Faithfulness – REALITIES MINISTRIES

He takes faithfulness seriously | Pst. J.O. Lawal

Date: January 09, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 36

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours without measure from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I am glad to welcome you to the second week of this new year, year 2022. And I pray that you will be empowered by the Holy Spirit to be faithful in all your service to God in the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we see in the bible, God is not only concerned about what we do for Him; He is also concerned about the heart with which we do it. Therefore, His reward will not come to us only on the basis of how much we are able to do for Him but also on the basis of how faithful we are in doing what we do for Him. This is why you must not let your focus be merely on doing this or that for God; instead, let it also be on doing whatever you do for Him with a diligent and faithful heart.

Why was Cain’s offering rejected? It was because his heart was not right with God. Yes, many have said that it was because he did not bring God a quality offering. Some have even said that it was because what he brought was not a blood sacrifice. But the bible does not say anything like that. It does not say that God gave Cain and his brother Abel a specific instruction on what to bring to Him. Rather, it tells us that they both brought Him offerings from the labour of their hands. So, it must have been freewill offerings that they brought to Him. (Cf. Gen 4:3-5)

In any case, even though both of them had laboured to bring Him something, it was only Abel and his offering that He looked upon with favour; He did not look upon Cain and his offering with favour. And when He saw that Cain was downcast because of this, He told him plainly, “If you are doing what is right, will you not be accepted?” So, it was not really about his offering but about him. All along, something had been wrong with his heart. That was what spoilt his offering. And because he did not heed God’s warning, that thing ended up making him a murderer. (Cf. Gen 4:6-8)

So, God is looking beyond what we are doing for Him or giving to Him. He is also looking at our hearts. And it is what He sees in them that will determine whether He accepts and rewards our labour for Him or not. In fact, as we also see in the bible, there are times that He punishes people for not being faithful or diligent in serving Him. For example, on the same day, Nadab and Abihu, two of the sons of Aaron, were both punished with death by Him because they offered before Him unauthorized fire. Yes, they were out to serve Him. But they ended up getting killed for their service instead of getting praised and rewarded. (Cf. Lev 10:1-3)

What about Ananias and Sapphira, his wife? They were both killed on the same day by the Lord for being unfaithful with their giving (Acts 5:1-10). So, we need to always take faithfulness in our service to God seriously. Paul, speaking about this, says, “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” (1Cor 4:2NIV) Did you see that? In stewardship, faithfulness is key; it cannot be overlooked or undermined.

Therefore, as you go this new year, let faithfulness be your watchword in all your service to God. This is so that He may use your service to accomplish His good purpose in the lives of men. Also, it is so that you may get His praise and reward for your service instead of His disapproval or punishment. And may your heart be taught and strengthened to be faithful to Him in all things and at all times, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a great week.

Copyright © 2022, 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 pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

Be faithful in your service to Him | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: November 28, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Vol. 10, No. 30

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours forevermore from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to the last Sunday of the month of November 2021. I pray that the goodness of God will overflow your life and home throughout the remaining days of the month and also the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this new week, I want to admonish you to take your service to God seriously and handle it wholeheartedly. Why? First, it is so that God can use it to accomplish His purpose in the lives of men. When we do not serve God wholeheartedly and according to His will, we may taper with the results He wants to get with whatever we are doing. And that will not be for our good or the good of those we are serving on His behalf.

For example, though the Jews of the earthly days of our Lord Jesus had priests, teachers of the law, Pharisees and Sadducees, who were ministering to them, the Lord still said that they were like sheep without a shepherd. In other words, the ministry of their religious leaders was not achieving the purpose of God in their lives. Why? Was it because something was wrong with them? No! Rather, it was because most of these religious leaders of theirs were hypocrites, whose hearts were not truly devoted to serving God according to His will. (Cf. Matt 9:35-36; Matt 23)

Now if we compare their ministry to that of the first seven deacons of the church, we see a great difference. That is because even though these deacons were not ordained to preach but to handle the sharing of food among God’s people, their ministry still resulted in the spread of the word of God and the growth of the church. Why? It was because they ministered with hearts that were faithful to God. So, if we are faithful in our service to God, He is able to use whatever we are doing, however insignificant it may seem to men, to accomplish His good purpose in people’s lives. But if we are not faithful, as I said before, we will most likely hinder or destroy His work. (Cf. Acts 6:1-7)

Yes, of course, there are times that God ignores people’s unfaithfulness in serving Him and still accomplishes His purpose through what they are doing. For example, there was a time that Moses and Aaron disobeyed Him and still got results. In other words, in spite of the disobedience of these men, God still performed a miracle for His people through what they did. But did they get rewarded for their unfaithfulness? No! Instead, they got severely punished for it. (Cf. Num 20:1-13)

Also, when we look at the life of Samson, we see that one main lesson it teaches us is that it is possible to be unfaithful to God in our lives or in our service to Him and still be seeing Him at work in what we are doing. But then, as we also see through His life’s story, if we continue to act in unfaithfulness in our lives or service to God, there will certainly come a time in which He will have to allow us to face the consequences of our unfaithfulness, which may be too much for us to handle. (Cf. Judges 13-16)

So, if you are unfaithful in your service to God, know that there will be consequences. One of them is that you won’t be receiving any reward or praise from Him for whatever you are doing. And the forms other consequences may take is not something I or anyone else can talk about. But they may be very grievous. All of this is why you need to watch the quality of service you are giving to God. Remember that He cannot be deceived or mocked. That means what you sow is what you will get. (Cf. Ps 18:25-26; Gal 6:7-8)

If you sow deception, unfaithfulness or hypocrisy in your service to Him, the fruit you will reap will show it. And if you sow faithfulness, diligence and love in your service to Him, the fruit you will reap will also show it. So, stop lying to yourself about your service to God and face the truth about its quality. Yes, examine and test the quality of your service to God in the light of His word in order that you may do what is needful. Otherwise, you will have only yourself to blame when He begins to treat you as your service deserves. I pray that you will not end up losing your reward for serving Him or get severely punished for not serving Him appropriately, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a fabulous week.

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 pastor@abcministryng.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)