LIVE BY THE WORD OF GOD

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

John 1:1 (ESV)

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

The Bible was written by the Holy Spirit through inspiring the prophets (2 Peter 1:19-21, 2 Tim 3:16); and after the shading of the blood and death of Jesus, it pleased God the Father to give the world the gift of the Holy Spirit since the temple - man had been cleansed. After Jesus had been taken to heaven, the Father released the Holy Spirit on the day of the Pentecost. The bible says in Acts 2:1-4 (NIV) that;

“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them”

Since then, all members of the body of Christ received the Holy Spirit. You too have the Holy Spirit because you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. And because you have the Holy Spirit, He speaks to you every day about the heart of God and heaven’s plans towards man. 

The Word Nurtures the Spirit

Deuteronomy 8:3 (NIV)

“He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.”

In this time, some people might say, we have been seeking God for a long time and we should choose to take a break right now. But we have two lives to cater for - physical and spiritual. When we accepted Jesus as our personal Savior, we became a new creation (2 Corinth 5:17). So it’s your responsibility to feed the new creation. The new being is fed by the word of God. The word you listen to helps the new creation to grow from one stage to another. When you do not feed the baby, he becomes malnourished. And when this happens, it affects the health and growth process.

As Christians, we need to know that there are spiritual responsibilities such as waging wars spiritually; but if you are weak spiritually, you can’t fight such a war.

We very well know that bad situations around us are engineered in the spiritual world. So if you keep feeding your inner man with the word of God by, fellowship, fasting and prayer, you will become spiritually stronger and withstand any challenge that comes your way, because you’re strong and healthy spiritually. Unfortunately, some Christians are spiritually weak; their spirits are malnourished – they don’t read and study the Word, don’t fellowship and their prayer lives is at the lowest.

It’s true that man does not live by bread alone because food alone cannot make you happy in this life. You need to balance your spiritual and physical life. You feed your spiritual life by feeding on the word that comes from the mouth of God and flows from the throne of God (1 Corinth 10:3).

The devil wants to use this chaotic season to kill your spiritual life, to kill the fruits of the Holy Spirit and, to take away the peace and joy of God you have been enjoying. In order to resist the devil, you will need to read, study, meditate and be a doer of the word, and by this you will have fought a good fight. 

Heed to the Word Without Any Diversion

Luke 10:42 (NIV) that;

“Few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

During a personal or communal devotion, if you want to hear and understand the words of the kingdom of God, close all the channels that might divert your attention and concentration. Things like radio, TV, phone etc can easily distract and divert you from the word so you need to close all those distraction avenues. The sermon is not made up of mere words, but come with a revelation and the Holy Spirit explains profoundly to you when you pay attention.

Once the word is preached or taught, the Holy spirit helps to interpret it for you; but if you're in church and you are doing a number of things while trying to listen to the word, you will miss God’s revelation in the word.

Mary chose to sit down and listen to Jesus yet Martha was distracted by other preparatory works (Luke 10:38-42). In the same way, what you do for God in church is good, but the word that God brings is better and more important. Try doing all the things that might distract you beforehand so that when the word starts you are focused and attentive. When you hear the word with a calm and attentive spirit, the Holy Spirit begins to interpret it and you get a revelation.

It’s the revelation that causes spiritual growth. But some ministers in church miss such a time because they are busy moving up and down. Truth is you are serving but you are losing and missing out on what is better and most needed. The greatest portion is for you to hear the word and understand the word of God so that you can grow spiritually. 

Jesus, Our breath

Job 12:10 (ESV)

“In his hand is the life of every living thing and breath of all mankind.” 

In these 30 days of congregational suspension, the devil is very calculative to make the weak backslide, to derail those that don’t have faith but we shall stand by the word that comes from the mouth of God because it is food for our spirits and it’s what makes us move. Jesus is our oxygen; if you take Him away from us we are finished. The bible says in Acts 17:28 (NKJV) that; “For in him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, 'for we are also His offspring."
By the time we came to Jesus we were long dead, but he breathed in us new life, so you should not let anyone or thing separate you from Jesus. In the word, we hear from Him and get life that will see us through the days to come - for His words are spirit and life (John 6:63).

Some people think that we come to church to be prayed for but that is not the case because there are things He has given us without asking. A case in point, have you asked Him for the breath of life? No. Or asked for the sun to rise? The main reason we come to church is to listen to what God is saying. In the beginning, God would go to Adam and Eve every day. Why? He wanted to communicate to them and for His presence to dwell with them.

Our life is like a phone, you need to charge the battery to keep the phone on. Whenever the word comes to you, you get charged and can hear from God clearly. The power that comes from the word is what keeps us spiritually healthy and our souls awake. That’s why we do not come to church because of the problems we have since He can even take them away without us asking. For instance, some people have testified about receiving healing without being prayed for. All they did was to sit in God’s presence and listen to the word, and God dealt with their sicknesses. 

God Will Take Care of Us

Psalm 37:18-19 (NKJV)

“The Lord knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be forever. 19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.”

From the day you received salvation, God changed your name; He started calling you an upright person; you are upright by the blood of Jesus and the grace of God. If that's the case, God knows the longevity of the upright so He guards and observes it. I don’t want us to doubt God, so stop thinking that this pandemic is going to kill you before time.

The scripture above has said that for the upright; their inheritance shall be forever. This means that the things God has given you as an inheritance are not temporary. While the situation may give you the impression that your days are numbered; but if you know the truth, take heart and stand still because God knows your days. If God purposed for you to live for 90 years, even when a bad situation comes at 60 years, you will live as long as God planned for you. So to those who are washed by the blood of Jesus, nothing will come your way; nothing will befall you because God is going to hold you and fight everything that is fighting you because he knows your days.

There are two things that God considers and guards jealously - your days and your inheritance. You might look for the background of a born-again Christian and fail to trace it simply because God picks us from dust and sets us among princes (Psalm 113:7-8, 1 Samuel 2:7-8).  

Some of the things we got in salvation were under another person’s ownership but God chose to give them to us. Just like Canaan, it was not for Hebrews but God gave it to them (Deuteronomy 1:7-8). We are co-heirs with Christ; and because we inherit whatever God gives us, He puts a caveat and a hedge upon our inheritance and protects it, and no one can take it away.

The good and blessed life that you have is inherited, so don’t pay attention to those saying that this is not your place, position or possession. When God decides to give you a place, He casts down the inhabitants. Psalm 44:2 (NIV) says; “With your hand you drove out the nations and planted our ancestors; you crushed the peoples and made our ancestors flourish.”

Stop seeing problems and you think they are going to destroy you. The God who guards those that are upright through the cleansing blood of Jesus knows your days and guards them. You will not die before your appointed days. God promises us in Exodus 23:26 (AMP) that; “None shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.”

God can never change His word, secondly your inheritance shall be forever because what you have is an inheritance from God and it is everlasting. Some situations say that what you have is temporary but if you got it from God, its everlasting – we are what we are by the grace of God.

Don’t Consider the Signs

You shall not be put to shame in these hard times. There are many things standing in our way at home and places of work but never be moved by signs because the devil uses them a lot to destroy our faith. We walk by the word of God. Even when the surrounding circumstances signal death, discard them because the bible says in Psalm 118:17 (GNT) that; 

“I will not die; instead, I will live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done.”

Always be interested in He who has the final say about your life because He knows your future and your tomorrow. For we are born of God; are washed by the blood of Christ and the government that cares for us is the heavenly one; so we have special protection and angels are surrounding us as seen in Psalm 37 above

People are now wondering what they will do during or after the 30 days but its not your plan that will enable you to survive. Even when you have 100 plans and God has not blessed them, none can prosper (Proverbs 3:5). Fix your eyes unto the Lord and allow your faith to grow; for He will make a way.

God knew before hand, that you would experience every situation you are going through and also came up with a solution, so when the devil raises dust, focus your eyes on God and, have faith in Him and His word.

Isaiah 45:22 (GNT) 
“Turn to me now and be saved,
 people all over the world!
I am the only God there is.”

FOCUS YOUR EYES ON GOD

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Psalm 46:1-4 (NIV)

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. 5 God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day”

You might be worried thinking that the world has come to an end. But personally, when I am going through a situation, I always want to know what God is saying. These days, the entire world wants to know what America and other super powers are saying about the situation, but as Christians, we long to hear from God because He has the answer and solution to our questions and worries.

You should note that there is nothing new word under the sun. Everything has happened before; and every word you expect from the throne, is written somewhere in the Bible. Everything that we are going through has ever happened. Everything that you think of has happened before. So if this is the case, the Creator of heaven and earth is the ultimate solution to every problem and the answer to every question under the sun.

God Our Refuge

Psalm 46:1a (NIV)
“God is our refuge…..”

I asked God about the current situation of the lock down; I told Him, the president was going to speak, what happens next? God told me, my child, Psalm 46. The Bible says that God is our refuge in times of trouble and for that case, we will fear not and we shall not be shaken.

The devil is always looking for someone to devour; there are so many things running after us and so we run to Jesus to seek refuge, and when we get to Jesus, He welcomes us with open arms and promises to protect us. When you present your issues before God and surrender your worries and burdens unto Him, He will invite you to dwell with Him and also unburden you.

In the same way, with all the problems in the country and the world at large, our refuge is in God because when we run to Him, we are assured of protection – God is our fortress (Psalm 46:7). The Bible says in Psalm 125:2 (NIV) that; “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore.”

In this time when people are puzzled and scared about the recurring calamities and pandemic, just know that you are special; God is going to protect you. He is your refuge in a torn and insecure world. 
Christians are like a grasshopper in a glass bottle; when a hen tries to peck it, there is an impenetrable barrier - the glass, and so the hen ends up hurting itself. The grasshopper is safe in the bottle as long as it does not focus on the hen. Imagine you are the grasshopper, don’t look at the hen; don’t consider or focus on the virus even if it gets to the neighbourhood; It shall not come near you (Psalm 91:7, Psalm 91:9-10)

I want to tell you that during this time trust in the Lord. He who spoke is faithful; He protected Israel and they went through the desert for forty years. They were sleeping in the wilderness and going through hardships but they did not fall sick because God was protecting them. He put His protection upon them. The God who protected them will also protect you. God knows you and you need to remind yourself about this. The calamities have always been around but they did not consume the believers. In the same way, let us believe that God is going to protect us. This storm means something, It wants us to understand God more and get a revelation of His word.

God is our refuge. Just as refugees are taken care of by the host country, we equally have a host country and that is heaven and it will supply all our needs this season. He dropped Manna from heaven and no one died of hunger. Today He will not send Manna but He will make a way out because His ways are higher than ours. He will take care of your burdens when you surrender them to Him; and when they ask, the answer is that God is your refuge. So don’t fear that you are out of work or that the children are back from school. 

God Our Strength

Psalm 46:1b (NIV)
“…….and strength, an ever-present help in trouble”

By the time we came to God, we were void of strength, we were weary, could not fight our enemies and do so many things but when we came to God, He took away our weaknesses and gave us His strength and grace. Apostle Paul always says that He is an apostle by the grace of God, (1 Corinthians 15:9-10) and that is why he is called an apostle of Grace because God revealed Himself to him.

It’s God’s strength that is going to fight our battles. We are what we are by the grace of God which has molded us. Without His grace we would not be born-again. There are a number of things that have attacked you but you have overcome them by the grace of God not your strength because it is very little.

Secondly, God is our shield. We hide in the Lord; He will be at the front-line of the coronavirus pandemic and any other climate calamity. We shall hide in Him as He smites our enemies and everything that is against us. So it does not matter if the world is trembling, for the Bible has said that we should fear not (Psalm 46:2).

People are worried about their survival during this season. I want you to remember that every problem elevates the standard. God wants your faith to be elevated. This seems like the desert and just like the Israelites were in the desert and there was only sand, God had a plan; He sent them Manna from heaven. Therefore, if the situation around you is not favourable, it’s a sign that God is going to provide if you trust and call upon Him. 

The Bible says that He who does not work, shall not eat (2 Thess 3:10) but people in the desert were not working. If it is God who has brought this situation, and has ushered you into the desert, then that same God is going to provide for you all your needs, deliver you and bring everything you were not expecting so that you can know that He is God (Philippians 4:19). Some of you think that God can only work up to some extent. I want to tell you that that’s not all He can do. You are going to see the power of God (Ephesians 3:20).

God has told us to trust in Him and take our eyes off the mountains. Get your eyes from the hen you grasshopper. Look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Stop looking at coronavirus pandemic, it just creates fear in you yet fear is not our portion – for we are governed by faith.

God the River

Psalm 46:4-5 (TLB) 
“There is a river of joy flowing through the city of our God—the sacred home of the God above all gods. 5 God himself is living in that city; therefore it stands unmoved despite the turmoil everywhere. He will not delay his help.

There is a river inside you - Holy Spirit (John 7:39); you are the city of God; you are God’s dwelling, and the streams of the river make glad the city of God. Jesus said in John 7:38 (ESV) that; 
“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” 

Jesus does not just have what our souls need, but He is what our souls need in this time and always. He is the bread of life and the living water (John 6:35). We need to focus unto God, trust Him and listen to what He is saying in this trying time when the entire world is on tension. When the situation is upside-down and everyone is giving all sorts of advice, focus on God’s report and His truth - for He is our strength, our refuge; He will unburden us and take care of us in a world that is torn apart by calamities. Even when a mountain like China is uprooted and all other G-20 countries are in chaos, God will be our strength and refuge.

Anytime from now, amazing things are going to happen. In these days, God is going to make those who know and trust Him do exploits (Daniel 11:32).  There are so many things you are going to do because God is your strength, refuge and by His grace we shall overcome.

RAISING THE STANDARD

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Romans 11:11-12 (NLT)

“Did God’s people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles. But he wanted his own people to become jealous and claim it for themselves. 12 Now if the Gentiles were enriched because the people of Israel turned down God’s offer of salvation, think how much greater a blessing the world will share when they finally accept it.

The coming of Jesus was a promise to the Jewish people. For many years God promised Israel a Messiah; for the prophets prophesied and the people waited upon the coming of the promised Messiah (Isaiah 9:6-7). As gentiles, when we talk about the Messiah we may not understand the meaning but in Israel they understood him as the Redeemer, someone who broke the yoke off their hands. Just as the other nations had their small gods and would run to them for solutions, the Israelites had one God, the Creator of heaven and earth.      

Rejected Cornerstone

Because the Messiah’s coming was a promise from God, the people waited for a long time. They probably had big imaginations about the long awaited Messiah: Some may have imagined him as one who would come with wings from heaven and land on Mt. Olive. They had big expectations about the Messiah; however, when Jesus came he came in a different way, not like one coming from heaven; for God’s plan was different. He was born to a poor family in a manger (Luke 2) and this caused some people to doubt whether He was the Son of God (Luke 20). When he grew up, He started a ministry and when he went to his own people, they rejected him and thus decided to give the offer of salvation to the Gentiles (John 1:11). Even Apostle Paul was rejected by Jews in Corinth; they opposed and resisted him, but he shook out his clothes and went to the Gentiles (Acts 18:5-7). The gospel started to be preached to the Gentiles in Rome, Greece and other parts of the world. Acts 28:28 (NIV) says;

 “Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”

We thank God for the Grace, because the gift of Salvation which was meant for the Jews only was also extended to the Gentiles because of their disobedience. Romans 11:11 (NLT) says that; 
“Did God’s people stumble and fall beyond recovery? Of course not! They were disobedient, so God made salvation available to the Gentiles.”

The Jews did not understand Jesus, thus rejected Him. We read this in John 1:11-13 (NKJV) that; “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

We are now called his sons and daughters instead of only the Jews because they rejected him. We thank God for the Jews because had it not been for the rejection of Christ, we would not have gotten the gift of Salvation. But now we are born again and because of this we are God’s children and have the gift of Salvation

 Shaken unto His House

Whoever has confessed Christ has a prepared place in heaven (John 14:1-3) with good things, plus wealth stored over the years. Therefore be mindful that you store up for yourselves treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20). Some Christians will however get to heaven and find nothing at all. But be reminded that whatever you give to the poor, widows, servants of God and church, you will have deposited on the heavenly account.

Every scripture and prophecy has a right season. The word of God is a lamp unto our feet and foundation of life. For His word is alive, active and sharper than any double-edged sword. (Hebrews 4:12) However, we should remember that everything happens at the right appointed time. One thing God is going to do in the end times is to raise the standard of the church. The bible says in Isaiah 60:22 (AMP) that; 
“The smallest one will become a thousand (a clan), and the least one a mighty nation. I, the Lord, will quicken it in its [appointed] time.”

This happened in Egypt. God used the Egyptians to give wealth to the Jews. The same will be upon this generation. The time is now when God is going to anoint you with favor and cover you so that no evil comes near you. This is the anointing that is going to hasten the smallest and least to become mighty and great. The despised will become mighty, because the time for this scripture has come to pass. The book of Haggai 2:7-9 (NIV) God says that;

 “I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty. 8 ‘The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the Lord Almighty. 9 ‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the Lord Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

The time for this scripture is now. This is the time when God is going to shake the entire universe and cause things to be filled in His house. Every good and beautiful thing that is desired by all nations, God will cause to come to those who love and serve Him. In this scripture God emphasizes that silver and Gold are his, because there have been people of the world making claims to these treasures. But in this generation God is going to give wealth to his people without sorrow added (Proverbs 10:22).

God is going to show this generation that the devil was clinging to the silver and gold yet they belong to Him and he possesses them. God is making it clear that this is the time when He is going to give wealth to his children. Whatever was desired by the nations, God is going to bring it to his children. The glory of this church is going to be better than the former.    

A Season of Greatness and Exaltation

In this generation few genuinely worship God and fewer people do His will. But a time has come when God is going to satisfy those who know Him and do His will. He affirms in the book of Isaiah 45:2-3 (NKJV) that;

‘I will go before you

And make the crooked places straight;

I will break in pieces the gates of bronze

And cut the bars of iron.

3 I will give you the treasures of darkness

And hidden riches of secret places,

That you may know that I, the Lord,

Who call you by your name,

Am the God of Israel.”

We are now living in the days of these scriptures. Whatever the world desires is now in the church – peace, freedom, health, wealth and the truth. God is going to make your crocked places straight – level mountains before you. Those riches and hidden treasures that no one knows about, God is going to give unto His children. He will do this so that world knows that He is the Lord God who calls you by name (Isaiah 43:1). Those that were not known are going to be lifted and exalted. It is the season for the lowly to be exalted. The bible says in Luke 1:52 (NKJV) that;

“He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the lowly”.

All these great things and much more will come to pass because, before Jesus returns, every knee will bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is Lord. These are the days when God is going to plant wealth in His house. Even those who have always mocked the gospel will eventually confess Christ and come to church. In these last days we always ensure to have some quality time with God. Whenever you go to another level, your enemies also increase (1 Corinthians 16:9). Every new level has a new devil, so whenever you ascend to a new level, you have got to take up your spiritual armour and every plan of the devil.

What you do not imagine or even expect, is what God is going to do for His children. What is not possible for you, God will use someone else to bring it to pass. You just need to have faith in God and His word and change your perception because God can use different avenues to bless you – for His ways are higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9). Always set your eyes on God and on Him alone. Psalm 44:1-3 (NKJV) says;

“We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, the deeds you did in their days, in days of old: 2 You drove out the nations with Your hand, but them You planted; You afflicted the peoples, and cast them out. 3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; but it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You favored them.”