Deuteronomy 11:1-32

The beginning of the year is like the beginning of any new venture. It has its hopes, its expectations and often its failures. Let us use the experience of the Israelites as they leave Egypt to teach ourselves what to do in the coming year:

Philippians 2:1-5:

“Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfil my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,” (NKJV)

Soon, it would be Christmas and one  Christmas song that portray the spirit of the season is; “Joy to the World”.  It is one of our family favorites.

A man told me the story I want to share with you today. All his life, even when he was in the Primary School he has had one ambition. It is to be a Minister of the Gospel. So on September 21, 1980, he was ordained a Minister. On his ordination day his father, who also is a Minister of the Gospel gave him a present. It was a gold medal with inscription on both sides. On the one side is written: 

On the other side are inscribed three Bible Verses

• Luke 9:62

• Philippians 1:6

• Revelation 2:10

Let us consider these three verses this afternoon.

Modified from original by Alexander Kiko [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Psalm 150

Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament! Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness! Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!  Praise Him with the tumbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals! Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!

Only humans have the ability to express ourselves by the use of the tongue. Even Angels cannot sing. There is no record in the Scripture of Angels singing. We sing out of two emotions – joy and sorrow. Angels have none of these.

Astrology is the use of astronomical phenomena to predict earthly and human events in terms of an assumed theoretical system. In its earliest form astrology consisted of simple omens that astrologists read from the sky. In its mature form astrology analyses the supposed effects of Sun, Moon, Planets and Stars on the Earth for a specific time and place.

Astrology originated in ancient Babylonia in 409BC and spread from there to China and the West where different but related traditions grew up. In the 12th Century astrology began to prosper in Western Europe. By the end of the 17th Century, however, astrology was considered as a pseudoscience by almost all learned people. Not only was it opposed to the Christian doctrines of divine intervention and human free will, but also the acceptance of a greatly-expanded sun-centred universe, raised doubt about whether the heavens were created to direct changes on the earth.

The astrological column in a Newspaper today is generally based on the sign of the Zodiac in which the Sun was located when a person was born. A simplified form of astrology, it implies that all people born under the same sign anywhere in the world at any time share common characteristics and that their daily activities should be so guided. There is no record to show that the horoscope reading in a paper in Nigeria is exactly the same as in a paper in the USA. Close investigations have shown that even in Nigeria, the reading varies from paper to paper.