Christmas time

There is a relaxing beauty trapped within the South African bushveld that cannot be easily replaced. Even though the hum of the air conditioner does its best to break the tranquillity of the soothing bustle as the birds and insects converse across the grasslands, thankfully I am able to distant that droning interference and just take in the moment. Similarly just like a cool pool is able to relieve an individual from the baking sun, so too does the bushveld calm me from all anxiety. As Christian we have all been commanded to be anxious for nothing! Easier said than done! Nevertheless a post we must aim for in Christ.

I have lived enough to understand the power of substance abuse, all it really achieves is an escape from reality, and only for a time. It is the “silly season” the Christmas holidays that affords so many individuals an excuse to indulge in a pass to excuse the flesh of some of its captivating pleasure as acceptable. And sure, the older we get, the better we become at disguising what we know to be an abomination to our heavenly Father from others. King Solomon understood this well. If it wasn’t for the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and his mind, “the mind of Christ” we would all be in serious danger of hell fire. But praise be to Him that although Christmas has been high jacked by Satan and his followers and many a Cristian has been taken by his plot to deviate from how we should conduct ourselves over this time and because we have His Spirit we are not totally fooled by the masses, praise God for this!

All I ask is that we be honest with ourselves and to all the Christian parents that still engage it the Christmas spirit with Santa Claus as a big part of the festivities, please refrain from the trickery of it all. It really helps no one in the bigger scheme of things. Especially ones children, all it achieves is to confuse them. It’s a unique idea that takes their eyes of Christ and places it onto someone else and promotes lies as acceptable.

The reason the Christian lives is to worship our glorious king, this concept may well be foreign to the masses, however, the Christian is well aware of the truth of this statement or at least should be. Jesus died so that we could be set free, there is no greater thought above or beyond the universe. Jesus paid the price for my sin, WOW! So why would I ever want to allow the decay of the Christmas festivities to deviate from that truth, I have made up my mind and I will stand firm on my persuasion. 

Although there may be many things we do that are barely acceptable to our heavenly Father and the idea of chopping down trees (mentioned in the book of Jeremiah) and decorating then with shiny things in the name of Christ could well be amongst that list, however doing it in the name of father Christmas is certainly not one of them. That in itself falls under an abomination before God. It is obvious that God is a jealous God and He will not share His glory with another, especially when his arch rival the devil is behind it all. Just so long as peoples attentions deviate from God’s intervention in sending a Saviour into the world so that individuals would recognize their sin and understand that they need to be saved from themselves and that God has afforded us all a chance to repent and call upon the name of His beloved Son our glorious Saviour to find forgiveness and be ushered into the fold of the only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

We must make up our minds, is Christmas a day to be celebrated as the birth of Christ, which is obviously not accurate if we had to study the actual times and seasons of Christs birth. A day introduced by the Catholic Church many years ago; it is a day that appeared in our calendar somewhere along the path of history as it was smuggled into our timetables and given its place. Then interestingly enough Santa Claus appeared on the same day and not another, just to throw in another “straw-man” so that the world could shift their attention to an alternative with great success. As Christians it is up to us to set the tone, especially when it comes to our families, without the hard conversations we may never be faithful in sharing the gospel effectively with those who have shunned Christ’s sacrifice.

Make a stand for our great King, the One who bled and died so that could have our names penned into the book of life, so what if you take a little heat in the kitchen standing over a steaming pot as your sister-in-law is force to address the issues of Christmas for the sake of the gospel and the sake of her families souls.

Many years ago and after just a little study I was convince about the truth of Christmas and by the grace of God have stood my ground. Whatever your conclusion, be firm on it but above all use this time to point people to Christ!

  

May the strength of Christs Spirit persuade all of this certainty and may it help turn the corner for the fence sitters.

Signing off

Tyrone

Water

Understanding the significance of washing throughout biblical history is very relevant for us today and there is much we can glean from when examining it a little closer. Washing of old dealt with various aspect and deeper underlying principles in the lives of the elect.

From the very beginning of time travelers would be afforded small amounts of water set aside to wash their feet. A spiritual analogy we can draw from; the closer we are to the dirt as we move across the plains of life, the dusty environment, the dirtier our feet become and a greater work is needed to renew our minds with the will of God for our lives. The tighter we cling to God’s direction in our lives the fuller we will be with the peace of God as it overshadows our aura. This is why so many outside of the will of God need to be helped by "shrinks" no wonder they can charge exceptional rates and still have people flocking to their doors. Everything that does not have roots in the equation of eternity, particularly to our roles in fulfilling the will of God as we use the BIBLE, HIS WORD and nothing else as our barometers will leave us wanting.

In order for us to understand the deeper meanings of life we must lay the correct foundation to our understanding, obviously we need eyes wide open and not wide shut to apprehend and this will only ever happen if God grants us the ability to see into His realm, the spiritual world. However the application remains true for all, which is this, we must understand the correlation between the world of carnality and that of the spirit and how they should both drive us towards a position of correction as we travel through life. King Solomon, David son, teaches us much with regard to trying to gratify our flesh as a means to an end. He sums it up like this; “and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7-8) – In other words, no matter what you strive for in this life if you miss the call of God it will be catastrophic.

Water and the use of it is a great clue to get us there.

Water and the Word of God correlates with one another, dirty feet need to be washed to remove the filth from them, studying the Word of God aligns our minds with Gods will for our lives and in turn renews our minds and equips us to put on the mind of Christ. Therefore, let us all be diligent when it comes to this area of our lives, for it will then result with great benefit and prepare us for the life to come which obviously has eternal concerns.

My prayer is this, Father God give us all the fortitude to be far more diligent in this area of our lives, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Nicodemus

(John 3:9)  Nicodemus answered and said unto him, how can these things be? 

How often do we find ourselves flabbergasted by the varying degrees of filth which impregnates our planet and our lives? Then there is the confusion of it all that leaves us asking questions like, “how can these things be?” The longer God affords me the opportunity to have breath and life here on earth, the more I begin to understand the short sightedness of mankind. Sadly we are all taken by our own agendas and live according to our rules and not the voice of the ONE who is actually in control of all things. We believe, because we are capable of choosing today, that tomorrow will be no different and so life continues until that too is taken from us, what then? Will we cry out “how can these things be?” Sadly for some with that cry will come terrible torment, however that can be avoided; you do not need to have all the answers to all your questions, all that is required, cry out unto Jesus and seek out his forgiveness for your own sin. It is really as simple as that and then you will cry out, “wow, I never realised that before. It is only then that our journeys begin and we then struggle with other issues when we see our reflection against God's brilliance. We begin to notice the gulf between our characters and yet through the Lord Jesus Christ we can now have fellowship with the creator of the universe, mind boggling, whilst being impressively beautiful. God forgiving mankind for their rebellion against him, his will and his authority. 

God has open a way for us all, He send his only beloved Son the Lord Jesus Christ to bleed and die on a cruel Roman cross to set the sinner free. However, do not be fooled, reject Christ and you will suffer the consequences. Do not believe the lie that God will still love you in spite of your rejection for His Son’s sacrifice, which is a false gospel. God’s love is encapsulated in the Lord Jesus Christ and outside of that covering, the love of God will elude you.

Where do you stand?

I believe that this man Nicodemus worked it out, God opened his eyes to the truth of it all and he no longer asked questions like “how can these things be?”

Signing off

Tyrone

The Magician

Endurance training is a means which helps us understand our limitations on a natural level. Temptation is a tool which is use to drive us towards sin and the more attractive the lure the easier the entrapment. However the greatest of all dangers in my opinion would have to be deception. A deceit that is so dangerous that it will have eternal consequence for all taken by it; the ultimate objective of our enemy, to defeat his/our creator and take as many with him as possible to an eternity of torment. Why would Satan look do this? I wouldn’t be foolish enough to say I have all the answers to that question; however I will state what I know to be an obvious observation. His objective is to belittle the great God of the universe, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, my Father! He wants to appear greater than Him in stature. His pride did not spring from a root of righteousness but sin entered in and therefore the rivalry began way before the creation of mankind. In a nutshell the devil wants to defeat God and all He stands for and for us to believe that he has no power would be an error of grave magnitudes. 

Did you know that when he was found out and banished from heaven that he was able to persuade one third of the angels in heaven to side with him. It boggles the mind, to think that angels that witness God brilliance still chose Satan over God! He was able to deceive them in plain sight, how much greater his ability to deceive those that are under his influence and are not truly aware of his presence, nor are they able to see him...

Who then is influenced by the sway of the devil? All of creation! Nevertheless it is all by permission from God. Without God’s consent his hands are tied. How do I know this? The book of Job makes this very clear; God gives Satan permission to inflict his servant. Why? To eventually glorify God in Job’s life, exalt his name and then Job is eventually rewarded for his faithful obedience.

Those who do not confess Jesus as Lord are automatically under the devils influence, why? Because he is the father of sin and we are sinners by nature. You do not have to teach a child to sin; they all learn to work that out for themselves. As I look back on my childhood, it didn’t take me long to realise that lying could keep the belt away from my buttocks, if I could be convincing enough, all I needed to learn to do was be convincing enough so that my deceit was believed as fact.

This will help you understand or not, depending on which side of the fence you sit; “Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:42-44)

1.     All those who do not love the Lord Jesus does not have the Fathers protection, in that sense... obviously the world and God’s creation is covered by His "communal grace" that effects all. Satan does not have total free reign, he only works within the parameters that God has afforded him, for now! But its only God’s children that have His loving affections.

2.    It is also obvious that those who reject God’s counsel, those who refuse to believe in the only true Messiah, the One and only Lord Jesus Christ belong to their father the DEVIL and they wish to fulfill his desires which are a string of lies that only carries with it intent to deceive.

Now no one likes to find out that they have been duped, but it is one thing to be tricked and then realign your radar to learn from your mistake and avoid it happening again.

Whilst we still have breath God affords us opportunity to find repentance. However, this now is very important please pay very careful attention to it; once we breathe our last, judgment waits, therefore there are no more second chances. It’s only in this lifetime, our lives on earth that God has afforded us time to find repentance for our sin in and through the Lord Jesus’ sacrifice, the rest of the voices you hear wafting through society is nothing more than trickery. The greatest magician of all times working under the cloak of invisibility.   

Therefore Satan’s ultimate goal must be to deceive as many as he possibly can and take them to their graves under a drape of deceit.

Where do you stand and who will you side with? I have made up my mind, as for me and my household we will serve the God of creation; bless the name of Jesus now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Honesty!

Honesty is a luxury that not many of us are privy too. Sure, we all experience honesty when it suits and it is comfortable for all to stomach, but what of so many brutal truths that are easily overlook until it is to late to make amends. Hindsight is what they call a perfect science; it is easy to speak after the fact. But what if time had no effect on your being? In other words you were an eternal being and not subject to time; you operated outside the limits of time. Life teaches us that we all have a lifespan and then we die, which is obviously true, that fact is undeniable. However, we all have an eternal part to our being; it is known as our soul. Our spirits will live or die forever, this is a fact that so many overlook, hoping that all will turn out tolerable, regardless of the way we live here on earth. Talk about the foolishness of an ostrich, how it hides its face from predators with its body in full view with the mentality that because it can’t see the hunter, it will be safe, have you ever heard the expression; “bury your head in the sand like an ostrich?” There is no doubt that society has been programmed by the enemies of the cross to avoid this topic at all costs. One of the most powerful of all reason is to get people to avoid diving into the subject of judgement and eternal life. None of us by default have any excellence in us, God is good, He is brilliant and He alone is righteous within Himself. He always does the right thing. Can we say the same? I know that some of you may now be looking for “straw men” (objections to override my point) to prove me wrong. Things like rape, hunger and brutal murders cannot be allowed by a God of love. To you I say, you obviously have not read much of the Bible. God will always rally in commitment for a people that love him, with faith an overarching ally, but disregard his voice at your own peril. People that turn their backs on God will face His judgement, whether living on earth or in eternity, this fact remains true.

Why did Abraham’s seed, the son of promise, eventually end up in slavery? In a nutshell they began to serve other gods and disregarded His law. For every action there is an opposite reaction, bow the knee to Jesus and you will be saved, refuse and suffer the consequences, the Lake of Fire will be your eternal home.

The Jews have always been God’s chosen people and it started with Abraham. However, as a nation they rejected their Messiah and this is what they cried out when Pontius Pilate gave them a choice to free Jesus; Pilate said to them, "Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" They all said, "Let him be crucified!" And he said, "Why, what evil has he done?" But they shouted all the more, "Let him be crucified!" So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of this man's blood; see to it yourselves." And all the people answered, "His blood be on us and on our children!" (Matthew 27:22-25) – How much misery have the Jews been put through as a people after the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus? The account is endless! Thankfully God has showed mercy to many Jews and some have also been saved and confess Jesus Christ as their true Messiah.   

  

This is a brutal truth that needs to be proclaimed from the rooftops and yet so few are willing to put themselves out for the sake of others. The Lord Jesus is a perfect example, a man who knew no sin, he live a life of sinless perfection and yet was moved with such compassion that he was willing to bleed and die on a cruel Roman cross, he gave up his own life, no man took it from him. The reason was so that some may be saved from themselves and escape God’s eternal judgment. But this compassion will only ever be realised once we bend the knee.

How often have you heard people at funerals say that the parted are in a better place, when all they ever did, whilst on earth, was slam the gospel and blasphemed the name of Jesus? Really, they are in a better place, hell a place of torment! Let us not be like the ostrich but be wise in our understanding and call on the name of Jesus and find forgiveness from Him for our sins, only then will we understand the deeper truths of life. Only then will we have eyes to truly see...

Signing off

Tyrone

Commitment!

I could look to many forerunners through the ages to draw on as a model example to follow, I suppose this is one of the reasons the Bible has been penned, to help the Christian through their first transition stage; a life on earth and having to contend with a flesh and blood body that by default has been riddled with a sinful nature. Sadly our own deceit often wins the day as it looks for justification and places us in the category of “the good person”. This is why it is easier for a wicket man to find repentance that a self-righteous individual. It’s only the sick that seek out medical aid. This is what the Lord Jesus had to say on the topic; “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." (Luke 5:32)  

With that now clearly understood and as I have journeyed through life with rebellion as a companion, it is easy for me to understand my need for a Saviour and even with Him mercifully saving my soul 30 years ago, I have been somewhat of a troubled child, but praise God for His commitment as I can honestly confess that transformation has and is still a process that by the good graces of God my Father keeps me focused. Sure there are still some battles that I end up losing, however although the independent skirmish may be lost the war has already been won. God accepted the Lord Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice when he hung and died on that cruel Roman cross two thousand years ago. The door to heaven is now open to all those who cry out to Jesus asking for His forgiveness for their sins, it really is as simple as that! Heaven is my eternal home and once I breathe my last here on earth my eyes to the spiritual world will be opened and I will see my Father and Saviour face to face, praise their names. How a part of me longs for that day, even so come quickly Lord Jesus, Amen and Amen!

As for the self righteous individual, the one who is better that the rest, the one who believes they deserves more than their neighbour, they are in trouble, they do not see their sin for what it is and sadly have no need to be saved. We are all on the same journey, birth, life, death and then eternity where time will liquefy as we have come to understand it and no one will escape that reality, the only question we need to ask ourselves, “is where do we fit in?” It is only repentance and a cry out to the Lord Jesus Christ that opens our eyes to the truth of it all. Even a sincere cry to help our unbelief is better than no cry at all.

I have heard testimony of individuals who have been at their wits ends and believed that their destiny was hell, behind closed doors they confessed their particular dilemma hoping to be heard but unsure of it all, and today I personally know some of these people who confidently confess Jesus as Lord, God mercifully took pity on their souls and open their eyes to a reality of heaven and His rule, praise God for His compassion. There are others I know who once confessed believing in the gospel but the pressures of life and the “now” has left them in a very dangerous place with eternity a very distant after thought. Father God, even now, I pray for these individuals, if it pleases you and the plea I have for them, please bring them to their senses.

Jacob is a man that teaches us many things about the blessings of life and that they can never be without their own struggles. It is God who allows these difficulties to befall us so that we may appreciate Him. His ingenious characteristics working beyond the reason of our limited understanding as He works out all things for our good. And yes, even the atrocities of life and all the terror we witness that we cannot quite reconcile with a loving God, he is in control of it all. Its only when we believe that we are on His level that we find difficulty with it all.   

Jacob was a help for his uncle Laban, he was a shepherd and he toiled night and day to win his wife. It took twenty years of what must have been years filled with its own challenges. Imagine the frostbite at night or the wild beasts looking to ravage his flock. What of the thieves, the serve sun beating down on him and the lack of water affecting his parched throat. Did he ever throw in the towel? We have the answer, he was eventually rewarded with the love of his life and Rachel became his wife. The ends will always justify the means when we remain faithful to that holy call God has place upon the believer’s life. Just like Jacob who was given a new name, Israel fed and toiled for his sheep, so too does our Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ intercede for His flock, He does not rest and all who rely on His finished work will reap their reward. We too will receive our new names when we get home and what a day that shall be!

Signing off

Tyrone

Why Faith?

Historically we know that in the beginning God created Adam and Eve, they fell from His grace and were banished from the Garden of Eden; Eve had two sons, Cain and Abel and we also know that Cain killed Abel. God then witnesses the constant sinful nature of mankind begin to spiral out of control as they put the creator on the back-burner and so God eventually decides to destroys his creation and all inhabiting it, and only eight souls are saved. Noah builds an Ark which in turn saves his family and the animals selected by God He wanted saving. Once Noah completes the task at hand God commands the heavens to open their bellies and they drop rain. The great flood ensures what God commissions it to do, destruction of all outside the Ark. All of creation obeys the voice of God except the rebellious. 

We then move down the genealogy of mankind and we will pick it up with Abram, who God gives a new name, Abraham, known and recorded as the father of faith. God singles out a man to begin a relationship built on a completely different fundamental that Adam and Eve faced, faith and not sight was now the playing field for mankind, Wow! I hope that thought grips you as much as it has me. Not to say that visually the heavens where open to them, but they certainly understood that God was real. Adam interacted with God and there can be no doubt that that was a completely different time and somewhat foreign to the world thereafter.   

Adam and Eve walked in the cool of the day and interacted with God, there was no questioning His existence. Today everyone is opinionated about God and what that is for them on an independent level, simple put they place him into a box that suits their sins and their desires. However a new precept was introduced down the line, faith the glue for true believers to engage with the creator of the universe. Lucifer and a third of the fallen angels never needed faith to believe. They once cohabited heaven with God, Abraham on the other hand wrestled with the concept of Idols (dead gods) which his father and the land he lived in at the time where obsessed with. Historically we learn that he smashed all his fathers’ idols and was hunted to be killed (the book of Jasher). God then sends him to a far away land and he packs up and leaves without hesitation; ABRAHAM THE FATHER OF FAITH! Noah was also a man of faith and he came before Abraham, but it was only with Abraham that God makes a covenant with a sect of people, the Jews and promises him to look out for them. Throughout the ages many of his descendants also disappoint the great I AM. Thankfully God’s promises are not dependent on our ability to uphold our part of the deal, where we are found wanting God remains faithful, He cannot deny himself.

An individual cannot realise salvation without faith. However, untried faith may be true faith, but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain weak so long as it is without trials. Who else was tested like Abraham, there are no doubt many men and woman of faith penned throughout the scriptures, but none of them where asked to sacrifice their son, the son of promise. Abraham the father of faith! Do not think for a single iota that if we want to prove our love to our Father, the God of the universe that we will be without trials and the deeper we look to take that relationship the harder the trial. Can the olive produce its oil without the pressure of two stones grinding down on it?

Faith does not require logical reason as some may imply, all it is, is a dependency on God’s ability to steer the ship and be content with the His ability to keep us safe, especially through the storms of life. As the beating waves smash into the hull of our lives, with the creaking mask under the pressure of the torrid wind tearing into our main sail, the quandary of life and death tugging away at our minds; do we cry, “drop the sail” of do we push through to safety trusting in our God? It’s only the trials of life that proves who we all are when it comes to faith.

If even the winds and the seas obey the voice of our great Saviour, why do we worry? Sadly we have a fallen fleshy body that always looks to pull us towards independence. The greater our faith the harder it must be tested so that we may be sure of its substance; the louder the call, the greater the need for a fuller measure of faith.

“Let not this, however, discourage those who are young in faith. You will have trials enough without seeking them: the full portion will be measured out to you in due season. Meanwhile, if you cannot yet claim the result of long experience, thank God for what grace you have; praise him for that degree of holy confidence whereunto you have attained: walk according to that rule, and you shall yet have more and more of the blessing of God, till your faith shall remove mountains and conquer impossibilities.” (Charles Spurgeon)

Signing off

Tyrone

Realignment

Regardless of the arena where our voices are heard and where we stand up to be counted; to be fashionably “current” is important. Imagine a businessman in the eighteen hundreds dressed to the hilt with his fancy attire looking to strike up an agreement with a computer geek of the twenty first century, a casually dressed millionaire in his slops and t-shirt. The deal would have had immense strain placed upon it before negotiations even began. Perceptions and preconceived ideological conditions establish who we are as individuals. As diverse as we all are, God remains the same yesterday, today and forever, He is constant, praise His name!

For us to handle scripture in a day like today we too must look for the clues that are relevant. The Word of God is not bound by time, whereas style is linked to time. Fashion must never dictate, the Word (Bible) must always take pre-eminence if we are to survive and end up on the right side of God’s judgments. Let me be clear, scripture in its entirety is relevant if we dissect the words within the verses that are on the pages with precision no differently to a homicide detective searching out clues within a crime scene; carefully paying attention to the obvious as well as the hidden detail. Some will be better than others in reading and interpreting scripture, no differently to the varying measures of talents across every other area of our lives. It is also obvious that we will play different roles within the body of Christ (the church, and on a local and universal scale). Therefore it would be impossible to continuously walk on our hands as feet where given to us by God for walking and yet hands are also crucial for our realities. The Apostle James says it like this; “let not many of your become teachers as you will receive a stricter judgement.” All where never meant to be teachers, but all are capable of an intermit relationship with God, that is, if we are born again and new creatures in Christ. Then and only then will we have eyes to see spiritual truths.

The voice of reasoning, which on the surface is exactly that, reasonable. Logic and common sense teach us to live in a certain manner. However when we strip it down it is the opposite of faith, which God requires from His children; “but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him." (Hebrew 10:38)  - “reasoning” in that sense is in direct opposition to the voice of God and is driven by the devil and his followers. When the Lord Jesus sent out his disciples to proclaim the gospel what was his instruction in spite of their initial obvious understanding of planning for their trip? Thoughts like; food, a weapon for self defence, a change of clothing and money for the trip…

This was the instruction; “These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Acquire no gold nor silver nor copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, nor two tunics nor sandals nor a staff, for the laborer deserves his food.”” In that sense God does not need help from men to do His bidding , He is the great “I AM”, this is were I believe so many of us get it wrong, we bring God down to our level instead of the other way around. True faith allows us to operate in the correct realm, GODS DOMAIN!

It is imperative to trim our sails and to check our bearing if we are to make it to our final destination, heaven with all its glory!

Let us all remember that if we believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead and confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord of our lives, we most certainly belong to the household of God and we shall be saved on that day, and yet when we flip the coin we see that God is not happy with those who draw back…

”Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, "Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.” (Hebrews 10:35-39)

Are we numbered amongst the latter or have we fallen asleep? Is it time to trim your sails, I have made up my mind, my sails need constant trimming. Give me strength Father God in the mighty name of Jesus Christ my Lord and Saviour to see the wood from the trees and to discern your will for my life and not to over emphasis the carnal wants in my life. Teach me to live by faith, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Palatable

More often than not when a person takes something to their mouths it is with an anticipation of experiencing something pleasant. Say you roll out of bed in the early hours of the morning, the sun is just breaking the horizon and there is busy stillness in the air, a perceptiveness of serenity is obvious and yet the pleasant sounds of chattering birds and insects interfering as they compete amongst themselves endeavouring to outdo one another. However, they too have their routines and we have ours; as for me it’s about a swig of mouthwash and then straight to the chicken to fix a pot of espresso. I then move across to my desk and envisage the thoughts that are vibrant in my mind, which often are from dreams or my stirring thoughts that saturate my mind throughout the night. It is somewhat of a wrestle as I contemplate the why and the how? My objective for the day would be to seek out the righteousness of God and how I may achieve my goal, to put on the mind of Christ and combat all the evil thoughts that press home. This is a constant struggle and to lie to ourselves that we are beyond these types of struggles, whatever yours maybe would be foolish. - “For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” (Romans 7:19-20)

Although we are new creatures in Christ and praise God for that; He has paid our debt and the payment has been paid in full, we owe nothing. However, we will continue to have this struggle until we breathe our last or we are change, in that moment, in the twinkling of an eye, when the trump of God sounds and we that remain are caught up into the air and given new bodies, glorified bodies, Wow! Even so come quickly Lord Jesus!

However as true as Paul’s teaching may be, this does not give us licence to live in sin so that grace may abound. Or at the very least we should not concede to that type of mind-set.

Our reliance is now upon the finished work of the cross, if not we have a long way to go in reaching maturity. Faith demands a shift from independence to a dependency upon that which is unseen and yet it is filled with an abundance of evidence. This is where I have another ongoing struggle, food and raiment is more often than not a concern, but then I am reminded to be content where I find myself in this area of my life, with this thought, “if God is for me who can be against me, praise His glorious name.” However without part of my routine being honoured, when something else gets in the way of it, it’s as if I forget to dress for battle and then the potential of my wayward thoughts running riots is far more likely.  

At times I am afforded the privilege of penning words about my walk with God, hence my blog. As the morning unfolds I move from my desk and to the kitchen topping up my espresso cup. I am very found of coffee and as I instinctively tap away at the keyboard I obviously reach for my fix, sipping away and then it happens, my cup has been standing for a time and my coffee is now lukewarm and my pleasant experience is now hindered and an unpleasant shock to my taste buds drives home. I had hope for a pleasant fix but now what I had expected to be enjoyable was the opposite, hostile. Instinctively I spew out what I hoped would be satisfying. With this experience the Lord Jesus gives me a great underlying principle that teaches me what he expects from me (us). “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:16)

It is imperative that every morning, and not only at night that we set time aside to spend in the Word of God. Why? Because the day is just beginning and we must approach our lives a day at a time, and no more, or else our life in Christ will be so burdensome so that we will often crack under the strain. There is a song “One day at a time sweet Jesus is all I ask from you” and this song must become impregnated into our minds. It is during our meditation that we must deliberate where we stand with our God and Father, not to question if we are saved, if that be our standing, but rather examine our hearts and what it is that drives and excites us. If there is something more pressing than what God has done for us we are entering a state of metamorphism and “Luke warmness” could be where we find ourselves. If that be so, beware that you are not spewed out of the mouth of the Lord Jesus. The Bible is filled with many encouragements and praise God for that! But we must not overlook the warnings, which have been penned for our benefit. If the shoe fits then it fits.

These are the types of thoughts that drive me each and every day, am I always victorious, absolutely not, but that will never keep me from trying to reach that blissful state of righteousness that if found in the person of our great God, praise His name now and forever more, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

The right or wrong side of history

Of late I have heard references referring to finding ourselves on the right side of history…

Here is an allegory that should help us understand the intention I wish to highlight…

A group of people gathered with eager anticipation as a young woman deep in the throes of labour, works her way painfully through the process of her brutal birth spasms, in spite of the anguish she now faced and with a clad-iron resolve she was determined to follow through with a natural birth. Whilst her parents linger in the cold dull passageway of the Maternity Ward in the deep south of Johannesburg, and as her father had lived through the Second World War a thought flashes vividly through his mind, “hospitals always have death written all over their walls”, and then the reality of what was happening kicked in, “but not this time!” his thoughts had now become vocal causing his wife to turned to him, “What”? “Never mind” he muttered, how could he bring up death when they expected life? As this was a very happy juncture. There were endless opportunities for this new bundle of joy. The man was filled with glee and was to soon be a granddad! But not yet for there were still many uncertainties, would his daughter and the unborn child come through without any complication? Therefore he continued to pace up and down with great intent hoping that all would be well with the apple of his eye for she was but a young lass, barely seventeen. It was an anxious moment and yet it was compressed by excitement. “Is it a boy or a girl”? An exciting thought all had already considered, wanting to be the one who could gloat and say I told you it would be a boy.

Then it happened, they heard it, a babies cry. It was rather comical as they simultaneously look at each other and laying aside the hospital policies, instantaneously they all rushed into the room to examine the miracle. Maybe this baby boy would be the next president or the next greatest prodigy with a golf club in his hand. The potential endless and full of promise! Words like “cute” and “he is beautiful, he looks just like you” travelled from person to person filling the room with chatter, the overtones of joy fanned across the room bringing smiles to all. And then something outside of the norm happened God allowed them to see into the future as He commanded time to travel forward. Their joy suddenly turns to shattered heartache; a horror filled vision now became their reality and they were all privy to it; death, misery and total darkness engulfed with unquenchable flames potentially awaited not only this little newborn baby but all of mankind and God in His mercy had shown it to them.

The reality of it was that all of mankind has been condemned already. We all stand guilty before a Holy God and Hell with all its fury is our destination. It is mankind’s lot in life. Try as we may to build Arks like in the movie 2012 or the series Salvation as we rally together as one united nation, trying with paramount resolve to avoid the inevitable, the destruction of this planet as we know it, which will eventually happen. The same fate awaits us all. An eternity of horror personified! They had seen it and there was no denying it for God had shown it to them.  

The joy that filled that delivery room was now filled with regret and the remorse of this accidental conception, conceived outside of the bounds of wedlock was now forgotten. Although they were practicing Catholics and they had done everything in their power to conceal their sin removing the ridicule that would come upon the family if it became public knowledge had now dissipated as there were far more pressing issues on hand. If only this little boy had never been born was the thought of consensus and then it dawned on then, but what about us? Doomed for eternity! It was no longer an idea that some jarhead had shouted from a street corner; “repent for the end is near”! God had revealed the truth to them and they had seen the end, they now understood the ramifications! They had grasped it for God had shown it to them! As they limply made their way back to the vehicles they had arrived in. The drive back to their homes was filled with silence and remorse for they were all devastated by the reality of it all, once so oblivious to the secrets of hell but now “eyes wide open” to what was just over the horizon. “Stop the car”, the father demanded on the fringe on the highway, it was a perfect position, the car had come to rest in a blind spot, and he thought that they might be lucky enough to be taken out of their misery and be steamrolled by a passing truck. What was a man to do? What is a father to do? Climbing out of the car the man began to frantically pace up and down with strides of hopelessness; he then looked up and saw a humongous clump of sand that had been sifted from a gold mine shaft and with his gaze locked onto it he called out to it, “KILL ME”! He had finally understood that he was “condemned already” and there was nothing he could do to save himself or his family nor his newborn grandson. It was a hopeless situation!

“CONDEMNED ALREADY” was and is the state of mankind and will remain their lot in life if they do not respond to the only lifeline available…

Pay very careful attention as it may just help you understand the magnitude of your predicament and rescue you from it. The Apostle John a spokesperson on behalf of God; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob penned these words a long time ago; “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:18) 

How on earth did mankind arrive here? Here was a man who had now understood his fate, he was in total despair, crying to a hill to fall on him and snuff the life from him. And then it happen, God mercifully took pity on him and took him back to the beginning to help him understand…

He now stood in the midst of a beautiful garden surrounded by absolute tranquility, a vast contrast to his previous vision, perfection personified with harmonic melody from all its wildlife wafting on the back of a gentle breeze bringing great comfort to him and those in the garden. “Is this how it all started” he thought? He knew it to be true. At first he grappled with the contrasting visions and if this is how it began why does it end with such destruction? Walking through paradise he passed a lion lying down next to a lamb, they seemed extremely content with their surrounding and there was no aggression evident. His stride then came to an abrupt halt and he saw a woman conversing with a serpent, a creature that he was unfamiliar with, it looked like a snake but it stood upright on its legs, it hissed with a choral lyric to its voice, he could now hear what was being said, “Did God actually say?” the serpent whispered.  And then it dawned on him what was about to happen. “Stop he shouted, get away from him”! But she was oblivious to his cries and continued to peer deeper into his trickery unaware of the deception that was about to take place. If only she knew what she was actually doing, dooming my new born grandson to an eternity of total hopelessness, “wake up you foolish woman”, he shouted even louder this time, but to no avail, the lure had worked and she was now lapping up every word. Satan had ensnared her and there was no escape, he had won and defied God! That day he won a fight but he will never win the battle, praise God!

Mr. Harry Casual (the man) finally understood that it was because of this event that all of mankind has been doomed. Our great grandmother to the power of who knows the actual number, God Knows, I most certainly don’t! It was all her doing! But what of our great grandfather, he wasn’t deceived and yet he followed in the sin of his wife. As selfish as his decision may well have been the reality of it all is the pair of them doomed all of mankind to fall under Gods condemnation. Happy-go-lucky (the man) then saw God commission two cherubim’s, angels like creature with flaming swords commanding them to guard the tree of life, forbidding sinful intent to eat from it. Death had now been their sentence, their foolishness had eternal consequences and their eternity with God had been snatched from them; resulting in God banishing them from paradise as they knew it. The penalties were dismal! For the first time they saw thorns sprout out amongst the flower eventuating their folly.

As he stood at the foot of that mound of that Sand Hill just off the highway the man having seen the end and the beginning of time finally understood why all of mankind had been doomed. The prize of God’s creation, mankind had rejected Him and yielded to the voice of another created being, the serpent that is the devil. It finally made sense! The sin of one man had blinded all to the realities of life and the bigger picture with the warriors of hell keeping us all from the truth. Driving us to be engulfed with daily activities and giving very little thought to the hereafter! Sending us into a spiral filled with our own opinions and with zero recognition for the creator of the heavens and the earth. Flip, dissect, analyze, or do what you want with the reality of the truth and we must all eventually arrive at the same conclusion; we all justly deserve what is coming, JUDGEMENT! Some will still cry, “That is unfair”, but it is what it is! He knew it to be true for God had shown it to him!

It was then that the man contemplated running into the oncoming traffic, for what else was a man to do? But before he could actioned that thought a voice from heaven shouted, “STOP!” God then took him into a time of Roman rule and he saw a man crucified to a cross with the onlookers jeering at him, “if you are God save yourself” they mocked; whilst others cursed insults at him and spat upon him. It was here that the love of God became apparent to Mr. Potentially Hopeful (the man); God’s love had compelled Him to provide a lifeline for mankind; "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) – A love inconceivable to our characters and yet God punished His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ the Lord was disciplined on behalf of sinners, WOW! In other words Mr. Thankful (the man) finally understood that although he was the sinner, someone who was without sin had paid the price for his sin. His mind now flashed to all the other religions of the world and the little he knew of them helped him finally understand that they could not help him as God hates sin and will deal with it and no one outside of the covering of Christs sacrifice will escape His judgement. If we are tried for our sin and found guilty of breaching even one of the smallest of God laws we will face His punishment. Hell will be our eternal destination.

Why do we need to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ? Because he alone paid the penalty for sinners and forgives all who repent of their sin and believe on His finished work; He paid the fine and that now frees us of our sin. The fine has been paid and it has satisfied God. “Jesus in my Place”! But never forget that Jesus Christ the Lord spilt his own blood so that we could go free and escape the looming devastation that awaits the devil and his angels.

Therefore reject the offer on hand and you will end up in that devastating place it is as simple as that. This is the end for those who reject God’s free grace offer, please pay very careful attention to it and do not be swayed by the foolish opinions that those professing to be wise present with no factual evidence. Some say that we are part of the cycle of evolution and that our genealogy started with the ape-man; think it through it, use your God given brain, if that be true, why have we not found millions if not billions of those fossils? The answer is obvious, it is a LIE! Here is the end of the story for those who reject this glorious God given offer; “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) – Therefore it is clear that there is a book with registered names in it known as the “book of life” and the only way any individual can avoid the upcoming fate is if their name is recorded in it and the only way for this to happen is by repenting and accepting the Lord Jesus’ sacrifice on behalf of your sin. It is as simple as that!

What will you do with the mercy that God has offered you?

“For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:13)

I beg you call upon Him and repent if not you will end up on the wrong side of history.

Signing off

Tyrone

Be perfect

As I sit in front of my computer screen in the very early hours of the morning with sleep eluding me and with e-Sword (Bible) open. I wonder about the Lord Jesus’ request in the Garden; “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will."” (Matthew 26:39) – There must have been a deep understanding of the gravity which he faced. It could never have had been having to deal with thoughts of evil intent, for the man Jesus was born untainted by sin and he had lived his life in obedience to God’s righteousness. Whereas mankind is not made like he was and we struggle with sin in a different way. I know the struggles I have on a daily basis. Nor would I want to presume that I understand his deliberation and his willingness for the temptation to pass. We all know the outcome of that encounter, he overcame, but the cost was an intense anguish, so much so that he factually sweated blood. The pressure he endured to overcome the temptation of sin is something very few, if any, have any grasp on. The flesh is weak and it has been tainted by sin from birth. We have a natural tendency to capitulation to the pleasures of sin and the more we feed a particular area of sin in our lives the more addictive it becomes and the harder it is to put it away. However the call is to be perfect, just like our Father in heaven is perfect. Wow! We all understand that we will never attain to His perfection until we reach heaven and our bodies and minds are transformed into the Lord Jesus’ beauty and brilliance. However that does not mean we must not shoot for perfection. Perfection must be our ultimate goal.

The world teaches us to have goals and to put things in place that will allow us to achieve them. Once that goal is reached we are then rewarded. Sin is the enemy; our own sin is the greatest hindrance that keeps us from our objective, which is; “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) – Our mind-sets must be one of deliberate intent and our goal must be to put off our old natures; we must watch and pray; “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." (Matthew 26:41) – Interestingly enough this was the Lord Jesus instruction to some of his disciples at the very time he was tested. He understood and he understands our weaknesses. He is our High Priest as well as our Saviour.

There are two opposing forces, the spirit which is willing to pursue God’s perfection whereas the flesh is extremely weak and more often than not succumbs to temptation. What should we do on a practical level to achieve our goal?    

I have of late found a practical solicitation that must always be driven by the spirit and not the flesh, if driven the wrong way around it leaves us feeling somewhat self-contented, which in itself is dangerous territory, a place where pride is bred and we all know what happens to the proud; God resits them! It’s only the humble who find His grace to endure. So what would I like to share with others struggling in differing areas of their lives; it is a simple request but it is having profound benefits. Instead of praying to overcome the temptation and the thoughts that just pop into ones mind. Rather pray to have our minds changed so that we no longer have such thoughts. A subtle teak in our prayer, may just fine tune our receivers.

If peradventure God gives us our request, where does it then leave us, changed by His Spirit and not our own determination and fortitude that will leave us having to fend off pride! Praise God for His brilliance!

In conclusion let no one bewitch you in this regard, I was a man who once believe that lusciousness was not such a bad thing, only because somewhere deep down in the recesses of my mind I wanted to satisfy the lusts of my flesh. Perfection is contrary to our human natures. However with the Spirit of Christ now living within us the world is our oyster, perfection is attainable in principle and it must be the goal we search out. All this really means is that we must seek out God’s righteousness and daily put on the whole armour of God if we are to have any chance. Sin has and will always be the enemy of God and the sooner we realise that as our reality the faster we will be able to address our failures.

God my Father give us strength I pray to appropriate these truths to our lives, help us all to understand the areas we are weak in and bring us to a point of confession. I ask you to change our minds and help us put on the mind of Christ. Aid us all in pursuing your righteousness on our daily to-do lists. Not only impregnate that as a daily reflex but help us prioritise this as our most responsible priority.

I am persuaded Father God that by faith you will grant me my request, thank you for your love and the grace we receive on a daily basis. The road ahead is treacherous and it is filled with many twist and turns, however if God is for us who can be against us. There is a day coming when we will see our God face to face, but until then let us fight the good fight of faith.

Signing off

Tyrone    

A serious consideration

Let’s face it we do things to help ourselves and yet we are taught to help others. We are self-centered individuals, do not be fooled into believing anything else, its God who has been merciful and often comes to our rescue and the rescue of others on the back of our prayers. But it always starts with our own well-being, strip it down and you will have to agree. Even those secret deeds done in the closest are not without “self” first, even if it is only seeking out God’s forgiveness for a particular sin that we struggle with, it’s about us; we are the ones that need work. If and when will give clothes or food to the poor, it’s only after we are taken care of ourselves; us first and then others. This is our human natures personified. Warren Buffet may have given away billions to charity, but he made sure he had a buffer of billions before acting out. The Lord Jesus on the other hand had this to say; “foxes have holes and birds have nest by I have nowhere to lay my head.” He had another agenda; He came to do the will of His Father, which was to offer a lifeline to sinner, opening an everlasting door for sinner, those who once opposed the will of God to bring about true repentance in Him; a perfect sacrifice! And until we learn this truth and it becomes our reality that Jesus died in my place, he died for me and paid the price for my sin, until then, God’s mercy will pass us by…

The further we move along into the future the more predominant “self” will become…

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.” (2Timothy 3:1-5) - I suppose this circle of life has its part to play throughout history, study the history books and it will soon become apparent.

We must be aware of these truths and cry out unto God seeking out His will for our lives, as He ushers in the changes needed in our lives to be helpful to other bringing a proclamation that will glorify Him.

Have you ever contemplated why words such as these may have troubled you over time? “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” (James 4:2-3)

The more I study the authors intent, God’s intention throughout the Bible the clearer in becomes… Righteousness must be what drives us and not “food and raiment”, we must seek out God’s righteousness for our lives and the rest will be taken care of. Where we often make the mistake is when we get our priorities off beam, which the Apostle James pegs for us; “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”  I then ask myself the question does this apply to all; another subject for another day. However for the Christian it is imperative that the sooner we learn this lesson the quicker we will find the peace of God in our lives. Sure we have all experience His peace, you cannot be a Christian without the peace of God playing its part in your life, however I am looking for a constant rather than an exception, how about you?

It has and always will be about Gods righteousness, Jesus is the king of kings and His Father, our Father gave Him and instruction and this was His response to that order; “For when he received honour and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."” (2Peter 1:17) – Do not for one minute think that our call has a different emphasis placed upon it, it may differ in stature, but we have all been asked to carry the flag of our God, which reads – “seek first the kingdom of God and HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS and all …” This I believe is one of the most important lessons of life and yet everything about our flesh drives us in the opposite direction and for some of us we have been called to a life of knocks and bruises; praise God for His endurance with us, I thank you Father God for your forbearance’s with me, continue, I pray, to lead me to the waters of righteousness which will in turn transform me into the image of your beloved son, my beloved Saviour, Amen and Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone