23. JESUS – THE SOURCE OF SUCCESS

(The Information & Edification Series)

People want LOVE but they don’t want the GOD OF LOVE and the God that IS love. People want MARRIAGE but they don’t want the LORD OF MARRIAGE and the Lord who ordained marriage. People want the good life, the promotion, the house, the money, the car but they don’t want the one that GIVES life and more abundantly.

Here is a little secret: You can’t get AHEAD without acknowledging THE HEAD. You can’t ignore THE SOURCE OF SUCCESS and expect to be SUCCESSFUL in life.

1 Corinthians 3:11 states: “For other FOUNDATION can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 2:19 reminds those who have believed on Jesus Christ and asked him to come into their hearts and take over their lives, that:

• “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon THE FOUNDATION of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.”

Colossians 1:16 testifies of Jesus, that:

• “…by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”

Psalm 127:1 informs us of the futility of trying to be successful and build a good life without Jesus being the foundation of it. It is useless. When we turn our backs on him and try to do things in our own effort and strength and according to our own understanding and intelligence, what we are trying to build may look nice and strong for a while but it will inevitably fail. It will not work because what we are building is not founded upon the rock of Jesus Christ. It is like a flimsy building made with untempered mortar.

In Ezekiel 13: 10-15, God said through his Prophet, of those who were seeking to build their lives and to have peace without submitting to Him and his way for living:

• “…one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter: Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that IT SHALL FALL: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it.

• So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and IT SHALL FALL, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the Lord.Thus will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with untempered morter, and will say unto you, The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it.”

Anything built without Jesus Christ at the foundation and at the very start, is highly likely to fail because it is being built on sinking sand. Only Jesus has the ability, as our Creator, to hold everything together and to enable us to do great exploits. Only Jesus can take our lives and make us something worthwhile. Only he can make us successful.

Psalm 127:1 reads: “Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it…”

Are you labouring in vain? If you’re searching for anything first and your God after, you have it backwards. IT WILL NOT WORK. God MUST be first and every good gift that he desires for you to have, will come after.

Matthew 6:33 states: “… seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and ALL THESE THINGS shall be added unto you.”

Seek Jesus first therefore. If you don’t yet know him as your Lord and Saviour, you need to repent of your sins, believe that he rose again from the dead and confess, in surrender to his Lordship and with your mouth, that he is Lord (Romans 10:9-10 KJV).

If you know him as Lord and Saviour, please forget about everything else you have been running after, repent of any idols you may have erected in your heart and put Him and his Kingdom business which has to do with the salvation of souls and the edification of the body of Christ, FIRST.

While Jesus lived on earth, he stated:

• “Whosoever cometh to me and heareth my sayings and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep and LAID THE FOUNDATION ON A ROCK: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for IT WAS FOUNDED UPON A ROCK. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.” (Luke 6:47-49)

You can’t live a successful life apart from Jesus. He is your very lifeline. Why not put him first, today?

(Written on 11th May, 2019)

Dear Reader, if you found the above Article to be interesting or edifying, you may also be interested in reading the following under the ‘COURTING OR ENGAGED Daughers of God’ Page:

• Note 20 – ‘Is Your Relationship Foundation Strong?’