Another Counselor, that he may be with you forever
3 Wise men were led by the star
Christian life is one which is led by faith as the wise men were led by a star. The Lord is guiding AOJ by giving new revelations. Jan-March inheriting the Churches!
Mat 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
When Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem the wise men came from the east to worship Him. A star was leading them towards their destination. When they came into Jerusalem, they went to king Herod to collect the details about Jesus’s birth. When king Herod heard it , he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him.
Why should all Jerusalem go into trouble? Because Jerusalem was ruled by a spirit which opposes Christ, & it worked through Herod the king. The news of the birth of Jesus Christ brought trouble to it.
When the wise men stepped into the unauthorised arena, the star disappeared. The wise men were misled in flesh and thought that the new king (Jesus Christ) would have born in Jerusalem in the king’s palace. Look at their words:
Mat 2:2 “Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.”
Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared. He led them astray.
Mat 2:9 They, having heard the king, went their way; and behold, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, until it came and stood over where the young child was.
When they came out of the palace, again they saw the star and rejoiced.
Dear soldiers of Jesus Christ,
When we accept Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Redeemer, He is born inside of us. This star, the Son of Righteousness will start leading us towards our destination. In case you happen to enter into an unauthorized area, the star would disappear. We will end up in darkness and danger.
Have you ever met with such situations?
It is said “they went their way”.
They did not even realize that they had gone to a wrong place!
Now when the wise men had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.”
Until this happened, the wise men would not have realized the wrong they did in going to Herod’s palace and giving the right information to the wrong person.
They would have apologized with God when they came to know the further incidents.
Mat 2:16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men.
The approximate number of children killed in Bethlehem and in its vicinity is 14,000 according to historical statistics.
We should be cautious about passing even the right information to wrong people. It may bring havocs in the life of innocent people.
This is where we need the perpetual guidance of the Holy Spirit.
In the prayer which Jesus Christ taught to us there are two clauses, “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”
We should understand the seriousness of this prayer from this context.
Jesus has promised us a comforter who will be with us forever and who will guide us towards truth .
Joh 14:16-17 I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever: the Spirit of truth, whom the world can’t receive; for it doesn’t see him, neither knows him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you.
Let us seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit every moment in our lives.
Another incident we read in the New Testament about the Spirit of the Lord leading a eunuch who was on his journey from Ethiopia.
Act 8:39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, and the eunuch didn’t see him any more, for he went on his way rejoicing.
Acts 8:26-40 gives a picturesque description of how Philip, the disciple of Jesus Christ was used to share Gospel with a eunuch and finally baptized him. The whole process happened within a few hours of their journey together. The most dramatic part of it is the appearance and disappearance of Philip in this incident . The Holy Spirit used him miraculously.
Act 8:26-27 But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Arise, and go toward the south to the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is a desert.” He arose and went; and behold, there was a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasure, who had come to Jerusalem to worship.
We all know the fact that the Jerusalem temple had 3 portions, The Courtyard, Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. But no portion among these can accommodate a non Jew like the above eunuch. This eunuch knowing, all the rules of the temple has travelled all the way from Gaza to Jerusalem, (May be even from Ethiopia). He was returning from Jerusalem to Gaza.
The distance between Jerusalem and Gaza is approximately 80 km (50 miles). Given that he was on a desert road and likely travelled by camel or chariot, it is hard to estimate the exact time taken, but it is roughly a 2-3 day journey one way. Knowing that he can not even get entry into the lowest portion of the temple, this man has taken up a round trip journey of 5-6 days. That was the thirst in him to worship the Lord.
Isa 44:3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and streams on the dry ground. Joh 7:37-39; Rev 21:6, Rev 22:17
How much thirst do we have to worship the Lord? We can make a self examination.
The following verses (29-40) are the narration of how the Lord rewarded him and poured His Spirit upon him.
Act 8:39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, and the eunuch didn’t see him any more, for he went on his way rejoicing.
After baptism, the eunuch did not see Philip any more, but he went on his way rejoicing.
The word “Rejoicing” is noteworthy. Today the Institutional Churches teach the believers wrongly that they have to sit with the pastor/priest inside the Church after receiving baptism. The Bible vehemently contradicts this statement. After baptism, Philip did not stay even for one day with the eunuch. And the eunuch was going to a nation where there is no one to teach him anything about baptism or biblical truths. But “He went on his way rejoicing.“
He did not even bother about the baptism giver. He would not have searched Philip after that and Philip also would have forgotten this incident. He would have never thought of going back to the eunuch or requesting some funds for constructing any Church building since he was the Finance Minister of the Nation.
Can a believer of today’s Church rejoice if he is left with a group of non believers, immediately after baptism with no believer or Pastor? They are taught just the opposite. They have to be regular in Church Sunday service, very regular in giving tithe, and attending all the activities of the Church and so on..
The eunuch rejoiced over all that happened in his life. There was no need of a Pastor to teach him anything about the duties of Christian living. Because the “Teacher of all the Bible Teachers” came unto him .
1Jn 2:27 As for you, the anointing which you received from him remains in you, and you don’t need for anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it taught you, you will remain in him.
For one who remains in the anointing, there is no need of an outside teacher. The eunuch would have been the only believer in his whole nation. We can believe that this eunuch would have been the first evangelist for the whole of Ethiopia.
After reaching his country, he would have shared all that happened in his life and he would have gained many disciples for Jesus Christ. The rejoicing would have lasted throughout his life because it was not dependent on the presence of a Church gathering, or on the accessibility to a Church Pastor: Rather it came from within; From carrying Jesus in his heart. Giving his heart to Jesus and inviting Him to abide with him.
Let us be guided by the Holy Spirit. Let’s concentrate on our target this month, Inheriting Churches!
Where to go, what to do will be guided by he Holy Spirit! Let’s inherit all the Churches in India by March 2026!
Sr. Angelica