Brothers dwelling in Unity!

(Psalms 133:1)  “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”

David understood the culinary advantages for brothers to eat and to share a table around the finished work of Calvary. I would liken it to honey in the rock in a dry and barren land. It is something we must never take for granted and we must fight with all our might for unity amongst the brethren. How thankful I am to God my Father for the unity we as brothers in Christ share around God and His Word on a Saturday mornings. For a long time I was in a barren land, with very little unity around God’s Word as I battled to come to truth with certain realities, that had been misrepresented.  I will say, amen! To what David has to say, “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”

The strength of any well thought out plan is for people to be unified in their objective. That goes for both the honourable as well as the criminal. Even organised crime would be less effective if it was not unified with criminals standing together in unity to rip off the public. What David is saying is how sweet it is when, Christians get together around the finished work of Christ with the same objective and that is to bring glory to their God, praise His name! These kinds of encounter help us find new strength to fly the banner of truth in our lives. It is something well worth dying for.

Christianity is filled with many proud and conceited individuals and I have no doubt played my part amongst that number. However there must come a time in our lives when we put off childish things and we look to fight for the common good of all true Christians across the globe. This does not mean at the exclusion of sound doctrine, but on the contrary, to stand up for truth and to allow the Word of God to speak and to break down strongholds in the minds of babes and those who have been blindsided with error as if it was the truth.

The time is at hand for all of God’s children to fight the good fight of faith and to help those who as weak and in need of a helping hand. It is imperative that we begin at home with our own lives as we look for grace to strengthen our own relationships with God our Father through the finished work of our great redeeming King the Lord Jesus. Prayer a vital pillar to that relationship.

Instead of looking for reasons why we will avoid certain brothers if indeed they are brothers in Christ, let us fight to have sweet fellowship with them in unity around Christ. What is it that will change our understanding on any given topic? What will open our eyes to the truth if we have misunderstood certain doctrines and misrepresented them? I am convinced, for us to arrive at a place of understanding it is all about humility before our great God. If we can learn to echo the words of Paul to Timothy and make them our own, I believe we too with David will echo his statement about brothers and unity. This then was Paul’s instruction to Timothy; “Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” (2Timothy 2:23-26)

We must act in a particular manner when handling the Word of Life, we must patiently endure evil in gentleness; however it is only God who can grant man repentance and help them come to their senses.

Let us not mistake gentleness for the accommodation of error and the doctrines of devils. Wolves are not to be accommodated in any shape or form, even the lion was no match for the shepherd boy David; at any sight of them he destroyed them and protected his sheep: "But David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him.” (1Samuel 17:34-35):- Elijah did exactly the same thing, he openly opposed those who opposed His God, if the challenge comes against the truth of God's Word it must be openly addressed so that the wolves are exposed.  

My plea is to those who have Christ’s Spirit across the denominations, there are Presbyterians, Baptists, Pentecostals as well as many other church groups that preach Christ and Him crucified and who have amongst their number those who confess Jesus as Lord, all of God’s children, His election and those who are known by God.

I have often wondered why any one particular church had not received the fullness of the measure in application on how a local assembly should operate. I think it has something to do with the necessity of keeping us humble. I may be wrong! But what I do know is what David teachers us; “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” And this must be our objective; we must fight for it and learn from one another.

The sooner we understand that our kidneys play their effective role in our own bodies and that we need then to flush out any impurities, the sooner we learn to work for them and not against them. If we learn that our kidneys are about to fail, we will not now go out of our way to go on an alcoholic binge, unless we have a death wish. So too has God placed each member in the body as it has pleased him; I now speak to the universal church and not the local assembly; we can and must learn from one another. For if we remain firm on our laurels and refuse to receive nourishment from our brothers we will not share and understand David’s sentiment on what it means to dwell in unity. We will suffer loss!

God help us to learn to stand on His truth and for us to lay down our lives for our brothers especially when we do not have unity as a common denominator. As the battle begins to gain momentum it is important that we know who is with us and who then is the true enemy.

“What it is that is commended - brethren's dwelling together in unity, not only not quarrelling, and devouring one another, but delighting in each other with mutual endearments, and promoting each other's welfare with mutual services. Sometimes it is chosen, as the best expedient for preserving peace, that brethren should live asunder and at a distance from each other; that indeed may prevent enmity and strife (Gen_13:9), but the goodness and pleasantness are for brethren to dwell together and so to dwell in unity, to dwell even as one (so some read it), as having one heart, one soul, one interest. David had many sons by many wives; probably he penned this psalm for their instruction, to engage them to love another, and, if they had done this, much of the mischief that arose in his family would have been happily prevented. The tribes of Israel had long had separate interests during the government of the Judges, and it was often of bad consequence; but now that they were united under one common head he would have them sensible how much it was likely to be for their advantage, especially since now the ark was fixed, and with it the place of their rendezvous for public worship and the centre of their unity. Now let them live in love.

II. How commendable it is: Behold, how good and how pleasant it is! It is good in itself, agreeable to the will of God, the conformity of earth to heaven. It is good for us, for our honour and comfort. It is pleasant and pleasing to God and all good men; it brings constant delight to those who do thus live in unity. Behold, how good! We cannot conceive or express the goodness and pleasantness of it. Behold it is a rare thing, and therefore admirable. Behold and wonder that there should be so much goodness and pleasantness among men, so much of heaven on this earth! Behold it is an amiable thing, which will attract our hearts. Behold it is an exemplary thing, which, where it is, is to be imitated by us with a holy emulation.” (Matthew Henry)

Signing off

Tyrone  

Pray without ceasing!

(1Thessolonians 5:17)  “Pray without ceasing.”

The ability and liberty in ones prayer life is a good indicator on where we stand before our Holy Father, if we have something to hide we will not have a liberty to express ourselves openly before Him. Obviously we can hide nothing from God and it is imprudent to even try. And yet I find myself having to constantly guard against the deceitfulness of my own heart in this area of my life, forgive me Father God.

Communication is the greatest tool in our arsenal, we have received the ability to converse openly with our heavenly Father; by His grace we must learn to use it wisely; to be open face before God our heavenly Father is our only option, do not be deceived into believing that all is well when in fact it is not. If our agenda’s do not coincide with God’s will then we walk as carnal men, and we will never please God. But open honest prayer life is a good indicator to help us understand where we stand spiritually; in other words how we have matured as Christians can be measured by the liberty we have to pray openly before God. If we have nothing to say, we either walk carnally by not giving God much thought throughout the day, or we live in habitual sin and it is a hindrance to our prayer life. We turn a blind eye to that which does not please God our Father.

When Paul says, “pray without ceasing”; that in itself is our own barometer, an ongoing check, that we walk in the spirit and not in the flesh; stop praying and we are inviting the old man to once again live in our lives. I like Samuels response in this portion of scripture, look how he ties ceasing to pray in with sin; “And Samuel said to the people, "Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the LORD will not forsake his people, for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you a people for himself. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. Only fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider what great things he has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king." (1Samuel 12:20-25)

 “Pray without ceasing,” 1Th_5:17. “Note, The way to rejoice evermore is to pray without ceasing. We should rejoice more if we prayed more. We should keep up stated times for prayer, and continue instant in prayer. We should pray always, and not faint: pray without weariness, and continue in prayer, till we come to that world where prayer shall be swallowed up in praise. The meaning is not that men should do nothing but pray, but that nothing else we do should hinder prayer in its proper season. Prayer will help forward and not hinder all other lawful business, and every good work. 3. In every thing give thanks, 1Th_5:18. If we pray without ceasing, we shall not want matter for thanksgiving in every thing. As we must in every thing make our requests known to God by supplications, so we must not omit thanksgiving, Phi_4:6. We should be thankful in every condition, even in adversity as well as prosperity. It is never so bad with us but it might be worse. If we have ever so much occasion to make our humble complaints to God, we never can have any reason to complain of God, and have always much reason to praise and give thanks: the apostle says, This is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us, that we give thanks, seeing God is reconciled to us in Christ Jesus; in him, through him, and for his sake, he allows us to rejoice evermore, and appoints us in every thing to give thanks. It is pleasing to God. 4. Quench not the Spirit (1Th_5:19), for it is this Spirit of grace and supplication that helpeth our infirmities, that assisteth us in our prayers and thanksgivings. Christians are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost and with fire. He worketh as fire, by enlightening, enlivening, and purifying the souls of men. We must be careful not to quench this holy fire. As fire is put out by withdrawing fuel, so we quench the Spirit if we do not stir up our spirits, and all that is within us, to comply with the motions of the good Spirit; and as fire is quenched by pouring water, or putting a great quantity of dirt upon it, so we must be careful not to quench the Holy Spirit by indulging carnal lusts and affections, or minding only earthly things.” (Matthew Henry)

May God help all His children view prayer with a greater urgency that the day before, Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

 

     

Step back and pause!

Today is a day I want to slow down with my thoughts and reel them in a little, which I must tell you, it is not an easy thing to do. Although God the Holy Spirit undoubtedly leads and directs all the children of God we have a safe guard to make sure we do not lose our way with a particular thought. We have history on our side! Let me explain; God is the same yesterday, today and forever; He is the great I AM! Praise His glorious name. How then does history of any form play its part? Christ Spirit then plays His part through others who have gone before us. Every child of God, every true born again believer receives Christ’s Spirit at salvation. It is part of the exchange from old to new. So now, every believer has the same mind to work from; “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. "For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.” (1Corinthians 2:12-16)

With this understood I often find myself running ahead with a thought as revelation deepens and I get excited with my new found understanding. But in order to make sure I am not being blindsided by pride and the like it is a good thing to look to others who have the mind of Christ and see what they saw on the topic I now find myself contemplating. With that in mind I do not want us to forget the roles we have been called to play as individuals in the body of Christ; many members but one body; we do not all have the same function and we must understand this, which many of us haven’t actually understood, especially in reformed circles. We need each other in the Body of Christ, but we also need to give place to each and every member to function in the body of Christ (church), no differently to how my fingers work with my keyboard and my eyes direct them to the keys, with my mind processing the information. Unity in perfect harmony! It is the members of my body working together that help me achieve my objective, which is to post this blog shortly.

WE NEED ONE ANOTHER the sooner we understand this the better it will be for us and for all involved in the body of Christ. It is God’s design and if we want to be about His will then surely we need to function under his direction; “For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.” (Romans 12:4-11)

If a teacher now teachers the Word of God, it would be a good practice to see what other have taught on the same subject, However I would not say that we should live only in another man’s revelation, Christianity is personal and so we should learn to understand our role as believers, on a personal level. We have a teacher and He is God, God the Holy Spirit; “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26)

Nevertheless I also have an enemy and we know where he loves to play; in the minds of men; "Did God actually say, “ is the question he loves to ask, Satan our enemy! The Lord Jesus has defeated Him once and for all, but he still prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.

My conclusions then, I take the direction and guidance of the Holy Spirit very seriously, it is my first point of reference when looking to understand the scriptures in relation to my own life on a personal level. But I do not consider those who have already run their race and come out on the other side with much fruit to their lives, as something of the past. I believe that they too can help me understand what God requires from me when I look to see what they understood on any given subject. God the Holy Spirit was also their teacher as He is mine. If I do not reason with this clarity I then am conceited and what I am actually saying is that I am better than them, as God gives me direction but I am not sure they also received it. Pride waiting for a fall! His understanding should not be different as God is God and He cannot change as He is perfect and in no need of any change. As much as I need their input in my life, a man like C.H.Spurgeon has opened my eyes to a lot I would not have seen without His influence. God used Him and is still using him to teach me certain truths! However we must never be insensitive to the other perspectives that the other members of the body of Christ would bring to a certain subject. Think on it like this, ask five people to describe a sunset and then package that into one explanation and the listener would be far more informed about the sunset.  

Where we go wrong is when the teacher wants to be artist and the artist looks to become the teacher; the hand looks to be the foot and visa-versa! Both members are needed in the body for it to function effectively.

God help us to understand the importance of each member in the church and to pray for their liberty within their particular churches so that Christ may be glorified and we may grow up in unity and into adults in love; “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Ephesians 4:13) 

Signing off

Tyrone     

  

  

Trusting the Word!

(Romans 12:1) “…present your bodies as a living sacrifice…”

A living sacrifice is something far different to a sacrifice that was once alive but now is dead. A sacrifice speaks of death and yet we are instructed to die through life. It is an ongoing ritual and not a one off event as it was in the days of Moses where sacrifices were introduced through the institution of the law, God’s Ten Commandments. An animal could only ever be offered once as a sacrifice, he would be alive before the procedural and then dead after it. We have been instructed with this imperative from our beloved brother Paul, to be a living sacrifice, that means a continual sacrifice, a way of life and not a one off event; “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.” (Romans 12:1)   

He stresses this point because I believe he understood the importance behind being “a living sacrifice”, it is a “trigger” to bring forth fruit unto God, call it pruning a fruit tree if you like. Without a self-denial of all that opposes God’s will and His character in our lives we are rendered fruitless. What is the fruit we are after? The fruits of the Spirit, which are; “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” They have become a living sacrifice.

What would make a man boast with such boldness if he hadn’t understood the way in which God blesses his children with fruit; “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven--whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into paradise--whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows-- and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2Corinthians 12:2-10)

I hope we are beginning at least to understand if we haven’t already understood that we are at our strongest in faith when we are hard-pressed. Paul is very clear on this; “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  When everything seems to be running smoothly from a worldly perspective, life’s achievements and the like, then we think we are strong and yet we are actually weak in the faith. It is when I understand this type of requirement from God my Father; I then begin to understand this statement with a lot more clarity; “that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1Corinthians2:5)

It is the trial of life that places a dependence upon us to look to God for strength, but the world preaches another message and that is self-sufficiency. God will bring down that message with a great crash, He has already defeated their leader, Satan has been overpowered in and through the work of God’s beloved Son the Lord Jesus, where and when He defeated him once and for all on Golgotha’s hill. All praise belongs to our glorious King; praise His name now and forever more.

For Christ sake God the Father will continue to work under this banner; “that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” It has been this way from the beginning and so it will continue. Have we learnt to accept it and have we welcomed adversity just as Paul learnt to do? Will we learn to align our wills with His? Which was; “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.”

I am persuaded that the battle to relinquish our own will takes place in our own minds; but until we accept the truth and what the Word of God teachers on any given subject, we will never change. There must first be an acceptance to what is taught before we will experience change. Fight the Word and we will never experience spiritual grow, we will remain infants all our lives.

The trick of deception is to get someone to believe a lie as the truth; Satan’s foundation to all of his lies. The cornerstone to all his trickery; “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God actually say,’…” (Genesis 3:1) 

God help us to have eyes to see, Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone

Power of Salvation!

There always seems to be some cause or voice we can attach ourselves to without too much effort. Just as I scroll through the first few posts on my Facebook page and I realize that the catch phrase “much to do about nothing” plays its part in our lives. Not that any given topic may mean nothing to us, on the contrary, because a certain topic grabs our hearts we are quick to get involved, it gives us a voice and a purpose. There is much we can learn from social media platforms like Facebook.

At times it doesn’t take much be noticed, but I have a concern, what about the real issues of life, heaven, hell and the perfect work of Calvary? We do not see too many getting involved with the Christian cause and we do not see many reposts about our love for Christ. If only I had the ability to open a person’s eyes to the truth of what Christ achieve on Calvary, if only I wielded a magic wand, and yet I actually do to some degree, not because of my ability but because of what God has equipped us with, His Son’s Spirit and we are able to cry “Abba Father”.

All those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord, have all been given the measure of reconciliation. Our words, when declaring the simple message of the gospel carry with it an enchanted power and the Apostle Paul explains it like this; “I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:14-16)

Not enchanted abracadabra but we rather have a duty in some measure at least to declare the simple message of the cross, not only to those who we think will listen. We must wherever and whenever the opportunities arise speak about what the Lord Jesus Christ achieved on earth for mankind. Even if we think a person will never respond, the power of the gospel resonates with God’s ability and not our feeble projections, never forget that! Paul understood and now teaches us that he is not ashamed of the gospel and neither should we be, why? “For it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.”

Our great God and Father has chosen to unfold His perfect plan in this manner, He could have rather of chosen to prove His existence by miraculously appearing in the heaven doing mighty signs and wonders and yet He chose to be a small still voice, possibly your voice will be used as a tool by God to open a sinners eyes and to cause him to fall to his knees and to find repentance. If that isn’t glorious then I am not sure what is! A man dead in his trespass and sins, damned to hell for all eternity unless he repent and God may use our voice to help him turn, what a glorious thought! A man hard as nails and then by just sharing a simple message about Christ’s accomplishment on their behalf and wallah; a grown man brought to tears as God comes and makes his abode in that individuals life.

KISS (keep it simple stupid), the simple message of the gospel, not with big swelling words or with might, all we need to do is simply declare the truth and then to watch God the Holy Spirit where and when He chose to save. I saw my entire family get turned around from believing our own independent lies, who we thought God was and what He meant to us as individuals. We all had our own ideas! Within a year almost my entire family was confessing Jesus as Lord. Why, because someone was not ashamed of the Gospel and had gone out of his way to preach it to us.

Faith then comes from hearing, and hearing the word of God. We must be sure to keep the unadulterated message of the cross simple and concise and not to start running off with big swelling words. Just get a person to understand what Christ came to do; He died for sinner so that they could go free, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God! People must be brought to this point; do they need a saviour or will their own works get then to heaven? But unless words bring them to a place to make that decision, no decision will need to be made. It is not enough to simple believe. Individuals must believe in the resurrection and then confess Jesus as Lord. But there can be no hard and fast rule when it comes to salvation; “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)

But this I will say and echo the words of Paul; “I am not ashamed of the gospel as it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes”. Let us therefore remember to tell people the “old story”, how God became a man, went to a cruel death for a crime He never committed, and He did it for whosoever. What that individual does with it is out of our hands; but let us must remember, “The gospel is the power of God unto salvation for everyone that believes”.

Signing off

Tyrone

    

Christ's perfect Example!

I often have good intentions that do not always turn into actions. The Bible teaches me that if I know how I could help in any given situation and I do not act upon it, then it is sin; This is the question we must ask ourselves and see if we are clear in the matter; "For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you." (2Corinthians 1:12) 

“Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.” (Isaiah 1:17): - Therefore when the scripture teachers us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice unto God, how must we do that? We must personally, on a practical level, get our hands dirty. We must get involved! Do not be fooled, Christianity is a walk for the faithful, and not for those who are unable to endure hardship. It is training of the elite and we must and will remember our Captain’s example; we must learn to follow Him. There has been no greater leader throughout history, how He has lead from the front with such persistence and humility coupled into one, without the enemy ever penetrating His defence. Praise the glorious name of Jesus! I know I have often had my defence penetrated, but "while we have breath we have hope" and we must once again get up and resolve to fight the good fight of our faith, no matter how many times we fall. “If God be for us who can be against us”! Faith has a promise attached to it, our great Redeeming King; the Lord Jesus Christ will get His Father’s children Home. Come what may, we must have the faith of Joshua and Caleb and if we have His Spirit then we have that faith. God has given it to us, praise His name!

The Lord Jesus marched forth on earth with His Father’s will in the forefront of His mind and He marched to victory. But His march was not the march of a king but He was treated as a stray dog and as a lamb to the slaughter they lead Him to die on a cruel Roman cross. And through it all, He was able to forgive not only in His heart but audibly He pronounced His forgiveness and uttered these glorious words; “And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."” (Luke 23:34)

Let us consider what it was that the Lord was forgiving His accusers for; where do I begin?        

Christ our Saviour was not just a man of words but of action; "But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. "If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:27-35)

Here we see the Lord giving his disciples instruction on how to practically act in a world that demands and takes its pound of flesh. For all those who have received Christ Spirit, we are His disciples! These instructions then apply to us! It is far easy to turn a blind eye to the one in need and to justify why we shouldn’t help, we reason like this; I work so why doesn’t he! The point in case is this; the Lord Jesus gave verbal instructions but then He was not only willing to be tested but was established by His very own teachings.

This is how they treated the One who came to save the lost; “Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.” (Isaiah 53:1-12)

Our great Saviour not just a man of many words but action a way of life, God give us ears to hear and help us to be more like Him we cry, Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone  

Hallowed be thou Name!

(Matthew 6:9) …"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.”

“Hallowed be thou Name”! It is a marvelous thought to think on, the consecrated name of our Lord and King in light of Jehovah God as the only true God, for He is “hallowed” and “hallowed” be His name. Do we register the severity and magnitude of what we are actually saying? I am not sure we do. When we recite “our Father” and we declare “hallowed be thou name” does is register, does it resonate and do we get it? I am not sure I have grasped this truth as I should have. In fact I know I haven’t, forgive me Father God! But this morning I would like to consider the hallowed name of God, my God!

Holy, sanctified, blessed, consecrated, deified, sacred, revered, respected and that would only be my opening sentence. Our God is so much higher than the heavens that our carnal minds cannot begin to process and conceive who this great God actually is. We are told it is impossible to put a face or to relate to him in the natural. Why? Because we are dead in our trespasses and our sins; we are dead to the spiritual realm because of sin, until this “hallowed God”, our God stepped in by sending His only beloved Son to pay the price for sinners so that they could go free. “Hallowed be His name”!

Even those who appear to be religious are blind to the heavens and they cannot see it unless they are born again, this is what the Lord Jesus taught; “Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.": - Therefore there is a provisory condition, one must be born again, not that a person must re-enters their mother’s womb a second time, that is obviously not possible, but we are clearly taught that there are two worlds, a world of the natural and the world of the spirits; God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24): - So in order for us to enter into a relationship with God, we need to have our eyes opened to the spiritual world. How is this done? We are born again! Without this personal event in our live we will not make it to heaven; “Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”” (John 3:5)

A simple explanation and not difficult to conceptualise, or is it? If you still live in the natural world and perceive with human intellect, what I have just said will appear like gibberish and your mind will be unable to process the concept. But if we have been “born again” and if regeneration has happened in your life then what the Lord has to say on the subject will be easily understood.

But before we get lost in translation, let us not be so captivated with the concept of having to be “born again”. When God reveals Himself to a person, He firstly quickens him in the Spirit and this is why this remains a mystery for some, but for others it is a new lease on life, true life! Life in the Spirit! And this is how the Lord Jesus explains the transition in Christians lives; “Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." (John 3:7-8)

The only reason some will be able to cry out to God in Spirit and truth is because of Christ’s selfless act on Calvary, Hallowed be His name!  God the Father send His only begotten Son to earth to live as a man and to die a cursed death for a crime He never committed. Hallowed be His name! What man would ever do such a thing? But God! Hallowed be His name!

The Lord Jesus hung upon that cruel Roman cross on the hill of Golgotha and the masses jeered and mocked Him, with taunts of “if you be God”! God He was, is and forever will be and yet He did not call the angels from heaven to free Him from the cross and to smite His accuses, but rather uttered these words; “And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And they cast lots to divide his garments.” (Luke 23:34):- Hallowed be His name!

“When we were united by faith to Christ, we were brought into such complete fellowship with him, that we were made one with him, and his interests and ours became mutual and identical. We have fellowship with Christ in his love. What he loves we love. He loves the saints-so do we. He loves sinners-so do we. He loves the poor perishing race of man, and pants to see earth’s deserts transformed into the garden of the Lord-so do we. We have fellowship with him in his desires. He desires the glory of God-we also labour for the same. He desires that the saints may be with him where he is-we desire to be with him there too. He desires to drive out sin-behold we fight under his banner. He desires that his Father’s name may be loved and adored by all his creatures-we pray daily, “Let thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, even as it is in heaven.” We have fellowship with Christ in his sufferings. We are not nailed to the cross, nor do we die a cruel death, but when he is reproached, we are reproached; and a very sweet thing it is to be blamed for his sake, to be despised for following the Master, to have the world against us. The disciple should not be above his Lord. In our measure we commune with him in his labours, ministering to men by the word of truth and by deeds of love. Our meat and our drink, like his, is to do the will of him who hath sent us and to finish his work. We have also fellowship with Christ in his joys. We are happy in his happiness, we rejoice in his exaltation. Have you ever tasted that joy, believer? There is no purer or more thrilling delight to be known this side heaven than that of having Christ’s joy fulfilled in us, that our joy may be full. His glory awaits us to complete our fellowship, for his Church shall sit with him upon his throne, as his well-beloved bride and queen.” (C.H.Spurgeon)

HALLOWED BE THY NAME!

Signing off

Tyrone

 

  

   

     

God meant it for good!

(Genesis 50:20)  “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.”

Just as Joseph’s brothers meant to destroy him by selling him into slavery and how Satan meant to destroy mankind by getting them to eat from the forbidden tree, God always has a perfect plan.  

Have you ever considered why God chose to allow mankind to fall? Well obviously His intellect is brilliantly above ours, for Him to be able to take the simple and to confine the wise is no mean feat and yet He does it to perfection. Everything God does is perfect; it may have to run its course but ultimately all that God has instituted will prove perfect when it is place under scrutiny at the Great Judgment of God. Sin with all its evil desire will be proved as a perfect facilitator proving righteousness; it will highlight the Goodness of God and His perfect persona. Utopia is a pleasant word and I like the sound of it; it is a goal we as individuals are afforded an opportunity to shoot for. Sinful man who is far from any form of perfection in comparison to that which is perfect, Jehovah God! Now through our lives, because of a conscious awareness of sin and it destructive potential to get us to do what we know we shouldn’t do in any given situation and yet we do it anyway now becomes our teacher causing us to cry out for help. It is only when we understand our state as sinners, will we ever call on the name of the Lord to be saved.

However without the “knowledge of good and evil” how would we learn to differentiate between the two? Why did God let Eve eat the fruit in the Garden of Eden and not step in and stop her? It was just a page in a chapter of God’s perfect plan. It is when we think we are smarted than this perfect God, the only true God that we flirt with eternal damnation. How can a God of love allow child abuse is the reasoning of some? The fullness of time will reveal all and manifest God’s perfection. Without the conception of that which is evil how would we value that which is good? Hence the perfect work of Calvary, the greatest event of all time, without any equal.

Without the knowledge of that which is evil, sin with its incriminatory hold on our lives, why would we ever look for a Saviour? There would have been no need. Does a man drink water if he is not thirsty? The law of God (concepts of that which is good and evil) then a teacher to help us understand, that we in ourselves are far from the perfection of God and in despairing trouble. So then the realization of sin in our own lives then brings us to a comprehension that we need a Saviour or hell will be our final destination. Without understanding that which is evil, why would we ever look for a Saviour? We wouldn’t!

Without Eve yielding to the devils temptation which led to her biting into the fruit of the “knowledge of good and evil”, there would have been no need for the law and then no need for Christ to die on our behalf. But this would have also left us without any choice in our actions. As soon as they knew they were naked in the Garden what did they do? They sewed fig leaves together and clothed their nakedness. They were consciously aware of it, but not before they had eaten from the forbidden tree.

Could God have chosen to unroll his perfect plan in a different way? He didn’t! The audacity of some and yet I was once amongst that number! It is the goodness of God that leads a man to repentance, let us never forget it! Those so foolish to challenge God and His plan! The definition of foolishness; (Lacking or exhibiting a lack of good sense or judgment; silly: foolish remarks. Resulting from stupidity or misinformation): - When has the clay ever had power over the potter? It is a beautiful thing to get these glimpses from God into His plan and character. Did you know? “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.” (Romans 8:7): - However would this verse have had the sane meaning if our consciousness had not been awaked to the “knowledge of good and evil”? I think not!

Our eyes have been opened to the righteousness of God, if we have His Spirit, we now belong to Him; “But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” (Romans 8:10)

Without understanding the wickedness of sin there would be no need for seeking out that which is good. God is good! How do we know this on a personal level? This is a question that is easy to answer; "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 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 3:16-18)   

    

The laws of God then a reflection of His own character and a reflection of how short we fall from it. It is the “knowledge of good and evil” which helps us understand that we are in desperate need of help. Hence, this is why God intervened on our behalf by sending His Son to die in our place so that we could go free; “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.”

“What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory—“ (Romans 9:22-23)

I trust we understand the need for our awakening to that which is both good and evil before we can really understand that which is good. God is good!

“But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (1Corinthians 1:23-25) 

Signing off

Tyrone

Pay earnest heed!

(1Corinthians 1:18) “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

“Lift up your voices salvation is calling”; it’s not those that are hopeful, without calling out on the name of the Lord, who has any true hope. And the more one fixates on ones hope the more one will call upon the name of the Lord. But there is an enemy and he is ferocious; if faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God, then time must be given to it. It will be impossible to ignite our hope will any real vigour without spending time in the Word. One could compare it to a world class athlete who never trains but expects to win Olympic gold and then when they don’t, they seem somewhat disappointed.

Propaganda is an interesting concept; it is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group. This word is often use in a negative sense, but if we want to have the faith of a mustard seed we need to be engrossed in the Bible. Our minds need to be renewed with the Holy Scriptures. I am realizing the less time I spend contemplating God’s Word the less fruitful I become and visa-versa. It is all linked to our mental and verbal connection to our Lord and Saviour. The older I get the harder it is to spool some of my thoughts and the only way I am able to combat them is to spend time reading and praying around God’s Word and obviously, with the help of God the Holy Spirit.

I have quantified the obvious, but it is only palpable if we make it our own, so if we are not spending time with the Lord and in His Word we will be more susceptible to the enemy; Satan as well as the lusts of our own flesh. One cannot tell oneself that I must arm my mind with the “mind of Christ” and then sit back and in faith hope I change, we must be proactive and feed on the nourishment from God’s Word and it will be marrow to our bones. Although we have been created with a memory, we also have a “forgettory” if you like and this is why we must be diligent, or at least learn to be assiduous when it comes to spending time feeding the Spirit. The lie that often presents itself is that it is not that important, but in fact it is so important our life depends on it.

The concept is not foreign to us, if we want to lose weight we go on a diet and exercise and before long we witness positive results. God help us to put more time aside for Him than the day before and it won’t be long and we will see positive results. The fruits of the Spirit will become evident in our lives. The more we bath in the fountain of life the more our ongoing sanctification process will begin to make inroads into holy living and the meeker we will become. I have been found wanting and I need to change my attention to seek out God’s Word with a lot more diligence.

The Word of God is designed to equip the believer in combat against all that which is evil, when we chose to put it aside or give no thought to it we are found wanting. The Word of God is aimed and designed to influence our mindsets, it is a help to lead us in a particular direction, it is a form of “propaganda” and it leads to life eternal and there is nothing negative about it. If you believe that your flesh is inherently good and you within yourself have something positive in the eyes of God to offer this world, then you will look to avoid this counsel as it is designed to keep the body under. It helps the body and all our preconceived ideas about how great we are, die a slow death. In fact it actually exposes the exact opposite; it proves how far I am from God’s holiness and it leaves me rather deflated at times. It leaves me with a great dependency on my great God and Saviour to get me home. I realize that without my great King, the Lord Jesus, I will never attain to the resurrection. And by spending time in the Word of God I am so reminded; thank you Father God for your perfect plan. Many may frown upon it, but they live with a false sense of security, help me remember the importance of it, I pray!

Help all of your children across the globe pay more earnest heed to this discipline, which is to spend more time on our knees and more time reading the inspired Word of God, Amen!

May we remember that no man ever served God by doing something tomorrow, today is the day of salvation, we must act today and not put it off until tomorrow. This then must become our mindset and resolve.

Signing off

Tyrone   

Wisdom has an ear!

(Proverbs 1:5)  “Let the wise hear and increase in learning…”

The knowledge of what the wise man would look like; a common drive in most human beings, after all who wants to be known as a fool? And yet it often takes becoming a fool before we begin to understand wisdom. King Solomon had 1000 wives (300 wives, 700 concubines), which could not have been easy! Imagine the strife it must have caused and yet he is classed amongst the wisest of men. How did he arrive with that title? May we remember it is a title given to him by the inspired Word of God, the Bible! 

Was not the trial of life his teacher!

Let us look at the mindset of King Solomon; “And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?" It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you.” (1Kings 3:7-12)  

The Apostle James reiterates the importance of seeking out wisdom in our lives; “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (James 1:5): - But remember when we ask, it will come with its own price, it must teach us to die.

King Solomon lived in a dispensation when the law was the schoolmaster for the household of the Jewish faith. Animal sacrifices for sins committed, a way of life. Hard for us in the 21^st Century to relate to this type of lifestyle, there are activist that would sooner hang a person for animal cruelty than a person murdering a thug.

Yet on further thought it is only by experience that we are able to sympathise with others in times of difficulty. It was up to the high priest to enter a chamber known as the holy of holies, to present himself before God for the sins of the people. Sometimes his sacrifice was accepted but there were times when they had to pull him out by the rope tire to his leg. His sacrifice not accepted and he then died where he stood. Imagine the turmoil in that man’s mind, a proxy for others and it could have cost him his life.

The Lord Jesus now steps in; His time is at hand; except for Him there was no possibility of survival. Die He must! The bible coins this phrase; “therefore I have set my face like a flint”. The Lord Jesus knew what needed to be done and He never flinched. In fact they tried their utmost to get Him to copout on His commitment to His Father and yet He went the extra mile; “I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.” (Isaiah 50:6): - The Lord Jesus did more than accept His fate, He freely offered it! Why? So that sinners like you and me could find forgiveness through repentance and go free. No longer would we have to stand trial for our sin.

But what did this teach the Lord Jesus if anything and what can we learn from His example? The Apostle Peter gives us insight to this question; “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.” (1Peter 4:1)

We must arm our minds to suffer in the flesh, why? So that we may learn to stop yielding to sin and it rule. What does this have to do with wisdom? Everything! The world and its principles teach us this attitude, an eye for an eye. But love trains us to turn the other cheek. And the only way we will learn to love one another as ourselves, is to die. How will we die? By suffering! It is not a complicated concept to understand, where it becomes tricky is our willingness to die.

May God help us become more like our great and glorious Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone    

     

Tender Mercies!

This morning I woke up to a message on my iPhone, “Software Update” is available and it will fix bugs affecting battery life. If you have an iPhone then you will know that their battery life is not their strongest feature, so obviously this message was appealing. I will download the new software without delay; my phone is already plugged in awaiting its upgrade. My question is do we act as efficiently when it comes to the Word of God and its instruction for our lives? It will have much more effectual benefit to our lives if we live but its rule and we learn to instinctively to walk in the Spirit.

I have had a glimpse into why the psalmist got so excited about the Lords loving kindness and why I also get excited when I consider the magnitude of almighty God’s tender compassion. A God, the only true God to be more accurate, has it in His power to speak creation into existence; the mountains, a dead lump of rock trembles when He speaks. A single command, “be gone” and it will no longer remain, fascinating if you believe my reasoning, nevertheless very much the truth! God spoke creation into existence!

The concept of reading God’s Word and then processing it with our own minds, seems to be common to all who read God’s Word, the Bible. But it is only once the words we read become a personal living experience; it will only then have any lasting substance to our lives.

We are clearly taught that God resist the proud and gives grace to the humble and it seems that the more zealous of the disciples, when it came to the importance of action over words, are in fact the ones that taught us this. Both Peter and James taught that God requires His sons to be of a humble spirit and that He would and will resist the proud. If one is right in their understanding on any given topic will this excuse them in God’s eyes if they laud it over those who lack understanding? I think not, the statement does not have a proviso attached to it, it simple states; “But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:6)

So it is not until we are in a state of humility will we be able to echo the words of the psalmist; thy lovingkindness in better than life itself. Christianity is an experiential experience; it is not enough to say we believe and to say we relate if we have not related to our God in person. How many times have I felt like a failure, more than I would care to remember, I do not speak about failure as a man in a material world, although I have also suffered there, but the reference I make is the times I have failed God in my life. Disappointment after disappointment and yet the lovingkindness of my Great God and Father never disappoints, praise His glorious name.

It saddens my heart to confess that it normally always takes a fall for me to realise the wonderful position of humility, it is a place where we have absolutely no boast within ourselves, and we are solely dependent on the mercies of God. Do you remember the story of the good father and the prodigal son? "But when he came to himself (his senses), he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' (Luke 15:17-19)

It was in this state that the father poured out and abundance of mercy on his undeserving son, and yet because of his humility, he was given that which he did not deserve. Why? Because the father had it in His power to give!

I suppose the harder we fall the humbler we become, or should I say, should become as it is part of the learning process. We are now back to yesterday’s blog, will we fall on Christ our Rock or will he fall on us?

It is through this experience I am also able to echo the psalmist sentiments, that my God’s love is tangible and I do not only believe it because David pens similar words but because I have personally experienced the tender touch of God my Father and for this I am truly thankful.

You may be feeling low, all you need to do is come to God the Father, just as you are without one plead of self-justification, call out to the Lord Jesus from that place of brokenness and you will be heard. You may say, but I have been here numerous times, ah I will say, what of it, humble yourself under the mighty hand of God and watch him work. And you too will be able to share in psalmist sentiments; “Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!” (Psalms 117:1-2)

Father God I thank you from the very bottom of my heart for you tender mercies and for the bottomless fountain of your loving kindness; with that in mind I pray make me, make us your children more like our glorious Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

Signing off

Tyrone