The Necessity for Christians to know that Everyone has a Ministry and Their awesome Responsibility to Produce Fruit for Jesus!

28 May 2026 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Today’s Scrip-Bit   28 May 2026   2 Corinthians 4:1.

2 Corinthians 4:1.        Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not (do not lose heart);

So we’ve come to Thursday, the second to last day of our work week, and though it seems windy like yesterday, it’s definitely not as warm and sunshiny. There’s a tad of cloud cover and temps only in the high teens. But we’ll take it, as though we have a choice, (smile) and keep working for Jesus, shining our lights like bright beacons, and spreading our flavourful salt all around the globe, so that people in the darkness can come to know and LOVE Him like we do, for that’s our earthly purpose.

How did Isaiah put it: ‘The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.’ (Is. 9:2) Yes friends, that’s our duty; to shine the light of Jesus on those who don’t know him, because they’ve been kept in the chains of darkness, living under the shadow of death. But the light of Jesus breaks chains and brings freedom to the enslaved. And brother are there still many enslaved in our world! So let’s get out there and do what we do best; spread the message of the gospel of Christ; broadcast the good news of His coming and all the wonderful things He’s done for us!

And Bruh Paul explained it to the Corinthians in greater depth., as he talks about preaching Christ Jesus the Lord. ‘Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not (do not lose heart); But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty (shame), not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully (adulterating the word of God); but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.’ (2 Cor. 4:1-2)

Now that’s something we must all understand; that every one of us has a ministry; have been appointed to preach, teach or in some way declare the word of God. The Lord has given us sufficient grace and mercy to do it, so there’s no need for us to become discouraged if things don’t seem to be going as we expected. The first thing we need to do though is renounce the ways of the world, then not adulterate the Word of the Lord, which unfortunately too many of us are currently doing.

That means they are using the Word in the wrong manner; teaching what people want to hear, or what they think they should hear, not doing as Bruh Paul admonishes Titus: ‘But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine (are proper doctrine).’ (Tit. 2:1) And we hear improper doctrine being advanced all over the globe today, possibly more so than at any other time. However, we cannot reach others properly for Jesus unless our consciences are clear and pure and we tell the truth as dictated by the Word.

And Bruh Paul continues: ‘But if our gospel be hid (veiled), it is hid to them that are lost (perishing): In whom the god of this world (Satan) hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ (the gospel of the glory of Christ), who is the image of God, should shine unto them.’ (2 Cor. 4:3-4)

Yes my brethren, as the scholars tell us, ‘those who don’t believe are so controlled by Satan, (the god of this evil world) that he effectively shields them from the light of the glorious gospel of Christ. The apostle thus categorizes those who find his message difficult to accept.’ And I guess the same thing goes for our ministry in this modern world; Satan has so many people so controlled that it’s difficult for the light of Jesus to shine into the darkness of their souls and spirits.

Then Bruh Paul announces: ‘For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.’ (2 Cor. 4:5) Now that’s a most important scripture my fellow believers. We must ensure that when we preach Christ or do anything in His name that it’s He who gets the glory and not us, for there are many who are using Christ’s gospel today to aggrandize themselves and not Him.

As Bruh Paul further declares: ‘For God, who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’ (2 Cor. 4: 6-7) Oh my people, God caused the light to shine in our hearts so that we can talk about the glory of Jesus to others not through our power, but God’s.

And here’s how the scholars explain that last verse.: ‘Earthen vessels: In the wilderness under the old covenant, God’s presence dwelt in a tent. Today he dwells in the believer’s heart. This is unspeakable truth and forms a theological basis for holy living (c.f. 1 Cor. 6:10-20). But the stress here is on the earthen. An earthenware jar is brittle. It depicts humanity in its weakness. The gospel is not a product of human genius or clever intellect (humanity in its strength). Yet it resides in men of clay, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’

Now that’s something we need to seriously guard against. Our fragility and fickleness can ofttimes cause us to stray, but let’s do our best not to, remembering that all that we are, all we have, and all that we do is through the strength of God. And it’s all for Him and His glory through Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour! Now let’s declare, and thus activate our Thursday Blessings; undeserved blessings generously bestowed by Almighty God to help us do our earthly work.

As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline! I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’ 

And my faithful brethren, that declaration now behooves us to go out and share those blessings with others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us, so that they too can come to know and LOVE Him like we do! Much LOVE!

…for ye were sometimes (once) darkness…but now are ye light in the Lord…therefore walk as children of light… (Eph. 5:8)

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

The Light of Christ is the Natural State for Believers, Not the Darkness of Satan!

29 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ephesians 5:8.         For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

And after Sunday, the first day of the week, comes Monday, the first day of the work week. Now, let’s hope that we are all ready for it, because if we’re not, then things can definitely go downhill for the remainder of the week, since the strongly held belief by some that a bad beginning makes for a good ending is not always true, for sometimes a bad beginning just makes for a worse ending. So, it’s always best to try and begin on a good footing rather than a bad one. (smile) 

And today, I want to continue with a passage that we did not get to put into the Bit yesterday, since it would have made it much too long and complicated. It’s about the light of Christ that Christians ought to be avidly and vividly proclaiming, walking as children of light, as written by Bruh Paul to the Ephesians. 

He compassionately informs them: ‘For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the fruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove (expose) them. 

For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved (exposed) are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.’ (Eph. 5:8-14) 

Yes friends, once upon a time we lived in spiritual darkness, or as the scholars’ state, ‘spiritually unenlightened, and accompanying this ignorance was immorality with its resultant guilt and misery.’ However, since we’ve received Jesus, who is the Light, the scholars say ‘that denotes that the recipients are now to be religiously informed. Their knowledge of the truth is attended by moral purity and happiness. And because of constant temptations and solicitations to evil, believers must always be proving or discerning what is and what is not acceptable unto the Lord.’ 

Furthermore, ‘the believer’s duty is expressed here in two ways. Negatively, he is not to have any fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, that is not to indulge in the sins of the unsaved. Positively, he is to “expose” (reprove) these sins, that is, bring them to light and show them for what they really are, so that the unbeliever may see their hideous nature and their terrible consequences.’ 

Yes my brethren, it’s always best to uncover and expose those terrible sins of darkness that are constantly taking place in our rather evil world, so that those who are lost can see and understand the error of their ways and the terrible consequences that they will incur if they stay in that state of sinful darkness. And as the scholars point out, if it’s indecent or ‘shameful to even speak of those iniquities in decent company (vs. 3), then how much worse is the committing of these sins. Hence the need to bring them to the light.’ 

Now that’s what we’re here for, to stop committing those sins, and instead expose them to the light. And per vs. 13, the scholars have an interesting explanation of it. They say: ‘This verse may be paraphrased: All sins that are exposed are made visible by the gospel, for whatever sin is made visible becomes light.’ And that’s understandable, because the gospel allows us to expose those sins, not only by bringing them to light, but also making them light so that they can inform others. 

Then re vs.14, they tell us: ‘Since exposing sin is beneficial, God invites the unbeliever (thou that sleepest) to turn from his sin (arise from the dead), with the promise that he will be granted the spiritual enlightenment  and help needed (Christ shall give thee light).’ Ah my people, I do hope that we see how important it is for us to both live in the light and help others to do the same, because that’s the only way we will first, keep the enemy at bay, and then eventually win his darkness encompassed people to the bright, enlightening  and everlasting light of Christ. 

That means it’s imperative we get out into the world this Monday, the second to last day of September and begin rousing the unbelievers from their inadvisable sleep, so that they can start turning away from their hideous sins. Oh, by the way, many of us supposed believers also have secretly hidden hideous sins, which we are also expected to give up. (smile) Now, for help in all that we are meant to do, let’s go to the throne of grace through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, seeking powerful divine aid. 

Altogether: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. Heavenly Father, You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. 

Yes, we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face. So, we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading for wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems.

 Oh Father, please ease the pain of the many suffering from negative situations, show them Your awesome grace and mercy. And faithfully keep Your promise to prosper us if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’  

And my fellow believers, let’s not kid ourselves, for we know that we’re not as salt and light as we ought to be, that’s why our Christian witness is sadly lacking, so if we truly want to fulfill our mandate as disciples of Christ, let’s sincerely begin humbling ourselves, praying, seeking His face, and turning from our evil ways. That’s the only way we will ever get true divine aid! Much LOVE!

…how can so many of us believers…walk in darkness…and yet pretend we’re walking in the light…we’re only fooling ourselves…not God… 

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   6 October 2021 Ephesians 5:8.

06 Oct 2021 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ephesians 5:8.     For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light. 

No more rain…And the sun is finally peeking out…Glory! Oh, the dark clouds are not all gone, but there is a great possibility of light, (smile) much more than we’ve had for the past few days. And that’s exactly how our Jesus comes and shines through our personal darkness. When we think that there is no hope, that the darkness will overwhelm us, He shows up unexpectedly with the bright light of His presence and chases the evil darkness away! Give Him some thanks and praise my faithful brethren for He is indeed a Saviour to those whose lives are consumed by the evil enemy. 

As the prophet Isiah so prophetically declared long ago, re the Prince of Peace: ‘The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath a light shined.’ (Is. 9:2) And that’s one of the most potent and prophetic prophecies ever prophesied! (smile) It heralded the coming of Jesus…the light of the world! 

But the sad news is that, as Jesus said: ‘And this is the condemnation that (the) light is come into the world, and men LOVED darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth (practices) evil hateth light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved (exposed).’ (John 3:19-20) 

And that’s the gospel truth my people! Those of us with evil deeds in our repertoire hate the light and will refuse to accept Jesus because we are afraid that those evil deeds will be exposed, for that’s what light does; it exposes the darkness, the sin, the evil in our souls! And we are not talking about physical light, but spiritual light, ‘light that shines on our hearts.’ 

I like how this article on thebereancall.org website with a conversation between Dave Hunt and T.A. McMahon describes the situation. T. A. McMahon says: ‘And men loved darkness rather than light.  Dave, is this in the statistical manual it talked about earlier? (Referring there to a manual on the power of DNA to operate without words or a language).

Dave Hunt replies: ‘Yeah, they don’t want to know the truth. I would say that whole statistical manual is a witness to this fact; men loved darkness rather than light. Instead of accepting the truth that we are separated from God by sin, that we are rebels in our hearts, that we need to be reconciled to God, we need to recognize that Jesus Christ is God who became a man to die for our sins, paid the penalty for our sins, died for our sins, rose from the dead and we open our hearts to Him and we allow Him to come in and He changes us completely. 

We are born again of the Word of God, Peter says. This Word that brings understanding, the truth that is the light that Jesus brought.  Now, it says they hated me without a cause because the light of Jesus Christ shows up the darkness, the darkness being what? Well, rebellion against God, running to hide from God, not wanting to know the truth and so forth.’ 

Now this passage from an article on the subject on the mtvchurchofchrist.org, further enlightens us. ‘The reason for the world’s LOVE affair with darkness is that it hides sin, or so it is believed. As long as it is dark, as long as there is no light of truth, those in sin can perpetuate their evil. But let one beam of truth pierce the darkness of sin and error, let one ray of goodness break through, and those in darkness scatter like so many roaches exposed to daylight. But the feeling of having hidden sin is only an illusion, for all things are open and naked before God (Heb. 4:13).’ 

And I’ll just insert that verse here. ‘Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight (hidden from his sight): but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do (must give account).’ (Heb. 4:13) So, as we well know, there is absolutely no hiding from God, but many of us still foolishly try to retain the illusion. 

The article then continues with this interesting slant. It says: ‘One of the reasons, if not the main reason, those in the world often feel uncomfortable around faithful Christians is that the faithful child of God reminds sinners of their sins. The faithful child of God might well feel uncomfortable around the sinner, as well (Eph. 5:11).’ Oh friends, I surely hope we do feel uncomfortable around evil doers, but nonetheless show them the light of Christ shining through our words and actions. 

And to substantiate all that we’ve said, let’s listen to the words of Bruh Paul to the church at Ephesus on the ways of the believer. ‘Let no man deceive you with vain (empty) words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be ye not partakers with them. For ye were sometimes (once) darkness, but now ye are light in the Lord: walk as children of light. (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove (expose) them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.’ (Eph. 5:6-12) 

Yes my brethren, once upon a time we too walked in darkness, but then we saw the light of Christ, and our lives were transformed. And the scholars explain it all thus: ‘5:8. Our knowledge of the truth is attended by moral purity and happiness. 5:10.  Because of constant temptations and solicitations to evil, believers must always be proving or discerning what is and what is not acceptable unto the Lord. 

5:11. Reprove is better translated “expose.” The believer’s duty is expressed here in two ways. Negatively, he is not to have any fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, that is, not indulge in the sins of the unsaved. Positively, he is to “expose” (reprove) these sins, that is bring them to light and show them for what they really are, so that the unbeliever may see their hideous nature and their terrible consequences. 5:12. For tells why the Christian must expose the sins of the lost. If it is shameful even to discuss their iniquities in decent company how much the worse is the committing of these sins. Hence the need to bring them to light.’ 

Ah my fellow saints, I do hope that all the above has now elucidated and enlightened us about walking in darkness and light, (smile) so that we are now capable of making good decisions on it. Now, for those of us who are sincerely trying to walk in the light, let’s go home declaring (oh yes!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. 

Altogether now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And believe me, if we endure until the very end, then that future will be even more glorious than we ask or imagine. So please, let’s hang in there my faithful brethren! Much LOVE!

…if light brings truth and happiness…why fool with darkness…which only keeps one trapped in sin and rebellion towards God…                                                                                                     

Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZJ8