Category: Food For Growth

⁶ and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, ~ Matthew 1:6

No matter what version you read, Solomon is always recognized as the son of King David by the wife of Uriah. Uriah wasn’t a Jew. He wasn’t even a descendant of Abraham in any way, shape, or form. Uriah was a Hittite; nevertheless, the LORD always remembered Uriah. Why? Because it’s not about race, ethnicity, or where you’re from. It’s about who you are as a person. It’s about the choices that you make. Because it’s your actions that make you who you are. It’s your actions that make your legacy.

You could be born into the perfect family. The perfect life, but your heart is far away from God. God doesn’t need a perfect person born into perfect circumstances. God can use anything and anybody. He can use even the most bent out-of-shape vessels. All God needs is a willing heart, and He can use you.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let God Use You.

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¹⁷ You have wearied the Lord with your words. But you say, “How have we wearied him?” By saying, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He delights in them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God of justice?” ~ Malachi 2:17

Today’s Church has become haters of good and lovers of evil. We’ve pushed away the Truth of our God for the lies of our enemy. Why? Because we desire to please, satisfy, and justify the flesh. No longer do we see correction as love. Instead, we see it as an awful judgment that we haven’t been called to make. I believe this is because it’s easier to offend a seemingly silent God than a friend that is speaking their truth in our ears.

When we justify sin and fill them with the lie that God just wants them to be happy, or that He made them that way, or that it’s not anyone’s place to judge, we not only plague them with false hope and security, but we lie about God. God Himself is Truth. God Himself is Light. God Himself is Good, so when we say that good is evil and evil is good, light is dark and dark is light, Truth is lies, and lies are Truth, we’re calling God a liar. We’re saying that we know better, and God, who created us, doesn’t know what’s best for us. In fact, He doesn’t even want what’s best for us.

Contrary to popular belief, God’s desire is that none of us stay in our old ways, but all of us strive to become that new creation in Christ Jesus. We strive for perfection. Why? Because our desire should match God’s desire, for He is good, and there is no darkness in Him. This should be our goal. This should be our desire to imitate and be like God. Not be God, but like Him. Like His goodness, mercy, grace, justice, and love.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Imitate His Character.

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¹¹ And He said, “There was a man who had two sons. ¹² And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. ²⁵ Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. ²⁷ And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ ²⁸ But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, ²⁹ but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ ³¹ And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. ³² It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’” ~ Luke 15:11-12, 25-32

The Prodigal Son is one of the most well-known parables in the world. Most focus on the dangers of self-desire that corrupted the youngest son and led him to a place of filth and sin, but very few focus on the older brother, who never left his father’s house. See, both of these sons represent the Church. One stayed faithful, but one left and corrupted himself. When the younger son returned home, and the father welcomed him home with great joy and celebration, the oldest son was offended by the father’s act of love. Many of us are like the older son. We don’t leave the faith. We remain as faithful as we possibly can, so when we see someone who is in and out of the Church return and receive blessings and maybe even start preaching or leading in the Church, we become indignant because we don’t feel they deserve it. If someone deserves recognition, we feel it should be us.

We’re like the older son. We’re so focused on all the blessings and favor someone else (who we don’t believe deserves it) is getting that we overlook all the blessings and favor we’ve received. The oldest son walked out of his father’s house, but there is no record of him returning to his father’s house. We have to understand that our Heavenly father blessings all of us, but some of us miss out on blessings simply because we haven’t claimed them. Just as the father told his oldest son that all he was his, Jesus is telling us the same thing. He already purchased our healing, freedom, peace, blessing, favor, etc., but sometimes we miss out even though we’ve never strayed. Maybe we’ve taken everything for granted. Maybe our faith wasn’t strong enough. Maybe we didn’t know how to claim our inheritance.

Regardless of the reason, we can’t be envious of someone else’s gifts and blessings. They weren’t ours to begin with, so how can we expect to decide who receives them? Rejoice with the prodigal regardless of their past. Rejoice because your brother (or sister) in Christ was dead, but now they’re alive and home in the arms of our Heavenly Father.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Leave The Celebration.

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³ Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. ⁴ And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” ⁵ And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” ~ Acts 9:3-5

Before Paul became the greatest apostle who ever lived, he was Saul, one of the greatest suppressors of the Truth. Saul was blinded by a veil, unable to see the Truth of who Jesus is, so he tried to silence the spreading of the Gospel by the execution of the Saints. Why? Because of this, Jesus confronted Saul from heaven because even though Jesus wasn’t the one physically being persecuted on earth, it was Jesus that Saul was truly attacking and persecuting. Why? Because we are Christ’s representation on earth, and Christ lives through us. Therefore, Saul was persecuting Jesus.

Today is no different. When we silence the Truth because we don’t like it, it offends us, or we don’t want to follow it, we silence Jesus because He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. When we try to convince others that the Truth is wrong because our God would never allow it to be true, then it’s God we’re arguing with and attacking, not the person who is speaking the Truth. The person is just the vessel by which the LORD gets His message out.

So, be careful who you persecute. Be careful whom you condemn. We should always ask questions and test the spirit, but we should never become hostile, even if the person is wrong. We are to be peacemakers, uniters, and the light in the darkness. When someone says they’re preaching the Truth of God, check the Scriptures to see if it’s true. Bring it before the LORD. Never blindly accept any teaching as Truth, but test each word spoken as the Bereans did with Paul. And if you find that it is Truth, don’t be offended by it; instead, humbly accept it. Don’t allow your own thoughts and biases to keep you from the Truth of God. Don’t silence Christ; instead, proclaim Him.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Proclaim Christ To The World.

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³⁵ The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶ and he looked at Jesus as He walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” ³⁷ The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸ Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” ³⁹ He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. ⁴⁰ One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹ He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). ⁴² He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter). ~ John 1:35-42

If you notice, John said to no one in particular but to everyone. “Look, I know for sure that He is the Lamb of God.” And he pointed his finger at Jesus as He walked by. So, two of John’s disciples, who heard him, began to follow Jesus. After Jesus noticed them following Him, He asked them what they were seeking. So, they asked Him where He was staying, and Jesus replied, “Come and see.” The Scripture then says that one of the two, Andrew, went to tell his brother Simon Peter, and he brought him to Jesus. In other words, he told Peter to come and see for himself. Come and see is a personal experience.

If someone just tells you about an event or an experience, it’s not your experience; it’s theirs. But when you come and see, that experience is yours, and no one can deceive you. No one can place doubts in your mind. No one can con you. It’s your experience, and therefore, it is personal to you. We must make the Gospel personal. That does not mean that we come and see and then keep all of the information to ourselves so that no one else can experience what we have experienced. But rather, we now Go and Tell. We share the Good News of Christ with others. We become the light in this dark world to others.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Come and See, Then Go and Tell.

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¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. ⁵ The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. ~ John 1:1-5

Although Jesus came to His own people, His people did not recognize Him or accept Him. They were probably looking for a warrior king, and Jesus did not fit that expectation. He came to die for the lost. To pay the penalty so that we might have the power to live victorious lives. Jesus successfully completed His purpose on earth, so God rewarded Him with the name above all names, with great majesty and glory. Jesus fulfilled His purpose; now it’s our turn.

So, often we think that all we have to do is believe, and life will become easy, but life is hard, and the road is so narrow many miss it completely. Believing, having faith, that’s just the key to finding the road. Now, you actually have to walk it. You now have to follow in the steps of Jesus and be the light in this dark world. You have to now fulfill your God-given purpose, no matter how hard it may seem or how lonely the walk may look. Unless we follow our call and obey the voice of our Heavenly Father, we can’t be the light in the darkness. If we can’t be the light in the darkness, then there’s no reward for us. If there’s no reward for us, then there’s only punishment awaiting us in the next life.

We don’t serve God and follow Jesus because it’s easy or because it’ll give us fame and fortune. We follow the LORD because He is the only path to Eternal Life. He’s the only path to freedom. He’s the only path to a new hope that is greater than anything we could ever think or imagine. That’s why we follow Jesus because He is the Light shining through us in this dark and lost world.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Find More Than The Key To The Narrow Road.

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¹ In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of His robe filled the temple. ² Above Him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” ⁴ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of Him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. ⁵ And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” ⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” ~ Isaiah 6:1-7

Isaiah was before the throne of Almighty God unclean and lost, so fear fell upon him. When he cried out in fear, one of the Seraphim stopped his worship so that Isaiah could worship in the presence of God. I want you to notice that the Seraphim had been worshipping in the presence of God long before Isaiah showed up. He had been worshipping for so long that he knew the heart of God. God didn’t tell him to go and get the coal and touch Isaiah’s lips. God didn’t order or command him to stop worshipping to help Isaiah. That Seraph had been in the presence of God so long that he knew the heart of God. He knew the desire of God was to dwell with mankind, so he stopped his worship to help Isaiah enter into the presence of God. After this, Isaiah received his call.

So many of us are so busy worshipping God, or we get so caught up in ministry that we stop listening to the heart of God. We don’t notice those who are struggling to worship. Maybe they smell a little like alcohol or like smoke, but they’re trying to worship. Maybe they have their head down, afraid to even look up to heaven because they’re ashamed of their past. So many times, we look down on those types of people instead of being like that one Seraph who stopped his own worship and his own edification so that he could put someone else’s needs above his own. We miss our responsibility as mature Christians to help those struggling to enter the presence of God. We have to worship, but we also have to listen, or that worship will become void because we aren’t changing, and neither is anyone else around us. So, let us worship by helping someone else worship.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Listen During Worship.

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¹¹ And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, ¹² so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. ¹³ Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” ¹⁴ Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. ¹⁵ But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” ¹⁶ And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. ¹⁷ And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. ¹⁸ Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. ¹⁹ And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. ²⁰ So the Word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily. ~ Acts 19:11-20

The men that confessed their practices and burned their magic arts books were already believers, but they didn’t dispose of their magic arts books. They didn’t dispose of the darkness they previously had. Why? Because they had extreme power. They heard the stories of Paul and probably even witnessed a few healings and deliverances by the handkerchiefs that had touched Paul’s skin. So, they knew the name of Jesus was powerful, but they thought that they could continue in their old darkness as well because what’s the harm, right? Paul’s Jesus had power, and their witchcraft had power, so if they kept the power from the witchcraft and added to the power from the name of Jesus, they’d have double the power. It wasn’t until seven sons of the Jewish high priest named Sceva tried invoking the name of Jesus and ended up getting beaten mercilessly by the man with an evil spirit.

I guarantee it wasn’t their first exorcism. I’m sure they had succeeded many times before. Why? Because they were called Jewish exorcists. And these believers who had magic arts books probably witnessed the seven sons of Sceva successfully invoking the name of Jesus without being a follower, or at least a full follower of Christ. They just believed in the power of the name. This is why when they saw these seven sons of Sceva get beaten and run away naked, a light clicked in their brains, and they no longer wanted anything to do with the darkness.

See, these ex-magicians understood power. They understood the power of the name of Jesus, but they also understood the power of the enemy. So, when they understood where the power Paul had possessed came from and how he received it, they took action. They understood that invoking the name of Jesus alone without the Holy as a seal could only do so much. They understood that they needed a relationship with God Himself with the man who owned that name. And that meant truly confessing their sins, repenting, and wholly following Jesus in the light.

Back then, people fled darkness for the power of the light because they understood nothing could compare. Today, people are leaving the light in droves because the darkness is seemingly the only one that has power. The Church no longer walks in power; in fact, we preach against it. What would happen if we sought the power promised to us over 2000 years ago? Maybe we’d see true deliverance, freedom, and the Word of the LORD increase and prevail mightily in our day and age.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek The Power of The Light.

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Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You also are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” Peter again denied it, and at once a rooster crowed. ~ John 18:25-27

On the night of Jesus’ life, He explained to His disciples one of them would betray Him. Peter insisted that He wouldn’t do that. That all the rest may leave Him, but he would never leave Him. He would follow Him even to death, but just a few hours later, Peter denied Jesus three times. Peter had failed his test because he failed to study.

Jesus had warned the disciples that He had to die. He told them time after time that He had to die in order to fulfill the Law and bring life, but Peter didn’t grasp this concept. Peter missed the purpose of Jesus because He had his own idea of who the Messiah was, even though he walked and talked with Jesus daily. Because of this, Peter set up a trap for himself to fall into. When in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed until Judas and the Guards came to arrest Him. Jesus asked Peter, James, and John to pray with Him, yet they all fell asleep. Now was the time for the test, and Peter wasn’t ready. He sliced off a servant of the High Priest’s ear clean off. This was the trap he set for himself.

The garden was dark. They came with only torches to light their way. Judas had to identify Christ so that they didn’t accidentally arrest the wrong man because Thomas, called the twin, was also in the garden with them. Peter wouldn’t have been recognized by the last accuser if he had never cut off the man’s ear. It was a relative of that man that recognized Peter from the garden. It wasn’t just hearsay. It wasn’t he said, she said. It was, “No, I saw you with my own eyes in the garden.” Peter never would’ve been recognized by this man if he hadn’t cut off the man’s ear a few hours earlier.

When we don’t pray and spend time in worship, our weak flesh overcomes our weak spirit. It allows for any stronghold to come into our lives and run us. We have to fight the good fight while we can. We have to store food up before winter. We have to prepare for coming trials so that we don’t accidentally set a snare for ourselves to be trapped in later on. If we pray and worship, we’ll clear the path for ourselves and build up our spirit so that when trials and tests come, we can pass with flying colors.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Clear Paths.

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²² Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Savior. ²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. ²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, ²⁶ that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, ²⁷ so that He might present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. ²⁸ In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. ²⁹ For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, ³⁰ because we are members of his body. ³¹ “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” ³² This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. ³³ However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. ~ Ephesians 5:22–33

Man and woman were created differently. We communicate, interact, and think differently. For men, respect is the most important thing. They want to feel like a man. Men don’t want to be emasculated. They don’t want to feel disrespected, while women need to be loved. Women need their husbands to listen to them, hold them, spend time with them, and make them feel loved.

Here’s the interesting thing about this. Paul doesn’t keep it strictly, wives submit to your husbands, as the first step. In other words, he isn’t saying that the wife’s submission comes before the husband’s love. He switches them around in the last verse. Why? Because Paul understood that sometimes, depending on the relationship, one has to show either love or respect before they receive either love or respect. A great example of this was the movie Fireproof.

A couple, both unsaved, were about to divorce. Before the wife filed the papers, the husband began to read the Word of God, meditate on them, pray, and worship. Then, he began to love his wife. The more he began to love his wife, the wife then began to respect him. There weren’t any more screaming battles. There weren’t any more nights when they went to bed angry. There was no more division. This is what Paul was showing us. Sometimes, we have to give what the other needs in order to receive what we need.

Husbands, if your wife isn’t respecting you the way you need to be respected, ask yourself, “am I loving my wife the way that she needs?” Matter of fact, ask her. I know a couple who were struggling. The husband even left and filed for divorce. They got back together and started talking. The husband now routinely asks his wife if there is anything more she needs him to do so that she can feel loved the way she needs to. And by doing that, she’s now striving every day to make sure he is feeling respected as a man. They now have two beautiful daughters, and their relationship and marriage are at the best they’ve ever been. Sometimes, you have to give a little to get a little in return. So, this Valentine’s Day, strive to give your spouse or partner what they need in the relationship to feel loved and respected.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Give To Receive.

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