Hope . ( Psalm 43 )

I read this by Herbert Lockyer as regards not knowing,on a  personal level, he is commenting on the words from Psalm 43,the Psalm was written by David who was experiencing real difficulties,he is praying,and he asked God,'why had He rejected him? '.Here are those comments by H.L 'it may appear as if God has rejected us,but we must never mistake our fears for actualities.Permitting mysterious trials to overtake us.God can best expound their design to us.'David  throws these desponded thoughts off,he speaks to himself,v 5'Why my soul, are you downcast?Why so disturbed within me?. He was giving himself a good talking too,yes things are bad, but that is not the end  of the story,  God has not rejected me,so he utters these words,words not just spoken to himself but to all God's children,' Put your hope in God',it has with it a sense of waiting for God to act. These words are written for the child of God ,those who know Christ as Saviour, our relationship with God,means we can have confidence in our God  to help us and bring us through our trials. There is a song written by  K.L.Suffield ,here are the words.

                                       ' God is still on the throne and He will remember His own.

                                        Though Trials may press us,and burdens distress us;

                                        He never will leave us alone,His promise is true He will forsake His own,

                                                               God is still on the throne.' 

He can. ( Psalm 46 )

 At this time when Russia has invaded Ukraine many people are saying,'I can't believe this has happened', what they are actually saying,they don't understand why Russia has done this. I cast my mind back to the 20th century,and its unbelievable that there where so many conflicts. Millions and millions  of people died, ,why?,because it seems that its part of our human nature to be violent. What Russia has done should not surprise us,we would like to think that mankind has become too civilised to start a war, but alas our idea that humanity is getting better and better, is a vain dream, a deluded dream.As long as we live, wars will continue to hunt humanity,nothing can stop it.well no human can.God is Sovereign not man, I  want you to read these  words from Psalm 46 v 9- 10 carefully and prayerfully,

                                       'He makes wars to cease, to the ends of the earth.

                                       He breaks the bow,and shatters the spear;

                                       He burns the shields  with fire.

                                       He says,'Be still, and know that I am God;

                                       I will be exalted among the nations,

                                       I will be exalted in the earth.'

                                       The Lord Almighty is with us;

                                       the God of Jacob is our fortress.

What is an Evangelical? ( 2 Peter 1 v 21)

 Diarmaid MacCulloch writing in his book on Thomas Cromwell says that in the early stage of the English Reformation the adherents of the reformation did not use the term 'Protestant', but rather the term ,'Evangelical'. I think I prefer that, rather than the term ,'Protestant'. because the word Protestant,has lost its original meaning.In Northern Ireland ,Protestant may simply mean you are not a Roman Catholic it does not mean one is a Christian. So when I say that I am an Evangelical,what does that mean? the cry of the reformation was,'Scripture alone', and Faith alone'. Scripture alone means, that one only accepts that the only bases of ones faith is the Bible, and that any other authority will be rejected.One adheres to the fundamental doctrines of Christianity,and believes in the inerrancy of the Bible. Here is a quote by, A.A.Hodge.' The   Scriptures  in their entirety are the Word of God, free from any error which might be caused by human admixture'.Next we believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God,'the Scriptures we are told are said to be God breathed; that holy men spake from God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit ( E.J.Young). So it is the only authority that the Christian accepts ,as being true,and by which  we judge everything ,our doctrines ,our behaviour, all things, there must be no compromise on this,if we do we are on a slippery  slope that will take us into error.

                                                  Every part of Scripture is God-breathed.

                                                                2 Timothy 3 v 16.

God's answer. ( Isaiah 53 )

 I was sitting in what we call our living room,and I heard a loud thumbing sound,I jumped up  to investigate, my brother in law who lives with us,had  slipped down a few steps of our stairs, fortunately he didn't hurt himself. I jokingly said to him ,be careful  you know what happened to Jack and Jill (A nursery rhyme),they went up a hill, they both fell down ,but Jack came off the worse, for he broke his crown.It is easy to fall and really hurt oneself. Now look all the wrong things in the world,wars and rumors of wars , there is so much evil in this world, so much,it is very very sad.The question is why?,why?,why?, yes and why again?.the answer is very simple,two innocent people did an awful thing,they sinned,and that was the start of something awful, human kind had a great, great fall.It brought spiritual death upon us,our relationship with God everything was drastically changed.We see how drastic it was when we see the extreme lengths God had to go to,in order that we might be saved.

                                             On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,

                                            the emblem of suffering and shame;

                                            and I love that old cross where the dearest and best

                                            For a world of lost sinners was slain.

He can. ( Psalm 23 )

Augustus Herman Franke(1662- 1727) ,wrote of a time when he was in utmost extremity financially,but as he thought on God's greatness,his heart was strengthened in faith. He wrote,'What an excellent thing it is when we have nothing, and can rely upon nothing, but yet are acquainted with the living God,who made heaven and earth , and place our confidence alone in Him, which enables us to be so tranquil even in necessity!.He tell how he needed money that day to pay the workmen's wages ,but when he got home he was told there was no money there,but he declared that he had faith in God to meet the need. No sooner had he uttered these words someone arrived with 30 dollars from an unknown source.He asked the overseer how much was needed,he replied 30 dollars'.I read this in Herbert Lockyer's book in the Psalms,one is greatly strengthened in ones faith when we read these things, for the God who met the need of that person can meet the need of anyone of His children,for we read.' My God will meet all your needs according to the  riches of his glory in Christ Jesus' ( Philippians 4 v 19 )

Secret sins ( Numbers 32 v 23 )

 Psalm 19  has a very instructive message ,it highlights 3 things,some call it a ,'A Psalm of Three Books', the three things are,' Creation ,Scripture,and Man'. In verse 12 , we have David writing,'Forgive  my hidden faults',another translation puts it,'cleansed from secret faults'. These are sins we commit which we don't want anybody else to know about, sins we seek to conceal. Examples are Achan  (Joshua 7) Gehazi (2Kings 5), King David (2  Samuel 11), Judas( John 12). All these people  committed sins they sought to conceal.They were deliberate acts ,they were not committed in ignorance, but with a brazenness that was disgraceful. Everyone of them did not take God into account,nor its consequences, but everyone of them was found out. The word of God tells us of something we can be sure about, and its this, that our sins will find us out. ( Numbers 32 v 23)There are no secrets from God, and those so called secret sins, will be dealt with,in judgement, unless we confess them to God  and have them forgiven. Remember there is no hiding place from God, He sees all, hears all, knows all,and will judge all.

Accepted. ( Luke 15 v 11 - 32 )

 I like football and when I was young I even played in a team,and supported a local team,now I follow a Premier league side.Over these last few years  they have struggled and have been disappointing in their performances ,one feels like not watching them, but of course I will. There is a bigger lesson to be learnt from this, when  I consider myself, and it goes without saying I'm far from being   perfect, when I was  young I trusted the Saviour, but I went away from Him, but praise be to God He didn't give up on me. When we read the history of Israel, my they blew it so many times, yes time after time, after time, but in spite of their dreadful history God never get up on them. In one of my daily readings, the writer told of an experience while he was on holiday ,as he was sitting reading his Bible, a young man approached him and his wife,he was nervous, and he spoke to them and said he had been in prison,he went on to ask,'' Do you think that God really cares about people like me?''. They assured him He did,and then he said ,''I wish my parents would forgive me to''.Very sad ,I prayed for him that he might feel loved and accepted by our wonderful Saviour, and that his parents may forgive him and accept him.

Are you an outlaw? ( Jude v 3 )

 Psalm 11 v 3 reads,''If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?'.Let me ask you a question, what are the foundations that our faith are  built upon?. The answer is found in Ephesians 2 v 20,'On the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the chief corner stone'. John Stott writes,' The church stands or falls by its loyal  dependence on the foundation truths which God revealed to His apostles and prophets, which are now preserved in the New Testament'. Of course Christ holds all things together,as it is His church,he is the chief corner stone. Anyone who undermines this foundation must be challenged,that is why Jude exhorted the church to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted  to God's holy people. ( v3 ) These truths have been intrusted to us by our forefathers,let us not betray that trust,by yielding to a godless society,and those who  have liberal leanings,or those who have added to the scriptures. It was Martin Luther who said,'' Here I  stand I can do no other, God help me''.for that, he was branded an outlaw.Are you an outlaw?.

                                                                   

Simply, ( Psalm 1 )

Psalm 11 is a about  David at a time when he was being persecuted by King Saul,who wanted to kill him, because he saw him him as a threat to his kingship.Charles Simeon writes,' His timid friends were afraid for his safety and recommended him to flee to some mountain where he have a have a  safe hiding place from the rage of King Saul. We don't know at one point were this persecution was taking place,possible it was early on,when David was still be in Saul's service. David responds by rejecting their advice,he replies,' I trust in the Lord for protection, so why do you say to me,' Fly like a bird  to the mountains for safety!'. There would be times, later on when he would have to flee, and he would have to trust God to keep him safe. We must be careful not to box ourselves in,in different situations,and circumstances, but at this time it was wrong for him to flee. He declares,''I trust the Lord for my protection.' v1,  Spurgeon see's what they are advising him to do was to distrust God. Davids life on the whole was full of so many situations , in which the only thing he had was his God,he needed to trust Him  as he faced a lion  a bear,Goliath,Saul the Philistines. All through his life he was called  to exercise trust in God, likewise it applies to all  God's  children, to simply  trust the Lord.

Unbelief. ( Hebrews 11 ) 3 Deut.

So in Deuteronomy 20 Israel were about to enter the promised land,it wasn't going to be easy, they were going into battle. There were those who could be exempt from fighting ,the exemptions are spelled out,the last one included those who were fearful or fainthearted,or soft of heart. J.A.Thompson makes a few helpful comments on this,'Such attitudes were not merely personal but were a threat to a whole army psychologically, for they may cause the heart of their comrades in arms to melt. Clearly, men who were fearful lacked faith, and faith in God's power is necessary for all who fight God's wars'. Without faith we cannot please God and it will hinder us and we will not get what we seek for Hebrews 11 v 6.It is a self made road block ,John Stott says the following ,''Unbelief is not a misfortune to be pitied; it is a sin to be deplored''. It was unbelief that  stopped Israel entering the promised land for 40 years  ,Hebrews 3 v19,unbelief will get you nowhere with God,He does not look  kindly on unbelief. We are saved by faith, and we are to live by faith , Habakkuk 2 v 4. I realize we will not all rise in faith at times,humbly confess this to God,asking forgiveness ,and ask Him to increase your faith.

A storm of his own making. ( 1 Samuel 15 v22 )

It is a very stormy day, the wind is exceptionally strong,so far  no damage done,I wonder will there be many more prayers offered up?.I am sure that many people pray who don't usually pray when in difficulties,for many prayer is just for emergencies, I wonder does God answer such prayers?,of course God is not a convenient store,but alas for many that's all He is.I am reminded of a famous prophet,and he was caught up in a storm, his name was Jonah,but it was a storm of his own making,and it was sent by God. He disobeyed God, it is a very serious thing when one disobey's God,as Jonah was going to find out. He was in a boat going in the opposite direction he was suppose to God.He put the other people in the boat in grave danger,sin and that's what disobedience is,it has a ripple effect .Consider the effect of what Adam and Eve did,massive, mind blowing, awful in the extreme.When David sinned,a man and a child died,but he also brought dishonour upon his God  among the nations 2 Samuel 12 v14 AV,and he brought permanent, consequences upon himself,let us all remember ,it is always better to obey God, because if you don't it can be very serious.

? 

Standing. ( Romans 4 v 18 - 21 ) 2 Deut

 Continuing on as regards Israel about to enter the promised land,the raising up of an army to fight and conquer the inhabitants of that  land. ( Deuteronomy 20) They are told had greater armies ,that were better equipped, God told how it was ,He didn't hide anything back. They needed to know what awaited them, it was not going to easy,but most important they are exhorted not to be fainthearted or afraid, to not panic or be terrified by them (v 4).Whatever challenges we may be facing,and like Israel of old ,we will face challenges but we will not be facing them alone, for as He said to Israel ,He says to us,'The Lord your God is the one who goes with you ,to fight for you,against your enemies to give you victory.' That's the wonderful thing about the  word of God,the encouragement one receives from  it,they are precious promises of God. Lean hard on God precious promises,and all He asks from you and me,is to believe them, and to trust Him to fulfill them. 

                                                  ' Standing on the promises that cannot fail'

                                                   When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,

                                                    By the living word of God I shall prevail;

                                                    Standing on the promises of God '

                                                                Words R.K . Carter.

What can we do?. ( Ephesians 6 v 18 - 20 ) 1 Deut

 Israel was about to enter the promised land ,but it meant that they would have to  conquer the land,that meant  raising up an army,it would not be easy.Moses tells them that those they fight against would have horses and chariots,it was not going to be easy. (Deut 20) Fighting the Lords battles is never easy, consider those who are being persecuted in the lands where Satan's strongholds are.They are at the coal face suffering the slings and arrows of misfortune,yes it really is a battle,and there is cost, don't pity them ,pray for them.Early on in their exodus journey , Israel  was attacked by the Amalekites, (Exodus 17 v 8 -15) so the Israelites led by Joshua fought them ,as they were fighting, Moses stood on top of a hill with the staff of God in his hands,which he held up. As long  he held it up Israel prevailed,if he let it down, the Amalekites prevailed. Moses arms became tired, so Aaron and Hur held his arms up,and Israel won the day/.The uplifted staff as Alec Motyer writes, was an encouragement to the fighting troops that God was enlisted in their cause. Matthew Henry  sees it as an appeal to God for His help,he simple says ,''Joshua fights.Moses prays''.The important  thing we learn from this,as I have said earlier,we may not be at the coal face,but it is vital that we uphold those who are, by praying for them.

Do it. ( Hebrews 4 v 16 )

 Let us consider Matthew 7 v 7- 8 ,which is all about prayer, Asking,seeking, and knocking, one can raise so many aspects  as regards prayer,prayer is not all about asking,but asking comes into it a lot.As we consider those three aspects mentioned they gave the impression of keeping at it,of not giving up,hanging in there.We are to be serious about it,and earnest about it,and not limiting God,for there is nothing to hard for Him for Him to do,but all things must fall within His will.Ask, that seems simple it is not always multiplying words,when Peter began to sink in the sea,Matthew 14 v30, he cried out three simple words,' Lord , save me',and He did just that.Prayer must not just be for emergencies ,Corrie Ten Boom said,'Is prayer your steering wheel or you spare tyre? ' So lets consider the asking ,seeking ,knocking, I will simple say this one thing, just do it,put it into practice.God delights to hear His children pray, our Lord is encouraging us to pray,and stresses God's willingness to answer our prayers. In v 9- 11 He speaks how a father will give  what his children ask,how much more will our loving heavenly grant to us what we ask.

                                                    My soul, ask what  thou wilt,

                                                    Thou canst not be to bold,

                                                    Since His own blood for thee  He spilt,

                                                    What else can He withhold?

                                                            Words John Newton.

A quite time. ( Proverbs 15 v 8 )

When is the best time, to have ones quiet time of prayer?, King David said,''In the morning you hear my prayer'', Psalm 5 v 3.Lets be clear ,one can pray at anytime and anywhere, but I am talking about what one would call having a quite time. We must be careful not to get into legalism,or to make people guilty,or inferior, because they don't pray in the morning.There is a number of reasons I have my quite time in the morning ,one, I wont be disturbed ,also things can crowd out prayer. Everybody's circumstances are different , a mother of children can find it hard to have a set time,there are so many different reasons.The  thing is, we need to pray,it can be anywhere, the main thing is, to do it, find your own rhythm as regards your prayer life.God delights to hear us pray ,be yourself ,sometime when we listen to certain people pray we feel inadequate ,well don't, that's the way they pray,you pray as yourself, for that's what God your heavenly Father wants to hear,the real you, not someone impersonating someone else. In 1 Thessalonians 5 v17 we read,' Never stop praying', have a prayerful spirit, God's  listening 24/7 it's is a mystery how God can hear all our prayers individually but He can, and He does,and what is more we have His full attention. It is wonderful having a relationship with our God, because of Jesus, our great high priest , who ever lives to make intercession  for us.

Not now. ( Deuteronomy 29 v29 )

 Chuck Swindoll one of my favourite preachers, tells how as a young man attending a seminary,found himself struggling with questions as to the whys in life.One of his tutors whom he respected and admired greatly, said something like this to him,'' Chuck , I've come to the place where I believe only on rare occasions does God tell us why, so I've decided to stop asking'', It is in 1 Corinthians 13 v 12 we read, 'Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror but then we will see everything with perfect clarity'.  Our Saviour said to Peter ,''You don't understand now what I'm doing,but someday you will''.( John 13 v 7)

                                                   'Not till the loom is silent,

                                                   And the shuttles cease to fly,

                                                  Shall God explain the reason why,

                                                  The dark threads are so needful,

                                                  In the weavers skilful hand

                                                  As the threads of gold and silver

                                                  In the pattern He has planned'

                                                            By Betty Kramer

 

Persecution. ( John 15 v18 - 25 )

It is terrible the suffering many dear Christians are enduring, Christians being hacked to death,shot,and so many other ways. I pray daily for our dear brothers and sisters ,and feel so sad.This is not something new ,as we look back over history we see that it is ongoing,and it will never cease. It is amazing the courage many show in their suffering, John Lambert a godly man who lived in the 15th century, during Henry the eights reign, was ordered by the king  to be executed by being burnt at the stake.At his martyrdom at Smithfield in1538 he suffered such a cruel death, but as he died, faith was victorious for he lifted up his fingers flaming with fire , and cried,'None but Christ, none but Christ'.Our Saviour said,''If the world hates you,keep in mind it hated me first''.( John 15 v18 ) He also said this,''In this world you will have trouble. But take heart I have overcome the world''.( John 16 v 33 )

Making preparation. ( John 3 v16 )

 One of my sons was  talking about the will he was going to make, it is an important thing to do, a sensible thing to do.Insurance is also  another way of making preparation in case the unexpected happening,it is also an important and a sensible thing to do.Here I believe is the thing we need to make preparation for that moment when we shall  stand before our maker, God. In these days we receive warnings as to a severe storm that is coming ,which enables us to batten down the hatches, or to move to a place of safety.Let me say this there is a storm coming ,  when God will destroy this world by fire (2 Peter 3 v 10) and every soul that ever lived will be ushered into Gods presence.For the Christian that day will hold no fear, for those who have never accepted Jesus as Saviour, judgement will fall ,it will be to late to seek forgiveness,the door of mercy will be shut,the door of judgement will be opened. We live in a time of opportunity ,a day of grace,in which we can be saved from ,sin, Satan ,and hell, be prepared don't leave it to late ,trust Jesus to be your Saviour today.

An invitation. ( John 4 v 7 -26 )

When I was young our family to say the least would be, by todays standards, considered poor.There was no possibility of pocket money,or indeed of any money.So if one of our friends had a birthday party we looked forward to going and enjoying the goodies on offer. But I remember one of our friends had a birthday party, but we were excluded, we never got an invitation ,boy what a let down, we were disappointed. I suppose its wonderful to go to Buckingham Palace to see the Queen,so far it hasn't happened to me,but we live in hope.But here's a wonderful invitation by someone greater that the Queen,it is an invitation from Jesus ,who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.One writer put what Jesus said  like this,'Are you tired?,Worn out? Burned out on religion ? Come to Me. Get away with Me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with Me- watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill fitting  on you. Keep company with Me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly'These words are based on Matthew 11 v28-29 ,why don't you accept that invitation? ,you will never regret it ,if you do.

                                                      'I heard the voice of Jesus say,

                                                       Come unto me and rest;

                                                       Lay down, thou weary one,lay down

                                                       Thy head upon My breast,

                                                       I came to Jesus as I was,

                                                       Weary and worn and sad,

                                                       I found in Him a resting place,

                                                       And He has made me glad.

                                                            Words H. Bonar.

For thou art gone backward/ ( Jeremiah 15 v 6)

 I was speaking with a Christian and she mentioned a number of her family including her husband,and  son whom she said had backslidden. I understood what she meant, for as I look back on my early life,as a  youngster I trusted Jesus,and then I went away,later I came back,then later on I went away,then a week before my 20th birthday the Lord in his great mercy restored me, that was nearly 58 yrs ago. Since then I have sought to be faithful by God's grace,yet I have two brothers who one could say are backslidden. Those words from Jeremiah 15 v6 ,'For thou art gone backward',where spoken by God as regards Israel, that special people blessed beyond many,and yet time after time they backslid turned away from the God who loved them with an everlasting love, a love that they continually spurned.And yet God was not finished with them, as He was not finished with me,God is the great restorer,the words of an old hymn,come to mind,'When I would wander from the path astray, then He will draw me back into the way'. No matter how far you have wandered from God,and no matter how long its been since you wondered  away from God,He the good Shepherd can restore you,if you return and seek Him.

                                                       I've wandered far away from God.

                                                       Now  I'm coming home. 

                                                       The paths of sin to long I've trod

                                                       Now I'm coming home.

                                                       Coming home ,coming home,

                                                       Never more to roam,

                                                       Open wide Thou Thine arms of Love

                                                       Lord  I'm coming home.

                                                                Words W,J, Kirkpatrick.

                           

God said. ( Genesis 1 )

Let  us  consider the following ,'Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces'. Jeremiah 23 v29. Unlike the words of the false prophets that had only power to deceive, mislead, and destroy,those who blindly followed it. The word of God accomplishes His purposes,His words are words of truth and life and will accomplish the purpose for which He sent it. Isaiah 55 v 11.When God moves by His Spirit ,the word of God  will break the hardest of sinners,as we read in 2 Timothy 2 v 9.'that it cannot be chained',no one can stop it.' It is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged  sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires'. Hebrews 4 v 12. As  P E. Hughes says ,'Only God's  word . can pierce through the intangible realms of a human being'. He goes unto say,'And this is why this sword of the Spirit,which the Christian is given to wield, is the most powerful weapon in the whole universe'. 

Christ came. ( John 3 v16 )

Consider the words we read in John 1 ,as regards our Saviour coming into this world,first of all we see in v1, that Jesus is called the word and he was  God . C S. Lewis wrote of God in disguise ,He who was truly God, became a human being and dwelt among us.He came into the very world He created, but the world didn't  recognize Him v10. Mankind is spiritually blind, is this not the supreme evidence of that reality?.Things have not changed nor will they ever change, because mankind loves the darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. John 3 v 18. The don't only love darkness, they hate the light 3 v 20,every day I pray for dear Christians been murdered,imprisoned,despised, because they are followers of  Jesus .So John writes how the world didn't recognise  Jesus for whom He was,and it still  doesn't ,but we also read''He came unto His own people, and even they rejected Him'', Jn 1 v 11,are these not amazing words, this is the nation of Israel he is writing about. They unlike the non-Jews had the scriptures that clearly foretold of Christs coming,and when He came as a child we read he was born in a manger ,for there was no room  for Him.Those words to me are symbolic, of what awaited Jesus, the only place there was room for Jesus  was on a cross.Yes it a dark picture I paint, more darker than we realise ,and as long as mankind continue to reject Him ,the wrath of God will abide upon them .Jn 3 v 36. But the good news is this,' to all who believe in Him and accept Him, He gave the right to become children of God'. Jn 1 v 12.

                                                   Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,

                                                   and you will be saved.

                                                              Acts 16 v31

The Word of God. ( Matthew 6 v 22 - 23 )

 When I lived in Belfast many places where being bombed, one of them was a Christian book shop,some of the stock was saved, and from what was saved I purchased a Bible.It had a little bit of smoke damage but it was in reasonable condition,I still have that Bible ,I don't use it now ,for its a bit worse for wear,but the fact that it survived the bombing and the fire ,reminds me how the word of God has come under attack throughout its history,it has survived ,and indeed will continue to survive.There are so called Christian churches that have hid the word of God from Gods people, saying that they were the only ones capable of interpreting the word of God.But instead of interpreting it and teaching what God said,they taught so many things that were contrary to God word. Jeremiah that wonderful man of God was one of the last prophets who prophesied before the Babylonian captivity,he had to contend with so many things.I mention one,the false prophets, they prophesied lies and dreams, deceitful inventions of their own hearts.What they taught was of no value,worthless in contrast to the word of God, CP Jeremiah 23 v 28. If your religion is not based on God's word it is worthless, not only is it worthless it is dangerous and can only lead you into a lost eternity Our Saviour said ,''And if the light you think you have is actually  darkness, how deep that darkness is.'' Matthew 6 v 23.

Consequences.( 1 Kings 11 v 1 - 13)

 Suddenly he was no longer strong, he thought he was,but alas his strength was gone,you see all those great feats of strength was accomplished,because God give him the strength.So what happened he had a hair cut,he didn't mean to have it cut,but he would play with fire ,when he fell for a girl  called Delilah. He should have known better but as the saying goes, love is blind,and because of that he became physically blind,and he became  physically weak. Consider that there are things that can weaken us spiritually,like Samson,we get involved with the wrong kind of person or people.The word of God instructs us not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers, for what fellowship hath righteousness have with unrighteousness?, and what communion hath light with darkness .( 2 Corinthians 6 v 14 ) Most people apply this to believers marrying unbelievers,but  I am sure it can apply to other situations. As we view the history of Israel ,we see time and time again the disastrous consequences  of  them entering into relationships with foreign nations .The greatest example of this was Solomon who was endowed with godly wisdom, and yet acted in such a dangerous way by marrying many heathen wives, he should have known better,but his love for these women blinded him,he ended up worshipping their gods,

It's just me. ( Romans 8 v 29 )

There was  lady in the church where I was joint leader,and she was so unpleasant,people knew what she was like ,and they would say,'that's just Ann'.  and they where absolutely correct, that sums it up . Let me move away from Ann,to Bill the preacher,no, lets take away the preacher bit,and lets consider Bill,like Ann I have been a Christian a long time,and I often display the old Bill, I wander if  their are people,and they say about me,''oh ,that's just Bill'',and they are absolutely right,sad to say.. It was the greatest of the prophets John the Baptist ,who said something  so challenging,when  he said,''He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less''John 3 v 30,John was speaking about Jesus.It raises this question,how much of Christ am I like,in my character.oh yes I will always be Billy, but will I be a Christlike Billy?.I have a friend who became a Christian,and some of the family didn't like it ,but his mother said ,''he is different,''and the difference was Christlikeness.

Responsible. ( Genesis 3 v 11 - 13)

Recently I read of an incident in Pakistan, it involved some people who work in a dirty,high risk, low-pay job cleaning the sewers .They don't have much say about anything,they have to do what they are told,they really need their job.In the sewers toxic gas builds up,and if breathed in, it can be fatal. Well a number of the workers died, the company did not supply any protective equipment,they denied any negligence on their behalf saying it was the will of Allah. Here is fatalism of the worse kind,no responsibility, many people who have committed awful war crime say it was not their  fault they  where just taking orders.Consider, if you have a family you are responsible for them,if you have a car you are responsible to maintain it,making sure its road worthy,you are responsible for how you drive the car. My God is sovereign, as a Christian it does not mean that I should act in an irresponsible manner,like those Islamic people who conveniently  put the blame on another,and did not want to be held accountable financially,I also would hold that what they did was criminal ,of course the people who suffered where Christians,so who cares,as the Koran calls Christians and non- Muslins wretched creatures. I would just add this as a Christian I love all humanity,as God does, we read that He so loved the world that He gave  His only begotten Son( Jesus), that whosoever believes in Him ,should not perish but have everlasting life ( John 3 v16 )

                                                             'Come one,come all'

I saw the light. ( John 9 )

 Sometimes in life we struggle and we retreat into ourselves,we think that no one cares for us.It may be we  are overwhelmed by life,experiencing rejection, loneliness ,loss,always seem to be misunderstood,you may be considering suicide.I am sure many people, more than we realise, think about it,thankfully that's all they do,but sadly many actually do commit suicide.Do try and talk to someone, pray ,you may not be a Christian but you can still talk to God ,tell him how you feel, hold nothing back,you cant shock God.The Bible is full of many people who have felt despair,and they cried unto God and He heard and answered them.We read of a man, a jailer who found himself  in a position, where suicide seemed the only option,but he heard one of the prisoners,shouting out to him,''Don't harm yourself'',and he didn't, yes he was saved from suicide,but it didn't stop there,for he discovered the most important life changing event in his whole life,Jesus became his Saviour, no longer was he lost,no longer was life a black hole,  It was Hank Williams who wrote and sung a song called,' I saw the light',here is a few verses of it.

                                                  ' I wandered so aimless life filled with sin,

                                                    I wouldn't let my dear Saviour in,

                                                    Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night,

                                                     Praise the Lord I saw the light.

                                                     Just like the blind man I worried along,

                                                     Worries and fears I claimed for my own,

                                                     Then like the bind man that God give back his sight,

                                                      Praise the Lord I saw the light.

The big problem .( Romans 11 v 33 - 36 )

 There is a particular brand of tomato Ketchup that has this slogan  on it '57 Varieties,' when it comes to problems, there are more than 57 varieties. Some don't go away others resolves themselves, others have to be worked through,some appear so difficult. What can we do,we may feel at a loss as to how to solve the problem. Here is what I  believe , God can help us with our problems.Think about what God has done,He created the universe ,and everything in it, He is the great problem solver.Consider the greatest problem that He was faced with the salvation of mankind , and He solved it.So many ignore this to their hurt,in relation to time and eternity,we are exhorted to trust Christ for the forgiveness of our sins,and to be set free,  there will be a coming  judgement ,in which there will be no escape. Why suffer for the greatest problem in all our lives,our sin.There is an answer to this awful problem,and its only to be found in Jesus, and in Him alone, your church cannot save you,let me stress this again only through Christ,and Him alone can one be saved. I leave you with a verse of a song by Natalie Grant.

                                             ' In Christ alone who took on flesh

                                              Fullness of God in helpless babe

                                             This gift of love and righteousness 

                                             Scorned by the ones He came to save

                                             Till on that cross as Jesus died 

                                             The wrath of God was satisfied 

                                             For our sin on Him was laid

                                            Here in the death of Christ I live.

I can't see. ( Job 23 v 10 )

 i  remember a song years ago and it was very popular sung by Doris Day,words by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans  ,and here are some of the words from it,'Que sera,sera, what ever will be ,will be,the future's  not ours to see'. Consider the words ,'the future's not ours to see',none of us know what the future will be ,that seems obvious.And yet many want to know the future,they look to the stars,crystal balls, I remember working with a young man ,who said he  had a gift of reading tea leaves, and that supposedly told one what the future held . It was the prophets of old like Daniel, Jeremiah that had a knowledge of the future . God may reveal  the future to certain individuals,but most of us will not know the future.Joseph Parker wrote a hymn ,here are some of the words.

                                              God holds the key of all unknown and I am glad;

                                              If other hands should hold the key

                                              Or if He trusted it to me,

                                              I might be sad.

                                              I cannot read His future plans;But this I know;

                                              I have the smiling of His face

                                              And all the refuge of His grace

                                              While here below.

                                              Enough ,this covers all my wants,and so I rest;

                                               And in His care I saved shall be   

                                              Forever ever blest.