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And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Ephesians 1:22-23

In Ephesians chapter 1, Paul paints a beautiful picture of God’s plan of salvation and redemption for humanity, and how the fullness of Jesus makes all the difference in our lives. While we have redemption through the blood of Jesus, that is just the beginning of God’s marvelous and magnificent blessings that He bestows on us because of the fullness of  Jesus!  The resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead, allowed Him to be seated at the right hand of the Father, and overruled all powers and principalities, is also extended to all of us who believe in Jesus.

We are the benefactors of God’s divine grace because of believing on the work of Jesus on our behalf. Jesus extended the invitation to all humanity to receive Him and believe in Him.The fullness of His work is able to save billions of people from sin and bring them to salvation. When we believe in Jesus, a spiritual transaction takes place where we give permission to God to buy us back from the hands of the enemy and to become our Father, Lord, and King! The Lord receives us as His beloved children, and we join His family and His Kingdom. He has many rooms for all His children and Jesus went to prepare a place for all those who believe in Him!

God’s Kingdom is full of inheritance for His children, and the Holy Spirit is the seal of our inheritance. The Holy Spirit reveals to us the magnificence of everything God has to offer us. As the Holy Spirit gives us revelation, we begin to see, hear, and understand God’s amazing riches that He has provided for us in this age and in the age to come.

Jesus through His obedience made every power subjected to Him. His full obedience brought complete freedom to us from death and damnation. When we receive Him, we become dead to our old nature and begin a new life in our new nature. As we look to the Lord, He begins to show us the hope of His calling and His purpose in our everyday lives. Sometimes, the Lord gives us big promises for our future, but most of the time, He gives us our daily wisdom and understanding on how to live as a child of the King!

Ephesians 1 is rich with the revelation of God’s plan for us and the fullness of Jesus in every aspect of our spiritual blessings. I encourage you to read the entire chapter in the New King James Version (NKJV) and then read it in the Message Bible. You will be blessed with God’s work on your behalf!

For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, Colossians 1:19

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. John 1:16

It was the Father’s pleasure to send Jesus in fullness to change the course of our lives. The fullness of Christ gives us everything we need for the life God intended for us to live.  

The fullness of grace and truth in Jesus is powerful, but many in the body of Christ have not understood or appreciated the value of what He came to offer us. Hence, some churches struggle to know what to preach and how to reach people without compromising on either truth or grace  

Why is the body of Christ seem to be divided between those who proclaim the grace of God and those who hold on to the truth of the gospel? Below are a few reasons that have caused some churches to be in one camp or the other.

1. We live in a culture where education has become the idol of humanity. Therefore, much of our training is intellectual and heady, which leads people to operate from the natural perspective rather than spiritual. In this mode of operation, believers tap into their natural understanding and knowledge to solve spiritual problems. Spiritual things are only discerned spiritually and can only be addressed spiritually. Jesus declared himself to be the resurrection and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through him. Our plans, projects, and curriculum have no power on their own to bring about the change in people’s lives until such a time that people are exposed with the resurrection power of Jesus. If we rely on education or intellect as the means of transformation of humanity, we are going to be pressured to come up with more creative programs and seeker friendly messages to get people hooked on Jesus!

2. The ills of society cannot be fixed with our level of compassion for people. Compassion is critical in reaching people for it opens the door to deeper ministry, but on its own is powerless to bring lasting change.  Many believers try to reach people through the mercy and the love of God and miss addressing man’s sinful nature that has to be dealt with before the individuals begin the road to recovery. As a matter of fact, some churches are so compassionate that they tell people that God loves them and will be in relationship with them regardless of what they do and their lifestyle. First of al that is not the truth. The Lord expects us to repent and follow Him by denying ourselves. Secondly, the person may feel comfortable, but it will not transform them and free them from their bondages.

3.  Social justice has become a new ministey for some churches leading them to become weak and ineffective spiritually. There are important issues that should be addressed. However, when the church looks to government to fix societal issues, she is in danger of getting distracted and polluted. Social justice draws the church to align itself with certain politicians or a political party to ensure that their agenda moves forward. We are called to be in the world but not of the world. We cannot forget that political parties are secular entities that their main objective is to win elections and push forward their secular agenda. Their goal is not to serve God or to glorify God. They only happen to push for certain policies that we like or deem more Godly.

   We may agree with certain policies of a person or a political party, but when the church aligns itself with them, it looks as if the church is in agreement with all the views or policies of the politician or political party. As a result, it cannot speak truth on certain issues because it has to show wholehearted support and agreement with those that it politically supports. This pollutes and dilutes the church. The church will lose its saltiness when it desperately seeks a certain political agenda thereby compromising the gospel message. Whenever the church and government go to bed together, the end result is a weak church!

Not everyone liked or received what Jesus had to say. Our success is not going to come from the measure of being liked by the world or the size of our church membership. When we remain consistent with being filled with the fullness of Jesus’ truth and grace, we will be powerful to reach whosoever is ready to accept and receive Jesus and experience transformation in their lives. 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

What is the significance of Jesus coming in the fullness of grace and truth? 

When God sent Jesus to the earth, He knew what we needed to be restored to the His original intent. Jesus came full of grace and truth to break the bonds of sin and religion that had taken the place of relationship with Him. Adam walked in the cool of the day with the Lord, but sin and religion had brought impenetrable barrier between God and man. Before Jesus came on the scene, people were afraid of God and could not get close to the Holy of Holies. In that era, God only spoke to a certain few and getting close to Him was only reserved for those with a special calling and anointing. However, with the coming of Jesus everything changed!

The mercy of Jesus allowed us to reach God without being afraid of Him. It also helped us to become vulnerable before God without the fear of reprisal. People opened up to Jesus in ways that they had never been able to do so with their religious leaders. Jesus broke down class barriers. They knew He cared about them and that He desired to help them. They found a shepherd for their souls who did not shun them or look down upon them. People brought their loved ones to Him, and Jesus healed their sick, cast out demons, and gave them recovery of sight.

Jesus also came full of truth. He was truthful with people about their condition. Jesus showed that the root of their ailments was sin that had quietly been ruining their lives. He did not sugar-coat sin or make excuses for it. He knew that if people wanted to be truly whole, they had to have the courage to face their sin and walk away from it.

The fullness of mercy and truth in Jesus paved the way for our salvation and transformation. The mercy of Jesus showed the heart of God for people and His desire to be in relationship with them. The truth of God showed them that unless they are willing to face their sins, no forgiveness or freedom is available to them.

Jesus’ interactions with people were unique yet similar. When He met the woman at the well, He told her He knew about her lifestyle, yet He was willing to get a drink of water from her. His mercy towards the woman committed in adultery allowed Him to protect her from those who were going to stone her, but He told her that she should change her life and sin no more.  When He saw Zacchaeus, He acknowledged him and told him that He wanted to eat with Him. Zacchaeus was used to being shunned by people because he collected exorbitant taxes from his own people. However, now he came face to face with someone who valued him. Jesus didn’t have to tell Zacchaeus about his sin against his own people. Instead, Zacchaeus was convicted because he felt safe and loved enough to face the reality of his sin and the need for change. 

We have many people who are need of someone walking in the fullness of truth and grace in their lives. Are you walking in the fullness of grace and truth? If not, what do you need more of to be effective in reaching people for Jesus?

Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, was the fullness of everything God had to offer. He held nothing back and gave Himself completely to us! Jesus came with fullness of passion and commitment towards every one of us to manifest the heart of the Father and to bring God’s Kingdom on the earth. 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

Jesus came in the flesh to show us who God is! He made the Word of God to come alive and become real to humanity. The Word of God was no longer an abstract idea that was relegated to the professionals. Jesus brought the Good News of salvation and God’s heart to the learned and unlearned, Jews and Gentiles, male and female!

The oneness of Jesus with the Father allowed the glory of God to be seen on the earth. In the Old Testament, Moses hid behind a rock to see the glory of God. People feared the glory of God and never dreamt of the possibility of seeing the glory of God. Their religion was based on what their leaders reported about God. They were dependent on others to find out who God was and what He expected of them. Unfortunately, their leaders many times did not represent the Lord correctly to people, but Jesus was different!

Jesus came with the fullness of truth and grace. He came as a powerful force to set us all free from the bondage of sin and the oppression of religion. Sin and religion have one thing in common. They both cause self to be the primary focus. Sin causes us to focus on what we want and the pursuit of our desires. Religion causes us to focus on our self-effort and ensuring we have done enough to earn what we wish. The more we focus on ourselves, the darker things become. Instead, Jesus came in the fullness of truth and grace to set our gaze upon the glory of God and on His heart for humanity.

When we look to Jesus, the light of His countenance warms our hearts and gives us hope for our future. The truth and the grace of God stabilizes us and establishes our personhood on the character of God rather than on unstable thoughts and feelings dictated by our circumstances. 

What is the significance of Jesus coming in the fullness of truth and grace? I will share about this in the next devotional.

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. James 4:13-14

The above scripture reminds us that we have a very limited time here on earth, and our focus should be the will of God and what He desires for us to do with our time. Just because something looks good or is not a sin, it does not mean that it is a beneficial use of our time. The two greatest commandments are about relationship with the Lord and relationship with people. We are designed to have meaningful relationships. Time is the currency for developing and nurturing relationships! 

It is the relationships that sharpen us, shape us, and mold us in Christ image. It is through relationships that we have the opportunity to share Christ with others and give them the most significant invitation of their lives. It is also through relationships that we support one another in time of need. If we are going to fulfill the call of God in our lives and be obedient to Him, we need to be mindful of how we use our time. All of us should value it for it is one of the most precious commodities!

When we don’t value our time, we spend it frivolously. Those things that look interesting, showy, or urgent distract us from what is really important. Our time should be managed and budgeted just as our money is budgeted. However, time and money have differences in their limitation. Some people may have unlimited financial resources, but we all have 24 hours in a day and an average of 70-80 years of life on this earth. Therefore, managing our time is critical regardless of who we are and our status in life. We should have a long range focus on how we invest our time.   It is important to save, invest, build a career, or purchase a house, but they all have to be managed in the light of commitments we have made in our lives.

Have you invested time, prayer, and support in certain relationships? Are there people in your life who feel the freedom to call you at anytime of day? Are there people in your life that you can call upon at anytime of day? When we don’t value our time, we use it unwisely. This eventually leads to isolation, problems with our primary commitments in life, and lack of meaningful relationships in life. If you don’t have those kinds of relationships, pray and ask the Lord to show you a couple of people that you can begin investing your time in and developing that kind of relationship.

For years we have been told that we can achieve any dream we desire if we work hard enough, but this is not the whole truth! No one told us the price we have to pay in terms of our time to reach those dreams and its cost on our families and relationships. Just because we can achieve a dream, it does not mean it is the right time to do it. Jesus told us to take up our cross and deny ourselves (See Luke 9:23). I don’t think, many people see this scripture in the light of letting go of their financial or career dreams for the sake of God’s priorities.

How are you managing your time? Do you value it and use it intentionally to give your primary commitments the time they need? 

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1

The way we use our time is an important aspect of our walk with the Lord. We usually don’t consider our use of time an area that requires transformation, but that is a critical aspect of our lives that should be evaluated in the light of scripture. We all have had influences in our lives that set a pattern on how we spend our time. To steward the time the Lord has blessed us with, we should examine those influences and evaluate the voices that might compel us to be out of line in our priorities.

1. Our family upbringing

It is important to think about our family history and see its influence on us. Many times we follow our parents’ pattern rather than evaluating it in the light of the scripture and understanding the will of the Lord. At other times, we do not appreciate the value of sacrifices our parents made to create a peaceful and secure environment, so we take for granted what we had as a child. We assume we can have everything our parents provided in addition to what we want such as a having a demanding career or more money in the bank. 

2. The Lifestyle of friends 

The lifestyle of our friends can make a big difference on how we view our lives and whether we think we are successful or not. If our friends have ambitious careers or fancy houses, it is easier to be compelled to do the same and view that lifestyle as the pattern of success. The truth is that the fruit and the consequences of our peers’ decisions could take years before they become evident. 

3. The voice of the culture

In our culture, provision turns into a dream house or a dream job! We have a tendency to stretch ourselves too thin in order to have a higher lifestyle than we can normally afford. Whenever we choose a higher lifestyle, it creates a perpetual demand to maintain it over a long haul. This adds stress and a lack of time with the Lord and with our loved ones. Children may enjoy a big house and a nice play room, but they are more secure and content when they have Mom and Dad’s attention. 

There was a time that we were tempted to purchase a bigger house, but we didn’t. Looking back at it, we were so thankful we did not put ourselves in that financial obligation. Had we purchased that house, we would have been tied down to a big mortgage, and it would not have allowed my husband to leave his stressful job!

4. The desire to do ministry

We are all called to do the work of ministry. The work of ministry allows people to feel that they are contributing to the work of the Kingdom. It also allows them to have something that takes their minds off of work and family and connects them with others. The work of ministry is important, but it is also important to remember that the work of ministry changes faces depending on the season of life we are in. Our first ministry is at home, and eventually we will do more at our churches and in our community. Furthermore, not all ministries are alike, and some of them are more time-consuming than others. We don’t need to be looking at others and determine our level of involvement based on their level of busyness in ministries. We are all accountable to the Lord on how we steward our time! For those who have younger families, you may have to choose ministries that are not as demanding to ensure that it does not take you away too much time from your family.

What are the areas of conformity for you? Are you following the pattern of your parents, friends, culture, or church members? Once we recognize the areas of conformity to the world system, we can ask the Lord to help us to renew our mind in stewarding our time according to His will! This isn’t easy, but it’s worth it!

The Lord has designed us to be relational, and relationships require time! Adam walked with God in the cool of the day. He enjoyed his relationship with the Lord and had regular time with Him. Jesus spent time with the Lord in the early hours of the day. It was important to Him to commune with God before He faced people or did the work of ministry.

As I shared in the last devotional, our culture is a very busy culture. People are overcommitted, and they run from one commitment to the next, which results in shallow connections. A lifestyle of busyness brings about insecurity in relationships and causes marriages and families to be malnourished for time. 

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. Matthew 6:19-21

The above scripture is a reminder that all the earthly treasures will eventually be destroyed. If our focus in life is gaining material wealth, status, or titles, we will find ourselves bankrupt someday. The recent fires in California and hurricanes elsewhere are a reminder of how quickly things can burn up and investments can be destroyed. The treasures we lay up in heaven are about our relationships and how we impacted the lives of those around us and those that we ministered to.

We may spend years in worldly accomplishments, but they are short-lived and have no lasting value. Regardless of our position in a company, we are easily replaced and become history within a few weeks. Furthermore, anything that demands so much of our attention today will soon be replaced with another demand tomorrow. Therefore, it is our responsibility to ensure that we don’t allow the urgent to take our time away from the people that are God’s priority for us.

Those who are single parents have the toughest job! Hopefully, you have family or friends who pray for your family regularly and encourage you in tough seasons. If you are empty nesters you may want to invest sometime in supporting a single parent with his/her demands of life. Those who are married couples have more options.  Some of them might say that they are working for their family, so their children can have a good life and are well-provided for. That’s a noble goal, and the Bible tells us it is our responsibility to provide for our family. However, we need to remind ourselves that the best gifts we can give our children is our time, a healthy marriage, and a relationship with the Lord! Our season in life and our relational priorities are two important factors that should determine how we spend our time. 

I will continue with this subject in the next devotional. 

We live in a time when most people have shortage of time, and there is much demand on everyone. Parents are trying to pay bills and provide for their families, and children are taken to various activities to ensure that they are well-rounded individuals by being exposed to sports, music, art, etc.

In addition to the above demands, the culture dictates the characteristics of a successful person, and many people are striving to be all that the culture expects of them to be and fulfill the American Dream. Furthermore, the social media can be thanked for giving a platform for people to market their success and show off their house, their cars, and their exotic vacations!

What does God say about how we are to spend our time!?

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9

The above scriptures show God’s priorities in how to live our lives. First, we are called to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and strength. If we don’t put Him first, everything else will be out of order. When we put God first, the Holy Spirit begins to expose things that are near and dear to our hearts but are not God’s priorities. We cannot love God with all our hearts unless we let go of those things that we secretly value and hold on to as significant in our lives.

Second, from the account of Genesis, we learn that God instituted marriage, and we are called to be one with our spouse. That means we live a married life that is peaceful and united as a couple. We care about our spouse’s needs, and we ensure that we are in continual communication with him/her giving them what they need. This is our first human ministry.

Third, the above verse shows us that our children are next in the line of our priorities. They need our time and attention. One of the things that has hurt our society more than anything else is the lack of time and attention to our children. The above scripture is not listing tasks, but it is describing a lifestyle where our young children are included in our daily lives.

The above scripture was written in a time where the jobs would have been at home or closer to home. Many had their own farms or business close to home, and People did not have hours of commute to work. Therefore, the children were either around their parents regularly or had ease of access to them. Fathers trained their sons in the skills they had, and mothers taught their daughters how to take care of home. In the process of preparing children for adulthood, the children had the opportunity to watch their parents live their lives with a love for God and with integrity before people. For example, the parents had the opportunity to tell their children why it’s important to help the family next door or why they did not charge the last person as much because the person had fallen on hard times.

Nowadays, much of that type of interaction has been lost, and it has been replaced with commute time and 8-10 hours of work away from home. When the parents get home, they want to ensure that their children don’t fall behind in skill set, so they take them to various extracurricular activities. All the while they miss out on precious time spent with their children. When I take my dog for a walk in the neighborhood park, I see some parents who are on their laptop or on their cell phone supposedly watching their children practice their sport. I wonder if they are actually paying attention to their children or something else has taken their mind miles away from there!?

The truth is that most of us have focused on accomplishing tasks rather than valuing relationships. We raise the children by providing for them, but we are not spending as much time with them. Indirectly, we are saying that skills and activities are more important than being present.

Some of us are not in child-rearing phase, but we have people around us who have younger children at home. It’s important for us to encourage the younger parents to choose the right priorities that helps their families flourish. I will continue with this subject in the next devotional. 

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18:21

Our tongue is a very powerful tool and it has the ability to produce good or evil. With our tongue we praise God and worship Him, and we have the ability to express love and appreciation to others. We also use our words to pray for healing and deliverance of people. Our tongue has the power to stir up love, hope, and kindness, and bring life into the atmosphere.

On the other hand, our words can have the power of death if used inappropriately. When we use our tongue in an ungodly way, we open the door to the enemy to have a foothold in our lives. People are in bondage to the evil words spoken by them or over them. In our deliverance ministry,  we break off word curses and vows that people have spoken over themselves or others have spoken over them.

When teenagers first get behind the steering wheel, we teach them and warn them about possible pitfalls and dangers that they may experience. We do thorough training because we know the power of a moving vehicle and how dangerous it can be if it is not handled properly. Irresponsible and reckless driving can cause all kinds of problems. The above scripture tells us that we should love and appreciate the power of our tongue. Just as we understand the power of a car, we should understand and appreciate the power that our tongue wields and pay attention to God’s boundaries in how to use it.

Many of us don’t think of our tongue as a part of our body that needs to be dedicated to the will of God. We may dedicate our home, cars, or our finances to the Lord, but we feel the freedom to use our tongue the way we please. We choose to use it to vent and express our feelings at any given moment. Some people think that “being real” means that we can say what we want to show our personality or our uniqueness. They are concerned to look religious, robotic, or fake if they only spoke the appropriate words. The enemy deceives us with those lies and tells us that it’s ok not to have a sanctified tongue. We can pray and ask the Lord to show us how to be real while speaking words of life over ourselves and others.

Taming our tongue is not easy, but it’s very important to our walk with God! One of the areas that the tongue needs to be tamed is in the area of lying. God hates lying, and there are many scriptures in the Old and the New Testament addressing this issue. Lying comes in different forms.  Lying can come in the form deception, hypocrisy, half-truth, and false accusation.

Lying seems to be very easy for some, and unfortunately, we see a lot of lying in young people these days. It seems like the more frequently they lie, the easier it is for them to lie about inconsequential things.  For example, cell phones are a major distraction these days in high school. I was discussing with one the high school teachers, the issue of students turning in their cell phones at the beginning of each period. He has a total of 150 students in all his classes that he meets with on daily basis. I asked him, “What if students claim that they they didn’t bring their phones?”  He told me that the chance of the students telling the truth about that their phone is one student per day! That’s a staggering number considering that the use of cell phone cannot be such a big deal that it is worth lying about it! 

Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,  speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, 1 Timothy 4:1-2

In the above scripture, Paul exhorts Timothy that in the last days people are going to be comfortable in speaking lies because their conscience has been seared with hot iron. These individuals will give themselves over to deceiving spirits and will follow the doctrine of demons. I doubt these people know that they have deceived themselves. When people open themselves up to lying, they are opening the door to the demonic world. It is even more dangerous for those who get away with lies. Once lying works, it is easier to do it next time when the person is under pressure. At first, people may feel bad about lying, but they justify their actions to calm their conscience. Sometimes people find a close friend that they confide in, which helps them to release the pressure of conviction and a way out of guilt. All along, they are allowing their conscience to get seared, and they lose their sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and His conviction in their lives. If someone lies to others, someday, they will lie to us!

These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
A proud look,
A lying tongue, Proverbs 6:16-17

The Lord tells us that He hates lying. Hate is a strong word, and we should take it seriously. When God hates something, it is because He knows the damaging affect of that sin on people. They knowingly or unknowingly have opened the door to the demonic influence. Since the Lord is full of truth, He will not tolerate or bless any form of lying, half truths, or deception. He may allow it to go on for a while, but, in the meantime, He will give people the opportunities to repent from their ways. If they don’t repent, the consequence of lying is a like a spider web that the person is weaving. At some point, it will trap them with no way out. The sooner we get out of that ugly habit and ask the Lord to give us the courage to be truthful, the more peaceful and free we are in living our lives and enjoying the blessing of our relationship with the Lord.

Are we two-faced with our colleagues, our bosses, or our friends? Do we tells half-truths to ensure we won’t get in trouble? Do we try to portray an image to impress others? Our tongue can be a vehicle for good or for evil. Lying is against the nature of God. Therefore, it is also against the nature of God’s children to lie. We all need to slow down this powerful vehicle (our tongue) and pay attention to how we use it!