Christ in all the Scriptures

One Year Bible: February 11 - Exodus 9:1-10:29; Matthew 26:69-27:10; Psalm 20:1-9

2012-02-11T00:01:00.002Z

Exodus 9:1-10:29; Matthew 26:69-27:10; Psalm 20:1-9

The tragedies of Pharaoh and Judas continue - "the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart ... Moses replied ... I will never appear before you again" (Exodus 10:27-28). Judas "went away and hanged himself" (Matthew 27:5). This is the tragedy of those whose hearts are hardened against the Lord. The opportunity of grace comes. It is missed. It is never so near again. This is the tragedy of spiritual suicide. The contrast between Pharaoh and Israel is clear : "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm" (Psalm 20:7-8). The contrast between Judas and Jesus is clear: "I know that the Lord gives victory to His anointed (Christ). He answers him from His heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of His right hand" (Psalm 20:6). The Resurrection is God's answer to prayer of the Christ: "Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit" (Luke 23:46).

One Month in Proverbs - Day 15

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Proverbs 15:1-33

‘The path of life leads upward for the wise’ (24). The wisdom which leads upward is centred on Christ. He is the Way to the ‘Father’s House’ (John 14:2-3,6). ‘Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble with it’ (17). Jesus teaches us the way to live wisely: ‘lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven’ (Matthew 6:20) - ‘I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I’d rather be His than have riches untold...’ (Mission Praise, 319). ‘The lips of the wise spread knowledge’ (7). Christ is our Wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30). We must not keep Him to ourselves. Share Him with others. Let people know that Jesus is your Saviour. Let them know that He is your Lord. Don’t just ‘believe in your heart’. ‘Confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord’ (Romans 10:9). Your words will help others to find Him.

One Year Bible: February 10 - Exodus 6:13-8:32; Matthew 26:47-68; Psalm 19:7-14

2012-02-10T00:01:00.003Z

Exodus 6:13-8:32; Matthew 26:47-68; Psalm 19:7-14

There is a clear similarity between Pharaoh and Judas. Pharaoh said, "I will let you go ... " (Exodus 8:28). He didn't keep his promise. "Judas said, 'Greetings, Rabbi!' and kissed Jesus" (Matthew 26:49). He betrayed Jesus. How are we to avoid this hypocrisy, this marked discrepancy between our words and our actions? Psalm 19:7 points the way - "The Law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul."

One Month in Proverbs - Day 14

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Proverbs 14:1-35

‘A perverse man will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man with the fruit of his deeds’ (14). Jesus speaks to us about ‘good fruit’ and ‘bad fruit’. He warns us not to be deceived by those who have no real love for Him: ‘You will know them by their fruits’ (Matthew 7:15-20). How does good fruit grow in the ‘tree’ of our lives? - ‘Blessed is the man... whose delight is in the law of the Lord... He is like a tree planted by streams of water, that yields its fruit in its season’ (Psalm 1:1-3). There is good fruit to be enjoyed when we take delight in the Word of the Lord. There is bad fruit to be thrown away. Let’s throw away the bad fruit - ‘...strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness...’ - and enjoy the good fruit - ‘love, joy, peace...’. Let ‘the fruit of the Spirit’grow in you - ‘be filled with the Spirit’ (Galatians 5:19-24; Ephesians 5:18).

‘Righteousness lifts up a nation, but sin is a disgrace in any society’ (34). Our nation can flourish again - by the preaching of God’s Word and the praising of God’s Name. Times of blessing can come again - if we will listen to God’s Word and sing His praise. Times of blessing will not come if we refuse to listen to the Lord, if we will not worship Him. We are living in difficult times - ‘dark powers are poised to flood our streets with hate and fear’. We must learn to see things as God sees them - ‘You stand appalled to see Your laws of love so scorned and lives so broken. Pray for mercy - ‘Have mercy, Lord’. Pray for revival - ‘Revive Your Church again’. Pray that Christ’s ‘glorious Cross shall tower triumphant in this land’. Pray that ‘righteousness’ will flow ‘like a never-failing stream’ (Mission Praise, 509).

Exodus 1:1-2:25

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Circumstances change. God does not change. Joseph was no longer there. God was still there. Joseph had become part of the past. God was making plans for the future. Joseph had been a highly significant man within the history of Israel. Now, the scene was set for the emergence of a new spiritual leader, a man of even greater importance within the history of God’s people. That man was Moses. It was a new situation. There was to be a new spiritual leader. Joseph’s time had ended. Moses’ time was about to begin. It was a new situation, a situation which required a new leader. The arrival of Moses was not immediate. Nevertheless, the perfect plan of God was in process. God was at work. He was preparing His people for Moses. He was preparing Moses for his God-given work of leadership.

Why was Moses’ life preserved at the time of his birth? Was he just lucky? No! There is something else here. The hand of the Lord is at work. God looks upon this newborn baby and says, ‘This child must not die. I have great plans for him. I have a special purpose for his life.’

The times were difficult for the people of Israel. The loss of Joseph was a great loss (1:8-11). It was not an insurmountable loss (1:12). When things get tough, the Lord’s people rise to the challenge. They do not rise in their own strength. They go to God in their weakness. They look to Him for His strength (2:23).

What was happening at this time? God was preparing His people for a new situation. He was also preparing Moses to be the man who would lead them into this new situation. Oppression was to be replaced by redemption. The people needed to be prepared for this. They needed to become a prayerful people. They needed to become a people who were learning to call upon the Lord. They needed to learn to look to the Lord for His help. God was preparing His people. He was leading them to pray for and for and expect His deliverance. God is bringing His people to an end of themselves. He is bringing them to the point where they long for His deliverance. When God’s people pray, God’s purpose moves forward (2:23-25).

The stage is set for a mighty work of God. The Lord’s people face a crisis-situation. They are being oppressed by the Egyptians. God sees what is happening. He is making His plans. He will give His people a better future. It seemed like God was doing nothing about Israel’s problems – ‘a long time passed’ (2:23). God was not standing back, paying no attention to what was going on. He was busy, preparing Moses to be the leader of His people. He was taking steps towards the great event of deliverance from the oppressors. God was looking ahead to the Exodus and the journey from the land of bondage to the land of promise. Remembering ‘His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob’ (2:24), God was about to fulfil this promise with a mighty demonstration of His saving power. When nothing seems to be happening, we must not give up. God has not given up on us. He waits for us to call upon Him. He waits for us to pray for His blessing.

Exodus 3:1-22

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The people had prayed. Now, God was about to answer prayer. Moses had not yet taken centre stage. He was still waiting in the wings – ‘keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro’ (3:1). Soon, the time of preparation would be over. The time of ministry was soon to begin. The call of God would bring Moses into a new situation. No longer would he be a shepherd, looking after sheep. Soon, he would be a shepherd of souls. He will care for the people of God. He will lead them into their new situation, the situation of redemption. The time of Joseph had ended. The time of Moses was about to begin. The time of oppression was almost over. The time of deliverance was drawing near.

The story of Moses continues. It is not merely a human story. Moses was called to be a servant of God’s people. He was to be their leader. He would play an important part in bringing God’s blessing to the people of Israel. He was not to be a ‘lone ranger’. He was to ‘assemble the leaders of Israel’ (v. 16). He was to share with them the Lord’s vision for His people’s future. God was taking them away from their ‘misery’. He was leading them on to blessing. He was taking them out of Egypt. He was taking them to a new land - ‘a land flowing with milk and honey’. Moses was not to go to Pharaoh as a ‘lone ranger’ – ‘you and the leaders must go to the King of Egypt’ (v. 18). There are important lessons for God’s servants in every generation. We move forward together. We move forward as ‘one body in Christ’.

The story of Moses is the story of God at work in human history. God is working out His purpose of salvation. This is the great story of which the story of Moses is only a part. Moses was called to serve the Lord. We are called to serve the Lord. As we look together at the Old Testament story, with its many changes in circumstances, we must learn to see that the one constant factor is God Himself. Joseph comes. Joseph goes. Joseph is replaced by Moses. Moses comes. Moses goes. Moses is replaced by Joshua. Through all the changes, God remains the same – the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua. This God is our God. He had plans for His people, Israel. He was giving them a brighter and better future. He has plans for us. He holds our future in His hands. He is leading us forward into His future – a future filled with His blessing.

The Exodus was a mighty miracle of God’s love and power. It was not, however, the end of Israel’s problems. They were to face forty years of wilderness wanderings. In all of this, God did not lose sight of His saving purpose. He did not abandon His people. He will not abandon us. God had great things planned for His people. He was leading them on to better things. He is preparing a great future for us. He is leading us to a place that is far more wonderful than ‘the land flowing with milk and honey’. He is leading to His eternal Kingdom. In all the changing circumstances of our life, we must never lose sight of this – the God of heaven is building ‘a Kingdom which shall never be destroyed, a Kingdom which shall stand for ever’ (Daniel 2:44).

In announcing His purpose of redemption, God identified Himself with the mysterious words, ‘I am who I am’ (v. 14). In this Name, we have the divine promise; ‘I will be there for you. I will be present for you. I will be effective for you’. In this Name, we have a declaration of God’s faithfulness. God’s promise is utterly reliable. We can stand upon His Word, confident that He will never fail those who put their trust in Him. The words, ‘I am who I am’ may be mysterious. They are not, however, an evasion of the question, ‘Who are You?’ They are God’s way of saying to us, ‘I am there for you. You can count on Me.’ We learn who God is as we walk with Him. We observe what He does for us. We learn that He is the God who is completely trustworthy. We learn that He is the God who is worthy of all praise, glory and honour.

When we walk with God, walking in the pathway of His redemption, we leave behind the life that is depicted in the word, ‘Egypt’. ‘Pharaoh’ has no power over us. We have been set free by the Lord, the God of our salvation. As we walk with God, we learn that we have no need to go back to the world’s way of living. Our trust is in the Lord, the God of grace. He fulfils His purpose in us. With Him, we ‘walk in newness of life’ (Romans 6:4). We are ‘changed’ by Him, as He leads us on ‘from glory to glory’ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Walking with Him, we are travelling towards the full revelation of His glorious salvation. With this glorious destination ahead of us, we ‘rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory’ as (1 Peter 1:8-9).

Exodus 4:1-31

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In Moses, there is great weakness. In the Lord, there is great strength. By himself, Moses was completely out of his depth. With God, Moses went from strength to strength. He had God’s promise as well as God’s command: ‘Now go, and I will help you speak and will teach you what to say’ (v. 12). Moses was not to be left on his own. As well as having the help of the Lord, he also had the help of his brother, Aaron: ‘I will help both of you speak and I will teach you what to do’ (v. 15). Moses and Aaron were not to work in isolation from the other ‘leaders of the people of Israel’. They were to share with them ‘everything the Lord had said’ (vs. 29-30). God’s Word to Israel was a Word of power – He ‘did miraculous signs for the people’ (v. 30). It was also a Word of love – ‘the Lord was concerned about the people of Israel’ (v. 31).

Before the Exodus could take place, two obstacles needed to be overcome – the apathy of the people (v.1) and the resistance of Pharaoh (5:2). These obstacles need to be dealt with in the right order – first, the people of God, and, then, the working of God in the world.

How did God prepare Moses for overcoming these obstacles?

* He assured Moses that He – the Lord – had called him to this work and that He – the Lord – would be with him (vs. 1-5).

* He sent Moses as a man whose sin had been forgiven (vs. 6-7).

* He gave His Word to Moses (v. 12).

Once the people had given their support to Moses (vs. 29-31), the stage was set for Moses to turn towards Pharaoh. Before we turn our attention to Pharaoh, we must ask ourselves an important question: ‘Is our response like Israel’s response – “the people believed … they bowed their heads and worshipped” (v. 31)?’ or “Is it more like Pharaoh’s response – ‘Who is the Lord that I should obey Him … ?” (5:2)?’

Exodus 5-12

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It gets worse before it gets better. Things seemed to be going from bad to worse for God’s people. They became ‘discouraged’ (6:9). They were unable to look beyond their present difficulties. They needed the Lord’s Word of encouragement – ‘The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I use My power against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of there’ (7:5). Before there was salvation for Israel, there was judgment for Egypt. The judgments upon Egypt (‘the plagues’) were a call to repentance. If there had been a willingness to listen to God’s Word at the beginning, these ‘plagues’ would not have happened. More disobedience meant more ‘plagues’. Each ‘plague’ was a call to repentance as well as a judgment on disobedience. Each ‘plague’ could have been the last – if Pharaoh had said ‘Yes’ to the Lord. Pharaoh said ‘No’, and the ‘plagues’ continued.

Let’s think about the hardening of Pharaoh. Scripture tells us that God Himself said, ‘I will harden Pharaoh’s heart’ (4:21; 7:3). What does this mean? It means that the more Pharaoh heard God’s Word, the harder his heart became. God was saying to Pharaoh – ‘Let My people go’. The effect was quite the opposite. The more Pharaoh heard this Word, the harder his heart became.

This is a Word which must hear. We must receive its message to us. This is speaking about something which happens today. This is Gospel-hardening. The more people hear the gospel, the harder they become. The Gospel does not come to such people as a hard Word. It comes us a Word which speaks of God’s love. It comes as a Word that is designed to lead them to know the love of God. Some people hear the Gospel of God’s love, and they become harder and harder. The more they hear of the free grace of God, the more they retreat into legalistic morality and become hardened against the Gospel. This is a matter of eternal importance. Do not become Gospel-hardened. Let the Gospel break down your hardness.

Gospel-hardening is progressive. The more the Gospel is heard, the harder the Gospel-hardened person becomes. Nevertheless, it must be emphasized that Gospel-hardening is not irreversible. The process of Gospel-hardening can be gloriously and marvellously reversed. How is this process of Gospel-hardening to be reversed? There is only way. It is through the Gospel itself which can reverse this process. The Gospel itself shows the way from hardness to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You can be converted. As God’s Word comes to you, in all its seriousness, you are called to decision. You can become more hardened against the Gospel. You can allow the Gospel to break down your hardness. This is the ‘either-or’, presented to us by the Gospel. There is no middle course. Will the preaching of the Gospel make us harder against Christ? Will the preaching of the Gospel lead us to Christ? The Word of God comes to us, in the power of the Spirit, inviting us to come to Christ. We are called to come to Christ. Along with this call to come to Christ, there is also the warning concerning the consequences of refusing Him. The call to receive Christ as Saviour is a matter of the greatest urgency. This is impressed upon us in two very serious passages of Scripture: ‘He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken beyond healing’ (Proverbs 29:11); ‘Today, when you hear God’s voice, do not harden your hearts’ (Hebrews 4:7).

Under their Egyptian taskmasters, the people of Israel had to work hard. This hard work was done unwillingly. They did not want to be the slaves of the Egyptians. They hated every minute of the hard work which was forced upon them by the Egyptians. Israel’s constant desire was for freedom from their captivity in Egypt. When we work as servants of Jesus Christ, we are to serve Him with gladness. We are to serve Him with love. We serve the Lord in the knowledge that our true freedom is found when we are captives of Christ: ‘Make me a captive, Lord, and then I shall be free’.

To the outward observer, hard work has similar characteristics, whether it is done by prisoners of war or those who are doing the kind of work they really want to be doing. When, however, we go to the heart of the matter, to the matter of the heart, we find that there is a radical difference between work which is done willingly and work which id done out of love for Jesus. Our attitude towards Jesus Christ is absolutely crucial in the whole of life. What we make of life, with its many different circumstances, is vitally related to our attitude to Jesus Christ. This lesson is emphasized more clearly as we look at Israel’s situation in the fuller context of the work of God. While Israel was working hard for the Egyptians, God was working hard for the Israelites.

The activity of God is seen in the series of connected events known as ‘the plagues’. Outwardly, ‘the plagues’ can be described in a simple and straightforward manner. In 7:14-24, we read of the turning of the Nile to blood. In chapter 8, we read of the plagues of frogs, gnats (or mosquitoes) and flies. Chapter 9 tells us about the death of the Egyptian cattle, the plague of boils and sores and the hailstorms and thunderstorms. This is followed, in chapter 10, by the plague of locusts and the three days’ darkness. The final event in the series is the death of the Egyptian first-born (11:1-12:30).

More plagues meant more opportunities for repentance. God was calling upon Pharaoh to change his mind. He needed to change his mind about God. He needed to change his mind about the people of God. The call for repentance was ignored. Pharaoh put on a show of repentance (9:27-28; 10:16-17). He didn’t really mean it. He was a man of unbelief (9:35). God confirmed him in his unbelief (10:20).

The inner meaning of ‘the plagues’ is quite different for the believer and the unbeliever. For unbelieving Egypt, ‘the plagues’ are God’s pronouncement of judgment. For God’s believing people, ‘the plagues’ are a part of His way of showing to them His salvation.

The same set of circumstances can produce hardness of heart in the unbeliever while leading the believer on to greater faith.

The first nine ‘plagues’ provide the build-up to and the backcloth for the most powerful of all ‘the plagues’ – the death of the Egyptian first-born. The final ‘plague’ – the death of the Egyptian firstborn – marked the end of the road for Pharaoh – ‘the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart’ (11:10). God was saying, ‘Enough is enough.’ God was going to bring His people out of Egypt – with or without Pharaoh’s permission. There were good things happening – ‘the Lord made the Egyptians kind to the people. And Moses was highly respected by Pharaoh’s officials and all the Egyptians’ (11:33). This, however, did not change the fact that Pharaoh was resisting God. This resistance did not hinder God’s great plan of salvation.

In this tenth and final ‘plague’, the issues of salvation and judgment become absolutely clear. In this ‘plague’, we see the radical difference between the believer who is saved by the powerful love of God and the unbeliever upon whom the judgment of God is decisively pronounced. For unbelieving Egypt, there was the death of the first-born. For God’s believing people, there was the Passover. As we think together of God’s activity in salvation and judgment, we must relate both salvation and judgment to the love of God. Salvation speaks to us of the wonderful thing God has done, is doing and will do for His believing people whom He loves with an everlasting love. Judgment speaks to us of the seriousness of man’s rejection of the love of God. Those who repeatedly reject the love of God deliberately place themselves under the judgment of God. The ten ‘plagues’ speak to us of God’s judgment. They also speak to us of the God of love who longs for sinners to return to Him. The very fact that there are ten ‘plagues’, rather than a single decisive judgment, serves to underline the love of God. Each of the ‘plagues’ came as the invitation of God’s love, inviting Pharaoh to turn from his sin. Each ‘plague’ came as a call to Pharaoh to obey the Lord. Time and time again, the invitation of God’s love- so freely given by the Lord – was rejected.

The Word of God says to us, ‘Don’t be like Pharaoh. Don’t reject the love of God.’ The Word of God points us unmistakably to the Lord Jesus Christ who shed His blood for our sins. The heart of the message of the Gospel is contained in the words of 12:13 – ‘when I see the blood, I will pass over you’. This text contains a clear prophetic reference to the death of Jesus Christ for sinners. We can come to understand the significance of Jesus’ death for us by looking at what happened on the night of the Passover. On the Passover night, the angel of death passed over, in mercy, only those households over whose doors the blood had been sprinkled. This merciful ‘passing over’ had nothing to do with the character or the works of those in the houses. It had everything to do with the blood under which they had taken refuge: ‘When I see the blood, I will pass over you.’ The angel of death was not instructed to check out the character-traits or the religious observance of those in the houses. The angel of death was to look for the blood on the doors: ‘When I see the blood I will pass over you.’ The only criterion for ‘passing over’ was the blood. It was not the blood and something else. It was not a matter of ‘Look for the blood and then take a peep through the window to see what’s going on inside’. There was no peeping needed. There was no peeping allowed. The blood was the all-important factor – ‘When I see the blood I will pass over you.’

The same principle is true today. We are put right with God on the basis of Christ’s death for us. Believing that Christ shed His blood for my sins, I am forgiven by God and declared to be righteous in His sight – ‘My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.’

Exodus 13-15

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The purpose of the Passover was to build a bridge between the past, the present and the future: ‘Remember this day – the day when you left Egypt, the land of slavery. The Lord used His mighty hand to bring us out of slavery in Egypt’ (13:14). The Lord was in control. This is what we must remember when we think about these events. Once the people of Israel came out of Egypt, the Lord continued to be in control of their journey. In 13:17-18, we read that God closed one door – ‘the shortest route’ – and opened another door. God’s perfect way may not always be ‘the shortest route. It is His way. His way is always the best way.

The Exodus could be described as the Great Escape. It was the escape of the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt. It should be pointed out that the word, ‘escape’, does not begin to describe what really what happened in the Exodus. This was more than the Great Escape. This was the Great Deliverance. It was not so much the escape of Israel. It was the deliverance of Israel by God. This was not about what Israel did for herself. This is a declaration of what God did for Israel. It is the action of God on behalf of His people, Israel. It is this divine work of redemption that stands at the very heart of the book of Exodus. This is not about what we can do for ourselves. It’s about what God has done for us in Christ. Our whole attention is directed away from ourselves to Christ.

There are three high-points in the book of Exodus – the Passover, the Exodus and the giving of the Ten Commandments. It is most important that we understand the order in which these events took place. This is of great importance to us if we are to understand what God is saying to us concerning salvation in Christ.

The meaning of the Passover is summed up in the words: ‘When I see the blood I will pass over you.’ The full meaning of these words is found in the death of Jesus, ‘our Passover Lamb’ – ‘the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’ (1 Corinthians 5:7; John 1:29).

The tremendous event of the Exodus is described thus: ‘By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the bondage … by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of bondage’ (13:14, 16). Here, we catch a glimpse of something even greater than the Exodus. God raised His Son from the dead. When God put His mighty work of deliverance into effect, Egypt could not hold His people any longer. The power of God was greater than the power of Egypt. In Christ’s resurrection, we see something greater. The power of God is greater than the power of death. Death could hold Christ no longer. God raised Him from the dead.

The Ten Commandments are not given before or apart from the Passover and the Exodus. They come after these great events. They are given on the basis of the Passover and the Exodus. The Ten Commandments are introduced with a declaration of God’s work of redemption: ‘I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage’ (20:2). It is no nameless, faceless, unknown God who addresses the people of Israel in the Ten Commandments. It is the God of the Passover. It is the God of the Exodus. This is the God whose great work of salvation finds its fulfilment in the death and resurrection of Christ. In our thinking about the Ten Commandments, we need to keep the death and resurrection of Christ at the very centre of our attention.

The people of Israel were to remember. They were to remember the Passover. They were to remember the Exodus. They were to remember the Exodus. They were to remember the giving of the Law. We too must remember. We must remember Christ crucified for us. We must remember, with thanksgiving, that we have received the forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ our Saviour. We must remember that Christ has been raised from the dead for us. We must remember, with gratitude, that Christ has come to live in our hearts. We must remember that the Law of God has been given to lead us to Christ. We must remember, with rejoicing, that, alongside God’s Law which shows us God’s will, we have God’s Spirit, who enables us to do God’s will: ‘we serve not under the old written code but in the new life of the Spirit’ (Romans 7:6); ‘God has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills but the Spirit gives life’ (2 Corinthians 3:6).

In 14:31, we read of ‘the great power of the Lord.’ As we consider His great power, we worship Him: ‘I will sing to the Lord. He has won a glorious victory … The Lord is my strength and my song. He is my Saviour. This is my God and I will praise Him … ’ (15:1-2). In the work of God’s redemption, we see His love and His power – ‘Lovingly, You will love the people You have saved. Powerfully, You will guide them to Your holy dwelling’ (15:13). Here, we see the greatness of God’s power. It is power which serves the purpose of His love. The Lord is King – ‘The Lord will rule as King for ever and ever’ (15:18). He is not a tyrant. He is not a dictator. He is the King of love. He loves us. We are to love Him – living for Him and looking to Him to fulfil His promises in our lives.

Exodus 16-19

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The Lord provides. Through the provision of manna and water, the Lord sustains His people. Strong in Him, they press on to victory. This is a picture of the Christian life. Before we can be soldiers of Christ, we must receive our strength from the Lord. We come to Him, looking for strength – His strength. Jesus is the Bread of Life. He is the Living Water (John 6:51; 4:14). Strengthened by Him, we will not be defeated. We will be victorious – ‘more than conquerors through Him who loved us’. His love will give us the victory. Nothing will be able to separate us from His love (Romans 8:37-39). In the provision of manna and water, we see love. In the victory over the Amalekites, we see the victory of love: ‘Love has the victory forever’. In the Exodus, God revealed His love for His people. In the wilderness, He continues to show His love for them. In love, He gives them the victory.

In 16:1, we read of a journey from ‘Elim’ to ‘the Desert (or Wilderness) of Sin’. ‘Elim’ was a good place to be. It had ‘twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees’. In one sense, ‘the Wilderness of Sin’ was simply a geographical location - a wilderness which lay between Elim and Mount Sinai. ‘The Wilderness of Sin’ is more than a geographical location. It is a word of warning. We read about ‘the Wilderness of Sin’. We hear God’s warning, ‘Do not go into the wilderness of sin.’

What happened when the people of Israel went into the Wilderness of Sin? – ‘The whole congregation of the people murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness’ (16:2).

Murmur – what a horrible word! The very sound of the word is sinister. They murmured. There was something wrong in ‘the Wilderness of Sin’. There was something wrong with the people. In one sense, the place was just a place – a place in which the people were to learn how to trust God. There was, however, something wrong with the people. They were murmuring. They had been redeemed. They had been delivered from their slavery in Egypt. Now, they wanted to go back to Egypt. They had been redeemed. They had made some spiritual progress. Now, they wanted to go back to the way things were before they had been redeemed by the Lord. What about you? Do you feel like you want to go back to ‘Egypt’? Do you feel like you want to return to a worldly way of living? Where are you now in relation to God? Are you determined to go on with God? Perhaps, if you are honest with yourself and with God, you may have to say, ‘I am in the wilderness of sin.’ To acknowledge honestly that you are in the wilderness of sin is the first step towards getting out of this wilderness. It is the first step in your return to the Lord. It is the first step in your walk with Him. God does not want you to remain in the wilderness of sin. He wants to lead you out of the wilderness of sin.

In 17:1, we read, ‘All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the Wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord’.

They moved on ‘according to the commandment of the Lord’. God wants us to move on with Him. He does not want us to stand still. He wants us to move on in our obedience to Him.

They moved on ‘by stages’. Some were the first to make the move. Others came along behind them. It is still the same today. Some make the first move. They go on with God, making significant spiritual progress. Others lag behind. It seems that they will never make any significant move towards God. What about you? Are you going on with God? Are you holding back from following Christ?

The people of Israel had moved on from the Wilderness of Sin. They still had problems – ‘there was no water for the people to drink’, ‘the people found fault with Moses’ (17:1-2). They were still murmuring.

How did God respond to His murmuring people? He was gracious to them. Twice – in chapter 16 and chapter 17 – God provided for them. This is the ‘amazing grace’ of God. He is so patient with us. He is so faithful in His love for us. He does not want to leave us in the wilderness of sin. He does not want us to remain trapped in the wilderness of murmuring. He wants to lead us into rest – ‘Come to Me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ (Matthew 11:28). He wants to lead us into rejoicing –‘These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full’ (John 15:11). Are we ready to follow Him?

The Word of God tells us what God has done for His people: ‘the Lord saved them’ (18:8). The Word of God teaches us that being saved by the Lord places us under responsibility to be obedient to Him (19:4-5).

Exodus 21-30

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21:1-23:33

Our obedience to God is to take shape within the varied circumstances of everyday life. At the heart of our obedience, there is to be compassion. Our compassion is to be an expression of God’s compassion (22:21, 28; 23:9). At the heart of our obedience, there is to be worship (23:14). Taking compassion and worship together, we come to the very heart of our obedience to God. It is not compassion without worship. It is not worship without compassion. The spiritual and the social belong together. We need spiritual foundations leading to social effects. The social does not stand on its own. There needs to be spiritual depth. The ‘spiritual’ does not stand on its own. It is empty formality if it does not lead to a change in our way of living from day to day.

24:1:27:21

‘The glory of the Lord’ (24:16-17) – God is to be glorified in all that we do. Symbolic of God’s glory is the frequent reference to ‘gold’ or ‘pure gold’. God’s glory is to shine brightly among God’s people. If God is to be glorified among us, if our lives are to be like ‘pure gold’, we must be like ‘pure virgin olive oil’, keeping our ‘lamps’ burning for Him (27:20-21).

God will not be glorified if we are not looking to Him to keep our lamps burning for Him – ‘Give me oil in my lamp keep me burning’, ‘Shine, Jesus, shine. Fill this land with the Father’s glory. Blaze, Spirit, blaze. Set our hearts on fire.’

The blessing we read about here is not simply for those who are already God’s people. It is also for those who will be reached for Christ and won for Him as the Lord’s G people rise to the challenge of carrying Christ to ‘this land’ and to ‘the nations.’

28:1-30:38

In all our worship and in all of life, we are to be ‘holy to the Lord’ (28:36). Holiness lies at the heart of God’s instructions to His people. God speaks of the special blessing of His ‘presence’ at ‘the tent of meeting’ – ‘My glory will make this place holy’ (29:42-43).

The holiness of God is full of love. He lives among His people as the God of redemption: ‘I brought them out of Egypt so that I might live among them’ (29:45-46). In the Lord’s presence, there is grace – ‘in the Lord’s presence … the sins in their lives are removed’ (30:16). This redemption is given to us by the grace of God. We are assured of God’s salvation through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This assurance must never lead to arrogant presumption. We must never take God’s grace for granted. We are to pray for an ongoing experience of God’s grace. It is through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit that we ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ (2 Peter 3:18). We must never presume upon the continued blessing of the Holy Spirit. We look to God for grace, never forgetting this: ‘Holy to the Lord’ (30:37).

Exodus 31-34

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The history of Israel is like a rollercoaster ride. It’s full of highs and lows. We read of the Lord giving His Word to Moses (31:18). This is followed by the people rebelling against God (32:1).

Though the sin of the people is very great, the mercy of God is even greater. To those who had rebelled against Him, God continues to speak His Word of grace – ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you peace’ (33:14).

Often, we feel like God won’t want to have anything more to do with us. God is the God of grace. He is also the God of glory. He reveals His glory to us (33:18-22). His full glory is too much for us. He gives us a glimpse of His glory. He does not overwhelm us by showing us too much of His glory. He shows us just enough to create in us a thirst for more of His glory.

What we have here is grace and glory together. When the glory seems too much, the grace of God breaks in. The God of grace assures us that we belong to Him. In grace, He shows us His glory. It is the glory of His love. This love is the greatest love of all. There is no love like the love of God.

34:1-35

Moses received the Word from the Lord and brought the Word to the people. With God’s Word of grace – ‘the Lord, a compassionate and merciful God …’ – there is also His Word of warning – ‘He never lets the guilty go unpunished …’ (vs. 6-7). Hearing God’s Word of warning, together with His Word of grace, Moses pleads with God for mercy – ‘Lord, please, go with us …’ (v. 9). The Lord promises to give his blessing again – ‘I’m making My promise again’. This promise of His blessing is accompanied by His call to obedience – ‘Do everything I command today’ (v. 11).

‘I am making a covenant with you’ (v. 10). The word, ‘covenant’, emphasizes the gracious, undeserved character of God’s promise. God’s promise does not come to a deserving people. It comes to God’s forgiven people. The difference between being deserving and being forgiven is very important. The person who thinks he deserves God’s blessing knows nothing of confession of sin. He has never come to God as an undeserving sinner, saying, ‘Father, I have sinned against you.’ The forgiven sinner is the person who has confessed his sin to God. It is to such people that God says, ‘The best is yet to be.’ It is with this confidence in God that we are called to move into the future.

When Moses came to the people, from God’s presence, his ‘face was shining’ (vs. 30, 35). This was a sign of the power of the Spirit filling him, giving him strength, equipping him for the work of ministry.

Exodus 35-40

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35:1-36:38

The work of God requires the work of a large number of people who pool their resources together to see that God’s work is done. When there is this willing spirit among God’s people, God’s work moves forward. This willing spirit comes from the Lord Himself – ‘The Lord has filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God.’

Through the Spirit of God, we receive gifts which are put to good use in the service of God (35:31). We are to use these gifts in the service of the Lord (35:34). When God’s work is done in God’s way – ‘as the Lord has commanded’ (36:1) - , there will be God’s blessing: ‘The people are bringing much more than we need for doing the work the Lord has commanded us to do’ (36:5).

37:1-29

Many times over, we read the word, ‘gold’. Beyond the gold, there is the great God, the God of glory, the God who is worthy of all praise. We look beyond the furnishings of the place of worship to the God, who is worshipped. In our hearts, we say, ‘My God, how wonderful You are.’

Many people place great value on gold, but they do not worship God. They make much of the glory of gold, but they do not give glory to God. How sad it is that so many people value the things of this world yet they do not acknowledge the greatness of the god who created our world.

We must learn to look beyond this world. We must learn to say, in our hearts, ‘I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold. I’d rather have Jesus than riches untold.’

The Lord must always be more important to us than anyone or anything else. We must not let ‘gold’ become our ‘god’. We must look beyond the ‘gold’. We must look to our God.

38:1-40:38

All of this may seem so strange to us. There is one thing – among all the many details – which we must not miss. They ‘made everything that the Lord commanded’. They ‘followed the Lord’s instructions’ (38:26, 29, 31-32, 42-43).

God’s people are called to be obedient to Him. We are not to do what we want. We are to do what He commands. We are to follow His instructions. There can be no ‘anointing’ if there is no obedience. The two go together – obedience and anointing. We are to do everything the Lord commands us. We are to follow His instructions (40:16, 19).

Such obedience to God will involve putting His Word at the centre of our lives. His Word is not so much a Word of demand as a Word of ‘promise’. It is not so much a Word of law as a Word of ‘mercy’ (40:20). Our obedience to God is grounded in our experience of His ‘promise’ of ‘mercy’. Having received the ‘mercy’ of God, promised to us in Jesus Christ, we follow the Lord’s instructions (30:21, 23, 27, 29, 32).

When we have ‘finished the work’ God has given us to do, we must look to Him to send His blessing – ‘the glory of the Lord filled the tent’ (40:34-35).

In all the strangeness of the world of Old Testament worship, there are deep, spiritual lessons for us. There are lessons which enable us to go on with the Lord. We receive His mercy. We obey His Word. We experience His glory.

God is good to us. He shows His mercy to us. He puts a new Spirit within us. He gives to us the Spirit of obedience. He sends His glory so that we might rejoice in His presence and be strengthened by His presence.

"In the beginning, God ... " - The Bible's first verse

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* "In the beginning, God" (Genesis 1:1)

Here, we are taken back to eternity, back to the eternal God. There is nothing beyond this. There is nothing beyond Him.

* "God created the heaven and the earth" (Genesis 1:1).

He is the Lord of heaven and earth. The mention of heaven and earth in the Bible's opening verse sends our minds on from the beginning to the middle and the end of God's great Story of salvation. At the heart of this wonderful Story, there is Jesus Christ who came from heaven to earth for us. The Story moves on to the marvellous fulifilment of God's plan of salvation. The Lord Jesus will come to take us from earth to heaven to share with Him in the glory of eternal life.

Genesis 1

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There is a profound depth and startling simplicity about the opening chapter of the Bible.

The great philosophers have found that they are out of their depth in Genesis 1.

Nevertheless, a little child can sing in simple faith: “God who made the earth, the air, the sky, the sea, who gave the light its birth, careth for me.”

Simple, childlike faith is of vital importance if we are to appreciate what the Lord is saying to us through the Bible’s first chapter.

Many, who regard themselves as great scholars, miss the whole point of the Bible, because they come to God’s Word with a critical sopirit, arrogantly dismissing those parts of Scripture which are not to their liking.

The way of childlike faith is scorned by those who portray themselves as the great intellectuals. They do not hesitate to disregard the teaching of the Scriptures and turn away from the God whom the Scriptures proclaim.

If we are to be truly wise, we must pay careful attention to the first four words of the Bible: “In the beginning, God”

This is the starting-point for understanding the Bible.

It is also the starting-point for understanding the meaning and purpose of our life on this earth.

It is no accident that God is the subject of the first sentence of the Bible.

The word, “God“, dominates the whole of this first chapter of the Bible.

The word, “God” catches our eye at every point as we glance over the Bible’s first pages.

First and foremost, Genesis 1 is about God. Essentially, the Bible is a Book about God.

If you read the Bible for any other reason than this: to learn about God, you are missing the point of the Scriptures.

We do not have the right to treat the Bible with contempt, as though it was a thing of little value.

As those who have been created by God, we must bow before His Word and receive its teaching.

When we read the Bible, we must open our minds to receive the instruction of God’s Word.

We must give our wills to the doing of God’s will.

We must allow our emotions to be grasped by the God of power and love, the god who created us in His own image that we might learn to know Him, love Him and serve Him.

As we allow the Word of God to instruct our minds, control our wills and fire our emotions, we will learn to see our whole life in relation to God.

When we ask the question, “Why am I here on this earth?”, we must go back to the prior question, “Who put me on this earth?”

Here, the first four words of the Bible must dominate our thinking: “In the beginning, God”.

Reading on from that first verse, we will discover that the God of the Bible is the God of power and the God of love.

From the Scriptures, we learn that God’s power is a loving power and His love is a powerful love.

The power of God and the love of God belong together.

It is in the light of God’s loving power and powerful love that we discover the meaning and purpose of our life.

God, in His power and love, has created us that we might to learn to live as His people, seeking to serve as His purpose of love.

God’s purpose of love is truly amazing.

When you consider the sinfulness of your own heart and the sinfulness of our world, it would be easy to imagine that God would give up on us as a lost cause. God has not given up on us. The Cross of Jesus Christ makes it perfectly clear that God loves us with a truly wonderful love.

If we ever doubt the reality of God’s love for us, the Word of God brings us back to the Cross of Christ.

When we think of God the Creator, we must allow our thoughts to turn also to Jesus Christ, our Saviour.

Here are some thought-provoking words from Helen Steiner Rice: “How wonderful to contemplate and to know that it is true that He who planned the universe gave us our Saviour too.”

We began by stressing that the words, “In the beginning, God” provide us with a starting-point for understanding the meaning and purpose of our life on this earth.

It must now be emphasized that the beginning of Genesis is only the beginning of the Bible’s answer to the question of life’s meaning and purpose.

From the Creation, we must move on to the Cross. From the Garden of Eden, we must move on to the Garden of Gethsemane.

In the Garden of Eden, we learn of our creation in God’s image. We also learn of mour fall from God, because of sin. It is only as we move on to thje Garden of Gethsemane that we really come to see the full extent of God’s love for us.

The Garden of Eden leaves us with a sense of our sin. The Garden of Gethsemane brings us to an awareness of our Saviour.

It is great to know of God’s activity in creating, sustaining and directing the universe. It is an even greater blessing to know that you are a new creation in Christ and that you are being kept for and directed towards a heavenly destiny which is far greater than anything you will ever know in this earthly life.

How wonderful it is to know that the “God who made the earth” is also the “God who sent His Son to die on Calvary.”

May God grant that each of us may know Him as our Saviour as well as our Creator. Knowing Him as both your Creator and our Saviour, you will know the true meaning and purpose of your life.

"In the beginning, God ... " (Genesis 1:1-2:4)

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Genesis 1:1

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" - This is our only starting-point. We begin with the eternal God. Before there was creation, there is God. There is nothing beyond God. He is the Beginning.

Genesis 1:2

"darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of face of the waters."

Before the Spirit of God has done his powerful work in our hearts, we remain in darkness. We can do nothing about this. The light does not come from ourselves. It comes from the Lord.

Genesis 1:3

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light."

This is the mighty work of God. Through His amazing grace, He brings us out of His darkness and into His light.

Genesis 1:4

"the light was good"

What a wonderful blessing it is when the light of the Lord shines in our hearts.

Genesis 1:5

"Day and Night"

It's like the difference between Day and Night. What a great change there is in us when the Lord brings us out of our darkness and into His light.

Genesis 1:6

"a firmament"

We have a firm foundation upon which to build our faith. There is solid ground upon which we can take our stand. The sold ground is Jesus Christ. He is the firm Foundation.

Genesis 1:7

"the waters"

In the days of Noah, there was a great flood. All around us there is danger. The flood threatens to overwhelm us. How are we to be saved from drowning? There is one way of salvation. Jesus Christ is our Saviour.

Genesis 1:8

"Heaven"

What a wonderful word this is! What a wonderful Saviour Jesus is. He is the way to heaven (John 14:6).

Genesis 1:9

"gathered together unto one place"

What a release of the living waters of God's Spirit there is when the Lord's people are gathered together with a real desire to give praise and glory to Him.

Genesis 1:10

"the gathering together of the waters"

When we are gathered together in the Lord's House, we must pray that the Spirit of God will be at work among us, bringing to us a mighty river of blessing.

Genesis 1:11

"the fruit tree yielding fruit"

We bear fruit as we build our lives on the Word of the Lord (Psalm 1). There is the fruit of the Spirit in our own lives (Galatians 5:22-23). There is the fruit of God at work in the lives upon whom we are able to exert a life-changing influence for God (Psalm 126:5-6).

Genesis 1:12

"God saw that it was good."

What a good thing it is for the people of God to bear fruit in their lives and in winning others for the Saviour.

Genesis 1:13

"the third day"

We read these words, and our thoughts move forward to the mighty miracle of Jesus' resurrection from the dead - "on the third day God raised Him from the dead."

Genesis 1:14

"lights"

We think of the sun and the moon. There is a greater Son - our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. When the sun and the moon are no more, there will be Jesus, the King of creation, the Lord of glory. His reign shall never come to an end. It will be the reign of His everlasting love. When the light of the sun and moon are no longer shining, the light of Christ's love will be shining brightly (Revelation 22;5) - shining "not for the years of time alone, but for eternity."

Genesis 1:15

"light upon the earth"

As we read these words, we rejoice in this - Jesus is the Light of the world" (John 8:12).

Genesis 1:16

"the stars"

As we read about the stars, our thoughts turn to the star which led the wise men to Bethlehem. As we think of that star, we are led to Christ. May we join with the wise men in saying, "We have come to worship Him" (Matthew 2:2).

Genesis 1:17

"light upon the earth"

Where does light come from? Do we look inside our own minds? No! We look to Him who "came down from heaven to earth - Jesus Christ our Saviour."

Genesis 1:18

"rule over the day and the night"

Beyond the "rule" of "the two great lights", there is the "rule" of the Lord. He is the King of creation. He is the King of salvation. He is "the King of kings" (Revelation 19:16).

Genesis 1:19

"the evening and the morning"

The morning is bright with new beginnings. In the evening, we feel weary. In all life's changing circumstances, let us look to the Lord. When we feel strong, let us say, "My strength comes from the Lord." When we feel weak, let us pray, "Lord, I am weak. You are strong. I bring my weakness to You. Give me your strength."

Genesis 1:20

"Let the waters bring forth abundantly"

What abundance of blessing there is when the living waters of the Holy Spirit are flowing freely among the Lord's people (John 7:37-39; Ezekiel 47:5,9).

Genesis 1:21

"great whales"

Remember "the great fish" that swallowed Jonah (Jonah 1:17). This was God's way of showing us that "salvation comes from the Lord" (Jonah 2:9). From the story of Jonah's mighty deliverance, we look on to the mighty miracle of Jesus' resurrection from the dead. He died, but He did not remain dead. He rose from the dead.

Genesis 1:22

"God blessed them"

What a great thing it is to be blessed by the Lord. Without His blessing, we have nothing. We must never forget these challenging words of Jesus; "Without Me, you can do nothing" (John 15:5). What a great challenge they are to our human pride. When we think we can manage on our own, Jesus reminds us, "You are nothing, you have nothing and you can do nothing without My blessing." With His blessing, everything changes. This is the great change which God has brought into our life - "In Christ, He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing" (Ephesians 1:3).

Genesis 1:23

"the evening and the morning"

The repeated pattern of nature - evening, morning, evening, morning ... - speaks to us of God's great faithfulness. Without the sustaining power of God of perfect faithfulness and constant love, our world would return to chaos - "without form and void" (1:2). Whatever changes may take place in our world, let us never forget this: God's mercies are renewed every morning. He is the God of great faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23).

Genesis 1:24

The "beast"

Whenever we read, in God's Word, about "the beast", we are reminded that we face constant and determined from Satan, the enemy of our souls. Whenever we feel that Satan is getting the upper hand, let us remind him that Jesus is Lord.

Genesis 1:25

"every thing that creeps upon the earth"

Creep - Isn't that such a sinister word? Satan creeps around, doing no good. There is One who does nothing but good - our Lord Jesus Christ. He will never be defeated by Satan. Let us rejoice in this: Jesus gives His victory to us.

Genesis 1:26

"in God's image"

This doesn't sound like a true description of the way we really are! We are sinners. We have lost our way. It's a reminder of what God created us to be. It's His high calling for us. He calls us to be like Him. He calls us to bring glory to Him.

Genesis 1:27

"male and female"

We belong together. We're not to compete with each other. We are to help each other to love the Lord more and more as we journey through life together.

Genesis 1:28

"dominion"

We are given dominion. God has dominion. Let us never forget this. We must not think too highly of ourselves. We can never think too highly of the Lord.

Genesis 1:29

"meat"

We need the strong meat of God's Word if we are to grow strong in the Lord. Let us feed on the Word of God. Let us pray that our hunger will increase. The more we hunger for the Lord, the more fully He will satisfy us.

Genesis 1:30

"I have given"

The gift of God - Life is God's gift. He is our Creator. Salvation is God's gift. Jesus is our Saviour. The Holy Spirit is God's gift. He has come to live in us. He will take us to live with God - to give glory to God forevermore.

Genesis 1:31

"everything was very good"

When we look at the world as we know it, it's hard to take this in! We must take our stand upon God's Word. There was a time when "everything was good." There was a time before our sin spoiled everything. There will, again, be a time when everything will be a good. There will be a time when sin will be no more. It will be a time of giving glory to God forevermore.

Genesis 2:1

"finished"

We read about the finished work of creation and we think of Jesus' words from the Cross, "It is finished." This is the finished work of Christ. He has completed the work that was required by the holy God for sinners to receive forgiveness.

Genesis 2:2

"He rested"

After creation, there was rest. After crucifixion, there was resurrection. We rest in the risen Lord. We rest in His perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. We rejoice in His triumph over death. We remind Satan that he has been defeated by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Genesis 2:3

"holy"

When God blesses us, He makes us holy. He has not given to us the forgiveness of our sins and left us just the way we were before we came in faith to Christ. We come to the Saviour - "Just as I am" - but do not remain the same. God has given us new life - the life of the Holy Spirit. From the moment we receive God's forgiveness, we begin our new journey on the High Way of holiness (Isaiah 35:8). We will often wander away from this High Way, but the Lord keeps on bringing us back. He brings us back to the Cross where we find forgiveness. He brings us back to the risen Lord, who empowers us for walking with God in holy living. When we see that our forgiveness and holiness comes from Jesus Christ, crucified for us and risen for us, we give all the glory to God. This is not our own doing. It is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes (Psalm 118:23).

Genesis 2:4

"This is the history"

This is His Story. This is God's Story. In this great Story of creation, which leads on to the great Story of salvation, we read about the God who has done for us what we could never do for ourselves. we could not create ourselves. We could not save ourselves. We have been created by God. We have been saved by God. Apart from the work of God, we would have no life. Our life has come from Him. Apart from the work of God, we would have no new life. It is through His mighty power that we have become "a new creation in Christ Jesus" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Apart from the work of God, we would have no hope of eternal life - "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son" (1 John 5:11). In ourselves, there is no hope. In the great God of our salvation, we have this glorious hope - "the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23).

Genesis 3

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From the majestic perfection of God and the privileged responsibility of humanity, we now move to the evil subtlety of Satan. An intruder has sneaked into the privileged place between God, the Creator, and mankind, His creation.

Chapter 2 ends with the absence of shame. Chapter 3 begins with the presence of Satan. The work of Satan, successfully executed, ensures that chapter ends rather differently from chapter 2 - “the Lord God sent the man out of the Garden of Eden” (v. 23).

This was “Paradise Lost”. Was there a way to “Paradise Regained”? There are two answers to this quesion: “No” and “Yes”. Taking ourselves as the starting-point, the answer is “No”. God will not permit us to take salvation into our own hands (v. 24). Starting with God, the answer is “Yes”. This is the answer of verse 15: Christ (the woman’s descendant will be crucified (the bruising of His heel), but the outcome of this will be the defeat of Satan (the crushing of his head).

Sin, Judgment ... And Salvation (Genesis 3:1-24)

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Genesis 3:1

"The serpent" (Satan) raises doubts - "Has God said?

Genesis 3:2-3

The woman tells Satan what "God has said."

Genesis 3:4

Satan contradicts God's Word. Note the progression from questioning God's Word to contradicting His Word.

Genesis 3:5

"Your eyes will be opened." You will see eveything in a different way. You will know "good" as something you've lost. All you'll have left is "evil." That's not exactly how Satan said it would turn out. What can you expect from someone who contradicts God's Word? - Nothing but lies!

Genesis 3:6

This is the beginning of sin. We listen to Satan. We do what he says - instead of listening to God and doing what He says.

Genesis 3:7

"Their eyes were opened." They saw what they had become through their disobedience to God's Word.

Genesis 3:8

Sin leads to hiding from God.

Genesis 3:9

"Where are you?" Why is God looking for them? Is this nothing more than the voice of accusation? There is something more than that. There is the voice of love.

Genesis 3:10

The sinner does not hear the voice of God as the voice of love. He hears only the voice of accusation.

Genesis 3:11

More questions from God - He makes us think about what we have done.

Genesis 3:12

Passing the buck!

Genesis 3:13

More passing the buck!!

Genesis 3:14

Here, we have the Word of judgment - but that's not the only Word that God speaks to the sinner.

Genesis 3:15
This is the Word of salvation. It's the first prophecy of Satan's defeat. Christ will win the victory over Satan.

Genesis 3:16-19

Sin has its consequences!

Genesis 3:20-24

In these verses, we read about "the tree of life." Here, we catch a glimpse of Christ who died on the Cross for us. It's through His death that we receive eternal life.

Beyond the darkness of sin, there's the light of salvation.

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Genesis 1-3

This is not only about creation. It's also about sin. There's also the promise of salvation (Genesis 3:15).

Even in the darkness of sin, there's a glimpse of the light that will come. God created us. He has not forgotten us. He has sent His Son for us. He has not left us in our sin. He has delivered us. We have just a hint of this here - "The seed of the woman shall bruise the head of the serpent" (Genesis 3:15). There is enough of a hint to persuade us that there are better things still to come. We do not get bogged down in sin. God is calling us beyond that. He is calling us on to salvation. He is calling us to come to the Saviour - our Lord Jesus Christ.

What will we leave behind us? What will we pass on to the next generation?

2012-02-09T17:56:00.000Z

Genesis 25:1-18

What will we leave behind us? What will we pass on to the next generation? In this passage of many names, there is a challenging contrast between the influence of Abraham and Ishmael on the next generation. In Genesis 25:11, we read, ‘After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac’. In Genesis 25:18, we find that ‘Ishmael’s descendants lived in hostility toward all their brothers’. In Isaiah 52:13-53:12, there is a great prophecy concerning the death of Christ. We read of His suffering, as He becomes ‘an offering for sin’. We learn also of His glorious future - ‘He will see His offspring and prolong His days’ (Isaiah 53:10). Unlike Abraham (175 years) and Ishmael (137 years), Jesus did not live a long life on earth (33 years), yet ‘He shall see the fruit of the travail of His soul and be satisfied’ - ‘many’ will be ‘accounted righteous’ (Isaiah 53:11).

Our true strength is in the Lord.

2012-02-09T17:55:00.000Z

Genesis 32:22-32

At the place called Peniel, Jacob ‘saw God face to face’ (Genesis 32:30). We see ‘the glory of God in the face of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 4:6). Jacob wrestled with God and became an overcomer (Genesis 32:28). Christ wrestled with the powers of evil, and has won a mighty victory for us. When He cried out from the Cross, ‘It is finished’ (John 19:30), this was not an admission of defeat. It was the declaration of victory - the victory has been won, the victory is complete. ‘Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (1 Corinthians 15:57). For Jacob, crossing the Jabbok involved a spiritual ‘crossing over’. Jacob became Israel, a new man (Genesis 32:28). After he had been ‘touched’ by God, Jacob was ‘limping’ (Genesis 32:31-32). This was a reminder of his own weakness. His true strength was in the Lord. Wait on the Lord, and renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31).

John Wesley on "Salvation by Faith"

2012-02-09T17:54:00.000Z

This sermon is entitled “Salvation by Faith.” It is based on the text – “By grace are ye saved through faith” (Eph. ii.8). At the head of the sermon, we read, “Preached at St mary’s, Oxford, before the University, on June 18, 1738″,
There is, however, a footnote which reads, “Wesley put June 18; but he was then in Holland. See Journal . It was delivered on June 11.”
Early in this sermon, Wesley speaks of the grace of God in both creation and salvation – “It was free grace that ‘formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into him a living soul,’ and stamped on that soul the image of God, and ‘put all things under his feet.’ The same free grace continues to us, at this day, life, and breath, and all things - "… Wherewithal then shall a sinful man atone for any the least of his sins? With his own works? No, … If then sinful men find favour with God, it is ‘grace upon grace!’” (John Wesley’ Forty-Four Sermons, Epworth Press, 1977, pp. 1-2).
Creation and salvation – This is grace upon grace! The interesting way in which Wesley begins this sermon on salvation by faith” helps us to see the unity of the work of God in creation and salvation.
Underlining the vital connection between creation and salvation, G. C. Berkouwer uses the words, “friction” and “fiction” in a rather interesting way. He emphasizes that any friction between creation and salvation must be recognized as “unbiblical fiction” (General Revelation, p. 133).
A. W. Tozer has provided us with a helpful analysis of the creational and redemptive aspects of divine revelation. Emphasizing the integral relation between faith in creational revelation and faith in biblical revelation, Tozer writes, “The Bible will never be a living Book to us until we are convinced that God is articulate in His universe” ” (The Pursuit of God, 1961, p. 81 / also The Best of Tozer, 1978,p. 25). He maintains that the separation of creational and biblical revelation is destructive if faith in the reality of divine
revelation: “To jump from a dead, impersonal world to a dogmatic Bible is too much for most people. They may admit that they should accept the Bible as the Word of God, and they try to think of it as such, but they find it impossible to believe that the words there on the page are actually for them” (p. 81 / p. 26).
Tozer insists that we must not allow ourselves to be drawn into “a divided psychology” which “tries to think of God as mute everywhere else and vocal only in a book” (p. 81 / p. 26). He maintains that “much of our religious unbelief is due to a wrong conception of and a wrong feeling for the Scriptures of Truth. A silent God suddenly began tto speak in a book and when the book was finished lapsed back into silence for ever. Now we read the book as the record of what God said when He was for a brief time in a speaking mood. With notions like that in our heads how can we believe?” (pp. 81-82 / p. 26).
Looking beyond biblical revelation to creational revelation , Tozer writes, “His speaking Voice, antedates the Bible by uncounted centuries …. (since) that Voice … has not been silent since the dawn of creation” (p. 75 / p. 21).
Applying the idea that God is “by His nature continuously active” (p. 73 / p. 20) to our understanding of biblical revelation, Tozer insists that the Bible is “not only a book which was once spoken, but a book which is now speaking”
(p. 82 / p. 26). Emphasizing that “a word from God once spoken continues to be spoken” (p. 82 / p. 26), Tozer maintains that our thinking about divine revelation should be expressed thus: “Not God spoke, but God is speaking” (p. 73 / p. 20).
Tozer’s insists that, in our understanding of divine revelation, we should seek to ensure that the present significance of redemptive revelation is not distorted because of a failure to emphasize properly the reality of creational revelation.
In these words, we hear an echo of Wesley’s emphasis on creation and salvation as “grace upon grace.”
When we build upon the “grace upon grace” perspective, as it has been emphasized by Wesley and developed by Tozer, we are able to emphasize, with Berkouwer, that “the authority of God’s Word … is (known) in the way of the Spirit, which leads man to obedience and draws him in his full existence to the gospel” (Holy Scripture, p. 349, emphasis mine). Understanding the relation between the Spirit,. the Saviour and the Scriptures in this way, we are able to avoid the divided psychology of a “Bible-only mentality (which) virtually
equates spiritual reality with the text of Scripture itself” (B. Ramm, “Is ‘Scripture Alone’ the Essence of Christianity?” in J. Rogers (ed.), Biblical Authority, 1977, p. 116).
Commenting on the value of this “grace upon grace” for our understanding of divine revelation, we draw a careful distinction between (a) the idea that the spiritual significance of creational revelation is properly understood through the redemptive revelation recorded in Scripture; and (b) the tendency to think of Scripture as the entirety of divine revelation.
Biblical authority requires to be affirmed within the context of the affirmation of the unity of revealed reality if there is to be a proper understanding of the nature of Scripture and its authority:
“Scripture is not the totality of all God has said and done in this world. Scripture is that part of revelation and history specially chosen for the life of the people of God through centuries” (B. Ramm, p. 117, emphasis mine).
Thus, Scripture is the means by which man comes to understand the true character of revealed reality without itself being the entirety of that revealed reality
This approach to the role of Scripture in divine revelation avoids the charge of a purely formal book-religion. Discussing the authority of Holy Scripture in the modern world, Berkouwer writes, “The confession of the authority of the Word of God can never be isolated from the saving content of the Word of God” (Modern Uncertainty and Christian Faith, 1953, p. 14, emphasis mine). In confessing that the Bible is the Word of God, the believer confesses that God is speaking to him through the Bible concerning salvation.
With thie perspective on Scripture, Berkouwer insists that “Christianity is a book- religion, but not a book-religion in the formal sense of the word” (p. 14).
What he means is this:
(i) The confession, “The Bible is the Word of God”, emphasizes the importance of the Bible for Christianity. In this sense, Christianity is a book-religion.
(ii) Alongside the emphasis on the importance of the Bible for Christianity, there is the rejection of the formal conception of Christianity as a book-religion. This is intended to emphasize the present activity of the Spirit who uses the words of Scripture to point sinners to the Saviour. This way of understanding the relation between the Spirit, the Scriptures and the Saviour “opens up a perspective that is not locked in the past” (Holy Scripture, p. 344).
We began with Wesley’s sermon on “Salvation by Faith”, noting the interesting way in which he began with creation before turning his attention to salvation. He emphasized the “grace upon grace” character of the relation between
creation and salvation.
I hope that the thoughts I have shared, from the writings of Tozer and Berkouwer, are a helpful way of emphasizing this first point of Wesley’s sermon. We speak of creation. We speak of salvation. We speak of grace. It is creation by grace. It is salvation by grace. It is creation and salvation. It is grace upon grace!

The Law of God, the Spirit of God and the Son of God

2012-02-09T17:38:00.000Z

The law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3:24). Some schoolmasters may be viewed as disciplinarians. I think, however, we should see the work of the Holy Spirit here. He convicts us of sin and leads us to Christ. This is not the impersonal law. It's the personal approach of the Holy Spirit. In grace and mercy, He shows us how far we have fallen short of God's perfect standard so that He might gently lead us to the Cross of Christ, the place where we receive the forgiveness of all our sins.
In Galatians 4:6, we learn that ‘God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts.’ The Spirit is not a reward which we earn by being good people. We are bad people who have broken God's law. The Spirit is God’s gift (Titus 3:5). The Spirit is not a reward which we earn because of our good works. Paul connects the gift of the Spirit with Christ’s death for us and our faith in Christ(Galatians 3:13-14).
When the Spirit brings us to Christ our Saviour, He takes us through a process which could be described as disciplinarian. We could look at His work in this way - so long as we see much more of divine grace in this than we would normally associate with the word "disciplinarian"!
The Spirit strips us of our human pride. He leads us to come to Christ with humility. When the Spirit has done His work in our hearts, we do not come to God with our religion in one hand and our morality in the other, insisting that we deserve to be blessed by Him. We look away from ourselves to Christ - ‘Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy Cross I cling.’ All pride in ourselves must be brought to Christ’s Cross as we humbly pray, ‘Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me, break me, melt me, mould me, fill me.’
Let's look beyond the idea of the law as a disciplinarian. Let's give thanks to God. He has given His Spirit to us. Let’s give ourselves to Him - to ‘be filled with the Spirit’(Ephesians 5:18).

A Question from Jesus - ‘Where is your faith?’(Luke 8:25).

2012-02-09T17:36:00.001Z

Immediately after this question, we read about Jesus casting out demons. Those who didn't have faith were puzzled by the demon-possessed man. They were even more puzzled when they found him sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. Without faith, they could not understand what had happened to the man. This was strange. It filled them with fear.
Jesus' question, "Where is your faith?", is a call to move beyond the fear of the unknown to a real trust in the love and power of Jesus which brought deliverance to the demon-possessed man.
When Jesus comes with the question, "Where is your faith?", some beg Him ‘to depart from them’(Luke 8:37). They don't want to know! Others long to ‘be with Him’(Luke 8:38). They don’t want Him to go!
For those who didn't have faith, the deliverance of the demon-possessed man seemed strange. They didn't understand Jesus. They were afraid of Him. They begged Him to depart from them.
Where there is faith, there is a longing to be with Jesus. We take time to be with Him. This doesn't mean that we can fully comprehend His miracles. It does mean that we have been touched by His love and we are learning to worship Him with joyful trust.
His miraculous power is no longer just something strange. We no longer need to run away because of the fear of the unknown.
Catching a glimpse, by faith, of the love and power of Christ, we bow down before Him and we say, "To God be the glory! Great things He has done." We say, "This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes."
How do we get beyond fear? Fear needs to be replaced by faith. We still have awe - a reverent fear of the Lord which is the beginning of wisdom - but this is a very different thing from the kind of fear which needs to be cast out by perfect love.
The miracles of Jesus still invite us to give our answer to Christ's question, "Where is your faith? Whether we remain gripped by fear or get delivered from fear will be determined by our response to His question.

"Where is your faith? (Luke 8:25) - Part Two

2012-02-09T17:36:00.000Z

How good it is that Jesus leads us in the way of faith. His way is better than the way of fear. We give thanks to Him for what He did in the life of the demon-possessed man. What are our "demons"? They're anything that keeps us in bondage to fear. Jesus is stronger than these "demons." Let us put our trust in Him and we will know the truth and the power of God's Word - "We are kept by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed at the last time" (1 Peter 1:5). "Salvation ... at the last time" - This is the ultimate deliverance from every "demon" that keeps us in the grip of fear!

The old, old story - it is ever new!

2012-02-09T17:35:00.000Z

We look back to the past. We say, “That was then. That’s old.” We live in the present. We say, “This is now. This is new.” We shouldn’t be too quick to dismiss the past. Jesus Christ belongs to the past. He also speaks to us in the present. He is preparing us for God’s eternal future.

We read the Story of Jesus. We rejoice in His love. We say, “The old, old story – It is ever new. The old, old story – Praise the Lord! It’s true!” It’s true! That’s why it’s still God’s “new song.”

The Uniqueness of Christ

2012-02-09T17:34:00.000Z

People did not know what to make of Jesus. They tried to understand Him by comparing Him with famous figures from the recent and more distant past - ' John the Baptist ... Elijah ... Jeremiah or one of the prophets'. Into this situation of confusion came something new, something different - 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God'. Where did this come from? It came from God - 'flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven' (Matthew 16:14,16-17). What we have here is divine revelation. Our thinking about Jesus is not to be limited by what people say about Him. We must listen to what God says about Him - 'This is My beloved Son' (Matthew 3:17). What is so different about Jesus? Those who came before Him were servants of God. He is God's 'one and only Son' (John 3:16). They preached God's Word. He is God's Word. Seeking to convince his readers that 'Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God', John begins and ends his Gospel in a way that leaves us in no doubt about the absolute uniqueness of Jesus. Describing Jesus as 'the Word', he begins his Gospel with the astonishing declaration - 'the Word was God'. Toward the end of his Gospel, we have a similar declaration of Christ's divinity - 'My Lord and my God' (20:31; 1:1; 20:28).

The great words of John 1:14 - 'the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth' - are echoed and expanded upon by Paul, in Philippians 2:5-11. Emphasizing that though 'He was in the form of God, Christ Jesus did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men', Paul goes on to describe Christ's crucifixion - 'being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross'. Paul, then, takes us beyond Christ's crucifixion - 'Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the Name that is above every name'. Paul's next words - 'that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father' - take us far beyond the beginning - 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God' (John 1:1). They take us on to the end. They prepare us for the great words spoken by the risen Christ in the book of Revelation 'I am the Alpha and the Omega ... the Beginning and the End ... the First and the Last ... the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty' (1:8; 21:6; 22:13).

This wonderful Story - the eternal Word, the Word become flesh, the Suffering Servant, the glorified Lord - is the great fulfilment of the prophecies of Isaiah. The 'Mighty God' has become 'Emmanuel (God with us)'. 'He makes himself an offering for sin; and 'He shall see His offspring ... the fruit of the travail of His soul' (9:6; 7:14; 53:10-11). This is the Story of our salvation, the Story of Jesus Christ, the 'Mighty God' who became 'God with us'. For our salvation, we need both - the 'Mighty God' and 'God with us'. Apart from 'God with us', the 'Mighty God' might seem remote, great in power yet detached from us. Apart from the 'Mighty God', 'God with us' might seem too homely, too much like a 'god' created in our own image. Jesus Christ is our Saviour. He is the 'Mighty God'. We know that He is able to save. He has become 'God with us'. We know that He is willing to save. The Story continues. He has become the Suffering Servant. He has 'borne the sin of many'. Now, as the risen Lord, He has 'prolonged His days' (Isaiah 53:12,10). 'Jesus Christ', our Saviour and Lord, 'the same yesterday and today and forever', continues to speak to us His gracious words of salvation - 'Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have mercy on him, and to our God for He will abundantly pardon' (Hebrews 13:8; Isaiah 55:6-7).

Jesus is the Lord - 'In the beginning ... the Word was God' (John 1:1). He is the Christ, the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies. The prophets looked forward to His coming. The apostles proclaimed 'the good news' - the Christ has come. The prophets and apostles speak with one voice concerning 'the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glory' (1 Peter 1:10-12). Together, they declare to us the 'good news' of our salvation - 'Jesus ... will save His people from their sins' (Luke 2:10; Matthew 1:21). From the very beginning of His life on earth, Jesus is clearly marked out as different from the rest of us - 'that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit' (Matthew 1:20). This uniqueness continues throughout His life on earth - He is 'without sin' (Hebrews 4:15). His uniqueness is powerfully demonstrated by His resurrection from the dead - 'designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by His resurrection from the dead' (Romans 1:4). Throughout His great Story, we see Jesus Christ as our wonderful Saviour, the only One who 'is able to save to the uttermost all who come to God through Him' (Hebrews 7:25).

The uniqueness of our Lord Jesus Christ is indicated early in His life when, at the age of twelve, He speaks these wonderful words, 'Didn't you know I had to be in My Father's house?' (Luke 2:49). Hearing these words, we catch a glimpse of Jesus' unique relationship with God the Father. From there, we look back and notice earlier indications of the unique place held by Jesus in God's plan of salvation - the divine protection of the child and the divine victory over the child's enemies (Matthew 2:13,20). When Jesus sets out on His public ministry, it becomes clear why His life was preserved. Jesus is a special Person - 'This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased' (Matthew 3:17). He has a special purpose - He is 'the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world' (John 1:29). As soon as Jesus is publicly announced as God's one and only Son and our one and only Saviour, Satan takes action, seeking to divert Jesus from His God-appointed pathway, the way that brings salvation to the world. Satan is, however, one step behind God. At Jesus'baptism, something remarkable had happened - 'the Holy Spirt descended upon Him' (Luke 3:22). Jesus had been filled with the Holy Spirit since His conception - 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you ... therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God' (Luke 1:35). There is, however, in Jesus' baptism, a mighty empowering for service which equipped Him for victory over Satan. When Jesus goes into the wilderness, He does not go alone. He is 'led by the Spirit', 'sent' by the Spirit, 'full of the Holy Spirit'. 'The Spirit descends and remains on Him' (Matthew 4:1; Mark 1:12; Luke 4:1; John 1:34). Jesus is ready for Satan. When Satan comes, questioning Jesus' divine Sonship - 'If you are the Son of God' (Matthew 4:3; Luke 4:3,9), Jesus is ready for him. Armed with the Word of God - 'It is written' (Matthew 4:4; Luke 4:4,10) - Jesus triumphs over Satan.

Moving forward in triumph, 'Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit ... to preach good news to the poor' (Luke 4:14,18). Jesus' preaching is unique. Others preach the Gospel. Jesus is the Gospel - 'I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me' (John 14:6). We find an echo of Jesus' preaching in the message given by Peter in Acts 4:12 - 'Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved'. As well as pursuing a ministry of 'preaching' and 'teaching', Jesus also exercises a ministry of 'healing' (Matthew 4:23). In this healing ministry, we see the uniqueness of Jesus. His miracles proclaim Him as God's Son and our Saviour. The 'miraculous signs' are recorded by John so that we might 'believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing, we might have life in His Name' (John 20:30-31). Jesus' ministry is not only a ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. It is also a ministry of prayer. In John 17, we see Jesus praying. In His prayer, we see His uniqueness. We see Him committing Himself to the pathway that leads to the Cross, the place where He will fulfil God's purpose of salvation - 'Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You' (v.1). We hear Him praying not only for His first disciples. He prays also for believers of every generation (v.20). As we look at the praying Jesus, we catch a glimpse of Him as our Lord who is 'the same yesterday, today and for ever', our Saviour concerning whom we can still say, 'the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin' (Hebrews 13:8; 1 John 1:7).

On our way towards the crucifixion of our Saviour, we travel by way of His transfiguration, the great event in which we hear these wonderful words concerning Him - 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased' (Matthew 17:5). Learning to view Jesus' death in the light of this divine declaration, we join with Paul in his great words concerning Jesus - 'the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me' (Galatians 2:20). Together with Paul, we give thanks to God for the great message of the Gospel - 'Christ died for our sins' (1 Corinthians 15:3). We rejoice, with him, in the great love which lies behind the death of Christ for our sins - 'God demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us' (Romans 5:8).The death of Jesus is not the end of His Story. As we move from Jesus' death to His resurrection, His ascension and His return, we see that He alone is worthy of the marvellous description given of Him in Revelation 19:16 - 'King of kings and Lord of lords'. We hear the Gospel proclamation - 'Jesus Christ is Lord'. We confess Him as our Lord (Acts 2:36; Romans 10:9). The Story is unique. Our Saviour is unique. His Salvation is unigue. It is only this Story, this Saviour and this Salvation which gives us the strength to face the future with the confidence which says, 'Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ' (1 Corinthians 15:57).

The Holy Spirit in the Life of Faith

2012-02-09T17:33:00.000Z

The Holy Spirit is the Breath of God. All Scripture is God-breathed. We experience the Breath of God upon our life when we listen attentively to the God-breathed Scriptures. Paul speaks, in 2 Timothy 3:15-17, of the relationship between the Breath of God (the Holy Spirit) and the God-breathed Word (the Holy Scriptures) - 'the Holy Scriptures ... are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work'.

1) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to make us wise.

The wisdom which comes from the Spirit and the Word is a special kind of wisdom. It is not the wisdom of this world. It is the wisdom which is bound up with Christ, salvation and faith. Worldly wisdom places great value on intellectual attainment. It emphasizes the importance of getting on in the world. True spiritual wisdom has quite different priorities. As we feed upon God's Word, the Spirit imparts wisdom to us, a wisdom which the world can neither understand nor receive. This is the wisdom of which Paul speaks in 1 Corinthians 2. He describes this wisdom as 'a secret and hidden wisdom' (v.7). This wisdom is no longer hidden from us - 'God has revealed it to us by His Spirit' (v.10). It is hidden only from those who refuse to read and hear with faith the 'words ... taught by the Spirit' (v.13).

2) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to lead us to Christ.

Jesus has given us His promise concerning the Holy Spirit: 'He will glorify Me, for He will take what is Mine and declare it to you' (John 16:14). If we are to honour the Holy Spirit in our preaching, we must focus on the cross of Christ' - 'we preach Christ crucified', 'I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified' (1 Corinthians 1:17,23; 2:2). We must pray for 'the Spirit's power' (1 Corinthians 2:4-5). How are we to preach Christ crucified? Will it mean preaching only from a select group of 'gospel texts' which refer explicitly to the death of Christ? Preaching Christ and Him crucified does not mean that we must narrow down the focus of our preaching. What, then, does it mean? It means that we must learn to see Christ in 'all the Scriptures' (Luke 24:27). At the very centre of all of our preaching from God's Word, there must stand Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We do not read Christ into places where He is not to be found. Rather, we emphasize that Christ - 'the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world' (John 1:29) - is the central Theme of the Scriptures. The Spirit of God points us to Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We are to 'keep our eyes on Jesus' (Hebrews 12:2). As we keep our eyes on Him, we will find that the Spirit directs our attention to the cross, graciously reminding us that we have been 'redeemed ... with the precious blood of Christ' (1 Peter 1:18-19).

3) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to bring us to salvation.

Jesus Christ is 'our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification and redemption' (1 Corinthians 1:30). He is our full salvation. From beginning to end, our salvation is in Him. There is no room for boasting on our part: 'Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord' (1 Corinthians 1:31). Our salvation is an 'out of this world' salvation. It is 'out of this world' in its origin. It is a salvation which has its origin in the 'before the ages' love of God, the eternal love of God. It is a salvation which has, as its destiny, 'our glorification' (1 Corinthians 2:7). When Paul speaks of this eternal salvation, this glorious salvation, he emphasizes its 'out of this world' character. He writes, 'What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived ... God has prepared for those who love Him' (1 Corinthians 2:9). This salvation is not only 'out of this world'. It has entered into our experience: 'God has revealed (His salvation) to us through the Spirit' (1 Corinthians 2:10). Salvation has been revealed. It has come 'from above'. Here below, we experience salvation. Here below, we confess, with gladness of heart, that salvation has come to us. Tempted to doubt God's salvation, we must allow the Spirit to bring to our remembrance this salvation which comes 'from above'. Tempted to think that we 'know it all', we must remember that we are still here below. When we speak of God's salvation, we must speak with deep gratitude to God 'for His inexpressible gift' (2 Corinthians 9:15). Our words can never give adequate expression to God's great salvation. Nevertheless, we must not be hesitant in preaching Christ and His salvation. As we preach the gospel of salvation, we must never lose sight of the way in which the Spirit has revealed God's salvation to us. Salvation has not come to us from the depths of our own heart. It has not come to us from some 'great beyond' which makes the whole matter so private that we dare not speak of it. Salvation has come to us through 'words ... taught by the Spirit', the words of Holy Scripture. To those who live below, salvation has come 'from above'. When we think of God's salvation, we will come to appreciate its greatness, as we learn to see the greatness of our sin, the greatness of our need.

God's salvation corresponds to our need. We have a need for forgiveness. The Gospel speaks to us of 'peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ' (Romans 5:1). We doubt our ability to keep going in the life of faith. God's Word says to us, 'Do you not know ... that God's Spirit dwells in you?' (1 Corinthians 3:16). We wonder if there is hope. God assures us that there is hope. He does this by pouring His love 'into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us' (Romans 5:5). Peace with God provides us with the God-given foundation for living the life in the Spirit. Before we are called to the life of discipleship, God says to us, 'There is ... now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus' (Romans 8:1). To the believer, God says, 'You have been set free' - set free 'from the law of sin and death', set free 'for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus' (Romans 8:2). This freedom is in Christ. The Lord Jesus says to us, 'if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed' (John 8:36). His way of setting us free is emphasized in John 8:32 - 'you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free'. Our experience of freedom, given to us by Christ through His Word of truth, is to be an ongoing experience. This experience of freedom is described by Paul in 2 Corinthians 3:16-18. It begins 'when a man turns to the Lord' (v.16). Freedom is the gift of God. It is the gift of the Spirit: 'where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom' (v.17). Our ongoing experience of freedom - freedom from sinfulness, freedom for Christlikeness - grows 'from one degree of glory to another as we 'behold the glory of the Lord' (v.18).

4) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to bring us to faith.

God's salvation is a gracious salvation. When, however, we join in Paul's affirmation of Ephesians 2:5 - 'by grace you have been saved' - , we must take care to look down to verse 8 where we find the additional words, 'through faith': 'By grace you have been saved through faith'. There must be no hint of a grace which works apart from faith, a grace which makes faith redundant. That would be 'saved by grace without faith' which is very different from 'saved by grace through faith'. In our preaching, we must emphasize both the absolute necessity of grace and the absolute necessity of faith. It is important for us to ask some key questions about faith.

Our first question is this: 'Where does faith come from?' Is there a basic inclination in man towards believing? The parable of the Pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:9-14) gives us, in the proud Pharisee, a striking picture of man apart from the grace of God. We may not believe that we are absolutely perfect but we will, nonetheless, look around ourselves until we see someone to whom we can point and say, 'Lord, I'm not as bad as him. I'm better than him'. The Holy Spirit has a very definite answer to such sinful pride - 'you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are, when you judge another; for in passing judgment upon him you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things' (Romans 2:1). How do we move from being the proud Pharisee, boasting of our own self-righteousness to becoming the humble publican, crying to God for His mercy? There is only one way, the way of the Gospel. It is when the 'Gospel' comes to us 'not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction' that we are brought to faith (1 Thessalonians 1:5; 2:13). Let us not imagine that we can bring others to faith without the power of the Holy Spirit working in us and through us.

When we move on to our second question, 'What is faith?', we find that the parable of the Pharisee and the publican provides us, in the publican, with a simple picture of faith. The contrast between the faith of the publican and the works of the Pharisee is total. The faith of the publican was not a 'work' by which he earned salvation. He received salvation as a gift of God's grace. The faith of the publican points in one direction only: the mercy of God. His prayer, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner' (v.13), points away from the sinner to the Saviour. When we observe Jesus' use of the word, 'justified', in verse 14, our thoughts tend to move towards Paul and the doctrine of justification by faith. The doctrine of justification by faith was Jesus' doctrine before it was Paul's. What does say Paul say about justification by faith that is not already said - in essence - by Jesus in this parable? Paul contrasts grace and works in Romans 11:6 - 'if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works'. He contrasts faith and works in Romans 9:32 where he states that Israel did not fulfil the law because 'they did not pursue it through faith, but as if it were based on works'. While Paul contrasts both grace and faith with works, he never contrasts grace and faith. They belong together. In our preaching, we must emphasize both the offer of grace and the call to faith.

There is a third question we must ask - 'Why is faith so important?' Again, the parable of the Pharisee and the publican answers this question for us: 'this man went down to his house justified rather than the other' (v.14). It is faith which marks the difference between the man whom God has declared righteous and the man who is robed in the 'filthy rags' of his own religion and morality (Isaiah 64:6). The contrast between Pharisaism and saving faith is brought out well in Luke 7:36-50 where a sinful woman is forgiven as the Pharisees 'say among themselves', "Who is this, who even forgives sins?"'(v.49). Jesus' words to the woman, in verses 48 and 50, consist of three very short sentences which are packed with Gospel truth. 'Your sins are forgiven' - these words were spoken to the woman, but not to the Pharisees. Why? The answer is found in the next sentence - 'Your faith has saved you'. The reason that the woman, and not the Pharisees, heard the words, 'Your sins are forgiven', is clear. She believed. They did not believe. The Lord Jesus then said to the woman, 'Go in peace'.

From these words of peace, we may find our thoughts turning to the Dove of Peace, the Holy Spirit. In giving to the believer the forgiveness of sins, the Lord Jesus also gives the Holy Spirit. In grace and mercy, God gives the Holy Spirit to us: 'regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit', given to us by 'the goodness and loving kindness of God our Saviour ... poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Saviour' (Titus 3:4-7). The direct connection between Christ and the Holy Spirit is emphasized in John the Baptist's prophecy: 'He (Jesus Christ) will baptize you with the Holy Spirit' (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33). In Galatians 3:14, Paul stresses that it is 'in Christ Jesus that we receive the promise of the Spirit through faith'. He goes on to emphasize that 'faith works by love ' and speaks also of 'love' as 'the fruit of the Spirit' (5:6,22-23). Love - this is so important. Love - this is the practical context for all of our theological reflection concerning the Holy Spirit in the life of faith.

5) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God for our profit.

At our local primary school, I began a lesson on the Old Testament prophets by asking the question, 'What is a prophet?' One boy gave the answer, 'It's when you sell something for more than you bought it for'. We profit from the Scriptures because Scripture is a word of prophecy: 'men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God' (2 Peter 1:21). How do we profit from the prophets? How do we profit from the Scriptures? The answer is given in 2 Timothy 3:16 - 'All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable'. Scripture is profitable because Scripture is God-breathed. The Bible is the Word of God. That's why it profits us. If the Bible is not the Word of God, no amount of our saying, 'I derive profit from reading the Bible' will make it the Word of God. It is not our faith or lack of faith which decides whether or not the Bible is God's Word. Our faith or lack of faith can neither add to nor take away from Paul's great declaration, 'All Scripture is God-breathed'. Our faith rests on a sure foundation: 'How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!' Despite our unbelief, 'the Word of God is not bound' (2 Timothy 2:9). Through His Word, God is able to lift us out of our unbelief and bring us into the assurance of faith. We profit from God's Word when we allow the Breath of God, the Holy Spirit, to breathe His God-breathed words into our hearts and lives.

6) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to teach us.

Jesus tells us, in John 7:17, that if we want to understand His teaching, we must commit ourselves to doing the will of God. True understanding of Christ and His Gospel goes hand in hand with a practical commitment to living as His disciple. If we are not to be 'blown here and there by every wind of teaching', we need to commit ourselves to being 'doers' of God's Word (Ephesians 4:14; James 1:22). There are 'some things', in God's Word, which are 'hard to understand' (2 Peter 3:16). Many demands will be placed on those who take seriously the task of 'correctly handling the Word of truth' (2 Timothy 2:15). As we wrestle with the many-sided complexities of gaining an accurate understanding of God's Word, we must never lose sight of 'the simplicity which is in Christ'. We must take great care to maintain our 'sincere and pure devotion to Christ' (2 Corinthians 11:3).

In our learning from God's Word and in our teaching God's Word to others, we are to honour the Holy Spirit. He is our Teacher. This is what Jesus says concerning Him - 'the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you' (John 14:26). As we walk with the Lord, 'letting the Word of Christ dwell in us richly' the Holy Spirit will not fail us. He will not leave us without a word to speak for Him (Colossians 3:16; Luke 12:12). In the ministry of God's Word, we are to say only what the Holy Spirit gives to us for the spiritual feeding of the people.

When I was a student, this lesson was impressed upon me by my Minister, George Philip. He pointed out to me that there may be many things which will interest me in the study, but they may not be what God is wanting me to share with the people when I go to the pulpit. I have never forgotten his words. They have provided an important framework for my ministry. Our goal is not to impress people with our great learning. Rather, it is to give them a glimpse of the greatness of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jack Rogers gives us a thought-provoking account of a sermon preached by G.C. Berkouwer while he was in the U.S.A. - 'The worshippers were disappointed by his sermon. They could understand it! They expected the great professor to be profound (i.e. abstract, dull). Instead, he preached a simple gospel sermon of pastoral comfort and affirmation' (Confessions of a Conservative Evangelical, p.141). If our preaching is a disappointment to those who bring with them the wrong expectations, let us not be perturbed. If our preaching is a help to those who are eagerly seeking to be instructed in the Word of God, let us rejoice. We are to help our hearers to 'grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ' (2 Peter 3:18). This is 'the work' for which we have been 'set apart' by 'the Holy Spirit'. This is 'the work' to which we have been 'called' by 'the Holy Spirit' (Acts 13:2).

7) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to reprove us.

This ministry of the Spirit - His reproving ministry - is vitally related to His correcting ministry. These ministries belong together. In His reproving ministry, the Spirit is concerned with showing us where we have gone wrong. In His correcting ministry, He is concerned with bringing us back to the right way. There will be those who are reproved by the Spirit of God yet they refuse His correcting ministry. The Word of God speaks very directly of this in Proverbs 29:1 - 'He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken beyond healing'. This, however, is not the intention of the Spirit's reproving ministry. The Holy Spirit reproves us so that He might bring us back into the way of holiness. In Hebrews 3:7, we read words which 'the Holy Spirit' speaks to us, 'Today, when you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts'.

In Paul's letters, we have two different yet related instructions concerning obediennce to the Spirit of God - 'Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God' (Ephesians 4:30). and 'Do not quench the Spirit' (1 Thessalonians 5:19). While these two instructions may be similar, there is a difference of emphasis. The warning against grieving the Spirit is more related to the Spirit's reproving ministry while the warning against quenching the Spirit is more related to His correcting ministry. When the Spirit is reproving us for our wrong living, we must not grieve Him by continuing in the wrong way. When the Spirit is seeking to bring us back into the pathway of holiness, we must not quench Him by resisting His holy promptings within us.

In connection with the Spirit's reproving ministry, we must consider Christ's warning against committing the unpardonable sin, 'the blasphemy against the Spirit' (Matthew 12:31-32; Mark 3:28-30; Luke 12:10). What is Jesus saying to us here? He is urging us to be responsive to the Spirit in His ministries of reproof and correction. We must not isolate this sin against the Spirit from all other sins of resisting the Spirit. Jesus is pressing home the urgent importance of not grieving the Spirit and not quenching the Spirit. In His ministries of reproof and correction, the Spirit speaks to us as the Spirit of Christ. He speaks as the One concerning whom Jesus says, 'He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you' (John 16:14). The Spirit convicts us of our sin with a view to bringing us to the Saviour who graciously forgives our sin.

8) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to correct us.

The Spirit's ministries of reproof and correction belong together. In Ephesians 4:30, we see both reproof and correction. We are warned - 'Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God'. We must take care that we do not follow a pathway that will lead us further away from the Lord. We are encouraged - 'in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption'. We must not lose sight of the glorious destiny towards which the Lord is leading us. In His ministries of reproof and correction, the Lord does not treat us as strangers. He treats us as children. 'Sent into our hearts' by 'God' the Father, 'the Spirit' enables us to call God our 'Father' (Galatians 4:6). In love, we are reproved - ' the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives' (Hebrews 12:6). His goal is our correction. He wants to transform our life, to bring us out of a life dominated by sin and into a life filled with His blessing.

Calling us back from a life that dishonours God - Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery', He invites us to live a life that brings glory to God - 'be filled with the Spirit' (Ephesians 5:18). The Spirit corrects us as we respond, with the obedience of faith, to the Lord's command - 'be filled with the Spirit'. Paul does not say, 'Fill yourselves with the Spirit'. He says, 'let the Holy Spirit fill you' (N.E.B.). God is calling us to 'the life-long walk in the Spirit' (A.W. Tozer, The Divne Conquest, p.110). He is calling us to 'keep on being filled with the Spirit'.The Spirit-filled life is a gift of God, a gift of grace. There can be no room for boasting of our own moral superiority. All the glory belongs to the Lord. We can only look away from ourselves to Him and say, 'the Lord has done this, and it is marvellous in our eyes' (Psalm 118:23). Our testimony must always be this, 'Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name be the glory, because of Your love and faithfulness' (Psalm 115:1).

9) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to train us in righteousness.

Whenever a preacher speaks about being baptized with the Spirit or filled with the Spirit, different hearers hear the words in different ways. An important biblical way of thinking about the baptism with the Spirit is indicated in Matthew 3:11-12 and Luke 3:16-17. The baptism with the Spirit is a baptism with 'fire' - 'His winnowing fork is in His hand and He will clear His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the granary, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire'. The Spirit led Jesus, after His baptism, into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-2). The Spirit leads us into the refining fire where we are trained in righteousness. Training in righteousness is not fun. Compare training in righteousness with the training of a sportsman. It is hard work. There are times when it is difficult to see the goal. When we are going through hard times, we must remember the goal - 'praise and glory and honour at the revelation (or appearing) of Jesus Christ' (1 Peter 1:6-7).

When we are being trained in righteousness, there will be difficulties arising from the fact that loyalty to Christ is not welcome in an unbelieving world. God's Word tells us that 'all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted' (2 Timothy 3:12). When we are being trained in righteousness, we must recognize that God's way for us may not be the way that we would have planned for ourselves. When Paul prayed about his 'thorn in the flesh', his prayer was answered - but not in the way he had hoped. The weakness remained, but in it Paul experienced something greater - the grace of God. God can turn even the most unlikely circumstances into ideal situations for training in righteousness. We can be assured that God knows what He is doing. Over the whole process of training in righteousness, He writes these great words - 'My grace is sufficient for you' (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).

10) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to make the man of God, complete for every good work.

'Man of God' - isn't that a wonderful expression? That's what God calls us! We don't deserve to be called this, but this is what God has made us in Christ. God is determined to make us worthy of this marvellous title which He has so graciously bestowed upon us! We are called to maturity. We are called to mature holiness. We are to mature in our response to God's call to holiness, that call which is at one and the same time both a command and a promise - 'be holy, for I am holy', 'You shall be holy, for I am holy' (Leviticus 11:44; 1 Peter 1:16). God's call to holiness is clear - ''God has not called us to uncleanness, but to holiness'. This call is followed by these solemn words of warning - 'whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives His Holy Spirit to you' (1 Thessalonians 4:7-8). Maturity is bound up with holiness. The nearest we have, in Scripture, to a definition of maturity is found in Hebrews 5:14 - 'solid food is for the mature, for those who have their faculties trained by practice to distinguish good from evil'. 'Trained by practice to distinguish good from evil' - what a practical definition of maturity! May God grant a revival of such maturity in our day. We are being 'equipped for every good work' These good works are the works of faith - 'By grace you have been saved through faith ... to do good works' (Ephesians 2:8-10). These good works are produced in us through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. As we 'let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly', the Spirit works in us to make us more like our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ - 'the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control' (Colossians 3:16; Galatians 5:22-23).

Revelation 4 & 5

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‘In heaven’, there’s ‘an open door’ – This is the great declaration with which Revelation 4 begins. This ‘open door in heaven’ speaks to us of the great love God has for us. We sing about the opening of heaven’s door when we sing the well-known hymns, There is a green hill and Jesus loves me. In the hymn, There is a green hill, we sing of Jesus Christ our Saviour:

‘There was no other good enough to pay the price of sin;

He only could unlock the gate of heaven, and let us in’ (CH, 241).

In the hymn, Jesus loves me, we sing of the wonderful love our Saviour has for us:

‘Jesus loves me! He who died heaven’s gate to open wide;

He will wash away my sin, let His little child come in’ (CH, 418).

From heaven’s door, we hear the voice of love. It is the voice of our Saviour calling to us. He says to us, ‘Come up here’. What a gracious and glorious invitation this is! – From heaven’s open door, Jesus Christ, the risen Lord, calls out to us, ‘Come up here’. What happens to us when we respond to Christ’s call? John tells us in verse 2 – ‘At once I was in the Spirit’. To all who come to Christ in faith, God gives the gift of His Holy Spirit. When we think of the opening of heaven’s door and the sending of the Spirit into our hearts, we can only bow before God in worship and say,

‘This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvellous in our eyes’ (Ps. 118:23).

As we worship, we catch a glimpse of the glory of God. He is the eternal God. He is God the Creator. He is God the Redeemer. This threefold revelation of God as the eternal God, the God of creation and the God of redemption is found in 4:8, 4:11 & 5:12.

In 4:8, we catch a glimpse of the glory of the eternal God:

‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is

to come.’

In 4:11, we catch a glimpse of the glory of God the Creator:

‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour

and power, for You have created all things, and by Your will they

were created and have their being.’

In 5:12, we catch a glimpse of the glory of God the Redeemer:

‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth

and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!’

Looking through heaven’s open door, catching a glimpse of the glory of God - This is the heavenly and eternal context within which our worship takes place. We have gathered for worship as those who have heard the gracious call of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. We have heard His voice of love, calling us to worship. He still says to us, as He said to John, ‘Come up here’.

Humanly speaking, we have come down to the valley. Our place of worship is set in a valley surrounded by hills. Spiritually speaking, we have come up to the mountaintop – the high place of heaven itself. Here, in the low place that we call the valley, we lift up our eyes beyond the hills to the Maker of the hills, the eternal God, the God of creation, the God of redemption. We catch a glimpse of His glory, His heavenly glory, His eternal glory. This evening, in our worship, we focus attention on three glimpses of God’s glory – the glory of the eternal God, the glory of God the Creator, the glory of God the Redeemer.

For our first glimpse of glory, we look at God as the eternal God. He is the God ‘who was’, the God ‘who is’, the God ‘who is to come’. The Bible begins with the eternal God. Before the world is even mentioned, we have the words, ‘In the beginning, God’. Before the world was created, there was God. Before He became God the Creator and God the Redeemer, He was the eternal God. The Bible ends with the eternal God. In the Bible’s final chapter, the eternal God gives us this majestic description of Himself:

‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the

Beginning and the End’ (v.13).

The eternal God calls us to put our trust in Him:

‘Trust in the Lord for ever, for the Lord God is the eternal (or

everlasting) Rock’ (Isaiah 26:4).

The eternal God gives great promises to those who put their trust in Him:

‘The eternal God is your Refuge, and underneath are the everlasting

arms’ (Deuteronomy 33:27).

‘The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no-one can

fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of

the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men

stumble and fall; but those who wait on the Lord will renew their

strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not

grow weary, they will walk and not be faint’ (Isaiah 40:28-31).

In this precious promise concerning the renewal of our strength, we have a description of God which leads us on to our second glimpse of glory – ‘The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth’.

For our second glimpse of glory, we turn our attention to God the Creator. He is the God who ‘created all things’. The first half of the Bible’s opening verse speaks to us of the eternal God – ‘In the beginning, God’. Before everything else, there is God. In the second half of the verse, we learn that the eternal God has become God the Creator – ‘In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth’. Here is love, the love of the eternal God. By creating the heavens and the earth, the eternal God pours out the love that is in His heart. This love - His love - is everlasting love. When we speak of God as the God of perfect love, we will be challenged by unbelieving critics of the Christian Faith. They will say to us, ‘How can you believe in a God of love if He created a world like this?’ How are we to answer this kind of criticism? We must go back to the first three chapters of Genesis. There, we will learn about the world God created. We will learn that the world created by God is very different from the world as it is today. In the final verse of Chapter 1, we have a description of the world as it was created by God:

‘God saw all that He had made, and it was very good’.

We look at the world today, and we say, ‘What’s the world coming to?’ Why is there such a difference between the world as it is now and the world as it was created by God? The answer to this question is found in the third chapter of Genesis. The Bible’s answer to this question can be summed up in one word: sin. It is our sin which has spoiled the good world created by the God of perfect love. As we read of Adam and Eve disobeying God, we must see ourselves in their story. We must see our sin, our rebellion against God. We have disobeyed Him. We have gone our own sinful way rather than walking in His perfect way. We have done what we wanted rather than walking in the centre of God’s perfect will for us. This is not only the story of Adam and Eve. It’s the story of every one of us – ‘All have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory’ (Romans 3:23). Sin – This is the reason why the world as we know it is so very different from the ‘very good’ world that was created by God.

The loving God created a ‘very good’ world. The sinful creature – that’s every one of us – has spoiled God’s world. That’s the basic message contained in the first three chapters of Genesis. From here, we now move on to our third glimpse of the glory of God: the eternal God, God the Creator, has become God the Redeemer.

Our third glimpse of the glory of God brings us to the very heart of the Christian Gospel. ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain …’ (5:11) – These marvellous words direct our attention to God the Redeemer. In the opening chapter of the Gospel of John, we have profound teaching concerning our Saviour, Jesus Christ. This teaching, in verses 1-3 & 14 brings together our three glimpses of God’s glory – the eternal God, God the Creator, God the Redeemer.

‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the

Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all

things were made … The Word became flesh and lived for a while

among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son,

who came from the Father, full of grace and truth’.

Why did the eternal God take on human flesh? Why did the Creator of all things live for a while among us? The answer becomes clear as we read on in the Fourth Gospel. In Revelation 4 & 5, we are invited to enter more deeply into the worship of God – the eternal God, God the Creator, God the Redeemer. The words of John’s Gospel will help us to do this. In 3:16, John speaks to us of the love God has for all of us:

‘God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that

whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life’.

This is the eternal God, the God of eternal love, reaching out to guilty sinners, providing a way for us to share in eternal life with Him. In 1:29, John points us to our Saviour:

‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’

Twenty-nine times in the book of Revelation, Jesus Christ is described as ‘the Lamb of God’. ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!’ By praising our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ in such wonderful words of worship, the book of Revelation teaches us to pay special attention to the love of Christ. We must not think only of the greatness of the power of God without also thinking of the greatness of the love of Christ. The power of God and the love of Christ belong together. We must not think of God only as the eternal God, the God of creation. We must think of Him also as the God of redemption. We will focus on the God of redemption, when we ‘turn our eyes upon Jesus’. As we ‘look full in His wonderful face’, ‘the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glorious grace’ (MP, 712). May God, the eternal God, the God of creation ‘who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’, make His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ’ (2 Cor. 4:6).

Let us feed on Jesus Christ. He's "the Living Bread" (John 6:51).

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John 6:22-59

Jesus said, ‘I am the Bread of Life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst’ (John 6:35).

Jesus had enemies - ‘The Jews then murmured at Him, because He said, “I am the bread which comes down from heaven”’ (John 6:41). Christ’s enemies are still with us. They ‘murmur among themselves’ (John 6:43). How are we to respond to this situation? We must feed on Jesus Christ, ‘the Living Bread’ (John 6:51). Whatever difficulties we may face, the Lord provides for us: ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies’ (Psalm 23:5). We have His invitation: ‘O taste and see that the Lord is good!’ (Psalm 34:8). With His provision and invitation, let us make our response: ‘We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread, and long to feast upon Thee still’ (Church Hymnary, 571).

Looking back with thanksgiving and looking forward with hope

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We look back, and we ‘give thanks to the Lord’, remembering ‘the wonderful works that He has done’ (1 Chronicles 16:8,12). We look forward, committing our future to the Lord in prayer, looking to Him to fulfil the promise He gives to those who call upon Him in heartfelt prayer: ‘If My people who are called by My Name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land’ (2 Chronicles 7:14).
What will the future hold for us? One thing we can say is this: there is work to be done – God’s work. God is calling us to do His work and He will give us the strength that we need (Ezra 1:2,5). ‘At such a time is this’, a time when many are turning away from the Lord, showing little or no interest in worshipping and serving Him, a time when many are living according to the world’s standards with no real desire to please God and do His will, God is looking for people who will make a whole-hearted commitment to a life of serving Him. He is looking for people who will say, ‘Serving the Lord – this must be the great priority of my life, the most important thing’ (Esther 4:14,16).
Serving the Lord will not be easy. There will be many times when we will feel like giving up. We will be tempted to follow the crowd rather than following our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. When it seems that we are in danger of being overwhelmed by such temptations, we must say, ‘I have decided to follow Jesus’. We must remember that Jesus went to the Cross for us and we must say, ‘There will be “no turning back”’. We must not by put off by those who have no real love for the Lord: ‘Though none go with me, I still will follow’. We must make our choice: ‘The world behind me, the Cross before me. No turning back’ (Mission Praise, 272).
Sometimes, as we serve the Lord, we may wonder, ‘What’s this all about? Where is the Lord in all of this?’ When such thoughts fill our minds, we must take encouragement from God’s Word: ‘He knows the way that I take’ (Job 23:10). We must remember God’s great faithfulness (Lamentations 3:23). In the Lord our God, we find ‘strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow’ (Songs Of God’s People, 37). As we look to the Lord, we will catch a glimpse of His eternal purpose for us (Ecclesiastes 3:11) – He is ‘fitting us for heaven to live with Him there’ (Church Hymnary. 195).
My prayer for each of you is that, in 2011, you will learn to ‘turn your eyes upon Jesus’. I pray that you will ‘look full in His wonderful face’ and find that He is ‘altogether lovely’. As you learn to love Jesus more, you will discover that ‘the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace’ (Mission Praise, 712; Song of Solomon 5:16). Through the great love of Jesus Christ our Saviour, may we all grow stronger in our commitment to worshipping and serving the Lord our God.

Hunger for God, Love for God, Vision of God, Foundations in God

2012-02-09T17:29:00.000Z

Luke 6:17-49

Four thoughts from Jesus’ ‘sermon’: (a) Hunger for God (Luke 6:21; Matthew 5:6) - Laziness leads to superficial Christianity. Do not hunger and you will not be ‘filled with the Spirit’ (Ephesians 5:18). Do not seek and you will not find (Matthew 7:7). Seek the Lord with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13). God has so much for us (1 Corinthians 2:12). Don't miss out (2 Corinthians 9:6). (b) Love for God - Love is the greatest thing in the world. Our love for God is to be seen in our love for others (Luke 6:27; 1 John 3:16-17). (c) Vision of God - The blind cannot lead the blind (Luke 6:39-42). Make sure you are not ‘blind and short-sighted’ (2 Peter 1:9). Run with the vision - Others will be blessed (Habakkuk 2:2). (d) Foundations in God - Make sure you are ‘rooted’ in Christ, our sure ‘Foundation’ (Luke 6:43-49; Ephesians 3:17; 2:19-22).

Let us continue in the way of repentance and faith.

2012-02-09T17:27:00.000Z

Luke 13:1-35

Jesus stresses the need for both repentance (Luke 13:1-5) and the fruits of repentance (Luke 13:6-9). God’s Word, planted in our hearts at conversion, is to bear fruit. This requires continual repentance and faith (Colossians 2:6; Galatians 3:1-5). Don’t put it off till tomorrow! Today is ‘the day of salvation’. Don’t ‘neglect’ God’s ‘great salvation’ (Luke 13:15-16; 2 Corinthians 6:2; Hebrews 2:3). Let there be spiritual growth, affecting the whole of your life (Luke 13:18-21). Jesus was ‘journeying toward Jerusalem’ - to ‘finish His course’ at the Cross (Luke 13:22,32-33). He came from the Lord (Luke 13:35). Through Him, we come to the Lord (Luke 13:24; John 10:9). There is no salvation in ourselves (Luke 13:25-27). Apart from Him, there is ‘no peace’ (Jeremiah 6:14; 8:11). Jesus loves you (Luke 13:34). Make ‘sure’ that your trust is in Him. He will never fail you (2 Peter 1:10-11).

God loves you. Christ died for you.

2012-02-09T17:26:00.000Z

1 John 3:19-4:21

‘God is greater than our hearts’. When you are deeply aware of your sinfulness, remember - God loves you. God’s Word is brutally honest - about us: ‘The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?’ God’s Word is wonderfully encouraging - about His love for us. He ‘knows everything’ about us - and He still loves us: ‘God shows His love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us’ (1 John 3:20; Jeremiah 17:9; Romans 5:8). What a great Saviour we have. He is ‘without sin’ - yet He is the Friend of sinners. He ‘receives sinners’. He ‘came into the world to save sinners’ (Hebrews 4:15; Luke 15:2; 1 Timothy 1:15). Whenever we start getting too full of ourselves, too full of our own importance, we must remember: ‘He first loved us’ (1 John 4:19) - before we ever thought of loving Him!

What a wonderful redemption!

2012-02-09T17:25:00.001Z

God gave His promise - ‘I will make a new covenant’ (Hebrews 8:8-12; Jeremiah 31:31-34). God has fulfilled His promise. There is now a ‘new covenant in Jesus’ blood’ (Matthew 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25). The old covenant cannot even begin to compare with the new covenant. It is only a ‘shadow’. The new covenant is the real thing. It is ‘much more excellent’. It is ‘a better covenant’ (Hebrews 8:5-6), The old covenant is ‘outdated’ (Hebrews 8:13). It’s seen its day. Now, it’s past its ‘sell by date’! We look at the old covenant and we say, ‘There must be more than this’. There is more - ‘much more’. Through ‘the blood of Christ’, ‘our hearts and lives’ have been ‘cleansed’. Now, we can begin ‘to serve the living God’ (Hebrews 9:14). ‘What a wonderful redemption!’ - ‘eternal redemption’ (Mission Praise, 765; Hebrews 9:12)!

What's going on in your heart?

2012-02-09T17:25:00.000Z

Matthew 5:21-37

The teaching of Jesus here may be summed up thus: The heart of the matter is the matter of the heart. Jesus’ teaching was much more penetrating than the pronouncements made by the scribes and Pharisees. Not content to scratch the surface, Jesus asked the deeper question, ‘What's going on in your heart?’ Jesus’ teaching has real spiritual depth. He takes seriously the biblical teaching that ‘the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt’ (Jeremiah 17:9). He knows that we need a ‘new heart’ (Ezekiel 36:26). The Pharisees were bogged down in intricate details - Do this. Do that. Do the other. All the emphasis was on what we do. Christ was much more direct - Get the heart right. Ask God for a heart of love (Matthew 5:21-26), purity (Matthew 5:27-32), and truthfulness (Matthew 5:33-37). Do not say, ‘Look what I've done’ (Matthew 5:7:22). Let Christ live in your heart; let Him change you.

"Is anything too hard for the Lord?" (Genesis 18:14)

2012-02-09T17:24:00.000Z

Genesis 18:1-15

We need to hear these words as God’s call to greater faith. Sarah, like Abraham, had heard God’s promises, yet ‘she laughed to herself’ (Genesis 18:12). We can hear God’s Word, and still remain, in our hearts, men and women of unbelief. The Word of God does not benefit us when we do not receive it with faith (Hebrews 4:2). God knows what is in our hearts, just as He knew what was in Sarah’s heart (Genesis 18:13-15). He knows the human heart, ‘deceitful above all things’ (Jeremiah 17:9), yet He continues to love us. He does not give up on us. He perseveres with us. He could have given up on Sarah as a hopeless waste of His time, but He did not. ‘The evil heart of unbelief’ is always with us, but God is constantly at work to create in us ‘a clean heart’ ( Hebrews 3:12: Psalm 51:10). 'Soften my heart, Lord’ (Mission Praise, 606).

Amazing Grace (Part One)

2012-02-09T17:03:00.000Z

Genesis 17:1-27

Amazing grace - this is the marvellous theme of this chapter. Abram became Abraham (Genesis 17:5). Sarai became Sarah (Genesis 17:15-16). What they were belonged to their sinful past. What they became was the work of God's grace. What a contrast there is between human sin and divine grace. We look at ourselves. We see sin, and we lose hope. We look at the God of grace, and we say, ‘Sin shall not have dominion. Grace is victorious’ (Romans 6:14). Abram and Sarai appeared to be hopeless cases. They had failed the Lord, but He did not fail them. He made them new people. They became the father and mother of nations. To those who do not deserve His love, God still renews His ‘covenant’, His promise of love (Genesis 17:2). He still says, ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love’ (Jeremiah 31:3). In the Cross of Christ, we have the greatest ‘sign of the covenant’ (Genesis 17:11; Romans 5:8).

Amazing Grace (Part Two)

2012-02-09T17:02:00.001Z

Genesis 43:1-34

The roles have been reversed. At the beginning of Joseph’s story, it seemed that the brothers had control over his destiny (Genesis 37:19-20). Now, Joseph has the upper hand. Ultimately , it was the Lord who was in control. In all the events of Joseph’s life, God had been leading him towards the re-uniting of the family through which He would work out His purpose of grace. Joseph, the man at the centre of God’s purpose, knew the God of grace and desired that others might also know the blessing of the gracious God (Genesis 43:29). Benjamin was Joseph’s only full brother. The others were step-brothers (Genesis 29:31-30:24; Genesis 35:16-18). Joseph had a special affection for Benjamin (Genesis 43:30). In the love of Joseph for Benjamin, we see God’s love for us: ‘My compassion grows warm and tender’ (Hosea 11:8); ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love’ (Jeremiah 31:3).

Amazing Grace (Part Three)

2012-02-09T17:02:00.000Z

Joshua 9:1-10:15

Some chose ‘to make war against Joshua and

Israel

’ (Joshua 9:1-2). The Gibeonites came, looking for peace. They achieved their objective - ‘Joshua made peace with them’ (Joshua 9:15). In this story we see the work of Satan, and we may catch a glimpse of the work of God. The ‘peace’ was based on deception. The Gibeonites ‘acted with cunning’ (Joshua 9:4). The Israelites were easily deceived. They ‘did not ask direction from the Lord’ (Joshua 9:14). The Gibeonites brought trouble to Israel (Joshua 10:3-5). There were ‘weeds among the wheat’ - ‘An enemy has done this’ (Matthew 13:25,28). Through the grace of God, the Gibeonites’ ‘curse’ could become a ‘blessing’. Working at ‘the place’ of worship, they could come to know and love the Person who is worshipped (Joshua 9:23,27; Psalm 84:4). Let Christ bring you from ‘no peace’ to real peace (Jeremiah 6:14; Romans 5:1).

Clothed with the perfect righteousness of Christ (Isaiah 61:10)

2012-02-09T17:01:00.000Z

Genesis 3:10-15

Having chosen the way of sin, we are ‘naked’ and ashamed (Genesis 3:10). The Gospel teaches us that ‘there’s a way back to God from the dark paths of sin’. We can be clothed with the righteousness of Christ. We can bring the ‘filthy rags’ of ‘our righteous acts’ (Isaiah 64:6) to God, and we can exchange them for the perfect righteousness of Christ (Isaiah 61:10; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Putting our trust in Christ, we need not be ashamed in God’s presence (Romans 10:11). There must be no ‘passing the buck’ - the man blaming the woman, the woman blaming the serpent (Genesis 3:12-13). We are to confess our sins and receive God’s forgiveness (1 John 1:9). This forgiveness comes to us through the Cross where the suffering Saviour becomes the victorious Victor and the subtle serpent became the defeated devil. This is the message of Genesis 3:15. Through the Cross, God has provided for us a full salvation!

"There's a way back to God from the dark paths of sin."

2012-02-09T17:00:00.000Z

Genesis 4:6-16

In the story of Cain, we see the development of sin. Jealousy leads to anger, and anger leads to murder. In this story, we see ourselves in the ‘mirror’ of God’s Word. Here, God emphasizes our exceeding sinfulness - ‘The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt’ (Jeremiah 17:9). Our sinfulness leads us away from ‘the presence of the Lord’ to ‘the land of wandering (Nod)’ (Genesis 4:16). This is the work of Satan in our lives - Genesis 4 is an extension of Genesis 3. Even in the land of wandering, the hand of God is upon us. This is the meaning of ‘the mark of Cain’ - ‘so that no one who found him would kill him’ (Genesis 4:15). Even in our wanderings, God is waiting in mercy for us to make our way back to Him by coming in faith to Jesus Christ our Saviour. Even when ‘sin’ is a good bit more than ‘crouching at the door’, it can be ‘mastered’ through Christ (Genesis 4:6; Hebrews 7:25).

Our sin and God's salvation

2012-02-09T16:59:00.001Z

Job 38:39-40:14

‘I am unworthy - how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth...I have no answer...I will say no more’ (Job 40:3-5). God speaks to us about our sin: ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’. He tells us that ‘all our righteous acts are like filthy rags’. Why does God speak to us like this? He speaks ‘so that every mouth may be silenced’ (Romans 3:23,19; Isaiah 64:6). We must stop talking about our own righteousness and start listening to what God is saying to us. He speaks to us of ‘His love’. He tells us that, ‘while we were sinners, Christ died for us’. This is Good News - ‘the blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin’. No more excuses - ‘I’m not such a bad person. I’m really quite good’! Let’s ‘confess our sins’ and receive God’s forgiveness (Romans 5:8; 1 John 1:7-10).

May we be a shining light. Let the flame burn brighter.

2012-02-09T16:58:00.000Z

Exodus 27:20-29:9

The ‘lamp’ was ‘set up to burn continually’ (Exodus 27:20) - ‘May we be a shining light... Let the flame burn brighter...’ (Songs of Fellowship 389; Mission Praise, 743). A ‘royal priesthood’, we have been called by God - to let His light shine (1 Peter 2:9). He has called us to serve Him (Exodus 28:1 John 15:16; Acts 20:28; 13:2; 9:15; Hebrews 5:4). The divine call is accompanied by a divine empowering - ‘the Holy Spirit sent from heaven’ (1 Peter 1:12). We are precious to God - Our ‘names’ are written on His heart (Exodus 28:9-12,21,29-30; Luke 10:20; Philippians 4:3; John 10:3). In Christ we are cleansed (Exodus 29:4 1 John 1:7), anointed (Exodus 29:7; 1 John 2:27) and robed (Exodus 29:5-6,8-9; Isaiah 61:10). In Christ, we have ‘the best robe’ (Exodus 28:2; Luke 15:22; Revelation 7:9-10,13-14). In Him, we are ‘consecrated’ by the Word and ‘anointed’ by the Spirit (Exodus 28:3,41; John 17:17; John 14:16-17, 26; John 16:13-14).

A call to pray, a call to seek God's glory

2012-02-09T16:56:00.000Z

“You do not have because you do not ask God” (James 4:2) - This is a call to prayer.

“When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:3) - This is a call to seek God's glory.

Acts 2:37-38 (a sermon)

2012-02-09T16:55:00.001Z

A number of years ago, I enjoyed a very pleasant afternoon, walking along the beach at Millport on the island of Great Cumbrae. Some parts of the beach were quite rocky. I had taken on the responsibility of making sure that my 4 year old nephew didn’t fall and hurt himself on the rocks. “Make sure Jamie doesn’t fall and hurt himself” – This seemed to be the main thing on my mind. Jamie had other things on his mind.
As we walked across the rocks, Jamie kept asking questions. It was one uestion after another. As soon as I had answered one question, Jamie followed it up with his next question.
Why? Why? Why? From early childhood, we ask questions. From early childhood, we are looking for answers.
This morning, we are going to think about a question and an answer.
* The question is our question: “Brothers, what shall we do?” (v. 37).
* The answer is God’s answer: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
The question concerns our response to the Gospel – “What shall we do?”
The answer is given to us by God – “This is what you are to do?”
We begin with the question.
Where does this question come from? – It comes from God.
His Word is preached. His Spirit is at work.
Following on from the preaching of God’s Spirit in the power of God’s Spirit, we read this, “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart” (v. 37). This is where the question comes from. God has put it into our heart. Through His Word and His Spirit, he leads us to ask the question of salvation: “What must I do to be saved?”
The question is our question. The answer must always be God’s answer. We ask the question. We cannot give the answer. In ourselves, there is no answer. We are “far off” (v. 39).
We know about our sin, but we cannot give to ourselves the forgiveness of sin.
We know about the emptiness in our lives, but we cannot fill our own hearts with the presence of the Holy Spirit.
We can only come to God in our sin and our emptiness.
We come in our sin, praying for God’s forgiveness. We come in our emptiness, praying that God will fill us with His Spirit.
When we come in our sin and emptiness, God speaks His answer.
The question is asked, “What are we to do?” God’s answer begins with a call for repentance and baptism – “Repent and be baptized.”
If we were to read no further than the words, “Repent and be baptized”, we would miss a great deal of what God is saying to us here. “Repent and be baptized” is only the beginning of God’s answer. We must go on from there. As we read the remainder of verse 37, we learn that
(1) God’s answer is addressed to every one of us.
(2) God’s answer comes to us in the Name of Jesus Christ.
(3) God’s answer comes to us with the promise of the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
(1) God’s answer is for every one of us. He doesn’t say to some of us, “You need to repent” and then turn to others, saying, “You won’t need to repent. You’re good enough already.”
To every one of us, God says, “Repent and be baptized”. To every one of us, He says, “Leave your old life behind. Step out into the new life with Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord.”
(2) God’s answer comes to us in the Name of Jesus Christ.
“What are we to do?” – Before we think of what we are to do, we must think about what Jesus Christ has done for us. This is the Good News. Jesus Christ has taken our sins upon Himself. He has died for us so that we might be forgiven by Him.
We must never begin with the call for repentance and baptism. We must always begin with Jesus Christ – “the Son of God loved us and gave Himself for us” (Galatians 2:20).
“What are we to do?” – The first thing we must do is this: we must look away from ourselves to Jesus Christ, our Saviour.
When we turn our eyes on Jesus and keep our eyes fixed on Him, we will never think of our repentance and baptism as ‘good works’ we have done, ‘good works’ by which we make ourselves acceptable to God.
The Name of Jesus Christ is the Name of our salvation. It is in Him that we are called to repentance and baptism. It is through the power of Jesus Christ, the risen Lord, that we are able to put the old life behind us and begin the new life of the Spirit.
At the heart of God’s answer to our question, there is “the Name of Jesus Christ.”
In His answer to our question, God speaks to us of repentance and baptism. He speaks of the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Above all else, He speaks to us of His Son, our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
(3) In Jesus Christ, God’s answer comes to us with the promise of the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
* Through faith in Christ, we put the old life behind us. Our sins are forgiven. We receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit.
* Through faith in Christ, we receive the strength we need to live as men and women who love God.
* Through faith in Christ, we receive the strength we need to maintain our confession of faith – “Jesus Christ is Lord.”
We ask the question, “What are we to do?” God gives the answer - “Repent and be baptized.” We lay our old life before the Lord. We invite Him to come and change us. He comes in forgiving love. He comes in transforming power.
Once we have put our faith in Christ, everything changes - “If any one is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Everything has become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17); "It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me" (Galatians 2:20).
There is a change of direction in our life. This change of direction is described for us in Acts 2:42 - “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
Our priorities change. Life is no longer centred upon ourselves. It is centred upon Christ.
Christ has given us life – abundant life, eternal life. Let us live this life for Him, giving all glory to Him and taking no glory for ourselves.
Let us not speak so much of our repentance and baptism. Such things can never be anything more than our response to His love. Let us learn to look away from these things and rejoice in our Saviour, saying with the Apostle Paul: “God forbid that I should glory save in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Galatians 6:14).

"Preaching and Teaching" by James Philip

2012-02-09T16:55:00.000Z

Inspiration, authority, infallibility and inerrancy are the necessary prerequisites for preaching and teaching. If a true ministry is to be exercised, these theological foundations are indispensable. This is implied by Paul’s employment of the word ‘ambassador’ to describe the work of the ministry. The word ‘ambassador’ is used twice in the New Testament by Paul. In 2 Corinthians 5:19, he says, ‘Now, then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God”. His second comment is found in Ephesians 6:20 - ‘That I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak..” The Greek word for ‘ambassador’ is presbutes. This word is derived from the verb presbeuo. The literal meaning of this verb is ‘to be older or oldest’, ‘to take precedence by right of seniority’. This idea of seniority; which includes authority and responsibility as its key elements, is particularly significant for our understanding of Paul use of the expression, ‘to be an ambassador’. Entrusted with God’s inspired, infallible and inerrant Word, the ‘ambassador for Christ’ is to carry out this ministry, with divine authority, as one whose chief responsibility is faithfulness to God.

In these New Testament passages, it is significant that the verb is used rather than the noun. The emphasis is on activity. We have a duty to fulfil. There can be no resting on laurels. We must get on with the job. There is work to be done. In seeking to understand the work to be done by 'the ambassador for Christ', we begin by noting that an ambassador is the authorized representative of a sovereign. It is his representative capacity that gives him his authority and position. He is nothing in himself. One thinks of the analogy of Lord High Commissioner at the General Assembly. For a brief spell in May, he represents the Sovereign. He is to be treated as the Sovereign. He takes precedence over all the dukes. He is next to the Lord Chancellor. In himself, he is nothing. In his office, he bears this position of great authority. He does not speak in his own name. He speaks on behalf of the ruler whose deputy he is. There is a ‘givenness’ about his message. The ambassador is not at liberty to change a dispatch from his government or Sovereign. He cannot tone it down in any way. He must hand it on as it has been given to him. We are Christ's ambassadors. We are not at liberty to change His message. When asked, 'Do you believe in hell?', the minister dare not answer, 'Yes, but I would never preach it'. This is a betrayal of his commission. It is part of his responsibility, as an ambassador for Christ, to ‘warn every man’ (Colossians 1:28). In 1 Corinthians 1:17, Paul gives this description of his ministry: 'Christ sent me ... to preach the gospel'. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, he tells us how he carried out his divine calling: 'I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures...'. As His ambassadors, we are to deliver His message. We are to preach His gospel. There are several things involved in the proper fulfillment of this work.

In the first place, the nature of the gospel has to be made clear. The gospel is the good news of the incarnation, atonement and kingdom of the Son of God. This message is massive in its scope. It needs to be learned before it can be lived. We need to give ourselves to the understanding of the gospel before we can play our part in communicating its message. Before Paul set out on his ministry as an 'ambassador for Christ', he sought earnestly for a deeper understanding of the gospel's truth. Between his conversion on the Damascus Road and his commissioning at Antioch, there were long years of training in the way of discipleship. He was being equipped for the work of teaching God's truth to it to others. In our ministry, we are to follow Jesus who said, 'we speak of what we know' (John 3:11). We get to know Him that we might make Him known. In our proclamation of the gospel, we are to exercise a teaching ministry. We preach 'the unsearchable riches of Christ' as we 'declare' to the people 'the whole counsel of God' (Ephesians 3:8; Acts 20:27).

A second feature of the ambassador's work concerns his responsibility to convey his Sovereign’s mind faithfully to those to whom he is sent. For Christ's ambassadors, a knowledge of the mind of Christ is necessary. This requires a relationship of fellowship with Christ. This relationship is much more important in the Christian ambassadorship than it is in the natural realm. How can we know the mind of Christ if we are not walking with Him? Walking with Him will involve us in close and continual study of His Word. Through His Word He reveals Himself to us, deepening and enriching our fellowship with Him. We are to 'let this mind be in us which was also in Christ Jesus ... '. We are to follow Christ who 'emptied Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross' (Philippians 2:5-8). Knowing the mind of Christ means having the mind of Christ ourselves. To have fellowship with the Son of God involves being like-minded with Him: 'Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?' (Amos 3:3). How can we 'beseech men in Christ’s stead' in any worthy way unless we think like him. We must be able to say, with Paul, “We have the mind of Christ' (1 Corinthians 2:16). In Paul's words, “we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God” (2 Corinthians 5:20), there is a clear message. God is speaking through us. Christ is working in us and through us. How can this become real in us? It happens when we are one in mind and spirit with Him, identified with Him in His redemptive work in the world.

A third aspect of ambassadorship, one which underlines what has just been said, is found in Ephesians 6:20 where Paul describes himself as ‘an ambassador in bonds’. Literally, he was a prisoner in Rome at the time. Spiritually, he was also in bonds. He was the bondslave of Jesus Christ, captive to His love, captive to the Word of God. This is what we must be if we are to fulfil our stewardship in the gospel. This means - and here we come to the crux of what I want to say - that it is not merely a question of holding doctrinal orthodoxy. There is something much more important: having a life controlled by, and submissive to, the Word of God and the love of Christ. What say, in our preaching, is important. What we are when we say it is the most important thing of all. This point is emphasized in Scripture. We see this in Philippians 2:6 where we learn that Christ 'did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped’. What do these words mean? What they mean is this. Equality with God might be regarded as a status to be grasped and held on to at all costs. This is not the way Jesus thought. Equality with God was something that was His by right. It was enjoyed by Him, as the Second Person of the Trinity, before the world was created. By right, He could have held on to it. He did not do this. He freely surrendered it for the sake of a mysterious and eternal purpose - the redemption of the world. In the incarnation of the Son of God, the attitude of voluntary self-surrender came into the world. Think of our world, our bent and broken world, self-seeking and grasping, in which values are so distorted and corrupt. Into it came this principle of voluntary self-surrender. This is what happened when Christ came among us. This is a principle of incalculable potential. This is what Paul means when he says, 'let this mind be in you'. As Christ's ambassadors, this is the kind of people we are to be! Paul goes on to show how all this worked itself out in his own experience. “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss… I have suffered the loss of all things ... that I may win Christ…’ (Philippians 3:7-8). In the life of this man who has the mind of Christ, we see Christ's own self-surrender. For the sake of the world's redemption, Christ freely surrendered His equality with God. For the sake of the gospel, Paul freely surrendered all that was gain to him..

Paul’s words concerning Christ 'not regarding equality with God a thing to be grasped' (Philippians 2:6) can be understood in another way. We can read them in the light of the contrast between the first Adam and the second Adam. What happened with the first Adam? He was made 'in the image of God'. He was given dominion' over all the creation (Genesis 1:26-27). He was called 'the son of God' (Luke 3:38). Despite all this, Adam was tempted. What was the nature of his temptation. Satan said, 'Ye shall not surely die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil'. Note the phrase - 'as God'. Equality with God - this is what Satan offered him. Adam he snatched at it. He regarded it as something to be grasped. Even though he had no right to it, he reached out for it, claiming it for himself. The second Adam was very different. He had the right to equality with God. He could have reached out it. He could have claimed it as His own. He did not do this. He did not consider it a thing to be grasped. He emptied Himself. For Christ, the appropriation of divine honour and equality in that way constituted a temptation to be resisted. He refused to countenance it. One sees this recurring temptation throughout the story of Jesus. It is particularly evident in the wilderness episode. The words, “all these things will I give thee if Thou wilt fall down and worship me” are nothing more than a thinly veiled suggestion of equality with God. Jesus regarded it as something that He was not prepared to grasp. The first Adam grasped at life - the tree in the midst of the garden - and laid hold upon death. The second Adam grasped death and laid hold on life. That is the heart of the gospel. Jesus did not think of equality with God as a thing not to be grasped at in the way Adam grasped at it. From the outset, the Incarnation becomes a substitution - not that but this, not that way but this way, not Adam’s way, but a new and living way. This is the mind that must be ours in the work of the gospel.

Another important passage is 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 - 'Thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?' The picture Paul uses here is that of a Roman triumph, in which the conquering general rode into the capital, with his captives chained to his chariot wheels, watched by cheering crowds, while incense burned on every altar by the way, to celebrate the victory. What Paul is saying is, not that he wins the battle, or that he is made to triumph (although this is taught elsewhere in Scripture and is blessedly true), but that he is the captive led in the conqueror’s train, and men see in him the trophy of the Conqueror’s power. It is he, Paul, who is t:he captive of Christ’s chariot wheels. Christ triumphed over him on the Damascus Road and bound him forever to Himself, and wherever he went, his captivity to Christ made the knowledge of the Saviour available to everyone he met This is the message here. What a tremendous word it is! Let us consider its meaning. Let us think about its significance.

Dr. J. Denney has some very fine things to say on this. Let me quote: ‘When God wins a victory over man, and leads him captive in triumph, the captive too has an interest in what happens: it is the beginning of all triumphs, in any true sense, for him … (The Damascus Road) was the beginning of God’s triumph over him: for that is how God led him in triumph in Christ, But it was the beginning also of all that made the Apostle’s life itself a triumph, not a career of hopeless, internal strife, such as it had been, but of unbroken Christian victory. Furthermore, the true meaning of the word reminds us that the only true triumphs we can ever have, deserving the name, must begin with God’s triumph over us…’ It is not for nothing that Paul begins many of his epistles with the words, 'Paul, bond-slave of Jesus Christ'. Can we say that the way we live, the experiences through which we pass, are for the blessing and redemption of men? Paul speaks not only of God triumphing over him in Christ, but also making manifest through him the savour of this knowledge in every place. Why does he use this word, ‘savour’? This figure is suggested by the idea of the Roman triumph, with the incense, smoking on every altar, and its fragrance floating over the whole procession. What Paul means is that the knowledge of Christ communicated through the lives of believers is a fragrant thing. As Paul went from place to place, men saw in him not, only the power, but also the sweetness of God’s redeeming love. 'The Mighty Victor made manifest through him, not only His might. But His charm, not only His greatness but His grace'. Well! What a challenge! Is our communication of the gospel a 'savour', a 'fragrant' thing? The charm, the winsomeness, the attractivness of it - is this what comes over? Listen again to J. Denney: 'It. is not to preachers only that this word ‘savour’ speaks: it is of the widest application. Wherever Christ is leading a single soul in triumph, the fragrance of the gospel should go forth; rather, it does go forth, in proportion as His triumph is complete. There is sure to be that in the life which will reveal the graciousness as well as the omnipotence of the Saviour. And it is this virtue which God uses as His main witness, as His chief instrument to evangelise the world. In every relationship of life it shall tell. Nothing is so insuppressible, nothing so pervasive, as a fragrance. The lowliest life which Christ is really leading in triumph will speak infallibly and persuasively for Him … And if we are conscious that we fail in this matter, and that the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ is something to which our life gives no testimony, let us be sure that the explanation of it is to be found in self-will. There is something in us which has not yet made complete surrender to Him, and not until He leads us unresistingly in triumph will the sweet savour go forth'. Who is sufficient for these things? There is only one Way: it is to be at Christ’s chariot wheels, manifestly a bond-slave of the Conqueror, manifestly conquered and mastered by the Master of men. Is that what we are?

From 2 Corinthians 2, we move to Paul’s mighty utterance in 2 Corinthians 4. There is so much here that, in trying not to miss out something valuable, one is almost tempted to say too much. I want to concentrate particularly on verses 7-13, which speak of ‘treasure in earthen vessels’. Paul is speaking of being ‘able ministers of the. New Testament’ (2 Corinthians 3:6). It is in this connection that he gives such important teaching on the stewardship of the gospel, our faithful communication of its message. What is it that makes us able ministers? What is it that makes us effective in the work of the gospel?

First of all, an able minister is one who ‘does not lose heart’ (verse 1). This is because he has a sense of the mercy of God. A sense of what we owe to Christ should be the inspiration of. all our endeavours. This is to be the divine force that keeps us going on and on. Denney comments, 'It was a signal proof of God’s mercy that He had entrusted Paul with the ministry of the gospel; and it was only what we should expect, when one who had obtained such mercy turned out to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ, able to endure hardship and not faint. Those to whom little is forgiven, Jesus Himself tells us, love little. It is not in them, for Jesus’ sake, to bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things. They faint easily, and are overborne by petty trials, because they have not in them that fountain of brave patience - a deep abiding sense of what they owe to Christ, and can never, by any length or ardour of service, repay. It accuses us, not so much of human weakness, as of ingratitude, and insensibility to the mercy of God, when we faint in the exercise of our ministry'.

The second thing that makes us able and effectual ministers or witnesses is that we should have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty (all that hinders the sweet savour from going forth). We see here, by implication, where weakness and discouragement can lead a man, betraying him into dishonesty and compromise in handling the things of God. The question then passes from the emotional realm to the moral. When a man loses heart he may also lose his testimony, yielding, for the sake of keeping the peace, to the temptation to accommodate or adapt his message to suit the spirit of the time, to manipulate the gospel dishonourably, to apply diplomacy in the preaching of it so as to avoid the reproach of the cross that straight preaching will certainly bring.

Thirdly, an able minister manifests the truth. His task is to unveil and show forth what the Word of God says, to lay bare the truth, and allow it to come out and speak for itself. We see this in Nehemiah 8:8 - giving the sense, and causing the people to understand the meaning. Underlying this is a basic, central presupposition, namely, that the truth itself contains the virtue and dynamic of God, and has, within itself, a converting, regenerating power.

A fourth consideration arises from what was said earlier about renouncing the hidden things of dishonesty. One great hindrance to the manifestation of the truth can lie in the preacher himself. If he is not right, the manifestation will not take place. He may say the right words, but the truth will be hidden, not merely in the sense that the hearers will be put off by the speaking of someone whose life they know is not right, but also even when the wrongness is quite hidden and unknown to any but God. Only when the channel is clean does the living water flow. But when it is thus made manifest, the truth will appeal to a man’s conscience, making an irresistible impression upon it.

Paul used the word, ‘commend' (v.2). He does not mean that the message creates a pleasing impression on the hearers. This was certainly not what happened on the day of Pentecost, when Peter manifested the truth, expounding the Scriptures and causing the people cry out, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?' They were pricked in their hearts as they listened to Peter’s manifestation of the truth (Acts 2:37). There is something very important here. Conscience is God’s monitor in the soul. It is the moral element in man’s nature. It is this that the Christian message has to address. Denney maintains that this is why the preacher’s task is not to prove but to proclaim the gospel - 'not to set out an unanswerable argument (although of course the gospel has a reasoned and reasonable case), but rather to make an irresistible impression (and to make that impression upon the conscience, the moral nature of man, in such a way that it will be futile for him to protest against it), an impression that subdues and holds him for ever, to manifest the truth, to hold up the truth before men until it tells on the conscience of those that hear it.'

In verse 6, Paul speaks of 'the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face Jesus Christ'. This is 'the treasure that we have in earthen vessels' (v.7). We must note the association of ideas: this light has shined in our hearts, and now, having been enlightened it is our responsibility to let the light shine before men. (Matthew 5:16). How are we to let the light shine? Through preaching, through witnessing? Yes - ‘we preach not ourselves but Christ Jesus the Lord’ (v.5) - but there is another prerequisite. What I mean is this: look at the link between ‘earthen vessels’ (v.7) and being ‘troubled on every side’ (v.8). The ‘light’ has to be let out. How can the light shine out of an earthen vessel? Well, there is not much you can do with an earthen vessel except break it. If the vessel is broken, the light gets out. Matthew Henry has a remarkably fruitful interpretation of these words. He suggests that Paul may have in mind the well-known story of Gideon and his three hundred men (Judges 7:13-21). When the light shone through the shattered pitchers, there was such a display of light that the enemy thought they were surrounded by an army of thousands, and fled the field in disarray. This is how the victory was won! Whether Paul had this in mind or not, it: is an excellent illustration, and very pertinent for our point. How can light shine out of an earthen vessel? There is only one way this can happen. The earthen vessel needs to be shattered. Paul goes on to say, ‘We are troubled on every side yet not distressed, always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might he made manifest in our body' 'The life also of Jesus' - what does this mean? It is ‘the light of the knowledge of His glory'. To speak of that light shining into us to transform us means nothing other than this - the risen Lord of glory comes, by His Spirit, into our hearts. Once He is in our hearts, He wants out from our hearts to bring blessing to men. Paul expresses the same idea, in different imagery, when, in Galatians 3:1, he speaks of Christ crucified being ‘placarded’ for all to see. The phrase, ‘earthen vessels’ refers our whole human nature - 'man’s body in its weakness, and liability to death; his mind with its limitations and confusions, his moral nature with its distortions and misconceptions, and its insight not yet half restored.' It is to such 'earthen vessels' that the rnighty God commits the treasure of the light of the gospel. This idea is very deeply embedded in Paul’s theology. You might call it the theology of Christian experience. In 1 Corinthians 2:3-5, Paul describes what it means to have the knowledge of God's glory in an earthen vessel - ‘I was with you in weakness, and fear and much trembling that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us - and my speech was not with the enticing words man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power' The earthen vessel was shattered, and the light shined out all over Corinth! Accompanying the marks of the cross, there are the marks of the resurrection. The one produces the other, as an infallible law of spiritual harvest: 'Death worketh in us, but life in you' (2 Corinthians 4:12). Denney comments, 'Suffering, for the Christian, is not an accident; it is a divine appointment and a divine opportunity. To wear life out in the service of Jesus is to open it to the entrance of Jesus’ life: it is to receive, in all its alleviations, in all its renewals, in all its deliverances, a witness to His resurrection. Perhaps it is only by accepting this service, with the daily dying it demands, that the witness can be given to us; and “the life of Jesus” on His throne may become incomprehensible and unreal in proportion as we decline to bear about in our bodies His dying. The evangelist 'always carries around in his body the death of Jesus' so that those who receive his message partake of Jesus’ risen life and power - 'Death is at work in us, but life is at work in you' (verses 10-11). Our lives are to reflect the death of Christ in such a way that men are somehow reminded of Calvary. We are to be signposts to Calvary. Our lives must say to men, 'Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world' (John 1:29). They must say, positively and convincingly, 'I know a fount where sins are washed away.' In verses 13-15, Paul underlines this point. His message to us may summed up thus - 'I believe this to be the pattern of effective service for God. I believe this is what He promises to bless, and I am going forward on that assumption, that my sacrificial living, my bearing in my body the dying of the Lord Jesus, the shattering of the earthen pitcher, will be owned of God in revealing the risen and omnipotent Saviour to dying men and women.'

This is the real challenge of the minister’s inner life and preparation for his work. It is a costly way to live. We will often be tempted to take lower ground. Evangelical orthodoxy can become a substitute for living, fruitful faith. No doubt you, like me, will have attended theological conferences, at which intellectualism, though impeccably orthodox, has been lifeless. Evangelical brilliance has been a brilliance without a heart. It has come across as mere cleverness. After more than thirty years, I still remember, with pain, a paper on Dispensationalism. The speaker, a well-known scholar sneered at the naivety of those who hold such a view. Much more recently, I recall the clever points-scoring of a brash young intellectual taking part in a debate on the ‘separation’ issue. On both occasions, I was in substantial agreement with the theological positions taken by these men. Nevertheless, my heart was grieved by the empty cleverness of men who spoke without unction. Such cleverness is not far removed from the kind of cynicism which is frightening to behold. This kind of thing can be such a terrible blight on those affected by it. One fears that it conceals the sad truth that there is a death that men are refusing to die.

A man needs unction if his ministry is to do anything in this generation. Let me quote to you some words from E.M. Bounds’ remarkable booklet ‘Power through Prayer”, in which he speaks of unction as 'the indefinable in preaching which makes it preaching. It is that which distinguishes and separates preaching from all mere human addresses. It is the divine in preaching. This unction vitalizes God’s revealed truth, makes it living and life-giving, Even God’s truth spoken without this unction is light, dead and deadening. Though abounding in truth, though weighty with thought, though sparkling with rhetoric, though pointed by logic, though powerful by earnestness, without: this divine unction it issues in death and not in life. Unction is that indefinable, indescribable something which an old, renowned Scottish preacher describes thus: “There is sometimes somewhat in preaching that cannot be described either to matter or expression, and cannot be described what it is, or from whence it cometh, but: with a sweet violence it pierceth into the heart and affections and comes immediately from the Lord; but if there be any way to obtain such a thing it is by the heavenly disposition of the speaker.” This divine unction is the feature which separates and distinguishes true gospel preaching from all other methods of presenting the truth, and which creates a wide spiritual chasm between the preacher who has it and the one who has it not. It supports and impregnates revealed truth with all the energy of God. Unction is simply putting God in His own Word and on His own preacher. By mighty and great prayerfulness and by continual prayerfulness, it is all potential and personal to the preacher; it inspires and clarifies his intellect, gives insight and grasp and projecting power; which is greater than head power; and tenderness, purity, force flow from the heart of it. Enlargement, freedom, fulness of thought, directness and simplicity of utterance are the fruits of this unction.'

That must be all - except to say this: this theme in Scripture is one that has held a fascination for me over the years. I have been preoccupied with it, and gripped by it for I have felt that here I was at the heart of all that is absolutely vital in Christian service. I have felt that, if I was to be any use to God in the service of the gospel, this pattern must become a continuing reality in my life. And I want to say that To the extent that this has been a reality, in that measure God has been pleased to bless the testimony. Sometimes, I feel that I have only caught the merest glimpse of it and that only a pale, fitful reflection of it has been there in me. How deeply I wish it had been far more than it has been. I believe with all my heart that all that there has been of good in my ministry has been so because something of all this has touched my life. I know that I must be brought to this place again and again, day by day, as I continue to preach His Word..

When Peter was at a low point - 'death' - that he was raised by the Lord's commission, 'Feed My sheep', to the great privilege of bringing 'life' to others (John 21:15-17). Like Peter, we need to be brought again and again to that place of 'death' to ourselves where we can begin to become useful to the Lord in bringing His 'life' to others. The earthen vessel must be broken for the light to show forth. We must become broken bread and poured out wine for the life of the world. The shapes taken by the ‘crucible’ may be various. The principle is always the same. Behind every life that has ever spoken for God, there is a continuing experience of the cross. Christ re-enacts a thousand Calvaries in us to bless the lives of men. What we say is important, but what we are when we say it is also important. This is the message. It beckons us on, whispering in our hearts with monotonous insistence: 'The message of Christ crucified can be preached effectively only by a crucified man'.

Salvation through Christ

2012-02-09T16:54:00.000Z

Drawing on L Newbigin’s book, The Finality of Christ, Michael Green writes, “It is one thing to claim that all salvation is through Christ … It is quite another to claim that nobody finds life with God unless they pass through the doorway of explicit Christian faith … The Christian Church has never maintained that overt knowledge of the person and work of Jesus was essential for salvation … So to maintain … that “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12) does not mean that no man can be saved unless he has heard of Jesus: it does mean that Jesus is the only saviour of men” (The Truth of God Incarnate, pp. 118-119, emphasis mine).

Also of interest are the comments made by S H Travis in his book, I Believe in the Second Coming of Jesus. Commenting on those who have no real opportunity to hear the message of Christ, Travis writes, “it is possible to affirm the possibility of salvation for such people, without surrendering the belief that Jesus is God’s unique means of salvation. People who lived before Christ of after him in non-Christian cultures may find salvation through Christ, even though they do not know his name, by casting themselves on the mercy of God. If a Hindu finds salvation, it is not by virtue of being a good Hindu any more than a Christian is saved by being a good Christian. Whatever a person’s religious background, ‘saving faith’ involves coming to an end of one’s own ‘religion’ and abandoning oneself to the grace of God” (p. 204, emphasis original).

One Month in Proverbs - Day 13

2012-02-08T23:28:00.002Z

Proverbs 13:1-25

‘The light of the righteous rejoices’ (9). Jesus is our Light. He is ‘the Light of the world’. In Him we rejoice. Through Him, ‘we have now received reconciliation’. We are no longer walking in darkness. We are walking in the light with Him, giving thanks to God that ‘the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin’ (John 8:12; Romans 5:11; 1 John 1:7). What a wonderful thing God has done for us in Christ. He has ‘called us out of darkness into His marvellous light’. Let us ‘declare His praises’, rejoicing in His great love, His rich mercy and His saving grace (1 Peter 2:9; Ephesians 2:4-5). Keep on rejoicing! There is light at the end of the tunnel - even when you have ‘to suffer grief in all kinds of trials’. Don`t lose sight of ‘the goal of your faith’ - ‘the salvation of your souls’ (1 Peter 1:6-9).

What do you do with the Word of God? How do you respond to the Word of God? What a difference there is between those who respect God’s Word and those who despise His Word. We have here a word of warning - ‘He who despises the Word brings destruction on himself’ and a word of promise - ‘he who respects the commandment will be rewarded’ (13). Those who keep on ignoring God’s Word are putting themselves in great danger - ‘He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck will suddenly be broken beyond healing’ (29:1). Those who take God’s Word seriously will find ‘great reward’ - God’s Word ‘revives the soul’, ‘makes wise the simple’, ‘rejoices the heart’ and ‘enlightens the eyes’. May your heart often meditate on His Word. May your mouth often speak His Word (Psalm 19:11,7-8,14).

One Year Bible: February 9 - Exodus 4:1-6:12; Matthew 26:31-46; Proverbs 4:10-19

2012-02-08T23:28:00.001Z

Exodus 4:1-6:12; Matthew 26:31-46; Proverbs 4:10-19

Moses was not eloquent. God made him a mighty man of faith. Peter denied his Lord. God restored him and established him in Christ. We are inadequate and unworthy. God can do great things in us and through us. The Lord is leading His people on to better things: "The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day" (Proverbs 4:18).

One Month in Proverbs - Day 12

2012-02-08T00:01:00.006Z

Proverbs 12:1-28

The Word of God shows us the way we are not to go as well as the way we are to go. We are told that ‘the root of the righteous stands firm’ (12). We are warned: ‘he who follows worthless pursuits has no sense’ (11). Do you have any sense? Here’s the most sensible thing you could ever do: Let ‘Christ dwell in your heart through faith’. Be ‘rooted and grounded in love… the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge’. Does it make any sense to live a life of emptiness - ‘worthless pursuits’ - when you can be filled with all the fullness of God’? What sense is there in living a life that amounts to nothing - ‘worthless pursuits’ - when you can have ‘His power at work within you’? There are two ways: the way of giving ‘glory to God’ and the way of ‘no sense’ (Ephesians 3:17-21). Only one ‘Way’ makes sense - Christ (John 14:6).

What harm can be done by ‘reckless words’ (18). We need to take care how we speak. As those who belong to Christ, we have a special responsibility. We are to ‘witness’ for Him. We are to give our ‘testimony’, declaring what He has done for us. We are to speak of the ‘one thing’ that is more important than anything else - what the Lord has done for us: ‘I used to be blind, but now I can see’ (John 9:25). This is what the Lord has done for us - ‘He has called us out of darkness into His marvellous light’ (1 Peter 2:9). There is a better way than the way of ‘lying lips’ (22). When the ‘lying tongue’ has no more to say for itself, there will be one confession of faith which will remain forevermore: ‘Jesus Christ is Lord’. This confession brings ‘glory’ to ‘God the Father’. Let it be your confession of faith: ‘Jesus Christ is Lord’ (19; Philippians 2:11).

One Year Bible: February 8 - Exodus 1:1-3:22; Matthew 26:1-30; Psalm 19:1-6

2012-02-08T00:00:00.002Z

Exodus 1:1-3:22; Matthew 26:1-30; Psalm 19:1-6

The mighty redemption of God in the Old Testament was focused on the Exodus. The mighty redemption in the New Testament is focused on the Cross - Jesus' 'exodus' or 'departure'. The Exodus led to "the land flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:17). The Cross leads to the "Father's Kingdom" (Matthew 26:29). As we concentrate on these mighty once-for-all events of redemption, we must never forget the ongoing activity of divine revelation: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech" (Psalm 19:1-2).

Sharing our Faith Effectively

2012-02-07T01:08:00.001Z

Philemon, Verse 6 - “that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus”.
These words bring to mind several other verses of Scripture.
* “acknowledging every good thing … ” indicates that we are to share our faith in the spirit of thanksgiving, giving thanks to the Lord for all that He has done for us, all that He is doing for us and all that He will do for us.
When we find it difficult to share our faith, we must learn to stand upon God’s Word: “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).
* “every good thing in you” brings to mind the wonderfully encouraging words of 2 Timothy 1:7 - “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind”.
What a great encouragement it is to know that we can exchange our weakness - “fear” - for the Lord’s strength - “power … love … a sound mind”.
This is the fulfilment of God’s promise in Isaiah 40:31 - “Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength”.
The combination of “power” and “love” is important.
We might say that it is the power of love. It is the love of God at work. It is the power of God at work.
His love motivates us to reach out for Him. His power makes our witness effective for Him.
As well as power and love, there is also the blessing of “a sound mind”.
There are times when we have the opportunity to prepare a message from God’s Word.
We use our minds to think through what the Lord is saying to us and what He wants us to say to the people.
There are other times when we must think on our feet.
We must “always be ready to give a defence to everyone who asks for a reason for a hope that is in us”. We must do this “with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).
When we have to think on our feet, we must stand upon the Lord’s Word: “do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13:11).
God’s promise will be fulfilled as we learn in our study of God’s Word, to pray for “the renewal of our mind” (Romans 12:2) - “May the mind of Christ my Saviour live in me from day to day, by His love and power controlling all I do or say”.
We must never forget that the “power” and “love” come from the Lord and not from ourselves.
When there is an effective sharing of our faith, we must always remember this: “This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvellous in our eyes” (Psalm 118:23). This must be our testimony: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name give glory, because of of Your mercy and Your truth” (Psalm 115:1).
* “every good thing” - Here, we are reminded of the great words of Paul in Ephesians 1:3 - “every spiritual blessing”.
Paul speaks here in a spirit of worship - “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”.
He gives thanks to the Lord who “has blessed us with every spiritual blessing”.
“Every spiritual blessing” is to be found “in Christ”.
* “in Christ Jesus” - The final words of Philemon 6 remind us that any good things “in us” have come from Christ.
Paul tells us that, in ourselves, “there is no good thing” (Romans 7:18).
The good things are “in Christ Jesus”.
He gives them to us as He gives Himself to us.
If we are to be effective witnesses for Christ, we must learn to “abide in Christ”. We must never forget this: “without Him we can do nothing”. Abiding in Christ - this is the way of “bearing much fruit” - “May the Word of God dwell richly in my heart from hour to hour, so that all may see I triumph only through His power”.
* There will be times when we must share our faith with those who are going through a time of great suffering. If our words are to be helpful to them, we must pray for the strengthening of our own faith so that we are able to share the Lord’s strength with them: “May the peace of God my Father rule my heart in everything, that I may be calm to comfort sick and sorrowing”.
* An effective sharing of our faith is a sharing of the love of Jesus. We must pray that His love will shine through as we witness for Him: “May the love of Jesus fill me, as the waters fill the sea; Him exalting, self abasing, this is victory”.
* Persevering in the way of faith is not easy. We must take care that we do not lose “our first love” (Revelation 2:4). We must keep our eyes on Jesus. He will give us the strength to continue in the way of faithful obedience: “May I run the race before me, strong and brave to face the foe, looking unto Jesus as I onward go”.

Local Church Evangelism

2012-02-07T01:08:00.000Z

Here are some thoughts from the “Introduction” to Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray.
A Definition
“Evangelism may be defined briefly as the God-given task of presenting the good news of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit in order that men and women and children may come to trust in God through him, accept him as their Saviour and serve him as their King in the fellowship of his Church in the world. It is concerned with communicating a specific message - a message that is not only about Jesus Christ but is Jesus Christ - with the aim of winning those who receive it to his allegiance” (p. 9).

A Reminder
“The congregation renewed for mission is God’s primary evangelistic agency” (p. 10).

A Question
“Are our services of worship welcoming, open in spirit and ethos to the outsider, the visitor, the wider community?” (pp. 10-11).

A Challenge
“We need to be more self-critical, not only about the ‘message’, more often implicit than explicit, that our worship conveys to the stranger and the uncommitted, but also about its impact on the congregation itself” (p. 11).

Looking up to God and looking out to our community

2012-02-07T01:07:00.000Z

Here are some more thoughts from Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray.

Worship comes first.
“”Praise is the primary form of the communication, the sheer enjoyment of the grace of God in our lives - all other communication is an overflow of this, the spread of its scent, affirming in appropriate ways, in various situations, the content and delight of praising God” (p. 49).

Worship leads to Witness.
“the church should be united in love and purpose, wide open to the Spirit of Jesus in prayer and with the outward look of openness to others in love” (p. 28).

Come to Christ and Go for Christ.
“Jesus says both ‘I am the light of the world’ … and ‘You are the light of the world’” (p. 43).

Service, Prayer, Love and Witness

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“It is the total ministry of service, prayer, love and witness, throughout the year, which is used to bring new life to the parish” (Local Church Evangelism, edited by David Wright and Alastair Gray, p. 85).
To be reminded of our calling to be faithful in service, prayer, love and witness is to be reminded of our failure.
When, however, we look beyond the inadequacies of our service, prayer, love and witness, we catch a a glimpse of the faithfulness of God - “If we are faithless, He remains faithful” (2 Timothy 2:13).
In the presence of the God of “great faithfulness”, we are reminded that we have “received this ministry by the mercy of God” (Lamentations 3:22; 2 Corinthians 4:1).
We have “received mercy” so that “we might proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9-10).
“Shine, Jesus, shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory; blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire … “. These are not only words to be sung. It’s a life to be lived. They are not only words for the mountain-top experience - the exuberance of praise. It’s an all-year round life, a life of service, prayer, love and witness. Let’s live the life and see the difference it makes!

The Bible, God, the Church and the World

2012-02-07T01:06:00.000Z

We may study Scripture personally but we must not study it individualistically. Our study of Scripture must be related to God, the Church and the world.

We need a revival of the apostolic devotion - “we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word” (Acts 6:4). We are not to study Scripture for our own benefit only. We are to “hold fast the Word of life” by “holding forth the Word of life” (Philippians 2:16).

The Word is God’s Word. The work is God’s work. The Word is to be read in God’s way. The work is to be done in God’s way. We are to read the Word of God prayerfully. The work of God - evangelism and edification - is to be done prayerfully.

We are to approach God’s Word in a spirit of prayer - “Give me understanding, that I may keep Thy law and observe it with my whole heart” (Psalm 119:34).

We should pray for those who preach the Word (Ephesians 6:18-20). Pray for them in their preparation. Receive the preaching prayerfully, even when the preacher is not among the best.

The Church is established through evangelism and equipped for evangelism. If the Church is to be equipped for evangelism, there must be edification.

God’s people must feed on the Word of God if they are to become strong and able to share it with others. As well as “quiet times” and sermons, we should take advantage of opportunities for group Bible study.

Prayerful study of God’s Word opens doors for God to work in our lives, our churches and our communities.

In drawing our attention to his own deep commitment to both evangelism and theology, Michael Green made the thought-provoking remark: “Most evangelists are not very interested in theology: most theologians are not very interested in evangelism” (Evangelism and the Early Church, p. 7). Insofar as Green’s observation is accurate, our theological understanding and our evangelistic endeavour are weakened.

This matter must be taken to God in prayer. There, we will be given understanding and we will be equipped for evangelism. There, we will discover that “prayer is evangelism shorn of all its carnal attractions.”

God has declared His purpose: “For I’m building a people of power and I’m making a people of praise, that will move through this land by My Spirit, and will glorify My precious Name.” Let our prayer be, “Build Your Church, Lord.Make us strong, Lord. Join our hearts, Lord through Your Son. Make us strong, Lord, in Your Body, in the Kingdom of Your Son.”

Building on God's Word and walking with God's Spirit

2012-02-07T01:05:00.000Z

We have begun to look together at the Church Without Walls Report. This is an ongoing process of thinking about where we have come from, where we are and where we ought to be heading. I hope that these introductions to our Kirk Session meetings will help us to become more devoted followers of Christ. I hope they will help us to grow in our commitment to providing spiritual leadership within this congregation and community.
If we are to be devoted followers of Christ, we must ask Hin to teach us to pray. Here's a short quotation which emphasizes the vital importance of prayer: 'There must be a revival of praying before there can be a reaping of the harvest' (Sammy Tippet). This call to prayer is an important reminder to us that 'Without Christ we can do nothing' (John 15:5). If the Church's worship and mission is to be blessed by God, we must bring it before Him in prayer.
Looking at the Church Without Walls Report together with the booklet, The Eldership: A Training Manual, we have noted the important part which must be played by the elders if there is to be a revival of God's work in our congregation and community. The third and fourth chapters of this training manual focus on 'Biblical Teaching on Ordination' and 'Spiritual Leadership'. The first of these chapters makes reference to the Westminster Confession of Faith. The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has produced a study manual on the Westminster Confession of Faith - Firm Foundations: A Faith for Today's Church. We are to be today's Church without losing contact with the firm foundations upon which our faith is built.
Being today's Church will not mean change for change's sake. It will mean being changed by the God who has given us firm foundations for our faith. It will mean rediscovering the biblical and spiritual priorities which have too often been forgotten. We must build on God's Word. We must learn to walk with God's Spirit. This is the kind of change we must seek. We must not search for superficial novelty when God is looking for real change, a change in our attitude towards Him. The Church Without Walls Report invites us to think about what it will mean for us to follow Christ in today's world. The Report invites us to do this through a careful and attentive study of one of the Gospels. In our study of Luke's Gospel, we have noted that Jesus 'calls sinners to repentance' (5:32). If we are to be changed by Jesus, we must learn to see ourselves as 'sinners' who have fallen short of God's perfect plan for us. We must pray for real change. We must ask God to give us a spirit of repentace. We must pray that God will give us the strength to turn to Him with our whole heart.
Seeking the right kind of change will mean recognizing where truly spiritual change comes from. It comes from God. It comes from listening to God's Word. It comes when we are obedient to the voice of God's Spirit. The fourth chapter of Eldership: A Training Manual emphasizes the importance of 'Spiritual Leadership'. It begins by pointing out that 'the Church is a spiritual fellowship'. It is different from any other organization. When we begin our meetings with the reading of God's Word and prayer, we are not simply going through the motions of religious ritual. We are recognizing our need of God's help. We need to hear what God is saying to us through His Word. We need to receive God's strength as we call upon Him in prayer. We are acknowledging that our meeting is much more than a conversation among ourselves.We are bringing God into the conversation. We are letting Him be the most important Voice in the conversation. Before we listen to any other voice, we are listening to the Voice of God. Before we speak to one another, we are speaking to God. If there is to be a real input from God into our meetings, into our congregation and community, our worship and mission, our reading from God's Word and our speaking to Him in prayer must lie at the very heart of our life. We are to follow Jesus. In our study of Luke's Gospel, we have seen that Jesus' whole life was steeped in God's Word and prayer. We do not live by bread alone but by every Word of God (4:4; Matthew 4:4). Like Jesus, we are to find 'a solitary place' (4:42) - a place where we can be alone with God.
Our meetings have begun with a much more definite concentration on what God is saying to us concerning His Church and our place within it as elders. This is beginning to be a very special time. It shapes our thinking, giving us a real concentration on our true purpose as God's people and God's servants. I hope that these times will be times when the love of God reaches us and the glory of God becomes our great aim. When this happens, we will receive strength from the Lord. We will be equipped by Him for the privilgeged responsibility of providing true spiritual leadership within our congregation and community.
Our desire to see people of all ages brought into the fellowship of God's people will grow as we ourselves are learning to love the Lord more. Our commitment to this work of bringing people into the fellowship of God's people will increase as our own commitment to serving the Lord grows in strength. In Jeremiah 24:7, we read, 'I will give them a heart to know Me that I am the Lord'. Let us pray that this promise of God will be fulfilled in our own lives. Let us pray that it will be fulfilled in the lives of more and more of the people of our community.

Before we become leaders, we must become disciples.

2012-02-07T01:04:00.001Z

We need leadership. Can we revitalize true discipleship? It is very important that we understand the relationship between leadership and discipleship. Before we can become leaders, we must first become disciples. We cannot lead others to Christ unless we ourselves are following Him.

Section I of the 'Church Without Walls' Report is entitled 'The Primary Purposes of the Church'. It begins with words of Jesus - 'Follow Me' (9). Section II - 'The Shape of the Church' - also begins with Jesus' call to discipleship - 'Follow Me' (15). Section III - 'Proposals for Continuing Reform' begins in exactly the same way - 'Jesus said, "Follow Me"' (37).

There's a great difference between 'the cycle of grace' and 'the cycle of works'.

The cycle of grace begins with acceptance - We hear the Gospel message that 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners' (1 Timothy 1:15), and, trusting in Christ as our Saviour, we receive the forgiveness of our sins. It ends with achievement - Submitting ourselves to Christ our Lord, we serve Him as good and faithful servants who rejoice in the great salvation which He has so freely given to us: 'The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly' (1 Timothy 1:14).

The cycle of works is the exact opposite of the cycle of grace. It is a vain attempt to begin with achievement - trying to do all 'the right things' - and end up with acceptance - Surely God will accept me now: I've done all 'the right things'. Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the publican (tax collector) highlights the difference between the cycle of works (the Pharisee) and the cycle of grace (the publican). In pride, the Pharisee boasts, 'God, I thank you that I am not like all other men...' (Luke 18:11-12): There can be no forgiveness for those who refuse to confess their sin to the Lord and seek forgiveness from Him. In humility, the publican confesses his sin and seeks God's forgiveness, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner' (Luke 18:13): To those who confess their sin to God and seek forgiveness from Him, God speaks His precious promise, 'If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness' (1 John 1:9).

The great difference between grace and works is emphasized in Ephesians 2:8-9 - 'It is by grace you have been saved... not by works...'. Using the language of the two cycles, the cycle of grace and the cycle of works, we may describe Christ's salvation like this: He brings us out of the vicious circle of our own sinful works - 'all our righteous acts are like filthy rags' (Isaiah 64:6) - and into the glorious circle of His saving grace - 'From the fullness of His grace we have received one blessing after another' (John 1:16).

This contrast between the cycle of grace and the cycle of works helps us to understand the call to discipleship issued to us by Christ in His words, 'Follow Me' (Matthew 4:19; Mark 1:17; Luke 5:27). These words are spoken to us by our loving Saviour. He loves us very much. He loves us with a perfect love. Behind His words which call us to follow Him, there is His love for every one of us. Before we think of discipleship as a challenging responsibility, we must think of it as a tremendous privilege. What a wonderful thing it is that Jesus Christ - God's Son and our Saviour - should call us to follow Him! Following Jesus will never be a burdensome thing when we keep our eyes fixed on the love which lies behind His call to discipleship.

A life made up of praise in every part

2012-02-07T01:04:00.000Z

Circles within circles, with Christ at the centre - this phrase sums up our approach to the Church Without Walls Report. We began with a small circle by looking at ourselves as elders. As we explored this theme, we saw that this smaller circle - eldership - is enclosed within a larger circle - the congregation. Beyond the local congregation, there is another larger circle - the parish.
We look now at two even larger circles - the created world and the worldwide mission of the Church. As we look at the various circles of the Christian life, we must never forget to keep Christ at the centre. The Church Without Walls Report emphasizes this point when it speaks about being 'shaped by the Gospel', 'living out the story of Jesus' and 'living out the spirituality of grace'. Christ is to be at the centre of our work as elders in this congregation and parish. As we look out to the created world and the Church's worldwide mission, we are to look out with the eyes of Christ. The change which Christ makes in those who love Him is a far-reaching change. It begins with our personal response to His love, but it does not end there. Personal experence of Christ's love leads to a deep appreciation of the world that God has created for us. The hymn, 'Loved with everlasting love', makes this point very well. It begins with our personal experience of Christ's love:
'Loved with everlasting love, led by grace that love to know ...
... In a love, which cannot cease, I am His, and He is mine'.
It goes on to emphasize that knowing Christ's love changes our view of God's creation:
'Heaven above is softer blue, earth around is sweeter green;
something lies in every hue, Christless eyes have never seen:
birds with gladder songs o'erflow. flowers with deeper beauty shine,
since I know as now I know, I am His, and He is mine' (Mission Praise, 452).
The same principle also applies to our commitment to the support of the Church's worldwide mission. The more we rejoice in Christ's love for ourselves, the more we will appreciate His love for all people everywhere: 'Christ died not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world' (1 John 2:2). The Church Without Walls Report emphasizes that our concern for the created world and the Church's worldwide mission is to be an act of friendship. All of our relationships are to be 'Shaped by Friendship'. The Report develops this theme under the following headings - Friendship with fellow members; Friendship with the next generation; Friendship with the searcher; Friendship with the community; Friendship with fellow leaders; Friendship with other Churches; Friendship with rich and poor; Friendship with the World Church; Friendship with God's creation. Where are we to learn such friendship? If we are to be 'Shaped by Friendship', we need to be 'Shaped by the Gospel'. When we think of friendship, we think of Jesus:
'What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! ...
Can we find a Friend so faithful, who will all our sorrows share?' (Mission Praise, 746).
This is the Friendship which is to shape all of our life. Getting to know Jesus, the greatest Friend of all, our life is 'shaped by His Friendship'. This will happen as we learn to pray:
'Fill Thou our life, O Lord my God, in every part with praise ...
... Not for the lip of praise alone, nor even the praising heart,
We ask, but for a life made up of praise in every part' (Church Hymnary, 457).

Looking beyond the place where we worship to the God whom we worship

2012-02-07T01:03:00.000Z

My wife and I spent a few days “south of the border”. No! We weren’t “down Mexico way”! We were much nearer home. We were in England. We were based in Southport. We enjoyed our time there. We also visited Chester. What an interesting place Chester is! There are plenty of modern shops. There’s nothing unique about that! We didn’t go straight to the shops. We took a walk around the city walls. These walls have an interesting history. The walls were there long before the shops. The story of the walls is told on a series of plaques. We read the history of Chester as we walked around its walls. The walls are now a tourist attraction. At one time, however, they were very important for a different reason. They protected the people of the city from their enemies.

In the Old Testament, we read about the walls of Jerusalem. There was a time when the walls had been “broken down”. It was a time of “great trouble and shame” (Nehemiah 1:3). Under the leadership of Nehemiah, the walls were rebuilt. The work of rebuilding was completed. It was a time of great celebration. “The dedication of the wall of Jerusalem” was a memorable occasion. There was much “rejoicing”. The people sang praise to the Lord. They gave thanks to Him (Nehemiah 12:27).

After our walk along the walls, we visited the shops. We were struck by the attractive combination of the old and the new. If we are wise, we will continue to “ask for the ancient paths” (Jeremiah 6:16). We are to learn from the past without being locked in the past. As well as asking for the ancient paths, we must pray that God will do His “new thing” among us (Isaiah 43:19).

In recent years, we have heard about a “Church Without Walls”. We sing, “We love the place, O God …” We need, however, to be reminded that the place isn’t everything. Beyond the place where we worship, there is the God whom we worship – “I love You, Lord, and I lift my voice to worship You …” Beyond the walls of the place where we worship, there are the walls of God’s salvation (MissionPraise, 731, 287; Isaiah 26:1). Coming to the place where we worship is only a first step. Our lives are to be shaped by God’s salvation. This will mean more than being in the place where He is worshipped. It will mean being changed as we worship Him. “Following Jesus today”, “Worship that changes lives”, “Transforming the local congregation”, “Building church round the gifts of the people” – these are titles in a series of “Church Without Walls” booklets. They challenge us to welcome God’s “new thing”. We do this when we follow the “ancient paths”: looking to Christ, learning from Christ and loving Christ.

Chester still has its walls. Today’s Chester is, however, very different from the Chester of a few centuries ago. The old and the new – we need both. We look back to Jesus Christ. He comes to us from the distant past. We move forward with Jesus Christ. He is the living Lord. He leads us on to His future. I began by telling you about Chester. I end by speaking to you about Christ. You may never go to Chester. Make sure that you come to Christ. Chester has changed. The world has changed. We wonder, “Is it a better world than it used to be?” It will be a better world – and we will be better people! – if, “with salvation’s walls surrounded”, we continue to confess our faith in Christ: “Grace which, like the Lord, the giver, never fails from age to age”. We had a good look around Chester – the old and the new. Look to Christ and “see the streams of living waters, springing from eternal love”. He comes to us from eternal love. Let Him lead you on to eternal life (Mission Praise, 173).

Let us look to Christ for a better and brighter future.

Let us serve the Lord with gladness.

2012-02-07T01:02:00.001Z

The Church Without Walls Report emphasizes that 'Each person is a gift from God to the Church to be celebrated and nurtured.' 'The word 'celebrated' is used deliberately because it emphasizes the joyful generosity which is needed to give freedom to people, so that they can grow and became fruitful.' The use of the word 'celebration' emphasizes the fact that we are to 'serve the Lord with gladness' (Psalm 100:2). The call to 'serve the Lord with gladness' is addressed to everyone - 'All people that on earth do dwell'. We, who have accepted God's call to become leaders within His Church, are to give a lead to others. By serving the Lord with gladness, we are to set an example which will encourage others to join us in serving the Lord with gladness. At a special service for elders, entitled, 'A Celebration of Eldership', the letters of the word 'elders' were used to highlight key features of the work of the eldership - Eldership, Listening, Disciples, Educators, Responsive, Support. These words set the eldership within both our relationship with God - we are to listen to God's Word, we are to live as disciples of Christ, we are to be responsive to God's Spirit - and our responsibility to the people of God whom we are called to serve in Christ's Name - as Christ's disciples, we are to listen to people with a view to responding in a way that will give support to them as they seek to live in obedience to God's Word as followers of Jesus. The two sides of our life as God's servants - listening to what God has to say to us through His Word and speaking His Word to those to whom we are called to give support in the way of faith and obedience - are highlighted in Isaiah 50:4.

'The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught'.

'Knowing the word that sustains the weary' - This is a very important phrase which provides an apt description of the heart of the work of the eldership. We are to exercise a ministry of encouragement. Chapter 5 of The Eldership: A Training Manual is concerned with 'Relationships with Others' - the Minister, other Elders, the Congregational Board, the Organizations, the Congregation and the Higher Courts of the Church. In each of these areas of our work, we are to be encouragers. The ministry of District Visitation is a particularly important part of the elder's work. Its importance is emphasized in the booklet on the eldership where a full chapter (Chapter 6) is devoted to this subject.

Jesus calls us to follow Him.

2012-02-07T01:02:00.000Z

The Church Without Walls Report was presented to the General Assembly in 2001. The Report is an attempt to look for fresh ways of encouraging and supporting congregations in the twentieth-first century. The Report invites all of us in the Church to think about where we have come from, where we are and where we ought to be heading.
The Church Without Walls does not seek to impose a single, detailed pattern on every congregation. This point is emphasized in the opening summary of the Report's contents:
'We place into the hands of God's people the opportunity to live out our faith, each according to our own uniqueness, made in the image of God. It is our hope and prayer that the Report, together with the many initiatives within the Church at present, will stimulate the Church to face the future in faith and hope' (9).
The Report begins with the words of Jesus, 'Follow Me' (9). Christ calls us to follow Him. He invites us to be changed by Him. He calls us to move forward with HIm. Moving forward with Christ and being changed by Him will involve listening to His voice. Encouraging us to listen to Christ's voice, the Report recommends 'congregations' to 'study, reflect on and live by one Gospel for one year in the first instance, and let Jesus shape the life and structure of the congregation' (18).
The change which is being called for is spiritual change. This is the change Christ is looking for. The Report emphasizes this point:
'The heart of reform is the reform of the heart. The first proposal for reform is a call to prayer' (37).
In one of 'the many initiatives within the Church at present', the Board of National Mission has produced a thirty-four page booklet entitled 'Lord, Help us to Pray!'. With this booklet, as with the eighty pages of the Church Without Walls Report, it is possible to feel overwhelmed - 'This is all too much for us!'. Like the Church Without Walls Report, the booklet on prayer recognizes the uniqueness of each congregation:
'Go at your own pace. You should not imagine that you are expected to implement all, or even most, of the ideas in this booklet. What you will find
contained here are simply guidelines and suggestions' ('Lord, Help us to Pray!', 16).
Beginning with the Kirk Session emphasizes the important part elders play within the life of the congregation. We are to follow Christ. We are to help others to follow Christ.
The booklet, 'The Eldership: A Training Manual' lays the foundations for following Christ and helping others to follow Him. By emphasizing 'The Biblical Basis for the Eldership' (9), it strikes a similar note to the Church Without Walls Report with its emphasis on listening carefully to what God is saying to us in His Word. Its emphasis on 'Spiritual Leadership' (34) is strikingly similar to the Church Without Walls Report's statement:
'The heart of reform is the reform of the heart. The first proposal for reform is a
call to prayer' (9).
When we lay the right foundations
- 'We will devote ourselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word' (Acts 6:4) -
we can move forward with God, confident that He will lead us in His perfect way.
We may be very uncertain about how God will lead us forward. If, however, we are serious about following Jesus Christ, we will know the truth of these words from Susan Brown's booklet, 'Church Without Walls: Working it out Together' -
'People at prayer learn to live within the purposes of God with patient hope' (27).
We have thought about important matters. Now, we must pray about them. We have spoken about important matters. Now, we must speak to God about them. This is not only a conversation among ourselves. We must bring God into the conversation. We must listen to what He is saying to us. We must speak to Him, seeking His help.
Let's join together in a final prayer taken from Susan Brown's booklet, 'Church Without Walls: Working it out Together':
'Lord Jesus Christ, you call us to follow You into the familiar and into the unknown, to places we find easy, and others we find difficult, to follow You tirelessly to the ends of the earth. We need Your strength, Your courage. We need the help of Your Holy Spirit to fill and inspire us, drawing us closer to You, and to one another in You, for Your sake. Father God, You have always gone before Your people, and You go before us. Grant us the courage to follow closely, to walk where You walk and do what You do. May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord' (7,28).

Christ at the Centre

2012-02-07T01:00:00.000Z

We are to ‘let Jesus shape the life and structure of the congregation’ (Church Without Walls Report).

Bringing Christ into the centre of the congregation and keeping Learning to follow Jesus is a lifelong project.

Bringing Christ into the centre, keeping Christ at the centre - What will this mean for us? We are to serve our local community for the sake of Jesus. We are not here just for those who are regular worshippers. Our worship is to strengthen us for the task of being Chris’s witnesses to the people of our community.

‘The local congregation is the space where Christian life is nurtured in practical discipleship, earthed in the concrete realities of local life. The congregation shows the way by serving alongside the community and inviting others to become followers of Christ’.

We are called to be 'a missionary congregation.' ‘We must take care that we do not ‘develop a fortress mentality of isolation’. If we allow ourselves to slip into this kind of attitude, we will be ‘no longer a servant of the Kingdom of God’. We are to be ‘a worshipping, witnessing community’, ‘a real community of faith’, ‘a Gospel community’.

Without the deepening of our faith in Christ as we build upon His Gospel, there can be ‘no communication of the Gospel’ to others. When we worship God, we must always seek His strength so that we can more effectively fulfill our calling to be His witnesses in our community.

At the heart of the ministry of the local congregation, there is to be the ministry of friendship. Jesus is our ‘Friend’. We are to pray that, through our friendship, others will find the greatest Friend of all, our Lord Jesus Christ.

People will come to Christ as they catch a glimpse of Him shining through our friendship. In Christ, there is ‘faith, hope and love’. If these things are real in ‘the Bible of our lives, the only ‘Bible’ many people ever read, we will be Christ’s witnesses with the power of a changed life, a life that is centred on Christ, a life that is seeking His glory and the advancement of His Kingdom.

When people begin to see Christ in us, ‘the Word made flesh’ in our lives, they will sit up and take notice. They will be drawn to us and - more importantly - they will be drawn to the Saviour.

Teaching Evangelism

2012-02-07T00:59:00.000Z

In the preface to his book, The Evangelism of the Early Church, Michael Green states a personal reason for writing the book:

“Most evangelists are not very interested in theology: most theologians are not very interested in evangelism. I am deeply committed to both. So the study of this subject was particularly congenial to me” (p.7).

Green’s book contains a brief but helpful section on “Teaching Evangelism” (pp.204-206).

Green’s emphasis on the unbreakable connection between theology and evangelism encourages us to develop an evangelistic theology.

A theology which does not lead to evangelism remains remote from both the Gospel of God and the need of human beings.

An evangelism which shows little interest in theological reflection tends to become rather superficial, lacking the depth and range of “teaching evangelism”.

One Month in Proverbs - Day 11

2012-02-07T00:01:00.005Z

Proverbs 11:1-31

‘With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbour’ (9) - This kind of thing is going on all the time! There is no respect for the ‘neighbour’. An easy target, he is treated with contempt. He is slandered without mercy. It is not without reason that God’s Word says to us, ‘The tongue is a fire… With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men… My brethren, this ought not to be so’ (James 3:6-10). God knows what we are like. We ‘destroy’ people with ‘the tongue’. It is character assassination. What drastic effects this kind of thing can have: ‘a city… is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked’! Can the blessing return again? God’s Word is clear - ‘By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted’ - , but we must learn to speak and live as ‘the upright’ and not as ‘the wicked’ (11).

‘He who wins souls is wise’ (30). ‘He who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward’ (18). Righteousness is not purely a private matter. God’s Word tells us that ‘those who turn many to righteousness shall shine like stars for ever and ever’ (Daniel 12:3). Winning others for Jesus Christ is not easy. To those who commit themselves to this great work, God gives His precious promise: ‘He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him’ (Psalm 126:6). In this work, we must remember: It is not what we do that makes the real difference. It is the Lord working through us. Never forget: ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain’ (Psalm 127:1). Always remember: When our work is done ‘in the Lord’, it is never ‘in vain’ (1 Corinthians 15:58).

One Year Bible: February 7 - Job 40:3-42:17; Matthew 25:14-46; Psalm 18:43-50

2012-02-07T00:00:00.002Z

Job 40:3-42:17; Matthew 25:14-46; Psalm 18:43-50

"The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first" (Job 42:12). "For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance" (Matthew 25:29). Both of these statements occur within the context of the call to be faithful to God. This faithfulness to God is not something in which man himself glories - "Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink?" (Matthew 25:37). In view of the Lord's blessing, His people say, "The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Saviour!" (Psalm 18:46).

"Revised Common Lectionary - Year B" Links

2012-02-05T23:18:00.000Z

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Revised Common Lectionary – Year B: First Sunday of Advent

2012-02-05T23:13:00.000Z

Isaiah 64:1-9; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:24-37

Jesus Christ is God’s Answer to our prayer.

We confess our sins to God - ‘We sinned... All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags’. We look to God for forgiveness - ‘Do not remember our sins for ever’ (Isaiah 64:5-6, 9). We know that God hears and answers our prayer. Jesus Christ is God’s Answer to our prayer. He has ‘come down’ from heaven to earth. ‘The Son of the Most High’ has been ‘born’ into our world. Jesus Christ is God’s way of saying ‘Here am I! Here am I!’ He is ‘God with us’ (Isaiah 64:1; 65:1; Luke 1:32, 35; Matthew 1:23). ‘The blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin’. Let us ‘confess our sins’. ‘The blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin’ - Let us come to God with faith, believing that He ‘will forgive our sins’. (1 John 1:7, 9). Let us rejoice in Jesus, our Saviour!

We pray for salvation. God gives His Answer – Jesus Christ, our Saviour.

‘Restore us, O God, make Your face shine upon us, that we may be saved’ (Psalm 80:3). This prayer for salvation is repeated with a growing sense of God’s greatness - ‘O God Almighty’ (Psalm 80:7), ‘O Lord God Almighty’ (Psalm 80:19). To those who are asking the question of salvation - ‘What must I do to be saved?’ - , God gives His answer - ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved’ (Acts 16:30-31). What does the Lord say to those who look to Christ for salvation? - ‘The Lord will bless you and watch over you. The Lord will smile on you and be kind to you. The Lord will look on you with favour and give you peace’ (Numbers 6:24-26). Let us worship Him: ‘Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Through Christ, God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing that heaven has to offer’ (Ephesians 1:3).

Christ is our full salvation. Let us rejoice and be glad in Him.

Paul preached the Gospel, ‘not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power’ (1 Corinthians 1:17; 2:4). He preached ‘Christ crucified’ with a determination ‘to know nothing except Jesus Christ crucified’ (1 Corinthians 1:23; 2:2). This is the message of our salvation - ‘Christ crucified... Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God’ (1 Corinthians 1:23-24). All the glory belongs to God. We have no right to steal away any of the glory for ourselves: ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord’ (1 Corinthians 1:26-31). Our faith is ‘not based on human wisdom but on God’s power’(2:5). ‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace’ (Mission Praise, 712). Christ is our full salvation. ‘Let us rejoice and be glad’ in Him’ (1 Corinthians 1:30; Psalm 118:24).

With Christ as our Saviour, we are a people of hope.

We are not to be a people whose ‘faith’ is locked in the past! We are to be a people of hope. We look to the future. We ‘see the Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory’ (Mark 13:26). There may be ‘wars and rumours of wars’ (Mark 13:7). When Christ returns, only one thing will matter: ‘he who endures to the end will be saved’ (Mark 13:13). ‘This day - the noise of battle’: Look beyond all that to ‘the victor’s song’(Church Hymnary, 481). In human conflict, there is so much of self - ‘We are the people’. When Christ returns, nothing will matter but this: ‘When the roll is called up yonder, I'll be there’ (Mission Praise,759). We hear of ‘wars and rumours of wars’. Do we say, ‘This is part of our history. It’s always been this way’? We must remember: Preaching Christ's Gospel is far more important than ‘defending’ our ways (10)!
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Revised Common Lectionary – Year B: Second Sunday of Advent

2012-02-05T23:12:00.000Z

Isaiah 40:1-11; Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Mark 1:1-8

Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.

‘The Lord is the everlasting God... He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak... those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength...’ (Isaiah 40:28-31). Far too often, we say, ‘I can’t’when we really mean ‘I won’t’. ‘I can’t’- This is an insult to the power of God. The Lord calls us to do something special for Him. We say, ‘I can’t’. What are we really saying? This is what we are saying - ‘Lord, I don’t believe Your promise - “Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength”’. Don’t say, ‘I can’t’. Don’t get so busy with other things that you fail to wait upon the Lord and renew your strength. When the Lord calls you to serve Him, say, ‘Yes, Lord, I will wait upon You. I will renew my strength. I will do Your will’.

O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee. Send a revival. Start the work in me.

We are to pray for revival - ‘Restore us again, O God our Saviour... Will You not revive us again that Your people may rejoice in You?’ (Psalm 85:4, 6). We are to pray that God will ‘grant us His salvation’. We are to pray that ‘His saving presence will remain in our land’. We must pray that ‘His glory may dwell in our land’ (Psalm 85:7, 9). We are to pray for real listening - ‘I will listen to what God the Lord will say’- , a real turning to the Lord - ‘turning to Him in our hearts’- , and a real sense of His blessing - ‘He will speak peace to His people’ (Psalm 85:8). Prayer for revival does not begin as a prayer for others. It begins with ourselves: ‘O Holy Ghost, revival comes from Thee; send a revival - start the work in me’. It begins with this prayer: “Lord, take my life, and make it wholly Thine; fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine’ (Mission Praise, 587).

Centred on Christ, our life is filled with grace and glory,

‘Grow’ in Christ and give ‘glory’ to Him. Centred on ‘our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’, our life is filled with ‘grace’and ‘glory’. From Him, we receive ‘grace’ - ‘From the fulness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another’. From Him, we receive ‘glory’ - ‘I have given them the glory that You gave Me’ (2 Peter 3:18; John 1:16; 17:22). Where does this life of grace and glory begin? It begins with God. In ourselves, there is sin. In Him, there is salvation. ‘He is patient with us.’ He waits for us to ‘come to repentance.’ He shows us our sin so that we might learn to look to our Saviour - ‘Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation’ (2 Peter 3:9; 2 Corinthians 7:10). Turn to the Lord. Let it be real. Let Him lead you in His pathway - the pathway of grace and glory.

In Christ, we become a new creation.

This is a new ‘beginning’. The prophets had spoken. Now, the Saviour has come. This is Good News. John has prepared the way. Now, he stands aside to make way for Jesus Christ, the Son of God’ (Mark 1:1, 11). Following Jesus’baptism, there was temptation. This was Kingdom against kingdom. Satan’s kingdom was under threat. The Kingdom of God had come. Christ triumphed over Satan. In Him, we triumph when, hearing the Gospel declaration - ‘the Kingdom of God is at hand’- , we obey the Gospel command - ‘repent and believe the gospel’ (Mark 1:15). With the command, ‘Follow Me’, there is the promise, ‘I will make you...’ (Mark 1:17). Christ’s call is ‘full of grace and truth’ (John 1:14). It is truth - a call to discipleship. It is grace - a call from Jesus. In Christ, we become ‘a new creation’ (2 Corinthians 5:17). We become ‘fishers of men’ (Mark 1:17).

Revised Common Lectionary – Year B: Third Sunday of Advent

2012-02-05T23:11:00.000Z

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Psalm 126:1-6 (or Luke 1:47-55); 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8, 19-28

God has given us the Good News of salvation: Jesus Christ.

‘The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me... to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour’ (Isaiah 61:1-2). Jesus has fulfilled these words (Luke 4:18-21). Jesus has come, ‘proclaiming the Good News of God’. He tells us that ‘the time has come’. This is the time of opportunity, the time for making our response to Jesus Christ. He calls for our response - ‘Repent and believe the Good News!’ He calls us to make our response now - ‘now is the acceptable time... now is the day of salvation’ (Mark 1:14-15; 2 Corinthians 6:2). There will come a time when the time of opportunity comes to an end. When Christ returns ‘with power and great glory’, it will be ‘the Day of vengeance of our God’. We do not know when Christ will return. Get ‘ready’for His Return. Put your ‘faith’in Him (Isaiah 61:2; Matthew 24:30, 36, 44; 25:13; Luke 18:8).

God has given us a solid Rock for our faith: Jesus Christ.

‘Those who trust in the Lord... cannot be moved...’ When we put our trust in the Lord, we are like the ‘wise man who built his house on the rock’. His house ‘did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock’. When we do not put our trust in the Lord, we are like the ‘foolish man who built his house on sand’. His house ‘fell with a great crash.’ ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labour in vain’ (Psalms 125:1; 127:1; Matthew 7:24-27). ‘Jesus Christ’ is the ‘sure Foundation’ upon which our faith is built. He is ‘the solid Rock’, our ‘mighty Rock of spiritual refreshment’ (1 Corinthians 3:11; 10:3-4; Church Hymnary, 10, 411). ‘Christ died for our sins... He was raised on the third day’. Let us rejoice in Him: ‘The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy’ (Psalm 126:3; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

God has given us a Song of praise: Jesus Christ has come to our world.

There are two great ‘songs of praise’ here (Luke 1:46-55, 67-79). God was doing ‘a new thing.’ His people were rejoicing in Him. Great things were happening. Greater things were going to happen. Soon, the Saviour would be born. The birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:57-66) - This was great. The birth of our Saviour - This would be even greater. Mary and Zechariah felt the touch of God upon their lives, and their hearts were filled with praise to God: ‘When I feel the touch of Your hand upon my life, it causes me to sing a song that I love You, Lord. So from deep within my spirit singeth unto Thee, You are my King, You are my God, and I love You Lord’ (Mission Praise, 753). John was ‘in the wilderness.’ He ‘became strong in spirit’ (Luke 1:80). May God help us to grow spiritually, even when life is not very easy!

God has given us a glorious Hope: Jesus Christ is coming again.

Do you feel like giving up? God is not about to give up on you: ‘He who calls you is utterly faithful and He will finish what He set out to do’ (1 Thessalonians 5:23). He has a great future for us: ‘God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (1 Thessalonians 5:9). We look forward to the Return of our Lord Jesus Christ: ‘The Lord Himself will descend from heaven’ (1 Thessalonians 4:16). We look forward to heavenly and eternal glory: ‘We shall always be with the Lord’ (1 Thessalonians 4:17). This is the kind of encouragement we need. We are to remind one another of these things: ‘Comfort one another with these words’ (1 Thessalonians 4:18). We are ‘to encourage one another’ to go on with the Lord. Let’s ‘build one another up’, encouraging each other to build on ‘the Rock’ which is ‘Christ’ (1 Thessalonians 5:11; 1 Corinthians 10:3; Matthew 7:24-27).

God has given us Himself: Jesus Christ is God.

Jesus Christ is the Word of God. He is the Beginning. He is also the End (John 1:1-3; Revelation 21:6). He is ‘the Word... made flesh.’ ‘We have seen His glory’ (John 1:14). This is only the beginning. When He returns, we shall see His glory - ‘we shall see Him as He is’ (1 John 3:2). From Him, there is creation (John 1:1-3). From Him, there is salvation (John 1:12-13). In Him, we receive the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit (John 1:29, 32-34). He is the Word of God, the Lamb of God and the Son of God (John 1:1, 29, 34). When we look at Jesus Christ, we see God - ‘the ‘Word was God’ (John 1:1), ‘No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known’ (John 1:18). Do you want to know what God is like? - Look at Jesus (John 14:9). What do we see when we look at Him? - ‘the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29).
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