Friday, 20 January 2023
“After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the Church” – Ephesians 5:29 NIV
African culture is at times weird and very different from western culture. When I married my wife, her family liked me because I had done right by their daughter. They just liked me, nothing more, nothing less. A couple of years later, we had gone back to her family to celebrate the new year with them. My wife, before marriage, was skinny and now that she was married, she had gained a couple of kilos (nothing hectic). When her grandfather saw her, he was so happy he gave me a hug. He thanked me for what he referred to as, “feeding his granddaughter”. Everyone was excited and let’s just say that I was elevated from average to their favourite son-in-law. To them, her weight gain equated to me looking after and caring for her. To them, I had shown my level of commitment and dedication to their family by “feeding their daughter”. To them, this proved my love towards my wife. My take home message to all husbands is that, if your wife looks exactly as she did the day you married her, you need to repent. Clearly you aren’t loving her as Christ loved His Church.
Jesus Christ gave Himself for the Church . He became an offering of sacrifice so that the Church may be without blemish, (we are now chubby because of what He is feeding us). As a result of that, GOD glorified Him and gave Him a Name that is above any other name. He became a sweet smelling aroma, a worthy sacrifice and offering. His offering before the LORD was pleasing and acceptable hence GOD honored Him. He did not withhold anything but He gave everything (His life) for the body. This is why He is seated at the right hand of the Father. Like my in-laws, who praised me for the weight gain, when people look at the Church, they praise Jesus and give Him the glory.
Hannah, in her anguish and desperation, offered her unborn child to the LORD as her sign of worship. In her mind she was only going to have one child, and that child would serve the LORD for the rest of their life (If the child was good enough for her, the child would be good enough for LORD). Because she did not withhold that which was precious to her, GOD blessed her with more than she could have ever wished for (more kids). This shows a very critical principle of the Kingdom: blessed is the hand that gives, more than that receives. So when GOD receives an ACCEPTABLE and pleasing gift from us, He reciprocates and gives us more. Abraham offered his son, as a result he received us as an inheritance. What determines an ACCEPTABLE offering? It’s an offering given out of love, without duress or manipulation.
“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain” John 12:24 NKJV. The very thing you are unwilling to sacrifice, is the very thing that is a hindrance to your prosperity. It’s only when you surrender it that it can be multiplied. A grain of wheat, unless it falls and dies, will remain just that, a grain of wheat. As a scientist I love when theory becomes practical. So let us put GOD to the test. You have nothing to lose, but EVERYTHING to gain.
What determines an ACCEPTABLE offering? It’s an offering given out of love, without duress or manipulation
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