Solomons folly.[ 1 Kings 11 ]

If only,how often have we said this,and thought it,one of the greatest disasters that Israel experienced was when Solomon,became king. At least I think so,I could be wrong,but it appears to me that this wise king,acted the fool,he was invited by God to ask what he wanted,and of course he asked for wisdom and knowledge,these he received.He was commended by God for what he asked for,and God promised him also riches,wealth,and honour.None of those things I don't think effected him.But there is always a but,he like his father married many wives, Solomon unfortunately married foreign wives,these women had tremendous influence over Solomon,Chronicles does not mention the influence they had on him,but the book of kings does.[1 Kings 11]. He was influenced by these wives to worship other gods,he may have had a genuine reason in marrying these wives,political alliance,but God forbid the accumulating chariots,and horses,huge harems, and incredible wealth.[Deuteronomy 17 v14-20].The result was Solomon turned to the gods of his wives,the  bible mentioned that the turning to these gods happened when Solomon was old.There is a saying which goes/ there is no fool like an old fool  /,and unfortunately this old guy Solomon proved this to be true.The lessons we can learn from these thing are many,don't let prosperity go to your head,obey Gods word,and don't when you get old, act like an old fool.
A  prayer....../ Dear God there is so much we can admire about Solomon, but there is so much that saddens us,God we acknowledge that,we are prone to wonder prone to leave the God we love,Father keep us by your grace, in Jesus name Amen /

We are one. [ Ephesians 2 13-22 ]

 Recently while on holiday my wife and I attended a certain fellowship,it met in a large building I choose to sit  on the outside seating,my wife said why not sit in the middle, I jokingly said I am not part of this fellowship,then I said ,but I am part of this church. It is so vital for us to appreciate this,the church of Christ is made up of so many different groups,to numerous to mention,for many it is confusing,but it is not confusing for Christ,He chose 12 disciples,there where twelve tribes of Israel.I read these words recently,everyone is equal,but not the same,I wonder do you feel that church down the road is less equal to your church?,not so,they are just different.When I pray I do not just pray for my own fellowship,no I pray for many fellowships,for although they,are different,they are part of the church of Christ. We all need each other,and we all should accept each other,Christ died for the church,which includes all who are truly born again.The church at Corinth lost sight of what it truly meant to be a  Christian,one was saying I am a follower of Paul, I am a follower of Apollos,and still another group were  claiming to be followers of Peter.Paul had to remind them that they must focus on Christ, after all He was the one who had died for all true Christians.In a very real sense the label is not important,but what is important is,knowing Christ,
A prayer....../Lord , may our union form a part,of that thrice happy whole. Derive its pulse from Thee the heart,its life from Thee the soul. Amen/[John Montgomery]

God [Isaiah 40]

I am reading A. W Tozer and his book,/The knowledge of the Holy/,it is interesting and helpful, dealing with the mystery of God,and the only way forward is faith ,not reason.He wrote,/We are afraid to whisper mystery/.Here is another quote ,/love and faith are at home in the mystery of the Godhead . Let reason kneel in reverence outside/ The J Ws reject the  the doctrine of the trinity because it is not rational,they rely on human reasoning, I  often mention the sovereignty of God, that is a statement of faith.Tozer stresses the fact that God can be known, by faith in Jesus,but God cannot be fully known, in His being and His ways. I am overawed by the immenseness of the universe,its vastness , then I consider , God ,who made that awesomeness,and I am speechless .We are all guilty of mixing the creature with the creator, and in so doing,making God lesser than what He is,and God can never be lesser ,He must always be seen as greater.Greater than our imaginations,greater in every way. God is to be praised, and maybe that praise is best shown in holy silence, and a heart that is lost in wonder love and praise.Yes in Christ we can know God, and know Him in a very personal way,and that's what God wants, that is why Christ came,and when we do know Him,so begins a relationship that is truly astounding, because of whom He is ,God,but God,whose ways are past finding out,and whose being is unfathomable. It is in Isaiah  chap 40,that we read,/To whom then will ye liken  Me,or shall I equal?, saith  the holy One.The answer is we can liken Him to no one,He is different He is unique,there is no searching of His understanding, and yet the wonderful thing is we can know Him through Jesus.
A prayer...../ Dear God , we bow before You,in wonder,love and praise,the great unknowable ,and yet the one we can know through Jesus, Amen/
[I will return to my blog on Sunday 26th]

Death a shadow [Psalm 23 ]

A   dear friend has died, she was a lovely lady,and when I heard of her death ,the words in Psalm 23 v4 came into my mind./Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with  me, thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me/It is Henry who wrote the following. / Here is one word that sounds terrible, it is death...but there are four words which lessen the terror. [ 1] It is the shadow of  death, there is no substantial evil in it, the shadow of a serpent will not sting,nor the shadow of a sword kill. [2 ] It is the valley of the shadow,deep indeed,and dark, and dirty, but the valleys are fruitful, and so is death itself fruitful of comforts in Gods people. [3 ]It is but a walk in this valley, a gentle pleasant walk, the wicked are chased out of this world, and their souls are required, but the saints take a walk to another world, as cheerfully as they take their leave of this. [4 ]It is a walk through it,they shall not be lost in it, but get safe to the mountain of spices on the other side/.
A  prayer...../Dear God the loss of a loved one ,or the loss of a friend is painful,but we praise You, that it is not the end,glory awaits every dear child of God, so help us not to sorrow as those who have no hope, in Jesus name. Amen /

Neglect. [2 Kings 22 v 8 ]

The history of Israel is not a pretty picture,the wilderness journey was filled with murmuring,the times of the Judges,was a time of continual backsliding,when everyman did that was right in their own eyes,the times of the deteriorated ,to such a point where God had to deal with the nation in the most severe manner,yes there were the good kings,David and some others.Josiah was an outstanding man of God,who sought to bring the people back to God,in 2 Kings 22/ 23,we read of the awful list of things that the nation was involved in,the temple had fallen into disrepair,the word of God had been neglected. No wonder the nation behaved in such a Godless manner,and so it will always be,when the word of God is neglected,when dust gathers on our Bibles,we can expect to backslide.A friend of mine attended a funeral service recently ,he came away concerned,for the minister never read the word of God,oh yes he said the Lords prayer,but read a few silly poems. We must on a personal level fight to have a time to read and get to know Gods word,and if we are not being fed in the church we attend then leave it and attend somewhere else,somewhere where we will be fed,spiritually. Let us learn from Israels history,a nation that neglected,and rejected Gods word,and the awful consequences it brought upon them.
A  prayer...../ Dear God help our ministers to faithfully preach Your word,help us all to faithfully read it ,help us to take heed of what happened to Israel,can happen to us ,we ask this in Jesus name Amen /

.We are responsible [Galations 6 v7 ]

Hezekiah was a good king not a perfect king,and God blessed him,but he had a son called Manasseh, I call him ,Manasseh the terrible,for he was terrible in the things he did,he reigned 55 years,and most of that reign was disastrous, for the nation and for those who would follow after him. God humbled Manasseh ,and he did repent,and was forgiven, in 2 Chronicles 33 v13, we read ,then Manasseh knew that the Lord he was God.He had a revelation of who God was,up until then, he followed everything and anything,even sacrificing his son as a burnt offering to his god. Who knows the terrible evil and foolish things we will do when we follow the gods of this world,and of our own imagination, and we must never forget where this will eventually lead to, a lost eternity.Now God forgive Manasseh, but in Jeremiah 15 v4 ,God declares that He will judge the people for his sinful actions,this puzzled me because,if God had forgiven him,why judgement?.It seems to me that the nation did not take responsibility for the part they played in the wickedness that was carried out, and to a great degree ,continued to carry out,the plea of so many people,I was only carrying out orders will not wash with God who holds all men responsible for their actions.
A prayer..../Dear God  help us not to hide behind the lie that I am not responsible for what I do , in Jesus name Amen /

A new heart. [ 1 Samuel 10 v9 ]

Abraham Lincoln said, /In order to win a man to your cause, you must first reach his heart/,as a preacher,I want God to touch my heart,that I when I stand to minister,that I may touch the hearts of  the people,I am ministering to. I think we have to qualify this,because I am dealing in spiritual things as opposed to natural things.Hitler won the hearts of many of the German people,by his oratory,lies and deceit,satan entered into Judus,,on the natural level the heart is our most vulnerable place, What is controlling your heart,anger,unforgiveness,Jesus said ,out of the heart proceeds, evil thoughts,murders,adulteries,fornications,thefts,false witness,blasphemies[Matthew 15 v10]. So the question is who or what has got our hearts?, in Proverbs23 v26, we read, /My son give me thine heart./ The non Christian holds unto their treasures,what ever those treasures are, the rich young ruler, held fast to his riches,and so forfeited eternal life,the very thing he wanted [Matthew 19 ] We do not like Gods description of our natural hearts cp Jeremiah17 v9[The heart is deceitful above all things,and desperately wicked],but it is the truth that sets us free,better to face the truth,as to our condition.If we are not saved then we need a new heart ,God has promised this when we trust Christ[Ezekiel 11v19],a heart where He reigns and rules,a heart that when daily yielded to Him,will transform our lives.
A  prayer..../ Dear God grant us a new heart,and when You do, help us to yield it daily to Your perfect will, in Jesus name Amen /