All the way( Hebrews 13 v 16 -18 )

 As I was praying a verse of a hymn came into my mind ,it was written by the blind hymn writer ,Fanny J. Crosby,she was one of the most prolific hymn writers of all time.She became blind when she was only a child , a doctor used the wrong ointment.She never was  bitter about this,and didn't let her blindness hold her back. Many hymns were written out the of hymn writers own experience,and we also can identify with what  she wrote.So here is the verse from  the hymn that came into my mind.

                                                        'All the way my Saviour leads me;

                                                        What have I to ask beside?

                                                         Can I doubt his tender mercy,

                                                         Who through life has been my guide?

                                                          Heavenly peace divinest comfort,

                                                          Here by faith in Him to dwell!

                                                          For I know whate'er befallme,

                                                          Jesus doeth all things well'

I have been following my Saviour for 61yrs ,and I would say amen to those word,for as I look back the most wonderful thing that fills my heart with praise,is my Saviours abiding presence,I have never lost the preciousness of  that reality. The walking with Jesus is a walk of faith,not based on feelings or circumstances. A faith that declares like Fanny that whatever befalls us Jesus makes no mistake but does all things well.

                                                          

                                                      

There is mercy. (Jeremiah 25)

Why did God  punish His people by sending the nation of Babylon (whose king was Nebuchadnezzar  )to defeat and conquer them,most of them would die,awful things would take place,a small number would be spared ,but would go into captivity.In Jeremiah25 the prophet tells us why.v3 'The word of the Lord has come to me and I have spoken to you again and again,but you have not listened. He ministered for forty years  urging them to turn from their evil ways,and evil practices,and if they did mercy would be shown to them.They were to stop following other Gods to stop serving them and worshiping them,other prophets had spoken to them, but to no avail.So God says.But you did not listen to me, and you have aroused my anger,and so they have no one to bame for the judgment that was going to fall upon them.Of all people surely they should have listen to Him but they didn't listen,so God had ,had enough and Judgement would fall.But God is merciful and He promised that  the captivity would only last 70yrs. yes God is merciful to His disobedient children.and to those who are not His children if they forsake their disobedient ways ways.For you who are not Christians there is mercy for you ,even though in the words of Charles Wesley, 'You have long  withstood His grace,Long provked Him to His face,Would not hearkeen to His calls, grieved Him  by a thousand falls'.

                                                      'In seeking mercy we must seek Christ'

                                                                 

He giveth,He taketh away. ( Proverbs 27 v1 )

It was my 81st birthday, and I was talking to a lady,and I mentioned that it was my birthday,I then asked a leading question ,'how old do you think I am? she said 40,she really did, a 81 yr old looking like a 40yr old,marvellous ,then our conversation ended and I put the phone down.I must face facts ,no she was right. So much for my humour now back to reality.Psalm 90 v 10 reads,'Seventy years are given to us!Some even live to eighty. But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble,soon they disappear,and we fly away'Consider the opening words,'Seventy years are given to  us!'who is the one us who gives us this life? God (Genesis 1 v 27/ 1 Timothy  6 v13) In  Ps 90 v 12,we read,'Teach us to number our days,that we may get a heart of wisdom' I would put over those words,teach me to live in the light of eternity.How few think about that,they live as if this is all there is,the fact is it's not,for the Bible tells us,'After death there is Judgement(Hebrews 9 v 27)Our life will soon be ended,our days are numbered and it is God who is doing the numbering.Yes soon we will fly away,but where are are we flying to?is it heaven or is it hell?,The only way to get to heaven is by trusting Jesus,and the only way of escaping hell is by trusting Jesus.

We deserve (Ephesians 2 v 1- 5)

 There is so much that one could say about the faithfulness of God,in Lamentations 3 v 22-23, we read, 'Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for  his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness'These are astonishing word for it is spoken by the prophet Jeremiah standing in the ruins of Jerusalem,the city had been overthrown by Babylon ,many had perished  few had survived.This was a judgement from God on Judah for there sinfulness, CP  Jeremiah 2 v11-13,in Ezekiel 15 ,Jerusalem is called an adulterous wife,this chapter makes grim reading.God sent Prophets to warn them but they just contiued  on their sinful behaviour,They exhausted God's patience and so judgement fell,Habakkuk was amazed that God would use such a dreadful nation to judge His people,but He did. The whole nation deserved to be wiped out for their sinfulness,but God spared a remnant,and for that Jeremiah was grateful,he writes of the Lords Great love,his wonderful compassion,and great faithfulness.What we do not realise is, that God would be justified in destroying every human being on earth,right now.But out of His love,compassion,and faithfulness,He sent Jesus into this world,to redeem a people unto Himself,that if they believe in Him they will not perish,reject Him and they will perish.

                                                 'To God be the Glory! Great things He hath done!

                                                  So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,

                                                   Who yielded His Life an atonement for sin

                                                   And opened the life gate that we may go in.'

                                                                  Words Fanny J. Crosby

Do you fear death? (John 11 v25)

  Winston Churchill was asked if he feared death?,he replied,'I am ready to meet my maker,and added, 'whether my maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter'. Death is that intruder that comes into our lives which we often try to ignor, but as we all know its enevitable,it will happen.What would you say if someone asked you,'are you afraid of death?.' You may be a Christian and you may be afraid of dying,when you shouldn't be afraid,I'm not condemning you for that,the wonderful thing is there are many assurances given to the the Christian,that all will be well .Yes you say I know that, but I'm still afraid,think about this,what has helped you live the Christian life?,  the grace of God.So it is when you come to die He will give the grace that will overcome your fears,you will not have to cope in your own strength,our Lord tell's us that His grace is sufficent for us.But not only will He give us his grace to face death,He will also grant unto us a sense of His presence,we will not face it alone,think of those wonderful words from Psalm 23v 4,'Yea,though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,I will fear no evil; for thou art with me'.So even if you die alone you will not be alone ,the good shepherd the Lord Jesus Christ will be with you.

The word of God.( Matthew 4 v4)

There is a little childrens chorus which goes,' Read your Bible pray everyday,if you want to grow',it is Peter in his first epistle 2 v 2, writes to those who were relatively new Christians,'Like new born babies,you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into the full experience of salvation . Cry out for this nourishment.'The AV says ,'as new born babies,desire the pure milk of the word'. Edmund Clowney writes, 'Christians must be addicted to the Bible',and in relation to being like new born babies Peter writes ,'crave the pure milk of the word',what does a baby desire ,it desires to be fed by its mother milk,and as EC says, 'For an infant,milk is not a fringe benefit'. I love reading the pleasure it gives me knowledge and enjoyment,I have favourite authors,but most of all I love reading the word of God.I remember 60 years ago when Lord restored me,one of the first things I did was to buy a Bible,I have worn out many Bibles since then.The word of God has been my daily bread,I memorised it,studied it, preached it, and sought to live it out in my life. We neglect it to our cost, Hank Williams sang a song called ,'Dust on the Bible'. let us follow what that little childrens chorus tells us,read our bible everyday and we will surely grow spiritually. but I would also add study it,and seek with the help the Holy Spirit to understand what you read.

Hollow man ( Hebrews 11 v 24- 26)

 Edmund Clowney writes  the following,'In contrast with the empty life of 'hollow men',Christians are given faith and hope in God'.I like that phrase,'Hollow men',and yet it is a sad description of humanity,it is from a poem by T S.Eliot ,who paints a very dark futile description of humanities existence.One of the top golfers  earned over a period of time 100, million dollars,I don't think that is necessary wrong,but I cannot help thinking of what are Saviour said.'What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world,yet forfeit their soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for their soul' (Matthew16 v26)Can that wealth ,fame and power bring meaning into ones life?, I don't think so,yet there are millions seeking that wealth and all that comes with it.People fill their lives with many things  like power,sport,sex,Read the book of Ecclesiastes there we have a man who had everything,tried everything and in essences he found it all meaningless. E C writes how Chistians are given  faith and hope,money cannot buy those two things,achievement also cannot give you faith and hope,only God can give you those  two precious jewels.Tell me if everything precious that you have was suddenly taken from you,what would that leave you ,mister hollow man,hollow woman?.

0