Taking Your First Few Steps

Congratulations to you for making the most important decision in life to accept and to invite Jesus Christ into your heart to be your Lord and Savior; Scripture says you are now born-again Christians, my brothers and sisters in Christ.

The angels rejoice with you in heaven. Your name is written in the Book of the Lamb. The Holy Spirit puts his seal upon you. You are welcome into the Kingdom of God.

Scripture says you are new babes in Christ. You shall be fed with the pure milk, the whole truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Definitely, your pastor and spiritual mentor shall guide you in the acquiring of the truth.

You shall be taught the truth, the Word of God. You must pray and guard your heart so you shall not incline to hear anything else but God’s Truth. You need to set aside time to worship and to praise God individually and corporately. Set aside time to fellowship with other believers and to encourage each other in the faith. You need to read God’s Word and understand what God is commanding you to do.

As you grow in your daily walk with Christ in the Word, through prayer and through your dependence on the leading of the Holy Spirit in you, you shall learn to make your daily decision to pick up the cross to follow Christ and submit yourselves under His lordship; you are also enlisted into the armies of the Lord under his banner; you are also the ambassador of good will; the witness to the power of the resurrection in you; the disciple of the Wonderful Master and Teacher; you are the bond servants of the Lord.

Yes, the more you know who you are and what you have in Christ Jesus; the more you discover your inheritance, your hidden treasures in the field, your gifts given by the Holy Spirit as He sees fit, the more you shall be used in the area of your gifting and calling.

However, many people fail to hear God’s call, fail to respond to him, fail to follow him with the right motives and inadequately fulfill their mission in life because the lack of knowledge of the Word. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge;” (Hosea 4:6) we’ve got to know what the Lord requires of us and be fully equipped so that we can serve Him effectively. Beside, many don’t know that they are in a fierce spiritual warfare. It’s on-going.

We have to know which side we are on. There is no DMZ. There is no middle or neutral ground. You must know you are for God and not against Him. If you are not with Jesus you are not belonged to Him. You are or you are not!

Satan through our lack of knowledge has come to deceive us with lies, all kinds of fear and worry and defeated thoughts. He has attacked the body with all kinds of sickness and disease, twisted and perverted the mind with all kinds of false ideas, damaged the soul of man with all kinds of hurt and pain and caused the spirit of man to lose that connection with the Creator. Indeed, man has exchanged the truth for a lie (Romans 1:24-25). That’s why man shall not live by bread alone.

God’s Word emphasizes that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. He lives in us. We are in him. Our body has been bought with a price, the blood of the Son of God, and therefore “If anyone defiles the temple, God will destroy him (I Corinthians 3:17).

How do people defile their bodies, God’s temple? They have done so through illegal drugs, abuse of alcohol, illicit sex outside of marriage, pornography, lust, homosexuality, profanity, demonic evil piercing and tattoo, greed, rage, wrath, unforgiveness …and more. Why would they want to defile it? It is because of their lack of knowledge of the Word of God. Many reject God’s Word as authentic, infallible and absolute truth. And therefore they have developed and believed in all kinds of lies.

As long as we have let the flesh dominate us, we are not walking by the Spirit of God. When we let sin enter our lives and defile our bodies with unclean demons and spirits we are in danger. Everyday I have seen people who are depressed, tormented, harassed or oppressed by the devil, by the unclean spirits and demons. Their bodies are sick with diseases; they have unclean thoughts; they have heard voices repeated blaspheme; they have seen weird and demonic and horrible images, nightmares that continue to haunt them.

Just as Jesus gave his power to the apostles, disciples over unclean spirits and demons He gives the same power to us today to help people in need to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease (Matthew 10:1). In fact when you have an intimate relationship with Jesus, when you know you have His power, His authority and in Jesus’ name you can preach the Word, heal the sick and cast out demons (Mark 3:14-15; Luke 9:1-2; Mark 16:17-18).

There are many things that the Lord needs you to do; the Church needs you. Therefore, we must be trained in the Word. Be filled with the Holy Spirit. You must receive your anointing.

Take your position. Guard your post. Stand in the gap and fulfill what God has called you to do.

Pastor Linh