To foreknow something is to know it before it was formed. Only the Lord can foreknow us as He made us.
Jeremiah 1: 5
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
The Lord has plans for us, and His plans for us were predetermined before He made us. In other words, He knows what we have the potential to do and what graces we have, don’t let anybody else define you.
Lets look at the above scripture. Before l formed thee in the belly, l knew you, and before thou came out l sanctified and ordained you to be a prophet to the nations. As only the Lord knows the foundation of our lives, its only Him we should sought for direction and His own plans for our lives. Forget what people are saying, the one who formed you and preknew you knows better.
Do you know that God has great plans for your life? But l am not even born again, l don’t know the Lord. Receive the Lord Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him Lord of your life (please follow this link for steps to take to know the Lord http://peacewithgod.jesus.net/). But life is tough? That’s why you need the Lord.
Lets see what the Lord has in stock for us:
Romans 8: 28-29
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Do you see the desired destination? To be conformed to the image of His Son. Brethren are supposed to look alike. Jesus Christ is our big brother.
This is the desired end, we are to become more like Jesus every day. The Lord that formed us, knows what He has invested in us. He foreknew us, and He knows better. Don’t give up on yourself, you have great potential in the Lord and He has great plans for you.
Bisi Oladipupo
Sunday, 19 May 2013
Monday, 6 May 2013
He saith unto Peter!
Towards the end of Jesus earthly ministry, Jesus took three of His disciples to pray with Him.
Matthew 26: 36 – 41
36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
In the book of Mark the account of verse 40 says:
Mark 14: 37
37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?
From this account, Jesus took three of His disciples along to pray with Him and one of them was Peter. Since there were three disciples, why was the question ‘ why are you sleeping can you not pray’ addressed to Peter only? And if you note it, the Lord called Peter by name. I think it is safe to say that, at that time Peter did need to pray because of the attack and temptation that was coming his way, but he slept.
The Lord is very specific and He deals with us as individuals. He knows what we might each face individually, and He knows the plans that He has for each individually. This is why we cannot afford to run and do like others. Yes they may be Christians, but we cannot afford to disobey what the Lord has specifically told us to do. Remember that He may not have instructed the others to do the same.
In this account, all three disciples i.e. Peter, James and John (Mark 14: 33) were supposed to be praying, but the Lord addressed the question to Peter because as earlier stated it is safe to say that he was the one who was going to face the more severe attack and temptation. He: i.e. Peter and not James and John denied the Lord. He should have prayed.
So what is the Lord saying to you? But others are not doing it, does it matter? Only Peter fell and not James and John because the attack was towards Peter. Whatever the Lord tells you to do, take it as a specific instruction for yourself and do it. What others are doing around you does not matter. The instruction is for you, and the Lord knows why. Just obey! Thank God for church services and home church meetings, however we must spend time with the Lord ourselves and know what He wants us as individuals to do. We must each know and hear His voice.
So my question is, what is the Lord saying to you!. Whatever it is, just do it!
Bisi Oladipupo
Matthew 26: 36 – 41
36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.
37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.
39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?
41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
In the book of Mark the account of verse 40 says:
Mark 14: 37
37 And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?
From this account, Jesus took three of His disciples along to pray with Him and one of them was Peter. Since there were three disciples, why was the question ‘ why are you sleeping can you not pray’ addressed to Peter only? And if you note it, the Lord called Peter by name. I think it is safe to say that, at that time Peter did need to pray because of the attack and temptation that was coming his way, but he slept.
The Lord is very specific and He deals with us as individuals. He knows what we might each face individually, and He knows the plans that He has for each individually. This is why we cannot afford to run and do like others. Yes they may be Christians, but we cannot afford to disobey what the Lord has specifically told us to do. Remember that He may not have instructed the others to do the same.
In this account, all three disciples i.e. Peter, James and John (Mark 14: 33) were supposed to be praying, but the Lord addressed the question to Peter because as earlier stated it is safe to say that he was the one who was going to face the more severe attack and temptation. He: i.e. Peter and not James and John denied the Lord. He should have prayed.
So what is the Lord saying to you? But others are not doing it, does it matter? Only Peter fell and not James and John because the attack was towards Peter. Whatever the Lord tells you to do, take it as a specific instruction for yourself and do it. What others are doing around you does not matter. The instruction is for you, and the Lord knows why. Just obey! Thank God for church services and home church meetings, however we must spend time with the Lord ourselves and know what He wants us as individuals to do. We must each know and hear His voice.
So my question is, what is the Lord saying to you!. Whatever it is, just do it!
Bisi Oladipupo
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