Do not judge. [Matthew 7 v 1-5 ]

I recently saw a Christian  married  friend,sitting at a cafe with another women,the question is were they involved in an illicted affair?.No the bigger question is should I be judging that situation?,the answer is no,we so
often judge others on our prejudices,our narrowness,and condemn then with so little evidence,''That is one of the reasons why our Saviour told us told,not to judge others,CP  Matthew 7 v 1ff, read these very challenging words,''Do not judge''.Our Saviour lived in a very judgemental religious society,that lived by rules and regulations,quick to condemn.CP Mark 2 v 23-27.Michael Green writes,that when it comes to judging,''We can never know the whole story....but God does.And all too often what we condemn in others are the weaknesses we dare not face up to in ourselves.'' A common fault with us who drive, we judge others even though none of us our perfect drivers.Jesus said before we start judging others,we need to first put ourselves right firstCP Luke 6 v41-42.
                                         A  prayer.
Dear God forgive our critical judgemental spirit,you alone are one we should leave judgement to ,help us ,in Jesus name Amen.

Follow Me.[ Matthew 4 v 18- 25 ]

           

                    Come follow Me [Matthew 4 v19]     

                           Will you come and follow Me
                            if  I but call your name?
                           Will you go where you don't know
                           And never be the same?,
                           Will you let My love be shown,
                           Will you let My name be known.
                           Will you let my life be grown in you,
                            And you in me?

                            Will you leave yourself behind
                             if  I but call your name?
                            Will you care for cruel and kind
                            And never be the same?
                            Will you risk the hostile stare,
                            Should your life attract or scare?
                            Will you let  Me answer prayer
                            In you and you in Me?.

                            Will you let the blinded see
                            if  I but call your name?
                            Will you set the prisoners free
                            And never be the same?
                            Will you kiss the leper clean,
                            And admit to what I mean
                            In you and you in Me?

                            Will you love the 'you' you hide
                            if  I but call your name?
                            Will you quell the fear inside
                            And never be the same?
                            Will you use the faith you've found
                            To reshape the world around,
                            Through My sight and touch and sound
                            In  you and you in Me?

                            Lord, Your summons echoes true
                            When You but call my name.
                            Let me turn and follow You
                            And never be the same,
                            In Your company I'll go
                            Where Your love and footsteps show;
                            Thus I'll move and live and grow
                            In You and You in Me.
                            [Words by, G  Maule and
                              J. L. Bell]

John Wycliffe. [ 2 Timothy 3 v 16-17]

John Wycliffe lived in the 14th century,a time when those who were so to
represent the Christian Church,were acting in deplorable ways,especially the so called Popes,along with clergy.The Bible was in Latin,which very few people could read,and so many awful things were introduced into the Church.The result was as Brian Moynahan writes, '' Religion had come to mean the church itself and its traditions''.The leaders of the visible church,
taught so much that was wrong,so much that was not in the scriptures.They
used their power to enrich themselves,yet some of the going on's of the Popes was laughable it had not been so serious.What Wycliffe did was to bring people back to Gods word,he and his followers began teaching truths
from the Bible.Eventually Wycliffe began the task of translating the Bible
into English,which he finally did.This is what he wrote about the Bible, ''The Bible was the highest authority for every Christian,and the standard of faith and all human perfection.All that was in it must be obeyed,.All that was not-the deep patina of lore,ritual,law,hierarchy and dogma,that had built up for more than a thousand- was mere human invention and
superstition.''One of the things he did say was''there was no mention of the
pope in scripture''.
                                       A  prayer,
Dear God help us to hold fast to your word the Bible,that Word which is able to make us wise unto salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen.

The will of God . [Acts 16 v30-31 ]

Recently in part of our country,large hail stones fell which damage property,and some cars windows,it is strange to me having hail in the summer.It reminds me of the one of the plagues in Egypt,it was so severe
that it could have killed,animals and people.There were ten plagues altogether,it need not have been so,if only the Pharaoh had let the children of Israel go,they were virtually prisoners,and used as slave labour.It was God will and time to leave,but Pharaoh resisted,and so he and his nation paid the price of resisting  Gods will. The reality is,Gods will ,will always be fulfilled, if we resist or ignore it,we will suffer the consequences.We must realise that the will of God is important,and is to be taken very serious,
Jonah ran away rather than to submit to God,and  ended up being in the belly of a great fish.Continually the nation of the Israel,and their leaders
chose to disobey Gods will for them,and the greatest example of this ,was their rejection of Christ.The result was they suffered as a nation,in AD70
the Romans, put down a rebellion,that left Jerusalem in ruins and most of the population sold as slaves,and that not the end of the story,for they died
Christless and entered into a lost eternity.Gods desire is that all men may be saved,in and through the death of his Son, if we reject Him,like the Christ rejecting Jews ,we will pay a pray,to spend eternity in Hell.
                                            A  prayer.
Dear God help to submit to  your good,pleasing and perfect will,in Jesus name Amen.

Prayer and promises.[ Titus 1 v 2 ]

John Stott wrote the following,''God's promises are the only ground of our assurance that God will answer our prayers. Prayer is not a way of inducing
God to do what he has said he will do; it is the God-appointed way of enabling him to do what he has promised to do and enabling  us to inherit
his promises. God's promises and our prayers must not be separated'' Time without number I have faced with difficulties in my life,as many of Gods children have.Take Joshua who accomplished so much,consider the following,he was Moses successor,he was going to lead the nation of Israel, It was then God spoke ,He promised him,that he would be with him and he would succeed in all he had to do.I am sure when he faced difficulties he would claim the promises God had made.Every difficulty a child of God faces is an opportunity,for prayer and to claim the promises, God give you.Peter writes how God has given us great and precious promises[2 Peter 1 v 4].There is a promise on every paper money issued ,it reads,''I promise to pay the bearer on demand,the sum of.....''Unfortionately banks can go bust, I sincerely hope it does not,but it may,and if it did it could not fulfil its promise.Be assured when God gives a promise,no power in heaven or hell can stop him fulfil it.
                                           A  prayer.
Dear God we thank you that when you give your word,no circumstances,
can stop it being fulfilled,in Jesus name Amen.

All will be well,if...... [ Ephesians 2 v1-13 ]

Yes was the chilling answer from our Prime Minister,she was answering the
question ,would she press the nuclear button?.Her answer rang out with  chilling clarity,that left those who would threaten our nation,in no doubt
that we would respond,if attacked.Ever since mankind rebelled against God
we have been at war,with each other,and with God.Religious and political
fanatisicm is always around,and will not go away,our country sought to appease Nazi Germany,but it did not work.Mankinds aggressive nature will
continue to put this little planet earth in jepordy.What is the long term view?
annilation of every human being,will we finally have our death wish and destroy,this lovely place we live in?.If that happened will that be it,will we become space refugees?,It is hardly likely,of course what I have been saying,is purely on a human level,and that's the problem,most people live at
that level.I am a believer in God,in his word,he paints a very sad picture of mankinds nature,a nature that has blotted out God. The result of that is we
are all invected by a awful virus called sin,our whole beings,lead us on in a
downward spirrill,that we need to control but cant.Gods answer was extreme,it had to be,in order to meet the need of our extreme condition.
 His answer is seen in the cross on which Jesus died,it is through his death upon that cross,we find forgiveness,and hope,a sure and certain hope,that what ever happens ,all will be well.
                                               A  prayer.
Dear God,it is very depressing as we consider the human race,that includes
ourselves,but we thank you that through Jesus your son there is a sure and certain hope Amen.

Watch your back [Psalm 121]

Recently while on a visit to one of my sons,we went to a lovely spot,where we watched the boats sailing past.I  turned my back on it all put my hand
over my eyes.My son said to me what you doing I said I'm looking out to see,I have eyes in the back of my head.They did not appreciate my humour,
possible you don't either,but of course I have no eyes in the back of my head.It reminds me of the saying, watch your back,which means to watch out for yourself,because we do know where  danger will strike, and do us harm. There are times,more than we realise,when danger is threatening us,the unseen danger,people who would do us harm.There are places of employment where we can feel very vulnerable there are places of power in which we are vulnerable.If one is a famous personality,it is easy for  people to make a false charge against them, Today let us not be ruled by fear of dangers within and dangers without,here is the word of God for us today, from Psalm 121,
                                   The Lord watches over you [v5]
                                   The Lord will keep you from all harm,
                                   He will watch over your life;
                                   the Lord will watch over your
                                   coming and going
                                   both now and forevermore.[v 7-8]

It is impossible. [Luke 1 v37 ]

We have a new Prime Minister,the previous one is gone,one of the things he said as he was about to leave was this,''Nothing is really impossible if you put your mind to it''.I know many people have accomplished great things, nearly impossible things.People speak much of mankind's achievements,and the human spirit,if only we could hear a word about God in all our achievements.But alas the sad thing is our politicians even when they are
church goer's ,do not think He should get a mention,possible feeling their religion is a private affair,which in some way it is,but in other ways it is not.
Nothing is impossible if we put our mind to it,declares our ex-Prime Minister,is that so?,no it is not so.The primary meaning of that word means,
'not able to occur,exist,or be done',so when we say something is impossible
it means just that.Let us consider the following,'creation,dividing the Red sea,making an axe float,raising the dead,feeding five thousand people with
a few loaves and fishes,'impossible?,with man,but ,nothing is impossible with God [Luke 1 v 37]
                                   A  prayer.
Dear God we thank you that you are the God of the impossible in Jesus name Amen.

Discernment .[ Acts 17 v11 ]

I recommended a certain book to a friend by one of my favourite authors,in
reading that same book again,I read something,that I found difficult.I then thought of the couple I had recommended the book to and wondered should I have recommended it .A minister friend of mine had a person who attended his fellowship and became a Christian,that person was very enthusiastic,but then he read some ,what we could call liberal books, he is not attending the fellowship now.He has been caused to stumble,by reading those books.Of books there is no end,the important  thing to do is in reading any so called religious book ,is to be discerning,the word of God exhorts us to test everything[1Thessalonians 5 v21]As long as they keep to the truths taught  in the scripture,accept them,that goes for preachers. I have read many books I have those I could call my favourite,but I must not be swayed by that,no I must read with discernment.Consider the following words,from Acts 17v11,the apostle Paul visited a place called Berea,there he ministered to them,we read this,''Now the Bereans ........received the message with great eagerness''but they did not stop there,for next we read,that they,''examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true''
                                       A  prayer.
Dear God grant unto us all discerning hearts ,and minds,in Jesus name Amen.

Persistence. [ Philippians 4 v 4-9 ]

I wonder what you think of the following''Ask and it will be given to you,
seek and you will find;knock and the door will be opened to you.For every
one who asks receives;he who seeks finds,and to him who knocks,the door will be opened.[Matthew 7 v7-8 ]Our dear Lord applies this to prayer,and how as our earthly fathers give to their children the best,so our heavenly
Father will give us the best,our Lord calls them good gifts.How do you
view your heavenly Fathers giving?well He is not a miser,some people
think He is,but He is not.Oh yes He will supply our needs,but often He gives more than we need[Ephesians 3v20]. Often our prayers are answered
quickly[Isaiah 65v24],often there must be a persistent asking,Elijah prayed,but his servant was told to go seven times to see is there were any sign of rain clouds[1 Kings 19 v41ff ]D.Martyn Lloyd- Jones, writes,of the
importance of persistence,''Persistence ,continuance in well -doing,' always to pray and not to faint'.Not just pray when we want a great blessing and then stop;always to pray.Persistence; that is the first thing.The realization of the need,the realization of the supply,and persistence in seeking after it.''
                                           A prayer.
Dear heavenly Father,help us to be persistent in holiness,love,righteousness,
and all things concerning your Kingdom,especially in prayer,in Jesus name Amen.

Moral not material. [Jonah 3 ]

In Proverbs 14 v34,we read ,''Righteousness exalts a nation,but sin is a disgrace to any people''.I read this recently,Biblical scholar Alec Motyer writes,''We are conditioned by our whole inherited cast of mind and our
education to look for political,social and economic causes of the rise and fall of nations and empires; the Bible would help us reform our thinking
and seek the cause of things in the moral and spiritual realm upon which
all else is consequent. To the Bible, history is the areas of moral decisions,moral conflicts and moral consequences''. Selwyn Hughes writes,'' This statement deserves to be given front-page prominence on every daily newspaper in the world.'', he goes on to say,''The worlds
greatest problems are not material but moral''. Recently our Prime minister
in offering his resignation,spoke of the things he had achieved,one of them was self same marriages.As I listened  it made me wonder as to the moral dimension in our country,and indeed in many countries ,who have done the same thing.Let me stress again,''Righteousness exalts a nation,but sin is a disgrace to any people''.
                                        A  prayer.
Dear God have mercy upon the nations,who appear to think anything goes
help them to see the truth that righteousness ,not unrighteousness is vital
for any countries well being,in Jesus name Amen.

Forgive [Matthew 6 v 14-15 ]

I am at war,everyday I go into my garden looking for slugs,the gardeners pest,they may be my enemy,but I don't like killing them,I dispose of them.
On a more serious note,have you read what Jesus said about those who are our enemies.''Love your enemies and pray for those persecute you''[Mt 5 v44]Every day I pray for people who are experiencing awful things,rape ,
false imprisonment,loved one murdered,and so the list goes on.Is it
possible to do what Jesus said?, I believe it is,and it is not only possible,it is vital to our spiritual well being that we do.Remember ,Jesus practised what He preached.when they were nailing Him to the cross ,He uttered the
words, ''Father forgive them''[Luke 23 v 34 ],the Christian life brings with it a challenge that is not for the faint hearted.It was not easy for Jesus to utter those words,but He did and He meant what He prayed.Yes it is not easy what Jesus said and did,there are things that we may say ,I just cannot do it
and of course its true,that is why we need God to help us,and He will.You may be saying I cannot forgive,yet Jesus says we should,but He is also
saying ,through Me you can do all things,yes even forgive.
                                         A  prayer.
                             
                           Our Father in heaven,hallowed be your name
                           your kingdom come,your will be done
                           on earth as in heaven,give us this day our daily bread.
                           FORGIVE US OUR SINS,AS WE FORGIVE THOSE
                           WHO SIN AGAINST US.
                            and lead us not into temptation.
                                      Amen.

Changed lives. [ Luke 8 v26-39 ]

I have a friend called Derry,who is lovely Christian,he told me how a number of years,a number of Christians went to the famous Speakers Corner ,at Hyde Park in London..He was ministering,and was hassled by
some atheists, so my friend give them a challenge,he said he would bring six people along next time.These people had been freed from all sorts of sinful condition,they had been transformed  by Jesus.He then said to them,
to bring six people who had been transformed by atheism,they went away in a huff.The wonderful reality millions and millions of people have had their lives dramatically and wonderfully changed when they trusted Jesus as their Saviour. As for atheism it is not in the business of changing people,one day Stalin received a phone call,the person wanted to talk about for the want of a better term,spiritual things.Stalin's response was to dismiss such talk and found it strange,even though he was familiar with such things.
                                      A prayer.
Dear God we praise you for the historical Christ,who has and is transforming the lives of million and millions of  people,open our eyes to see that what He has done for others He can do for us.Amen.

The news from . [ Psalm 46 ]

As I view life with all its uncertains,I need to fix my thoughts on God,this 
again is borne out,just as I write this,when on the news ,it is reported of a man who drove a lorry,through crowds of people,killing at least eighty people.This happened in France,but of course it could happen anywhere,so many things can happy,that we never expect,are you fearful?,I know I was upset,by the news from France,so I will leave the following scripture with you.
                                  God is our refuge and strength,
                                  an ever present help in trouble.
                                  Therefore we will not fear,though
                                               the earth give way
                                  and the mountains fall into the
                                               heart of the sea,
                                  though its water roar and foam
                                  and the mountains quake with
                                              their surging.

                                   The Lord Almighty is with us,
                                   the God of Jacob is our fortress.

                                   Be still, and know that I am God

                                   [Words from Psalm 46 ]

Change can happen. [ 2 Corinthians 3 v 18 ]

I love my garden,weather permitting I love to sit in it,and there I have a time with the Lord.I have been to many different places on holiday,but my garden is my favourite place.When God made man He placed him in a garden,it must have been beautiful,yet into that beautiful place sin entered in.We are told that sin entered the world through one man,and death through
sin,and in this way death came to all men,because all sinned[Romans 5 v12]
The place was not the cause but the people,I used to hear people speak of wanting to move,they felt the move would change everything.Of course the place was not the problem,they would take with them,the fears and personality disorders,and their inability to cope with life,nothing in fact would change.It was not a change of place they needed,no , they needed to change,here is the good news,Christ can help us change,He is in the business of bringing change into the lives of all who trust Him as Saviour.Perfection will only come when we go to heaven,but we can begin
to know a change in our lives,as we follow our Lord.The question we need to ask ourselves are we willing to change,are we prepared to face up to what
that means?.If we are,then with Gods help, change can take place,it will mean a daily desire,a daily seeking God for His all sufficient grace. The
result is,we will change,it will take time,we cannot expect habits of a life
time to go all at once,some may,but others will need continually brought to the Lord in prayer,are you willing to be willing?
                                        A  prayer.

                          Holy Spirit,we[I] welcome You,
                          Holy Spirit we[I ]welcome You.
                          Please accomplish in us[me] today
                          Some new work of loving grace,we [ I ] pray-
                          unreservedly -have Your way.
                          Holy Spirit,Holy Spirit,
                          Holy Spirit,we [ I ]welcome You.[ In Jesus name,Amen]
                              [Words by Chris Bowater]

      [I  will return to my blog Monday,  every blessing]


                                   
                                

Holy love. [1 John 4 v 7-12]

We read in 1 John 4 v8 ,that God is love,now of course we hear the word love continually,people sing about it all the time,Love is a many splendour thing,goes the song,Love and marriage,goes together like a horse and carriage,this I tell you brother,you cant have one without the other,the words of  another song.The great William Shakespeare wrote,''Love is not love,which alters when it alteration finds''.Love ,when we say we love someone,what do we mean?,what do I mean?.Again the words of a song comes to mind,''will you still love me when I'm sixty four?.''Well we could go, on,and on about love,but what does it mean ,when  we read in the Bible,that God is love?.I read this recently by the late Selwyn Hughes,
''Although God is love,we must never forget that He is holy love and will
always challenge His people when they lose their way or walk off in the
wrong direction.He loves us too much to let us continue with anything that
separates us from Him''.The role of the prophets was to remind the people of God, of Gods holy love.A lady in the church in which I was a joint leader,was acting strange,she was married but appeared to have become
infatuated with someone else.She eventually left the church,she complained about being told what to do from those who ministered,she was wrong.
                                       A  prayer.
Dear God we thank you that your love is holy.a love that saves and transforms us,we would have it no other way,in Jesus name Amen.

Idol worship . [ Exous 20 v 3-6 ]

In many countries people still erect idols and pray to them, unfortunately
there are even those who erect idols within the visible Christian church.The
word of God forbids the making of idols [Exodus 20v 4-5 ],Israel found it very hard to break that habit,even king Solomon fell prey to this practise
[ 1 Kings 11 v4ff ]. Now of course we in the West do not make idols,to worship,or do we?Consider what John Stott has written.
''The more sophisticated idols[that is ,God -substitutes] of modern secular cities are equally powerful.Some people are eaten up with selfish ambition for money,power or fame.Others are obsessed with their work,or with sport or television,or are infatuated with a person,or addicted to food,alcohol,hard
drugs or sex.Both immorality and greed are later pronounced by Paul to be
forms of  idolatry,[Ephesians 5 v5 ]because they demand an allegiance which is due to God alone.So every idolater is a prisoner,held in humiliating bondage''. So are we idol worshippers?.
                                         A  prayer.
                             
                              The dearest idol I have known,
                              what're that idol be,
                              help me to tear it from Thy throne,
                              and worship only Thee.
                                          Amen.
                               [Words by William Cowper ]

Men are not gods. [1 John 3 v1]

I was watching a very old movie,called,'Men are not gods',if only people would realise this,yet in their foolishness,they have not.The Romans accepted the Caesars as gods.and killed those who would not acknowledge them as such. Men are not gods,there was a popular song called,''If I ruled the world' I have heard that before, we all have,but men are not gods,none can stop themselves from catching the common cold.We were made in the image of God,but that does not make us Gods,it lifts us above the animal creation,it bestows upon us a dignity,but alas we have chosen the lesser undignified position,of calling monkey our brother,maybe that is why we eat bannas.Yes it is true,men are not gods,but still God,the only God,has as someone has said , a soft spot,for us sinners,inspite of all our dillusions of grander He reminds us that although we in our blindness,have chosen the dark avenues that leads us on a road that only takes us farther and farther a way from him,and He whispers in our ears,that He loves and values us so much that through Him who is truly God and truly man,that He died on a cross,so that we can become  children of  God.
                                            A prayer.
Dear God we confess that we are often blinded with extremes,of  thinking we are gods,and on the other hand we are related to monkeys.open our eyes
to see what we really are, sinners,who can  become children of God,through
Jesus Amen .

Contend. [Jude v3 ]

There are passages in the Bible that I do not understand, even though I have studied the word of God, been to Bible college.The problem with some people this can cause them problems,and it is not helped by those ministers,
who weaken peoples faith.Instead of trusting in what God says in his word,
they give free reign to their intellects,and so cause people to stumble,and even stray from the faith. As a minister of Gods word my desire is to be
faithful to the Bible,and not to cause anyone to stumble spiritually.Our first
parent Eve,was deceived by Satan ,the result was Adam followed her example,[1Timothy 2 v14]. What Satan said appeared reasonable,and what
God said appeared unreasonable,but the devil is liar,and the father of lies
[John 8 v44].Unfortunately Eve doubted Gods word,and so mankind moved away from God,into the kingdom of darkness,which they grew to love,because their deeds are evil.[John 3 v19] Let me emphasise the importance of trusting God ,if we don't,confusion will reign,there are many
who call themselves Christians who accept things they should not,and unfortunately ,many are following their lead. The book of Jude was written
to warn believers as regards those who were seeking to undermine Gods
word,the key verse is v3,where we exhorted to  contend for the faith.
                                             A  prayer.
Dear God help us to contend for your truth,as revealed in your word,help
us for the sake of ourselves and for others,in Jesus name Amen.

Death ,thou shalt die. [John 11 ]

John Donne wrote a poem called,''Death,be not proud'',here are a few lines from it.
                        Death,be not proud,though some have called thee
                        Mighty and dreadful,for thou art not so:
                        For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow
                        Die not,poor Death,nor yet canst thou kill me.
                        From Rest and Sleep,which but thy pictures be,
                        Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow;
                        And soonest our best men with thee do go-
                        Rest of their bones and souls' delivery.
                        Thou'rt slave to fate,chance,kings,and desperate men,
                        And dost with poison,war, and sickness dwell;
                        And better than thy stroke. Why swell's thou then?
                        One short sleep past,we wake eternally,
                        And  Death shall be no more:Death,thou shalt die.
Jesus said to her,''I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me
will live,even though he dies; and whosoever lives and believes in Me will never die.Do you believe this?.
                                               [John 11 v25-26 ]

Violence. [ 1 Corinthians 13 ]

The story is told of a man who killed ,his parents,he was arrested, and tried,
but the judge was about to pass sentence,he spoke to him and said,''Judge have mercy,on this poor orphan''.Now you may laugh at this or judge me
for  telling something inappropriate,but the sad reality is this we live in a
violent world.It would have been Jo Cox's,forty second birthday,but she was murdered,yes violence is not far from any of us. If you knew me you may think that this little old Irishman,would not hurt a fly,but I want to tell you something you are wrong,I know,and God knows,the potential for violence in me.We glorify violence,why do we still have boxing?,what ever way it may be dressed up,its about violence.All over the world women are experiencing Violence,in South Sudan at this time many have been and are being violated. Many children are experiencing violence of the worst kind,by a parent who should be protecting and shielding them.The story I opened with,is in reality no joke,violence is never a joke,especially  to those who are experiencing it,is it not about time we faced up to the repulsiveness
of violence,not only in others,but also in ourselves.
                                              A  prayer.
Dear Lord have mercy on those who have and are suffering violence,help
them to forgive,we thank you that you are the great healer.Help us not to make excuses for our violence ,to see it as sinful,to repent and forsake it.
We thank you that your grace is sufficient,to heal and to change Amen.

A welcome mat. [ Ephesians 2 v11-22 ]

The epistle to the Ephesians,can be divided up into two sections,according to  John Stott,exhortation,and exposition.The first 3 chapters are exposition
where Paul seeks to explain the mystery of Christ. Again JS writes,''the
mystery is a truth hitherto hidden from human knowledge or understanding, but now disclosed by the revelation of God''The mystery is this ,that Gentile
and Jewish Christians together are now fellow heirs of the same blessing, fellow-members of the same body and fellow -partakers of the same promise''. Again JS writes ,the mystery of Christ is the complete union  of
Jews and Gentiles with each other through the union of both with Christ''
I suppose it is hard for us to grasp what this meant to the Jew.The Jew would thank God he had been born a Jew,the Gentiles where despised,as indeed where women.Now all that was coming to an end,the sinful defiled
Gentiles,were now being brought into the kingdom of God. In the temple
there was a petition a wall that separated the Gentiles from Jews.With Christs coming that was now changing,there would be one people of God.
No longer would contact with Gentiles be forbidden they would be sought
out,and told the good news,the gospel of Christ.Christ through his death on Calvary,welcomed  everyone,for many Jews it was step to far,but not for God,now there was a welcome mat,on the entrance to the kingdom of God,
with Christ standing there to give every seeking sinner a great big hug of acceptance.
                                         A  prayer.
Dear God we praise you and thank you for mercy shown to us Gentiles,
that we who were not a people have now become the children of  God,
through Jesus your Son Amen.

Come what may,we can go on. [ Isaiah 41 v10 ]

It is hard to cope with the death of a husband,wife,child,friend,and others who are close to us.I was talking to a lady recently who lost her husband,
they had been a very loving couple,they had a lovely ministry in song.He died three years ago,and every day since that event she remembers him.
She is doing her best to cope,and appears positive in her outlook,she is
a lovely Christian lady.Her life has not ended with the death of her husband
no she has entered into a new aspect of life.She will always miss her dear husband,but Christ still beckons her to follow Him .When He died the disciples were overwhelmed with grief how could they go on?,the one they  loved had died,what was the point of life?.But they were to find that life was not over for them,they would soon find out ,that they must with courage and faith go on,and serve their Lord.When He left them,and went back to Heaven,and just before He left,He said,''I am with you always,''and
in the person of the Holy Spirit,He is.

                           God hath not promised we shall not know,
                           Toil and temptations,trouble and woe;
                            He hath told us we shall bear,
                            Many a burden,many a care.

                            But God hath promised strength for today,
                            Rest for our labour,light for the way,
                            Grace for the trials help from above,
                            Un-failing kindness,un-dy-ing love
                                 [Annie Johnson Flint]

Those who rule. [1 Timothy 2 v 1- 3 ]

Things in our country are in a bit of a turmoil,we have voted to leave the EU,we will be having a new PM,the biggest opposition party appears to be falling apart.What can I do?well I can pray,because God hears and answers
prayer,not just for my own personal situation.No ,prayer can change things,
be it for me as an individual,or for our government,in 1 Timothy 2v2,we are
told to pray for all who are in authority.So I will pray for those who are in authority in our country,they need our prayers,as one looks at many modern
politicians in our country,one wonders if any of them pray, I hope they do,and does any of them know the Saviour?,the Lord alone knows,those who are His.So let us with confidence pray for those who govern, that God may grant us peace ,that they may be granted wisdom to rule.
                                      A prayer.
Dear God in the name of your son Jesus,help the situation in our country
to calm down,grant unto all our governments that they may rule with justice,and that righteousness which is important,may be exercised continually,Amen

Are you a liberal? [ Romans 1 v18 ]

Words are important,this is especially true when it comes to the Bible,it is very important that when translators come to translate the word of God.
D.A.Carson writes of a man called C.H.Dodd,a Welsh professor,he had made a profession of faith,during the Welsh revival,but he gradually became what is known as a liberal theologian,that is someone who will take liberties in relation to Christian beliefs.He found it hard to except the biblical word propitiation,which refers to satisfying or setting aside Gods wrath.He helped translate the NEB,and changed that word to expiation,
which refers to cancelling sin. The problem with C.H.Dodd he had a problem accepting the biblical doctrine of the wrath of God,I say biblical
for it is clearly taught throughout the Bible.D.A.Carson points out,''We
cannot ever lose sight of the fact that God is personally offended by our anarchic rebellion and is judicially angry with us''.The wrath of God is a biblical fact,that is why Christ died,in His death He bore Gods wrath,that we need not bear it.John 3 v16,tells us ,''That God so loved the world that He give His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life''.The word perish means eternal punishment
,imagine the awfulness of that,awful it may be, but it is true,and if you are not saved then you need to take it very serious,don't be become a liberal.
[Most of what I have written is from D.A.Carsons book, Scandalous]
 In that lovely hymn,''Beneath the cross of Jesus'',we read.
                             
                      There lies beneath its shadow,
                      But on the farther side,
                      The darkness of an awful grave
                      That gapes both deep and wide;
                      And there between us stands the cross,
                      Two arms outstretched to save,;
                      Like a watchman set to guard the way,
                       From that eternal grave.
                          [Words by Miss E.C.Clephane]

The glory.[ Romans 8 v 17-28 ]

Writing about the book of Revelation,William Barclay writes,''That it contains the blazing faith of the Christian Church in the days when life was
an agony,when men expected the end of the heavens and the earth as they knew them,and the earth as they knew them,and when they still believed that beyond the terror there was the glory,and that above the raging of man was the power of Almighty God''. Above the terror there was the glory,lift up your eyes dear child of God,lift up your eyes,beyond this world,and all the trials you may be facing to the glory,To the glory of the love of God,that
nothing can separate us from,many dear Christians have lost so much,but they can never loose their Saviour.Beyond the terrors of life,beyond the deaths of a dear Christian,there is the eternal weight of glory.Beyond the
sorrows and tribulations that children of God suffer there is the Glory.
                                 A  prayer.
Dear God help those of your dear children who are suffering the terrors perpetrated by wicked men ,help them to see the glory,also for all us who
face the loss of health,and loss of loved ones,help us as to whatever we are going through,to look to the glory that awaits us,in Jesus name Amen.

At what levl are you at ? [ Daniel 4 ]

Sultan Bin Salman al-Saud,DIscovery 5  astronaut,said as they journeyed
into space,''The first day or so we all pointed to our countries,the third or
fourth day we were pointing to our continents. By the fifth day we were aware of only the earth''.I wonder at what level you and I are at, today as we look at life?.There is the personal level,our families,friends,ourselves,then there is our country,then the world.As I was leaving our fellowship I spoke to the pastor,he voiced concern as regards our country,and the fact that we
voted to leave the EU.He was concerned as to the repercussions of this,I 
tried to mention the sovereignty of God,but he unintentionally pushed that to the side,his concerns as to the possible repercussions took over.The one thing I try to keep in mind,is the truth that God rules over all the affairs of mankind.There are so many things are beyond our control,which the greatest minds cannot resolve,at all levels of life,in spite of all our advances.
A great and mighty King had to have a severe lesson,in order for him to
acknowledge that God ruled [Daniel 4 ]The lesson was this that God does as He pleases,with the powers of heaven,and the peoples of the earth.No one
can hold back his hand or say to Him,''What have you done?''.At what level are you at?.
                                   A  prayer.
Sovereign Lord from time and uncertainties we lift or minds to you,as to
our personal circumstances,our countries situation,or the world situation,
we ask for grace to trust in you,in Jesus name Amen.

He is on the throne. [ John 14 v1 ]

We have moved into a period of uncertainty in our country,we as nation have voted to come out of the EU.Many are worried as to what this will mean,we are going to go it alone,as to the right or wrong of it I am not sure,but  it has happened,the decision to withdraw has taken place.What should we as Christians do?,well I will do what I have always done,I will
lift up my eyes to my sovereign God,as I read the Word of God,and the history of Israel,the changes and challenges they faced,the prophets spoke
not for any political party,but Thus saith the Lord.They reminded Israel were their true strength,and security lay,in their God.Things have not changed for us his children,our strength and security lies in God,and the one who has been given all power and authority,even Jesus[ Matthew 28 v18].
He declares to those who are His,I am with you always[Mat, 28 v20].
                                       
                              Peace perfect peace,our future all unknown?
                              Jesus we know,and He is on the throne.
                                               [Words by E.H.Bickersteth]

Praise Him [ Revelation 5 ]

As I started to pray,I wanted to praise my Saviour,so I got out a hymn book,
and read a hymn of praise, here is one verse of that hymn.
                    
                 Praise Him, praise Him,Jesus our blessed Redeemer,
                 For our sins, He suffered and bled and died;
                 He, our rock,our hope of eternal salvation,
                 Hail Him,hail Him.Jesus the Crucified.
                 Loving Saviour,meekly enduring sorrow,
                 Crowned with thorns that cruelly pierced His brow,
                 Once for us rejected,despised and forsaken,
                 Prince of Glory,ever triumphant now.
                          [Words by Fanny J. Crosby ]

                   Worthy is the Lamb,who was slain,
                   to receive power and wealth and
                   wisdom and strength and honour
                    and praise.
                           [Revelation 5v 12 ]