THE FEAR OF GOD

 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.  

Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.

If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit. If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.

Prov 9:10-12

Beginning of something is the basics. For example we can say the beginning of learning is learning ABCD.... and 1,2,3...

Unless you learn this first, you will never be able to learn anything else in any other subject. 

We have to grow in wisdom if we are to be effective in our lives on earth, but we have to start from the basics, we have to learn the fear of God first of all.

When we learn the fear of God, God will give us wisdom in every situation or circumstance we face in life. 

Do you want God to give you wisdom in everything you face in life; on how best you can be effective for His glory, on what opportunities to take and which ones to leave,....then, you must learn the fear of God first. 

There are two types of wisdom, a heavenly and demonic wisdom.

For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.

For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, shows no favorism and sincere.

James 1:14-17

Wisdom that God gives has seven pillars. Prov 9:1

The seven pillars are mentioned in Jam 3:17 which results in;

1. Bringing purity 

2. Brings Peace

3. Always Gentle

4. Open to listen and reason with the others

5. Full of mercy and good fruits. It does not lead one to be a faultfinder or accuser or judge others but quick to do good.

6. Does not show favourism to friends or family or those of higher rank in society. Treats all men equal.

7. Always sincere. There is no hypocrisy.

If you want to walk in purity, fear God.

If you want to leave in peace with everyone, fear God.

If you want to deal gently with others even those who fall, fear God.

If you don't want to be a dictator, one who forces his opinion on others and who is conceited that my way must be followed and never questioned; fear God. In this you can even make yourself a god if you get offended when your ego is hurt, you easily get offended and get hurt by others and keep on meditating on what others have done or not done, or said to you because you are a fool. Fear God and you will have wisdom.

Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, For anger resides in the bosom of fools. Ecc 7:9

If want to be fair to everyone and never show favourism to any, fear God.

If you want to be free from hypocrisy, fear God.

God will always give you all the wisdom you need for every situation you'll ever face in life if you will learn to fear God.

The fear of God is the beginning of all Christian education.

Before you learn any other thing about Christianity, before you learn about rapture, or tribulation, or second coming of Christ, or about the seven Trumpets, or the seven plagues or anything else you can learn in the bible learn the fear of God first of all.

Joseph did not have a bible but his father taught him the fear of God, that is why he resisted the temptation by potiphers wife to commit sexual sin though no one was watching. He knew God was watching. Gen 39:1-16

Job did not have a Bible but heard the fear of God and that is why he was upright. Job 1:8.

These old testament saints did not have a bible, could not have fellowships, could not hear an encouragement but they had the fear of God. We who have all that do not have the fear of God; that is why though we are full of bible verses, there are many sins committed in the church by the church leaders and the members.

There is no fear of God left in the church.

The devil has gotten the church sidetracked from the most important thing in the Christian life, to other peripheral things and led them to argue on things that have no eternal value.

What is the most important thing to you.

What are you willing to fight for die for.

If you look at that from a heavenly point of view, how much value will it carry in eternity.

God back to the basics.

The first lesson you must learn is to fear God. Drop every other topic and learn this one first. Learn the fear of God.

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WHAT IS REQUIRED OF YOU TO FINISH WELL

 FINISHING STRONG

STUDY XI

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. I have kept the faith. 2Tim 4:7

When Paul, came to the end of his life and ministry, He says that he has fought a good fight. 

This explains that as long as we are in this world, we are in a battlefield and we have to be fighting until the end. There is not a single moment we must be relaxing. Majority of people backslide after a great victory or after God has used them in a powerful way. They think that now they can relax and at that same time the devil attacks and overcomes them and lead them astray. We must always be on our guard. We must always be watchful and prayerful. We must never give the devil a foothold. Luke 21:36, Mat 26:41, 1Pet 5:8, Eph 4:27.

Paul says that we don't fight with human beings but with principalities and powers and rulers and wicked authorities in the heavenly places. Eph 6:10-18, we must therefore be always put on the whole armour of God.

I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. 1Cor 9:27-28

Paul explains that the other fight He does is to discipline his own body. We must exercise self discipline, to make our bodies do what they should do and not what they want to do. Unless we are disciplined, we cannot finish well in our life and ministry.

Paul says that He has also finished the race. The Christian life is compared to a race. Paul says that he does not run aimlessly; 1Cor 9:26. He runs with an aim and with a prescribed direction. He doesn't run just for the sake of running. 

All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 1Cor 9:25

To run, we must be disciplined.

Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules. 2Tim 2:5.

We see also there are rules to be followed in the race. 

We need self discipline and following the rules if we want to finish the race well otherwise we can be disqualified.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Heb 12:1-2

We are to remove all unnecessary weights and lay aside the sins we easily fall into.

We are to run the race marked out for us.

This means there is a particular path for each person and one must run their own race fixing our eyes on Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith.

In this race we are not allowed to be distracted by others. When your eyes are in a fixed position, you won't see others whether they are running or not. Your eyes are only seeing Jesus. The evidence that your eyes are fixed on Jesus is that you will not be discouraged or give up your Christian faith no matter what comes. Heb 12:3. If at any time you get discouraged or give up the race or cool down, it's because at that very moment, your eyes are not on Jesus. They are looking at others or the circumstances or looking back at what is past; but as long as your eyes are on Jesus, you will never be discouraged and you will never give up.

Paul says I have kept the faith. He didn't allow anything to distract Him. We also must never allow anything to distract us from Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

“Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his [ah]master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Mat 24:45-46

Faithfulness in obeying what God tells you to do is the only thing God wants from you.

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ Mat 25:21

It's faithfulness the God looks for. 

I have glorified You down here on the earth by completing the work that You gave Me to do. John 17:4.

It's faithfully doing the work God gave you that God wants.

Not the work men give you, but the assignment that God gave you.

If you set your mind and heart to be faithful and obedient to God's purpose for your life all the days of your life, you will definitely finish well.

You are blessed to be a blessing 

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PRIDE IS YOUR GREATEST ENEMY

 FINISHING STONG

STUDY X

Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Prov 16:18

Pride comes before a fall. 

Pride is as a result of comparison to others who are below you in achievements and feeling you are superior to those who haven't as much as you, either in progress achievements, wealth or anything. 

When a person falls, it's an evidence that before the fall, he was proud.

Many begin well but fall along the way. The only reason they fall is because they became proud before the fall.

God is able to keep us from falling. Jude 1:24, but we have to always put our faces and our mouths in the dust before God. Lam 3:29

The devil was once an angel, but he became proud, and that is how he became the devil. Pride can change a saint of God into a devil.

It's good to examine what the devil was proud of because it is still the same thing he injects in the hearts of believers to be proud of so that they can destroy themselves. 

When you become proud the devil doesn't remind you that that is how he became the devil.

The devil was proud of his wisdom and understanding, Ezekiel 28:3-4, of his riches, verse 4-5,17. Riches can be in many forms, can be money, family background, level of education,...., he was proud of success in his business, verse 5,16. He was proud of his perfection, how good he was compared to others, verse 12, he was proud of beauty, verse 12,17, he was proud of his covering, his dress, verse 13,17, he was proud of his anointing, verse 14, he was proud of how far he had walked with God, verse 15.

From Ezekiel 28:1-17, we can conclude that the way for a Christian to become a child of the devil is to be proud, either of his wisdom as compared to others, or his anointing, being more anointed than others, or his perfection, being able to do things better than others, singing or preaching or serving or giving better than others, he can be proud of their beauty, in their face or in character or their many achievements, they can be proud of success in business or career, and can also be proud of how far they have walked with God and their experiences with God.

Pride is the pathway of becoming a devil. If we want to finish well, then humility must be our daily pursuit.

Zephaniah 2:3, speeks to the humble of the earth and tells them to seek more humility.

Are you humble, seek more humility. As your days increases you ought to be more humbler than you were. 

If we are to finish well, we must seek to be more humbler as we grow.

The bible says that God fights against the proud person. When you become proud of anything, God becomes your enemy and Starts fighting you. If God fights you, can you progress? Of course not, if you try to move forward, He pushes you backwards, if you try to rise, He pushes you to the ground. On the other hand, He gives grace to the humble. If you try to move forward, He comes behind you and pushes you forward, if you wants to rise, He pushes you forward. James 4:6, 1Pet 5:5. It's only a humble person who will finish well. It's only a humble person who will enter into everything that God has for them.

A proud person can never receive correction. A proud person is full of self justification. He never admits he was wrong, and even if he does, it's in seeking a reputation for humility. The proud person easily gets hurt when someone doesn't serve them as they think they deserve to be served. 

A proud person has a lot of demands on others. This and that must be done for them. They are very big in their own eyes as compared to others. Hypocrisy is one of the primary marks of a proud man. 

Proud people are quick to see the faults in others and rarely see their own faults. Luke 18:10-14, Prov 9:8, Mathew 7:1-5, Luke 16:15.

To overcome pride, we must learn to acknowledge God always. For who regards you as superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? 1Cor 4:7 

We must learn to acknowledge that whatever we have, God has given us. We must also learn that Whatever God has given us is to make us a blessing to others and also to serve others.

A The gifts are given to each of us so we can bless others. 1Cor 12:7

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 1Pet 4:10

We also must learn to never compare ourselves or our gifts with others.

The fool is anyone who compares himself with other human beings. 2Cor 10:12.

Jesus Christ is our only standard. He always said follow me to His disciples. We must pattern our lives with His.

We are commanded to run the race fixing our eyes on Him. Heb 12:2. 

Jesus was the humblest man who walked on earth. You become like the company you keep. If you walk with the wise, you become wise, if you keep a bad company, your good morals get destroyed. Prov 13:20, 1Cor 15:33.

In the same way, if you walk with Jesus every day, you will be humble. 

Your company define who you will be. Walk with Jesus, and you will always be humble. Humility is in the mind. Phil 2:3-10. 

You are blessed to be a blessing 

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DON'T IGNORE GODS WARNINGS AND KEEP YOUR CONSCIENCE CLEAR.

 FINISHING STRONG 

STUDY IX

God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. And if you leave God’s paths and go astray, you will hear a voice behind you say, “No, this is the way; walk here. Isaiah 30:21

God always warns His children when they deviate from His path but unfortunately many ignore God's warnings due to pride. God warns us primarily through dreams and through our conscience or through His servants.

God warned Abimelech about Abrahams wife through a dream. Gen 20:3-6

God warned pharaoh of a seven year famine through a dream. Gen 41:22-

God warned king Asa through a prophet. 2Chron 16:7-9

God warned David by a prophet. 2Sam 12:1-7, 24:11-12

God warned Joseph to move away through a dream. Mathew 2:19.

Paul said that people made shipwreck of their faith because of ignoring their conscience. 1Tim 1:19.

God cares so much that He will always warm us, either through a dream, or by a prick in our conscience or through a prophet; but we have a free will and we can choose to ignore God's warnings. We can silence our consciences, we can ignore dreams, we can ignore warnings through His servants, and the fall will be because of our pride. 

Pride comes before a fall.

If you desire to finish well, we must decide that we'll never ignore any warning that God sends to us. We must act on them. Those who finish poorly and backslide are those who ignore God's warnings. 

Learn to keep your conscience clear. Never ignore your dreams, For God speaks to us many times through dreams, never ignore warnings from God's servants. Learn to always humble yourself and learn to love correction whichever way God chooses to send it. 

Learn to always judge yourself every single day of your life. Aim to become a better person at the end of every year that you were at the beginning of the year.

Seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit every day.

The best thing you can do for those you love deeply is to love Jesus with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

The best gift you can give to those you love is a better version of you. You becoming better and better every time.

Learn from and follow those who finish well.

Learn from the mistakes of those who didn't finish well and take a warning for yourself.

Remember that God is more interested in your finishing well that you are. He is more than willing to give everything we need to finish our Christian life well. 

He will give us all the encouragement we need, all the wisdom, all the warnings, all the knowledge, all the counsel, all the health and wealth.

Remember, I can do everything through Christ who gives us strength. Everything includes power to finish well. Everything that God wants us to do, provision for it is available. We only need to seek God for it.

You are blessed to be a blessing 

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@Blessed Mshindi Mambo

SINGLE VISION TO FULFILL GODS PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE

 FINISHING STRONG 

STUDY XIII

The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness.If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.” Luke 11:34-36

Jesus said that He did everything God asked Him to do; John 17:4

He had only one vision. He said He came not to do His own will, but the will of His Father who sent Him. John 6:38. He said that He couldn't do or say anything except what He saw the Father do. He only spoke what His Father told Him. John 5:19.

He said that His only nourishment was in doing God's will. John 4:34

He was not in hurry to do ministry. The first thirty years He lived in the carpentry shop. He didn't preach a single sermon nor performed any miracle. He waited on His Father. God's voice was more important to him than the needs around him. He always sought God's will in everything. He sought God's voice before speaking.

He said follow me. To follow Christ means to watch how he lived and walk in His steps. You have to see Him first, and see the direction He is going for you to be able to follow Him.

He warned Peter not to concentrate or be distracted by John or His calling. He told him, "follow me" when he asked whether John would have an easier life than him.John 21:19-22

You must have a single vision in fulfilling God's purpose for your life.

The safest place in the whole world for you is the centre of God's will for your life. As long as you are there, God will keep you from falling.

It's when we move out of the boundaries of God's will that satan gets hold of us, but if you determine to remain there, there is nothing the devil can do against you.

David only fell in adultery with Bathsheba when He failed to be in Gods appointed place for him that time. Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. BUT DAVID STAYED AT JERUSALEM. 2Sam 11:1

He was supposed to be in the battle as a king but he decided to relax in the palace. 

Today we fight spiritual battles. When you are supposed to be praying but you send others to the prayer meeting but you decide to relax in God's blessings; BEWARE lest the calamity that befell David catches up with you. David was not the last, Be in the place God wants you to be always.

Everyday seek To know and do God's will. Don't sit to congratulate yourself on how far you have reached. David has already written many Psalms which bless us even today, but the time he relaxed, the devil didn't care how much he accomplished in the past before attacking.

We are to follow Jesus who had a single eye for the joy that was set before Him. Heb 12:2

We are to walk in the steps of Him who commited no sin, nor deception found in His mouth, not reviled back but in every circumstance He faced, He committed Himself to God who judges righteously. 1Pet 2:21-23

We are to follow Him who didn't allow publicity to distract Him from His calling. He ran away when people wanted to make Him king. John 6:15. He told people to tell no one about the miracles He performed. Luke 8:56.

Paul said that He only had one thing that He did ... Phil 3:13. 

He said that He only had one goal in life. 2Cor 5:9

David said about one thing He desired.... Psalm 27:4

What about you? You don't need ten secrets to success. You only need one thing.

Jesus told Martha that she only needed one thing, not two or seven or ten. You only need one thing. Sitting at Jesus feet and listening to Him. Luke 10:42.

Everyday seek to sit at Jesus feet and listen to Him and only do what He tells you. Don't be distracted by ministry like Martha. Listen first, then do only what you are told and leave the rest.

God is seeking for one who will wait and watch for His beckoning Hand. One who will work the work He gives in God's manner. One who will not be distracted by the work he is not given, but keep it aside. Such a person will bring great delight to Gods heart. One who will do all of Gods will. One who will study His masters mind.

Be such a person and if you are faithful until the end, you will definitely finish well. 

Will you be one?

You are blessed to be a blessing 

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THE SECRET OF FINISHING STRONG

 FINISHING STRONG

STUDY VII

 

As we look closely in the word of God, we realise that there are many people God called and chose them to a particular purpose but they later backslide. We are told that the scriptures are supposed to instruct us and warn us. 1Cor 10:11-12, Rom 15:4We can learn that it's not whether you are anointed or not that matters, but the most important question is how you finish.

We are surrounded by people who were once mightily used by God but it's another story. 

Jesus and Paul are the only two persons who finished well and also told us to follow their example.

Paul said that "I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified." 1Cor 9:27.… He then goes on to give the example of the Israelites in chapter ten, teaching us that though God delivered them from Egypt to take them to Egypt, only two of them entered the land of Canaan. Though many have supposedly"received Christ ", very few enter into everything that God has for them.

If we don't discipline our bodies to do what they should do, not what they want to do; we cannot finish well.

Paul says follow me as I follow Christ. 1Cor 11:1. This is to mean that we are to follow him as long as he is following Christ. If he stops following Christ, we stop following him. If a preacher who was your role model stops following Christ, you stop following the preacher and continue following Christ.

He says "But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ." 2Cor 11:3. 

The way satan leads us astray is by corrupting our minds towards the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. He makes us to think that serving Christ is more important than your personal devotion to Him. He crowds our lives with religious activities and we have no time for meditation on Christ, Communion with Him and study of His word.

The devil will want us to think that if God blesses us materially, He is definitely pleased with you, but stop and think. Who are the richest people in your town or city or country? Can you honestly say that God is pleased with them? We can see that God can bless you materially even when you are displeasing to Him. 

Interestingly, we can pray and read the bible and not meet Christ, and that would please the devil. We can be devoted to the text of the bible and not Christ; it is our devotion to Christ that is to be utmost in our lives. If we commune with Christ, He will cause our hearts to burn, Luke 24:32. If you listen to a man of God whom God is using, your heart will burn. Your life will be full of peace and rest, without any fear and full of joy.

Above all things, make your devotion to Christ number 1 each day of your life.

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. We have to fix our eyes on Jesus.

As long as Peter fixed his eyes on Jesus, he walked on water, but when he looked at the storm, he begun sinking but crying out immediately Jesus helped him. Mathew 14:27-32

If we look at the surrounding, we'll sink, if we look at people or circumstances or even our past, either good or evil we'll sink in worldliness, but if we fix our eyes on Jesus we will be overcomers.

Lam 3:51 says that my eyes affect my heart. Where your eyes are looking will affect your walk with God. If you look at circumstances, you will be distressed or depressed. If you look at people, you will be jealous or proud, if you look at past achievements, you will be proud. Don't look right or left, or back, but fix your eyes on Jesus and you will not sink. If temptation comes and you cry out to him to save you, He will. Don't be silent if you are drowning but call of him.

Meditate of the cross constantly and you will develop a deep love and reverence for Christ.

The evidence that your eyes are fixed on Jesus is that you will never give up or get discouraged in our fight against sin in our lives. Heb 12:2-4

As long as he sought God, God made him prosper... 2Chron 26:5b

Keep the fire on the alter always burning by constantly meditating on the cross of Jesus. Discipline your body. Guard you devotion to Christ more than anything else.

You are blessed to be a blessing 

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@Blessed Mshindi Mambo