Living Your life To The Fullest On this journey called “life” we face many challenges; sometimes challenges may be opportunities in disguise. We are God’s special creation; our destiny is important to Him. So, no matter how things may seem right now, we can be sure that He is working behind the scene. It's not His will for us to live below our privileges.
A story is told of a very poor illiterate man, who lived in a in a third world country. After hearing about the prosperity in America he dreamed of one day coming to the beautiful country. He worked hard to save enough money to purchase a one-way ticket, and the day he climbed aboard the ship was a happy one for him. During the trip he became very hungry. He had only cheese and crackers that he brought along for the journey; it was all he could afford.
In the mornings he would sneak to the dining room deck to watch the people enjoy their buffet breakfast. After a few days he began to despise his stale cheese and crackers. The journey finally ended; he arrived in America. Before he departed from the ship, the captain came to see him and asked him; “sir, was there anything we did to offend you?” “Why no, Captain; whatever gave you that impression,” he answered. The captain replied, “I couldn’t help but notice that you never joined us for any of the meals, so I thought perhaps something was wrong.”
The man bowed his head in shame; his face flushed with embarrassment. He said, “Well, you see, sir, I am a poor man; I only had enough money to purchase the ticket.” “Oh, sir,” the captain replied, “Didn’t you know that the meals were all included with your ticket?” The same thing happens day after day in the Spiritual realm. God has a fabulous banquet table prepared, so to speak. The Holy Ghost, with the evidence of speaking in other tongues, healing for our bodies, miracles, etc, are all on the table, but many are eating cheese and crackers; they’ve failed to read the ticket, which is the Holy Bible.
God loves us and longs for fellowship. Sometimes we get so busy that we don’t always hear His voice. When He wanted to speak with Jeremiah He sent him to the Potter’s house. At the Potter’s house Jeremiah watched a man take a piece of clay in his hands and began to work on it. The drab and useless piece of clay didn’t look like very much, but he watched as the Potter shaped and fashioned it into a beautiful masterpiece. Then, the Lord spoke to him these words, as recorded, in Jeremiah 18:6, “behold, as the clay is in the Potter’s hand, so are you in mine hand.”
A song writer penned it this way:
No, there’s not a broken vessel God can’t mend,
When the whole world turns its back on you,
He’ll still be your friend.
He’ll pick up the pieces, time and time again,
For there’s not a broken vessel God can’t mend.The Master Potter (Jesus Christ) doesn’t throw anything away. It doesn't matter how broken or marred a vessel becomes; it’s never so damaged that He can't mend it. He’s able to recycle and restore broken lives to make them into glorious vessels.
I’m reminded of another story; Queen Victoria was proud of her soldiers, who won the “Victoria Cross Medal,” for outstanding bravery. She decided to hold a banquet to honor them. It was a special feast with all the glittering pomp of the Royal Palace. The guests came from every walk of life. Among these guests was a very poor, uneducated soldier, who was completely bewildered by such an array of splendor.
The table sparkled with gleaming cutlery, such as his eyes had never seen before. Trembling, he picked up a finger bowl and drank from it. There was such a titter of laughter, accompanied by snickers and smiles, from those around him that the soldier blushed with embarrassment. When the Queen noticed what had happened, she leaned forward and picked up her finger bowl, her eyes flashing with fire, and drank from it. Then, with a resounding thump, she placed the bowl on the table. As she slowly looked around the Royal table, with her eyes still flashing, the smirks and snickers died. She, the Queen of the British Empire, had identified herself with the humble soldier.
This is just what our Lord did for us; He identified Himself with lost humanity. We read of an account, in John 3:1-5, of a religious man, by the name of Nicodemus, who came to Jesus looking for answers. Jesus said to him; “verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus didn‘t understand what Jesus meant, so he asked Him; “how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into a mother‘s womb, and be born?” Jesus answered him; “verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God.”
Whereas Nicodemus was thinking in terms of a natural birth, Jesus was speaking of his need for a Spiritual birth. In our natural birth, according to Romans 5:12, we were all born with a sinful nature, for we read, “wherefore as by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned." Hebrews 9:22, tells us, “Without the shedding of blood there is no remission.”
God, as a Spirit, had no blood to shed, so He manifested Himself in flesh. Matthew 1:23, records, “behold, a virgin shall be with child, and she shall bring forth a son, and they shall call him Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." The ultimate purpose for His coming was to give His life as a sacrifice for sin. Through the shedding of His blood, He made a way for lost humanity to obtain forgiveness.
After Jesus died and rose again He spent some time with His disciples before He ascended to heaven. One day He told them, as recorded, in Acts 1:8, “ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you.” He had given them some insight earlier, as recorded, in Mark 16:17, when He said, “these signs shall follow them that believe; they shall speak with new tongues.” The word “new" means appearing for the first time.
The first to speak in tongues were the disciples on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2:4, records, “and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Communion was restored between God and man as they began to glorify God in the language of the Spirit.
In the natural we learn to speak the language of our parents, which for most of us would be English. The same holds true in a Spiritual birth, when a person is born again from above; he or she will speak the language from above, which is new tongues.
When the Jews, who gathered for the feast of Pentecost, took note of the group descending from the Upper Room, all filled with the Holy Ghost, they wanted the same experience. They cried out, as recorded, in Acts 2:37, “men and brethren, what shall we do?” Peter gave to them (Jews) the born-again message, as recorded, in Acts 2:38, “then Peter said unto them repent, and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
The beautiful born again message was not only for the Jew but according to Peter it was for the whosoever will. It was not long before God chose Peter to take the message to the Gentiles also. Cornelius, who was a devout man; and one that feared God, was the first Gentile chosen. When Peter arrived at his home his family and friends were there also.
Acts 10:44 records, “while Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on them which heard the word. And they of the Circumcision (Jews), which believed, were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter can any man forbid water that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we. And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.”
In closing, a story is told of a University Professor who stood before his students, who were about to write their final exam. He said to them; “I know you’ve faced many challenges during this past year; maybe even at times felt like giving up, but you’re still here. In my hands today, I hold copies of your final exam. Now, because of your commitment and determination I’m willing to give you a C, without you writing this exam.”
As he glanced out over the room, he noticed one hand go up, then another, until nearly half of the students had their arms raised; they were willing to settle for a C. He, then, passed out the exam to the others, but asked them to wait until all students had their copy before beginning. When the moment came to begin, they turned over the page to find these words; “Congratulations, you’ve made an A."
Now, the question is this; what are you willing to settle for? I admonish you, “don’t settle for a C, so to speak, when Jesus Christ has an A, with your name on it.”
If you have any questions please feel free to Email me at:
lilahmac@nb.sympatico.ca
