Fight for the Gospel.

Jude 3

"I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you CONTEND EARNESTLY for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints." [New American Standard Bible]

GREEK
ἐπαγωνίζομαι epagōnizomai; [Greek] {This word is similar to agonize}

> For the Greek the word used means a battle, opponents engaged in a contest in a stadium (Like athletics), such that in the end, the winner will gets a price
> This word was commonly used in connection with the Greek stadium to denote a strenuous struggle to overcome an opponent, as in a wrestling match or athletics...

ENGLISH
> To contend means to exert intense effort on behalf of something.
> to fight with intense effort on behalf of the faith.
> Defend the Gospel in humble, meek and loving way.
> Literally to content means to carry on “a conflict, contest, debate, or legal suit
> Also to CONTEND EARNESTLY means “to fight,” “to defend,” “to strive urgently,” “to struggle for,” “to uphold.”

How do you CONTEND EARNESTLY for the Faith?
1. hold fast the principles of the Gospel, especially when you face challenges.
2. maintain the principles of the Gospel when you face people the oppose them.
3. this is not a physical contention by arms o violence, but CONTEND EARNESTLY in word and reason.
4. Pray
5. Be Holy as He is Holy.
6. Do not simply to defend the faith, but fight for it and actively promote it.

Romans 1:16
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for wit is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes..."

#Understanding

VPN END OF YEAR FUNCTION

WHAT'S THE PRICE OF THIS LIFE?

WHAT'S THE PRICE OF THIS LIFE?

Lately I ain't been sleeping, staying up all night
Contemplating, trying to figure out just what's life
Could it be that it's just me when nothing's right?
Does anyone out there know what is like?

Feels like I'm drowning and I'm putting up a fight
But my strength is wearing out, not a life gone inside
I know I'm not supposed to show none of my weaknesses
But that just goes to show you how deep this is

Part of me is saying be a MAN, stand tall
But I would be foolish if I wouldn't think I can fall
When all I see about these four walls are closing in
I close my eyes and see my only friend

Even if I wanted to call it quits you wouldn't let me
Not only that, but you quit to come and uplift me
Through it all, you're the only one I'd listen to
From you I learnt that true love is unconditional

I wish that I could do for others what you do for me
Truthfully, I'm not even sure why you would root for me
Time and time again I stumble and I fall
But you still stick by me, I'm just humbled by it all

These words that I'm saying are long overdue
Only reason that I exist is all cause of you
So from here on now I promise to be a soldier
'Cause when I'm on the edge, you keep me from going over

Your love is precious, something that I just can't waste
As long as you're with me is nothing I can't face
Your love is like, your love is full of grace
I know for me there's gotta be a brighter day

I'll never question you again 'cause you're always right
And at the end of the darkest tunnel there's always light
Your love is like food to my soul

Only you can make me get up
Not understanding
Feeling like there's no one to turn to
And anybody
Don't worry about the things I can fall
You keep me from going over the edge, the edge, the edge, the edge
I AM READY TO DIE THAT I MAY GAIN YOU,
JESUS THE COST AND PRICE OF MY LIFE!!! — listening to MC Jin.

DIVORCE BANNED IN SWAZILAND

Romans 13: 1-7 "1. Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 

2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 

3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 

4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 

5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. 

6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor."
MBABANE – King Mswati III says that there is no divorce in a marriage conducted under Swazi Law and Custom. The monarch said there was no earthly forum that had the powers to declare a customary marriage null and void. Only death, the King said, can bring a customary marriage to an end.

Of late the kingdom’s courts have seen an upsurge of cases where individuals married under Swazi Law and Custom want their marriages nullified. But the King said: “We do not even need to sign any documents to prove that marriage because you find that in future such documents are torn apart when some members of the family say the marriage is not in existence and, therefore, the documents should be torn. We do not have such under Swazi culture; we do not encourage it and practice this. All we know is that a person dies at their marital home. That is the Swazi way which was designed by God.”

The King said once a woman was smeared with red ochre (libovu), that meant the person was now a wife and therefore cannot be smeared with red ochre again by another family.Red ochre is a substance that a woman is smeared with during a ceremony known as kuteka, which is one of the early stages in customary marriage."

"Once you are smeared with red ochre, it is not like in a marriage where you can divorce and then go on to sign another marriage document with another man. Once you are smeared with red ochre, no other family can also do that to you because that would be taboo to them. Nothing would ever go well for that family.”

The King said even if a wife was to desert her husband, she would be fetched to mourn him once the man died. He noted that Swazi customary marriage was good and therefore encouraged that the youth should be taught about it.“The youth should know that once you get married traditionally, that marriage cannot be undone, yet other foreign forms of marriage can be undone,” said the King.


Follow through the scripture and see what the bible says;
1Corinthians 7:10-11 "To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife."

Luke 16:18“Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery."

Matthew 19:6 "So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Romans 7:2 "For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage."

Malachi 2:16 “For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless.”

Hebrews 13:4 "Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous."

Matthew 6:10 "Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

Glory and Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

AMEN!!!

“We cannot have CHRISTIANS saved by the blood of Jesus supporting people of this world who are tearing down the kingdom of God.”

This is a story i read online and i thought i should post it here also just to emphasize and encourage you on what it means to be a Christian and what it entails to follow Christ. I have added a few scriptures just to clarify.

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

On Saturday, Mt. Salem voted him out for attending a local Rick Ross concert.

With a vote of 11 to 3, the 14 deacons met at 11pm Saturday night to discuss and come to a conclusion that they did not need his services anymore. Rev. Wills arrived to the church the next day for Sunday morning worship service and notice his parking sign taken down and his name removed from the office door.

The deacons even asked another minister from the community to officiate the service that morning. “We cannot have our leader supporting people of this world who are tearing down the kingdom of God.” said Deacon Miles Langley.

According to Deacon Langley, this is not the first time Rev. Wills has attended a concert while pastoring Mt. Salem. 9 months ago the diaconate board met with Rev. Wills when word was given to them that many youth and young adults spotted the pastor at a Lil Wayne concert.

“We know that many saints will have mixed opinions from our actions, but this is not how we do things here at Mt. Salem. We cannot have a pastor praising the world one minute then praising the Lord the next. Period” said Deacon Langley.

1 Corinthians 10:21 "You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons ; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons."

Rick Ross recently made nationwide news when he was dropped from Reebok and other endorsements for lyrics advocating rape towards women. ”Put Molly all in her Champagne/ She ain’t even know it/ I took her home and I enjoyed that/ She ain’t even know it,” he raps on the track. Ref: http://scoophunters.com/2013/08/07/church-sacks-pastor-for-attending-rick-ross-concert/ 

The Moral of this article is that we ought to set an example as Christians, Galatians 1:5 "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;" If we imitate God what would we have done? Do you think if Jesus was on earth would go and pay some money to listen and raise His hands to Rick Ross's music - full of the profane language and naked women - I don't think so!

You might be wondering thinking that we are busy "judging" a soul that Christ died for but the Bible says; (1 Corinthians 5:9-12) “I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges.”

According to the above scripture, you can see that Christians ought to be rebuked, corrected and judged if they do not value the life that Jesus Christ made available to them (or if they abuse the liberty they have in Christ Jesus). We cannot drag the name of the Lord in the mud. Think before you act and always listen to the Holy Spirit you are the light of the world and you are the salt of the earth, do not be hidden but shine and show the Glory of God or else you be trampled on by foot if you lose your saltiness.

The Bible says “if you’re a card carrying member of the Church and you believe in Jesus and you want to be one of His followers, then we need to hold you to a higher standard. Following Jesus – like everything else that is rewarding in life – won’t be easy. You are going to have to make some sacrifices and some tough decisions. And because we love you, we are going to hold you accountable to those tough decisions. We will hold you to a higher standard.”

But to the non-believers or those outside the Church, the Bible says “We don’t judge you. We love you and accept you as you are – no matter where you’ve been or what you’ve done. We want you to know the love of God which surpasses all understanding and we know that once you taste that love, you too will be compelled to a higher standard of living. We don’t judge you; we love you.”

That is my opinion, comment below!!!
“We cannot have CHRISTIANS saved by the blood of Jesus supporting people of this world who are tearing down the kingdom of God.”

The lion, which is mightiest among beasts and does not turn back before any; Proverbs 30:30

IT IS ABOUT TIME

The lion, which is mightiest among beasts and does not turn back before any; Proverbs 30:30

SOMETIMES A LION GETS INTO TEARS NOT BECAUSE ITS BEEN DEFEATED IN THE BUSH.

BUT BECAUSE sometimes in the bush the rules of natural selection gets distorted by poachers.
Poachers who just kill the rhinos for one thing the Horn and leave the meat nje, coz they have the horn!!!
The Poacher has come to steal, kill and destroy
You can see by the motives
You can even tell be the how much in a hurry he is
The poacher has been to most jungles, killing for the horn

The poachers ain't gonna be hear any longer as the Lion was created for this very purpose and such a time as this.

Its gonna be alright Lion
Its gonna be alright King of the Jungle
You were placed in the jungle for a reason
Once a King always a King
Don't give up
Your territory and the animal Kingdom was bestowed on you
Never give up
Put your foot down and stand your ground.
Remember, u can Roar
Some need to hear that Roar
To know that enough is enough
You can cry now Lion and bath in tears.
Pain may endure a night but joy comes in the morning
You know the joy of the Master is your strength
Crying may seem like a weakness but the strength is perfected in your weaknesses.
Poachers may think your not the King anymore
Little do they know that those tears are watering the ground so u can have more grip to fight back
Fight Lion, Fight
For such a purpose you were created
For such a time you have been born
Set an example of how a real Lion behaves
Set an example to the upcoming ones
Show them how u defend Your jungle
Show them you don't jump one jungle to another because of poachers
Roar in your closet
Roar and make your Master proud
Roar with the wildest roar ever
Roar and shake the camps of the enemy out of your jungle
This ain't the playing ground no more
Your jungle deserves the best
The best that the Master prepared for it,
The Master placed you in jungle because he trusted you Lion
He trusted you with the life of the jungle
He gave u room in the caves
He gave u sharp long teeth
He gave you strong paws to strike
Strength to run and never look back
Above all The Master supplies all of your needs
All you gotta do is stand in the gap Lion King and allow the Master' will to reign
Stand in the gap and roar
Roar till there is an earthquake
Poachers know the effects of an earthquake and tremble
Roar till the grounds shake as if its a mighty army approaching
Poachers know an army and they run for their lives.
Be sincere and stand your ground
Roar from the deepest parts of your heart
I know the jungle is everything to you, the Master pointed to you when He placed you there
The Master equipped you for a reason, and told you one day you will have to fight
Its good you have marked your territory and are never turning back
You have dedicated yourself to the jungle till death do ..... part.
Roar Lion Roar
Fight for your jungle , the Master created you for such a time as this!!!
May grace and peace be with you in abundance.

They shall go after the Lord; he will roar like a lion; when he roars, his children shall come trembling from the west; Hosea 11:10

Poetry by ~ Phillip Sinothi Moyo

SALVATION PRAYER