Tag: JAN 2020

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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2020

Title: How God protected a murderer JAN 12, 2020.

from pastor's desk

By: J.O. Lawal

Date: January 12, 2020

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 8, No. 36

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Redeemer. I am pleased to welcome you into the second week of this new year, year 2020. My prayer is that God’s favour and cover will rest upon you continually all through the remaining part of the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

One of the things we learn in the Scriptures about God is that He is compassionate and full of mercy. For instance, Micah says this about Him: “Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” (Mic 7:18-19NIV) Look at the things this man says about God, things that many still do not comprehend about Him. First, he says that He is a God who pardons sin and also forgives people’s transgressions. So, regardless of how great your sin may be in His eyes, He is still able to forgive you, if you will turn to Him in repentance. 

Also, Micah says God does not stay angry forever but delights to show mercy. Have you ever thought about that? There are people who think that once God is angry with them, that is how He is going to be forever. But that is not true at all. It is not His desire to be angry with anybody forever, that is, as far as our activities here on earth is concerned. Rather, His desire and pleasure is to show mercy.

Now we see this in the way He dealt with the case of Cain, who murdered his brother, Abel, in cold blood. God, evidently, was very angry with him. And so angry was He that he told Cain that he would no longer prosper as a farmer and that he would be a restless wanderer all the remaining days of his life. And when Cain heard that, he was like, “What! God, this is too much for me! I know I messed up. But please, this punishment is too much for me to bear. In short, it is as good as passing a death sentence on me.” (Cf. Gen 4:10-14)

If you were God, what would you say in response to what that wicked man said? You would most likely say, “Are you alright at all? Just hear yourself. Don’t those words of yours sound bad and terrible in your mouth? Just be thankful I am not killing you immediately. Now get out of this place and don’t ever let me hear a word from you again.” But God would not act like that or say such things. And that is why we just couldn’t be God. 

Well, God, having listened to Cain’s plea, looked at him and was filled with mercy for him. So filled with mercy was He that He put a mark of protection on Him and also said to him, “Anyone who touches you will be punished seven times over.” And I can imagine Cain going around and saying to anyone who wants to harm him, “What do you think you are doing? God has got my back. And if you dare touch me, your life will be seven times more miserable than mine.” What a powerful charm to use! (Cf. Gen 4:15-16)

Now think about that. God was willing to show mercy to a murderer and put a mark of protection on him, just because he appealed to Him. What, then, will He not do to keep safe His children, whom He loves dearly in Christ Jesus? Nothing! No wonder Paul says this to us about what He has done for us: “Remember, God is the One who makes you and us strong in Christ. God made us his chosen people. He put his mark on us to show that we are his, and he put his Spirit in our hearts to be a guarantee for all he has promised.” (2Cor 1:21-22NCV) Did you see that? God has put His mark of ownership on us. Hallelujah. So, we don’t need to pray, as many used to pray today, that God will put a mark of life or protection on us. We already have His mark on us. We go everywhere with His mark on us. Oh yes, it is an invisible and spiritual mark. But angels, Satan and demons can see it; they can tell that we belong to God and that to touch us is to touch Him (Zech 2:8). And what we now need to fully enjoy this is to walk in its consciousness.

Cain, a murderer, walked in the consciousness that he bore God’s mark of protection everywhere he went. And his life was preserved for years. This, of course, does not mean that you are free to murder people, in expectation that God will protect you. You are a rogue, if you think like that; and God will see to it that you get what is right for you. But what I am saying is that if Cain, despite what he did, would boldly take advantage of God’s provision for his protection, we, who are loved and cherished by God, should not act any less. Instead, we should rise every moment of the year and declare boldly, “God’s mark of ownership, life and protection are on me. Nothing can successfully harm me.” And if this is the way we are functioning, we will see for ourselves all through this new year that God never fails in honouring His word.

Do have a very pleasant 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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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2020

Title: Trust Him with all your heart JAN 05, 2020

from pastor's desk

By: J.O. Lawal

Date: January 05, 2020

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 8, No. 35

Beloved: Grace, mercy and peace be yours abundantly from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. It is with great delight that I welcome you into this New Year, year 2020. Without doubt, it is because of the Lord’s mercies and compassions that we are alive to be a part of the year. And my prayer is that it will not be a wasted additional year for us, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Now, as we all are preparing our hearts, minds and bodies to make the most of this new year, I want to remind you that there is nothing we can accomplish on our own in the year without God (John 15:5). So, let us not waste any time, energy, resources, skills or dedication on trying to make it on our own. Rather, let us begin, right from this moment on, to rely on God for everything we need to make the most of this new year that he has given us the privilege of witnessing.

Solomon says this to us in his book of proverbs: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” (Prov 3:5-8NIV) Did you see that? We can choose to either trust in the Lord with everything inside us or trust in ourselves and our own ways of doing things. Which will it be?

See, God will not force us to trust in Him. But He will always counsel us to do so. And if we listen to Him and cast ourselves in utter dependence on Him for every matter of our lives, we will experience His glory in ways that are beyond anybody’s imagination. But if we choose to rely on our ways and methods of doing things, we will someday see for ourselves the folly in doing so.

David, in a Psalm of his, has this to say to us: “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.” (Ps 20:7-8NIV) These words, you need to understand, arise out of this man’s personal experience of the difference between trusting in God and trusting in ourselves or our schemes. Remember how he stood before that great giant and warrior, Goliath, and challenged him in the name of the Lord. He clearly said to him during that encounter, “You come against me with sword, spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, who you have defied.” (Cf. 1Sam 17:45)

Now David did not say those words to Goliath because he had nothing in his hands to fight with. He had a sling and some stones in his hands. And he must have been quite skilful in using them. So, he had some skills too, even though his skills could not in any way be compared to Goliath’s. Nevertheless, he did not put his trust in his skills or weapons; rather, he put his trust in the Lord. So, at the end of the fight, he, the little boy from Israel, was the one standing, not Goliath, the great warrior giant from Gath. 

So, when we are talking about putting our trust in the Lord, we are not saying that we don’t need to put our skills, education or resources to any legitimate use. Rather, we are saying that we must not put our trust in those things but in God. Those who trust in human wisdom, strength, influence or resources will ultimately meet with humiliation and disgrace. But those who trust in the Lord, those who count on Him to handle the matters of their lives for them, will never be put to shame, regardless of their handicaps. Instead, when all has been said and done, they will be radiant and standing strong and firm (Ps 34:5). So, put your trust in Him with your whole heart this year, beloved, and you will never regret that you do so.

Happy New Year.

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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FROM PASTOR'S DESK 2021

Title: His power and authority are now yours JAN 17, 2021

from pastor's desk

By: J.O. Lawal

Date: January 17, 2021

Series: From Pastor’s Desk

Number: Vol. 9, No. 37

Beloved: grace, mercy and peace be yours from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. I am delighted to welcome you to this new week and pray that your heart will be strengthened to walk in the fullness of God’s purpose for your life all through the week and the remaining part of the year, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

As we begin this week, I want to remind you of the words of our Lord Jesus, which say, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you…” (Acts 1:8NIV) Who did He say these words to? His first set of disciples! What did He say that they would receive, when the Spirit of God comes on them? Power! And what kind of power did He say that they would receive? It was God’s divine power to live as victors over sin and over the devil and all his works here on earth.

Now did these disciples receive this power, just as the Lord had promised them? Yes, they did! They received the power of God into their lives the very day the Holy Spirit was poured out on them (Acts 2:1-4). And from that time on, life was no longer business as usual for them. First, they began to live differently, in love and in the righteousness of God and in boldness. I mean that all these men and women, who were once selfish and loaded with all kinds of immoral ways, began to sell their things to take care of others and to live for the sole purpose of pleasing God. And that was because they were strengthened in their hearts with God’s power by the Holy Spirit in them. (Cf. Acts 2:44-46 & 4:32-37)

Then these brethren began to proclaim the good news about Jesus Christ and to frustrate and destroy the works of the devil everywhere they went. They had lived all their lives in fear of the devil and his wicked works before they met Jesus and were eventually filled with the Holy Spirit of God. But having been filled with the Spirit of God, they received the power of God to lose their fear of the devil and his works and their fear of men and their wickedness. So, everywhere they went, they boldly proclaimed Jesus and also set people free from Satan and his demons. (Cf. Acts 2:43, 4:31-33 & 5:12-16)

In like manner, as many of us that have received the Holy Spirit today have also received God’s power to live the way those disciples of old lived. We too have received God’s power to reject a life of unrighteousness and live in the love and righteousness of God every day. And if we are not walking in the love of God and practising His righteousness, it will not be because we are powerless to do so; rather, it will either be because we have refused to take advantage of His power in us or are totally ignorant that we now possess His very power in our lives. 

Also, we have received His power to lose whatever fear we have of the devil and his demons and destroy their works wherever we go. I mean that we now have at work in us God’s power to heal the sick, raised the dead, drive out demons and even destroy bad habits in people’s lives. And remember that Jesus says,

“I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” (Luke 10:19NIV) So, it is totally unacceptable for us to still be living in fear of Satan, his demons, witches, wizards or any other worker of wickedness. What we need is to learn to utilise the power and authority that we already have to put these beings where they belong in our lives and affairs –under our feet (Rom 16:20).

Now how do we utilise God’s authority and power that are now ours? One way to do this is through prayer. James tells us in his epistle that the prayer of a righteous person makes tremendous power available and is dynamic in its working (James 5:16). In other words, each time we pray in accordance with the will of God, His power is released to bring about His will in our lives or world and to frustrate the works of the devil. So, if you want to continually see a mighty release of God’s power through your life, pray without ceasing. Another way to put to work God’s power and authority in our lives is to constantly speak His word to our situations. And we will speak His word to our situations, if we truly believe that it is true and will not fail (2Cor 4:13). Do you, for instance, believe that in Christ Jesus you are a master to Satan, his demons, witches, wizards, sicknesses, diseases and so forth? If you do, then, you will not hesitate to command them to stop their works wherever you come in contact with them.

So, as you go this week, make up your mind that you will take advantage of God’s power and authority that are already yours in Christ Jesus to enforce His will in your life and in your world. And remember that you are not alone in all this. The Spirit of God is in you and with you and will strengthen you to do what is right, as long as you are willing.

Do have a miracle filled 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 alaythiabiblechurch@gmail.com/alaythia4all@gmail.com  or call: 08037592851 (WhatsApp Number: 07085711280)