents are reading this message with a longing, that their children had not been able to bear fruit until this time. But God says, that God is going to put His Holy word into their heart, like rich manure, and God will pour upon them the water that represents the Holy Spirit, then your children, will be able to yield new fruits. Parents are going to see many new changes taking place in the life of your children. They are not only going to be very spiritual but they will also shine in the worldly prospects. Not only your children even your family members who were not able to be successful in their lives are going to be energetic and smart and will produce good results in their business or at their work place or they will rise in position, through promotion .
And as a result of yielding spiritual fruit in your families, God is going to bring about great prosperity in your worldly life also. And many variety of fruits will grow in your family for you to eat thereof. The meaning that you will yield fruit and eat of it, indicates that you need money to eat good food. God will therefore provide good job and help you earn good income and thus help you to eat satisfactorily. Therefore submit yourselves to God and He will meet all your needs according to His riches, in glory by Christ Jesus. God bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Lord we thank You for causing our children to yield fruit. Thank you for bringing a change in our family members, who were unable to yield fruit. Help them to be like trees that are planted by the rivers of water that brings forth fruit in its season. And also bless the work of their hands.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today, is from the book of John 1:12 “But as many as received Him to them He gave the right to become, children of God, to those who believe in His name.”
From the above passage we learn that God gave the right to become the children of God, to all those who received His Son, Jesus Christ as their personal saviour. God the Father wants us to be His children. He says, I have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings. But God feels sorry, that they often refused to receive Him as their Saviour. Just as a Father has compassion on His children so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him . This is the nature of a Father.
We see the role of a good father displayed in the parable of the “Prodigal Son.” When the prodigal son returned to his father we see the graciousness of the Father overshadowing the sinfulness of the son; as it is the memory of the Father’s goodness that brings the prodigal son back home. There are some who for their own selfish reason backslide and draw themselves away from the presence of God. When they go away from God, the devil attacks such people. They might be well educated Medical students or Engineers. But suddenly such students get caught up in depression. These students would have secured good score in their subjects, but suddenly they go into depression. This happens when one goes away from the Lord. Then the devil has an opportunity to take possession of such people. You should never give an opportunity for the devil to take possession of you. This is the moment you fall into sinful things and lose the glory of God.
Back sliding can cause disastrous consequences. The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways. He may simply fall back through neglect by not praying, reading the Bible, and not keeping his focus on living for God, It can bring dishonour to the one who laid down His life for us (Jesus Christ.) But the Lord to such people gives an invitation saying, Return to Me with all your heart. In order to revive, the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite. “Return backsliding Israel, says the Lord. And I will not cause My anger to fall on you. For I am merciful” says, the Lord. The backslider in heart, will have his fill of his own way. But a good man obtains favour from the Lord.
God’s merciful purpose to His people is to revive and to restore. God calls us back to himself to be in fellowship. God demonstrated His love for us through the death of His son. Therefore, if anyone has gone away from the Lord , return back to Him, that He may heal you and bind you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. God is merciful with the merciful, and with a blameless man He will show Himself blameless. God bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Dear Lord help us to search our heart and see if we have backslidden. We pray for Your mercy. Forgive us of our sinful nature and cause us to reconcile with You. Help us to cherish your goodness rather than submit ourselves, to worldly pleasures. May we experience the glory of God in our lives.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
