Blessed be God!

Blessed be God!
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

Ephesians 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,

The Apostle Paul is writing to the church at Ephesus and sharing His insight through the Holy Spirit concerning spiritual realities in Christ. His letter to the Ephesian church was aimed at their edification.

As you look diligently at this scripture, you will find this verse is loaded with godly edification. The Apostle Paul let's us know who we are in Christ and what we have in Christ. Once you get a hold of these realities in your spirit, you will begin to live a flourishing life. Once you know who you are and what you have, you can live a triumphant life. This verse says, our heavenly Father has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. God has given you everything! Nothing is left! All is given to you. Notice the words, *'every spiritual blessing'.* Do you know that you have every spiritual blessing in you because you are in Christ? The verse doesn't say, you will be blessed in the future. Rather it says you are blessed with every spiritual blessing. It's not something that is going to happen. It's something that has already happened. It's a glorious reality. No wonder, the Apostle Paul starts praising God and says, 'Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ...'. This reality has to be established in your consciousness. There is nothing you need that you don't already have. The day you get this, you will start praising and thanking God like the Apostle Paul. Blessed be God. Hallelujah.

Philemon 1.6 says as you acknowledge every good thing you have in Christ, you faith will become effective. Why don't you acknowledge that you are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ? Why don't you take a moment and praise God for giving you every spiritual blessing? You are so rich, beyond your capacity to comprehend. As you praise and thank God, you will begin to see the manifestation of these blessings in your life. Never stop thanking God. Never stop praising God. Never stop celebrating these realities.

*"Father I thank you for blessing me with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. You have made me so rich. I thank you Father for your grace, love and mercy. I am walking in the manifestation of these blessings and bringing glory to your name as I distribute these blessings to the dying world around me”*

Run! Flee! Don't destroy yourself!

Run! Flee! Don't destroy yourself!
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

I Corinthians 6:18
Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.

We live in a sexually immoral world. Sexual immorality has become common these days and even acceptable in many places. The Bible in this verse tells us, to flee, to run away, to avoid, to stay away from sexual immorality. Always remember whatever God's word says, it's completely for our benefit.

The above verse says, one who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body.
Proverbs 6.32 says, one who commits immorality lacks understanding and destroys his own soul. If a person knew the consequences of sexual immorality, he would never do it. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. God lives in you. Your body is not your own. It belongs to God and it was bought with a heavy price - the blood of Jesus. Sinning against your body is sinning against the Lord for your body belongs to the Lord. It's a serious thing. It's a violation of trust. It's adultery. Like in the Old Testament, when Israelites worshipped others gods, they were unfaithful to the living God. When you committ sexual immorality, you give your body, which belongs to God to some one to whom your body doesn't belong. The Apostle Paul said, to avoid sexual immorality let each person have his own spouse. In a covenant of marriage, your body belongs to your spouse therefore you can give your body to your spouse. Your body belongs to the Lord and it belongs to your spouse. Giving your body to anyone else is sinning against the Lord.

Sexual immorality begins in the thought life first. The word says in 1 Thessalonians 5.22, 'Abstain from every appearance of evil.' Notice the verse, stay away not just from evil but from the very appearance of evil. Guard your thoughts. Maintain proper distance with the opposite sex. Be careful with what you share and how much you share with the opposite sex other than  your spouse. Reserve your soft and sweet speech to your spouse only. These little wise decisions will help you a lot in the long run. Flee from sexual immorality. In other words, flee from your own destruction.

*"My body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. I flee from sexual immorality. I abstain from the very appearance of evil. I am careful with the opposite sex and will never share my affections reserved for my spouse with any other man or woman."*

Let the Lord handle it.

Let the Lord handle it.
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

2 Timothy 4:14
Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm, but the Lord will judge him for what he has done.

The Apostle Paul faced a great deal of opposition from people. In this verse He mentions the name of the person who did him much harm.  Notice the word 'much harm'. It seems like this guy really troubled the Apostle Paul.

I want you to notice Paul's response to this opposition. He said, ‘..the Lord will judge him for what He has done.’ He didn't seek ways to get revenge. He chose the best way, He chose the word way. He gave the revenge to God. The Lord says, 'Do not take revenge, Vengeance is mine, I will repay'.

In your life, you will come across people who will speak against you and even work against your progress in life. Seeking revenge is very tiring and it will affect your life in a negative way. Don't take it personally, like the Apostle Paul give it over to God. Always remember, Love is the only way.

*"Father, I choose to walk in love. I forgive people who speak or work against me. I bless them in the name of Jesus. Father, I will not take revenge. Vengeance is yours and you will repay. I continue to bless and I continue to love for love is the only way.”*

The mind of Christ!

The mind of Christ.
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

I Corinthians 2:16
For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

Indeed a powerful verse! You have the mind of Christ. When you see verses like this, you agree with it and speak it! “Yes, I have the mind of Christ. Hallelujah”

Many times people say, What's in his mind? What is she thinking? What's going in their minds? You may never know what people are thinking. But you can know what's in God's mind because you have the mind of Christ. You have the mind of Christ because the Holy Spirit lives in you. You have the mind of Christ because you have His word. A believer should never say, “What's in God's mind? What is He thinking about me? What is His will?” Remember, you have His mind, the mind of Christ. You don't have to be confused and frustrated like the world. The presence of the Holy Spirit in you gives you an edge over the world. The world doesn't have this advantage. You are at a higher place. You have the mind of Christ. Spend good time praising God for giving you the mind of Christ.

Beloved, yield to the mind of Christ. You don't have to be confused about your life, your future or any other decision of your life. Spend quality time in the word so you can  yield to the Holy Spirit. Spend quality time praying in tongues so you can be sensitive to the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Every step He will guide you. Every decision He will counsel you. Every move He will direct you. You will know exactly what God wants of you and you will fulfill all His will. You have the mind of Christ - You have the Holy Spirit.

"Thank you Lord, I have the mind of Christ. The Holy Spirit lives in me. The word of God is my daily food and I am never confused because I am led by the Holy Spirit. I know exactly what my Father God desires and I fulfill all His will. I have the mind of Christ. Hallelujah.”

Please don't fall.

Please don't fall.
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

Proverbs 11:28
He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like foliage.

The word of God will protect you. God's word will guide you so you don't fall in life. Stay in the word for it is your life and your key to a life of perpetual success. Hallelujah.

You and I, we live in a world where money is god. The belief is, the more you have it, the more successful you are. The more you have it, the more safe you are. The more you have it, the more valuable you are. The more you have it, the better your life will be. According to God's word, it's called the deceitfulness of riches, where you believe about riches something that is not true. It means a person is deceived about his belief in riches, which causes him to trust, lean, rely and have confidence in his riches. This belief cause a person to run after riches all the day long. It causes him to lie, steal, deceive, kill and destroy to get more riches and add more of it to himself. His god is money. His security is money. His confidence is money. I Timothy 6:10 says, 'For the love of money is a root of all kinds  of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.'

Beloved, you don't need to live life as the world lives. In this new covenant, the Lord has spoken to us, “I will be your God and you shall be My people”. You don't have to make yourself rich. You have a God and you are His people. He will make you wealthy beyond your human comprehension. Proverbs 10.22 says, 'The blessing of the Lord makes rich and He adds no sorrow to it.’ Wherever you are, put your trust in God. Whatever you are doing, do it with all your heart and do it for the Lord. Give His word first place in your life. Make His word final authority in your life. You will never lack in life. You will have more than enough and you will become distributors of God's wealth. You will flourish like a foliage and you will be a blessing to many. Hallelujah.

"I don't trust or rely on riches. My God provides for me. I trust Him and He causes me to have more than enough. I never lack because my God supplies all my needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Bless your city!

Bless your city!
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

Proverbs 11:11
By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, But it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

The best place in life is the will of God. No place on earth is more peaceful, safe and prosperous than God's will. When you are in God's will, you can enjoy life knowing you are where God wants you to be and that He will take care of you completely because His will is His bill.

Acts 17.26 says, God has assigned a specific place for you on earth. So wherever God has placed you on this earth, no matter which country, state or city - Bless your country, state and city! You will find many people complaining about their city concerning the roads, the electricity, the water supply, the people that live around, the authorities and so on and so forth. Don't live your life like them. Don't join in with those complainers and grumblers. Remember you are different. You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood and a holy nation, a people belonging to God. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. You bless your city in the name of Jesus. Jeremiah 29.7 says, 'Seek the prosperity of the city where I have sent you. Pray to the Lord for your city for when it prospers, you too will prosper.’ And when you do what the word says, you will begin to see good changes in your city. Do you remember, when God saw darkness all around Him, He didn't complain and start accusing? He said, 'Light be' and Light was. Hallelujah.

No matter how dark or unpleasant it looks today, it doesn't matter. Continue to bless! Because this verse says, 'By the blessing of the upright, a city is exalted'. Your words are powerful. Your words of blessing can turn a desert into a garden of Eden. As God spoke light be, the Holy Spirit turned the darkness into light. Similarly as you bless your city in which God has placed you, the Holy Spirit will respond to your word of blessing and turn your city into an oasis of love.

"Lord I am thankful for the city where you have placed me. In accordance to your word, I bless this city in the name of Jesus. This city is prospering and glorifying Jesus as Lord. No weapon formed against this city shall prosper and your will is accomplished in this city in the name of Jesus. Amen”

You are not guilty!

You are not guilty.
- Pastor Ashish Mathews

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

The only reason a believer gets destroyed is because of the lack of word knowledge. There are multitudes of believers living under condemnation still today or in others words living under God's damnation, where they believe God is still angry on them and just waiting to destroy them.

Sin results in condemnation. Adam's sin resulted in God's condemnation on humanity. But the obedience of Jesus (where He obeyed God in sacrificing Himself for the sins of humanity) has brought God's righteousness on humanity. The moment you accept the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus for your sins and confess Jesus as your Lord, you are no more guilty, no more condemned. Jesus Christ suffered your sins, your guilt, your punishment and your condemnation. Therefore when you trust that He did this for you, you are set free and made righteous in God's eye - as righteous as Jesus Himself. You are in Christ and in Christ, there is no condemnation. Not a single believer is condemned. Not a single believer is guilty. You are in Christ. But there are believers who live under guilt consciousness. Two things are imperative for us to understand. Being guilty and being guilt conscious. These are separate things. A believer is not guilty but he can live in guilt consciousness. A guilty conscience destroys a believers life. A guilty conscience destroys a believers confidence before God which affects their prayer and faith life. A guilty conscience is where a believer focuses too much on his weaknesses, his mistakes, his inability and his shortcomings instead of focusing on the strengths, perfections and the finished works of Jesus Christ. Satan would love to have you focus on yourself. By doing so, he can keep you in bondage to guilt consciousness. The more you focus on yourself and the more you focus on what other people think about you, you will always be living under guilt consciousness because you will always fall short. Christ is your perfection!

Remember, you are in Christ. There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ. Renew your mind to this reality. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. You are right in the eyes of God - as right as Jesus Himself. Do yourself a favour and declare independence from the opinions of people. Love people but only look to Jesus. In the eyes of Satan you may be wrong. Also in the eyes of some people you may be wrong. But in the eyes of God, you are right - you are the righteousness of God in Christ. You are not guilty! You are righteous! Live righteously!

“I am not guilty, I am not condemned. Jesus died for my sins and rose again for my justification. I am in Christ and I am the righteousness of God - as righteous as Jesus Himself.”