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DAILY PROMISE

Daily Blessing
Friday July 4, 2025

Today's Promise:
   The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.

DAILY DEVOTION

C.H. Spurgeon's Morning Devotional
Friday July 4, 2025

"Sanctify them through Thy truth."-John 17:17
    
    Sanctification begins in regeneration. The Spirit of God infuses into man that new living principle by which he becomes "a new creature" in Christ Jesus. This work, which begins in the new birth, is carried on in two ways-mortification, whereby the lusts of the flesh are subdued and kept under; and vivification, by which the life which God has put within us is made to be a well of water springing up unto everlasting life. This is carried on every day in what is called "perseverance," by which the Christian is preserved and continued in a gracious state, and is made to abound in good works unto the praise and glory of God; and it culminates or comes to perfection, in "glory," when the soul, being thoroughly purged, is caught up to dwell with holy beings at the right hand of the Majesty on high. But while the Spirit of God is thus the author of sanctification, yet there is a visible agency employed which must not be forgotten. "Sanctify them," said Jesus, "through thy truth: thy word is truth." The passages of Scripture which prove that the instrument of our sanctification is the Word of God are very many. The Spirit of God brings to our minds the precepts and doctrines of truth, and applies them with power. These are heard in the ear, and being received in the heart, they work in us to will and to do of God's good pleasure. The truth is the sanctifier, and if we do not hear or read the truth, we shall not grow in sanctification. We only progress in sound living as we progress in sound understanding. "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." Do not say of any error, "It is a mere matter of opinion." No man indulges an error of judgment, without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth, for by so holding the truth shall you be sanctified by the Spirit of God.
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I am a christian

When I say ...'' I am a christian
I am not shouting '' I AM CLEAN LIVING''
I'M whispering '' i was lost''
Now I'M found and forgiven.

When I say ...'' I'M Christian''
I don't speak of this with pride
I 'M CONFESSING THAT I STUMBLE
and need christ to be my guide.

When I say ...'' I'M a christian"
I'M not trying to be strong
I'm professing that I'M WEAK
AND NEED HIS STRENGTH TO CARRY ON

When I say...'' I'M a christian"
I'M not bragging of success
I'M admitting I have failed
And need God to clean my mess

When I say...'' I'M a christian ''
I'm not claming to be perfect
My flows are too visible far
But,God believess I am worth it

When I say ...'' I'M a christian''
I still feel the sting of pain
I have my share of heartaches
so I call upon His name

When I say...'' I'M a christian''
I 'M not holier than thou
I'M just a simple sinner
Who recieved God's good grace, SOMEHOW..

DAILY BIBLE STORY

Bible Stories
Today's Bible Story
Friday, July 4, 2025
Jesus' First Disciples - Five Men Meet Jesus
John 1:35-51
Jesus calls His first five disciples.
MANY PEOPLE WHO heard John preach by the riverside believed his words, and they began to look for the coming of the King from heaven. From day to day they waited, eager to hear the glad news that the King had arrived. They believed that he would set up a kingdom of Judea, like the kingdom of David had been. And they believed that the Jews would be the favored people in this great kingdom.

    One day after Jesus had returned from the lonely wilderness, John the Baptist saw him walking along the road near the river. And John cried out, "Behold the Lamb of God, who bears the sin of the world!"

    Two young men from Galilee were with John that day and heard him speak. These young men had been disciples, or learners, of John, for they were interested in the teachings of God. When they heard John's words concerning Jesus, the Lamb of God, they turned at once to follow this wonderful person. Perhaps they wondered why John had called him the "Lamb of God." And perhaps they wondered how he could bear the sin of the world.

    Jesus knew these young men were following him, so he stopped and called to them. He asked what they wanted of him, and they answered, "Master, where do you dwell?" Then Jesus took them with him and talked with them all the day.

    We do not know what Jesus told those men, but we do know that his words proved to their minds that he was the King, or Messiah, for whom the Jews were looking. How glad they were because they had found him!

    One of those young men was Andrew, who afterwards became a disciple of Jesus. Just as soon as he believed that Jesus was the promised King he remembered how eagerly his brother, Simon, was waiting to see this great person, too. So he hurried at once to find Simon and bring him to Jesus.

    Both Simon and Andrew lived by the seaside in Galilee, but at this time they were numbered among the many people who daily sat listening to the words of the strange preacher in the wilderness. Never had they heard such wonderful teaching before, and they were sure that John was a prophet.

    But Jesus' words had convinced Andrew that he had found a new teacher who was even greater than John. So he called Simon aside from the multitude and said,"Come with me, for we have found the Messiah!"

    When Jesus saw the two brothers coming to his lodging-place he looked at Simon and said, "You are Simon, the son of Jona; but you shall be called Peter." Simon wondered how Jesus knew so much about him, but after he listened to Jesus' words he, too, believed that the long-looked-for King of the Jews had come. And he followed Jesus with his brother Andrew.

    On the next day Jesus began his journey back to his home country in Galilee, and these men went with him. As they went they met a man named Philip, who lived in the same town as Simon and Andrew lived in. Jesus called Philip to follow him, too; and Philip obeyed.

    As he walked along the road with Jesus and the other followers Philip listened in wonder to the wise sayings of his new-found friend. He had longed for the coming of the Messiah, and now he, too, believed that Jesus was the promised Savior and King.

    Philip had a neighbor named Nathaniel who had often talked with him about the glorious time soon coming when the King of the Jews would appear. And now he ran to tell Nathaniel about Jesus.

    He knew how greatly Nathaniel longed to see the coming King, and he called to him, saying, "We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth."

    Nathaniel knew the Scriptures, and he did not believe that the King of the Jews would come from Nazareth, for the prophets had said he would be born in Bethlehem. So he said to Philip, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?"

    But Philip answered, "Come and see."

    Because Philip was so eager, Nathaniel rose and followed him. When they came near, Jesus saw Nathaniel, and he said, "Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!"

    "How do you know me?" asked the astonished Jew.

    Jesus answered, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig-tree, I saw you."

    What Nathaniel had been doing under the fig-tree we can only guess, but he may have been kneeling there and praying that God would hasten the coming of the promised King.

    When he heard Jesus; answer, he was filled with wonder and surprise that Jesus could know what he had been doing and where he had been staying before Philip called him.

    At once he believed that only God can see all things, and can reveal them to men, so he exclaimed joyfully, "Master, you are the Son of God! you are the King of Israel!"

    Jesus replied, "Do you believe just because I said I saw you under the fig-tree? You shall see greater things than these. Some day you shall see the heavens open, and the angel of God all about the Son of man."

Tomorrow: The Wedding In Cana - Jesus' First Miracle

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WHAT IS PRAYER?

Prayer is basically talking with God. It is simply expressing your heart and spending time with Him. It is not a one way activity, God speaks, we listen, we speak and God listens to our hearts. Prayer can be exciting, powerful and fulfilling.

I am going to be focusing mostly on intercession, but I also wanted to provide an overview on other types of prayer that will hopefully inspire you to pursue your own personal study on this subject.

Types of Prayer

A. Thanksgiving
B. Petition
C. Prevailing
D. Intercession

A. Thanksgiving - Giving thanks to God for all things in your life. We are commanded to give thanks in all circumstances. Being thankful is being grateful for his protection, provision, blessing, and most of all for his Son.

B. Petition - We ask God for the specific things we need in our life. Give us our daily bread. Give us the things we need to survive, a roof over our heads, employment etc. Petitions are usually self orientated, presenting our personal needs to our Heavenly Father, in trust that He will provide. Be specific in your petitions, pray in details and not in generalities.

C. Prevailing Prayer - fervent consistent insistent prayer until a breakthrough takes place, whether in your personal life, or for someone else (intercession). Example Believing for emotional or physical healing.

Biblical Example: Luke 18:1-8.(NIV) Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, `Grant me justice against my adversary.' "For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, `Even though I don't fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!'" And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

D Intercession - Love on its knees in prayer, for others. Pleading on behalf of the needs of someone else. Standing in the gap, that is, praying prayers of repentance, etc., identifying yourself with the sins of those for which you are in prayer.

Biblical Example: Nehemiah, a godly man, identified with the sins of his people, praying prayers of repentance, asking the Lord to forgive and to have mercy and to raise up once again the nation of Israel.

Confirmation of Conversion


Reading: John 3:1-16

"If any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things

have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Cor 5:17)


Can we identify a genuine experience of salvation? Surely yes!

First of all, there will be the true peace and joy through the Holy Spirit in the heart! When we make peace with God we have the peace of God. Jesus called it the peace the world cannot give (Jn 14:27). The burden of sin is rolled away! Guilt is gone! The converted man is overflowing with gratitude to God. He shouts with exuberance, "Thank you, Lord, thank You!" If over one sinner who repents there is great joy among the angels "in Heaven," will the angels "on earth" around him stay unmoved (Lk 15:10)?

Secondly, the converted man begins to hate sin and the evil ways of the world. The sinful acts he was indulging in during the past so willingly appear obnoxious to him now. The joy of the Lord has replaced the silly pleasures of sin. This does not mean he will never ever commit any sin. Before getting saved he was like a pig; he would be wallowing in the mire! Now he is a lamb. Even if someone pushes the lamb into the mire, it will atonce jump out and not stay there. Have you understood the difference? A child of God will not "live" in sin!

Thirdly, the saved man begins to love Bible meditation, prayer and fellowship of God's children. It is no more the routine of reading the Bible for a few minutes as a religious custom, but a delightful desire to spend hours in meditating it (Psa 1:2). Prayer becomes his very breath. Earlier he had not known God. But now he knows God as his Father. Hence this longing to speak to Him! He begins to feel and appreciate the love of God who has redeemed him (1 Jn 3:1). Fellowship with saints is necessary to comprehend the width, length, depth and height of that love (Eph 3:18).

Fourthly, those who are saved will walk in love with others (1 Jn 3:14). They will restitute matters with the wronged (Mt 5:23,24). Loving the enemies, the persecutors and the opposers is a proof of our being children to a God of love (Mt 5:43-48).

Fifthly, the saved man will just be anxious to share his new-found joy with others (Jn 4:28,29; Mk 5:19). "Let the world get the joy I got!"- This will be his motto.

More about Jesus would I know,

More of His grace to others show;

More of His saving fullness see;

More of His love-who died for me!

(Eliza E. Hewitt, 1851-1920)

Letter From Hell. - Scary but true

Conversions: facts and figures

Below are some self-explanatory facts and figures that show the showing the alarming rate of conversions and missionary activity in some of the world's nations.

This is taken from a site which mainly expresses the aggresions caused by christians in the world. As a saying goes,

"Only Enemies know the strength of the mightiest"

Christian Population Statistics

China:
1950 - 1 Million 2003 - 100 Million

South Korea:
1945 - 2.2% Population 2003 – 49% Population

Papa New Guinea:
1950 - < src="http://www.christianaggression.org/images/arrow.gif" height="10" width="21"> 2003 - 97% Population

Africa:
1900 – 1.7% Population 2003 - 55% Population

Is India Next?
2003 - < src="http://www.christianaggression.org/images/arrow.gif" height="10" width="21"> 2060 - ???

Other Countries:

The below countries are traditionally non-Christian but are now majority Christian through aggressive missionary activity. Most, if not all of the countries below, have effectively been converted by the exploitation of their impoverished conditions by missionaries.

Angola - 90% Christian
Burundi - 78% Christian
Cameroon - 35% Christian
Central African Republic - 82% Christian
Chad - 33% Christian
Congo - 62% Christian
East Timor - 92% Christian
Ethiopia - 52% Christian
Equatorial Guinea - 94% Christian
Gabon - 79% Christian
Kenya - 25% Christian
Liberia - 68% Christian
Mozambique - 31% Christian
Nigeria - 52% Christian
Papa New Guinea - 97% Christian
Philippines - 84% Christian
Rwanda - 69% Christian
South Africa - 78% Christian
South Korea - 49% Christian
Sudan - 30% Christian
Tanzania - 20% Christian
Togo - 23% Christian
Uganda - 70% Christian
Zaire - 90% Christian

In India:

State Hindu % Christian %

1961 1991 1961 1991
Arun. Pradesh - - 37.0 - - 10. 2
Assam 71.3 67.1 2.4 3.3
MP 93.9 92.8 0.5 0.6
Manipur 61.6 57.6 19.4 34.1
Meghalaya 18.2 14.6 35.2 64.5
Nagaland 9.3 10.1 52.9 87.4
Orissa 97.5 94.6 1.1 2.1
Sikkim 66.6 68.3 1.7 3.3
Tamil Nadu 89.9 88.6 5.2 5.6
Tripura 76.0 86.5 0.8 1.6
Lakshadweep 1.0 4.5 0.2 1.1

Conversion Facts

  • Every year, churches around the world perform US $1.1 billion worth of research in 3,000 languages, covering 180 religious topics for conversion purposes.
  • Missionary literature in today's libraries number 175,000 different titles in 500 languages, increasing by 4 newly published every day.
  • From only 3 million in year 1500, Christians involved in missionary activities has grown to 648 million worldwide, 54% being Non-Whites (Showing the focus of training of indigenous missionaries).
  • There are only 818 ethno linguistic peoples or tribal groups which have never been targeted by any Christian agency.
  • Each day 10,000 Chinese are converted to Christianity .
  • Each year 3.5% of Africans (6 Million) convert to Christianity.
  • In 1972, there were 26 indigenous missionary agencies in India, as of 1997 there are more than 200.
  • In India, it is estimated that 5,000 people are converted to Christianity everyday. That's one person every 17.28 seconds!

2 comments:

gifta said...

Hi jebaraj,
The facts are useful to know about the christian population... Its shocking India has only a small percentage.

Anonymous said...

But I wonder, why is it given us "alarming rate of conversion".
The article is expressing concern about the conversions happening in Africa.
Making other people know about Jesus is the very duty of every christian and when a person accepts Jesus is its fullfilment I believe..