Consigned to . ( Revelation 20 v 11 - 15 )

Following on from yesterday were we declared how Christ bore the wrath of God on the cross,why?. Let me shift our thoughts to humanity ,we are told that in our unsaved we were by nature deserving of wrath.(Ephesians 2 v 3 ), and that God's wrath remains on us,because we have not accepted Christ as our Saviour.If you re not a Christian at this moment in time you are under the wrath of God ,because of your sinful state. That is here and now you are considered ungodly, and an enemy of God ( Romans 5 v 6 / 10 ),what does that mean?,it means if we die in that state we will be judged ( Hebrews 9 v 27 / Matthew 5 v 27 -  30). In Revelation 14 v 10 - 11 we read of those experiencing the cup of Gods wrath,and the torment that follows.It is all very awful, Bruce Milne writes,'Hell is terrible by any measure and as Jesus indicates ,everything is worth sacrificing in order to avoid it.There is no more terrible prospect conceivable than of being consigned to hell'.

Awful ( 1 Peter 2 v 24 )

We continue looking at I would say, three awful things,Hell ,sin, and Christs suffering,we finished by considering Christs physical Christ, which truly was awful.You may wonder why I quote from Isaiah 52 - 53,as regards Christs suffering,it is because Isaiah received revelation from God,as indeed did David did ,CP Psalm 22 . All that Christ suffered was meant to be,and Christ knew it,and His suffering was a fulfillment of what was foretold.Derek Tidball writes,'Thirteen Old Testament texts are quoted in the passion narratives of the Gospels, of which nine come from the Psalms. Of these nine, five are found in Psalm 22. So exactly does it portray the suffering of our Lord that it has aptly been called the Fifth Gospel.' Yes Christ suffering was awful, it surely was ,but it did not stop there as many liberal people make out,no there was still even more awful suffering He had to experience.For it was a judgement for sin, as Isaiah points out, when he declared ,'Yet it was the Lords will to crush Him and cause him to suffer',( Isa 53 v 10 ) ,in other words Christ was experiencing punishment for our sins. We will continue this next time.

Awful . ( Isaiah 53 )

Hell is not a subject preached on in many pulpits, even though it is clearly taught in the Bible,for many it is to awful and unthinkable,that such a thing should be. So it is ignored and many are relieved ,but let me make it very clear,it exist,ignoring it will not change anything, that is a fact. Why is there such a doctrine in Gods word? ,one could say the thought of hell is awful, to awful to contemplate .Yes it is awful but sin is awful ,and of course many seek to ignore that reality,God does not ignore sin,In order to save humanity,he devised a plan that for him was awful ,but it was the only answer . .Look on the cross see a figure who had been nearly flogged to death,whose bones were protruding ,in Isaiah 52 v 3 ,we read a description of his physical suffering, 'Many were appalled at him, his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness'. yes it was truly awful ,we will continue this next time.

But they said. ( John 3 v 7 )

The verse in Jeremiah 6 v 16 ,ends with the words,'But they said. We will not walk therein',such was the reaction to Gods word,there is a sense of determination in those words. They are saying, no matter what Jeremiah says,we are not for turning,we are going to do things our way. A minister at a dedication service said this to the parents,' that the child was engraved on the palms of Gods hands'(Isaiah 49 v 16 ) ,and that he was a child of God.The message that followed was confusing also, So a dedication service is being used for children to be born again. It must have sounded nice to the parents ,but it  is in reality not true, for Gods word teaches ,that the new birth comes when a person accepts Christ as Saviour,here is what the apostle wrote,', But as many as received Him (Jesus) to them gave He the right to become children of God,. to those who believe in His name,who were born, not of blood,nor of the will of the flesh,nor of the will of man,but of God' ( John 1 v 12 - 13) No one can make a Christian, only God,no ritual can make a person a Christian,the responsibility of a Christian parent is to teach the child the Holy scriptures which are able to to make them wise for salvation,through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3 v 15 ). The sad thing is that some minister will not listen,to me ,or even God.

He could do no more. ( John 3 v 16 )

Selwyn Hughes ,wrote,'Increasing numbers of ministers and teachers in today's Church are claiming that the idea of Gods wrath is incompatible with His love', The doctrine of  hell is  awesome and a very serious thing ,it is not a thing to be spoken of lightly,but it is not to be denied . Consider these words spoken by Jesus, yes spoken by Jesus, ' Be afraid of the One who can destroy  both soul and and body in hell'. In Revelation 6 v 16 ,we read,'They call to the mountains and the rocks,Fall on us and hide us from.....the wrath of the Lamb'.This wrath  we read of, is future,but even now we are told in John 3 v 36, 'Whoever ever believes in the Son has  eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on them'.Leon Morris writes, 'that there are literally  hundreds of passages in the Bible referring to God's wrath, and the rejection of them all leaves us with a mutilated Bible'.This doctrine is not something that should be ignored,or to expect it to fade away with the passage of time.God who is love, in love did all He could. to save us from the consequences of our sins. (Read John 3 v 16).

Sall a spade a spade. ( Romans 3 v 23 )

A minister I know rarely mentions sin,and objects to people preaching about it or its consequences, I heard him saying once,sin is mentioned in the Bible,of course that's were he would prefer to keep it,when I mentioned a certain practice was sinful,he replied ,that's your opinion, it certainly was  not his opinion.A psychiatrist wrote a book called,'Whatever became of sin?'.Selwyn Hughes writes,'The point he made was that behind many people's mental and emotional problems ( though by no means all)   tlie issues that were once called sin are now described in more euphemistic terms. This tampering with the labels adds clutter and confusion and leads to additional misunderstanding of just what sin is, and therefore the true remedy for sin- redemption and forgiveness- cannot be applied.'Let me remind you again that we live in a fallen sinful world,forget about what your sinful hearts tells you,or what society tells you,listen to what God's word says.It is time we stopped fudging the issuses,we need to call a spade a spade,and accept the fact that we are sinners,and we need Jesus the Saviour of sinners.

People go astray.why? ( Isaiah 66 v 2 )

One of the important  verses in the Bible is Proverbs 3 v 5,'Trust in the Lord with al your heart and lean not upon your own understanding'. I once said to a minister that he sounded like a Jehovah Witness,for he was doing exactly that, leaning upon his own understanding ,instead of by faith,instead of accepting the Word of God for what it is. Selwyn Hughes commenting on  on Isaiah 66 v 2,which reads,'This is the one I esteem ; he who is humble and contrite in spirit,and trembles at my word'.said this,' Sad to say  ,much of the clutter in the well  from which the truth of scripture is drawn has been cast there by ministers and leaders who sit in judgement over the Bible rather than sitting under it in humility. Isa 66 v 2 tells us that God esteems those who tremble at His Word. Those who deny the   authoritative nature of the Bible do not tremble at His Word they prefer it seems ,to tamper with it instead,'

Turn Back ( Jeremiah 2 )

In Jeremiah 6 v 16  we read ,'Stand at the crossroads and look ; ask for the ancient paths,ask where the good way is, and walk in it'.Jeremiah  lived through dramatic times,awful times,his ministry lasted about 40 years.They were bad times,what was left of the nation, mainly Judah,had learned no lessons from what had happened to to the other ten tribes of Israel,because of their sinful ways.God had to Judge them,removing from the land.It was Jeremiahs task to call them back to God whom they had forsaken. Jeremiah 6 v 16 is a cry for the nation to return the old paths, devotion to  God and to his ways ,a way of holiness,  faithfulness ,to the way of justice, to the way of obedience,to the way of love.We live in times when many of Gods  are turning away from Gods  ways.,and that is very serious,and sadly it is not an exaggeration . We will consider this in relation to our present times, we will do this with the help  of a devotional by the late Selwyn Hughes,and of course with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Building . ( Matthew 7 v 24 - 27 )

We have been considering the importance of  hearing and doing,as regards the word of God, as opposed to hearing and not doing. In James 1 v 22 ,we read,'Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves'. We are often quick to judge the preacher, for their ineffectiveness ,a certain well known preacher,preached a sermon that was full of  elegance,people praised him, his reply was ,'but did it accomplished'?.It could it be that it accomplished little because the people were not really listening. All preachers want their sermons to accomplish  something,consider the prophets they preached wonderful sermons,but the people refused to listen. And as for obeying the word of God ,that's something else,the greatest preacher ever Jesus, stressed the hearing and the doing. William  Hendriksen wrote the following  ,''The sensible man ,who shows by his deeds that he has taken  to heart the words of Christ, and is therefore building upon the Rock ( Christ) will never be put to shame, he quotes from a well known hymn'The soul  that on Jesus has leaned for repose,I will not,I will not desert to his foes; That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I'll never, no never, no never forsake. '( Words by John Rippon )

Hear and Do.. ( Matthew 7 v 13 - 14 )

So what else can we learn from the parable of the two people and the two houses in Matthew 7 v 24 ff ,what was the purpose  of  this parable Jesus told.Kenneth  Bailey,sums it up ,''hear and do '', Jesus had just finished His sermon on the Mount,the sad commentary on the Jewish nation was one of hearing and not doing,they never appeared to really grasp the importance of doing what God  said,and when the trials came they suffered .Disobedience always has a price tag on it, always.How safe Israel would have been, by simply doing what God told them.The safest thing in all the world is obeying God and.the most serious thing for Christians is to  ignore Gods word ,and of course it is even more serious for the non Christian who hears the Gospel and does nothing about it.no matter how prosperous they are as to this life, their doom awaits  in eternity (  Hebrews 9 v 27 )

Face Reality. ( Job 1 - 2 )

Continuing to consider the parable of the two houses in Matthew 7 v 24,we mentioned that both houses experienced a storm. I have already pointed previously why  we have so many wrong things happen in life, because of the fall,when mankind sinned. It was Oswald Chambers who said,'Life is more tragic than orderly',commenting on this Selwyn Hughes said,'Chambers knew that unless we are willing to grapple with this truth and accept it, we will be plagued by inner oughts and shoulds  that  lead us down the road of illusion. We can find ourselves sayings,'It ought not be like this or'Things should be different'- and sadly the only the only thing this kind of demandingness  produces is frustration and anger.......This is reality-  and the sooner we face it, the better. True faith is not  built upon illusion but upon reality'.

Not Yet. ( 2 Corinthians 11 v 2 1 ff )

In the parable of the two builders in Matthew 7 v  24 - 27, we have two  two builders,who built houses, one built on rock, the other on sand, Jesus said that a storm hits both houses,,Kenneth Bailey ,points out that ,'Faith in Jesus does not provide magical protection from the storms of life'.So many Christians are seeking to be free from suffering,,the late  Selwyn  Hughes,wrote the following,''The fall has turned this fair universe of God's into a shambles much about the world is still beautiful,accidents,disasters. And will continue until the time when God brings all things to a conclusion''.Much of the New Testament is full of people who suffered ,why? this a fallen world as Selwyn Hughes  pointed out. We will consider more on this next time.

Be Careful .( 2 Corinthians 6 v 14 )

When I was young we used to sing a little chorus,about a wise man building his house upon a rock, and a foolish man who built his house upon the sand,and how when the rain came the house built on rock stood firm ,but the house on the sand fell down. It ended with the words ,''So build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ''. A little chorus relegated to a children's chorus,I wonder if we children understood what that little chorus meant .The words of that chorus were spoken by our Jesus Christ ,we have it recorded in Matthew 7 v 24 ff, and Luke 6 v 46 - 49.There is a connection to these words in Isaiah 28 v 14 - 18.there Israel had made a covenant with Egypt ,Isaiah called it a covenant with death.As one writer points out,'The Egyptians' entire worldview  centered on death and the worship of the gods that governed death. This covenant was a foundation built on sand ,and would result  in disaster. Isaiah declares that the Lord would lay a foundation a stone a tested stone,and whoever believes ,( in it- L X X )will not be shaken. We will continue this the next time,I will end by saying be careful who you join hands with, and who you put your confidence in.

Mistakes ( Matthew 27 v 3 - 5 )

The fact is this we all make mistakes, I am a  football fan, and  everyone on the football field makes mistakes,but the one who receives the most blame for a making a mistakes is the poor goal keeper.Here is a few saying as regards making mistakes,'He who never made a mistake never made a discovery'. 'Show me a man who has never made a mistake, and I will show you one who has never tried anything'.Mistakes like success are part of life,they come in all shapes and sizes, some are serious,some are not so serious. It is a fascinating subject Some people make the same mistake over and over again,and it is ruining their lives.So if that is you, is it not time you stopped making the same mistakes.That may sound simple but it makes a lot of sense, why not face the way you are,ah you may say,I can't help it,then turn to God and ask Him to help you. Of course the biggest mistake in life is keeping Christ out of ones life,because it has severe consequences,for time and for eternity.

To speak or not to speak. ( James 1 v 26 )

To speak or not to speak that is the question ?, we read in James 1 v 19 that we are to be quick to listen ,and slow to speak. These are very important and instructive words,warning against a rashness in our speaking,in other words listen and consider before you let hastiness take over  . Here are a number of verses, I will leave with you ,'Sin is not ended by multiplying words,but the prudent hold their tongues'( Proverbs 10 v 19). 'Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues ( Prov 17 v 28 ). ' Do you see  someone who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for them'( Prov 29 v 20 ) Think how much pain would have been avoided if these words  were heeded.

Trapped ( Romans 4 v 18 - 22 )

I wonder if you ever feel trapped?, something you cannot escape from,you pray and still nothing happens. My mind turned to Joseph a person unfairly imprisoned in ancient Egypt.We read about him in Genesis 37- 50, it is thought that his actual imprisonment lasted 10 years, in prison his feet was shackled and his neck was put in irons. Imagine such an imprisonment for something you did not do,trapped, yes those places , situations, that we find ourselves in, are not easy.But David had spoken to Joseph many years before this, CP Genesis 37 ,it foretold how he would reign over his brothers.This was Gods word to a young man but there he was trapped in prison how could it possible happen?. But it did happen,eventually, in a marvellous way God fulfilled His word. When God gives you a word, no matter how long it takes,no matter what your circumstances may be, it will happen, it will come to pass.

What Jesus said ( Acts 4 v 12 )

Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me  ( John 14 v 6 ), does that mean other religions are wrong, and without Christ you cannot get to heaven,and you will go to Hell?. The answer must be yes,because Jesus said ,no one can come unto the Father but by Him,so it does  include other religions,yes because Jesus said one cannot come unto the Father but by Him. Does that mean every single person who has never accepted Christ is lost,yes because Jesus said you cannot come unto the Father but by Him. I want to repeat what Jesus said, and I stress that point,that it is Jesus who has said this,here it is again, Jesus said,''I am the way the truth and the Life,no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me''

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Love ( 1 Corinthians 13 v 1 - 8 )

If I speak in the tongues of men or angels, but do not have love. I am only a sounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If  I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries, and all knowledge, and if I  have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If  I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I  may boast, but do not have love,I gain nothing. Love is patient,love is kind,it does not envy, it does not boast,it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking ,it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always  perseveres. Love never fails.

Evolution the lie. ( John 3 v 16 )

H.G.Wells interpreted the past as an evolutionary march towards freedom and enlighten commenting  on this Philip Yancey said,'a view  of that century would do much to refute'. Many wonderful changes have taken place in so many areas of life,in medicine,in living standards { for many,myself included )Yet the nature of man has not changed, there always appears to be some threat hanging over mankind, wars are still raging,injustice in many areas of the world abound,sexual deviance has not gone away, addiction of one sort or another has not gone away,false religions are still around,causing so much pain to those in them,and to those who are not. Mankind is capable of much good,but also of so much evil,if God removed His restraining power from humankind, I can assure you life would be unlivable..God has not forsaken this world, with Him there is a future, there is hope, there is a way forward,and for sinful humanity ,the way starts at the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sugar ( John 8 v 34 - 36 )

One day a lady came to Gandhi with her son,and asked him to tell the child to stop eating sugar, because it was bad for him.She said the child would not listen to her, but would listen to Gandhi. Bring him back in a week ,and I will tell him. A week later the woman returned with her son,Gandhi  took the boy in his arms,and told him not to eat any more sugar,then bid them goodbye. Before they left the mother asked a question, why did you have us wait a week,could you not have told him last week, 'No',he replied. 'Last week I myself was eating sugar.'  Many years ago I used to smoke I know how hard it is to quit smoking, but  it can be done, tor me it was when I came back to the Lord, Let me tell you when Christ forgives He also empowers us and enables us to be free.

Two . ( James 1 v 17 )

I wonder what you think of this short prayer by G.K .Chesterton. ,'Here dies another day,during which I have had, eyes,ears,hands,and the great world around me;. And with tomorrow begins another. why am I allowed two'.?.  Why indeed, after all I am entitled ,to two eyes,two ears,two hands' or am I .Let us all stop and thank God for the two.or let us all praise God for all his blessing. Everything we have comes from God.We owe Him everything,everything,everything. 'Dear God ,thank you for every blessing,in Jesus Name Amen.'

How. ( Proverbs 3 v 5 - 6 )

.In John 3 a very religious person came to see Jesus,he was a  man called Nicodemus, he belonged to the very strict group of people called the Pharisees, and they were part of the ruling class in Israel.He wanted to know more about Jesus,but he it did in secret visiting him at night.He  acknowledged that Jesus was a teacher,that means one who taught the things of God to the people,an expert in the religious law.Now  one of the the first things Jesus said was,that a person needs to be born again,and as he listened ,he used the word how  twice..Jesus said to him ,''you are Israel's teacher.. and you do not understand these things?''.It stuck me that 'how', is very important to so many people , take the J Ws ,when one tells them a spiritual truth , they say how this and how that ,the fact is they have no spiritual understanding,they have not got the Holy Spirit within them. To them the trinity does not make sense,and they do what natural man will do ,lean upon there own understanding.If we are gong to know God we have to nail our ,'How's ', to the cross,and by faith accept Christ as ones Saviour,then everything will become clear,you see, faith is beyond reason.

Something Happened. ( Matthew 17 v 20 - 21 )

So continuing on looking at a lady in dire straits ,no money,no healing, and yet something happened,she heard about Jesus, and the wonderful miracles He performed. So hope arose within her heart, and so she made her way towards were he was, and when she got there a vast crowd was there.But she was desperate,and she thought,if I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.( Matthew 9 v 21 ), and she did just that, and she was healed. At this Jesus spoke to his disciples ,,'Who touched me?',when it was pointed to him that many people had touched him,because of the vast crowd. Jesus insisted that power had gone out of him. The woman could no longer go unnoticed, made her way to Jesus, trembling and fell at his feet,told him why she had touched him,and that she had been healed. He spoke to her and said ,''Daughter your faith has healed you.'' ''Go in peace''. What is God saying to you,as you read this story,?.Let me remind you that Jesus is the same today as he was then,and faith in Him can transform your life no matter  how desperate your situation, something can happen.

Nothing happened. ( Psalm 40 v 1 )

I am sure we have all been crushed  in a crowd, now Jesus was popular and thousands of people came to hear him,came to be healed. In Luke 8 v 43 ff. we read of a lady who had suffered  for 12 years from a certain complaint,she was subject to bleeding. According to Leviticus 15 v 19 - 33,she was considered ceremonially unclean,so this had a profound effect on her life. In Mark 5 v 24   we read, 'she had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had,yet instead of getting better she grew worse'.This lady had not the benefit of our medical profession and by the sound of it she must have endured a great deal in her desire to be healed,and now she was penniless.I am sure she prayed every day,but nothing happened.. We will continue with this tomorrow,remember it is always darkest before the dawn.

He sees. ( 1 Peter 5 v 7 )

In Genesis 16 we read of a lady called Hagar,who ran away from a difficult situation ,brought on by her own foolishness.She was all alone and she was pregnant, irrespective why she was in this situation,she was in desperate straits,who could possible help her?.When all of a sudden an angel appeared to her with reassuring  words, when he departed we read,'She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her,'You are the Lord who sees me'. In a universe so vast,and with billions of stars our planet is very small and insignificant, and we who dwell on this tiny planet ,are very very,very, small and insignificant.Yet the words spoken by this lady,remind us that God sees us and loves us, and cares for us.Whatever our situation in life right now God sees us ,child of God you are never for one moment out of His sight.Remember what our Saviour taught us,as regards his care even for a sparrow,Luke 12 v 6, and then He add ,'Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows  ( v 7 ),trust Him dear child of God, He is watching over you.

Why ( Psalm 18 v 30 )

Following on in relation to the lady who got healed, her husband who was in last stages of  Parkinson,he died.One may ask the question why did he not get healed?,why indeed seems unfair,and yet it is not.It is in Psalm 31 v 15, we read King David declaring ,'My times are in your hands', if one reads the life of David you discover a man who was faced with death many times, and yet he lived to a ripe old age and died naturally.In  Acts 12 we read of two of the earliest Christians being arrested,James the brother of John, and Peter . James was executed, yet  Peter escaped. why were  both not rescued?,but they were not. The fact is we all have our own individual path in life to walk,some will be spared into old age,others will die young.Although I was a  premature baby I survived,but when my mother had another child called Bobby, he died shortly after birth. It is important to realise that God is sovereign, our times are in His hands,even though it is painful for those who are left,  we are in God 's hand.

Obeying Gods word. ( Hebrews 11 v 8 )

Following on from yesterday as regards the lady and her husband who were very ill,when she told me that she had cancer and it was very bad.Later in the evening while at home I read from one my readings James 5 v 14 -15, 'Is anyone among you ill? let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them and anoint them in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up,if they have sinned,they will be forgiven.' I shared this with the lady and eventually we did that,nothing happened immediately ,she had treatment,which God blessed,and now she is completely clear of cancer.

Gods Prompting.. ( Acts 16 v 7 )

A  Christian lady I know shared an experience she had, when things were very difficult,it was a time when her husband was bedridden as he was in the last stages of Parkinson's .At that time she was diagnosed with cancer,she had a number of tumors,and was given 6 months to live.She was having treatment, which was very severe ,after one the treatments she needed bed rest.While she lay there her husband needed assistance,she was not able to help, it was very distressing,the carer was away,likewise her family. The doorbell rang and she managed to get to the door,it was a Christian couple from the church,God had prompted them to visit her,they did not know why.The husband had been a carer and soon sorted out the ladies husband,they had also brought two ready meals for them.

The Gospel ( Romans 1 v 16 )

The gospel is good news, with it comes with so many wonderful promises,'forgiveness of sins', John 1 v 29  ,peace with God. ' Romans 5 v 1.'eternal life ', John 3 v 16.,a ' place in Heaven' John 14 v 6.no condemnation,' Romans 8 v 1.' a heavenly Father',   2 Corinthians 6 v 18.' Gods abiding presence', Matthew 28 v 29.'Power to overcome', Romans 6 v 14. Yes the Gospel is good news,but let me make it clear when I use the word gospel,it is the only gospel that can bring us into those wonderful promises.,it is the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Only through Christ and his death on the cross  can we be saved, are you prepared to trust  Him as your Saviour?.