Footsteps to Zion

Continued from THIS ARTICLE... 2. THE BAD EYE      Leviticus 21:18-20 talks about some characteristic physical defects that prohibit one from coming before the Lord. While they all have their own spiritual significance, we would like to focus on those that are associated with the eye. One defect is blindness , which is essentially the lack of vision. We have to see where we are now and where we are going! We need to walk in the present truth of God and lead other people as well to the pathway of light. Another defect is a “ blemish in the eye ” which signifies diminished sight, or blind spots in our vision. We tend to interpret truth based on the lenses that we use to see that truth. (Such as the proponents of Christian homosexuality or remarriage that twist Scripture to validate and “legitimize” their carnal desires!). So often, we think that we are able to see the whole picture when in fact, we often need to pray for the Lord to show us the situation as He ...

Matthew 6:22-23 NKJV The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!           Jesus tells us that the light of the body is the eye. The eye gives us a sense of vision, an awareness of the things and happenings around us. With our eyes we are able to appreciate many wonderful things such as the myriad of colors and hues in our surroundings.      In the above passage, Jesus talks about two kinds of eyes. 1.THE GOOD EYE      In the Greek, the term “ good ” is haplous . In the King James Version, this term “good” is translated as “single” which is rightly so because the term connotes wholeness, singleness. The thought is undivided vision, that of having a single focus and goal.       Human beings h...

Continued from Part 1 ...  4. The people of God must prepare well. It takes time to build the temple of God. Preparation must be undertaken. It says David abundantly prepared because David understood the scope of the work that will be undertaken. 1 Chronicles 22:5 Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death. (NKJV)       How are we preparing today? We are preparing by allowing God's work of transformation to be done in us as well as by getting equipped through discipleships, Bible classes and hands on training in ministries. Let us prepare faithfully! 5. The people must set their heart and soul to seeking God. As David gave instructions to Solomon on the building of the temple, he told his son to set his heart and soul to seek God. ...

     God has always sought for a place where His glory can dwell among His people. At several points in history a dwelling place for God's presence was built. He seeks for such a place because He desires to be with His people. While in the past God called His people to build natural temples, today He calls us to build His living temple, His church. 1 Peter 2:5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (NKJV)       And in building the living temple of God today, much can be gleaned from the experiences of those who built physical temples for the Lord in the past as well as from the instructions given to the New Testament church. 1. The builders had to build according to the blueprint given by God to the leadership. When the Lord commanded the Israelites to build a sanctuary for Him in the wilderness, the Lord said that they were to...

     In the last post , we have talked about joy as one of the keys in triumphing over difficult circumstances. Oh how we need the joy of the Lord!       But to whom is the joy of the Lord given? Psalm 45:7 tells us : You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.        Here we see that those who LOVE RIGHTEOUSNESS and HATE WICKEDNESS are given the anointing oil of gladness by God! We need this two to be developed by the Holy Spirit in us because we are not naturally righteous, and we are very prone to wayward ways. Our love for righteousness is manifested if we choose not to compromise the standards that God has set in His Word even if it means having to pay a costly price. I have seen this happen to all the Christians I know who chose to come up higher in their walk with God. It is definitely not possible to mature as a believer o...

     JOY is one of the keys to triumphing over every trial, suffering, or tribulation. Paul in his letter to the Colossians (in Colossians 1:10-11) prays that the church there “ might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power,unto all patience and longsuffering WITH JOYFULNESS ”.      Nehemiah 8:10 tells us that the joy of the Lord is our strength . It is joy that will cause us to have strength in the hard times! Habakkuk (in Habakkuk 3:16-18) also tells of this wonderful key to overcoming hardship : When I heard, my body trembled; My lips quivered at the voice; Rottenness entered my bones; And I trembled in myself, That I might rest in the day of trouble. When he comes up to the people, He will invade them with his troops. Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the oli...

    Mark 5:18-20 And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. However, Jesus did not permit him, b you, and how He has had compassion on you.” And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.ut said to him, “Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for him and all marvelled.      Unlike the disciples who followed and served Jesus, the demon-possessed man who was delivered by Jesus was clearly instructed to go back to his home and be a witness among his own people. To me, this account serves as a reminder that while not all are called to a path of full-time church ministry, we are certainly all called to be ministers of the gospel wherever God has planted us.       For believers who are in secular jobs, it is no accident God has placed you where you are today. He has a divine purpose for putting you i...

Rev. Paul Caram in his book “ True Christianity ” has said, “ how we handle money determines whether or not we will succeed in our Christian life ” -- and he is right! How we manage our money reveals a lot of hidden things in our hearts! It tells us what we really value in life, whether we possess self-discipline and faith, and much more! The problem lies not with how much money we have, but how we manage and handle the money that we have. There are at least three key issues that need to be addressed in a Christian’s life when it comes to money: 1. CHARACTER and RIGHT ATTITUDES. Some of the things that should be developed in our lives include: A. Submission - have we surrendered to God the FULL control of our money? In actuality, it is HIS money, and we are but stewards. The question is not how much of our money we will give to God, but how much of God’s money should we keep for ourselves. We should develop an attitude of seeking God for every purchase we make. We sho...