Hardship In Following God - Religion - Nairaland
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Following God’s Schedule / Following GOD Sheepishly / Hardship In Following God (part 2) (2) (3) (4)
| Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 10:33am On Dec 12, 2010 |
Sometimes people are urged to accept Christ because "he will solve your problems." But Christ did not promise to solve all of people's problems. In fact, he repeatedly warned people to consider what it would cost them to follow him, and he pointed out the hardships that would come into their lives as a result of choosing to following him Luke 14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Mark 8:34 34And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. If we look into Exodus 5 as a case study, we will see that Pharaoh's ealier enslavement and persecution of the Hebrews was purely strategic. He worried that this growing sector of the population would cause trouble for him (Exodus 1:8-22). In Exodus Chapter 5, the situation is different. Moses and Aaron had rallied the people's hope that their God would soon rescue them (Exodus 4:29-31). During their initial encounter with Pharaoh, Moses and Aaron confronted him with the reality of God's sovereign rule. Not surprisingly, Pharoah considered this an affront to his own sovereignty and reacted strongly against the Israelites. When God's Kingdom clashes with God's enemies, there is often conflict and hardship for God's people. We should not be surprised, therefore, when hardships come our way. Believers have changed allegiance from the realm of darkness to the realm of Light. The Lord of Host has enabled us to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. Hallelua and Amen for that! However let us be aware that those who rule in the realm of darkness will certainly not let us leave their power without a fight. I call it the "The Spirit of pharaoh" meaning Hindrance, Obstruction, Barrier to our freedoom of worshiping and following the LORD. CONCLUSION Therefore like the ancient Hebrews, we must stand firm in our faith, knowing that God will secure the final victory on our behalf in JESUS NAME EXODUS 6:1-8 [b]1Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land. 2And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD: 3And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them. 4And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers. 5And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant. 6Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments: 7And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD.[/b] God bless  |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by manmustwac(m): 1:13pm On Dec 12, 2010 |
Are you trying to say that the masses should accept their condition & continue to suffer & smile while our corrupt leaders continue to loot the treasury? |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by PastorAIO: 1:23pm On Dec 12, 2010 |
Very true what you posted in OP, but you cannot expect nigerians to really count the cost of christianity before attempting to become christians. Please let of properly consider the verse of Luke above and then look at nigeria. How many unfinished houses do you see all around? So therefore 9ja people like to start things without due consideration of the cost of the project. Maybe they start in the hope that a miracle will happen and they'll some how find the money to finish it. And if this attitude is spread to everything else that they do then obviously they take up christianity without a full appraisal of what chrisitianity is. How sad!! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 11:29pm On Dec 12, 2010 |
Are you trying to say that the masses should accept their condition & continue to suffer & smile while our corrupt leaders continue to loot the treasury? obviously not  But I will encourage them to look before they leap. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by nuclearboy(m): 12:07am On Dec 13, 2010 |
No wonder you are not popular on Nairaland, yommyuk. You tell the truth! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by InesQor(m): 1:07am On Dec 13, 2010 |
God bless you for this, yommyuk  |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 4:21pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
InesQor: Seconded!  Funny but this (IMHO) is actually the acid test for the genuineness of the gospel one has subscribed to, in a world awash with all forms of self-gratifying versions of the 'gospel' - if its something that focuses on having all your worldly  And that's my problem with virtually all the big name ministers of our day who in effect teach that the believer ought to enjoy life on earth in all good health and earthly prosperity and anything to the contrary must be vehemently rejected. . . showing where (and how) their hearts really are  Luckily for me, I hear stuff like this (the OP) all the time every week in church but pray that somehow, God would make it possible for others out there to hear his truth preached in sincerity like this |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 4:36pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Pastor AIO: Actually, they do count the cost o. . . only that of a different, watered down version of Christianity which in the real sense has no 'subscription' cost compared to the real thing. I mean, whats there to cost when the MOG first preaches to you about how much better your life will become when you sign up for Jesus??  Pastor AIO: Well, real objective, personal studying of the bible is not encouraged by our current crop of clergymen so the only 'appraisal' of Christianity they (the sheeple) usually have is the one fed to them by whatever MOG did the 'evangelizing' and won them over, which (to me) is virtually identical with a very persuasive sales pitch - 'you have everything to gain. . . and nothing to lose'. Ain't nothing mush to appraise in that And chances are that they'll NEVER see or hear such scriptures such as the one posted in the OP above. . . or the one below - For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake - Phil 1:29 |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by eyzhvntsn: 4:40pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
InesQor: Thirded petres_007: @bolded part, PLS tell them again. Everyone will be a millionaire, everyone will have business ideas, everyone will live in houses they did not build, the wealth of the wicked is being transferred to the church and on and on it goes. Sad that the gospel has been so commercialized, the cross made of no effect. All I say is if what we see is what Jesus went to the cross for, then he sure didn't have to go. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 5:14pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
eyzhvntsn: Na today. . . eyzhvntsn: [size=14pt]Bang, bang, BANG on POINT!!![/size] It's so so sad that people who profess to be Christians miss the whole point of Christ's mission! 23 And Jesus said to his disciples, "Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 25 When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished, saying, "Who then can be saved?" 26 But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." - Matthew 19 Before Jesus, there were rich people. . . during his lifetime and ministry, there were rich people. . . from then till now (approximately 2000 years), there have been and still are rich folk in every generation. Many times, the methods, principles or even the particular line of trade or business can copied by poor people who may then become rich as a result. My point is, barring God's sovereign actions to prevent this, people can and always will be able to get rich or significantly increase their standard of living. But this one thing that's been elusive and impossible for man - salvation, righteousness etc. IMHO, was the main point of Jesus' mission. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins was God stepping in to the picture to work out something that otherwise would be IMPOSSIBLE for man to achieve by himself. As awkward, humbling (or humiliating) as it may sound to most of us (Christians) today, Jesus did not come to make our earthly lives more comfortable not to mention, one of luxury, or problem-free like our MOGs today would have us believe.  Here's some verses that come to mind now which I think capture it well: . . . and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Mat 1:21 But he was wounded for [size=15pt]our transgressions, he was bruised for [size=15pt]our iniquities[/size]; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed.[/size] Isaiah 53:5 |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by Tonyet1(m): 5:45pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Point worthy of note: yommyuk: |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 5:45pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
yommyuk: Corrected! Didn't notice that earlier |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by Tonyet1(m): 5:53pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Pastor AIO: And that is if many who call themselves Christians really understand the true essence of the entity called 'Christian'. Lately i have begun by asking questions like what does it mean to become a Christian. If Christianity was alabout making all the monies in life, building and living in the best and finest of houses and riding the sleekest of cars, then bill gates et al would have been called 'modern father of christianity'. I somehow believe these MOGs know what they are doing secretly. May God help his churchReally been waiting for a day when someone will agree with me that this concept called christianity means more of Spirituality - consciousness of the rebirth man with his maker than all the jumping, shouting and coughing i see everywhere |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by Enigma(m): 5:54pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
This is why some of us regard the prosperity "gospel" as no gospel at all ---- its whole ethos is to subvert the teachings of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, it appeals a lot as it appeals to the flesh ---- which again is an indication of its contrariness to Jesus' teaching which requires emphasis on spiritual things. The prosperity "gospel" first of all deceives its followers in saying that fleshly things are "spiritual" and adds to that with various forms of false "spirituality" and supposedly "spiritual practices". Well, thankfully, there will always be a remnant who are not fooled by that false prosperity "gospel" which is no gospel. If only they will not use the title 'Christian' and opt for something like 'Prosperitian'! Edited to correct spelling errors etc |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 6:01pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Tonye-t: [takes a deep breath]. . . thanks for this post! Enigma: That will really be nice o! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by Enigma(m): 6:14pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Tonye-t: I am thoroughly convinced that many of the American televangelists certainly know what they are doing and that many of them are really atheists. There have been examples of some of them who deliberately set up a church or "Christian ministry" for the sole purpose of making money. One example is Robert Tilton of whom it was said that while in college he himself said he was going to do precisely that with his plan including setting up a good "hallelujah corner" (or something like that) i.e. a good choir so as to attract punters. Closer to home, we have an ongoing thread about the Ghanaian "pastor" who went to a voodoo guy for juju help to attract people to his "church". Another line, a more favourable line, is that some of the so-called MOGs set out with good intentions but got sidetracked by the lure of filthy lucre. I believe that many of the Nigerian big-name MOGs fall into one or other of these two categories. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by eyzhvntsn: 6:33pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Enigma: @ bolded, yes, yes, YES!!! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by eyzhvntsn: 6:42pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Enigma: I agree. Some of the ones who set out with good intentions also are where they are because of premature exposure, which ultimately exposes the desires and intentions deep in the crevices of their hearts that have not passed through the cross. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 10:36pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
No wonder you are not popular on Nairaland, yommyuk. You tell the truth! @ Nuclearboy. When people seek the Truth, they most often possess preconceived ideas about what that Truth will look like. They assume, for example, that finding the Truth will make them happy, successful, and healthy. They often believe that Truth will support their ego in its own expression and desire. They may think that Truth exists in order to make their life easier and support their own personal growth, personal empowerment, etc. and assist them in obtaining enlightenment. The devil is a liar. Many people seek Truth or what they conceive as Truth,but often do not consider that it will challenge and utlimately tear down and demolish the very things that they seek to achieve by discovering the Truth! People will seek the Truth to make themselves more powerful, to satisfy their personality, but Truth actually neutralizes the power and agendas of the ego. Many people seek Truth to find happiness, but Truth undermines all satisfaction with the personal life. People seek Truth to obtain enlightenment for themselves, but truth ultimately dissolves the ego-self in order that enlightenment may be realized. A testimony of my life. Psalm 24:3-4 Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure , Continue speaking the truth with a clear conscience bro |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by poweredcom(m): 10:43pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
Hahaha well there is hardship anywhere, but any so call christian that is facing hardship and going to give his so call pastor his last kobo is what i call an idiot and Mugu, Tithes .is not for you , these evangelist will ring you and you are gonna be poor, Hunger go wound your soul, Go and make your self connection and Work smart and Hard.to make it it Life, Use ur head to think not follow follow, one white man religion |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by aletheia(m): 10:55pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
The "prosperity mentality" has always being there right from Jesus' time. Even Peter fell prey to it. Consider: From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. [Matthew 16:21] All these were intimations of pain, rejection and suffering. In true prosperity gospel style Peter reacts: Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. [Matthew 16:22] In other words; Peter was rejecting the "negative confession" of Jesus. But there follows the stunning rebuke: But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men. [Matthew 16:23] The false gospels "savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." And finally the message for us all: 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? [Matthew 16:24-26] |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by nuclearboy(m): 11:32pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
You won't see them here. They come in, look around, realise such threads have too much power behind them and like their ancestors, sneak out then go back to strategise with the other members of their marketing teams on how to discredit truth and make erROR seem like Gospel.  |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 11:54pm On Dec 13, 2010 |
1 Tim 6 say it all These people always cause trouble. Their minds are corrupt, and they turned their backs on the truth. To them, a show of godliness is just a way to become wealthy. Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can't take anything with us when we leave it. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 12:04am On Dec 14, 2010 |
Go and make your self connection and Work smart and Hard.to make it it Life, Use your head to think not follow follow, one white man religion The above statement is true apart from the bolded which I will ignore for now. To be rich is good. But to trust in riches is not wise and unreliable. Though I am rich, i refuse to rely on my riches. I trust only in God who richly gives me all I need for my enjoyment. However these riches I use to do good. I choose to be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always ready to share with others. Why? Because I know doing this, I am storing up my treasure as a good foundation for the future so that I may experience true life. Cheers bro |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by eyzhvntsn: 12:05am On Dec 14, 2010 |
Amen! Amen!! Amen!!! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 2:18pm On Dec 14, 2010 |
yommyuk: I love this portion of scripture. I remember showing it to a Winners Pastor I was discussing these issues with about 4 years ago when he broke down weeping. When I asked him why, he said he'd NEVER seen this part of the bible before!  |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by ogajim(m): 8:44pm On Dec 14, 2010 |
It is hard to explain this to most of our Christian brethren these days that being a Christian doesn't mean you will be WEALTHY because they've been given this "SUCCESS" cool aid to drink far too many times. I have to believe that most of the so called "MOGs" (the ones we tend to hear the most from usually) are actually working for the "other side", they are playing "away games" on the home turf. That is the reason Jesus Christ admonished his believers to be "wise as Serpents and gentle as Doves" 1 John 4:1-6 1Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 4Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. 5They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. 6We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by yommyuk: 8:57pm On Dec 14, 2010 |
5They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.  |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by Enigma(m): 9:08pm On Dec 14, 2010 |
ogajim: This, especially the bolded, is what many of us are concerned and warning about! |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by cemehere: 7:35pm On Dec 16, 2010 |
Job 36:11. If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures. |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by petres007(m): 8:30pm On Dec 16, 2010 |
cemehere: @cemehere, That was Elihu speaking, and not even Job. How does that translate to being God's word/position on the matter? Have you ever noticed that most people who served God throughout history DID NOT spend their days in (earthly/material) prosperity and their years in pleasures? |
| Re: Hardship In Following God by nuclearboy(m): 8:52pm On Dec 16, 2010 |
@cemehere: Jesus said He had no place to lay His Head. Yet He prospered SPIRITUALLY. He lived pleasurably BECAUSE He was content, joyous, fulfilled in His mission. Same with Peter, Stephen, Paul, Timothy, James etc. We also read from the Bible which is the Word of God and not a commentary that offerings were taken for the poor saints. Please tell us - Jesus, the Apostles and all those Christians - did they not please God? Why then didn't they "prosper" as you insist? Or could you show us their earthly/material wealth so we know and understand? For what the Bible shows is those who belong to God and do His Will having Spiritual wealth (which is what Christ said to seek) |
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