Sunday, December 27, 2015

Song of Mary

Meditation of Mary's song

The song "Mary did you know", when i first heard it, i was thinking why the song writer is asking so many questions to Mary.
like Mary did you know that your baby boy will one day walk on water.
Mary did you know that your baby boy heal the blind.

Yes it is a song praise in the form of a question.
But after listening to this song again and again, i wanted to know what Mary knows.So I said let me look in scripture abut what Mary knows.
Then i found this song.

You should know a teenage girl about 15 to 16 years age.
The Romans Catholics idolise mary and evangelical christians neglect how God used Mary.
But one thing we should know is God has chosen Mary.
out of all the young women who were there in the land of israel, when God wanted to send His only Son Jesus Christ, He chose Mary.

The only thing that she knew about the baby is what angel Gabriel told her.
V 31 "you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."

And this song that she sings when she met her relative Elizabeth.
In this song you will really know what Mary knows about her God.

V 48. Man is body soul and spirit being.

Mary says, Her Spirit rejoices in God my savior.
and Her Soul exalts/magnifies God.

Lets take an example, suppose you take joy in the way certain sportsperson play.
If you take joy in the way that he plays, then in your every talk you will exalt that person, you will talk good about that person, you will elevate. you try to wear his printed t shirts.

what Mary says is in my Spirit, I rejoice in my Savior. and so my Soul exalts my Lord.

how many 15 year old teenage girl can say these words. only a girl who is deeply in love with God can say these words.


V 48. She realized that God has regarded the humble state of His bondslave.

we seen that all apostles considered themselves as bond slaves of Jesus Christ.
that is after they were filled with Holy Spirit.
When angel brought her the Word, despite her questions she said, Let it be done according to your word.
But here is teenage girl who considers herself as bond slave. today when most of the teenagers are bondlaves of gadgets, fashions, here is a girl who who can say Lord I am your bondslave and you looked at my humble state.

You may ask Mary did you know your baby boy will one day walk on water.
She will say i know my Gods Name is Holy.

If you ask Mary did you know that your baby boy will heal the sick.
She will say i know my God has done great things. No wonder He will do all these things that you are asking. that is her faith.

Verse 52.
One thing Mary realized is that God resist the proud, but exalts the humble.

Verse 53 is a crucial verse.
He sent away the rich who thought they have everything, but He filled the hungry with Good things.
When rich is mentioned, you can say wherever you don't seek God you can consider that as richness.
because the biggest sin a man can do is not depending on God. and one who is rich and does not need God they will be sent away empty handed.

But one who is hungry for God will be rewarded. Mary as a teenager was hungry for God. and what other good can come to her, that the womb of this girl is chosen as an entry point for the savior to come into this world.

She is so hungry for God. God blessed her with Savior. He did not bless her with all the richness of the world. How do you know? even after the birth of savior, she is still poor and when she took Lord Jesus for dedication Luke 2: 22- 24, they brought turtle doves.

what Mary knows is God is God who keeps His Promises. She knows all the promises are Yes and Amen.


Chruch, this song is not to say great things about Mary, but taken this so that Church will be encouraged through the life of Mary.

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Psalm 62

Waiting upon God.

WaitingRoom is a place where life looks like has come to a halt.

When have to meet somebody at say 10.30 and that person is late and you are waiting, that wait is unbearable.

when you go to doctors office, lets say they give an appointment at 10, and when you go in at 10 the wait will be like forever.


Waiting has 3 things.
Passage of Time
Confident Expectation
Waiting time is Seeking Time

Passage of Time
Psalm 130:5-6: “I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope. My soul waits for the Lord More than the watchmen for the morning; Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning,”

In Psalm 130:6, the psalmist says I will wait like a watchman waits.
The watchman watches the night times go hour by hour till he sees the morning.
the morning doesn't just in a twinkling second. but there is a passage of testing time.

Confident Expectation
Another aspect of this verse is The watchman knows for sure that morning is coming.
The watchman has no doubt that morning is coming, he is sure about morning, he knows its only hours away. But we sometimes sit in Gods waiting room with out a surety. It is the faith factor.
God is not pleased if we wait without trusting in Him.

In Psalm 62, the psalmist is sure that He is my Rock, my Salvation, my Defense and he says I will not be greatly moved.
If a person does not have this hope, even though he is waiting he will be disturbed.

Waiting time is Seeking Time
Lamentations 3:25
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.

When we enter doctors waiting room, we just sit and wait and watch for the call.
but its different in Gods waiting room, we need to seek Him in His waiting room.
Seek Him in your waiting, Learn about Him through Word. Learn praying in this waiting time.
It is in this secret place of waiting your life with God is built.
my testimony of waiting.

Bless with Mouth, Curse with Heart
Verse 4: Don't be like the wicked who bless with their mouth, but curses inwardly.
If you have something , go and ask directly that is better for you rather than saying Blessings with mouth and inwardly cursing.
that's what happened with Miriam and Aaron whenever they see Moses , Brother Praise the Lord.
but they go into the tent and says, Does God only speak through Moses. Aren't we Important ?

Verse 10.
If Riches increase do not set your heart on them.

The problem is not with the riches, the problem is with your heart set on them.
As you know I joined this new job, i got a good hike from my previous job, the first thing I started doing is calculating how much tithe.

This heart is always prone towards riches, but set your heart on God, that will bring a blessing, wait on God with solid hope and trust and during this wait seek Him earnestly.





Saturday, December 12, 2015

Psalm 61


Psalm 61 is a psalm written by King David.
This psalm starts with a prayer and ends with praise.
How good it will be if every prayer ends like that.

our God is a God who hears the prayers of His people.
Today if you are praying , this psalm encourages that wait for that praise.
Today you might be waiting for a job, blessing of a child, breakthrough in family life, or for a marriage or healing. Don't give up on your cry to the Lord.




From the ends of the earth I will cry out to you.

When you are not among your known people, when you are not in your familiar situations, when you are not in your comfort zones, any place will be like the ends of the earth.
Davids comfort zone is Jerusalem, it is the place where He worshiped God along with other saints.
But when his son absalom rebelled against him and he was running away, he was in wilderness  and he is in strange situations and overwhelming situations, and he calls those places as ends of the earth.
But for David, place doesn't matter, He always calls on God.
for some people, they pray only when they come to Church. for some people they need some occasion like Christmas.
what this teaches us sometimes is that we may at the remotest part of this world or in strangest situation , but our God is just a prayer away. Be quick to pray.

An African missionary story about the hot water bottle and doll.


Lead me to the Rock that is Higher than I.

The place where the psalmist is, or the level where he is - he thinks enemy might attack him.
So David is asking God to take him to that place or the Rock which is Higher than I.

Imagine a sailor who is on a ship and because of the waves or mighty storms, the ship is uncontrollable and now what the sailor will be looking for is a Rock which is at a higher than him.
He wont be looking for a rock below him, or he wont be looking for a rock which is just appearing out of the sea. But he will be looking for a Rock which Higher in place where he can stand and be at rest and secured from all the tossing waves and storms.

David in the midst of the storms, calls out to God the Father , asking to lead Him to that Rock of Ages ( that is Lord Jesus Christ)  and who is there to lead him is the Spirit of God.

Let us ask God to lead us to the Rock that is Higher than us. To get us out of the attacks of the enemy.
Sometimes if the issue we are going through is something solvable or can dealt with then we will pray.
But if the situation is too big then we try to seek peoples help.

Honor God through prayer.

Among those in the court of Alexander the Great was a philosopher of outstanding ability but little money. He asked Alexander for financial help and was told to draw whatever he needed from the imperial treasury. But when the man requested an amount equal to $50,000, he was refused--the treasurer needing to verify that such a large sum was authorized. When he asked Alexander, the ruler replied, "Pay the money at once. The philosopher has done me a singular honor. By the largeness of his request he shows that he has understood both my wealth and generosity."



Verse 4: Security is in the tabernacle of God.
In the presence of God is the security for mankind. Their lives are secured from eternal death, their lives are secured from the attacks of the enemy.

colorado girl story .




Sunday, November 29, 2015

Psalm 60

2 Samuel 8 : 11-14.

Nothing in scripture portion of 2 Samuel suggests that they were lost and any tone of lamentation.
It all sounds victory.

The situation could be that While David was fighting with Syria and Moab,  and Joab commander might be fighting somewhere else and suddenly there might have been an attack from Edom.
And when Joab returned he killed 12 thousand.
1 Chronicles 18:12 says Abhisai, brother of Joab killed 18000 people.

Here we see the battle was great, the results are favorable for Israel and in this context Psalmist says My God deserves a song  in this situation.

David is a man who has new song for every situation in his life.
We sing songs like God is good all the time, He s put a song of praise in this heart of mine.

David heart is like this
If Victory-, oh its a victory for me, God deserves a song.
If Trouble - oh its a trouble situation, my God deserves a song.

Coming to Psalm -

First David deals with root cause of the problem. Why this wars have come - why this troubles arise from the neighbors (syria, edom, moab).
In software , we call it as RCA ( root cause analysis of the defects that software has).
So he got the Victory, he killed so many people, and he made a name for himself and now he sits down and do the root cause analysis of the whole situation.


The main thing David noted root cause :  God is displeased.
A man like David sitting down after a victory and see the situation came because God is displeased.

Is my life pleasing to God? When Lord Jesus was baptized, the voice of God says This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.

A life in which God is pleased, is a blessed life.
The life of Jesus is one where God was pleased.

Here David makes a confession that Lord it is because You were displeased that all things wars have come.

But in the midst of all chaos, confusions, You have raised a banner of Truth for us.
The banner in the olden times is used to gathering all people or signal the troops.
Here it talks about Banner of God, where in the times of confusion, chaos if there one banner where people can go is Lord Jesus Christ.

After the Prayer God Spoke:

Judah and Ephraim are symbols of Gods kingship.

When we go in prayer, God speaks, and He speaks of the relationship that we have with Him.
See how great a God we have. He looks to as His authority and kingship.
but to the enemies He says  wash pot and sandals.


Lessons Learned: 
V 11 - help of man is useless.
Only God can give the victory.











Sunday, November 22, 2015

Psalm 59

Verse 4 :
I have done no wrong, yet they are ready to attack me.
    Arise to help me; look on my plight!

Here David did not do any Wrong. He did not commit any evil plot, or done any bad thing to Saul but still he was being attacked.

Many times people end up being attacked because they commit some mistake. they might have are on wrong side. and as a result they receive punishment.

In 1 Peter 2: 19-22
If you suffer for doing wrong, what credit is there in it..
But if you suffer for doing good then it is commendable before God, it is pleasing in the sight of God. 

Thomas university student.

That is why it is written in Matthew 5:10 that
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

19 For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. 20 For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. 21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us,[f]leaving us[g] an example, that you should follow His steps:
22 “Who committed no sin,
Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;


Today, is there a situation in our lives where we suffer for doing wrong, or suffer for doing being righteous and suffer for standing as a Christian.
If you suffer for doing wrong, what credit is there in it..


2nd thing in this psalm is 
Gods Strength/Power : mentioned in V 9,17

We all know how Great God is looking at the creation.
His Power being revealed in the nature. We read in the old testament that from time to time Gods power is revealed in the life of Israelites.
But here in New Testament I have been learning from what pastor is teaching, is the Grace of God when multiplied, This Grace gives us power to overcome, for everything we need. 
A true over comer is one who always comes under the throne of Grace.

So let us always take the Showers of Grace. It is under Grace we receive power to overcome.



Sunday, November 15, 2015

Psalm 58

Verses 1-5 shows the wickedness of the judges.
This was before David became king and when king Saul was against david, david was labelled as Rebel of the nation and all the judges that are with saul , inorder to please saul had judged him saying yes David is rebel and must be caught and killed.and so David ran away.

characteristics of these judges --
1) It is not that they by mistakenly have given a wrong judgement.
but in their hearts they work out wickedness.
Isaiah 57:20 says - They were tossing on the bed with thoughts of wickedness.
But the wicked are like the troubled sea,
When it cannot rest,
Whose waters cast up mire and dirt.

2) They are estranged from the womb.
The wicked are born sinners.
3) They keep accusing people like a snake spit poison.
They refuse to hear - David was not even given a chance to make his case.


David did not rebel against Saul. He waited and allowed God to work in his toughest moments of life.
He didnot hurrily gather some people and rebelled against king.
He did not do things on his own. But waited patiently for God to deal with the his situation. 


The great encouragement is that God will take revenge on the enemies.
There is a reward for those live for God who wait upon God.

Friday, November 13, 2015

Second Coming of Lord Jesus seventy weeks


70 weeks = 490 years
When this period of 70 weeks started?
Israelites under the captivity
First Babylon kings – for 70 years
Next Persian kings (kings specified in bible - Cyrus, Darius, Artaxerxes)

Daniel 9:25-27
Our future is clearly mentioned.

4 decrees given by the 3 Persian kings - Cyrus, Darius, Artaxerxes
1st decree by Cyrus: regarding building the
To build him a house at Jerusalem
2 chronicles - 36:22; 23
2nd decree by Darius (also build house of god in Jerusalem)
Ezra 6:6-12
3rd decree by Artaxerxes (regarding to build the house of god in Jerusalem)
Ezra 7:11- 28 (verse 27)
4th decree again by Artaxerxes
Nehemiah 2:5-8
This request also given to king Artaxerxes by Nehemiah
To build the city of Jerusalem, not the building of house of god.

So first 3 decrees to build the house of god in Jerusalem, but fourth decree is to build the city of Jerusalem.

Daniel 9: Verse 25
The day when the decree to build the city of Jerusalem, this period of 70 years started.

When Gabriel, spoke these things to Daniel, they are under the Babylon .
Meaning still Persians still didn’t come.
So Gabriel revealed the future, to Daniel

445 B.C march 14 – history tells that this day decree is passed by king Artaxerxes
70 year period started

To understand 70 weeks, divide into 3 parts/3 periods:
7 weeks = 49 years
62 weeks = 434 years = then total of 483 years
1 week = 7 years
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Division of 70 weeks.

weeks -     49  (Daniel 9 : 25,26)
62 weeks - 434  (v 26)
week -         7 (v 27)
--------------------------
                 =  490 years
---------------------------

“Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;

So 7+62 = 69 weeks (483 years - To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince)

first 49 years - in Nehemaih built the Jerusalem town.
After second 62 weeks (434) years - Messaiah will be cutoff.
and then 

Matthew 21:
Luke 19: 41,42 

42 saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day
the day represents the 62 weeks finished.
Entry into Jerusalem - 62 weeks (434) years completed.


Daniel 9:26 (And the people of the prince who is to come
Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.) - This prophecy has 2 implications.

History says king Roman king titus destroyed Jeruslem.
Then this verse also implies that anti christ will come with his people and destroy.

So bible experts expect that anticrist will be from Rome.

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Gods ways are higher than our ways

Most of the time our focus is on man.
Very rarely we think about God.
Compared to God, we focus more on man.

The statistics say,in a typical week, the average person will speak enough words to fill a 500 page book

Even the number of words, number of thoughts -  most of the things we discuss about man, we think about people.

Even in Christian life also --- some times our focus goes onto man when our focus should really be God.

What God wants than what I Want to do.

What God thinks than what I think

What God Loves than what I love.

Anything in Christian life comes down to this.

Gods way or my way.

Isaiah 55

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.

Thoughts of the LORD are HIGHER than  our thoughts
The Ways of the LORD are HIGHER than our ways.

Rahab, Boaz

We all know Rahab - about her life.
Joshua 2 : 1 gives overview of Rahab's past life.
She was a prostitute.
She believed in God and she and her household got saved.
Joshua 6:25 says - Joshua spared Rahab and her fathers household.

We see this as analogy for Salvation.
We are many times satisfied with Salvation and stop looking at the glorious life that comes with salvation. 
A life of victory over sin.
A life of living by the Word of God.
A life of promise of God.

This is all where most of us stop.
Never limit God -our God has no limit.
Don't limit God by our thinking.

John 21:25 says
25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.


To see how Rahab's life is transformed.
Turn to Ruth 3:

Naomi tells Ruth, its good that you have followed me from Moab to Israel, now its time to settle you down as a family, Get ready and go to the Boaz harvest place and don't identify yourself, there is going to be party time, a cheerful time, and when boaz eats and drinks well then histo him so that he can marry you.
Verse 7 says.
Boaz had good time in eating and drinking. and he slept.
then Ruth goes and sits at his feet and in the middle of night he woke up and saw and did not commit sin.
A celebration time - that is harvest
Add to that a good meal,a good drink and 
nobody to question him. and now a young woman at his feet in the middle of night
See the character of Boaz.
First thing he calls her daughter. He thinks of values of who should redeem first
in that situation.
This is the character of Boaz.

Remember who is this man and where this man came from:
He comes from the womb of a woman who was prostitute before she believed in the Lord.
This is what God can do in your life and my life.
If you put faith in Lord Jesus Christ, your past life may like the life of Rahab, a life that wretched, a wasted life. but because of the God is so amazing, he turns the bitter to sweet, He not only changed the life of Rahab, He not only protected the family of Rahab but He brought a man called Salmon to marry Rahab and from that womb He brought forth a man who even in the middle of the night when a woman comes to him, he did not sin . Thats what God can do. That is the way of God.
we might say what good can come from the womb of a prostitute.
we might say nothing to talk about children of a that woman.
But God used that woman that womb to bring forth one of the holiest person in the bible .
Isnt it true that Gods ways are higher than our ways?
Exodus 20:7 says God will bless thousand generations.

Proverbs 30: 18,19
18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me,
Yes, four which I do not understand:
19 The way of an eagle in the air,
The way of a serpent on a rock,
The way of a ship in the midst of the sea,
And the way of a man with a virgin.







See how man thinks and God thinks

1 Samuel 17:
V 37,38 - David says it is the Lord who delivered me from lion and bear.
Saul says that okay, but take this armor. 
take this helmet (thinking this will protect David from gloiaths weapons)

Sauls thinking is that Although he used words like Go, and the Lord be with you, he gives all the things necessary to fight the war.

Not only Saul, even Goliath thinking is the same.
Goliath is expecting David to come in the Armor, Sword and shield. 
The world expects you to come to respond to them in a way that they think.

Saul is thinking David should wear the armory,
Goliath is also thinking and expecting that he should fight with someone in armor.
Everyone's focus is on man, and his strength, his sword, his height.
But David being man after Gods own heart - Goes to the battle by the Strength of the Lord.

Can we declare today, that I will go against every problem in the Name of the Lord.
If there are people accusing us today, don't respond in the way people expect you to respond, Go in the Name of the Lord.



37 Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”
And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”
38 So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail. 39 David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. And David said to Saul, “I cannot walk with these, for I have not tested them.” So David took them off.

43 So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?”
verses
But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel

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Moses

Just for Reference - Exodus 2:11-12
11 Now it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren and looked at their burdens. And he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren. 12 So he looked this way and that way, and when he saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 

Acts 7
23 “Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. 25 For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. 26 And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ 27 But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’ [e]29 Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.


Look, he is fully fit at age of 40.fully learned man having grownup in palace.
Moses was trained in all Egyptian Learning.
He is at the right age of 40.
At this moment he comes to Brethren and kills Egyptian.
Read verse 25: 
For He thought - Whose thought is this - the man.
What is mans thought - the brethren (Hebrews) would understand that God would deliver them by his hand.
He thought that people will understand him. 
v 25 says but they did not understand.


Now he has to run for his life and ends up in the land of Midian and 
marries a girl and becomes father of 2.

Moses difficulties.
--> First, people of different religion and different race.
--> Second, wife of different race and different ideas.( he could not circumcise          his children)
--> Third, He became a shepherd, a profession  which he did not know.

--> Fourth, - to add to all to this, he is at FIL house.
Exodus 2:10 says God telling Moses - I have heard their groaning, now go.

All questions of Moses.

At 40 :
Moses was a skilled man.
At right age.
Moses is a man who can kill another person and can hid him in the sand.
Moses is a man who thought everyone will understand that God sent him.


At 80:

Exodus 3:13 - Who am I Lord ?
Exodus 3:13 - What is His Name?
Exodus 4:1 - suppose, they will not believe me.
Exodus 4: 10 - I am slow to speech.
Exodus 4:13 - Lord see if someone else can go.

It is not about our strength.
It is not about our intelligence.
It is not about what people will think about us.

When our strength is gone ..When we are weak.. He is made Strong ( 2 Corinthians 12:9)
when our strategies are all gone - Gods wisdom is revealed.

How Great is our God.
Gods ways are higher than mans ways.

For leading people of 6 million , do you send a young 40 yrs man or 80 yr old man.
For God age doesnt matter.
When all our abilities are gone - God does His work.


When you are weak He is made Strong.
2 Corinthians 12:9
And He said to me,“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” 




-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Came to senses - Prodigal Son.

Coming to senses is not about mans work.
Its about coming to senses about who God is. What His House is.


“These have chosen their own ways…. when I called, no one answered,
 when I spoke, they did not listen;
 but they did what was evil in my eyes
and chose that in which I did not delight.”


cursed is the man who leans on the man