We are not god's. { Exodus 20 v 2- 6 )

 A worldwide famous chef is opening a restaurant in London ,his name is Yannick Alleno, and he said the following,'I want my guests to feel like god's'.It is an interesting statement when the devil tempted Eve as regards eating the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He said if you eat it you would be like God ( Genesis 3 v 5) One writer says the following,'It wasn't wrong for Eve to be like God. To become more like God is humanities goal, it is what we are supposed to do.But Satan  mislead Eve concerning the right way to accomplish this goal. He told her that she could more like God by defying  God's  authority, by taking God's place and deciding for herself what was best for her life. In effect, he told her  to become her own god'. There was a very pompous politician ,and it was Winston Churchill who said,'there but by the grace of God, goes God'. Nothing has changed,we may not be pompous ,and yet we may be,but like Eve of old our first mother, we have chosen not God or His way,but our way.That great chef may want to make his guests feel like God,but feelings don't change anything,we are human and we will die,and then we will face the one who is God,are you ready?, better get ready,by trusting Jesus as your Saviour.

I'm going to live for ever. ( Romans 8 v 35 - 39 )

 My Saviour said,' My sheep listen to my voice, I know them,and they follow Me. I  give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, no one will snatch them out of my hand.My Father, who has given them to me,is greater than all, no one can snatch  them out of my Father's hand, I and my Father are one'. (John 10 v 28-30 ). John Stott declares,'' No profounder security is conceivable for the follower of  Jesus'' 

                                              'The stars shine over the earth,

                                               The stars shine over the sea,

                                               The stars look up to the Mighty God,

                                               The stars look down on me;

                                               The stars will live for a million years,

                                                For  a million years and a day!

                                                But Christ and I shall live and love

                                                When the stars have passed away.'

                                                                   Anon

'

                                       

Ungodly ministers .( Acts 20 v 25 - 31 )

 Dale Ralph Davis tells the story about a minister called Thomas Hogg who ministered in a place called Kiltearn ,Scotland,who charged his congregation to dig his  grave at the threshold of the church building where  he might act as a silent sentinel against any unworthy minister coming into the charge. The inscription on Hog's tombstone read;

                                            'This stone shall bear witness against the

                                             parishioners of Kiltearn if they bring an 

                                            ungodly minister in here'

The forefathers of the church that I attend,put into the constitution that any minister who came to the church must be an evangelical.Why did they do it?because they realised that all ministers do not hold fast to the truths in the Bible. The gospel will not be preached,many precious truths will be denied or neglected and God 's people will suffer and God will not be honoured it will cause havoc in the church.

Where are you going? ( Matthew 10 v 28 )

 I was in a traffic jam,the driver in the car behind me pumped their horn telling me to move,but I couldn't,when I did move I saw him shooting off ,going to his destination.All these car owners speeding everywhere, were is their destination?.From the moment we are born we are heading towards a destination I am not just talking about death,but after death. There are only two destinations one is heaven the other is hell,no one would want to go to hell that seems reasonably enough, and everybody would want to go to heaven.Oh yes I know that many people do not believe in either,they think there is no such place as heaven or hell. I do not say this flippantly,but they are in for a big,big surprise.Hell is a terrible place,best avoided, heaven is an absolute wonderful place.It is Bruce Milne who writes,'It is not that hell is so terrible, but that heaven is so wonderful that every effort is to be made and every possession ,if necessary, relinquished in order to arrive there'. Everything here is worth losing if it leads to the incalculable gain of 'life' everlasting'. Our blessed Saviour personified truth,He never told a life,and he spoke of judgement  a lot ,and made it clear that death does not end our existence  , and He did something wonderful on  the cross in which he died,that if we asked forgiveness, and trust Him as our Saviour , the door of heaven would be opened. We all have a destiny,what is going to be your destination?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         ,                                                                                                                                                                                          

Are you a plodder? ( 2 Timothy 4 v 7 )

 I am not a fast reader,it usually takes me awhile reading a book,but I usually get there in the end,I was encouraged to read that William Carey otherwise known as the father of modern missions, suffered  innumerable  hardships during a lifetime of missionary service ,said the following to his nephew,'' I  can plod. That is my only genius. I  can persevere in any given pursuit. To this I owe everything''. There is a lot to be said for being a plodder,there are those who start with great enthusiasm, but they give up that thing they were doing. There is an old song called ,'Old father Thames', by Raymond Wallace,here is a verse from it,

                                                'He never seems to worry

                                                 Doesn't care for fortune's fame,

                                                 He never seems to hurry

                                                 But he gets there just the same'

As Christians we are in a race, but it's not about who finishes first,it is about finishing,no matter what the difficulties, plod on ,persevere on by God's grace,don't give up.

Everything's gone. ( Romans 8 v 28/ 38 -39 )

The German  miserabilist wrote,''The ordinary man places his life's happiness in things  external to him,in property, rank,wife and children,friends, society and the like, so that when he loses them....the foundation of his happiness is destroyed''.Of course those thing are important to most of us, yet in a moment all things can be destroyed,or taken from us. The fact is we can end up standing,naked and barefoot bereft us of all these things. Natural disasters, unforeseen events,can rob us of everything,and there is nothing you can do about it ,no matter how unjust it may seem. We who are in a comfort zone,and daily view on our TV's the terrible disaster in Ukraine caused by the war,it is sad beyond we can imagine,yet it may be that it could happen to us.The greatest example of this is to be found in the book of Job,were Job lost everything , a very extreme trial. I do know how I would react if such a thing would happen to me,but one thing for sure these things mentioned cannot rob us of  God's love which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

                                                 'Every joy or trial, falleth from above,

                                                 Traced upon our dial. by the Sun of Love.

                                                 We may trust Him fully,all for us to do,

                                                 They who trust Him wholly, find Him 

                                                                   wholly true.

                                                          Words Frances R. Havergal

Truth matters ( John 8 v 31 -47)

    We were eating at a well known  establishment, and I saw  a stand with  magazines on it,the words on  the front page read,'Does truth matter?'.It appears that during the covid they were accused of  wrong doing,the magazine sought to challenge what had been said about them/.The were seeking to show that truth matters,not the lies that they believe were told about them.. Whatever the truth of this matter is the fact is  ,truth does matter,in business,politics, the media, the justice system.When the truth is denied, suppressed,distorted,what takes its place is lies?. In his poem ,'If', Rudyard Kipling,speaks of truth being  ',twisted by knaves'. The Nazi regime was supposed to last a thousand years,instead it lasted 12 years,one should not be surprised , for it was built on lies,among other things. It was Jesus who declared that He was the way the truth and the life ( John 14 v6 ), the death of Jesus on the cross, was an attempt by Satan ,and indeed the world,  trying to kill the truth.but of course they did not succeed,for you cannot destroy the truth,and Him who is the truth.His birth,His life,His message,his death and resurrection are built on truth,the thing is ,we are sinners ,and Christ Jesus came to save sinners,that is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

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Ignore Him at your cost. (Genesis 19 v 26 )

 There were two brothers,they were religious,you read about them in Genesis 4.they were named Cain and Abel,They both worked at different jobs,the Bible says, Abel kept flocks,Cain worked with the soil.One day they both brought an offering to God, Able brought  what the Bible calls the firstborn of his flock, Cain brought the fruits of his soil.Then we read how God looked with favour on Abel's offering,but on Cain's offering He did not look with favour. The result was Cain was very angry, and God spoke to him, assuring him if he did what was right he would be accepted. So it follows that what he had done had not been right in God's eyes. What that was we do not know,it is not revealed to us,and God cautioned him about his anger that it was like a wild beast ,he must not let his anger rule him. Alas it does not appear that he listened to what God said,instead of saying to himself , I will do what God says,I will seek to do what's right in Gods eyes,and I will not be ruled by my temper.The thing is when you ignore what God says you are heading for trouble,he ended up with the infamous title,'the first murderer'.

Humility. ( Philippians 2 v5- 11)

A little bit of humility goes a long way ,true humility is not a showy thing, it should be genuine,not a Uriah Heep, 'I'm every so humble',  false  confession. Nor should it be a one off occasion,rather it should be a life manifestation. Peter exhorts the younger men to submit themselves to the elders.and to clothe themselves with humility towards one another,because, 'God  opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble ( 1 Peter 5 v 5 ) How is it manifest? by taking the place of a servant, as our Saviour did  (Philippians 2 v 5 -11). Peter declares,'Be clothed with humility', our dear Saviour personified that,I have looked at many examples of humility by preachers and so many other people,but they would all agree that in our dear Saviour ,we have by far the greatest manifestation of true humility. Charles R. Swindle  wrote the following,'Though  enwrapped in the radian light of His own divine glory, God the Son put a veil over His glory- not diminishing it or extinguishing it, but concealing it- all on behalf of a cold, dark world that sought to plunge Him into the shadow of death'. What a incomprehensible, unfathomable   example of selfless humility' Try following that.

'Fight the good fight . ( Romans 8 v31 - 39 )

 When we were young ,one of my older brothers was being picked on by a fellow who lived in our street,you may have heard of a child who would say,'i'll get my big brother for you', well that's what happened,our eldest brother did go and deal with him.Israel had come out of Egypt and they were going into the promised land,there would be many battles to be fought,those nations would be equipped with horses and chariots,and their armies would be greater than theirs.and this is what they were told,' Do not be faint hearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory'. ( Deuteronomy 20 v 3 - 4 ) Yes they would have to fight,one writer say's,' Divine  sovereignty does not negate human activity,' it is not ,'Lets go and let God', no,they were going to to have to fight,the important thing is the Lord  would be with them and  would give them the victory,and so victory would be assured.We new covenant Israelites have many battles to fight on our way to glory,because the Lord will be with us ,victory is assured.

                                                     'Onward Christian soldiers'

Don't be gullible. ( 1 Thessalonians 5 v 16 -22 )

 I recently heard of a minister who was walking  through a local market,and his attention was drawn to a lady who was clutching her hand bag,he didn't think much about this, when he felt the Lord speaking to him. He was told to go and speak to that lady/.This is what he  was told to say,''Your life is all wrapped up ,like your hand bag'',it turned out that this lady was the wife of a murderer,the murder had happened recently,the minister was able to talk to her and hopefully help her.A friend of mine and his wife were  attending a church of a Pastor friend of theirs. The Pastor wasn't speaking but another elder was,he read the scriptures and he look straight at my  friend saying,' that was a word for you', and my friend nodded in agreement.Later his minister friend said, 'do you realise what he the preacher meant'?,My friend said ,'not really',his friend told him that the reading was about someone committing adultery.I can assure you that was not true,my friend and his wife are a faithful couple.In 1 Thessalonians 5 v20-22, we are told ,' Do not treat prophecies with contempt. but test them all; hold on to what is good,reject every kind of evil'. There are many cranks,crooks ,twisters, and over enthusiastic people,who declare,'here is the word of  God, for you', Don't accept it as necessary true,test all things by the scriptures,one writer puts it like this,'don't be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what's good. Throw out anything tainted with evil'.

Not yet. ( 1 John 3 v 1 - 2)

 Peter Adam in his commentary on the book of Malachi writes,' How amazing that though we know we are not the centre of the  universe, we feel,think, relate and act as if we are. Our self-centredness blinds us to God; we try to live in a fool's paradise, when in fact it is more like hell than a paradise.' God last' rather than ,'God first' is our effective motto and rule. Is it as serious as that?, I think so,wherever mankind dwells,we bring something with us, our fallen nature,which  we so under rate , our fallenness is ever with us.Our best moments can change in a moment into our worst , our world history is littered with mountains of dead bodies,and it does not appear to be changing. Oh yes we are capable of so much good,no one denies that,but it is not the good that is the problem,it is that darker side that manifests itself in so many destructive ways.I believe God grants us experiences,that reveals to us how deadly we can become.  I know someone who is a Christian of many years who was hurt by someone near to him,he felt  like ,literally killing that person. It was the Greeks who had a saying,''Man know Thyself'',we don't know ourselves,but God does.we are sinners,God's answer is the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,when we embrace Him as Saviour, are sins are forgiven, and  and we find that He can breath  into our lives and set us free,oh no we will not sinless, that will never happen while we are in this mortal coil but it will happen one day,and wonder of wonders we shall be like Jesus.

Contentment .( Philippians 4 v 10 - 20 )

 When Israel was about to conquer the city of Jericho, they were told that they were not to keep any of the spoils for themselves,it was all to go into the  treasure  ( Joshua 6 v 19 ).But unfortunately a man called Achan disobeyed ,and brought trouble upon the nation,He and his family paid the penalty for there sin  ( Joshua 7 v 25}When he confessed his sin he said 'I coveted', (Josh 7 v 21) ,yes coveting  is a sin,it is something that mankind is prone to and the devil plays into it,read Gen3v 1,he tempts people to want more,he does not tell you that when you yield to the sin of covetousness there is a price to pay.Dale Ralph Davis writes of the cancer of covetousness that we are consumed with, indeed this is one of the first principles of 'serpent theology'.As Christians we must be careful that we don't feed into it,It was a man called Jeremiah Burroughs who wrote a book  called,'The Rare Jewel of Christian contentment', it the apostle Paul who wrote,' I  know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content.'(Philippians  4 v 12 )What was that secret? well in v 13 the apostle declares ,' I can do all this through Him (Christ) who gives me strength.'

                                'We need His strength to teach us to be content in every condition'

                                                              ' Matthew  Henry'

                               

 

 

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Baa baa baa. ( Isaiah 55 v 6 - 7)

 I remember when I was little boy,there was a special church gathering,were we little one's were on the platform singing a song,my mother and aunt were there.As we sang it became to much for me,and I started to cry,but I do remember the song we were singing,well some of it,here are some of the words of that song.

                                             'We're poor little lambs ,who have lost their way

                                              Baa  baa baa!

                                              We're little black sheep,who have gone astray

                                              Baa baa baa'

There are two things in these words one , the little lambs, are lost, and the black sheep have gone astray,they are in a sorry state.They depict humanity  in their lostness ,in Isaiah  53 we are told ,'We all,  like sheep ,have gone astray,  each of us has turned to our own way'.The fact is we are all under the same umbrella, we are sinners, and we start manifesting that at a very early age,and it never leaves us,and often gets worse. There is another verse to that little song it goes,

                                               'Gentlemen songsters off on a spree ,doomed  

                                                from here to eternity,Lord have mercy on such

                                                as we.'

The word spree means doing something enjoyable, like shopping,we often loose sight of the eternal things,for the things that are temporal. The awesomeness of our eternal destiny needs to be faced,our deepest need is not material things but mercy,which we can receive when we bow before the cross and ask Jesus to be our Saviour.

Go. ( Mathew 28 v 18 - 20 )

 Our Saviour  in  Acts 1 v 8 said , 'But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,and in all Judea,and Samaria, and to the ends of  the earth'.That still stands as a  challenge to every new generation of Christians.That means proclaiming the gospel, churches will die if that is ever neglected.As one looks at the apostle Paul the missionary ,we see a man consumed with a passion to proclaim  the gospel.I was talking to a young unsaved girl,she said,' that there are  so many religions, I replied. but there is only one Saviour', let us be clear, He is the only way to come to God (John 14 v 6 ). Our Saviour said about going into all the world,John Stott writes,'The kingdom of God is international in its membership.Christs kingdom tolerates no narrow nationalisms, when it is consummated at the end, the countless redeemed company will be seen to be drawn from every nation, tribe,people and language'.(Revelation 7 v 9) We must not neglect this task,we must obey God rather than men,in England in the 18th century,it was unheard of for any one to preach the gospel in the open air.But God raised up the Wesley's and George Whitfield to leave that restriction ,and went into the highways and the by-ways ,and preached the gospel

                                                  ' The torch is now passed unto us'.

           

He is there. ( Isaiah 46 v 9 - 10)

 Sometimes it appears that the world is out of control, wars and rumours of wars,disasters injustice,and the darkness of evil wicked and oppressive religious and political regimes.  The poet James Russell. Lowell wrote.

                              ' Though the cause of evil prosper,yet the truth alone is strong.

                                Truth forever on the scaffold,wrong forever on the throne,

                                 Yet that scaffold sways the future, and behind the dim unknown,

                                 Standeth God within the shadows,keeping watch above His own.

Dale Ralph Davis wrote,'God has not hung out a vacancy sign over His universe or His people. He is there, bringing His word to pass. Sometimes only that assurance keeps His people sane'.

Count them. ( Lamentations 3 v 22-23 )

 Thankfulness, have you given thanks to God recently for your many blessings?, one writer has said this,'We should get rid of some of the tripe  in our prayers like 'and thank you for your many , many blessings'. in other words it is to general' lingo-ese', why do we not name one or two of those blessing in  our prayers,and teach our children to do that also'.An old hymn comes to mind,I would like to leave it with  you, the words are by Johnson Oatman, JR

                                            'When upon life's billows you are  tempest tossed,

                                             When you are discouraged ,thinking all is lost

                                             Count your many blessings ,name them one by one,

                                              And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

                                              Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

                                              Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

                                              Count your many blessings ,every doubt will fly,

                                              And you will keep singing as the days go by.

                                              So amid the conflict ,whether great or small,

                                               Do not be disheartened, God is over all;

                                               Count your many blessings, angels will attend,

                                               Help and comfort give you to your journey's end.

                                               Count your blessings,name them one by one;

                                                Count your blessings,see what God has done!

                                                Count your blessings,name them one by one,

                                                And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

                                                  

                                                  

I would miss Him. ( Hebrews 12 v 1-2 )

 If you ask me what would be my greatest fear in life, it would be that I could go away from my lovely Saviour, I am not like Peter and the other disciples ,who said that they would never  leave and disown their Lord( Mark 14 v 27 - 31 ).No I pray I won't, for I know it could happen for I know that I am weak. I remember reading about a very blessed preacher whom God used,and sadly he went away from the Lord,many years later speaking about Jesus,he said,'I miss Him'. Very ,very sad and telling words. There are many reasons why, people turn away from the Lord,I am not going to judge them or condemn them.I remember many years ago working with a man called Alec, he was a bright Christian,yet he went away from the Lord. I remember meeting him one day,and I spoke to him,and as I did I started crying,it was all so sad.So here is vulnerable Bill writing,and I asked the question, what preventive measures can I take to keep me from leaving Jesus, there is hymn by dear Fanny Crosby the blind hymn writer, which is in essence a prayer, hear are the words, I pray and hope they will help you.

                                          'Jesus keep me near the cross; there a precious fountain,

                                           Free to all a healing stream,flows from Calvary's mountain.

                                           Near the cross,a trembling soul,love and mercy found me;

                                           There the Bright  and Morning star, she it's beams around me

                                            Near the cross ! O Lamb of God, bring it's scenes before me;

                                            Help me walk from day to day, with it's shadow o'er me.

                                            Near the cross I'll watch and wait,hoping trusting ever,

                                            Till I reach the golden strand,just beyond the river.

                                            In the cross,in the cross, be my glory ever;

                                            Till my raptured soul shall find,rest beyond the river.

                                           

'The Lord Almighty is with us. ( Psalm 46 )

 I remember a writer in the Times newspaper writing about Africa,and this is what he said,as regards its future,'It was between the ,'machete,the witch doctor,and Christianity'. He favoured Christianity ,and with good reason, there are many Christian hospitals ,orphanages, schools,and so many other organisations involved in helping people,ministering to their needs.In so many African countries the machete is still in use, causing a reign of terror to so many dear people.as for witch doctors the less said about them the better.Wars and rumors of wars continue unabated in this world, there is so much pain and suffering,in spite of all the wonderful advances humanity has made in so many things.Things will not change,because human nature will not change,oh yes we can mention the good things,but hanging over us all there are so many uncertainties. I love the Psalms ,so I want to leave these wonderful words from Psalm 46 ,I would commend the whole psalm to you, here are the words of v 10, and v1.

                                                 'Be still and know that I am God'

                                                  and remember ,that He is an ever

                                                  present help in trouble'

It's impossible. ( Mark 8 v 34 -- 38)

 I wonder do you have a favourite song and singer,I have many favourite songs,and favourite singers,one of them is Perry Como, he sings a love song called,'It's impossible',on the whole it has nice words,and a nice tune.But unfortunately the writer gets carried away.Here  are the foolish words sung to his sweetheart,'And tomorrow,should you  ask me for the world,some how I'd get it.I would sell my very soul and not regret it'. In case you didn't realise we all have a soul ,that invisible and immaterial element of our being , one writer William Hendriksen comments ,'in  several instances the two terms soul and spirit are used interchangeably',It exists after death,our Saviour said in Matthew 10  v 28,Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul  ,rather ,be afraid  of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell'.Again it't WH who points out that the word,'' destroy '' is used here in the sense not of annihilation.but  of the infliction of everlasting punishment upon a person'.Our soul is the most valuable thing we have ,and we must not forget that. Alas  so many people do forget and pay the awful price for doing that. If you realise the importance of your soul you would not sell it, Let me remind you ,without Christ as your Saviour you are and will be a lost soul.

Side affects ( Proverbs 4 v 10 - 27)

 It is said that most if not all medication have side effects, I personally have had side effects,and my Gp has changed the medication I have been  on.Sin is like medication,it has on a temporal side effects,take someone who commits adultery,it can bring with it guilt and fear,it can also bring with it the break up of a marriage,and the loss of so many things.So when we are tempted to sin,think of the side effects,and ask yourself is it worth it?. If we are Christians,then our relationship with God is effected,and that can be heartbreaking.We all need to consider the side effects of our actions,as to how it will affect others and how it will effect us,and how it will effect our relationship with God .When we receive our medication their is usually a leaflet with it that highlights  the side affects,it is a guide.The Christian is not left to themselves as regards wrong and sinful things that we may become involved with ,and their effects,we have the holy Spirit and the word of God.We are not free agents to do whatever we want,if we neglect these,we will be anything but free.

Do you need a change? ( Luke 4 v 14 -- 19 )

 I believe that Christ does not only save your soul ,He saves your life also,consider the before and after,before your life can be such a terrible mess,I have read about so many people whose lives have been transformed when they have come to know Christ as their Saviour ,people like John Newton who wrote Amazing grace, he is one of many  .Someone said go for sinners and go for the worst,remember we can't write anyone off.Where sin abounds ,grace much  more abounds,,everyone who comes  to know Christ will always have a degree of change in their lives.No they will still be full of flaws, and characteristic faults,but their life will be changed and that for the better.A friend of mine came to know Christ as his as Saviour ,he told his family, and his mother said I hope there will be no longer  any of those bad words,and there wasn't .One is never to bad to be saved,for Christ came  to save sinners,nor is one's life to far gone that it cannot be changed.One of the greatest illustrations  of that is to be found in Luke 8 v 26 ff ,it tells of a man whose life was a total mess,possessed by demons,lived among the tombs,he was naked he self harmed ,no one could change  him,they did try but to no avail, there he was crying out in distress ,then something happened,Jesus came,and all was changed.

If only. ( Proverbs 27 v1 )

 I'm sure we have all said ,'if only',if only I had checked the oil in my car, if only I'd taken the car for a test drive before I bought it.Looking back there are so many times we could say ,'if only',but it cannot be changed, although I speak from experience,I have been rescued from those situations,God is merciful,and can help us.How many  times King David must have said ,if only I had not gone out for a walk on the roof of my palace,and if only I had not looked looked and lusted after Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11),all the trouble it brought me.Take heed don't fall into the same trap as David,or  like Samson who fell for the wrong gal,he lost his sight,his freedom ,and lost his life, bringing the house down upon his head.( Judges 16 ). Consider how many people who are in a lost eternity ,they are thinking if only I had trusted Jesus,if you are not a Christian ,don't make your eternity an ,'if only eternity,' trust Jesus to be  your Saviour, now.

Saturn . (John 14 v 6 )

 A famous actress is involved in the worship of Saturn, Saturn was a Roman God,I was surprised to read on the internet ,it said Christianity was Saturn religion,and Judaism was a Moon religion.I can assure that is wrong, both believe in the only real God , who created  the planets stars,and all things.Don't believe all things you read on the internet . It only goes to bear out humanities fallenness, that person is an educated person,as many people are but that doesn't stop  them from being involved in a pathetic belief that a planet has any power to influence anything,it is just a planet ,as is a stone or wooden idol.Alas people make god's out of anything, scientology is a religion invented by L.R.Hubbard ,likewise there are  cults that are religions invented by unscrupulous human beings ,Islam was put together by a false prophet.all religions except one ,are human inventions.Christianity is based on historical  realities as recorded in the Bible.The coming of a Messiah is clearly taught in the Old Testament scriptures,Jesus was that Messiah,in those scriptures there are about 300 prophecies as regards His coming, who He was,what He did. No one can compare to this person,He manifested miraculous powers more than any person has ever done,His death was the fulfilling of Psalm 22/ Isaiah 52/53,and many other scripture,and as regards his resurrection  it was foretold in Psalm 16 v 8- 11.Cp Acts 2 v25 - 35. When we trust Jesus as our Saviour, our sins will be forgiven ,and we will receive eternal life, based on that which is built on truth and not sinful concoctions of false religions.

Temptation. ( Matthew 26 v 41)

 I was visiting a friend recently ,he is about 10 yrs older than I am, so he is very old, he has been a Christian for along time .We were talking about our ages,and how it was affecting us,then he mentioned about having sexual thoughts,which he said he didn't want. Let me stress something that's very important ,being tempted is not a sin no matter what age you are, or how grave the temptation is. It becomes a sin when you yield to it,and run with it,instead of running from it.The wisest man who ever lived was Solomon,and yet in his old he yielded to temptation ,and brought judgement  upon the whole country ,read 1 Kings 11 v 1-13. Age will not protect us from temptation, or from yielding to temptation,we may go into a religious order, but that will not protect us from being tempted,and from yielding to temptation. The fact is the  tempter has no days off,and our fallen nature is still alive and kicking ,until our dying day. We need to stop and consider, that we haven't come this far in our own strength, if it was not for the Lord  we could not have come this far. Nothing has changed,our God has not changed,whatever difficulties we will face,whatever temptations we may face,He promises ,'that  as our days so shall your strength be' (Deuteronomy 33 v 25)

                                                  'Through many dangers ,toils and snares,

                                                    I have already come;

                                                    'Tis grace hath brought us safe thus far,

                                                    and grace  will lead us home'

                                                               John Newton

A king is crowned. ( 2 Corinthians 5 v19)

 Today is a special day in the history of our country a king is being crowned ,he  will be Charles the third,his wife is being made queen. He will be brought to Westminster  Abbey ,in a wonderful coach,,and he will wear a  wonderful crown. Millions will watch and cheer him, as the coach winds its way to the Abbey ,to the crowning event..Altogether a wonderful spectacle which most of us will enjoy,but I want to turn your mind  to another king ,he is somewhat different,indeed quite a bid different,he said his kingdom was not of this world ( John 18 v 36), He had come into this world to set up an everlasting Kingdom,the citizens of that kingdom would no longer be  narrow nationalistic , but people from every nation,tribe and language .Revelation 7 v 9.but the way He would establish His kingdom would entail tremendous  suffering,His entrance into Jerusalem was not on a gold-plated chariot,but riding on a donkey,a fulfillment of a prophecy by Zechariah 9 v 9,the  crowds welcomed Him,singing His praise. But soon that would all change as he was arrested,tried by a kangaroo court,and sentence to death,He endured much suffering before the horror of being crucified..Instead of a golden crown being placed on His head, He wore a crown of thorns ,instead of a throne,He was nailed to a cross..It was truly awful but it had purpose a God purpose,sinners such as you and I could have our sins forgiven,when we trust Him as our Saviour, and become part of the family of God,and a citizen of the Kingdom of God.

                                                     'Jesus ! Thou art the Prince of peace,

                                                     Thy reign of love shall never cease;

                                                      Though man's proud  empires all decline,

                                                       An everlasting  Kingdom Thine.

                                                                     Thomas Ives

The race is not to the swift. ( 1 Corinthians 1 v 18 - 31 )

 Ecclesiastes 9 v 11 reads,'The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favour to those with knowledge,but time and chance happen to them all'.  As the writer observed life  does not always go as planed,the fastest runner does not always win the race,sometimes the tortoise wins. The strongest man does not always win the fight as Goliath found out.The wise and intelligent don't always succeed in life ,sometimes the Nabal does,though wealthy,his name means fool,and as was his name so was he. (1Samuel 25 v25 ) There are so many examples of these things in life, the writer sums it up by saying ,'Time and chance happen to all',It is Matthew Henry who writes,'All these disappointments to us  seem so casual, and we call them chance, but really they are according to the counsel of God'  King David wrote, 'My times are in your hands'. (Psalm 31 v 15), let us hold fast to the truth of God's sovereignty, it is CH. Spurgeon who wrote, 'God in providence often laughs at pedigree and ancestry. and stains the honour dignity of everything in which human nature boasts itself,from the kennel to the palace is an easy ascent when heaven favours'.

Holiness ( Leviticus 20 v20 )

 A  notable Christian who lived in the 19 century called John Duncan otherwise known as .'Old Rabbi  Duncan', said on looking back on decades of his life,confessed,'' I have never done a sinless action during the seventy years''. Is he not exaggerating?, no he's not,for sin comes in many ways,even in what we may call our most holiest of moments,our fallen nature ,is felt. Consider the sermon on the mount,were our dear Saviour touches  on so many things,not just our actions but our motives. I have a reasonable singing voice but often I wonder ,for whose glory was I singing .Often our Saviour stressed the doing of things secretly, like praying,giving, and fasting.He stressed the importance of forgiving others,turning the other cheek,the list goes on.There are people who feel that one could reach a point of not sinning,in spite of the fact that we are told ,' If we claim to be without side sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us'.(1 John 1 v 8 )Only God is holy,we are called to be holy,the holiness process will not be complete until we get to glory, although holiness may elude us,we must never give up in the ongoing challenge to be holy. It was Robert Murry MCheyne that godly man who said the following,'I earnestly long for more grace and personal holiness,and more usefulness'.  I often pray,''Lord make me as holy as a pardoned sinner can be made''.

Ungrace ( Matthew 6 v 14)

 It is Philip Yancey who writes in his book, 'What's so amazing about Grace',of ungrace ,meaning those who refuse to forgive,will not utter the words,sorry. I knew a lady who who was a professing Christian,  and she was so ungracious, she sought to undermine my leadership,said unpleasant things about me,she was confrontational,I must confess I avoided her.She has now passed away, I suppose I should have went and saw her,and told Her I forgave her, the hurtful memories still remain, so I did something,I prayed a prayer, I said,' Father I forgive her'. If you are carrying hurts ,that has turned to hate,yet that person has passed away, yet for you the hate remains ,that's ungrace ,harbouring hatred and unforgiveness is not the way of grace, it is like living with a permanent open sore. It is one thing singing,' Amazing Grace' when we think of the grace God has shown to us,yet we ourselves refuse to show that grace to others.Our dear Saviour who experienced so much  hurt and hatred from His enemies,could pray while they nailed him to the cross,'Father forgive them', He wants us to follow His example. In Matthew 5 v 44 we read ,' Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you'. Why not pray that simple prayer. 'Father I forgive them'.

Lord ,is it I ? ( Matthew 26 v 21 -22 )

 There's a  David in us all, I don't mean the killer of the evil giant,but the adultery and the murderer we read of in 2 Samuel11.There is a Solomon in us all I don't mean the man who wrote that wonderful book of Proverbs,but that besotted old man  who turned to other gods,and brought judgement on Israel (1 Kings 11,There's a Peter in us all ,not that faithful disciple of Jesus ,but the one who denied Him ( Mark 14 v 67 ff).There is Demas in us all not that professing Christian and friend of Paul in the cause of Christ, but the one who forsook him because he loved this present world.The word of God  says ,'Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall ( 1 Corinthians10 v12) It was Robert Robinson who wrote that lovely hymn ,'Come Thou fount of every blessing' two lines in that hymn read ,'Prone to wander,Lord I feel it,Prone to leave the God I  love'. Unfortunately he did just that and confessed' I would give a thousand worlds,if I had then, to enjoy the feelings  I had then'. Oh God grant us grace to overcome the weak,foolishness and sinfulness of our fallen nature,may we continually seek to be under the control of God the Holy Spirit, in Jesus name. Amen.

To God be the glory. ( Philippians 4 v 20 )

 I don't want to be weak, but the fact is I am,I find myself worrying about things,I make mistakes,I get angry at times,with my dear wife,and need I go on. I know those who are reading this are saying ,shame, shame  ,take him out and stone him.Then I remind myself,I am a work in progress,by the grace of God I have come this far,you are no different ,I hope you recognise that,for He does.We have no righteousness of our own,none  whatsoever ,consider the words of Isaiah 64 v 6,'(We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags.)Dale.Ralph. Davis writes,'The living God  does not have clean material to work with. And don't get sentimental when you sing  hymns about the Potter and the clay;  remember it is only sinful( i.e., sin-full) clay  the potter works with'.Years ago I stood up to give a word of testimony,and I just a read a hymn, here's part of it,the words are by James M. Gray.

                                                ' Naught have I gotten but what I received

                                                  Grace have bestowed it since I believed

                                                  Boasting excluded, pride I abase,

                                                  I'm only a sinner saved by grace.

                                        THIS IS MY STORY ,TO GOD BE THE GLORY.