We all have something particular to do

I ended my latest blog series with a conclusion and a question: "I strongly believe we all have something particular to do, apart from the general works we are called to do as believers. 👉What is it He called you to do?"

In other words, what is your calling? The Bible is full of stories of people who had a specific task given by God. One smaller, one bigger, but a task nonetheless.

And whatever they did, became part of Biblical world history and God's Kingdom as we know it. All their stories are connected to Ephesians 2:10 where it is written:

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Notice it says 'in' Christ Jesus. We first need to be in Him. Why? Because it is in Him that we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). We find our purpose in Jesus. Being in Him comes before doing something for Him. Remember that! 2 Corinthians 5:17 says:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

We discover the specific works God has prepared for us when we are a new creation in Christ, in other words when we have been born again. How exciting! Think about it, there is a task only you can do. 

Yes, you. Why? Because you are unique. You have a specific character and background. You have specific life experiences, abilities, strengths, talents, and spiritual gifts. Some of your experiences may be painful or negative, but God will make everything new. He redeems our lives for His purposes.

I am a writer and blogger, but there are probably millions of people who do a better job than I do. Yet, I know that I am called to write about certain topics in a certain way, simply because of the way I think, the way I grew up, the way I connect with the Lord, the way I express myself etc. etc.

Furthermore, a prophetic word was given to me many years ago, before I even penned one blog, article, or book. God called me to be His 'faithful mouthpiece'. I have those words on my desk, to be reminded every day that I work for Him.

How do you find out what it is God has prepared for you?

• I believe it starts with prayer, asking the Holy Spirit to reveal the Father's purpose for your life.
• Seek Christian gatherings where people operate in prophetic gifts and come with a genuine hunger to do His will.
• Get inspired by reading the Bible, by the men and women that went before you and take notice when your heart jumps a beat... that is a clue for further prayer.
• Journal (write down) anything that the Lord brings to mind: words, thoughts, scriptures, names... anything! They are pieces of the puzzle.
• Make sure to seek silence so you can listen to the quiet whispers of the Holy Spirit.

This post might be helpful as well

And you know what, when we do the particular works, we are being shaped into the man or woman He ordained us to be. Our specific calling shapes our life for eternal purposes.

Is your love growing cold?

That we live in 'turbulent times' is probably an understatement, although I believe each generation has its share of ups and downs, blessing and drama, prosperity and pain. There is no such thing as a constant in life...

You may think whatever you like about everything we are experiencing in our world today. The opinions, thoughts, and interpretations of the current state of affairs are endless and quite diverse. I strongly believe each human being is entitled to voice his or her thoughts on any topic, as long as we listen to each other and respect the fact that not everyone thinks the same 😁

As Christians, we are warned (more than two thousand years ago) for times like this. Jesus clearly spoke about the future (which is now) and the things to expect such as wars, earthquakes, and pestilences. 👉Read Matthew 24 for yourself and see how accurate His predictions are.

I want to focus on verse 12 in that chapter, where Jesus says: Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. To me, that is the scariest thing of everything He had to say that day. Our love growing cold, a very troubling thought... and yet we see it happening every day, right in front of our eyes.

People divided and hating each other over politics, over mouth masks, over conspiracies, over religion, over about everything. And if that isn't enough, 'social distancing' is being preached as the new norm which is somehow accepted by many, many people as something to get used to. Really? Synonyms for distancing are dissociation, separation, isolation, segregation (!), alienation, disengagement etc. etc. Think about that, please!

Sin (everything that goes against God's moral standard for living and thriving) will be rampant everywhere (some translations say there will be an increase of wickedness) and at the same time our love for God, country, and each other will grow cold. We must be careful not to go with that flow. Do NOT let your love grow cold, guard it, exercise it, share it! 1 John 4:18 says there is no fear in love.

Let's keep fear at a distance, not each other!

Good times, bad times

It is quite interesting (and quite irritable as well) to see that every time a disaster, drama, or crisis occurs, experts' arise, shouting whether or not it was punishment from God, whether the end of time is near and whether or not Jesus will come back soon.

With the passing of time, things quiet down on the battlefield of doomsday thinkers, prophecies, conspiracy theories, and global plots. Until the next catastrophic event of course ... then everyone dares to speak up again.

What I often miss in their messages which (much to my annoyance) pop up everywhere in Christian Facebook groups and forums, is some form of love, grace, and hope. Anyway, each his own thing.

Looking at the history of humanity, it is quite obvious that there have always been good and bad times. Times of peace and war, of abundance and hunger. Yes, the so-called fat and lean years. The world didn't end and life resumed. Usually with people being full of renewed energy, confidence,  and many good intentions.

In bad times, we will often see a massive search for God, while in good times a general idea that we are doing just fine by ourselves is quite common. I don't really know if there is a healthy balance in this, maybe it is such a curve that keeps us alive, the ups and downs, the mountains and the valleys, the periods of great creativity and innovation and the times of indifference and consumption.

Every person on the face of this planet experiences times of joy and sorrow, of blooming and withering, of letting go and starting again. As a matter of fact, we see this happening on a larger scale as well. We see it in our country, our economy, our earth ... there is always that curve, called 'seasons'...

👉 As for the return of Jesus. He had something to say about it:

So be ready all the time. For I, the Messiah, will come when least expected (Luke 12:40, TLB).

I have often wondered what kind of moment that will be. A moment when He is least expected, don't you think that is interesting? I wonder if the 'experts' take that into account when they write their end-time scenarios. Basically, we do not know! The key is to be ready to meet God, all the time. Then, and only then, can we truly live a quiet life, no matter what happens.

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).

Light of the world (4)

In my previous blog I mentioned the song of Simeon. In this song, he referred to the words in Isaiah 49: 6, where God himself speaks. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

A light for all nations, till the ends of the earth, not just for Israel. This clearly points to Jesus. He came for the whole world, for all people. The first followers of Jesus understood very well that they had the task of telling not only their Jewish friends but the whole world about that light. Just read Acts 13:47 where Paul and Barnabas are speaking: For this is what the Lord has commanded us:‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.' And with those words, they quoted Isaiah 49: 6.

Pooh well, you might say, this is quite a difficult assignment, because the world is rather dark. Didn't Jesus make it sound a little too easy when He told people you are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14). How can we effectively spread that light, how can we be that light in this world? Personally, I think the first followers of Christ had questions about the practical side of being light-bearers as well, but they came to a discovery that I would like to share it with you:

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. (2 Corinthians 4: 6). God wants to shine in the darkness of our hearts, if we allow that of course. Invite Him to do so if you have never done that. Come on, just ask Him.

Then, we can actually proclaim 'For I was once darkness, but now I am light in the Lord' (Ephesians 5: 8).

Light of the world (3)

'Light shines in the darkness, we certainly do our best with all our lights and candles during the dark winter season. But let's not forget, the One who can truly take us out of darkness (enlighten us), the real light is Jesus! With those words I ended my previous blog.

How wonderful when a person receives that revelation. Let's take a look at someone who experienced that a long time ago ...

A certain Simeon lived in Jerusalem. He was a good and honest man and he deeply respected the law of God. He was full of the Holy Spirit and lived in the firm expectation that the Christ would soon come. When he saw the child Jesus in the temple he began to shout to God: ... my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel (Luke 2: 30-32).

Simeon saw the prophetic words from Isaiah literally fulfilled and it made him sing for joy. It's going to happen, God has kept His word. The light is here! Can we sing like he did? Do we dare to sing like Simeon because we actually believe that Jesus Christ is the light for the world?

When Jesus grew up He confirmed that truth: As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world (John 9: 5).

Give me a P

In my Bible Alphabet Blog Series P stands for Prophesying.

Prophesying (the gift of communicating revealed truth) comes from the Greek word προφητεία prophéteia i.e. prophecy.

Prophesying is not so much predicting the future, but more so the expression of the mind of God (as dictated by the Bible or the Holy Spirit) at a given moment.

1 Corinthians 14:1 says, follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. Especially prophecy ... How in the world can we make that practical today?

Prophesying is a spiritual gift which enables the believer to share a word of revelation from God (who is in Heaven) thereto urged by the Holy Spirit (who dwells in us). That word, therefore, is not a sermon prepared at home or a predicting of the future. Prophecy is the proclamation of God's will and the calling and encouraging of believers towards justice, loyalty and perseverance.

Some interesting facts:

• Uttering prophetic words is now something every believer can and should do (Acts 2:17).
• The gift of prophecy is distributed as the Holy Spirit decides (1 Corinthians 12:10-11), but we must pursue it (1 Corinthians 14:1).
• The appointment of a prophet for the edification of the church is done by Christ Himself (Ephesians 4:11).
• Nowadays, prophetic words are no longer infallible (as opposed to the OT), therefore, such words must always be weighed and tested (1 Corinthians 14:29 and 1 Thessalonians 5: 20-21).
• Prophesy is a matter of using our mind. Actually, it is one of the few times (maybe the only time) that the Bible says we must submit the spirit (1 Corinthians 14:32).

How do we strive to prophesy? I strongly believe by asking the Lord for it in prayer and by studying what the Bible says about it. God has always desired and still desires to speak through people like you and me. He wants to speak through His written Word ... but also LIVE!

The gift of prophecy

This is the 4th and last post (for now) on 1 Corinthians 14:1, Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. 'Especially the gift of prophecy'... how do we apply that to our daily life?

Even if we don't know anything about the spiritual gifts as mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12, we can learn from the above mentioned scripture that we should at least desire the gift of prophecy. This is a gift that enables the believer to bring a word of revelation directly from God (who is in heaven) under the impulse of the Holy Spirit (who is in us). So, it is NOT the delivery of a previously prepared sermon and it is NOT the foretelling of the future. It is proclaiming God's will and exhorting and encouraging God's people to righteousness, faithfulness and endurance.

Many wild stories and ideas do go around the world when it comes to prophecy, I have collected some biblical basics, hope they will help:

• The speaking of prophetic words is available for all believers (Acts 2:17)
• The gift of prophecy will be given as God decides (1 Corinthians 12:10), but we are encouraged to eagerly desire this gift (1 Corinthians 14:1)
• The appointing of prophets to build up the church is done by God (Ephesians 4:11)
• Prophetic words are no longer infallible (as in Old Testament times) and must be tested (1 Corinthians 14:29 and 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21)
• Speaking prophetic words is a matter of using our mind. It is one of the few practices (maybe the only one) wherein the Bible tells us to keep our spirit under control of our will/mind (1 Corinthians 14:32)

How do we test a prophetic word? For example by asking ourselves whether it conforms God's Word, whether it promotes Godly living and whether it is uttered by a person who is sincerely living under Christ's Lordship.

How do we desire the gift of prophecy? I believe by asking for it in prayer and then by studying what the Word has to say about it. God has always desired and is still desiring to speak through ordinary people like you and me... through His Word, but also LIVE!