True Humility

This is a devotion by Charles Spurgeon on the humility of Christ. So much to understand what true humility is...an example set forth by Our Lord!!

"He humbled himself." -- Philippians 2:8

Jesus is the great teacher of lowliness of heart. We need daily to learn of him. See the Master taking a towel and washing his disciples' feet! Follower of Christ, wilt thou not humble thyself? See him as the Servant of servants, and surely thou canst not be proud! Is not this sentence the compendium of his biography, "He humbled himself"? Was he not on earth always stripping off first one robe of honor and the another, till, naked, he was fastened to the cross, and there did he not empty out his inmost self, pouring out his life-blood, giving up for all of us, till they laid him penniless in a borrowed grave?

How low was our dear Redeemer brought! How then can we be proud? Stand at the foot of the cross, and count the purple drops by which you have been cleansed; see the thorn-crown; mark his scourged shoulders, still gushing with encrimsoned rills; see hands and feet given up to the rough iron, and his whole self to mockery and scorn; see the bitterness, and the pangs, and the throes of inward grief, showing themselves in his outward frame; hear the thrilling shriek, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

And if you do not lie prostrate on the ground before that cross, you have never seen it: if you are not humbled in the presence of Jesus, you do not know him. You were so lost that nothing could save you but the sacrifice of God's only begotten.Think of that, and as Jesus stooped for you, bow yourself in lowliness sat his feet. A sense of Christ's amazing love to us has a greater tendency to humble us than even a consciousness of our own guilt.

May the Lord bring us in contemplation to Calvary, then our position will no longer be that of the pompous man of pride, but we shall take the humble place of one who loves much because much has been forgiven him. Pride cannot live beneath the cross. Let us sit there and learn ourlesson, and then rise and carry it into practice.

I don't deserve to be treated that way...

I think I have made the above statement a lot lately and I am not proud of it. I should be thankful for what the Lord has given me instead of being prideful and arrogant. The way things have been going at my workplace many a times I tend to think, this is not what I deserve, I am qualified to do more. God has been very patient and gracious with me. I was reading 12 Ordinary men by John MacArthur, and one of the incident that was mentioned in the book was about Jesus washing the disciples feet (John 13:1-20). Even as I was going through the context I realized that what Jesus did (by washing the disciples feet) was a very menial job. Yet He did it, without complaining & grumbling. Let us not forget who we are talking of; He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lord’s, creator of the heavens and the earth.

It is such a privilege to worship a God who is perfect and Holy and the best example we can follow. Reading that passage made me think, that God being so great went down to the level of a servant and washed the disciples feet, and thus set an example of humility and genuine love. So every time you feel that you are being told to do something (which in your own eyes, seems low) look unto Christ “who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Philippians 2:6-8

David's Song of Thanks

Today is Sunday morning and instead of being at church I am at my office desk. I was quite sad in the morning even as I left for work, as I knew I would miss corporate worship and fellowship today. But then i realized that i can worship God anywhere. Why sulk and be a bad testimony amongst my unbelieving friends, when I can be thankful and give Him praise for everything that he has done for me. So i opened my bible and turned to 1 Chronicles 16:8-36 David's Song of Thanks. Will share a few verses from the passage:

8Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
9 Sing to him; sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!
10 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
11 Seek the Lord and his strength;
seek his presence continually!
12 Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
his miracles and the judgments he uttered,

Just reading the first few lines made me thank Him even more for everything that He has done in my life. His wondrous works! I love verse 10"let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!" I then realized that i should not be a sulky Christian. He has blessed me with every spiritual blessing (Eph 1:3"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places")

After reading the passage i knew that I had to focus on Christ, and not myself. Never to forget that He is a great God: Sovereign,Wonderful, Just, Holy, Compassionate and Lovely. And these are just some of His attributes.

Will just end with a few verses from the passage:

For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and he is to be held in awe above all gods.(vs 25)
Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; (vs 29 b)
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!(vs 34)

My precious Saviour

Like the morning dew on the petal
Your word captivates my heart
Just as the bud begins to unfold
My heart begins to grasp
The glories of my Master
For what He rendered for my soul.

You are precious to me my Saviour
Much more than diamonds or pearl,
Your glory shines far brighter
Than the glaze of the rays of sun
You are my real treasure
You are my only hope.

How Deep is Your Love

I love this song and have been singing it a lot lately. Just to focus on His attributes and remember what Christ had to go through so that we have eternal life.

How Deep

You were broken that I might be healed
You were cast off that I might draw near
You were thirsty that I might come drink
Cried out in anguish that I might sing

How deep is Your love

How high and how wide is Your mercy

How deep is Your grace

Our hearts overflow with praise To You

You knew darkness that I might know light
Wept great tears that mine might be dried
Stripped of glory that I might be clothed
Crushed by Your Father to call me Your own

Words and music by Stephen Altrogge
As recorded on Valley of Vision

© 2006 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI).

Jesus-My all in all

A weak attempt in writing a few lines to express my Saviour's sufficiency.

Oh to live in the light of His Glory,
To breathe the air of His grace,
Eat of the bread of His life-giving word,
Health to my bones and strength to my heart,
Tis presence a shade from the scorching heat'
This is how my soul gets refreshed.

Are you burdened and in turmoil?
I give thee a sweet suggestion,
O go to Him weary spirit,
Carry no burden that is heavy
Leave it there at His feet,
For it is Jesus who will refresh thee.

Christian Life

Something that i am always thankful unto the Lord for is my church, Kerusso Bible Church. I am grateful to the Lord for the elders who minister to us every Sunday and at the weekly Bible Studies. Many a times we get all charged to up on Sundays after being fed with God word, to live godly lives. But many a times the zeal fades off by the end of the day. We need to meditate on His word daily. It is the food to our spiritual growth. Just like we don't eat the whole week's meal on one day, for our spiritual growth we need to feed on God's word every single day. That's the only way we can live God honoring lives by meditating on His word and praying continuously. Let us not forget that we are living in a wicked world, and if we don't guard our hearts and minds with the truth, we can start believing the lies the world offers.

Ephesians 6:10-18 explains it well as it says

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.
16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;
17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,
18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.
To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.

Therefore knowing what we are up against, we should be wise Christians, clinging on to His word. It is the only way we can stand firm in our faith and fight life's daily battles. Let us humbly come before God for wisdom, and not be wise in our own eyes.

What is our treasure?

What does treasure actually mean? It means something that is very dear to you. In the dictionary meaning as a noun treasure means: anything or person greatly valued or highly prized. As a verb it means:to retain carefully or keep in store, as in the mind/to regard or treat as precious; cherish.

Keep the above meanings in mind, as a Christian what are the things we treasure? Our car, home, music collection our intellect.. the list can go on.. We need to evaluate our lives constantly and keep our mind in check and see what are the things we treasure. Is Christ our treasure? Do we cherish Him more than anything else? There are a lot of things in this world that distract us and change our focus from Christ to other perishable things. The main reason we cherish other things more than Christ is because we don't value Him enough over the other things and He is not of great importance in our lives.

So we know our problem so what is the solution. How do i make Christ my all in all in my daily living.

1. Spend time Meditating on Scripture.

• Focus on His Attributes
• His work on the Cross

2.Spend time in prayer.

• Praising God
• Giving Thanks

3. Memorize Scripture.

• Scripture memorization should ultimately result in application in our daily living.
• People around us should see that every decision we make, our lifestyle, is centered around Christ.

So let us evaluate our lives and see who or what is our real treasure. I will end with Psalm 145

Great Is the Lord

[1] A Song of Praise. Of David.

145:1 I will extol you, my God and King,
and bless your name forever and ever.

2 Every day I will bless you

and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,
and his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.

5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.

10 All your works shall give thanks to you,
O Lord,and all your saints shall bless you!

11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the children of man your [2] mighty deeds,
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works.]

[3]14 The Lord upholds all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand;
you satisfy the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and kind in all his works.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
he also hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord preserves all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,

and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

To Know God

“And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom You sent.” John 17:3

This is the Highly Priestly prayer breathed out by Our Saviour for all the believers who believed in Him and who would believe. Yes!! Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners (1Tim.1:15) like you and me. From what? From the bondage of sin, death and from the clutches of the devil. For what? To have eternal life, in order to KNOW God- who is the one true God and Jesus Christ.

Most often when we think of eternal life, we are prone to think in terms of quantity than in terms of quality. Focus on the depth not just the breadth!! True life is knowing God! Stop at that. Think for a minute with me. God saved us to know Him. The one true God who is Great, powerful, Omnipresent, Omniscient, Sovereign, All-wise, abounding in love and so much more. We finite creatures, poor, fallen now washed, cleansed, forgiven to know an infinite God!! Doesn't that thought blow your mind??

We were not saved for ourselves and to just secure a safe place in heaven, but pulled out of hell's fire and brought into a close intimate relationship with God through Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are called into a relationship. Notice carefully it is not knowing about God but knowing God. There is a vast difference in that. No wonder it was Paul's running theme often in the Epistle to the Philippians. And God wants us not just to know Him but also to understand Him. And He delights in that. Too much?? Read the verse below.

"Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands me and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD." Jeremiah 9:23-24.

So the next time you are thanking God for your salvation received through Christ, meditate on John 17:3. We are to know God and Jesus Christ by the power of His Holy Spirit. And this is accomplished with much dependence on His Holy Spirit, by reading and meditating on His precious life-giving word that transforms our life and renews our mind (Romans12:2), in constant prayer and practical application of His word in our lives, desiring His glory alone!! (1Cor.10:31)

Study of Doctrine

Doctrine plays a very important role in the life of a Christian. I know of many churches who do not give importance to the study of doctrine. Therefore, we have Christians all around with a very shallow knowledge of the Word of God. Being part of a local church that stresses on going back to the Bible for everything, helps a Christian grow in faith. Some important doctrines like Justification, Election, Sovereignty of God and many more play a vital role in our lives. It helps us to think biblically and thus the foundation of our faith is strong. For eg: In times of trial we know that the Lord is sovereign in our lives, and therefore we don't doubt God in his doing knowing that He is perfect control.

Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope"

Therefore we know that the Lord has "plans of welfare" for us, and it helps us focus our mind on the character of God. A person who does not know this truth will tend to believe that God is mean and loves to see His children struggle.

The study of Doctrine also helps us discern the truth from the lies. There are so many people who do not preach accurately, and because of the lack of knowledge from the Bible people believe them blindly. Doctrines are taken from God's word so ultimately we are studying the Bible, which will draw us closer to God and know Him better, which should be our ultimate goal.

One life to live!!

Yesterday, I completed reading the book, "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper and I must confess that I am quite unsettled in my heart. How am I living the life gifted by God for His glory?? Am I making much of Christ ?? Is my lifestyle and pattern of living reflecting that Christ is my REAL TREASURE??? I ask you too?

It is so easy to get caught up in the flow of life forgetting that we are called to lose our lives for the sake of Christ that we may actually save it!!! Radical huh?? Paul knew when he said, "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21. And "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." Philippians 3:8....

Christ is our real Treasure! He is the Bread of life! He is the gentle Shepherd. He is our all in all!! I love this quote that I came across in this book:

Only one life,
’Twill soon be past;
Only what’s done
for Christ will last.

Let us resolve to live in the light of eternity and with gratefulness of heart that we were saved by the precious blood of Jesus and that we are not our own, we belong to Him!!
“You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19- 20).

Regenerated...

Have been reading this book by John Piper called "Finally Alive" and it has been a blessing to my soul. It talks about what exactly happens to a person when he is regenerated or as it says in the bible "born again". It was such a good time for me to contemplate and think back and see how the Lord saved me, and what He saved me from. After many years of being a Christian we tend to forget about the Lord's saving grace.(Eph 2:4-5) It was humbling and it bought me down to my knees, thanking and praising our Lord for the new life that He has given me.

This book also talk about the qualities that a regenerated person has. In this day and age many call themselves as "born again" Christians but are truly not saved. In the initial chapters he speaks on John chapter 3 about how a person is born again.

The book also goes into various doctrines like, Justification, Sanctification & Glorification. I am truly being encouraged, edified and convicted reading this book and would recommend every Christian (those regenerated:) to read it too.

God Moves in a Mysterious Way

God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea, and rides upon the storm,
Deep in infathomable mines of never-failing skill,
He treasures up His bright designs, and works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take; the clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break in blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding ev'ry hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flow'r.
Blind unbelief is sure to err, and scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter, and he will make it plain.
-William Cowper, 1774

The deceitfulness of deceit

We come across this word "deceit" so often in the Bible, so I thought "Wwhy not find out the dictionary meaning of this word?". It is interesting!


de⋅ceit 
 /dɪˈsit/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [di-seet] –noun

1. the act or practice of deceiving; concealment or distortion of the truth for the purpose of misleading; duplicity; fraud; cheating: Once she exposed their deceit, no one ever trusted them again.

2. an act or device intended to deceive; trick; stratagem.

3. the quality of being deceitful; duplicity; falseness: a man full of deceit.

Origin: 1225–75; ME deceite < style="FONT-VARIANT: small-caps" Synonyms:1. deception, dissimulation. 1, 3. Deceit, guile, hypocrisy, duplicity, fraud, trickery refer either to practices designed to mislead or to the qualities that produce those practices.

Deceit is the quality that prompts intentional concealment or perversion of truth for the purpose of misleading: honest and without deceit.

The quality of guile leads to craftiness in the use of deceit: using guile and trickery to attain one's ends.

Hypocrisy is the pretense of possessing qualities of sincerity, goodness, devotion, etc.: It was sheer hypocrisy for him to go to church.

Duplicity is the form of deceitfulness that leads one to give two impressions, either or both of which may be false: the duplicity of a spy working for two governments.

Fraud refers usually to the practice of subtle deceit or duplicity by which one may derive benefit at another's expense: an advertiser convicted of fraud.

Trickery is the quality that leads to the use of tricks and habitual deception: notorious for his trickery in business deals.

Antonyms:3. honesty, sincerity.
Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009. Cite This Source