Even though we are living at a time when corruption seems to be the norm, we cannot deny the fact that honesty remains the best policy. What is good is good even if everybody is against it. And what is evil is evil even if everybody is for it. If hands be joined with hands, a sinner will never go unpunished. Sin is simply error, and punishment is simply the inevitable result of error. The laws of the society are man-made; it sometimes happens that the lawbreaker escapes society’s punishment for some time. Not so with the laws of the spirit. These laws work without error, and he, who thinks evil, creates evil; and he who sends out evil will find evil returning home to him; if not today, then tomorrow. Your thought or action, whether good or bad goes out on its course, but the Eternal Lawmakers has decreed that it must return to its creator—you. He who eats by the sword shall be eaten by the sword. The seed a man sows, he shall reap. And the fruits of sin are always bitter but the deception is that the bitterness comes after it had been ingested. The leaves of a tree may remain green for sometimes after the tree has been cut down. Know that ill gotten gain is the beginning of a great loss. Obtaining success through fraud is a greater failure. Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man but afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel. Better is a little with righteousness, than vast revenues without justice. Be not like the bird that sees the seed but not the trap. He who sins, sighs. Every time there is sin, there will be wound. If you defile your holiness because of gain, fire will come from your own actions and burn you. There is no slavery as serious as being a slave to your fleshy desires. You should not destroy your future because of a pot of porridge. Every unspiritual joy looks attractive as it first creeps in, but in the end it poisons and destroys. Don’t indulge in open laughter when you have good reason to weep. Every soul that refuses to give himself to his Creator is under the control of Satan. He is not his own. He may talk of freedom, but he is in the most abject slavery.
The reality is that life is a competition and you have to compete. But be sure that true greatness in life is never achieved through strive or unwholesome competition. It does not come from the east or west; not from self promotion or praise of men, but from that great King who reigns supreme over all. If you must win, win decently and according to the rules. How life is lived is more important than what it achieves. There is no pain in death except for a life not well lived. Life is cyclical in nature, which cannot continue without death. For a thing to be, it must die. It is therefore needless fearing what is inevitable. That which was is that which is; And that which is now is that which will be. There is nothing new under the sun. Don’t fear death, fear sin. The guilty are afraid. Conscience is a voice within each individual to guide him into the way of eternal life. In the midst of our wicked and careless ways, a gnawing, persistent conscience (the still small voice) reminds us that we are in the wrong road, and that, “The wages of sin is death”. Sin is the sickness of the soul. Clear conscience is the secret of boldness. The heart of man cannot be kept from the maker and the clamor of conscience be silenced. Every one stands convicted at the bar of his conscience. The voice of conscience is always on the side of the truth. This impartial judge called conscience demands repentance. Uneasy remains the heart until it rests in its Creator. Repentance may be a humiliating experience but unless we repent, we shall perish. Our world has lost sense of guilt. Sense of guilt is a useful resource. It stimulates correct and respectful conduct and favourably getting along with others. Feeling of guilt in the right amount helps people to observe rules and respect others. The right proportion of guilt helps to prevent bad behavior. Do not support evil, even if it is favouring you. The evil that is working for you today will definitely work against you tomorrow.
Live your present life with eternity in view. Being a decent human being is more important than winning a trophy. The end does not justify the means; it is the means that justifies the end. When we cheat people we are preparing ourselves to be cheated. When we teach our children how to lie for us, we are also teaching them how to lie to us. That it shall be well with the righteous is as true as truth can be. A good heart is the secret of a good life. A short life lived in righteousness is better than a long sinful life. It is a lot better to be decent than to be famous. Seek not popularity as it may be a threat to spirituality; Honoured by kings but rejected by the King of kings. In the estimation of heaven, what is it that constitutes greatness? Not wealth, rank, noble descent or intellectual gifts. It is moral worth that our Creator values. Love and purity are the attributes He prizes most. The things of this world, though important are subordinate to those of eternal interest. When Satan said, “I will be like the Most High”, what he desired was the position and power of the Most High and not his character. He sought for himself the highest place, and anyone who is inspired by his spirit will do the same. He will desire to be seen in the hall of fame. The law of the flesh is to fight to be: number one, the president, the general overseer, the chairman, the first lady, high chief, arch bishop, the most reverend, most senior pastor, senior apostle, etc. But in the kingdom of heaven there is no earthly dignity and display. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, envying and provoking one another. It is character, not position or title that determines one’s fate. It is works not words. Be wise; he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot loose.
The kingdom of Satan is a kingdom of pride and force; dominion is the order of the day. Therein, when money is talking, nobody checks the grammar. It is their despot. This necessary evil has devastated the world. In this our generation, this tree of good and evil kills more than it saves. Every individual regards every other as an obstacle in the way of his own advancement, or a stepping stone on which he may climb to a higher place. And when he dies, his epitaph will read: Here is the man that did not make the Creator his strength but trusted in the abundance of his riches. A noble heart will refuse happiness built on the misfortune of others.
The world today pursues riches at all costs. It is written; “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition”. Again, “How hard it is for rich men to enter into the kingdom of heaven…” It is not evil to be rich but know that, riches come not alone to a man. They surround him with circumstances which are inimical to spiritual perception. For this reason, a rich man’s soul is endangered, not from the simple circumstance of his happening to have riches, but because he becomes subject through them, to many influences of an unfavourable character. It is different with the poor. Their days are spent in labour. They have little to comfort them, and are strangers to the elegances and luxuries by which the rich sweeten their lives. They are held in small reputation, have few friends and few pleasures. This enables the righteous poor man to remain connected to his Creator and not be lost in the world of pleasure and sin. Anyone Satan could not entice to sin, he would cause to suffer. But his anger is a favour to us. Therefore, we do not lose heart, even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction which is but for a moment is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we do not look at the things which are seen but the things which are not seen. For things which are seen are temporary but things which are not seen are eternal. There is a glory beyond the poverty and humiliation of the present. The Messiah never held out any hope of earthly rewards to His followers. If so, multitudes would have offered Him there allegiance. Any theology which denies suffering as a reality is incomplete, for suffering is our heavenly Father’s tool for accomplishing his purpose. Difficulties strengthen the mind as labour does the body We must everyday gain a fresh hold on Omnipotence, for only thus can we contemplate thse future. And by so doing, maintain equanimity and lose not our equilibrium. Let the people of this world enjoy the things of the world. Don’t envy them. It is their world – their age. We are strangers in this place of sin, decay and death. Our citizenship is in a realm of life where there is no defeat, no pain, no sin and no death. Their cabbage is our garbage. Don’t lose your values. We have a sure hope that we shall share our King’s joy. Today we are in concealment and humiliation, even as He was when he was here below; but when he comes it will be our manifestation. The slandered and the despised shall shine forth into the kingdom of their King, and the days of their mourning shall be ended. He who came as a lowly man to serve will assuredly come to take the reward of his service.
Temptation, poverty, adversity, is the very discipline needed to develop purity and firmness. They help to make us wise to discern evil and strong to resist it. So that neither gain nor pleasure, applause or censure, could induce us to consent to a wrong act. But at a time like this, you must keep vigil over your life because the evil one takes advantage of human weakness. Through temptations of the devil and the unkindness of the wicked who are his seed, Satan seeks to weary the saint. It is a token of our separation from them. Satan’s crafts are most successful against those who are depressed by difficulties. Do not disbelieve in the dark the truth that the Holy Spirit had clearly taught you in the light. A weary man’s desire makes it easy for him to see divine guidance in some outside urge or invitation which conforms to what he wants. Whenever one is encompassed with clouds, perplexed by circumstances, or afflicted by poverty or distress, this prince of the dark kingdom is at hand to tempt and annoy. He hopes to discourage the soul, and to break our holds on the Most High with his sophistries. If any yields to Satan’s deceit and gets the glory of this world, such a one will find no rest. He may be engaged in the affairs of the nation, receiving honours from men, he may bear a smiling face and dignified mien, while he conceals an anxious heart, ever oppressed with the fear that a curse is upon him. The stings of a guilty conscience will give him no rest day and night, except for those whose conscience are dead.
To do what the Creator desires merely because one cannot do otherwise has no moral worth. It could be like the beams which uphold the house just because they have been put in place and cannot but bear their load. To do the right where there has never been an opportunity to do wrong is not a moral behavior. The opportunity to do otherwise must present itself. This is temptation. A castrated man should not boast of not being an adulterer.
Greed blinds the mind. Eve freely spoke with the serpent without sensing the grave irregularity in the serpent’s ability to speak. As Balam was not aroused with the fact that a mere irrational creature as the ass spoke with human voice. When the father of lies lures the mind to sleep, he sows the seed of sin. The taking and eating of the forbidden fruit was not the fall into sin, the fall had occurred before the act. The eating of the fruit was an incidental bit of evidence of the fact that man had fallen. The fall was a matter of the heart. The eating was not the genesis of sin but its full development and expression. Man cannot read the heart, but he can discern from the outward act what had transpired in the heart.
Don’t be a creature of the wishes of other people. Be the individual you were created to be. Make the decisions that shape your life, let not the crowd do it for you. While in the crowd, remain an individual. Be yourself. Do not be a conformist – doing what others do, thinking what they think, feeling what they feel and saying what they say. Being a man of public opinion weakens or destroys the risk of standing up for the truth.
You will always feel joy in the evening if you have spent the day profitably. Resist negative peer group pressure, and maintain a heavenly approved lifestyle. To stand one’s ground and to remain uninfluenced by the attitude and the conduct of all people to the contrary, gives indication of strength of character. A wise person makes his own decisions, while an ignorant person follows public opinion. When by others you are urged to do something you should not do, let them blame you if they will but firmly tell them, no. Don’t be afraid to speak that little word – No. Choose the right because it is right and leave consequences with the Most High. Resist every unfavourable social barometric pressure on your life. Crave an atmosphere of love and purity. To sin by silence when there should be protest makes cowards of men. Not all conflicts are wrong. Not all disagreements require reconciliation. Occasionally it is right to be defiant and fight. Surrendering to a cause that would lead to wrong is wrong. He who cannot be angry at evil lacks enthusiasm for good. A man shows his character by what he laughs or frowns at. It takes a thief to appreciate a thief. But apply caution in saying this no. Don’t be arrogant. Don’t create unnecessary enmity. Say it politely and respectfully. Be afraid of offending people you should not offend. It is better to avoid a battle than to win it. Learn to STOP before you act. It means to: Stop, Think deeply, consider Options before you Proceed.
Sinners interpret the scripture to suit themselves. Don’t be taken in by their doctrines. There is no right way to do a wrong thing. At times people can be so wicked that you will feel justified to hate them, but hatred is unjustifiable. Whatever makes sin permissible is an enemy of both the Creator and the created. If you tear your garment of honour you will wear the mask of disgrace. The measure of a person’s character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.
Be you also mindful of your dressing style. As there are animals and fish that are unclean for food; I want you to know that some words, dressing styles and some popular life styles are unclean to you as a saint. Touch nothing unclean. Your dressing style is a language, what you wear has much to tell the people about your character, who you are and what you are. So take time to dress corporately. Dress decently and in order. Wear what fits you according to the faith. Those who wear saggy trousers are living a sagged life, and they lack sagacity. It is a sign of inner decay. The way you dress is the way you will be addressed. There is much advantage in dressing corporately. Because when you put on a uniform, there are certain inhibitions you must accept. False knowledge is worse than ignorance. Ever since the fall of man, Satan has been sowing the seeds of error. It was by a lie that he first gained control over man, and thus he still works to keep men under his power.
Avoid greed and covetousness. There is nothing that one eats no matter how big that will quench hunger forever. Flippancy and rapacity are the order of the day but you can be a star that shines brighter in darkness. Truly, honest people do have hard time in a corrupt environment, but be courageous for the right. Life is not about material things, but it’s about eternity rather than time. We don’t really belong here, we are simply staying here. The way of righteousness is the most reliable route to follow when life gets complicated. It may have its rough moments, but you will never regret it. Perhaps for a moment the righteous are staggered when their integrity results in sever trial, but assuredly, the day shall come when they shall bless their King that they did not yield to evil suggestions. Satan may worry you but may he never claim you as his own. It is written, “blessed is he that endures temptation.” The endurer may not know that he is blessed, but he is. We are in a world where evil powers sponsor criminality, making it seem as if it is a good way. The holy powers are not in competition with them. They don’t accept the challenge even though they can turn the stones into bread. There is time for everything. When a social vice stays long with a people, it becomes a norm. A lie often repeated seems like a truth. The longer a person is in error the more sure he is that he is right and the less open he is to change. The evil one is deceiving people with the doctrine of, “everybody is doing it”. No, everybody is not doing it. But even if they do, you can be Lot in Sodom. A careless person who lost his golden ring in the river must never blame the river but himself. If you cannot escape to the spiritual world, learn how you can live spiritually in this physical world. Satan’s influence is constantly exerted upon humanity to distract senses, control the mind for evil, and incite to violence and crime. He weakens the body, darkens the intellect and debases the soul. Enticement is Satan’s strategy. Beware, Satan’s voice sounds like that of the Holy Spirit, especially when it is talking of how to get what you desire. His intent is to change your focus, direction and destination. But you, set your mind on things above, the precious things of heaven, not on the things on earth.
A free citizen is one who keeps the law. Freedom from the law is not freedom to break it, but freedom gained from keeping it. It is by observing the rules that we gain freedom. Be one of the kept seven thousand who had not bowed their knee to Baal. Delilah may delight you tonight, but she will destroy you tomorrow. Portiphar’s wife did not desire Joseph because he was handsome; she desired him strongly because the devil wanted to use her to destroy the young man’s destiny. Be wise, flee adultery. Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? So is he who goes in to his neighbour’s wife. Escape while you may. Let your garment always be white. Garment of righteousness (the best robe) will never go out of fashion. No substitute has ever been found for honesty and veracity. Always start your day by washing the face of your soul with the water of life. Go to the scripture regularly, open it prayerfully, read it expectantly and live it joyfully. You have a destination, remain focused. Know that sin is sin whether overtly or covertly perpetrated. Covet the beauty of holiness. As evil is the opposite of good, and death is the opposite of life, so the sinner is the opposite of the righteous man. All the works of the Most high are in pairs, one the opposite of the other.
Remember, you are salt of the earth. Salt has no need to look like other soup ingredients. It sends out no aroma like other seasonings, yet without it soup will be tasteless. Salt maintains its integrity amidst all pollution. Have you ever seen a salt buyer demanding a taste before buying? This is because salt has proved its integrity over the ages. One who needs to swear before he is believed lacks integrity. Let your life be salt, not insult.
Those who follow the Messiah must imitate in their own way and time His pattern. They must live a life for others, a life that embodies love and truth. They must set their lamp on a lamp stand so that those who enter may see the light and glorify our Father. The chief mark of a saintly life is voluntary suffering (sacrifice). A saint must willingly be ready to suffer for the truth and for love. What happened to the earlier saints? They were martyred. They suffered. And so it will ever be. If they have called the Master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household? We know that rejecting conformity with the world attracts confrontation from her. The Truth was crucified by men, and even today men crucify truth wherever it is found. People of THE FAITH; followers of THE WAY, all MESSIANICS know this. And they enjoy being persecuted. Because of the Passover Lamb, the Jews enjoyed bitter herbs. Blessed are those who endure, but more blessed are those who enjoy their afflictions for His sake, the fellowship of His suffering. The Almighty has this to say: “Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, you people in whose heart is My law; do not fear the reproach of men, nor be afraid of their insults; for the moth will eat them up like garment and the worm will eat them like wool; but My righteousness will be forever, and my salvation from generation to generation”.
Keep yourself pure; that you may boldly say at the end: I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. You are different from the world. Make sure you keep up the division in spirit, aim, character, company and even in eating and dressing. It is written “lo, the people shall dwell alone and shall not be reckoned among the nations”. The children of Israel ate the passover lamb with their loins girded and their shoes on their feet_ ready to depart from Egypt. The moment one receives our Passover Lamb, he must depart from the world and all of it’s allurements. Today, there is such a mingling and mixing that one often sighs for a lodge in the wilderness. The Chief Shepherd would have his people follow a separate path and come out from this world’s vanity fair. Our names are not in the same book. Our roads and destinations are also different. I invite you for a walk in the HIGH WAY OF HOLINESS. No lion nor any ravenous beast shall be there. Only the redeemed shall walk on it. It is for those who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the LAMB. The Spirit and the bride say: “come”. The two trees in the Garden of Eden were symbolic of two ways of living__ divine life and self life; choose one. Truly, the evil days are here, but it is possible that one can live in the evil days and still be free from the evils of the day. He can be affected but not infected.
Let your decision on corruption be:
“OTHERS MAY BUT I CANNOT”
Escape For Your Life
