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Rev Enoch Thompson | March 12, 2023 | Matthew 8:28-34 KEY VERSE: Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region. Matthew 8:34 (NIV) MESSAGE: The demonstration of the power of the God-in-human-flesh, Jesus of Nazareth, has travelled, the healing of leprosy, and fevers, calming of nature’s storms to the casting out of demons in our text. Two miserable human beings, some students of the Bible conclude it is a couple (for which reason the other Gospel writers talk of one man), are held captive and harassed extensively by the Devil and his demonic host. The two have become a terror to themselves and a threat to others so that no one dared pass their way. They lived in the tombs and shared in the environment of the state of those who had died, though they were alive. This is what demonisation can do to humans created to reflect the image of God. Is there a real Devil and an assortment of demons? Do they matter in our life as Kingdom citizens? This is the matter of our reflection today. In the times of Christ, the Pharisees believed in the existence of angels and demons, the Sadducees on the other hand did not believe in angels and demons, and they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead (Luke 20:27; Acts 23:8). Different people today have different opinions on this question. C. S. Lewis, in his classic work, The Screwtape Letters, published in 1942, observes that there are two extremes of belief to which the Devil is always happy to have Christians drawn to; one is to deny the existence of the Devil and his demons, and the other is to become overly concerned with them. The modern era has definitely fallen into these two extremes, and the Devil is very very happy. While there are those, even among Christians, who by their education, material wellbeing and sophistication think that they have arrived at a stage in their human development which makes the concept and talk about the Devil and demons a sign of intellectual backwardness. There are on the other hand those who are preoccupied with Satan, demons, witchcraft and sorcery. They find the cause of every challenge as a cause of demonic activity, and consequently their Christianity is more of demon-hunt than God-worship. Satan and his demonic hosts are alive and well on planet earth. We will do well to assign them their defeated state in the coming of the Kingdom of God in the first coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in their ultimate defeat when they will all be thrown into the Lake of Fire, to be forever disbanded from troubling the human species. FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: The Christ-follower is given authority to trample underfoot scorpions and serpents (Luke 10:19), that means to have the authority of our Master Jesus to overcome the Devil and his demons in our encounter with them. Do not be an ostrich and deny the existence of demonic reality. At the same time do not become a feather blown in the wind by unnecessary fear of the demonic hosts that can render you powerless in your journey with Christ. Put the Devil and his demons in their right corner, and march on in the victory of Christ. PRAYER: Lord Jesu Christ, thank you for defeating Satan in your ministry, but ultimately on the cross (Col. 2:15). Please help me to walk in your victory, and to live a life unaffected by the enemy and his agents. May your Church have a balanced understanding of the forces we are called to fight, and may the Church live in the victory of Calvary. For you dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | March 11, 2023 | Matthew 8:23-27 KEY VERSE: He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. Matthew 8:26 (NIV) MESSAGE: The demonstration of the power of the Lord Jesus over diseases and demons demonstrated in the context of Matthew 8 and 9 is taken to the control He had over nature. The power of nature challenges the smartest advancement of human knowledge and scientific advancement. The forces of wind, water, fire and earthquakes have remained untamed. We actually fear these forces of nature, and we continue to learn how we may bring them under perfect submission. The devastating power of nature was shown in the fact that the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ did not forbid the storms from rising. The first show of the Lord that He was in charge of affairs was seen in the fact that while the storm was raging He was fast asleep. His disciples were frightened by the storm and cried out to Him to save them because they feared they were about to drown. He rebuked the disciples, and then rebuked the winds and the waves. The result was an immediate calm and quiet in the raging forces then at work. The Lord Jesus still has power over nature and does what we may not always be aware of, to safeguard our safety and comfort. The whole of creation is in chaos and is groaning (Rom. 8:8-25), and the Church must call upon the Lord, to bring some order into the situation. We must also speak and act in ways that bring restoration rather than degradation to the environment. As Rom. 8 shows the fullest realization of the redemption and calming of nature will happen when Christ comes and releases God’s people completely from the limitations of the fallen world we live in. In the journey of life also we meet storms that frighten us. The Lord Jesus has the power to intervene wonderfully. When that happens, our necessary response should be that of the disciples, “The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!" (Matthew 8:27). FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Appreciate the environment that God in His wisdom has given us to live in. Determine to protect the environment as much as it is in your power to do so. Speak up against the degradation of the environment. Look forward to the new Heavens and the new Earth where there are no storms or disasters. PRAYER: Lord, you made the heavens and the earth, you have power over the sin-stained world, and can silence its forces of destruction. Lord, please limit the occurrence of the natural disasters you predicted as signs of the end. Please make me an agent of environmental preservation. Above all, please speak to the storms in my life, and I will be careful to praise you. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | March 10, 2023| Matthew 8:18-23 KEY VERSE: Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." Matt 8:20 (NIV). MESSAGE: Despite all the attacks that Christianity has suffered over the centuries and the turning away from a vibrant Christianity by nations that were built upon Christian values, Christianity is still an attractive choice in many parts of the world. Many people call themselves Christian because it is culturally appropriate or the thing that everybody is doing, and therefore appeals to our crowds-psychology. It feels good to be part of the crowd. However, it seems that many of those who claim to be Christians are not following the Lord Jesus to the point of Him changing us into His image, and if we seem to be following Him we want to do so on our own terms. The two persons in our text who offered to follow the Lord Jesus were disappointed with the response that the Lord gave to their loose offers. The offer of the teacher of the law was as innocent and impressive as it could be, that he would follow the Lord wherever the Lord went. In our current quest to swell the numbers of our church membership, we would have clapped and bent over backwards to announce to everyone that we gained one more member. However, the Lord Jesus saw in the motivation of the would-be follower a certain expectation of comfort (maybe in view of the miracles he had seen the Lord perform), and He addressed it by His response. The discipleship life is one of sacrifice, and comfort could not be guaranteed. The disciple must understand this and commit to following with a readiness to suffer, to bear a cross. The second offer to follow the Lord came from a man described as a “disciple.” It would seem that he was part of the usual crowd seeking to follow the Lord. He shows signs of wanting to go deeper and further in his commitment to following Jesus the Master. His only condition was that he would go and bury his father before coming to fulfil his intentions. A cursory look at the response of the Lord seems rash and devoid of feelings. However, it needs to be observed that the father of the man in question was not dead at the point at which he made his proposal to the Lord. This disciple wanted to go and wait for his father to die, and bury him, before coming back to follow the Lord. This is misplaced priority since the ministry of giving spiritual Iife to spiritually dying people was more important than waiting for people to die and be buried before serving the Kingdom agenda. FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: The call to follow the Lord Jesus Christ is an urgent, demanding, and self-sacrificing call. It has benefits for this life and the afterlife. Would you covenant with the Lord, to leave everything behind and follow Him? on His terms and on his terms only. PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you that you left your glory and comfort and came to save me. Now I commit myself to you, determined to follow you and to do so on your terms. Please help me to follow you more nearly, love you more dearly, day by day. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | March 9, 2023 | Matthew 8:14-17 KEY VERSE: This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases" Matthew 8:17 (NIV) MESSAGE: From the Fall of the human race into sin by the deception of the Devil, the human story has been a painful sad one. Sin brought with it hardship, toil, sickness, hatred, and physical and spiritual death. Spiritual death is the immediate separation of the human soul, every human soul since Adam, from the loving living relationship we were meant to have with God, and physical death is the eventual separation of the human soul from the human body. When the Lord Jesus, as God in human form came on earth, He was on a mission to take away the curse of the Fall and restore us to Himself. This mission He demonstrated in His teachings which redirected His immediate hearers to new ways of thinking and behaving which correspond to the way God intended and desired for His human creation. Those who received His message and believed in Him were spiritually raised from their spiritual death, just as succeeding generations of Christ-believers are born again into the new life by which our spirits are born again, resurrected, and given life when we believe. Along with the restoration of the human spirit Christ the Lord also dealt with the physical consequences of the Fall. In our text, Matthew 8:14-17, we see all the wards of the human clinic opened for the visit of the Great Healer. The Lord Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever, she is immediately healthy enough to set about preparing and serving food to Jesus and His entourage. Consequently, “When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick” Matt 8:16-17 (NIV). Jesus came “to make His blessings flow, far as the curse is found.” The Lord Jesus is the Master of our spiritual infirmities as well as of our physical infirmities. He heals today as He healed when He was on earth. And if for His own purposes and in His excellent loving wisdom He allows a painful state to remain He does so for our benefit and to His glory (reflect on 2 Cor. 12:7-12) FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Do you have a burden of body, mind or of spirit? Come to the Saviour, the Master-healer. There’s GRACE at the throne of God for our healing. And if He permits anything that hurts us to remain, there is still SPECIAL GRACE to bear the cross and to follow Him. Even in this latter case, He heals us by giving us the peace of God which surpasses human understanding. Go to the willing Saviour with your burden and cares. Lift your afflicted loved ones also before the Lord. PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, I believe that burdens are lifted at Calvary. I come to you this moment believing in your saving healing power. Lord heal me, of all that troubles body, soul, and spirit. Lord heal me of the effect of the curse of this fallen world. Lord, heal me. Thank you, thank you, thank you for being my Healer. For your dear Name’s sake. Amen! THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | March 8, 2023 | Matthew 8:5-13 KEY VERSE: When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. Matthew 8:10 (NIV) MESSAGE: Astonish Jesus, is that possible? Yes, it is, and that in itself is astonishing, for the Lord knows all things. Our text shows us that when the centurion expressed his faith in the Lord Jesus, in His authority, in His capability to heal and to heal from a distance, the Lord Jesus was astonished. To astonish someone is to make them impressed with something good we have done, or to surprise them for something wrong we have done. Astonishment arises out of earlier impressions or expectations we hold of the people concerned. And so, the Lord was astonished (impressed) with the barriers that the centurion pulled down to express such faith in Him. In Mark 6:1-6 we have another Gospel narrative in which (in verse 6) the Lord Jesus was astonished. In this case, it was the people of His hometown, Nazareth, who astonished Him. They questioned His teachings and His miraculous power, making reference to His family, His ordinariness among them as a simple carpenter, and they were offended at Him, loaded with unbelief. As a result of their unbelief, “He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.” Mark 6:5 (NIV). The Lord was astonished that His countrymen who had the Law and the Prophets and the promises concerning the Messiah could not see Messiah in their midst, and could not understand God’s visitation among them, but measured by human standards and underestimated the God-in-human-flesh among them. These are the only two instances in the Gospels that we read of the Lord being astonished. In Matthew 8 the Lord is astonished by a Gentile’s faith which released the blessing of healing intended for all humanity, whereas in Mark 6 the lack of faith on the part of Jews resulted in the Lord not being able to work out miracles among descendants of Abraham for whom there was a standing line of credit which should have released much more blessings upon them. The Lord has expectations of us in our various situations, and how we act, react, or respond, often astonishes Him. The Lord is not only astonished (impressed or surprised, as the case may be) in the matter of our expression of faith, but in our attitudes, behaviour, conversation, and what we fail to do or choose to do. FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Imagine the Lord observing your life and being astonished. Determine to astonish the Lord positively by choosing, despite the challenges of your circumstances to show your faith in Him by living according to His word. One way or the other you astonish the Lord! PRAYER: Lord, I may not see how I have shocked you by my wrong choices and behaviour, but I now acknowledge that I sometimes astonish you rudely. Please help me to live by faith in you and in your word, and may I be so changed by that word, that I may be a wonder to the devil and a joy to you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING! SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 7, 2023 | MATTHEW 8:5-13 KEY VERSE: When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. Matthew 8:10 (NIV) MESSAGE: We have discussed the place of prayer in the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, and His instruction to us, as His followers, to use God’s gift of prayer to access God’s provision. However, when we pray, we are expected to have faith, to believe that God is able and willing, according to His will to do the things we ask Him for. In our text today we see the faith of the centurion from His initial decision to go to the Lord Jesus, and His actually taking the steps to do so. He was a foreigner in the first place, besides he was an agent of the occupying force of Rome, and these facts could have served as barriers for Him, to make him wonder if the Lord would receive him. He overcame these barriers and by faith trusted in the loving grace of the Lord Jesus and went to Him. When the Lord Jesus offered to go to the place where the servant was in order to heal him, the centurion raised the faith bar further by indicating that he was convinced that Jesus did not need to move to the location of the sick servant; in effect the centurion expressed the faith that the power of the Lord Jesus was such that it could take effect at a distance and that there was no distance in the power of God. He acknowledged the spiritual power of the Lord and compared it to his own power as a top military officer, whose commands are obeyed by all under his command. Certainly, the Lord was impressed with the faith of the centurion, and used the opportunity to challenge the lukewarm attitude of the Jews who were not responding that heartily with the ministry of the Lord. The Lord gives us the divine arrangement for God answering our prayers; Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:24 (NIV). Could it be stated any more simply? When you desire whatever (which is in line with the word and will of God), pray about it. When you pray believe God that you HAVE RECEIVED IT, and then YOU WILL HAVE IT! FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Take your prayer life to another higher level. Do not pray as a mere formality and empty religious exercise. Intentionally tell yourself, God is real, God cares about my needs, God is listening for my prayer, God is able to meet my need, and my need is met! Then look forward to your prayers become reality before your very eyes. We have tasted and can say, GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS! PRAYER: Dear Lord in Heaven, thank you for the gift of prayer. I believe in you, please help my unbelief, and usher me into a life of asking God and receiving answers from God. In Jesus’ Name, Amen! THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 6, 2023 | MATTHEW 8:1-4 KEY VERSE: Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured b of his leprosy. Matthew 8:3 (NIV) MESSAGE: From the mount of instruction, the Lord Jesus descended into the valley of human needs. In Matthew chapters 8 and 9 we will meet the Lord in the valley of human affliction and demonstrating His power to save by His miracles. His miracles were to show compassion to human suffering, to endorse His credentials and to reveal saving truth to His observers and followers. Among the large crowds that followed Him, who had listened to His Kingdom message, there was a leprous man who sought the assistance of the Lord, and requested, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." Matt 8:2 (NIV). This individual man in need is representative of humanity contaminated by sin and negatively affected by life’s challenges. Leprosy was a contagious disease which rendered the person suffering from it ceremonially unclean and an outcast from Jewish society. They were to live on the outskirts of town, and when people drew near to them, they were to announce their contaminated and contaminating presence by shouting “Unclean, unclean.” Those who were not infected were not allowed to touch the leprous. What a life of pain, physical and emotional. The leprosy of sin has affected all of humanity, so the Bible teaches us (Rom. 3:23). We were born sinners and are unclean before God. When we come to the Lord in humble acknowledgement of our need for help, like this man did, He does reach out to us in ways that change our circumstances and set us free to live a new life. It is astonishing that “Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.” (verse 3). That is the wondrous beauty of what God is willing to do for anyone who acknowledges their need, for spiritual cleansing in the first place, but also for any and all needs of life. FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: For some people, life has dealt the hard blows that make us feel unwanted, undeserving, and hopeless. For some others, the feeling of guilt and shame has made life depressive. For whatever state of need we may find ourselves in at any time, let us remember that if we cry out to the Lord Jesus, He will reach out to us, touch us and meet our needs. PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, I ask you to reach out to me as I seek to attain my right standing in society. Above all make me worthy to stand before the Heavenly Father, by your touch and your embrace. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 5, 2023 | MATTHEW 7:24-29 KEY VERSE: "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. Matthew 7:24 (NIV) MESSAGE: Hearing the message of Christ is easy and simple, someone speaks, I listen and walk away without the word making any impact on my life. Just as talk is cheap so is hearing cheap. Doing is the matter of the matter. Our relationship with God is not based on having access to the revelations about God but conforming to the demands and directives of God through His word. The Lord paints the picture of two types of hearers of His teaching. Verses 24 and 26 show the marked difference in response to the teachings of the Lord. There are those who hear and obey the teachings of the Lord (verse 24), and there are those who hear and disregard the word of the Lord (verse 26). Those are choices that the individuals concerned make, and they are free to do so. However, there are real-life consequences to those choices. Hearing and obeying the instructions of the Lord makes a person strong in the face of the challenges that life presents. Life lived according to the teachings of Christ is like a house built upon a rock, whereas a life which disregards the word of Christ is comparable to a house built on the sand. Both houses face the storms, and storms of life come uninvited and without discrimination. The end result of the two houses is the house on the rock standing when the storm is over, and the house on the sand falling, and with a great crash! The danger of hearing and not doing the word of God is very close to everyone of us. The Holy Spirit finds it necessary through James to remind us in James 1:22-25 “²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵ But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it — he will be blessed in what he does.” (NIV). Knowledge without application is useless, and faith without work is evidently dead (James 2:14-17). FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Where are you in your faith journey? Have you reached the place where reading or hearing God’s word is not a mere academic exercise with no practical relevance for life? We need to make God’s word the determinant of the direction of our life. Commit to obeying the word of God you know at every point in your life. You will be better off for it! PRAYER: Dear Father in Heaven, your word has been reliable through all the endless ages. Please help me not only to admire the beauty of the word, but to apply the teachings of the word, that I might become enabled to stand and withstand the challenges of this life, and to have a good account to give at the end. Thank you for hearing me, in Jesus’ glorious Name, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 4, 2023 | MATTHEW 7:21-23 KEY VERSE: ²¹"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21 (NIV) MESSAGE: It is interesting how the Lord sets the standards and provides the bases of inclusion or exclusion from the Kingdom He came to establish. It is easy to think one belongs to the Kingdom when, actually, one is far removed from the Kingdom. And the Lord sounds the alarm early enough in His ministry: ²¹"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21 (NIV). To say “Lord, Lord” is easy; anyone can say it and even add accolades and appellations to the name of the Lord. The Lord Jesus indicates that it is not the mere heaping of words upon His holy Name or things related to His Name that makes one a Kingdom citizen, but the obedience to His teachings, which in turn pleases the Father in Heaven, which brings about Kingdom citizenship. It is possible to do the things associated with the Kingdom of God, miracles, signs and wonders, and not have the sanction and approval of the King of the Kingdom. Please note that the Lord did not argue with those making the claim of work done in His Name, to say that they did not do those works they were claiming to have done. The deciding factor for the Lord in who is a Kingdom citizen and who is not is not the matter of cheap talk. The matter of relationship, the relationship between the individual and the Saviour is the deciding factor in the matter of qualification. The Lord does not know nor acknowledge the cheap-talkers. “Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' (Matthew 7:23). Where Christian faith is in name and word only character is flawed and people live without Kingdom principles; they qualify to be called “evildoers.” FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Are you a Christian, a citizen of the Kingdom of God, of a truth? The matter must be settled. True Kingdom citizenship must result in Kingdom spirit and character. If there are ways in which our behaviour does not match up to our religious language and claims, then we are getting ready for a rude awakening. Settle your submission to the lordship of Christ, vow to live up to your Christian profession in every area of life. PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, I crown you Lord indeed in all matters of my life. I pray that my Christian life will not only be at the level of a biblical name, a church membership or other association with Christian institutions. May I have your acknowledgement in this life, and when I stand before you at the end, may I be received into your glorious Heaven. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 3, 2023 | MATTHEW 7:15-20 KEY VERSE: "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. Matthew 7:15 (NIV) MESSAGE: From the onset of His ministry the Lord Jesus indicated that there would be false prophets, and towards the end of His earthly journey, He indicated again “²⁴ For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect — if that were possible. ²⁵ See, I have told you ahead of time. (Matt 24:24-25 (NIV). The presence on the religious scene of those who claim to be prophets and are false prophets should not surprise the informed Kingdom citizen. What is important is to identify the false prophets and steer away from them. Our text is helpful because the Lord gave us some insight as to how to identify them. False prophets are very good pretenders. They present themselves as harmless agents of God, but their intentions and purposes are evil, seeking to take advantage of the Kingdom citizen and to enrich themselves. How can we identify the false prophets? Over time and by close observation, and some spiritual discernment, the Kingdom citizen should be able to read between the lines; the behaviour of the false prophets will show who they really are. Their character and behaviour, more than their words and any signs and wonders they may produce ¹⁶ By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷ Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Matthew 7:16-20 (NIV). Jude helps us further in how to identify the false prophets in Jude 11-13;16-19; ¹¹ Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion.¹² These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm — shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted — twice dead. ¹³They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. Jude 16-19 ¹⁶ These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage. ¹⁷ But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. ¹⁸ They said to you, "In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires." ¹⁹ These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. NIV FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: In an era that is excited about prophets, you need to examine whom you are listening to or following as a prophet. Please pay close attention to the attitudes, words and behaviour of any person in the position of spiritual leadership. Pay close attention to the fact that the display of sexual sins, boastful claims, flamboyance, disrespectful language and extortion of money from people, by supposedly spiritual leaders, are red flags, that you are following a false prophet. Study your Bible and measure the teachings of these persons to ensure that you do not get caught in the net of these agents of Satan. You may not be following someone who calls themselves a prophet per se, but anyone who assumes spiritual leadership over you must be subjected to the test discussed above. Beware of false prophets, pastors, and self-styled spiritual leaders whose behaviour does not measure up to the Bible or what they rightly teach from the Bible. Are you a Kingdom leader? Is your lifestyle consistent with your teaching? PRAYER: Jesus my Prophet, Priest, and King, thank you for the insight into the possibility of coming under the influence of false spiritual leaders. Please help me to have the abundance of your Spirit so that I may discern falsehood in the Church and all around me. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 2, 2023 | MATTHEW 7:13-14 KEY VERSE: "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” Matthew 7:13 (NIV) MESSAGE: Every human being born into this world begins a journey and continues in that journey to a destination of destruction in Hell or eternal bliss with God in Heaven. The journey of life is undertaken by the individual on a path with an entry point, which the individual chooses. The Lord identifies two gates or decision points that mark the beginning of the individual’s journey of life, the wide gate and the narrow gate. The section under consideration gives us the admonishment to enter through the small gate and travel the narrow way. The reason for the Lord’s direction is that the wide gate is wide; what does this mean? The wide gate is wide because it is inviting, accommodating and spacious; it seems the way to go. The wide gate leads unto a path that is broad, it is the lifestyle with no restrictions. One who enters the wide gate lives a life where conscience is silenced, and God’s rules and,are thrown to the wind. The wide gate and its broad road is often chosen because it has many travellers. How many of us are influenced by what everybody seems to be doing? Of course, it is easier to be like the rest than to be different from them. The philosophy on the broad road is that if it feels good, and everybody is doing it, then go ahead and do it. Because the road is broad the traveller can freely throw their weight about however, they choose. The sad reality about this choice of a life journey is that it leads to destruction. In life, it makes us slaves of the devil, and beyond death, it qualifies us for eternal Hell. Wise King Solomon captures this truth this way; ¹² There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end, it leads to death (Prov 14:12; repeated in 16:25), NIV. The prescribed way for the Kingdom citizen is to enter life through a decision point that is deliberately limiting and restrictive. To choose to be a follower of the Lord Jesus and to truly live that life is a commitment to live a restricted, demanding, and challenging life. He said in Matthew 10:37-39, ³⁷"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; ³⁸ and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. ³⁹ Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (NIV). The lordship of Christ is a narrow gate. The human desire to self-project and to be our own god cannot accept that Jesus Christ is Lord of our salvation and Master of our sanctification. Not only is the gate small, but the path open to the Kingdom traveller is a narrow path! To truly live as God would have us do is a truly narrow path. The Christian life is not necessarily a life devoid of happiness, for it offers happiness at a deeper level, it offers joy, and contentment that is not dependent on external factors. The Christian life is a seriously restricted life, life on the narrow path; we cannot use certain language because our language must be sanitized. We cannot treat others unfairly because we must do to others what we want done to us. We must love people who hate us, pray for them, and show them genuine goodness. The path is really narrow and has few travellers. The good thing to note is that the Master assures us that this path leads to life; life in this life, and life beyond death. FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Have you entered life through the narrow gate? The Lord Jesus asserts in John 14:6, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (NIV) If you have not, then please accept that He came to die for you and rose again from the dead. Thereafter determine by His help to keep to the narrow path and be sure He will help you to the promised Heavenly home. PRAYER: Dear Master and King Jesus, thank you for summarising the human story so simply. I commit to the small gate and the narrow road. Please help me keep my feet road till I appear before you in Heaven. For your dear Name’s sake Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

Rev Enoch Thompson | MARCH 1, 2023 | MATTHEW 7:12 KEY VERSE: So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:12 (NIV) MESSAGE: Our verse for reflection seems to stand on its own in the immediate context. The need to guard the sacred callings and giftings from wrong influences is stressed in verse 6, followed by the invitation to pray and expect God to answer prayers (verse 7-11). Then comes the instruction in our verse; “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” What is expressed here is what has become known as the Golden Rule. There was a woman whose husband was sick and unable to look after himself at a point. The woman after some time decided that she was not going to waste her life looking after a sick person, who, apart from all the attention he would demand would not be able to provide her with what he used to provide. She had married for the better, and not for worse. She, therefore, packed her bag and baggage and walked away to find newer loves. As the narrative goes, over time she also fell ill in turn, and after her new love had spent quite some money on her, he decided to abandon her and move on with his life. She wept and begged, but the man moved away anyway. What a sad story, but it happened and happens in our fallen world. The message for us today from the lips of the gracious Lord Jesus is that as citizens of His holy Kingdom we learn and commit ourselves to showing other people the same level of good treatment we would expect to be exercised towards us, or put in other words not to do to other people the evil that we would not be happy to have done to us. This is most stressed when other people are at the disadvantage, or when we have the power over them to hurt them. Why must I live by the Golden Rule? We must live by this sacred universal rule because we are all made in the image of God. When we treat our neighbours wrongly, we offend the God in whose image they are made. We must do this because our fellow human being is of equal worth as ourselves, irrespective of our different nationalities, races, tribes, social and economic statuses etc. We must obey the Golden Rule because rather than merely rising to the high standard of respecting the humanity of the neighbour and the image of God in them, the Kingdom lifestyle requires of us an even higher standard; “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” Phil 2:3 (NIV). Finally, we must do this because it shows our love for our neighbour, and fulfils the demands of the Law and the Prophets; “³⁷Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' ³⁸This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' ⁴⁰All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matt 22:37-40 (NIV). FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE: Decide under God to evaluate everything you say to or about the people in your circle, everything you do to, do for, or do against your neighbour, and in all of your interactions, to live by the Golden Rule, and you will become more and more a true citizen of the Kingdom of God. PRAYER: Lord, I am grateful for the Golden Rule. I confess that I have not lived by it as I should and ask for forgiveness. Please give me the consciousness to keep the Golden Rule before me, always, and to live by it, so that I will please you, and be a blessing to all around me, in the home, in the Church and in the larger society. In Jesus’ loving Name, Amen. THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING. SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!