Category: Topical Studies

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Topical Studies

Title: Don’t despise the gift of God – February 03, 2021

fire in my bones
fire in my bones


Series: Youth for Jesus, Number: Vol. 3, No. 38

“Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom. Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.” (Gen 25:29-34NIV)

Have you ever despised something or someone or judged them as worthless, only to later found out that your judgment was wrong and that the very person you despised, ignored and rejected was someone that would have contributed greatly to your advancement or satisfaction in life? If you have never done that, then, I pray that you don’t ever do it. That is because the regret or pain that may come with it may be for an entire lifetime.

Now such was the case with Esau. Esau was the elder of the twins of both Isaac and Rebekah. And as the bible tells us, he was a skilful hunter, who also went on to have under his command four hundred warriors (Gen 25:27&33:1). So, we are looking at a strong, brave and intelligent man and leader. Yes, we are looking at a very confident man, one who believed in what his intelligence and might could achieve for him.

But Jacob, Esau’s younger twin brother, was unlike him. He was not an impressive person like his elder brother. Rather, he was a quiet person that prefers to stay indoors. That, however, does not mean that he was a stupid person. On the contrary, he was a very clever person, who knew how to use what he had to get what he wanted.

Well then, being an indoor person, one who was always interacting with everyone at home, especially his parents and their servants, it was not long before he learnt about a special blessing from God that was running through their family and which naturally was meant to go to his elder brother. And the moment he got to know about this blessing and what it could do to his life and the lives of his descendants after him, he began to covet it and think of ways to make it his. (Cf. Gen 12:1-3, 22:15-18 & 26:2-5)

Now a day came when his dream came true. Esau came home that day, hungry and fainting and desiring to eat something very fast. And to make things easy for him, he met his younger brother in possession of what he loved best, red stew. So, he asked him to quickly give him some in order that he may quench his hunger with it and renew his strength. But Jacob, who was a very shrewd person, saw an opportunity in that situation to make his brother give up his right as the elder of the two of them and so asked him to sell it for the price of his red stew. Why? It was because he felt that would give him the opportunity he needed to be the inheritor of the blessing of God that was given to their grandfather, Abraham.

How, then, did Esau respond to that? He responded by saying, “Look, I am about to die here. What good is the birthright to me?” So, without giving much thought to what he was about to do, he sold his birthright on oath, collected the food he wanted to eat, ate, drank and then got up and left. And the bible says that by doing that, he despised his birthright. Think about it. That man despised something that only God could give a man, something that no amount of money could ever buy. And by despising his birthright, he also despised the blessing given by God to Abraham and proved himself to be unworthy of receiving it. So, today, hundred of years later, the descendants of Jacob still stand as a recognised nation in the world, but the descendants of Esau are nowhere to be found.

But why did Esau do what he did? He did it because he was a godless man, as the bible notes (Heb 12:16-17). He was someone that did not believe in spiritual things and the roles they play in determining how life goes. Remember I said that he was a very confident young man. But his confidence was not in God but in himself and what he could accomplish for himself. Unfortunately, all that he could accomplish for himself could not give him and his descendants a permanent place in God’s scheme of things.

In like manner, we need to watch never to put confidence in ourselves or our abilities to take care of ourselves. Is that to say it is wrong to be a confident person? No! But our confidence must not be in ourselves but in God without whom we cannot accomplish anything. This, of course, will keep us humble and also from despising people or things that He has given as gifts to fulfil us in life.

Copyright © 2021, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com / alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2020 Pastor's Desk Topical Studies

Title: Is anything hindering the flow of His blessings? – March 15, 2020


Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great joy that I welcome you into another week of the month of March 2020. And I pray that your life will be cleansed of everything that is keeping you back from experiencing the fullness of God’s blessings, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

According to the bible, God has blessed all of us who believe in Christ Jesus with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Him (Eph 1:3). So, we have been chosen and ordained by Him to live overwhelmingly blessed lives. But are we fully enjoying these blessings? Are we fully enjoying His blessings of favour, good health, prosperity, joy, peace, self-control, patience and so forth? Is it even evident in our lives that we are blessed of God?

But it ought to be evident to those of the world that we are blessed of God. I mean that they ought to daily see through us what it means to blessed of God, what it means to have Him as one’s Father. For example, we are told in the bible that Potiphar, Joseph’s Egyptian master, was able to see that God was with him and was making him successful in all that he did. In other words, he could tell that Joseph was not walking alone; he had the living God walking with him and making his life a very blessed one (Gen 39:2-6). Interestingly, it was a similar thing that Laban learnt about Joseph’s father, Jacob, when he was with him. He said to him on one occasion, “I have learnt by experience (signs) that God has blessed me because of you.” (Cf. Gen 30:27)

So, the presence of God’s blessings in and on our lives ought to be pronounced and conspicuous. People should be able to say that our lives are orderly, prosperous and full of the fruit of the Spirit because God’s blessings are at work in us. At least, when people are operating under certain curses, we often can tell, regardless of how rich or influential they may be. We can tell that their lives are worn-out or out of place because certain negative influences are at work in them.

In like manner, the workings of God’s blessings cannot be hidden. In other words, if His blessings are truly at work in us, those around us will be able to tell. If this, then, is not the case, we need to find out why. We are blessed of God already, unless we are not Christians. So, we should be enjoying these blessings to the full. And if we are not enjoying them, we ought to find out why.

Now, of course, the problem can never be with God. It is always with us. We are always the ones doing something that will hinder the flow of the blessings or not doing something that will make His blessings freely flow. For instance, from what we see in the bible, one major thing that kept the children of Israel that Moses brought out of Egypt from entering and possessing the Promised Land was unbelief. The bible actually declares in no uncertain terms that they could not enter God’s rest because of unbelief (Heb 3:19). But they were brought out of Egypt so that they could enter that land that was flowing with milk and honey. And they experienced the wonders of God both in Egypt and in the wilderness so that they would be full inheritors of that land. Nevertheless, the bible says God was not pleased with most of them. So, He caused their bodies to be scattered over the desert during a period of forty years (1Cor 10:1-5).

But why was God not pleased with the same people He delivered from Egypt? Why was He displeased enough with them to keep them from going into the land He had promised them and enjoying it? Paul says one major reason is unbelief. They did not believe that God was able to deliver on His promises. And that cost most of them their place in the Promised land. But unbelief wasn’t the only reason. As Paul shows us in a letter of his, there other reasons as well. Some of them did not make it into the Promised Land because of idolatry, sexual immorality, grumbling, lack of contentment or rebellion against authority. And the apostle says we are to learn from what happened to these people, so that we too will not be denied of the full experience and enjoyment of God’s blessings because of our own errors. (Cf. 1Cor 10:1-11)

So, as we begin this new week, ask the Lord to open your eyes to see whatever wrong thing in your own life that is preventing you from fully enjoying His blessings that have been generously poured out on us. And you can be sure that He will answer you. But if you already know what wrong things you are involved in, don’t boast in them or act as though you did not know that these things are present in your life (James 3:14). Instead, admit your wrongs and repent of them quickly. Otherwise whatever you are still experiencing of God’s blessings may soon enough be taken away from you. And then you will begin to understand what it means to function without the goodness of God. May things never come to that for you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a splendid week.

Copyright © 2020, Reality Desk, a ministry of Alaythia Bible Church –This material is the sole property of Reality Desk. It may be copied for personal non-commercial use only in its entirety free of charge. All copies must contain this copyright notice. Please direct any questions you may have to alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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Fire in my Bones Life Application Topical Studies wisdom for living

Prove yourself profitable with what is available

“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?” (Luke 16:10-12NIV)

When God first made man, He told him to rule over the earth, subdue it and replenish it. But we see clearly from Scriptures that God did not immediately leave him to start moving round all the face of the earth in order to fulfill the mandate He had given him. Instead, He first put him in a small garden, the garden of Eden. And He did that to teach us that until we have learnt to manage that which is little and profit with it, there is no way we can manage that which is great and be fruitful with it. (Cf. Gen 1:26-29 & 2:4-8)

(more…) "Prove yourself profitable with what is available"