^Being Lukewarm^

^Revelation 3:15-16 - I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

^Titus 1:16 - They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.

^Matthew 7:21-23 - "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

^Luke 6:46 - "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?

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A lukewarm Christian is someone who claims to believe in God and has accepted Jesus Christ as their savior but lives contrary to this proclamation

A lukewarm Christian is someone who has moments with Jesus but has failed to surrender their life completely to Him

A lukewarm Christian is afraid of God and does not fear Him in reverence

A lukewarm Christian is someone who loves the things of the world so cannot really desire fellowship with Jesus, moreover, is unsure of their eternal destination ( when this world ends)

A lukewarm Christian may have the gifts of the Spirit but does not put it use because they’re either terrified of the Lord ( like the servant given 1 talent in Mathew 25:14-30) or shy to use what the Lord has given them

A lukewarm Christian does not have the Holy Spirit living in and through them

A lukewarm Christian does not bear the fruit of the Spirit and is disconnected from Christ therefore is bound to be cut off from the Lord and thrown into eternal fire ( John 15:5-6)

A lukewarm Christian does not know the mysteries of God because the Holy Spirit has not revealed it to them because they have not given Him , the Holy Spirit, space to manifest Himself

A lukewarm Christian does not allow the Lord to show them the way as He says in Isaiah 30:21 but allows the god of this world, the devil, and his cohorts to manipulate them.

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Now, some people may not see the problem with being lukewarm because , after all, I have given my life to Jesus and God has given me free will.

But look carefully at Matthew 7:21-23 and John 15:5-6. When you’re lukewarm Jesus doesn’t know you! You claim to know Him but He has no idea who you are because you fail to fellowship with Him!

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I can confidently say that the Holy Spirit has helped me leave camp lukewarm (shoutout to Montell Fish) and has led me to totally surrender my life to Jesus. Coming from someone who was the definition of a lukewarm Christian, I now ask these questions to myself:

^Was it worth it?

^After all that you’ve heard the Lord has done for you, why break His heart one more time by not making an effort to leave the things of this world?

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If you’re reading this and ticking boxes to see whether you fall under the category of a lukewarm Christian then you probably are. But no need to fear because today is the day of salvation🎉!

^Be honest with the Lord

^Tell Him that you’re sorry for not completely surrendering to Him

^Ask the Holy Spirit to come dwell in your heart

Find a fellowship or a group of Christian brothers and sisters who are madly in love with Jesus and spend time with them. Open up to them about your struggles with this world and its desires and the Holy Spirit will definitely use them to help you❤️

And remember He wants you to come home!

Come back next week for part 2 :)

simple thoughts....

Society has ,one way or the other, depicted an invalid view of God. They have either tagged Him as;

!a lazy person,who has no concern for the human race

or

!a wicked ruler, who is selfish

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But I am here to tell you that is very false. I definitely won’t be able to tell you all the things He is because the Lord likes to reveal His nature as a relationship develops, but I can testify to the fact that our God wants us. God isn’t desperate for us, don’t get it twisted. But He desires us; we are His pleasure ( Ephesians 1:5). Not only does He want us but He is close to us. Listen, never let the devil tell you that God is far away from you because you’re so sinful. Now, yes, your sin separates you from God but God will still pursue you after you’ve fallen short ( Matthew 18:12-14). God is so near to us; He is literally one call away, one cry away. Jesus wants you to be saved and set free ( 1 Timothy 2:4). Jesus wants you to be redeemed and have eternal life.

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Ultimately Jesus wants you to give your life to Him completely. This is where people start scratching their heads because they aren’t willing to lay it ALL down for the saviour of the world, Jesus Christ. But let me ask one thing Jesus asked me when I struggled with this “ For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, but lose his soul?" -Mark 8:36.

The answer is nothing, just in case you didn’t know. Literally everything before our very eyes will disappear and we will stand before the judgement seat and be held accountable ( 2 Corinthians 5:10).

Instead of putting all our energy into the fleeting attractions of this age, let us focus on the real deal, living a life centred around Jesus Christ.

See you next week God willing😉!

.to fast.

“For the one who gave me life nothing is a sacrifice”

- Available by Tiffany Hudson, Elevation Worship

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Fasting

-the act of starving the flesh and feeding the spirit.

-allowing the Holy Spirit to take root in your soul by pushing away/ cutting off the things of this world

As a follower of Jesus Christ it is essential that you fast. It is so much of a necessity and Jesus displays its essence when He fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, as told in Luke 4:1-2. Fasting must not be viewed as a religious practice in order to tick a box or go about telling others of the maximum number of hours we’ve “fasted”. The goal of a fast is to feed the spirit within and kill the desires of the flesh.

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We fast to get more revelations of the Lord because the Spirit reveals the deep thoughts of God ( 1 Corinthians 2:10) and the genuine character and nature of a person is vividly depicted by their thoughts.

We also fast to die. Paul says this plainly in 1 Corinthians 15:31 to show that the desires of our flesh should not dictate our steps.

To add, we fast to feed the Spirit and allow Him to take control. In Him taking control, He leads us into exercising our authority over demonic powers and principalities.

Most importantly, fasting leads us to the presence of God, to the feet of Jesus.

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We do not always fast with the goal of the Lord blessing us ,materialistically, in return. There’s nothing we could ever do that will equate to the blessings the Lord lavishly gives us.

Rather, when entering into a period of fast, the Holy Spirit should direct us into that place of intimacy. In that place, we must worship the Lord in spirit and truth, meaning appearing before the Lord as we are. This should be our motive behind every fast.

When fasting, we must also be expecting to hear from the Lord. Moses in Exodus 34 entered His fast with 2 tablets, ready to write down the words of God. We must enter a fast with our hearts ready to receive a word from the Most High God.

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reminders

Fasting is done within a designated time period. Certain fasts happen at certain times to unlock certain things we do not see. Jesus fasted before His ministry to equip Him for the work He was about to do. The Lord will give us a time frame to fast in because He is working on something in the inside of us to prepare us for a greater work, ultimately for His glory. Ask the Lord when to fast and never designate a time frame by yourself.

Fasting is a personal activity. No one can fast for you to become spiritually alive ( unlike praying)

Fasting cannot be done with pride seated in our hearts

the aftermath of a fast

You become equipped with the Holy Ghost. He has full control and works within you for God’s glory

You shine/glow. At the end of Exodus 34 we see that Moses face literally glows, causing his people to fear him at first sight. In Matthew 5:16, Jesus speaks about a certain light within us that must shine so God is praised by others. After a fast, we allow the light of Jesus to shine bright within us causing many to praise God

You build a better relationship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. When you fast, you let them know that they are your priority and nothing will stand in between you and them, thus, strengthening your relationship.

Allow the Holy Spirit to push you into a period of fasting!