Developing Spiritual Immunity

Parents take so much care that their children eat well and have a balanced diet that they will develop immunity. Small children when they start going to school they contract a common cold, cough and so on. If their immunity levels are low then it happens more frequently. If not taken care then it can develop into infections and more complex physical conditions.

Similarly, in spiritual life, we need to have a balanced diet of God’s Word in order to develop spiritual immunity. God’s Word nourishes us and prepares us to resist the attacks of the enemy of our soul. (1Pet.2:2; Eph.6:10-17)

Sin is the worst virus that can infect us with disastrous effects, to our body, mind and spirit. It blocks the supply of spiritual energy that enables us to lead a victorious life. The Word of God reminds us of our condition, and when we obey His prescription we experience healing. God’s Word is not only our food, but it is also our medicine. We need it so much that we can not survive without it. So let us feed on it and be healed and strengthened by its power. Let it provide us the spiritual immunity to resist the deadly viruses around us.

Once we start developing immunity, alongside we need to strengthen our muscles and prepare ourselves for the tasks God has assigned for us. Here we need to build a discipline of
Prayer, Fellowship and Witnessing. We are called to grow as a family or a body, the body of Christ. The assembly of believers or the Church is this body in which we are members. Salvation through the blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ is what binds us together. We are to help and edify each other in the growth of the body.

Personal as well as group prayers help us grow strong. (Mat.7:7; Eph.6:18; Phi.2:12-14; 4:6; 6:18; 1Tim.2:1; 1Thes.5:17; Jam.5:16)

Fellowship with other believers encourages us and motivates us to move on as we face challenges. (Heb.10:24-25; Act.2:42; Mat.18:20; Phi.2:4; Col.3:13-14; Rom.15:5; 1Thes.5:11)

Witnessing through our life and words in the society will bring glory to God and others into God’s family. (Mat.28:18-20; Rom.1:16; Mat.5:16; Act.1:8; 2Cor.5:20; 2Tim.1:8; Lk.9:26)

As Children of God, we grow to maturity in this way and our lives will become fruitful for our Master and Savior. (Psa.1; Jn.15:8; 2Pet.1:8-11; Mat.12:33)

This is our life’s purpose as Christ followers. This world and all its pleasures will pass away and those who do the will of God will live forever with Him in glory.

And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.
(1Jn. 2:17; 1Cor.7:31; 2Pet.3:10; Job 36:12; Ecc.6:12)

Why should God let us into heaven?

Have you ever thought of it? Maybe you don’t believe in heaven or hell but the Bible points to these two as the ultimate destinations for us human beings. Ultimately, we are responsible for our beliefs.

God is absolutely holy and we are sinful. The Bible says all of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s standard of holiness (Rom.3:23). We try to cover up with our good works, religion and charity, but the Bible says that our best deeds are like dirty stained clothes (Isa.64:6). The end result is eternal death as Rom.6:23 says. There is no second chance because Heb.9:27 reminds us that after death only judgment remains. This means, whatever has to be done to escape judgment has to be done before death.

God knows our inability to save ourselves. That is exactly why Jesus came, took upon Himself our punishment, died on the cross and rose again. Rom.10:9 says, If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

It means: I must accept that I am a sinner, I cannot save myself and so I am condemned to eternal death.
I must believe that Jesus was nailed to the cross and He died in my place taking my punishment upon Himself. I must repent of my sins and in faith ask Him to come into my life as my Savior and Master. I must confess that Jesus alone is my Savior and Lord and surrender my life totally to Him.

This is my own choice and decision. Nobody else, living or dead, can do it for me. Delaying this decision will be playing with my destiny, for who knows whether I will see tomorrow.

We can express our decision through prayer, saying,

“Almighty God, I agree that I am a sinner worthy of hell. I repent of my sins. Thank you for sending Jesus to take my punishment and die in my place. I believe He rose again defeating sin and death. I now accept Jesus as my only Savior and invite Him to be the Lord and Master of my life. I surrender totally to Him so He can have His way in my life. I ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.”

If we are sincere in our decision Jesus will come into our lives as He promised (Rev.3:20) and give us a new birth.
But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.
(John 1:12 NLT)

Knowing what is Right and not doing it

• Have you ever closed your eyes towards your own mistake?

• Have you deliberately stayed away from doing what is right?

• Will you knowingly do things that would destroy your health?

People who are trying to be morally upright abstain from certain acts, like smoking, drinking and gambling. But, that is only one side of the coin. We are accountable for both the wrongs we do and the rights we don’t do. We may keep away from doing wrong for fear of punishment. But do we do the right thing even if it may cost us dearly?

We may take things for granted thinking nobody is going to be hurt by our inaction. We are accountable when knowing the truth we try to suppress it. We know people in our community or neighbourhood who are in need but do nothing though we are able to help. If we overlook the mistake of someone close to us instead of correcting that person, we are wrong. We know copying another student’s answer in the examination is wrong. Just the absence of an invigilator will not make it any less an offense. Cigarette packets display the message ‘smoking is injurious to health’, yet people spend money and smoke. We know we must work hard but we often look out for short cuts. We know we should not litter our neighbourhood and our public places, yet we throw garbage wherever we find it convenient. We gossip about others when they are not around even though we know it is wrong. Flirting and fooling around with the opposite sex is not the right thing to do but so many young people have misunderstood it to be trendy. We are to do what is right, all the time, whether we are being watched or not.

The general tendency is to think that if you are not caught then you may be right. Much of the corruption in our society is due to this attitude. When caught, people argue their case with blatant lies and all kinds of justifications. In the eyes of the law you may win but In God’s sight you are a loser and an offender.

A Christian should take care to do what is right irrespective of circumstances. “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.” (James 4:17 NLT)

Another Easter!

Another Good Friday! Another Easter! The celebration continues year after year. An opportunity for the Christian community to celebrate just like other religious communities have. Does it have any significance beyond that?

Have you ever wondered what motivated God to sacrifice his own Son, his only begotten Son?

Jesus’ crucifixion reveals God’s hatred towards sin.

I can not fulfill the righteous laws of the Most Holy God. God’s Word calls this condition sin. The Bible says, “There is no difference; all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
(Romans 3:23). The penalty for this is death. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

I cannot earn forgiveness of my sins by paying money, or by doing good deeds, or by the help of saints, or by climbing mountains, or by keeping vows, or by any other means. The Bible says, “There is no salvation except by shedding blood” (Heb. 9:22).

“The soul that sinneth, it shall die; the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father; neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: for the righteousness of the just shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him” (Ezekiel 18:20).

God the Father was silent when His only begotten son was sweating blood and pleading from the Garden of Gethsemane, “remove this cup from me if you will”. The Father turned a deaf ear to the cry of His beloved son who was hanging on three nails on the cross, bleeding from head to toe, groaning in agony, asking “my God my God why have you forsaken me”. God the Father allowed His dear Son to be tormented up on that cross and that shows how much He hated sin.

Jesus’ crucifixion reveals God’s love for me.

Jesus is God who became a human for us humans. He is the Creator who took the form of His own creation. Because He is infinite, He voluntarily relinquished His glory in order to be a finite man. Since He is eternal without beginning or end, He confined himself to time, human history, and a geographical territory. He, while being sinless, allowed Himself to be tortured and killed for our sins. Jesus did not come into the world to be hailed as a saint, or a spiritual leader, or a teacher, or the founder of a religion, a prophet or a martyr, but to carry the burden of sin of the whole world on His own shoulders and endure the wrath of God, so that we might be forgiven of our sins. Lonely and despised, ignored by the Father, abandoned by all, hanging on that cross, He shed even the last drop of His blood as the sacrifice of sin for you and me.

He did all this out of His love for us. The Word of God says, “Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?”
(Romans 8:32 NLT)

“God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

“But God demonstrates His love for us in this, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5: 8)

Jesus’ crucifixion reveals my only hope

Because Jesus took away my sins and became the ransom sacrifice for me, I can trust in Him for my forgiveness. No one else in human history has paid the penalty for all the sins of mankind with his own blood. The Bible says, “There is salvation in no one else; there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

In him we have redemption and forgiveness of sins. Jesus calls all who are struggling with sin to come to Him. He is knocking at the door of your heart, hoping you will invite him inside. He will change your life. That is why he came and that is why he died and rose again. Will you invite him in as your Savior and Master?

He promises to be with you forever and never to leave you. (Heb. 13: 5)