When are we the prodigal son?

Luke 15:11  And he said, A certain man had two sons: 

12  And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 
13  And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. 
14  And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. 
15  And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 
16  And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 
17  And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 
18  I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 
19  And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 
20  And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. 
21  And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. 
22  But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: 
23  And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: 
24  For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. 

25  Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard musick and dancing. 
26  And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant. 
27  And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. 
28  And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and intreated him. 
29  And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: 

30  But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. 
31  And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. 
32  It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.

I used to be by a certain church serving at the youth, then the youth stopped because of political reasons. I then started helping at another church. About a year passed then I felt God called me back to the previous church and I obeyed.

Those days I was still addicted to nicotine and alcohol. I assumed people from the first church saw me and started a rumor that I have fallen back (backslide or whatever you want to call it).

The moment I entered the church I notice that people wasn’t pleased because I started serving there again and even the Pastor had a service on the “Prodigal Son” to calm the people down. Then I thought to myself, do some people really think their church is the only church where Jesus is? Do they really think being obese, addicted to soft drinks or being lazy is a lesser sin than being addicted to a stronger substance?

We all rely on Jesus for breaking bonds and addictions.

The way I see it, the people that haven’t repented yet by giving their hearts to Jesus by admitting He is the Son of God; is the Prodigal Son… Not the ones struggling with sin or attending another church you don’t like. If else, everyone is still the Prodigal Son…

Is it time church closes their doors?

The day church closes his doors to sinners is the same as hospitals closing their doors for the sick and wounded.

Luke 15:1 Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.

2 And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.

3 And he spake this parable unto them, saying,

4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

5 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

6 And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

8 Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it?

9 And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.

10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

 I was ones by a prophecy service and after the service the prophetess screamed out; it is time church closes that doors for sinners once again.

At that moment, I thought to myself, then who will ever enter this church? Are there really some that are that full of themselves thinking they have no sin?

How can I follow Jesus?

Every Christian must have had this thought, how can I follow Jesus?

Luke 14:25 And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,

26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?

29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,

30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.

31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?

32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.

33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

When I was still in school, there was a house in the town I lived in that was built to roof level. It did not have the roof, windows or doors yet. After about a year, every time my friends and I passed that house, someone just had to say something. It was always; this guy is probably dead or didn’t have money, bankrupt or something. About 20 years after I was finished with school, my friend used to live in a flat next door to that house. Almost every time he looks at that house when we exited the flat, he will say; will that house ever be finished.

Jesus compares the decision to follow Him to that situation. I basically see how people always mock Christians that get distracted halfway with this marathon.

So, if you just asked yourself this question? When we say, yes Lord, send me. Make sure first that it is God leading you. First, start to hear God’s voice before starting to sell stuff or leave your family and job behind. I have seen people after hearing one sermon, selling everything and leave his job. His brothers are now looking after him, his wife and children. I did not hear anyone ever say something good about him after he made that choice, just mockery.

Everyone that knows my testimony knows I also went through similar, but God has blessed me with a great testimony to honor Him and be a wildness of His Glory.

But also remember, if you do hear God’s voice and obeyed, and things go slow leading to mockery. It is not always the case that you heard wrong. There was a time people mocked me too before the Miracle happened.

These are just some of the costs you should consider to be a disciple of Jesus.

The Sabbath Day

Should we keep the sabbath and which day is it?

Luke 14:1 And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.
2 And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy.

3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?

4 And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go;

5 And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?

6 And they could not answer him again to these things.

There was a time in my life that I have worked 7 days a week, doing shutdowns on power stations. Thinking back to that time, I wouldn’t want to do that ever again. I was basically in a trance the whole time and overtired. I had pain most places in my body and even started to have weird emotions.

The job I have now is what I always wanted to do. I worked so many hours at this, even weekends. I don’t need to do stuff physically; I work on a computer the whole day. Then after a few months, I started getting bad neck pains and couldn’t concentrate on my job anymore. It was like my brain was shutting down. I also started to stress about small things and started to overcomplicate things.

I started doing some research about resting and basically concluded that there should be at least one day a week rest.

So, I started to put Saturday out for my rest day. I do as little as possible, resting my brain and body. After about a month, I started to feel relaxed again and the stress stopped.

The sabbath day is Saturday on the Jewish calendar, the roman catholic changes this to Sunday. Some say because catholic’s started worshipping the sun idle, others say the non-catholic churches changed it to Sunday now because the Christians took their tithe the first day of the week to church. The first day of the week is Sunday.

This, of course, is not a good reason to change the sabbath day to any other day of the week. Also, it is not indicated in the Bible that we should change the day to any other day of the week. I am involved in a church and are active in the activities. Sometimes, I work harder at church on a Sunday than at my work during the week and I think a lot of other people do too.

It is part of the 10 Commandments to keep. But if you try to keep it, it means that you are not allowed to go out of your house, work or allow anyone else to work. So basically, you should switch off the electricity of your house and not use water from a tap. Someone might be working in the power or water plant and consuming these causes people to work.

So personally, I think we should at least rest one day a week for the sake of our bodies.

If we must keep the sabbath day as Christians, then we all are in trouble here!

The Narrow Door

There comes a time we ask ourselves, am I saved? Am I going to heaven? Well, there is only One that knows that answer. 

Luke 13:22 And he went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 
23 Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, 
24 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. 
25  When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: 
26 Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. 
27 But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. 
28 There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. 
29 And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. 
30 And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last.

We sometimes end up following people that manipulated us to a certain mindset. Then we end up by a church of some kind with some name with some doctrine. I have studied a lot of types of churches but find one or two that believes the Bible completely, the rest might as well not even have the Bible.

There is a lot of translations though but find the old King James KJV to be the most accurate, the others are mostly twisted and contradicts the verses. Some call them the new translations, I call them the new twisted versions.

At this point, you might think what makes me think I know the truth and gives me the right to judge what church/Bible is true or not… Well, in the end, you should too. Only God knows and spending time with Him will reveal these things.

We sometimes don’t want to bother and just listen to some YouTube sermons instead; I don’t say there is a problem with that. But only YouTube sermons and going to church? Who will ever reveal the truth if we listen to people? The Son of God is the only way to God. He is the Doorway, the Bread of Life, the Light and the Lamb that was slain.

I don’t say it is wrong to go to church or submit under a spiritual leader but make sure God is the one that sends you there.

The Bible says we should only believe and confess with our tong, then we will be saved. But how would we really know we believe?

After considering all these… by spending time with God daily to start to know His voice, will you know if you are saved. Only God can reveal that to you.

Bear Fruit

God through the Blood of Jesus gives us a lot of chances to repent and bear fruit.

Luke 13:6 He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. 
7 Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground? 

8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 

9 And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.

About a year after I finished school, I use to be reckless and speed around in town. The one late afternoon, it was raining, and my car had cracks in the disks of the brakes. The road ahead had a curve in and there was a car parked in the middle of the road. Heading towards the car at high speed, it seemed like the car was parked next to the road. When the road started to straighten, I realized the car was on the road. I stepped on the breaks gently then suddenly it locked and won't release. The car slid on the wet road and it almost felt like the car was sliding faster than what I was driving. So, I crashed into the other car and my car went into the field across from houses. Luckily by the time I hit the car, my car didn’t seem to be at high speed by the eyewitnesses that were in the house looking out because of the skid noises of my tyres. They were angry at the other person for parking in the middle of the road to answer his phone, and people had to drive around him if they were using that road. So, I drove home and the engine barely made it because the radiator was broken. I got off that one easy.

The next day while I was walking to my friend, I thought of all the accidents my friends and I were in before. There was a couple of car accident I was in and never got hurt. Not even a stiff neck like some of my friends did in previous accidents. Then I started to feel almost invincible. Suddenly while that thought went through my head, I felt God talk to me, saying, if it wasn’t for your mother’s prayers, you would have been dead by now. I got the fright of my life.

Pride and taking God’s Mercy for granted can cause us not to bear fruit. A selfish person is basically fruitless.

If God should have a look at us now, will He find fruit on us? He gives a lot of chances and we should not waste them.

Overwhelming Anxiety

One of the worst bad habits a man can have is to constantly worry about things. Worry about food, what to wear, home, transport, family and then even our relationship with God. Sometimes the more we worry the worst we feel about our relationship with God because He tells us we should not worry. We just can’t seem to stop worrying, to a point the worrying gets overwhelming and anxiety starts to form.

The only way to get rid of these fears is by spending time with God. Every day, even if you feel guilty for worrying. Just spend time with God.

Luke 12:22 And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on.

23 The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment.

24 Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?

25 And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit?

26 If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?

27 Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?

29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.

30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.

31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.

32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. 

34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

There was a time in my life all went bad and I lost everything. I felt God told me to start my own business and at a point, it felt I heard wrong. I then told God; I will leave everything at His feet. No matter what people think or if I end up on the street, I will do what he tells me. I then started going to a church I used to attend, and they told me to help with youth and a lot of other things that needed to get done. It wasn’t even a week from starting to help at church, a lot of contracts started to go through for my business. Suddenly I made twice as much as I ever got per month.

Sometimes God just wants to see if we really trust Him and will sacrifice our time for Him.