Honour ( Revelation 5 )

I have read and preached from 1 Samuel  many times,so I was surprised that I had missed something of importance it relates to king Saul ,it was after he had fought with the Amalekites, ,we read in 15 v 12, that he' ,set up a monument in his own honour'. It indicates to me,that here is a man who lost the plot, what do dictators do, they have statues of themselves erected .Mankind is full of thieves, who rob God of His honour,the scientist, have robbed God as the one who created all things.Saul should have raised up a monument to God, who had given him the victory.The challenge that comes to us all are we giving glory to God?.are we honouring Him?.or are we like king Saul, We owe everything to God,the victories,the achievements,do we give Him the honour?,let us start to give God the honour.;                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Those who honour me I will  honour                                                                                                                     ( 1 Samuel 2 v 30 )                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Deliverance ( John 17 v 6 - 12 )

'And lead us not into temptation,but deliver us from the evil one', 'Temptation, can mean a trial of ones character,of ones virtue, temptation,solicitation to sin,especially from Satan' Our character is continually under attack,Satan will always seek to under mind our character.Evil takes in so much and no one is excluded from its influence.If our first sinless parents could be overcome  how much more are we vulnerable to attack from the arch enemy of all that is good.So how appropriate  for us to pray these words,'lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one'.The word deliver has the meaning of snatching one from danger,rescuing ,God alone is able to truly deliver us,and when we pray,call on Him,cry unto Him,He will not fail us.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       I need Thee ev'ry hour,                                                                                                                               Most gracious Lord,                                                                                                                                   No tender voice like Thine,                                                                                                                        Can peace afford.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            I need Thee every hour,                                                                                                                              Stay Thou near by,                                                                                                                                      Temptations lose their power                                                                                                                     When Thou  art nigh.                                                                                                                                     ( Anne Hawkes  )                                                                                                                             

Forgiving others ( Matthew 5 v 7 )

We have consider ,the request for forgiveness ,now let us consider the vital importance of forgiving others,yes we have a choice,to forgive or not to forgive.Our Lord teaches us,that being forgiven,  should bring a positive response from us.We rejoice that God forgives us all our sins,but are we prepared to forgive others? v 14- 15, tells of the consequences of not forgiving ,we put a barrier between God and us,God will refuse to forgive us.There are reasons why we feel we should not forgive,the hurt they caused you,the pain that you feel,they do not deserve to be forgiven.The fact is God could quite easily say the same thing to us .but He didn't, when we cried unto the Lord,He did not turn a deaf ear to us, He did not turn away from us. No He didn't, He forgive us,we see this illustrated right through the Bible, Nineveh,the place Jonah was sent to,to preach judgement,but when they repented of their evil ways God forgive them , our Lord forgive Peter ,our Lord forgive Paul the chief persecutor of  the early Christians.Such love by God in forgiving these people,requires us to in return to forgive those who have hurt us.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              He expects                                                                                                                                                  He requires,                                                                                                                                                       us                                                                                                                                                               to                                                                                                                                                               Forgive.

Forgiveness. ( Matthew 6 v 9 - 13 )

Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors',the term debts means sin,W. Barclay,writes that there are five different  words that are used for sin in the New Testament,briefly here they are, /Missing the mark/Stepping across the line which is drawn between right and wrong/to slip into sin/lawlessness/ debt a failure to pay that which is due/.Even as believer we sin in one way or another,by speech,word,deed,thought,there are many ways in which we sin,so we need to ask God  to forgive us, and the wonderful thing is He will. CP  1 John 1 v 9.

Daily bread ( Matthew 6 v 9 - 13 )

'Give us today our daily bread',  Many years ago my Pastor said this request was not for now, I think he said it applied to a future,tribulation. After all He said, we have no shortage of food, well when I was living by faith often I had a shortage,and many dear believers have a shortage,and to them it seems a very meaningful thing to pray.Of course the Lord has supplied my need,but the general principal, in requesting for daily provision,is a very needy reminder of our dependence on God for our daily needs.So many people have lost sight of their dependence on God.W. Barclay writes,'By implication, this petition gives God His proper place,' Let the unbeliever scoff at this,in their proud ungrateful spirit,but let us never, forget our food is  a direct gift from a gracious and loving God.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      All good gifts around us                                                                                                                            Are sent from heaven above,                                                                                                                      Then thank the Lord, O thank                                                                                                                     the Lord                                                                                                                                                     For all His love.                                                                                                                                          ( M. Claudius/J.M.Campbell)

Gods Kingdom (Matthew 6 v 16 )

'Your kingdom come',  It is Christ who defined Gods kingdom as not of this world,( John 18 v 36 ),so what are we asking when we pray ,for Gods kingdom to come?It is W. Barclay who links,'your will be done' together with Gods Kingdom,it is a spiritual kingdom,that needs no earthly Parliaments ,no earthly kings or queens,it is not a kingdom that can be brought in by earthly force,we can never force anyone into Gods kingdom,at the point of a sword or a gun.It is an everlasting Kingdom   ,that can never be destroyed,though many will try,It is Gods Kingdom,and it is Christ who is King of Kings, who has been given all power and authority,and by the eternal Spirit reigns in the heart and lives of everyone who has entered that kingdom,by a new birth, by faith in Jesus as Saviour.Whose sole aim is to do Gods will in every aspect of their lives,the challenge is to follow in the footsteps of Jesus,who perfectly obeyed Gods will.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         'Your will be done''                                                                                                                                              in me.

Let your name be held holy. ( Exodus 20 v 7 )

''Hallowed be your name'',one translation has, ''Let your name be held holy''so what do you think this means?, let it be seem as something that should be above the common use,it is special.Let us remember that Gods name is not just a label,but it speaks of the whole person.The one who is awesome in holiness, who expects to be treated with deep reverence and respect. It should not roll of   our lips as a swear word,or a word that is of no consequence.It is sad to hear Christians taking Gods name in vain,Exodus 20 v 7 reminds us that there is consequences ,it displeases God.In Psalm 9 v 10 we read, 'Those who know your name put their trust in you', ''It means that those  who know what God is like,those who know the nature and character of God, will put their trust in Him'.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Jehovah-jireh    .......The Lord will provide.                                                                                              Jehovah- rapha.........The Lord that healeth.                                                                                              Jehovah-Shalom.......The Lord our peace                                                                                                  Jehovah- ra-ah...........The Lord our Shepherd.                                                                                          Jehovah-shammah.....The Lord is present.