Monday, December 14, 2009

God's Faithfulness

"If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself."
2 Timothy 2:13


Has anyone ever signed a contract with you and backed out? Have you ever been betrayed by a friend, a love one or business associate? Unfortunately, many of us have countless stories of how people have been unfaithful to us and if we are honest how we have been unfaithful to others. We make promises we do not keep, we take vows we back out of, and we sign contracts that we violate. Man is an unfaithful sinner and no matter how hard we try we find ourselves struggling to be faithful. I'm amazed at the fact that even the most devout believer struggles to be faithful though saved and sanctified. The only one whose faithfulness is unchanging, constant, irreversible and unquestionable is God's.

Faithfulness is an ongoing demonstration of commitment and allegiance to a person or cause. It is a time tested attribute. Faithfulness is not something that we were; it is something that we are. You cannot say I used to be faithful, because once you cease to be faithful you no longer can claim faithfulness as a character trait. If you have been married for 50 years and divorce out of unfaithfulness, that act of unfaithfulness eradicates all the 50 years of faithfulness you had put in. One act of unfaithfulness corrupts years of faithfulness. Faithfulness is never past tense it is always present tense. You can see how difficult it is for man to be faithful. Faithfulness requires endurance, perseverance and longsuffering. It is an unconditional act towards a changing person to remain committed no matter the circumstances. Though it is difficult for man to be faithful, there is one whose faithfulness is eternal, uncompromising and steadfast; our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. God's faithfulness is eternal and irrevocable.

How can God be so faithful though we struggle to maintain our own faithfulness? The secret to God's faithfulness is that it is not dependent upon us fulfilling our end of the bargain. God made a deal with Abraham and could not find anyone to swear by so he swore by himself, Hebrew 6:13-19. Imagine that, someone makes a deal with you and recognizing your limitations and frailty he signs both sides of the contract to ensure that the contract will be realized no matter what you do. God's faithfulness is independent of man; it is totally dependent on the very nature of who God is. That is why he says in II Timothy 2:13 that even when we (man) are faithless He (God) remains faithful because He (God) cannot deny himself or His very nature. God made a deal with himself concerning man that He will accomplish certain things through man regardless of man.

Many kingdom entrepreneurs struggle with condemnation and guilt because we are unable to carry out our end of the bargain regarding the covenant we made with God. We allow the devil to trick us into believing that we are not enjoying certain privileges or we are going through certain difficulties because somehow God is not pleased with us or God is dissatisfied with our performance. Here is the good news; relax and thank God for Jesus who paid a dear price for your freedom and to make you right with God. God's love towards you is not conditional to what you do for Him or to Him but it is solely dependent upon what His Son did on the Cross of Calvary. To make sure that we had no excuse He sent His Son to demonstrate faithfulness so we would not have to struggle with it but just walk in it by taking on His Son. Wow, what love.

Do you struggle with faithfulness? Do you struggle to keep the commitments you make towards God or others? Stop trying to keep them based on your own strength which leads to self condemnation. Recognize that you are limited and turn to Jesus Christ and take on His nature so He may show Himself faithful through you. Faithfulness cannot be accomplished outside of a devoted relationship with Christ. God's faithfulness towards us is able to bring us into His image and likeness which enables us to walk in His faithfulness.

Copyright © 2009 Patrice Tsague ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Monday, December 7, 2009

From Mission Impossible to Possible

But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "with men this is impossible but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26.

Have you ever had an assignment or project that you felt in your heart there is no way I can do this? Is your business facing a challenge that seems impossible for you to overcome? The fact is most kingdom assignments are impossible for us to carry out in our own strength. They require supernatural intervention if we are going to be successful.

In Matthew 19:16-22, we learn of a rich young ruler who had obeyed the Ten Commandments from his youth but now desired to ensure that he can make claims to eternity. Jesus' response to him requires an act of compassion towards the poor and a commitment to follow Him forsaking all that is important to him. However, the rich young ruler did not value eternity enough to make the necessary sacrifice. For the rich young ruler this request of Jesus was an impossible mission.

In contrast, we find another rich young ruler in the Old Testament in the book of Genesis Chapter 12 called Abraham; God calls him to leave his father's house and his country and go to a land that He will show him. Forsake all that you know and follow me to a place that you do not know. This young ruler obeyed and God made him very wealthy and he became the father of many nations.

What impossible task has God ask you to carry out? Like the rich young ruler you may have faithfully obeyed God's word for years but yet God is requiring more from you. He is requiring you to do something that will require you to exercise another dimension of your faith. Kingdom assignments are never solely based on our own ability but based on God's ability. How do you turn an impossible mission into a possible mission?

The difference between the rich young ruler and Abraham was the following:

1. Abraham believed he had heard from God while the rich young ruler was uncertain of the deity of Jesus Christ;

• Make sure that your instructions are from God

2. Abraham believed God while the rich young ruler did not believe Jesus since he did not trust in His deity;

• Make sure you believe God, because the scripture says all things are possible to those who believe. Mark 9:23

3. Abraham trusted God while the rich young ruler put his faith in his riches;

• Make sure you put your trust not in what you have acquired or accomplished but in God and God alone

Operating a kingdom business is an impossible mission; it is impossible for man on his own to make decisions that risks his natural stability trusting heavenly stability. It is impossible for man to love his customer more than money. It is impossible for man to love his employees more than their productivity in the business. It is impossible for man to love and pray for his competitors. It is impossible for man to be more concerned about community transformation then business growth. It is impossible for man to conduct his business in an environment where bribery and corruption is the norm for business profitability. It is impossible for certain businesses to be profitable or even maintain positive cash flow in the current economic environment.

All these things are impossible with man, but with God all things are possible. Not just some things but all things that are according to His will. Whatever your situation, make sure your instructions are from God. Believe God and put your complete trust in Him, and not only will He turn your impossible mission into a possible mission, but he will reward your faithfulness in the process.

Copyright © 2009 Patrice Tsague ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.