The Reveling of Angels Is Joy

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The Fruit of the HOLY SPIRIT

Podcast Episode: The Fruit of the HOLY SPIRIT – JOY #6

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS, AND SELF-CONTROL. There is no law against these things.” [Galatians 5:22-23 NLT]

We need to understand that love is the first characteristic of the fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is well placed at the head of the list, for it permeates all the rest of the attributes. Somehow, if we live a life of love, the other virtues will attend us all the days of our lives. Love is the key that unlocks the entire fruit basket of Galatians 5:22-23, as well as permeating 1 Corinthians 13.

The Benefits of A Gracious God

In Psalm 103:20-22 NLT says, “20  Praise the Lord, you Angels, you mighty ones who carry out His plans, listening for each of His commands. 21  Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of Angels
who serve Him and do His will! 22  Praise the Lord, everything He has created, everything in all His kingdom. Let all that I am praise the Lord.“

These descriptive Psalms describe the following highlighted and bold words > Bless the LORD – The Psalm ends as it began with a call to bless (Psalm 103:1, 2). EXCEL IN STRENGTH – lit. “warriors of strength” (Anderson). Do His commandments – Their acts of obedience are prompt and without reservation, so that they are ever ready to hear and follow His will (cf. Deuteronomy 26:17; Luke 1:19). Ye His hosts – referring to the hosts of heaven that do His bidding (Psalm 101:6).

If the angelic hosts are quick to do His will, how much more those who (we as Born-Again Christians) have experienced His mighty acts of salvation and mercy. Amen!

This passage instructs Angels to praise God, but aren’t we His messengers of joy as well? Joy is the business of Angels. Joy is humanity’s business, too. The Angels praise God when they see His mighty works and when they bask in the glory of His presence. That is our position as well: We look around our world and see God’s hand in the scenic vistas and quiet streams. We come before God in prayer and feel His presence wash over us. We sing with the Angels our praises to God. Amen!

One of The Temptation of our Lord Jesus Christ

In Matthew 4:10-11NLT says, “10 “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say,
‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only Him.’ ”11 Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.“

Our Lord Jesus Christ dismissed Satan with the words, “Get out of here.” For our Lord Jesus Christ to take a shortcut to the goal – ruling the world by worshiping Satan (Matthew 4:9) – would be to break the first commandment, “You must worship the Lord your God; serve only Him” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Our Lord Jesus Christ would take the path of submission to God. Only by doing so would He be able to accomplish His mission of bringing salvation to the world.

Since our Lord Jesus Christ was superior to Satan, Satan had to do as our Lord Jesus Christ commanded. So the devil went away. This would only be the first of many encounters that our Lord Jesus Christ would have with Satan’s power. That Angels came and cared for our Lord Jesus Christ in no way lessens the intensity of the temptations that our Lord Jesus faced. They may have brought Him food, but they also attended to His spiritual needs.

When our Lord Jesus Christ is victorious over the tempter in the wilderness, the Angels come and minister to Him. Joy is the automatic response of heaven every time we stand true in the midst of any trial.

Consider the words of Joshua 1:9: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” When we have stood true, we will not be alone, for we will be standing in the company of proud Angels. Amen!

The Shepherds and Angels

In Luke 2:13-14 NLT says, “13 Suddenly, the Angel was joined by a vast host of others – the armies of heaven – praising God and saying, 14  “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

After the Angel gave the great news of God’s arrival on earth, suddenly all heaven broke into praise, for the Angel was joined by a vast host of others – the armies of heaven. John’s vision of heaven recorded in Revelation reveals that there are innumerable Angels in heaven (Revelation 5:11). One of the Angels’ key roles is to offer continuous praise to God.

The arrival of God’s Son > our Lord Jesus Christ on earth caused all of heaven to join in an anthem of praise to God. Glory to God focuses the praise on the One who set these events in motion, the One who controls all events on earth. He is in the highest heaven and is sending peace on earth to all whom He favors. The peace referred to is the peace that only the Messiah can bring – not peace after war or conflict, but peace between sinful humanity and the holy God. Those whom God favors are those to whom He will graciously reveal His truth.

Gloria in excelsis deo is Latin. But whether the Bethlehem. Angels sang in Latin or Aramaic, the issue here is joy.

“All of a sudden the whole flock – or whatever you call a group of Angels – started singing, ‘Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace to men on whom His favor rests!’

“Then they were gone, just like that! When all that light and noise was over, things got dark and quiet.”

Things may be “dark and quiet” once the joy settles, but after having praised Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior; we are never quite the same again. Praise Him briefly and live for a day. Praise Him regularly and live forever. Amen!

Concluding Words About Joy

In Hebrews 13:1-2 NLT says, “1 Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. 2 Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained Angels without realizing it! ”

The first command is: continue to love each other with true Christian (agape) love. The early Christians faced persecution and hatred from the world; hopefully, within the church and in the fellowship of Born-Again Christian believers, they should be able to find love and encouragement. The church and/or fellowship ought to be a haven for believers. The command for us being Born-Again Christian believers to love one another was not new (see Leviticus 19:18; John 13:34-35). Born-Again Christian believers are to love one another based on our Lord Jesus Christ’s sacrificial love for all of us. Such love brings people to our Lord Jesus Christ and will keep believers strong and united in a world hostile to God. Our Lord Jesus Christ was a living example of God’s love, and we are to be living examples of our Lord Jesus Christ’s love (see also Romans 12:10; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; 1 Peter 1:22; 2 Peter 1:7).

The second command is to show hospitality to strangers. This kind of hospitality was important because inns of that day were expensive, as well as being centers for pagan practices and criminal activities. This hospitality also helped spread the Gospel because traveling missionaries would be able to go to more places and minister to more people if they did not have to stay in inns.

These “strangers” to be entertained, however, were not to be people who worked against God’s Kingdom; that is, believers were not to welcome false teachers into their homes (2 John 1:10-11; 3 John 1:5-9).

A further encouragement to this kind of hospitality comes from the biblical record that, through their hospitality, some have entertained Angels without realizing it. This happened to Abraham (Genesis 18:1-14) and Lot (Genesis 19:1-3). That hospitality was given to and received by Angels shows the importance of the hospitality Christians ought to give one another. It is better to offer hospitality generously than to miss the chance to entertain Angels. Amen!

Parable of the Lost Sheep

In Luke 15:1-7 NLT says, “1 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. 2 This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that He was associating with such sinful people – even eating with them!
3 So Jesus told them this story: 4 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. 6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!”

In Verses 1 & 2 describe that our Lord Jesus Christ’s association with notorious sinners in the eyes of the Pharisees has already been documented (Luke 5:30; 7:34). Tax collectors were Jews who worked for the Roman Empire in collecting Rome’s taxes from their countrymen. Yet these people came to listen to our Lord Jesus Christ teach. These were the very people our Lord Jesus Christ had come to reach – those who needed help. In that culture, sitting down and having a meal with a person showed a certain amount of identification and welcome. If our Lord Jesus Christ were eating with such horrible people, then He was guilty by association. The Pharisees would not even go near such people, not even to teach them the law or point them to God.

In Verses 3-5 describe the religious leaders were to picture themselves as shepherds (in reality, as leaders of the nation, they should have been serving as shepherds of God’s people). Each shepherd has one hundred sheep – a typical number for the average flock of sheep. Shepherds counted their sheep every night, for sheep would easily stray away and get lost. When this shepherd counted, he was missing one sheep. Our Lord Jesus Christ used the shepherd’s concern for each sheep to set up the question, “Wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one?” The answer was obvious to these listeners – any caring shepherd would do so. He would search, find the lost sheep, carry it back to the flock, and rejoice.

God’s love for each individual is so great that He seeks each one out and rejoices when he or she is “found.” Our Lord Jesus Christ associated with sinners because He wanted to bring the lost sheep – people considered beyond hope – the Good News of God’s Kingdom. Just as the shepherd took the initiative to go out and find the sheep, so our Lord Jesus Christ actively seeks lost souls. These tax collectors and sinners (Luke 15:1) with whom our Lord Jesus Christ was associating were like sheep who had strayed away from God and needed to be returned. More than that, they needed the salvation that our Lord Jesus Christ offered. See John 3:16.

In Verses 6-7 describe the shepherd did not rejoice alone. He even called his friends and neighbors to rejoice with him that he found his lost sheep. In reality, the shepherds would not have had a party over one found sheep. Our Lord Jesus Christ used this element in the story to stress His Kingdom’s reality and the value of one lost person. God rejoices when one lost sinner is found and returns to God.

We worship when we are reminded of God’s goodness. The Angels rejoice when a lost one is found. Shouldn’t we also share their joy when we witness the miracle of a soul being introduced to eternal life?

Joy is the business of heaven. In Luke 15, it is the recovery of something that was lost that brings about that joy. A lost sheep (vv.4-7), a lost coin (vv. 8-10) and a lost son (vv. 11-32) are all found once again. Our Lord Jesus Christ remarks in the last case, that the retrieval of that which was lost sets the Angels singing. Hallelujah! Amen!

Prayer is the key that unlocks and reveals faith. Effective prayer needs both an attitude of complete dependence and the action of asking. Prayer demonstrates complete reliance on God. Thus, there is no substitute for prayer, especially in situations that seem impossible.

So, let our hearts and minds in tune with God, in the power of God, the Holy Spirit. Let’s continuously and persistently pray for God’s perfect will be done. We as Born-Again Christians have been tried and cleansed, we have moved freely into a relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ that is more powerful than it was before our trials. We are at home in the presence and fellowship of God, for we are heirs with our Lord Jesus Christ, more like Him that we could ever have dreamed possible. So, let’s continuously and persistently pray for God’s perfect will be done. Amen!

The principle is that no one has anything of value to bring to God in order to deserve salvation, mercy, justification, or even a second glance from God. The proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored. Acceptance before God cannot be achieved by good deeds, piety, or any amount of self-proclaimed righteousness.

Let’s never get over the effect of God’s saving transformation on people’s lives. People who were lost in sin, filled with anger and bitterness, give up their hatred and become approachable as we have studied and learned last time. That is, of course, why we minister to others. Those of us who minister are not people to whom (fruit of the Holy Spirit) love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control comes naturally. We are people who have been remodeled by grace. We thankfully leave our old natures far behind as we embrace joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, the agape love of God, and in our treatment of others. Amen!

Sunday by Sunday as we come to worship, let me encourage our brothers- and sisters-in-Christ, and I want my readers and listeners to be both strong in the faith and sensitive to others’ needs. Because all, we as Born-Again Christian believers are strong in certain areas and weak in others, we constantly need to monitor the effects of our behavior on others.

In these JOY Series of Podcast, we learned the following PURPOSES of this fruit of the HOLY SPIRIT:

• The Joy of God’s Creativity – Podcast Joy #1 – We understood and appreciated the creation of God
• A Positive Attitude Is Joy – Podcast Joy #2 – We learned how to acquire a positive attitude
• The Presence of God is The Infallible Proof of Joy – Podcast Joy #3 – We felt and experienced God’s presence, in the God’s Person of the Holy Spirit
• The Reward of Endurance is Joy – Podcast Joy #4 – We received and experienced the reward of endurance
• Focusing On A Higher Reality is Joy – Podcast Joy #5 – We focused on the higher reality and realized God’s presence
• The Reveling of Angels is Joy – Podcast Joy #6 – We learned that when we praise God, He will show up. When God shows up, it will change our thinking, If we change our thoughts, we change our lives.

We will have the “PEACE” Podcast on next Sunday.

On every Podcast, I always have three (3) questions we can answer from only these Sources: The Bible and Guidance of the Holy Spirit. The following are:

First is about our > Observation: What do these passages or Scriptures say to you?

Second is about our own > Interpretation: What do these passages or Scriptures mean to you?

Third is about how we can apply > Application: How do the meaning of these passages or Scriptures apply to you or to your situation?

If you are not sure that you are Born-Again Christian believer or you have relatives, loved ones, friends, neighbors, and people in your circle of influence, please take a look and/or guide them to one of our ministries, “An Invitation To Meet Our Lord Jesus Christ” at https://homefellowshipchurches.org/an-invitation-to-meet-our-lord-jesus-christ/

Let’s give an opportunity for the lost souls to experience on being Born-Again Christian as explained by our Lord Jesus Christ in the book of John 3:13 in the New Testament of the Bible.

It is as simple as A, B, & C > Admit, Believe, & Confess. All Born-Again Christian believers prayed this simple prayer we called “Sinner’s Prayer”

“Father God, I come to in the name of Jesus Christ. I acknowledge and admit that I am a sinner and I need a Savior. I believe and have faith in Jesus Christ who was born of Virgin Mary, died on the Cross for the penalty of my sins, and rose again that I may have the eternal life. I confess and declare Jesus Christ as my personal Savior and Lord of my life. Comfort, guide, and help me Holy Spirit to live and grow in my spiritual life according to Your Words, purpose, and perfect will of God, in my Lord Jesus Christ name, Amen!”

If you prayed this, “Sinner’s Prayer” sincerely in your heart, you are Born-Again Christian believer.

If you are not sure that you are Born-Again Christian believer and/or knows someone (relatives, loved ones, friends, neighbors, or in your circle of influence), please take a look of one of our ministries, “An Invitation To Meet Our Lord Jesus Christ” at https://homefellowshipchurches.org/an-invitation-to-meet-our-lord-jesus-christ/

Now, let me pray for all of you:

Father God, we come into your presence in our Lord Jesus Christ name, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Thank you Lord Jesus Christ for Your agape love and forgiveness you have done on the Cross of Calvary, and continue to intercede for us in prayer. Thank you Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter. Thank you for the wisdom, knowledge, understanding, courage and strength. We cling, yield, plug-in and tune-in to you Holy Spirit to help us understand God’s Words, obey them, receive Your divine revelation, know the Truth that sets us free, and apply them in our lives, in our Lord Jesus Christ name, Amen!”

Let’s praise and worship God in Spirit and in Truth. Give all thanks to God for all answered prayers.

Please send your > Praise Reports (answered prayers) and New Prayer Requests via email to: TrinityBlessings@homefellowshipchurches.org. God bless you all and our families!

A Call to Repentance and Be Blessed

In Malachi 3:7-15 AMPC says, “7 Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “But you ask, ‘How can we return when we have never gone away?’ 8 “Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me! “But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’ “You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me. 9 You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me. 10 Bring all the tithes (the whole tenth of your income) into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now by it”, says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” [Malachi 2:2.] 11 “And I will rebuke the devourer (insects and plagues) for your sakes and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground, neither shall your vine drop its fruits before the time in the field,” says the Lord of hosts. 12 “And all nations shall call you happy and blessed, for you shall be a land of delight”, says the Lord of hosts.

If the people would obey God, giving as they should, God would flood His people with blessings. There would be an overabundance of God’s blessing if He was given what He requested.

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse – See 2 Chronicles 31:11; cf. 1 Chronicles 26:20; Nehemiah 10:38; 13:5, 12. If the temple storehouses were empty, it was the people’s fault. God had already blessed them with enough to give a little back to Him.

Instead of destroying our crops (blessings), God would make them come in greater abundance than we had ever imagined possible (Amos 4:9; Haggai 2:19; Zechariah 8:12). The devourer – probably referring to locusts, though the word here is general in meaning (Baldwin). In the Near East, locust swarms are known for their ability to damage huge tracts of agricultural land (see note on Joel 1:4).

A delightsome land – All of the blessings promised to Jacob would come to pass if the people would obey God (Deuteronomy 33:29; Zechariah 8:13). Their land would be a delight to all who saw it (Daniel 8:9).

The problem in Malachi 3:7-12 was the people’s departure from God as reflected by their neglect of tithes and offerings. Two annual tithes were required according to Israelite law – one for the Levites (Leviticus 27:30; Numbers 18:21), and one to be used in worship at the annual feasts in Jerusalem (Deuteronomy 14:22). A tithe was required every three years to provide for the needs of the poor (Deuteronomy 14:28-29). There is debate as to whether this tithe for the poor was in addition to or served as a substitute for the tithe used in worship.

The New Testament pattern for tithing is proportionate giving – a person is to give “in relation to what you have earned” (1 Corinthians 16:2). Certainly a tithe should be given proportionate to one’s wealth, but not all proportionate giving is a tithe.

The anticipation of blessing for obedience to God’s command to tithe was based on the Mosaic covenant, which promised blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience (Malachi 3:10; cf. Deuteronomy 28:15-68). Generally, God will meet the needs of His own people (Psalm 34:9-10; Philippians 4:19), but that is not an unconditional guarantee. There certainly were and are exceptions. Yet, where God chooses not to provide physically, He gives sufficient grace to go without (2 Corinthians 12:9).

The problem in Malachi 3:14-15 was that the people were guilty of arrogant words against God. They were saying, “There is no prophet who is serving God,” and “God is not concerned about justice.” God responded by showing that He did distinguish between the wicked and the righteous. The righteous would be blessed, and the wicked would be judged.