He understands. ( Psalm 23 )

I met a dear Christian, a few years ago she lost her husband, I asked her how she felt,she said she was lonely. It is not a crime if you are a Christian to say you are lonely, or your sad. The words of a hymn by Francis H. Rawley  reads.

                                                 ' Days of darkness still may meet me,

                                                   Sorrow's paths I oft may tread;

                                                   But His presence still is with me,

                                                   By His guiding hand I'm lead'

It impossible to not feel sadness,or loneliness, after all we are not machines, we have emotions,it does not make us any less a Christian. Many people feel lonely,no use denying it, and sad, but here is the wonderful truth,' But His presence still is with us,by His guiding hand we'r  lead'. Yes He will bring us through,let us remember, He walked this earthly life,He is called a man of sorrows one who was acquainted with grief, and no one experienced the depths of loneliness that He felt on the cross when He cried out,''My God , my God, why hast thou forsaken me?''. We are told that Jesus our great High Priest, understands our weaknesses, for He faced all the same testings we do,yet He did not sin.Hebrews 4 v 15. Yes our Saviour is walking with us, He does feel for our sadness and loneliness, and He whispers to us,''I understand''.

                                                             Hebrews 4 v 16  .

                                     'So let us come boldly  to the throne of our gracious 

                                     God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will

                                      find grace to help us when we need it most.'

                                                 

                                    

The sea is not always calm. ( 2 Thessalonians 2 v 16 - 17 )

I remember many years ago, my family and I were on holiday in a town called Bangor in Ulster,it is a seaside town.One could hire a rowing boat to go out on the bay,so we did that,the sea was very calm, we were not to far from the shore. Then from the shore along the seafront we heard the sound of bagpipes,I stopped rowing and we sat and listened , they were playing amazing grace. As we sat there listening in the calmness it touched my heart, but as I reflect on it now,I am reminded that the sea of life is not always calm,far from it,but praise God,His amazing grace never changes,never, and we are told its always sufficient,and more than enough to meet our needs whatever trials we are going through. The writer calls it amazing grace, and rightly so,as I think of how many, many,dear Christians are enduring so much, how do they cope?,grace, as I read of the apostle Paul,and his suffering CP 2 Corinthians 11 v 23 - 28/ 12 v 7 - 10, how did he cope?,grace,that wonderful grace of God.Not only not did he cope, he glorified God,which is our chief end in life,Life being what it is,uncertain, we being what we are ,weak ,vulnerable,fragile, and a target for the ungodly ,and their master Satan,what do we need ?, grace. The grace of God will not dry up,and God will not withhold it from us,we are told ,He giveth more grace ,as the hymn writer wrote, as the burdens increase,He giveth, He giveth, and giveth again.

Wise words. ( Romans 8 v 29 )

Alan Redpath said the following, ''The conversion a of soul is the work of a moment, the making of a saint takes a life time''. These are wise words, to all of us who are Christians,the Word of  God speaks about growing, as in the natural ,so in the spiritual. It is something we should aspire to,it does not happen automatically,in 1 Corinthians 3 v 7, we read,' only God who makes things grow'.and that goes for the Christian,how does He do that?. It is the apostle Peter who writes,'Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation'. 1Peter 2 v 2. That spiritual milk he refers to is Gods Word, the fact is the word of God is a vital part of our growing as a Christian. I remember the TV  presenter Michael Palin on one of his travels visited North Korea, when he arrived in the country,the first question they asked him was,have you got a Bible.It seems to me they fear the Bible,and rightly so it can change people,set them free,and as Christians help to Grow.There is little chorus that goes,'Read your Bible ,pray every day if you want to grow'.Prayer, how do you find prayer? along with the word of God,it will develop your relationship with God ,which is vital if you are to grow.But there is more,more lessons to learn,life is like a school in which God  will teach us many things,with the sole purpose of making us more like our blessed Saviour.

No. ( John 11 v 25 - 26 )

 No ,it is not Christmas yet, but as I write my wife has put a Christmas CD on,and I am enjoying listening to it.Yes Christmas is a time most people  look forward to,even though they may not be Christians.Yes Christmas is very commercialised, yes that's true,but somehow it brings out a degree of kindness in people.People spend money not just on themselves, every Christmas a neighbour calls and gives us a present ,yet he is of the Sikh religion. The homeless are given more consideration, shelter is found for them, many people want to be kind,we send Christmas cards, wishing them a merry Christmas,and a happy new year. I do think Christmas makes a difference for many people ,some even attend church and join in the singing of carols. But of course the real meaning of Christmas for many  is missed ,I  don't say this in a judgemental way,but with sadness, and concern,for after after all He is the reason ,for the season , To miss the reason for the season is to miss the greatest gift that can one receive, the forgiveness of sins, and eternal life,and Christs presence with you.

                                                   How silently,how silently

                                                  The wondrous gift is given

                                                   So God imparts to human hearts

                                                   The blessing of  His heaven,

                                                   No ear may hear His coming;

                                                    But in this world of sin,

                                                    Where meek souls will receive Him still,

                                                    The dear Christ enters in.

                                                        Words Phillips Brooks

A donkey ride. ( Zechariah 9 v 9 )

 The time was drawing near for our Saviour to die, He knew this and told his disciples  Matthew 16 v 21/Mark 8 v 31- 9; 9;1/ Luke 9 v 22- 27 . His death can be seen as a tragedy as indeed it was ,because of the very people involved in it ,they were His own people,John 1v 11,but such is the sinful nature of mankind. His death  was voluntary, given of His own free will,He could have stopped it but he didn't,He could have easily called the forces of heaven to rescue Him (Matthew  26 v 53,) but as He said,''But how then would  the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen this way?. MT 26 v54. He is referring to scriptures like  Isaiah 52 v 13- 16 /53 v1 - 12, Psalm 22 v 1- 2. His death was set in stone in Gods purposes, and Christ would not waver in fulfilling this. During His ministry He played down that He was the Messiah, Matthew 16 v 20 ,but now things changed His actions would openly declare that He was the Messiah.He did it by riding on a donkey into Jerusalem,this was fulfillment of a prophecy by Zechariah 9 v 9, as to the Messiahs coming.William Hendriksen writes,'The King is not the fulfilment of men's dreams but of a specific Messianic promise. He is the One who in the very act of riding...to His death,and thus to victory, a victory not only for himself but also for His true people, those who believe in Him'.

Christs Kingdom. ( John 18 v 36 )

 One of the saddest and tragic things about the Jewish people is,. they are waiting for their Messiah to come, yes, they are the waiting people . Still waiting for a Messiah who will defeat their enemies,a warrior Messiah, they still are blind, it is a judgement by God on them Romans 11 v 8 - 10.As Jesus rode into Jerusalem the whole city was stirred,and they cried out Hosanna to the Son of David, which means ''save now''.Save now, their moment had come ,victory over their enemies, no more the underdogs. They used the  term Son of David, a term for Messiah , yes Jesus ,you are our Messiah. William Hendriksen writes,' It was deplorable, however that by far most of these people did not go one step further; they should have combined Psalm 118 v 26 with Isaiah 53 and with Zechariah 9 v9, 13 v1. Then they  would have recognized in Jesus who saves his people from their sins Matthew 1 v 21.When Jesus was before Pilate,he asked him, are you the king of the Jews,why did he ask Him that?,because his main concern was that Jesus was leading an insurrection,  of course he was a king,but he clarified what that meant, 'My kingdom is not of this world',John 18 v 36. His kingdom was a spiritual kingdom,totally different in character to an earthly kingdom.

                                                 Jesus my King rules in my heart.

Persevere (Luke 18 v 1 )

Let us consider, 'Persevering in Prayer.', the meaning of persevering is, continuing  on in a course of action even though it is difficult. Sir Harry Lauder wrote a song after the death of his son in the 1st world war,here are some of the words,

                                         Keep right on to the end of the road,

                                         Keep right on to the end,

                                         Tho the way be long,let your heart be strong.

                                         Keep right on round the bend,

                                         Tho your tired and weary, still journey on,

                                         Till you come to your happy abode.'

In a way that's the challenge of the Christian life,going on,sadly not all do  , some have fallen by the wayside.That which will enable us to go on, is prayer,it is vital that we persevere in prayer in the good times and the bad times,Jesus knew how hard that would be for us,the way can be hard,but the way also can be soft,and we neglect prayer,so gradually we stop praying,we think that we don't need Him.If only we would realise how much we need Him ,and how vital it is to persevere in prayer.

Make time. ( 1) ( Ephesians 6 v 18 )

 I just want to encourage you with a few thoughts on prayer,

                                             ( 1 ) Make time for prayer.

We live in a very busy world,it is easy in spite of our good intentions,for prayer to be neglected,one of the reasons  I rise early,I know how easily it is for the activities of the day to take over.We read how our Lord at times spent time apart from His disciples ,in order to pray . (Mark 6 v 46) . In Mark 1 v 35 ,we read,'Very early in the morning, while it was dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed'.Although He was the Son of God, he was also the Son of Man, crushed with his  many duties, the multitudes pressing in,wanting ,wanting,the disciples needing needing,and under attack  continually,He needed to pray,He needed to be refreshed and strengthened in the presence of His Father in heaven.If He needed to pray,how much more do we need to spend time with our heavenly Father in prayer.

                                                       Words by Cleland Boyd Mc Fee.

                                                       There is a place of quite rest,

                                                       Near to the heart of God,

                                                       A place where sin cannot molest,

                                                       Near to the heart of God.

                                                       Hold us who wait before Thee,

                                                       Near to the heart of God.

Weak faith.(Mark 7 v 14 - 19 )

I was speaking to my wife and I used an inappropriate word, when she pointed this out to me as wives do,I felt convicted.This was not a swear word but I acknowledged it before asking forgiveness.There are words and actions that are not blatantly sinful,but they can be inappropriate.I remember passing a married couple I know, while out walking, on reflection I felt that I was brisk with them,I felt convicted, and called round to their home and said I was sorry. We should not become paranoid about this, but let us be careful, as to how we speak,and how we act. In Romans 14 the Apostle Paul writes about those who are weak in faith,in relation to what they eat,a Jewish convert may be offended if they saw another Christian eating pork.Now as Christians we can eat all food we are not under the old covenant,that is the Jewish food laws,in Mark 7 v19  Jesus said  that all foods are clean. This is further spelled out in 1 Timothy 4 v 1- 5.In  Romans 14 the apostle makes it clear we are not tied to what we eat, he brings it down to a matter of faith.But as Paul says ,''All food is clean'',but it is wrong to eat something ,if it makes another person stumble''.This would apply when you are in contact with others who have not the faith that you have,as regards eating.We are being asked to be sensitive n relation to others,in all things,in case we cause them to stumble.

Who am I ?. ( John 3 v 16 )

                                            Who am I ?That You would think of me

                                            Among a million stars shining in the night

                                            Who an I ?That You  would call me yours.

                                             And offer up your  all, to save my life,

                                                           Who am I?.

                                                         Words  Lincoln Brewster.

These struck a cord with me,'Who am I ? the writer is surprised that God  had him on His radar,among the vastness of the universe. God's interest as regards man has never waned from the moment He created us, but our interest in Him, has continually waned. Mankind have continually searched the universe not looking for God,but for reasons to deny the person of God the creator.Because mankind is blinded to the reality of God, but God is not blinded to the reality of man.His eye is upon every single human being.God thinks upon then,looks upon them. But it does not stop there, for the writer declares,'Who am I ? That You would call me yours,and offer up your all, to save my life'. Why?,oh why should God do this?, why did He not leave us to ourselves?,if  He had it would been just a matter of time we would have destroyed ourselves, ,yes a real possibility,and yet that would have not been the end of it,for the eternal hell beckons. God was not prepared to let that happen ,He loves us,that in itself is amazing ,and out of that love, He offered up His all, in the person of Jesus, too save us ,amazing.

Tomorrow. ( John 14 v 1- 6 )

 A.W.Pink said,'Remember dear reader that tomorrow will bring with it tomorrows God'. the word of God says we do not know what a day may bring forth (Proverbs 27 v 1 ).Humanity knows a lot of things ,but they also don't know for certain, what life really holds for them.That sure certainty may turn out to be the biggest flop,that perceived looser may become the the greatest winner.You may loose your job ,uncertainty, is the name of the game , and yet life is not a game. Woody Allen who is an atheist said''The universe  is indifferent, so we create a fake world for ourselves,and we exist within that fake world,a world that in fact means nothing at all, when we step back, it is meaningless''. Now that's a happy thought, poor Woody,all his tomorrows are meaningless,as far as the atheist is concerned your on own,no hope,no help.because he is without God . Ephesians2 v12. Faith makes the difference,but not just faith , but faith in the historical Jesus,the Biblical Jesus.The only one ,who when we trust Him , forgives us,and brings us to the God of all hope. He is the God who is with us today ,tomorrow, and all our tomorrows,we are not alone.Eternity for  the Christian is not a black hole of nothingness, no,it will be a place of everlasting joy,peace,love,and happiness,what a wonderful tomorrow we will have.

A mothers request ( Romans 1 v1 / 2 Timothy 2 v 3 )

 In Matthew 20 v 20 - 28, the mother of James and John   knelt before Jesus and asked,that her sons be granted the pre-eminent position in His kingdom. Her request was not granted, Jesus told her why,then he went on to clarify how one achieves true greatness in His kingdom. Jesus asked John and Peter where they willing to drink the cup that He was going to drink?,they said they were.The cup that Jesus spoke of ,was the suffering that He was going to experience. The other disciples were angry at what Peter and  John asked even though they were guilty of the same thing. CP Mark 9 v 33 - 34.Jesus goes on to explain to then where true greatness lies in God's kingdom,being a servant, and suffering .He summed it up with the following words of v 28 'Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many'.These words summed up Christ ministry ,serving and suffering,and this is the path we who go under the name Christian are called to take.Consider serving,what does that mean? it is not about sitting giving orders,and being bossy,its doing what needs to be done, in the fellowship,in the home,and in the world. It involves suffering , the Church of Christ in many countries, is suffering greatly for our dear Saviour. Isaac Watts wrote that wonderful hymn,'Am I a soldier of the cross', here are two verses from it.

                                                     Must I be carried to the skies

                                                     On flowery beds of ease,

                                                     While others fought to in the prise

                                                      And sailed through bloody seas?

                                                      Since I must fight if I would  reign

                                                      Increase my courage, Lord!

                                                       I'll bear the toil,endure the pain,

                                                       Supported by Thy Word.

The children. ( Matthew 19 v 13 -15 )

 I feel very sad for the children of this generation, many of them in this country are better off than the children of my generation.Yes they have so much more materially that may be a good thing , but we are not just material beings ,and our needs go deeper,that the food on our plate.Because God has placed eternity in our being , we are born with it,some describe it as a vacuum, that God shaped hole,a longing for God. But because of mankind's fallen nature, we go astray from birth,we do not seek after God Romans 3 v 11.But we still have that longing, even as children,but alas that longing can so easily lead us into that which is destructive. A friend of mine mentioned how some 12 year olds use their smart phones,to view pornographic images,who knows where that will lead to, and what it will lead to.Children are  also being continually fed on the media with things that are contrary to their wellbeing, and contrary to God's moral law, and society is even promoting them.It is a dark picture ,with children never attending a church service , never attending Sunday school. What chance do they have?,very little, sad to say, modern society is .putting so many obstacles in their way.It  makes me very sad,so what is the answer?,most certainly prayer,and guidance from the Holy Spirit,that we will be guided in ways, as to how we reach this present generation of young people.

My eyes see the glory. ( Revelation 21 v 1)

I know planet earth is important , and I know we should care,but as Christians we can't allow that to take our eyes and thoughts of a greater reality,the eternal glories that shine afar . So I would like to leave some scripture with you.

                                                           2 Corinthians 4 v 18.

                                'So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen,

                                since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal'

                                                             Colossians 3 v 1- 4.

                                 Since, then, you have been raised   with Christ, set you hearts

                                 on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God

                                 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died,

                                 and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is 

                                  your life, appears,then you also will appear with Him in glory.

Dr . Martyn Loyd- Jones wrote,' The Christian is a man who should walk through this life as conscious that it is  but transient and passing, a kind of preparatory school. He should always know that he is always walking in the presence of God, and he is going to meet God; and that thought should determine and control the whole of his life'.

                                 

Cause You're the God of all my days. ( Matthew 11 v 28 )

 I heard this song recently and it blessed me, it was written by John Mark Hall /Jason Ingram.it is called'The God of all my days'. Here are some of the words,  hope they will bless you.

                                          'I come to you with my heart in pieces

                                           And found the God with healing in His hands                                   

                                           I turned to you,put everything behind me

                                           And found the God who makes all things new

                                           I looked to You,drowning in my questions

                                           And found the God who holds all wisdom

                                           And I trusted You and stepped out on the ocean

                                           You caught my hand among the waves

                                            Cause You're the God of all my days

                               Chorus  Each step I take,You make a way

                                             And I will give You all the praise

                                             My seasons change You stay the same

                                             You're the God of all my days.

                                             I run from You I wandered in the darkness

                                             And found a God who relentlessly pursues

                                             I hid from You hunted by my failure

                                             I fell on you when I was weakest

                                             And found the God,the lifter of my head

                                             And I worshiped You

                                              And felt you right beside me

                                              You;re the reason I sing

                                               Cause you're the God of all my days.

                                               In my worry  You are my stillness

                                               In my searching, You are my answers

                                               In my blindness,God  you are my vision

                                               In my bondage You are my freedom

                                               In my weakness,God You are my power

                                               You're the reason that I sing

                                               Cause You're the God of all my days.

                                               And found the God whose grace still covers failure

Could it be? ( Acts 13 v 2 - 3 )

 What did the prophets,the disciples, have in common?, they all were called of God to proclaim God's truth,Moses received his call while looking after sheep, likewise Amos, Paul was called nearly from the moment he was saved. We don't know how they all received their call by God, but we know they did, they were not disobedient to the heavenly vision.( Acts 26 v 19 ) In a sense every Christian  is called to serve God,but there are those who called to be missionaries, ministers, or to start up orphanages,or medical work, or whatever.I listened to a modern Christian song by Dan Schutte ,the chorus goes.

                                                         ' Here I am, Lord, Is it I, Lord?

                                                          I have heard your calling in the night,

                                                          I will go ,Lord, if you lead me,

                                                          I will hold your people in my heart.'

Could God be calling you to serve him in a new way? well,will you obey it?,will you say, here I am Lord, send me.

Kindness ( 1 Corinthians 3 v 10 - 15. )

A friend and I were talking about something,and  he said to me,how that God is kind, F.W .Faber ,wrote a hymn ,here are two verses from it.

                                                   'There's a wideness in God's mercy,

                                                    Like the wideness of the sea;

                                                    There's a kindness in his justice                                    

                                                     For the love of  God is broader

                                                    Than the measures of man's mind;

                                                     And the heart of the Eternal

                                                     Is most wonderfully kind.' 

As I look back on my life I remember may times people were kind to me,we do remember kindnesses shown to us, over the years.Many years ago ,when I was walking to church we had no car, could not afford to buy one, a  lady from our church  pulled up in her car,and asked me if I would like to have it.Mark Twain said,''Kindness is the language  which the deaf can hear, and the blind can see''.God remembers the kindness we show to others,in Matthew 10 v 42, we read,' And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded'. Kindness includes not just giving financially,but befriending someone, giving a lift to someone,etc, the deed is important, but it must be wrapped in love. Just for moment stop and give thanks to God for all the kindness he has shown you. 

Don't despair. { Romans 8 v 31 - 39 )

 It is to so easy to be very negative about life, disease  has ravaged the world,the immense suffering that is going on in this little planet.A young lady I heard speaking at a church,stressed the environmental crises in ,as I listened I said to myself,'' here we go again.''I'm not saying we should ignore these things, of course we should do all we can, to make this world a better place. The fact is I know of  many Christians through out this world who are contributing to the well being of the sick and the suffering,of missions who are involved with children ,educating them,giving them so much love and care ,and so I could go on. There are a vast amount of Christians who really care for  for humanity , by prayer,by giving,by going,by loving actions,it is part of being a Christian.As a Christian I cannot ignore the suffering of others, but the word of God tells us that we live in a fallen world,and a world that will not get better,and in God's time will be replaced by a new heaven and a new earth,and the wonderful thing is, we will be part of it,if you are not a Christian,you will not be part of it,unless you trust Jesus as your Saviour.  God loves you,your life may be a total mess,you feel that you have nothing,no hope ,no purpose ,no future,come to Jesus surrender to Him,hand your life over to Him, and everything will change for the better.

                                                    'Christ in you the hope of glory'

.

Spam ( Proverbs 7 )

 I rarely go into the spam section of my email, but recently I did and found emails I was looking for,but as I looked for them,I noticed girls names appearing. I didn't open them,for the one line that appeared was enough to show that they were trying to allure me into a relationship. I have deleted some of them,I will delete them all in time. I found it all very sad,and was somewhat angry at what those people are doing. I could see how easily they could trap vulnerable people, who crave for sex,and also crave for love.The internet on the whole can be used for good,but also for evil,usually its  peoples money they are after. They don't care who they hurt and harm, or even destroy,just as long as they get money. Let us all remember that mankind from the day they are born are born  with a sinful nature, its called original sin. If I were to say to you there are no perfect people,you would agree with that,it is obvious.there is that within man, that is wrong,original sin.So dear Christian reader, be on your guard,stay close to God,shun those wrong things on the internet ,If you are not a Christian ,remember your greatest need is not sex or money, but Christ,  seek Him,and he will forgive your sins and set you free.

We have an enemy. ( Psalm 51 )

I was listening to my very favourite preacher,Chuck Swindoll, and one of the first things he said was.''We can be our own worse enemy''.That's very true,take king David,he had many enemies, the giant Goliath, the Philistines,King Saul, and later on his own son ,Absalom, but the biggest enemy he had to face was,you've guessed,himself. Which led him to commit adultery,then murder,no one forced  him to do such a terrible evil.it was all about David.Shakespeare wrote,'Man know thyself''.If we would take seriously what God 's word teaches  us as regards our fallen nature,things can be different,to be forewarned is to be forearmed.Our fallen nature is inclined to cause us to fall, Chuck quoted someone who said,'Don't just read the Bible,let the bible read you',that means we will be left  with no excuse if we fall morally into sin,its not just self awareness,but Bible awareness that will be to our advantage in dealing with public enemy number one, ourselves.How do we avoid falling into sin,by avoiding those things that can trip us up. Joseph ran from sin,so often we run into sin,the result disaster.And again as Chuck said,'' we must fight our battles on our knee's'', we must take these things very seriously,as our dear Saviour said to the disciples,'Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation, why?,'The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak'.Matthew 26 v 41.

 

??

Are you desperate? Psalm 34.

 I heard a preacher speaking of a godly man who  prayed a wonderful prayer ,the preacher spoke of the desperation in his  prayer,many of you I'm sure have in desperation, prayed to God. Such a prayer has no frills in it,when bold Peter  who walked like our Saviour on the water ( Matthew 14 v 25 -31 ),lost faith,and began to sink, he cried out to the Lord to save him,it was a desperate prayer.One translation puts it like this,'he was terrified and began to sink, 'Save me Lord!' he shouted.One reads of many people being healed by our Lord,they were desperate, and out of that desperation they cried  to the Lord,and the Lord answered.Let me say this again desperate prayer,is not about the niceties,it comes from the heart, often  from a broken heart .In Psalm 34 v 18 , we read,'The Lord is close to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit', Desperate prayers get to the point,God is not impressed by empty words that go on and on, spoken as if to impress God,we can't impress God, nor should we try. In our desperation we need to get to the point ,desperate prayers come from the heart,the center of our being,our inner self, not our intellect CP Proverbs 3 v 5.Desperate prayers come from the poor in spirit,our poverty of being,Psalm 34 v 6 reads 'This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles'.

                                            'I call out at the top of my lungs,

                                            ''God!Answer! I'll do whatever 

                                             you say.'  ( The Message)

 

1

1

One thing leads to another. 2 ( Revelation 3 v 1 - 3 )

Lets continue looking at Isaiah 29 v 13,'And so the Lord says,''These people say they are mine. They honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, and their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote'.Consider,'but their hearts are far from me',one has said if we feel that sense of distance with God ,we can be assured that God has not moved.Let us put it in  a modern setting, they were just going to church,they must have thought that was all that was expected of them.Of course its not if that all it is, its legalism, when we attend our local fellowship it has or it should have, the ministry of the word of God .That word should touch our hearts,and create in us a desire for our God. The problem with the people we are considering is they were not getting the word of God, they were getting as  Barry Webb puts it, 'false religion',he writes,' False religion is the very worst kind of pride because it attempts to make God our servant instead of recognizing that we are his'.Let us move to the time of Jeremiah ,the weeping prophet, were we see nothing had changed ,in 5 v 31,we read,' The prophets give false prophecies, and the priests rule with an iron hand. Worse yet, my people like it that way!Our dear Lord was faced with the same thing CP Mark 7 v7.The result would be as foretold in v 14 of Isa 29,I quote Barry Webb,' God's judgement would reduce proud Jerusalem to the most abject weakness and helplessness'.

                                                'There is no substitute for the word of God'

God speaks. 1 ( Isaiah 1 v18 )

 In Isaiah 29 v13, God speaks to His people, the chapter is about a people who were far from Him,it starts with ,' What sorrow awaits Ariel,a special name for Jerusalem'. Verse 13 highlights their state spiritually, 'And so the Lord says,''These people say they are mine, they honour me with their lips,but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man made rules learned by rote''. On a general application of the words,'These people say they are mine',most people would say they are children of God,but they are not unless they have truly trusted Jesus as Saviour. ( John 1 v 12- 13).These people say they are mine, but where they?,everything they were doing  was a denial of that relationship.Remember what our  Saviour said by their fruits you shall known them Matthew 7 v16,There must be an evidence that we are Gods children, even as Christians we will sin, 1  John 1v 8, but we do not walk in sin,and act as if sin does not matter, it does.John Stott writes,' The divine nature within the regenerate believer asserts itself against all evil. It is impossible for him to make a practice of sin.' We are children of God, and sin is unnatural to us'( Dodd').'The believer may fall into sin, but he will not walk in it. (Smith)We will continue this next time.

                                                                Augustine

                                           'It is a human thing to fall into sin

                                           A devillish  thing to persevere therein,

                                           And an angelical or supernatural

                                           thing to  rise from it.'

Such love.( John 1 v 10 - 13)

While on holiday in the town in Tavistock I saw something that is in most towns in the United Kingdom a monument with names on it, the dead  who died in war who sacrificed their lives for our sakes.0n top of  this particular monument there is a cross, that reminds all who see it of  one who sacrificed his life for mankind. They both made sacrifices,those whose names are mentioned on the monument, lead down their lives for friend ,family,and their fellow country men,and we applaud that, Consider the profound difference between the sacrifice that Christ made , from the sacrifice of those who laid down their lives ,in wars.Christ sacrifice was for his enemies Romans 5 v 8,the fact is, all mankind are  total enemies of God, lovers of darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil,in fact they hate the light John 5 v 19-20. The supreme reason for crucifying Jesus is summed up in the words of Luke 19 v14,'We will not have this man to reign over us'. Mankind has always objected to God's rule ,and when they crucified him, they showed their hatred for God in the most extreme manner imaginable. Yet in spite of such ingrained brutality,Christ sacrificed his life that mankind's sins could be forgiven,and that they may be reconciled to God, and receive eternal life. 

                                              'We love Him, because he first love us'.

                                                                 1 John 4 v 5 .

Emptiness. ( Hebrews 11 v 24 - 27)

Jack London a famous author  said ,' 'The function of man is to live. Not to exist'', he lived a very full life ,what he said has a ring of truth about it. It meant not being a couch potato ,of putting effort into life and he did that. But there is a greater meaning to these words,our Saviour came that we may have life,and have it abundantly.I believe that what people call life is a life without Christ, and that can only be described as an existence, without Christ, life will always be just an existence,and when one dies it will still be just an existence.A life without God is missing the true meaning of life ,everything is but an anti climax without God.  I asked a lady how she was keeping,she replied in a negative way,and I said to her that Christ makes all the difference for life ,and for eternity.Most people live just for the here and now,with not a  thought for eternity, the prodigal went looking for a life that he thought would be wonderful, but it did not turn out that way. We have a choice if we really want to live  and not just exist, the answer is very simple,  Christ.

                                              O what emptiness without a Saviour,

                                              Mid the sins and sorrow here below!

                                             And eternity,how dark without Him!

                                             Only tears and endless woe!

                                            What though I might live without the Saviour,

                                            When I come to die what will it be?

                                             O to face the valley's gloom without Him?

                                            And without Him all eternity!.

                                                      Words David Hanson.

                                            

He see's,He hears, He delivers. (Psalm 34 )

 Let us consider v15 of this lovely 34 Psalm written by David ,at a time of great distress.  'The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,and his ears are attentive to their cry'.Another translation puts it like this.'The eyes of the Lord watch over those who  do right,and his ears are open to their cries for help.'Sometimes a parent may say to a child  ,'I'm watching you',well dear child of God, he is watching you, you are never out of his sight, 24/7.He saw Jonah in the belly of a whale,he saw Daniel in  a den of lions. It is a great comfort that God is always watching over us,there are dear children of God who are in prison,their families do not know where they are,but the Lord is watching over them.This should be a great comfort to every child of God,but it is also a challenge, to live as to be always in the sight of God. Next he says that God listens to  his children when they cry out to him, He is always available, He will always come to your aid,for' when the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles' v17.

                                 Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,

                                 Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home,

                                  When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He;

                                  His eye is on the sparrow,and I know He watches me;

                                  His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He cares for me.

                                                       Words  Chas ,H. Gabriel.

Are you in Trouble?. (Psalm 34 )

 So we continue to look at Psalm 34, written by David, at a time of great difficulty, v 6, reads ,'This poor man called and the Lord heard him, he saved him out of all his troubles'. He is not talking poor materially, no , it has the idea of being humble, he is acknowledging that he has no bargaining power,remember what our Saviour said,'Blessed are the poor in spirit,for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  (Matthew 5 v 3) David the great warrior future king, saw himself in God's sight as one who as William Hendriksen puts it ,'as one who realizes their utter helplessness (Romans 7 v 24), they expect nothing from self,everything from God'. The Living translation puts it like this,'In my desperation I prayed.'This is a heart wrenching prayer,all the niceties are gone,he was in desperate straits, so out of that desperation he calls upon his God.the result God answered not in a halfhearted way,He delivered David from all his troubles. Consider the word all, there is no trouble, that God cannot deliver us from, no matter how many they are ,or how difficult they  are.            

                                          'How great is our God how great is His name,

                                          How great is our God,He's forever the same.

                                          He rolled back the waters,of the mighty sea.

                                          And He said I'll never leave you, put your trust in Me.'

                                                             Linda Randel.

Are you fearful ?. ( Psalm 34 )

 When  David the future king of Israel was being hunted by King Saul. he fled of all places to the land of the Philistines, to one of their major cities Gath. ( 1 Samuel 21 v 10 -15 ) Why did he go to such a place?,had David not killed their champion Goliath, and why did the Philistines allow him in the country?. Possible because he would have been seen as a defector , David wasn't but they were not to know that,he was after all going to be Israel's next king,My study Bible writes,'Soon however the Philistines became nervous about David's presence, after all he had slain thousands of their people'.David felt himself  in real danger so he pretended to be insane,and then he fled to a cave in Adullam. Out that fearful experience he composed  Psalm 34, it is a song of praise, and a testimony to  God for his deliverance.In that life threatening experience David was fearful, remember even a great man has fears,but he didn't run with his fears,no, instead he ran to God. God did not turn a deaf ear to his prayer for deliverance,hear is what he says,( 4) 'I sought the Lord and He answered me',hear this, God answers prayer.next,'He delivered me from all my fears',Hear this,God can deliver you from all your fears. We will continue this next time.

Now . ( Acts 16 v 31 )

 In the play the Tempest you have the words 'The very instance I saw you did my heart fly at your service', someone put it this way,'  My heart is always at your service'. Of course he is not talking about the physical heart,but the center of our inner being, Cruden's describes it as,' our mind,soul, spirit,in fact our entire emotional nature and understanding'. In Proverbs 23 v 26, we have the words,' My son give me your heart'. I remember a preacher ,saying when he was young those words brought conviction to his heart,he was religious but he had not surrendered to Christ, but that night he did.Let me ask you have you surrendered your heart to Christ, why not? and why not do it today,why are you resisting Gods Spirit?.There is a little prayer which goes,' Come into my heart Lord Jesus,come in today,come into stay,come into my heart Lord Jesus'.

                                           ' Behold, now is the accepted time;

                                            behold, now is the day of salvation.'

                                                     2 Corinthians 6 v 2 .

/