Footsteps to Zion

Have you ever heard someone saying that he or she has heard the voice of God? This may be hard to believe at first but it is certainly true that God can speak to each one of us. Yes, it may be easier to believe that God can speak to “spiritual giants” like Abraham, Moses, and Elijah but to believe that God can speak to normal Christians like you and me may seem close to impossible. However, if we read the Bible more closely, we will find that God didn’t just speak to mighty, anointed leaders of His people. When God chose to reveal the birth of His Son Jesus Christ on earth, He didn’t just reveal it to the rich, wise men.  He also revealed it to poor, lowly, unknown shepherds. “Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold,...

Based on the message of Rev. Norman Holmes Before Jesus ascended to the Father, we read in Matthew 24:14, “ And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come .” One of the conditions to Christ’s return is the fulfillment of this verse. Thus, the Lord Jesus commanded us in Matthew 28:18-19, we read, “… Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. ” This is the Great Commission . We must not minimize our part in fulfilling this marching order from Jesus. Something that looked like utter foolishness when Jesus said to His disciples, “ I will build my Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it ” has become a success today when Jesus took a handful of ordinary fishermen to start a worldwide movement. He began something not by might, not by human wisdom, but by the power of the Holy Spirit. And now, what...

God once told a Christian, “I designed your life that you would bear fruit for Me... I come to My fruit trees looking for fruit. But the fruit that you were beginning to bear was out of reach and it wasn’t the kind of fruit that I was looking for” (Eskelund). When this Christian heard this gentle rebuke from God, he knew God spoke to him not out of anger, but out of love. God loved him so much that He didn’t want this Christian to stay fruitless forever and miss out on all that God had in store for him. This raises the question then: if God would look at our lives today, will He see any fruit? Some people might realize that they have no fruit yet - no souls won for God, no fruits of the Holy Spirit developed. While others may admit to having just some fruit, and already be satisfied with it. But God is not looking for just “some fruit” - He is looking for “ much fruit.” John 15:8 says that God is glorified when we bear “much fruit.” How then do we bear much fruit fo...

Source: www.LumoProject.com "Do business till I come." This is the word of instruction of the nobleman to his servants in the parable of the minas which Jesus spoke of in Luke 19:11-27. The same command is true to us today as He has entrusted each one of us with “minas” of which God will ask us to give an account. Just the thought that Jesus used the word "business" tells us that the ministry God gives to us is "work." And just like a businessman, God expects returns on His investment. In the same way that the nobleman returned to settle accounts with his servants, Jesus will come back again and judgment will begin in His own household – the Church (1 Peter 4:17). In this parable, the citizens hated the nobleman and that tells about the Jews’ rejection of Jesus. The servants are those who believe in the Lord. Ten minas were given to ten servants; therefore, each of the servants received one mina. Source: Sweet Publishing/FreeBibleimages.org Th...

What a comfort to know that in our weakness, God's strength ever more shines. It's in those moments that we can really trust in God and believe that it's not about our efforts to gain His love and acceptance rather His nature as the God of Love, upon which we can rest. In the book of Corinthians, Paul writes a letter to a church that is situated in a place that had a reputation for being carnal, lustful and licentious. Amidst all this, the apostle Paul encouraged them by saying that not many wise, mighty and noble are chosen, instead it is the base things of this world that the Lord chooses. We can see that the criteria used in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 is also applied in many parts of the Bible especially in the Christmas story. We can find four particular persons in the book of Luke that would seem very unlikely to be eligible and yet were chosen to be the vessels in whom John the Baptist and our Lord Jesus Christ would come into this world. 1. Zacharias and Elisabe...

The Lord promised that He will come back. But He tells us in James 5:7 that we ought to wait in patience like a farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth. In Isaiah 51:1-3, we are called to look to the rock from which we were hewn. The rock referred to is Abraham - a man who was given a promise of countless descendants and yet had to endure much waiting before the promise came to pass. These two passages are a reminder to us of how before fruitfulness comes, we are called to patiently wait. Isaiah 51:3 is an excellent promise of how Zion will not be desolate forever because a time is coming that her waste places and deserts will be like the garden of the Lord. We can look forward to a time when barrenness will be transformed to fruitfulness, sorrow into joy, and mourning into singing! Promises Come with Instructions In Gen. 12:1-3, Abraham was given a promise by the Lord that He is going to bless him and make him a great nation. God’s keeping will be upon him si...