About Grieving the Holy Spirit (My response to a friend's question on how a believer grieves the Holy Spirit) Just like it is in the natural, you grieve someone when you do something that they don't like; especially when you continue to do it for a long time. A believer can grieve the Holy Spirit by continually ignoring the Holy Spirit and by continually doing what the Holy Spirit is telling him or her not to do. I think the Holy Spirit can also be grieved when a believer does not do something that the Holy Spirit has been stirring his or her heart to do for a long time. To avoid grieving the Holy Spirit then, a believer needs to be conscious of the presence of the Holy Spirit and develop a strong relationship with the Holy Spirit. A believer must also be very sensitive and willing to yield him or herself to the leading and stirring of the Holy Spirit.
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About Circumcision (My response to a friend's question about if circumcision is important in the life of a believer) First of all we must understand the concept of circumcision. It was a sign of being in covenant with God. That is, people who were in covenant with God had a sign on their body to show it. The problem was now that so many people began to feel that for you to be a child of God you must be physically circumcised but that was not what God said and that was not why God asked Abraham to be circumcised. The Jews who had been physically circumcised even began to call themselves the circumcision, like we see in Col.3:11 and Col. 4:11. Having a sign does not always mean that you have the substance. The fact that a man has been physically circumcised does not have any effect on his Spirit and Soul. We must also remember that many things in the Old Covenant and even before the Old Covenant were just shadows or symbols. What God wants us to circumcis...
What being a Sower really means Isaiah 55:10, 2Cor.9:10
Introduction: God gives seed to sowers. A sower is someone who has developed a lifestyle of sowing seeds. That you sow seeds once in a while does not make you a sower. Sowing has to become your lifestyle for you to be termed a sower. Every seed has power in it to produce more seeds. Blessed to be a Blessing: As a sower your motive of sowing is very very important. God wants you to have so that you can give (be a sower), Eph.4:28. Fruit (even of your labour) contains both seed & bread. Every time you bless someone you have just sown a seed. Your seed may be someone else’s fruit. A sower is more concerned about how to be a blessing than anything else. It is more blessed to give than to receive, Acts 20:35. The reason God makes His grace abound toward you is so that you can abound to good works, 2Cor.9:8. The rich fool was supposed to ask “Lord how can I be a blessing with these blessings you have given me. God wants us to have a liberal soul (Prov.11:25) not a selfish on...
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT (Gal.5: 22-23)
The fruit of the Spirit is the Life and Nature of God that we have in us that makes us fruitful. The fruit of a tree is the essence of that tree, It is what the tree is known for, its identity, Matt. 12:33. God is the Vine and we are the branches. It is the fruit (nature) of God that produces the fruits (work) of God in our lives, John15:4-5. The fruit of the Spirit is not the opposite of the works of the flesh, Gal. 5:19-23. The fruit of the Spirit is a nature; the works of the flesh are actions. IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE ONLY SOME OF THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT? No, we may exhibit only some of the character produced by the complete fruit of the Spirit in us, but we have the fruit of the Spirit in us as believers, Rom. 8:9. We have God’s Spirit in us and all of His nature (the fruit) is in us. What we need is to exhibit more of His characters, by allowing the fruit (His nature) influence our lives more and more. HOW DO WE EXHIBIT THE CHARACTER OF THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT? ...
Keeping the Faith 2Tim.4:7
To keep the faith is to nourish, stir up, exercise and remain strong in faith at all times (good & trying times). What we do about our faith in good times will determine how much we would be able to keep the faith in trying times. The value we place on our faith will determine the seriousness with which we would be willing to keep it at all times. 7 Importance of Our Faith: 1. Our Faith pleases God, Heb.11:6. 2. We live by our Faith, Rom.1:17, Gal.3:11, Heb.10:38. 3. By our Faith we access God’s grace, Eph.2:8, Rom.5:2. 4. Our Faith guarantees us victory, 1John 5:4. 5. Our Faith saves our soul, 1Pet.1:9. 6. Our Faith makes us live like God & become more like Him. 7. Our Faith enables us know & do God’s will. Faith is not supposed to be alone (James 2:17) and it is not supposed to remain at the same level (2Pet.1:5-11). The following are more things that we need to add to our faith to keep it strong and alive: 1. Consistent Fello...
DEVELOPING A THANKSGIVING LIFESTYLE
Aim: To practically understand some vital truths from God’s Word about developing a thanksgiving attitude and lifestyle. * WHAT EXACTLY IS A THANKSGIVING LIFESTYLE? The attitude or posture of continual praise and gratitude to God. Being always grateful to God both for who He is, what He has done for you in Christ and what He is doing in your life. * IS IT POSSIBLE TO DEVELOP A THANKSGIVING LIFESTYLE? IF SO HOW? See that it is important, Believe it is possible (because you are a new creature & you have a new spirit), Renew your MIND , and you will be transformed into a thankful person. Practice being thankful. N.B: Rocket dynamics – how a rocket bursts through the force of gravity into space. * WHY IS IT NECESSARY TO DEVELOP A THANKSGIVING LIFESTYLE? It is with thanksgiving and praise we enter God’s presence, Psa.100:4. God wants us to give thanks in all things, 1Thes.5:19. God wants us to serve Him with joy and thankfulness of heart...