Is Christ Risen ?

      The Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the greatest fact in history. Take away the Resurrection from the Christian faith and everything else fails. Death could not hold Jesus. An empty tomb proved that He was risen. The absence of a single bone or relic is proof that the Resurrection of Jesus was a fact that could not be disproved. In the enemies of Christ could have produced His body and shown it to believers in a risen Christ, they could have disproved the Resurrection, but they could not do so, and nothing could explain away the Resurrection. Events that followed immediately after the first Easter morn go to prove that Jesus lives and belongs to those who are alive.

              When in India, during  Sarojini Naidu's funeral oration at Gandhi's funeral. Having first praised the great man, she next uttered so pitiable a lament, "Gandhiji will you not rise up; will you not rise up?' But her heart-rending cry was but an echo. Gandhiji was dead both to India and to the world.

                 But what of Jesus? Were not the words of the angel to the seeking women, " Why seek ye the living among the dead?" proof of His resurrection and confirmation of the fact that He belonged not to the dead but to the living?

                There are various ways of proving that Christ is alive, but we who sincerely believe that He is risen from the dead, have to demonstrate to the world that Christ is alive by showing Him in our lives.

                 Jesus told His disciples before His death that He would send them the Comforter.   " It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away the Comforter will not come unto you." John 16:7. This Comforter is the Holy Ghost whose presence in the world is proof that Jesus rose from the dead and went to His Father. Peter speaking to the amazed multitude who came together on the day of Pentecost said, 'Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this, which ye now see and here."  Acts 2:33. Peter was trying to explain that even as he and the others with him knew by the experience they have received, that Jesus has gone to the Father, so these people too were able to see and hear the evidence of the Holy Ghost which the Father has sent from heaven.

                 What is the evidence of the Holy Spirit ?   In Acts 2:3-4, we read  "And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire and it sat upon each one of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues…" As Peter later explained this experience, here is seen the evidence that Christ having gone to the right hand of God receives the promise of the Holy Ghost and sends it to the disciples. We know that Christ is alive because we have received the Comforter which He promised to us.  The purpose of this Comforter is to reveal unto us the reality of Christ.  We read "…he shall receive of mine, and shew it unto you". John. 6: 14-15.

                How then does this Comforter, the Holy Spirit work in our lives?  The Greek world, "Paraclete" means, one who goes along with you. He abides in us and Jesus explained the experience by saying, " On that day ye shall know I am in my Father, and ye in me and I in you."  The triune God comes to dwell in us. John. 14.20.  He dwells in us through the Holy spirit who is active and reveals the Christ in us, He guides us into all truth. John 16 : 13. The secret of experiencing Christ in our daily lives is to listen to His voice and to obey.  It is when we are led by the Holy Spirit that we begin to know the reality of the living Jesus.

                 This Holy Spirit which we receive is also called the "power of His resurrection" and the spirit of Christ". In Rom. 8:9-11, we read, "the spirit of Him that raised Christ from the dead". and , " If any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of His."  The Old Testament saints had the experience of the Spirit of Christ. We read that Old Testament saints prophesied through the spirit of Christ that was in them.  1 Pet. 1:10-11. The spirit which we receive today is called the " spirit  of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead." The resurrection power of Jesus which comes into us is the spirit  that raised up Christ from the dead.

                  He not only gave us the Holy Spirit, but He also gave us gifts known as the gifts of Christ.  " when He ascended up on high, He gave gifts unto men….He gave some apostles some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers." Eph.  4: 7-11. These gifts are given for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry and the edification of the body of Christ - the Church. Eph. 4 :12-13.

                  The sending forth of the Holy Spirit, and the offices that are necessary to build and perfect the church if proof that Christ is risen. The best way of demonstrating to the world the power of the risen Christ in our lives is by yielding to the Spirit of God and also receiving the gifts. When others see us they must see Christ in us. The great ministry of the New Testament is "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Col. 1:26-27. 

                   May god grant us the grace to demonstrate to the world the living Jesus, by our receiving the Comforter, and obeying His voice and yielding to Him, so that the world may know that Christ is risen.

Saudi Grand Mufti calls for the destruction of all churches

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA ( VOP News)– Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, recently declared that it is "necessary to destroy all the churches of the region."

As the President of the Supreme Council of Ulema and Chairman of the Standing Committee for Scientific Research and Issuing of Fatwas, Abdullah's decisions on Islamic law are final.

Abdullah's recent ruling sanctioned the previous "suggestion" made by a Kuwaiti parliamentarian who called for the removal of all churches, although the Kuwaiti later said he merely meant that no new churches should be built in his Emirate.

However, the Grand Mufti explained that since Kuwait was a part of the Arabian Peninsula, "therefore it is necessary to destroy all churches in it."

Abdullah based his decision on the hadith declared by Mohammed on his deathbed: "There are not to be two religions in the (Arabian) Peninsula," which has always been understood to mean that only Islam will be practiced on the Peninsula.

TPM INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION KOTTARAKARA

The Pentecostal Mission's Largest convention in kerala 'Kottarakara International convention will be held from Feb 8-12 near Pulamon junction at Pentecostal Mission convention ground. On wednesday evening when a Gospel rally starts from faithhome through pulamon junction and reaches convention ground the convention will be started with prayer. Daily Morning 4.00 am praising, 7:00 am Bible study, 9.30 am General meeting, tarry meeting @ 3pm and 10 pm, Evening at 6:00 pm Gospel meeting and divine healing service. On sunday Morning service 0f 40 faithhomes will be held @ 9.30 am. On sunday evening a special Divine healing service will be held from 5.45 pm which will be last meeting of this convention

Jehovah Rohi - The Lord Is My Shepherd

One of the best-known Psalms in the Bible begins with a verse that is so simple in its structure, yet, so pro¬found in its significance: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).
In these few words, we can see the Almighty God stooping to communicate Himself through one of earth's meanest proffessions: that of a shepherd. No doubt, we are but dumb sheep; but, how can such a Supreme Being be our shepherd-our Yahweh Rohi? God's sheep are spe¬cial sheep. Ever look around and wonder why God ever chose us? What bedraggled, unkempt, wayward, mot¬ley sheep we are! Yet, the Lord is pleased to call us His own; and, there is hope for us-He is our Shepherd.
In the Scriptures, both the Old and the New Testament, God reveals Himself as the great Shepherd who delights in instructing, leading, and nurturing us. The word “shepherd,” roeh, (rohî means “my shepherd”) holds the thought of “feeding” or “keeping.” In Isaiah 40.11, God promises to “...feed His flock like a shepherd...gather the lambs with His arms and carry them in His bosom, and...gently lead those that are with young.”
King David's awareness of the Lord as his Shepherd implied that David had entered into a beautiful relationship with Yahweh. David knew Him as much more than a remote, divine Entity that only demanded sacrifices and homage. He knew God as his Owner, his Manager, and his Master. David, who had cared for his own sheep so tenderly, saw the Hand that had led him, kept him, and exalted him as the hand of our Yahweh Rohi. Consequently, David gave God every right to his life and yielded complete allegiance to Him. We also have seen the Shepherd's hand, but have we surrendered to His control? Are we truly His sheep all of the time? Once a shepherd purchases a sheep, he then gives her his own particular earmark. It's not a pleasant procedure. The sheep has to quietly, submissively lie down and allow the shepherd to place a notch on her ear with a sharp knife. Pain ensues, but the result is that the
sheep now belongs to the shepherd-indelibly! A similar ac¬count is related in the book of Deu¬teronomy. Whenever a slave decided that the want¬ed to serve his master for the rest of his life, he was taken to the door of the house to have his ear pierced with an awl. From then on, he was a per¬manent member of that home-a bondslave forever. Similarly, God wants a peo¬ple whose ears are pierced to hear His voice always. Jesus stated, “My sheep hear My voice and they follow Me” (John 10:27). Hearing God's voice is essential for every Christian. Once we begin to walk in fellowship with the Lord, His voice must command our undivided atten¬tion. When a shepherd calls his sheep by name, they turn their heads and cock their ears to catch every word he speaks. The Lord delights to com¬municate with us every moment of the day, and it's our responsibility to listen and to respond. He's not merely looking for a mental assent to what we've heard, but also for a response that stems from a choice to obey and please His heart of love. Once we make this choice, we experience the special delight of knowing Him profoundly and intimately. A man of God expressed it this way: “Truth becomes truth to me, and spiritual life becomes spiritual life to me only when I actually do the thing Christ calls me to do.”
After giving ourselves to the Shepherd, we find that a new dimen¬sion of life opens to us: “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” Only a sheep that completely belongs to his shepherd can boldly utter this statement. Since the Lord is my Shepherd, therefore I shall not want. The word “want” not only signifies a satisfaction of needs; but, it also implies total, perfect content¬ment-not craving or desiring any¬thing more. Many in the world are owned by another, an imposter, who really doesn't care for their well-being: the devil. Although they have everything their hearts wish for, there's still a persistent, inner yearning-a void within. Still others of us have known the Shepherd, heard His voice, and nestled upon His shoul¬der, yet we are still not content -always wondering if the “grass were greener on the other side.” Unfortu¬nately, we find out the hard way that it is He alone who affords green pastures and calm, clear waters. He alone knows our needs-He alone can satisfy them. Why?-because our contentment depends on whose ruler¬ship we are under. If we are His, then, He is ours! In Christ, we have “all that pertains unto life and Godli¬ness” (2 Pet. 1.3), “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2.3), “righteousness, sanctification, and redemption” (1Cor. 1.30), “every good and every perfect gift” ( Jms. 1.17), “joy unspeakable and full of glory” (1Pet. 1.8). Hallelujah! Con¬tentment, fulfillment, satisfaction, happiness-everything is in HIM!
Yahweh is our Shepherd. All-knowing, unchanging, ever-present, and all-powerful-we shall not want.

Savior, like a shepherd lead us;
Much we need Thy tender care;
In Thy pleasant pastures feed us,
For our use Thy folds prepare:
Blessed Jesus, Thou hast bought us,
Thine we are.