Thanksgiving

"Backbiters are worthy of death" (Rom 1:30-32) Speaking ill of another person in his absence is called slander or backbiting. We don't help anyone by this act. God has commanded in the Law, "You shall not go as a talebearer among your people" (Lev 19:16). The reason He gives is, "I am the Lord!" In other words, God hates backbiting. We may justify ourselves saying, "After all, I am telling the truth only." Imagine God revealing our sins to others! It was true that Noah was lying naked in his tent because of drunkenness. Ham his son, instead of covering his dad, told the matter to his brothers. The result was that Ham inherited only curse! (Gen 9:20-27). "Love covers multitude of sins!" (1 Pet 4:8). Lovelessness is the root cause of backbiting. Love rejoices not in evil (1 Cor 13:6). We don't realize that it is God who first hears what we speak when we slander against anyone. Backbiting grieves the Holy Spirit because i

"You must be ready all the time.  For the Son of Man will come when least expected" (Mt 24:44) In His discourses on the end-time Jesus emphasized watchfulness in prayer over anything else. "Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is" (Mk 13:33; Mt 25:13). Jesus might have known that in these days there would be a slump in prayer-time. The world is busier than ever. In spite of so many modern gadgets to do things faster, we don't have so much spare time as our forebears. Everyday it's hectic. The casualty is always the prayer-time. In the Bible, watching and praying are often mentioned together (Lk 21:36; Eph 6:18; Col 4:2). The saying goes, "He who prays sins not; He who sins prays not!" In these days when sin abounds, prayer is the only way of escape. Martin Luther (1483-1546) testified, "If I fail to spend two hours in prayer each morning, the devil gets the victory through the day." As our work increa

"I don't seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me"  (Jn 5:30) Man considers self-willed life as freedom. But wisdom cries out, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (Prov 14:12). Therefore, "Do not depend on your own understanding. Seek God's will in all you do, and He will direct your paths" (Prov 3:5). More often than we think what we seek in prayer is God's endorsement of our own plans. We think that once we mention our plans and desires in prayer, they are automatically sanctioned by the Almighty. We then go about launching our programs boastfully. The Bible condemns this kind of life in the strongest possible terms: "Your life is like the morning fog—it's here a little while, then it's gone. What you ought to say is: If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that" (Js 4:13-16). We should speak thus with a godly fear. We are at times so obsessed with o

"Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness  of mind let each esteem others better than himself" (Phil 2:3) Divisions in Churches are sometimes around personalities or due to various doctrinal emphases or disputes or differences of opinion. Though it is Christ who redeemed us, some people stick around personalities: "I am of Paul... I am of Apollos... I am of Cephas." And there is yet another group — an interdenominational denomination—"I am of Christ" (1 Cor 1:11-13). Paul was perhaps well aware of this problem well ahead and that was why he didn't baptize too many people. Thank God for a preacher like Paul who did not keep a record of baptisms! "I do not know if I baptized any other," he said (v16). If Jesus had baptized people, they would have claimed that their baptism was superior to others. So He let His disciples do the baptizing (Jn 4:1,2). Divisions may also be due to various doctrinal emp

"The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name"  (Jn 14:26) It is thrilling to meditate on the following list of comparison between Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit: « Jesus Christ is God's first comforter; the Holy Spirit is God's second comforter. « Jesus Christ is compared to a Lamb the gentlest of all animals while the Holy Spirit is compared to a Dove the gentlest of all birds. « Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are holy and they both teach us holiness. « Jesus Christ is the Theme of the Scriptures; the Holy Spirit is its Author. « Jesus Christ is received by faith; we believe and receive the Holy Spirit. « Jesus Christ was rejected by many Jews; the Holy Spirit is rejected by many Churches. « We confess Jesus Christ with our mouth; we speak in tongues after receiving the Holy Spirit. « Jesus Christ is the price of our redemption; the Holy Spirit is the seal of our redemption. « We pray in the Name of Jesus and in the power of the Ho

"If Christ is not risen, your faith is futile,  you are still in your sins" (1 Cor 15:17) Christ is given "the Name above every name" (Phil 2:9; Acts 2:32,36) because of resurrection. In the Name of Jesus we have the victory! "The Name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe" (Prov 18:10). It's a bunker no scud missile can penetrate! The Name of Jesus is the "Patriot" that intercepts the enemy's missiles, not missing one! David warned Goliath, "you come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the  Name  of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel!" (1 Sam 17:45). In the Name of Jesus, demons will have to flee (Mk 16:17). The Resurrected Christ lives in us (Gal 2:20). He our General is greater than the one in the world (1 Jn 4:4). Jesus triumphantly declared, "I've overcome the world!" What words of cheer to the army in the heat of th

"The fool has said in his heart, There is no God!"   (Psa 14:1) Scientific inventions like Cable TV, Cell Phone, Satellite and Super Computer make many people, especially youngsters, in the 21st century to doubt the very existence of God. "Science or Scriptures?" is a question that constantly challenges the mind. The Bible is not against Science. The Bible in fact agrees with true Science. The Bible abounds in scientific facts. It declares that the world is round (Isa 40:22). Even thousands of years before, the Bible has stated that the earth hangs on nothing (Job 26:7). We have learned from the Bible the scientific facts such as the stars in the sky cannot be numbered (Gen 15:5), and there is oil in the valley of Siddim (Arabia) (Gen 14:10). The Bible has also mentioned that iron is taken from the earth (Job 28:2) and that molten glass is cast into moulds (Job 37:18). Surely God who has created Heaven and earth knows all this! Many eminent Scientists