The poor( James 2 v 1 - 13 )

Our Saviour said that the poor we will have with us always (Matthew 26 v 11), Many years ago I remember been told,that I was poor,and I suppose I was.When I was a child my mother left my father ,which meant she had to being four children up by herself,by todays standards we were poor. There are many places and organisations where the poor would be excluded,even in the early church there were those who had a wrong attitude to the poor. In the church to whom James wrote his epistles .there were those who were  discriminating against the poor.James highlighted how wrong that was.and gives an example of the preferential treatment given to the rich. There was the rich man in all his finery,and there was the poor man dressed in filthy old clothes. The rich man is given the best seat in the building,while the poor man is told to stand or to sit on the floor. (James 2 v 1-4) James classes what they were doing as evil.James reminds us of a very wonderful thing,that God chooses the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs to God's kingdom.In God's eyes,being rich,being powerful,being black or poor, means nothing , they are all but sinners saved by grace. 

                                                                Keep the royal love.

                                                                    James 2 v 8

Unforgiveness. ( Matthew 6 v 9-15 )

 It is interesting and sad to see how quickly our fallen nature kicked in,and it was within a family  Genesis 4, and it all started within a religious setting. Cains sacrifice was not acceptable to God,while his brothers Abel's was,and that made him very angry,it wasn't that God had rejected  him,but that made no difference.His anger exploded into violence,and he killed his dear brother. A friend said to me recently  how severe family disputes can be,he spoke of a relative of his wife's who had  holds a grudge against them,even though his wife had tried to mend the relationship. Unforgiveness is not in some peoples  repertoire,and that is very serious, especially if they are Christians, because God will not be pleased. A man called Walter Wink tells of two peacemakers who visited a group of  Polish Christians 10 years after the end of World War11.They were asked if they would meet up with some German Christians from Germany? They wanted to ask  for forgiveness for what Germany did  during the war.They were told that was impossible,we cannot forgive. Before they parted they prayed the Lords prayer,when they reached the words''forgive us our sins as we forgive'' everyone stopped praying. One of the Poles spoke,''I must say yes to you, I could no more pray the Our Father, I could no longer call myself a Christian, if I refuse to forgive'' ,and so by the grace of God there began a process of reconciliation'.

Tuit. ( Mark 13 v 32 - 37 )

 I have before me a plate ,and in the centre of the it there is a sticker with following words on it,'A Round TUIT', and underneath are the following words,'This is a round tuit! Tuits are hard to come by, especially the round ones. It will help you to become a much more efficient worker. For years you've heard people say,''I'll do that when I get round to tuit.''Husbands are notorious  for saying that, when I get round tuit, one can see the funny side to it,but it can have a serious side to it. forgetting to test the fire alarm,making sure you have enough fuel  in your car before you set out on your journey. When it comes to spiritual  things,like reading Gods word on a daily bases,I am sure many think about it,but don't do it,in other words they don't get round tuit. Likewise having a regular time of prayer,oh you say I know I should do it,but you don't get around tuit. Read the account of Mary and Martha in Luke 10 v 38ff.When it came to following Jesus many ,made excuses, CP Luke 9 v 57ff,some more convenient time.The proclaiming of the gospel is urgent,and responding to the gospel likewise is urgent,indeed very urgent.Ask yourself the question ,am I a tuit person?,it is time you  said to yourself ,'I've done it'.

The Cross ( James 1 v 17 ) 4

 From propitiation to expiation,although the word does not appear in the NT, it can mean the same as atonement, it  tells us all the good aspects that Christs sacrifice brings to us when we trust Him as our Saviour . They are so many, all our sins are forgiven everyone of them, we are told that ,'the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin'.(1 John 1 v7)Yes every sin,all are forgiven,there is a friend of mine who was brought up as a Roman Catholic,he was a very earnest Catholic.The problem was he never had  the assurance that his sins were forgiven,Eventually he trusted the Lord and he then had the assurance that his sins were forgiven.The most important thing in all our lives is to know that our sins are forgiven. Yes the wonder of the atonement is that our sins can be forgiven.So many things flow from the atonement ,God becomes our Father,He will be a perfect Father, we also receive eternal life,the Spirit of God,peace with God,and the peace of God,the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, and so we could could go on, enough to say we are truly blessed.

                                               'Thou didst not spare Thine only Son ,

                                                But gav'st Him for a world undone,

                                                And freely with that blessed One

                                                Thou givest all.

                                                For souls redeemed, for sins forgiven,

                                                For means of grace and hopes of heaven,

                                               Father, what can to thee be given,

                                               Who givest all'.

                                                            Words C . Wordsworth.

The Cross ( Isaiah 53 ) 3

 Let us consider further the cross on which Christ died , what was He accomplishing?,there are certain words that show us, Here they are,(1) Propitiation, (2)Expiation,)These words have a deep meaning,now what does propitiation mean ?, it means appeasing the wrath of God,it is mentioned in three scriptures,'Romans 3 v25/ 1 John 2 v2 / 4 v10. unfortunately some translations  use expiation or atonement,could be they are influenced  by a certain scholar,who found it difficult as regards God manifesting wrath,yet there are plenty of examples recorded in His word of God manifesting His wrath.God the holy one was appeased by pouring out  His wrath on Jesus, as Isaiah 53 v 4 -5 puts it,' He was pierced through for our transgressions,He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well being fell upon Him,and by His scourging we are healed'.Those words clearly show our dear Saviour experiencing dreadful suffering, in keeping with what propitiation means, the words of  a hymn by D.W.Whittle explain it best.

                                                  'The wrath of God that was our due,

                                                   Upon the lamb was laid,

                                                   And by the shedding of His blood,

                                                   The debt for us was paid'

The Cross.( John 1 v 29 2

 We have been considering,' why the cross? ' let me point out, that when man sinned in the garden,God was not caught out, in Revelation  13 v 8, we read of,  'the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world', no the cross was not an afterthought, Barnes comments,'The meaning here is,not that He was actually put to death'' from the foundation of the world,'' but that the intention to give Him for a sacrifice was formed then, and that it was certain that it might be spoken of as actually then occurring. See  Romans 4 v17.'  Praise God He had a plan ,a perfect plan, that would not fail,all the sacrifices under the old covenant pointed to the sacrifice on the cross of Jesus,those sacrifices were inadequate Hebrew 10 v1 -18,but Christ perfect sacrifice was Gods perfect answer for humanities salvation ,and we will consider next time what that meant for Christ the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,and indeed what it meant for us.

                                           ' O Jesus, we adore Thee, Upon the cross our king!

                                    We bow our hearts before Thee, Thy gracious name we sing.

                                    That name hath brought salvation,That name in life our stay,

                                        Our peace, our consolation, when life shall fade away'

                                                            Words A.T.Russell.

                                            

The Cross. ( I Corinthians 1v 18 1

 The question is this what was involved on the death of Christ on the cross? , more, than many people realise, and more than many people are prepared to accept.The cross was and is the most significant event in human history,why? because all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God(Romans 3 v23). That sin alienates us,isolates us, from a holy God, there is nothing that humanity can do to change this,this leaves us in dire straits,every single human being. Left in this condition we have no hope whatsoever, we are without hope,and every moment we get near to eternity our situation does not improve,it gets worse. The grave is not the end,most people would be happy with that,but it is a delusion, the word of God tells us that there is an eternal existence after death. There is a heaven, where God dwells,there is also  prepared for the devil, and his angels ,an eternal fire (Matthew 25 v 41),and without the cross that is the fate of  every human being. That is why the cross is so significant ,ignore it,reject it,as indeed those in in Sodom did, when they were warned of the coming judgement,they thought it was a joke,( Genesis 19 v14 )but the joke was on them,sad to say.. We will continue this next time DV.