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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Pastor's Desk

Take submission seriously | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: September 04, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 11, No. 18

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to the month of September 2022. My prayer is that none of the beautiful things God has prepared for your enjoyment in the month will be hindered from being yours, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now when we are talking about people experiencing hindrances in their lives, it is not every time that Satan is to be held responsible. Sometimes, God Himself is to be held responsible for it. But why will God, who loved humanity so much that He gave His only begotten Son for them, want to hinder any man or woman from advancing in life? Pride is the reason.

Both James and Peter in their epistles tell us that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6; 1Peter 5:5). So, if you are proud, you can surely expect God’s resistance to progress in certain or all of the areas of your life. And one way we often unconsciously manifest pride is in our unwillingness to submit to authority.

As we see in the bible, there are people God has already commanded us to submit ourselves to. For example, our parents, husbands, employers and bosses, community leaders and government leaders are among those He wants us to submit to. He does not want us to disrespect these people or to disobey them, where their instructions do not conflict with His word and principles for righteous living. And if we go against this and begin to disregard them, we are simply walking in pride and will certainly see Him in action against our progress. Only He knows, then, how many of us are being limited or hindered in life because of this. (Cf. Romans 13:1-5; Eph 5:22; Eph 6:1-3; 1Pet 2:13-14; 1Pet 3:1-2)

Furthermore, in the church, we are taught by the Lord to submit to our leaders out of reverence for Christ (Eph 2:21). That means the church of God is not a place where you flex your muscles and act as you like. There are people God has placed over you there to watch over your soul and care for you, so that you may become all that He wants you to become. It is important, therefore, that you yield yourself to these people and not make it difficult for them to lead you, as long as they are not leading you away from the truth of God’s word. Otherwise, as the bible points out, it will not be for your benefit at all. God will certainly deal with you according to your pride. (Cf. Heb 13:17)

Unfortunately, there are many in the church today that pride will not make them learn what will profit them or make them experience the fullness of the goodness of God that could have been theirs through their leaders. They are like the nobles among the men of Tekoa mentioned in the book of Nehemiah, who would not submit to their supervisors when the walls of Jerusalem were being rebuilt by all the people (Neh 3:5). Such people are unconsciously hindering the work of God among His people. So, He too will limit His works in their lives.

You can see, then, that rebellion to authority is not at all in your interest. So, deal with whatever form of pride you have in you that is causing you to act in rebellion towards those that God has appointed over you. And may be the Spirit of God lead and also strengthen you to do what is right about this matter, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Have a pleasant 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@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Pastor's Desk

What do you want to hear? | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 21, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 11, No. 16

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. I am delighted to welcome you to another week of the month of August 2022. And I pray that God will continually humble your heart before Him, so that you will always embrace His word for your daily edification, exaltation and salvation. Amen.

Paul, writing to Timothy in a letter, says to him, “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2Tim 4:3-4NIV) Who are the people this apostle is referring to here? Is he referring to unbelievers? No! Rather, he is referring to so-called Christians, to people who claim to have been born again through faith in Christ Jesus.

And what does Paul say about these people? He says they have a wrong attitude towards the truth of the of the Lord Jesus. In what way is their attitude towards the truth of Jesus wrong? First, as he points out, it is by not putting up with it. In other words, they detest it and do not want to embrace it. In fact, Paul says they turn their ears away from it. Why? It offends and hurts them. Why does it offend and hurt them? It is because it is contrary to their way of life.

Perhaps you too hate to hear the truth about God or about yourself or about life in general. Perhaps you too are continually turning your ears away from the truth when you are confronted with it. It only means that your life is contrary to it and you don’t want to admit it. Therefore, you will never be free from whatever binds you and is destroying you, for it is only the truth that makes people free (John 8:32).

Another thing that Paul says about these so-called Christians is that they gather around themselves a great number of teachers that will tell them what their itching ears want to hear. That means these people know what they want to hear. But it is not the truth. And in order to satisfy themselves, they will do anything to look for those who will tell them what they want to hear. Even if they have to pay handsomely for this to happen, they will do so.

It is no wonder, then, that we have a lot of preachers today who have departed from the truth of Jesus in order to teach errors, myths and other related nonsense. And interestingly, they also have a great number of people that are willing to follow them anywhere.

Now perhaps you too have certain things you want to hear from God or your church leaders other than the truth. Maybe there are things about money, sex, Christian devotion and so forth that you want to hear from God but which are contrary to what He wants to tell you. I want you to know that you will never be free from the trap of sin and death until you humble yourself to hear and embrace the truth He is bringing to you. Yes, you may go from prayer mountains to prayer mountains or from prophets to prophets for deliverance or exaltation. But as long as what you want to hear is not what God wants to say but what your itching ears want to hear, you will never experience the salvation or exaltation you are seeking.

So, what do you want to hear? Is it God’s truth that will bring you perfect liberty in your life or men’s lies and stories that have no power to give you any serious help? As for me, it is the truth of God that I want to hear all the time. And that is why I join Habakuk to say, “I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.” (Hab 2:1NIV)

Do have a week of delight.

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

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Pastor's Desk

They begged to give | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: August 01, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 11, No. 14

Beloved: grace and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am glad to welcome you to a new week of the month August 2022. And I pray that God will cause you to excel in all good things in the week and throughout the remaining part of the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, as we begin this new week, I want to encourage you with the words of Paul to the Corinthian brethren about the Macedonian brethren, which say: “And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.” (2Cor 8:1-5NIV)

Why is Paul saying these things about the Macedonian churches to the Corinthians? It is because he wants them to emulate them. And what does he want them to emulate in the Macedonians? It is their devotion to giving for the work of the Lord. Evidently, there was a time churches of God of bible days were making contributions for His work and to help some of His people. And though the Macedonian churches at the time happened to be in extreme poverty, they still gave.

In fact, there are three major things Paul mentions in the text above about their attitude towards giving on that occasion. First, he says that they were overflowing with joy to give. Therefore, their poverty resulted in rich generosity. That is strange. How can poverty result in generosity? Well, as Paul shows us, when a man is overflowing with joy, even in poverty, he will find a way to be generous. If you are not generous, then, it may be that the joy of the Lord is not full or overflowing in your life.

Second, Paul says these people contributed beyond their ability. That, of course, is figurative, for no one can actually give what he does not have. So, what Paul means is that these brethren shocked everybody with their giving. They gave far beyond what everybody expected them to give, considering their circumstances. And that, again, was because their hearts were overflowing with joy to give.

Sadly, today, most people in church always think of giving as small as they can for the work of the Lord, to their leaders and to other brethren in need. That is because giving is boring to them. They see it as an unnecessary burden that God has placed on their lives. Perhaps you too see giving for the Lord’s cause as an unnecessary burden. The Macedonian brethren did not see it that way. Instead, they saw it as a thing of joy to give to the Lord and to His people. And that is how it should be, for if we see it as a thing of joy to receive from the Lord, we should also see it as a thing of joy to give to Him or to anyone He wants us to give to.

The third thing Paul mentions about the Macedonians is that they were earnest about their giving. According to him, they literally begged to be given the opportunity to give on that occasion. HAVE YOU EVER BEGGED TO GIVE TO THE LORD? Well, these brethren did. And why did they have to beg to give? It was most likely because the apostle did not want them to give, considering their financial condition at the time. But they would not miss out on the blessedness of giving and receiving. So, they begged him to allow them also to participate. And when they were allowed to do so, they gave beyond everyone’s expectations.

Unfortunately, most of us today will do all that we can to escape giving in our assemblies. If an usher, for instance, mistakenly takes the offering bag pass us in a church meeting, that is over for that day – we won’t give again. And what we do not know is that as we are seeking ways to avoid giving for the work of the Lord and to those that He wants us to give to, the benefits of giving are also seeking ways to avoid us. And the word of God is coming to us now and asking us to change our ways and learn from the Macedonians instead of always making excuses for not being devoted to giving to the Lord’s cause. Yes, sometimes, it may not be convenient for us to give, as it was not convenient for them too. But if our hearts are right, as their hearts were right, then, we will give with joy and in the maximum. And our gifts will be accepted by God based on what we have and not based on what we do not have.

Do have a pleasant 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@abcministry.com or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 wisdom for living

Cast them down | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: May 01, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 52

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the fifth month of this year, the month of May. My prayer is that God will cause your joy to overflow everyday of the month, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Recently, our online space was inundated with news about a ten-year old girl that was supposedly gang-raped by some of her fellow students while they were in Dubai for some international games. And since then, all kinds of comments have been made about the matter. Some have blamed it on poor parenting. Some others have blamed it on the irresponsibility of the school in handling their students. And yet some have blamed it on some social medial influencers and their culture of indiscriminately sharing contents of their immoral lifestyles on the internet.

But then, I have asked myself the following questions concerning the case: How many of us are truly better than these children in the way we now live our lives? And how many of were better than them when we were of the same ages as they now are? At least, I can very well remember that when I was the same age, I had my own evil desires and demons to fight as well. So, I could have become like one of those kids or even worse.

Why, then, did I not become like them? It was the grace of God that kept me from becoming like them. And how did His grace accomplish that? First, it provided me with parents who did not provide the circumstances to become like them for me, whether by their words or actions. Second, it placed me in a church where I was continually exposed to the word of God, prayers and godly counsel. So, these evil thoughts that could have made a mess of my life could not thrive or find expression in me.

So, if you are a parent, let God use you to preserve your children and other children around you. How? Watch the kind of atmosphere you create for these children to grow in, through what you do and say. That is because it will, to a large extent, determine whether evil will prevail over them or not. And if you are not a parent, you need to be truthful to yourself about the evil thoughts and desires trying to find expression in you. Otherwise, they will surely prevail over you and ruin your life. No, the world may not know or hear about the ruin of your life as they did about that girl and a number of others. But what does it matter? If your life is ruined, it is ruined.

This is why you must face the reality about the evil thoughts and desires you have. Don’t pretend they are not there. Instead, deal with them. All of us are daily troubled by them. Even Jesus and the apostles of old were also daily troubled by them. That was why Peter wrote to the churches, saying, “Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.” (1Peter 2:11NIV) So, evil thoughts, impure thoughts and destructive thoughts are continually at war against our souls. And we must accept this as our reality. Otherwise, we won’t be able to effectively deal with them.

Now, of course, those thoughts are not our thoughts. They are Satan’s thoughts. For example, it was not Jesus’ idea to jump down from the temple top and die. It was Satan’s. And it was not Judas Iscariot’s thought to betray Jesus. It was Satan’s thought. But the difference between Jesus and Judas was what they did to the thoughts Satan brought to them. While Jesus cast down those evil thoughts with the word of God, Judas allowed them to take charge of his life and ruin it. (Cf. Matt 4:1-11; John 13:2; 2Cor 10:5)

In like manner, if we do not want the evil thoughts warring against our souls to find expression in our lives and ruin them, we must take advantage of the word of God, prayers and the fellowship of God’s people to recognise and demolish them. And we must be ready to do this every day, for Satan is also ready to ruin our lives every day, as the opportunity to do so comes to him. So, wake up from your slumber and get ready for action. This is our fight of faith. And it is a good fight, for we already have what it takes to be victorious in it every blessed day.

Do have a fabulous May 2022.

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

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Pastor's Desk

Don’t lose your sense of rightness | Pst. J.O. Lawal

Date: March 20, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 46

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours abundantly from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Welcome to a new week of the month of March 2022. My prayer is that the evils of these last days will not make you lose your mind and become what you have stood against all your life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

The bible speaks of a time in the land of Israel when everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6 & 21:25). In other words, for example, if someone felt that taking his neighbour’s daughter as his wife without the man’s permission was a good thing to do, he could do so, as long as he had the might or power to do so. You can then imagine how widespread evil must have been in the land at the time. People were committing all kinds of atrocities and were justifying themselves for doing so.

But what led them, the whole nation, into such deep darkness? It was a loss of sense of rightness. Don’t forget that these people had been entrusted with revelations of God about how to live in righteousness. So, they were in a position to know what was right and what was wrong. If they, then, came to a point in their history where what was right or wrong was judged based on individuals’ interpretation of things, they definitely had abandoned the word of God. That was why they began to tear themselves apart and to ruin the land with bloodshed and immorality of all kinds. Therefore, they could not prosper as a nation or rise among the nations of the world of the time. (Cf. Judges 17-21)

In like manner, when we too set aside God’s word and His revelations about how to live, we will lose all sense of what is right and what is wrong. And where this is the case, we can only do things that will ruin our lives and our world, things that will keep peace, joy and prosperity far away from us. Look at many of us who call ourselves Christians today. Are we living on the basis of God’s word or on the basis of our judgment of things? If we are living on the basis of God’s revelation, then, we will know, for example, that things like sex outside marriage relationships, bribery, lying, slander, malice, embezzlement of public funds, forgery, money rituals, swindling and other terrible things that many of us now freely get involved in are wrong.

But we do not see these things as wrong anymore. That is because we are now the ones judging for ourselves what is right and what is wrong, not God. We have become like those of the world who, because they have lost their sense of rightness, now cheerfully say that nothing is wrong with homosexuality and other similar nonsense – everything depends on individuals’ perception of things. And as I said before, where this is the case, we can only ruin our lives and even the lives of others as well, when all has been said and done.

Now the trouble, often, is that we can be running our lives and not know immediately that we are doing so. For instance, it did not become clear immediately to Samson that his indulgence in sexual sins was ruining him. But it was secretly weakening his inner strength and character. Then there came a time that it totally subdued and cut short his life. (Cf. Judges 16)

So, even if it does not look like the wrong things you are involved in are ruining you now, a day will come when you will clearly see what sort of mess it has been making of your life all along. My prayer is that God will restore your sense of rightness and lead you to repentance right early, so that that day of ruin and disgrace will never surface in your life. Amen.

Do have a wonderful 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Pastor's Desk SUNDAY BULLETINS SUNDAY BULLETINS

What is going on with you? | By: J.O. Lawal | Date: February 27, 2022 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 43

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours in abundance from God our Father and Jesus Christ our precious Redeemer. Welcome to another week of this year. And I pray that God will keep your heart right with Him in the week and till our Lord Jesus will return.

Amen.

One of the things the writer of the book of Hebrews emphasizes all through the pages of the book is the need for every assembly of God’s people to keep an eye on their members. Why? It is so that they will not stray away from the will of God for their lives and be ruined or harm the health of the church. So, if you have any member of your assembly watching out for you and asking you questions relevant to your life and faith, don’t take offence or insult them. They are just fulfilling the law of Christ concerning you (Gal 6:2).

Now I am not saying that it is everyone in your church that is mature enough to know some things about you or to handle certain information about your life. And I am not saying that it is everyone that professes to be a Christian that you can open your life to. Anyone, according to the Scriptures, whose faith-life is not plain for you to see, so that you can tell that they will not injure, pollute or cheat you is definitely someone you have to be careful in relating to. If in your judgment, then, there is no one in your assembly that is worthy of knowing what is going on in your life or worthy of keeping an eye on you, you should get out of there and find another assembly where you can freely relate. Otherwise, you will soon enough endanger your faith or life. (Cf. 2Cor 7:2)

So, for your own good, stay in an assembly where you can freely let the brethren know what is going on in your life and also keep an eye on you. Then, for the health of the church, it is important that you keep your life open to the brethren and allow them to be a vital part of it, so that they can continually support you to stay focused in doing the will of God.

Why do we have many weak and unstable Christians in many of our Christian assemblies today? And why do we have many assemblies in which brethren are bitter towards one another or are constantly quarrelling over one thing or the other? One main reason is that many of us don’t want our lives to be watched or set right by the brethren. What we want is to be able to live as we like without anybody’s interference or contribution. And that is not good for us or for the health of the church at all.

For example, the writer of the book of Hebrews says this to us: “See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.” (Heb 12:15-16NIV) How do we see to it that none of us misses the grace of God, if we do not know what is going on in the lives of all of us? How do we see to it that bitterness or division does not happen in our midst, if we do not know what is going on among us? Or how do we prevent our brethren from falling into the trap of sexual immorality or any other sin that could ruin their lives or marriages, if we do not know what is going on in their lives? It is not possible.

See, we can only appropriately help one another stand firm in the faith when we have adequate information about what is going on in our lives. And we can only truly preserve the health of the church of God when there is sufficient knowledge of what is going on among the brethren. For instance, when the church began to increase in number in those early days, some groups of the brethren began to feel that their widows were not be properly treated by those representing the church in food distribution. What, then, did they do about that? They talked to the apostles about it, and the problem was fixed and the church was strengthened. But what if they had kept quiet about it? It would not have been long before bitterness, anger, hatred and envy filled the whole church and ruined it. (Cf. Acts 6:1-7)

So, for your own spiritual health and for the health of the church of God, keep your life and affairs open to the people of God in your life. And don’t carry around the air of ‘My life is nobody’s business’ or function with the notion that no one would understand you or be able to help you, if you should open up to them. Your life is the business of every one of us. Then your business is to make us know and understand what you are up to in life. And my prayer is that the Spirit of God will enable you to understand and function in this light always, so that you don’t end up falling into Satan’s trap or end up becoming his tool in afflicting the church of God.

Do 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2022 Life Application Pastor's Desk Prayer SUNDAY BULLETINS SUNDAY BULLETINS

Title: The practice of righteousness | By: Johnson O. Lawal | Date: February 20, 2022 | Series: Taking advantage of God’s power

We have been looking at how to take advantage of the power of God. And the first thing I said we need is a clear and thorough knowledge of the quality and greatness of His power. Without knowing His power and what it is capable of accomplishing for us, we won’t be able to take adequate and appropriate advantage of it. So, we need to know His power. We need to study His power. And we need to pray to know His power. We need Him to fill our hearts with revelations of His power. So, we should continually look to Him for more and more revelations of the greatness of His power in order that we may take adequate and appropriate advantage of it.

We have been looking at how to take advantage of the power of God. And the first thing I said we need is a clear and thorough knowledge of the quality and greatness of His power. Without knowing His power and what it is capable of accomplishing for us, we won’t be able to take adequate and appropriate advantage of it. So, we need to know His power. We need to study His power. And we need to pray to know His power. We need Him to fill our hearts with revelations of His power. So, we should continually look to Him for more and more revelations of the greatness of His power in order that we may take adequate and appropriate advantage of it.

Then we talked about the place of prayer in taking advantage of God’s power. So, we must learn to pray. The bible says the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective (James 5:16). Therefore, we must not underestimate prayers that we offer in accordance with the will of God. They are powerful and effective and can change things. What we are saying is that when we pray, God’s power is unleashed for our experience and for the experience of those in our world. I already gave you a number of examples from Scriptures of how people prayed and released the power of God for their salvation, prosperity and strengthening in doing the will of God. We too, then, should devote ourselves to prayer.

Jesus says men ought always to pray and not to faint (Luke 18:1). So, do not faint in prayer. Exactly how God’s power will work when you pray is what I cannot tell you. But I can tell you that His power works in very dynamic ways. So, do not allow Satan to mess up your life or world. Instead, learn to pray, for as we pray, we release the power of God to frustrate him.

Now another way to take advantage of the power of God is through the practice of righteousness. Let me give you something Paul says to Timothy in the second chapter of his second letter to him, from verse 19: “Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.’” (2Timothy 2:19NIV) God expects everyone who confesses Jesus as Lord to turn away from wickedness, as Paul points out in this verse of his letter. And He wants them to turn away from wickedness to what? He wants them to turn away from wickedness to righteousness.

See, when we are talking about Christian living, it is not just about turning away from wickedness; it is also about devoting ourselves to practising righteousness. That is why the bible talks about putting off the old man and putting on the new man (Eph 4:20-24). So, as we talk about and emphasise the things we must no longer do; we must also be talking about the things we must be doing. Mind you, we have been recreated to do good works. Paul tells us in Ephesians, chapter 2, verse 10, that we are God’s workmanship in Christ Jesus, created to do those good works that God has prepared in advance for us to do. So, Christian living is not just about what we do not do but also about what we do. We have an obligation not just to turn away from wickedness but also to be devoted to practising righteousness.

Now as we devote ourselves to righteous living, we unleash the power of God. How this works or happens is not what we can explain. Spiritual things aren’t always things we can explain using human words. But once God is clear about what we need to do, ours is to act accordingly. And as we act on His word, we will see the results He wants us to see.

What is the point I am making? It is that through the practice of righteousness we are able to take advantage of God’s power for our protection, exaltation and favour. There are some examples I want to quickly draw your attention to about this. First, from Genesis, chapter 35, verse 1, we are told:
“Then God said to Jacob, ‘Go, up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau. So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, ‘Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.’ So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in the ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.” (Genesis 34:1-5NIV)

The bible tells us that all the things written in the Old Testament part of the bible are types and examples for us, so that we may learn from them, take advantage of the lessons they teach and live the kind of life God wants them to live. Here we are told of how God appeared to Jacob and told him to go to Bethel, settle down there and build an altar to Him. In response to this, he called all the members of his household together, told them what God had told him and instructed to do away with all their idols and foreign gods. That means, even at that time, not all the members of Jacob’s household were devoted to worshipping God. You know that he had all kinds of people with him – servants, workers, guards, wives and so forth. And these people had not been raised to be worshippers of God. So, they had idols and gods that they worshipped. They must also have had charms, tokens and so forth them as well. And these things must have been affecting Jacob and his prosperity as well.

In any case, on this occasion, he called all of them together and said, “My God, the true God, that I serve has told me to go to Bethel and live there. Now I want you all to give me your foreign idols and gods and turn away from them. And let us go and serve this God.” And they all did. They gave him all their idols and gods, which he buried so that they would not have access to them again.

Now, as they set out for Bethel, as God had told them, the fear of God came on all those around them, so that no one attacked or pursued them. What is that telling us? It is that when we give ourselves to practising righteousness, God’s power is released on our behalf. Jacob did not pray on this occasion in order to experience God’s protection. Yes, we know that he prayed to God for salvation when his brother Esau was coming to attack him. And when he prayed, the power of God was released. But on this occasion, all that he and those with him did was to turn away from their idols and foreign gods. And when they did, God released His power for their protection. He brought His fear on all those around them. So, no one pursued them, attacked them or made any attempt to hurt them. That was because the power of God had been released for their protection.

As we too give ourselves to practising righteousness, we will begin to see God’s power being released for our protection and to accomplish different things in our lives, even without praying. I am not saying we are not to be praying at all, once we devote ourselves to practising righteousness. We must always pray according to the instructions given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ and His Holy apostles. Remember that as we pray, we are expressing our dependence on God. However, besides praying, when we give ourselves to practising righteousness, we are able to take advantage of the power of God in ways beyond our imaginations.

Look at another account similar to that of Jacob’s in 2Chronicles, chapter 17. From verse 7 we are told the following:
“In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hali, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the towns of Judah. With them were certain Levites – Shemiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tob-Adonijah – and the priests Elishama and Jehoram. They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the Book of the Law of the Lord; they went round to all the towns of Judah and taught the people. The fear of the Lord fell on all the kingdoms of the lands surrounding Judah, so that they did not go to war against Jehoshaphat.” (2Chronicles 17:7-9NIV)

When Jehoshaphat became king, one of the things he did was to send people to different parts of the land to teach the people the word of God. Why did he do that? Why did he send his officials to teach his people the word of God? It was so that they would devote themselves to practising righteousness. He knew that if they were taught the word of God, they would know what to do. Not only that, they would experience the cleansing, healing, transformation and prosperity that come with hearing the word of God and practising it.

So, this king understood the fact that if people would be taught the word of God, they would live lives that are consistent with the will of God. And if they would live lives that are consistent with His will, they would experience His power in their lives. God had promised them through Moses that if they would live in His righteousness, He would continue to be their God, protecting them, prospering them and lifting them. And Jehoshaphat wanted this to happen. So, he sent teachers that would teach them the word of God. As they were taught, then, and began to live according to what they were taught, the fear of the Lord came on all the kingdoms around them. So, they would not attack them.

In like manner, the terror of God can be on those around you through your practice of righteousness. So, they will not have the boldness to attack or hurt you. They may not like you or your prosperity or progress. But as you give yourself to practising righteousness, God’s fear will be on them. I mean that His power will be released for your protection. So, they would not be able to come near you, attack you or hurt you, for the power of God is all around you, protecting you. One of the things that Satan said concerning Job was that there was an edge of protection from God all around him. So, he could not be attacked, hurt or touched by his enemies. Why? It was because of the man’s devotion to practising righteousness. And I am saying that if you too will devote yourself to practising righteousness, you will be unleashing the power of God in ways you cannot describe. People will be able to sense this in your life. They will be able to tell that there is something about you that they cannot handle. So, they will be relating to you with respect or regard. (Cf. Job 1:9-10)

Furthermore, through your devotion to the practice of righteousness, God’s power can be released for your favour and advancement. Let me give you an example along this line from the book of Daniel. It is about how Daniel determined in his heart not to be defiled with the royal food and wine. And that had nothing to do with the sweetness of the food or the quality of it; rather, it had to do with the composition of the food. Daniel and his colleagues had been raised up as Jews. And as Jews they were not permitted to eat certain animals and birds or to include them in their meals. That, of course, was not because something was wrong with those animals and birds. Rather, it was because God had said that He would not want them to eat them and that He would bless them for following His instructions on this matter. (Cf. Leviticus 11)

So, the unwillingness of Daniel and his friends not to eat the royal food and wine had nothing to do with the quality of the food they were being offered but with its composition. In any case, these men resolved not to defile themselves with the royal food and wine and asked for the permission of the official in charge of their affairs not to do so. And because of their devotion to God’s righteousness, He caused that official to favour them. Look at some of the things said about this from verse 8 of chapter 1, the book of Daniel:
“But Daniel resolved no to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself in this way. Now God had caused the official to show favour and compassion to Daniel, but the official told Daniel, ‘I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men of your age? The king would the have my head because of you.’ Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hanaiah, Mishael and Azariah, ‘Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.’ So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days. At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead. To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams.” (Daniel 1:8-17NIV)

Why did Daniel and his friends experience what they experienced in the service of King Nebuchadnezzar? They experienced these things because of their devotion to righteousness. Yes, these young men were raised to worship God. So, they must have been praying to Him as well. But apart from the fact that they were praying to Him, they were also devoted to practising righteousness. And because they were devoted to practising righteousness, God also began to release His power for their favour.

For example, when they determined that they would not be defiled by the royal food and drink, God caused them to obtain favour from the official in charge of them. If everything had just been about their determination, it would not have amount to anything. But as they determined to please God, He also released His power for their favour. So, they were favoured by the official the king had appointed over them. That was why the man agreed to test them with vegetables, when they proposed to him that he should give them vegetables instead of the royal food and wine. That man agreed because God had put their love in his heart. And that was a manifestation of the power of God. His power can cause people to help you, love you and want to help you, if when it is risky. It was risky for that man to help Daniel and his friends. Yet because the power of God was at work on their behalf, he favoured them, even though it was risky.

God is powerful and awesome. And when His power begins to work in our favour, it would be mind-blowing. These men were devoted to practising righteousness. So, God caused His power to work in their favour. And when they were tested with vegetables, as they had proposed to that official of Nebuchadnezzar, they looked better at the end of the ten days than all the other young men that were eating the royal meals. How did that happen? It was through the power of God. The power of God made them look more handsome and better nourished than others.

So, you don’t have to ruin your life through prostitution, stealing, bribery and corruption or any other wrong thing because you lack certain things in life. That is because if you will give yourself to practising righteousness, God will cause His power to manifest on your behalf. And what you think is not enough will become enough or more than enough for you through the working of His power. Then where you think there is no way His power will make ways available for you there. So, people will begin to envy you, even though you do not have as much as they do. And your joy will be full, fuller than the joy of those who have more than you do. (Cf. Psalm 4:7)

That was what happened in the case of those men. The power of God worked even in their bodies because of their practice of righteousness. Also, God blessed them with wisdom, knowledge and understanding in all kinds of literature and learning. So, you who are worried because of studies just need to devote yourself to righteousness. Then you will see how God would release His power to quicken your brain, understand what others do not understand and excel in your studies. The same thing can happen in your business or any other area of your life. Therefore, take the practice of righteousness very seriously in your life. And you will be amazed at how His power will begin to work in your favour in various ways and beyond human understanding.

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

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

Remember to do them good | Pastor J.O. Lawal

Pastor J.O. Lawal
Pastor J.O. Lawal

Date: December 12, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 32

Beloved: grace and mercy be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. Welcome to another week of the month of December 2021. I pray that God will open your eyes in it to see all the good you are supposed to do for others in the year that you are yet to do and also enable you to do it without delay, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now I offered that prayer for you because it is in line with the will of God for you. In other words, just as it is His will that all those who are meant to do you good this year will remember to do so, it is also His will that you too will remember all those that you are supposed to do good to this year and do whatever good you are supposed to do to them or for them. Therefore, our desire must not just be for others to remember to do us good; rather, it must also be for us to remember to do others good. And there are people that God is expecting us to remember to do something good to. It may be because of certain roles that they or someone related to them have played in our lives in the past. Or it may be because we are just in the best position to help them.

For example, here is what is written about David concerning this matter: “David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”” (2Sam 9:1NIV) Why did he ask this question? It was because he remembered Jonathan, his friend. In fact, Jonathan was more than a friend to him; he was a brother as well. When he was alive, he loved him with all his heart and did all that was in his power to protect him from his wicked and jealous father, Saul.

But then, he died because of the sins of his father, and the kingdom was taken away from their family and given to David. So, at the time David was asking this question, nobody was paying any serious attention to what was going on in their family again. They had become a history to everyone. If David, then, had not made any move to find out if he could be of any help to them, they may never have gotten any serious help or attention in the land again. But by asking that question, he was able to learn that Jonathan actually had a crippled son that had been abandoned by almost everybody. And that was how the young man, Mephibosheth, was lifted out of the realm of shame and poverty and brought into the prosperity of the king. (Cf. 2Sam 9)

Now though we are not told how God rewarded David for doing this, bible accounts show us that, years later, when he was running away because of the rebellion of his son, Absalom, Mephibosheth’s servant, Ziba, was one of those that God used to supply him and his men food. But what if David had not allowed God to use him to lift them out of poverty and shame at the time he did, would the man have had anything to support him in his own days of misery? Even if they had something to support him, would they have thought about him at all, when he had not remembered them or done anything good for them when it was in his power to do so? It was very unlikely. (Cf. 2Sam 16:1-4)

So, if there are people you are in a position to support or do some good to now, and there will be such people, lose no time to help them in whatever way you can. That is because you may not be able to tell how God will reward you for the good you are doing to them today or when the good you are doing to them today will open a door for you too to receive some form of kindness that money or position cannot buy.

Do have a splendid 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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

Use it for appreciation | By J.O. Lawal.

Date: December 05, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 31

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours without measure from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord. It gives me great delight to welcome you to the last month of this year, the month of December 2021. And I pray that your life and home will overflow with gladness and peace all through it, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, as we come to this very last month of the year, I want to admonish you to use it to appreciate God and all the people He has used to bless you in one way or the other in the year. Why do you need to appreciate God? First, it is because that is His will for you (1Thess 5:18). The will of God is that everyone living in the world that He created and enjoying His provisions there would show themselves grateful to Him, regardless of the circumstances in which they find themselves. So, even if certain things are not working well for them in the world at the moment, they still need to learn to be thankful to Him for those things that are working well for them. That is because things could have been worse for them, if it had not been for Him (Ps 124).

Second, you need to appreciate God because it is what will open the door for you to receive more from Him and to also receive a perfection of what you have received from Him (Ps 50:23). See, whatever we have right now, however wonderful or unpleasant it may be, is not the best for us in this life. There is always something better in God’s hand, something beyond what our minds can handle or fathom (Eph 3:20). And until we learn to give thanks to Him for the gift of life and also for all the good things in our lives, we will not be showing ourselves as worthy to receive more from Him or to have Him perfect the things that are not working well for us.

So, instead of looking at the things that are not working well in your life and complaining about them, take out time to first consider carefully the things that are working well in your life and give God thanks for them. Remember that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. So, if anything is working well in your life at all, He is the one responsible for it. And you should acknowledge that and be truly thankful to Him for it. (Cf. Ps 103:1-5; Is 26:12; James 1:17)

Also, don’t allow yourself to get carried away because of the few good things God has done for you in life and forget to be thankful to Him. That is because there is always more to receive from Him. And if you will not be thankful for whatever He has already done for you, will you not be shutting the door to receive more from Him against yourself? Remember those ten lepers that Jesus healed. Only one of them came back to thank Him. Others were too excited to remember to come back and thank Him. And it was only that one man that came back to thank Him that received one more word of blessing from Him – your faith has made you whole. In like manner, it is only those who return to thank God this year end for all He has done for them in it that will receive more from Him and also a perfection of all He has done for them. (Cf. Luke 17:11-19)

How, then, do you show God that you are grateful to Him for all He has done for you this year? First, you show it by praising Him with your words, songs and dances (2Sam 6:14; Luke 17:15; Acts 3:8). Second, you show it by giving to Him. In other words, you give something for His cause, the cause of the gospel. So, if you have not deliberately done anything for the kingdom of God this year in appreciation of what He has been doing in your life, prepare to do so this month. Third, you show it by continually using whatever He has done for you to promote His righteousness.

Finally, as I pointed out before, it is not only God you are to appreciate this year end; you are also to appreciate all the people He has used to bless, protect or lift you up in the year. I know none of us can actually know all the people God has used or is using to make life better and safer for us. But there will always be some individuals that we can point to the remarkable roles they have played in our lives. And we should think of ways to appreciate them too. That is because if they had not yielded themselves to be used by God for us, certain exaltation or salvation we experienced in the year may probably have been delayed or postponed.

Now don’t make excuses about this. It does not always cost much to appreciate people, if we will learn to be thoughtful. So, be like David, who, in the day of his prosperity, sent gifts to all his friends that accommodated and provided for him during the time he was roaming about because of King Saul (1Sam 30:26-31). And may God abundantly supply you with all kinds of good things this December, so that you can be truly grateful to Him and to all the people He has used for you this year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a great December 2021.

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)

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021 Pastor's Desk

One wrong thing | Pst J.O. Lawal


Date: August 22, 2021 | Series: From Pastor’s Desk | Number: Vol. 10, No. 16

Beloved: grace and peace be yours abundantly from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am glad to welcome you to another week of the month of August 2021. And my prayer is that you will always be prevented by the Spirit of God from desiring or doing anything that will expose you to God’s judgment, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now that may not sound like a very serious prayer to many. But Paul offers a similar one for the Corinthian brethren, saying, “We pray to God that you will not do anything wrong…” (2Cor 13:7NCV) So, though this appears to be a very simple prayer, it is perfectly scriptural. And since it is perfectly scriptural, it can actually be the difference between life and death or between exaltation and fall for us.

For example, Reuben was not cursed by his father because he was a troublesome young man that was always causing problems and pains. Rather, he was cursed because of just one wrong thing he did. He slept with his father’s wife. Why he did this is not stated in the bible. Perhaps he was seduced by the woman, just as Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph. We would not know. But just that one offence made him and his descendants lose their place of excellence in life. (Cf. Gen 35:21-22 & 43:3-4)

Also, what got Nadab and Abihu, two of the sons of Aaron, killed on the same day and at the same time? It was just a wrong step that they took. They were good people. Also, they were anointed priests of God. But when they offered unauthorised fire before the Lord, fire came out from His presence and consumed the two of them right away. They were not given any warning or any chance to repent. So, any wrong thing can expose us to instant destruction or a life time of trouble. (Cf. Lev 10:1-2)

See, people may be involved in all kinds of wrong things and not get punished for them immediately or in any serious or obvious manner. But just one more wrong thing from them, one that may not even appear as grievous as the ones they have been doing, and they may find themselves in some very serious trouble with God. That was what happened to King Belshazzar. God did not put him to death or take away his kingdom from him for any of the wrong things he had been doing before the day he and his people decided to use the articles belonging to His temple for merriment. But on the day he did that, the sentence of death was pronounced on him. And he was killed and his kingdom given to another. (Cf. Dan 5)

In like manner, someone may have been doing everything right before God and receiving His praise. But just one wrong thing from him can make him lose his life, his ministry or his place in the kingdom of God. Remember Moses. It was just one wrong thing that he did that made him lose his ministry of leading Israel into the Promised Land. So, one wrong thing can spoil everything for us. (Cf. Num 20:1-13)

All of this is why I find Paul’s prayer for the Corinthians to be a very relevant one for me and in fact for every child of God. And what again is this prayer? It is that we will not do any wrong thing, whether one that will lead to our death or one that will lead to our failure, destruction, depression or uselessness in life, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Do have a great 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)