Category: Bible

Justice for all

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #5

The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.

Psalm 103:6 (ESV)

We pick up at verse six of this stunning psalm. Our focus now turns to righteousness and justice. Righteousness here is not moral correctness, or even right standing with God, but is a perfect pairing with justice. It refers to God’s righteous judgement. That may sound a difficult thing to face, but simply means God making things right.

The word translated as “works” here could also be translated as “executes”. We can therefore read this verse as saying “The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all the oppressed”.

Justice is an important theme throughout the Bible. God’s justice, His sense of right and wrong, are of paramount importance for us to understand – both in terms of the Gospel and how we ought to live.

Fairness is often something we struggle with. We occasionally get a sense that life is unfair, especially when hard times come. Something inside of us tells us that when something bad occurs, it just is not right! We get that sense of right and wrong, fairness and justice, from our Heavenly Father. It’s built into all of us.

While morality seems a flexible concept for some, each of us has a built in consciousness of right and wrong. That may be warped at times, but across the world there are certain things that nearly all agree are “wrong”. For instance, murder is generally outlawed, as is stealing or physical abuse.

We know these things are wrong instinctively because God made us that way.

The Gospel

God’s interactions with humanity is all about making wrong things right. The pinnacle of this effort was in dealing with sin once and for all in Jesus Christ. The Gospel therefore is the ultimate expression of justice. Sin was punished. Every wrong thing done against God and man was placed on the shoulders of Jesus, Who bore it on our behalf.

Justice demands action against wrongdoing. God, loving us as He does, did not want us to face the eternal consequences of sin. He fulfilled His requirements of justice by putting the Righteous One in our place. Jesus is our Substitute so we no longer face those consequences.

Justice in our everyday lives

But what about the wrong done to you? When is God going to put that right?

This is not easy to answer. If you have been mistreated, falsely accused or abused in some way, then you might be wondering what God’s justice means for you. What about the person who hurt you? They look to have gotten away with it, and you feel left behind and in pain.

Hurting people hurt people, and while that is no excuse, it does at least explain why some treat others the way they do.

God is a healer, and I believe He can heal you from the pain of your past. It may take a long time, and it will certainly be a difficult journey, but He can get you through.

God’s justice is not instantaneous and rarely is it quick. We must begin to take an eternal view of our lives. Perhaps, on this side of heaven, the hurt caused you may not be resolved, but I can assure you that God will wipe away every tear from your eye.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

Revelation 21:4 (ISV)

God is a just God, and everything will come right in the end. Our part is to trust Him, which can be very tough at times. God cares about the oppressed, and those who have been hurt. He knows how it feels also – as Jesus Himself faced it all.

Take your pain to the Righteous Judge, Who will do right by you.

 

The Pit, the Crown and the Eagle

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #4

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,

who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Psalm 103:1-5 (ESV)

We pick up where we left off last time, and today consider verses 4 and 5 of this spectacular Psalm. So far, we’ve already seen some of the benefits of believing, which include forgiveness and healing. And now find out a few other exciting reasons to “Bless the Lord.”

Redeemed from the pit

We don’t often encounter the word “redeem” in our everyday lives, and the most common use I can think of is when we “redeem” a voucher when shopping. When we shop like this, the word means “exchange” – you exchange your voucher for some product or service.

We might understand this verse – “redeemed from the pit” – to mean that we have been saved from death. Probably the pit referred to here, is the grave. So to be redeemed in this context, is to “exchange” death for life. We redeem our old sinful life (that leads to spiritual death) with our “Jesus coupon” which entitles us to life eternal.

Redemption can also mean “restoration,” “reinvigorate,” and even “renovate.” These are all relevant terms for us, as we exchange our old life of sin for our new life in Christ.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

The above verse tells us that we are made completely new when we put our faith in Jesus. That redeeming work of Christ is exactly like renovation. When we renovate a house, we transform it from its old worn out state into a brand new dwelling place. Likewise, our spirits which were once dead in our transgressions are now fully alive and new.

Crowned with steadfast love and mercy

When you think of a crown, you probably imagine something like a queen or king might wear. This is one type of crown of course, but the Bible also speaks of victor’s crowns – more like gold medals from a sporting event perhaps.

There are a number of crowns in the Bible –

  • The Imperishable Crown – 1 Corinthians 9:24-25
  • The Crown of Rejoicing – 1 Thessalonians 2:19
  • The Crown of Righteousness – 2 Timothy 4:8
  • The Crown of Glory – 1 Peter 5:4
  • The Crown of Life – Revelation 2:10
  • And more…

The crown mentioned here is one of steadfast love and mercy. A “steadfast love” implies one which cannot be moved. A love that is not fickle or whimsical, or based on shifting foundations like wealth or good looks. This kind of love and mercy endures to the end, and is God’s kind of love.

You never have to fear that God’s love will run out, or that you will somehow wear down His resolve.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

Satisfaction with good things

Another benefit of believing we find here is “satisfaction”. God satisfies us with good things. I don’t believe this should be interpreted to mean God will give us whatever we want, but i certainly do think it means we can trust God to take care of us. Jesus tells us in Matthew 6 that God takes care of the birds, and that we are far more valuable than they, and so, we should trust God to look after us.

Satisfaction goes far beyond mere material needs however. Many spend the majority of their lives unsatisfied with their work, relationships, and most importantly spiritual lives. This verse, along with many others, tells us that satisfaction can only be found in God. We cannot be content without that relationship we were born to have – that is, with God.

Youth renewed like the eagle’s

This satisfaction we briefly discussed above has a consequence. Verse five goes on to say that we are satisfied so that our youth is renewed like the eagle’s! This is quite a promise!

While, in my experience, young children are rarely satisfied for very long (with dinner, clothes, TV, toys or activities), they are generally content with their lives. They never seem to worry about tomorrow, never fear where their next meal is coming from or even too contemplative about their lot in life. Most adults can’t say the same. They tend to be worried, fearful and always seeking something else.

This verse does not promise we will never grow old, or even feel it at times, it does suggest that a life lived in relationship with God can lead to mental or spiritual youthfulness.

As I draw this post to a close, remember you have been redeemed from the pit, crowned with love and can have a youthful outlook on life. These are indeed great benefits to believing in Jesus, and I pray you will spend some time thinking on them today.

The Berean Approach

I don’t want you to just take my word for it…

We take a little break from our current series on Psalm 103 to discuss something important.

It is an immense privilege to share God’s Word with you through this blog, and I take that responsibility very seriously. But you, the reader, have a responsibility also.

If you follow this blog for any length of time, then I can probably promise you two things:

  1. You will not agree with everything I say all of the time, and
  2. There’s a good chance I will get something wrong from time to time.

I think both of these are “OK” within reason. Truth be told, any Bible teacher you follow (and I very much include myself in this) will not get everything right 100% of the time. We are all learning and growing, and not one of us has perfect understanding of the Scripture.

Likewise, there are different views of what the Scripture teaches on particular subjects, and different ways people approach worship. We have many diverse kinds of churches for this reason. There are certain fundamental doctrines – beliefs – that all Christian churches should hold but others where we may disagree – yet still have a Christian perspective and fellowship as brothers and sisters in Christ.

So, I ask two things of you:

  1. Be open minded, and
  2. Don’t take my word for it!
Be Open-minded

As we approach the Bible, we do so from our own experience. Often we read a familiar passage and assume we “know” all about it. God’s Word is so deep however, that new truths can be revealed to us by the Holy Spirit from even the most familiar of passages. Be cautiously and prayerfully open minded. Make sure your beliefs are founded on Scripture, not on tradition or society’s expectations.

Don’t just take my word for it

Perhaps more importantly, please do not just take my word for it. If I teach something through this blog or a sermon, I will do my best to evidence that point from the Bible. If I cannot demonstrate it from the text, then it is only my opinion. Test what you hear and read – not just from me, but from all sources.

The Berean Approach

You, the reader, must take “The Berean Approach.”

Now these people were more noble and open-minded than those in Thessalonica, so they received the message [of salvation through faith in the Christ] with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

Acts 17:11 (AMP)

“These people” here refers to the Berean Jews. They heard the message and were keen to understand it, but they searched the Scriptures to make sure that what they were being taught held up.

We must be like them. We must not just accept the newest fad teachings from the most fashionable Bible teacher, without testing it first. Similarly, we should not just swallow the teaching of our favourite teacher just because they are our “favourite”.

I know it may sound like work – checking and praying and testing – but it is worth it. There is great danger in just accepting what someone says. The Bible is so large and complex that one can take a selection of Scriptures out of their proper context and make them say whatever they want.

Context is critical in understanding what any portion of the Bible says

Guarding ourselves against deception is important. Biblical truth is wonderful and freeing, but if we get caught up in false teaching, it can warp our view of not just the Bible, but of God Himself. False teaching can lead us astray.

It is often not the outright lies that catch us, but the subtle falsities mixed with kernels of truth. We must be on our guard, and ever vigilant. We must be life-long students of the Word.

I encourage you to be a Berean!

Trusting the Unseen

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #3

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

Psalm 103:1-3 (ESV)

I’ve included the text from verses one to three here, but our focus today is just on verse three. So far in this Psalm we have thought a little about praise and worship, and also about using our minds and memories. The psalmist – David – begins to list out some of the benefits of believing, and he starts with two of the most amazing ones.

Who forgives all of your sins

From the very moment Adam and Eve fell in the Garden of Eden, God put into action His plan of salvation. So many times in the Old Testament do we see imagery or typology of the future Christ Who would come to die for the sins of the world. Indeed in that very garden, God clothed Adam and Eve with the skins/furs of animals. Blood had to have been shed for those animals to give up theirs skins, and the principle of the shedding of blood to “cover” sins was begun.

David knew as he praised God with these words, that He is a forgiving God. Of all the characteristics of God David could have pointed to, he chose first to highlight His forgiveness. Even in Old Testament times, before Christ came to deal with sin, we see God’s patience with His people lengthened time and time again.

And how many of our sins does God forgive? All of them!

So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Hebrews 9:28 (ESV)

God, through His Son, dealt with every single one of our sins now and forever. The idea that God has forgiven all of our sins sometimes makes my head spin. When I think back over my life, I can recall the times when I’ve let God down. Sometimes it was out of ignorance, but if I’m honest, there have also been times when I’ve done or said something which I knew I shouldn’t – but did anyway. I feel unworthy and even now I can barely comprehend that I can walk right up to God as my loving heavenly Father and know that I’ll be welcomed!

It’s almost too good to be true! I just don’t deserve it – and that’s what makes it so good! That’s grace!

I hope you are still with me up to this point, and that you too are humbled and full of praise to God for forgiving you of all of your sins. But the third verse doesn’t end there…

Who heals all of your diseases

This is where it may get more difficult. If I asked a typical church if God had forgiven their sins, I’d get at least 99% of the hands in the room go up. If I then asked if God had also healed all of their diseases, I’m not sure I’d get more than one or two hands if any.

I’ve never met a Christian who didn’t believe the first part of verse three, about being forgiven. But I’ve met many who don’t believe the second part.

Why is that? The same God who forgives our sins, also heals our diseases right? If He forgives all of our sins, then it follows (according to this verse) that He also heals all of our diseases. We cannot separate the two. If we accept the former, then we have to accept the latter also.

The difference is that we cannot see the evidence of forgiveness, and have no option but to trust that God has done it. You can’t see a sin, forgiven or otherwise, so we have to operate out of faith.

When it comes to our bodies, we look and see, and if we still see sickness, then we wrongly conclude that this verse isn’t true. Perhaps we wouldn’t admit that we think it isn’t true, and instead look for other interpretations of the Scripture.

Jesus faced a similar problem with the paralysed man in Mark 2. His faithful friends lowered him down on a mat before Jesus, but instead of healing the man, Jesus told him his “sins were forgiven”. This probably wasn’t what he wanted to hear! It certainly wasn’t what the teachers of the law were expecting. In fact, they thought it was a blasphemous thing to say – who is He to forgive sins! – they thought.

That was Jesus’ point. He essentially proved that He could forgive sins by healing the man. He proved the thing that could not be seen (the forgiveness) by doing the thing that could be seen (the healing).

When we see symptoms in our bodies, it is easy to conclude that we’re still sick. Yet this verse clearly states that God heals all of our diseases. So which is true? We have the same choice that Adam and Eve had. We can choose to believe what God says, or listen to an alternative voice. In this case, our symptoms.

To be honest with you, I have a problem with my eyesight. It is a long-standing issue, and one I have prayed about many times. I have yet to receive my healing. With a sight problem, the symptoms are always before you. And I’ve “trained” myself to believe in the symptom more than in the Word of God. So I am not writing this from the perspective of someone who has it all figured out! I have much to learn myself. And we are all on a journey.

Healing is not a straightforward issue, and there are many reasons why we might not be healed when we ask for it. But we have to start from the premise that this verse is true. God is a healer. Jesus, the perfect representation of God, spent the majority of His ministry healing people. God is the same today, yesterday and forever. If He was a healer in Jesus’s day, He is a healer now.

This post is long already, so I don’t want to spend too much more time on this subject. Perhaps it is a subject for a future series. For now though, if you accept that God forgives all of your sins (something unseen), at least consider that He also heals all of your diseases. Pray over this verse, talk to God about it, and begin to trust the unseen more than the seen.

Resurrection Sunday

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

1 Corinthians 15:1-8 (ESV)

May I wish you a very happy… Easter? I hesitate over the word because actually “Easter” doesn’t appear in the Bible. While I realise some translations include the term, it actually isn’t a biblical word at all. Easter probably comes from the pre-Christian celebration of the goddess “Eostre” which occurred at the beginning of spring. At some point in history, our celebration of the Resurrection of Christ took over the name of the festival.

I much prefer the term – Resurrection Sunday, rather than Easter Sunday therefore – but I digress…

Whatever you choose to call it, it’s the time of year when we remember and celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This was perhaps the most important moment in human history, alongside the Creation, as it marks the time when God dealt with sin once and for all. From that time on, whenever someone puts their trust in Jesus, they become “dead to sin but alive in Christ”. They receive eternal life and are born again into God’s family.

Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15 quoted above, gives us a concise and clear explanation of the Gospel – the good news about Jesus.

The Gospel is:

  • Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,
  • he was buried, and
  • he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared… to many
Christ died

Jesus lived a perfect life, fulfilling every aspect of the Law of Moses. He was never tainted by iniquity, and so was the perfect sacrifice for our sin. He died the death of a sinner on our behalf. He was tortured and crucified so that you and I might go free.

Christ was buried.

They put His body into a tomb carved from the rock. It was a tomb where no one had been laid before. According to the Scriptures, He would stay there for three whole days.

But which Scriptures? Where does it say that Christ would spend three days in the grave?

In Genesis 22, we read the account of Abraham being asked to sacrifice his only son – Isaac. If we’ve been paying attention, we’ll realise that Abraham had more than one son, and so something else must be going on here. In fact, the whole account is Abraham acting out a prophecy of what God the Father would one day do with His Only Son.

Nearer to Father’s Day, i’ll upload a sermon about this…

From the moment Abraham was given the command to sacrifice Isaac, until he arrived at the place God chose, was exactly three days. In Abraham’s mind, his son was dead from the moment the command was given and so, to Abraham, Isaac had been dead for three days when the stay of execution was granted.

Likewise, when Jonah was swallowed by the great fish/whale, he was in its belly for three days and nights before he was “vomited” onto the beach! No one said resurrection wouldn’t be messy!.

Christ was resurrected

Often when we share the gospel, we say something like… Jesus lived a perfect life and died for our sins on a cross. Therefore, if you put your trust in Him, your sins are forgiven.

What’s wrong with that, you may ask, and it’s pretty much what you’ve said above?

We somehow forget the Resurrection. The Gospel does not end with the cross.

We must never omit the resurrection from our Gospel preaching. If the cross enables God’s justice and our forgiveness, then the resurrection enables our new life in Christ. Without being born again, we are stuck forever with our sinful, fleshy nature and have no hope of changing our lives. The cross deals with our sin, but the resurrection enables us to be new creatures in Christ.

I conclude with these words from John’s Gospel. It includes perhaps the most famous verse of them all, “for God so loved the world…” It also includes Jesus’ teaching on being born again. We must, each one of us, be born into eternal life – new life in Christ.

I hope you enjoy this season celebrating the Resurrection!

3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again[b] he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

John 3:3-5 (ESV)

16 “For God so loved the world,[i] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 3:16-18 (ESV)

Forget Me Not

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #2

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,

Psalm 103:2 (ESV)

 

We continue our series on “All the Benefits of Believing” with the second verse of this great Psalm. And it’s a cracker…!

This verse repeats the phrase found in verse one – Bless the Lord, O my soul! I discussed before that this encourages us to stir ourselves up to praise God – even in times when that might be difficult. In such times, we must speak to ourselves – our own souls – and remind ourselves of the many reasons to worship the Lord. No matter how bad things get in this life, there are always more reasons to praise.

If you are reading this now, then you must have Internet access – a blessing if used correctly! But more than that, you probably have eyes to read it. Look around you, wherever you are, and there are likely many reasons to be thankful. Whether it is lighting, heat, electricity, a roof, food or drink or many other physical things. Beyond that, if you are interested in this subject, then you either know God or are seeking Him. So the reasons to praise God are already mounting up.

Our petition should not outweigh our praise!

This verse instructs us not to forget all of God’s benefits, and we see this little word – all – once again.

Remembering – forgetting not – the benefits of the Lord is a powerful thing to do. What our mind dwells on has a huge impact on our lives. The fruit of your life today depends greatly on the thoughts you sowed yesterday. Joyce Meyer says, “Where the mind goes, the man follows.”

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…

Proverbs 23:7a (KJV)

Our minds are incredibly powerful, and everything we perceive in life goes through the “filter” of our inner thought life. If that filter is clogged or damaged, then our perception could be off. For instance, if someone doesn’t return your call straightaway, it could be that they are angry with you and that you have offended them in some way. Or, it could simply be that they are busy right now.

How we choose to use our minds impacts our life

We can use our minds in many different ways. This verse is instructing us about how we use our memory.

When you think back, what key events or situations stand out in your memory? Are they generally positive or negative? It’s probably easier to recall in vivid details the times when you have been hurt or when some tragedy befell you. Perhaps it’s in our nature to dwell on the bad, rather than the good, but it is a choice.

Ultimately, you can choose what you think about and how you use your memory.

There are times when we need to examine a bad thing that happened to us, and work through it. I’m thinking of those who experienced some kind of trauma. I’m not suggesting you simply bury those experiences and don’t deal with them in the proper way.

However, if we spend our time recalling only the bad things that have happened to us, then our minds – and subsequently our lives – will not be in a good place.

For even though they knew God [as the Creator], they did not honor Him as God or give thanks [for His wondrous creation]. On the contrary, they became worthless in their thinking [godless, with pointless reasonings, and silly speculations], and their foolish heart was darkened.

Romans 1:21 (AMP)

Here Paul explains how some fall away from the Christian faith. Even though they knew God as Creator, they didn’t honour Him as such. Paul points out that they stopped giving thanks and that their thinking became worthless.

We must not allow our thoughts to become worthless. We must continue to give thanks always. We must not forget all the many reasons to worship God.

What is your thought life like? Perhaps you’ve never thought about it! Try to memorise this verse from Psalm 103 (above) and if you find yourself not being thankful, complaining or dwelling on negatives, then speak to yourself. Don’t allow yourself to forget the benefits of God. Think back over your relationship with Him, and the times He has come through for you.

Your memory is extremely powerful – don’t waste it!

Praise the Lord – O my soul!

All the Benefits of Believing (ATBOB) #1

Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Psalm 103:1 (NIV)

This is a fantastic Psalm, and there is a great deal for us to both enjoy and consider. I’ve called this series “All the benefits of believing,” and throughout I’ll be pointing out the many wonderful benefits of following Jesus.

Before I start sharing the benefits listed by this Psalm, I want to focus on this first verse for a while. “Praise the Lord!” is a common phrase in the Psalms and the Bible as a whole, yet I wonder sometimes if we Christians fall short in this area.

Life can be tough at times, and often our prayer lives reflect this. We come to God, seeking help in time of need, and Hebrews 4:16 tells us we’ll find “grace and love” when we come to His throne. This is a fabulous promise, and one I don’t want to understate in any way.

However, when I consider my own prayer life and relationship with God, I’m acutely aware of how often I seek His help more than I seek Him.

We should never seek God’s blessings more than we seek God Himself.

Of course, we’re all guilty at times of seeking God’s “presents” rather than His “presence”, but we were created to worship Him. As we progress through this Psalm, let’s please bear this in mind. God is worthy, more than worthy, of our total devotion and praise – irrespective of the benefits a relationship with Him offers.

So, Psalm 103 begins by telling us to praise God, and uses the phrase “my  soul;” The phrase “my soul” here is nephesh in the original language and it means “soul,” “self,” or “living being.” Clearly the psalmist is stirring himself up to praise the Lord. While praise and worship should be the most natural – even automatic – thing for us, often it does take effort and exertion on our part. Why is that? It’s because we have a “flesh” or “carnal nature” which is opposed to the things of God. Our spirits are willing, but our flesh is weak.

The Psalm goes on to say “all my inmost being, praise His Holy Name.” This series is all the benefits of believing, and you might be surprised how often this little word – all – pops up in this one Psalm. Yet Psalm 103’s first use of “all” is about us. We are to praise God with all of ourselves.

We will go on to read about the many wonderful benefits of knowing God. Sadly though, many Christians don’t see or experience these benefits and can’t understand why. Of course, I don’t want to generalise here, but I do want to point out at least one possible reason why this is so often the case.

We sometimes seek the benefits of following God, without the corresponding commitment to Him.

When a couple are “dating,” they have no right to each other’s assets, money or name.  It’s only when they marry (commit fully) that they are then entitled to the other’s possessions, assets, name and any other associated benefits. In a similar way, the Church as the bride of Christ, has no right to claim the benefits of “marriage” without the corresponding commitment.

Likewise, when someone starts a new job, they cannot claim the full salary without fulfilling all aspects of the role. If I called my boss and said, “I’m not crazy about starting early, so I’ll come in when I roll out of bed.” or, “I like my monthly pay cheque, but to be honest, I’m not that keen on writing reports so I’ll just skip doing them.” It won’t be long before I’ll be looking for a new job.

As Christians, we cannot claim “all” the benefits with only a half-hearted commitment to Jesus. We must go all in if we want to realise the potential of our inheritance.

Please don’t misunderstand me, I’m not suggesting that we must earn our place with God or only be blessed by “performing”. That would be legalism and works of the flesh. Every blessing and every benefit of following Jesus is given to us by His grace; the finished work of Christ at the cross.

Let me give an example to explain my meaning. My daughter is still very young, but one day will want to learn to drive a car. I could buy her a car right now, but would be reckless indeed to hand over the keys. Instead, I need to wait not only until she is old enough, but also until she can demonstrate that she is responsible and trustworthy to handle the vehicle. The “blessing” of the car could be sat in my garage, just waiting to be claimed. It’s bought and paid for, but until she reaches maturity, she cannot handle it safely.

How is your relationship with God right now? Before we dig further into this spectacular Psalm, I’d encourage you to examine your heart. Do you praise God with “all” your inmost being? Do you spend more time asking for things, or praising His Holy Name? Do you need to talk to your “soul” and stir it up a little? There’s no better time to start than now.

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Continue in Christ

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him

Colossians 2:6 (ESV)

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul is here urging them to stick with the Gospel they heard. That Gospel was Christ-centred. Paul points out it was all about Him, and that there were no bells or whistles – Christ was simply more than enough.

Paul urges them here to continue in the Christ-centred Gospel they started in. Not to wander off after other gospels, other more “exciting” teachings and so walk on serving Him.

This is an important truth, and one we should not lose sight of. But I want to draw something else out of this text today.

Other translations render this verse essentially as – so as you received Christ, continue on in the same manner.  So how did we receive Christ exactly? While everyone’s story is different, it comes down to the fact that someone told you of Christ, and you put your faith in Him. It wasn’t about you, and it certainly wasn’t about what you had done to deserve Christ, rather it was about what Jesus had done for you.

Imagine someone coming to your church and asking any of the following questions:

  • How many times do I need to come to church in order to be saved?
  • How much does it cost to join the church?
  • How many hours a day do I have to read the Bible in order to get right with God?

You would likely be quite shocked. You would tell them they just need Jesus! It’s not about what you have done or can do for Him, rather it is recognising we cannot save ourselves and we need a Saviour!

But does anything change after we come to Christ? How do you approach God now, when you have a specific need?

Let’s say you are seeking God for something (it doesn’t matter what it is as long as it’s biblical!). Do you come to God, asking Him for it, and giving Him a list of reasons why He should do so? “I’ve been to church every week, sometimes twice, for years! I’ve prayed four hours a day for eight months! I’ve read the Bible and confessed the Scriptures over and over – yet I’ve still not received my answer!” If that’s you, then you are not approaching God in the way you did to receive salvation. Instead of trusting in Him and His grace, you are piling up works of the flesh – your own actions and efforts – to try and convince God you deserve an answer.

If you have a need, irrespective of what it is, you must approach God in the same way as you did to receive Christ.

Don’t go to God trying to twist His arm into giving you what you want. Instead, seek His will in this area. If the Bible says it is something God has promised or provided, then you can seek Him for it.

When you pray and ask God to meet this need, look to the cross and what Jesus has already fulfilled. It can’t be about what we deserve, as we surely don’t deserve anything from God. But rather, it is about Jesus’ perfect sacrifice and Him purchasing for us everything we do not deserve.

Grace and faith must stand and work together. I’ve heard it said that “Faith takes what grace makes.” Put simply, we cannot use our faith to “make” God do something for us. Instead, we use our faith to receive what God’s grace has already provided.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

Ephesians 2:8

Faith gets a bad name when there are those who try to use it to get whatever they want. Faith does not move God, it only enables us to receive what God has provided through grace. Put it this way, you cannot use your faith to get anything God has ot promised to give you.

So, we must continue on in faith just as we started our relationship with Jesus. We must refrain from trusting in our own good works and instead rely totally on His grace to sustain us. If you find yourself more focused on your own actions/works/efforts, and not on Christ, then chances are you have strayed away from the Gospel. Keep Christ at the centre of your life, and continue on in Him.

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The Fear of Bad News

He will not fear bad news;

His heart is steadfast, trusting [confidently relying on and believing] in the Lord.

– Psalm 112:7 (Amp)

 

This is an interesting psalm, and I’d encourage you to read the whole thing when you have some time.

I want to focus on verse seven for now, as I think it holds an interesting truth.

The “He” in this verse is not necessarily a male, but rather “one who is upright” or someone who is righteous. This verse tells us that he will not fear bad new,s and that his heart is steadfast and trusting in God.

Bad news can come in many forms; a report from a doctor, a bank statement covered in red, a phone call from a distraught family member and so on. Jesus Himself told us that while we are in this world, we will face trouble but that we should take heart in him.

Perhaps you are facing something right now which you would consider “bad news”. This verse however isn’t so much talking of bad news, but rather the fear of bad news. This may be a subtle distinction, but I believe one worth thinking about.

If you are a Christian, then you are righteous. That means to be in right standing with God, and this is something you have been given as part of your new birth in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). It doesn’t matter whether you feel righteous or act righteous, you are righteous because the Bible says that you are. It’s not something you’ve earned, but something Jesus earned and gave to you.

Therefore, this verse instructs us not to fear bad news. Absolutely we need to deal with it when it comes, but we are told here not to fear its coming.

Like the examples above, do you have a doctor’s appointment next week? Are you expecting your bank statement to come through your door or inbox any day now? Are you checking your phone regularly looking for missed calls? Could it be that you are fearing bad news that may come?

Fearing bad news is another name for worry I suppose, and the Bible is pretty clear about that. We believers should not worry. Easier said than done? It is for me at least. I’m a natural worrier! If it were an Olympic sport, I’d be in with a chance for a medal! But this verse also tells us something important about the reason we worry (the fear of bad news) – our hearts don’t fully trust God.

The truth is, and it can be a hard truth, if we find ourselves worrying or fearing the future, then we are not fully trusting God. If we truly believed God’s Word that says He knows the plans He has for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us; plans to give us hope and a future, then we wouldn’t worry about it. If we believed Jesus when He said not to worry about food or clothing, as God takes care of the birds and the lilies and that we are far more valuable than they; and if we believed that God shall supply all of our needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus, or that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him… then why would we worry at all?

I don’t wish to be flippant, and I genuinely do appreciate that this is easier said than done. However if we reflect on these biblical truths, then we should realise that worrying really is a waste of time and energy. If we trust in God and refuse to fear the bad, then we will have deep foundations in Christ that won’t be easily shaken.

Perhaps it’s too much to ask you to stop worrying right now. If so, then I do understand. Rather, could you at least come to a place where you don’t fear bad news? That is, refuse to worry about things that might happen and pray and think on the positives. I’m going to try myself, and I hope you can join me.

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Magnification

Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!

Psalm 34:3 (ESV)

At a recent prayer event, we were thinking about “magnifying God”. The facilitator expressed the sentiment that to magnify something is to make it larger, so how can we make God any bigger than He already is? This stumped me. Surely God is as big as He’s ever going to be?

I later realised however that our definition of magnification was wrong. When you magnify something, you don’t make it any larger whatsoever. It just appears to be larger.

Living by the seaside as I do, we often come across telescopes mounted on the sea wall for you to look out at passing ships. When we use such a device, we don’t affect the ship itself at all. What we are doing is to make the ship larger in our vision. Other objects are obscured, and the focus of our scope is purely on the magnified item.

Likewise, when we magnify God, we are not making Him bigger at all – for that’s impossible. What we are doing is focusing on Him, and thus He appears larger in our vision.

When we magnify an object, it allows us to see it more clearly. It also enables us to examine minute details which we might not otherwise have seen. All of these examples apply to magnifying God also. Seeing Him more clearly, by magnifying Him, and understanding Him better by more clearly seeing His character and quality.

So how do we practically do it?

I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

Psalm 69:30 (ESV)

Often the phrase “to magnify God” is used in terms of worship. Sometimes we use words like “worship”, “praise”, “magnify” and “glorify” interchangeably, and yet there can be subtle differences. Certainly worship is a major way in which we magnify God. When our attention is on Him, and not our problems, we cannot help but increase Him and decrease everything else.

Worship is not the only way however. We magnify God when we study His Word. When we make an effort to get to grips with the Scriptures, we are showing Him how important they are. And the Word speaks of God. The more we study it, the more we magnify Him and the more we understand not just who He is, but also who we are in Christ.

Lastly we magnify God through prayer. Prayer is certainly part of our worship, but even in making requests of God, we are magnifying Him. By praying to Him, we are looking to Him above all else. God should never be just another “thing” in our life, He should be the main thing. I once heard it said that He shouldn’t be one of many, but the one and only.

If the largest thing in your life right now is not God, but some kind of problem, then chances are you are magnifying the problem itself rather than Jesus.

At times in life, we face incredible difficulties, and I am in no way belittling that. Serious illness, the loss of a loved one, or financial difficulty are terribly difficult and often stressful. In those times however, we need to make sure we are recognising that God is bigger than any problem we have, and not get trapped into believing the problem is bigger than He is.

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Co-operation

Why is it that when I follow God’s leading, it doesn’t always work out?

Have you ever experienced a time when God was leading you to do something? Perhaps it was a big step of faith, or perhaps just a small thing He wanted you to do. You do it – to the best of your ability – you follow His leading and do what He has told you to. But it doesn’t work out…

There have been times in my walk with God when I felt that He was leading me to do something. Perhaps it was to share a word with someone, or something different.

I recall a time when, during a church service, I felt strongly that there was someone there with an injured wrist. After checking with the pastor, I shared this with the congregation.

“I believe there is someone here with pain in their wrist,” I started. “I think it is their left wrist, but I could be wrong. If that’s you, please come forward at the end as God wants to heal you today.”

What happened at the end of the service? Nothing. No one came forward.

Was I wrong? Possibly, and it is always worth considering that. We are not perfect, and if, like me, you are still learning to follow God’s leading, then you may find it hard to know whether you have really heard from God.

Later that day, I shared with some from the church that I perhaps missed God on this occasion. At that point, someone confessed to me that they had been having trouble with their wrist, and it had been particularly bad that morning! It turned out however, that the painful wrist was the right one and not he left as I had thought. That being the case, the individual decided it was not for them.

I take some of the blame here, and maybe should not have shared which wrist I thought was injured. However, I think that this word was very much for that individual and on this occasion, we simply missed it.

When God leads us, it is entirely possible that we mishear Him. But sometimes, when we have genuinely heard His voice, it doesn’t work out. The reason is simply “people”.

Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. 14 And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” 17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; 19 and taking food, he was strengthened.

Acts 9:8-19 (ESV)

Here we read of the conversion of Saul. After encountering Jesus on the road to Damascus, Saul (later known as Paul) is blinded. His companions take him into Damascus where he waits – for three days.

We are told in verse 12 that Paul has a vision of a man named Ananias who will come and pray for him.

Likewise, Ananias hears from the Lord and is instructed to go to Damascus (note how specific the instructions are) and pray for Paul.

Note the co-operation that is now required. Paul must wait on Ananias’ arrival, and we know he had to wait for three days. This is no short time when you have become blind and are not eating or drinking. Ananias also must obey the Lord’s instructions. He must face this “persecutor of the church” and lay hands on him.

But what if one or both of them don’t obey the Lord? Paul, let’s say, cannot move due to his condition and so waits on Ananias. What if fear got the better of Ananias and he decided, like Jonah, to go in a totally different direction? Paul’s had a vision; he’s certain he knows what to do to and what God is leading him to. But it only works if Ananias also obeys.

I’m sure you can recall a time in your life when you were sure – certain even – that God had spoken to you. But when you acted on it, it did not work out. You probably assumed you had misheard, and while that’s not impossible, it could be something else.

It could be that someone else in the chain did not follow God’s instructions. We are fallible people but we’re the best God has to work with!

All any of us can do is to try and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit as best we can. If someone else along the line makes a mistake, then it may not work out as planned, but I am certain God can find another way to fulfil His plans in our lives.

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