Matthew 24:14 (NIV) “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come”

Our opening scripture revealed that Jesus conditioned the coming of the end times on preaching the gospel. His assertion on the gospel was not merely prophetic but He was given us a divine mandate and instruction to expedite His return.

You see, you have a divine obligation to preach to gospel in this last days before the end comes. Many people have been held bound by sin, sickness and various infirmities by the devil. Nonetheless, their liberty is connected to the gospel. Thus, as you preach to people you are delivering them from many schemes and more especially from the grips of the devil.

Jude 1:22-23 says “Be merciful to those who doubt; save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh”. There is no best way to show mercy to sinners and unbelievers like preaching the gospel.

Make sharing the gospel a priority. It must reach the ends of earth for the Lord to come. But until you join the Lord’s harvesters not much can be done in this matter.

Read: Mark 16:15 “He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for the privilege to preach the gospel.  Let the fire of the Holy Spirit kindle in me an unending zeal and love for missions and evangelization. Lord, I also pray that more people will be send to seek and to save the lost with the gospel.

Psalm 37:1-3 “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed”

Most of the times, many Christians worry themselves over unnecessary things. By wrong comparison, they throw themselves into envy. They become envious of sinners or unbelievers who are seemingly walking in riches, or any power or influence they exude.

You see, anything people have in the flesh without God is nothing to be envious or jealous about. In fact, you even don’t have to be envious about anything people have in life.

You see, people who are rich without God will fade away. So irrespective of how glamorous they appear to be, don’t be thrown into awe or don’t admire them.

No matter how successful, famous or wealthy a person is, if he or she is not born again, the Bible says such ones are alienated from God.

No wonder the Psalmist said again in Psalm 37:35-36 “I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found”. That’s the life of a man who is not saved.

But for those on the Lord’s side the Bible says” in Psalm 37:37 that “Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace”

You see, instead of becoming envious or allowing your mind to ponder on the uncertain riches and the luxurious life of unbelievers pray for their salvation.

Read: Proverbs 23:17 “Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long”

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for the blessings you have lavished on me. I pray for a mind and a heart that is set on you. I pray for grace to stand in this end times and never become envious or jealous of sinners because of what they have.

Romans 10:14 “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”

We are living in an era where the truth of the gospel which is the good news has not reached many. In fact, worldly philosophies and perverted facts is what has captured the minds of many.

This is why Christians must be on the run with the gospel.

The Apostle Paul spoke about the power of the gospel in Romans1:16. He said “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek”

You see, we must fervently and incessantly go back to the highways and byways with the gospel. This is not the time to slack in preaching the gospel or the good news. It has what it takes to break the power of sin and influence of the devil. But until we preach, it won’t do any much good.

People must know that Jesus came to die for them, people must know that they can be delivered from the power of sin and its consequences, people must know that Jesus is a healer, people must know that they can still have a relationship with God, but how can they know unless you and I preach.

1 John 3:8 says “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning”

For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil”

Again in John 10:10 the Bible says “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

You see, the promise of life- life above sin, sickness and the devil is in Christ. Nonetheless, until you become passionate to reaching out to others many will die in their sins. Not only that, others will also be afflicted and live in pain and misery throughout their earthly life.

Get out from your comfort zone as a Christian. There are many more to save before all is said and done. Use any means and every means possible to save someone from the grips of the devil with the good news.

A song writer once wrote:

“Rescue the perishing, care for the dying,

Snatch them in pity from sin and the grave;

Weep o’er the erring one, lift up the fallen,

Tell them of Jesus, the mighty to save.

Rescue the perishing, care for the dying,

Jesus is merciful, Jesus will save”

Beloved, there is a duty call. It is a call to save. A call to look up to men and women who are hell bound and preach them the gospel.

Read: Isaiah 52:7 “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!”

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for saving me. Let me glow with the passion for lost souls and enable me by the power of your precious Holy Spirit to preach to the unsaved. Amen!

Psalm 71:1 “In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion”

When it comes to trusting in the Lord, it is easier said than done. For some people, it is easy to express some degree of trust in the Lord when everything is fine and calm around them but when they are faced with the storms of life they become doubtful. They immediately give in to fear. But that’s not how trusting in the Lord must be like. Trusting in the Lord is an “all out go”.

Trusting the Lord means that, you have given your course to the Lord and know that he will deliver. Folks who trust the Lord, never remain in despair or anxiety. In Psalm 62:8, the Bible says “Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.

Glory! Trusting God is not something we do at one time and do something else at other times. God is all- sufficient and can deliver on anything, anytime and anywhere. This is why your trust in him must be resolute.

Don’t come to God and have an uncertain mind. In fact, if God can’t be trusted then nothing or no one can. But NOT SO WITH GOD. He can be trusted when everything else fails. 2 Timothy 2:13 says “If we are faithless, He remains faithful [true to His word and His righteous character], for He cannot deny Himself.”

When medicine or medical science gives up on your health situation God can be trusted, when you are faced with rejection, God can be trusted, when you are faced with the storms of this life, God can be trusted.

You see, never put your trust in the wrong things. Money, people, human power, political power, etc. These things are transient. Their availability is not guaranteed forever.

The Psalmist said “For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us. In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah. (Psalm 44:6-8).

In Psalm 118:9, he again said “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes”.

You see, no matter what comes your way. Trust the Lord.

Edgar Page in 1876 wrote on trusting the Lord in his hymn “simply trusting everyday”

“Simply trusting every day, Trusting through a stormy way; Even when my faith is small, Trusting Jesus, that is all.Trusting as the moments fly, Trusting as the days go by; Trusting Him whate’er befall, Trusting Jesus, that is all”

Read: Psalm 91:2 “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust”

Prayer:Dear Lord, thank you for the understanding on the subject of trusting you. I pray for grace to trust you daily. I refuse to give in to fear. I pray for grace to trust you to the end

Acts 17:11"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so".

There is nothing more deluding or misleading like ignorance or “half truth”. This is even worse when it pertains to spiritual things and especially in one’s walk with God. In Mathew 22:29, Jesus said to the critics of his days that “they err not knowing the scriptures”.

You see, anytime a person lacks knowledge of the truth, making wrong judgments and inferences will be inevitable. That’s why there is the need to search the scriptures.

To search means to look somewhere carefully in order to find something. It also means to go over or look through for the purpose of finding something. This implies that, searching must be deliberate and it entails effort on the part of the searcher.

Thus, in searching you don’t just browse through over a subject, rather you give attention to details to seek out the truth from among several other facts. It also involves checking on the consistency of the truth or its holistic nature. 

You see, you can’t have a glorious experience in your walk with God if you are ignorant. You need to know the truth. The truth also comes by searching. Yes, prayerfully searching, and consistently flipping through the pages of the Bible to know God’s word on what you are doing, and what you want to do.

There are several revelations and insights that when you get your life will be easy. In fact, it will make your journey in this perilous and sin doomed world glorious.

Acts 17:11 says “These (the Berean Jews) were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so”.

Truth will always make you a noble person. It will make you fair-minded and cause you to prevail. Knowledge will be acquired as you search the word, wisdom will be acquired as you search, and your faith will be enhanced daily.

Ecclesiastes 8:1 from the Amplified Bible reads “Who is like the wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a matter? A man’s wisdom illumines his face, And causes his stern face to beam”

Make time for the word. Search it daily. Search what it says about any subject or matter that you may be confronted with. You will get the keys – wisdom keys, knowledge keys, and spiritual keys to navigate through life.

Read: 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Prayer: Dear Lord, open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things from your word. I ask for grace to engage or practice the truth I get from your word. Amen!

James 1:4
“But let patient have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing”

Your character matters. It will determine many things in your life. Therefore, building a solid character is a necessity. It is an invaluable asset that one can have in this last days.

No one can succeed without a great character because it contributes greatly to your success story.
A positive character is the foundation for success.
This consists of the virtues that the “new life” brings, namely, kindness, truthfulness, patience, honesty, endurance, etc.
You can’t be successful in life when you neglect these virtues.

The truth is that you can master many things in life, but the absence of a virtuous character will bring you no lasting results.

A bad or weak character is a life deficient of godly virtues, godly principles and discipline.
Every day of your life gives you the opportunity to make your character better by engaging these three things.
Be determined to build a solid character for your life since the consequence of a bad character is highly unbearable.

For instance, a bad character can destroy a marriage, it can destroy a relationship, it can bring chaos to a family and bring confusion to a ministry.

Always remember that you are as powerful as your character. It has the power to make you and to also unmake you.

Instead of concentrating on things which are of lesser value in life, rather spend time on building a SOLID AND AN UNQUESTIONABLE character.
Keep assessing yourself daily to ensure that you put your character in a way that can promote your success in all things.

Read: 2 Peter 1:5-8 “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Mathew 24: 45-46“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing”

Having success in life is not a guess work neither is it by coincidence. It takes the attitude of being responsible to have success and to maintain it. Without it, whatever you aim at will only become a pipe dream. 

Being responsible means that, you have made or will make yourself to be accountable for anything that happens or with whatever you have been entrusted with- time, money, resources, people, relationships, opportunities, etc.,

One dictionary definition also explains “responsible” this way, that when you are responsible for something, it is your job or duty to deal with it and make decisions relating to it. According to the Collins Dictionary, responsible people behave properly and sensibly, without needing to be supervised.

From the above explanations, it makes it clear that, for people to stand out in life, they must be responsible. These permeates all aspects of one’s life. You must be responsible as a Christian, you must be responsible in and with your education, you must be responsible in your matrimonial home, you must be responsible in your ministry, you must be responsible at your work place, etc.

In Mathew 24:45, the Bible says “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season”. You see, it takes being responsible to do what is expected of you at the right time and at the right place. Responsible folks know what duty or charge have been entrusted into their hands and they stretch themselves to deliver without given any excuses of whatsoever.

You see, people who are responsible show that they are wise and faithful nothing more nothing less. As Christians God expects us to take charge over our lives and anything that has been entrusted into our hands. One undeniable attribute of people who are responsible is that they have results to show forth for anything that has been placed in their care. Are you responsible? How have you managed the resources, time, money and the opportunities that have come your way? Do you give so called “tangible excuses” for what you MUST do?

You see, no matter how you describe a reason for your failure, you have still failed. The only thing that defeats failure is success, and results- positive results. Have a clear understanding of what your assignment entails and device practical ways by which you can carry them out with perfection.

Learn never to give excuses when given a task. Go all out and put in your best to accomplish that task. Also, learn not to put off till tomorrow what you can do today. Be diligent and your gifts will set you before great men.

Growth, order and success are undeniable when you take responsibility of your life and everything that has been entrusted into your care.

Read: Proverbs12:24 “The hand of the diligent shall bear rule; But the slothful shall be put under taskwork.”

Ephesians 4:29“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers”

Communication or talking must have a purpose. Aside conveying a thought or an idea to a person, what you say must be good, must edify, and must minister grace. When your “talks” satisfies these requirements then you are obeying the Lord on this subject.

One important truth you must know as a Christian is that God does not want us to talk anyhow and anywhere. When it comes to talking or communication there is a divine standard. Missing out on this is nothing but disobedience to God’s word. The message translation put Ephesians 4:29 clearer “Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift”.

When you talk or communicate, you must say good things- things consistent with the word of God, things consistent with the principles in God’s word, this consistent with the new life you have in Christ, and things that are true. Don’t miss out on this great principle when it comes to talking.

When you talk or communicate you must edify people. That is to say that your words must instruct or improve (someone) morally or intellectually. Furthermore, your communication must educate, teach, coach, guide, enlighten, indoctrinate, better, uplift or elevate someone. You see, no wonder talking well demands that you must have the tongue of the learned from God (Isaiah 50:4).

The bible again teaches that, when you talk, you must minister grace to your hearers. In other words, your Words must bring an impartation. Grace is favour. Thus, when communicating it must be with favour and blessings.

When we master how to talk, it will not only do us well, but we will be able to touch our world with the power of God.

Never give room to corrupt communication! Any communication that does not satisfy the divine order when it comes to communication is corrupt communication. How can you minister grace with insulting words, how can you talk good with shouting on top of your voice against people, how can you edify people with derogatory arguments over matters under discussion.

When you talk, don’t give room for evil to prevail. Don’t talk to bring quarrel, don’t talk with nagging or fault-finding, and don’t talk with fights.

Read: Colossians 4:6 “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man”

Isaiah 50:4 “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned”

One author once wrote “Talk is cheap, but it can cost you plenty.” This is one fact everyone “talking” must constantly bear in mind. The consequences or the after happenings after talking or “using words” must be one guiding principle when it comes to this subject.

The prophet Isaiah said “God has given him the tongue of the learned so that he should know how to speak…” Meaning that, to say something worthwhile, sensible, advisable, when talking is dependent on having a learned tongue. And the learned tongue comes from the Lord by submitting your life to his Lordship and teachings of His word. No one can talk well without the wisdom that comes from the spirit of the Lord and his grace.

Having the tongue of the learned also means that, you know how to speak a word in season. In other Words, you know the Words to use and the ones to avoid when talking to people. Not only that, you know when to talk about or on some issues with people and when to avoid it all together. Proverbs 25:11 says “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver”. Proverbs 15:23 also says “a word spoken in due season, how good is it!

You see, from the above explanations, it means that, there is much wisdom needed in talking. For you to articulate Words and express yourself rightly is something you must depend on the Lord for and also make it a priority in your life. As Christians it is therefore important for us to be careful how we communicate what we want to say and to also be careful when we communicate what we have to say.

Take it or leave it. Talking anyhow will cost you. Talk with the tongue of the learned.

Read: Colossians 4:6 “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man”

Matthew 16:24-28 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me”.

Following God and working for the Lord demands a great sacrifice. You can’t follow the Lord effectively without sacrifice. In fact, the call to be a Christian is a call to sacrifice.

Sacrifice means to give up something valued for the sake of other considerations. When you sacrifice, you sometimes abandon something, surrender your will, forgo your comfort, renounce or forfeit a privilege and the like. 

Today, most Christians don’t see the need to sacrifice in their walk with the Lord. They only remain on one side of the lane where comfort and convenience is the order of the day. But that is not all about being a Christian. In fact, being with the Lord and being kingdom minded calls for a great sacrifice.

Anytime I share on sacrifice I consider first and foremost the example of Jesus. He is and was God but left all the glory He had and took upon himself the nature of man just to have us saved. Not only that, He gave up his life in a gruesome and shameful way. This is nothing but sacrifice. 

Another example to give on sacrifice was how missionaries sacrificed their comfort, risked their lives to travel around the world to spread the good news. What a price they paid! Up to today we have great ministries like the Presbyterian churches, Methodist churches, Anglican churches, Baptist churches, etc., that have forefront the spreading of the good news dating back into the 17th and 18th centuries in Africa and some parts of the world. 

Beloved, come to the chambers of sacrifice. Be ready to sacrifice something for the course of God. Christianity is not only about comfort and convenience. It is heeding to the master’s call without restraint and going all out to serve his purpose. That is why Christianity is not about “me, myself and I”. We are not called for selfishness and self-interest. These are enemies to sacrifice.  

You can sacrifice irrespective of your situation, you don’t have an excuse. Think about God who gave his only son he could have kept for himself. This is what sacrifice means. It is giving out what will cost you; time, money, energy, comfort, wisdom, life, in fact, everything.

 Sacrifice now. Tomorrow might be too late. 

 Read: Matthew 16:24-26, “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”