Smallest Seed

iStock You must grow spiritually in Christ, no doubt. No growth means no life. No life means no part in Christ, whatsoever. And Jesus said the main reason why someone would have no life in him is because he refuses to eat Jesus' flesh. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. [John 6.53] And what does it mean to "eat the flesh of the Son of Man"? The context is clear. It's about swallowing Jesus' radical teachings---like eating his flesh and drinking his blood. He taught them: "This bread is my flesh...whoever eats this bread lives forever."  Then later he told them what it all meant: "Whoever eats me (or feeds on me) will live because of me." He even hinted on how he also "ate" the Father (he lived because of the Father). All this eating business proved too much for some of his disciples so they left him for good. In other words, they were stuck to earthly teachings a...

Dreamstime.com You seldom see Jesus approaching the rich in the Gospel. He took time to visit a dying servant (though he found her dead on his arrival) and personally visited Peter, James and John to invite them to be his disciples, but I don't remember him taking time to visit the rich or those in high positions. In Luke, he said "Blessed are the poor" and in another instance he praised a poor widow who gave her last two small copper coins, while belittling the donations of the rich. Except for one guy---Zacchaeus, I often wonder why Jesus stayed away from the rich. What did he see in Zacchaeus to invite himself to his house, even saying, "I must stay at your house today." Was it because Zacchaeus wanted to see him? But other rich people wanted to see him, too. Nicodemus wanted to see him, but Jesus never invited himself to his place. I think it was Zacchaeus' death-defying tree-climb that prompted Jesus to want to stay at his place. Seriousl...

Bankrate Anyone who remembers Eliab? The prophet Samuel thought he was God's chosen because of his looks. You remember John Mark? He was taken to a missionary journey but had proved unreliable because he had deserted Paul and Barnabas. There are times we miss the traits and marks that God looks for in a servant and judge people with our flesh, so we pick the wrong people for the right ministries. God told Samuel how He never looks at a person's appearance but his heart and John Mark later repented and wrote a version of the Gospel and proved helpful to Paul's ministry. How do we know who's a real help right now in ministry and who's not yet ready? Here's an e-book on true and powerful spiritual maturity. Click here for the review. How do you make sure you are really growing spiritually in Christ and how do you know you're not? Among the tragedies today in church is not knowing who's really growing and who's not. And many who are carnal or s...

Barba CFO Being blessed is good (and we should thank God a lot for it) but it's really no big deal. I mean, it doesn't mean you are better than others as lots of folks would have it. God blesses both the righteous and the wicked. God even abundantly blessed Ishmael even if he wasn't God's will for Abraham. And here's what's even astonishing---even if you are in the present move of God and you know exactly what God's will is and have a good relationship with Him, but if you fail to wait on Him and go ahead of Him, you'll end up with an Ishmael---with everything wrong---though everything may seem perfect. Blessed but scratched out of inheritance So blessed and yet without inheritance. Is that possible? Yes it is. In fact, you see it everywhere in ministries. Churches in a hurry to grow big, doing anything and everything that works and indeed growing big and looking so blessed. They really look so, so blessed. But because they're not using ...

Wordpress.Com "Just look at the positive side of things." This phrase tacitly accepts there are negative sides to life. But it wants to ignore them and wants to focus on the "bright side" instead---which will never work. God knew this. I mean, he himself designed life to have both positive and negative, and he never intended to ignore or hide the negative. It will never work. If you're Truth (Jesus is the Truth), you have to openly deal with both without covering up or hiding anything. He calls good "good" and bad "bad." He never thought he had to hide the fact that one time he "regretted" ever creating man. Watch how he put it in writing in the bible: The LORD regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. [Genesis 6.6] He also "regretted" making Saul king [1 Samuel 15.11]. He could have just kept quiet about it or kept it a secret and focused on the bright side of t...

Shutter Stock We all know the story. A rich, young ruler went to Jesus to ask how to have eternal life. Jesus didn't tell the young man to receive him as Savior but told him to obey the commandments. Neither did Jesus say, "you must be born again" as he did Nicodemus. Queer. Didn't Paul tell us no one could be justified by the works of the law? Yet Jesus said eternal life is through obeying the commandments. And James said the perfect law leads to freedom [1.25]. So, which is which? Jesus told us no one has the right to delete the importance of the law because he did't come to abolish it but to fulfill it. In fact, your standing in God's Kingdom depends on your attitude about the law. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. [Matthew 5.19] We'...

Secret Entourage Ministers, especially pastors, should be extra sharp to discern the difference, because a very thin line separates one from the other. Are you Spirit-led or income-led? Did you end up in ministry because of a divine call or because you were looking for profitable work and got one, and then somehow ministry followed? To be sure, income sources are God's blessings. The more the merrier. I love to be in a lucrative business. In fact, the church can be in business as the Acts church was. But we are NOT to be led or controlled by our income source, business or money. All who are led thus end up like prophet Balaam---always bargaining for the right price while pretending to be after God's leading. Abram got wealthy while "in the process" of obeying God. He didn't leave Ur for greener pasture somewhere. He left Ur without knowing where he'd end up. He left simply because he obeyed God. Unlike a lot of pastors today who leave for the US, Ca...