The Challenge of the Cross!

The Cross of Jesus is perhaps the most significant event in the Bible.  For different people, the Cross means different things.  It is an ornament; for some, it is a good-luck charm; for others, it is a fashion symbol.  The Pharisees and Sadducees despised it.  It was a “stumbling block” for the Jews and “foolishness” to the Greeks.  As Christians, we use the symbol of the Cross for everything from marriage to funeral.  There is no ceremony without the Cross.  Using the Cross becomes an empty ritual, something of no value if we do not understand the Cross’s importance and significance.  

What...

DENY YOURSELF ...

During the Lenten season, it is common for us to practice self-denial!  It seems my grandfather on my father's side, who was known as 'Kaanathu Asirvatham,' used to walk everywhere during the Lenten days and then give the money thus saved to the Church!  For some of us, it is food; for some, it is entertainment or TV; and the list goes on.  It is good for us to understand what the Lord means when He says, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." (Mt. 16:24-27).   There is no way the Bible talks about doing something just for forty days!  I believe self-denial goes far beyond just physically denying ourselves for a short ti...

Fasting chosen by God!

Fasting is a way of humbling ourselves in the presence of God.  The realization of the awesomeness and holiness of God should make us realize our sinfulness and unworthiness.  We see how Isaiah felt in the presence of God (Is 6:1-6).  When we fast and pray, we expect God to answer our prayers.  So, after all, it is good to understand what kind of 'fast' is acceptable to Him.  In verse 5, God says, "Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself?" This question made me think.  'Only a day to humble' means God does not want us to humble ourselves for just one day.  If we fast food every day, we will die, so that is not God's plan!&nbs...

BURDENS ARE LIFTED AT CALVARY

A friend of mine lost her husband while she was very young.  When I visited her just after that, she shared this thought with me, and it has stayed with me fresh through many decades.  She was not crying after her husband's death, which made her worry if she had loved her husband enough to feel his loss intensely.  She asked the Lord what was happening to her.  Then suddenly, all her grief and loss came back to her with such force that she could not even get up for two days after that.  The Lord told her that He was carrying her grief and loss since she could not carry it herself.  It is wonderful to experience rest by having our burdens lifted at Calvary!

Fathers and Mothers

Paul attributes the genuine faith in Timothy to the faith of his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5).   It is incredible to see King Hezekiah turning out to be a Godly king, especially knowing what a wicked king his father Ahaz was.  Hezekiah opened the house of the LORD, which his father had shut and restored worship as soon as he came to power.  I believe it must have been because of his mother's  Godly influence.  While the Bible does not say so explicitly in the case of Hezekiah, the Bible says Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, king of Judah, walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother Athaliah advised him to do wickedly ( 2 Chronicles 22:1-3).  Even though...

Manasseh

It is sad to read the life of King Manasseh of Judah.  His father, King Hezekiah, was a Godly man.  The Bible says that Hezekiah “did what was good and right and true before the LORD his God.  And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart" ( 2 Chronicles 31:20,21).   But Manasseh did evil in the sight of the LORD.  He rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah, his father, had broken down.  He built altars for the Baals and made wooden images.  Manasseh built altars for the hosts of heaven, worshiped, and served them.  He made his sons pass through fir...

The Journey of Faith!

Faith, I believe, is a journey. 

The beginning is in believing in God's character.  Abraham fully believed that God had the power to do what He had promised (Rom 4:20,21).  God is able;  God remembers us;  God has engraved us on the palms of His hands.  The end is standing firm in our faith, believing in God's promises, for all His promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus.  God will do what He says;  God is not a liar;  God is faithful.  The Bible defines faith in Hebrews 11:1 as "... faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not...

On what lies your trust?

While Israel did not have even one king who walked in the ways of the Lord, Judah had eight good kings.  Four of this list of eight were, in a way, outstanding.  They were Asa, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah.  Even these four kings did not live with a heart fully committed to the Lord till the very end.  When God gave success, riches, victory, and peace, their hearts strayed from the Lord!

When Zerah the Ethiopian came against King Asa, he cried out to the LORD, and the Lord struck them ( 2 Chr 14:11).  But Asa made a pact with Ben Hadad of Syria to fight Basha of Israel instead of depending on God.  When Asa became diseased in his feet,...

God of the Valleys

We read about Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria, besieging Samaria during Ahab King of Israel in 1 Kings 20.  A vast army of thirty-two kings had sworn allegiance to him.  God did not leave Ahab alone but sent a prophet to tell him that he would come out victorious!  When Israel routed the Syrians, the Syrians said, "Their gods are gods of the hills.  Therefore they were stronger than we; but if we fight against them in the plain, surely we will be stronger than they" (1 kings 20:23).  So they gathered a big army and came against Israel to fight in Aphek.  But Israel routed them out entirely for the Lord Himself fought for them!  Valleys or mountain tops, our God is in...

Wisdom from the Book of Kings

As I completed the study of  2 Kings in my quiet time, I sat reflecting on my lessons.  Dates, names, genealogies of Kings and their enemies filled my head.  The Holy Spirit has some lessons to learn, examples to avoid and emulate amidst the many details!  The book of Kings is an excellent reminder of the daily pitfalls we face.

First and foremost, what struck me was the role of wisdom in our lives.  Life is easier with the wisdom of God!  The Bible says in Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction”!  W...