Why oh why? ( Philippians 2 v5-11)

No one likes being humiliated ,when I was in the army as a boy soldier,there was an occasion when a certain corporal was giving us drill and he called one of the young lads out.And he berated him saying this is what we have to face the Russians with, the cold war was still a reality.That young lad must have felt humiliated ,it is not nice to be humiliated,no one likes it,one feels a sense of shame.The word of God tells us this about our Saviour,that before he came into this world He had equality with God, In other words the angels worshipped Him (Hebrews 1 v 6),by Him all things were made (Hebrews 1 v2),just to remind you that God is a triune being,Father,Son,and Holy Spirit, they are not three gods,they are one, and they work in harmony with each other.But this is what God the Son did,He left aside the trappings of His deity, and  did something incredible,he took up the humble  position of a slave and became human.And then He humbled Himself in obedience to God,by dying on a cross. Those who put Him on that cross hated Him, during his three and a half years of ministry,they hated him with a vehemence that reached a transcendo of viciousness and cruelty,when they arrested Him they sought to totally humiliate Him. Why oh why did He go through all that?,the answer is simple but profound ,to bring salvation to a lost world,to save you, and to save me.

There is hope ( Luke 23 v 39- 43)

I heard these words recently ,' You may not know it ,your not beyond redemption'.the apostle Paul called himself the chief of sinners,and then he added,''Of whom I am worse''.  ( 1 Timothy 1 v 15) In Romans 5 v  6 we read ,'Christ died for the ungodly'.In the Gospels the religious people appeared not to offer any hope of salvation to those they thought were sinners,inspite of the fact that their greatest king sinned greatly and was forgiven,we speak of David who committed adultery and murder.Many people today are a bit like the Pharisees they don't hold out much hope for people being forgiven. The reason Christ came was to save sinner,no matter how sinful they  are,no matter how wicked they have been. The nation of Israel so often in their history sinned against God who is holy,yet God said to them,''Come now,let us reason together,''Says the Lord,''Though your sins are like scarlet,they shall be as white as snow; Though they are red as crimson,they shall be as wool'.(Isaiah 1 v18) Forgiveness is offered no matter if you are a deep died sinner,you can be forgiven if you turn to Jesus in repentance and seek forgiveness you will be saved.

         

                                                     'The vilest offender who truly believes,

                                                      That moment from Jesus a pardon receives,'

                                                                   Word F J.Crosby

He knows what He's doing ( 1Corinthians 1 v26-29) 4Gideon

Lets consider another lesson from Gideon when he was he was faced with an army of many thousands and he had only three hundred soldiers, to the natural eye,it was absurd ,and yet those three hundred won the victory.Remember David and the giant,in 1Samuel 17,and how David little more than a boy won the victory over that giant,God knows what He is doing.His ways are not our ways,in  Isaiah 55v  8-9 we read,'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts' God chooses nobodies and make them somebodies,that's God way ,He knows what He is doing,so trust Him and obey Him.

Trust (Psalm 37)

Someone wrote as regards something that happened ,'That it was not a coincidence but a God-incidence'. a very insightful statement.David as an old man wrote the 37th Psalm and in verse 23,we read ,'The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord',it was very appoberiate that this godly old man wrote those words.As an old man myself I look back on my life I can trace God's hand in all my life. Of course it is sometimes hard to see that at the time,if only we could it would save us a lot of worries,a lot of pain. Out of his experance  he wrote this Psalm , in three verses we have the word trust, what are you facing today? difficulties , disappointments ,'discouragements,dangers,'Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding'.Think upon  those words ,That it was not a coincidence but a God-incidence', do you doubt that?,why not replace doubt with ,'Trust'.David experienced so many difficulties ,he lost two sons,and his dearest friend,King Saul hunted him like a wild amimal,but his God who is our God brought him through ,the poet wrote,

                                                           Sovereign Ruler of the skies,

                                                            Ever gracious ever wise;

                                                            All my times are in Thy hand,

                                                            All events at Thy command,   (Words John Ryland)

To God be the glory. ( Titus 3 v5-7)3

 Let's consider a lesson that Gideon had to learn,in Judges chap7 Gideon prepares for war with an army of  thirty two thousand. But God speaks and tells him to reduce the army ,why ? the reason being  Israel would boast that they got the victory, and would rob God of the glory.The army was reduced to ten thousand,but God was not finished, He reduced the army to three hundred.Israel had to learn the lesson that we  also need to learn,He must have all the glory.When it comes to salvation the apostle Paul writes,' For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves,it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast'. ( Ephesians 2 v 8-9)Likewise in Romans 11 v 6  we read,' And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would be no longer grace.So in relation to salvation and all things we must give God all the glory. 

                                            'To God be the glory! Great things He hath done!

                                            So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,

                                            Who yielded His life an atonement for sin

                                            And opened the life-gate that we may go in.'

The relucant One ( Luke 14 v 25-33) 3

Following on from yesterday, we read Moses was filled with fear and then God spoke to him,telling him that He had heard the cry of His people and would rescue them from their suffering, and take them to the promise land.I'm sure it sounded good to Moses,but then he heard God say, So now go.and bring  His people out of Egypt.And so started a whole conversation,Moses say's who am I that I should go Pharoah and bring the  Israelites out of Egypt? God's answer was simplicity itself ,' I will be with you', Then began a toing and froing which went on for quite a while,God was very patient with him seeking to reassure him.Then Moses said to God he was not a very good speaker and that He should send someone else,God got angry, but that passed,and He pointed to Aaron his brother who was a good speaker. Moses again spoke that  he was not up to the task.but God went on to say that he would help both of them to speak,and told him to take his shepherds staff so he could perform the miraculous signs that God had shown him.Just a couple of comments God is always with us,and He will be with us,and if neccessary he will give us a Silas or a Timothy to assist us and he will equip us for the task that he has called us to do.

Called by God (Exodus 3) 2

Moses was wonderfully called by God,but it would not take place for forty years,he had left Egypt,after he had killed an Egyptian who was beating one of his people. He hid the body in the sand thinking that no one had seen what he did,but word got around, Pharaoh sought to find him and put him to death, so he ran away and ended up in Midian,there he came into contact with a priest who had seven daughters Midian invited him to stay ,he accepted and he married one of the daughters,and he ended up in being a shepherd looking after his father-in -laws sheep.He did this for forty years until that fateful day when minding the sheep,he saw  a bush burning and yet it was not burnt up. Curiosty got the better of him,and he heard the voice of God calling him and he answered ,'Hear am I'. God warned not to get to close,and to take of his sandals off, for he was standing on holy ground.Then he said that He was the God of his father,and the God of Abraham,Isaac,and Jacob'.We will just finish with a few thoughts.God can meet us in many ways not just in a church building,but in the midst of a crowd,in an areoplane in a boat,or even in the belly of a great fish Who  knows ?,but you will know.