Category: Ages 11 & above

Posted in Ages 11 & above, Life Skills

Life Partner

Posted on by christianliving4young

We humans are social beings and are dependent on each other. Even though in this century, people think they can handle everything on their own, it is not easy to survive as a loner. Loneliness hurts and affects mental wellbeing which can lead to depression and suicides. God knew that it is not good for humans to stay alone and hence He introduced the institution of marriage. Let us find out more from the treasure book.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

God’s design of life partners

And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”

Genesis 2:18

After God made Adam, He knew it was not good for Adam to be alone. He created a helper for him – Eve, and blessed them to multiply, rule the earth and subdue it. Loneliness was the key factor that was considered in creating a partner for Adam. God created the first humans as man and woman so that they are not lonely but could enjoy each others company, help each other and be there for each other.

God designed life partnerships because loneliness is not good for humans. Life partners are to be a companion and helper to each other.

Whom NOT to partner with

There comes a time in our lives, when we should choose our life partners. We should be very careful in choosing the right partners as they become our greatest influencers. Influencers have a very big role in our lives as we learned in “Choosing Influencers“. If we do not choose wisely, we can end up in the road to destruction because “Bad company corrupts good character” as said in the word of God. We will look into an example of a couple from I Kings 21.

Ahab & Jezebel

During the time of prophet Elijah, Ahab reigned as the king of Samaria and he took Jezebel, the princess of Sidon as his wife. Next to his palace, was a vineyard that belonged to a man named Naboth. King Ahab desired to have this vineyard and approached Naboth to get it by paying a price or in exchange of a better vineyard. But Naboth refused to give it to the king as it was his ancestral property. The king was displeased and was sulking at his palace without eating. Jezebel, his wife got to know about this and told him that she will get him the vineyard he wanted. For this, she wrote letters in the King’s name, sealed them with his seal and sent them to the elders and the nobles of the city where Naboth lived. In the letter she gave them a plan to kill Naboth in trickery. The elders and nobles of the city carried out the plot as asked by Jezebel and killed Naboth. Jezebel then informed Ahab about the death of Naboth and asked him to take procession over the land he desired. The wicked and evil ways of Ahab provoked God and He sent His prophet Elijah to tell them about the calamities that will overtake them and their household, which eventually happened.

When we look at this couple, we can see Jezebel was a wife devoted to make her husband happy. When Ahab was sad, she took over and tried to cheer up his spirits. Everyone would love a life partner who is there for you at the time of your distress and go out of their way to comfort you & cheer you up. However, Jezebel did this at the expense of another man’s life. She took evil and wicked ways to attain her husbands desires. Hurting others and taking their lives did not matter to her. She did not fear God but encouraged Ahab to walk in wicked ways.

But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up. 

1 Kings 21: 25

Ahab did evil in the eyes of the Lord more than all other kings before him because of his wife Jezebel who encouraged and persuaded him to do wickedness. Jezebel even killed the prophets of God and Ahab rather than stopping her, supported her plot. Slowly, the wicked person will influence your heart to walk in evil ways. So beware of yoking yourself with an evil person. Such a person will not help you but will take you to the pit with them!!! Ahab and his household was cursed because of what was done by Jezebel.

In addition to being evil, Jezebel was a Sidonite who worshipped Baal and Asherah – the false Gods. When Ahab married Jezebel, she also brought her Gods with her. Ahab also worshipped the Gods of his wife. So choosing a life partner who is after other Gods and who do not worship the true God, will definitely lure your hearts away to them. Solomon is another example of who turned away from the true God because of the Gods of his wife. Beware of yoking yourself with an unbeliever.

 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?

2 Corinthians 6:14

So before choosing a partner and deciding to spend the rest of your life with them, get to know their character and their relationship with God. If they fear God, they will definitely hate all evil and wicked ways as we already learned in “The Fear of the Lord”. Do not be yoked with the lawless, because they can lure your heart away from your God and lead you to destruction as seen with Ahab and Jezebel.

Do not be yoked with the evil or the unbelieving, because they can lure your heart away from your God and lead you to destruction.

Trust God for “The One”

Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers, But a prudent wife is from the Lord.

Proverbs 19:14 

The right partner comes from God. So rather than us struggling to find “the M Perfect” or “the Miss Perfect”, give it to the Lord in prayer. He will bring them along at the right time. Like how God gave Eve for Adam, He has the perfect partner for us. But how will you recognize the right partner? When God made Eve and brought her to Adam, immediately he recognized her as his partner. He said “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh”. It was revealed to him because he was walking with God and was in communion with Him. So if you walk in communion with the Holy Spirit, He will give you the revelation that this is “the one” like how Eve was revealed to Adam.

When we choose to trust God and wait on Him, things will happen at the right time. When you take up the right partner given by Him, there will also be blessings on your union as how He blessed the first couple on Earth.

Give it to God in prayer because the right partner is revealed by God. Trust Him and wait on Him for “The one”.

Treasures uncovered

God designed life partnerships because loneliness is not good for humans. Life partners are to be a companion and helper to each other.

Do not be yoked with the evil or the unbelieving, because they can lure your heart away from your God and lead you to destruction.

Give it to God in prayer, because the right partner is revealed by God. Trust Him and wait on Him for “The one”.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for this beautiful experience of life partnership. Thank you for the love and care towards us and for providing us the right partner to enjoy our life on earth. Help us not to be yoked with the wrong people. We trust you and believe that you will bring us the right partner at the right time and will reveal to us “The one”. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, Life Skills

When at crossroads…

Posted on by christianliving4young

In life, many times we have stood at various crossroads not knowing in which direction we should move. At any given crucial point, we are bombarded with options and we end up being confused or lost among all those options. There are many paths that look promising, colorful and offer lots of fun. There are also those that look dull and lifeless. We should never choose paths just by looking at them because they might be wrong for us. After all, appearances could be deceptive !!!

Let us open the treasure book to hunt out clues on how to choose right path when at a cross road.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Paths to avoid

Do not enter the path of the WICKED, and do not walk in the way of EVIL. Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on.

Proverbs 4:14-15

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the UNGODLY, nor stands in the path of SINNERS, Nor sits in the seat of the SCORNFUL

Psalms 1:1

We should never choose the path that wicked people take – cheating & tricking others, hurting and consciously causing trouble for others, and all similar evil ways. God detests evil and hence we should never choose such paths, nor walk in it. But consciously avoid it and turn away from it. Many times, we only see those evil options to climb up the ladder in life. If the way is evil, avoid it and turn away from it; Do not enter it or walk in it.

We should also not walk in the counsel of ungodly as we will also be at the risk of being UNGODLY. We should not stand in the path of sinners nor sit with scoffers. For example, if some of our close friends rebel against their parents to get things done their way, or hang out at places not meant for them, or mock others and bully them – seeing them do these often, we too will feel those are normal things to do and end up being influenced by them. So do not walk in the council of ungodly / sinners / scoffers as those always follow evil ways. Do not choose any evil person as your influencer as such people can influence you into their evil ways. Hate evil and every evil way as we already learned in The Fear of the Lord.

The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble.

Proverbs 4:19

Taking the path of the wicked and evil is like walking in darkness. When you walk in darkness you do not see your path or see what lies ahead of you or even where you are headed to. It is as if you are blind and cannot see. When you are in the council of evil and follow their path, it is like a blind man leading another blind. Imagine two blind men walking together, they both have no idea about what lies ahead and can stumble and fall. This is what happens when we follow the path of the wicked – we stumble and fall not knowing what made us stumble. Even if we choose the evil path to climb UP the ladder of life, in reality we are FALLING down, not realizing it.

Do not be in the COUNCIL OF EVIL and do not choose the WAY OF EVIL, nor stand in it nor walk in it. But avoid it and turn away from it. The path of the wicked is like darkness and leads to stumbling and falling.

Ponder Your Path

Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.

Proverbs 4:26

Always ponder your path before taking a step. To Ponder means to carefully think about before making a decision. Pondering will help us to analyse our path and find out the pros and cons and where it will eventually lead us to – destruction or life. All your ways will be established if you invest in carefully thinking about it.

If we do not ponder, we might take the path of the wicked and do not realize it or even recognize it. Without knowing, we would be walking in utter darkness. This happened to David while he was king (2 Samuel 11). It was a time when he had many servants and army heads who worked for him and he had all the pleasures of life at the command of his voice.

During spring when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab his army commander and other servants with him to battle while he remained at his palace. One evening, David walked on the roof and saw a beautiful woman bathing. David inquired about the woman and found she was Bathsheba, who was married to Uriah who was a soldier in David’s army. David committed adultery with her knowing she was married. However, did not realize he was sinning and walking in the path of evil. The woman conceived and when David knew it, he tried to trick Uriah but the plan did not work out. David then asked Joab, his army commander to put Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle and withdraw forces from him so that he may die. Joab did so and Uriah was killed. Even after all this, David did not realize he was walking in the wrong path. After Bathsheba mourned for her husband, David took her as wife and she bore him a child. The thing that David had done displeased God, but he neither recognized the path he took nor his mistake. God sent prophet Nathan to David and only then David had a realization of the path he took and the sins he committed. The realization, even though late, helped him from turning away from the path of destruction. However, he had to bear the punishment for his sin.

So make sure to ponder the path of your feet before you step into it so as not to be walking in evil ways.

Ponder the path of your feet.

The right path

Acknowledge God in all your ways and He will show us the right path.

In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

Proverbs 3:6

The right path is full of light and shines bright.

Like how wicked ways are completely dark, the right way is always filled with bright sunlight.

But the path of the just is like the shining sun,
That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.

Proverbs 4:18

God Himself guards and preserves the path .

He guards the paths of justice, And preserves the way of His saints.

Proverbs 2:8

Our souls will be at rest.

When we rest physically, we are relaxed, happy and at peace. Worries or anxieties do not overtake us. Similarly, when we choose the right path our souls will be at peace and happy.

Thus says the Lord: “Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find REST for your SOULS. ”

Jeremiah 6:16

Acknowledge God in all your ways and He will show us the right path which is full of light and shines bright. God Himself guards and preserves the path and our souls will be at rest.

Treasures uncovered

Do not be in the COUNCIL OF EVIL and do not choose the WAY OF EVIL, nor stand in it nor walk in it. But avoid it and turn away from it. The path of the wicked is like darkness and leads to stumbling and falling.

Ponder the path of your feet.

Acknowledge God in all your ways and He will show us the right path which is full of light and shines bright. God Himself guards and preserves the path and our souls will be at rest.

When we see life in a bigger frame, there are only two destinations – eternal life and eternal suffering. The path to eternal life is narrow and that is Jesus – the one and only way. Wide and many are the paths to destruction. All Evil and Ungodly paths leads to eternal destruction. But the good news is you can change your direction to eternal life. When you realize you have taken the wrong path, turn from it, repent and receive Jesus as your savior.

Prayer:

Show me Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths.

Psalm 25:4
Posted in Ages 11 & above, Life Skills

Watch what you watch

Posted on by christianliving4young

During our free time, we long to do those things that we enjoy. Reading books, watching our favorite TV show, playing computer games, listening to our favorite music band, catching up with our friends, etc., are few options we would consider. We need our eyes and ears to be functioning well to indulge in these favorite pass times. Do you know that our eyes and ears also play an important role in determining the course of our life?

Let us open the treasure book to find clues.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

The significance of eyes and ears

Proverbs 23:7 says, “A man is what he thinks”. What fills the inside – the heart, is what comes outside – our actions. So what we fill our hearts with, influences our actions. How do we fill our hearts? We fill our hearts with the information that we “take in” through our eyes and our ears. Let us look into an example that we are all familiar with.

We all know Adam & Eve were deceived by the serpent in the garden of Eden and they sinned. God had clearly instructed them not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. They knew very clearly that they should not eat the fruit. But how were they enticed into sinning? How did this idea of eating the fruit get into their heart? The serpent started a conversation with the woman and lied to her.

Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:4-5

So first, they heard the voice of the serpent. This information, even though a lie, got into their hearts through their ears as the voice of the serpent. Secondly, this information they heard from the serpent was strengthened by the sight of the tree.

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. 

Genesis 3:6

Eve saw the tree was good for food and that it was a pleasant sight to the eyes. She took the fruit and ate it. She also gave her husband and he too ate it without any hesitation. What they heard from the serpent and what they saw with their eyes, influenced their action. Their action was wrong because it was disobedience to God and a sin. God threw them out of the garden. It cost them their good life and comfortable place of living.

Things are not different even today. The information that we collect from what we watch/see and what we hear, influences our thinking and our actions. Even though most of such information contradicts the word of God, we still go behind it and end up sinning. So it is very important to consciously monitor what we watch and listen to – the shows, movies, music and even games because they can lead us to sin. The friend circle around us also matters as we take in information from them too, that influences our action.

In Jesus ministry, many people believed in Him and followed Him when they heard and saw the miracles he did.

Eyes and ears are the “entry ways” for information into our heart – good or bad. So what we watch and listen affects our thinking, our actions and our behavior.

Guard eyes and ears

It is important to guard our eyes & ears as these influence our actions and could lead us to sin. Jesus taught that if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out because it is better to enter life blind than to rot in hell. Word of God is the ultimate truth that teaches us to walk right and act right. So if we fill out hearts with the word, then our actions will be influenced by it.

My son, give attention to my words;
Incline your ear to my sayings.
Do not let them depart from your eyes;
Keep them in the midst of your heart.

Proverbs 4:20-21

We should incline our ears to the word of God and do not let it depart from our eyes. So when we have the word of God take up our eyes and ears, it will go into our hearts too. However, if it departs from our eyes and ears, it will slowly depart from our hearts too!! Haven’t you heard the saying – “out of sight, out of mind“. If the word of God goes out of sight, then eventually it will go out of mind too. The reason why God gave tassels on the garments of Israelites.

In Numbers 15 (37-40), we read that God spoke to Moses to tell the children of Israel to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations. The tassels were given to them so that each time they look on it they should remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that they do not follow the desires to which their hearts and eyes are naturally inclined to. Cloths are a necessity in life and hence by putting tassels on them, God made sure His words and commands did not depart from their eyes.

Incline your ears to the Word of God and do not let it depart from your eyes. For if it goes out of sight then it goes out of mind.

What to hear and watch

God abides in you. Whatever you listen to and watch, He too is listening and watching. There are certain things that you wouldn’t watch or listen when you are in the company of others. So remember, God is always with you and so watch and listen to only those things you can watch and listen in His company.

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

Philippians 4:8

We are instructed to meditate on things that are true, noble, pure, lovely, praise worthy and of good report. We cannot meditate on them unless we hear them or see them. So we need to listen to and watch those that are pure, true, noble, pure, lovely, praise worthy and good things. Abstain from watching and listening to wicked and evil reports. Do not watch intimidating murder or horror or cheating stories that will have an adverse effect on us. As we already established, what we watch and listen to influences us and can lead to sin. So watch out and be conscious about the things you see and listen to. Meditate on the good things.

Treasures uncovered

Eyes and ears are the entry ways for information into our heart – good or bad. So what we watch and listen affects our thinking, our actions and our behavior.

Incline your ears to the Word of God and do not let it depart from your eyes. For if it goes out of sight then it goes out of mind.

Listen to and watch those things that are pure, true, noble, pure, lovely, praise worthy and good things.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for teaching us that our eyes and ears play an important role in determining the course of our life. Help us to incline our ears to your word and not Iet it depart from our eyes. Help us to fill our heart with good by listening and watching good things acceptable to your sight. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, God & Me

Shhh… It’s a Secret !!!

Posted on by christianliving4young

Do you have secrets? Remember the time you bunked classes and went for a movie with your friends? Shhh!!! it is still a secret!!! We all have several secrets that we either keep to ourselves or we share with our most trusted friends.

Even in different walks of life, we see people holding on to different types of secrets. Governments and political leadership have their secret strategies, each country has its own secret defense operations, FBI has their secret missions, restaurants keep their secret recipes, businesses keep their trade secrets and so on.

What does the bible tell us about secrets? Does God have secrets?

Let us open the treasure book and find clues.

Does God have secrets?

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Deuteronomy 29:29

Surely the Lord God does nothing,
Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.

Amos 3:7

For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord, But His secret counsel is with the upright.

Proverbs 3:32

God has secrets too. However, His secret counsel is only with the upright. Similar to how we share our little secrets with our most trusted friends, He too shares His secrets with His trusted friends – the upright. The floods during the time of Noah is an example. Noah was upright before God and He revealed the plans of flood only to Noah. We see another example in Genesis 18. God and His angels after visiting Abraham were leaving to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Even though it remained a secret to other people, He chose to share with Abraham what He was about to do. Abraham was called “Friend of God” and God revealed His secret mission to His friend, Abraham. Throughout the ages we see that, without revealing His secrets to His friends, God has not done anything in the world. God remains the same yesterday, today and forever.

The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven were kept a secret from the foundation of the world as written in Matthew 13:35. Jesus, while on earth, spoke about these mysteries using parables and those parables were not understood by everyone. Jesus explained them to His friends – the disciples, later on when they were alone. Even today, these things are not understood by all people in the world. They are only revealed to His friends – the ones who does His commands and walks in His ways. To others, it still remains a secret.

God has secrets and He reveals it to the upright – His friends.

Does God know our secrets?

“Can anyone hide himself in secret places,
So I shall not see him?” says the Lord;
“Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.

Jeremiah 23:24

Would not God search this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.

Psalm 44:21

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Hebrews 4:13

God is omniscient, meaning He is all knowledgeable. He knows everything and nothing is hidden from Him. No creature can hide from His sight. He also knows the secrets hidden in people’s hearts. He is a discerner of thoughts and knows the very intend behind those thoughts. Every thing is wide open before Him. All secretive plans that people make to hurt, to ambush or to destroy one another is all open before Him. Even your secret desires and ambitions whether good or bad is wide open before God. So no matter how deep you bury your secrets, or how efficiently you hide it, those secrets are naked and open to His eyes. Simply put, God knows all our secrets. Ugly or bad, He knows it all – even the shameful things which are done in the dark. So beware, next time you make an ugly secretive plan in your heart, God knows exactly what you are planning. You cannot hide your secrets from God.

No secret is deep enough to be hidden from God – He knows it all.

Does God expect us to do anything in secret?

But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.

Matthew 6:3-4

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 

Matthew 6:6

But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Matthew 6:17-18

There are certain things that God expects us to do in secret. As we already established, God knows all our secrets. So God expects us to do those things in secret so that it stays only between us and Him. Our prayers, our fast and our charitable / good deeds should be done in secret. These should be affairs between only us & God, and not public to get praises from people.

Our prayer life and fasting should not be limited to corporate prayers and fasts that we do at Church meetings only. In such cases, the only intention is to show others that you are upright. Pray when you are alone with God and fast without making it public. Similarly, when we do good deeds, it should not be for being recognized or praised or for fame and publicity. The good deeds that we do should be done in secret where God is our only audience. All our deeds should be focused on pleasing God and not pleasing people. God who sees these in secret will reward us openly. So be vigilant, so that we are not cheated by our own selfish desires and ambitions. Remember, our heart’s desires are wide open before Him and He knows the exact intentions behind each action. So do these in secret with the right intentions and rise up to His expectations.

Our prayers, our fasts and our good deeds should be done in secret – to be seen only by God. Our Father who sees in secret will reward us in the open.

Treasures uncovered

God has secrets and He reveals it to the upright – His friends.

No secret is deep enough to be hidden from God – He knows it all. Our secrets are wide open before Him.

Our prayers, our fasts and our good deeds should be done in secret – to be seen only by God. Our Father who sees in secret will reward us in the open.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for revealing your secrets to the upright. Help us to always remember that our secrets are wide open before you and that we cannot hide anything from you. Help us to concentrate on pleasing you and secretly carry out our good deeds. We love you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, Life Skills

Can we judge?

Posted on by christianliving4young

Social media has become an inseparable part of our daily lives. We spend many hours browsing through other people’s Instagram profiles, TikTok videos, YouTube videos, Facebook updates, Twitter updates etc. It is because we are very much interested to know what is happening in other people’s lives, the reason why we watch their profiles even when we don’t like them much. We would then criticize their actions and gestures, gossip about them and even post hatred messages for their posts. We are too quick in doing so. Is it right to judge others and speak ill of them?

Let us open the treasure book and see what it says.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

The rightful Judge

But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

Romans 14:10

And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.

Revelation 20:12-13

All of us will have to stand before a judgement seat one day. The judge on the judgement seat is JESUS, who will judge everyone of us in righteousness and truth. There is no room for any kind of partiality. Whoever we are – great / meek / powerful / influential – will be judged according to our deeds. Every thing that we do in this life will be written down and every soul will have to give account for each of their deeds. As we all know, each deed whether good or bad, will be evaluated based on the intention behind it because God weighs our hearts. Since each individual (including us) will be judged by a very rightful judge, who are we to take-up His job? Let us leave the judging part to the law giver, the rightful judge – Jesus, and concentrate on the better things in life.

Each individual will be judged by JESUS – the righteous & true judge.

Judge NOT, Condemn NOT

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:1‭-‬5

Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

Luke 6:37

Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God?

Romans 2:1‭-‬3

The first question we should ask ourselves before judging others is “Do I like to be judged? Do I like to be condemned?” If not, don’t judge and don’t condemn others. This is what Jesus Himself taught during His ministry – Judge Not and You will Not be Judged. Condemn Not and You will Not be Condemned. There won’t be any excuse for any one, no matter who you are or what position you are in – unlike the world we live. In this world, influential people come out of their crimes using their power. However, since our judge is righteous and true, there is no excuse for anyone. We will be judged by God with the same measure we judge others. When we judge others, we in fact condemn ourselves because we too practice those things that we judge. Each of us have a lot of flaws and imperfections. Our imperfections is considered to be a plank before the imperfections of others which is insignificant as a spec. Jesus is emphasizing that other’s flaws and limitations might be negligible compared to ours. We have to first concentrate on perfecting our character and behavior before judging others.

Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?

James 4:11‭-‬12

We should also not speak ill of others. It is considered evil. If we speak evil of others, then we are not only judging them but also judging the law. The law is given by God Almighty and so He is the lawgiver and the rightful judge. Do you have the power to save a soul or destroy it? – this power is only with the law giver. Then who are we to judge one another as we are only doers of the law. So do not judge or speak ill about others.

Do not speak evil of others. Judge Not and You will Not be Judged. Condemn Not and You will Not be Condemned.

How did Jesus judge? John 8 : 2-11

One day when Jesus was teaching in the temple, the scribes and the Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They set her in the midst and said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery. The law commands us to stone her, but what do You say?” They said this to test Him, so as to find something to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. When they continued asking Him, He rose and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Those who heard it being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one – the oldest even to the last. Jesus was left alone with the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus rose, He saw no one but the woman. He said, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

As per the law, a woman caught in adultery should be stoned to death. However, when this woman was brought to Jesus, He remained silent. When people insisted that He should tell His judgement, Jesus reminded everyone of the accusers that each of them is a sinner, just like the adulterous woman. Each of them deserved punishment just like her. How can a sinner condemn another, who is just like him? With a very simple sentence, Jesus made each of them realize that they could not judge anyone as they themselves were also imperfect like her. Each of them were convicted by their own conscience and left the scene immediately. All human beings whether small or big, meek or powerful, are imperfect. So how can we judge others?

You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.

John 8:15‭-‬16

Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

John 7:24

JESUS do not judge according to appearances as flesh does, He judges in truth and in righteousness as He proved in this example.

Treasures uncovered

Do not speak evil of others. Judge Not and You will Not be Judged. Condemn Not and You will Not be Condemned.

When we judge others, we condemn ourselves because we also practice what we judge. Since we are humans, we too are imperfect like the others we judge – so leave the judging to the perfect lawgiver who has the power to save and destroy.

JESUS is our rightful judge who judges every soul in righteousness & truth. No one is excused from this judgement.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for being our righteous judge who judges us in truth and righteousness without any partiality. We thank you for reminding us that we two are imperfect like others and do not have any authority to judge others. Help us to remember this when our hearts rise to judge others. Thank you for loving us and caring for us even through our imperfections. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, God & Me

Pleasing God

Posted on by christianliving4young

Our parents have the highest authority over our lives as long as we remain under their care and protection. If we are disobedient with them, we will be punished for sure. However, if we put on our best behavior by being obedient and carrying out the things that are expected of us, our parents will be happy and pleased with us. For instance, if we obey and respect our parents, do all our chores with perfection, get good grades at our school, etc., our parents will be very pleased with us. This will make sure we have an edge over our siblings in everything. The same at schools and colleges too. Our teachers too will be very pleased with us, if we do what is expected of us – respect them and be obedient to them, complete our assignments on time, score good grades, etc. We will also see them favoring us over others.

If pleasing parents and teachers brings us benefits, how will it be if we pleased God, the supreme authority over all creations. Can we please God by any chance? Let us look into the treasure book to hunt out clues.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Is it possible to please God?

When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”

Luke 3:21-22

While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

Matthew 17:5

In the first passage from Luke, Jesus is getting baptized. When He prayed, the heaven opened and Father God confirmed that He is well pleased with Jesus, His son. In the second passage from Matthew, Jesus took Peter, James, and John on a high mountain and He transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light. There they heard the voice of God from heaven confirming to them that Jesus is His son and that He is well pleased in Him.

Jesus during His life time on earth, pleased God so very well.

By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

Hebrews 11:5

Enoch walked with God all his days (Genesis 5: 21-24). He too pleased God.

We saw that Jesus and Enoch pleased God. So it is possible to please God. If they could, definitely we too can.

How to please God?

Faith

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6

Faith pleases God. Faith is a thorough belief without seeing or having any solid proof. We do not see God, but definitely believe in the existence of God. Believing in the all powerful God and having faith that He rewards those who diligently seek Him pleases Him. We see many people with extraordinary faith in the Bible. During the ministry of Jesus, many were healed because of their faith. The woman with the issue of blood is one such example. Jesus tells her – “Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace” (Luke 8:40-48). There were even times when Jesus Himself marveled at the faith of certain people like the centurion who is mentioned in Matthew 8. So faith pleases God and brings about deliverances.

Faith pleases God

Doing what is expected of us

Doing what God expects from us pleases Him. So we should get to know what He expects from us.

“And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,

Deuteronomy 10:12

God expects us to love Him and serve Him with all of our being. As Jesus taught, the first and greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul and all our mind” (“Give it all”). Keeping the greatest commandment pleases Him. We also have to serve Him with all our heart and soul. Only if we love Him with all our being, we will be able to serve Him with all of our being. And this pleases God.

To Fear the Lord is to hate wickedness and all evil ways as we already learned in “The Fear of the Lord”. So God expects us to hate all evil and wicked ways.

We are also expected to walk in all His ways. We saw Jesus and Enoch walked with God and in all His ways, no wonder God was pleased with them! Walking in His ways is to keep His commands. How do we get to know His ways?

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

John 14:26

The word of God teaches us about God, His likes & dislikes, His commands and everything else about Him. By reading and meditating the word of God, we get to know His ways and commands. As we know, Holy Spirit lives inside of us from the time we accept Jesus as our savior. Holy Spirit is the one who reveals to us the word and teaches us His ways. Doing good, loving, sharing, obedience, humility, gentleness, kindness, forgiveness, faithfulness, etc., are few of His ways. As you read and meditate on the word, more of His ways will be revealed to you. Walking in all His ways also pleases Him.

So we, His children, are expected to love and serve Him with all our being, walk in His ways and hate evil & wicked ways.

If we do what is expected of us, God will definitely be pleased with us!!!

Example of Solomon I Kings 3:4-‬13

After King David, his son Solomon became the king of Israel. We will look into an instance from Solomon’s life that pleased God and see how it benefited him.

After Solomon offered sacrifices, the Lord appeared to him in a dream by night and said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to David my father. Now, O Lord my God, You have made me king, but I am a little child in the midst of Your people who are too numerous to be numbered or counted. Therefore give me an understanding heart to judge Your people rightly.” This pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked for wisdom. Then God said to him: “Because you have not asked long life nor riches for yourself, nor the life of your enemies, but asked for understanding to discern justice, I have done according to your words. I have given you a wise and understanding heart. There has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you. And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days.

Israel was the chosen people of God and had become a big nation by now. David had many sons besides Solomon, but he was chosen as king of Israel after David. Handling the affairs of God’s chosen people and serving them is serving God. Solomon knew, he had to take care of the nations affairs in justice as this is God’s way. He needed divine wisdom to serve the people. When God appeared, Solomon asked only for a wise heart to judge His people, when he had the opportunity to ask for riches, long life, or anything else he desired. But he put God first. Serving God & His ways were a priority over his own desires. This pleased God. God not only gave him the wisdom he asked for, but also riches and honor which he did not ask. God made him the wisest of wise amongst all generation. Fame, Riches and Honor followed Him. The one instance that pleased God changed Solomon’s life forever.

And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

1 John 3:22

As we established before, Walking in His ways and keeping His commandments pleases Him. If we please Him, we will receive whatever we ask for. From Solomon’s life we see that we will receive more than what we ask for.

Treasures uncovered

Faith pleases God.

Doing what is expected of us pleases God. God expects us to love and serve Him with all our being, walk in His ways and hate evil & wicked ways.

If we please Him, we will receive whatever we ask for and even more.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for teaching us what is expected of us. Help us to walk in all your ways, love you & serve you with all our being and hate all evil & wicked ways. Holy Spirit, teach us the ways of God and help us to have faith in God. Help us to live a life pleasing in your eyes. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, God & Me

The abiding place

Posted on by christianliving4young

We all love to live in a beautiful house that is clean and well arranged with elegant and comfortable furniture. Along with the protection and shelter it offers, we want our house to be a place where we can peacefully unwind and be ourselves. A place where we can be happy without any cares, regrets or worries. Wherever we are during the day, we would long to get back to our “comfy space” to chillax. Probably you are right now in your comfy space reading this. Like how our body needs a proper space, our soul too needs to be abiding in the right place. Let us find which is the right abiding place for our soul.

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Abiding in Jesus



Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

John 15:4-6

Jesus is teaching us to abide in Him. He uses an example of a vine and its branches to illustrate this. Jesus is compared to a vine and we, the people, to its branches. If a branch is detached from the vine, it cannot live on its own. The nutrients required to survive will not reach the branch as it is separated from the plant and withers away very soon. So to survive and eventually bear fruit, the branch should be attached to the plant. If not, it will definitely wither away and becomes useless. All the branches that wither are gathered and thrown into fire. Similarly, if we are separated from Jesus, we cannot survive on our own or bear any fruit for God’s kingdom. If we do not remain in Jesus, we too will wither away into the path of destruction and will be thrown in to the eternal fire. So our soul abiding in Jesus, is crucial for our eternal life.

Also, when a branch is attached to the plant, both becomes one entity. Similarly, when we remain in Jesus, we become one with Him – we abide in Him and He in us. We will bear much fruit in this case. But without Him, we cannot do anything.

How to abide in Him and He in us?

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

1 John 4:15

Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

1 John 3:24

He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

1 John 2:6

To abide in Him and He in us – we need to confess that Jesus is the Son of God, keep His commands and walk in His ways. If you have not confessed yet, this is the right time to confess that Jesus is the “Son of God”. If you do, He will make you His dwelling place and you will dwell in Him. The Holy Spirit comes to live inside you and will teach you to keep His commands as we already learned in “The Holy Spirit”. As a branch that is attached to a plant, you too will be remaining in Jesus, bearing much fruit.

To abide in Jesus and He in you, confess Jesus as the Son of God, keep His commands and walk in His ways. You will bear much fruit and will not wither away or be thrown in to the eternal fire.

Abiding in Jesus will give you eternal life and will save your soul from eternal fire.

Abiding in Word


Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

2 John 9:31-32

“The word of God” is the ultimate truth. Jesus is teaching us that we should abide in His word. If we abide in His word, we will know the truth and this truth will set us free. In the world that we live, we read and study many subjects that gives us knowledge and understanding. It helps us to live healthy, obey law and order, eat the right food, get to know our rights, the facilities available to us, current affairs of the world etc. However, illiterate people do not know these and are exploited very much because of their ignorance. Similarly, the devil will be able to exploit us and afflict us if we are ignorant about the spiritual truths. Because the Word is filled with numerous spiritual truths, reading & studying it will help us to get to know those truths and it will set us free.

Abiding in the word brings freedom to your soul.

Abiding in Love

“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.

John 15 : 9-11

Jesus is teaching us to abide in His love. His love, as we know, is unconditional and everlasting. Jesus enduring the cross is the biggest example of the unconditional love of God. We abide in His love when we keep His commandments and walk in His ways. So keeping His commandments helps us to abide in Him and also in His love.

Jesus promises us that when we abide in these, His joy will remain in us and we will have the fullness of JOY. Just imagine your soul filled with an everlasting joy that is complete – without any worries or regrets or hopelessness, but just JOY. This is the comfy space we all long for – fullness of joy that is ever lasting.

Treasures uncovered

Our Soul should abide in Jesus, His word and His love. This will result in fullness of Joy – the perfect “comfy space” our soul could be in.

Abiding in Jesus will give us eternal life and will save our soul from eternal fire. Abiding in the word brings freedom to our soul.

To abide in Jesus and He in us, we should confess Jesus as the Son of God, keep His commands and walk in His ways.

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for teaching us about the perfect abiding place for our soul. Help us to abide in Jesus, in His word and in His love by keeping His commandments and walking in His ways. Holy Spirit, thank you for living inside us and guiding us. Help us to have the fullness of joy. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, The Negatives

Who are Fools?

Posted on by christianliving4young

Do you think Clowns are the REAL FOOLS because they act silly? We call a person fool when they behave silly or act without commonsense. Don’t we all sometimes speak and act silly? When our feelings / emotions such as grief, anger or happiness overwhelm and overtake us, we do not think but act spontaneously and most of the time end up being foolish. Apart from these petty instances once in a while, we think we are pretty wise at all times. Isn’t it?

The bible is “The book of ultimate truth” and hence let us look for what it says regarding the subject.

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Biblical definition of fools

WISDOM is considered as the ability to think and act using knowledge, experience, understanding and common sense. Foolishness is the exact opposite of that. Dictionary defines FOOL as a silly person who acts unwisely. What about biblical definition of fools?

The fool has said in his heart, “ There is no God.” They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good.

Psalms 14:1 NKJV

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

I Corinthians 1:18

In the bible, the people who do not believe in God are called FOOLS. The one who says in his heart “THERE IS NO GOD” is called a fool. For such people, the plan of salvation is foolishness. God sending His son Jesus to the world and Jesus enduring the cross for the sin of the world does not make any sense to them because they do not believe in God. They think they are wise but are silly and unwise before God. They are the real fools before God, not a clown.

So if people have been addressing you “a fool”, do not worry or bother because what matters is what God thinks about us. If you believe in God, in His son Jesus and in the message of cross, we are wise in the eyes of God.

The Origin of foolishness

For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

Mark 7:20‭-‬23

Foolishness is to believe in the heart “there is no God”. This is evil and wicked before God. Like all other evil and wicked deeds, foolishness too originates from the heart because it is with the heart that we believe. Foolishness is at par with other wicked acts and defiles a person before God. Foolish people are on the road to eternal perishing because they do not believe in Jesus, the only way to eternal life.

Foolishness originates at the heart. It defiles a person and is evil before God.

Characterestis of fools

A fool’s heart

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 1:7

A fool has no delight in understanding, But in expressing his own heart.

Proverbs 18:2

The wise in heart will receive commands, But a prating fool will fall.

Proverbs 10:8

A fool despises his father’s instruction, But he who receives correction is prudent.

Proverbs 15:5

The main characteristic of a foolish person is that they despise wisdom, instruction and correction. As we all know, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. But fools do not believe in God and hence His wisdom does not shine any light on them. They despise their father’s correction and do not have any heart for understanding. They delight in expressing their own heart. In simpler words, they do not perceive but only talk. If you despise wisdom, understanding & correction but only care about expressing your own heart, you will definitely end up being foolish in everything you do.

Embrace the wisdom from God and prepare your heart to receive instruction and commands. Never ever despise your father’s correction. They have seen life more than you have and they have more life experiences than you. Your father corrects you so that you do not make his mistakes but be an even greater achiever. Fools never understands this fact but despises elder’s correction.

A fools heart despises wisdom, correction and understanding.

A fool’s mouth

A fool vents all his feelings, But a wise man holds them back.

Proverbs 29:11

Whoever hides hatred has lying lips, And whoever spreads slander is a fool.

Proverbs 10:.‬18

A fool’s lips enter into contention, And his mouth calls for blows.

Proverbs 18:6

Another characteristic of fools are that, their mouths cannot be controlled. As we saw before, they do not take in corrections or instructions or try to understand any given situation but are interested in expressing their heart and venting out their feelings. Expressing your feelings about other people or situations might result in spreading slander. Speaking about others merely based on your feelings and without proper proof is totally wrong. It is slander. A fool never understands these or worry about the consequences of his words. They FEEL, and they SAY… This will bring them trouble. The mouth of a fool brings about disagreements, quarrels and even disputes. They do not think before they speak or evaluate the outcome of their words before bringing it out.

A fool’s mouth brings in trouble as words are spoken without thinking and only based on feelings.

A fool’s walk

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Ephesians 5:15‭-‬17 NKJV

Circumspect means being “careful to consider all circumstances and possible consequences”. It simply means to be prudent – to be careful and thoughtful for the future. Fools do not walk in prudence. They do not consider possible consequences of their walk, but walks in all kinds of paths that only leads to destruction. The only path leading to eternal life is Jesus as we learned in “Life the bigger picture“. Let us be prudent in our walk and the paths we take in life.

A fool’s walk leads them to destruction as they are imprudent.

Treasures uncovered

The people who do not believe in God are called Fools – the one who says in his heart ” There is no God “.

Foolishness originates at the heart. It defiles a person and is evil before God.

A fools heart despises wisdom, correction and understanding.

A fool’s mouth brings in trouble as words are spoken without thinking and only based on feelings.

A fool’s walk leads them to destruction as they are imprudent.

Prayer:

Father, thank you for teaching us that foolishness originates at the heart. Help us to believe in you and in your son Jesus. We thank you for the plan of salvation. Help us to be prudent in our walk and be careful in our talks. Help our heart to accept correction and delight in wisdom. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, The Negatives

Fear

Posted on by christianliving4young

What comes to your mind when you hear the word Fear? Some of us might think about the most fearful moment in our life, some others about the things / situations / people that they fear or the horror movies they have watched, etc. Fear brings to remembrance different things for different people and its intensity varies from person to person. But for everyone, it is an unpleasant emotion. None of us like to be experiencing fear for a prolonged time. Currently, with the world facing the pandemic, many are living a life of FEAR. In fact it would be rightful to say they are under the captivity of fear. How to handle this unpleasant emotion?

Let us dive into the word of God to find clues.

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The character of Fear

The first time bible mentions “Fear” is when Adam & Eve disobeyed God. God came to meet them in the garden, but they hid from His presence as they were afraid to face Him because of their disobedience to Him. Fear creeped in as a consequence of Sin and that’s how the emotion of fear entered humanity.

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”

Romans 8:15

Fear is a bondage that works in the spiritual realm. It is a spiritual weapon used by our enemy, the devil, to take over people and bring them under his captivity. Normally in a warfare, the kingdom that wins takes the loosing kingdom’s subjects as captives / slaves. Similarly in the spiritual warfare that is going on in our minds (as we learned in The Armor of God), if we do not resist and give in to Fear, it will enslave us.

So first, the bondage happens in the spiritual realm, and then its consequences surfaces in the physical. Fear will impose us to hide from or flee from the situations that we are afraid of, or the people whom we fear, or from life itself. It will bring about despair, emotional trauma, feeling of helplessness, etc.

Fear enslaves people in the spiritual realm and its consequences surfaces in the physical realm.

Fighting Fear

Always remember

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9

Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.

Deuteronomy 31:8

Imagine having a powerful ruler to be with you always, wherever you go. You will be respected like him and also will be privileged in everything because he is with you. You will get extra ordinary facilities that are not available to common people. Because he is with you always, these privileges follow you everywhere you go. So there is nothing to fear or be concerned about as he is powerful and is able to help you out from any kind of situation.

We are in an even better position. Our God is the all powerful God and the creator of the whole universe. There is no other power that is greater than Him. We also know that when we accept Jesus as our savior, the Holy Spirit comes and lives inside us. He is with us always to guide us and help us. He will not leave us nor forsake us. So why fear? The all powerful God Himself is with us always and He is greater and powerful than all the dark powers put together. We need not fear and be concerned about anything because He is our God. He will surely help us and uphold us.

The great and mighty creator of this universe is my God who is with me always. He will never leave me nor forsake me, then why fear?

Our Mindset

The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?

Psalm 118:6

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7

We should always remember that God is with us. If God is on our side who can stand against us? The spirit that is within us is the spirit of power, love and of a sound mind, not the spirit of fear. So then, tell your mind – “I WILL NOT FEAR”.

Our mindset should be “I will not fear because God is on my side”.

What if fear creeps in?

Fear can creep in at any moment of weakness. Even the disciples of Jesus feared and cried out when they saw Him walking on the sea thinking it was a ghost. So, everyone goes through moments of weakness in life, after-all, we are humans. So what if fear creeps in and tries to take us captive?

I sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 34:4

The only way to get out of fear is by seeking God. When you seek Him, you will find Him. God is the only one who can deliver you out of all your fears and insecurities. God alone is the only solution, so seek Him. The bible has recorded many events in the lives of people as an example for us to learn. Let us look into such an example,

2 Chronicles 20
Jehoshaphat was king over Judah for twenty five years. Sometime during his reign, few kingdoms from Syria formed a great army against them to fight them. When Jehoshaphat heard that a multitude of army is coming to fight him, he FEARED!!! Being a king having an army that is not big enough to fight the big army of his enemies, Jehoshaphat feared. What did he do?

He set himself to seek God and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord and to seek the Lord. God assured Jehoshaphat through a prophet not to worry and promised He will take care of the battle. Jehoshaphat trusted God and on hearing this he and all people worshipped God. The next morning, as the army set out for the battle, Jehoshaphat and his people sang praises to God and worshipped Him. The Lord set an ambush against the big army of the enemies and they destroyed each other. When Jehoshaphat and his army came to fight they only found dead bodies with valuables and precious jewelries. It took them three days to gather all the valuables as there were so much. On the fourth day they blessed the Lord and returned back to their homes. There was great joy and rejoicing throughout Judah. They won the battle without even having to fight!!! The lord fought their battle and took care of their situation which would have been impossible otherwise.


When fear creeped in, Jehoshaphat set himself to seek God. He sought the Lord and the Lord delivered him from all his fears and filled him with joy and laughter. Jehoshaphat rightly approached his fear and he was delivered.

So when fear creeps in, seek God and ask Him for help. He is the only one who can deliver us. He will never leave us nor forsake us. Our part is to seek God and trust Him, praise His name and worship Him. He will deliver us and bring us JOY & REJOICING!!!

Treasures uncovered

The great and mighty creator of this universe is my God who is with me always. He will never leave me nor forsake me, then why fear?

Our mindset should be ” I will not fear because God is on my side “.

If at all fear creeps in, SEEK GOD and ask Him for help. He is the only permanent solution and the one & only who can deliver us. He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Fear enslaves people and bring them under its captivity, however our God is mighty to save. In fact, only He can bring deliverance. He is the only permanent solution. So Seek Him, Trust Him, Praise His name and Worship Him. He will deliver us from all our fears and bring us JOY & REJOICING!!!

Prayer:

Father, we thank you for being our God. Thank you for teaching us that you are the only permanent solution to “Fear”. Thank you for being on our side. Help us to seek you during times of fear and despair. Help us to always remember that You are with us. Thank you for delivering us from all our fears and insecurities. We Love you. In Jesus name, Amen.

Posted in Ages 11 & above, The Negatives

I Would Never… Really?

Posted on by christianliving4young

We all have certain firm ideas and principles in life that we present proudly in front of others. We would make statements like “this is what I am, so I would never do that or I would never say that” and so on… But most of the time we end up doing those, that we proudly stated we would never do. For example, we swear to our friends “I would never hurt you” and we end up hurting them very often. Even though our principles are with right motives, we sometimes become hypocrites. Hypocrite is a person who acts in contradiction to his / her stated beliefs / feelings.

Let us see what the word of God has to say about such people – Hypocrites.

OPENING THE TREASURE BOOK undefined

Is Hypocrisy okay?

In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 

Luke 12: 1

The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.

Proverbs 11:9

BEWARE / be cautious of hypocrisy is what Jesus taught His disciples. We are normally cautious about things that are dangerous. Hypocrisy falls into such a category. It is likened to a leaven (e.g., yeast) which when added to any dough infects the whole dough and changes its composition. Similarly hypocrisy is considered to be infecting a persons heart and change its initial composition. So hypocrisy is not okay. It infects our heart. A hypocrite is also associated with destruction. They destroy others with their mouth. Destruction is evil and is from devil who only comes to steal, kill and destroy.

Hypocrisy is a matter of the heart. It is destructive in nature. It is infectious and dangerous for our hearts, so BEWARE of hypocrisy…

Who does God call a Hypocrite?

Jesus during His ministry came across many hypocrites and addressed them.

  • People who judge others and point fingers at them.

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7: 3-5

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

Matthew 23:29-30

We all have flaws in various areas. As our hearts get closer to God, our eyes will be opened to them to undergo correction and resemble Him more. The kind of people who have flaws and not realize it are the people whose hearts are away from God. They are too quick to judge others and find faults with them. Rather than being bothered about their own bigger issues, they are interested in others business irrespective of how insignificant it is. Such people are blind towards their faults and flaws. Their lives and hearts would be more messed up than others, still they ignore it and interferes into others life. So be sure to evaluate your heart and life, be aware of own flaws and mistakes, correct them before judging others, pointing fingers on them and trying to correct them.

  • People whose hearts long for recognition and praises from people.

Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.

Matthew 6:1-2

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

Matthew 6: 5

There are people who do various charitable deeds and even things concerning God to show-off to others expecting to be noticed and get praises from them. Such people are pretentious and crave for recognition and glory. Even though, they seem very genuine outwardly, their heart’s intent is to get people’s attention and praises. They want others to be talking about them and hence they make sure to do such things with much publicity. Do you crave in your heart to be praised by people, then your deeds will be in alignment to that. So evaluate yourself and check the intention behind your deeds – are you craving praises and recognition?

  • People who neglect and ignore the significant matters of God

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

Matthew 23: 23-24

Drinking tea or coffee with fly in it is possible although it is disgusting. But can you swallow a whole camel? It is impossible!!! Flies are small and insignificant compared to camel. Even though all laws should be obeyed, there are certain laws that are very significant like a camel – justice, mercy and faith are among them. These should be obeyed and followed at any cause. However not giving importance to such laws is like swallowing a camel which is an impossible thing to do. Jesus used this simile to address the kind of people who would follow certain laws and instructions that are easier and comfortable for them to the minutest detail, but neglect the important and significant ones before God. Jesus calls them hypocrites and even blind guides who would strain out a fly but will readily swallow a camel! We should follow all instructions given by God and not ignore them, specially the matters that are of significance before Him.

  • People who neglect the cleanliness of their heart

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

Matthew 23: 25-26

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Matthew 23: 27-28

As we already learned in “What does God notice in me?“, God notices our heart when he looks at us. Our hearts are very important to Him. We can fool people by pretending and projecting ourselves as something that we are not. But remember, we cannot fool God. We might look beautiful, gracious and righteous outwardly but our heart’s condition would be bad and in ruins. Our heart shows the “real” us. This is wide and open before God. He knows the “real” us. When we are pretentious this way before people, we are being hypocrites. Hypocrisy is at par with lawlessness. They are both considered unclean. So cleanse the inside – our hearts, from all uncleanness and only then the outside will actually be clean.

Treasures uncovered

Hypocrisy is a matter of the heart. It is destructive in nature. It is infectious and dangerous for our hearts, so BEWARE of hypocrisy…

Hypocrites before God are

  • People who judge others and point fingers at them rather than correcting own flaws.
  • People whose hearts long for recognition and praises from people while doing charitable deeds or the things of God.
  • People who neglect and ignore the significant matters of God, but follow others to the minutest detail.
  • People who neglect the cleanliness of their heart and cares only about outward appearance.

Hypocrisy is a matter of the heart. It is unclean and destroys our heart. Our hearts are wide open before God and He gets to know all our hearts desires and its intents when he scans it. We cannot fool Him by being pretentious. He knows the exact content of our heart and what it is filled with. So cleanse your heart with the blood of Jesus and fill it completely with Him and His love, then nothing else will infiltrate it. As Romans 12:9 says Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

Prayer:

Father we thank you for teaching us that hypocrisy is a matter of heart and brings about destruction. Help us not to be pretentious, longing for praises or judgmental but be aware of the matters that are significant before you. Help us to keep a clean heart that is fully pleasing to you. We Love you. In Jesus name, Amen.