None shall appear before me empty - Staying away from church

Friend: ha! How come you didn’t go to church today? Where is your church?

Brother: some 5 houses away.

Friend: how come you didn’t go to church?

Brother: I don’t have offering money to drop o.

Friend: so is that why you didn’t go?

Brother: how would I have gone? Our pastor showed us that scripture says none shall appear before God empty, and I don’t want to violate God’s law as the week is yet fresh.

Friend: (amazed at the response) what is this I’m hearing?

But this isn’t a funny story, it’s serious! That brother is a typical example of many people today. All work days they are at workplace, at Saturdays at party(s), but Sunday; they are absent from church leaning on the excuse that they don’t want to ”appear before God empty”. Hmm!

Let’s see the base of that scripture. Your pastor could not be implying that you shouldn’t come to church if without a money offering. Ignorance is serious.

Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: AND NONE SHALL APPEAR BEFORE ME EMPTY:) Exo 23:15 

But the firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb: and if thou redeem [him] not, then shalt thou break his neck. All the firstborn of thy sons thou shalt redeem. AND NONE SHALL APPEAR BEFORE ME EMPTY. Exo 34:20 

Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: AND THEY SHALL NOT APPEAR BEFORE THE LORD EMPTY:  Deut 16:16 

Thank God you have seen the scriptures yourself now! Now I will show you how to keep this commandment, because, if you offend in one point, you are guilty of all.

1. You are to go to church only three times a year. THREE TIMES IN A YEAR shall all thy males appear before the LORD (Deut 16:16)
2. It is an injunction for only males. Three times in a year shall ALL THY MALES appear before the LORD (Deut 16:16)
3. The offering being referred to isn’t money, but lambs, goats etc. offering on your firstborn, firstfruits etc.

So your pastor must have only meant that you should imbibe the habit of giving, as it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35), and not actually legalising the practice of “no money, no blessing”.

Oh how that brother have just missed the blessing of fellowshipping together with fellow saints! You don’t sin because you attended a church program without dropping money offering, No! Afterall, the blessings were freely given of God. Love makes us donate towards the furtherance of the gospel. I think a brother like that should rather have his needs supplied. He should be placed on a salary scale by the same church rather than being levied and excommunicated for his penury sake.

Church is glorious! Please never miss the next gathering of holy brethren at the next meeting day. The Lord commands the blessing, life evermore (Psalms 133:3)

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Why God Hears us today

Except the words of Jesus are untrustworthy, except God can lie, we know the Father hears us when we pray. He answers all our hearts.

And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. (1 John 5:14-15 KJV)

How do we know God hears us? We look into Christ. By faith we understand…

Don't Faint in Faith - Poem

DON’T FAINT IN FAITH

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” 2cor 4:17

O Christian, faint not, you are almost through

What God has spoken, shall He not make it good?

O saints, these troubles are only for a while

Think if you know what lies ahead you would smile

Even if you are the only one in a room of eight

And many other older converts have been caught by men’s sleight

Hear the voice of the One who holds His saints

Saying, “Groan in prayer as you must but NEVER FAINT”

For the joy before Him Christ endured the cross

Now you know he never suffered a loss

For this limited time manage to bear the pain

So for eternity you would reap an endless gain

Why Christ tarries is for us to double up our efforts

Let everyone leave the walls and forget comfort

Let’s go east, west, south, and north

As we tell the whole world OUR TIME IS SO SHORT!

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Can our praise bring God down into our midst?

 Bribe God? Impress God if you can

Praises bring down the power of God. You can get the heart of God through praises. You can eulogise God to the extent that His head will swell until He begins to give almost the whole world to only you (like a man who is under alcoholic influence). You can even cause God to release blessings He didn’t want to release before to you. If you know the secret of praise, you can make much of it. In fact, if you can just go and learn eulogies, memorize them, and you will just be a star, because God would have showered the whole world on you before you know. His head would have swelled towards you such that He like Herod and the daughter that danced before him, would just say ask anything you want, giving you a open cheque. Marvels of praises! In fact, one may be the worst of sinners, if he can know how to eulogise God, he will escape much punishments and get more blessed than a person who is trying to live holy but does not know how to praise God; such will get heavy punishments for little sins he has done. So praise can make God to forget your sins and hurriedly bless you like Jacob and David as opposed to Esau and Saul. It’s only a person that know how to praise know how to receive from God. Oh without praise, you cannot even enter His gates because bible says “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Without praise, God will not come down no matter how hard you pray, because God dwells in the praises of His people. In fact, God does not know how it is doing Him again whenever people begin to praise Him: He just gets to begin to bless like a drunkard. So I may not be a spiritual “jim jim” (i.e. giant). I may not know the bible much. I may not be that holy, but I know how to turn God from His anger and He won’t know what he’s doing again and just begin to laugh like a man who is being tickled, and before you realise it, He has turn from His wrath.

Moses almost not made heaven. Why? Read this

Born at a time when it was a terrible thing to be an israelite and much more grievous to be a male, was protected being "a proper child". Studious, dilligent, intelligent, serious man; Trained in all the skills of Egypt and maybe on the way to winning a Nobel prize and perhaps also a preferred candidate for the throne of Egypt, he had a call of God and he was not disobedient to the heavenly calling.

He served God with all his heart. 1Cor 4:2 - "Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful" Heb 3:5 - "And Moses verily [was] faithful in all his house, as a servant".
The bible attested to his meekness, a virtue not so common then: Num 12:3 (Now the man Moses [was] very meek, above all the men which [were] upon the face of the earth.) no wonder God will show him a lot of revelations. Because Psa 25:9 says "The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way".

Until a day, he did not fully carry out an instruction from God in unbelief, and would consequentially

"I gave my life to Christ/God". Is it true?

It is important we know with more precision what happened to us at salvation. There is a common term that is often used for this event which I cannot find a biblical origin for. It is to “give my life to Christ/God”.

How do saints in the Acts of Apostles and epistles describe the event of new birth?

In Acts 2, when the Holy Spirit began to indwell the first church and Peter preached that first gospel of Christ’s resurrection,

Now when they heard [this], they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men [and] brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them REPENT, AND BE BAPTIZED EVERY ONE OF YOU IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:37-38 KJV)

MY JOURNEY FROM FLESH TO FREEDOM

Once Flesh was my sworn husband. My name was Kay Flesh. My husband compelled me to do that which is contrary to God's laws. Though against my wish, the husband is the head of the wife, i just followed. I protested against him, called him evil, and all sort of names but my boss will keep lording sin over me. Yes! The law is holy and the commandments holy and just and good, but my marriage to Mr Flesh was my eternal mistake. Afterall i was not allowed to choose my Husband, i would not have made this tyrant my head. Many a times we'll fight and fight in the home, but he's stronger than me. I desired to please God after my inward man, but 'evil' is present with me. I sought a law court to seek redress. I went with my strong reasons for divorce, but "the two, saith he, shall be one Flesh". Who will hear me out when the law that governs the universe says it is 'till death do us part'.

The Peace Christ Made - The War is Over!

Hurray! The War is Over!!!

Speak... comfortably to Jerusalem... that her warfare is accomplished... (Isaiah 40:2)

And in that day thou shalt say, O LORD, I will praise thee: though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me. (Isaiah 12:1)

Our message is that God was making all human beings his friends through Christ... We were sent to speak for Christ, and GOD IS BEGGING YOU TO LISTEN to our message. (2 Corinthians 5:19 GNB, 20 CEV emphasis mine)

Roll out the drums, IT IS FINISHED!

Celebration for a MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

Heaven gates are now open so freely

IT’S FOR REAL, come on in to the holies

God and man in a new pact

Heart to heart touching, just like that?

A relationship in fellowship can now start

Even angels would wish to say “congrats!”

Our Intercession Ministry - images

WHY ARE YOU CAST DOWN?

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.” PSALMS 42:11 (RSV)

When tears roll down your cheek like a child who can’t see His lights

When you try to look out for a ray of hope through the nights

Try to see if you can see a reason to move on but can’t find one

If only you could see someone to share burdens with but found none

When all you could see is a destiny going into a waste bin

Though all an external observer could see is the grin

Food shortage imminent as penury hits harder at the door

And the results of your exams knock you down to the floor

When grief possesses the merry portion of your heart

But you see the ungodly men everyday grow fat

When the gate of death seem to have taken over your world

And you try to pray, but your torment come and make you bored