Issue 15 - Spring 2021

Living Messages
For Family Life and Christian Living
Issue #15
SPRING
2021
• IN THIS ISSUE •
THE BLESSINGS OF REAL WORSHIP
IS YOUR CHURCH A SOUL-WINNING CHURCH?
OUR GREATEST ENEMY
THE LIFE OF THE MANNA
Photo: courtesy of John Tobin

Dear Friends,
Did you ever feel that you were
being petty or foolish when you asked
for something small in prayer? Did
you ever wonder if you should not
bother God with small insignificant
prayer requests?
The apostle Paul told the
Thessalonians to “Pray without
ceasing.” That’s all the time! He also
told the Philippians: “In everything
by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your requests be made
known to God.” In other words, he is
telling them and us to PRAY ABOUT
EVERYTHING! Not just the big things!
Not just when the bottom falls out!
But pray ALL THE TIME AND PRAY
ABOUT EVERYTHING!
Satan loves it when you rush
through your prayer time. He loves
it when you are just too busy to
pray! However, as someone has said,
“Satan trembles when he sees the
weakest saint upon his knees!” Samuel
Chadwick said, “The one concern of
the devil is to keep Christians from
praying. He fears nothing from
prayer-less studies, prayer-less work,
and prayer-less religion. He laughs at
our toil, mocks at our wisdom, BUT HE
TREMBLES WHEN WE PRAY!”
Prayer has been chosen by God
as a means of us having a part in
seeing the will of God brought to pass
in our lives and in the lives of others.
Through prayer, we become partners
and co-workers with God.
“Therefore I say unto you, what
things you desire, when you pray,
believe that you receive them, and you
shall have them.” (Mark 11:24) It is
time to become specific in our prayers.
When you go to a restaurant and
look at a menu, if you know that the
restaurant has what you want, and
you know that they want to sell it to
you, then you can just ask for it and
expect to receive it. When we come to
God and look at His menu, the Word of
God, we try to find out His will for us.
If we don’t get everything we
ask for, there may be some unknown
factors that prevent us from receiving
our answer to prayer. We may not
have the right understanding of the
complete will of God, in accordance
to His perfect timing. We can pray
with expectancy, however, even as
we, sometimes, still have to pray, “if
it be Thy will.” It is God’s will for you
to pray throughout every day. It Is
God’s will for you to PRAY ABOUT
EVERYTHING!
May God bless you and yours!
Phil Cannistraci
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GOD'S WILL FIRST
"After we have made our requests
known to Him, our language should
be, ‘Thy will be done.’
I would a thousand times rather
that God’s will should be done than
my own.”
D.L. Moody
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THE BLESSINGS OF REAL WORSHIP?
CAN A TIME OF “PRAISE AND WORSHIP” BE “REAL WORSHIP?”
Wherever you attend church, the first
part of the service, which usually lasts from
ten minutes to a half hour or more, is called
“WORSHIP.” There may be a short prayer
before or after this “worship time”, however,
in most churches, this time consists mainly
of singing “praise choruses” and sometimes
even a hymn.
This time is led by a “worship leader”
or “a praise team”, and accompanied by
guitars, piano or keyboard, and drums. If
those that attend enjoy and participate in
the music and singing, then it is usually
considered “a good time of worship.” Much
depends on the musical perference of the
“worshipper.” Teenagers, and even those
into middle-age, usually prefer the typical
"praise songs" of most churches. Those who
are over sixty years of age, usually prefer
many of the traditional hymns or older
choruses that they are familiar with.
IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH
Jesus told the woman at the well:
“And they that worship Him must worship
Him in SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH”. (John 4:24)
What did Jesus mean when He said “in spirit
and in truth?” Jesus said, “My Words…
are spirit and they are life.” (John 6:63)
Therefore, we need God’s Word in
order to worship in Spirit. Jesus also said in
John 17:17, “Thy Word is truth.” Therefore,
we need God’s Word in order to worship in
truth. God’s Word is SPIRIT AND TRUTH.
To worship in spirit and in truth, your
heart and life must be in submission to and
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in obedience to the Word of God. Only the
Holy Spirit and the Word of God combined
in the heart of a believer will produce REAL
WORSHIP.
REVERENCE FOR GOD
When I was a boy, our family
attended a church that had a practice of
being quiet when they entered the church
sanctuary. Some would just sit quietly.
Some would bow in prayer. Some would
even be kneeling at the altar in prayer. They
practiced reverence for God and for God’s
house. They considered the church service a
holy time to meet with a holy God.
In order to experience REAL WORSHIP,
we must, first of all, have reverence for
God. A. W. Tozer, one of the most respected
authors of Christendom wrote: “The
greatest loss in the church today is the loss
of reverence for God Himself.”
SEEING THE LORD
But what will give us reverence for
God and what will help us to get right with
God? We need to see the Lord through
reading and hearing God speak to our
hearts through His Word. Have you seen the
Lord lately in His Word and in His presence?
When Isaiah saw the Lord in all His
glory, he was caught away in worship.
(Isaiah 6:1-8) In verse 5 Isaiah said, “Then
said I, Woe is me! For I am undone because I
am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the
midst of a people of unclean lips. For mine
eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”
We, also, will experience spiritual worship
by seeing the Lord as we read, study,
meditate upon, and obey His Word.
SEEING OURSELVES
We will also experience REAL
WORSHIP by seeing ourselves as God sees
us in all our sinfulness. Many years ago,
I was praying and I asked God, “Lord, let
me see myself as you see me, not as others
see me.” It was as if a curtain was rolled
away and I saw too much of my spiritual
inconsistencies, my fleshly ways, and
prideful motives. I have never wept so much
before or since. I found myself in a spirit of
brokenness and REAL WORSHIP.
HERE AM I, LORD, SEND ME
Notice, after Isaiah was humbled by
seeing the Lord, he experienced a cleansing
and then a willingness and a readiness to be
a true servant of the Lord by saying “Lord,
send me!” You will not experience REAL
WORSHIP until you have been humbled, by
seeing yourself and your sinfulness, through
seeing God and His holiness in the Word.
If that really happens under the
conviction of the Holy Spirit,then you, like
Isaiah, will experience REAL WORSHIP. You
will experience a cleansing, along with
being willing and ready to be a true servant
of the Lord. You will say to the Lord: “Here
am I, Lord, send me!” That is all included in
the blessings of REAL WORSHIP.
REAL WORSHIP
Isaiah was burdened for God’s People.
Are you burdened for God’s people? You can
read your Bible everyday. But if you are just
a hearer of the Word and not a doer of the
Word, your worship has been in vain. You
will NOT experience REAL WORSHIP unless
you are obeying the Lord and are burdened
for others.
Are you motivated to serve God
just because He is God? Or, is your mind
occupied with your needs? Do you praise
God only when He blesses you by answering
your prayers? A life of worship transcends
all prayer and praise. True worship of
the King of Kings is a fully devoted and
surrendered subject who is motivated and
satisfied by bringing glory to the King!
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God would have each of us learn
how to practice repenting of our sins of
complaining and un-thankfulness and learn
how to worship God in the face of difficult
circumstances in our lives. We must learn
how to worship God and live for God even
when the chips are down and we don’t even
feel like being happy! That’s REAL WORSHIP!
Let’s feed daily on God’s Word! Let’s
see God and His love for us in His Word!
Let’s see our need for God in His Word! Let’s
get right with God! Let’s gain a reverence
for God! Let’s gain a burden for our own
sinful condition! Let’s gain a burden for the
sinful condition of other Christians! Let’s
gain a burden for the unsaved!
Let us, like Isaiah, experience REAL
WORSHIP and say, as he said, “Here am I,
Lord, send me!” THAT’S REAL WORSHIP!!!
Therefore, if you put this message
into daily practice, you will enter your
church with REAL WORSHIP in your heart
and you will be able to WORSHIP during a
time of “praise” even if you don’t like the
music!
The beautiful old hymn “Draw Me
Nearer” says it best: “I am Thine, O Lord…
consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
by the power of grace divine; Let my soul
look up with a steadfast hope AND MY
WILL BE LOST IN THINE!”
WHAT A WONDERFUL PRAYER OF REAL
WORSHIP!!! P.C.
IS YOUR CHURCH…A SOUL-WINNING CHURCH?
IS YOUR CHURCH AN EFFECTIVE GOSPEL PREACHING AND
EFFECTIVE SOUL-WINNING CHURCH?
THE GREAT COMMISSION
Before leaving this earth, Jesus gave
the great commission to his disciples. In
Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus was declaring
to His disciples and to us that He has all
power and authority in Heaven and Earth,
therefore, he is sending us with the power
of the Holy Spirit, as His representatives,
to do His work in this world. It is God’s will
for every church, including your church, to
bring the gospel to everyone, everywhere.
A GOSPEL-PREACHING CHURCH
However, He is not just sending us
but He is equipping us and giving us His
authority and the power of the Holy Spirit
to accomplish this GREAT COMMISSION!
He has called us to be A SOUL-WINNING
CHURCH! For us to become a more effective
SOUL-WINNING CHURCH, we must, first
of all, become a more effective GOSPEL-
PREACHING CHURCH.
Romans 10:14-15 says, “How shall
they hear without a preacher and how shall
they preach except they be sent?” We send
missionaries to all parts of the world, but
in John 20:21, Jesus says to us also, “As My
Father hath sent me, EVEN SO SEND I YOU!”
Every one of us is called to be a witness of
the gospel to as many people as possible.
THE PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL
Let’s, first of all, consider and realize
THE PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL. In Luke 4:18-
19, the purpose of the gospel is to bring
salvation and hope to the poor; to heal the
broken hearted; to bring deliverance to
the captives of sin; to bring healing to the
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blind” so that they will see their sin and
see the Savior of their sin; to bring liberty
to those that are hurt and suffering in sin
and shame; and proclaiming that a time of
freedom and deliverance is now ready for all
mankind. This is the PURPOSE of the gospel.
THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL
Secondly, we need to realize THE
POWER OF THE GOSPEL. God wants us to
move on from being just a gospel preaching
church and become A SOUL-WINNING
CHURCH. God wants us to BECOME HIS
WITNESSES. How can we be sure that we
have enough power and ability to be A
SOUL-WINNING CHURCH?
Acts 1:8 says, “But ye shall receive
POWER after that the Holy Ghost is come
upon you.” I want you to take notice that
this is not just a command to the church but
to each one of us as believers. If you have
been genuinely saved then you also have
the power of the Holy Spirit TO WITNESS TO
THE UNSAVED.
As Christians, we have the Word of
God in our hearts and lives and we have
the Holy Spirit dwelling in us and with us.
Therefore, we have THE POWER OF THE
GOSPEL.
Paul said in Romans 1:15-16 that
the gospel was “the power of God unto
salvation.” To the Romans, power was
everything. But Rome was a wicked city.
Paul was not ashamed of the gospel. He
knew that it had power to change the
sinners of Rome. Are you ashamed of the
gospel? If the gospel has changed your life
then you should not be ashamed of it. The
gospel can change the worst person you
know!
The Holy Spirit may use many means
of bringing a person to a place of receptivity
toward receiving the gospel, but it is the
GOSPEL, ITSELF, that is the “power of God
unto salvation!” There is POWER IN THE
GOSPEL!! What is the Gospel? The gospel
is the GOOD NEWS OF THE DEATH, BURIAL,
AND, THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS ON OUR
BEHALF. The gospel is the power of God,
which brings us salvation.
WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
You might ask me at this point,
“Why don’t we see more people being
saved through our church?” Let me ask you
something, how many people have you
invited to church lately? How many gospel
tracts have you given out in the last week or
month?
Our first mission field after we are
saved is to find or reach out to our own
family and TELL THEM ABOUT JESUS.
Statistics reveal how people come to the
Lord: Advertising 2%; Pastor 6%; Church
visitation team 6%; FRIENDS AND RELATIVES
86%!!!
THE EARLY CHURCH
Could it be that we do not realize, THE
FULL POWER OF THE GOSPEL? The church
in Jerusalem started out with about the
same amount of people as most churches
of today, 120. That’s what they had in the
Jerusalem church on the day of Pentecost.
That church didn’t stay small however.
The church was filled with the Holy Spirit,
that’s the first requirement. Then the
apostle Peter preached the gospel and the
result was a great revival and a growing
church.
In Acts 2:41, we find that this church
went from 120 members to 3,120 members
in one day all because of THE POWER OF THE
GOSPEL. People were getting saved every
day and the church kept growing. In Acts
2:47 we read: “And the Lord added to the
church daily such as should be saved.”
Acts 4:4 records more unusual
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growth when 5,000 more were saved. It
was a Jewish custom to mention only men
as heads of households. There were about
5,000. This meant that there were also about
5,000 women and at least 10,000 to 15,000
children. This means that there were about
25,000 in the church with the population of
Jerusalem at that time about 200,000.
Then in Acts 5:l4 we read that
“multitudes” were being saved. Imagine,
the Jerusalem church was at approximately
25,000 in number already. Now “multitudes”
were being added to the church.
AFTER 7 YEARS = 100,000 CHURCH
MEMBERS
History tells us that by the end of the
first seven years, this church in Jerusalem,
which met mostly in homes, exceeded
100,000!
Imagine! Half of the population saved
and serving God!! This was the result of THE
POWER OF THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL
BY THE MINISTRY OF THE CHURCH AND
THROUGH THE WITNESS OF ITS MEMBERS.
Could your church be instrumental in seeing
half of the population in your area saved
and ready for Heaven? Yes, it can happen if
we really want it to and if we are willing, as
a church, to give our hearts to it. What an
amazing potential we have as a church!
THE PLAN OF THE GOSPEL
Not only do we need to realize THE
PURPOSE OF THE GOSPEL AND THE POWER
OF THE GOSPEL, but we also need to realize
THE PLAN OF THE GOSPEL.
We need to obey the command of
Acts 1:8: “But you shall receive power after
that the Holy Spirit is come upon you.”
Notice the rest of verse 8: “...and ye shall be
witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and
in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the
uttermost part of the earth.” Thus we have
THE PLAN OF THE GOSPEL.
YOUR JERUSALEM
For your church, your “Jerusalem”
would be your family, your fellow students,
your fellow workers, and your neighbors
in your community where you live. Your
“Judea” would be the surrounding areas of
your section of your state.
YOUR SAMARIA
Your “Samaria” would be the missions
in the United States, which your church may
support regularly.
YOUR UTTERMOST PARTS
Your “uttermost part of the earth”
would be those missions your church
may support on foreign soil. You support
those missions through your offerings and
prayers. The Church of Jerusalem was a
witness in Jerusalem then in all Judea, then
in all Samaria and then in the uttermost
parts of the earth!!
NOW’S THE TIME
If we are to become a soul-winning
church, now’s the time that we must get on
fire for God! If we have been spiritually lazy
and indifferent then it’s about time that
we repent of it. It’s time to repent of being
too shy and ashamed to speak up for Jesus.
It’s time to come out of hibernation and no
longer isolate our selves from the unsaved.
It’s time to do it in any way you can! It’s time
to tell others what Jesus means to us! It’s
time to become a witness!
We may not get the chance to give our
testimony or we may not be bold enough
to give our testimony but we can exercise
ourselves in handing someone a tract or
perhaps just start off with offering them a
Daily Bread devotional then also a tract if
we will be seeing that person from time to
time. How about writing your testimony
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and making copies to give to your relatives
and friends?
How about inviting a neighbor to
church? How about picking them up to ride
with you? How about sitting with them in
church? How about praying for them and
with them? How about bringing them over
your house for lunch?? How about calling
them during the week to see how things are
going with them?
ARE YOU READY?
Are you ready to become a missionary
and a witness by taking a stand for Christ
among your relatives and friends? Are you
ready to take a stand for Christ among your
schoolmates or your fellow workers ?
If you are not saved, then you can
make the most important decision of your
life. You have the opportunity to accept the
good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It will change your life. You can
come to Jesus as a sinner and ask for the
forgiveness of your sins. He will give you
forgiveness and will fill your heart and life
with His Holy Spirit. You will have a new life
in Christ Jesus. Invite Jesus into your heart
today.
In order for us to be in God’s will and
to be doing what is expected of us before
the Lord, your church must be a church of
Christians that are GROWING SPIRITUALLY.
We must be Christians that are actively
involved in some ministry of our church.
Lastly, God is calling your church to be a
powerful lighthouse in your town or city, in
your part of your state, in other parts of the
United States, and even to the uttermost
parts of the Earth!!!
YOUR CHURCH MUST BECOME “A
MORE EFFECTIVE SOUL-WINNING CHURCH!!!
This is all part of the main mission of your
church. Are you actively involved as a part
of the mission of your church? God not only
wants you to be, but He expects you to be,
and He commands you to be!!! May you help
your church to become A SOUL-WINNING
CHURCH! P. C.
ARE YOU AWARE OF OUR GREATEST ENEMY?
We are in a war! If you are a Christian,
then you are in a spiritual battle. You may
not be aware of it, but Satan (the Devil)
and a host of demon spirits are just waiting
for the chance to make you falter in your
Christian walk.
Satan, the Devil, is out to destroy your
spiritual life, your marriage, or your family.
Jesus said, “The thief (Satan or the Devil)
cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy: I am come that they might
have life, and that they might have it more
abundantly.” (John 10:10)
Yes, Satan’s purpose is to steal, kill,
and destroy what we have in Christ. If he
is successful, then you will be the loser
and he will be the victor. But, you say,
the Devil has already been defeated at
Calvary. Yes, that is a wonderful truth and a
glorious revelation. We must start with that
assurance before we go out to battle with
Satan. However, as we continue on in our
Christian life, our salvation is proven only as
we continue to abide in Christ and endure to
the end.
Likewise, the victory over Satan
continues to be ours and is worked out in
our lives, only on condition that we learn to
resist the Devil and submit ourselves to God
in all things.
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HE STEALS THE WORD OF GOD
In Luke 8 we read about the sower
and the seed. The seed is sown on different
types of ground. In verse 12, we read about
the seed that was sown by the wayside:
“Those by the way side are they that hear,
then cometh the devil, and taketh away the
Word out of their hearts, lest they should
believe and be saved.”
Notice that the Devil has the ability to
take the Word of God out of a person’s heart
and keep them from being saved. Though it
is speaking about the unsaved, the principle
still holds true in the life of the Christian.
Satan had no power over the seed which fell
on good ground which was those that had “a
good and honest heart.”
Likewise, if our hearts are not fully
prepared to do the Lord’s will above our own will,
then we will find that we will be only “hearers” of
the Word, but not “doers” of the Word.
May the Lord help us to realize the urgent
necessity of seeking the Lord with all of our hearts.
How we need to hide the Word in our hearts: “Thy
Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin
against Thee.” (Psalm 119:11)
AN ACTIVE WARFARE
In Ephesians 6:11-13, we are admonished
to: “Put on the whole armor of God, that you
may be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil.
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities, against powers, against the
rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places. Wherefore, take unto
you the whole armor of God, that you may be able
to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand.”
It is not enough to think that because “the
battle is the Lord’s,” then we can just sit back and
relax. No, these scriptures show us that we need
to “put on” the armor of God in order “to stand”
against the wiles of the Devil.
Always remember this one thing: If you
are not a threat to the kingdom of Satan in your
life and in the lives of others, then you will not
be bothered much by Satan. He already has you
where he wants you. You are already defeated.
We must constantly use the shield of faith in
our warfare: “Above all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery
darts of the wicked.” (Ephesians 6:16)
A ROARING LION
“Be sober, be vigilant, because your
adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walks
about, seeking whom he may devour. Whom
resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same
afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that
are in the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)
Yes, he is out to devour you in any way
that he can. You may not always be aware of his
presence and may not “hear his roar,” but when
he “roars” and attacks you, it will be when you are
unaware of his presence and tactics.
Therefore, we need to be aware of
OUR GREATEST ENEMY. What kind of a
soldier would we be if we could not identify and
distinguish the presence of the enemy?
DISCONTENTMENT
In Acts 5:1-4, when Ananias and Sapphira
lied to Peter, Peter asked them, “Why has SATAN
filled your heart to lie to the Holy Ghost…why has
thou conceived this thing in your heart? Thou has
not lied to men but unto God.” The same was true
with Judas when Satan entered into him. (John
13:27)
In other words, how did Satan gain
entrance into their hearts? Why was Satan able
to enter the hearts of these three? The same
condition is evident. They were discontent.
When we become discontent with anything or
anybody, we are being unthankful. This is a direct
disobedience to the Word of God, to be thankful
in all things. When we are unthankful, we open
the door for Satan to lead us astray. Very often,
murmuring and complaining is the first step in
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drifting away from God.
ACCUSER OF THE BRETHREN
In Revelation 12:10, we read of Satan being
the accuser of the brethren. There is a danger as
one begins to drift away from God, of becoming
critical of a fellow Christian. When this happens,
the accuser of the brethren, Satan, enters into one’s
thoughts and gives a very strong case against the
other Christian. He provides the critical one with
evil conclusions regarding that person.
Satan is out to destroy your home and your
church life. He is happy when, instead of you
saying “my church” because things looks good to
you, and you say “that church” or “they” because
you are critical of “them.”
JEALOUSY
Another way that Satan can produce
discontentment is to get a Christian to submit to
a spirit of jealousy. A mother came to Jesus to
ask for her two sons to be seated with Jesus on
His throne, one on the left and one on the right.
(Mathew 20:20,21) There is a common desire of
the flesh to be great or have a high position. In the
kingdom of God we must learn to be a “servant” in
order to find “greatness.”
DESTROYING THE DESTROYER
“He that commits sin is of the Devil, for the
Devil sins from the beginning. For this purpose
the Son of God was manifested, that He might
destroy the works of the Devil.” (1 John 3:8) Jesus
came that we “might have life and have it more
abundantly.” (John 10:10)
How can we overcome Satan so that victory
will be ours continuously in all situations? We are
admonished in James 4:7: “Submit yourselves
therefore to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee
from you.” How can we effectively resist him?
First, we must “put on the whole armor of
God.” (Ephesians 6) We must “stand” and have
“our loins girt about with truth” by eating and
digesting the truth of God’s Word.
We need the “breastplate of righteousness.”
Our heart must be protected from all
unrighteousness by a breastplate or shield so that
evil will not enter our hearts. Our feet should
be “shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace.” We should be prepared ahead of time to
walk always in the ways of peace. We should “live
peaceably with all men as we are able.” (Romans
12:18)
The “shield of faith” protects us from evil.
Satan is powerless against a shield of faith. We
need to maintain our confidence in God and in His
promises.
We need “the helmet of salvation” as we
renew our minds in accordance with the Word of
God, day by day.
Take and use the “sword of the Spirit.” We
must get into the Word so that we can use it in
our warfare. Jesus resisted Satan when He was
tempted and said: “it is written.”
The 18 th verse of Ephesians 6 ends by
saying, “praying with all prayer and supplication
in the Spirit." May God lead us to have “spirit-led
prayer.”
Yes, we can walk victoriously over all the
power of Satan, OUR GREATEST ENEMY, who
was defeated by Jesus at Calvary. Let us earnestly
walk in that victory that Jesus has won for us. “If
God be for us, who shall be against us.” “We are
more than conquerors through Him that loved us!”
(Romans 8:31,37) Amen! P.C.
MEN, NOT MACHINES
"Some say, 'If God loves me, why does
He not make me good?'...
He does not want machines or slaves.
He could break our stubborn hearts,
but He wants to draw us toward
Himself by the cords of love.”
D.L. Moody
-10-

THE LIFE OF THE MANNA
GETTING FOOD FROM THE BIBLE
Jesus is the manna from Heaven.
(John 6:48-51) He is also called the Word.
He was the Word made flesh. (John 1:14) He
is the sustainer of all spiritual life. His life
was given for all men but not all men receive
Him.
How can a Christian continue to
receive life from Christ? Obviously, it is
through partaking of Him. Isn’t it sufficient
to just “read the Bible?” Many Christians
lack the full realization that Jesus is THE
LIVING WORD. Apart from the quickening of
the Holy Spirit, the Word of God has no life
or power: “…the letter kills but the Spirit
gives life.” (2 Corinthians 3:6)
The children of Israel were instructed
to gather a certain amount of manna for
each day. (Exodus 16:14-21, 35) They were
told to eat each day’s portion before the
next morning. Any that wasn’t eaten by
morning would turn foul or rotten. Notice
that they couldn’t gather anymore than the
amount that they were told to eat because
it would be rotten by the next morning
anyway.
Notice the pattern by which they
received strength and health. They first
gathered the amount of manna that the
Lord instructed them to, they ate it before
it turned foul the next morning, and finally,
they received strength for their life from the
manna.
They gathered the manna, they ate
it, and they were strengthened. This is the
pattern for us also. We must: Read the
Word of God as He leads us to (GATHER THE
MANNA). We must fully receive it and allow
the Holy Spirit to quicken it to us and place
it in our hearts (EAT THE MANNA). Then we
will be receiving strength or life from the
Word and are actually partaking of Christ.
MANNA: Gathering plus Eating =
Strength and Life
CHRIST: Reading plus Hearing = Faith
(Spiritual Strength and Life)
“Faith comes by hearing and hearing by
the Word of God.” (Romans 10:17)
If the Israelites only GATHERED
the manna and didn’t EAT it they would
have suffered from malnutrition. If we,
as Christians, just READ the Bible and do
not HEAR it truly speaking to our hearts
(HEARING) by the Holy Spirit, we, also, will
suffer from spiritual malnutrition.
Indeed, then all that we read will
just turn foul as the manna did because it
wasn’t eaten. This is evident today in some
church circles where men have established
doctrines according to the letter of the
law. They read the Word and just carnally
interpret it without Hearing from the Holy
Spirit. (I Corinthians 2:14) So reading the
Word without hearing by the Holy Spirit
brings forth the letter of the law only:
“The letter kills but the Spirit gives life.” (2
Corinthians 3:6)
“Let him that has an ear to hear,
let him hear what the Spirit says to the
churches.” (Revelation 3:22) Remember:
“The best part of prayer is hearing God
speak back to you through His Word.” P.C.
(This message was one of my first messages
written in 1968, when I was 25 years young!
P.C.)
-11-

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