Sunday Lifeline With Gerald: 2016 – A Year To Celebrate Jesus Christ

By
Femi Adeoya
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"Delight yourself in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart" – Psalm 37:4.
 
I warmly welcome every reader of this column to this wonderful new year God has given us. It is the goodness of God to us that separates us from those who passed on last year. It is not that we are better than those who have not lived to see this year. It is not the robustness of our security network that guaranteed we made it to this year despite many evils we encountered, it is the protection of God that saw us through into this year. Therefore everyone who has crossed into this year 2016 must be grateful to God and praise Him for His many benefits in our lives. I thank God for giving us the opportunity to partake in His kingdom through the medium of Skytrend online publications. He has never ceased to put across His lifeline to us to rescue us from drowning in the terrible waters of sin, troubles and sorrows. Indeed if it had not been the LORD that was on our side, the waters would have overwhelmed us, the streams would have gone over our souls (Psalms 124:4). Dear friends, we certainly have many reasons to thank God for this new year. We have before us another 366 days of opportunities that God has graciously granted us, and we must be grateful. 
 
In the last one and a half years since we started our interactions in this Lifeline column, God has graciously reached out to us with every publication and I believe you have testimony of what He has done for you through the messages that have come in this column on Skytrend news publications. I welcome you specially to this year and I pray that God will continue to shape our lives for His divine glory and make us shining lights in our generation engrossed in thick darkness. I wish you will join me here every week on Sunday Lifeline and Midweek Lifeline as we study the Bible together. By the grace of God, we shall discover great treasures God has for us in His word this year. I will appreciate your feedback by way of contributions, suggestions and questions through the feedback mechanisms available here on Skytrend media. Let us grab every Lifeline God will throw in for us to salvage us this year. Just as a drowning man would hold on tightly to the lifeline so he could be pulled out from the water, so must we hold on tightly to our Lord Jesus Christ, God's lifeline for our salvation. Let us receive and put into practice every instruction and counsel God shall give us in this platform this year and our lives shall be gloriously transformed for the better in Jesus name.
 
Friends one key thing we must do this year 2016 is to celebrate Jesus Christ more than we have ever done. As we wake up every day of this year, let us take some time to kneel by our bedside and thank God for another new day. It is a year to lift up the name of Jesus Christ above every other name. It is a year to delight in Him and place Him as our foremost and utmost priority in all our daily engagements this year. We must seek to glorify His name in our lives this year. If you have not believed in Jesus Christ and committed your life to His control, this is your year of salvation, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved (Romans 10:9-10). If you had surrendered your life to Jesus but you wandered away from Him and backslid on your commitment to Him, this is the year to return to Him, and He will restore you. I pray that you too will celebrate Jesus Christ in your life this year.
 
 
 
 
We must let God's word be the rule of our lives this year by studying it, meditating on it and by being obedient to all His commandments (Joshua 1:8). We must look up to the Holy Spirit for instructions and direction in all we do this year. It is a year to openly share our faith in God with people everywhere; in the office, marketplace, school, etc, and whenever we have the opportunity to do so. We must boldly stand for Christ despite ridicule, mockery and even persecution we may receive from unbelievers. This is not the year to be ashamed of Jesus Christ and pocket our faith in Him, and try to conceal it so cleverly and mingle with the world without being noticed. Our lights were not meant to be hidden under bushels, we must be the lighthouses of salvation for people in this world lost in the darkness of sin, wherever we are (Matthew 5:14-16). Remember also that our Lord Jesus Christ warns that if we are ashamed of Him before men in this world, He will be ashamed of us before His Father and the holy angels to let us into the glory of heaven (Mark 8:38). Let us have the desire to win sinners over to Christ this year. We will indeed celebrate Christ by witnessing about His love and ultimate sacrifice for the salvation of the souls of men.
 
We must celebrate Christ by living to please Him this year. Let our family members see Christ example in the way we live. Let our children see our godly lifestyle and follow our example this year. Let the love and compassion of Christ be witnessed in our dealings with people this year. Let Christ-like integrity and honesty characterize our activities in the workplace and in the conduct of our businesses. Let the fear of giving others occasion to ridicule the name of Christ we profess keep us from corrupt acts this year, whether in the secret or in the open. As citizens of our nation and also of heaven, let our obedience to our higher laws of heaven show off in our obedience to the lower laws of our nation. This is the way to celebrate Christ this year. When we live righteously, it will compel those around us, people living and working with us, to see that the sacrifice Christ paid for us by dying on the Cross is not in vain, and that if He could change us, then they also can be changed.
 
Let us celebrate Christ by working to advance His kingdom in the world. Let us double our commitment to the work of God in our church assemblies and also give support and participation to the work of missions in reaching the world for Christ. Commit your resources, whether financial or in any wise, to the furtherance of God's work. Pay your tithes and offerings willingly, generously and regularly. Let God's business be your business this year. As you set out to work for progress in your career, job and business, do not neglect God this year. Let 2016 stand out as the year you gave yourself to God to honor Him.
 
Why must we celebrate Jesus Christ? It is because His name has power. His name is above all other names. It is the name of Jesus Christ that guarantees our salvation. There is salvation in no other name, for there is no other name in heaven given among men by which we must be saved, except the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12) It is the name of Jesus Christ that brings Satan, demons and all powers of hell to their knees (Philippians 2: 9-10). Sicknesses and diseases bow at the name of Jesus Christ, and the sick are healed in His name. As you journey through this year, let the name of Jesus Christ continually be in your mouth. Call upon His name often, for those who call upon
 
His name shall be saved (Acts 2:21). His name is a potent weapon for you in the battles that may confront you this year. Also there is great power in the blood He shed for us at the cross of Calvary (1 John 1:7, Hebrews 12:24). His blood shall speak all good things for your life and shall also cancel evil words, incantations, curses and covenants issued against your life and destiny. Celebrate Jesus Christ this year by calling on His name and calling on the power of His blood to work for you.
 
Finally I shall call your attention to Psalm 37:4, "Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart". I want you to see that when you delight in and celebrate Jesus Christ, God will grant you your desires. Your prayers will be answered, your promotion will come, your breakthroughs in marriage, career, business and all other endeavours will come when you celebrate Jesus Christ. Psalm 91:14-15 further assures us of these, saying "Because he has set his love upon Me (God), therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him".
 
Friends this is a sure promise God has made concerning those who delight in Him and celebrate Him. As we journey through this year, all things may not be rosy or shiny, the economy may not become very good, world peace may not be achieved, but no matter what may come our way, God has promised to deliver and protect us from losses and injury in all of Satan's attacks. You will have God's protection and promotion this year if you will commit to celebrating Jesus Christ this year. We all have plans and programs drawn out for this year, but let us remember to seek His will, and the key to having fulfillment is this; "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). May God bless you abundantly this year. May you celebrate His goodness all the 366 days of this year in Jesus Christ name. Amen.
 
Happy new year. Celebrate Jesus Christ more than ever this 2016!
 
 
 
 
 
 
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