He will welcome you back. ( Isaiah 1 v 18)

 We don't hear much the backslider,what is a backslider? it can be described as ,'someone who lapses into previous undesirable pattern of behavior'. It could describe a reformed criminal,who goes back to a life of crime.Or could describe an alcoholic who goes back to the drink,but the term that I associate with is someone  who professed to be a Christian,and have given up following Christ. There are examples in the bible of people who did not go on in their relationship with Christ.It doesn't just apply to individuals but to churches,we see this in the seven churches of Revelation chap 2- 3.In the OT we see it time and time again with the nation of Israel Jeremiah 2 v 19,their whole history is littered with it.There are reasons why people  backslide, whatever the reasons are,none are valid.none, I believe there are always regrets,and no advantages,if you give up following Jesus you will always be the looser.Yet God is merciful and kind,and will welcome the backslider back,he did it with Peter,and He did continually with Israel. Hosea 14 v4 .CP Revelation 3 v20. William Cowper writes of loosing that fist love experience with the following words,'Where is the blessedness I knew when first I saw the Lord',and the idols that can so easily remove us from following Christ and we become a backslider,Here are words written to backsliders.

                                                            Revelation 3 v 20.

                                             'Look! I stand at the door and knock ,

                                             If you hear my voice,and open the door,

                                             I will come in and we will share a meal

                                             together as friends,.

Remind me Lord. ( John 21 v 15 )

Psalm 24 v1 reads 'The earth is the Lord's,and everything in it,the world all who live in it '.These words should reminds us that we are but custodians ,of what we possess.Yes we use the word mine,and some sense that is  true,but it is not the whole. The verse we read  tells the full story,as regards in this world ,which includes every human being,that everything belongs to God.Those possessions we have,everything is on loan,Job had to learn that lesson, he had seven sons and three daughters,he lost them all,he was very wealthy,he lost it all,he was very healthy but that changed .( Job 1 ) Consider all that happened to him,he said,'Naked I came from my mothers womb,and naked I shall depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away,and then he adds,'May the name of the Lord be blest'. (1 v21 )The cry of many is,mine,mine, mine,and God say's no , they are mine,I own everything ,yes everything,So let us a remember to thank God for ever blessing,and acknowledge Him for every good and perfect gift. Someone said that one of their favorite descriptions of stewardship is,''When God gives you a gift,hold it loosely''. I  understand that statement to mean  that whatever God gives us in not exclusively for our benefit, but is intended for the whole family of God'.

                                        'Dear God and Father we thank you for every gift we possess,

                                        but if I forget that they are just loaned to me,remind me Lord,'

                                                                   

If only ( Hebrews 12 v 1 - 2 )

 As one looks back on ones life,there are many 'if only's', if only I had done better at school I could have got a better job.if only I had kept following the Lord when I was young.I had a reasonable singing voice, if only I could have developed it more.I played two musical instrument in my time,but not very well,if only I  had got training, and improved that gift.Yes we can all look back and say if only,so many people  get trapped in that mind set, yes the past,'if only's', rule our lives and not for the best. we say if only I had not been born into that family ,in that country,in that neighbourhood, if only I had not had that accident,yes, if only. Here is what a wise man said,'The past is not a place of residence,but a place of remembrance'.The thing is we will always remember our past,but we must not let our  past to imprison us. There was a great man who had a wonderful future,he had a wonderful education,but he gave it all up,when Christ became his Saviour ,and so he went on to serve Him.Many years later he wrote,

                                                    'But one thing I do ; forgetting what lies 

                                                     behind and straining forward  to what 

                                                     lies ahead, I press on toward  the goal 

                                                     for the prize of the upward call of God

                                                     in Christ Jesus.

                                                                (Philippians 3 v 13 - 14 )

The Mighty Grasp. ( Philippians 2 v12-13 )

 I read this in one of my daily readings,a verse from a poem by John Campbell Sharp,called ,'The Mighty Grasp',  

                                                'Let me no more my comfort draw

                                                 From my frail hand of thee;

                                                 In this alone rejoice with awe,

                                                 Thy mighty grasp of me! '

Jesus said ,' Without Me you can do nothing', that does not mean we shouldn't do nothing?,no, it means that in all our doings there must be a continual dependence on our Saviour. That means every day and every hour of everyday He will be our strength and helper,everyday it must be more of Him and less of us.In Philippians 2 v12 ,the Christians are called to ,'work out their salvation  with fear and trembling',now we are not told  to work for our salvation ,salvation is not a merit salvation ,it is not our merits that save,it is the merits of Christ that saves.Alec Motyer writes the following,that working out involves ,'obedience, responsibility,and sensitivity'.That is our work ,but let us remember God is at work v 13 ,for God the Holy Spirit is with us,to hold us up,without Him we could do nothing but fail,may we draw great comfort from that,and let us rejoice with awe,in His mighty  grasp of you and me.

Unworthy ( Romans 5 v 6- 11)

 I have a friend who becomes frustrated when he hears how some Christians are seeing great blessing ,even miracles,I have known my friend for a long time and he struggles with various difficulties,at this time he is suffers from panic attempts. I suppose there are people who would judge him I don't ,I have not walked in his shoes,I do pray for him and his wife who struggles with him,but loves him,and indeed I love them both.Bill Gaither wrote the following,'I believe help thou my unbelief', I take the finite risk of trusting as a child,I believe, help Thou my unbelief. I walk into the unknown trusting all a while,I long so much to feel the touch,that others seem to know.Yet should I never feel a thing,I claim Him even so. I walk into the unknown trusting all the while'.I somehow identify with those words with my friend,for over 40 years, he has walked with Christ,struggling with so many things.you see it is not feelings that bring us through, it is faith in God, who chooses those who are weak.I know a lovely lady who had a terrible time growing up ,yes she has had her struggles, she knows the Lord,and I believe the Lord loves her,and I love her to.Let us remember we can't see our invisible God, but He sees us,and knows us  like nobody else  ,and here is the wonder of it all,'He loves us'.

                                        'Why me Lord,what have I ever done to deserve such love?

                                          and He answered and said  , the cross was not for those who

                                          think themselves worthy'.

He is with you. (Matthew 28 v 20 )

It was David Livingstone  who prayed,'God send me anywhere! Only go with me. Lay any burden upon me,only sustain me'. What a challenging prayer, would you pray it?, would I pray it?. It is a good question,think what he was praying,to go anywhere.I remember offering to go to Brazil,to the interior,a place that was known as the green hell .That meant taking my wife and children , but God didn't permit me to go, and I certainly would not have wanted to go if the Saviour was not with me. It was Moses who said to God,' If your presence does not go with us,do not send us from here', (Exodus 33 v15) In verse v 14, God had said ,'My presence will go with you',Moses was expressing his relief at what God had said,Is it not a relief child of God to know that the Lord is with you,as one man comments,'Safety does not consist in absence of danger but in the presence of  the Lord'.Wherever you are,whatever you are facing at this time,the Lord is with you,the Psalmist could say,'Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me'.  ( Psalm 23 v4 ) As you lay your head down on your pillar tonight,rest assured that He who never slumbers or sleeps is watching over you,and is with you.

                             'I must have the Saviour with me,for I dare not walk alone,

                             I must feel His presence near me, and His arm around me thrown.

                             Then my soul shall fear no ill; let Him lead me where He will,

                             I will go without a murmur,and His footsteps follow still.

                                                         Words Fanny Crosby.  

9

Her heart was still. ( John 21 v 15 )

 In Genesis 19 we read how God was going to judge Sodom and Gomorrah for their sinful behaviour, which  included homosexuality. God revealed what He was going to do to Abraham,now Lot and his family lived in Sodom, and Abraham pleaded with God to shew mercy to those cities if  there were at least ten righteous people in them, God assured him if there were ten righteous people in the cities He would not destroy them.God earlier had sent three heavenly visitors,these visitors went and warned Lot and his family to leave Sodom, his son- in- laws refused to leave but they didn't take it serious,so they stayed.Times have not changed so many refuse to accept that God who is the righteous judge,will judge humanity for their sinfulness. That's because they do not accept the seriousness of their sin ,be that as it may,God  has provided a way of salvation  ( John 3 v16),and for those who refuse that way,will be Judged. (John 3 v 36) Now back to  Lot and his family, they were told to flee for their lives,but don't look back.So the judgement began and we read ,'Lots wife looked back', and she was turned into a pillar of salt.I wonder why she looked back?.I come from Ireland but I live in England,and I am happy where I live, but there are many exiles who through their song indicate a longing to go back'Lots wife was leaving Sodom and Gomorrah,but her heart was still there.So it is we  cannot follow Jesus when our hearts are somewhere else,it is all or nothing.

                                                                         A Prayer

                               'Lord I give you my heart,I give you my soul to live for You alone,

                                Every breath that I take,every moment I'm awake,Lord have your

                                way in me'

                                                                   Words Hillsong.

                                                            

The Bread of life. ( John 6 v 25ff)

 I was a visiting a friend and he told how a friend give him a loaf of bread he had made,he described the bread as being the most loveliest bread he ever tasted.He went on to say if he had that bread regular, he would live to a 150.His wife was present and I don't think she wanted that to happen,we all laughed  at the idea.  Bread has been called the staff of life,in other words it is very important to many people to sustain life. When Jesus performed the miracle of feeding over 5000 people with bread and a few fish,they  flocked after Him,seeing him as the local food bank. He explained to them a greater truth,a spiritual truth,He reminded them  how God fed their ancestors with manna in the wilderness yet they died.Then He goes  on to say that He was the true bread of life that has come from heaven,and if they accepted Him into their lives by faith they will live not for a 150 years but for ever. We who have have taken Him who is the bread of life into our lives are very privileged,but with privilege comes responsibility,In Matthews account of this miracle (14 v 13ff) Jesus said to the disciples as to the feeding of the multitudes,'you give them something to eat',untold millions have never heard the gospel,we need to reach them and feed them the Bread of life, Jesus.

Liberty (Romans 6 v 15-23 )

There are three words associated with the French revolution ,'Liberty,Equality,and Fraternity,these were proposed by Robespierre.Most revolutions are movements that seemingly want freedom, the dear land I come from had a revolution in the early 20th century .  I listened to a song recently  about a man being held in jail and was waiting to be executed,here are some words from it,'From our school days,they have told us we must yearn for liberty. And so he joined the cause,and he ended up a prisoner,and he says the following,''They'll take me out at dawn, and I  will die''.Yes there's usually a price to be paid to have ones liberty,but for all its idealism and sacrifice, it does not ,cannot, set humanity free,from their sinful nature,it is very limited,and often it can usher in greater bondage.Jesus said that those who sin are slaves to sin,(John 8 v34),and here is the fact,that means we are all slaves.(Romans 3 v23),And here is another fact many are in denial,and refuse to accept that,they think that the good they do , nullifies the sin they do,it doesn't. So what's the answer?,Christ, and only Christ,He and he alone is God's answer, only through Him can we be forgiven, and be set free from the power of sin.This was brought about through His death on Calvary,He paid the price to set us slaves free.

                                            'Would you free from your burden of sin?,

                                             come to Jesus'.

                                             

                                          

                                              

                                                          

Glorifying God. ( 1 Corinthians 1v 27)

 When does God get the glory?,when we are at our weakest,when David faced a giant, ( 1 Samuel 17) that Giant looked at that young man and mocked him, despised him.Looking on the enemies of Israel  must have thought,we are on a winner,victory is assured. I wonder what Israel was thinking,Davids brother didn't think much of him and told him so v28.Saul told him that he would not be able to defeat the giant v33, but David testified how God had helped him kill a bear and lion would help him  kill that giant.So he went forth with a sling and five smooth stones,and the giant mocked him.But David stood his ground and answered his mocking with the following words,'You come against me with sword and spear and Javelin, but I  come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty.......This day He will deliver you into my hands',and He did just that,and God got the glory.v 45-46. When does God get the  glory?, through our weakness and limitations,think of what Paul accomplished ,how?,in his own strength,no,in weakness,and in that weakness he glorified  the God who  impowered him in all His service (2 Cor 12 v  9)

                                           '   Our Saviour was crucified in weakness

                                              and He of all people exalted and glorified

                                              God'.  ( John 17 v 4)

That is the question. ( John 1 v 1 -5 )

                                                             THE  QUESTION (Words Patrick McAloon)

                 Who designed the snowflake                                 I don't know who made the snowflake

                  Who made the planet spin                                               So intricate sublime

           Who came up with new born babies skin                     But I can spot an artist every time   

                       Who created seasons                                         Oh, I can spot an artist every time    

                       The cycle of rebirth                                           Did the darkness and the stars witness  

            Who introduced the oceans to the earth                                 What happened long ago  

              Well whoever made the snowflakes                                      Perhaps only they know

               Made shadows where doubts lurk                                       Who invented the rainbow

                  I suspect an artist is at work                                              Who made the water fall

              I know when an artist is at work                                  Who came up with new born babies skin

               Who designed the snowflake                                            Some will tell you nature's random

                    I look for  clues or hints                                                    That beauty's just a quirk

            For traces of  the craftsman's fingerprints                                 I believe an artist is at work

                                                                                                              Sshhh , an artist is at work

                                                                                                               I say,look a genius at work.

                                                                  THE ANSWER

                        In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1 v 1)

   

                                                                     

To speak or not to speak. (Luke 4 v 22)

 Proverbs 29 v11 reads,' Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back'.Well in case you think that I am mister perfect,which of course I'm not,I have a confession,I have been that fool so many times,ask my wife,and my children. So here we have  very wise advice ,one could sum it up in the words of Ecclesiastes 3 v 7(B) ,'A time to be silent and a time to speak'.One could widen the subject out as regards giving advice,we need to choose the time to do that,Charles Bridges has profitable things to say to us on this subject,'For how many things it would be far better never to speak; indeed to suppress in the very thought!' I am so glad for the times I didn't give vent to my feelings,but as I said sometimes to my shame I have. How often we have  judged people, and told others about that person, only to find out it wasn't true. We must be careful not to utter rash words and make rash judgements The religious leaders of  Israel  said many awful things about Jesus,and one day they will gave an account for every evil word they have uttered (Matthew 12 v36 -37 )In 1 Peter 2 v 23 we read as regards our Saviour. 'When His enemies hurled insults at Him, He did not retaliate, when He suffered, He made no threats,instead, he entrusted himself to Him who judges justly '.Yes there is a time to speak, when we have to speak the truth,defend the truth,and to tell the truth,and in our ordinary day by day conversation,may our speech be always be full of grace, to the edifying of those we speak to.

Heroes.( Psalm 6 )

 I wonder do you have any heroes?I  read recently of a war time hero, those who knew said he was not a nice person,he treated those under him deplorable. It is sad when you hear of hero worship,only God should be worshipped. One of the most outstanding people we read of in the bible is David, he achieved greatness through his deeds,and also through his words.Most of us love the psalms he wrote,and in those Psalms we have an honest picture of  David,it reveals to us his struggles,and indeed his weaknesses .He had many enemies\, and at times he felt overwhelmed, here are some of things he writes from Ps 6  ,'I am faint,my soul is in deep anguish,I am worn out,all night long I flood my bed with weeping,and drench my couch with tears,my eyes grow weak with sorrow.' He was being honest acknowledging his struggles and his weakness.God knows how we feel,there is nothing hidden from Him, so David leaves a perfect example of being honest with God.We are also instructed how important to cry unto God as David did,and as he did God gave him the assurance that,'He heard his weeping,He heard his cry,He accepted his prayers',in other words his prayers would be answered.Someone said the following.

                                          'Whatever God brings us into,He will bring us through'

Trouble ( Isaiah 41 v10)

The old spiritual goes ,'nobody knows the trouble I've seen '  , if I told you that we live in a trouble world you would agree?.One of Jobs comforters said,' It's human!  Mortals are born and bred for trouble, as certainly  as sparks fly upwards',( Job 5 v 7),he simple is saying that there is an inevitability about it,and I'm sure Job would have agreed with that,considering how he suffered. It is as if he is saying ,trouble hunts us,and dogs our footsteps, our Saviour said the obvious ,but its worth repeating, 'when you hear of wars and rumours of wars,( Luke 21 v 8- 9)  yes we hear plenty of that these days.but He goes unto say, 'do not be terrified'. Following ' Remembrance Sunday ',someone wrote,'Remembrance Sunday was a balm for our trouble soul', So many must feel sad weary, and troubled in these days but God is with the believer always,here is what He said to all His children ,'Do not let your heart be troubled,you believe in God; believe also in Me'. (John 14 v 1)

We can make a difference. ( Matthew 5 v 16)

 Two young girls in Ukraine were playing their guitar and singing in a park,when they were killed by a Russian bomb.The mother of one of the girls said the following,' How is it possible in the 21st century to do something like this'. Cast your mind back  to the last century consider the wars and evil that took place by civilizations,not ignorant savages,and yet such evil manifested itself,in the most cruel behaviour, why?. Well there is only one reason ,our sinful human nature, unrestrained its potential for evil  knows no bounds.Think of what we did to our Saviour, beware of putting man on a pedestal,and I mean any man.So  is it  all bad news? no, there is the good news,we have experienced the grace of God  through Jesus our Saviour , and that should make a difference.We are called the light of the world (Matthew 5 v14 )and we are told to let our light shine(5 v16),and if we do that we can make a difference.Firstly the world needs Jesus and  we are called to tell them about Him,the gospel is good news,it is life changing if it is embraced  people become better people Secondly, live and act like Jesus,after all He was the most loving person who ever lived,the world needs that love, we are called to show it.His was a generous love,he was continually pouring out that love ( John 11 v 36 ) Next His love was a sacrificial love,look on the cross,that speaks for itself.Yes we can make a difference,so let us do just that.

'The church is not' ( Acts 2 v 42 )

It was Pastor Bonhoeffer  whom the Nazis  murdered spoke of religious Christianity, what did he mean by that?.I just read an interesting article as regards those people who do not meet with God's people in the church building.Most of you will realize that the building that Christians meet in is not the church,it is a building in which the church  meets.People say,' I do not have to go to church to pray',they have a mind set that if one examines  does not make sense,it is based on unintentional ignorance. As Christians most of us do our praying outside that building were the church meets.During the times of the Soviet Union when Christians were persecuted they often met in the open air,likewise in some countries the church meets in peoples homes likewise Christians would meet in the catacombs in ancient Rome.The church of  Christ should not be seen as  a building ,but as a people who know Christ as their Saviour. But of course fellowship for the church is important for many good reasons,mutual support,public worship in singing to God's praise,and also hearing the word of God ministered,and many other things.To neglect meeting with Christians in that way is not helpful for your spiritual well- being, of course it is just part of what helps us spiritually, but  it is a very important part,and we neglect it to our cost. Bonhoeffer when he was in prison said  that one the  of things he missed most  was having fellowship with God's people.

                                                           Hebrews 10 v 25 

                                    ' And let us not neglect our meeting together as

                                     some people do'

                                            

A Burden. (Psalm 37 )

 I have been blessed with 5 sons,I spoke  to a  minister  recently,he spoke about his son,and that children our a burden that parents carry with them,so true. So we pray for them before they are born, and every day of their lives, first and foremost for their salvation,and if they should go astray for their restoration.We pray for them as they attend school,and when they leave school,for their employment,for their future wives,and so it goes on.There are times like all of us they have problems,financially struggling, needing work. Recently one of my sons  shared with me the difficulties he was having,I assured him of my prayers, so I have been praying. Now in my own personal life when I have problems, I pray,but I also look for  assurance from God's word. so I was looking for a word from God, and as I was reading a daily reading,I read this word from Psalm37 v 25,which reads,'I have  been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,nor his descendants begging bread'.I have been following the Lord for nearly 60 years ,and can testify to Gods care and provision.But what encouraged me was  the testimony how God had cared and provided for Davids children.This gave me the assurance that God will care and provide for my children,and indeed for your children. Yes our children are a burden that we carry with us all the days of our lives,and it is a burden we can cast upon the Lord,to care and to provide for them.

Other remedies. ( 1 John 4 v 1 )

 'In these days of deteriorate Church doctrine, when other remedies  than that of the gospel are applied to the wounded spirit,'so wrote a 19th century preacher.As we look back we see that nothing has changed as in our present times,many are applying other remedies to wounded spirits, likewise the charge against so called prophets ,who were false prophets prophesying lies, at the time of  Jeremiah ,God  declared,'They have healed the heart of my people slightly,saying ,'Peace,Peace', when there is no peace.' The people needed to hear the truth,because the nation had turned away from God,and judgement was coming,and eventually did  come  when the Babylonians came and devastated the nation,most of the population would die,and those who were spared went into captivity. Alas as I have pointed out there are many false prophets today, who are betraying their calling, refusing to warn people that judgement  is coming.The gospel is the only remedy for sinful humanity. it is God's remedy, and if people do not hear it they will not be saved from the wrath to come. If they continue in their sin there is no hope, all  that awaits them is   judgement,from which there will be no escape.

                                                      'O God ,in wrath ,remember mercy'

The end of the beginning ( 2 Corinthians 4 v 13 -18 )

Every year I have to take my car in for its yearly MOT,that is a compulsory check to see if my car is roadworthy .We are all growing old, most of us have to have regular tests for our eyes,test for blood pressure,diabetes,and so many things, I think I'm fighting a losing battle,in a sense we all are.I'm in no way saying we should give up on life for it is a gift from God and it is precious,so we well take the pills, watch our diet,and keep getting those regular MOT's. It is the apostle Paul who writes,'Therefore we do not loose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away,'  (2 Corinthians 4 v16)  It is so easy to loose heart yes even as Christians,say what's the point?, well the context in which Paul wrote those words is very positive, that there is a work of the Spirit going on within us renewing  us everyday,one writer puts it like this,'Even though on the outside, it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside,where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace'.Yes outwardly we are perishing, Denny writes,' The decay of the outward msn in the Godless is a melancholy spectacle, for it is the decay of everything'.Paul encourages us to not focus on that which is temporal,he especially emphasises troubles,whatever they are , their is a better day coming for every child of God.a new body,a new eternal home,a new eternal existence

                                'Bruce Milne writes,'What is life?Where is it going?What about death?

                                 and the beyond ? The sun of conviction breaks through our chronic

                                 unbelief , and in that instant we know that we are more than dust, that

                                  life is larger than the boundaries of this terrestrial, and that our death

                                  will not be the end of us,but merely the end of the beginning.'

                                 

The whole Truth. (Ephesians 2 v 19- 20)

 John Stott wrote the following,' The well-being of the church, depends on our listening to Jesus Christ and obeying Him  as His word comes to us through  His apostles in the New Testament'. I agree with that, but I would go further,for it seems that he is excluding  the Old Testament.There is a book called ,'Christ in all the scriptures',consider what Jesus said to the  religious leaders of his day in John 5 v 39 ,'You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them  you have eternal life.These are the very Scriptures that testify about Me'. It is only in the Old testament we have foretold of His birth,life teaching that we get the full picture .Without the Old Testament we would struggle to  understanding  the person of Christ,His birth, death , resurrection ,and his teaching.   J C.Ryle  writes ,' Christ is not merely in the Gospels and Epistles,Christ is to be found directly and indirectly in the Law,the Psalms,and the Prophets...... Jesus , the Messiah,is everywhere to be found in the Old Testament'. Let us remember that our well -being,depends on our listening to Jesus Christ and obeying Him,as His word comes to us through all the Word of God,in the Old and New Testament.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Eating humble pie. ( Matthew 6 v 9 -15 )

 A person shared with me that his wife never say's sorry, it is a fact  that some people find it hard to say sorry or to ask forgiveness.Recently I was faced with a dilemma, I had opened my mouth and put my foot in ,in other words I had said something I shouldn't,it disturbed my peace and more than likely disturbed the person I had spoken to.The question was,what could I do to redeem the situation? I had spoken to God about what had happened,so the next morn I phoned the person and said I was sorry,and it was all my fault,she was gracious enough to accept what I said, and after that I felt a great relief.  To ask forgiveness means, we have to show a degree of humility, in other words we have to eat humble pie.Also to have a  unforgiving spirit,is like having a festering sore. And of course God is not pleased, for He expects us to  forgive those who sin against us.if we don't ,our Father will not forgive us our sins.( Matthew6 v 15 ), and that is serious.

                                                         'Confession is good for the soul

                                                          and so is forgiving others'

The eye of faith. ( Hebrews 11 )

 In his little commentary on Hebrews  Charles F. Pfeiffer commenting  on chap 11 v 27 writes ,'The faith of Moses was based on a spiritual principle;''He endured, as seeing Him who is invisible''. This is, of course, a paradox. How can one see the invisible? The answer ,'with the eye of faith,'' Peter addressed suffering saints, reminding them of the coming  of the Lord Jesus'' Whom, having not seen, ye love; in whom, though ye see Him not, yet believing ye rejoice with a joy unspeakable and full of glory''.The evolutionist  look for an answer horizontally , the Christian ,by the  eye of faith, (v3)declares,'The the  universe was formed by God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible' The eye of faith  is not an escape  from realities , no,it is looking on a greater reality,God.People look at  death with despair, the believer looks beyond death to one who said,'I am the resurrection and the life,The one who believes in me will live, even though they die' ( John 11 v25 ) The non Christian looks on in despair as the problems become greater,by the eye of faith the Christian declares, 'with God all things are possible'. (Matthew 20 v 26).The eye of faith is the  eye  in which the cataract of unbelief has been removed,it declares I once was blind but now I see.

                                                         ' The eye of faith gives us supernatural

                                                           vision, and so gives us hope in our 

                                                           darkest hour'

Amazing (Galatians 6 v 14)

 Most of us receive gifts,but there are times we receive something special, I can recall a time when my then wife and I  were living by faith,we had no savings,no bank account.We received gifts from different people  some anonymous, everyone one of those gifts were precious. One man in my church give on a regular bases a small gift ,small  but it was precious. At that time I passed my driving test,but we could not afford a  car but a lady in my church give a car it was very precious.During my lifetime I have received three cars,all very precious. Now of course salvation is a free gift,ask and you shall receive,( Romans 3 v24), and yet there are so many who believe that its not so,most religions and even some who profess to be Christian think that while Christ died on the cross,it is not just enough to save,they must do something,so they add on,their good works,and so doing they nullify what Christ has done.The question is very simple,is our Saviours death on the cross sufficient to save us or not?.If you say it is not ,then the whole purpose of His coming was pointless . Imagine how wonderful the gift of salvation is ,all that it brings  us into,and what it showers upon us,it is absolutely amazing beyond words.It cost us nothing ,but love so amazing,so divine,demands everything.

Extremes, ( Proverbs 30 v8 -9 )

Let us consider again what Agur writes ,' O God ,I beg two favours from you;let me have them before I die.First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.(Proverbs 30 v 7-8)  One translation  puts it like this,'Remove far  from me vanity and lies'.The word of God  speaks of the pride of live,( 1 John 2 v16) We are called to walk humble with our God (Micah 6 v 8) Pride is a sin, in whatever form it manifests itself, be it a car,home,or are so called good looks,the gifts we have,the money we have,the success we have ,and so we could go on. Agur wants God to keep him humble. Then He ask God to shield him from extremes ,from being poor and being rich,let us be honest not many of us want to be poor,migration is fulled by people who are poor, Yet Jesus said the poor you will have with you always (John 12 v 8) Indeed we are told that God chooses the poor of the world to be rich in faith (James 2 v5) And yet it can have its disadvantages it brings with it temptations,( Pr v 30 v9) which we may yield to, become a thief ,become  embittered. He also mentions the dangers of riches,Judas wanted to be rich,consider what he did, there are dangers in prosperity Israel was warned about it,it is so easy to forget the Lord and forsake Him.( Deuteronomy 6 v 10 - 12)So Agur recognises the dangers of extremes, because they  both may draw us away from God. Charles Bridges writes as regards poverty and riches says the following,  'Many of God's children are in both these conditions let them seek for grace to glorify God in either estate'.

 

 

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Only the Word and nothing but the word. ( 2 Timothy 3 v 16 )

 Lets consider Proverbs 30 v 5-6, 'Every word of God is Flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to His words,or He will rebuke you and prove you a liar'. These words are penned by a man called Agur, we do not know much about him,but that is of no consequence, it is the word of God. The first thing we are told, that the word of God is flawless,One translation has the word  pure,it is not defiled or unclean,a man I know said that when the Israelites invaded and conquered the land of Canaan, killing the inhabitants ,they were murders.That is wrong they were God's executioners,on a very sinful people, He was defining what God the righteous Judge had commanded as being murder The word of has been wonderfully preserved,make no mistake about it.Charles Bridges comments ,''Every word of God is pure gold,..Having God for its Author,it has truth without any mixture or error for its matter'. To all who put their trust in it, will experience tremendous beneficial results,both in this life and in the afterlife.Next we have a warning,' Do not add to His words',there are many examples of this,the Roman Catholic Church,puts church teaching,tradition,and apocryphal writing on par with the scripture,likewise the cults,in an attempt to undermine the word of God,have their false translations,and false teaching. Alas there are so called Christens  who I would class as rationalist,as CB comments they are those who expound their own mind, instead of the mind of God. 'It is only the holy  Scriptures that are able to make us wise unto salvation',(2 Timothy 3 v15)

,

Don't despair. ( Psalm 145 v 3)

There are so many things in this world,bad things,disturbing things, it may appear to us that the world is out of control.In our own lives problems with family, within our own personal situations,we may cry what's going on?.And then I remember ,God is still on His throne, that He is sovereign,that means just what it says,'He is sovereign'. We much not judge the Lord by feeble sense,you may be asking ,who can we turn to?, we need to turn to the Lord,who can help us? the Lord,He is still on the throne and He will remember His own.God is a reality,He rules,He is working out His will in all the earth, We have two choices,the first one is, our natural sight,or with the eye of faith. we can let what we see with our natural sight rule our lives,and that can cause us to despair,and drive us away from God,and the way will appear darker by the hour.The eye of faith calls us to look beyond the chaos,beyond this dark world,to one who said ,' I am the light of the world .Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness,but will have the light of life' (John 8 v 12 ) He holds the whole world in His hands,and his focus is on us His children,  let us take our eyes of Him for one moment,let us not stop trusting Him for one  moment.Don't be distracted, don't be discourage,don't be downcast , remember our God rules, our God loves,and in a mysterious way He is working all things out for us His children's good.  ( Romans 8 v28 )

                                                         ' He's got the whole in His hands,

                                                          But praise God He's got you and

                                                          me,dear child of God in His hands'

Love covers ( 1 Peter 4 v8)

 There is not much said about Joseph the husband of Mary but he played his part in that great event ,the birth of Jesus,of course he was not the actual father of Jesus.But he was  a godly man ,but the question is how do we divine godliness?,well one aspect of his godliness was seen when he found out that Mary was pregnant.He really thought Mary had fallen into sin,this would mean she would be exposed to public disgrace,Joseph did not want that,he wanted to shield her from that. It is in 1 Peter 4 v 8 we read this exhortation,' And above all things have fervent love for one another, for'' love will cover a multitude of sins'',and that's what Joseph did.A church I know had a leader  who fell into sin, the main leader was away in business,so the other leaders dealt with it, The brother confessed his sin and repented of it,he was married and his wife forgave him.,the leaders kept it quite. When the main leader came back and heard what happened,he insisted on telling it to the church,he was asked not to do that,as it would destroy that man,but he would not listen,and it had a serious effect on that man and his wife.There is a time for exposing sin,an example is child abuse,but there is also a time to do what Joseph was prepared to do..It was later that Joseph was told  by the angel of the Lord,that the child had been conceived by the Holy Spirit.

Judge not. ( Matthew 7 v 1- 2)

 I visited a friend recently he suffers from mental illness,one aspect of his illness is panic attacks, but he suffers other symptoms. His sister who is deceased also suffered from severe mental illness,she would phone him up very distressed,but he had very little sympathy for his sister.He was impatient with her,thinking ,why doesn't she pull herself together?.Now he looks at things differently, now he understands how she must have felt.  I worked with a mental health team for twenty years,so I have a degree of understanding as regards this condition,first of all it is an illness, mainly  treated with medication.Now lets come back to my friends attitude to his sisters illness,and lets broaden it out,first of all Jesus said judge not, ( Matthew 7v 1-2). I remember watching  a program on TV as to the victims of a serial killer,most of them were prostitutes,and people at the time were making moral judgements on them,it was as if they deserved what they got, the police were not much better. This was a time when one got very little help from the state,many of these women had children,but no resources to feed them, or even clothed them,  some had escaped abusive relationships,others had husbands who had left them, so they turned to prostitution in order for their families to survive.Yes prostitution is wrong, does that give us a right to pass judgement on them?,our dear Saviour said this to very religious people who wanted a lady stoned to death,because she had committed adultery,'Let anyone of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her,and they all left.( John 8 v 1- 11 )

                                                     ' Judge not, but tell them about 

                                                       Jesus who came to save sinners.

                                                       Remember you have not walked 

                                                        in their footsteps.'

The next question is. ( Psalm 46 v 10 )

 The next question is ,'What will the future hold?', well I am no fortune teller,and nor is anybody else in this world,but there is  one who does know, and of course that is God. As we look at the world,it can be a very scary place,there are so many uncertainties ,things appear to be out of  control at times.Well on that happy note what can we say, well first of all let us bring God into this situation,for the sad thing is when it comes to the future,for most people God is sidelined,instead we have so called experts with their forecasts.But as a Christian the one vital thing we must do,is to to simply trust God,yes that seems simple,but never the lest ,that's what we must do if we are going to get through. As we look into the future it may appear that it holds nothing but foreboding,but ours is not a blind faith,yes I once was blind ,but now I see, but what do I see?, that God has not forsaken me in the past,and indeed assures me that He will never leave me nor forsake me,here is what the Lord God says,'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you'....So we can say with confidence,'The Lord is our helper,we will not be afraid'. (Hebrews 13 v 5-6) He is not just a spectator looking on ,leaving us to our own devices,no, He is involved in our future to guide us through, what to us is the unknown future,but it is not unknown to Him, Remember He is totally trust worthy,He keeps His word, and those  exceeding great and precious promises to us His children.

                                               'Peace perfect peace,our future all unknown,

                                                Jesus we know and He is on the throne'

                                                            Words E.H. Bickersteth.

                                                

                                                           

How will we cope? ( Isaiah 40 v 29) 1

 So we have entered  another year by the grace of God, so what about the year that lies ahead?,how are we going to cope?.what will the future hold?. Well lets think about the first question,how are we going to cope?,well just like last year,by the grace of God,nothing has changed, grace has not changed.God says to us, 'As your days, so shall your strength be'(Deuteronomy 33 v 25 )This goes beyond natural   strength ,for we have little strength in ourselves (Revelation 3 v 8) ,this comes  from a dependence on God.Consider Samson  was he a mister universe,how did he accomplish all those great feats?,in God's strength. How will we cope?,how will we manage?, how will we face each day?,in the strength of the Lord.who is the Lord?, He is  our refuge and strength (Psalm 46 v 1).When we feel down down He will lift us up,when we feel like giving up he will give us strength to go on. David was overwhelmed he was living among his enemies  ,disaster came upon him and his men,and his own men turned on him threatening to stone him,but we read these words,'But David found strength in the Lord , and went on to victory( 1 Samuel 30 v 3- 6 ) The great God of David is our God, here is the word of God for us as we go forward in our journey to glory.

                                                       'So do not fear, for I am with you;

                                                       do not be dismayed,for I am your God.

                                                        I will strengthen you and help you; 

                                                        I will uphold you with my righteous

                                                        right hand'.

                                                                            Isaiah 41 v10.

                                         

                                                                  

He is qualified ( Acts 4 v12 )

 Writing about Jesus  the writer of Hebrews in 5 v 8 -10,declares  , 'Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things He suffered.And  having been perfected,He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest''according to the order of Melchizedek''. Let me point out that the word perfected,can be translated ,' Qualified'. So what the writer is saying that all Christ suffered qualified Him to be the source of our salvation.'That meant surrendering His will to the obedience and will of  God ;  so on the cross He offered the perfect sacrifice.'(Thomas Hewitt} ,which means ,He bore the wrath of God,so that we do not have to bear it Who is the ,'We', to all who obey Him,Again Thomas Hewitt points out something very important,'This leaves no room for,'universal salvation'.God has provided the perfect salvation for us sinners,for all those who trust Jesus as their Saviour.

                                                    'Christ suffered that we may not suffer.

                                                     Christ died that we might live,