CRITICAL QUESTIONS

God's standards are so high that the people of this world dismiss them not because they are unfair but because they can't reach them. They are so high to the so called thinkers and as a result they start calling themselves atheists, etc because they have rejected the only way given to reach them. They are so high that many a pastor and the so called bishops try to explain them in vague terms and instead of preaching the truth they have all fallen into the preaching of the false gospel of prosperity and illusion. 

The standards are so high for me too because I know what they require me to do but I always rebel and take to my own understanding. I cannot meassure up to Job who after undergoing a suffering that no life on earth has ever seen except that of Christ on the Cross,said . "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. Job 23:10-11 . 

The Critical Questions for you to READ  and to ponder:
1. Does God know the way that you and I take?
2. When God has tested you and me, shall we come forth as gold?
3. Have your feet and My feet closely followed his steps?
4. Have you and I kept to his way without turning aside?

How many of us can say without batting an eye like Job?

I thank the gospel of the Cross of Christ preached by the Apostle Paul who wrote" in Romans 7; 21- 25, 'So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature[d] a slave to the law of sin.

TRUST

We often hear this word used in various places and by various people. In fact, in Kenya there is a brand of a birth control device called TRUST. Nonetheless, the meaning of this word to those of who have gone through trying moments, those who have sinned terribly, those who have been rejected, despised, forsaken, ridiculed oppressed, disciminated against and even blackmailed, the word TRUST makes a very deep meaning that ought to make us shout HALLELUYA THE LORD IS GOOD!!!!

First, the word denotes reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, love and protection, of a person or thing; To the Christians, our object of TRUST is GOD through the finished work of Jesus Christ. When we look up to the Cross of Christ, our suffereing and the despicable situations we undergo, just become learning experiences of hardening us towards the finish line. So do not give up. Belt up and focus. KEEP ON KEEPING ON.

Secondly, the word TRUST speaks of having confidence. If we say we trust in God, our actions, beliefs, behaviour and attitudes must be governed by honesty. Honesty as an attitudenal aspect should permiate our lives as much as dealing with matters that matter in life like; relationships, dating, marriages, parenting, work ethics, studies, and preparedness for exiting this world. Like in an examination, performance, sporting athletics, contests and situations where we are being tested, confidence produces the best results. Here, if indeed we TRUST in God, we ought to deligently study His word and live according to His perfect will. When we find ourselves in situations that are threatening, we have no fear of failing because the Holy Spirit ensures that we do the Things that pleases God. The WORD that we have hidden in our hearts produces confident expectation of God's DELIVERANCE because He is God and worth of our TRUST.

Thirdly TRUST means confidence in the certainty of future reward, this could be an equivalent of credit: Trust also refers to a person on whom or thing on which one relies: Who is your TRUST? Nations of the world have their TRUST in Nuke heads, weapons, and the power of the gun. Citizens of this world have their TRUST in politicians, presidents, money and wealth. But Christians TRUST IN THE LORD GOD and this gives us hope.God is my trust.

Since in these matters of TRUST we are in a condition of one to whom the gospel has been entrusted.We ought to know the scripture apply scripture live by scripture. Here is where the rubber meets the road.We hardly honour the obligation or responsibility imposed on a us especially when in positions of leadership. The people we lead have placed in us confidence and authority. Leaders occupy a position of trust, charge, custody and care therefore we need to be stewards and not masters. Most of the leaders we have are rulers: they are the "it is either my way or the highway type of people. These sort are those who instead of Trusting in God, they have trusted in themsleves and their way in disregard to other people's opinions and feelings.

The Chracteristics of a Christian whose TRUST is in God, is described beautifully in Jeremiah 17:7-8
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

MAVI USIYOYALA WAFUKUZIANI NZI ?

The title of this liitle message may not be polite. I purposely ignored the use of euphemism because it is an African saying coined to produce the same feelings it has produced in those of you who understand it and in those who will understand it. I am always made to blame for being blunt sometimes but in this I had no choice but to use this saying.

To the Non Kiswahili speakers and those who did not take Fasihi ya Kiswahili, Mavi is waste matter discharged from the bowels after food has been digested; excrement. The second word has been conjugated from the verb "la" or "kula" which means "to eat". Used in this form renders it a negation- ie.do not eat. Wafukiziani -translates to- why are you chasing away ? Nzi -is a fly. Translated , Why chase away flies from the faeces you do not eat?

I relate this saying although crude to why people get offended when we Worship God and believe that Jesus Christ is the ONLY WAY LIFE AND TRUTH to the Father. If you feel this is FOOLISH, WHY ARE YOU AFFECTED BY WHAT YOU DO NOT BELIEVE IN? I am not sure I know why some feel offended when we say we believe in God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. I do not KNOW why some don't like it when we say that there is God in heaven the creator of heaven and earth in whom we believe. I have never understood why others feel offended when we say that Jesus is the only WAY THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE. Does this offend you? Why?

I Reproduce Paul's intruction 1 Timothy 2:5-6 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.

THE FOOLISHNESS IN CHRISTIANITY

Many mordern people find Christianity as a way of life that is chosen by those who are foolish, irrational, backward and those who believe in things without questioning. If you sit and start thinking deeply about this scenario, you will indeed see foolish things happened and are still happening even today. How does life sustain itself? How do human beings and animals live? It is foolish that both animals and humans live on dead things. Insects too. They eat dead things. Isn't that foolish? WE cannot eat meat if an animal doesnt die. Isn't that foolish too? Even plants have to die for us to have life after eatining them.

Now the Climax of all foolishness is when God, the almighty God comes down to His creation after the creation rebelling against Him, God becomes man and in Jesus Christ lives among His creation. The brightest of His creation, those clever ones, the sharp minds, the analytical minds, scrutinize Him, follow Him, investigate Him, dispute with Him,marvel at His miracles, eat the bread and fish that He foolishly multiplies, some refuse to follow Him and some follow but decided to cleverly go back to their trade-fishing after this God dies foolishly on a rugged cross. A shameful death designed for foolish people who coomitt grevoius mistakes like treason, blasphemy, and robbery.

This God is arrested after being betrayed by one clever guy, who thought wisely, that this guy who claims to be God is worth 30 pieces of silver. He again cleverly, plans and plots on how to identify this God to the brightest of all. The ones who came to arrest this foolish guy, were definately clever and wise. They arrested him at Night. He was foolish because He did not run away, he did not defend Himself, He was hunted down like a robber and did not know where to hide. Isn't this WISDOM?

Clever guys of this world would not be arrested just like that. His disciple called Peter was more clever than Jesus because he used the sword to cut the ear of one of those who had come to arrest this guy. This God was foolish because He did not know that tit for tat is a fair game, He was foolish because He did not know that the law allows you to kill in self defence, He was foolish too because he placed the ear back. He was foolish because all His diciples ran away and left Him alone NOT KNOWING HOW TO RUN AWAY AND SAVE HIS LIFE, if He were clever, he would have ran as fast as Usain Bolt afterall He is the one who created these fastest people, So He claimed.

The whole spectacle of FOOLISHNESS was displayed on the Cross outside the city and this God was smucked but could not tell who smucked Him. He was spat on, flogged kijinga kijinga tu. He claimed that He could demolish the Temple and Built it up in 3 days. Even this Foolish God could not save baby Jesus Christ when he was being sought out by Herode, and the parents of the Baby Jesus, like all cowards do, become a REFUGEE and went to hide in a Africa a Continent of the foolish black people full of diseases,and backward people.

Jesus Christ could not curry His cross uphill until He was helped by another FOOLISH man like Him from Africa called Simon. You know foolish people come from Africa. This foolish person did not volunteer to carry this( my perspective) cross but because he was Black and a slave, he was forced, he did not offer himself and therefore foolish to carry the CROSS.If he were clever, he should have reasoned out with them and proved to them that he was a free man and could not be forced to carry a cross that would be used to crucify a bastard whose father was not known. a Jew could not be forced to carry a cross, a free person could not be forced to carry a cdross for a foolish criminal who claimed to God. Only a foolish Slave could carry a Foolish Cross for a foolish God. You see? Only Foolish people can do this.

Then came a foolish Apostle called Paul. He was foolish because, he decided to follow a person he claims to have seen in a vision on his way to Damascus to do what the clever people do -persecute the foolish Christians- how can a whole lawyer decide to become homeless, abandone his family, never talk about his wife and children, quit his occupation and decided to walk arround preaching about Jesus Christ. A whole memeber of the Pharasees council in Jerusalem, A roman Citizen -not an undocumented allien- gathering around some young people like Timothy and Titus and teaching them about a foolish way of life where people drink the blood of a dead Man Jesus Christ, and eat his flesh. Wasn't this foolish?

This Foolish guy called Paul then wrote some 13 letters which form a big portion of the Bible. To demonstrate the essense of all these foolishness, in one of his many letters, he wrote this: 18Let no one deceive himself. If any of you thinks he is wise in this age, he should become a fool, so that he may become wise. 19For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” 20And again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.”…How did the foloish God make CHRISTIANS FOOLISH? The answer is in 2 Corinthians 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. I am FOOLISH, are you ? Faithful Ordinary Ordained Living in the Immortal Saviour's Hope.