THE WORD OF THE WEEK PART 2

12-11 2018

CONTINUED FROM PART 1

GOOD DAY

Today we continue with the story of Abraham and his promise from God. 

We did mention that we can learn a lot from Abraham the Father of faith. We did mention, FAITH, PATIENCE, PERSEVERENCE. We do not hear Abraham murmuring and complaining or being angry with God. Never once did he accuse God of anything. but the bible shows us his state of mind at the time of waiting.  

ROMANS 4:13-25

The Promise Granted Through Faith

¹³ For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. ¹⁴ For if those who are of the law areheirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, ¹⁵ because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.

¹⁶ Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be ^[d]sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all ¹⁷ (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; ¹⁸ who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” ¹⁹ And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. ²⁰ He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, ²¹ and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. ²² And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

²³ Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, ²⁴ but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, ²⁵ who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

This is remarkable, and no wonder God was pleased! This man was a great man of Faith. We learn a lot by following his example. While I was pondering this great example, the Holy Ghost spoke to me. We know that all Scripture was written for our example and learning.  (V23 above) If we are open minded God will teach us a lot through His word. We will learn through what is written which is the (LOUD TEXT) and we will also learn by what is not written the silent text.  We can also learn a lot by what he didn’t do but should have done.

QUESTION FROM THE HOLY GHOST?

Why didn’t Abraham enquire from The Lord about His promise? Why didn’t He talk to God? Maybe God was waiting for Him to ask. God may wanted Him to make conversation. WHY?

Because He is a relational God. He delights in Fellowship. He loves us so much that He wants us to ask questions. God delights in conversation. We see Him and Abraham talking and getting into a debate just a few chapters later. God had just told Abraham that He was Going to destroy the two wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham starts interceding for the city, arguing that God the Righteous Judge of the whole earth would be unjust, if He destroyed the good people with the evil people. Take a look

Genesis 18:16-32 New King James Version (NKJV)

Abraham Intercedes for Sodom

¹⁶ Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way. ¹⁷ And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, ¹⁸ since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? ¹⁹ For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.” ²⁰ And the Lordsaid, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, ²¹ I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”

²² Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. ²³ And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? ²⁴ Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? ²⁵ Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

²⁶ So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.”

²⁷ Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: ²⁸ Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?”

So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.”

²⁹ And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there should be forty found there?”

So,He said, “I will not do it for the sake of forty.”

³⁰ Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?”

So He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

³¹ And he said, “Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?”

So He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.”

³² Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?”

And He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.” 

What can we learn from this conversation? Think about these things and discuss them

In your groups. We will continue text week when we conclude next week…. 

BYE NOW HAVE A BLESSED DAY!

WORD OF THE WEEK.------THUS SAYS THE LORD! PART 1

GOOD DAY!

It's time to seek the Lord,  oh how good He is! Recently the Lord has been talking to me about seeking Him and going for my promises that I've been waiting for years. As l write this I'm reminded of Abraham who waited for 25 years for his promise.

Genesis 15 New International Version (NIV)

The Lord’s Covenant With Abram

15 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:

“Do not be afraid, Abram.
    I am your shield,[a]
    your very great reward.[b]”

2 But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

4 Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” 5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring[d]be.”

6 Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

7 He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.”QUESTION IS...... WHY did it take so long? Is there anything that he could have done to make the promise come sooner? I want to believe there is. We don't hear him talking to God about the promise. No communication at all! I believe God was waiting for him to approach and ask questions. When he didn't come God had to come back and make a promise again, this time with a time frame.

Genesis 18 New International Version (NIV)

The Three Visitors

18 The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.

3 He said, “If I have found favour in your eyes, my lord,[a] do not pass your servant by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”

“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”

6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs[b] of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”

7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.

9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.

“There, in the tent,” he said.

10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”

Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”

But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

Maybe you, are like Sarah who ended up bringing Hagar to help with God's promise. Maybe its been so long that you even laugh at the idea of the fulfillment of your promise, GOD knows. There are so many things that you can learn from Abraham concerning what he did- patience, perseverance, faith, intimacy with God. Yet ...... TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK. PART 2 

WHERE ARE YOU TODAY?

Where  does life find you today?

Today you may be going through a hard patch, but remember God is with you. He will never let you down. He will never leave you nor forsake you. One nation is going through a massive transition today. Zimbabwe is celebrating a new era. what does that mean for individuals? how will that affect each one? All we need to think of is God is still in control. We not alone! If you place your trust IN GOD you will make it. Prayer is the way forward. Our future should be hidden in prayer. We need to build our future through  prayer. A lot of young people left the country to work else where, its time to go back and build our country. No one will do it for us. GOD'S promise is HEBREW 13:5{ I will never leave you nor forsake you.} So go on take the hand Jesus and move on!

PRAYER FOR YOU.

Do not forget to send your prayer requests to pastornomsa@gmail.com. Lets take it to the LORD IN PRAYER. This is your chance take it,

OUR HOPE

Introduction

This was written to help my brothers and sisters struggling with bad news. SICKNESS, DISEASE, AND DEATH CAN CAUSE SOMEBODY TO SINK. Be of good cheer, we have HOPE. READ ON......

WORD OF THE DAY

1John 5:13

1 John 5:13

New King James Version (NKJV)

13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life,[a] and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.

What a promise! The Word of God tells us that “We have eternal life”. If we believe in the Name of the Son of God, there is hope. We cannot be lost. As long as we know that God gave us His Son to die for us, and he came and purchased us by His blood, we are children of God. If we acknowledge the blood sacrifice of Jesus.

We need to understand how important it is to know that hope. This is the blessed Hope. Daily we live in a world where evil is rampart. So much bad news! Doctors constantly deliver the bad news to us, but is this the end? No, we have Hope. Eternal life is our Hope. We believe God for long life and abundance of blessings, but what about the one who has been given bad news?

Day by day somebody somewhere crashes under the heavy weight of bad news. Where is our Hope? Here The Word of GOD tells us that it’s not the End. We are Eternal beings, living in a finite body called Flesh. All we need to do is believe in the Name of the Son of God. Paul says this….

2 Corinthians 4:16

New King James Version (NKJV)

Seeing the Invisible

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.

Our hope is that inside there is life though outside maybe decaying. Our hope is Eternity with Jesus. We have an eternal habitation prepared by God. Once again read this…

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

New King James Version (NKJV)

Seeing the Invisible

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things, which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Glory to God, He is worthy to be praised. If we believe in the Name of the Son of GOD, we have eternal life, not only that, we can look straight at any affliction whether of body or soul and say, I’m winning this. I will get a glorious crown, out of this. I wont crumble, l will fight on knowing if l reach the end of life, on Earth I’ve got a new house that is eternal, and I look forward to be clothed with that one house, which will never be destroyed. Eternal like me (my spirit).

Comfort yourselves with these words. Think on them, meditate on them, Find hope in them. We have a house, tent, waiting for us in heaven, with no pain or destruction.

This is our hope…

2 Corinthians 5:1-3

New King James Version (NKJV)

Assurance of the Resurrection

5 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3 if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked.

Do you see that, There is hope if you believe in the Son of God. If you trust in Him. As soon as you begin to trust in His Name He starts to build a house for you. We give Him PRAISE. COMFORT ONE ANOTHER WITH THESE WORDS.

TRUSTING THE LORD!

Do you trust the LORD, with all your heart, all your soul and all you have? What does that mean?
It doesn't mean that problems wont come your way! No, It simply means when problems come your way, you are not moved! It means you know in whom you have believed in and He wont let you down. God is FAITHFUL. We can put our Trust in HIM.
LOOK AT THIS SCRIPTURE!
LUKE 1: 37
FOR WITH GOD NOTHING SHALL BE IMPOSSIBLE!
MY FAVOURITE SCRIPTURE!
I can preach on this verse any time, anywhere. It is because l know that its true. Nothing that l face is too hard for the Lord!
When oceans rise and thunders roar, all l need to do is to look unto the Lord. Nothing is impossible with JEHOVAH.
I always understand this to mean with God on my side, I can face anything. The other meaning is l can face anything as long as l walk with Jesus. Jesus will never let us down. He is there even when things come out the way you didn't expect. He understands perfectly every situation. He knows whats best for us. Our issue is not that God doesn't understand us, ITS THAT WE NORMALLY DON'T CHECK HIS WILL FIRST.
Have you ever thought how things would turn out if Jesus gave us all the things we thought we needed?
What kind of a Father do you think Jesus is? One who would buy a 2 yr old a sports car because he threw a tantrum...
Your issue is Trust! do you trust Him with your life?
Some trust strangers more than they trust JESUS!
How many times have you questioned the ability and skill of a
- pilot, bus driver, driver, train driver, couch driver?
Yet we question the LORD.
RESOLVE THIS TODAY!
ARE YOU GOING TO TRUST HIM, HIS JUDGEMENT, TIMING, ABILITY, AND LOVE.
HAVE A BLESSED DAY!