Date: March 8, 2026 

Key Scripture: Psalm 147:12-14 | Hebrews 11:24-27 

Key Scriptures 

Psalm 147:12-14 "Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion! For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your children within you. He makes peace in your borders, And fills you with the finest wheat." (NKJV) 

Ruth 1:16 "Wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God." (NKJV) 

Proverbs 13:22 "A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous." (NKJV) 

Matthew 10:39 "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it." (NKJV) 

Hebrews 11:24-27 "By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward." (NKJV) 

Isaiah 3:10 "Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they shall eat the fruit of their doings." (NKJV) 

Numbers 11:26 "But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other was Medad." (NKJV) 

Introduction: The Greatest Gift — The Ability to Choose 

We are in the second week of the third month. In Scripture, the number three carries profound significance — on the third day, the Lord Jesus rose up! This is therefore a month of elevation, a month of rising up. What has broken inside you, what has decayed — this is the month of lifting it up. Open your mouth and give glory to Jesus! 

Glory to God. Hallelujah! The greatest gift God has given any person — do you know what it is? The ability to make decisions. Sitting inside this meeting, you can choose whether to sleep or to worship. You can decide whether to receive the Word or not. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord. 

Deuteronomy 30:19 

"I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live." (NKJV) 

God declares: I have given life and death before you — you may choose. Blessing and curse are placed before you — you may choose. Those who choose life today, those who choose blessing, open your mouth and accept the name of Jesus. It is a gift God has given us: the ability to decide how our future should turn out. 

Your decisions determine your future. The future of your generations is determined by the decisions you make today. Even Ruth, a woman of Moab, made a decision for the living God — and her name was written into the very lineage of Jesus. 

Ruth 1:16 — Ruth's Decision 

"Wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God." (NKJV) 

Psalm 147:12-14 — Four Reasons to Shabach the Lord 

In Psalm 147, verse 12, there is a profound call to praise. The Psalms from 145 to 150 are called the Great Hallel — the Jews sing them continuously. If you read those five chapters alone, you will get an encounter with worship that will transform you. In the depth of the Lord, connected to worship, the Holy Spirit will give you an encounter. 

Psalm 147:12-14 

"Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion! For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your children within you. He makes peace in your borders, And fills you with the finest wheat." (NKJV) 

Within verse 12, the word used for "praise" is SHABACH — meaning to make a loud noise unto God. Not a timid, quiet praise, but an audacious celebration! I will Shabach the Lord. I will make a loud noise to God. I will celebrate Him with clapping and shouting. I will glorify my God. It is a decision. Raise your voice — I will Shabach the Lord! 

The second word used in verse 12 is HALAL — we will glorify the Lord. Hallelujah literally comes from this word. Why does the believer praise today? Verse 12 gives us the call, and the following verses give us the reasons. Let us walk through four powerful reasons. 

Reason 1: Protection — He Has Strengthened the Gates (v.13a) 

"He has strengthened the bars of your gates" — this means PROTECTION. Have you ever praised the Lord in the midst of difficulty? In your praise, you will find divine protection. This unveiled God has protected you, and only those who are truly certain will praise the Lord. 

The enemy tried to break you in many ways, and you did not even know it. But if you are seated here today, God has cared for you. It is God's mercy. It is Jesus's love. In the book of Job, even the devil acknowledged it: "Have You not made a hedge around him?" Many times, when the devil tried to break you, when he came in many ways to pluck you apart, God had already put a fence around you! 

A fence has been put around you. Try breaking it — you cannot! Today we are inside the great fortress of the Lord's holy blood. 

Many tried to cast a spell on you. He tried to impose various bonds on you, to break you in many ways. But you are sitting here alive, listening to this message — because God has protected you. I will Shabach unto the Lord! I will praise His name! I will exalt His name! 

Reason 2: Generational Blessing — He Has Blessed Your Children (v.13b) 

"He has blessed your children within you." Praise the Lord! Children — your generations — have been blessed. With you, not far from you. Even if they are geographically distant, God declares: "He has blessed my children within me." It is the greatest joy for fathers and mothers. 

Proverbs 13:22 

"A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous." (NKJV) 

The original translation speaks not just of your immediate children, but of those who will come after them — and after them too! He is the God of generations. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Why do I Shabach and praise with a loud voice? Because He has blessed my generation. Look at someone and tell them: "Your children are blessed. Your children's children are blessed!"

I will Shabach unto the Lord! God has kept my generations safe. He has blessed them. 

Reason 3: Peace — He Makes Peace in Your Borders (v.14a) 

"He makes peace in your borders." Sanity. Balance of mind. Without the mind's balance, we cannot function. This peace is deeply needed in these days. 

I will Shabach unto the Lord — to avoid becoming depressed, to avoid going down in spirit, to prevent a broken heart. The demonic realm that tries to break your mind is being broken today in Jesus' name! The Lord says: "You Shabach unto Me. You praise Me." So that your mind does not go down — I will firmly hold your mind. 

The Lord declares: "I firmly hold your mind." The soundness of your life is restored today! 

Reason 4: Provision — He Fills You with the Finest Wheat (v.14b) 

"And fills you with the finest wheat." Provision! Not just any provision — the finest, the most excellent. When we say the finest wheat, may God give the finest in your life. May you enjoy the finest things of life! 

Look at someone and tell them: "May you enjoy the finest things of life!" 

So we must praise. We must choose life. In the Lord's name, we must choose — and when we praise, we are positioned to receive all four blessings: Protection, Generational Blessing, Peace, and Provision. 

The Three Kinds of Life: Choosing the ZOE 

When God says "choose life," what does that mean? Don't we already have life? The life we have in this physical body is called BIOS — a Greek word for animal life, plant life, and human flesh life. Everyone has bios; there is no need to specifically choose it. 

There is another Greek word: PSUCHE — the mental aspect of life. Life lived with the mind. Tension and thoughts arise. We think and process. Our minds can experience what feels like a nuclear explosion of anxiety. Many people choose psuche life — intellectual, emotional, mental life. 

But when God says to choose, what He is calling us to choose is the God-kind of life — the ZOE. ZOE is the Greek word for the God-kind of life: abundant life, the abundance of abundant life. Life as God Himself lives it. The very life God lives can be yours today! Will you walk in bios life, in psuche life — or in the ZOE of life?

"In the abundance of life, I desire to walk in Jesus. That is what I choose." — It is eternal life, and it is only in Jesus Christ. 

Matthew 10:39 (Amplified) 

"Whoever finds his lower life [bios] will lose it, and whoever loses his lower life on My account will find it — the higher life [ZOE]." (Amplified Bible) 

The Amplified Bible makes this beautifully clear. The bios life will resist — it will say, 'Do not walk in the ZOE. Walk only in me.' But the higher life, the eternal life, the spiritual life — this is what we are called to pursue. For the bios, there is a constant war against the ZOE. 

Mark 8:35 (Amplified) 

"For whoever desires to save his higher, spiritual, eternal life will lose it [the lower natural, temporal life left only on earth], and whoever loses his lower life for My sake and the gospel's will save it — the higher spiritual life in the eternal kingdom of God." (Amplified Bible) 

This is the real Amplified Bible. Where is your bios? Did you live only for this world? Were you tense? Did you walk only in worry? ZOE is saying: eternal life, abundant life, the same life of God is within you! For this, I will bring this bios together with Christ — it is crucified. On a daily basis, I choose to live a ZOE-kind of life, eternal life, to live in Jesus' life. Praise the Lord! 

Moses: Four Choices That Changed History (Hebrews 11:23-27) 

Hebrews 11:24-27 

"By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suf er af liction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible." (NKJV) 

Moses is one of the greatest leaders in all of Scripture — a man who led an entire nation, whose ministry began at forty and who lived until 120! Don't say we can retire at sixty. Retiring at 120 is enough! For him to become this leader and to be used by God — it was all determined by his decisions. Let us examine the four key choices Moses made.

Choice 1: Identity — Knowing Who You Are 

Moses went through three stages of identity. First, his father and mother were slaves — he came from a place of bondage. Second, he was called the son of Pharaoh's daughter — there was a time of adopted identity, of living under Egypt's name. Third, a realization came to him: "I am not the son of Pharaoh's daughter. I am not an Egyptian. I am a Hebrew boy. I have a God in heaven." 

Moses realized: "I am within Abraham's genealogy. I am not a slave; I am God's child. Not to live as the son of Pharaoh's daughter — my life is to live as one among Abraham's generations. That is my life." 

He also understood something remarkable: God had said to Abraham that until the fourth generation, his descendants would be slaves — but in the fourth generation, He would visit them and set them free. When Moses realized he was an Abrahamite, he understood that his generation was the fourth generation. It was a time of deliverance! He had found his identity. 

We need self-awareness! Only when you know who you are can you make a decision. I am God's child. I am not a slave. I am one to receive blessings with God's people. 

Choice 2: Lasting Blessings Over Temporary Pleasures 

"By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin." — He chose the lasting blessings. He decided he did not want the temporary ones. 

Think about what Moses chose to leave behind: a royal palace, the finest food and clothing, the company of Egypt's elite, the name and power of Pharaoh's household. To achieve something excellent, you must be willing to say no to temporary comfort. 

This is the nature of all great decisions. The athlete who trains relentlessly — running extra laps, enduring the coach's demands — chooses to sacrifice temporary comfort for lasting achievement. The student who studies while others play, who sits at their desk while friends are relaxing, has made a decision: "I must choose the lasting blessing." Robin Uthappa, the Indian cricketer, was once offered payasam at a pastor's home and refused — not because he disliked it, but because he had a goal. "I don't want a family pack," he said. "I want a six-pack." That is the nature of choice! 

Say it with me: I must choose the lasting blessing. Not the temporary ones — I must choose the lasting ones! 

Moses saw Egypt for what it was: temporary comfort. There is a club there. There is a palace. He could do anything there. But he declared: "I will not give up my identity. I don't want the temporary things. I am going to stand with God's people. I have a God in heaven."

Choice 3: What God Appoints, Not What the World Appoints 

Hebrews 11:26 

"...esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward." (NKJV) 

There is a throne in Egypt. There is wealth. There is fame. There is a name. There is power. There is a family tomb with a pharaoh's legacy. There are friends. But Moses said: "No — that is not what I choose." He chose what God appointed, not what the world appoints. 

Pastor Rajesh Mathew shared from his own testimony: "At twenty, I went down for the Lord. I chose to follow Jesus. It has been 33 years. Glory — God has given grace for that. God showed mercy. God held my hands. I chose — not of the world, but of Christ." 

Today no one even knows the name of the Pharaoh who reigned in Moses' time. But everyone still knows Moses. Because God is faithful, even after thousands of years, we are still speaking about Moses today. Even if one conquers the whole world and loses his spirit — what is the benefit? 

In the Old Testament, Moses saw God's back as He passed by. But in the New Testament, when Jesus went up the mountain with Peter, John, and James and prayed, Moses was there — speaking face to face with Jesus. That was Moses's ultimate reward. A face-to-face encounter with the Lord! 

Philippians 3:7-10 

"But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suf ered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ...that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suf erings." (NKJV) 

As Paul declared: I count everything that belongs to the world as dust. I count it as rubbish. Christ's death, resurrection, and sufferings — identifying with all of this is the greatest treasure. Therefore, even in holding on to the Scripture, there should be no shame. Even in carrying your Bible, let others see it. Raise your voice to praise the Lord without shame. Pray without shame. Count what belongs to the world as rubbish, and count what belongs to God as excellent!

Choice 4: Faith Over Fear 

Hebrews 11:27 

"By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible." (NKJV) 

In that one verse, two powerful realities collide: fear and faith. And Moses chose faith over fear. He chose not to listen to fear. "Will Pharaoh come after me and kill me?" — he did not fear. He chose faith. He chose faith. He chose faith. 

Come, say it out loud: I choose faith over fear. Not fear — I choose faith! 

There is no need to dwell in fear. "Will this disease heal? Will things break down? Will I not come out of the deep? Will my generation not receive blessing? Will my children not get married?" Such fears that do not exist — do not carry them around. Take all those fears, cast them far away, and say: FAITH. My faith in the Word of God — in Him whom I have believed — I know. 

Isaiah 3:10 

"Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they shall eat the fruit of their doings." (NKJV) 

Looking to Him, they did not become ashamed — their faces were illuminated. Today and tomorrow — if you choose faith, honoring your faith, God will anoint you. 

In Mark chapter 5, the woman with the issue of blood chose faith. "I am going there impure. I have an issue of blood. I am going as one who is unclean. But if I touch Him..." In the midst of that heavy, difficult situation — Jesus was there. The Lord is here. And she chose faith, and healing came. 

From here I am going down — not as a burden, not as a disease, not as a bondage. From here I am going down by heavenly deliverance. From here I am going down with anointing. From here I am going down with breakthrough! 

We need faith that good will come. It will be well with my soul. Say to the righteous — it shall be well. Let us say to those justified by Jesus's blood: IT SHALL BE WELL. Today, glory to God. To you who are justified by Jesus's blood, the Holy Spirit says: it shall be well with you. And all that belongs to you — it shall be well. Praise the Lord!

Eldad and Medad: God Visits You Where You Are (Numbers 11:26) 

In Numbers chapter 11, God spoke to Moses: "Choose seventy people. The anointing I have placed upon you, I will place upon seventy people." Moses immediately gathered seventy people. But when they assembled at the tabernacle, only sixty-eight came. Two had remained in the camp. 

Not only did the anointing come upon the sixty-eight at the tabernacle — the anointing came upon Eldad and Medad in the camp where they were! They were not where they were supposed to be. And yet God visited them there. The Spirit of God rested upon them there. 

Numbers 11:26 

"But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other was Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp." (NKJV) 

Notice what is remarkable: who can tell us the names of the sixty-eight who reached the tabernacle? No one remembers. But the names of the two who did not reach — they are written forever in the Bible. Eldad and Medad. The Holy Spirit preserved their names for eternity. 

When you hear the meaning of those names, you will say them again with new wonder. "Eldad" means: Jehovah Has Loved. "Medad" means: Beloved of God. Glory to God! Those chosen by God — it is because He loves you. You are the Beloved of God. 

Eldad! Medad! God will visit you. You have not yet reached where you are supposed to be — financially, spiritually, materially, in marriage, in business, in your career — but God says: "I will show you grace. I will visit you. I will bless you." 

This is the thought that always torments us: "I have not reached where I should be in life." But where you are, God will do some miracle for you in this season. God's Spirit will come down upon you. The Spirit of God will rest upon you — right where you are. 

Does the Book of Life have your name? Rejoice in it! If the Book of Life exists and it has your name, God will bless it, magnify it, and in some places make it for His glory. He will complete it. The Spirit of Prophecy declares: not only your name — your company, what you represent, your work, the names of all those connected to you — God will glorify them. He will make them known. 

The Lord is about to unleash such a great favour upon you. Your name shall be associated with revival. With breakthrough. Your name is appearing in places of significance — in land registers, on business contracts, in magazines, on screens. God is transforming you into a revival hub. Your light is shining!

Closing: The Decision Is Yours 

Before you leave today — offer your heart. God has given you the greatest gift: the ability to make decisions. You can choose your life. You can choose life. You can choose to praise the Lord. You can choose to pray. You can choose to live right before God. 

How many have chosen heaven? Say it out loud: I choose heaven! You cannot have a divided heart and walk into eternity with God. You must say: I am for Jesus. He chose what God appointed — not what the world appoints. Let us do the same. 

If you decide to live for God — to walk in ZOE life, to praise Him with Shabach, to choose lasting blessings over temporary pleasures, to walk in your true identity, to choose what God appoints, to choose faith over fear — He will surely bless you with heaven. He will bless your generations. He will fill you with the finest wheat. He will make peace in your borders. His protection will surround you like an unbreakable fence. 

I walk by faith. Not fear. Praise the Lord! It shall be well. Say to the righteous — IT SHALL BE WELL! 

Summary & Key Takeaways 

• The Power of Decision: God gave us the greatest gift — the ability to choose our future, our attitude of praise, and the kind of life we will walk in. Your decisions today determine the destiny of your generations. 
• The ZOE Life: God calls us beyond bios (physical life) and psuche (mental life) to ZOE — the God-kind of life, eternal and abundant. This is the life Jesus came to give us (John 10:10), and it is accessed through daily choice. 
• The Four Reasons to Shabach: Psalm 147:12-14 gives us four blessings tied to praise — divine Protection (strengthened gates), Generational Blessing (children within you), Peace (borders secured), and Provision (finest wheat). Praise positions us to receive all four. 
• Moses's Four Choices: Identity (knowing you are God's child, not Pharaoh's son), Lasting over Temporary (enduring sacrifice for eternal reward), God's Appointment over World's Appointment (the reproach of Christ is greater riches), and Faith over Fear (enduring as seeing Him who is invisible). 
• Eldad and Medad: God visits you where you are. Even if you have not yet reached where you feel you should be — spiritually, financially, relationally — God says: 'I will show you grace. I will visit you. I will bless you.' You are Beloved of God. Your name is written in His Book. 

"Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them."