Rev J N Manokaran

Lord Jesus taught that the blessed are poor as they shall inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. (Matthew 5: 3) There are many kinds of poor people. Generally, the privileged wish that the poor are not seen or heard; Bartimaeus was silenced as he was poor and blind. (Mark 6:48) Materially poor: Many people are destitute, […]

In the olden days, the pen or enclosure for sheep had circular fencing in the open fields with one door. The shepherd is the door, he lays his body across. (John 10:9) The door of Hope: Humans throughout history saw misery, violence, death, toil, oppression, starvation, and diseases. There was only hopelessness and darkness. The

The tribe of Ephraim was one of the larger tribes that broke away and was almost considered the symbol of rebellion, disloyalty, backsliding, and apostasy. “The Ephraimites, armed with the bow, turned back on the day of battle.” (Psalms 78:9) Asaph laments that they were mentally and spiritually unprepared for the battle. Arena: The Ephraimites

Most of the time, people who are not Christians tell believers: “Do not judge,” quoting the bible. (Luke 6:37) Perhaps this is one of the misinterpreted concepts. There are selfish and proud servants of God, quote this verse to stop those who criticize them. In fact, they arrogate themselves to curse those who question them.

Moses is considered the greatest person on planet earth who gave the Law. Moses commanded the children of Israel to teach their children every day as they sit or walk or lie down or arise; the Lord promised to prolong their days in the Promised Land. (Deuteronomy 32. 46-47; 6:6-7) Apostasy: Though Moses gave the

“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.” (Luke 6:21) A hungry person seeks. They seek with hope to get some food and be satisfied. The single focus of a hungry man is to seek food. In the same way, a spiritually hungry person will have one single focus to know

Joshua Hunt has written a moving article: How I became a pathological liar? (New York Times, 13 July 2022) Being from a poor family, he told lies to mask his poverty in school. He had to invent excuses for not participating in excursions, as he could not afford them. “Observing this etiquette doesn’t feel dishonest

King Ahab who chose Falsehood was aptly misled by prophets who were influenced by lying spirits. (I Kings 22:19-23) Ahab, who reigned for 22 years, continued to provoke the Lord by indulging in false worship like his father Omri. (I Kings 16:33) God gave Ahab the opportunity to know Him and follow him several times:

The process of becoming a disciple is explained by Lord Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of Luke. (Luke 6: 46-49) This parable provides insights for all humans. Lord, Lord: People should come near to the Lord to have an intimate relationship. They should not distance themselves and cry from afar. The Lord invites one

Bnei Brak is the suburb of Tel Aviv city in Israel, where ultra-orthodox Jews live. There was a fire on the Sabbath day, they asked the Rabbi if it was right to call the fire department on the Sabbath day. Before Jewish Rabbi could send his reply – ‘yes’ three apartments were burnt, though there