The works of salvation.

Philippians 2:12‭-‬13
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

The day you believed in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and confessed with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord', you were saved. Once we are saved, we are expected to work out our salvation. Manifest on the outside what happened on the inside.

It doesn't say work for your salvation, the word says work out your own salvation. Salvation is not earned by works, it is by grace we are saved through faith, it is a gift of God, not by works lest any man boast. We are saved by faith in the works of Jesus, not by our works. To work out your salvation means to manifest or reveal the nature of God that you received the day you were saved. Manifesting the nature of God in your thoughts, words and behaviour is working out your salvation. As you stay connected to God in the word, in prayer and in fellowship with other believers, the Holy Spirit who dwells in you, begins to give you new desires, godly thoughts and righteous passions. As you allow the Lord to minister to you in this way, you are no more interested in the ungodly desires and unholy pursuits that you once lived in before your salvation. Not only does the Lord, through the Holy Spirit gives you pure, holy desires and passions, but He also gives you the ability to do them. He causes you to have godly desires and then He gives you the ability to live and enjoy those desires.

Friend, the Lord himself helps you in working out your own salvation. You see, the Lord gave us the Holy Spirit to be with us and in us forever, so we could manifest Jesus everywhere and in everything we do and say. As we stay connected to the Vine, the branches will grow and the fruit will manifest. Stay connected! Jesus is in you, bring him out, reveal Him. Work out your salvation. Let the world know, it's not a fake salvation but a genuine one. Glory to God.

Knowledge is power.

Proverbs 24:5
A wise man is strong, Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength;

In order to have command in any field or profession, it's important for us to have knowledge about it. No matter where you are today, increase your knowledge in that field and improve yourself so you can become better in what you do and in the way you do it.

Wisdom is strength and knowledge is power. In fact the verse says a wise person is stronger than a strong person and a man of knowledge is stronger than the mighty. Always seek to improve yourself. Become more and more valuable. Give more than what you are paid for. Invest in books that increases your knowledge in your field and makes you an absolute delight to talk to. Wherever you are, the word says do all things for the glory of God in the name of Jesus. Refuse to be stagnant and complacent. Always seek to excel. Always seek to progress. Always move ahead. There's more to life and so much more that God wants us to enjoy. He wants us to live the abundant, overflowing life that Jesus died for us to have. Knowledge places you in a better position to make decisions and wisdom helps you make the right decision which results in your success and brings glory to our Lord.

Friend, the word says my people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. Destruction, therefore can be avoided by simply investing in knowledge. Knowledge is power. Make yourself powerful. Refuse to be ignorant in the things of God and in the arena where God has place you. Know the truth and the truth will set you free. Be free. Be powerful. Ride above the flood of ignorance and let the world see Jesus in all you do.

Wait and Rise!

Isaiah 40:31
But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

To wait on the Lord simply means to trust in the Lord. It means to put our hope and expectations in the Lord. It means to look to him confidently being assured that He is our refuge, an ever present help in trouble.

As you make a decision to wait on the Lord with hopeful expectation and confident assurance, you will begin to draw strength from Him and you will find yourself becoming stronger and stronger. The verse says as you give yourself fully into his hands, you will renew your strength, you will begin to walk and not faint and you will run and not grow weary. Waiting on the Lord doesn't mean to be passive or inactive, it means to work on your faith, to work on your praise, to work on your trust, to seek the Lord's guidance in the word and in prayer. It's a knowing of who you are in Christ and of who Jesus is and getting established in those realities. Waiting on the Lord is work.

Friend, you may be facing challenges today, may be creditors are knocking on your door, may be the reports are against you or perhaps you may have a tough decision to make, I want to encourage you to wait on the Lord, seek His face and you will receive strength and the wisdom you need to come out victoriously. Corrie ten Boom, one of the champions of faith, said, 'There is no pit so deep, that God's love is not deeper still. With Jesus even in our darkest moments, the best remains and the very best is yet to be.'

The triumphant life!

II Corinthians 2:14
Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

The life of a believer is a triumphant life. Can you declare it, 'My life is a triumphant life in Christ'. The word triumph means victory or celebration of victory. Your life is a life of victory. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Victory is not an achievement, its a condition. You are conditioned to win, to triumph and to be victorious. Its in your DNA because you are in Christ. The day you accepted Christ, you received eternal life, the nature of God into your spirit. You are born of God. John says whatever is born of God overcomes the world. By being born again, you are a world overcomer. Not going to be, you are! Every child in God's family is a world overcomer. Victory doesn't just happen once in a blue moon rather victory is our nature, victory is our lifestyle. Think victory. See victory. Speak victory. Live victory. Dream victory. Dress victory. Breathe victory. Predict victory. Celebrate victory. Be victory conscious all the time for Jesus is your Lord. The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus has qualified you to receive the victorious and triumphant nature of God. Take some time and discover yourself in the scriptures. Some will be shocked, others will be glad. I am so glad. Glory to God.

As you consistently see yourself in the mirror of God's word, you will begin to realise who you actually are. As you grow in your identity in Christ and begin to walk in it, you will manifest your  victorious and triumphant nature. There is a lion in you. There's dominion in you. There's heaven in you. There's so much potential and ability in you. You can do all things through Christ which strengthens you. You are more than a conqueror. This is is your life, the triumphant life. Look to Jesus, look to the word and live your triumphant life for Jesus did it all, just for you. Jesus loves you. This is your time of victory.

Leave the temporary, go for the eternal!

Proverbs 21:6
A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare.

Lies have terrible consequences. Jesus said about the devil, He has no truth in him, when he lies, he speaks his native language for He is a liar and a father of lies. Satan is the father of lies, meaning all lies - all colours and all sizes, comes from the devil.

Look around the world today, lies have become the order of the day. Its sad to say that even believers who misunderstand the gospel of grace abuse the grace gospel by speaking lies only to cause disgrace to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. They say, its impossible to progress without lies, its impossible to get a promotion without cute lies, its impossible to live without white lies. Well, this verse says whatever we achieve by lies is a fleeting vapor and a deadly trap. Its temporary and will eventually trap you. Let’s settle this in our thinking, lies have terrible consequences and it does not come from God. Its from the devil and we have no business with Him or his lies. Refuse to lie. Dare to speak the truth even if it costs you everything you have. Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life.

Friend, irrespective of what the world says or think, you have God’s ability,  you have his grace and you can achieve uncommon success by speaking the truth and living an honourable life. You don’t need lies, you don’t need the devil, you have God Almighty living in you, He is with you and for you. You cannot fail when you walk with Him. Whether you are a politician, student, artist or some businessman or a minister, His grace will enable you to speak the truth and achieve great success. Leave the temporary, go for the eternal. Remember, wisdom is the most important thing.

Give your cares to Jesus!

Give your cares to Jesus.
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

I Peter 5:7
casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Lets look at this verse in the Amplified version, Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.

Jesus is your Lord and He has commanded you to give him all your cares, worries, anxieties and concerns. Be obedient and do exactly what he says. Refuse to carry it any longer. Turn it over to Him and refuse to take it back. Refuse to touch it again. Refuse to give words to it. Refuse to pay any attention to it. When you are tempted to worry, boldly declare, "I have given all my cares, anxieties, worries and concerns to Jesus and He is taking care right now, I refuse to worry and I refuse to take it back from His hands. I choose to celebrate because Jesus is my caretaker and therefore all things are working together for my good and the best is yet to come. Thank you Lord Jesus"  Once you give your cares to Jesus, refuse to take it back. Worry is expensive because it causes stress, health problems, chaos in relationships, unhealthy habits and eventually leads to wrong decisions. Notice, Jesus didn't command us to manage worry, He said give it to me, I can handle all of it. He is Love and everything He says is for our benefit because He cares for us and love us deeply. Believe that He loves you and cares for you!

Friend, we live in a planet where worrying has become as natural as breathing. They say its common and its sensible to do so. No wonder, there has been a tremendous increase in the stress level, health problems, unhealthy habits, broken relationships and so on in our world. But, you are from another planet called heaven. You are a citizen of heaven. We don't worry, we don't manage worry, we give it all to our King, Jesus and He takes care of it. We acknowledge and celebrate the fact that our Lord has all our cares and He is working on it and its all turning out for our good.

"Because Jesus is my caretaker, I refuse to carry any worry and cares, I give it all to Jesus. Thank you Lord you are dealing with it and its working for my good. I am carefree and I enjoy my life with the Lord Jesus."

Give thanks!

Psalms 136:1
Oh, give thanks to the Lord , for He  is good! For His mercy endures forever.

God is good and His mercy endures forever. No matter what mistakes you have made in life and no matter how many times you have missed the mark, always remember God is good and His mercy endures forever.

The psalmist says give thanks to the Lord. Give thanks. Give your heart to the Lord and let him know that you are grateful for who He is and for what He does. To give thanks to God is God's will for us in Christ Jesus. Cultivate a lifestyle of thanksgiving. Once you wake up, thank Him. Before you eat, thank Him. Before the church service starts, thank Him. Before you drive, thank Him. Before you sleep, thank Him. When you fellowship with other believers, take a moment and thank Him. Look for ways to consistently thank God for He is good and His mercy and endures forever. Thanksgiving is our lifestyle and dominates our language.

Friend, when you realise all that Jesus has done and is doing for you, you can't help but thank Him. Thanksgiving is a response to the goodness of God and to the ever enduring mercy of God. Thanksgiving positions you to receive and experience more of His goodness and His mercy. Refuse to complain, refuse to grumble, refuse to be mad, be glad and thank the Lord for all things work together the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpos. Thanks be to God, who always gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ and always causes us to triumph in Christ. Give thanks and give it lavishly for He is worthy.