A Precept, A Practice and a Promise

UV 348/10,000 Amazing Principles of the Uni-verse revealed verse by verse Psalm 84 v 11 Psa 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. The Word of God is structured in this manner. It contains a precept or teaching, followed by a practice and a promise. The precept is that the Lord our God is the sun of our lives. Unlike the earthly sun, He does not rise nor set. He is always shining on us. The sun’s rays travel through space and ether to light up the earth. The Word of God are the rays of His light that travels through eternity to provide both direction, guidance, warmth, nourishment. Unlike the earthly sun from which we must sometimes shield ourselves to protect us from the intensity of its heat, the Lord our God is a shield from the visible and invisible threats, temptations and dangers present in our lives. When we yield to Him, He becomes our shield. The Lord divinely enables us when we are so yielded to Him. He humbles us in the areas of our natural or personal strength and enlarges us or strengthens us in the areas of our weaknesses. His divine enablement is our daily necessity- our daily bread. The Holy Spirit reminds us, prompts us, encourages us with a timely Word, nudges us to move in the direction of fulfilling God-ordained potential and purpose. Fulfilling our potential and purpose is synonymous with the “glory of God.” We no longer fall short of the glory of God. When we have done something with our hands and say to ourselves when it is done, “ it is good, very good,” then we are glorying in it. In the book of Genesis, soon after each act of creation, the Creator said, “ it is good.” He was glorying in His creation. It stopped being “ good” in His eyes when man chose to violate His will. When man was reconciled with God once more through the blood of the slain and resurrected eternal sacrifice, Jesus Christ, He once more gloried in His creation and reaffirmed not with an impersonal “ it is good” but a personalized, “ He is good” or “ She is good”. The practice part of the verse is as follows: when we continue to walk in alignment with the paths indicated and lit up by the Sun of Righteousness, we are said to be walking in integrity or walking uprightly consistent with our faith in Christ. Integrity is a quality that if one possesses it, nothing else matters. If one does not possess it also, nothing else matters. “Good things” are meant for “ good people”. The very word “ good”, in my opinion is derived from “ God” meaning “ of God”. The promise part of the verse: This Uni-verse contains the wonderful promise that “ no good thing” He will withhold from those walk in faith and in consistency or integrity of faith. This has been my life experience too. What is the “good thing” you desire today? If you do not have it already, be sure it is on its way as you walk in faith and wholeness and uprightness. Prateep V Philip

Rejoice for life is an eternal Banquet

UV 347/10,000 Song of Solomon 2 v 4 Rejoice for Life is an Eternal Banquet Son 2:4 “ He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.” Our personal relationship with the Lord is compared to a continual feast. He will sup with us and we will sup with Him. It implies that the Lord will dwell in us, dwell with us in our homes and take us to be with him at the Heavenly Feast. At all times, His banner of protection and of love is over us as an ensign to the enemy that we belong to the Lord. The image that is drawn is that of a bridegroom who is none other than the Lord who brings home His bride, the church or every believer. He will preserve us from every evil. He will provide whatever we need. He has glorious plans for each of us. He will fulfill it. The Lord continually feeds us in the course of our relationship and our walk with Him. He feeds us with His truths that bless us, heal us and free us. Our soul is satisfied with such substance more than our body can be satisfied with marrow and fatness of meat. A sense of joy and gladness should always well up in us and overflow in our thoughts, words and actions. The banquet is called to celebrate Christ’s victory over death and sin and its consequences. Our mood hereafter should be celebratory. True optimism comes when we realize that we are in the banqueting house of the Lord. Nothing can go wrong. He who could turn water into wine, who could calm the storm, heal the blind and the lepers, bring the dead back to life, gave Himself to die to pay for our shortcomings and then took back life to help us conquer death and enjoy His resurrection power is the One whose love and grace is sufficient for us. The words, “ brought me” shows that it has already happened, not something that will happen in the distant future. The words, “ His banner over me is love” shows that His love is a present reality. His love is selfless, not conceited, not proud. His love does not hold a record of wrongs and is not puffed up. His love never fails. It endures and is not fickle. His love rejoices in the truth. Our attitude, too should be to rejoice in the truth of His Word. His love is perfect. Like the Shulamite beloved in the Song of Solomon, we too should focus on pleasing Him and doing His expressed will. Then, when He comes to take us on high to His Father’s home for the eternal banquet, He will not find our lamps are unpolished and empty of the oil of gladness and wisdom. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3DJOaAIVZQ&feature=related Prateep V Philip

Our spiritual beings formed in the womb of time and space

UV 346/10,000 Amazing principles of the Uni-verse revealed verse by verse John 3 v 3 The cells, organs and limbs of our new born spiritual selves Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” http://www.google.co.in/imgres?hl=en&gbv=2&biw=1320&bih=618&tbm=isch&tbnid=i8hunWPm0hdVpM:&imgrefurl=http://forlifeandfamily.blogspot.com/2011/12/hearing-heartbeat.html&docid=lqwtEtlEtd3WJM&imgurl=http://www.lifesitenews.com/images/sized/images/news/potential_life-580x357.jpg&w=580&h=357&ei=ShpcT8evGsiIrAewo5CFDA&zoom=1 Just as a child acquires a physical shape with many organs and limbs, a person is born again in the spirit when he or she is washed in the water of regeneration- the Word of God and the Spirit convicts one that the Word is truly God’s own Word. The darkness of the womb is replaced by the darkness in the world. Just as a baby is formed in the mother’s womb, the Holy Spirit will form and shape our spiritual bodies. The Holy Spirit is the obstetrician who oversees our spiritual birth and growth. ] When our thoughts, feelings and emotions combine with the Word, the first cell of our spiritual being is born. That cell further multiplies and differentiates into various organs in the womb of time and space. In due course, we develop the spiritual corollary of the different organs of the body- spiritual eyes to perceive the truths of God, spiritual ears to hear the teachings of God, a spiritual brain or mind to think, dwell and develop on these lines, a spiritual heart that continually adores and worships the Lord, spiritual limbs to take us places to share the truths that we have learnt. We become a brand new creature in Christ. With every breath and every thought and every emotion, our spiritual bodies are renewed and strengthened for the work of the Kingdom of God. Those of us who hear the Word but do not grow are like still born foetuses. Those of us who grow and bear fruit for the kingdom of God are the mature ones who grow to their full potential. Though we seem to be carrying the metaphor too far, it is good to think that every physical organ and part in our body has a spiritual corollary and equivalent that we need to nourish and strengthen. We need to pray, “ Let my spiritual eyes be able to perceive You as clearly as my physical eyes are able to see the world around. Let my spiritual mind be able to think the things of God with as much clarity as my physical brain is able to think on many subjects. Let my spiritual heart rejoice in you as my hormone- driven emotions delight in pleasure. Let my spiritual limbs bring me closer to you that I can hug you as my physical hands can hug my loved ones.” We will realize soon that we have a spiritual self as real as our physical self and that it is as important if not more important to feed and digest the spiritual food of the Word of God, as important to exercise the muscles of faith, as important to clothe the spiritual self with the clothes of salvation, as important to travel and be transported on our spiritual limbs into the heavenly realms. Indeed, prayer can gives wings to our imagination. Let reason take a back seat meanwhile. Prateep V Philip