THE LORD WILL FAVOR YOU.

 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.  Luke 1:38 (KJV)  

When the angel, Gabriel, visited Mary, she least expected that she would be highly favored over her peers. How can a young village girl expect to become the mother of God's own begotten son? Though she was afraid of such an enormous responsibility to be placed on her, she availed herself to be used as a vessel of noble use because she believed in God. She knew that once the Lord has spoken, He will certainly accomplish His word. She was assured of God's presence with her in her present situation. 

In the house of God, there are many vessels, some made up of gold, silver, bronze, clay, etc. The are some vessels of honor and some that are not. When the Lord speaks to a congregation, not everybody allows the word to penetrate the heart and water it to grow and influence the person's life. To be used of the Lord, you must open your self up to Him. You have to personally and wholeheartedly avail yourself to Him. You must declared that "Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." God would not force Himself on you. You have the choice of allowing Him to use you or not.

Mary response was that "I am at service, Lord", "I am at your disposal, Lord, use me as you please", "I will do whatever you command me to do because I know that with you, nothing is impossible." There was danger of spoiling her marriage, and blemishing her reputation, but she left the issue with God, and submits entirely to His will. This is what humility in spirit means. Being ready to do God's work without fear of what it would cost you. This is the attitude a Christian needs to adapt in order to be used by God. 

Bring yourself low and allow God to elevate you today. You too can be highly favored like Mary. With God all things are possible. The favor of God would abound in your life during this season of Christmas in your your marriage, education, health, job, and church. Claim this by faith and expect a miracle this season in Jesus' name. 

COME REASON WITH THE LORD

“Come now, and let us reason together,” saith the Lord. “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Isaiah 1:18

In this passage, there are some few action words that I will like to focus on:

1. Come now: This is an open invitation from the Lord to come into His presence. In everyday life, we give invitations to special people who we want at our events. For God to invite you to come and not just to come but to come now, it means you are very special to Him. Indeed, we are special among all His creations. He made us in His own image just for us to be able to communicate with Him and also to take care of His creations and to have dominion over them. 

2. Let us reason together: The Lord, being a loving father does not impose things on those He has made in His image. He has given us the ability to reason and think, and He employs these same faculty in His dealings with us. So, His invitation is for us to come to His presence to reason with Him. He is the all-powerful God who could have made a decision and then imposed it on us. Afterall, He is our creator and He can do what He pleases with us but He has given us the chance to be part of the decision making process. 

So, what is the issue at stake that has to be reasoned out? 

God made us in His own image to have fellowship with us but we disobeyed His commandment by eating of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Because Adam disobeyed God in the garden and we are all descendants of Adam, sin was inherited from him and so, we have all sinned.                                                                                                      

 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."  Romans 3:23

"Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." Romans 5:18-19

If one sins against an authority, punishment is metted out. The wages of sin according to the Bible is death, that is, eternal condemnation in the lake of fire. But, God being so loving and not wanting any one to perish, has made provision for man to escape this eternal judgement. This can be obtained through His some Jesus Christ who died on the cross to pay our punishment. The blood He shed on the cross washed away all our sins and redeemed us from the punishment for sin.

To receive forgiveness for your sins, you must acknowledge that you have wronged God by default, right from birth, and that you have fallen short of His glory. Pray and ask for repentance and forgiveness of sins.

 “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." 

The Lord would wash away all your sins. It doesn't matter what you have done in the past. He will wipe your slate clean. He will remember your sins no more. This is the reason why He wants you to reason with Him and to be certain in your mind and heart that you are forgiven forever without any iota of doubt.

Confess Jesus as Lord, and invite Him into your life as the Lord and master. He will come into your heart and live in you.

 "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20          

 You will experience a whole new life in Christ. Decide and begin to walk in righteousness. Live like Christ and you will have joy and eternal life. 

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

I pray that you will make the wise decision today to accept Christ as your personal savior. Be blessed!

BEHOLD, THE LORD COMES!

"Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."          Revelation 1:7-8 (KJV)

The Book of Revelation consists of the writings of the vision that Apostle John saw as related to him by God. He wrote down the events that will unfold during the end times. In the above passage, he saw Jesus Christ descending from the heavens with the clouds in all His glory and majesty ready to leash judgement on the earth. This will be a very visible event since every eye shall see Him. This day will be a joyous occasion for those who know the Lord and have lived their lives worthy of His calling. It will be a great day for those who have labored in the Lord and have not given up in the face of challenges and persecutions. It will be a great day for the Sons of God! But for those who have not given their lives to Christ to govern, the Bible makes it clear that it will be a time of wailing and gnashing of teeth. Indeed, it will be a terrible time for those who have rejected the Lord. 

Which side are you on, the Lord's side or the devil's side? I entreat you to be on the Lord's side today. It is very simple. Accept that you are a sinner who has fallen short of God's glory. Confess your sins and repent of them. Accept the fact that Jesus is Lord and ask Him to come into your life and take control of your daily affairs. If you open the door of your heart to Him, He would come in and reign in you.

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." Revelation 3:20

If you said this prayer, you are now a child of God. You now have access to the Lord our Father. Decide to live a life of righteous from now on and when Jesus comes riding on the clouds you will be caught up with Him and rule with Him FOREVER AND EVER! Amen.