Ecclesiastes 12:13
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.
INSIGHT
-King Solomon the author of this book, having been adorned with wisdom came to an interesting conclusion, to define the purpose of all mankind. As a king, he had it all, wisdom, wealth, fame, women, power, but came to the realization that all is vanity. In the first verse of Ecclesiastes 12, we see an exhortation to the youth who are called to remember the Creator, and avoid the pleasures that are natural during this age. Before one knows it, age has started catching up and the body becomes frail day by day. The last verse of Ecclesiastes 12, reveals of the judgement that will be pegged on our deeds whether hidden or visible, good or evil. Therefore the call to remain in the fear of God, and to keep His commandments, which is the foundation of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7). To fear God is an inward worship, reverence, love, trust and devotedness of heart to serve and please God and keep His commandments, which is the evidence of true and genuine fear of God. To keep God’s commandments is not burdensome and demonstrates the love of God (1 John 5:3). Jesus came to fulfill the law and the prophets, and summarize the law into love. If then we believe in Jesus and accept Him into our lives, He empowers us to keep His commandments and fear Him through the help of the Holy Spirit.
PRAYER
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace, we worship You and praise Your holy name. You are the one we praise and adore, we glorify Your holy name. You have empowered us with Your grace to see this day we worship Your holy name. May You heal the hearts of all those who have lost their loved one’s and fill them with Your peace. May You heal all those are sick and suffering among us dear Jesus for by Your stripes we are healed. May You deliver all those who are faced with financial distress by Your powerful right hand merciful Savior. We love You Lord, thank You for loving us first. May You empower all the youth that they may seek You always and do Your will. Our souls wait in silence for You God alone; from You comes our salvation. May You grant all people access to Your gift of salvation, that we remain in You as You are in us. Help us all to fear You and to keep Your commandments dear Jesus. May the light of Your salvation be our guiding truth. May Your blessings be upon us this entire month that we may find favor in all our going out and coming in. May You hear all our prayers and answer our hearts desires according to Your divine will. We worship You and praise Your holy name, now and forever. Amen
Further reading: Deuteronomy 10:12
Genesis 1:28
“God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
INSIGHT
-From the beginning, God’s intention to build a dwelling place for Himself on the earth is seen in the creation of man and woman. Through them, God intended to live and reveal Himself in the world by manifesting His authority(image) and character(likeness), express dominion over the earth, display His indisputable power over the works of darkness, and deliver His mandate through man. Since we belong to God, and whether we live, we live for the Lord and if we die, we die for the Lord (Romans 14:8). God is interested in our lives that He may fulfill His mandate, which is our duty on the earth. It is vital then to notice His mission for our lives, that we may be fruitful, increase in number, and have dominion over every living creature. To succeed in this mission, we need Jesus to take centre stage in our lives, for He is the Vine and we are the branches, and without Him we cannot bear fruit.
PRAYER
Lord Almighty Father, how great are You in all the heavens and earth. Your steadfast love never ceases and Your mercies are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness our Lord and God. You created us in Your image and likeness, how great are You in all the heavens and earth. We praise You our God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ, that we may be fruitful, increase in number and fill the earth, subdue it and rule over every living creature. How great are You in all the heavens and the earth. May You fill us with the knowledge of Your will through all wisdom and understanding that the Holy Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of You Lord, and please You in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, and growing in Your knowledge. Thank You for what You have birthed in our lives and the purpose that You have formed and continue to water in us that we may bear much fruit for the glory of Your name. May You cleanse us with Your precious blood and bless the work of our hands dear Jesus. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now and forever more. Amen
Further reading: John 15:5, Colossians 1:9-10
Ephesians 2:10
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
INSIGHT
-Often times do we ask ourselves, what is our purpose or duty here on earth? Several people make annual plans that they intend to achieve by the end of a certain period, for instance the end of the year. In such instances, these objectives are evaluated right before the Christmas holidays begin. When these objectives are not achieved, some people feel empty and that life is meaningless. Others live on with a vision to accomplish these objectives in the next year. This is the quest to obtain meaning or purpose is life, which may cause some sort of satisfaction. Proverbs 19:21reminds us that, “many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” God has a purpose of each one of us and it is His will that should be prioritized in our lives. One may ask, how do I know God’s purpose for my life or my duty on the earth? Proverbs 20:5 reveals that, “the purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.” God reveals His purposes for our lives through impartation of gifts, talents, visions, dreams and by His word. 1 Corinthians 12:27-31 discloses that, we form the body of Christ, and each one of us is a part of it. Some are apostles, others prophets, teachers, many have the gift of healing, miracles, helps, guidance, performing miracles, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues, etc. It is through the pursuit of purpose and God’s will that ones duty is revealed. Romans 8:28 reminds us that, ..”God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose..” God has a purpose set for each one of us and He orders our steps according to His good pleasure.
PRAYER
Great are Your purposes Oh Lord our God and mighty are Your deeds. Mighty are Your deeds and marvelous are Your works in all the heavens and the earth. Your eyes are open to the ways of all mankind; and You reward each person according to their conduct and as their deeds deserve. May Your merciful kindness and everlasting grace, be ever present in our lives, families and nation to guide us in the way that we should go. May Your purposes be fulfilled in our lives we call on You dear Jesus. Many are the plans in our hearts but it is Your will that prevails, teach us Lord to walk according to Your will. Thank You dear Jesus for the plans You have for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future, we glorify Your holy name. May Your purposes prevail in our lives dear Jesus and may we fulfill our duty hear on earth. May You provide the skills, wisdom and resources that we require to achieve our goals for the glory and honor of Your name. Our Father who art in heaven; hallowed be Your name; Your Kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from evil; for thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory; forever and ever. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 37:23, Jeremiah 32:19
Matthew 6:14-15
“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
INSIGHT
-None of us is perfect and we are all prone to error. The Bible says in Romans 3:23-24, that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Also that, “if we say we have not sinned, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 8-9). We all need the mercy and grace of God. We are reminded that forgiveness is conditional and we need to forgive others their trespasses to obtain forgiveness. As we approach the Christmas festivities, we realize that some people have held grudges against us or we have deliberately refused to forgive those who have offended us. Such grudges cause disunity and lack of inner peace. Therefore, some who have been bestowed the responsibility to provide for their families have absconded their duties and are ranked worse that unbelievers (1 Timothy 5:8). Forgiveness is the act of will and a duty that has been laid upon each one of us. Jesus calls us to forgive one another so that He may forgive our trespasses too. Forgives causes inner healing and peace. We are called to take advantage of the death and resurrection power of Jesus Christ, which forms the foundation of our faith.
PRAYER
Father we thank You for Your eternal blessings and everlasting mercy upon our us. We come to Your throne of grace with boldness that we may obtain mercy and grace to help us in times of need. Grant us the grace to forgive all those who trespassed against us and forgive our trespasses too dear Jesus. We look to You our Lord and Savior, You are our all in all. Thank You for You have forgiven our sins and our lawless acts You will remember no more. Thank You for Your goodness and mercy that You have bestowed us that we may dwell in Your house forever. Silver and gold belongs to You dear Jesus, may You provide for all our needs we humbly beseech You. Our Father who art in heaven; hallowed be Your name; Your Kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from evil; for thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory; forever and ever. Amen
Further reading: Jeremiah 31:34, Daniel 9:9, Ephesians 1:7
Matthew 22:37-40
“Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
INSIGHT
-The commandment of love has been impressed upon us, as it was given to the children of Israel from the beginning. In Deuteronomy 6:4-11, the Lord instructs the Israelites saying, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Further, these instructions were to be impressed upon their children, so that they may inherit the promised land. The commandment of love is the greatest, and it is our duty first to love God, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. 1 Corinthians 13:2 reminds us that despite our gifts and achievements, without love we are nothing.
SUMMARY
The word duty means a task, job, chore, assignment, function, role or concern that we intend or are obligated to accomplish. In the Old Testament, the word duty has been used to bring out an obligatory implication for instance; a mans duty to his wife, priests to the Lord and the people etc. The concept of duty in the New Testament emphasizes service and piety. Jesus says that when a servant has done his best, serving his master, he is only performing his duty (Luke 17:10). The seven deacons who were chosen by the early church were to supervise the daily distribution of food; the apostles turned this responsibility over to them (Acts 6:3). Husbands are told to fulfill their marital duties to their wives (1 Corinthians 7:3). Widows are exhorted to practice piety (1 Timothy 5:4), a duty that reflects pious care for the family. As clearly brought out above, the duty of man is founded in love. Love for God will ensure that we fear Him and keep His commandments (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Love for God and one another is a summary of the whole law and prophets. It is through love that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and calls us to love one another and forgive seventy times seven times. When we forgive others their sins, God will also forgive us our sins (Matthew 6:14-15). Love will also ensure that we perform our duties and purposes as God has prepared for us us to do in advance (Ephesians 2:10). It is through the love of God that we; His children are revealed as creation awaits (Ephesians 2:10), and we are able to become fruitful and have dominion on the earth (Genesis 1:28). Let us then love God and our neighbors as ourselves unconditionally so that we may remain in Christ and bear much fruit as we dwell will Him forever.
PRAYER
We thank You Abba Father for You are good and Your love endures forever. We give thanks to You God of gods, for Your love endures forever. We give thanks to the Lord of lords, for Your love endures forever. You alone does great wonders, Your love endures forever. Only You are great and greatly to be praised. Only You deserve all our worship and praise. Only You deserve to be adored and magnified. You are the King of kings and the Lord of lords, Your love endures forever. Thank You for this far that You brought us and the far that You are taking us, Your love endures forever. We count our blessings and name them one by one. May You heal all our wounds and deliver us from every plan of the enemy. No weapon fashioned against us shall prosper and no word spoken against us shall prevail in Your name Jesus. Thank You for making us victorious in Your love. Thank You being our ever present help in times of trouble. We love You Lord, thank You for loving us first. Shows us Your ways dear Jesus and teach us to love You and our neighbors as ourselves. Thank You for blessing us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. May You bless us abundantly dear Jesus, so that in all things and at all times, having all that we need, we may abound in every good work. May You bless the Love of Christ Foundation, that Your purposes may come to completion through it for the glory and honor of Your name. May You bless us Lord and keep us. May You make Your face to shine upon us and be gracious unto us. May You turn Your countenance upon us and grant us peace. Amen
Further reading: Deuteronomy 6:4-11, 1 John 4:8