DONHOLM CFF

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel,Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) Donholm Kenya.

There are various things mentioned in the new testament that we should keep. Others we should keep away from.

Here are seven of those:

1. KEEP YOURSELF FROM IDOLS.

(1 John 5:21)

An idol is an image. Idol worship is the worship of an image such as statues or the worship of a person in place of God. Whatever has taken the place of God in your life is your idol, that is what you worship.
Idolatry is divided into;

1. Fetishism and belief in magic power.

Fetishism comes from the name fetish, which is an object believed to have supernatural powers.

This is a form of idolatry that involves the worship of non living things such as trees, rivers, mountains, stones etc. Fetishes also include statues and charms.

2. Nature worship.

This is the worship of sun, moon and stars as the supposed powers of nature.
There are various entities that God gave powers after He had created the earth including biological parents; this explains why they can curse and the curse takes a toll on the cursed,

He gave powers to the sun , the moon and the stars . While the sun was given dominion to rule the day, the moon and the stars were given dominion to rule the night.

The popular star signs in the name of “zodiac” should be a big no for a believer. This is actually idol worship. It involves incantations enchanted on the moon and the stars.

Deut 4:19 says that we should not be enticed into bowing down and worshipping the sun, the moon and the stars.
Exodus 20: 3-5 is a command we all know not to have any other God other than the Lord God or make ourselves graven images and bow down to them.

3. Hero worship .

This involves the worship of deceased ancestors or heroes. Pouring of libations for the departed in the name of appeasing them is idolatry.
Heroes are the people in the society who have attained popularity through their achievements.

There are people including believers that worship “celebrities” by hanging their pictures on the wall, copying their habits; how they dress, talk, their form of greetings, etc.

Jesus says in Matt 10:7 that whoever loves their parents and relatives more than he loves God is not worthy of God. Whoever puts other people ahead of God no matter who they are commits idolatry.

Sleep and food can also become idols. Believers that choose sleeping over praying commit idolatry and so do those that cannot fast, because they cannot abstain from food.

2. KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS.

Matt 19:17(b) says if you want to enter into eternal life, keep the commandments.
Jesus also says that those that love Him follow His commandments.
Jesus did not come to abolish the law, He came as the law.

3. KEEP NO COMPANY WITH THESE SIX TYPES OF PROFESSED CHRISTIANS.

1 Cor 5:11 outlines types of Christians that profess Christ falsely. Paul says a believer should not even eat with such. These are the sexually immoral, covetious, idolaters, slanderers, drunkards and swindlers.

4. KEEP YOURSELF PURE.

1 Tim 5:22 ‘do not be hasty in the laying on of hands and do not share in the sins of others.’
Keep yourself pure. Do not compromise or agree into doing something that you know is wrong or sinful.

5. KEEP THE GOSPEL COMMANDS UNTIL CHRIST COMES

1 Tim 6:14 says that we should keep the gospel commandments without spot or blame until the end.
Guard and follow the Gospel until Jesus comes back.

6. KEEP THE GOOD ENTRUSTED TO YOU.

2 Tim 1:14 “That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.”
As believers, we need to be loyal to the faith which was committed and trusted to us by the Holy Spirit.

7. KEEP YOURSELF IN GOD’S LOVE.

Jude 1:21 “keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

Continue loving God and others. Continue fasting and giving. Do not let the love you once had for God grow cold.

https://donholmcff.home.blog/2020/06/07/the-four-watches-of-the-night-the-third-watch/

THE OPEN HEAVENS WATCH.

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) Donholm Kenya.

The final watch of the night kicks in at 3:00 am and goes up to 6:00 am.
Would like to call it the open heavens watch.
This is the last watch of the night when satanic agents who went out to perform evil activities return to their bases. When light shows up, darkness just bows and vanishes.
Demons, witches, warlocks satanists etc, undoubtedly, have no business in this watch.

The first rooster crows at 3:00 am the very entrance to the fourth watch, and this, in the spirit realm, we can interpret to be an alert that the Heavens are open and people should arise and receive from God.
You covered yourself with the blood of Jesus in the second watch, destroyed the evil altars in the third watch and are now ready to meet with God in the fourth watch.

It might be a little difficult for Heavens to serve you if you slept defiled.
As a believer, maintain an active prayer life. You never know when the Heavens plans to visit.
Your file could be next in God’s hands and He will definitely not access you defiled. Imagine missing out on such a golden opportunity?

Do not rebuke demons in the fourth watch. As mentioned, at this point they have already returned to their bases.

This however, does not mean that these type of believers are now safe and cannot experience attacks anymore;
1. A believer that slept defiled.
2. A believer that has opened doors to demons through sinning.
3. A believer whose salvation is incomplete.

THE HOLY ANGELS ACTIVITIES.
From 3:00 am, the Heaven doors open and the angels bring messages from God to His people.
They also come to serve the Church.

Rev 5:8 talks of the four Living Creatures and the twenty four elders falling before the lamb holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.
Rev 8:3 echoes this by talking of an angel that is given incense to offer it with the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar before the throne, where the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascend before God.
Each believer has angels serving them and it is their duty to take our needs to God.
You need to ask yourself whether they find you asleep or praying. How can they present to God needs that you have not made?
We have to understand that the fourth watch is the time heavens has set to serve the needs of believers.
As much as we can still ask from God in other watches, He will most probably serve us better in the watch He has set for the same since He is a God of order.

This is the time when Jesus walked on water in Matt 14:25-27.

The disciples spotted someone walking on water and they became terrified saying it was a ghost. Jesus assured them it was He and not a ghost.
Jesus came to visit His people in the fourth watch.
Notice that God assures the disciples that it was He and not a ghost; as mentioned, demons ans satanists have no business in the fourth watch.

PRESENT YOUR NEEDS

This is the perfect watch where a believer makes their needs known to God. Phil 4:6 says we should not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication we should make our requests known to God.
If you dont want to be anxious in the day, be alert in the fourth watch. Our voices reach Heaven in the morning. Maybe the reason you are yet to receive answers to your prayers is the fact that you dont make your needs when the Heaven is ready to hear them.

Imagine a bus that picks students at a particular time and at a designated location? If a student shows up later or at the wrong location, they definitely miss out on the ride. The issue here is not showing up, it is showing up on time and at the right place.
The right time and place for us to be served by Heaven’s bus is the fourth watch.

Psalms 5:3 says “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord ; In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up.”

During this watch, cry unto God. Imagine your house rent is due and the landlord wants to kick you out?
How do you make this known to God? By pleading with God in tears that it does not happen.
Psalms 56:8 talks of believers’ tears being preserved in bottles.
We shall be paid according to the same.

The Psalmist in Psalms 90:14 makes a prayer to God to satisfy him with His mercy early in the morning.

As we present our needs, this is also the watch when we should worship the Lamb of God with hymns meant to only exalt and glorify Him.
Make sure to cry unto God while addressing Him with all His beautiful names and attributes.
They include: The Holy one of Israel, The Messiah, Redeemer, Saviour of the Universe, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, Majesty, Miracle Worker, Light of the world etc.

The fourth watch is the time when the Holy Spirit manifests and fills us and as a result we receive grace and power. We also receive strength to fight temptations, God puts a new song in us and our strength is renewed.

Psalms 143:8 talks of the morning bringing God’s unfailing love. This is also the time when we receive visions from God.
Peter saw a vision in this watch and so did cornelius.

PS : If you are living a life of sins and compromise, if you are not born again or are hiding sins, your fourth watch prayers are not received as incense before God. The Bible talks of the prayer of the righteous being powerful and effective not just any prayer.

TITHE YOUR TIME.
In the same way we pay 10% of our earnings and wages, we should give 10% of our time in a day to God.
A day has 24 hours and 10% of this is 2 hours and 40 minutes.
It is advisable to pray more at night than during the day.
As such, you can give God two hours at night and 40 minutes in the day. Remember there are 4 watches in a day as well. How you allocate your prayer time is dependent on your schedules.

Psalms 141:2 “May my prayer be set before you like incense. May the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.”

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Continue reading “THE FOUR WATCHES OF THE NIGHT, THE FOURTH WATCH.”

https://donholmcff.home.blog/2020/06/05/the-four-watches-of-the-night-the-second-watch/

THE THIRD WATCH (THE SPIRITUAL BATTLES WATCH)

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) DONHOLM KENYA.

The third watch of the night begins at 12:00 am, where a day starts, and ends at 3:00 am, where the fourth watch begins.

A lot of activities happen in this watch.

According to Psalms 91:5(a), there are terrors that come at night. We as believers are at war and Eph 6:12 tells it all.

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

The third watch is the darkest and most demonic watch of the night when the Kingdom of darkness is in full swing.Demons stand at the entrance of this watch and spoil a believer’s day that is why most people wake up heavy in the morning with headaches.

Demonic doors open at midnight. Witches, sorcerers, satanists, warlocks name them operate in the third watch no wonder you are encouraged to bind the strong man before twelve and get into actual war from twelve.

While we counterattack the schemes of the enemy in the second watch, the actual warfare is a third watch affair.

The only people that are safe are the spiritually awakened; those that sleep undefiled and after they have demolished satanic activities.

This is the time to loose your family members that are bound, stand in the gap for others, possess your day etc, but you will only be successful if your spirit was strengthened in the second watch by covering yourself with the blood of Jesus and sanctifying yourself.

If you enter into warfare defiled, your prayers will be a waste of time.

Prov 3:24 says that we should sleep peacefully while in Jer 31:26, the author talks of how sweet his sleep was to him.

As believers, we should rest well at night and not fall prey to the terrors of the night but only if we stay spiritually awake.

Jer 6:5 Arise, and let us go by night, And let us destroy her palaces.”

The Parable of the 10 Virgins

Matt 25 speaks of the 10 wise and foolish virgins. While the wise five had carried extra oil in readiness for the bridegroom the foolish five only relied on the oil in their lamps.

The believers are the virgins in this case, while the lamp is the spiritual strength.The oil is the prayers. Many believers are like the foolish five whose lamps went out. If you are not armed with prayers and just go to bed in the third watch, you give the demons an easy way to come and put out your lamp.

There are various Biblical characters that had encounters in the third watch.

Paul and Silas.

At midnight, Paul and Silas sung unto God and prayed until there was an earthquake. The foundations of the prison were shaken and all the chains fell loose. (Acts 16: 25.)

The chains that have bound your family, the closed doors in your life, the foundations in your life, will all bow if you provoke a shake up in the third watch.

Peter

It was in the third watch when Peter denied Jesus 3 times. This we get from Matt 26:34 , John 13:38 and Mark 14:30.

Those who do not pray are just like Peter, they deny Jesus.

The baby that was exchanged.

It was in the third watch when the exchange of the baby took place in (1 Kings 3:16-28)

The lady was asleep when her child was being exchanged and so are many belivers when their destinies,and blessings are stolen, exchanged and manipulated.

Prayers close demonic doors and open the heavens.

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DEFILEMENT.

It doesn’t matter whether you are born again. If you defile yourself before this watch by watching pornography, entertaining evil thoughts etc, you won’t escape attacks.

For the believers that sleep without covering themselves with the blood of Jesus, the story is the same. Demonic doors open when;

One’s conscience is defiled.
Make sure your conscience is pure before going to bed. Cleanse yourself if your conscience is convicting you. For instance if you know that you told a lie. (Acts 24:16)

When our behaviours give an opportunity to the enemy. If you told a lie or dressed inappropriately in revealing clothes earlier on in the day, you will not escape attacks at nights.

THE DREAMS

This is the time when people experience all manner of evil dreams. A battle is lost spiritually before it is lost physically and if you can wake up and cancel these dreams before it is too late, the better for you.

These dreams are usually intimidating, worrisome, scary and confusing and as we all know God is not in a habit of trying to scare or intimidate. As such these dreams are usually straight from the devil.

we will just mention a few of these dreams.

Dreams of dead persons.They reveal that there are ancestral evil linkages with the dead that you need to break.

Dreams where you attend meetings with strangers. They are usually dressed in black in most cases. This just shows you are on your way to being recruited into occultism.

Dreams where you are going back to the former life; former house, former clothes, a place you moved away from, former school. This is the spirit of backwardness.

Dreams where you see yourself going up a hill with much difficulties. This signifies the spirit of struggle.

Dreams where you pick up coins, this is the spirit of poverty.

Sexual dreams. They reveal that you are married in the spiritual realm or been claimed by evil spirits.

Dreams where you see yourself shedding tears. This is the spirit of heaviness and depression.

(Dreams is a wide topic. Lets do it another day)

Scriptures are a great weapon in warfare.

Deuteronomy 3:22 tells us not to fear. God Almighty defends the righteous.

Jesus overcame the devil with scriptures and the good news is that we have also been given all the power to overpower him.

Col 3: 16 says that the Word of God should dwell richly in us.

The Word of God is a strong weapon in warfare and here are some of the scriptures you need to quote more/pray with in your third watch prayers.

Matt 18:18, Luke 10:19, Matt 16, psalms 27:1-2, Rev 12:11, Mark 11:23, john 10:10,

Psalms 118:12, Numbers 23: 23 Deuteronomy 28: 7, Prov 3:24, Isaiah 54:17, Isaiah 3:10, Romans 8:31,37, Psalms 91:5, 11, Psalms 34:7, Psalms 37, 2 Tim1:7, James 4:7.

Isaiah 59:19 (b) “When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him.”

Who wins the midnight battles, consequently controls the day.

https://donholmcff.home.blog/2020/06/05/the-four-watches-of-the-night-the-first-watch/

THE “COVER YOURSELF WITH THE BLOOD” WATCH.

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) Donholm Kenya.

The second watch begins at 9:00 PM and goes up to the beginning of Midnight (12:00 am)
Someone will tell you how they experience pains such as headaches during this watch. The devil will start afflicting you with pain to keep you from praying in this watch.

If you didn’t prepare yourself in the first watch, by dealing with arrows of the day, you’ll probably have it rough in this watch.

This is usually the perfect time when God deals with enemies that stand in the way of God’s perfect plan for His children.
During this time, plead and cover yourself with the blood of Jesus.
Speak the blood of Jesus over your family, children, Church, nation etc so that by the time midnight knocks you are covered and protected.

The angel of death that killed the Egyptians’ firstborns most probably struck in this watch, Exodus 12:12.
Today, most night deaths occur between 9:00 PM and 12:00 am.

For us as believers, this is usually the best time to pray or rather it is the intercessory watch. The most spiritually awakened believers are the ones that pray in the second watch.

Demonic activities take full operation right at the end of the second watch, exactly where the third watch begins.
You should always make sure to get into prayer before midnight, to counterattack every plans and schemes that the Kingdom of darkness has prepared to unleash at midnight. (This will be explained way better when looking at the third watch)

Remember there is an enemy waiting for you at the door to the third watch. The best way to overcome him is first by paralyzing him before you get to that door, and that is why you should always cover yourself with the blood of Christ before midnight.

Bottomline :
– The second watch of the night is the three hours from 9:00 PM to Midnight.
– Cover yourself with the blood of Jesus in this watch lest you become an easy target for satanic attacks in the next watch. Demons can easily spot the covered from the non-covered.
– This is the best time to counterattack the schemes of the enemy programmed against you.
– The second watch is the best time to intercede.
– You have the power and authority. Assume your rightful position.

Begin your prayer time most preferably one hour, or thirty minutes, before the second watch ends and extend through to the third watch.

Continue reading “THE FOUR WATCHES OF THE NIGHT: THE SECOND WATCH.”

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) DONHOLM KENYA.

Lam 2:19 says “Arise, cry out in the night, At the beginning of the watches; Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord. Lift your hands toward Him For the life of your young children, Who faint from hunger at the head of every street.”

Man cannot do without prayer; He/she who is prayerless is powerless.
When combined with fasting, prayers connect man to God and gives them power.
The minimun amount of time we are supposed to pray, in a day, is an hour. Each of us has temptations programed against them by the devil every 24 hours.

The devil is usually really determined to drag us back into our old selves; first into temptations and eventually into sin.

In Matt 26:40, Jesus finds His disciples sleeping after He had asked them to keep watch with Him.
He specifically asks whether they could not keep watch with Him even for an hour (Verse 41).
When you get used to praying for one hour, you won’t fall into temptations easily. From there a believer should advance to more hours. Jesus could pray a whole night.

The Praying and Crying man
Heb 5: 7 talks of how our Lord Jesus CRIED vehemently unto God His Father in obedience.
The point is when talking to God in prayer, crying indicates the depth and intimacy. Jesus would always cry unto God.

Biblically, a watch is a door and a night has four (4).
The Bible instructs us to always be spiritually awake in all these watches.Night prayer was and is very important. This is when God used to communicate with men in the Bible for instance Abraham, Jacob and others.

Men and women of God prayed at night throughout the scriptures.
We’ll look at some of those as CASE STUDIES.

JESUS

Luke 6:12 talks of how He went out to the mountain to pray at NIGHT.
Two (2) reasons why He always prayed: 1. He understood the assignment that was ahead of Him to save mankind.2. To set an example to the Church.

SOLOMON AND THE TWO MOTHERS
Remember the story of the two mothers, that went to King Solomon for judgement? (1 Kings 3: 16-18)
Well, they had both given birth around the same time and shared a bed (as the scriptures suggests).
One of the babies, however, had been smothered at NIGHT and they both claimed the remaining child.
Had the child’s mother kept watch, the baby would not have died. In a believer’s context, failing to pray at night, literally means crushing your baby; your blessings.

JACOB
According to Genesis 32:24 Jacob wrestled with God the whole night for a blessing. Night time is usually our perfect time to cry unto God, make our requests known and conquer against the Kingdom of darkness.
While believers are called upon to cry unto God at night in prayer, demonic entities are usually also activated at night.
A believer should therefore, always keep watch inorder to destroy the works of the enemy.

SAMUEL
Samuel, when God rejected King Saul, felt so dejected that he cried to God the whole night. (1Sam 15:11)

THE PSALMIST
The psalmist in Psalms 119: 62 vows to always rise up at midnight to thank God.Psalms 119:55 says “I remember you name in the night oh Lord.

Bottomline:
-The enemy of night prayer is sleep.
– The enemy of fasting is food.
– The cost we must pay is sacficing the comfort of sleep and food to conquer.
– God can reach man more easily at night through visions than during the day.
– Praying more in the early hours strengthens you so that you can face the challenges of the day.
– Witches and demonic entities conduct their businesses at night. It is therefore a good time to release fire and overcome the powers of darkness.
– When you pray at night, you attract Heaven’s attention.
– Most believers strain to pray at night but then we must pay the cost by sacrificing our sleeping time.
– Night prayer is the hardest spiritual exercise.

Psalms 63:6, ‘When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.

https://donholmcff.home.blog/2020/05/29/patience/

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) DONHOLM KENYA.

We can define patience in three ways.

1. The capacity to accept/tolerate delay, sufferings, problems etc without becoming annoyed.

2. The ability to continue waiting or doing. How you act while waiting tells whether you are patient or impatient.

3. The quality of waiting calmly without complaining.

God and patience

God has truly been patient with man. He has withstood all of his sinful nature. God the creator made the earth and can destroy it at will but He chooses to give us chances to mend our ways.

By being patient, you become strong and confident in the Lord. It helps to build your character and relationship with God since spiritual maturity is measured by how patient we are.
2 Peter 3:8-9

All great achievements require patience hence it is a key element of success. One of the reasons many of the Israelites did not make it past the wilderness was because of their impatience. Patience, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, does not complain.

Noah, the greatest evangelist exhibited a great measure of patience. He built the ark for a total of 120 years preaching the same message; that people should save themselves from God’s coming wrath. Job also displayed a great deal of patience. Despite all the trials, pain, and afflictions he never complained about it. His patience was paid with restoration.

Ecc 7:8 ‘The end of a thing is better than its beginning; The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.’

Five Things to know about Patience.

Patience is waiting. The following adverbs modify how we should wait.

1. Patience is waiting quietly Lamentations 3:25-26 implies that God is good to those who wait on Him. Verse 26 specifically says “it is good that one should hope and wait quietly.”

2. Patience is waiting eagerly.

This only means we should express desire in our waiting. ‘Eagerly’ is the term the Bible uses to describe how we should wait for Jesus’ second coming. Heb 9:27-28

3. Patience is waiting until the end.

Heb 6:15 talks about Abraham whom, after enduring patiently, obtained patience. James 5: 7-8 tells us to be patient until the Lord’s coming just like a farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop. We are not only required to wait, but to wait through to the end.

4. Patience is waiting expectantly.

This means anticipating or looking forward to something. We look forward to God’s time in our lives. In Psalms 5:3, the psalmist says he waits in expectations after laying his requests before God.

5. Patience is waiting joyfully.

This we get from James 1: 2-4. The testing of our faith produces patience so it should be all joy in our waiting.

Remember,

– Not everything happens the way we want, dont focus on the time frame.

– Patience tests your faith and ability to wait for the right time through problems and challenges.

– Have patience in all things but first with yourself.

Continue reading “PATIENCE (2)”

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) DONHOLM KENYA.

We have no choice but to be patient while going through difficulties in this life. The fact remains that trials and afflictions for a believer are unavoidable.

Patience, hupomone in greek, is a fruit of the Holy Spirit without which a believer will be in a state of destitution.

It is also known as endurance, which means remaining under.

Patience basically takes three forms.

1. Patience with God.

This is better known as faith without which we can not please God (Heb 11:6)

2. Patience with others.

This is love. Imagine a situation where someone owes you money and they have been evading paying back for quite a while, while lying to you. The endurance you show towards them is called love.

Without patience, you can never really stand people that will pick on you for nothing, despise you, mock you and do all manner of bad stuff to you.

3. Patience with self.

This is hope. In the face of trials and afflictions, all you can do is endure in the name of hope.

Hope is being positive that things will get better.

1 Corinthians 13:13 says

‘And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.’

The Patience Triangle.

We have faith (Patience with God) at the very top, hope (patience with self) at the first edge of the horizontal line while love (patience with others) lies at the other edge of the same line.

Patience (Hupomone) is

1. THE WILLINGNESS TO ENDURE.

Endurance in the face of,

1a.) Afflictions and trials.

We only go through fire, to come out as gold.

Job 23:10 says

“But He knows the way that I take; When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.”

1b.) Endure reproaches.

The elders of faith endured all manner of reproaches. We are called to be the same.

Heb 11:37 says “They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented.”

2. THE WILLINGNESS TO WAIT.

2a.) Waiting for God’s vengeance.

Vengeance does not belong to you it belongs to God. Do not try to be God’s assistant in implementing vengeance.

Heb 10:30 says “For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”

2b.) Waiting for God’s reward.

After all the pain, God’s reward is sure. All we go through cannot to be compared to the latter glory and most assuredly to the great reward.

Heb 10:35 tells us not to cast away our confidence which has great reward.

2c. Waiting for God’s will and answer.

Do not take your own way in and out of things. As a believer you are in God’s purpose. This means that you should wait on God’s will and not the will of men or worse still, your will.

Gal 6:9, Heb 6:10, Heb 4:16.

2d.) Waiting for Christ’s return.

Christ is still coming back for the Church some day. All we should do is wait without compromising our faith.

James 5:7

3. THE WILLINGNESS TO ABIDE.

3a.) Willingness to abide in Christ

Look forward. Anyone who turns back is not worthy of the Kingdom of God. Abide in Christ and in Christ alone. Luke 9:62

3b.) Willingness to abide in God’s will.

We are called to be patient and express it by our willingness observe and keep up with God’s will.

Heb 6:1 “Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,”

3c.) Willingness to abide in faith.

We are called unto contending earnestly for the faith which was once and for all delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3)

2 Tim 4:7 reminds us to fight the good fight, to finish the race and keep the FAITH.

Bottomline;

1. Patience is bitter but its fruit is sweet.

2. Patience is a loyal friend that brings peace to any situation.

3. Patience is a key element of success.

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) Donholm Kenya.

A covenant is a chosen relationship in which two parties make binding promises to each other e.g God and man.

There are various major covenants mentioned in the Bible.
These covenants include
Noahic Covenant, the Rainbow Covenant, Abrahamic Covenant, Sinai Covenant, Davidic Covenant and the New Covenant which we are in and is the subject of this study.

THE NEW COVENANT
Jesus did not come with a new law, He came as the new law.
According to the new covenant, i am a Church, you are a Church, the building is where we congregate as the importance of brethren fellowship cannot be overlooked. This new covenant puts us at a better place spiritually and physically.

1. In the new covenant, Jesus Christ is the High priest and the Chief Apostle who cleanses our sins. In the old covenant, the law put the high priests in a position to forgive sins and access the holy of holies, which was not accessible to others.

2. According to the new covenant, we have the ability to obey God and to do His will. All this at a very personal level.

3. In the new covenant, we can commune with God, with whom we have a direct inward fellowship.

4. According to the new covenant we can know God deeply. We are allowed to receive gifts of the Holy Spirit and use them to edify the Body of Christ. We can prophecy. We can perform miracles among other things. In the old covenant; prophets were chosen, miracles were performed by specific people. Today, anyone in Christ Jesus and under the guidance of the Spirit of truth can be a prophet, can perform miracles.

5. Under the new covenant we can have a direct access to God. We do not require any middlemen for it.

Old Covenant vs New Covenant

• The old covenant came by Moses while the new covenant came by Jesus Christ. John 1 :17 says “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” The law was given to be kept in the old testament while in the new covenant, Jesus is the law. When we follow Christ, we follow grace, truth, freedom etc.

• The old covenant kills . The new covenant gives life. 2 Cor 3:6 (b) says ‘the letter killeth but the Spirit gives life.’ With Jesus in you, you have life and life in abundance. Those in Christ will live even when they die.

• The old covenant was ended by Jesus, thus says Romans 10:4. The new covenant was established by Jesus according to Hebrews 8:6. Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant established on better promises hence we are blessed, strong, rich, have rights to be blessed etc.

• The old covenant enslaved/entangled with the yoke of bondage, Gal 5:1. The new covenant makes free . It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. John 8:36 says that if the son sets you free you shall be free indeed, while John 8: 32 speaks of knowing the truth, and that truth becomes the means by which we are set free. Free from; curses, bondages, sins, poverty. You should never be ensnared all that is required is for you to remain holy.

• The old covenant brings a curse. The new covenant redeems from curse. From Gal 3:10, all that rely on the works of the law are cursed. Verse 13 of the same chapter says “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.” You should never be bound by an old covenant when Jesus, the new law, has redeemed you from curses.

By Pastor Gitahi Daniel, Christian Foundation Fellowship (CFF) DONHOLM KENYA.

1 Cor 16:13 “watch, stand fast in the faith; be brave, be strong.”

A trial is an outside test brought by God while temptation is an inner enticement to sin brought by the devil.
On getting born again, trials and temptations become inevitable.The journey of faith is a battlefield and it requires a believer to be courageous, to put up a good fight, soldier on and keep the faith till the end.
On one side, God will test you to strengthen you and on the other, the devil will tempt you so that you lose focus and fall.

When a test comes:
You either drift back, fail the test or break through.
You have to understand that for a believer, happiness is not the absence of problems, it is the ability to deal with them.

Tough times are necessary to build a Christian’s character and shape their faith.
Your character cannot be built in prayer and fasting nor can it be built when life is all smooth.

For you to mature in faith, you must go through God’s training camp, i.e hardships.
You actually have to go through hardships and training inorder to attain victory.

The confidence we should have as believers rests in God’s promises in the scriptures.
Phil 1:6 says that He who has begun a good work in us will complete it while
2 Chronicles 15:7 tells us to be strong and to never give up for our work will be rewarded.

When the devil comes in with the temptations, you have to choose where to go
– You will either go back or go forward.
– You will either be broken by the temptation or you will break through it.

Psalms 31: 24 “be of good courage and He shall strengthen your heart all who hope in the Lord.”

The Israelites journey to Canaan is a reflection of what a believer has to go through on their journey to possession. They were delivered from Pharaoh, went through the wilderness and finally entered their possession, Canaan.

THE ATM.
For you to get to your destiny, you will have to go on a journey, alias the ATM, A for annointing, T for testing and M for Ministry.

ANNOINTING
This is where one surrenders to God and is delivered. For one to be saved, deliverance power is required.

TESTING.
Is all experienced in the wilderness brought by God Himself. God will not allow you to soldier on while still in your old garments. While here, challenges are inevitable and what is required of a believer is to fight on. Sustaining power is what will keep this believer put.
To say that this phase is necessary is an understatement. After all the finest gold goes through fire. The greatest men and women of God, the most anointed worshippers, the best intercessors etc, all went through fire and is all for the good of the believer.

What does God really do when He puts a believer through trials?
(The 3 Ps)

1. He Promotes the believer through the trial.
Getting to your destiny is a promotion. A test is very necessary for this promotion to be worthy. The school is the wilderness.

2. God Purifies through trials.
In the wilderness, a believer is also cleansed. The former life of drunkenness, fornication, adultery, lies, etc rendered them dirty and filthy hence the need to remove the stains through trials.

3. God Proves a believer’s love through trials.
He has to know how serious one is hence wants the truth of the matter to be demonstrated by letting you go through hardships.

While at it, God the provider will always give resources through his Sustaining power. The resources include,

1. His Presence.
Heb 13:5 Deutronomy 31:6
His promise is clear; He will never leave us nor forsake us.

2. The role model of Jesus.
Heb 2: 17-18 says,
“Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.”

3. His guidance.
(Psalms 119: 105)
His word is a lamp to our feet And a light to our paths.

MINISTRY
This comes after beating the heat of the desert. Many believers, unfortunately, give up or compromise while going through tests hence do not live to see the end of this three- phase- journey. The Possessing power is what a believer requires to possess their Canaan also known as destiny or the Ministry to which they were called.

Prov 28: 1b says that the righteous are as bold as a lion.

Do not let your faith waver. Hold on. Be strong and courageous. The wilderness is a passing place, you wont be there forever.

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