RAISING DISCIPLES FOR WORLD OUTREACH

 "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?" — Romans 8:31 One word in this verse deserves careful attention: if. No faithful Bible translation, regardless of its theological perspective, removes this conditional word. It reminds us that the certainty of our victory rests upon one indispensable reality: God must truly be with us. We must never live on the assumption that God is with us simply because we profess His name or engage in religious activities. Rather, we should seek the assurance of His abiding presence through a life of obedience, faith, and fellowship with Him. There is a tragic danger in presuming upon God's presence. Scripture records the heartbreaking account of Samson: "He awoke from his sleep and thought, 'I will go out as before and shake myself free.' But he did not know that the LORD had left him." (Judges 16:20) These are among the saddest words in the Bible: "He did not know that the LORD...

 My Expedition in Life “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son… Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.” — Romans 8:29–30 Some years ago, while I was serving in the Methodist Church Nigeria in Lagos, my mother came to visit me. She walked quietly through the beautiful apartment provided for her son. Her face reflected joy and satisfaction at the path of ministry I had chosen. As she sat down to eat the meal I prepared for her, the Holy Spirit impressed something strongly upon my heart. I suddenly said to her: “Mummy, I am not yet where I ought to be.” She looked at me in surprise. She wanted an explanation, but honestly, I could not explain what I meant. At that time, I myself did not fully understand the weight of those words. But about two or three years later, I resigned from my work with the church and moved fully into missionary work a...

 “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son… Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.” — Romans 8:29–30 During our study of the Epistle to the Romans in our local assembly, we arrived at this passage. I felt uneasy approaching the subject of predestination because of the many arguments and controversies surrounding it. I prayed earnestly that God would grant me understanding so that even the simplest person in our village congregation could grasp its meaning. As I pondered and prayed, two passages of Scripture came strongly into my heart. First: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” — Jeremiah 1:5 God spoke firmly to Jeremiah. It was as though He was saying: “I did not create you by accident. I knew you before you were formed. I invested grace into you...

FROM DEATH TO LIFE “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” — Romans 8:28 In our previous study, drawing lessons from Matthew 20:1–16, we concluded that God, in His infinite mercy and sovereign generosity, is able to bless the last just as much as the first. And when the first murmur and complain against His dealings, He can reduce the first to the position of the last. Heaven’s economy does not always follow human calculations. For the Scripture says: “For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.” — Romans 9:15–16 Likewise, Solomon observed the mystery of life under the sun: “The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to me...

 "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." — Psalm 51:10 King David, in his prayer of repentance, asked God for the creation of a clean heart. He did not ask for a repaired heart, a modified heart, or a slightly improved heart. Instead, he cried out for a divine work of creation. David understood that the corruption within him was too deep for mere adjustment; he needed God to do what only God could do—create something entirely new. The heart was especially important to David because it was the very basis upon which God chose him as king: "And when He had removed him, He raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also He gave testimony, and said, 'I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after Mine own heart, which shall fulfil all My will.'"— Acts 13:22 God looked beyond David's appearance, abilities, and social standing. He looked directly into his heart—its disposition, receptivity, and willingness toward God—...

 "So it was, year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, that she provoked her; therefore she wept and did not eat... Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the LORD." — 1 Samuel 1:7,10 The birth of Samuel was not an ordinary birth. Samuel emerged from what appeared to be an impossible situation. His story reminds us that when God opens what He has closed, no power can stop His purpose. The Bible clearly states: "But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion; for he loved Hannah: but the LORD had shut up her womb." — 1 Samuel 1:5 Hannah was not childless because she lacked a womb. She was not suffering from infertility in the ordinary sense. Her womb existed, but it was shut. The issue was not absence but closure. What she needed was not replacement but divine intervention. Many people today are in a similar situation. Their destinies are not destroyed; they are temporarily delayed. Their opportunities are not absent; they seem inaccess...

 "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." — Romans 8:28 In our previous study, we examined how God overturned the wicked plans of Joseph's brothers and transformed what was intended for evil into an enduring testimony of victory, influence, and leadership in a foreign land (Genesis 50:20). We also considered the remarkable story of Solomon's ascension to the throne. Humanly speaking, his emergence as king defied political calculations, family expectations, and even the ambitions of powerful kingmakers. Yet God had ordained him to reign, proving once again that divine purpose is not subject to human approval (1 Kings 1:28-40). Today, we turn our attention to the parable of the labourers in the vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16), a story that challenges human reasoning and reveals the mysterious operation of divine favour. This parable teaches that when diligence meets divine favour, God can...

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” — Romans 8:28 How can pain, loss, betrayal, affliction, and persistent sorrow work together for the good of a believer in Christ? What assurance can be given to someone whose life experiences seem devastating and beyond repair, that God can still turn those broken pieces into a testimony of grace and victory? These are questions many believers silently wrestle with. At certain moments in life, Romans 8:28 may appear difficult to comprehend. Yet throughout Scripture, God continually demonstrates His sovereign ability to bring beauty out of brokenness, triumph out of tragedy, and purpose out of pain. The workings of God are often invisible to human eyes. His intervention may not always be immediate or dramatic, but it is always intentional. Heaven can be silently arranging victory while earth appears overwhelmed by defeat. SOLOMON: GRACE BEYOND HUMAN QUALIFICATI...

 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger!’” — Luke 15:17 The story of the prodigal son in Gospel of Luke is one of the most powerful pictures of repentance, restoration, and the mercy of God. It is a story that calls wandering hearts back home. The younger of two sons demanded from his father the share of inheritance that belonged to him. Surprisingly, the father granted the request and divided his possessions between both sons. There is something important to notice here. Luke 15:17 says: “When he came to his senses…” This means there was a period when he had lost sound judgment. A son who was already wealthy in his father’s house somehow became blind to the value of what he already had. Sin will always deceive a man into abandoning abundance in search of emptiness. While the older son remained with the father, the younger son traveled to a distant country and wasted everything on reckle...

 PRAYING WITH THE HELP OF THE SPIRIT “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” — Romans 8:26–27 THE NECESSITY OF DIVINE HELP About four or five years ago, I was harvesting maize from my farm. The bus transporting the harvest became trapped in deep mud. For two days, several people and I labored tirelessly to free it, but every effort failed. Many who came to help eventually left exhausted and discouraged. As our strength and ideas diminished, a tractor passed by on its way to a nearby farm. I approached the driver for assistance. Within two minutes, the bus was pulled out. What two days of human effort could not accomplish was settled almost instantly through the right help. That experience taught me a powerful less...

  "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was in this way: when his mother Mary was going to be married to Joseph, before they came together the discovery was made that she was with child by the Holy Spirit." — Matthew 1:18-20 THE QUIET HERO Who truly knows Joseph? Not Joseph the dreamer — that son of Jacob who soared from a pit to a palace, who wore the coat of many colours and fed a famished generation. Not Joseph of Arimathea, that bold and influential man who stood before Pilate and tenderly laid the body of our Lord in his own tomb. No. This Joseph is different. Quieter. Simpler. A carpenter. An ordinary man in the streets of Israel — unremarkable by the world's measure, unannounced by fanfare or fame. He sought no spotlight. He pursued no platform. He did not hunger for recognition or public promotion. And yet — Heaven chose him. There is something deeply sacred about the man God trusts with silence. CHOSEN FOR THE UNTHINKABLE  Joseph made history not by performing a miracle...

The Ministers of gods "Join one another in following my example, brothers, and carefully observe those who walk according to the pattern we set for you. For as I have often told you before, and now say again even with tears: Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. Their minds are set on earthly things." — Philippians 3:17-19 "For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear." — 2 Timothy 4:3 The way things appear today, I begin to wonder whether becoming a Church Minister entails any sacrifice, cost, or sacred calling at all. The Scriptures remind us in Jeremiah 23:1 — "Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!" — declares the LORD. Yet such shepherds multiply in our day. ...