We all have things in our flesh that still need to die.
Have you ever heard anyone say, ‘ Jack is so bad tempered he can never change?’. Well the truth about this is that it is a lie. Anyone can change provided the person is willing to change.
One of my famous preachers says ‘ everyone has flesh’, yes this is true however we need to be changing into His image, the image of our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ day by day. We should be looking at ourselves as the years go by and say ; what happened to my anger, wow!! l don’t talk like that anymore etc. The list should go on.
Lets look at an example from scripture:
In the book of Acts we read an account about Moses:
Acts 7: 22 – 30
And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.
And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.
And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:
For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.
And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?
But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?
Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday?
Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.
And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
Acts 7: 35 – 36
This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.
He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.
Remember that the book of Acts is just giving a summary of Moses and includes an account of where he started from.
Lets look at another brief account of Moses in Numbers:
Numbers 12: 1 to 5
1And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
2And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it.
3(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)
4And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out.
5And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.
Before the Lord used Moses to deliver the children of Israel he murdered someone.
He then spent 40 years in the Land of Midain before the Lord called him to go and deliver the children of Israel (Acts 7: 30), Moses also spent 40 years in the wilderness with the Israelites (Acts 7: 36).
Something must have happened to Moses during this period, from being a murderer to being described as ‘The meekest man on the face of the earth’. What a description, The bible did not say that Moses was the meekest person in his family, or town, or even country, but in all the face of the earth.
That is a great change considering where he was coming from.
So what happened to Moses? Its called change and change can take time. I am not saying it will take 40 years, but we all have areas in out lives were we need to change.
This is the good news. We don’t have to settle where we are. We have so much working for us if we do want to change.
We have the Word, and His Spirit within us.
So how do l change?
We need to take the mirror of the Word to examine ourselves. Is there anything lacking? Then change is required.
Psalm 19: 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
We need to listen to the Spirit within us and respond to what He says.
We need to look at the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18
18But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
We all can change. Change can be a process, as we allow the Lord to work in us we will become better in character and better representatives for Him.
Bisi Oladipupo
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Monday, 17 January 2011
The disciple whom Jesus Loved
What a great way to describe a person and a honour. Let’s examine a few things about whom the Lord loved.
This was the disciple that was lying on Jesus bosom at the last supper.
John 13:23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved. Bosom signifies ‘the front of the body between the arms’ (vines expository dictionary of old and new testament words) or a person’s breast or chest (oxford dictionary)
For you to lay on a persons breast you must be close to them and very likely there will be a mutual likeness or love between you.
He was the only disciple that could ask Jesus the question that others wished to ask.
John 13: 21 – 26 When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake. Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom he spake. He then lying on Jesus’ breast saith unto him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
Remember when you were young and wanted biscuits from mummy. What did you do? You sent the one closest to her to ask.
He stood by the cross when Jesus was being crucified and Jesus handed over His mother to him.
John 19: 25 – 27 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.
Jesus handed his mother to the disciple he loved. Who would you hand your mother over too anyone or someone very close to you?
He outran Peter when he heard that the body of Jesus had been taken away.
John 20: 2 – 4 Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the LORD out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
He recognized Jesus first when the other disciples did not.
John 21: 4 – 7 But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.
Looking at the above it is evident that this disciple was very close to the Lord. He leaned on Jesus breast, asked Jesus a question when the others could not, He was at the cross when Jesus was being crucified, He took Mary, Jesus mother into his own home, he recongised Jesus first when the other disciples did not. He was the only disciple described as ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’.
The Lord loves us all, however the truth of the matter is that some Christians have a closer walk with the Lord than others. Have you ever heard someone talk about the Lord and you said to yourself ‘ l wish to know the Lord like that’.
The Lord is no respecter of persons, if we pay the price, obey Him, Love the Lord, thirst after Him, we will have a closer walk with Him.
Do you desire to know the Lord better? Ask him to help you, and as long as you are prepared to pay the price, you will experience a deeper walk with Him. Just as John did and was described as ‘ the disciple whom Jesus loved’.
Remember the Lord loves us all, but there is more room to get to know Him better.
Bisi Oladipupo
This was the disciple that was lying on Jesus bosom at the last supper.
John 13:23 Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved. Bosom signifies ‘the front of the body between the arms’ (vines expository dictionary of old and new testament words) or a person’s breast or chest (oxford dictionary)
For you to lay on a persons breast you must be close to them and very likely there will be a mutual likeness or love between you.
He was the only disciple that could ask Jesus the question that others wished to ask.
John 13: 21 – 26 When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake. Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom he spake. He then lying on Jesus’ breast saith unto him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
Remember when you were young and wanted biscuits from mummy. What did you do? You sent the one closest to her to ask.
He stood by the cross when Jesus was being crucified and Jesus handed over His mother to him.
John 19: 25 – 27 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.
Jesus handed his mother to the disciple he loved. Who would you hand your mother over too anyone or someone very close to you?
He outran Peter when he heard that the body of Jesus had been taken away.
John 20: 2 – 4 Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the LORD out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
He recognized Jesus first when the other disciples did not.
John 21: 4 – 7 But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.
Looking at the above it is evident that this disciple was very close to the Lord. He leaned on Jesus breast, asked Jesus a question when the others could not, He was at the cross when Jesus was being crucified, He took Mary, Jesus mother into his own home, he recongised Jesus first when the other disciples did not. He was the only disciple described as ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’.
The Lord loves us all, however the truth of the matter is that some Christians have a closer walk with the Lord than others. Have you ever heard someone talk about the Lord and you said to yourself ‘ l wish to know the Lord like that’.
The Lord is no respecter of persons, if we pay the price, obey Him, Love the Lord, thirst after Him, we will have a closer walk with Him.
Do you desire to know the Lord better? Ask him to help you, and as long as you are prepared to pay the price, you will experience a deeper walk with Him. Just as John did and was described as ‘ the disciple whom Jesus loved’.
Remember the Lord loves us all, but there is more room to get to know Him better.
Bisi Oladipupo
Tuesday, 4 January 2011
The Hundredfold return – Is the place of sacrifice
Have you ever heard ‘ give and you will get a hundredfold return?
Well if you study scripture very carefully, this is not what the bible is saying about the hundredfold return.
So what does scripture say?
Mark 10: 17 – 30
17And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?
18And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
19Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.
20And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
21Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
22And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.
23And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
24And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!
25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
26And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?
27And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
28Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.
29And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,
30But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
Here is the evidence of the hundredfold return. The young man in verse 17 was invited to be a partaker of great treasure by leaving all.
Peter responded in verse 28 by saying: ‘ we have left all and have followed you’.
Jesus then responded directly to Peters comment ‘ in verse 28 which is the condition of the hundredfold return.
Cleary stated:
Leaving houses, or brethren, or sister, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for HIS SAKE AND THE GOSPELS.
In summary it is the place of sacrifice for the Lord and for the sake of the gospel i.e laying it all down to follow and serve Him.
But l heard someone quote Genesis 26: 12 – 23
12Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him.
13And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:
This scripture is not a promise. It is just stating how the Lord blessed Isaac when he sowed in the land. It’s the book of Mark that is a promise to ‘any man’ that meets the condition.
Apart from this, we do not know what Isaac sowed in the land, as the bible has not stated it.
Yes when we give, the Lord does bless us and gives to us. The measure we get back is not specified , but obviously it is a good meausre, pressed down and shaked together according to scripture:
Luke 6: 38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
The hundredfold return is the place of sacrifice where we leave all ,take up our cross for His sake and for the gospels sake.
If we want to experience the Lords abundance we must make His priorities ours and follow Him with all our heart.
Bisi Oladipupo
Well if you study scripture very carefully, this is not what the bible is saying about the hundredfold return.
So what does scripture say?
Mark 10: 17 – 30
17And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?
18And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
19Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.
20And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
21Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
22And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.
23And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
24And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!
25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
26And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?
27And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
28Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.
29And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,
30But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
Here is the evidence of the hundredfold return. The young man in verse 17 was invited to be a partaker of great treasure by leaving all.
Peter responded in verse 28 by saying: ‘ we have left all and have followed you’.
Jesus then responded directly to Peters comment ‘ in verse 28 which is the condition of the hundredfold return.
Cleary stated:
Leaving houses, or brethren, or sister, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for HIS SAKE AND THE GOSPELS.
In summary it is the place of sacrifice for the Lord and for the sake of the gospel i.e laying it all down to follow and serve Him.
But l heard someone quote Genesis 26: 12 – 23
12Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him.
13And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:
This scripture is not a promise. It is just stating how the Lord blessed Isaac when he sowed in the land. It’s the book of Mark that is a promise to ‘any man’ that meets the condition.
Apart from this, we do not know what Isaac sowed in the land, as the bible has not stated it.
Yes when we give, the Lord does bless us and gives to us. The measure we get back is not specified , but obviously it is a good meausre, pressed down and shaked together according to scripture:
Luke 6: 38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
The hundredfold return is the place of sacrifice where we leave all ,take up our cross for His sake and for the gospels sake.
If we want to experience the Lords abundance we must make His priorities ours and follow Him with all our heart.
Bisi Oladipupo
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Doing things right in the eyes of the Lord
1 Kings 15, 8 – 11
And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead.
And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.
And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.
Lets look at a few thing Asa did
1 Kings 15: 12 – 13
And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
Asa stepped on some toes to please the Lord. I think this is very commendable. Can you imagine the controversy he would have come up against? Removing his mother from being queen and rightfully so as clearly stated above.
We need to do things right in the eyes of the Lord at all times. Lets not be men pleasers, its just not worth it.
In areas of our lives, we should not put up with things that don’t please the Lord because we don’t want to offend people. Not worth it, remember that one day, we shall all stand before the Lord to give Him an account for our lives.
Bisi Oladipupo
And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead.
And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.
And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.
Lets look at a few thing Asa did
1 Kings 15: 12 – 13
And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
Asa stepped on some toes to please the Lord. I think this is very commendable. Can you imagine the controversy he would have come up against? Removing his mother from being queen and rightfully so as clearly stated above.
We need to do things right in the eyes of the Lord at all times. Lets not be men pleasers, its just not worth it.
In areas of our lives, we should not put up with things that don’t please the Lord because we don’t want to offend people. Not worth it, remember that one day, we shall all stand before the Lord to give Him an account for our lives.
Bisi Oladipupo
Friday, 24 December 2010
Saturday, 11 December 2010
Activating substance into our relationships.
What do l mean? Do you have people in your life that it seems there is not much to talk about? You call them, once you pass the discussion about the Kids, work and weather there is nothing to talk about.
For relationships to be sustained there must be some valuable substance to it. What do l mean? There needs to be something you are giving or that is adding value to you?
But there is nothing to talk about. It can be activated. How? By activating substance into it.
An example of doing this is to find something that the person does that interests you. It could be reading books, or listening to messages, or a sport or physical activity.
Lets take the example of reading books. You can ask what books the person is currently reading? The person shares it with you and how much they have been blessed. In exchange you also give them books that have blessed you. The next time you talk, your conversation will have more substance to it because you will have something of value that interests both of you. In this case, you can talk about the books you have read.
The list of activating substance goes on e.g. doing things together, praying together , ministry, etc the list goes on.
While we do need to have substance in our relatonships not everyone will respond the same way. So what do l do? You can only try and if the person cannot discern that you are only trying to add more value to the relationship you at least tried.
Its all about trying to keep the flame alive and as we do so we will be blessed with valuable relationships with great substance.
Bisi Oladipupo
For relationships to be sustained there must be some valuable substance to it. What do l mean? There needs to be something you are giving or that is adding value to you?
But there is nothing to talk about. It can be activated. How? By activating substance into it.
An example of doing this is to find something that the person does that interests you. It could be reading books, or listening to messages, or a sport or physical activity.
Lets take the example of reading books. You can ask what books the person is currently reading? The person shares it with you and how much they have been blessed. In exchange you also give them books that have blessed you. The next time you talk, your conversation will have more substance to it because you will have something of value that interests both of you. In this case, you can talk about the books you have read.
The list of activating substance goes on e.g. doing things together, praying together , ministry, etc the list goes on.
While we do need to have substance in our relatonships not everyone will respond the same way. So what do l do? You can only try and if the person cannot discern that you are only trying to add more value to the relationship you at least tried.
Its all about trying to keep the flame alive and as we do so we will be blessed with valuable relationships with great substance.
Bisi Oladipupo
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
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