Doubt ( Psalm 43 v 5 )

 'I had been with him for over 3 yrs, I witnessed the miracles, I had  heard him speak, his enemies were amazed at what he said and taught, he appeared indestructible .  I never thought that he was going to die like he did, why did he die?, he was the Messiah, he was going to establish God's Kingdom on earth, why? , why?, why?. Now they are telling me that he is not dead, I don't believe it ,he was crucified,, he was dead ,and when your dead your dead. I can't believe, I won't believe'. His name was Thomas ,otherwise known as doubting Thomas, he was one the 12 disciples ,he must have felt many things  when Jesus died such a horrible death on that awful cross, doubt was one of them.  A friend of mine spoke of  her son who appears to have lost his way spiritually, she doesn't know why, she spoke of how she remembered him preaching, but now he appears to have withdrawn , struggling. There are may reasons why like Thomas people's faith can be affected, maybe like Christian in Pilgrims progress ,we all visit even briefly Doubting castle. It is good to acknowledge that , to acknowledge that sometimes we lose our way. In spite of his black hole of  doubt and despair, he did recover, we read how his Saviour manifested himself to him, for his Saviour loved him.  Today you may be struggling with doubt ,remember your Saviour still loves you.

A good feeling. ( Genesis 18 v 14 )

A well known preacher asked his sister ,what was one of the best  feeling she had?, and she answered, relief. It is very true ,as I look back on my life , I can remember so many times, I have experienced relief , in relation to my family , or when my football team one certain matches when it looked like they were going to be beat. Years ago my wife and young family were travelling home, it  was night, and the car had a puncture, and someone stopped and helped me, what a relief It was a relief when a church called me to be their minister , after so many doors had closed. Yes relief is a major thing in our lives, when a person recovers from a life threatening illness, or when a financial need is met, yes its a good feeling  . I know life has many different experiences , they are not always good, often they can be down right bad. You may be having a bad experience, there appears no way out, no relief on the horizon ,trust God for He has not left you, listen child of God ,He has not forsaken you, nor will He. He can make a way for you out of your difficulties, so don't despair, hear the word of the Lord ,''I will help you''. ( Isaiah 41 v 10 ),is that not a relief  .

Everything we need . ( Philippians 4 v13 )

 In 2  Peter 1 v 3 we read,' His divine power has given us everything that we need  for life and godliness'. When we become a Christian we are not left  with no resources, no God has given us everything we need for life and godliness. In Romans 7 the Apostle Paul, writes of the struggle he had in seeking to do what's right, the fact is none of us are perfect, but we must seek that godly perfection that Christ spoke of in Matthew 5 v 48. our Saviour did not tell us this, to mock us, but rather to make that our aim, to be ever striving, as the apostle  writes in Philippians 3 v 12 - 14.  We are not saved by what we do, but by what Christ has done, we are not saved by our righteousness ,Titus 3 v 5, but we are called to be righteous ,likewise only God is holy yet we are called to be be holy. ( 1 Peter 1 v 16 ) As  a Christian I have to take this serious, Paul recognised the challenged and struggled with it, why because although we have a new nature we still have the old nature which is referred to as the flesh Galatians 5 v 16 - 17. In Romans 7 v 25 Paul declares 'Thanks be to God ,through our Lord Jesus Christ', our Christian life starts with Christ, and continues with Christ, yes there is victory in Jesus. He is with us in the power of the Holy Spirit, who will grant us the power and the grace to live a life of godliness.

                                                  Through many dangers, toils, and snares

                                                   I have already come ;

                                                   Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,

                                                   And grace will lead me home.  ( Words John  Newton )

                                                    

Are you greedy? ( Matthew 22 v 37 )

 Years ago when  rich people had servants, the master of the house  overheard one of his servants saying to  the other servants, '' if only I had ten pound I would be so happy and content''. Well the master took ten pound from his wallet ,and gave it to him, and as he was walking away  he overheard him say, ''I wish I had said twenty pounds.'' Recently a neighbours daughter said to me, ''I don't want a lot of money, just enough to buy a few things''. The thing is the more people get, the more they want , it is very true, people always go for a better paid job, a bigger house, a better car .Now I am not saying that's its wrong to better ones self, for most of my life money has been scarce, not now, God has blessed me, and I am grateful, and content, my concern is to not let my possessions possess  me . In Ephesians 5 v 3 the apostle Paul  challenges the believers not to be greedy, it has the meaning of covetousness, a hunger for material possessions,( among other things). Charles Swindoll, points that in Colossians 3 v 5  greed is linked  to idolatry, and he makes this valid point ,''greed ,'' makes a god of what it seeks to possess''. My  dear wife is a self employed carer, and she reminds me it is not just about the money. it was dear William Cowper who wrote,

                                                    'The dearest idol I have known,

                                                     Whate'er that idol be,

                                                      Help me to tear it from Thy throne,

                                                       And  worship  only Thee.'.

It is not fair. ( Romans 12 v 19 - 21 )

 Looking back on my life, I think  of the many friends I've had along the way, one of my earliest friends was Billy Harris, although it wasn't all smooth going the friendship, bearing in mind ,we were both in primary school, in other words we were both very young. We had a fight and I bit him, no I didn't  try to eat him, no I just bit him, he  got over it, we still remained friends for a few years. I  remember going to his home, and his mother  sent him out to get some shopping, we both  went, and  when his mum asked him for the change, he had lost it. In those days money was short, so his mother was very upset, so she started blaming me, I  didn't take it ,or should I say, steal it, no I was innocent, he was my friend.  It is not nice being blamed for something one didn't do, think  of Joseph accused wrongly of trying to rape someone ,and for that he spent many years in prison. He could not do anything about it, it was not fair or just.  In   1 Peter 2 , Peter writes about those who suffer wrongly, and gives the greatest example of that in Jesus, and this is what we read, ' Who when he was reviled, did not revile in return; when he suffered , He did not threaten , but committed ( or entrusted ) himself  to Him who judges righteously' ( v 23 )

It became a reality. ( Isaiah 9 v 6 )

 In Matthew 2 we have recorded the visit of  the wise men from the east ,possibly from Persia, and they came seeking the king of the Jews, it is understandable that they went to Jerusalem initially, as it is very near Bethlehem. They assumed that the king of the Jews would be born in a palace, but not so, as they soon found out  ,when they met with  King Herod. The Jewish religious leaders pointed out from scripture, that it was to be in Bethlehem as foretold by the prophet Micah ( 5 v 2 ) that the Messiah was to be born. It is important to emphasize, that the coming of  Christ was foretold in the OT. In Isaiah  7 v 14/  9 v 6 we have his birth foretold,  in Isaiah 53, and Psalm 22, his suffering and death, in Psalm 16 v 10, we have His resurrection foretold. Christianity is not something  that we have made up , it was clearly foretold in scripture. Those Jews who made up the early Church, saw Christ  as the promised Messiah, that He was the one the scriptures clearly foretold was coming. Yes they followed  that prophecy given by  God, that became a reality, in that little town of Bethlehem, in a babe called Jesus, the Saviour of the world.

The future. ( Isaiah 50 v 10 )

 In 1939 Great Britain and many other countries were facing a very uncertain future, Germany  ruled by a  dictator called Hitler,  had set his sights on conquest by force  on the nations of Europe. The British Prime Minister thought he had secured peace, and the nation rejoiced, but alas it was not  so, and so war was declared. Difficult and uncertain times lay ahead the then King George the sixth on 25th of December 1939 ,spoke to the nation on the radio, his young daughter  Princess Elisabeth, passed unto him a poem by Minnie Louise Haskins, called,' The Gate of the Year', the king read this in his talk. Considering the uncertainties that we as a nation face and indeed the world ,its is a very appropriate poem to read. As  someone has said, 'No one knows what the 'New Year 'will bring, but God knows'.  

                                      'And I said to the man who stood  at the gate of the year, 

                                       Give me a light that I may tread safely  into the unknown,

                                        And he replied,   

                                        Go out into the darkness, and put your  hand, in the Hand of God  ,

                                        That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.'

That God ,can be known through Jesus his Son, who said '' I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life''.  (John 8 v 12 )