The man who paid the price - for some one's deliverance

On the 20th day evening, Eby Achan spoke about a specific person who paid the price for the deliverance of someone.
Mark 2:4-5
When they could not come near to Him because of the crowd, they unroofed the roof where He was. And digging through, they let down the cot on which the paralytic was lying.And seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, Child, your sins are forgiven to you.

To understand this portion we need to check the background.
- Jesus came to Capernaum from a place called country of the Gergesenes(Mathew8:28).
- This land Gergesenes is given to Ruben,Gad and half tribe of Manasseh(Read Numbers 32). They didn't want any portion in the promised land, instead they themselves choose this land to grow cattle. Later people started growing pigs
- Jesus healed the demon possessed man who came on the shore to welcome him. No one else came there to greet him.In that way Jesus healed that land and the curse on that land.
- But when the people of that land knew that the demons killed their pigs, they became agitated and asked Jesus to leave their place.
- Jesus went back on the same boat and came to Capernaum
- People of Gergesenes rejected Jesus for pigs. They gave importance to their income than God.

Jesus came back to Capernaum. There a man opened his house for Jesus(Mark 2:1-2). Jesus sitting inside the house preaching and healing people. The crowd was so much that there was no room even at the door.

When one place rejected Jesus because they give importance to income, here is one man who opened his own home for Jesus and all the crowd

Then came four people carrying a parlytic person. Since there is no room to come near Jesus, they removed a portion of roof of that house and brought down the cot with that sick man. Jesus healed that man seeing their faith.
- Before removing the roof, the people who carried the sick naturally asked the house owner
- There is every possibility that the house owner himself suggested this way of removing the roof
- He considered the deliverance of a sick man mosre importnat than his material possession, his house
- He very clearly knows that his house will be damaged by doing this
- But here is a man who paid the price for the deliverance of some one else.

These days God is looking for people like this house owner, who is ready to pay the price for the deliverance of this nation, this state, this society, his family and friends.

Will Of God

On the 20th day of fasting prayer,we had Eby Achan(Kokkad,Punalur, Kerala) as a guest speaker.In the morning session, he spoke about Will of God, specifically what is expected out of a person who follows will of God.

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus.(Ephesians 1:1)

John 1:35-42
.......And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus saw him, He said, You are Simon the son of Jonah; you shall be called Cephas (which translated is, A stone).

Here Jesus is prophecising to Simon Peter, seeing him for the first time.

Luke 5:1-3And it happened that the crowd pressed on Him to hear the word of God, He stood by the lake of Gennesaret. And He saw two boats standing by the lake. But the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. And He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, He asked him to thrust out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the people out of the boat.

1. Person who do the will of God will not follow blessings, but will follow the One who gives you blessing

-Jesus told simon that you will become Cephas. But he went back to his routine, fishing. Here Jesus is telling simon that one day will come when your identity will be changed
-Eventhough Simon went back to his work, in His time Jesus went to him.
Peter and friends tried the whole night in lake of Gennesaret. Even though they were good in their job, they didn't get anything that night. When they came back totally depressed,Jesus is waiting for them in the shore. Peter didn't have any hesitation in giving his boat to Jesus to preach.
-You will win in same situations where you failed
They tried all night, but they failed. But when they obeyed Jesus, the same lake gave them plenty.
-You need to tell bye-bye to many things, sometimes including blessings
Peter got boat full of fish when he did as Jesus commanded. That was a blessing to him. But when Jesus called him, he didn't look back. He left everything, his net, boat and his latest catch. Nothing hold him back including blessings. When you follow His will, you need to change your priorities
In Old Testament we see Abraham rejected the offers made by King of Sodom(Gen 14:21-23)

2. Person who do the will of God will ask "What shall I do Lord"
Acts 22:8-10
..And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Arise and go into Damascus. And there it shall be told you all things which are appointed for you to do.


This is experience of Paul(Saul). Lord visited saul. The first question Paul asked was this. He didn't ask nay personal blessings. He wish to know " I am ready Lord. What shall I do?"

Our warfare

Today, 17th day of fasting prayer, Pastor Balraj preached from the Word. He was specifically preaching about 1. Our journey towards the promised Canan 2. How we can fight it out in this World.

Exodus 3:17 , Joshua 3:11
When God promised the land with honey and milk to Israel, God told about 7 enemies they need to face in their journey.They are Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites.

Ephesians 6:12
Similiarly, as new testament Israel, in our journey towards the promised land, we also need to fight out seven different enemies. But these enemies are not flesh and blodd or humans.

What is our armor?
For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, pulling down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought into the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:4,5)

Ephesians 6:13-18

Seven enemies of every Christian believer

1. Lust of flesh

But each one is tempted by his lusts, being drawn away and seduced by them. Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin. And sin, when it is fully formed, brings forth death James 1:14,15

But every person who is on the journey to promised land mus crucify his flesh. As apostle Paul said
But those belonging to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts Galatians 5:24


2. Life without Love - Personal & Family life
Ephesians 5:22, 5:25, 6:9

If anyone says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar. For if he does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? (1 John 4:20)

3. Speaking Lies

2 Corinthians 2:11
Psalms 15:1-5
Psalms 119:163
Therefore putting away lying, let each man speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.(Ephe 4:25)

4. Our own ways
Proverbs 25:28
Proverbs 4:11,12

5. Fear
2 Timothi 1:7

6. Pride

7. Our own strength
Psalms 20:7-8
2 Corinthians 10:17,18

Some quotes heard

1. When Peter was in prison, angel of Lord came down to open the gates(Acts 12:7-10). When Paul was in Roman prison(Acts 28), angel did not come, but instead gates of heaven itself opened before him so that he wrote 4 epistles from the prison, which later became the pillars of Church.

2. 14 for 1 - Paul(Saul) started his journey with one letter from the high priest to destroy church, but when he met Jesus he himself wrote 14 letters to strengthen church.

3. If you invest now in fasting , praying, bible study, then you can withdraw later when you start preaching from pulpits.

4. root vs fruit - If you are rooted well, you will bear fruits

5. Love of Jesus is so deep that it can reach to the bottom of hell, so high that it can reach heavens and so wide that it can cover all nations and gentiles.

6.In old testament, Psalmist says "The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want."(Psalm 23:1).
In new Testament church of the Laodicea changed that to " I am rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing" (Rev 3:17). Thats World.

You are called - Be in your position

Continuing our study on Book of Ephesians on the 15th Day of fasting prayer, today Pastor Anoj spoke from the Word.In his inimitable style, he brought out some of the serious topics of this epistle.
He discussed about two aspects, more specifically the second part.

1. What is the purpose of your calling?
Every one who is assured of their calling by Lord, must understand the purpose of their calling.
Thats what Paul clearly tells in Ephesians 1:4
According as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,

You are called to be Holy and blameless.

2. How can we keep our position according to His purpose?
Ephesians 3:14-21.
14.For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 of whom the whole family in Heaven and earth is named,
16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man;
17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height,
19 and to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,
21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, forever. Amen.

This is Paul's second prayer in this epistle. The first prayer we can see in Ephesians 1:15- onwards. Here Paul very clearly tells about the various things which every one of us needs to follow to keep our position according to His purpose
a. Bow your knees - Always Pray (3:14)
We need to bow our knees before our God because
- He chosen us
- He adopted us
- He gave us inheritance
Prayer will lead you to spiritual maturity

b. Inner man(inner spirit) is strengthened by His Spirit(3:16)
If the inner man is not strengthened then sinful nature of the flesh will dominate us.If our inner man is strengthened then we can overcome the temptations
- This is what Jesus showed after His fasting for forty days
- This what Stephen showed when he was showered with stones (Acts 7:55-60)

c. Indwelling Christ - Christ must be a permanent resident in you and not as a guest.
2 Corinthians 6:16
... For you are the temple of the living God, as God has said, "I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

When He dwells in you and walks among us, then He knows our infirmities. He will clear all of them.
When Abraham unknowingly gave a feast to God's angels, they knew that what is lacking in Abraham's family without telling it(Genesis 18:10)

d. Incomprehensible Love - rooted in Christ's Love (3:17)
If we are rooted in the love of Christ, we will bear fruits
Ephesians 2:4 - But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love with which He loved us

e. Grow in the Infinite fullness of God(3:19)
When we grow in the fullness of God
- We will become spiritually mature
- We lack no gifts

We need to follow the above five advices to keep our position in Christ.

3. What will happen if we follow these?
Ephesians 3:20
Our God will do "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,"