November 5

Matthew 21

¹⁸ In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. ¹⁹ And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.²⁰ When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” ²¹ And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²² And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”– Matthew 21:18-22

MATTHEW 21 FAITH MAKES THE IMPOSSIBLE TRANSPIRE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When you think beyond the box, you can imagine the impossible

God gave us a mind that is not fearful but is sound and powerful

When you pray, do not have doubts so you can receive your requests

Without faith, nothing you hope for will ever be answered or granted

With faith you can bring to life what is dead and what is lifeless

And without it, you will live a life of confusion and fruitlessness

As you believe in the power of God, you share in that same power

Your faith is the only way you can win and make the devil cower.

In this gospel of Matthew, we are given a clear picture of the power of faith. This account narrates the event when the Lord Jesus Christ spoke to the fig tree by the wayside as they passed by it. He commanded it to wither since it has not been fruitful but just produced leaves instead. It reminds me of these other verses in the bible about fruitlessness and not abiding in Christ: John 15:6 -Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. John 15:2 – ² He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. Matthew 3:10- Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire. What Jesus did to the fig tree symbolizes believers or any man who is fruitless in their deeds, they deserve to be burned or annihilated as Jesus withered the fig tree. It is a consequence of the uselessness of God’s people. They live a dead life.

Faith as emphasized here shows us its power. In verse 21, Jesus himself challenges his disciples to exercise faith so that they can also manifest its power just like he did in commanding that fig tree to wither and die. He further gave them another example of how even mountains can be moved by the power of faith. Of course, this is a figurative speech that explains that anything is possible if you have faith. Prayers without faith can do nothing. As the book of James says in 1:6-8 if we don’t ask in faith, we have a double-mind and are very unstable just like the waves of the sea blown by the wind. If we have no faith, we need not expect anything from God.

REFLECTION

·       Why do people still not apply faith as they pray or hope for something despite its power?

November 4

1 JOHN 5

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. ² By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. ³ For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. ⁴ For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. ⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? ⁶ This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. ⁷ For there are three that testify: ⁸ the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. ⁹ If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. ¹⁰ Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. ¹¹ And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. ¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.  – 1 John 5:1-12

1 JOHN 5 FAITH OVERCOMES THE WORLD

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If we were given the gift to believe that Jesus is the Son of God

And if we trust that his sacrifice on the cross will save us

There is nothing in the world that can lure us to be deceived

To accept that gift of faith is shown in obeying God’s commands

It is to recognize that without faith, we are going to be defeated

Faith is the only weapon we have against the devil’s devices

When we strongly believe that God is our only protection

We will surely overcome the lies and triumph over temptations.

In this account, the Lord reveals to John his beloved disciple how to overcome the world. In our humanity, we think that to triumph over the devil is to yell or call him out. The more we rely on our own strategies to win over this corrupt world, the more we will fail. The Lord gives us a clear guideline and a step-by-step process to be overcomers. We do not use physical and mental faculties to fight with spiritual unseen forces, but we apply our faith and the truth to eradicate these strongholds that are built by the devil to hinder us from believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 10:10, we are told that the purpose of the devil is to steal, kill and destroy us at any cost, while Jesus’ goal is to give us life and live it to the fullest. In this account, we are given the blueprint to win over the systems and corruption of the world. Before we can follow the steps, we need to be chosen by God himself. With that election, we are given the gift of faith. We need to keep that faith active and alive as we continually love others, especially the people of God. With the truth given to us in God’s word plus our faith, nothing can destroy us at all.

REFLECTION

• Why do some believers fail to triumph over temptations to sin?

November 1

JAMES 1

² Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, ³ for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. ⁴ And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. ⁶ But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷ For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

⁹ Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, ¹⁰ and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grasshe will pass away. ¹¹ For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

¹² Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. ¹³ Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. ¹⁴ But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. ¹⁵ Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. – James 1:2-15

JAMES 1 TESTING OF YOUR FAITH

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you will be tested

You will have to face trials and adversities to strengthen it

It has to be purified and refined for you to be used by God

Your faith is useless if not tested; you’ll be plagued with doubts

So, be joyful when you face all kinds of pain and misery

That is the only sure way you can grow your endurance

When your character has grown, you will have patience

With it, you can courageously face trials with resilience.

Hebrews 11:1 defines for us what faith is, it is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen. When we say we have faith in Christ, it means that we believe in the resurrection promise of eternal life to those who believe and it also includes a trust in the divine things that we cannot understand or see that are laid down for us in the word of God. Knowing God intellectually does not constitute true faith. In James 2:19, even the demons believe and shudder that there is only one God. Faith must also include a life of dependence on God in all things. We do not rely on our own understanding or abilities.

In this account, James reveals to us that faith needs to be tested in suffering and trials. He says in verse 12 that when we remain unwavering under trials, we have stood the test and receive the crown of life. Without suffering, we could never claim that we have true faith. It is in the midst of uncertainties and things we cannot understand that we can truly display our total dependence on God’s sovereignty.

REFLECTION

·       Is it possible to grow your faith without going through suffering? Why or why not?

October 30

ISAIAH 42

For a long time I have held my peace; I have kept still and restrained myself;
now I will cry out like a woman in labor; I will gasp and pant.
¹⁵ I will lay waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn the rivers into islands, and dry up the pools.
¹⁶ And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.
¹⁷ They are turned back and utterly put to shame, who trust in carved idols,
who say to metal images, “You are our gods.”– Isaiah 42:14-17

ISAIAH 42 SHAME TO THOSE WHO TURN TO IDOLS

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we turn to false gods and pagan idols, we lose our identity

God made us in his own image so we can live a life of purity

Because of the curse of sin, we tend to create our own image

When we cave in to idolatry, we begin to hide from our Maker

This hiding is the constant impenitent turning away from God

It is the shame that results from the sin of worshiping things

If we turn from sin and repent of it, we will be free from shame

Shame stays when we continue to serve ourselves and other gods.

What comes to mind when you hear “Shame on you” spoken to someone or to you? According to Cambridge dictionary, this phrase is an expression of condemnation, disappointment or scolding used to tell someone that they should feel guilty, embarrassed or sorry for something they did. Baker’s Evangelical dictionary on the other hand defines shame as a consequence of sin. It further explains that “feelings of guilt and shame are subjective acknowledgments of an objective spiritual reality. Guilt is judicial in character; shame is relations. Though related to guilt, shame emphasizes sin’s effect on self-identity.” The “shame on you” phrase puts the act and the person together and judged inseparably. Guilt becomes the feeling. Shame according to the bible is the aftermath of turning our back to the image God has placed in every human heart. But God gave us a way out through Christ so we could find our way back to him and repent and not live in that condemnation forever. In Genesis 3, after Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they hid. That was the manifestation of shame. After their identity of belonging to God was twisted into belonging to themselves and to the corrupted world of Satan, they experienced that turning away from their original purpose of glorifying God. They now became obsessed with glorifying their own “self.” They began to make their own identity apart from God. It is the same thing when we serve or bow down to other idols, we are turning our backs to God and towards these idols.

REFLECTION

• Why is it important to understand “shame” in the context of God’s character and plan for man?

October 29

REVELATION 2

¹² “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword.¹³ “‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faitheven in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. ¹⁴ But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. ¹⁵ So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. ¹⁶ Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth. ¹⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’– Revelation 2:12-17

REVELATION 2 IDOLATRY IS A STUMBLING BLOCK

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

As you serve the Lord God Almighty, you will begin to discern

Things that you used to do automatically becomes uncertain

The truth begins to expose the lies that were so predominant

You begin to question all those unloving patterns you engaged in

The word of the Lord begins to challenge you to grow your faith

God’s Spirit shows you all the stumbling block that deters your growth

Idolatry is the highest hindrance to your relationship with God

It is the open door for the devil to keep you hooked into this world

If you keep bowing down to the pursuit of these idols

You will soon become without life and without purpose.

This account is the letter to the church in Pergamum. It is one of the churches where the Lord has revealed his complaints about his people to John the beloved. The Lord God rebukes the spiritual adultery that thrives in this church. They claim that they are believers and yet they engage in acts of idolatry. In verse 13, he calls them out where they dwell, which is Satan’s throne. In verse 14, they were reproved on their divided loyalty to him and to the teachings of Balaam and in verse 15, to the Nicolaitans’ teachings.

The letter to the seven churches is not just addressed to those specific churches but it is a letter to all the Christian churches even in our days. It was a disciplinary letter of a God who loves his people and cares for their progress in their relationship with him. Like a loving Father, he wouldn’t want his children to go astray and be in danger to perish with their divided loyalty to him and to other gods that don’t belong to the kingdom of God. Spiritual adultery which is also idolatry is the biggest hindrance to knowing God and having the fear of the Lord. Because God is a jealous God, he will not want to share his own people with the prince of darkness and the god of confusion.

REFLECTION

·       How can idolatry easily become a stumbling block for a believer? Cite instances.

October 27

MATTHEW 6

¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.²² “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, ²³ but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!²⁴ “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. ²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? – Matthew 6:19-27

MATTHEW 6 NO ONE CAN SERVE TWO MASTERS

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If the Lord chose you to serve him, you will obey him

You will not gather earthly treasures that are fleeting

You no longer are driven by your lust for material things

But you now prioritize what is spiritual and unseen

You treasure the things that pleases God and avoid sin

You’re no longer anxious but rely on God for all your needs

There’s now a bias towards righteousness and prejudice over evil

You rank God first in all you do and don’t let the devil in.

Some scholars claim that the book of Matthew was written anonymously but other scholars according to some sources say that it was the Apostle Matthew who was formerly called Levi and was a tax collector before he became an apostle. In this account, the author focuses on the importance of true worship to our Lord and Savior. It is amazing how service and loyalty was emphasized in these following verses. If we reflect on life, we are either the servant or subordinate to a master or leader.

What Matthew is pointing out here is very vital in our understanding of true worship. He tackles the subject matter on anxiety, loyalty, priorities, longings and what’s valuable in life.  I was fascinated by how he wove the idea that if our hearts are longing for earthly things, we will veer away from God. That’s why he suggests for us to gather riches in heaven rather than material things that easily rot, rust, destroyed or stolen. In other words, if we seek those physical things, we will eventually worship those things and become slaves of them or idolaters. When our focus is on earthly stuff, we become anxious to pursue them and begin to depend on ourselves. If we shift our attention to heavenly things, we become thankful and content with what the Lord provides for us. We worship the One true God.

REFLECTION

• How can an anxious heart easily be turned into idolatry? What is that person worshiping?