Skip to main content

Sermon #27: THE BATTLE BELONGS TO THE LORD

  “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. So I will stretch out my hand …” Exodus 3: 19-20 I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him,” God said to Moses. I rephrase this statement as follows: “I know that the devil will not leave you alone unless a mighty hand compels him.” That sounds totally true. Satan has to be compelled to leave you alone, to let you go. He will never willingly let you go. This goes to show the determination that Satan has when it comes to constraining the children of God; he wants to keep them in bondage forever. Christians, therefore, need to be more determined than the devil to free themselves from his shackles. Unfortunately, a number of Christians are too lukewarm or absent-minded to even think of getting their freedom; such Christians, therefore, remain under Satan’s bondage in various areas of their lives. The devil is determined to bind you forever. If the devil i...
Post a Comment

Sermon #14: GOD, WHERE ARE YOU?


She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13


It seems every Christian gets to this point at least once in their lifetime, the point at which they wonder whether God is still with them.

“God, where are you?” the believer whispers. “God, why have you left me alone?” others hazard to conclude.

This teaching is meant to motivate you and also strengthen you so that you will face difficulties with faith and courage.

It is usually when one goes through difficult times that one wonders if God is still with them.

Consider Hagar. She had fled home because she had been mistreated by Sarai. Evidently, Hagar was in the wrong for despising Sarai, the hand that had fed her, but that’s beside the point.

After fleeing from Sarai, Hagar went into the desert, a place of extreme difficulty. I don’t think Hagar knew where she was headed. I don’t think she had any specific destination in mind; she was just escaping mistreatment.

You can appreciate the situation Hagar was in at the time. In describing the gravity of Hagar’s circumstances, the Bible says she was in misery (Genesis 16:11).

It usually is in such situations of need that one wonders whether God is still with them. “God, where are you when I need you the most?” Hagar must surely have queried in her heart.

Now to the encouraging part: “The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.” Genesis 16:7

A spring is “a source of water” (Wikipedia). Imagine finding this in the desert, probably the hottest of places!

The above-cited verse is truly inspiring. I take two lessons from it:

The first lesson is that God sees you even when dark clouds obstruct your own vision. You don’t seem to see Him. You think He has abandoned or disowned you. Yet you are never out of His sight!

Consider Hagar. In her predicament, and probably not expecting any help, expecting to perish, the Bible says, “The angel of the LORD found (her)…”

The angel of the LORD found Hagar only because the eye of the LORD had been on her all the time; God never looked aside, even for a second.

If God’s eye can be on a sparrow always, how could it not be on you too?

The second lesson is that in every situation, whatever your surroundings, there is always a spring nearby. Hagar was in the desert, a very difficult environment, and yet there before her, was a spring, probably the source of the most needed provision in such high temperatures!

Whatever your surroundings, and whatever your circumstances, there is always a spring (of water) nearby. You will never die of thirst. Know this.

So, never lose your focus. Your gaze should always be on Christ, and not on your challenges, for Christ is the spring that can cool down your difficult circumstances! He alone can quench your thirst and pull you out of that crater.

Saying this is one thing; practicing it in real-life situations is another. But that is exactly what we are encouraged to do, to walk the talk, even though it may be extremely difficult at times. For what would we benefit from acting contrary to this encouragement?

It is what you believe that would either sustain or break you in difficult times and situations.

She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13

Beautiful.

Please consider taking this teaching to heart.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sermon #24: I WILL NOT LET YOU GO UNTIL YOU BLESS ME

Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:26 I think every Christian has gone through the following experience at some point in their Christian journey. One moment they are on fire; they feel like their prayers are blazing right into the Throne Room. They are energetic and appear to fly as they go through their paces in the prayer room. The next moment they are down. They are totally demoralized; they appear like all energy has been sapped from them. They can hardly lift their tongue to pray and wonder whether they are making any real progress in their prayer life. “Does God even hear my prayers,” they wonder to themselves. But what’s the recommended attitude for the believer to adopt? Here it is: “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” That’s the attitude. It’s called ‘perseverance’. It’s called ‘never giving up’. It’s called ‘trusting in the Lord’. It’s called ‘sticking with God, no matter what’...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sermon #22: STAY POSITIONED ACCORDING TO GOD'S WILL AND PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE

  The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live.”  Genesis 26:2 I want you to picture the context. According to Genesis 26:1,  “… there was a famine in the land…”  Genesis 26:1 Whenever there is famine in a given place, some residents emigrate. Some stick it out, and for some, it is because they have no choice – they just have nowhere to go. Emigration happens regularly in developing countries. Sometimes the economies of developing countries, for one reason or another, collapse, compounding the economic hardships, leading many to seek greener pastures elsewhere. We usually see on the news crowds of people from developing countries emigrating to developed countries, sometimes under very punishing and treacherous circumstances. Some of them would be quite vulnerable as they travel, in various respects. It looks like Isaac had considered emigrating to Egypt, but before he could even make the necessary arrangemen...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sermon #21: SELLING YOUR BIRTHRIGHT

  “But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.” Genesis 25:33-34 I always encourage Christians by telling them that they live in an excellent place. I tell them so because that’s a fact. Christians are in Christ, glory to God! That’s the excellent place in which we live. Being in Christ is a treasure beyond measure! So, it is important for every Christian to value the grace placed on them . We were bought not with perishable things but with the blood of Him who saved us. It was by great sacrifice that we now can relate to God in a father-child kind of relationship. Yet I see many Christians who appear absent-minded, who live like their salvation is an ordinary thing. It breaks my heart! When I read the opening Bible verses I see one thing – a compromise of unimaginable proportions. I think that’s the...
Post a Comment
Read more