Making the Most Important Thing the Most Important.2.

You must be Born Again.

Would you believe it? Only a few weeks after my beach experience, I was asked if I was born again, and I didn’t understand the question! After I had been assured that God had heard my prayer for salvation, and that I was safe, I thought that being born again was some way-out cultish expression, and no way was I going to be pulled into anything weird. “I,” I stated boldly, “am a Christian, but not born again.”  As the young woman who had asked was a business associate whom I had considered to be a good Christian, I was disappointed that she had obviously been misled into something weird, but not considering myself expert enough to argue, I merely said goodbye, and wondered about the strange, almost dumbfounded look she gave me. Some people are so “in your face” holy, I thought. The Lord doesn’t expect that of me. I can just get on with life now, knowing that He is watching over me.

A short time later, in my daily reading of the Bible, a newly acquired habit, I read John 3:3 and at last I understood. I was born again! How could I have attended Sunday School, been confirmed, worked for 20 plus years in a responsible job, attended church sporadically, and yet had never heard the most important lesson that everyone needs to learn.

I tell you the truth; no-one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.

I had not been taught. I had not listened when the Lord was calling me by name. The only sermon I could really remember was one about doubt. Now I had no doubt. I was assured. Day by day the Lord was leading. Day by day He adds knowledge and understanding.

“Fear not!” He said. Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1b

I can’t tell you the date and time, but I am born again. Are you?

Making the Most Important Thing the Most Important.

Do you know the Most Important Thing?

I was walking on a beach in Hornsea, East Yorkshire, England. The waves were shimmering silver in the early morning mist as I watched the ebb and flow. I had been in conversation with Eternal Father, strong to save, whose arm doth bind the restless wave, and had wondered whether He had heard my pleas. Some time previously during the upheaval in my life, I had confessed that I had made a mess of my life, and needed Him to take over. I had asked Him to save me from eternal damnation, and also to save my marriage. My marriage was over, so the answer had been “No.”

Was I truly saved?

There, in the glow of the rising sun, and in the solitude of that early morning, God spoke into my heart. I was as aware of His presence as if He walked beside me, but actually He was closer than that. I knew, fully and irrevocably that whether I walked through wind and storm in Africa, or scuffed bare feet through the ripples of the North Sea, whether I was high in the sky over the world’s continents, or on a crowded street full of nameless faces, He was with me and would never leave me or forsake me. He was closer than the air I breathe.

30 years have passed since that day, but I can testify to His Presence and provision every step of the way.

To know Him is as simple as ABC.

Acknowledge that you are not good. Admit your weaknesses.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and the promise of John 3:18 Whoever believes in Him is not condemned but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

Confess your need of Him in your life. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:2,3)

If we Confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Decide to follow Him.

I have decided to follow Jesus. Have you?

Fear not - Enjoy Close Fellowship.

Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1

When the sinless Adam and Eve walked in the Garden with the Lord God, what sweet fellowship they must have enjoyed. What agony when they were banished, given hard work to do, and set to understand pain and suffering.

Eve became the first mother to lose a child, and was the first mother of a murderer. I wonder how she felt about being unable to return to the place of peace she and Adam had known before temptation and sin entered their lives.

When the serpent said to Eve, “You will not surely die,” in his temptation to have her eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the devil, satan, was showing his deviousness for the first time, and he hasn’t changed.

When the angels gathered in the presence of God as we read in the first chapter of Job, satan was amongst them and said he had been “roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it.” He still roams, and has the same evil intent, to entice us away from our close relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

God knows, even allows the temptations, yet still longs for close fellowship with his children. He made a way back to intimate communication through His Son and calls us by name to enter into a relationship with Him that includes two way conversations.

No longer do we have to employ the services of a priest to intercede for us, and plead our case. The High Priest Jesus has done it for us. In order to maintain the relationship we can enjoy because Jesus came, bringing comfort and love, and best of all, restoring sweet fellowship with Father God ,we need to proclaim our victory. ---for everyone born of God overcomes the world [and it’s temptations.] This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcame the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. 1 John 5:4,5

If we are keeping short accounts with God, maintaining our fellowship with Him, satan has no unsettled claims, his hands are tied, his lies are limited.

I thank the Lord for sweet fellowship with my Heavenly Father. How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! 1 John 3:1

Be thankful --- Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom --- Colossians 3:15,16

We are so privileged, that as brothers and sisters in Christ we can communicate with each other according to the wisdom received in the Word of God.

Be blessed in Him.

On sharing my Faith

I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest in man’s wisdom, but on God’s power. 1 Corinthians 2:3-5

I quote the Apostle Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians, a church community beset with similar problems to those we see in our day, no matter where we live. The church Paul founded was with people who had no basic grounding in accountability, good morals, ethical business behaviour, innate honesty, or general education. They were of mainly pagan background, although when Paul first arrived in this Greek city, he attended the Jewish synagogue, which disagreed with his teachings. Then he went to the Gentiles, and spent 18 months teaching and proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ.

Now I, in weakness and fear, with much trembling but a heart of love and concern, come and hopefully share on my walk with the Lord, and encourage you to build a strong and secure relationship with Him. Even though many of us have loved and trusted Him in our lives for many years, there is always something new to learn, some new insight from the Word of God, the Bible, and His personal communication with us.

In the course “Experiencing God,” by Henry Blackaby, there is an important lesson to be learnt in the Seven Realities of Experiencing God.

God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.

May I be an instrument in His hands to share His love and concern for everyone, for It is not His will that any should be lost. The letter, 2 Peter, was a warning to the church not to be misled by false prophets and teachers who would try to wean people away from the truth. People are crying out for freedom, but there is a freedom to be prized above all else, the freedom offered by the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not to do as we please, but to be set free from the bondage of wrongdoing, and to be embraced by His Grace within His claim on our lives through the price He paid on the Cross.

The Lord isn’t slow to do what He promised, as some people think. Rather, He is patient for your sake. He doesn’t want to destroy anyone but wants all people to have an opportunity to turn to Him and change the way they think and act. 2 Peter 3:9 God’s Word

It is my desire to share with you, that we may encourage one another. I welcome comments and opportunities to pray with and for you,

Be blessed in the Lord Jesus.

Why I Believe the Bible is True.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness --- 2 Timothy 3:16 NIV

As a child I suppose I was insufferable. I always wanted to know, but unfortunately what I thought I knew was not always based on intelligent, well founded knowledge of facts. Take the time some of us very young kids were discussing a popular subject – where do babies come from? How are they made?

Authoritatively and in all innocence I proclaimed, “Well, there has to be a mummy and a daddy in the same bed, and while they are asleep something happens.”

Yes, I had a lot to learn, but innate curiosity had given me fractional knowledge, by hearsay and jumping to conclusions. It is just so with the Bible. I knew about it, and from hearsay thought I knew some of its lessons and stories, but my reading had been cursory, with no real desire for deeper understanding. Although I would have classified myself as a Christian as against heathen, or pagan, on any form requiring such information, I had no depth. Even when the school teacher said that no matter what kind of reading we enjoyed, we would find in the Bible love, adventure, murder, I tried, but did not have the incentive to persevere.

When I made a full commitment to the Lord, then the Bible became more readable, but I had to learn how to gain insight, absorb knowledge, experience fresh understanding and receive instructions for righteous living. At first I used a devotional, which gave me some idea of how someone else had received a passage. I started to have a Quiet time, when I could concentrate, and pray about what I was reading. The King James Version I found difficult; poetic and familiar, yes, but not as easily readable as the one the church was using at that time, the Good News. This I used for my first complete reading through project. It took a while, but has been followed through the years by the NIV, NAS, NLT, Amplified, and others, to the absolute conclusion that indeed The whole Bible was given to us by inspiration from God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realise what is wrong in our lives; it straightens us out and helps us do what is right. 2 Timothy 3:16 The Living Bible.

Many people today find it is much easier to deny the truth of the Bible, than have to live by its principles. It is a basic “sin” thing, for the thought of having to give up what makes life exciting and interesting is not an inducement to making a commitment to a Righteous God whom you would rather not know. If He is going to disrupt your life, rather leave Him alone, is the prevailing thought.

How well do you know your spouse? Your children? Your parents? Your friends? How did you get to know them? Was it by spending time with them? Did you have a desire to know them intimately, in order to grow closer and understand them better?

Do you know God, and if so, how would you describe Him? Only the Bible can give us some idea. Having spent a couple of days in research, I encourage you to check out for yourself, as there is much material to confirm the validity and historicity of the Bible. The best research is to prayerfully read for yourself the Truth. Learn of the prophecies that have been fulfilled, and that give us understanding of what is yet to be.

A fool finds no pleasure in understanding, but delights in airing his own opinions. Proverbs 18:2. Let us not be fools, but wise and remember that It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way. Proverbs 19:2. NIV

He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers. Proverbs 19:8 NIV

There’s nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another – showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us. The Message. 2 Timothy 3:15-17

(If you have doubts and may risk a gamble, look up Pascal’s wager on Internet!)

Who is God?

God is not Allah. And even more positively, Allah is not God. Unfortunately God has been named Allah in some Arabic translations of the Bible, in a misguided attempt to encourage Muslim belief.

The name Allah comes from al-Ilah, the moon god worshipped with human and animal sacrifices for centuries, by Mohammed’s tribe. Much of Islam, founded by Mohammed, is based on pagan practices, including the kissing of the black stone in the Kaaba, as part of the Mecca pilgrimage.

The personalities of God and Allah stand in stark contrast, the one being grace, love and compassion, and the other hatred, and death to those who do not comply with his demands. As both evil and good supposedly come from Allah, there is no standard of righteousness or ethics, and as a father is considered strict, demanding, and bound to his family by duty rather than devotion, Muslims consider the idea of Allah as a father figure tantamount to blasphemy.

God is not Buddha, whose adherents must battle through so many contradictions that they can never come to a concrete conclusion about their faith. There is a complete denial of a god, as they believe the world operates by natural power, and their efforts to reach Nirvana (paradise) seem pointless, as they consider the senses, (hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, seeing) non-existent, as also the soul, (mind, will, emotions), so their practice of peace and tolerance brings them no eternal reward. If reincarnated they could be a dog, or an insect, or a bird, and not necessarily human. What a strange belief, if one can call it that – not even a hope!

God is not just a “higher power” and I wonder, higher than what? How high is high? Can high be high enough to cover all that would make a god worthy of worship? He is most definitely not “the man upstairs” – what an abominable concept.

So who is God?

Stan Telchin, a highly successful Jewish businessman, thought he knew God. He was a happy family man, with a lovely wife and two beautiful daughters, the older one, Judy, being a University student. His world fell apart when Judy phoned, and in the course of a long conversation, disclosed that she had become a believer in Jesus Christ as the Messiah. To Stan, as it would seem to any Jewish person, this was a betrayal of their people, and a desecration of their ancestors. Read his book, “Betrayed” to see what happened to their family.

The Egyptians of ancient times were quite happy with their gods, who even did magic things for them, but along came Moses and introduced the Eternal Almighty God who deals in miracles, not magic. They learned at their cost that the God of gods is worthy of worship.

The people of the Old Testament, like so many today, did not understand who God is. We can read of those who chose obedience or disobedience to the Unseen God, revealed through the prophets, and shown through Creation. The Bible is full of evidences of God’s character and commands, and to those Old Testament believers, He was a God to be feared, respected and honoured. Sacrifice and offerings were made in order to appease Him and buy His favour.

Israel was proclaimed as God’s chosen people, but they vacillated between allegiance and denial of His sovereignty. The prophet Hosea exhorted them to, “—return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but He will heal us; He has injured us but He will bind up our wounds.”

“I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings”, said God. Hosea 6:1 & 6.

And yet – why did the Old Testament culture demand sacrifice?

Adam and Eve walked with God in the cool of the evening, and they enjoyed close companionship. In innocence they lived peaceably with the animals Adam had named, feeding on the lush vegetation in the Garden of Eden. Then Eve was tempted to eat the fruit that the Lord God had told Adam not to eat. You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you may not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. Genesis 2:16,17

God shed the first blood after the disobedience of Adam and Eve. He made garments of skin for his created man and woman, which necessitated the killing of an animal, and he banished the two hitherto sinless people from the Garden.

Here we have an account of the beginning of human history, and you may say it is a story. Why would I base my account of God on a story?

Because I believe the Bible is God’s inerrant word, and I will speak more of this Creator God who revealed His plans and purposes in order that we may believe in Him, trust Him, and gain eternal life.

Who Am I?

Life without purpose is not to be thought of! Life and purpose go together, but purpose and chance are opposites. How could life then, happen by chance, and still have purpose?

My being who I am is special to me. I could not imagine being anyone else. Who are you? Could you just be anybody, or are you, like me, a unique person with character, likes and dislikes, knowledge according to your interests, ideas, abilities? I could go on, but you can see for yourself you are an individual, affected by genes and family traits, but you are ONE. Even identical twins are separate beings, identifiable by differences of some sort. Having established that we ARE, and not figments of each other’s imaginations, let us look at who God is.

I have found that this is easier said than done, but to begin, before seeing who God is, we have to decide on a crucial issue. To define God, you have to believe that God IS.

If you do not have that belief, and think that this great universe did not need a creator, but happened from nothing, I can’t help you, and you will have no further use for this column.

The Bible tells us, Only fools believe there is no God. (Psalms 14 & 56)

Also, Do not argue with fools or you will become like them. (Proverbs 26:4)

We will later examine why the Bible is my authority, but if you are still with me, let us look at who God is NOT.

Pantheists say that God and the world are one. Nature and history, matter and thought, are all related, and I see no evidence of holiness or divinity in such an idea. Going back to early Indian philosophy, history shows Pantheism in many forms, and while related to Brahminism, Stoicism, Gnosticism etc, and very much a part of the more recent New Age movement, it can also include Atheism, for there is no god in such a belief. If God is in everything, then He is in nothing, and if evil and good exist side by side in whatever form, how can he be worthy of respect? He cannot create and be in creation, and if everything is absorbed into one being, after death becoming part of that being, then it is immaterial whether one lives a moral or immoral life. Who wants to worship such an impersonal concept? We see in modern times the idea of “ecotheology”, with many adherents worshipping and wanting to preserve nature, no doubt thinking that the fate of creation is in their hands. They are not god.

Polytheism is the worship of or belief in more than one god. Well the God I worship and serve is One God, and He instructs that other gods should not be worshipped. Note that He does not deny the existence of other gods, but He commands that they be left out of His sphere of relationship. You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:2. That includes the gods of the day, Baal, Molech, Isis, Greek and Roman gods, the many, (approximately 30 million) Hindu gods, ancestors, totems, and the gods of money, sport, status, intelligence, entertainment and self-interest.

Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord; no deeds can compare with Yours. All the nations You have made will come and worship before You, O Lord; they will bring glory to Your Name. For You are great and do marvellous deeds. Psalm 86:8-10.

My God is not Allah, and I will explain more on this later.

Meantime, God is not lost!

See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness…

Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts … Hebrews 3:10,13,15.

The Most Important Thing.

The first question of this morning’s sermon at church was, “What is the most important thing God tells us?”

Answer, “Love God; love people!”

It seemed a confirmation that I must continue with what is on my heart to day, and I hope I can put what I feel into words. I am finding that writing this blog is giving me a curiosity about people who I may never meet. Whether by accident or God’s leading, by curiosity or referral, I see “hits” from countries I can only visit in my prayers. With my theme, “Glorify the Lord with me; Let us exalt His Name together” I feel led to ask and answer a few questions, and to invite you deeper into my own life, warts and all.

No-one who knows me is left in doubt about my beliefs, but even amongst my own family are those who think I am an eccentric who has “got religion.” I remember when my mom was seriously ill, and we knew her time was limited, she was a little irritated by my desire to know more of her beliefs. In frustration one day, I asked, “Mom, if what you believe is not true, would you want to know?”

“No!” she replied, and I had to respect that. No more comments, hoping she would react, ask questions or at least listen. No more giving something to read in the hopes she would! No more asking if she would like to watch a video or DVD to elicit reaction.

She would ask my brother for legal advice. She would call in a plumber if the taps leaked, or an electrician to fix a gadget, but for spiritual help, even the local minister was ignored. Was there nothing I could do?

There was something! I went to the Lord, in tears and trust, saying “Lord, only You can fix this. My hands are tied. It is not Your will that any should be lost.”

A few days before I left my mother, and returned to Africa, she asked some of the right questions! I gave answers, but I was not to know what her heart decided, for she died in her sleep soon afterwards.

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, --- 1 Peter 3:15

Perhaps what I have to say will stretch over several “chapters” and I wait to see what I am led to read and expand on, but here are some of the issues I would like to explore with you. Those who know Jesus Christ in an intimate relationship will bear with me and hopefully add to my insights, while those who are seeking will find fresh food for thought.

In Dave Hunt’s book “In Defense of the Faith” he quotes two writers who made pertinent comments worth repeating here.

“It is no sin to doubt some things, but it may be fatal to believe everything”- A W Tozer

“There is a place for scepticism as well as a place for faith; and in considering an investment or embracing a religion, scepticism should come first” - Irwin H Linton in A Lawyer Examines the Bible

So ---

Ø  Why Believe the Bible?

Ø  Who is God?

Ø  Why Promote my Belief?

Ø  Why do I care?

Ø  What does it mean to you?

Before I can go into any further depth, I must introduce myself as a creation, not a happenstance.

On the day I gave my life back to the Lord, - Father, Son, Holy Spirit – I said, “I believe! Help my unbelief!”

I was not the first to say this, and I am pretty sure that every believer, consciously or sub-consciously, has issues with belief that are difficult to get around. In the course of my relationship with you, I will no doubt be sharing some of the ways that that prayer has been answered. Some questions in a believer’s life will only be answered when we meet Jesus face to face.

I am not a Theologian, but an ordinary person who has given my life to the Lord Jesus Christ, and I am trying to live it in obedience and trust to His honour and glory. I have a burden on my heart for those who have no faith; nowhere to go for help in troublesome times; nothing to cling to when all seems lost.

Let us take a look at a beginning point. The first sentence in the Bible, Genesis 1:1, reads:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

John 1:1 reads:

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

Believers, please bear with me. Sceptics and Inquirers, hang in here!

Who is God, and why use the Bible as evidence of Him?

What other evidence is there, apart from the Bible?

Watch this space!

Like an Olive Tree

Perhaps it is the writer’s desire to grab the reader’s attention with the first sentence that prompted the statement causing a horror reaction.

“Beyond broken glasses, broken teeth, and no wheels,” I said on the phone, “we are fine.” How it sounded did not occur to me, but a major disaster it was not. Major inconveniences, yes, and problematic solutions, yes. I am so glad we can call for answers in the right place, so when my listener had combed down his hair and was breathing comfortably again, I could go on with the story.

The glasses were due for replacement, so their breaking was an incentive to make an appointment and a temporary answer was found. The teeth must have been weakened at the stainless steel connection, one side with the other, so beyond an unexpected couple of jabs from a mushy meal of pasta, I am happy that they can be sorted. And the wheels? Well, that is a longer story.

Driving comfortably along there was a sudden and horrendous clicking, clacking and grating noise, bringing us to a complete standstill, and the necessity to call a breakdown truck with flat bed and hoist to get us home. Long story short – it will also necessitate a reliable replacement, and hence major money juggling. Praise the Lord it happened where and when it did, for if it had been in the middle of heavy traffic in the city centre, - I don’t want to even think of that!

Only the first reaction was a little wobbly, but we are fine now, thanks!

I was reminded, after I had flipped a little, of Romans 7:18 Nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh, and Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is more deceitful than anything else, and is desperately sick; who can understand it.

When we hit rock bottom in ourselves and realise we have failed again, lost our cool, allowed patience to depart, or given in to hasty words, a temper tantrum, or sheer stubbornness, it is time to take stock, and settle accounts. I realise every day the importance of our choices, and in the past couple of days I made some wrong ones. The Serenity Prayer was much needed, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

I also looked again at the poem of Maya Angelou,

When I say “I am a Christian” I don’t speak of this with pride. I’m confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say “I am a Christian” I’m not trying to be strong. I’m professing that I’m weak and need His strength to carry on.

I am reminded that my initial shock and doubt was unfounded. Jehoveh Jireh, our provider, has not failed us before, and will not fail us now. We are asking His guidance in decisions that must be made, and so glad that He, not us, is in control.

But I am like an Olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever.

I will praise You forever for what You have done; in Your Name I will hope, for Your Name is good. I will praise You in the presence of your saints. Psalm 52:8,9

In His Hands, - there is no better place to be.

Reflections on Rusks and Righteousness.

Yesterday wasn’t the best of days. I’m sure you know the feeling of everything in your favour being against you. It is an attack by the enemy satan, who knows our weak spots, and those who might be his willing partners. There is an antidote: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5) Trust in the Lord and do good … Delight yourself in the Lord … Commit your way to the Lord … Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him … (Psalm 37:3-7)

Today I have been blessed, and after a baking session yesterday, and putting together what I had made, the Lord spoke into my heart.

Through the years, with a little tweaking here and there, I have developed a recipe for South African favourite, - rusks. Now in many countries, rusks are used for babies when teething and are handy to carry in the nappy bag for emergency solids to add to baby’s bottle. In South Africa they are very much an adult treat to be dunked in coffee, being particularly enjoyed in the winter months. Mine are healthy, bran rich, and flavoured with aniseed. As I am not a cordon-bleu cook, they are not standard shape and size, but popular with friends and family, and people started to ask for them, adding that they would pay. Eventually I had to make a price to cover costs, and was soon spending regular time in the kitchen baking mounds of my speciality. Then a strange thing happened!

Someone would say, “I love your rusks, but could you please make me some with sunflower seed instead of aniseed?”

Another would ask, “Do you make them white as well?” (I have yet to see white bran!)

Other requests followed. “Could you do me some with less sugar, or would you use sweetener instead?”

“My sister doesn’t like aniseed, could you please leave it out?”

As I bake 4kg batches and put them into 500g packs, you can imagine the odd 3 ½ kg excess packs I would sit with.

Psalm 37:5 (NLT) tells me: Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him, and He will help you.

So I did – and He did!

But I was thinking this morning, isn’t it so like church attendance?

“I would go to church, but they always want money.”

“I enjoyed the service, but I wish they would sing more hymns/ sing less hymns/ sing the choruses we know/keep the children quiet/put cushions on the chairs, etc”

And of course, the favourite, “I would go to church, but they are such hypocrites there. I can’t handle it.”

Then there is, “I do go to church, but not if Joe Bloggs is preaching. I like John Doe better; - he doesn’t go on so long.”

I don’t know about you. I go to church to worship my Lord. I go to church to have fellowship with other believers. I go to church expectantly, knowing that God will have a special word for me, that will penetrate my heart, - that will encourage me or rebuke me. I go to church because I want to. And if my church did not give me food for thought that would help me grow in grace, faith, hope, trust, I would have to find one that did! Church is not a building that is a symbol for Sundays, but a body of believers who have a roof of authority over them, and who gather together to serve and honour God the Father, acknowledging the supreme price that was paid by Jesus Christ for their salvation, and to go out in the power and equipping of the Holy Spirit.

I desire to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart.

I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as You know, O Lord.

I do not hide Your righteousness in my heart; I speak of Your faithfulness and salvation.

I do not conceal Your love and Your truth from the great assembly. (Psalm 41:8-10)

There is nothing new under the sun --- said Ecclesiastes.

Ecclesiastes, had studied history, and seen his own life through different stages, realising something that has become a cliché in our time – What goes around, comes around.

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9

If we go back to creation, and read Genesis we can see where it all began. There was no death in the Garden of Eden. Adam, Eve and the animals lived together in perfect harmony as vegetarians. As we read in Isaiah 40:8 the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of our God stands forever. (Note, the vegetation withers and falls, as against human death.)

Man’s fall began in the Garden of Eden, and it continues into the Garden of Remembrance, as we remember the times we have failed to honour God. When conscience pricks, we have the choice – go with the world, or go with God. Who is the influence in the world in our present time? Satan, the evil one, is who, in Job 1:7 answered God when He asked where he had come from, by saying, “From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it.”  

He still roams, and he still does damage!

Genesis 2:17 reports that while God’s instruction to Adam was obeyed, all went well. Adam had the responsibility to maintain obedience, but in Genesis 3:6 we see that Eve was tempted, and gave in to curiosity. Don’t we, too, find curiosity is an almost irresistible force? We want to know, “What if --?” and wonder “would it really hurt?”

The youngsters of today are taught evolution in the schools, an idea passed off as scientific. Far from science, it leads to the idea that if we “just happened,” by a long stream of events, then there is no need for ethics, and morality, and integrity. Why bother with the Ten Commandments if there is no Creator God and Judgment to follow our evil lives? Why not give in to curiosity and experiment with any forbidden fruit that looks attractive? Why bother with “God rules” if there is no solid base of righteousness?

The older or middle generation – might I even call it the lost generation? – grew up largely in rebellion against the rigid rules and guide lines of the earlier age group. Without church commitment, children were given more leeway, and a more permissive style of parenting led to the idea that if you don’t have your own way, you won’t have the happiness you deserve. Forbidden fruit was no longer strongly forbidden, but offered generously and freely.

The wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23)

But what is sin? Anything that does not honour the Creator God, who set out the way He wants us to live and acknowledge His provision for us!

Way back in the days of Noah, when men began to increase on the earth --- the Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of his heart was only evil all the time --- (Genesis 6:1-8) God’s anger resulted in the Flood.

Back when the judges ruled, roughly 1000 years before Christ, --- everyone did as he saw fit. (Judges 21:25)

Read Romans 1:18-32 and see the similarities to our day and age.

Since [People] did not think it worthwhile to retain to the knowledge of God, He gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such thing deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them (v 28-32)

No, we are not all that bad! Why, some of us do our best to do well, and help others!

There is a way out!

The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23b)

Accept Him, and live!

All Bible verses are from the NIV.

(I started this piece yesterday, and then asked God if this was from Him, or was I just trying to be clever? Then our Pastor preached on the very verses that had challenged me to write, although from a different angle, But, confirmation enough! Those who know God, know Peace. No God, No peace!)

Love the World or Love the Word

-----This world’s last hour has come ----- 1 John 2:18

The world and all that’s in it – what a sweeping concept.

30 - 33% of the world's population claim to be Christian.

These are people who have responded to a survey or on some way have professed their faith to be Christian. How many though, are truly saved into His Kingdom? How many know and follow Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives?

I still wonder about my early years, for though I believed in Jesus Christ and His crucifixion, I had not become a living sacrifice. I still went about living my life “my way.” Only when the wheels fell off did I realise that “my way” was a disaster.

Someone I thought of as a “Holy Joe” – you know, the sort of person who oozes Christianity, and scares the nominal Christians stiff with their fervour – asked me if I was born again. What was I to think? Here was someone who had “got religion,” a happy clapper of note, so my reply caused raised eye-brows and a look of shock. “I am a Christian,” I said, but I’m not born again!”

After all, I had been christened as a baby, confirmed as a teenager, and I went to church quite often, warming a pew and responding to the liturgy.

May she be blessed! She didn’t try to bowl me over with heavy preaching, and she remained my friend, accepting me with all my warts and hang-ups. Fortunately though, the Lord did not leave me long in ignorance as after the seed was sown for very soon afterwards John 3:3 hit me between the eyes!

I had been fed a watered down gospel by well-meaning, sincere teachers, but from then on I dug into the Scriptures myself.

We need to be sure that we hear the Word, understand the Word, and respond to the Word, for it is the Word of Truth.

Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world – wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important – has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from Him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on  its way out – but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.  (1 John 2:15,16. The Message)

Dear children, this world’s last hour has come. You have heard about the Antichrist who is coming – the one who is against Christ – and already many such persons have appeared. This makes us all the more certain that the end of the world is near. These “against Christ” people used to be members of our churches, but they never really belonged with us or else they would have stayed. When they left us it proved that they were not of us at all.

 (1 John 2:18-20 TLB)

These are the ones of Matthew 13:20. They received the message with great joy, but the soil of their hearts was shallow, so the seed did not take deep root, and when trouble came, or persecution because of their belief, enthusiasm faded, and they fell away.

But you are not like that, for the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you know the truth. So I am not writing to you as to those who need to know the truth, but I warn you as those who can discern the difference between true and false.

And who is the greatest liar? The one who says that Jesus is not Christ. Such a person is antichrist, for he does not believe in God the Father and in His Son. For a person who doesn’t believe in Christ, God’s Son, can’t have God the Father either. But he who has Christ, God’s Son, has God the Father also.

So keep on believing what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will always be in close fellowship with both God the Father and His Son. And He Himself has promised us this: eternal life.

These remarks of mine about the Antichrist are pointed at those who would dearly love to blindfold you and lead you astray. But you have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within you in your hearts, so that you don’t need anyone to teach you what is right, For He teaches you all things, and He is the Truth, and no liar; and so, just as He has said, you must live in Christ, never to depart from Him.

And now, my little children, stay in happy fellowship with the Lord so that when He comes you will be sure that all is well and will not have to be ashamed and shrink back from meeting Him. Since we know that God is always good and does only right, we may rightly assume that all those who do right are His children. (1 John 2:20-29 TLB)

Be sure you are of the ones who know Jesus Christ! And be ready for His 2nd Coming.

 

What next, Lord?

You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. (Matthew 24:6-8.NIV)

The hurricane YASI which hit Queensland, Australia, and has caused widespread damage, has attracted much attention. It is another of the disasters the earth is experiencing, and we are inclined to ask, “What next, Lord?”

It is not only the earth shattering news that challenges our minds, but what is happening in our personal orbits.

There are the individual disasters, with families being wrenched apart by various escalating problems birthed by modernism. Parents are hurting because of rebellious children succumbing to peer pressure, often caused by promotion of “new world” standards. Promiscuity, “alternative life style” teachings, promotion in the entertainment industry of occultism and the encouragement to turn away from the values that earlier generations were taught to embrace; all lead to a degeneration of society.

Parents, so entrenched in the money-making demands of keeping up with the Joneses, or being the Jones, that family concerns are no longer their priority. Fraud and violence permeate our society, and we need only read the first chapter of Romans, verses 18-32 and on into chapter 2, to see what the Lord’s view is of modern society. History repeats itself, but His judgment is inevitable.

Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents, and have them put to death. (Matthew 10:21)

 Jesus speaks of persecution of those who proclaim His teachings, and in Matthew 24:12-14 He says, Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Do you think I should be walking the streets like the cartoons of a placard bearing eccentric proclaiming REPENT. THE END IS NEAR?

I would, if it would help, but meantime I entreat that we all examine our beliefs, check what the Bible says, and be prepared, for we are living in the End Times. We are of the generation that is seeing the fulfilment of the final prophecies.

Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." Matthew 10:28

In His Faithfulness we can Trust

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the skies. (Psalm 36:5 NIV)

Random thoughts remind me of God’s faithfulness. Here we are at the beginning of the 2^nd month of the “New” year, and I wonder how we are doing if we were brave enough to make those special resolutions that seemed so attainable in the midst of all the celebrations. Are you keeping those promises you made to yourself?

Isn’t it wonderful that God doesn’t make new resolutions, but He is the same, yesterday, today and forever?  

Frances L Hess wrote about God’s faithfulness, and a copy of one poem is on the wall near my bed.

God’s faithfulness we’ve known throughout the years,

His oneness with us in our joys and tears;

So many times the Lord has helped us through,

Has answered prayer and given strength anew;

To God our voice in gratitude we raise

And for His every blessing give Him praise.

We are in a new month, open for the Lord’s leading. He may be calling you; He may be equipping you for a new work; He may want to revive your flagging faith.

New every morning is the love
Our wakening and uprising prove;
Through sleep and darkness safely brought,
Restored to life and power and thought.

New mercies, each returning day,
Hover around us while we pray;
New perils past, new sins forgiven,
New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven.

Words that have refreshed me through the years. And always we can find confirmation in the Psalms.

I will praise You, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders.
I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to your Name, O Most High.
(Psalm 9:1-2 NIV)