Leaven!

(Galatians 5:9) “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.”  

A little leaven affects the entire lump and it always brings about its objective when used correctly, it works as a raising agent. Similarly allowance of the smallest sins in our lives will have the same result. When we lighten the load to our sin with these types of thoughts, “it isn’t so bad” or “it could have been worst”. We certainly do not help our cause or the plight of others, and we play into the hands of the enemy with the same result every time, getting up from the dirt and dusting off our knees. Sadly its takes these kinds of knockdowns to teach us what needs to be learnt, “a little leaven leavens the lump”, it will more often than not leave us down and in the muck having to seek out God’s forgiveness. The truth of the matter is this; sin is sin no matter how you slice it and when we allow a fraction of it to remain alive in our lives, if we consent to it in any form, know this… “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” (Galatians 5:9)

Whether we are looking to find an excuse for our sin or if we err on the opposite side of lasciviousness and apply self-righteousness to our existence in order to prove our worth by applying the first covenant into our lives at the expense of the second. Pride rears its head and is resisted by God; we must never forget this, He seeks out the humble and He will only ever exalt the meek. It will never be about outdoing the person next to us with an arrogance that leaves us thinking we are better than the rest. In both instances, “a little leavens the whole lump”.

     

Lust (the natural offspring of a carnal and corrupt mind) of any form will have this result in our lives and we must be aware of its destructive power, I most certainly do not claim to have arrived but because of it destructiveness it has been brought to my attention and it needs to be rooted out before it brings forth death. Did you know? “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.” (James 1:14-16)

So from the smallest to the biggest allowances of sin in our lives let us not be fooled into believing that God will turn a blind eye to it, He detests sin so much that He sent his Son to die for it so that individuals would find deliverance in Him.

However as dismal as this reality may be; “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24) - There is an upside to it all. “Jesus in my place”, praise His beloved name now and forevermore, Amen and Amen! “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.” (Roman 7:25)

It’s not the power of the law or my application to it that saves me, but rather what Christ achieved for me on Calvary. Mankind was sold into slavery way back when, and sadly we are all benefactors of Adams rebellion. We were never taught to sin per say but rather born with a natural tenacity to sin. There is an obvious innocence to young children, but only for a time and then the slide becomes evident as they grow. As Christians we need to trim our sail on a regular basis, and the correct way to do that is to come under the sound of the Word, the Bible! We need faith to survive and we add to our faith in this manner; “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17)  

Now that I have been saved, born again, having eyes to see God’s kingdom, I still have a carnal mind that needs transformation. The war rages on between my flesh and the Spirit, and so it is for all who have been saved. Do not be deceived “a little leaven affects the whole lump”. 

  

Yesterday is gone. It has passed and nothing we do will bring it back. Today comes with new beginnings and our gracious glorious heavenly Father affords us such forgiving mercy that He allows us new beginning every day. Today is the day of salvation; let us therefore make the most of it. We all have an opportunity to right our wrongs in Christ’s forgiveness and find His grace to overcome.

“… But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13)

We have been called to live one day at a time, it’s only the world with all its propaganda that teachers us something entirely different, it instils that we must plan for our future, I will not look to over stir that pot but I will leave you with this thought; "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34)

Whatever your troubles are we must remember to pray through it. I have said a lot, so here is my summary; Sin is sin and must never be tolerated as adequate. We must seek out God’s forgiveness on a regular basis for our sin, and then we must seek out God’s grace to eventually overcome. Our victories in Christ do not justify us before God as the sacrifice of an animal in the First Covenant was meant to achieve, In fact the “First Covenant” (the law of Moses) was there to teach us about our sinful natures and that we needed a Saviour in order to find rescue. God has accepted His Son’s sacrifice and not ours. We are justified because of Him and this must never be overlooked. When we look to pat ourselves on our backs, this amplifies our pride, it becomes about us and not HIM! “A little leaven leavens the entire lump”; we must grasp this with both hands if we are to grow in the good graces of our God and King.

Signing off

Tyrone

Saving Faith!

What is faith? - Belief in, devotion to, or trust in somebody or something, especially without logical proof. Or it could be a strongly held set of beliefs or principles. However even though there are other variations of what faith actually entails for many, the obvious conclusion for all factions that claim to have faith believes in the unseen without a necessity for logical proof to assist in their findings.

Faith stretches across many spectrums, for some radicals they are even willing to blow themselves up, a human-bomb in the name of their cause. There has to be strong motivation to get an individual to carryout such an act. Faith is pivotal for these types of actions. But this is not the faith I want, I want to be involved with saving faith and not a faith that hinges on hate. Christianity centres on the opposite, which is forgiveness and when I seek it out and find it, it will leave me changed forever; it will bring about radical transformation and be driven out of acts of love. I may even have to lose my life because of it and that I would welcome if such a time arrived, just so long as the name of Jesus Christ my Messiah is fundamental through it all. His ultimate sacrifice brings about such faith in the lives of those who have been called. Why a man like Peter would be prepared to be crucified upside down leaves me with an obvious conclusion, he had an encounter with the only true and living God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He envisioned eternity, he caught a glimpse of the bigger picture and what God has in store for those whom He loves. 

What we all need is saving faith! Which results with us being assured that we are on the right track, it eliminates all guess work and its conviction brings understanding. This faith opens our eyes to see God in another dimension as if we were looking squarely at Him. The writer of Hebrews sums it up like this; “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) – It is nothing short of miraculous!

Let’s endeavour to unpack how it works and what we as individuals are call to do to find it; we will use the woman with the “issue of blood” (Luke 8:43) to get a clearer understanding. She did everything in her own power and spent her life saving trying to remedy her dilemma, but to no avail. However, somehow she had heard of the man Jesus maybe as she traversed the market place while shopping for her daily supplies, or she could have attended one of His rallies and finally it may just have been the testimony of the lives of those closest to her whose lives Christ had changed, God knows! One thing I am persuaded about was she believed with all her heart that He had the answer; she understood that the Lord Jesus Christ could heal her. All she needed to do was reach out and touch Him or just get close enough to touch the hem of his garment. She was motivated and nothing was going to stop her from, her intent was deliberate as her life depended upon it, how about you? Is there a need in your life to find the answer of your existence, have you asked yourself what the purpose of life is all about and where you fit in with eternity in mind? Are you as persuaded as she was to walk a life filled with faith, outside the control of our own capabilities? Or have you got everything under control? The majority of the earths’ population is always looking to take care of tomorrow at the expense of today. She didn’t care about tomorrow or next week all she purposed was to push through the masses to get to Jesus and somehow, hidden in the crowd she eventually achieved her objective and she touched the helm of his garment and was immediately healed. Wow! A miracle driven by faith!

As a photojournalist I too know what it is like to be swamped by a crowd, it can be rather daunting, and the only thing your mind keeps telling you to do is stay on your feet because if you fall you will never get up again. The most vivid memory I have of that was with Nelson Mandela in Smal Street in Johannesburg with thousands of people following him as he walk through the city, everyone trying to get closer to get a better look, it was maniac and the pressure from all sides was intense and I could feel an awareness of my adrenaline heighten as I recognized I needed to be on guard against any sudden mishap that would leave me at the mercy of the pressing crowd.

This woman must have given very little though to that, all she knew was that she needed to touch the helm of his garment, she achieved her goal and was miraculously heal right there and on the spot. “She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased.” (Luke 8:44) – Saving faith has an immediate upshot on those affected by it. Its not as if she was only partially heal, it was a complete restoration.  

Our lives are filled with goals, which vary between short and long term objectives. If your life does not revolved around reaching out and touching Jesus on a daily basis you have missed the purpose of life. The saved see Him as He is, their merciful Redeemer, whilst others cling to an idea of faith in God and remain blind to Him. Their lives are filled with attempts to score points with God and all because of their own merits, hoping that their good deeds will outweigh the bad. Unless we can all arrive at the same conclusion and forget all the other voices out there and push through the crowds to touch Jesus, we will not understand the concept of saving faith. We must be measured in our determination to find Him and seek out His forgiveness for our sins.

Although it is God who gives us faith, look at the Lords response; “But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me." And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace."” (Luke 8:46-48)

Do you see the connection? It’s our faith in the unseen God that heals us, and once we have this type of faith all is understood. - “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) – If you have been called, if you have experience saving faith, if your eyes have been opened to God and His existence and His involvement with all of creation then it is up to us to use the gifts He has given us by getting involved in helping others. Just as Christ laid down His life for the called, so too must we lay down our lives for others.

Signing off

Tyrone

The Holy Bible

Questions need answers, and there are many resources we can draw on to find answers and “Google Search” seems to be the flavour of the day; as brilliant as that may be remember the volatility of such a “search engine”. It has not been endorsed by God and the only thing we can truly rely on is His endorsement when it comes to our wellbeing and until we understand this with clarity we will be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. There will be areas of uncertainty in our lives. So what are we to do to overcome these types of predicaments? We must find God’s perspective on any given topic. How do we do that? We search out the scriptures…

If God has endorsed the written Word, the Bible, we can take full confidence in the fact that if we treasure it, it will be well with our souls. I cannot begin to stress this point enough, we are easily drawn aside by so many luring enticements with the overtones of the population’s opinions looking to take root in our minds and the only way to stay on track is to value the Word of God as our highest priority. How many of us can truly say that we have learnt this lesson well? We needn’t travel far to see where the world is going, it is moving in the opposite direction to what God wants from us.      

It is imperative I find scribes who have been privileged enough to pen thoughts on any topics that I face which needs to be answered. Many of our struggles will play a role in our futures. Some of those neglected areas will have devastating consequences that will haunt some for eternity. There are many voices out there but whatever the pressing issue may be, there is a principle that’s stands true, the greatest resource is the HOLY BIBLE. Trust it as your life does depend on it; God’s Word will stand the test of all scrutiny, if and when applied correctly. It has and will continue to set people up for onslaught from the enemy, but be that as it may, do we seek to please men or God? It’s only when we misappropriate the author’s intention and look for stuff that isn’t there that we end up on the wrong side of God instruction. And who hasn’t found themselves changing their opinions on a certain instruction as we have grown in Christ? It may be time to get back to basics for some of us.  

God often singled out ordinary men, authors that never had degrees or diplomas with intellectual awe-inspiring brilliance that earned them the right to be appointed by God as one of His scribes. Regardless of the topic, every author schooled or not, always has an intention in conveying a particular point or points within their message and its imperative that we get to understand what that is if we are to get the most out of the text. My encouragement would be not to overthink a simple instruction and here is a good example to illustrate my point; “Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."” (John 3:3) – Most of the world’s population is born with sight, we see God’s creation all around us, we witness His brilliance and yet we remain blind to Him until we are “born again”. Simply put, our spiritual eyes need to be opened. Until that happens we may think we see the kingdom of God through various rituals but in fact we are still blind. Nicodemus the scribe asked this question; “Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"” (John 3:4) – Its only when God gave him sight that he stopped asking theses types of questions.      

Once we are give sight to see we are thankfully not left to our own devises, or brainpower when we seek out certain truths from the Bible, the Holy Spirit will aid us in this area of our lives. This is where many schooled theologians with doctorates in my opinion, err at times, relying on their education as the pivotal objective to unpack certain truths. Schooled professors may read the same text that I read and come up with a totally different persuasion. Why? Could they be overthinking it or could I be under thinking it. My heart lies with all of the called and not only the brilliant. God is excellent and we conform to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ only when we value Him and His written Word. We must leave behind all opinionated persuasion that looks to tickle our ears.

Needless to say this does not give us a pass to become sloppy with the Word of God. What I mean by that is we must use the gifting God has given us diligently when it comes to unpacking scripture, we must be true to the text. Some may take this to extremes, they are scholars and good for them but the Authors intent (God) with His Bible was for all the called to find illumination from it and it was never only intended for the intellectual.

There was a time when organisations tried their utmost to keep the written Word from the commoner. They failed and God intervened, praise His name! Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures on how many Bibles have been printed, there is little doubt that the Bible is the world’s best-selling and most widely distributed book. God chose simple fishermen to pen some of the New Testament. Peter, James and John all have their parts to play in our lives when it comes to our sanctification.       

The Bible is a book for all and we must value it with all we have. It is the tool that will give every individual the insight to see them home, so long as God has given them sight to see. We must be born of the Spirit to benefit from it. And if this is true for you, I would encourage you to place nothing higher in your life than the written Word of God.

Signing off

Tyrone

Faith and Christian fundamentals

(Hebrews 11:6)  “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

The “resurrection of the dead” is not a term many are aware of outside of the Christian circle. Regardless of the opinions of many, the truth stands and many will experience resurrection.

Statements of the “Christians faith” differs from an individuals persuasion and then from organizations to local assemblies and when explored the dissimilarities will become obviously evident. We only need a few minutes of conversation to understand where others stand regarding their persuasions.

Although some differences can be settled on the “I beg to differ” scenario, there are some truths that are unequivocally correct and pivotal in order to align ourselves with God’s requirements for salvation. If there are those who resist these truths they irrevocably prove that they are the enemies of the cross. Those are the easy predators to pick out; like a lion that is not afraid to show-off his presence as he lazes under a shrub or tree, seeking out any shade he may find to escape the harsh African sun throughout any given day. If seen by the passes-by he remains undeterred, he does not hide, he believes that he is the king of the jungle and gloats as if there is no tomorrow. Its only when it is time to hunt that skulduggery is used as his main weapon. Whereas the leopard is far craftier and hardly ever seen and yet even more deadly, a supreme hunter that uses camouflage to trap its prey and there is disputably no greater hunter in Africa. Individuals who slip into congregations, they dress and speak the same as true believers but are in fact far from it, undercover agents that have their own agendas. Judas Iscariot was such a man. There are many other allegories we could draw from, but enough has been said.

What then are the fundamental truths that every Christian must say Amen too?

A young woman by the name of Mary who was in fact a virgin was impregnated by the Spirit of God; why was this important to God? In fact this was crucial for the second covenant to be legitimate and to start out correctly. Jesus was born without the blanket of a sinful nature tainting him, a contrast to every other baby ever born. He alone was afforded this privilege. And then from there on in for him to achieve his objective he had to live a life of sinless perfection, which he did accomplish. Whereas, every other individual to grace the planet, has breached the law of God and been tainted by their sin. Here is scripture which affirms this truth. “What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:9-10) - And yet a righteous individual needed to pay the price for mankind’s sins against God. Similarly in “type” to a spotless lamb required in the Old Testament times to pay for the peoples sins. The first covenant required the death of and animal, the second and better covenant the death of the man Jesus, never to be repeated, it was a sacrifice that God required and it only ever had to happen once. Historically this took place about two thousand years ago. Both these sacrifices were required by God to forgive people for their acts of treason against Him. The first covenant was an ongoing sacrifice whilst the second was the perfect sacrifice never to be repeated. Sin is Satan’s weapon, forgiveness in the Lord Jesus Christ is God’s grace exemplified. – “He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.” (Hebrews 7:27)   The one is driven by malice, guile and hate (Satan’s weapon), whilst the other encapsulated in love (the Lord Jesus’ sacrifice). “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son…” - Two very opposite extremes.

Another point to highlight is God’s intervention for mankind and not peoples attempts to earn their positions in finding acceptance from God. Today “dead works” is high up on people’s agendas in finding favour from God, which will never be accepted by Him. Faith is something needed in order to believe. It is God who opens our eyes to His intervention in our lives, without Him we will remain in darkness. Imagine being in Mary’s shoes telling those around her that she had never been with a man and yet she was pregnant. Those who didn’t receive the faith to believe could never have confidence in her claims, and in like manner so is it with all of mankind today, without God giving us sight to see, we will remain blind to His truth, for now! There is a day coming when the universe will see God for who He is.  

Christ needed to live a life of sinless perfection and then die a cruel death by hanging on a Romans cross, he was buried and then after three days rose from the dead. Almighty God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob affirming His work here on earth by raising Him from the dead. Praise the name of Jesus now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

The obvious truths that every Christian needs to agree upon is; the virgin birth, Jesus’ life as a boy/man never ever breaching one of Gods laws stipulated within the Law of Moses (the first covenant), his death, burial and then his resurrection to life. Many believe this to be true whilst others do not, time will reveal all and will become privy to this truth, that the life to come, our spiritual existence will either bring life and complete bliss in utopia, surrounded by God’s blessings, or damnation filled with torment that will stretch into the spans of eternity.

Without faith it is impossible to please God… 

Signing off

Tyrone

The will of God

It’s not about us Father God but about you, you are the creator and you have gone to great efforts to inform mankind of this truth. We have the written Word, the Holy Bible; we have the Word which dwelt amongst us, the Lord Jesus Christ. We have creation and all that entails… you have given us sight to appreciate your majestic works and yet so many worship the creature (creation) at the expense of acknowledging you as the only true originator.

We are not ignorant of the works of the devil, the one who opposes your will, but sadly we are so often sway by his influences, because of our weakness in this regard we seek out your forgiveness. If we were left to our own devises we would be far from you, we would be no different to the men in the days of Noah, with constant evilness plaguing our minds. Thankfully our thoughts are no longer constantly evil; although we surrender to evil thoughts the Spirit within us drives us towards you. Thank you Jesus for you selfless love.  

Life for the Christian is all about working out your good, acceptable and perfect will for our lives; “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1)  

This in itself is not something that is a quick fix, but rather a lifetime of trial and error. Without your fortitude we would all be lost, so I thank you for your endurance and tenderness with us, praise the name of Jesus now and forever more, Amen! Without His commitment we would all be absent and doomed to an eternity without your intervention in our lives.

We have been subpoenaed to worship. Everything we do should always be about exalting the beloved name of your only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is what we have all been called to work out. Help us to be diligent in this area of our lives I pray. Whether at work or play, Jesus must take pre-eminence in our indulged worlds; this I know is pleasing to you. He is the apple of your eye and because we are covered with His righteousness we find ourselves looked upon in the same expanse. Help us learn this lesson well I pray. It starts and ends with Him and not our own selfish agendas. This is an unrelenting war that we face each and every day. Holy Spirit teaches us this message well. Help the theory become actions in our lives. It is one things to understand a truth but quite another to apply it as part of our daily routine. We need your assistance, please hear my plea, thank you for hearing it and for your intervention in the Christians life.

Now that we have God on our side we have all been summoned to make daily decisions. We have been called to worship, which means a complete devotion to our God, a total surrender to his will. However with the call of life and the pressures that squeeze down on us, in particular, the gathering our daily bread, which we all are involved with, we must never let these two fundamental truths slip our minds; "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) – The obvious conclusion is a simple one, am I driven by worldly goals or am I storing up heavenly treasures? Don’t over analyse, keep it simple, the answer is staring us in the face all we need to do is be honest with ourselves.

I can almost see the Lord Jesus the man in Matthew chapter 6 standing before the masses unpacking his heart unlocking so many differing treasures, warnings, comfort and instruction; just some of the gems seeping from his heart engulfed with an abundance of concerned love and then rolling off his tongue pricking the hearts of so many; as he exposed the hypocrites and comforted the lowly; a direct message for those standing before him but no differently for us reading his Word.

How often do we pay serious attention to the words of those who can give us something? Some insights to make our life here on earth a little more comfortable; sadly for so many of us these lines have been severely smudged and we often tend to find ourselves erring on the side of storing up worldly treasures at the expense of eternity. Time will reveal all. However the beauty of God’s forgiveness allows all of His children to call out in repentance for our sin, whatever it may be. Once this has taken place we are called to forget yesterday, realign our rudder and trim our sails. We are to focus on today and not tomorrow; "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34)

Signing off

Tyrone

Christ in you...

(Colossians 1:27)  “Which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

This is a phenomenal statement and it is packed with unquenchable power. The trapping of this world and the pressures placed upon individuals to be better than the rest is a tangible driving force. Awards are presented to the top students or employees with the hope of driving others to be better in the differing fields of ones existence. Nevertheless when stripped down there is always someone with an ulterior motive behind it all. Satan drives us towards disobedience, to belittle God before those whom he is trying to impress, the fallen angels, with the fruit of rampant sin throughout the world proving that he exists. Creation on the other hand proves that God exists, two very opposite extremes and yet both are real as the other. Tangible proof that many have chosen to ignore! “Do-gooders” who deny their sin and animal lovers that denounce the creator.  

As true as these facts are, the Christian has been separated from the world and called out from among those who are driven by world domination. However without God’s intervention in our lives we would be no different. This is a truth that must never be missed. We are a people that fly a different flag, but how often do we forget the call of duty and disregard our responsibilities? The astute patriot will make a noise and let others identify where he stands. In like manner it’s up to the Christian to do the same, but thankfully we are not left to their own motivation. It’s the Spirit of God that prompts us into action. How often has a sudden urge befallen you to fall to your knees and thank God for His involvement in your life? Last night was such a night for me.

It is easy to be flounced away with the raging tides of the topical waves of our time. For now cryptocurrency is a pressing issue that demands my attention; a new opportunity to make hay whilst the sun shines. It is easy to be “lost in translation” and without God intervention in the believer’s life we would never be able to stand. For others it may be some other unrelenting nagging voice that drives you to be better than the rest. God is the One who reminds us of His existence in our lives, thank God for that! He trims our sails and guides us towards His truth. It’s the Spirit of God in us that reminds us of His intercession in our lives, this must never be missed and the only reason it isn’t is because of His enduring mercies. Thank you Father God for Jesus and His obedience to the call you placed upon His life. CHRIST IN US THE HOPE OF GLORY.

The Christian has a hope which is Christ in us; it’s His Spirit which is not driven by the will of men but rather by the will of God. Let us never forget this reality in our lives, blessed be the name of Jesus now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone        

An Invisible God

(Luke 18:42)  “And Jesus said to him, "Recover your sight; your faith has made you well."”

To live on God’s Word who is invisible requires faith and heaps of it. It’s only a fool or a madman that would expect a result which was totally contrary to the laws governing a certain outcome. Who walks into a supermarket, fills a trolley and then proceeds to the till without a cent in their pockets to pay for the purchase? Faith requires this kind of reasoning from us, the Christian believes words penned into a book and then acts on them. “Faith the substance of things hoped for” – Because I believe God at His Word I end up living by faith, remove that persuasion and I will never be capable of manufacturing true faith. God said it so I believe it! We must never mistake misguided faith or superstition beliefs under the same heading. Sports Commentators often say “I don’t want to put the “mockers” on him”. What they imply by that is that they have the ability to influence the outcome of a certain situation just by what they say. They may say “he is tearing it up out there and batting beautifully” and then the very next ball the very same batsman is caught on the boundary and dismissed. They then claim that they had an influence on his outcome, really! They say “I didn’t mean to put the “mockers” on him”. This type of mentality is endemic amongst so many of us; we believe we have the power to influence so many differing outcomes, when in fact it has already been predetermined by God. Although this isn’t faith per say, it’s a form of the power some believe in beyond the hidden. What we must do is learn to walk by faith, trusting in His ability to protect us from harm and to pave the way and not the other way around. Faith in the voice of God is what must drive the Christian and nothing else.   

At times it would be easy to claim something as a given as we mouth off certain truths that we unpack in scripture, but quite another facet altogether to prove it by our example. To follow the Apostle Paul’s model, to imitate him in so much as he imitated Christ. The hearer is never vindicated but the doer shall be justified.

Faith will and must be tested, so that we may prove to ourselves what substance the faith we claim is made of. “The just shall live by faith”! There must be evidence to faith, or our claims are unfounded, an appearance of godliness with no power attached to it. God help us to understand the severity of it all. Grace is needed to apply faith into our lives, and grace is freely available. We have been instructed to come BOLDLY to the throne room of grace and seek out as much as is needed for each and every trying event in our lives. Praise God, there is more than enough grace to go around. This room cannot be seen, nor is it tangible and yet it is right before my eyes I can touch it, I have been strengthened from its source of supply more times than I can number. And yet sadly I have passed it by on occasion when I needed it most, my faith was now replaced by unbelief. But praise belongs to Jesus, Christ in us once again drives the Christian in faith as He picks us up from the dirt and we dust off our knees.

When the Lord Jesus patrolled the earth as a man, how often did he say “your faith”…? You see, faith is needed prior to victory and it will never be the other way around. If it was then I would be driven by sight, results in what I see prior to believing. Thomas believed God because he saw Jesus resurrected. There could be no uncertainty and there was no doubt in his mind. He had the proof and it equipped him for what was to come in his life and who knows the depths of what he actually had to endure, God knows! Today's Christian does not have the resurrected Jesus standing before us and audibly giving us instructions, but we certainly have the written Word of God to instruct our actions. FAITH MUST BE WORD BASED. The Bible and the Spirit of God (the Holy Spirit) drives our faith.

Faith in God’s Word is needed in order for us to believe and live in such a way that it turns the heads of those looking on, why do I fluctuate in my ability to walk by faith? The lure of my surrounding become bigger than my faith at any given time and I begin to suffocate from the burden set before me. Praise God that when I become aware of this, its a warning for me to take note and to cry out unto my God and Father in the magnificent name of Jesus Christ my Lord and Saviour and I am soon reminded to pick up the shield of faith, which will extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.

Yes we serve an invisible God for now, faith demands this from us, but soon, very soon, we will see our God in person and what a day that shall be! Until then, may we continue to provoke one another to good works in the spirit of love with an even greater urgency as we see that day approaching and let us never forget to come together as Christians spurring each other on to the finish line in faith.

Signing off

Tyrone

Now

I am truly blessed to serve a God that works in the “NOW”!

There are many facets to my statement, so let me explain. Firstly my amazing heavenly Father, the only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, The One who sent His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ to die in the place of sinners, the One who was without sin, the very same individual who was sentenced to die a cruel Roman death upon the hill of Golgotha, paying the price for my sin and the many other individuals whom God has and will still continue to bring into His glorious light; men and women who have been rescued from the wrath of God. Those who have their names is written in the Book of Life, and we should all know what that includes; freedom from the Lake of Fire! “And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15) 

What have you done to deserve that privilege? I trust you have all landed in the same place I have when it comes to our understanding on the matter, THE MERCY OF GOD and nothing else!

Having spent time paging through the scriptures, the Holy Spirit has shown me many great truths that have sent my mind into orbit. “Jesus in my place” is most probably the greatest truth of all. However it would be difficult for me to measure the beauty of it all, but to say, God is truly WONDERFUL! God is slow to anger and quick to forgive the repentant sinner. It continues to amaze me as this truth finds its grounding in my life; although the wrath of God should never be overlooked as a light thing. God is privy to so much we are unaware of and yet He still chooses to save so many of us.

As Moe (my son) and me have been paging through the Bible in our daily readings I have a deeper understanding on what I now share; God works in the “now” in spite of what he is able to see in the future. Whether He flips that switch at will or not, I cannot with any certainty say, God knows! But what I will assert is that God has the ability to truly forgive and offer His love today even if tomorrow is filled with betrayal. No one else would behaviour with such splendour, not that I am implying that betrayal will go unpunished. The enemies of God will land up on the wrong side of His Wrath and yet there seems to be so much grace offered whilst we all work it out for ourselves. Mankind does not have this attribute in their arsenal. Children may understand this attribute better as they forgive with greater ease. Imagine we could see into the future witnessing the murder of a loved one and the person responsible. Would we treat them the same or would our judgements be influence by knowledge? I know I would be swayed by that insight. Our understanding of “The Knowledge of Good and Evil” has a perverted slant on it because our minds have been tainted by sin. God sees into the lives of his children but has the capacity to somehow block that from His mind and be merciful to us in the “now’, Wow! Just consider our journeys as Christians and it will soon become very apparent that what I say holds true. How often have his Children disappointed Him over time by the silly things we have done. I have failed far too often but forever grateful that my line of communication remains open and it reaches the portals of heaven and that it has the ear of God, and only because of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on my behalf, praise His name! Even the model Christian cannot claim a perfect life of total obedience. When we look back over our lives there will be times of regret; a time of disappointment, a period where we have failed our God. Even David would concede to this truth and yet God determined him a man after His own heart. This is all I have ever wanted to hear from my heavenly Father but how often does my selfishness get in the way of it all, forgive me Lord!

Remember David’s sin with Bathsheba and how he had one of his faithful soldiers (Uriah) killed in battle as he tried to cover it up. Out of that union God chose to use Solomon to build His temple, even through He knew that Solomon would also fail later on in life when it came to the persistent nagging of his unbelieving wives and to ease his burden, he folded to some of their sinful requests. Or what of the time when God destroyed the earth with a flood, did Noah not find grace? Through the throws of His anger there is something that compels our God to be merciful and save. This is the God I serve, He is my Father and I proclaim it with pride in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ my beloved Saviour.

Although there is a looming judgment on its way, which will eventually runs its course. However in the mist of it all, interwoven, not part of but during it all reference to the “Book of Life” and all those found written in it will ring loud and clear to those being exasperated.

“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:11-15)  

No matter how you have failed or whatever your disappointments may be, call upon the name of the Lord and you will find rescue. But call you must, do not delay! Our God and Father is filled to the brim with love for His children, bless His name now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Splish-splash

When I turn on the radio all I hear is crackle, a squelch of garbage as it pollutes and populates the listener’s brain. Climbing into my car I turn the key and then I scan through the various channels waiting for something to catch my attention and only then will I lock in the receiver station. Over time my desired needs have certainly shifted in regards to what I will and won’t listen to. I no longer am draw to the music channels that once drove me as I am now far more interested with the intentions and drives of those around me. Talk radio is where I normally land. God created us with a desire to communicate. In the beginning, whenever that was in relation to our understanding of the calendar, on the “sixth day”, approximately roundabout six thousand years ago God created man with a coherent desire to interact; this was such an obvious consideration that God acted on His observation; “The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him.” (Genesis 2:20)  

The Bibles genealogy gives us an understanding of mankind’s history. However there are those that insist that we (mankind) were around much longer than that. Whose voice will you believe? This is the root of where we will all land in eternity. Depending on what source we look to draw from, either way, it will drive us towards a certain end. Regardless of the opinionated voices out there, myself included, God will have the final say and you better believe it! Regardless of peoples assumption pertaining to God’s eternal plan, those persuasion will never influence the final outcome, heaven or the Lake of Fire! So very little thought is given for the will of God and His purpose that it’s beginning to sicken me deep within the recesses of my soul with a nauseating thought of the blind leading the blind and both then falling into the ditch.

In the “beginning”, God instituted His brilliance through creation with an accompanying command; “go forth and multiply” under the banner of marriage. However not only is marriage becoming a thing of the past but the way in which God’s command has been negated as the world now allows same sex marriages and the like; men with men and woman with woman, with Hollywood shaping our minds and perceptions on the matter as normality. I see the similarities of Sodom and Gomorrah now becoming a way of life for so many. And we all know what happened to that city and its inhabitants, the wrath of God found them out! Although I have highlighted a particular topic and only because it is current, there are others exclusion that are ignore across the board when it comes to the will of God. It is obvious that mankind professing to be wise have in fact shown themselves as fools. It would also be foolish of me to exalt myself above others when in fact I too have made countless mistakes throughout my lifetime; however the key to our blunders and how to handle them is confession and seeking out God’s forgiveness for our folly and not to turn a blind eye to the error of our ways. Repentance is to turn from sin and towards a merciful Father. God is merciful, “for all those who cry out unto the Lord will be saved”, but there will come a day when that door will be shut and then all havoc will unfold, as God’s wrath and His judgement is poured out upon all of His enemies; history has given us an indication of God's wrath, just look at what happened to the Egyptians, those who opposed God and Moses. The final outcome will eventually result in the earth destruction. Another typical clue that should be easy for the Christian to understand, the world trying to save the planet to the exclusion of God purposes in their lives; serving the creature (planet and all that God has created) but denying its creator.        

There is a lot of negativity I have honed in on, or so it may seem for some, but only for those who do not treasure the Bible, however every thought which I have penned is true in accordance with the written Word. The only decision you have to make is whose voice will you obey; God the creator of the universe or those who oppose Him, the created. We will all make our decisions; I have made mine and through this blog have recorded what I believe and where I stand. We all make judgments through our lifetimes on every facet in our lives. Some good while others are appalling and yet if we turn to the Lord Jesus Christ it will end well for us. From kinder garden to a retirement home we will be drawn into factions that complement our particular persuasions. Birds of a feather flock together and yet at times we often see differing species habituating the same area. Heaven will only be habituated with believers in Christ! The unbeliever will spend perpetuity in a smouldering blaze of torment for eternity.

Everyone has their own agenda’s and only those whom we find with like minds will be drawn to us. Cliques and splits throughout society is a very common scenario. Nevertheless I am still drawn to so much of the opinionated trifle that is aired over the radio and I find myself eating with both hands. This is where politics draws its strength from, parties find like minded people with promise of change attached to their voices and this draws in their supporters, like a fish to a baited hook. Sadly many parties are more talk than action and this leaves their supporters with complaints and hence the talk radio stations are kept alive.

And then I read and spend time in the written Word of God, the Bible and I am settled and reminded of the hope I have in Christ, praise His name now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Under threat

(Matthew 7:15)  "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

Livestock is often under threat from predators and so it’s up to the gatekeeper or their enclosure to keep them safe. But the hunter has their own objective and this is to hunt and destroy. Not all predator kill to survive, they eradicate because it’s who they are.  

As some of you may already know that I used to breed chickens as I was doing whatever I could to put food on the table, selling off the eggs. I build pens that allow the chickens to free range. About a month into my venture I started loosing chickens to a predator, at first I thought it was domestic cats causing the damage, I was wrong and later found out that it was a predator know mas a Genet; a species on the extinction list. Firstly why would such a beautiful wild animal be close to extension? The answer is an obvious one; farmers of old would make it their business to exterminate them as they viewed them as vermin. The reason for this was the destruction a single Genet would cause was unprecedented. In a single night I could lose up to twelve hens. I would not have minded if I lost a chicken or two in a fortnight. But because they just killed for the sake of it, without eating the chickens, this then became a serious problem. Jackals cause a similar problem, when speaking to a farmer friend of mine, he informed me that when a jackal got into a sheep’s pen it would kill a number lambs and only eat a small portion of the animal and then move onto the next. A Genet is worse it would only eat the brain of some of the hens leaving a trajectory of devastation. This then forced me to fully enclose the coops; it was for their protection as I was their protector. The Genet is such a sleigh animal that it took me weeks to keep it out of their enclosure. By this time I had lost close to 50 chickens and none of my chicks survived.

In like manner the Christian has many enemies that look to break down their faith. They will attack the Word of God with the intention of uprooting the babes in Christ. Therefore the point I stressed yesterday was that it is our responsibility to study the Word of God and be equip to handle the rot. How will we achieve this? Read, read and read! When the Bible is understood correctly it will equip us to handle the fiery darts of the evil one. However if we do not know our Bibles we will be ill equipped to defend what is precious to us as Christians.

Sure we have men that have been skilled in God’s Word that will help guard against the onslaught. But as mankind is the most intellect of all of God’s creation many will dress up in sheep’s clothing pretending to be sheep when in fact they are wolves. We must make it our business to study the Word of God (the Bible) to quench the twaddle. The more we read and study the Bible the better off we will be.

Read, read and read!

Signing off

Tyrone

Seeking out rescue!

(Jeremiah 29:13)  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

There is an up side to being in exile, it gives an individual an opportunity to turn the corner and cry out unto the Lord from the bottom of their hearts. But until then their journey with God we remain in the doldrums. The beauty of our heavenly Fathers corrections in our lives brings us to the point of repentance. Disciple is often what we need to turn the corner. But we must pay attention to God’s instruction when it is implemented and if ignored it will be at our own peril. We will remain in the “slough of despond” for as long as it is needed for us to come to our senses.

“God’s people can never by any possibility be punished for their sins. God has punished them already in the person of Christ, their substitute. But yet, while the Christian cannot be condemned, he can be chastised. Punishment is laid on a man in anger, God strikes him in wrath. But when he afflicts his child, chastisement is applied in love. The rod has been baptised in deep affection before it is laid on the believers back.” (Charles Spurgeon)    

When Israel did not please the Lord this was their state; “because they have done an outrageous thing in Israel, they have committed adultery with their neighbours’ wives, and they have spoken in my name lying words that I did not command them. I am the one who knows, and I am witness, declares the LORD.'"” (Jeremiah 29:23) – Up and until they hit the wall, just as we have to hit the divider in our lives to realise that the way we have been living our lives has not please our God. Sin is the thing that keeps our relationship away from the mercies of God. Repent turn that corner, cry unto God with your whole heart and He will come to your rescue. Once we rectify our wrongs, we will soar up on the wings of eagles. It is important for all to realise the requirement needed in our lives to turn the bend. In order for the Christian to crack their lives around we must acknowledge our sin before a Holy God. We cannot accept God to come to our aid if we continue to ignore this reality in our lives. Adultery in any form will never please our Father.

We cannot live like the world and expect rescue without His rod of correction in our lives. I have never learnt as much without the rod of God's love in my life.

God is for his children and once we grasp the error of our ways it will be a very sweet victory. Repent and call upon the name of the Lord and it will be well with your soul, but until then do not expect rescue and only the constant crack of the whip ringing in our ears. 

Signing off

Tyrone

But we have the mind of Christ

(1Corinthians 2:16)  "For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.”

                                                                                                 

A moon suit is needed to explore the moon, a heat shield when re-entering the earths orbit and a decompression chamber for deep sea divers once they surface. Just one of many scientific proves that we have been locked into, regulations that govern us. Its easy to relate to the obvious, not much thought is needed for us to remedy whatever is needed at any given time. We have instincts build into us that are rather remarkable, reflexes; adrenaline and the like spring into action where and when it is needed to get us out of a pickle. What about light and darkness in relation to what is good or evil, all the opposites in our lives that we instinctively act upon; parading the good and hiding the evil. How often have you found yourself saying, “I never thought it would be him?” Be that as it may, our perception of what is good is thwarted in comparison to God’s goodness and until this penny drops into our lives we will never grasp the magnitude of HIS GOODNESS.

Our natural understanding of what is actually good started wrong and therefore will always end on the incorrect side of that which is holy. We do not like to see our judgments like that, who would? It all goes back to the beginning to the tree of “the KNOWLEDGE of GOOD and EVIL”. Sin hijacked our minds into a skewed perception of being able to differentiate correctly and because of it we have so many differing opinions on various matters. USA has different by-laws in differing States on the same laws, why? This proves my point! God is never double minded on anything; He is holy and perfect and will never change His mind on a matter. He has no need too. Perfection never needs tweaking.

This is why it is imperative for us to understand our need for the Word of God to mould our lives. But for something to shape us we must understand it. Are you reading your Bible? If not my encouragement would be for you to start, books can be good but the Bible is way better. It’s only the Christian who has been given the mind of Christ and His awareness is found between the pages of scripture. Read, read and read!

Signing off

Tyrone