Walk The Bible

"The angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people" Luke 2:10 I am finding it very meaningful and renewing to remind my self of what Christmas actually means to me and to the whole world. Traditional and false understanding of the Bible takes away the power from the word of God. It always helps to take a fresh look at what the Bible has to say about the birth of Jesus. Here is another verse from the Bible which gives real meaning of Christmas - Birth of Jesus, the Christ: Christmas is good news Christmas news is of great joy Christmas is for everyone What makes this news so special? It's because Jesus (Greek word Jesus means Savior) is born. Jesus is the Christ - the anointed one, separated one for the purpose of saving people from the bondage of sin. "For to you is born this day in the town of David a Savior, Who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord!" Luke 2:11 To understand the value of free

As I was going through the Christmas story from the book of Luke, chapter 2, I observed that the news of Jesus' birth was made known to Shepherds first. "And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. And an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid." Luke 2:8,9 I am wondering why the news went to Shepherds first and not to others? I am sure there were many prophets, wise men and serious synagogue goers who were waiting for the news. What made these shepherds so special to receive the greatest news of the world first? Here is what came to my mind - At the time of Jesus birth, these were the people awake, keeping watch over their flock. Shepherds were poor people and they need God's favor most. God was going to reveal Himself as good shepherd, so shepherds will be able to carry out this news to others with lot of passion. I am not sure i

We have been halfway through the Christmas season. Many of us must have gone through lot of Christmas seasons and I am sure we all have enjoyed them with our families and friends. Over the years, I realized that I can really enjoy Christmas when I understand the true meaning of Christmas. This year, I started digging deeper into the Bible to understand the real meaning of Christmas. Reference from the Bible: Luke 1:67-79 This was the prophecy by Zachariah after the birth of his child John the Baptist. He was prophesying about the salvation that is going to be made available through the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas is nothing but God implementing His plan of salvation for the world. At this point of time in history, the people of Israel were under the bondage politically, in darkness as there was no revelation (word) from the God for a period of 400 years, they were going through shadow of death spiritually. Under this background came this prophecy as rain in the desert. Christmas g

"Saul died for his trespass against the Lord [in sparing Amalek], for his unfaithfulness in not keeping God's word, and also for consulting [a medium with] a spirit of the dead to inquire pleadingly of it, And inquired not so of the Lord [in earnest penitence] ..." 1 Chronicles 10:13,14 Saul, the first king of Israel, began his walk very well. It was the ideal start any one could look for - with all the favor from God and Prophet Samuel, being the tallest one among the people, being the first king of Israel. But along the way, he lost the focus and the end was a miserable and sad one. I am sure you will agree with me that it is how you finish, is more important than how you start . It is definitely an advantage to start well, but finishing is more crucial. The above verse made me think on why Saul's end was a sad one? What are the lessons that I could learn from him? He disobeyed the specific command to destroy the Amalekites Not keeping God's word - In general

As I was studying the life of King Josiah, I was intrigued by his response to " The Book of the Covenant ". His response reminded me of Fear of the Lord . Let me go through his responses as mentioned in the bible: He rent his clothes - As a sign of repentance for the sins of his people and forefathers. He didn't ignore the sins done by his predecessors, but took the responsibility for their sins (2kings 22:11) He chose to inquire of the Lord about what he heard from the book of the Covenant (2Kings 22:13) His heart was tender towards God (2Kings 22:19) He was humble before God (2kings 22:19) He wept before the Lord (2kings 22:19) He gathered all the people of his kingdom in the presence of God (2kings 23:2) He read the Book of the covenant in the presence of the crowd (2kings 23:2) He made a covenant before the Lord (2kings 23:3) He cleaned his house (Rest of 2kings chapter 23) What a remarkable character this leader has exhibited! Even though he was not directly respons

"Because your heart was [tender and] penitent and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I said against this place and against its inhabitants, that they should become a desolation, [an astonishment and] a curse, and you have rent your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you, says the Lord. " 2Kings 22:19 It was indeed a bad news for King Josiah to hear about the wrath of God that is going to come up on his nation. But he responded in a wise manner which brought an answer from God. I am sure we can learn some lessons from this incident. Be sensitive to God's word : From the above verse, we see that his heart was tender, soft and penitent. He was quick to heed the word of God. He didn't ignore the word that came to him. Ask the Lord for guidance : When he heard what was written in the book of the Law concerning the wrath of God that is going to come on the nation of Judah, he was quick to seek the guidance from the Lord. Even though it was n

" ... There was no accounting required of them for the money delivered into their hands, because they dealt faithfully." 2kings 22:7 Empowered individuals make empowered organizations. The organization could be a family, church or a big corporation. Often times organizations take lot of pain to create empowered organizations. The above verse from the Bible gives a clue to empowerment. It starts with every individual comprising of the organization. Integrity , Trustworthiness and Faithfulness of a person enables him to be empowered , resulting in freedom. These things cannot be taught in a crash course because they are nothing but the reflection of a person's heart or character. Unless a person's heart is transformed, he cannot exhibit these traits. I have listed below some of the areas of life in which we need to be faithful. The list is just a sample, not complete. Ensuring integrity and faithfulness in these areas will make us empowered individuals, confident befo

Whether we realize or not, every individual influences some body else in his circle of influence . Very few can say that his/her choices will not impact any one. In general, it is a fact that our choices impact some body else in some way. The choices made by husband and wife impact each other as well as their family. The choices of father/mother impact children. A king's choices will influence the whole kingdom. The leader's choices influence his/her followers and the list goes on. The ability of an individual to influence is a powerful truth . As I was going through my quiet time (2 Kings 21), this truth dawned up on my heart. This chapter gives the details of two kings of Judah namely Manasseh, son of king Hezekiah and Amon. They chose to depart from the ways of God and followed the practices that are detested by God. This in turn led the whole nation to sin against the Lord. The kind of influence they had on their people was not a godly one, not an encouraging one. I call i

" ... He will do the thing He has promised ..." 2 Kings 20:9 What makes the Bible stand apart from all the other books in the world? As I was meditating the above verse, I felt so calm in my heart and the assurance that the word of God, the Bible will stand the test of the ages. The Bible is special because it is the word of God, word revealed by God, backed up by the creator of heaven and earth. God will stand by what is mentioned in the Bible. We can take comfort in the promises made by God in the Bible, because God cannot change and He will show up to accomplish what He has promised. God's glory is dependent on the authenticity of the Bible and the manifestation of the promises there in. For this reason, God is very eager to accomplish His word. "The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this." 2Kings 19:31 Question to Ponder : Have you picked up any promise from the Bible recently? Then be assured that the zeal of the Lord will accomplish it for you.

"... I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will heal you...." 2 Kings 20:5 This is the reply from God to King Hezekiah after he cries out to the Lord. The king was told by prophet Isaiah that he is going to die, he will not recover from his sickness and he should set his house in order. In this verse, I came to realize that my God is very personal God. People have personal trainers, personal doctors (family doctors) etc. But I am not sure whether they have a personal God. I am glad to realize that I have a personal God. What makes our God so personal? He hears my prayers - How many times do we feel that there is no one to seek help? We might feel, there is no hope that some body will listen to our plea or prayers. But in this verse, I see that God gives His time and attention to our prayers. When we approach Him, He will gladly accepts us. My God is the God who listens. He sees my tears - Because I and you are valuable to God, He sees our tears. He is

"I beseech You, O Lord, [earnestly] remember now how I have walked before You in faithfulness and truth and with a whole heart [entirely devoted to You] and have done what is good in Your sight..." 2 Kings 20:3 In Faithfulness - Do not turn away from God depending on the situation. We are to remain faithful to Him no matter what the circumstances may be. Our faithfulness to God should not depend on our feelings. It should be based on our Faith in Him. In Truth - Not having any hypocrisy, being honest and open before the Lord. Walking in Truth before God becomes easy if we realize that He is our heavenly father. We don't have to wear a mask of holiness in approaching God. We are encouraged to approach God just as we are. With whole heart - Devote yourself to God alone. We are to follow in the footsteps of Jesus as He is our role model. God is pleased with 100% devotion to Him. Nobody can serve two masters effectively. We read from the Bible in Luke 16:13 "No ser

"..... take root downward and bear fruit upward." 2 Kings 19:30 Everybody would like to be fruitful, successful and have continual progress. What does that Bible say about bearing fruit? When do we bear fruit? The above verse gives the answer in plain terms. It is a natural principle that when a tree has it's roots established deep down in side the earth, it will be able to bear fruit. It is the same for us as children of God. When we are rooted deeply in Christ, anchored in Christ that is when we will be able to bear fruit upward. This fruit will last longer, have greater influence for the glory of God. Key is this : Being rooted in Christ, being anchored in Christ. Question to Ponder : Where am I rooted - In Christ or in the world?

Read 2Kings 18:5-7 2Ki 18:5  Hezekiah trusted in, leaned on, and was confident in the Lord, the God of Israel; so that neither after him nor before him was any one of all the kings of Judah like him.  2Ki 18:6  For he clung and held fast to the Lord and ceased not to follow Him, but kept His commandments, as the Lord commanded Moses.  2Ki 18:7  And the Lord was with Hezekiah; he prospered wherever he went.   As I was meditating on this scripture, I was impressed by Hezekiah's success and prosperity. My desire also is to be successful and fruitful. What is that Hezekiah did that made him so special among the kings of Judah? Initiative taken by Hezekiah was: Trusting God Leaned on Him Confident in the Lord Clinging to God Held fast to the Lord Following God Obeying God Results: God made him a special king among the kings of Judah He prospered wherever he went. By his actions, Hezekiah created an environment of God's presennce around him. By the way, God's presence around you

Read 2Kings 3:9-11 "So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. They made a circuit of seven days' journey, but there was no water for the army or for the animals following them. Then the king of Israel said, Alas! The Lord has called [us] three kings together to be delivered into Moab's hand! But Jehoshaphat said, Is there no prophet of the Lord here by whom we may inquire of the Lord? One of the king of Israel's servants answered, Elisha son of Shaphat, who served Elijah, is here. " When in trouble, dilemma or confusion, Jehoshaphat looks to God and His servants for help. What an attitude of dependency on God. When we are in such difficult situations, we let our hearts to be troubled and lose heart just the way Joram, king of Israel lost his heart. But wise thing to do would be to seek heavenly provision - the help from the God of Jacob, who is an ever present help in times of trouble ( Psalms 46 ). In trusting God, in submitting to G

How to Pray Effectively by Rick Warren Please remember what you told your servant Moses: “If you sin, I will scatter you among the nations.” Nehemiah 1:8 (NLT) Here are four secrets to answered prayer from the life of Nehemiah: 1. Base your request on God’s character. Pray like you know God ill answer you: “I’m expecting you to answer this prayer because of who you are. You are a faithful God. You are a great God. You are a loving God. You are a wonderful God. You can handle this problem, God!" 2. Confess the sins of which you’re aware. After Nehemiah bases his prayer on who God is, he confesses his sins. He says, “We’ve sinned.” He says “I confess . . . myself . . . my father’s house . . .we have acted wickedly . . . we have not obeyed.” It wasn’t Nehemiah’s fault that Israel went into captivity. He wasn’t even born when it happened and he was most likely born in captivity. Yet, he’s including himself in the national sins. He says, “I’ve been a part of the problem.” 3. Claim

How Do You Develop Self-Control? by Rick Warren God does not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT) *** *** *** *** Successful people have one obvious trait in common: personal discipline. They are willing to do things that average people are unwilling to do. It’s my observation that successful people express their self-discipline in six ways: · Successful people master their moods . They live by their commitments, not their emotions. They do the right thing, even when they don’t feel like it. “A person without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls” (Proverbs 25:28 NLT). · Successful people watch their words . They put their minds in gear before opening their mouths: “Those who control their tongue will have a long life . . .” (Proverbs 13:3 NLT). · Successful people restrain their reactions . How much can you take before you lose your cool? “People with good sense restrain their anger; they e

2Samuel 11:1 IN THE spring, when kings go forth to battle, David sent Joab with his servants and all Israel, and they ravaged the Ammonites [country] and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem. At this point of time, David was successful in all his battles and he was well established as the King over Israel. There was peace and prosperity in the kingdom. Because of his Godly character and success, there is no one to whom he has to be accountable. This has resulted in some complacency in David. It was time when the kings go for battle. But David remained in Jerusalem. This is the start of his fall. In stead if keeping himself with his work, he was relaxing. In general, David has a weakness toward women - why does he need to marry so many women being a Godly person? This is definitely not a trite that is exemplary in David's life. In the time of crisis that is about to come upon David shortly, all these things compounded on him and led to the fall. Remember, his fall was no

As I was doing my regular bible study, I came across the following verse from Bible. 1Sa 24:6 He said to his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this to my master, the Lord's anointed, to put my hand out against him, when he is the anointed of the Lord. I understood how David could go through such a difficult situation and handle Saul so well. In the end David could come out of it by God's grace. A great lesson to learn for us - David was not willing to harm Saul, who was an unreasonable master. Who is Saul for David: His master - an unreasonable master. Lord's anointed King Read 1Peter 2:18-24 1Pe 2:18 [You who are] household servants, be submissive to your masters with all [proper] respect, not only to those who are kind and considerate and reasonable, but also to those who are surly (overbearing, unjust, and crooked). 1Pe 2:19 For one is regarded favorably (is approved, acceptable, and thank worthy) if, as in the sight of God, he endures the pain of unjust suff