Lord, I cannot but you can June 1, 2019 bizadmin for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 ‘LORD, I CANNOT, BUT YOU CAN!’ Have you ever tried to break a bad habit on your own? You probably found that when you wanted to stop it by sheer willpower, you saw improvement for a while, and then bounced back to square one. Worse, you found yourself binging on the very thing that you were trying not to do. And your condition is worse than before you started your “I’m going to quit” program! The changes were temporary because it was you doing it. A church member who had been a chain-smoker used to believe that with willpower, he could quit smoking. He would tell himself, “If there is a will, there is a way!” But he discovered that with willpower, he could stop smoking for a week or two, and then he would succumb to the pull of nicotine again. When he turned his life over to God and learned about God’s grace, he told God, “I realize that I cannot stop smoking. I cannot, but You can break my habit, Lord.” And every time he lit up, he would say, “Lord, I am trying to stop smoking, but I cannot. I am trusting You.” He would even say, “I am still righteous because of Jesus’ blood.” Well, in the very same year, all his cravings to smoke vanished! When asked how he succeeded, he would say, “It is entirely God and none of me! It is all by His grace.” This man lost all the desire to smoke. That is a true transformation. When you receive the grace of God to do for you what you cannot do, you will experience easy and permanent change on the inside, which in turn changes your actions on the outside. The Bible tells us that God works in us to give us both the will and ability to perform what He desires. It is God who removes the old want to’s and gives us new ones. And He even provides us with the power to carry them out! Beloved, look to His grace to do what you cannot do. Say, “Lord, I cannot, but You can!” Then, what you experience will not merely be behavior modification, but real and lasting inward transformation!
Jesus has You Covered May 30, 2019 bizadmin Then he shall put his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him. Leviticus 1:4 JESUS HAS YOU COVERED Imagine the perfection of Jesus covering you from head to toe in the sight of God every moment of the day. Does that sound like a dream? My friend that is your reality today because Jesus became your burnt offering at the cross. In the case of the burnt offering, when the offerer lays his hand on the animal sacrifice (see Leviticus 1:3–4), the perfection and beauty of the unblemished sacrifice are transferred to him, and God understands and accepts him in the perfection of the animal. In Hebrew, the word “accepted” implies being treated with favor, delight, and acceptance. This means that you, for whom Jesus became a burnt offering, are treated by God with favor, delight, and acceptance because the beauty and perfection of Jesus have been transferred to you. As your burnt offering, Jesus has made atonement for you on your behalf. Jesus is your atonement or covering for sin. How precious Jesus is to the Father is how precious you are to the Father because when the Father sees you, He sees Jesus, your atonement, your covering. So every day, take Jesus as your burnt offering. Come to God and say, “Father, I thank You that Jesus is my burnt offering. He covers me from head to toe with His righteousness. I thank you, Father, that You see me without spot or wrinkle. You see me covered in all the value and perfection of the work of Your Son. What He is to You, I am. Who He is to You, I am. As He is now, so am I. I am in Him” (see 1 John 4:17)! Jesus has you covered. You don’t appear before the Father with all your faults and shortcomings. Jesus proclaims to you what is right with you in spite of what is wrong with you because He has covered you with His perfection. Today, hear Him telling you, “Go, girl! I have you covered. There is nothing for you to worry about!” Hear Him saying to you, “Go for it, son! I am covering you. There is nothing for you to fear!” -Joseph Prince
Let It Go May 28, 2019 bizadmin …I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.” Exodus 15:26 LET IT GO! After crossing the Red Sea, the children of Israel came to a place called Marah. The waters there were bitter. That is why the place was called Marah, which means “bitter.” The Israelites could not drink any of the water, so the Lord made the bitter waters sweet (see Exodus 15:23–25). Then, He brought up the subject of the diseases of Egypt and, for the first time, revealed Himself to His people as “the Lord who heals you.” Why did the Lord suddenly mention the diseases of the world (Egypt represents the world in the Bible) at a place called “bitter”? What do diseases have to do with bitter waters? I believe that it is because He wants His people to know that a major cause of diseases in their bodies is harboring bitterness and resentment! Some years ago, a lady shared with me about her sister who had died of cancer at a young age. She said, “Pastor Prince, a number of years before she passed on, she went through a very bitter divorce. She was very bitter toward her ex-husband.” Then, she asked me, “Is there a relationship between her bitterness and the cancer?” I have studied the subject of healing for many years. I have read many books. I have listened to many sermons and I have sat under many healing ministries. And they all say the same thing: If you have unforgiveness in your heart long enough, that unforgiveness can sometimes translate into a disease in your body. So if you have been bitter about something or someone, it is time to let it go! Your health, joy and life are more important. If you are already sick and you know that bitterness has something to do with it, let it go! See Jesus as your healer. He is standing at your place of bitterness today and He is saying to you, “My child, I can make your bitter waters sweet. I am the Lord who heals you.” My friend, let it all go and let Jesus heal not just your diseases, but your broken heart too! -Joseph Prince
God will Surely Show You Kindness May 24, 2019 bizadmin So David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father’s sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually.” 2 Samuel 9:7 GOD WILL SURELY SHOW YOU KINDNESS When the people in the palace heard that King Saul and his son Jonathan had died in battle, they panicked. Fearful that David was coming to seize the throne, and kill all the sons and grandsons of Saul, they ran for their lives. A nurse took Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s son, and ran. But as she fled, the five-year-old boy fell and became lame in both feet (see 2 Samuel 4:4). The poor boy would not have been crippled if they had known that David actually loved Jonathan and Saul, and would have looked after Jonathan’s son because he had made a covenant with Jonathan (see 1 Samuel 18:3). In this story, King Saul represents the human race. He is like Adam who sinned against God and forfeited all that God gave to man. He had the position, but not the power anymore because of sin. Jonathan, who came after Saul, represents Jesus, who came as a human. Jonathan was not like Saul—he was good, just as Jesus is not like Adam—Jesus is the perfect Man. David represents God. So Jonathan’s covenant with David speaks of Jesus’ covenant with God. Mephibosheth represents believers today who are “lame” in some way—sick, depressed, fearful, poor and so on. Now, Mephibosheth became lame because of bad news that was based on a lie. Many believers today are suffering needlessly because they believe the wrong things about God. They think, “My sin has found me out! God is coming after me!” Well, I have good news for all Mephibosheths: David is not after your life! When David looked for Mephibosheth, it was to show him kindness, to take care of him and restore to him the land that had belonged to Saul his grandfather. Likewise, God is not out to get you. He knows all about your sins and still loves you. That is why He sent Jesus as the payment for your sins. And because of Jesus’ covenant with Him, He says to you, “Don’t be afraid, I will surely show you kindness. I will restore all to you and you shall always eat at My table!” -Joseph Prince
Read the Good News Today? May 20, 2019 bizadmin …seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:33 READ THE GOOD NEWS TODAY? God doesn’t want you grabbing the newspaper first thing in the morning and reading all the bad news in the world. He knows that if you do that, your heart will be full of cares, anxieties and even fears. This happened to a mother who read in the newspaper that children from China studying in our local schools were becoming top students. She wrote to the press, voicing her concerns about the stiff competition her child would face from these students, even for the top jobs in Singapore in the future. When you are reading the newspapers, magazines, medical journals, economic reports, watching movies or surfing the Internet all the time, then you are getting your “nourishment” from these sources instead of God’s Word. Now, I am not against these things. But if you constantly feed only on earthly things which cannot satisfy, you will fill your heart and mind with cares and worries. Jesus doesn’t want you to end up worrying about your life—what you will eat, drink or wear—as these are the things that the Gentiles (people of the world) seek. He says that your heavenly Father knows very well that you need these things (see Matthew 6:31–32). That is why He promises you that if you would seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, all these things that the world seeks after will be added to you. It will not just be given but added, which means greater in quantity and quality! If you are faced with lack, don’t pursue material goods. Pursue God your provider. If you are sick, don’t pursue the “cure.” Pursue God your healer. My friend, don’t grab the newspaper or call your friend first thing in the morning to talk about the latest bad news. Instead, grab your Bible and read all the good news God has for you for the day. And as you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all the things that the world is running after will be added to you! -Joseph Prince
Believe First and You Will See May 17, 2019 bizadmin …as you have believed, so let it be done for you… Matthew 8:13 BELIEVE FIRST AND YOU WILL SEE You may have heard some people say, “How can I believe it when I don’t see it? If I can only see it or feel it, I may just believe that something is happening!” The woman with the issue of blood who came to Jesus could have felt the same way. For 12 long years, she had gone from one doctor to another, trying every conceivable cure they could offer. She not only grew worse, but ended up losing all her money to those doctors and their “cures.” Then, something happened to her when “she heard about Jesus” (Mark 5:27). She started believing that He could and would heal her to the extent that she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well” (Mark 5:28). Acting on her belief, she made her way to Jesus and touched His garment. Immediately, her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was healed of that affliction. Jesus, her true physician, also pronounced her healed. Beloved, God wants you to know that when you believe Him, you will see your miracle. What you believe Him for, you will receive.When a church member lost her wallet at a swimming pool, she prayed together with her husband, declaring their belief that God would restore the loss. One day later, not at the swimming pool but at her feet in the car, she found her wallet! She simply believed that God would restore her loss and she saw the restoration. In another case, a lady who had skin cancer wore long sleeves all the time to conceal her condition from others. During one of our church camps, she went forward for prayer, believing God for her healing. After one of our pastors, Pastor Henry, prayed for her, she went back to her room, rolled up her sleeves and saw that all the cancerous scarring on her arms had disappeared! Her doctor later confirmed that she had been cured of skin cancer. She believed God for healing and saw it. The world says, “Unless I can see it or feel it, I will not believe it.” But God says, “If you will believe it, you will feel it. Indeed, if you will believe it, you will see it!” -Joseph Prince
Consider the Lilies of the Field May 15, 2019 bizadmin “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Matthew 6:28–29 CONSIDER THE LILIES OF THE FIELD You may think that you must work very hard to provide for yourself and get ahead in life. But God wants you to consider the lilies of the field—they do nothing. They toil not, spin not and struggle not. Yet, they grow and are clothed by God while simply resting and basking in the sunshine of God’s love! And when God clothes them, they look even more glorious than King Solomon, the richest king who ever lived. Like the lilies of the field, God wants you to let Him take care of providing for your material needs, instead of you striving to do it yourself. When you let go and let Him, you will see Him bless you supernaturally, abundantly and generously! This is what happened to one of our church members who had been looking for a job. Initially, he received only two calls for interviews after sending out 12 résumés. Refusing to be discouraged, he believed that God wanted to bless him not just with a job, but with a position of influence too. God was faithful. This church member soon became the business manager of an engineering company even though he had no engineering background. He was offered a very attractive remuneration package and within his first week on the job, was asked to quote on two projects. He knew that this was God’s doing because it was difficult enough just to secure an appointment with contract managers to discuss projects, let alone be asked to quote on not one but two projects. Before long, he was offered the position to run the entire Singapore subsidiary with only one other business development manager. He was then only 25 years old! My friend, God can do for you what He did for this person. Just believe that if God clothes the lilies and grass of the field, which are here today and gone tomorrow, how much more will He clothe you, His eternal and precious child, with beauty and favor! All He asks is that you cease from your striving, allow Him to take over and just flow with Him! -Joseph Prince
Jesus is Your Sweet Aroma to God May 10, 2019 bizadmin …the priest shall bring it all and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord. Leviticus 1:13 JESUS IS YOUR SWEET AROMA TO GOD In Old Testament times, when a burnt offering is killed, its head is severed, the fat removed, and the entrails and legs washed. Then, everything is placed on an altar and burnt, and the sacrifice is a sweet aroma to God. All this speaks of the death of Jesus, who has “given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma” (Ephesians 5:2). The head of the sacrificed animal speaks of the mind of Christ offered as a covering for our minds. This means that although our minds are often clouded with unbelief, worries, foolishness, filth and human reasoning, God treats us as if we have the mind of Christ, without wrong or displeasing thoughts, bringing pleasure to Him like a sweet aroma. The fat of the animal speaks of the riches of Christ, His best, for God equates the fat of something with the best of that entity (see Genesis 45:18). The fat of the burnt sacrifice speaks of Jesus giving us His riches, His best, as our covering. So God does not see us in our lack, but in the riches and excellence of Jesus going up to Him as a sweet aroma. The entrails or intestines speak of Jesus’ motivations, feelings, affections and desires. We often feel fearful, anxious, stressed out or angry (and it affects our stomach and intestines). But God sees only Jesus’ feelings and desires, which are always pure, beautiful and acceptable to Him—a sweet aroma. The legs refer to Jesus’ perfect walk—His power to serve and obey the Father—imputed to our weak and faltering walk. And the fact they are washed shows that even our crooked walk has been cleansed. Beloved, God does not see your foolish mind, weak nature, inadequate feelings or faulty walk. Instead, He sees you in the perfection of His Son, who gave Himself up for you as a sweet-smelling sacrifice to God. -Joseph Prince