Afghan Radio - Sound of Life

We must give all our love to God and not keep back part of it for ourselves. We must love God with all our being--with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. We must give our lives in love for God. God does not want a burnt sacrifice of an animal. Rather he wants us! He wants us to offer ourselves to him as a living sacrifice.

How can we show our love for God? It is easy to say, "I love God", but what does it really mean? To love God means to obey Him. If we do not obey God, we do not love him. Obedience is a testimony and a sign of our love.

Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Syria, sought assurance that God would forgive him if he bowed to Ramon, one of the most important gods of Syria. He was not really going to worship this God. He just wanted to avoid insulting his king. Elisha blessed Naaman without any particular reaction to his words. He simply said, "Go in peace." Naaman’s situation here reflects the problems of new believers who live among unbelievers.

Three young Jewish men—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—loved God with all their hearts and worshiped and honoured Him. It did not matter what the cost was. Their faith and obedience have inspired generations of believers over the centuries.

Since the time of Jesus Christ, thousands of Christians have faced the same choice that these three brave young men faced: preferring death to betrayal of their God. The book of Daniel has much to say to us Afghan Christians.

Christians are called to glorify God in their sufferings, whether they live or die. But remember that suffering for Christ has a great reward. God has promised that after a short time of suffering, He Himself will revive us and make us complete, steadfast, and strong.

True worshipers understand that God is a spirit. God cannot be worshiped outwardly or by any particular ritual in special places. God can be worshiped only in spirit and in truth. This means that a person must worship God in their inmost being. And they must worship God in truth, that is, genuinely and sincerely from the heart and soul. The basic nature of God is spirit. He is a life-giving spirit. It is only with our spirit and souls that we can truly worship God.

Many people have wrong ideas when they pray and worship. They think that they must pray in a special way to receive an answer from God. They think that they should use certain words or pray for a long time or in a certain place. But these conditions are not necessary. God answers our prayers according to our faith, not according to the words or methods we use. Our God is all-knowing.

The good news of the birth of Jesus Christ was first given to the shepherds, that is, to common people. The angel said to them, "I give you good tidings of great joy." That good tidings was the gospel of Christ, the good news of salvation, good news for all people! Salvation is for all people – whether Jew or Gentile. This good news is for all who receive it and believe in Christ.

It is said that man can last a maximum of 40 days without food, 4 days without water and 4 minutes without air. But without any hope we cannot last 4 seconds! There is no life without hope. It is the hope that brings order to human existence. Hope gives purpose to living. As the proverb says, "Hope makes the world go round."

Jesus Christ is the living hope for us believers. This is because through faith in Jesus Christ we have eternal life.

Most scholars believe that originally the New Testament was almost entirely written in Greek, the language of the early manuscripts. But some experts give preference to Aramaic. They believe that the original language of the New Testament was Aramaic. Some biblical scholars also believe that some parts of the New Testament, especially the Gospel of Matthew, have an Aramaic origin.

When we look at the life of Jesus Christ on earth, we realize how humbly and simply he lived. He was completely free of arrogance and selfishness. When he entered Jerusalem, he entered humbly. Jesus Christ did not enter Jerusalem like an earthly king—riding a horse and leading a great army. He came rather riding a donkey, unpretentiously bringing righteousness and salvation. His humility and lowliness tell of his obedience.

Where should we go in tough times and difficult situations? Who should we call on? When we look in the Gospel of Matthew, we see that two blind men called out to Jesus Christ and asked him to give them sight. Although the two men were blind, their spiritual vision was so keen that they recognized Jesus as the Messiah and cried out to him. This incident teaches us to cry out in times of hardship to Jesus, the Messiah. He can turn our despair into hope.