Monday, October 25, 2010

Christ in you, the hope of glory


It is the experience of some people, Christians included, to have a life that is full of misery.
These people's lives are full of frustrations, full of turmoil, and stress.
Some people have been sick for a long time to the extent that they have lost hope. Medicine has failed them. The doctors have failed.
They have spent much money on medicine which has not helped. They have tried many avenues to no avail.

Some others are just frustrated with life in general. Things are not going they way they should go.
They are frustrated with their job, their business, and their life.
For these people it seems as though things will never change for the better.

There are yet others whose lives are full of fear.
Such people are haunted by the fear of death, the fear of failure, the fear of the future, and the fear of the unknown.
Some are even afraid to sleep in the night because they experience terrible things at night.
Such are those who are tormented by spirits in the night time.
For these people fear rules their lives.

But what if I told you that life doesn't have to be that way?
What if I told you that life could be full of peace, joy, and happiness?
What if I told you that you don't have to be sick anymore?
You don't have to be downtrodden, you don't have to be miserable, and you don't have to be frustrated.
What if I told you that the thing you think is too big to be removed from your life is not big?
What if I told you that there is hope for you.

The bible tells us in Colossians chapter 1, verses 26 and 27
"Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of
the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:"


Did you see that?
The bible tells us in this scripture that there was a mystery hidden from the world for ages and for generations.
It also tells us that this mystery has been revealed to the saints (the church, the Christians).
He also tells us that this mystery is CHRIST IN YOU, the HOPE OF GLORY.
Boy oh boy!!
If you could receive Christ into you. If you could receive Christ into your heart.
Christ in you is the hope of glory.
I'll say it again. Christ in you is your hope of glory.
Christ in you is the hope of your healing. He is the hope of your peace, the hope of your joy, the hope of your life.
Christ in you is the hope of you living the glorious life.

Is there anybody who is sick?
The bible tells us
"...But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken (give life to, heal, restore, revitalize) your mortal bodies..." - Romans 8:11

When you receive Christ into you, when you are born again and filled with the Holy Ghost, your life of misery will come to end.
The Holy Ghost can make your life beautiful.

Jesus Christ can change your life. Jesus Christ can make your life very beautiful. Jesus Christ can heal you.

It is simple, you can say this to yourself right away:
"I confess Jesus Christ as Lord over my life. I believe that He can make my life beautiful.
I receive now by faith the Holy Spirit who makes my life beautiful.
In the name of Jesus I declare that my life is going upwards and forwards only."


As simple as it may sound, this is a powerful confession and this will surely work if you believe it and do it.
Jesus said

"If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth" - Mark 9:23

God bless you








Monday, October 18, 2010

The Gospel Of Life

We clearly know from the bible that the main reason that Jesus came into this world was so that He could give us Life. The bible is very clear on this issue. Jesus actually said so himself.

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me.” – John 14:6

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have [it] more abundantly” – John 10:10.

But what kind of life is this?
What is so special about this kind of life? Why do we make fuss about this life?
We all know there is plant life, there is animal life, and that there is human life. We all know one thing that is common to all the forms of life listed here. All of them are subject to death. After a while a plant dies, an animal dies, and a human being dies.
But there is another kind of life!! It’s called the God-kind-of-life. This life is ETERNAL. This life is unbeatable!! This life is unconquerable. This life is not subject to death, or sickness, or poverty, or failure.
This is the kind of life that Jesus brought to us.

And lest I confuse you I should clarify what death means here.

When we talk of death we are not merely referring to the physical death or the cessation of physical life. Understand that there is SPIRITUAL DEATH and PHYSICAL DEATH.
Physical death is a result of spiritual death. Physical death is a consequence of spiritual death. Let us explain this in detail.
All men are born spiritually dead, that is, separated from God. This is the REAL DEATH. Death is firstly a separation from God. It means to be cut-off from God, to be isolated from God. This is the real death.
It is this death that brings about physical death. Because Men are born born spiritually dead men die physically, and it is for this reason that men get sick. Physical death is a consequence of spiritual death. If we couldn't die spiritually we couldn't die physically.

Who remembers the story of Adam and Eve?
Before they ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil they could not die. They couldn’t get sick. They could not be poor. But God said to them,  
“..in the day that thou eatest of it thereof thou shalt surely die…” – (Genesis 2:17 KJV)

But notice something here.
In the very day that Adam ate of the fruit he didn’t drop down dead.
But God said in that day you shall die. So how come Adam didn’t fall dead to the ground, and yet God told him that in the day that you shall eat of the fruit you shall die?
The truth is, Adam died the day he ate of the fruit.
He died spiritually that day – he was separated from God.
And because he was separated from God his body began to die physically, slowly until he died physically. Disease could now affect the human body. Sickness could now kill the man, because incipient death (the death of the spirit) was at work in him.
But Jesus came with life.
He came to reconcile us back to God so that death should no longer work in our bodies.
We already saw what Jesus said about himself in the quoted scripture

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father, but by me.” – John 14:6

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have [it] more abundantly” – John 10:10.

The reason why we are so confident of this life, that it has been made available to us, is because of what the bible tells us. The apostle John boldly declares
"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" - 1 John 5:11,12.

I love the way this verse is written in the Amplified bible version. It says
"And this is the testimony (that evidence): God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. he who possesses the Son has that life; he who does not possess the Son of God does not have that life."

I suppose then, that the next question you may ask is: How do I get that life?
We already read in the verse above that whoever has the Son of God has this life. So how do you get to possess the Son of God? How do you get to have the Son of God?
Its's simple...
All you need to do is:
1) Confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and saviour
2) Believe with your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead.

In fact, you can get this life right away by simply praying this prayer right where you are.

Oh Lord God, I come to you in the name of Jesus.
I confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord of my life. 
I believe that you raised Jesus from the dead. 
I therefore now have eternal life, and I'm now a new creation.
Amen


If you have prayed this prayer, contact me on email jamesritala@gmail.com and I will gladly tell you more about this new life that you have received, and on what you need to do in order to maintain and keep this life.