Scripture alone. ( Ephesians 2 v 19 - 20 )

In his book ,'Can I trust the Bible',R.C.Sproul, reminds us that the reformation was founded on Gods word, 'scripture alone',was the slogan..He goes on to recount the meeting that Martin Luther had with the leaders of the Roman Catholic Church over the doctrine of justification.He was maneuvered into a position in which he had to confess publicly that his views did not  agree with what the church taught. That provoked a  crisis for Luther,   questioning the authority of the pope was unacceptable. Luther held his ground,however,and finally ,at the Diet of Worms in 1521, he said. Unless I am convinced by the testimony of Scriptures or by clear reason( For I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves)  I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted, and my conscience is captive to the word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything,since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. I cannot do otherwise, here I stand,may God help me. Amen.

We receive ( Matthew 7 v 24 - 27 )

R.C.Sproul wrote the following in his book,'Can I trust the Bible',' Church councils used the Latin word recipimus  ( we receive ) in reference to the canon; they were saying'' we receive'' various books to be included in Scripture. By using the word receive, the church made it clear that .....they recognised the voice of God in Scripture and displayed  their willingness to submit to His word'.I believe the greatest enemy that ancient faced was not the Philistines, Assyrians,Babylonians,no, their greatest enemies  were the enemies within, the false prophets, and the false doctrines,they taught. It is the truth as is found in Gods word ,that alone, sets us free,depart from Gods truth you will depart from God who is truth, human flawed reason will take over, and with it,morality will slip we will not only accept the errors of today, and will even defend them.Solomon could  write .'trust in the Lord  with all your heart and lean not unto thine own understanding',( Proverbs 3 v 5) but most of his reign was lived out in disobedience to it.Remember we must believe the word of God,hold fast to the word of God,and obey the word of God.

Propitiation ( 1 John 2 v 2 /4 v 10 )

Because of many preachers imbalanced beliefs,they rule out a God who judges the wicked,after all they say God is a God of love,and of course He is.So it is incompatible they say to attribute such violence to the God of love. Unfortunately they carry these beliefs  unto the death of Christ on the cross,and of course the important question is, what was Christ accomplishing on the cross?.There is a word used in 1 John 2 v 2/ 4 v 10, propitiation,which means to pacify  God anger.. In Psalm 7 v 11 , we read that  God is angry with the wicked everyday , in the words of R C Sproul, ,''Christs chief achievement on the cross was to placate( Pacify)  the wrath of God, which would burn against us, if we were not covered by the sacrifice of Christ''. He follows this up by saying,''If somebody argues against placation or the idea of God satisfying the wrath of God,be alert,because the gospel is at stake''I often quote the following words,''The wrath of God that was my due, upon the Lamb ( Jesus) was laid.

There is Mercy. ( Isaiah 55 v 6 v 7 )

Let me stress, in not fully appreciating humanities sinfulness and Gods holiness ,we pass judgement ,which is ill advised and often shows our in built  animosity towards God ,His judgements,and His ways ,whose judgements are unsearchable.If you think I am exaggerating then look at the cross, think not that you or I would not have been part of the mob who shouted out crucify Him.In Psalm 119 v 75 , we read,' I know,O Lord Your Judgements are right',that ancient Patriarch ,Abraham, declared,'Will not the Judge  of all the earth do right' ( Genesis 18 v 25 ).These words were spoken just before God  wiped out Sodom and Gomorrah.In answer to Abraham's plea .to spare  these cities if only 10  righteous people were found in these cities,God answered that  He would spare these cities.Alas there was only one righteous man ,he was spared,his name was Lot, plus his two daughters.( Genesis 19 ) We are told,' God is love' 1 John 4 v 8,a love that embraces the world John 3 v 16..In Lamentations 3 v 33, we read,'For He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men'.Judgement for God is I believe a last resort. But when mercy is scorned ,then judgement will fall,but when mercy is sought  ,mercy will be granted.

The hangman is not a murderer. ( Genesis 6 v 5 - 7 )

I was talking to a person as regards the capture of the promise land by Israel ,and the fact that most of the population were put to the sword. Now of course it was an awful thing,but it was a judgement by God for their wickedness,this was not just a people being overthrown, it was Gods will. The person I spoke to accused Israel of being murderers,they were not ,they were executioners , like the hangman of old. The hangman was not a murderer oh yes he was guilty of killing someone,yes the Israelites w killed those people ,but they were not murderers,I repeat they were Gods executioners.. God judged the world by a flood,He judged Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone,when it came to judging  the Canaanites He used Israel.There comes a point when things become so bad,like at the time of the flood and the time of Sodom and Gomorrah,and with the Canaanites, that God declares enough is enough,and He pores out His righteous judgment. We will continue this next time.

A holy war. ( Romans 3 )

As a Christian when I read the Bible,do I accept what I read by faith, or do I lean upon my own understanding? Recently while speaking to a person whom I consider a Christian, we touched on Israels conquest of the promised land,in which they practically wiped out thousands of people, he called them murderer's .I did not give him a very good answer to this, but it did reveal to me how far that person has slipped away from God.Awful though it was, it was a judgement by God, because of their sinful corrupt culture and religion.'The wars of Israel',wrote Bonhoeffer, were the only''holy wars'', in history,for they were the wars of God against the world of idols. The problem with many people even some Christians,they fail to grasp two things, sins awfulness and Gods awesome holiness.All sin  outrages our holy God,I stress ALL SIN.in eternity all sin be judged and all who have not trusted Jesus will pay the price for the sins they have committed. We will continue this next time.

No escape .( Isaiah 55 v 6 - 7 )

It is reported that there is over a million cases of domestic abuse in our country,mainly carried out  by men on their wives,children or even partners.My dear mother left my father taking myself ,sister,and two brothers with her.My mother never told me why,but on looking back one cant help think there was a measure of domestic abuse.Recently in what was a care home,a report has come out revealing that there were hundreds of children abused, over a period of four decades. I wonder if all these cases of abuse may be but the tip of the iceberg ,so often evil goes on and never comes to light. The perpetrators seem to have escaped justice,In 1 Corinthians 4 v  5',we read that when the Lord comes back again,He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness'.all will be revealed, and judged by the righteous Judge,being Jesus ,no evil will be forgotten,or missed.Those who have not repented of their sin and sought forgiveness by trusting Jesus will know the wrath of God,shut out from the presence of God eternally. If you are an abuser take this warning seriously,forsake your sin it will come to light you will be judged,seek the Lord while he may be found,forsake your sin,before it is to late.