THE TRUE LOVE OF GOD

"Charity (love) never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away" (1 Corinthians 13:8). The love of God for humanity is unconditional. He loved us even when we were unlovable. God always loves us regardless of one’s condition. It is love that made God to give His only begotten Son for the salvation of the world. Through this love, Christ "endure the cross, despising the shame. And in 1 John 4:8 the Bible says God is love. The attribute of God is love; this is the true love of God that overflows from a pure heart. “God loves us. God loves us so much He sent His Son in the world to die on the cross to provide an atonement for sin.” God does not love us because we’re so lovable. we are not, we are despicable, vile sinners, who, if we are not saved by the grace of God, will be thrown on the trash heap of eternal damnation in hell.

There is that love of God that Scripture clearly shows us is general, unconditional, universal, unlimited, indiscriminate, and that it extends to all people in all times. It is what Titus 3:4 refers to as God’s love for mankind. This love is God’s way of showing Himself to man through man. Love is more action than words. In other words, Love is seen in actions, words, and even in facial expressions. If we claim to love God whom we don’t see, we can equally love men whom we see. To live is to love, to love is to live.

Love makes life worth living. Loving people genuinely is a selfless act. Love is the first and the greatest commandment. As true followers of Christ, true love of God builds homes and sustains marriages and other relationships. Love does not delight in fault-finding, resentful, and criticisms because "love cover the multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8). Lack of this true love of God in the heart leads to tragedies like jealousy, animosity, hatred, divorce, murder, suicide, war, and so on. Love is not lust, which leads to sensual, unclean behaviors, and practices that bring God's judgment (Ephesians 5:2-7).

It is very important to know that you can not have the true love of God without genuine salvation from sin. Our hearts must be regenerated and be made pure because the heart of man is the engine of the soul that generates all thought, desire, emotion, and action. When we become born again, our heart is filled with the love of God. This love is the first fruit of the Spirit that anchors the other virtues we possess at salvation. In Galatians 5: 22-23 (KJV), "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law". Love is pure, incorruptible, and harmless in thought, disposition, intention, feeling, action, attitude, disposition, and response. "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: " (1 Peter 2:21). Therefore, let us follow the steps of Christ and love like him.

END TIME WARNING!

“And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (Matthew 24:11-13).

Our Lord Jesus Christ foretold the major trends that would precede His return to earth and therefore, counseled all believers to endure to the very end irrespective of life challenges, trials, and persecutions they faced daily. He mentioned was religious imposters who would come in His name to deceive many. The world systems and traditions through Social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc.) are taking over the hearts of many Christians today. But the truly wise child will take to the counsel of the Father through the Scriptures and turn away from their negative influences that engross his heart.

Therefore, stand on the word of God always, be ready to throw away anything that will not allow you to enter heaven when the end comes, and fight the good fight of faith so that you can make it to the end. The day of the Lord is coming nearer than you can ever think of, the love of many friends of Jesus is waxing cold daily, but God does not want it to be so for you. Dear friends, do you take Christ’s warning seriously? Then pray this prayer: Father Lord, grant me abundant grace to love and follow you to the end. Amen!

FOUR STEPS TO SALVATION

1. Admit that you are a sinner; all human beings born into this world are sinners through the fall of Adam. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” As a result, “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

2. Repent now. Acts 3:19 says, “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord”. And 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”.

3. Believe that God loves and that Jesus died for you. Romans 5:8 say, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”.

4. Invite Jesus into your life through the prayer of faith. Revelation 3:20: “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.”

Pray thus:

Father, I have sinned against Heaven and before you, please have mercy and forgive me of all my sins and let the Blood of Jesus wash me and cleanse me from all sins, I confess that Jesus is the true Son of God. Lord Jesus, I accept you today as my Lord and personal Savior. Please come into my life, reign and save my soul from bondage of sin and f rom eternal damnation. Let the power to ‘go and sin no more’ come into my life from today. Thank you, Lord for the answered prayers, in Jesus’ mighty name I pray, Amen!

WE SHALL OVERCOME

“Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name: he shall thoroughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon” (Jeremiah 50:34 - KJV) God shall thoroughly plead our cause and deliver us from:

The Spirit of Judas Iscariot (spirit of betrayal).The Spirit of Herod (a killer of visionaries and missionaries).

The Spirit of Evil Contractors/Balaam hired to kill the innocent for selfish purpose).

The spirit of Absalom (hidden agendas, evil and lustful eyes, hidden strategies and hidden alliances) that wants to steal your blessings and destroy destiny.

The Spirit of Envy and jealousy (comparism, bitterness, hatred, division, rejection, accusation and murder)

The Spirit of Saul (Rebelliousness, Stubbornness, Disobedience and Witchcraft).

The spirit of Sanballat and Tobiah (secret hatred to hinder you from performing God’s work).

The Spirit of Marah (bitter situation of life).

The spirit of Pharaoh (spirit of pride, rebellious, oppression, and domination).

The spirit of Kadesh-Berna (Wilderness experience in life).

The spirit of Goliath (entity that threatening your life, peace, harassing you and intimidating).

The spirit of Nebuchadnezzar (the spirit that want you to bow down and worship a strange god or compromise your faith).

The Spirit of Pisgah (spirit that causes one to fail at the edge of breakthroughs).

The spirit of lying, seduction and manipulation (Controlling spirit of Jezebel in the church and family etc.).

When you are faced with any of this spirit of the devil, it brings about delay, stagnation, sickness, slow progress and sometimes untimely death. But for you the Lord your God will fight for you if you trust Him the more, do not give up! Look up to Him in prayers!! Never look down and succumb to your challenges!!! God is ever faithful and will surely fight for you as you trust Him in every situation.

Yours is the victory in Jesus mighty name! Now hear what God is saying to you today…” The Lord our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this (problem) mount” (Deuteronomy 1:6 KJV); therefore, that god that has not created you shall He (the Almighty God) subdued for you under your feet by His power. AMEN! !! !!!

HIS DWELLING PLACE

THE WRITERS OF THE BIBLE

The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it (Psalm 68:11). About forty authors of various occupations; Apostles, prophets, priests, prince, king, soldier, farmer, scribe, physician, tax collector, farmer, prime-minister, cupbearer, tentmaker etc. God used every usable vessel to convey His truth to the people. More than fifteen centuries elapsed between the writing of Genesis and Revelation. Nearly 400 years elapsed between the Old Testament which was written predominant in Hebrew (few verses in Aramaic) while the New Testament was written in the holy Bible is the word of God. Even though it is written by the agency of man, the Bible is the very word of God.

The evidences are:The amazing unity This unity is achieved in spite of the long period involved in the written and many authors of different occupations.It cannot be destroyed There were hammers of persecution, ridicule, higher criticisms, liberalism, and atheism but the mighty anvil of the scriptures stands unbroken, unshaken, and unchipped.Its Historical accuracy With the coming of archeology almost all the towns and places mentioned have been discovered.Its scientific accuracy. Although the Bible is a spiritual message from God and not specifically a scientific text-book, all scientific statements founds in the scriptures must nevertheless be taken literally and at face value.Its Prophetic accuracy. One of the acidic tests of any religion is its ability to predict the future. One fifth of the Bible is prophetical as at the time of writing, many have been fulfilled and others will still come to pass.It has universal influence upon civilization Western civilization is founded directly upon the Bible and its teachings.Its amazing circulation: It is the best seller among all books that are printed.Its absolute honesty.

The book did not spare men that seem to be close to God e.g. David, Moses, Elijah, Peter, etc. It exposed their sins, weakness, commitment, faithfulness and strength.Its life transforming power: The greatest proof of all that the Bible is indeed God’s word is its amazing ability to change corrupt humanity.Bible is not any book written by any man that can go for scripture. The term canon means a “reed” a “measure” or “rule” and suggests the testing of books to see if they meet the Divine standard.

The sixty-six books of the Bible is called Canon. By the year 300 B. C. (at the latest) all old Testament books had been written, collected, revered, and recognized as official canonical books. In A.D. 397, the twenty seven New Testament books were declared Canonical. There are some books in the Catholic Douay Bible which are known as Apocrypha (hidden) books, they are not recognized as inspired for the following reasons: They were not included in the Old Testament Canon, They were never quoted by Jew, Jesus or any New Testament writers. None of the claims divine inspiration. Some of them teach false doctrine such as praying for the dead. Lastly, some contain historical and geographical errors.

The central theme of the Bible is Jesus Christ and His redemption. Jesus said, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me (John 5:39; Please read Luke 24:24-27, 44-45). Christ is in the Old Testament concealed and He is in the New Testament revealed. To fully understand the Bible and to rightly interpret its passage, we must first receive Jesus Christ as Savior and have a clear and definite experience of freedom from sin and its consequences.

BIBLE AND YOU

The Holy Bible (also called the Scriptures, the book of the law, the book of the Lord) is the most inspiring book in all of human history. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).It is living and active book that inform,counsel, educate and impact knowledge above all the series of books that have been in human history. All scripture is written through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and about forty writers were used to do its composition and compilation for over a thousand years.

God’s word is free from any mixture of error, from all falsehood. The Holy Bible, which is also called the book of the LORD in Isaiah 34:16, it’s the heavenly treasure and constitution given to mankind, to guide us in our pilgrim’s journey on earth to eternity (life eternal). We are admonished to “seek ye out of the book of the Lord and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them”. Every promise is pure, and every doctrine is pure; every commandment is pure, and every promise prophecy is pure; every one of them free from the mixtures and interventions of men.No doubt, it’s the greatest book in the world and in the history of man.

It’s about God’s revelations to man covering the past, present and the future events. No man can know God except by the Holy Scriptures. As life of man cannot be sustained and nourished without the physical food even so a Christian cannot live victoriously except he/she daily feeds on the Holy Scriptures to nourish their spiritual lives. Who then is the author of the Bible? The Almighty God Himself in His infinite mercy inspired the writers, as the Holy Spirit moved the saints of old: the Prophets and Apostles (to mention but few) to write about God’s creation, His love, plan and purpose of salvation (2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Bible revealed God’s will to us (Psalm 119:9, 11,105). It also reveals the way of salvation by pointing us to the vicarious death of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, who paid the price of the sins of humanity (Hebrews 13:12; Acts 4:12).

The importance of reading and studying the scriptures cannot be over emphasized thus; it shows us the way of salvation and righteous living (John 3:16, 36;6:63; 8:32). It also gives us power over sin and weapons against temptation (Psalm 1119:11; Matthew 4:3-4). Studying and obeying the book of the LORD lead you to prosperity and success in life (Please read Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:1-3).More benefits you can derive from the Holy Bible as you study and practice it is growth and maturity (1 Peter 2:2); nourishment and health (Proverbs 4:20-22). As physical food is to the body so is the word of God to the soul of men.Unfortunately,a lot of people hate the Bible and a greater number of them hardly read God’s word. Reading the Bible day and night is profitable in this last day as it will impacts your life than any other books you can ever come across.Devotional attention must be given to the Bible – read it, study it, meditate on it, pray on it and obey it.

No any other guidebook that can lead one to heaven (life eternal) except the Holy Bibles. Truly, the Christian journey is impossible without studying the Bible. Hence, it’s imperative for all Bible-believing Christians to read God’s inspired book every day. “But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God,and keep it “(Luke 11:28). Commitment to the Bible means that we read it prayerfully, meditate on it patiently, pray on it perseveringly, and obey it in totality. We must not only rejoice in the promises but we should also tremble under the judgements and hasten to obey the commandments. Remember that as you are keeping to this word, your life shall never remain the same.