Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“ the friend of the bridegroom ” (John 3:29).
Goodness and purity should never be traits that draw attention to themselves, but should simply be magnets that draw people to Jesus Christ. If my holiness is not drawing others to Him, it is not the right kind of holiness; it is only an influence which awakens emotions and evil desires in people and diverts them from heading in the right direction.
A person who is a beautiful saint can be a hindrance in leading people to the Lord by presenting only what Christ has done for him, instead of presenting Jesus Christ Himself. Others will be left with this thought—“What a fine person that man is!” That is not being a true “friend of the bridegroom”—I am increasing all the time; He is not.
To maintain the friendship and faithfulness to the Bridegroom, we have to be more careful to have a moral and vital relationship to Him above everything else, including obedience.
Sometimes there is nothing to obey and our only task is to maintain a real connection with Jesus Christ, seeing that nothing interferes with it. Only occasionally is it a matter of obedience.
At those times when a crisis arises, we have to find out what God’s will is. Yet most of our life is not spent in trying to be obedient, but in maintaining this relationship—being the “friend of the bridegroom.”
Christian work can actually be a means of diverting a person’s focus away from Jesus Christ. Instead of being friends “of the bridegroom,” we may become amateur representatives of God to someone else, working against Him while we use His shield of armour. The link is there, the abundant resources are His to give, the relationship depends on us.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Higher Education
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
In Him "are hid all the treasures of wisdom." (Colossians 2:3)
Spring break was a good opportunity for home schooling parents to re-educate their children on the meaning of true "Higher Education." The world has had its great teachers and professors…men of great intellect and extensive research, men whose utterances have stimulated thought and opened to view vast fields of knowledge.
But there is One who stands higher and above all. We can trace the line of the world's great teachers as far back as human records extend; but the Light of understanding was before them all.
In these days much is said concerning the nature and importance of "higher education.” don’t get me wrong, higher education is important, but, True "Higher Education" is that imparted by Him with whom "is wisdom and strength" (out of whose mouth "cometh knowledge and understanding." (Proverbs 2:6) “He hath counsel and understanding." (Job 12:13)
Who is this Teacher? The Bible says, "His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
Teach and imbed this advice unto your children, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." (Proverbs 1: 7,8)
Now, why is that? Watch this family! God says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; and I ordained..." (Jeremiah 1:5)
Before you were even born, God says He knew you…and what was that?…He also set you apart…God says in this verse that you are SPECIAL to Him and that He SELECTED and ORDAINED YOU to be HIS CHOSEN MINISTERS. Now tell me if that is an amazing revelation or what?
Are you willing to heed His calling? If you are in doubt, here is another proof,…”But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:” (1Peter 2:9)
That’s why as loving Christian parents, we should raise and educate our children in the Word and that they put on the Full Armour of God. “My son, listen to your father’s discipline, and do not neglect your mother’s teachings." (Proverbs 1:8)
“Trust the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding.6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths smooth.” (Proverbs 3: 5,6)
Family, God says to trust in Him with all your heart, and not your own understanding “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1Corinthians 1:25)
He says in this promise "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."
(Jeremiah 29:11)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
In Him "are hid all the treasures of wisdom." (Colossians 2:3)
Spring break was a good opportunity for home schooling parents to re-educate their children on the meaning of true "Higher Education." The world has had its great teachers and professors…men of great intellect and extensive research, men whose utterances have stimulated thought and opened to view vast fields of knowledge.
But there is One who stands higher and above all. We can trace the line of the world's great teachers as far back as human records extend; but the Light of understanding was before them all.
In these days much is said concerning the nature and importance of "higher education.” don’t get me wrong, higher education is important, but, True "Higher Education" is that imparted by Him with whom "is wisdom and strength" (out of whose mouth "cometh knowledge and understanding." (Proverbs 2:6) “He hath counsel and understanding." (Job 12:13)
Who is this Teacher? The Bible says, "His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
Teach and imbed this advice unto your children, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." (Proverbs 1: 7,8)
Now, why is that? Watch this family! God says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; and I ordained..." (Jeremiah 1:5)
Before you were even born, God says He knew you…and what was that?…He also set you apart…God says in this verse that you are SPECIAL to Him and that He SELECTED and ORDAINED YOU to be HIS CHOSEN MINISTERS. Now tell me if that is an amazing revelation or what?
Are you willing to heed His calling? If you are in doubt, here is another proof,…”But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:” (1Peter 2:9)
That’s why as loving Christian parents, we should raise and educate our children in the Word and that they put on the Full Armour of God. “My son, listen to your father’s discipline, and do not neglect your mother’s teachings." (Proverbs 1:8)
“Trust the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding.6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths smooth.” (Proverbs 3: 5,6)
Family, God says to trust in Him with all your heart, and not your own understanding “Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1Corinthians 1:25)
He says in this promise "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."
(Jeremiah 29:11)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
If God is For Us, Who Can Be Against Us?
Mea e ‘ai e tatu ma le aso
"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
When we are born again, you become a new creation in Christ Jesus that no man can change. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are 'become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
In your Christian walk, there are always challenges before you that will test your resolve. It seems for example in every church, there are those few who always seem to try to find fault in your Christianity. They criticize how you talk or even the way you walk.
If your heart is right with God, family, the bible says that “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” (Romans 1:1)
So why do we seem to have so many hypocrites in the church that act so religiously holy? Jesus says in the book of Matthew “That they may have glory of men”. (Matthew 6:2) “That they may be seen of men” (Matthew 6:5)
The Bible tells us "man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) So my friends, don’t fret or be discouraged when you are persecuted within the church, but remember not to lose focus on He, who is the Head of the church. Christ himself said. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” (Romans 12:19-24)
Persecution in of itself builds our character “The trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:3, 4)
The Lord has an open invitation for your salvation that no man can close. “I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: (Revelation 3:8) Jesus once again remind us from the sermon on the mound “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:10)
"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, "nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38,39)
His promised indwelling Spirit enriches and enables our Christian lives. His recorded word strikes fire when heard and when translated into our choices. He answers our cries and intercedes in our behalf with the Father. Nothing created can short-circuit the power of God revealed in Christ through you.
When we are involved in skirmishes. We can be knocked down, but when we have assigned our lives to Christ’s powerful lordship, there is never any doubt about the outcome.
When we finally touch the underlying foundation of the reality of the gospel of Christ, we will never bother Him anymore with little personal complaints in our prayers. But carry on boldly forward proclaiming the gospel commission He has given you.
The one passion of Paul’s life was to proclaim the gospel of God. He welcomed heartbreak, disillusionment, and tribulation for only one reason—these things kept him unmovable in his devotion to the gospel of God. So, if God is for us, who can be against us?
Ia manuia,
Failauga p. anoa’i
"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
When we are born again, you become a new creation in Christ Jesus that no man can change. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are 'become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
In your Christian walk, there are always challenges before you that will test your resolve. It seems for example in every church, there are those few who always seem to try to find fault in your Christianity. They criticize how you talk or even the way you walk.
If your heart is right with God, family, the bible says that “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” (Romans 1:1)
So why do we seem to have so many hypocrites in the church that act so religiously holy? Jesus says in the book of Matthew “That they may have glory of men”. (Matthew 6:2) “That they may be seen of men” (Matthew 6:5)
The Bible tells us "man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7) So my friends, don’t fret or be discouraged when you are persecuted within the church, but remember not to lose focus on He, who is the Head of the church. Christ himself said. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” (Romans 12:19-24)
Persecution in of itself builds our character “The trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” (James 1:3, 4)
The Lord has an open invitation for your salvation that no man can close. “I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: (Revelation 3:8) Jesus once again remind us from the sermon on the mound “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:10)
"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, "nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38,39)
His promised indwelling Spirit enriches and enables our Christian lives. His recorded word strikes fire when heard and when translated into our choices. He answers our cries and intercedes in our behalf with the Father. Nothing created can short-circuit the power of God revealed in Christ through you.
When we are involved in skirmishes. We can be knocked down, but when we have assigned our lives to Christ’s powerful lordship, there is never any doubt about the outcome.
When we finally touch the underlying foundation of the reality of the gospel of Christ, we will never bother Him anymore with little personal complaints in our prayers. But carry on boldly forward proclaiming the gospel commission He has given you.
The one passion of Paul’s life was to proclaim the gospel of God. He welcomed heartbreak, disillusionment, and tribulation for only one reason—these things kept him unmovable in his devotion to the gospel of God. So, if God is for us, who can be against us?
Ia manuia,
Failauga p. anoa’i
Monday, March 28, 2011
God Has Chosen You!
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:" (Ephesians 1:4)
Long ago, even before He made the world, God chose us, to be his very own, through what Christ would do for us. How wonderful to know, you have been chosen. Whether it is sand lot football or the academy awards, we all want to be chosen. In life when one is chosen, others are excluded.
But with God, all are chosen, none are excluded. The Lord … is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). "...not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."
There is no doubt that God wants us even though we are unworthy. You were chosen before God made the world. Before God made the world means that He was thinking about us—planning for us. He created the world for us to have dominion over all things.
Knowing what we would do, He planned ahead for our redemption. God paid a big price to let us be free to think and choose of our own free will. Most of us would probably have created robots that we could control and do as we say. God controls the universe but gives man his freedom to choose.
Psalm 139. "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body, and knit them together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex." It is amazing to think about (verse 13). "You saw me before I was born (v16). "How precious it is, Lord, to realize that you are thinking about me constantly (v17).
God made man to have fellowship with Him, but man focused on what is in it for himself and broke the fellowship. Think of what God had in mind before He created us and His world. Compare that with what we have in mind for the world and ourselves. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).
We are His chosen ones. “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).
“So dear brothers, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen, and then you will never stumble or fall away”
(2 Peter 1:10).
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:" (Ephesians 1:4)
Long ago, even before He made the world, God chose us, to be his very own, through what Christ would do for us. How wonderful to know, you have been chosen. Whether it is sand lot football or the academy awards, we all want to be chosen. In life when one is chosen, others are excluded.
But with God, all are chosen, none are excluded. The Lord … is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). "...not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."
There is no doubt that God wants us even though we are unworthy. You were chosen before God made the world. Before God made the world means that He was thinking about us—planning for us. He created the world for us to have dominion over all things.
Knowing what we would do, He planned ahead for our redemption. God paid a big price to let us be free to think and choose of our own free will. Most of us would probably have created robots that we could control and do as we say. God controls the universe but gives man his freedom to choose.
Psalm 139. "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body, and knit them together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex." It is amazing to think about (verse 13). "You saw me before I was born (v16). "How precious it is, Lord, to realize that you are thinking about me constantly (v17).
God made man to have fellowship with Him, but man focused on what is in it for himself and broke the fellowship. Think of what God had in mind before He created us and His world. Compare that with what we have in mind for the world and ourselves. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).
We are His chosen ones. “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).
“So dear brothers, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen, and then you will never stumble or fall away”
(2 Peter 1:10).
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Are You Worried Over Your Children?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they (thy children) shall come again from the land of the enemy." (Jeremiah 31:16)
All parents should make an angelic hedge about their children by prayer; they should pray with full faith that God will abide with them and that holy angels will guard their children from Satan's cruel power.
Fathers and mothers, everyday in the morning and evening, should lift up their hearts to God in humble supplication for yourselves and your children. You see, our children are daily exposed innocently to a world ruled by principalities of spiritual powers, temptations and trials. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]." (Ephesians 6:12)
There are threats and luring invitations that daily beset the path of both young and old; and those of you who live patient, loving, honest lives, must continually pray for His Intercessory protection.
It is the duty of all Christian parents, morning and evening, by earnest prayer and unshakable persevering faith, to make a hedge about your children through God's mighty arm of protection.
But we must first walk in the light as Christ is in the light. As you take up the daily devotion of lifting up your children and maintaining your position of God fearing parents. We must brace and prepare ourselves for the most heart quenching trials, because they will surely come. "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ;"
(1Peter 1:7)
This troubled world is increasingly getting colder and colder. But do not lose your resolve... Difficulties will arise. We will all meet obstacles along the way. "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."
(Matthew 24:12)
But, let us look constantly to Jesus. The author and finisher of our faith. When an emergency does arise, let us ask, Lord? "Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel"...(Psalms 73:24)
The harder the battle fought, the greater our need of our heavenly Father. And the more we are marked for our childrens sake, the sweeter the victory gained. "Fear thou not; for I (am) with thee: be not dismayed; for I (am) thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10) "But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 19:14)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"Thus saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord; and they (thy children) shall come again from the land of the enemy." (Jeremiah 31:16)
All parents should make an angelic hedge about their children by prayer; they should pray with full faith that God will abide with them and that holy angels will guard their children from Satan's cruel power.
Fathers and mothers, everyday in the morning and evening, should lift up their hearts to God in humble supplication for yourselves and your children. You see, our children are daily exposed innocently to a world ruled by principalities of spiritual powers, temptations and trials. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]." (Ephesians 6:12)
There are threats and luring invitations that daily beset the path of both young and old; and those of you who live patient, loving, honest lives, must continually pray for His Intercessory protection.
It is the duty of all Christian parents, morning and evening, by earnest prayer and unshakable persevering faith, to make a hedge about your children through God's mighty arm of protection.
But we must first walk in the light as Christ is in the light. As you take up the daily devotion of lifting up your children and maintaining your position of God fearing parents. We must brace and prepare ourselves for the most heart quenching trials, because they will surely come. "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ;"
(1Peter 1:7)
This troubled world is increasingly getting colder and colder. But do not lose your resolve... Difficulties will arise. We will all meet obstacles along the way. "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."
(Matthew 24:12)
But, let us look constantly to Jesus. The author and finisher of our faith. When an emergency does arise, let us ask, Lord? "Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel"...(Psalms 73:24)
The harder the battle fought, the greater our need of our heavenly Father. And the more we are marked for our childrens sake, the sweeter the victory gained. "Fear thou not; for I (am) with thee: be not dismayed; for I (am) thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10) "But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 19:14)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Do You Feel Your Prayers Are Unanswered?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry." (Psalm 40:1)
When our prayers seems like they are not being answered, we must still cling to the promise; for the promise is true, and the time of answering will surely come, and we shall receive the blessing we need most. ... God is too wise to err, and too good to withhold any good thing from them that walk uprightly.
The answer to our prayers may not come as quickly as we desire, and it may not be just what we asked for; but He who knows what is good for His children, and will bestow a much greater good than what we asked, if we do not become faithless and discouraged with greed. "God fills our need, not our greed."
God does not always answer our prayers the first time we call upon Him; for should He do this, we might take it for granted that we had a right to all the blessings and favors He bestowed upon us. The Father hears every prayer of His faithful children.
The voice of supplication from the earth unites with the divine voice of Christ, our Intercessor, who pleads in heaven on our behalf, whose voice the Father always hears. Let our prayers therefore continually ascend to God. For our supplications are not done in vain.
But even before the prayer is uttered or the yearning of the heart is made known, the merciful grace from Christ goes forth to meet the grace that is working upon the human soul. He already knows your prayers before you even start your supplications. "For the eyes of the Lord (are) over the righteous, and his ears (are open) unto their prayers..." (1Peter 3:12) "I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry." (Psalm 40:1)
When our prayers seems like they are not being answered, we must still cling to the promise; for the promise is true, and the time of answering will surely come, and we shall receive the blessing we need most. ... God is too wise to err, and too good to withhold any good thing from them that walk uprightly.
The answer to our prayers may not come as quickly as we desire, and it may not be just what we asked for; but He who knows what is good for His children, and will bestow a much greater good than what we asked, if we do not become faithless and discouraged with greed. "God fills our need, not our greed."
God does not always answer our prayers the first time we call upon Him; for should He do this, we might take it for granted that we had a right to all the blessings and favors He bestowed upon us. The Father hears every prayer of His faithful children.
The voice of supplication from the earth unites with the divine voice of Christ, our Intercessor, who pleads in heaven on our behalf, whose voice the Father always hears. Let our prayers therefore continually ascend to God. For our supplications are not done in vain.
But even before the prayer is uttered or the yearning of the heart is made known, the merciful grace from Christ goes forth to meet the grace that is working upon the human soul. He already knows your prayers before you even start your supplications. "For the eyes of the Lord (are) over the righteous, and his ears (are open) unto their prayers..." (1Peter 3:12) "I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Friday, March 25, 2011
Don’t Lose Heart
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;... But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
(2 Corinthians 4:1-6)
With the chain of events unfolding on earth before our very eyes, anyone can be dispondant and get discouraged from time to time, and Christians are not exempt from discouragement.
Things happen in our journey in this world that can cause dicouragement. In the news, it seems lately that CNN "live" broadcast of calamitiy after calamity of historical magnitude are our daily diet. We witnessed "live" catastrophic distruction in Japan, New Zealand, Haiti, Indonesia and even in the Samoan Islands a few year ago.
The Apostle Paul went through many trials, but he never lost heart. He probably went through greater trials than we will ever experience, so he is the right person to instruct us when we are tested. Paul told the Corinthians church several reasons why they should not lose heart. We can learn from what Paul told them. Let’s look at four reasons why we as Christians should not lose heart.
I. The ministry entrusted to us (v. 1-6) God has given us a ministry, not just pastors or professional church workers, but also for any professed true Christian layperson. What a great privilege & honor to know that God wants to make us his partners. (v. 1) “Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;" This verse says It is a ministry that flows from God’s mercy, that has meaning and purpose & are great gifts for us.
2. (v. 2, 3). “But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God...But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:” Says it is a ministry of truth. We have the opportunity to give a trustworthy message to a desperate world in need of God’s biblical truths.
3. (v. 5). “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake”. This verse says it is a ministry that centers on Christ. He is both the subject and the motivation for our missionary work. That we preach a "Christ Centered Message."
4. (v. 6). “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” God has in-trusted to you my Christian brother and sister, a ministry of enlightenment for the world. Now isn't that worth a cheery heart, no matter how difficult the challenge it presents?
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;... But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
(2 Corinthians 4:1-6)
With the chain of events unfolding on earth before our very eyes, anyone can be dispondant and get discouraged from time to time, and Christians are not exempt from discouragement.
Things happen in our journey in this world that can cause dicouragement. In the news, it seems lately that CNN "live" broadcast of calamitiy after calamity of historical magnitude are our daily diet. We witnessed "live" catastrophic distruction in Japan, New Zealand, Haiti, Indonesia and even in the Samoan Islands a few year ago.
The Apostle Paul went through many trials, but he never lost heart. He probably went through greater trials than we will ever experience, so he is the right person to instruct us when we are tested. Paul told the Corinthians church several reasons why they should not lose heart. We can learn from what Paul told them. Let’s look at four reasons why we as Christians should not lose heart.
I. The ministry entrusted to us (v. 1-6) God has given us a ministry, not just pastors or professional church workers, but also for any professed true Christian layperson. What a great privilege & honor to know that God wants to make us his partners. (v. 1) “Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;" This verse says It is a ministry that flows from God’s mercy, that has meaning and purpose & are great gifts for us.
2. (v. 2, 3). “But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God...But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:” Says it is a ministry of truth. We have the opportunity to give a trustworthy message to a desperate world in need of God’s biblical truths.
3. (v. 5). “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake”. This verse says it is a ministry that centers on Christ. He is both the subject and the motivation for our missionary work. That we preach a "Christ Centered Message."
4. (v. 6). “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” God has in-trusted to you my Christian brother and sister, a ministry of enlightenment for the world. Now isn't that worth a cheery heart, no matter how difficult the challenge it presents?
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Lord Increase our Faith
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“Be careful for nothing, but in everything, by supplication and prayer, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God.” (Phil 4:6)
That is the Divine cure for all fear, anxiety, and undue concern of the soul, all of which are closely related to doubt and unbelief. This is the Divine prescription for securing the peace within which passeth all understanding, and keeps the heart and mind in calm quietness and peace.
All of us need to mark well and heed the caution given in Hebrews: “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” (Hebrews 3:12)
We also need to guard against unbelief as we would against an enemy. For the enemy is always trying to cultivate doubt and disbelief in our minds. But faith needs to be cultivated and nurtured as in excercising the muscles in our bodies. We need to keep daily devotional praying, “Lord, increase our faith,” for faith is susceptible of increase.
Paul’s tribute to the Thessalonians was, that their faith grew exceedingly. Faith is increased by exercise, by being put into constant use. It is nourished by the trials we go through in our lives.
Now the bible says that, If any of you lack wisdom, let them ask God, for faith buildeth genuine hope. A hope that leads; "To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you...Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." (1Peter 1:4,5)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“Be careful for nothing, but in everything, by supplication and prayer, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God.” (Phil 4:6)
That is the Divine cure for all fear, anxiety, and undue concern of the soul, all of which are closely related to doubt and unbelief. This is the Divine prescription for securing the peace within which passeth all understanding, and keeps the heart and mind in calm quietness and peace.
All of us need to mark well and heed the caution given in Hebrews: “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” (Hebrews 3:12)
We also need to guard against unbelief as we would against an enemy. For the enemy is always trying to cultivate doubt and disbelief in our minds. But faith needs to be cultivated and nurtured as in excercising the muscles in our bodies. We need to keep daily devotional praying, “Lord, increase our faith,” for faith is susceptible of increase.
Paul’s tribute to the Thessalonians was, that their faith grew exceedingly. Faith is increased by exercise, by being put into constant use. It is nourished by the trials we go through in our lives.
Now the bible says that, If any of you lack wisdom, let them ask God, for faith buildeth genuine hope. A hope that leads; "To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you...Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." (1Peter 1:4,5)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Walk by Faith and Not by Sight
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glow at the appearing of Jesus Christ.” (1 Pet 1:7)
Faith grows by reading and meditating upon the Word of God. Most, and best of all, faith thrives in an atmosphere of prayer.
It would be well, if all of us were to stop, and inquire personally of ourselves: “Have I faith in God? Have I real faith,—faith which keeps me in perfect peace, about the things of earth and the things of heaven?” This is the most important question a Christian can ask and expect to be answered.
And there is another question, closely related in significance and importance—“Do I really pray to God so that He hears me and answers my prayers? And do I truly pray unto God so that I get direct from God the things I ask of Him?”
It was claimed for Augustus Caesar that he found Rome a city of wood, and left it a city of marble. The pastor who succeeds in changing his people from a prayerless to a prayerful people, has done a greater work than did Augustus in changing a city from wood to marble.
And after all, this is the prime work of any preacher/ missionary. Primarily, you are dealing with prayer-less people—with people of whom it is said, “God is not in all their thoughts.” Such people you meet everywhere, and all the time in this rat race environment.
As a Christian missionary, your main business is to turn people from being forgetful of God, from having lack of faith, from being prayerless, so that they can become people who habitually pray, who believe in God, and remember Him constantly and do His will.
The pastor is not sent to merely induce people to join the Church, nor merely to get them to do better. It is to get them to pray, to trust God, and to keep God ever before their eyes, that they may not sin against Him.
The work of the ministry is to change unbelieving sinners into praying and believing saints. The call goes forth by Divine authority, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” We catch a glimpse of the tremendous importance of faith and of the great value God has set upon it, when we remember that He has made it the one indispensable condition of being saved.
“By grace are ye saved, through faith.” Thus, when we contemplate of the great importance of prayer, we find faith standing immediately by its side. By faith are we saved, and by faith we stay saved.
Prayer introduces us to a life of faith. Paul declared that the life he lived, he lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved him and gave Himself for him—that he walked by faith and not by sight.
Prayer is absolutely dependent upon faith. Faith has no existence apart from it, and accomplishes nothing unless it be its inseparable companion. Faith makes prayer effective, and in a very important sense, must precede it.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glow at the appearing of Jesus Christ.” (1 Pet 1:7)
Faith grows by reading and meditating upon the Word of God. Most, and best of all, faith thrives in an atmosphere of prayer.
It would be well, if all of us were to stop, and inquire personally of ourselves: “Have I faith in God? Have I real faith,—faith which keeps me in perfect peace, about the things of earth and the things of heaven?” This is the most important question a Christian can ask and expect to be answered.
And there is another question, closely related in significance and importance—“Do I really pray to God so that He hears me and answers my prayers? And do I truly pray unto God so that I get direct from God the things I ask of Him?”
It was claimed for Augustus Caesar that he found Rome a city of wood, and left it a city of marble. The pastor who succeeds in changing his people from a prayerless to a prayerful people, has done a greater work than did Augustus in changing a city from wood to marble.
And after all, this is the prime work of any preacher/ missionary. Primarily, you are dealing with prayer-less people—with people of whom it is said, “God is not in all their thoughts.” Such people you meet everywhere, and all the time in this rat race environment.
As a Christian missionary, your main business is to turn people from being forgetful of God, from having lack of faith, from being prayerless, so that they can become people who habitually pray, who believe in God, and remember Him constantly and do His will.
The pastor is not sent to merely induce people to join the Church, nor merely to get them to do better. It is to get them to pray, to trust God, and to keep God ever before their eyes, that they may not sin against Him.
The work of the ministry is to change unbelieving sinners into praying and believing saints. The call goes forth by Divine authority, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” We catch a glimpse of the tremendous importance of faith and of the great value God has set upon it, when we remember that He has made it the one indispensable condition of being saved.
“By grace are ye saved, through faith.” Thus, when we contemplate of the great importance of prayer, we find faith standing immediately by its side. By faith are we saved, and by faith we stay saved.
Prayer introduces us to a life of faith. Paul declared that the life he lived, he lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved him and gave Himself for him—that he walked by faith and not by sight.
Prayer is absolutely dependent upon faith. Faith has no existence apart from it, and accomplishes nothing unless it be its inseparable companion. Faith makes prayer effective, and in a very important sense, must precede it.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Faith for Today
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Give us this day our daily bread." (Matthew 6:11)
When we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are, in a sense, shutting tomorrow out of our prayer. We do not live in tomorrow but in today. We do not seek tomorrow’s grace or tomorrow’s bread, but today. Those who thrive best, and get most out of life, are those who live in the present.
They pray best who pray for today’s needs, not for tomorrow’s, which may render our prayers unnecessary!
True prayers are born of present trials and present needs. Bread, for today, is bread enough. Bread given for today is the strongest sort of pledge that there will be bread tomorrow. Victory today, is the assurance of victory tomorrow.
Our prayers need to be focused upon the present, We must trust God today, and leave the morrow entirely with Him. The present is ours; the future belongs to God.
Prayer is the task and duty of each day—morning devotion prayer for daily needs. Evening prayer for thanks giving and protection.
As every day demands its bread (spiritual food), so every day demands its prayer. No amount of praying, done today, will suffice for tomorrow’s praying.
On the other hand, no praying for tomorrow is of any value to us today. To-day’s manna is what we need; tomorrow God will see that our needs are supplied.
This is the faith which God seeks to inspire. So leave tomorrow, with its cares, its needs, its troubles, in God’s hands. There is no storing tomorrow’s grace or tomorrow’s praying; neither is there any laying-up of today’s grace, to meet tomorrow’s needs.
If we live in faith day by day, it will dispel all fears for the morrow. Faith brings ease of mind and perfect peace of heart.
We cannot have tomorrow’s grace, we cannot eat tomorrow’s bread, we cannot do tomorrow’s praying. “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof;”
(Matthew 6:34) and, most assuredly, if we possess faith, sufficient also unto the day, will be the good thereof.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"Give us this day our daily bread." (Matthew 6:11)
When we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are, in a sense, shutting tomorrow out of our prayer. We do not live in tomorrow but in today. We do not seek tomorrow’s grace or tomorrow’s bread, but today. Those who thrive best, and get most out of life, are those who live in the present.
They pray best who pray for today’s needs, not for tomorrow’s, which may render our prayers unnecessary!
True prayers are born of present trials and present needs. Bread, for today, is bread enough. Bread given for today is the strongest sort of pledge that there will be bread tomorrow. Victory today, is the assurance of victory tomorrow.
Our prayers need to be focused upon the present, We must trust God today, and leave the morrow entirely with Him. The present is ours; the future belongs to God.
Prayer is the task and duty of each day—morning devotion prayer for daily needs. Evening prayer for thanks giving and protection.
As every day demands its bread (spiritual food), so every day demands its prayer. No amount of praying, done today, will suffice for tomorrow’s praying.
On the other hand, no praying for tomorrow is of any value to us today. To-day’s manna is what we need; tomorrow God will see that our needs are supplied.
This is the faith which God seeks to inspire. So leave tomorrow, with its cares, its needs, its troubles, in God’s hands. There is no storing tomorrow’s grace or tomorrow’s praying; neither is there any laying-up of today’s grace, to meet tomorrow’s needs.
If we live in faith day by day, it will dispel all fears for the morrow. Faith brings ease of mind and perfect peace of heart.
We cannot have tomorrow’s grace, we cannot eat tomorrow’s bread, we cannot do tomorrow’s praying. “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof;”
(Matthew 6:34) and, most assuredly, if we possess faith, sufficient also unto the day, will be the good thereof.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Monday, March 21, 2011
A Little Touch of Faith
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” (Mark 11:24)
We should ponder deeply this statement—Jesus said “Believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” Here is described a faith which realizes, which promises, with assurance. Such faith is the consciousness of the Divine Lord Jesus Christ, an experienced communion with Him, a realized certainty. "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
(Hebrews 11:1)
Is your faith growing or declining as the years go by? Does faith stand strong these days, as iniquity abounds in the world and the love of many grows cold? Does faith maintain its hold, when you face personal challenges in life? Does it hold firm when the lack of faith in your children's lives is increasingly prevailing?, and they seem so far away.
It was Peter’s faith which needed guarding. Hence Christ’s plea for the welfare of His disciple’s soul and His determination to build Peter’s faith by His own intercessory prayer.
Faith was the foundation on which all our ministry were to be built. There is a Divine order, of which Peter finally was made aware; and so he goes on to declare that we are to give diligence to making our calling sure, which is rendered certain by constant, praying.
Thus faith is kept alive by prayer, and every step taken, in this adding of grace to grace, is accompanied by prayer. Faith in Christ’s ability to do and to do greatly, is the faith which prays greatly. Thus the leper lay hold upon the power of Christ. “Lord, if Thou wilt,” he cried, “Thou canst make me clean.” In this instance, we are shown how faith centered in Christ’s ability to do, and how it secured the healing power.
It was concerning this very point, that Jesus questioned the blind men who came to Him for healing: “Believe ye that I am able to do this?” He asks. “They said unto Him, Yea, Lord. Then touched He their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.” (Matt 9:28-29)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” (Mark 11:24)
We should ponder deeply this statement—Jesus said “Believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” Here is described a faith which realizes, which promises, with assurance. Such faith is the consciousness of the Divine Lord Jesus Christ, an experienced communion with Him, a realized certainty. "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
(Hebrews 11:1)
Is your faith growing or declining as the years go by? Does faith stand strong these days, as iniquity abounds in the world and the love of many grows cold? Does faith maintain its hold, when you face personal challenges in life? Does it hold firm when the lack of faith in your children's lives is increasingly prevailing?, and they seem so far away.
The inquiry of our Lord, may, with great appropriateness, should be ours, regardless of life's challenges. “When the Son of Man cometh,” He asks, “shall He find faith on the earth?” We believe that He will, and it is ours, in this day, to see to it that the lamp of faith is trimmed and burning, lest He come and our lamps lack oil and burned out.
Faith is the foundation of Christianity and the security of our ministry. To have that faith is to have durability of genuine hope. Without faith, there is no hope for tomorrow. When Jesus was looking forward to Peter’s denial, and cautioning him against it, He said unto His disciple:
“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, to sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fall not.” (Luke 22:31-32}Our Lord was declaring a central truth; it was Peter’s faith He was seeking to guard; for He knew that when faith is broken down, the foundations of spiritual life give way, and the entire structure of our religious experience fails.
Faith was the foundation on which all our ministry were to be built. There is a Divine order, of which Peter finally was made aware; and so he goes on to declare that we are to give diligence to making our calling sure, which is rendered certain by constant, praying.
Thus faith is kept alive by prayer, and every step taken, in this adding of grace to grace, is accompanied by prayer. Faith in Christ’s ability to do and to do greatly, is the faith which prays greatly. Thus the leper lay hold upon the power of Christ. “Lord, if Thou wilt,” he cried, “Thou canst make me clean.” In this instance, we are shown how faith centered in Christ’s ability to do, and how it secured the healing power.
It was concerning this very point, that Jesus questioned the blind men who came to Him for healing: “Believe ye that I am able to do this?” He asks. “They said unto Him, Yea, Lord. Then touched He their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.” (Matt 9:28-29)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Total Surrender
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“Peter began to say to Him, ‘See, we have left all and followed You’ ” (Mark 10:28).
Our Lord replies to this statement of Peter by saying that this surrender is “for My sake and the gospel’s” (10:29). It was not for the purpose of what the disciples themselves would get out of it.
Beware of surrender that is motivated by personal benefits. For example, “I’m going to give myself to God because I want to be delivered from sin, because I want to be made holy.”
Being delivered from sin and being made holy are the result of being right with God, but surrender resulting from this kind of thinking is not the true nature of Christianity.
Our motive for surrender should not be for any personal gain at all. We have become so self-centered that we go to God only for something from Him, and not for God Himself.
It is like saying, “No, Lord, I don’t want you; I want myself. But I do want You to clean me and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to be on display in Your showcase so I can say, ‘This is what God has done for me.”
Gaining heaven, being delivered from sin, and being made useful to God are things that should never be considered in real surrender. Genuine total surrender is a personal preference for Jesus Christ Himself.
Where does Jesus figure in when we have a concern about our natural relationships? Most of us will desert Him with this excuse—“Yes, Lord, I heard you call me, but my family needs me and I have my own interests. I just can’t go any further” (See Luke 9:57–62). “Then,” Jesus says, “you ‘cannot be My disciple’ ” (See Luke 14:26–33).
True surrender will always go beyond natural devotion. If we "let go, and let God", God will surrender Himself to embrace all those around us and meet their needs, which were created by our surrender.
Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God. Most of us have only a vision of what this really means, but have never truly experienced it.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“Peter began to say to Him, ‘See, we have left all and followed You’ ” (Mark 10:28).
Our Lord replies to this statement of Peter by saying that this surrender is “for My sake and the gospel’s” (10:29). It was not for the purpose of what the disciples themselves would get out of it.
Beware of surrender that is motivated by personal benefits. For example, “I’m going to give myself to God because I want to be delivered from sin, because I want to be made holy.”
Being delivered from sin and being made holy are the result of being right with God, but surrender resulting from this kind of thinking is not the true nature of Christianity.
Our motive for surrender should not be for any personal gain at all. We have become so self-centered that we go to God only for something from Him, and not for God Himself.
It is like saying, “No, Lord, I don’t want you; I want myself. But I do want You to clean me and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I want to be on display in Your showcase so I can say, ‘This is what God has done for me.”
Gaining heaven, being delivered from sin, and being made useful to God are things that should never be considered in real surrender. Genuine total surrender is a personal preference for Jesus Christ Himself.
Where does Jesus figure in when we have a concern about our natural relationships? Most of us will desert Him with this excuse—“Yes, Lord, I heard you call me, but my family needs me and I have my own interests. I just can’t go any further” (See Luke 9:57–62). “Then,” Jesus says, “you ‘cannot be My disciple’ ” (See Luke 14:26–33).
True surrender will always go beyond natural devotion. If we "let go, and let God", God will surrender Himself to embrace all those around us and meet their needs, which were created by our surrender.
Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God. Most of us have only a vision of what this really means, but have never truly experienced it.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Saturday, March 19, 2011
The Master Will Be The Judge
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ ” (2 Corinthians 5:10).
Paul says that we must all, preachers and others alike, no matter how high or low your rank in life is, will “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” But if you learn to live under the loving example of Christ’s pure light, your final judgment will bring you only delight in seeing the good work God has done in you.
Christians should live constantly reminding oneself of the judgment seat of Christ, and walk in the knowledge of the holiness He has given you. Tolerating a wrong attitude toward another person, or hatred towards them causes you to follow the spirit of the devil, no matter how saintly you display yourself on the outside.
One carnal judgment of another person only perpetuates the sinful nature in you. Bring that sinful tendency immediately into the light of God and confess, “Oh, Lord, I have been guilty there.” If you don’t, in time your heart will become hardened through and through.
One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it, or compromising to justify it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. It grows to the point that no struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the severity of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to where you no longer even realize that it is sin.
No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the consequences of sin. “If we walk in the light as He is in the light ” (1 John 1:7). For many of us, walking in the light means walking according to the self-righteous standard we have set up for our-selves towards another person. The quote that John is saying is "as He (Jesus) is in the light, thus we should also walk following Jesus example of light.
The deadliest attitude of the Pharisees we adopt today is not hypocrisy but that which comes from unconsciously living in sin, and not realizing it.
The saddest news I've read recently is there are certain people on the internet tweeting and linking the catastrophic hardship the people of Japan are suffering, to their sinful past.
We are not put here on earth to judge one another, this is not our calling. For the Bible says that one day “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ ”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ ” (2 Corinthians 5:10).
Paul says that we must all, preachers and others alike, no matter how high or low your rank in life is, will “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” But if you learn to live under the loving example of Christ’s pure light, your final judgment will bring you only delight in seeing the good work God has done in you.
Christians should live constantly reminding oneself of the judgment seat of Christ, and walk in the knowledge of the holiness He has given you. Tolerating a wrong attitude toward another person, or hatred towards them causes you to follow the spirit of the devil, no matter how saintly you display yourself on the outside.
One carnal judgment of another person only perpetuates the sinful nature in you. Bring that sinful tendency immediately into the light of God and confess, “Oh, Lord, I have been guilty there.” If you don’t, in time your heart will become hardened through and through.
One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it, or compromising to justify it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. It grows to the point that no struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the severity of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to where you no longer even realize that it is sin.
No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the consequences of sin. “If we walk in the light as He is in the light ” (1 John 1:7). For many of us, walking in the light means walking according to the self-righteous standard we have set up for our-selves towards another person. The quote that John is saying is "as He (Jesus) is in the light, thus we should also walk following Jesus example of light.
The deadliest attitude of the Pharisees we adopt today is not hypocrisy but that which comes from unconsciously living in sin, and not realizing it.
The saddest news I've read recently is there are certain people on the internet tweeting and linking the catastrophic hardship the people of Japan are suffering, to their sinful past.
We are not put here on earth to judge one another, this is not our calling. For the Bible says that one day “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ ”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Friday, March 18, 2011
The Servant’s Primary Goal
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“We make it our aim to be well pleasing to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:9).
"We make it our aim ” It requires a conscious decision and effort to keep our primary goal constantly in front of us. It means holding ourselves to the highest priority year in and year out; not making our first priority to win souls, or to establish churches, or to have revivals, but seeking only “to be well pleasing to Him.”
It is not a lack of spiritual experience that leads to failure, but a lack of working to keep our eyes focused and on the right goal. At least once a week examine yourself before God to see if your life is measuring up to the standard He has for you.
Paul was like a musician who gives no thought to audience approval, if he can only catch a look of approval from his Conductor. Any goal we have that diverts us even the slightest degree from the central goal of being “approved to God” (2 Timothy 2:15) may result in our disqualification from further service for Him.
When you discern where the goal leads, you will understand why it is necessary to keep “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2). Paul spoke of the importance of controlling his own body so that it would not take him in the wrong direction.
He said, “I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest I myself should become disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). I must learn to relate everything to the primary goal, maintaining it without interruption.
My worth to God publicly is measured by what I really am in my private life. Is my primary goal in life to please Him and to be acceptable to Him, or is it something less, no matter how it may sound? Let us "make it our aim to be well pleasing to Him”.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“We make it our aim to be well pleasing to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:9).
"We make it our aim ” It requires a conscious decision and effort to keep our primary goal constantly in front of us. It means holding ourselves to the highest priority year in and year out; not making our first priority to win souls, or to establish churches, or to have revivals, but seeking only “to be well pleasing to Him.”
It is not a lack of spiritual experience that leads to failure, but a lack of working to keep our eyes focused and on the right goal. At least once a week examine yourself before God to see if your life is measuring up to the standard He has for you.
Paul was like a musician who gives no thought to audience approval, if he can only catch a look of approval from his Conductor. Any goal we have that diverts us even the slightest degree from the central goal of being “approved to God” (2 Timothy 2:15) may result in our disqualification from further service for Him.
When you discern where the goal leads, you will understand why it is necessary to keep “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2). Paul spoke of the importance of controlling his own body so that it would not take him in the wrong direction.
He said, “I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest I myself should become disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). I must learn to relate everything to the primary goal, maintaining it without interruption.
My worth to God publicly is measured by what I really am in my private life. Is my primary goal in life to please Him and to be acceptable to Him, or is it something less, no matter how it may sound? Let us "make it our aim to be well pleasing to Him”.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Abraham’s Life of Faith
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“He went out, not knowing where he was going” (Hebrews 11:8)
Whenever we go through trials in our lives, we reflect on those in the Bible with similar experiences for an example in faith. In the Old Testament, a person’s relationship with God was seen by the degree of separation in that person’s life. This separation is shown in the life of Abraham by his separation from his country and his family.
When we think of separation today, we do not mean to be literally separated from those family members who do not have a personal relationship with God, but to be separated mentally and morally from their unfaithful worldly viewpoints. It means having the confidence that your faith will be sufficient for the both of you.
This is what Jesus Christ was referring to in Luke 14:26. Living a life of faith means never knowing where you are being led. But it does mean loving and knowing the One who is leading you. And trusting that He will take care of all your daily needs, through your faith in Him. Trusting that He will take care of your family & children, through your trust in Him.
It is literally a life of faith, not of understanding and reasoning why?—a life of surrender and trust, knowing Him who calls you to go. Faith is rooted in the knowledge of Christ, and one of the biggest traps we fall into is the belief that if we have faith, God will surely lead us to success in the world. These are wrong motives, for faith is a gift from God. He will fill your need, not your greed.
The final stage in the life of faith is the attainment of Christ like character, and we will encounter many challenges in the process. We feel the presence of God around us when we pray, yet we are only momentarily changed. We tend to keep going back to our everyday worries and the glory or first love vanishes.
A life of faith is not a life of one glorious experience after another, but is a life of day-in and day-out process of testing to attain consistency; a life of "walking without fainting". (Isaiah 40:31).
It is not even a question of the holiness of sanctification, but of something which comes much farther down the road. It is a faith that has been tried and proved and has withstood the test.
Abraham is not a example of the holiness of sanctification, but a type of the life of faith—a faith, tested and true, built on his love and trust in the true God. “Abraham believed God ” (Romans 4:3)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“He went out, not knowing where he was going” (Hebrews 11:8)
Whenever we go through trials in our lives, we reflect on those in the Bible with similar experiences for an example in faith. In the Old Testament, a person’s relationship with God was seen by the degree of separation in that person’s life. This separation is shown in the life of Abraham by his separation from his country and his family.
When we think of separation today, we do not mean to be literally separated from those family members who do not have a personal relationship with God, but to be separated mentally and morally from their unfaithful worldly viewpoints. It means having the confidence that your faith will be sufficient for the both of you.
This is what Jesus Christ was referring to in Luke 14:26. Living a life of faith means never knowing where you are being led. But it does mean loving and knowing the One who is leading you. And trusting that He will take care of all your daily needs, through your faith in Him. Trusting that He will take care of your family & children, through your trust in Him.
It is literally a life of faith, not of understanding and reasoning why?—a life of surrender and trust, knowing Him who calls you to go. Faith is rooted in the knowledge of Christ, and one of the biggest traps we fall into is the belief that if we have faith, God will surely lead us to success in the world. These are wrong motives, for faith is a gift from God. He will fill your need, not your greed.
The final stage in the life of faith is the attainment of Christ like character, and we will encounter many challenges in the process. We feel the presence of God around us when we pray, yet we are only momentarily changed. We tend to keep going back to our everyday worries and the glory or first love vanishes.
A life of faith is not a life of one glorious experience after another, but is a life of day-in and day-out process of testing to attain consistency; a life of "walking without fainting". (Isaiah 40:31).
It is not even a question of the holiness of sanctification, but of something which comes much farther down the road. It is a faith that has been tried and proved and has withstood the test.
Abraham is not a example of the holiness of sanctification, but a type of the life of faith—a faith, tested and true, built on his love and trust in the true God. “Abraham believed God ” (Romans 4:3)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
To Give is to Receive
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"...Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)
Observing the recent events in Japan should teach us a real valuable lesson in human dignity. With at least 10,000 people believed to have been killed, millions more have spent four nights with little food, water or heating in near-freezing temperatures as they come to terms with the loss of homes and loved ones.
As if the 9.0 magnitude earthquake, tsunami and threat of nuclear fall-out was not enough, up to 450,000 people in near-freezing temperatures are scattered in temporary shelters, as they search for thousands still missing or buried amongst the rubble.
In face of such tragedy of monumental proportion, the Japanese people seem quietly calm and collected despite the catastrophic events. There are no visible scenes of looting, robbing or rampant disorder, but a certain dignified calmness amongst the people. In contrast, to what we saw in "Hurricane Katrina" in 2005 were pockets of total disorder.
"What we are seeing is a new style of Japanese crisis management," said Thomas Berger, a Japan expert at Boston University. I don't know if it's the Japanese instilled cultural and moral values, but what strikes me is the fact that many of these survivors appeared middle aged or elderly.
"It is the elderly who have been hit the hardest," said Patrick Fuller of the International Federation of Red Cross, many lie shivering uncontrollably under blankets. They are suffering from hypothermia having been stranded in their homes without water or electricity.
Christians could learn something from this mostly Buddhist nation. The Lord's care is over all His creatures. He loves them all and makes no difference, except that He has the most tender pity for those who are called to bear life's heaviest burdens.
The tragedy in Japan should remind us that God's children will meet trials and difficulties in life. But they should accept their lot with a cheerful spirit, remembering that for all that the world neglects to bestow, God Himself will make up to them in the best of favors.
The plan of life that God gave to the Nation of Israel was intended as an object lesson for all mankind to follow. If the principles that He taught them were carried out today, what a difference it would make in the world!
"Give counsel, execute justice; make thy shade as the night in the midst of the noonday; hide the outcasts; betray not the fugitive." "Let Mine outcasts dwell with thee; . . . be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler."
(Isaiah 16:3)
"Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away." (Matthew 5:42) "The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous showeth mercy, and giveth." (Psalm 37:21)
Family, our brothers and sisters in Japan really need you today, please find a local "Red Cross" and give what you can. Jesus said. "...Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"...Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)
Observing the recent events in Japan should teach us a real valuable lesson in human dignity. With at least 10,000 people believed to have been killed, millions more have spent four nights with little food, water or heating in near-freezing temperatures as they come to terms with the loss of homes and loved ones.
As if the 9.0 magnitude earthquake, tsunami and threat of nuclear fall-out was not enough, up to 450,000 people in near-freezing temperatures are scattered in temporary shelters, as they search for thousands still missing or buried amongst the rubble.
In face of such tragedy of monumental proportion, the Japanese people seem quietly calm and collected despite the catastrophic events. There are no visible scenes of looting, robbing or rampant disorder, but a certain dignified calmness amongst the people. In contrast, to what we saw in "Hurricane Katrina" in 2005 were pockets of total disorder.
"What we are seeing is a new style of Japanese crisis management," said Thomas Berger, a Japan expert at Boston University. I don't know if it's the Japanese instilled cultural and moral values, but what strikes me is the fact that many of these survivors appeared middle aged or elderly.
"It is the elderly who have been hit the hardest," said Patrick Fuller of the International Federation of Red Cross, many lie shivering uncontrollably under blankets. They are suffering from hypothermia having been stranded in their homes without water or electricity.
Christians could learn something from this mostly Buddhist nation. The Lord's care is over all His creatures. He loves them all and makes no difference, except that He has the most tender pity for those who are called to bear life's heaviest burdens.
The tragedy in Japan should remind us that God's children will meet trials and difficulties in life. But they should accept their lot with a cheerful spirit, remembering that for all that the world neglects to bestow, God Himself will make up to them in the best of favors.
The plan of life that God gave to the Nation of Israel was intended as an object lesson for all mankind to follow. If the principles that He taught them were carried out today, what a difference it would make in the world!
"Give counsel, execute justice; make thy shade as the night in the midst of the noonday; hide the outcasts; betray not the fugitive." "Let Mine outcasts dwell with thee; . . . be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler."
(Isaiah 16:3)
"Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away." (Matthew 5:42) "The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous showeth mercy, and giveth." (Psalm 37:21)
Family, our brothers and sisters in Japan really need you today, please find a local "Red Cross" and give what you can. Jesus said. "...Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Monday, March 14, 2011
Does God Really Care?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Now acquaint yourself to Him, and be at peace." (Job 22:21)
I can just imaging at this time, the grief, sorrow and mixed emotions experienced by the people of Japan. The shock of witnessing everything in a matter of minutes washed away right before their numbing eyes. It would not come as a surprise if some of the people may even experience extreme emotions like in the story of Job. "Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb?" (Job 3:11)
Lets be honest about our grief. Job was experiencing extreme physical pain as well as grief over the loss of his family and possessions. He can’t be blamed for wishing he were dead. After all, he had just lost everything he had in the world.
Job’s grief placed him at the crossroads of his faith, shattering many misconceptions about God (such as: he makes you rich, always keeps you from trouble and pain, or protects your loved ones).
Job was driven back to the basics of his faith in God. He had only two choices: (1) he could curse God and give up, or (2) he could trust God and draw strength from him to continue.
This true man of God set an example for us to follow. He chose to trust God. "Naked came I out of my mothers womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away." (Job 1:21)
This demonstrated Job's true faith in his Lord. He trusted that though he was a faithful man of God, he was afflicted for whatever reasons he did'nt understand. But he knew and trusted that God had a better plan.
What Job did not realize is that, it was Satan who afflicted him and took away his family and possessions, and not God. God only allowed Satan to afflict Job to prove the loyalty of His his faithful servant.
Despite the tragedy Job went through, he knew God cared. He knew God is a personal and a loving God who also weeps for the suffering and grief, His beloved people go through.
"When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. (John 11:33)
Know this family that Jesus understands our grief firsthand. John stresses that we have a God who cares for us. This contrasts with the Greek concept of God that was popular in those days—a God with no emotions and no involvement with humans.
Here we see many of Jesus’ emotions—compassion, indignation, sorrow, even frustration. He often expressed deep emotion, and we must never be afraid to reveal our true feelings to him and cry out to Him. He understands them, for he experienced them too.
Yes, Jesus cares. When He saw the weeping and wailing, he too wept openly (John 11:35). Perhaps he empathized with their grief, or maybe he was troubled at their unbelief. In either case, Jesus showed that he cares enough for us to weep with us in our sorrow and time of grief.
God is the same today as in years gone by. Though severely tested, Job's resolve and faith was awarded with restored blessings three times more then he ever had.
It is in loving kindness that God allows the storms to beat upon us, that we may strike deeper roots in Him. He lets the rains fall that our lives may blossom and become fragrant and fruitful. Through all adversity His sheltering hand is over His own. He tempers the wind and calms the storms in just the nick of time. "Now acquaint yourself to Him, and be at peace."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"Now acquaint yourself to Him, and be at peace." (Job 22:21)
I can just imaging at this time, the grief, sorrow and mixed emotions experienced by the people of Japan. The shock of witnessing everything in a matter of minutes washed away right before their numbing eyes. It would not come as a surprise if some of the people may even experience extreme emotions like in the story of Job. "Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb?" (Job 3:11)
Lets be honest about our grief. Job was experiencing extreme physical pain as well as grief over the loss of his family and possessions. He can’t be blamed for wishing he were dead. After all, he had just lost everything he had in the world.
Job’s grief placed him at the crossroads of his faith, shattering many misconceptions about God (such as: he makes you rich, always keeps you from trouble and pain, or protects your loved ones).
Job was driven back to the basics of his faith in God. He had only two choices: (1) he could curse God and give up, or (2) he could trust God and draw strength from him to continue.
This true man of God set an example for us to follow. He chose to trust God. "Naked came I out of my mothers womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away." (Job 1:21)
This demonstrated Job's true faith in his Lord. He trusted that though he was a faithful man of God, he was afflicted for whatever reasons he did'nt understand. But he knew and trusted that God had a better plan.
What Job did not realize is that, it was Satan who afflicted him and took away his family and possessions, and not God. God only allowed Satan to afflict Job to prove the loyalty of His his faithful servant.
Despite the tragedy Job went through, he knew God cared. He knew God is a personal and a loving God who also weeps for the suffering and grief, His beloved people go through.
"When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. (John 11:33)
Know this family that Jesus understands our grief firsthand. John stresses that we have a God who cares for us. This contrasts with the Greek concept of God that was popular in those days—a God with no emotions and no involvement with humans.
Here we see many of Jesus’ emotions—compassion, indignation, sorrow, even frustration. He often expressed deep emotion, and we must never be afraid to reveal our true feelings to him and cry out to Him. He understands them, for he experienced them too.
Yes, Jesus cares. When He saw the weeping and wailing, he too wept openly (John 11:35). Perhaps he empathized with their grief, or maybe he was troubled at their unbelief. In either case, Jesus showed that he cares enough for us to weep with us in our sorrow and time of grief.
God is the same today as in years gone by. Though severely tested, Job's resolve and faith was awarded with restored blessings three times more then he ever had.
It is in loving kindness that God allows the storms to beat upon us, that we may strike deeper roots in Him. He lets the rains fall that our lives may blossom and become fragrant and fruitful. Through all adversity His sheltering hand is over His own. He tempers the wind and calms the storms in just the nick of time. "Now acquaint yourself to Him, and be at peace."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Sunday, March 13, 2011
WHERE IS GOD IN NATURE?
Mea e ‘ai e tatau ma le aso
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. (John 3:16)
Lets look at the ecosystem. The snow falls on the mountains. As that snow falls, the sun melts it. The streams carry the water down to ponds or lakes where water then evaporates and goes back up into the heavens to fall as rain, to replenish our water supply.
God made the ecosystem perfectly balanced. Nature shouts to us, that there is a God that designed it. Water is continuously recycled. God has built into earth a system to provide for His creatures. A system that reveals care and a loving God that has thought out the environment that’s perfect for you and me.
All across earth he causes the harvest to bloom and blossom and food to grow. He brings just the right amount of sunlight and rain, just so you and I can eat and enjoy life to the fullest.
And He gives us the abundant provisions of the earth. He gives us the fruits of the trees, as gifts; every apple you eat is a gift of God that’s already cooked naturally. You don’t need to bake it and make apple pie, God has already cooked the apple perfectly, tenderly and gently through nature until it is ready for harvest.
All the genius and smarts of man cannot cause that seed to grow. Man can't put life in the seed. It's a gift of our living, loving God.
As we talked about in yesterday’s blog, God created and numbered the stars. (Isaiah 40:26). "Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things, who brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name…Not one is missing."
Who keeps the stars in their orbit? One scientist said when you look at the stars and you see millions of stars and planet and galaxies it's like a mass raceway exhibit of shooting stars. They are like water skiers in the sky passing one another at incredible speeds. Why does earth not have collision with these stars that can destroy all life?
We can pose the same question in reverse when mega-quake catastrophe of historical natural disasters hits us. We question God? When the protective O-zone layer placed by God to protect the earth is depleted by man made pollution, we question God…
When weather patterns all around the world is going haywire because of global warming, melting glaziers, we are quick to question God. God melts the snow naturally for our benefit, but accelerated melting of the glaziers is man made.
People even blame God when our loved ones pass away. In Samoan, it is standard to hear funeral orators “E le o so outou finagalo, a o le pule toatasi a le Atua.” (Not your want, but God’s will)
When we look at the life of Jesus Christ, friends, and we see the care, the love, that God manifests, indeed, in His own son. In the life of Jesus (God manifested), you can clearly see, it is not God’s will that any should perish, but that we enjoy everlasting life.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”. (John 3:16)
That is God’s true will.
Family, we have a loving intelligent, designer God at our side, which has made all provisions for us that we can thrive through the tough times, if you're acquainted with Him.
If He can hang the stars in orbit, don’t you think he can take-care of your needs?
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa’i
Saturday, March 12, 2011
GOD’S ASSURANCE IN NATURE
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest". (Matthew 11:28)
These past few weeks we witnessed the devastating destruction of the POWER of NATURE. Earthquakes in diverse places in New Zealand followed by the recent historical quake in Japan...evidence of destruction so graphically vivid, people can't help to wonder where is God in all this? So much destruction, so much pain, so much devastation, does He not care?
Early scientists said there were 5119 stars…. scientists today with the discovery of the telescope indicate there are 200 billion stars. Some of those earlier discovered stars were actually galaxies. "Is not God in the height of heaven? and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!" (Job, 22: 12)
Who created the stars? Who set the stars in motion? Is it not God who is holding the stars in His hand? "Lift up your eyes on high, And see who has created these things, Who brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name, By the greatness of His might And the strength of His power; Not one is missing." (Isaiah 40:26)
Does not God govern the tides? Do they come in any haphazard way? The tides come in and out on time… The tides of the oceans follow a regular pattern. There is and intelligent design, not by chance or chaos. The tides flow in and out, exactly on schedule as He planned them.
Consider the sun. Let's suppose the sun were one degree closer to the earth. The earth would be burned up. Let's suppose the sun were further away. The earth would freeze.
Look at the air we breathe. The air is composed of four elements, nitrogen, oxygen, argon and carbon dioxide. What if the formula were mixed wrong? …Air itself indicates that this all-powerful God, the master designer, the intelligent God, prepared earth for you and for me and He mixed the formula just right to make the air we breathe perfect. "In whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breath of all mankind?" (Job 12:10)
In all things, despite natures destructive forces we witness. God's thoughts are turned toward you. "Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5: 7) He's not only the God of the stars. He knows your name. He knows your heartache. He knows your difficulties. He knows your problems. He's guided the stars and he can guide you through troubled times.
He wants to lift you from the plight of discouragement & disappointment. When you fall into perplexity, read this promise, and talk with God. "Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you"
Tell Him about your troubles and difficulties understanding Him. He is still our Comforter today. I have been asked by people to pray for them and their families through troubled times, and we do! But remember Christ is praying for them. All we need is to carry our soul-distress to Jesus.
The Psalmist says "When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou has ordained...What is man? That thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou has visited him?...For thou has made him a little lower then the angels, and has crowned him with glory and honour...Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hand; thou has put all things under his feet." (Psalms 8:3-6)
So you see my family, we have a all powerful God who is in total control. When Nature seem to be getting out of control, remember Jesus says "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go."
(Genesis 28:15)
He says, "I am at thy right hand to help thee." We need not to go to any human being or science for the help that Christ alone can give. He says, "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Friday, March 11, 2011
Light in a Dark Troubled World
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Let not your heart be troubled." (John 14:1)
I write this blog with a heavy heart with prayers and supplications crying out
for the people of Japan and all of South East Asia, after suffering a historical
8.9 magnitude earth-quake and subsequent Tsunami yesterday. I pray the grace
of God to comfort those in their hour of need.
of God to comfort those in their hour of need.
Jesus' final message to mankind in Matthew Chapter 24 is a message of hope.
It's a message that speaks to men and women in a society where there is deep
trouble. In fact, Jesus said this to his disciples as He sat on the Mount of Olives,
He looked out and said to His disciples, "Let not your heart be troubled."
Then He said to them, "Ye believe in God, believe also in Me. If it were
not so, I would have told you. But I go to prepare a place for you. And if I
go and prepare a place for you," Jesus said, "I will come again."
Jesus said, when you see famine and earthquake in diverse places and pestilence.
These are signs of His soon return. Each year, we have 6,000 major earthquakes
plus in the world. In fact, earthquake fatalities in the last 90 years we have
had 1.5 million fatalities from earthquakes alone. Earthquakes are on the rise
in our society. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 24." And there will be earthquakes."
in our society. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 24." And there will be earthquakes."
Earthquakes around the world indicate in the increased shaking that all of nature
around the world has been thrown off its course. Something strange is happening to our planet.
Why this upsurge in earthquakes with their devastation of broken gas mains
and burning fires and monstrous size waves of tsunami's? You can find answers in one of David's most beautiful prayers recorded in Psalm 43:3. “O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and
to thy tabernacles”.
This same earnest prayer to understand God's answers should be in the
heart of every sincere seeker for truth. A willingness to learn and to obey
must characterize all of those who expect to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit.
To such, the beautiful promises of the Scriptures will be fulfilled.
Though we live in troubled times, we could bare with the destruction in
understand God's Word for this dying world. You see friends, this world
is not our final home. We are just sojourners here.
Thats why Jesus said..."Let not your heart be troubled." I go to prepare
a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you," Jesus said,
"I will come again."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Being an Example of His Message
Mea e 'ai e tatai ma le aso
“Preach the word!” (2 Timothy 4:2).
One of my beloved cousins yesterday expressed three things she'd like to do in hopes to be used as a ministry through witnessing. What ever her or your aspirations are, we are not saved only to be instruments for God, but to be His sons and daughters.
He does not turn us into spiritual agents but into spiritual messengers, and the message must be a part of us and in us, in our witness to the world.
The Son of God was His own message—“The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). As His chosen disciples, our lives must be a living holy example of the reality of His message.
Even the heart of the unsaved will serve if called upon to do so, but it takes a heart broken by conviction of sin, baptized by the Holy Spirit, and surrendered into submission to God’s purpose to make a person’s life a holy example of God’s message.
Friends, there is a difference between giving a testimony and preaching. A preacher is someone who has received the call of God and is determined to use all his energy to proclaim God’s truth. God's abundant provisions will provide the way.
God takes us beyond our own aspirations and ideas for our lives, and molds and shapes us as clay for His purpose, just as He worked in the disciples’ lives after Pentecost.
The purpose of Pentecost was not to teach the disciples something, but to make them the incarnation of what they preached so that they would literally become God’s message through witnessing in the flesh. “ you shall be witnesses to Me ” (Acts 1:8).
Allow God to have complete control in your life when you speak. Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in you. Allow Him to speak through you in His Spirit. Jesus says..." Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit,... that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you." (John 15:16)
So friends, His provisions are there for the asking. Gather your resources prayerfully and carefully, and then allow God to “set your heart on fire” so you can..“Preach the word!” for His glory.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“Preach the word!” (2 Timothy 4:2).
One of my beloved cousins yesterday expressed three things she'd like to do in hopes to be used as a ministry through witnessing. What ever her or your aspirations are, we are not saved only to be instruments for God, but to be His sons and daughters.
He does not turn us into spiritual agents but into spiritual messengers, and the message must be a part of us and in us, in our witness to the world.
The Son of God was His own message—“The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). As His chosen disciples, our lives must be a living holy example of the reality of His message.
Even the heart of the unsaved will serve if called upon to do so, but it takes a heart broken by conviction of sin, baptized by the Holy Spirit, and surrendered into submission to God’s purpose to make a person’s life a holy example of God’s message.
Friends, there is a difference between giving a testimony and preaching. A preacher is someone who has received the call of God and is determined to use all his energy to proclaim God’s truth. God's abundant provisions will provide the way.
God takes us beyond our own aspirations and ideas for our lives, and molds and shapes us as clay for His purpose, just as He worked in the disciples’ lives after Pentecost.
The purpose of Pentecost was not to teach the disciples something, but to make them the incarnation of what they preached so that they would literally become God’s message through witnessing in the flesh. “ you shall be witnesses to Me ” (Acts 1:8).
Allow God to have complete control in your life when you speak. Before God’s message can liberate other people, His liberation must first be real in you. Allow Him to speak through you in His Spirit. Jesus says..." Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit,... that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you." (John 15:16)
So friends, His provisions are there for the asking. Gather your resources prayerfully and carefully, and then allow God to “set your heart on fire” so you can..“Preach the word!” for His glory.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Turning Back or Walking with Jesus?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“Will you also want to go away?” (John 6:67).
What a shocking question this must have been to the disciples! Our Lord’s words often hit home for us when He speaks in the simplest way. In spite of the fact that they knew who Jesus was, He asks, “Will you also want to go away?” We must continually maintain an humble attitude toward Him, despite any potential personal risk to your relationship with Him.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (6:66). They turned back from walking with Jesus; not into sin, but away from Him. Many people today are pouring their lives out and working for Jesus Christ, but are not really walking with Him.
One important thing God constantly requires of us in our journey with Him is a oneness with Jesus Christ. After being set apart through sanctification, we should discipline our lives spiritually to maintain this oneness relationship with Him.
When God gives you a clearer picture of His will for you, all of your striving to maintain that relationship by some particular method or another is completely unnecessary.
All that is required is to live a natural life of absolute obedience and dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live your life with God in any other way except His way for you. And His way means total devotion to Him. Showing no concern for the uncertainties that lie ahead is the secret of walking with Jesus.
Peter saw in Jesus only someone who could minister salvation to him and to the world. But our Lord wants us to be fellow laborers with Him.
In verse 70 Jesus lovingly reminded Peter that he was one of the twelve chosen to go with Him.
And each of us, in our Christian walk must answer this question for ourselves: “Will you also want to go away?”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“Will you also want to go away?” (John 6:67).
What a shocking question this must have been to the disciples! Our Lord’s words often hit home for us when He speaks in the simplest way. In spite of the fact that they knew who Jesus was, He asks, “Will you also want to go away?” We must continually maintain an humble attitude toward Him, despite any potential personal risk to your relationship with Him.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (6:66). They turned back from walking with Jesus; not into sin, but away from Him. Many people today are pouring their lives out and working for Jesus Christ, but are not really walking with Him.
One important thing God constantly requires of us in our journey with Him is a oneness with Jesus Christ. After being set apart through sanctification, we should discipline our lives spiritually to maintain this oneness relationship with Him.
When God gives you a clearer picture of His will for you, all of your striving to maintain that relationship by some particular method or another is completely unnecessary.
All that is required is to live a natural life of absolute obedience and dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live your life with God in any other way except His way for you. And His way means total devotion to Him. Showing no concern for the uncertainties that lie ahead is the secret of walking with Jesus.
Peter saw in Jesus only someone who could minister salvation to him and to the world. But our Lord wants us to be fellow laborers with Him.
In verse 70 Jesus lovingly reminded Peter that he was one of the twelve chosen to go with Him.
And each of us, in our Christian walk must answer this question for ourselves: “Will you also want to go away?”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Prayers for the Sick
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, And He saveth them out of their distresses. He sendeth His word, and healeth them, and delivereth them from their destructions." (Psalm 107:19, 20)
The Bible says that "men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18:1); and if ever there is a time when we feel in need of prayer, it is when sickness falls upon our loved ones, especially our children and life itself seems to be slipping from their grasp.
When our body systems fail, we reach out to our divine help. And never does our merciful Lord turn from the soul that in sincerity seeks Him for help. He is our refuge in sickness and in health. The Psalmist said "The LORD [is] my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust..." (Psalms 18:2)
The Spirit of God says, "the prayer of faith shall save the sick." People of God are blessed with the presence of the Holy Spirit's power. The calm assurance of faith that can claim all of God's promises. The Lord's promise, "They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover" (Mark 16:18), is a promise just as achievable now as it was in the days of the apostles. It presents the privileges of God's people, that with faith, they could lay hold of all that He had promised.
Christ's faithful servants are the channels of His working, and through them, He longs to exercise His healing power. It is the work as sincere Christians to present the sick and suffering to God in the outreached arms of our faith.
And God will hear our prayers. Christ has said, "If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it." Again He says, "If any man serve Me, him will My Father honor." (John 14:14; 12: 26). If we live in obedience according to His word, every precious promise He has given will be fulfilled to us.
The Scripture bids us, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed." (James 5:16)
As we pray for our loved ones, our prayers should include this thought: "Lord, you know every secret of the soul. Thou art acquainted with our loved ones. Jesus, our intercessory advocate, and your only begotten Son gave His life for them. His love for them is greater than ours can ever be. If, it is Your will and the good of the afflicted ones, we ask, in Jesus Name, that they may be healed, and restored to health.
If it is not Your will that they be restored, we ask that Thy grace comfort and Thy loving presence sustain them in their time of sufferings." Until that glorious morning, when Jesus"...shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, (Philippians 3:21) For in that day,"... the former things are passed away". "He sendeth His word, and healeth them, and delivereth them from their destructions."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, And He saveth them out of their distresses. He sendeth His word, and healeth them, and delivereth them from their destructions." (Psalm 107:19, 20)
The Bible says that "men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18:1); and if ever there is a time when we feel in need of prayer, it is when sickness falls upon our loved ones, especially our children and life itself seems to be slipping from their grasp.
When our body systems fail, we reach out to our divine help. And never does our merciful Lord turn from the soul that in sincerity seeks Him for help. He is our refuge in sickness and in health. The Psalmist said "The LORD [is] my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust..." (Psalms 18:2)
The Spirit of God says, "the prayer of faith shall save the sick." People of God are blessed with the presence of the Holy Spirit's power. The calm assurance of faith that can claim all of God's promises. The Lord's promise, "They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover" (Mark 16:18), is a promise just as achievable now as it was in the days of the apostles. It presents the privileges of God's people, that with faith, they could lay hold of all that He had promised.
Christ's faithful servants are the channels of His working, and through them, He longs to exercise His healing power. It is the work as sincere Christians to present the sick and suffering to God in the outreached arms of our faith.
And God will hear our prayers. Christ has said, "If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it." Again He says, "If any man serve Me, him will My Father honor." (John 14:14; 12: 26). If we live in obedience according to His word, every precious promise He has given will be fulfilled to us.
The Scripture bids us, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed." (James 5:16)
As we pray for our loved ones, our prayers should include this thought: "Lord, you know every secret of the soul. Thou art acquainted with our loved ones. Jesus, our intercessory advocate, and your only begotten Son gave His life for them. His love for them is greater than ours can ever be. If, it is Your will and the good of the afflicted ones, we ask, in Jesus Name, that they may be healed, and restored to health.
If it is not Your will that they be restored, we ask that Thy grace comfort and Thy loving presence sustain them in their time of sufferings." Until that glorious morning, when Jesus"...shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, (Philippians 3:21) For in that day,"... the former things are passed away". "He sendeth His word, and healeth them, and delivereth them from their destructions."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Monday, March 7, 2011
The Surrendered Life
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“I have been crucified with Christ ” (Galatians 2:20)
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go of everything we know, before we can grasp something else. We must be willing to emptying ourselves completely, in order to be filled by His Spirit.
The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretending or deceitfulness. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, or honesty, or even our efforts to do better, but He wants us to present to Him the real depth of our sinfulness.
Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is His Holy righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next, as He molds us as a potter's clay. Along each step of this process, we will even have to give up claims to our rights to ourselves. For "ye are not your own?...For ye are bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer sharp disillusionment before we fully surrender, that's natural. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ will.
When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction will hit home.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a decision to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
Because if you're truly “... been crucified with Christ ” as Paul was, your old self would have been crucified with Jesus, and rise again anew, as with Christ to a new and better life.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“I have been crucified with Christ ” (Galatians 2:20)
To become one with Jesus Christ, a person must be willing not only to give up sin, but also to surrender his whole way of looking at things. Being born again by the Spirit of God means that we must first be willing to let go of everything we know, before we can grasp something else. We must be willing to emptying ourselves completely, in order to be filled by His Spirit.
The first thing we must surrender is all of our pretending or deceitfulness. What our Lord wants us to present to Him is not our goodness, or honesty, or even our efforts to do better, but He wants us to present to Him the real depth of our sinfulness.
Actually, that is all He can take from us. And what He gives us in exchange for our sin is His Holy righteousness. But we must surrender all pretense that we are anything, and give up all our claims of even being worthy of God’s consideration.
Once we have done that, the Spirit of God will show us what we need to surrender next, as He molds us as a potter's clay. Along each step of this process, we will even have to give up claims to our rights to ourselves. For "ye are not your own?...For ye are bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
Are we willing to surrender our grasp on all that we possess, our desires, and everything else in our lives? Are we ready to be identified with the death of Jesus Christ?
We will suffer sharp disillusionment before we fully surrender, that's natural. When people really see themselves as the Lord sees them, it is not the terribly offensive sins of the flesh that shock them, but the awful nature of the pride of their own hearts opposing Jesus Christ will.
When they see themselves in the light of the Lord, the shame, horror, and desperate conviction will hit home.
If you are faced with the question of whether or not to surrender, make a decision to go on through the crisis, surrendering all that you have and all that you are to Him. And God will then equip you to do all that He requires of you.
Because if you're truly “... been crucified with Christ ” as Paul was, your old self would have been crucified with Jesus, and rise again anew, as with Christ to a new and better life.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Sunday, March 6, 2011
The Source of Abundant Joy
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37)
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate us from the love of God. But the amazing thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a true Christian saint.
The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our being with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the inner soul of a saint on the spiritual level.
The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was displayed on the Cross of Calvary; a love that cannot be earned and can never be. It is a free gift of God.
Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are given super-victories with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overcome and conquer us.
Huge crashing waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer, can produce a tremendous thrill for the tried surfer who has ridden through them. Let’s apply that theory to our own Christian walk. The things we try to avoid and fight against, tribulations, suffering, and persecution—are the very things that can be reversed to produce abundant joy in us.
“We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but because of them. A Christian saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it.
Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undeniable radiance that beams from our appearances, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can ever change.
And the experiences of life, whether they are happy events or terrifying experiences, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
Because “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” Find your source today.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37)
Paul was speaking here of the things that might seem likely to separate us from the love of God. But the amazing thing is that nothing can come between the love of God and a true Christian saint.
The things Paul mentioned in this passage can and do disrupt the close fellowship of our being with God and separate our natural life from Him. But none of them is able to come between the love of God and the inner soul of a saint on the spiritual level.
The underlying foundation of the Christian faith is the undeserved, limitless miracle of the love of God that was displayed on the Cross of Calvary; a love that cannot be earned and can never be. It is a free gift of God.
Paul said this is the reason that “in all these things we are more than conquerors.” We are given super-victories with a joy that comes from experiencing the very things which look as if they are going to overcome and conquer us.
Huge crashing waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer, can produce a tremendous thrill for the tried surfer who has ridden through them. Let’s apply that theory to our own Christian walk. The things we try to avoid and fight against, tribulations, suffering, and persecution—are the very things that can be reversed to produce abundant joy in us.
“We are more than conquerors through Him” “in all these things”; not in spite of them, but because of them. A Christian saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it.
Paul said, “I am exceedingly joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4).
The undeniable radiance that beams from our appearances, which is the result of abundant joy, is not built on anything passing, but on the love of God that nothing can ever change.
And the experiences of life, whether they are happy events or terrifying experiences, are powerless to “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39).
Because “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” Find your source today.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Taking the Next Step
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“ in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses” (2 Corinthians 6:4)
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one encouraging you, it requires the grace of the Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him.
It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel. Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into reality and by working it out with his hands.
We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks.
The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when your work cannot be seen by others, or appreciated.
And the only way to live an undefeated life is to "live looking to God." Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to Christ, and it will be impossible for temptational challenges to discourage you.
Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example in (2 Corinthians 6:4) "But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“ in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses” (2 Corinthians 6:4)
When you have no vision from God, no enthusiasm left in your life, and no one encouraging you, it requires the grace of the Almighty God to take the next step in your devotion to Him, in the reading and studying of His Word, in your family life, or in your duty to Him.
It takes much more of the grace of God, and a much greater awareness of drawing upon Him, to take that next step, than it does to preach the gospel. Every Christian must experience the essence of the incarnation by bringing the next step down into reality and by working it out with his hands.
We lose interest and give up when we have no vision, no encouragement, and no improvement, but only experience our everyday life with its trivial tasks.
The thing that really testifies for God and for the people of God in the long run is steady perseverance, even when your work cannot be seen by others, or appreciated.
And the only way to live an undefeated life is to "live looking to God." Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to Christ, and it will be impossible for temptational challenges to discourage you.
Never allow yourself to think that some tasks are beneath your dignity or too insignificant for you to do, and remind yourself of the example in (2 Corinthians 6:4) "But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Friday, March 4, 2011
Is He Really My Lord?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“ so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus ” (Acts 20:24)
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing.
The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do.
And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it—to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry.
Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).
We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this, we must close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior.
And we must be willing to experience the full impact of (Acts 9:16)—“I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17).
He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God.
If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call—the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you are in true fellowship with Him.
This does not imply that there is a whole series of different ministries marked out for you. It does mean however, that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may require ignoring demands for service in other areas. “ So that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus ”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
“ so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus ” (Acts 20:24)
Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing.
The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do.
And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it—to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry.
Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).
We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this, we must close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior.
And we must be willing to experience the full impact of (Acts 9:16)—“I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
“Do you love Me?” Then, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17).
He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God.
If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call—the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you are in true fellowship with Him.
This does not imply that there is a whole series of different ministries marked out for you. It does mean however, that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may require ignoring demands for service in other areas. “ So that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus ”
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Why Does God Allow Trials in Our lives?
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"But as for you, ye thought evil against me; [but] God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day..." (Genesis 50:20)
We sometimes wonder why God allows trials to come into our lives. We feel abandonment and pressured when we consider others circumstances, in comparable to our own, and question why God allows these sufferings to come among His faithful.
When we read the story of Job in the Old Testament Scriptures. We read with interest about the calamities which took away all his possessions and all his children in one terrible stroke. And yet, the first reaction of this godly man was to fall down and worship God.
Somebody may raise the question, "Well, why does God allow any pain to afflict us and try our faith?" The answer is found in a variety of Bible verses. (Psalm 11:5) "The Lord trieth the righteous." We find comfort in, (James 1:3, 4) “The trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."
Yes, God has good in mind for you-He controls the fires of affliction that come to you. He builds a hedge around us to protect us from that which we cannot bear. He sees that we need an experience of pain sometimes, and in great love He permits the right amount to come that is for our good.
Strange as it may seem now, we will all someday thank God personally that He led exactly the way He did during our earthly life. Paul will learn why a thorn had to stay with him during his missionary work. Perhaps he'll also learn what his life might have been without the thorn that he prayed about so much. You see Paul realized that "...we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8: 28)
So, if you question why your life has been a trail of abusement from one trial to another, we should also remember to thank God for these trials. "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations...7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:6,7)
Remember that your accusers and abusers thought evil against you, but "God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
"But as for you, ye thought evil against me; [but] God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day..." (Genesis 50:20)
We sometimes wonder why God allows trials to come into our lives. We feel abandonment and pressured when we consider others circumstances, in comparable to our own, and question why God allows these sufferings to come among His faithful.
When we read the story of Job in the Old Testament Scriptures. We read with interest about the calamities which took away all his possessions and all his children in one terrible stroke. And yet, the first reaction of this godly man was to fall down and worship God.
Somebody may raise the question, "Well, why does God allow any pain to afflict us and try our faith?" The answer is found in a variety of Bible verses. (Psalm 11:5) "The Lord trieth the righteous." We find comfort in, (James 1:3, 4) “The trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."
Yes, God has good in mind for you-He controls the fires of affliction that come to you. He builds a hedge around us to protect us from that which we cannot bear. He sees that we need an experience of pain sometimes, and in great love He permits the right amount to come that is for our good.
Strange as it may seem now, we will all someday thank God personally that He led exactly the way He did during our earthly life. Paul will learn why a thorn had to stay with him during his missionary work. Perhaps he'll also learn what his life might have been without the thorn that he prayed about so much. You see Paul realized that "...we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8: 28)
So, if you question why your life has been a trail of abusement from one trial to another, we should also remember to thank God for these trials. "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations...7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:6,7)
Remember that your accusers and abusers thought evil against you, but "God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Standing Up for God
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"This night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice."
(Matthew 26:34)
Peter loved Jesus, but he also loved the approval of the crowd. During the last supper when Jesus warned the apostles that they would all forsake Him, Peter jumped to his feet and brashly vowed that even if all others would be offended, he would never forsake Him. Jesus replied, "This night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice."
Peter meant well, but he did not recognize the pride in his own heart. Later that night when the mob came to arrest Jesus and all were watching, Peter pulled out a sword to defend His Master. But just a few hours later at His trial, as Peter was being mocked by the enemies of Jesus, he denied three times that he even knew Him.
Each time Peter became more bold, until he finally denied Him with swearing and cursing (Verse 74). Then the rooster crowed. At that very moment, Jesus was in the judgment hall, being beaten by the guards. Peter saw Jesus turn and look at him with love and compassion, and it broke his heart. "And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly." (Luke 22:61, 62)
From that day forward, Peter was a different man. He no longer lived to please the crowd, but was determined to please only God. After his conversion, he was no longer ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Peter boldly preached to multitudes despite strong apposition and when they heard this , they were pricked in their heart... Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. (Acts 2:41)
When brought before the Jewish council and threatened with beating if he continued preaching about Jesus, Peter fearlessly answered, "We ought to obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29)
Peter forever proved his loyalty and love for Jesus when he chose to be crucified upside down by the Roman emperor Nero rather than to deny his Lord again.
Would you stand up for God when faced with the same circumstances as Peter? Would you deny the Lord thrice as Peter once did. Or would you boldly proclaim...We ought to obey God rather than men." Choose you now this day.
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Do Not Limit the Ministry of Jesus
Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." (Matthew 7:7)
I'd like to carry-forward today just a little bit on the subject of our limiting God.
I want you to think about this today and ask yourself a question. What might your life be like if you had fully cooperated with God, and had permitted Him to carry out His full purpose in your life? Believe me, my friends, things would be totally different with every one of us today.
The Holy Bible has some sad readings on this subject. For example, in yesterday 's blog, we pointed out that Jesus had gone back to His home town of Nazareth where He had grown into manhood. What an honor it was for that little village to welcome the Son of God-the Messiah-into their streets. But, they did not react as we might think they would to the visit of Christ.
They would not even receive Him, and they wouldn't listen to His message of truth. They rejected Him because He had lived in their town and was the known son of the village carpenter. read (Matthew 13:55,56)
Listen, friends. Jesus wanted to work His miracles in Nazareth just as He had done in Capernaum, but He was not allowed.
His relatives and neighbors lived in Nazareth; some of His boyhood friends were still in town. Maybe even some of them were sick or blind, and they all of them needed to know the Saviour of the world. Jesus longed to touch them, to heal them, to lift their weight of sin and suffering, but He could not. They limited Jesus by their lack of faith. He could not deliver them.
How often we read in the Scriptures the words of Christ, "According to thy faith, be it unto you." And that is the limit of what Jesus can do for any one of us today. There are wonderus things that He wants to do for us now, just as He longed over the people of Nazareth. He has all power to meet every problem and need. He is ready to move in your behalf to smash obstacles out of your path. He holds the Universe in His hand, but He can't do a single thing for you unless you are willing open your heart to let Him in.
So I say to you my son, if your lack that faith and don't know what to do, remember Jesus in (Luke 17:19) "And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole."
And again, Jesus said unto him, "Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee". (Luke 18:4)
He can still heal and deliver in this twenty first century as well as He did in the first? There is no limit to what God can do, when we alow Him to work that miracle in your life.
The Bible says the blessing of God and the Spirit of God is given to those who obey Him. "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find"..."According to thy faith, be it unto you."
Ia manuia,
failauga p. anoa'i
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