Toxic Friendships

And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the LORD? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the LORD. (2Chronicles 19:2)

I want us to look at friendship by exploring this godly king’s relationship with an ungodly neighbouring king, Ahab.

We do not need to state the fact that friendships are essential to human living and development.

It is also worth noting that even in evangelism and missions, relationships are a very key ingredient to their success or otherwise.

This means that we must develop some sort of relationships with the unreached, even enemies of the cross, for us to effectively reach them.

It is against that background that we are examining Jehoshaphat’s life choices and their fruit.

Neighbours must have relationships.

They will either be at war or in partnership.

An example is Israel’s relationship with the Philistines which was always full of conflict.

We also remember the beginning of the split between Judah and Israel when the Bible states that there was always war between Israel and Judah.

It must have been the thawing of that relationship that brought about this relationship.

When sworn enemies bury the hatchet, they will want to compensate for all the animosity they previously had.

I suspect that was the cause of what I want us to explore.

Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: (Proverbs 1: 14)

That is what we see with Jehoshaphat when asked whether he wants to join him in a war, twice. And not even a clear word from God through prophets is able to dissuade him from joining such a war.

Having one purse introduces a dynamic to any relationship, taking it beyond friendship to partnership.

You become one team with the ones you share a common purse with.

This means that they deserve our support, whether they request it or not, whether they are right or not.

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. (2Corinthians 6: 14 – 16)

Most people associate this verse only with marriage. But I believe it applies more to other partnerships that it does to marriage.

And that is not to say it doesn’t also apply to marriage.

You see, in marriage, the two become one flesh with one purpose. It is a oneness and not a partnership.

You yoke two separate animals to maximise on their individual strengths.

A yoke of oxen can handle more weight that the combined weight of two unyoked oxen. Yet they will require less food and water than two separate oxen.

But a yoke of oxen will require more training to be able to do a good job. A mismatched or mistrained yoke of oxen will cause more than double the damage.

But the main point in this message is that a yoked team must more or less think and plan in unison to be able to maximise on their strengths.

I am still talking about Jehoshaphat.

Do you realise where he went wrong so early in his life?

He yoked himself to an enemy of the God he loved and worshiped early in his life.

Due to that, were it not for God watching over His promise to David, that partnership could have wiped out his posterity. All because of an ‘innocent’ friendship!

Our friends will definitely influence our lives much more than we think or imagine.

That simple business partnership; that simple pooling of resources; that simple sharing of transport, has a huge impact on how our lives, even destinies shape out.

The background to one of my favourite verses makes it clear

For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. (2Chronicles 16:9)

This godly king had seen God when he had not ‘arrived’.

Then a small challenge comes when he can afford someone to fight his battles and he does what most of us would do. He uses his money to hire someone to fight his battles. He uses his team to win without a sweat.

Smart thinking. Or is it?

God calls it foolish and an invitation to war in his life. His effort at stopping a war became an invitation to unending war because it had brough about a toxic relationship.

Simply because that partnership, though to us it appears like just an exchange of money and services, extended to faith. He was simply paying a foreign god to fight for him.

Incidentally, many kings fell into that error when we study Kings and Chronicles.

What am I saying?

It is an open secret that many children start experimenting with sex and drugs with those young and innocent house girls and gardeners whose background was too poor to afford them an education.

Many children get exposed to pornography and homosexuality by family friends they look up to.

Amnon was innocent until his cousin opened his eyes and widened his horizons.

And this young man was on hand to assure David that only Amnon was dead.

This means he had all along walked with the knowledge of the planning of that assassination but did nothing about it, either to talk Absalom out of it or warn the king about it.

But he was a present friend in the palace.

Though it is not written, it is very possible he is the one who advised Adonijah to request for Abishag from Solomon because he looks that kind of person.

Pooling resources.

Friendship.

What is God telling you? 

Positive Mammon

And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. (Luke 16: 8 – 13)

It dawned on me that mammon can never be righteous. It also can never be neutral

Mammon is an enemy to righteousness, according to Christ’s own teaching.

No wonder it is easier for a camel to pass through a needle’s hole than for the rich to inherit eternal life.

Why then am I putting positivity on an unrighteous thing?

It is because of what Christ is teaching in this passage.

How can He associate something unrighteous to a safe eternity? How does a wrong thing open the door to heaven as He appears to be saying?

It is instructive to note the parable from where this is coming from.

A steward is accused of impropriety. But stealing may be a more fitting term.

He therefore orders him to clear his desk because he was being dismissed from his position.

What he does is the backdrop of this message. And you will realise that it started with the lord who was in the process of dismissing him commending him.

Reminds me of a story of an ancient king whose direst punishment was an offender being torn to pieces by his dogs as was done for Daniel with lions.

One of his closest servants was condemned to that for breaking one law or the other. Or probably doing something that made the king lose trust in him.

Before he could be taken to the dogs, he requested that he be given ten days with the dogs.

The king thought that it would not do much harm to humour this condemned confidante.

The man then fed the dogs and took care of them.

When the ten days expired, he was thrown to the dogs.

But instead of them tearing him to pieces as per their custom, they started playing with him.

The king sought to understand what had happened and the condemned said thus,

Ten days with the dogs and we have become fast friends. I have served you for years yet you can condemn me to death for a single mistake.

Mammon

I want us to look at situations in the Bible where this truth plays out

We will start with the harlot Rahab.

Like I always say, she was the scum of scums as a harlot in condemned Jericho.

Then some spies come into Jericho looking for somewhere to hide as they do their survey and the script completely changes.

It is possible everybody else they approached for refuge turned them away and reported to the authorities.

But she saw a chance that she could not allow to pass and lodged them, even lying to ensure their safety.

Is it any wonder that she is mentioned all through the Bible?

The next is the Shulamite woman

She saw a tired old man and ministered to him before she knew that he was a prophet.

Not only did she receive a son beyond her wildest dreams and prayers, but she also received him from death.

Not only that. She was able to benefit from that ministry even after Elisha had exited the scene.

Think about the shortie, Zacchaeus.

We are not told that salvation came to his house after his repentance but after offering half of his wealth to the poor as he was entertaining Christ’s huge crowd.

Remember the Roman soldier whose faith touched Jesus in Luke 7?

He had built the Jews a synagogue, a synagogue he was forbidden from entering. And he was seeking for healing for his servant.

Do you realise it was the Jews who were pleading with Jesus to attend to this gentile and oppressing coloniser?

Why was Peter sent to Cornelius?

And why did the disciples refuse to allow Tabitha to rest in peace after her death?

Unrighteous mammon.

They all used unrighteous mammon to make spiritual inroads.

Note that they did not consecrate mammon or even anoint it as some idiotic ministers are doing to continue enjoying the giving of other idiots like them. They simply gave unrighteous mammon as it was and it was able to change the direction of their lives and destiny.

A missionary friend was sent to a foreign nation and the man of peace was nowhere close to what he was preaching in his life or business. But he served my friend appropriately.

He had a health condition that was beyond doctors and hospitals.

Before he left, he prayed for his host and there was perfect healing.

Allow me to give a situation that I know happens many times.

A rich wicked man hears the struggles a minister is undergoing and calls him to his office, asking him to give him a breakdown of everything he needed.

He then decides to humour himself or make fun of the minister by writing him a cheque to cover all his needs, and more.

Who do you think will get heavenly credit for the success of this minister?

Do you think it is the church that sent him?

Think also of this funny story I heard.

A man was praying for a major breakthrough in his business.

Incidentally, every time he would get to the altar, he would find another guy praying very simply, shoes

He looked at him and got annoyed.

Why is this man flooding heaven with such a cheap request? Isn’t he stifling my prayer line by that prayer?

He therefore took enough money from his pocket and not very politely told him to go buy himself shoes to stop interfering with his prayers.

Do you think God was angry with his deed? Do you think the guy praying for shoes cared about the attitude of the giver of those shoes?

That is the message Jesus is passing to us today.

There are people who will get to heaven because they invested their unrighteous mammon into relationships and ministry.

Matthew 25 is testimony to that.

The sheep are wondering why they are in heaven because they were no giving with heaven in mind.

They were not giving to compete with (outgiving) God as preachers nowadays teach. Nor were they giving for accolades.

They were simply meeting the needs around them.

That then opened an account in heaven in their names.

Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. (Mark 10:21)

And you remember that this young man was righteous.

I will also quote Cornelius’s interaction, noting that he also was a gentile

... And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God. (Acts 10:4b)

What am I saying?

We could be breaking our backs touching lives by sprinkling the Gospel in bits and pieces when the wicked are securing real estate for themselves in heaven by changing societies, some even funding those same missions we find it difficult to fund through our stinginess.

I know this appears very rude, even wrong.

However, look at this

... That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. (Matthew 21:31c)

What you do with unrighteous mammon has a direct bearing with how you will be received in heaven, at least according to our passage.

As believers, we are answerable to God for how we use our money.

It is actually sin if we do not wait for God’s orders before we spend it.

But the standard for the heathen is different since they do not have the revelation we possess. They also are not led of the Holy Spirit as we are.

This means that their judgment will be more lenient than ours.

The yardstick for our giving is different because we are supposed to know better with the Holy Spirit leading us.

But I think the greater challenge is not just being led but a proper relationship with mammon, unrighteous mammon.

We can’t spread God’s love through unrighteous mammon unless we detach ourselves from its hold on us.

We will not be able to open a heavenly account if God must have our permission before using our money.

Christ must be the Lord even of our pockets and purses and bank accounts if we must have accounts in His heaven.

For believers, it is not about generosity or philanthropy. It is about obedience.

We must be guided to give. We must be ordered to give because it is not ours.

And I think it is called unrighteous mammon because God releases His authority over our money so that we can then willingly surrender it back to Him.

It thus becomes unrighteous all the time it is under our control because He has no authority over it.

Take this as an off the cuff comment.

Calling wealth unrighteous mammon has a very clear implication on how we acquire it.

Any honest pursuit of wealth is legitimate. Please underline the word, honest.

This means that there is no dichotomy to God between secular and spiritual occupations. And I am writing this as a minister God called out of secular employment.

I am not any more spiritual that I am in ‘full time’ ministry than I was when I worked for a media house.

God is the one who called the Levitical class. And He did not do it because they were more righteous than the other tribes.

He is the one who called Aaron to the priesthood. And we can be sure he was not closer to God than his brother Moses.

Remember his sons died because they played with their calling just after their calling was confirmed?

It is God who determines who He will call and why.

An honest publican is more spiritual than a manipulating archbishop.

Compare Zaccheus with Judas. Or the publican and pharisee at the prayer centre.

But this post is about our use of unrighteous mammon.

For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward. (Mark 9:41)

There is a reward for the person who quenches the thirst of a minister.

And that does not demarcate between godly and ungodly quenchers of that thirst.

It does not talk about the motive of that quenching. Just like we do not have different levels of thirst.

Just like water quenches thirst, quenching the thirst of a minister invites a reward from heaven.

We might hide behind long words and titles. But the reality is that money can open doors, not only of corrupt offices as we are used to see, but also the doors of God’s rewards.

Look at the money and wealth you have

Do you manage it as your own or are you a steward of another?

Is the money you have yours or are you holding it in trust for another?

If you are holding it for another, how much say does he have on that money?

Can you expect a reward from the actual owner of that wealth in your name?

Can you confidently say that you are going to heaven because you have used that unrighteous mammon to secure eternal rewards?

And do not for a moment think I am nullifying grace.

This is simply the fruit our interaction with grace will produce.

 

Highest Bidder Truth

Recently, there was a story on TV that amplifies this point.

An incident occurred close to my place.

I was able to talk to several (not one or two) eye witnesses to it.

One of them told me to expect a surprise when I watch the news, though I do not watch any news.

The reason he said that is because stories involving those criminals have always been doctored to paint a sanitising narrative on the villains.

And that is exactly what happened.

Friends who watched that news were enraged to see truth butchered so mercilessly.

The evidence was conveniently shifted so that the story could go according to plan.

In one short swoop, the villain is made the innocent victim and vice versa.

The one who was doing his job has to apologise and compensate the offender.

I am reminded of an incident a dozen or so years ago when an estate demonstrated a whole week, even blocking a key road, so that a particular police officer is released.

Since that is so uncharacteristic of Kenyans, I sought to understand why that had happened.

The officer had done a proper job of ridding the estate of pests that had become such a nuisance because they were untouchable, coming from great wealth.

Incidentally, nothing was able to save the officer from jail because the of the influence money had on the case.

What am I saying?

We live at a time when it is critically important to verify what we call truth.

Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. (John 17:17)

This is because it could well be that what you call truth has been auctioned to the highest bidder. That the narrative you imbibe is the product of some auctioning process.

You could be fighting for a truth that has gone through boardrooms and marketplaces to be acceptable.

It could be that ‘unbiased’ reporting is the product of a purchase.

And being the product of a media school and media, I can confidently confirm that any news we read, listen to or watch goes through the filter called editorial policy that is the preserve of the owner of the media house.

That is why you will read or watch a news item and wonder why the same story has so many variations to the point that some appear completely different stories.

That is why you might follow a news item covering an incident you were part of or witnessed being so different from what you saw happening.

What am I saying?

We need to be very careful with what we follow.

Because what we follow has a way of shaping not only how we interpret issues, but also to shape what we ultimately become.

Truth is not relative, however much we may seek to demonstrate it.

As such, what we may call relative truth is actually auctioned truth, which is carefully packaged lies.

I have started at the marketplace. But my focus is not there.

I want us to look at Biblical truth.

And I do this because a vast majority of believers in our times place a greater premium on proclaimers, teachers, professors of the scriptures instead of the scriptures on their own.

Most are more comfortable quoting their favourite preacher (whatever title he may hold) than they are quoting what the Bible on its own says.

Others even quote women teachers even when the same Bible prohibits them to teach in church.

Do not get angry at me. I am not the one who wrote the Bible. I am just quoting it as you should.

Many believers are consistently reading the trash released by their spiritual brokers even as they neglect the Bible from where those conmen pretend to get their messages from.

The only time some will open their Bibles is to read the verses quoted by such brokers.

I intentionally use very strong words because of the danger following those characters are exposing their followers to.

I am also a teacher and also write books. And I of course write them to be read though I do not sell mine as per my orders.

But my books point to the scriptures and not me. they direct the readers to Christ and not my next release. They seek to build their faith in Christ and not draw them to my conferences and anointed events.

I want to help and guide people to read the Bible for themselves. That is why I include a Bible Reading Plan on the inside cover to challenge them to consider starting to read the Bible for themselves.

And it is the same with my blog.

You see, God has called me to guide people to Him. Like John the Baptist I should decrease even as He increases.

I am the most effective in my ministry when I am most decreased and He is most increased; when I am most invisible and He is most visible.

Jesus is the Truth; not me, not you, not anybody or anything else.

This means that any truth that does not have Christ at its helm is auctioned truth.

Truth with a man of God at its helm is unfortunately the best image I can conjure of that.

And it is because at its best, it is idolatry and at its worst, it is spiritual terrorism.

It is not different if we replaced the man of God with a spiritual structure, however spiritual its foundations may have been.

Only Christ is the truth, unadulterated truth.

He is the truth all other ‘truths’ find their validity.

No wonder even the enemies of the cross extensively quote Christ and the Bible to get any grounds for their opposition.

That is why faith in Christ and obedience to His revelation is the common ground for persecution.

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. (Psalm 2: 1 – 3)

That is why governments refuse to tackle conmen in clerical garb and use their conmanship as their ground for attacking the church of Christ.

Reminds me of a recent happening in Kenya when the government, instead of reining on the conmen using the church to enrich themselves as they preyed on the ignorant chose to block the registration of the churches for a decade or more.

You wonder which is easier between deregistering the openly crooked churches and blocking genuine churches from existing.

You wonder which is easier between prosecuting those endangering their flock through manufactured miracles on TV and blocking the move of God through declaring all churches conmen.

That is auctioned truth for you.

Any truth that does not have Christ at its apex is auctioned truth.

And in the simplest terms it is a lie.

What has Changed?

There is an interesting comedy on the world stage.

Roles have changed. Shoes have changed feet.

I have over the years said that the most judgmental people are the ones who shout the loudest about the most misquoted two words in the scriptures, ‘judge not’

Looking at the USA today exemplifies this.

Not so long ago, the abominable (and I call them so because that is how God calls them in His word) never stopped reminding believers to stop judging their abominable choices, reminding them that we are told not to judge. Yet the same people were doing everything possible, even changing laws, to criminalise the believers’ choices when they were in power.

Some were sacked and others lost their businesses for daring to live by what they believed. Simply said, they were judged very harshly for judging by the ones who were shouting the loudest not to judge.

The other day the dynamic changed and people who practice Biblical truth took power and decided to reverse those ‘gains’.

The same people who were judging believers for ‘judging’ them are again shouting loudest that the believers are not believers because they are not loving them.

What type of Christians are you if you are not full of love for our choices? How can your choice kill my choice?

They are now judging the believers for not loving them as they think the Bible teaches.

All the time forgetting that they were doing worse when they were in power.

If that is not comedy, then tell me what is

It is comedy because I am outside the drama.

And that is not the only incident where truth depends on who is sharing it.

Look at wars, terrorism, crime.

My side must be right because I am the one holding the microphone. My side must be right because I have the News outlet. My side must be right because I have the power.

All the time demonising any other alternative source of truth and shouting do not judge when the reality cannot be hidden.

It is absolutely wrong to trash any narrative you do not agree with.

It is wrong to call others idiots simply because they do not agree with whatever you call your values.

And it is wicked to force everybody to agree with your narrow interpretations of whatever you want people to believe as truth, especially if it differs with the revelation of God’s word.

Do unto others what you would have done unto you is valid whichever end of the stick I am.

I must be gracious in my judging if I should expect grace when I am the one being judged, simply because we reap what we sowed.

I should respect others’ opinions as I report their stories if I should expect respect when they are the ones doing the reporting.

Life is a mirror that reflects what is in front of it.

This means I should judge myself more harshly than I judge others because no other judgement can be harsher than truthful self judgment.

Nobody is an idiot. Nobody does not have an opinion. Nobody cannot be hurt or injured.

And people will reflect how you treated others as they treat you when you are on the receiving end.

Prepare for a nice and comfortable receiving end by extending grace when you are the one holding the stick.

Let me close this by simply stating the obvious; there is really one truth, God’s truth through His revelation in His word, the Bible.

Any truth that differs with it is trash, however trendy it looks.

It is trash however huge its support base is since a majority opinion can never be equated with God’s truth. Quite the contrary.

Foundation?

Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5: 17 – 19)

We have been taught, and even I have taught, that the Old Testament is the foundation of our faith.

This implies that the New Testament is the only visible part of the building.

That is what I want to shatter today though I am open to correction.

And I will start by asking a simple question.

For builders, what is the percentage in cost, material, time, workmanship of a foundation vis a vis the completed building?

However demanding that foundation is, I doubt it would go beyond a quarter of the building’s total cost.

That is what I want us to examine as we look at the Bible.

Allow me to use some percentages I took as I went through the Bible. And they are rough estimates with some margin of error that statisticians might find fault with.

But I teach the Bible, not statistics.

·       Pentateuch 20%

·       History 25%

·       Poetry 12%

·       Major Prophets 18%

·       Minor Prophets 5%

·       New Testament 20%

How can 80% be the foundation?

And why did Jesus not say He was coming to start building but to complete?

The truth of the matter is that the Old Testament was not the foundation but the building itself

The New Testament came to complete and beautify the building that had been in process through the times.

What am I trying to say?

The Pentateuch is the foundation with the first eleven chapters being the preparation for that foundation.

From that point, the building started in earnest.

No wonder everything in the New Testament points to the Old Testament

It is written, haven’t you read?, etc.

Jesus was the crowning act of the whole drama, the beautifying part in the building.

That is why Apollos could accurately share the Gospel without encountering Christ or even the visible church members.

That is why the Gospel spread fastest among those with prior knowledge and exposure to the Old Testament.

We therefore err when we equate the Old Testament with a foundation, basically because it creates the assumption that it is not as essential for the day to day running of our faith.

Or whoever made any reference to the foundation when they are looking for some rentals? Whoever sought to see the depth of the foundation before moving into a house?

The only person who may be interested in knowing the condition of a foundation is the one seeking to install heavy machinery because of their impact on any building they occupy. Simply because they require solidity as their foundation.

No wonder many believers associate the Old Testament with expired instruction and obsolete theology.

What then, according to me, is the New Testament? Where does it lie?

Jesus is the door as He said in John.

And that is where the New Testament starts.

The New Testament is what is done to a house after the door is installed.

Allow me to describe a door.

A door stands for security and warmth.

A door is the testimony that the house is habitable.

You can move into a house without plaster, without furniture, without a floor.

But people will doubt your sanity and sense of security if you moved into a house without a door.

A door also represents a boundary. That is why people will question your sanity if you moved into a house without a door because it is open to all. It is simply a shelter from the elements and nothing else since there is no way you can stop anything from getting in.

It is impossible to count on a house without a door. Simply because you must be there for that to be a reality.

I will be building on this on (a) later post(s).

 

Staged Generosity

Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. (Hebrews 13:2)

I want us to look at this verse in the context of Matthew 25 about the sheep and goats.

The primary reason I do it is because in the course of ministry I have severally encountered people who are always on the lookout for those angels to the point that it more or less becomes a passion.

But is that what the writer of Hebrews was teaching?

Of course not.

And this is why I want us to look at the Matthew discourse.

While the sheep were wondering when and how it was that they had ministered to Christ, the goats were wondering why it was that they didn’t see Him to minister to Him.

Reminds me of a story that was doing the rounds in my childhood in church.

You will allow me to paraphrase it to illustrate this point.

Jesus told someone that He would be visiting.

Of course, the person in question laid the red carpet in anticipation and went all the way to prepare for this very important guest. They even prepared a sumptuous meal for Him.

Then a tramp passed by looking for food.

Giving him food would mean dirtying everything, from the carpet to the utensils. And he couldn’t risk doing it because Jesus could be coming at any time. What would He feel seeing a stained carpet?

So, he chased him with a heavy heart.

Then a child came passed by for something or the other.

Again, he couldn’t risk his preparedness for the Saviour and therefore chased him.

A weary passerby came across looking for water to quench his thirst and he was also chased for the same reason.

Evening came and still no Jesus.

He therefore called Jesus, complaining because he had waited for Him the whole day and He had refused to honour His word.

‘But I came three times and you chased Me’, was Jesus’ reply

Our friend was perplexed, thinking that Jesus was pulling his leg or something.

Being on the lookout for angels produces the same results.

They will come and leave and you will be none the wiser because you were looking at the wrong signs.

Abraham was not looking for any angel when they appeared.

Moses was not looking for an angel when He appeared.

Jacob was minding his business when the angel appeared.

The disciples were not looking out for Jesus when He called them.

In short, angels do not visit the expectant. They visit the ready.

And I must explain what I mean by this.

Spontaneity is what produces results.

The nature of the giver is in its packaging.

Lest I confuse you more (or probably confuse you more), I think it is also wise for me to lay down some ground rules for what I am saying.

Jesus said that we will be known by our fruit.

A tree does not struggle to produce fruit.

A mango tree does not produce mangoes because it works really hard.

It does it because that is what it was created to do.

It just needs to live to produce.

Give it water and nutrients and it will produce mangoes.

We are like that mango tree.

We will produce after our kind by simply being us and not by striving to produce.

We will need water and nutrients to produce after ourselves.

But I also need to add that we are also fruit from elsewhere and not in any way autonomous beings.

The One who produced us will determine what we will in turn produce.

The quality of our produce is determined by the kind of nurture we are fed on.

In short, a mango must produce mangoes. But a well-fed mango will produce bigger and better mangoes.

What am I saying?

Hospitality is the fruit of a life lived on God’s terms. It is the product of a person who is born of God.

The relationship the person has with God (nurture) determines how good that hospitality is produced.

But as always, there is a counterfeit hospitality, originating from a counterfeit deity. But this is man-made and not spontaneous as it requires effort and external stimuli.

This kind leaves out everybody to be able to exclusively serve ‘Jesus’.

It does it because it cannot afford to waste resources on those without requisite resources for paying back, at least in kind.

One is a well that produces without asking where its water goes.

The other is a tank that needs the assurance that it will be refilled before considering whether to release its water.

I hope all these words are not confusing you.

The essence of Matthew 25 is the hearts of those two teams.

Though one team unconsciously did the right thing, the other team was simply unable to find the right thing to do.

It is impossible to think of them as being lazy or stingy. Because then they could not have asked the questions they did.

For our purpose allow me to ask what I think their question was.

Where were you when we were giving? How come we bypassed you in all our giving?

Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. (Matthew 6:1 - 4)

That is the spirit by which Christ is ministered to.

Giving is not acceptable to God when or if it is done for show. Meaning, I am not serving Christ when I am doing it with a camera, however noble the cause may be. And I am sure that was the way the goats did it.

Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just. (Luke 14: 12 -14)

And that is how the sheep did it.

No wonder none of the teams recognised Jesus in their service or non service.

What is your motivation for giving?

The long and short of what I am saying is the God judges the nature of the giver and not the substance of the absence of the same.

No wonder the poor widow who gave the least outgave the abundance of all the mega givers combined.

The question we need to ask ourselves, however, is, who am I? What am I composed of?

What overflows when I get full?

That is what God is looking at.

That is what Jesus will use when judging us.

 

Dry Bones 3

You will allow me to close this call for prayer with the source of that fire.

And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? (Genesis 41:38)

That fire is not the product of our effort.

I am not therefore asking you to pray for me for more power to perform.

It is a prayer for the release of God’s Holy Spirit in His fulness in my life.

That is what is consistent with everybody in the scriptures walking in power.

The Holy Spirit is the fire that can never be ignored.

He is the fire that contains the power to transform.

He is the fire that convicts.

I am therefore praying for the fulness of the Holy Spirit in my life.

Do not for a moment think I am talking about the drama that charismatics have made of it.

Being Spirit Filled is all about being completely under His control and Lordship.

He is the One holding my reins, so to speak.

We see that when we read the Bible.

It has nothing to do with emotional highs or strange tongues but everything to do with His Lordship over every detail of my life.

It has little to do with the gifts and their exercise but everything to do with the reproduction of His character and nature in my life.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (Galatians 5: 22, 23)

This is what Jesus meant when He said that we will be known by our fruit. The same reason He did not mention our gifts.

The problem with my spiritual life now is familiarity or something like that.

After being in Christ and His ministry for long, that fruit of the Spirit can very easily become the fruit of my experience because it has become habit.

I have overcome temptation for so long that I do not even think about it and it stops featuring in my experience.

It means I could effortlessly overcome temptation in my backslidden state.

My passion for ministry could be so ingrained that it becomes automatic and not dependent on a vibrant relationship with Christ.

My indignation against sin and evil has become part of me to an extent that I will fight spiritual battles in the flesh and not even realise it.

That is the danger Christ was warning us against when He addressed the churches of Ephesus and Sardis in Revelation 2 and 3.

I am praying against a habit led obedience and a momentum fuelled ministry.

And I must create the space for my most quoted verses

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7: 21 – 23)

That is the possibility I am seeing in my life.

And that is what I am inviting you to pray against.

I want us to pray against the beaten path that removes our focus on Christ’s Lordship.

There is something called driver’s fatigue or something like that.

This is when a driver falls asleep on the wheel yet drives for hundreds of miles without a single mistake though his mind is completely switched off to the point that he will not remember a single thing about that trip.

This happens because he has been driving for so long that it becomes instinctive.

He will brake when required, give way to others as required and follow lanes as required.

At that time, his eyes become sensers to guide his other body organs to automatically do what is required.

That is what I fear my ministry has been leaning toward.

The reality is that our enemy can see our autopilot ministry for what it is.

No wonder we stop causing offense because we lack the spiritual fire that comes from wakefulness that is the product of a vibrant relationship with Christ. Our enemy stops fighting us because we are on his side when he looks at our spirits.

Nobody can get scared of losing to a vehicle using momentum because sooner or later that slope offering gravity will end.

He will just give us space to flow then speed off before we realise that our engine was off.

Is this not what has opened my eyes to the state of my spiritual life?

Allow me to quote the message to the church of Ephesus to get my point

I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. (Revelation 2: 2 – 6)

There is not a single complaint about their character, ministry, doctrine.

They are scoring plain As for who they are and what they stood for.

They are doing the same for their relationships and witness.

But their spiritual engine is off. They are simply coasting on neutral. They are running on momentum.

Though to us it appears energy saving, simply because it is effective, to Christ it offers great offense because it takes the focus off Him to our effort. They are bearing spiritual fruit using tools of flesh.

That is why they were being called upon to repent.

And I believe that is the same call God has for us today.

And I have seen it in myself.

As you pray with me, please remember to pray that God also points that beam of truth on you so that you are able to see whether it also applies to you.

Otherwise, you may pray me get out of the darkness you are in.

But please pray for me.