Christ
is Victor
September/October 1998
Vol. 11, No.5
An
open letter to students…
Dear students,
As some of you would have just arrived on your campus, you might possibly be thinking, "At last! I am far from home and out of the gates of misery!" But mark you, you are entering a new phase of life where the central note is ‘responsibility’. Nobody will spoon-feed you now. Therefore it is necessary for you to have your life properly grounded.
God taught me, during my university years, moral responsibility. I learned this, knowing that my actions would have repercussions that would follow me during life. And so I began to sow to the Spirit, and not to the flesh. The easy road of the flesh presents itself with many allurements at university. But you will find that with every act of indulgence and concession to self, there is a backwash that really hurts, and you are filled with remorse. The only thing that will help then is repentance toward God.
Tell God, "Lord, I have wasted so many years of my life. And now what have I really gained from indulging self? Am I going to leave some footprints in the sands of time that will lead someone to a better life?"
You know, the opportunities before you are so great, that if you will learn to look to Jesus alone and say, "Lord, You died for my sins and rose again for me, and You are able to show me great and mighty things. Fulfill Your great purposes in my life. I hardly know what my potential is. You are able to multiply it." In this way put yourself into the hands of Jesus.
In all these years, I have never found the Lord Jesus to fail me, and you never will if you trust Him with all your heart. We have Bible studies designed to build you up. Your character, your spiritual potential, and your moral responsibility will be such that whole nations can and will be helped. You can do it. God can do it through you. But the willingness to put yourself into the hands of Jesus must come from you.
Please remember that Jesus multiplies blessing, but sin confuses and divides and crushes people with loads and burdens that they can never get away from. You please choose the Highest. God bless you.
Joshua Daniel
International Secretary, LEFI
"Bitterness or Love"
Genesis 33:1-4
After twenty years, these two brothers meet. Esau had already vowed vengeance after the death of his father. Though his father was yet alive he felt the moment of reckoning had now come. The bitterness of twenty years would now find expression. If you keep bitterness against anyone for any reason in your heart even for a day, your spiritual system will be poisoned. You may feel fully justified. But the Bible says, "Let not the sun go down on your wrath." That is God’s law. Why can’t we keep God’s law? Why don’t we fear God? - because of pride. Why is it difficult to say ‘sorry’ to a brother or sister? When did we become so perfect that we consider ourselves so infallible?
It is just a proud heart that is willing to forfeit the presence of God. Is that not terrible? Anybody who enjoys the presence of God will say, ‘ I would not lose the presence of God even at the cost of my life.’ When you become spiritually insensitive, various things begin to accumulate in your mind. In a spiritually insensitive person, a lot of rubbish accumulates. Ill-will, resentment, evil thoughts, some ambitions which are outside God’s will—all these things accumulate.
We have learnt not to speak lies. We have learnt not to steal. We have learnt not to use foul language. We have learnt to give God the tithes and offerings. We have learnt to pray and give God the time that we should. But in weightier matters we are failing. The devil’s trick is to disturb us in our relationship with one another.
Generally, we see tension between in-laws everywhere in the world. Who is a spiritual person? A spiritual person is one who has victory in the relationship with in-laws. Whatever may be the provocation, a spiritual person overcomes. Are we living in perfect peace with one another?
Life does not consist of smooth and easy situations. Generally, we come across some smart person like Jacob to provoke us. He outwits you. How do you react towards such a person? Esau was a very imperfect man and so disobedient as to be rejected by God. But in this situation, it is amazing how well he fares! He kissed his brother and almost behaved like the father of the prodigal son. Forgiving words came out of this man’s heart.
"No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us" (I
John
The Lord Jesus gave us a very simple rule, "…if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." (Matt. 5:23,24). I have asked pardon of some brothers, not once, or twice or thrice but four times. I am convinced that I am not wrong. Something from me has managed to hurt him. So I will say, ‘sorry’ and say it again and again, if necessary. I do not want that river of love to stop from my heart. I do not want to lose the presence of God. Be very careful, dear people.
If you want to dwell in God, you should dwell in love. If you do not dwell in love, you are not dwelling in God. You are dwelling in an organization and are not dwelling in God: what a dangerous thing that is! When you do not dwell in God, no good work comes out of you, only evil- only evil words, evil thoughts, evil reactions, evil deeds, poison and pollution will come out of you. But, if you dwell in God you dwell in love.
Where are you? Are you at least in Esau’s state to forgive and love a brother who has injured you? When Isaac died, both Esau and Jacob buried him together. Are we at that place where we are sanctified and made ready for such reconciliation? We should humble ourselves and examine our hearts and see that we do not stop revival.
- Joshua Daniel
"Saved
from the grip of alcohol!"
Testimony of Mark Rydinski
When I was young, I spent my life foolishly, though I thought I was very smart. I thought it was great to meet with my friends every night after work and have a few drinks. Of course, my wife didn’t like me doing this, because I usually came home none too steady on my feet.
In 1972, we gave our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ. As new Christians, we didn’t know what to do. So as a new believer, I did what was normal for me. I’d come home from work, and my car had a habit of turning in to this one tavern. I couldn’t control the steering wheel anymore. Because of my commitment to Christ, I realized that what I was doing was wrong, but I didn’t know how to stop.
The fact was, drinking was such a normal part of my
life that it was hard for me to see anything wrong in it. When I was a
youngster, my dad operated three saloons in
But then, the Lord had a hold of me, and I got to feeling so guilty every time that I would have a drink. Even at home, I found so many hiding places for my bottle. But my wife didn’t like me sneaking drinks, and she said, "Mark, why don’t you just take that bottle and set it here on the cupboard here in the kitchen? You don’t have to go downstairs sneaking drinks. I know you’re drinking."
But I was ashamed. It bothered me, but yet I couldn’t stop. I tried on my own. There was no way I could quit. My pastor even tried to help me, but I guess he didn’t have the right combination.
And then in the year 1978, we heard that a missionary, Reverend Daniel, was coming to our church. For me, I wasn’t one of those fellows that liked to go to church at night. Sunday was fine, but any extra time, that wasn’t my cup of tea. But anyway, Rev. Daniel came and for some reason or other, no matter how much I drank throughout the day, I still attended the meetings at the church on the weeknights. There was something that Rev. Daniel was saying that got to me. His words were like a magnet; the Lord was pulling me there every night.
At the end of the week, Rev. Daniel talked to our pastor, and said, "There is a brother in the congregation that needs help. If you can arrange a meeting of some sort, I would very much appreciate it." So my pastor asked if it will be all right if Rev. Daniel could come over to our house. Well, we liked to have company and said that would be fine.
So when Rev. Daniel came in that evening with our pastor, my wife offered him a 7-up or a cold drink. But he said, "No sister. I’m here on business." And he meant it, too! Then he said to me, "I understand you have a problem."
"Yes," I said, "I have a drinking problem. I’d like to stop, but I can’t."
And he said, "Well, there must be something in your life, between you and the Lord, that’s holding you back. We’ve got to find out what it is." So Rev. Daniel took me down to the pea patch to talk privately. Eventually it came out that I had been a bartender, and he said to me, "Have you asked these families for forgiveness for the amount of alcohol that you gave these fellows that go to the bar? Have you ever asked to be forgiven?"
I said, "Ask the families for forgiveness? Joshua, there’s no way. Most of the people I didn’t even know. There’s nothing I can do about it."
He said, "Did you ever ask God to forgive you?"
I said "No. Not really."
He said, "Would you like to get down on your knees and talk to God and ask Him to forgive you?"
REPENTANCE UNTO LIFE
So that night I got down on my knees and asked the Lord to forgive me for being a bartender and for drinking like I was doing. And before I had got off my knees, I could feel something working through my system, completely changing me. You talk about instant coffee, well I was instantly free from drink. From that moment on, I had no taste for it. Even the presence of alcohol didn’t bother me one bit. And God watched over me.
CALLED TO SERVE!
About a year later, I went to an evening service and the Lord began speaking to me. A young man was at the church as a gospel chalk artist. He was up there drawing beautiful pictures out of the Bible, depicting stories. And, the Lord said to me, "Now, you were an artist when you were sober. When you were sober, you could draw. But when the booze would take over, you couldn’t do anything. But I know you’re clean now. I’d like to have you start a ministry as a chalk artist."
So that happened! My wife and I had a beautiful ministry for 13 years. We went to many states, many churches, and many campgrounds. And I would draw a picture out of the Bible, and I would also give my testimony. Many times I was invited to clubs where they weren’t used to hearing the Word of God. And I’d always say, "Yes, I’d love to come to you, providing you let me give my testimony first." So it was always agreed that I could give my testimony. That’s what I would do; give my testimony and I would draw the pictures. And we had a wonderful ministry.
When I look back over my life, I am so thankful for my beautiful wife of 57 years. And I am so thankful that the Lord freed me and gave me a chance to serve Him.
Say What?
Galatians 6:7-8
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."
Inevitable Inheritance
Unfortunately, few people today know enough about their forefathers to know what their sins were. However, their lives are affected by those sins whether they know about them or not. Christians today have lost this concept. Failure to confess and deal with the sins of the forefathers often results in failure when attempts are made to break inherited curses.
I have a friend with whom I have corresponded for some time. She is a committed Christian, who serves the Lord with her whole heart. A couple of months ago I received a letter from Sandy telling me that she didn’t know what was wrong with her physical body but that she was gravely ill. As I read her letter my heart was grieved because the symptoms she described to me fit perfectly the symptoms of cancer of the pancreas.
I called her immediately. She told me that she had just been to see her doctor that day to get the results of an abdominal CAT scan. He told her that the scan showed what appeared to be a large tumor in her pancreas which was most likely malignant. She was scheduled to be admitted to the hospital the next day for surgery to biopsy the tumor to determine if it indeed was cancer. People with pancreatic cancer at that stage usually live only three to six months after receiving the diagnosis. There are no known effective treatments for this condition.
I asked
My response was, "Sandy, the Lord knows your heart. He knows that you want to do His will. You can rest in that. If you don’t have a clear answer from God that it is His will to take you Home now, then I believe you should resist death with all your might."
I asked
The Holy Spirit had just been teaching my husband and me the importance of
the principle of confessing the sins of the forefathers. I shared this
information with
"But what if you don’t know all the sins?" she asked. "I do know that my family has an extensive history of sexual immorality and divorce. In fact, I am the first one to remain in a marriage, and that’s because I accepted Christ. Very few in my family ever became Christians."
I told
I further suggested that she and her husband join together and anoint her with oil, covering her whole epigastric area and the area of her pain with the oil. While they applied the oil, she should command all demons associated with the curse to leave her at once in the name of Jesus. I also suggested that she specifically command any demon afflicting her pancreas or causing the tumor to leave at once in Jesus’ name. Finally, she needed to ask the Lord to heal all the damage that had been done.
How many Christians have not received healing because they have not dealt with the sins of their forefathers?
-selected
"The Eternal Friend"
by Charles Spurgeon
It is well that there is one who is ever the same and who is ever with us. It is well that there is one stable rock amidst the billows of the sea of life. Oh my soul! Set not thine affections upon rusting, moth-eaten, decaying treasures, but set thing heart upon him who abides forever faithful to thee.
Build not thine house upon the moving quick sands of a deceitful world, but found thy hopes upon this rock, which, amid descending rain and roaring floods, shall stand immovably secure. My soul, I charge thee, lay up thy treasure in the only secure cabinet; store thy jewels where thou canst never lose them.
Put thine all in Christ; set all thine affections on His person, all thy hope in his merit, all thy trust in His efficacious blood, all thy joy in his presence, and so thou mayest laugh at loss and defy destruction.
Remember that all the flowers in the world’s garden fade by turns, and the day cometh when nothing will be left but the black, cold earth. Death’s black extinguisher must soon put out thy candle. Oh, how sweet to have sunlight when the candle is gone! The dark flood must soon roll between thee and all thou hast; then wed thine heart to Him who will never leave thee: trust thyself with Him who will go with thee through the black and surging current of death’s stream, and who will land thee safely on the celestial shore, and make thee sit with Him in heavenly places forever. Go, sorrowing son of affliction, tell thy secrets to the Friend who sticketh closer than a brother. Trust all thy concerns with Him who never can be taken from thee, who will never leave thee, and who will never let thee leave Him, even Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever.