Ebenezer, ( 1 Samuel 7 v12 )

1n 1 Samuel 7 we read how Israel had turned away from God and began to follow false  god's,the Philistines were in the ascendancy.So the prophet Samuel urged them to forsake those so called gods ,and return to the Lord and He would help them defeat their enemies. So Israel did just that,they confessed their sins, they say that',confession is good for the soul'.It is not only good for the soul, it is vital if we are to have a relationship with God,and to receive his blessing.Now things began to happen,the Philistines who had previously defeated Israel ,were coming against them,and Israel was afraid.So they turned to the man of God Samuel to pray for them, and Samuel did two things ,he sacrificed an animal,and prayed for God to deliver Israel,and he did just that,and the Philistines were defeated.Then Samuel set up a stone and named it Ebenezer, meaning ''Thus far the Lord has helped us''. As we come to the end of this year, let us cast our minds back to all  our yesterdays,and consider how our great God has helped us in so many ways,He is not only the God of yesterday,He is also the  God of the present and the future,He will not fail us,for we are precious to Him and He loves us dearly.Dear old John Newton wrote the following.

                                                       'His love in time past

                                                       Forbids me to think

                                                       He'll leave me at last

                                                       In  trouble to sink;

                                                      Each sweet Ebenezer

                                                      I have in review

                                                      Confirms His good pleasure

                                                      To help me quite through.'

Why? ( John 10 17 - 18 )

 Napoleon is greatly admired, during his reign he warred against 5 countries  ,millions of soldiers died fighting these wars,possible millions of civilians died also. He never expressed any regrets at the lost of so many people. The Duke of Wellington said as he surveyed the carnage after the battle of Waterloo,''Next to a battle lost,the saddest thing is a battle won..'' From the slaying of Abel by Cain, humanity has been at war continually with each other, one writer said that the worlds history has been like a slaughter house.Why this intense desire to kill each other?,well their is a saying that declares as regards such violence,as being ,'the nature of the beast'. The word of God  declares that mankind has a sinful nature ,in Romans 3 v11-18 ,the writer declares different aspects as regarding that fallen nature, v 18 tells us that,'that our feet are swift to shed blood'. Life history bears this out, we read it every day in our newspapers,on TV, and it is seen as entertainment in movies.Here is something mind blowing for into this world of gratuitous violence ,a babe was born,his name was Jesus, the Son of God,no one forced Him to come, but He came,why?.

                                                           'Out of the ivory palaces,

                                                           Into a world of woe,

                                                            only His great eternal love

                                                            Made my Saviour go.'

                                                            Words  Henry Barraclough.

                                                            

Give me your heart ( Revelation 3 v20 )

In Proverbs 23 v 26 we read,' My son,give me your heart', spoken by a father ,warning his son as regards getting involved  with an immoral woman.Enid B.Mellor  points out what the father is asking,that his son would give him his full,undivided attention.There is most definitely that to it,we can get so easily distracted,the result is we don't listen,and of course there are times we don't want to listen, especially if we are young.Not realising that we would avoid a lot of dangers and hurts .if only we had listened,if only,I remember a man who used to preach in my church,we called him the pig farmer,telling us that he was convicted by those words,'give me your heart', the result was he became a Christian.There are so many things and voices tugging at our heart.Charles Bridges writes,'Many are the claimants for the heart,Heaven and hell contend for it. The world with its riches, honours, and pleasures; and science with  its more plausible charms- cries - Give me your heart'.Christ stands at the door of our hearts saying let me in,let me in,'give me your heart'. I made decisions as regards Jesus to come into my life when I was young,but unfortunately I give my heart to other things,but it wasn't until I grew older,in all my need,I give Christ my heart.

                                                                'We all have a choice'

Father you are faithful. (Hebrews 13 v5 )

 At one of the lowest points in Israel's history, when the nation had been devastated by the Babylonians, most of those who survived where taken into captivity( Psalm 137).Jeremiah  ministered for 40 years,it began under King Josiah, after his death the nation turned away from God.Jeremiah  in vain challenged the people as regards their sinful ways,pleading with them to repent and turn to God. Along with the challenge came a warning of coming judgement,and sadly, so it came to pass. So when it happened Jeremiah stood among the midst  of the ruins of Jerusalem,and declared ,'Because of the Lords great love  we are not consumed',there was still a remnant left,in 70 years they would return from exile,and the nation would recover.So Jeremiah tells us it was because of God's great love they where not  consumed,for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning, Great is your faithfulness. ( Lamentations 3 v 22-23)I  would like to highlight God's faithfulness,He is a faithful God, He says I will never leave you nor forsake you, Hubert Dapliyan wrote a song called,'Father you are faithful'. I will leave you with some of the words from that song.

                                           'Flowers wither,leaves drop,trees trample,roots spoil.

                                           Fountains dry, rivers thirst,but your love remains faithful.

                                           The sun sets,the moon rests,the day ends,the time flies,

                                           Seasons change,blue skies fade,but your love remains the same.'

                                                                 'Father you are faithful

                                                                  Father you are faithful

                                                                  Father you are faithful

                                                                   Father you are faithful'

                                              

The story is not over yet.( 2 Thessalonians 1 v 5 - 10 )

 So Christmas day has passed it is now just a memory, and while that is true, the reality of  what we were celebrating goes on , The toddler would grow and develop into a man and would face the grim reality of an awful death on a cross,and bear the terrible punishment for our sins,so that all who trust  in Him would not be punished. That was the reality He would face,everyday he lived  was a step nearer that event,He knew what He was  going to experience, nothing would take Him by surprise,He knew the reason  why He had come. Most of Israel did not see it that way, although they had the scriptures that clearly showed that the Messiah would die ,read Psalm 22 / Isaiah 52v 11- 15 and chap 53,it is as plain as knows on ones face. But the story is not over this may have been the worlds last Christmas,for Christ is coming again,the OT mentions continually the ,'Day of the Lord', Joel 2 v28 -32, David Prior sees in this' a world heading for an apocalyptic day of reckoning'.Isaiah 65 v 17 speaks of a new heaven and a new earth,which Peter writes of  in 2 Peter 3 v 13,and John writes of in Revelation 21 v 1.Of course Jesus spoke clearly of His coming back again,likewise the apostles,yes the reality of His second coming will happen,the story is not finished yet, it will happen, as a Christian let us  live in light of  that great coming event,if  you are a not a Christian trust Jesus to be be your Saviour before it is to late.

The greatest gift. ( 2 Corinthians 9 v 15)

Abraham Lincoln said,' I can see how it might possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist,but I cannot conceive how a man can look up into heaven and say there is no God'.Unfortunately there are none so blind who do not want to see,creation is God's voice, but the voice of God is drowned out. Humanity has eyes but they do not see,they have ears but they do not hear,writing of his unsaved state John Newton wrote ,'I once was blind'.There are two aspects of revelation,one is general and the other special . ' General revelation ,'is God's clear display of His glory in creation . and it is the  apostle Paul who points that because of this the unsaved are without excuse,'(Romans 1 v 20,)The second  is Special revelation it points to the Spirit of God moving in the hearts of mankind,and opening our understanding,as to whom Jesus is, a Saviour ,suddenly the scales drop from our eyes,and we who were once blind, can now see. It is a miracle of grace,amazing grace,salvation is of the Lord, without the Lord's gracious intervention none of us would be saved.Consider what the apostle Paul  wrote,'We were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of His great love for us,God,who is rich in mercy.made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. Then he adds,'it is by grace you have been saved and this is not from yourselves,it is the gift of God.'  (Ephesians 2 v 3 - 8) When you remember all the gifts you have ever received,lovely and precious though they were, they pale into insignificance to Gods gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ His dear Son. (John 3 v16)

                                             'Stop for a moment and consider Calvary '

 

 

Be a star. ( Acts 1 v 8)

 There is a lady I know,whose name means ,'star',and it reminded me of the star of Bethlehem,that guided the wise men to Jesus.I wonder what  you would think if  I said , that we Christians should all be stars ,leading people to Christ. You may reply I'm not qualified to lead people to Christ ,better to leave it to the professionals, who knows what they are doing. Yes I know that we are not all gifted in the same way,that's the way it should be .Every Christian has the Holy Spirit ,that means He will help us in our weakness , and we have a wonderful promise,( Psalm 32 v8)  'I  will instruct you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you'. In the  last verse in Matthews gospel we have these assuring words spoken by our Saviour, ''I am with you always'.Then we have the precious word of God, that word we are told is alive and active. Sharper than any two edge sword,it penetrates even to dividing  soul and spirit,joints and marrow,it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4 v 12) Then last but not least we have prayer, when we pray we are acknowledging our dependence on God. Many people in the entertainment industry wants to be stars,well we are dealing with something more important than entertainment,far more important.So the question is, do we want to be a star,and lead people to Jesus?

                                                            'Go on, be a Star'