Good morning people who ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth.

2 Timothy 2:15 NIV Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

In a time when truth is under attack, how do we know what is true and what is not true? Is there a right way of interpreting what God has said in the Bible?

Here’s three things I heard the Holy Spirit say to me:

When it comes to interpreting God’s Word, close enough is not good enough.

God’s Word means what God wants it to mean, not what we want it to mean.

An interpretation of God’s Word is only valid if God sees it the same way.

Interpretation is the explaining of something; not an opinion about something. It is the opinions of people that have most sabotaged truth. Asking someone’s opinion about something opens the door to more confusion and deception. Here is a much better question:

What does God’s Word say about this?

Now, it’s one thing to know the words on a page, but we need the Spirit of God who authored the words to be the One who interprets what He means. Many people can read the same Scripture and come up with different opinions or views of what God means. And that leads me to an important point:

Whenever the source of interpretation is us, it will be incorrect. The source must be the Spirit of God who will reveal the heart and intention of God.

Our application of God’s Word will come from our interpretation of God’s Word, and this is why our interpretation must be from divine revelation. People will put into practice their view of God’s Word, therefore, we must view it as God intends it.

True freedom is connected to right believing, and right believing is connected to correct interpretation through divine revelation (John 8:31-32).

Watch my short teaching on ‘Correct Interpretation’

Please note I incorrectly quoted the reference of 2 Corinthians 2:15 in this video instead of 2 Timothy 2:15.

Good morning people who are blessed by following Biblical patterns and principles.

Leviticus 8:10-12 MEV Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it, and sanctified them. He sprinkled oil on the altar seven times and anointed the altar and all its vessels, both the laver and its stand, to sanctify them. Then he poured some of the anointing oil on the head of Aaron and anointed him to sanctify him.

Anointing with oil is powerful. It was in the context of our Scripture above, and it also is today in our lives.

Mark 6:13 MEV And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.

If you are struggling with ongoing sickness, I encourage you to ask the elders at your church to anoint you with oil and to pray for you. It’s great to pray ourselves, but there truly is something right in the Spirit when we ask others to stand with us.

James 5:14-16 MEV Is anyone sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your faults to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much. 

Jesus made it clear that not all sickness is a result of sin (John 9:2-3). But as we see in the Scripture above, there are times that confession of sins can be linked to healing. And this is part of the beauty of Father’s design in coming to godly elders where wisdom and discernment can flow.

I am blessed to be part of a church that regularly anoints people with oil when they pray. I encourage you to make this part of your life journey as well.

Good morning people who continually stoke the fire of your heart for the Lord.

Leviticus 6:12-13 MEV The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it. It shall not go out. The priest shall feed it with wood every morning. He will arrange the burnt offering on it, and he shall burn the fat of the peace offerings on it. A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the altar. It shall never go out.

How often do you intentionally stoke the fire of your heart for God?

It’s time to shift from being seasonal Christians to evergreen Christians.

It’s time to shift from being lukewarm Christians to hot on-fire Christians.

Anything less displeases the Lord.

The priest shall feed it with wood every morning.

I am blessed to have a fireplace in my home. In the winter, it is such a beautiful thing to have a raging fire that provides warmth in the house and in the heart.

But this I have learnt: You must keep adding wood to the fire otherwise it will go out.

The same is true in our lives. Daily time in the Word of God, prayer, thanksgiving and feeding on stories that stir our faith help keep the fire of God burning in our hearts. This language is not radical or fanatical language; it is language of normal Christianity.

How often do you intentionally stoke the fire of your heart for God?

Good morning people who lead in such a way that you are a delight to follow.

Leviticus 4:22-24 MEV Whenever a leader sins, and he does unintentionally any one of the things that by the commandments of the Lord his God should not be done and is found guilty, or his sin that he committed was made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a male goat without blemish, and he shall lay his hand on the head of the goat, and he shall slaughter it in the place where they slaughter the burnt offering before the Lord. It is a sin offering.

People aren’t looking for perfect leaders, but they are rightfully looking for leaders who take responsibility and repent when they sin.

And this does not just apply to when leaders knowingly sin. Leaders, like everyone, can sin unintentionally. Leaders can unintentionally hurt people through careless actions or words; they might not have “meant to” do the wrong thing, but this does not equate to not doing the wrong thing.

Again, we don’t need perfect leaders, but we do need humble leaders who repent sincerely.

Take note of the wording in our Scripture above: Or his sin that he committed was made known to him.

If you are a leader, how do you respond when someone comes to you and makes known to you an area in which you caused hurt? Are you defensive and do you respond arrogantly? Or are you genuinely listening to the person who has taken a bold step to bring something concerning to you?

I am aware that the second half of our Scripture today talks very clearly about what the leader does to make things right in the eyes of God. There is something beautiful when a leader takes the lead towards reconciliation through their repentance.

May we lead and follow in a way that honours the Lord and others.

Good morning people who don’t stop short of what God wants to complete in you.

Leviticus 4:6 MEV The priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle some of the blood seven times before the Lord in front of the veil of the sanctuary.

Seven times is mentioned many times in the Book of Leviticus, and the number seven in the Bible often refers to completion and perfection. Let’s lean in.

God established the significance of completion and perfection in the very beginning.

Genesis 2:2 MEV On the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

Typically, we rest when the work is completed. This is what God modelled to us, and this is still His pattern today. Violating this holy command can not produce the fruit of God’s intention in our lives.

Naaman was healed and made clean after dipping in the Jordan seven times.

2 Kings 5:14 MEV So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh returned like the flesh of a little boy, and he was clean.

Sometimes the miracle follows our persistence in obeying God’s commands.

Joshua 6:15 MEV Then on the seventh day they got up early as dawn was breaking and circled the city in this way seven times. Only on that day did they circle the city seven times. 

Joshua 6:20 MEV So the people shouted, and they blew the trumpets. When the people heard the trumpet sound, they shouted a loud battle cry, and the wall fell down.

It’s also interesting that Jesus’ instruction for us to forgive others was not just seven times (which would have been enough), but seventy times seven (Matthew 18:22).

Is it possible that God completing something in your life is on the other side of you going again in faith and in obedience?

Don’t stop short – go again!