Like Jesus. [ 1 John 3 v1- 3 ]

These thoughts came to me ,''I am not what I once was, I am not what I should be,but in a time in the future I will be what I should be''. Yes when Christ saved me my sins where all forgiven, yes there was a change, for the better. When one comes to Christ there is deliverance, we are changed for
the better, yes we are not what we once where. But of course there is still the on going  need of Change, I still get it wrong at times I still sin, I am far from perfect, but there is process going on, we call it sanctification. We have the Holy Spirit within us, who enables us to change, but because we are still in as Paul puts it,  this body of death ,[Romans 7 v 25]we are continually faced with temptations, it is a continual struggle. That means we must rely on Gods Spirit to give us the victory, when we  fail to rely on the Spirit we will fail and fall, then we must turn  and seek forgiveness, in  1 John 1 v 9,we read, ''But if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins, and purify us from all unrighteousness''.  Someone has said we are a work in progress, yes we are not what we should be , but one day all that will change, we shall be  fully changed, fully saved from all that is wrong within us, Yes the change will be amazing,for on that day we shall be like Jesus [1 John 3 v 2]
                                         A prayer.
Dear God we praise and thank You for the change you have ,and are making in our lives, We ask for grace to rely on Your Spirit every hour of every day, to be overcomers, and not despair.  We look forward to that day when we will be totally saved from all wrong in Jesus name. Amen.

Oughts.. [ Jeremiah 17 v 9 - 10 ]

Let us return to the oughts, the third one, ''Christians ought regularly to examine their lives, and throw out the corrupting influences of sin''. This is to be a healthy check up, not a morbid introspective navel gazing. This is a
biblical practise, when it comes to partaking part in the Lords table, CP. 1 Corinthians11 v28.Also in 2 Corinthians 13 v 5,the  Apostle Paul challenges
the believers ,in this church there were those who were judging Paul, and seeking to undermine  Him and so undermine his teaching. R.VG.Tasker,
writes the following, ''Let them look into their own souls, and they will see that their attitude in this matter is not in keeping with the faith they profess'' So the challenge is how is our attitude, to Gods word, to Gods leaders, to our fellow Christians, have we got a chip on our shoulder?. What wrong
attitude are we carrying about with us?, we need to look at it and ask is this attitude in keeping with us as Christians?. The writer of Hebrews challenges us as regards every weight and those sins that so easily ensnares us[12 v 2],
cast them off, this is something we ought to do.
                                              A  prayer.
                         
                              Search me, O God , and know my heart,
                              Test me and know my anxious thoughts.
                              See if there is any offensive way in me,
                              and lead me in the way everlasting.
                                     [Psalm 139 v33-34 ]

Oughts. [ Hebrews 3 v 8 ]

Derek Tidball in his book on Leviticus writes of four important,'oughts',
of the Christian life. First,Christians ought to be in haste to obey God's will.
I remember a manager pulling me up, because he thought I was not doing something I should, he said, ''do it'' .There is an old fashion word which
is procrastination, it means putting old, to drag one's feet, playing a waiting game, putting of till tomorrow what should be done today. You get the idea, it is often applied to people putting of deciding for Christ, as the old hymn puts it, 'some more convenient day'. When it comes to salvation we cannot play around with the instant need of trusting Jesus now.Because of the uncertainty of life, when Gods speaks to our hearts it is vital that we do not dither, there is to much at stake. As Christians we should realise the importance of not putting of till another day what God wants us to do now.
When Jesus came to Peter and Andrew mending their fishing nets, He said to them, 'Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men'. They immediately
left their nets and followed Him.
                                                A prayer.
Dear God help me to be quick to do your will in Jesus name Amen.

Fierce may be the conflict. [ Hebrews 13 v 3 ]

We were singing that old hymn, ''Who is on the Lords side'', written by Frances . H. Havergal,in our fellowship, when we came to the words,''Fierce
may be the conflict''. My thoughts turned to what I read recently, about a
Christian in India, who lived in Tamil Nadu state. He was  lured out of the fellowship he attended, and found himself surrounded by five men. He sought to escape from them, but they gave chase, he took refuge in a local
church building. The men followed him in ,and killed him with sickles and 
other sharp instruments. This is not an isolated incident, by Hindu extremists, many Christians face harassment and opposition, in life threatening situations. Yes for many Christians, the conflict is fierce, because they follow one who said that He only was the way the truth and the life, and that no one can come unto the Father but by Him[John 14 v6 ].
                                             A  prayer
Dear Lord help those who are suffering for you, comfort the loved ones who
have been bereaved, and gave grace and courage to those who daily face
painful situations, in Your name we ask this Amen.

Stealing [ Ephesians 4 v 28 ]

I went to the store to purchase a audio cd, I  looked in the usual place, but could not find that section, I asked an assistant, who informed me where they were. They were situated  behind the girl at the till, I spoke to her and she informed me they had to be moved because people were stealing them, I did managed to purchase one. Shoplifting is a big problem ,I wonder how great a problem stealing is in our country?. In some Islamic countries people caught steal have hands cut off as a punishment, now I believe that this is cruel, but it makes me wonder if it was practised where we live, how many people would be walking about with no limbs?, not that I would want that.The word of God tells us we should not steal [Exodus 20 v15],in other words it is a sin, it takes many forms, Internet fraud, stealing from the vulnerable, the old and elderly, stealing from employers. Stealing is wrong, but it is a reminder to us all that we as human beings are sinful fallen creatures, we all to some degree, steal from God, instead giving Him the glory we want the glory, and so we become thieves.
                                         A  prayer.
Dear God have mercy upon us thieves, preserve us from the sin of stealing be it another persons husband or wife, or whatever. Help us to see that it is not just an evil thing to do, but that it is a sinful thing , and like all sin it has dire consequences, in Jesus name Amen.

Sin has a price tag.[[Romans 6 v23 ]

Derek Tidball,writes what a famous manager said, his name was Bill Shankly,'' Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I don't like that attitude. I can assure them it is much more serious than that''. As I have been studying the book of Leviticus, the seriousness of sin, is shown to be very important, and we must see this,as DT,writes ,''obedience to God is a life and death matter''. He further writes,'' Sin is not a neutral activity in which we can ever indulge Nonchalantly, it always entails a price....sin has a price tag''. In the book of Leviticus it is clearly spelt out what was required by God, it is summed up in one word obedience. Both in the ceremonial, and in the moral activities, if you disobeyed you would be judged, wrath would fall. God has not changed, He who is holy, He abhors sin, when we sin we are playing with fire, for God we are told is a consuming fire
[Deuteronomy 4 v24 ].In fact there are many places where God judges by fire, and indeed when Christ returns it will involve  a judgement of fire, CP
2 Peter 3 v 7-10,and in that final judgement, we read of death and Hades being thrown into the lake of fire.[Revelation 20v14 ] Many people in the
sexual area seek to rationalise what they are doing ,from a purely human point of view. Instead of realising it is how God views our actions. If you are doing this then beware, you are playing with fire,
                                         A prayer.
Dear God when we go our way, there is a cost, that  road leads to destruction, eternal separation from a holy God, today you would call us to forsake our sin, enter the narrow way, which begins at the cross of our Lord Jesus Amen.
                                       

Anger. [ Colossians 3 v 8 ]

I read this today,'' Anger doesn't help'', the fact is anger is often wrong, and very destructive. There was an old movie ,called,'' Look back in anger'',well
I can look back and see so many times I was angry. Now Jesus was angry, but it was righteous anger[CP Mark 3 v1-6],I wish I could say that the many times I have been angry was righteous anger, I get angry at some things, the
injustice that people perpetrate on others, the weak the vulnerable. I am not going to confess to you those outbursts of anger that I have shown, but I do know that often it was not right, and I had to seek forgiveness. In Ephesians
4 v26 -27,we read,'' In your anger do not sin, Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold''. Yes we all
feel anger at times,but the danger is, where will it lead us?, and our enemy can use it to cause us much harm. Many people are doing many things ,
wrong things, because they are not only angry, but out of control. Out of control anger can easily destroy, can easily ruin us, If we are prone to angry outbursts, and out of control,then we must seek God to help us, to change,
for the truth is ,anger doesn't help.
                                         A  prayer.
Dear Lord help us as regards our anger, help us not to make excuses, but to face up to the wrong, that comes from our anger, and grant us grace to repent, grace to change and be like our Saviour, who when they hurled insults at Him, He did not retaliate,when He suffered, He made no threats
Instead  He intrusted Himself to Him that judges justly,Amen