Author: biblicaldiagnosis

I am a christian and I seek to understand and practice the Word of God in every aspects of my life.

Believing and Suffering for Christ

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn eternal life, Faith, repentance, SinLeave a comment
Dear friends;

May the grace of God be with you in Jesus, our Lord and Savior. The messages of truth you are least likely to love are among the ones that give the most definite proof that you are saved.

Did you know that you have not only been appointed to believe in Jesus, but also to suffer for Him?

Phil. 1:29 – …it has been granted to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him

Do not choke your zeal for Jesus, to fight to live in a many worthy of Him, to fight for the right Gospel to be taught, because of your fear of the consequences, the afflictions and sufferings that will come. Far too many churches have abandoned this message…You must bear your own cross, You must share in Christ’s suffering, which is done by imitating Christ. It is proof of your salvation.

Phil. 1:27,28 – …live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ…not being frightened in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of destruction for them, but of your salvation—and this is from God.

Search the scriptures my friends, develop a zeal for Jesus, and move boldly forward, proving to yourself that you are indeed saved.

May the Lord strengthen you as you embrace this message and share in His suffering.

In His Name.

AMEN.

The Hunger of Doing God’s Will

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn eternal life, Giving, repentance1 Comment

Dear friends;

May the Lord open our spiritual eyes, that we may understand His Will. Allow me to dig into the well-known story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well of Jacob, as it relates to God’s children being spiritually fed by carrying the Will of God through good works.

We understand indeed from the scriptures that we have been created to do good works, as the Apostles, and most notably Jesus Himself have expressed in so many different ways. Doing good works is our purpose, our very reason for existing:

Ephesians 2:10 –…we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.

Matthew 5:13 – You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

Matthew 5:14 – “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden.”

But arguably the most expressive and forceful way of conveying this truth is by labeling the performance of good works as our food!

John 4:34,35 – “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work”

Now, our life itself is tied to doing the will of God. Food is not optional. One must eat. While we may choose not to eat, the consequences – the discomfort of hunger – are anything but a choice. And if left to persist, starvation will ensue.

This truth was vividly displayed at the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. Jesus was desperate to eat…He was desperate to do the Will of God: to save souls, to recover the lost sheep.

1. Jesus and the Samaritan woman

As recorded in John 4, Jesus, was resting at Jacob’s well from his travel to Galilee from Judea, when a Samaritan woman came to draw some water. Jesus was exhausted, thirsty and hungry from the trip, and His disciples had gone into town to buy some food.

When they came back, they found Him right in the middle of something: He just had an exchange with the woman in which He showed her that He was the Christ, and that He could offer her the living water that leads to eternal life.

John 4:27-29 – Just then his disciples arrived, and they were amazed that he was talking with a woman. Yet no one said, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?” 28 Then the woman left her water jar, went into town, and told the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?”

2. The hunger to do God’s Will

Note that the disciples were already amazed to see Jesus speaking with a Samaritan woman. That alone was peculiar, but what followed was far more disturbing for the disciples: they were about to witness the extent of Jesus’ hunger to do the Will of God, in ways they had never seen before. Although He was hungry, He refused to eat!

John 4:28-33 – Then the woman left her water jar, went into town, and told the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They left the town and made their way to him. 31 In the meantime the disciples kept urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But he said, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.” 33 The disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought him something to eat?”

Although His disciples insisted, Jesus refused to eat. And the reason He gave was that He already had food to eat…

John 4:34 – “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work,” Jesus told them.

Jesus was starving to do God’s Will, and the disciples found Him right in the midst of having this hunger satisfied.

Please note that the woman left the jar. She was to return, and she did indeed return, and this time, with many people!

This is the meal Jesus was waiting for. One soul (the Samaritan woman) and many more with her about to be saved. He saw a harvest, and that was an opportunity He could not pass.

3. But why was Jesus starving to do God’s Will in the first place?

While we could simply say that Jesus always did the Will of His Father, the reason Jesus was traveling in the first place is revealing.

John 4:1-3 – When Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard he was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (though Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were), 3 he left Judea and went again to Galilee.

Jesus was traveling by constraint, because the Pharisees had learned about the expansion of His ministry, and that He was even making more disciples than John the Baptist. He had to stop doing the Will of God in Judea and leave town.

Then, just like an oasis in the middle of the desert, he saw a single person, even if it was just a woman, and a Samaritan at that. Everyone would have passed by, but Jesus was hungry, Jesus was starving to do the Will of God. While his disciples contemplated his physical hunger, He was eagerly waiting the return of the woman, and not just herself, but an entire crowd…a true feast!!

John 4:39 – Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.”

No wonder Jesus had said to His disciples…

John 4:32 – “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”

4. Our discomfort when we do not do His Will

This state of discomfort resulting from not doing God’s Will is akin to the discomfort one feels when hungry. It is not a choice, it just is, because just as it is a basic necessity to eat, it is a basic necessity for God’s children to do His Will.

This discomfort may manifest itself in various ways. But one of the common ways is for us to feel unfulfilled. Christians who habitually resist the Will of the Spirit carry with them the heavy burden of feeling unfulfilled.

Another way is when feels saturated, when one keeps learning but does not release that Spiritual water erupting from their inner spring.

Your prayers are not like what they used to be, they lack intensity, connection, and passion. Your learning makes little progress, you open the Bible but you are unsettled, the drive to devour the scriptures is nowhere to be found, and no matter what you do, and how many times you pray, that overall discomfort is there and it grows…

…until you start releasing…until you start “doing” – not just learning – the Will of God…until you start eating!

John 4:34,35 – “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work” 

My friends; I exhort you to recognize when you are hungry, when you are starving. Release, Release, Release! Do the Will of God, believe in Jesus and do not resist His Will.

In Jesus Name, to the glory of God, our Father.

AMEN

No Prosperity Despite Your Prayers

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn prayer, repentance, Sin, Spiritual growth1 Comment

Dear Brothers and Sisters;

May the peace and grace of God our Father, and of our Lord Jesus-Christ be with you. This letter is addressed primarily to married couples, husbands and wives. It is also addressed to those of you who are aspiring to get married soon. I pray through my Lord Jesus that He grants me the love and wisdom to share with you one of the reasons your genuine prayers, as a married individual, may go unanswered.

It has to do with your spouse, and how you treat her (or him). God, through the prophet Malachi said the following to the Jews.

Malachi 2:13 – This is another thing you do. You are covering the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning, because he no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.

In the Book of Malachi, God was really displeased with the Jews. In the verse above, He was no longer accepting the offerings from the people. Why? Please note that the people were still making offerings in this verse. In addition, note that the fact that God was refusing their offerings had a very clear impact on the lives of the people. And that impact brought them to tears!

To translate in today’s terms, you may understand the verse above as no longer receiving blessings from God, despite your prayers, your singing, and your work at Church, and even your good deeds in your community! Why?

You pray genuinely, but your situation is not improving. You are generous in the community, but it does not seem to matter. Your health takes a dive. Your business does not prosper. None of your plans seem to work. You no longer have favor from anyone. Nothing is working and therefore, you are brought down to tears like the Jews in Malachi above.

And therefore, just like them, you are wondering why God is not hearing you!

Malachi 2:14 – And you ask, “Why?”

The answer: Because of the way you are treating your spouse!

Malachi 3:14,15 – And you ask, “Why?” Because even though the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partner and your wife by covenant. 15 Didn’t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit?

Acting treacherously against your spouse is a sure way to damage your relationship with God, and there are at least two reasons given.

 First: God was a witness of your marriage and made you one

God was a witness between the two of you when you got married. Naturally, we are not speaking of marriages where God was not a witness, of which, I am sure, there are many of such today. But if, with the little you knew when you got married, you did invoke God as you made the covenant of marriage, then it is safe assume that God was indeed a witness! And acting treacherously against your spouse is a disregard for who God, who was a witness, is!

Second: You are robbing God from what He is seeking: Godly Offspring

Malachi 2:15 – Didn’t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit? What is the one seeking? Godly offspring.

God is seeking Godly offspring. He is a witness of a marriage and makes the two one. He then goes straight to work to unite these two individuals, given them His Spirit (this is a mysterious thing, and beyond my capacity to understand, for the language in the verse seems to indicate that God gives a spirit that is only shared between the two individuals, making them truly one!).

This unity will ensure Godly offspring, what God is seeking…until one starts to deal treacherously against the other. The husband no longer loves his wife. The wife has no more reverence for her husband.

You are breaking what God is building! You dishonor your spouse, make light of that Spirit that unites you, jeopardizing God’s plan to have God-fearing children…and you expect to be prosperous? You expect to be heard? No, NOOO, NOOOOO…YOU WILL NOT BE HEARD!

Repent, and deal kindly with your spouse. Honor your husband. Love your wife. Ask for your forgiveness, for He is willing to pardon. He will hear you.

AND ONLY THEN, YOU CAN EXPECT TO BE HEARD. For you will be once again back on track to bring up Godly offspring. Children who fear Him, children who revere Him.

May the Lord of Mercy bless you all. AMEN.

What’s the Use Anyway?

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn Faith, repentance, Sin, Spiritual growth1 Comment

Dear Friends;

May God the Father, and Jesus our Lord be blessed, and may the Lord sanctify you and give you a heart to understand His Will.

Yes, what’s the use of serving God? What’s the use of enduring suffering and injustice for His name, while others seem to have it easy. While others, who do not fear Him, actually prosper?

There is nothing new under the sun, and neither are these questions. Look at what the Jews used to say in the times of Malachi.

Malachi 3:14,15 – “It is useless to serve God. What have we gained by keeping his requirements and walking mournfully before the Lord of Armies? 15 So now we consider the arrogant to be fortunate. Not only do those who commit wickedness prosper, they even test God and escape.”

Do not fall into that sin. It is a death trap! While many of the Jews were speaking and thinking that way, a few did the opposite…

Malachi 3:16 – At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another.

And God took notice

Malachi 3:16 – The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance was written before him for those who feared the Lord and had high regard for his name.

Friends; think very carefully about what you are thinking and harboring in your heart. The Lord may seem quiet at times, but He takes notice and listens.

Malachi 3:17 – “They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies, “my own possession on the day I am preparing. I will have compassion on them as a man has compassion on his son who serves him.

In His Name. AMEN.

No Confidence in the Flesh

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn Faith, repentance, Sin2 Comments

Dear Reader;

May the grace, peace and mercy of God be with you, through His Son, Jesus, whom He has appointed King of all Kings and Lord of all Lords. Friends, it is astonishing to see just how anti-biblical some of the deeply held beliefs in our societies are. And it is even more troubling when we see that they are deeply held even by our own Christian brothers.

Take for instance, the notion that we need to believe in ourselves.

This commonly accepted belief takes many forms: We need to have faith in ourselves. We can do anything that we put our minds to. We have amazing potential that just needs to be unleashed. These are just some of the ways this belief is expressed.

We see this belief applied in every domain of our lives, all geared toward some “betterment” of ourselves, our loved ones or our community, whether it be physical fitness, career advancement, or wealth generation.

But look at how the Apostle Paul expresses one of the defining characteristics of Christ’s followers:

Philippians 3:3 – …we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh

The statement…do not put confidence in the flesh…refers to the fact that Christians should believe that they are incapable of doing anything worthy of anything by themselves, through some form of inner ability that – as being widely believed today – all of us may possess (what the Scripture calls the flesh).

Romans 7:18 – For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it.

This statement is perhaps even more troubling and echoes the sentiment of Philippians 3. Paul said that nothing good lives in him. It is incongruent to both believe that nothing good lives in you and at the same time believe that you have within you what it takes to accomplish anything worthy.

Now, you may at this point read these and call to mind the countless stories of success (your own, or of others) which attest to the contrary: Evidences which prove that indeed we have within ourselves the ability to accomplish whatever we put our minds into.

Romans 3:4 – …Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar

Man does indeed have an inner ability, but it is not to do anything good

How we do reconcile what the scripture says with the countless evidences which seem to affirm the opposite of what God says?

I submit to you that one may find the answer – among other places – in Romans 7:18 we just read.

Romans 7:18 – For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it.

Whatever we can accomplish through the strength of our will, our inner strength (however that ability is labeled) is not good.

But what is “good”?

GOD defines what is good (unless we want to define for ourselves what is good, at which point we have made of ourselves our own God). And only things that can be accomplished through Him and Him alone are considered good. Everything else is not good.

Hence we may say, that if one desires to satisfy the passions of his flesh, he indeed has the ability to do so within himself, for his flesh is inside him. But the one who desires to do anything that is good – and hence, pleasing to God – is incapable to do so but with the help of God Himself.

Should we therefore hold onto the belief that we can do anything we put our minds to?

No, we run away from it, for that mentality only promotes the flesh, and its sinful desires, no matter holily those desires may portray themselves. Just think of the Galatians who thought it a good thing to circumcise themselves (Galatians 3:1-5).

And this applies to ALL of our aspirations in life. No matter how noble and right they might appear. If we are able to attain to them through our own strength, then we ought to know that they were nothing more than the sinful desires of our flesh.

In me dwells no good thing. I place no confidence in my flesh. I am incapable of doing anything that is good, for myself, my children or my community. I am wretched and miserable, destitute.  

Romans 7:24 – What a wretched man I am!

We should truly believe in our utter destitution so that we may truly believe in our utter dependence on God.

Only with the profound belief that we are destitute and incapable of doing anything good for ourselves or anyone will we cherish and hold onto our dependence on GOD, THROUGH WHOM WE CAN DO EVERYTHING THAT IS GOOD.

Philippians 4:13 – I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.

May the Spirit of Christ ministers to you the Word of Truth, for the glory of His own Name.

AMEN.

Burning Out in Search of Your Purpose

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn eternal life, Faith, repentance, Sin, WisdomLeave a comment

May the God of all grace, who is rich in wisdom, and abounding in mercy, be with you in the name of our Lord Jesus-Christ. I wonder how you would describe your Christian life. Has it so far been one of constant fire for the Lord? Or can you distinctly identify periods of drought, sometimes very long ones? Periods where you were – and perhaps still are – simply cold toward spiritual matters. May be even worse. Do you feel like you have simply run out of steam for God?

You can remember the days when you had all the zeal of the world. Perhaps that was at your new birth and the months that followed it. On fire you were to even preach the gospel. Volunteering at your local Church, even proposing new ideas of ministry. But now…

…You are exhausted. You feel like you have been doing everything you can, but now, you are tired, and that zeal is just not there anymore. At best, a routine has settled in, but spiritually and emotionally, you are somewhere else.

You, have burned out.

This burning out, is not like the one Paul is describing, where, precisely because of the Gospel, they were persecuted on every front.

2 Corinthians 1:8 – We don’t want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction that took place in Asia. We were completely overwhelmed—beyond our strength—so that we even despaired of life itself.

No, the burning out I am describing is where your Christian zeal is gone. Your prayer life is all but nonexistent, and your active involvement in Church is a thing of the past.

And even worse…

It seems like it does not really matter whether you find in you the energy to jolt yourself back up. God Himself seems silent. Not a word from Him, not a word of encouragement from Jesus in your head that perhaps says “Yes, go ahead, I am with you, do not give up!”.

What is my mission? What is my ministry? What is my calling? Why can’t I seem to find it? Why am I just not on fire for Him?

These are just some of the questions you have been wrestling with.

You, have burned out.

What is Happening?

I would not pretend to have the comprehensive answer on the matter, nor presume that God would reveal such to me. But one potential big reason could be the mistake we often make of placing the carriage before the horse.

We are focusing on the ministry before focusing on ourselves.

When you look at the words of Jesus, and of His apostles after Him, by in large their focus was on our personal growth, rather than our ministry.

Jesus’ message was full of Do’s and Don’ts for our personal life. He preached so that our very character will change. You can read Matthew 5 to 7 for a good illustration of this. His focus was not for us to engage on a quest to find our “ministry”, but to embark on a life of internal transformation by getting rid of moral traits, habits and behaviors which keep us far from God.

The Apostles’ message echoed their Lord and Master’s. Very little – if anything at all – is found in their writings about how to get creative in the church, how to attract new members, or how to get children engage in Bible school. No, we do not see any of that. But what do we see instead? A call for personal transformation. A call for each of us to look inward, a call to fight old habits and put on new ones.

Galatians 5:19-25 – Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things—as I warned you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things. 24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

Fighting our old nature – the flesh and what it produces – is where our focus should be. The fruit of the Spirit is not described as a series of activities in the Church, or a series of personal ministries, but instead as a list of character traits that are in perfect agreement with the Laws of God.

It is God’s part to give you a ministry, not yours – It is your part to fight your old habits, not His

And so we find ourselves often focusing on something else that God would have us focused on. We want to work for Him, but we are not focusing on purifying ourselves as He commanded. And therefore often we move forward, with our temporary zeal and creative mind, only to run out of steam because the Lord, was never with us to begin with!

2 Timothy 2:21 – So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

It is the Master’s privilege to judge us fit for use. Sure, as we fight our old nature and put on the new one supplied by the Spirit, we will find ourselves “doing” things that could rightfully be described as doing ministry work. But they are not the focus, for they are simply the natural product of the transformation that is taking place inside of us, which should be our focus.

And if God judges that we should spend the rest of our lives here on earth doing nothing else but transforming ourselves, rather than doing any kind of ministry, so be it, for it will all be worth it. For remember, only holy people will see God (Hebrews 12:14).

Matthew 5:8 – Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

May the Lord Jesus live His life in You, through the Holy Spirit, for the glory of the God the Father.

AMEN

The Gift of Repentance

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn repentance, SinLeave a comment

Dear friends;

I pray that the grace of God be with you, you who call Jesus LORD.  I hope that by His mercies, I may exhort you in a few words.

To those who have erred away from God, and are currently feeling the burden of their guilt.

Please consider the reaction of the Father whose son had grievously hurt him, as recorded in Luke 15. In essence, the son was impatient to get his inheritance. Put it bluntly, for him, his father was not dying soon enough. So he asked for his inheritance, left the house, indulged in a life of party, drinking and fornication, until he lost everything, became a beggar, and had to take a job to feed pigs. He was not even considered worthy to eat what he was giving to the pigs (Luke 15:16).

In a severe state of distress, the guilt of what he had committed caught up with him. We know it because he no longer saw himself as the son of his father. Instead, he said…

Luke 15:18,19 – I’ll get up, go to my father, and say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. 19 I’m no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired workers.”’

However, when he did return, the reaction of the Father caught him by surprise…

Luke 15:20-23 –  So he got up and went to his father. But while the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. He ran, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him. 21 The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I’m no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father told his servants, ‘Quick! Bring out the best robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Then bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let’s celebrate with a feast…

Some of you have wondered away from God, and some, for far too long. In fact, I would not be surprised that some of you are as guilty as this man. You have, by how you lived, hurt your Father, God to the same extent.

And among you, there are some who are now feeling that guilt. The guilt of your sin has caught up with you. I would like to encourage to run back to God. You may not feel that you deserve to be called the Son or Daughter of God…and THAT IS GOOD, for you are ready to offer true, real, genuine, repentance to God, which to Him, is the greatest of joy he can experience, after the pain you have inflicted Him.

Do not rob God of that Joy. Run to Him, your heart broken, your face covered in shame, and confess your sin before Him. He WILL NEVER refuse such a gift of repentance, and restore you into His fold. And you, will be a changed person!

In Jesus Name. AMEN.

Knowing Christ

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn Faith, repentance, SinLeave a comment

My dear Brothers and sisters;

Oh that we need to have our eyes opened so that we may know what we ought to know, namely, the surpassing value of knowing Christ. I pray the Father, in the name of Jesus, that He may grant to us such blessing, for if we do not know Christ, and the value of knowing Him, we have no hope of seeing ourselves transformed. We will continue to be at the mercy of our sinful dreams and desires, at the mercy of the latest current of our societies. At the mercy of our many limitations as human beings. And we will simply not know what we should know, until it will be too late.

The Apostle Paul knew the “Value” of Knowing Christ

We see in his letter to the Philippians that the Apostle Paul had come to understand the surpassing value of knowing Christ. He came to realize that knowing Christ was the greatest treasure he had to possess, above – and actually in lieu of – everything else that He had.

Philippians 3:7,8 – But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord…

Knowing Christ was, for Paul, worth everything and more. He did not simply consider that everything that he had – and was in his society – to be little to lose in order to gain that intimate knowledge of who Christ is, but he also considered them to be a real waste, an encumbrance.

Philippians 3:8 – Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ.

One element that is very interesting to note is that Paul plainly declared that he did not yet know Christ, but that this was his goal, and that he was doing everything to reach it.

Philippians 3:10-12 – My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, 11 assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. 12 Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus.

But my question to my God is HOW? HOW Father may I KNOW THE VALUE of Knowing Christ?

If I know the value, my life will change. My desires will change. My pursuit will change. At this point, it matters more to me that know the value of knowing Christ, for if I do not know its value, how will I pursue that knowledge. Paul knew the value, hence he made “every effort to know Christ”.

Oh my people, the answer is right before our eyes! It is right there in the passage itself: CHRIST HAS TO TAKE HOLD OF ME FIRST!

Philippians 3:12 – Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus.

The verb translated “taken hold of” is katalambánō [Greek: 2638], and it has a forceful, almost violent connotation to it. It means to grasp something in a forceful (firm) manner; (figuratively) to apprehend (comprehend), “making it one’s own.”

Is that how the Christian life starts? I am not sure. Perhaps not necessarily. But one thing seems sure to me: Understanding the value of knowing Christ starts this way. Christ must take hold of me. He must apprehend me. He somehow must manifest Himself to me FIRST.

We know that the consequences of Christ taking hold of us are pretty severe, if Paul’s loss of everything is any indication. Could it be therefore that there is timing to when Christ does decide to take hold of each one of us, so that He does it when He knows it is the right time? I ask God for I do not know.

But one thing Paul does offer is the following. Whatever truth we DO know, we should strive to live up to it.

Philippians 3:16,17 – In any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained. 17 Join in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and pay careful attention to those who live according to the example you have in us.

May God open your eyes and mine, that we may understand these deep truths, and the value of knowing His Son, Jesus, the CHRIST.

In Jesus name. AMEN.

Confession without Repentance

On By biblicaldiagnosisIn Faith, Sin, Sound bites from the Word of GodLeave a comment

My dear brothers and sisters;

I ask the Father of mercies, in the name of Jesus, His Son, that He pours upon us His mercies, and gives us a heart of repentance toward Him, for such a heart is one of great value before Him.

Have you wondered if there was a relationship between confessing the Lord Jesus, and repentance? If there is one, what is it? Are they synonymous? Does one come before the other? If yes, which one? “Must” one come before the other? In Acts, the Apostle Paul summarized in ministry as follows:

Acts 20:21 – I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.

I submit to you that having faith in Jesus necessitates that you have confessed Him as Lord. I also submit to you that your confession is only valid if you have repented toward God first. One must first repent before their confession of Jesus as Lord can be considered valid.

On the day the Church was born (on the day of Pentecost), after Peter explained to the assembly what they had just witnessed – the disciples speaking in tongues – they were deeply hurt because he had testified that Jesus, whom the Jews had crucified, was indeed the messiah and was now resurrected and glorified.

Acts 2:37 – When they heard this, they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles: “Brothers, what should we do?”

But now look at the response Peter gave when they asked “Brothers, what should we do?”

Acts 2:38 – Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

We can glean at least two elements in Peter’s response.

Anyone can repent, at any time: God protects a man’s ability to repent 

Peter instructed the people to repent, and he expected them to do it on the spot. In other words, repentance can be done immediately, and without the Holy Spirit. It is a God given ability, an ability that He protect so that anyone can be saved. Neither the Devil, the Angels or any other creatures can steal or nullify this ability.

Repentance emanates from a deep conviction that you are personally responsible and guilty of murdering Jesus, the Son of God, who, being sinless, did not deserve to die.

Jesus did not simply die FOR you. 

Jesus died BECAUSE of you. YOU have the blood of Jesus in your hands. YOU are guilty. YOU are a murderer.

Unless one is deeply convicted of this truth, one cannot truly repent. And unless one repents, one cannot be forgiven of his crime.

One MUST repent before he can be forgiven of their sins

From the response, we also see that repentance is a necessary condition for receiving the forgiveness of your sins. How can one be forgiven unless he 1) is made fully aware of his crime, and 2) acknowledges his crime, and 3) seeks grace for his crime? This is the process of repentance, a process that Peter, through His preaching that day, enabled in the people who were present that day. The people indeed did rightfully ask:

“Brothers, what should we do?”

Answer: “Now that I have made you fully aware of your crime of your charge, you must acknowledge it as true. Then you should seek grace from the great Judge, and He will forgive you.”

Many who have confessed Jesus as Lord never got saved

Romans 10:9,10 – If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

I submit to you that this passage must be understood in light of the account of the day of Pentecost.

Confession of Jesus as Lord necessitates that repentance has taken place first. One must first repent toward God. One must first acknowledge his state as guilty of murder before God. The one YOU once murdered is now ALIVE. He is LORD. How can you expect that your recognition of His Lordship (He is LORD) will be judged valid, genuine, unless you have first repented of your crime toward Him?

Hence, we conclude that your confession is invalid without true repentance. You are still in your sins. You are still dead.

But to those who have indeed repented, and confessed Jesus as Lord, a new call, a shout from heaven has been issued: Bring forth fruits Worthy of Repentance!

In Jesus Name. AMEN.