Episodes
Wednesday Sep 30, 2015
Wednesday WOW Worship - 30 September 2015
Wednesday Sep 30, 2015
Wednesday Sep 30, 2015
Worship Wednesday
September 30, 2015
Opening Prayer
O Merciful Father, We thank you that you are a loving God! We thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus Christ! We thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit! We thank you for life and that we can know you personally!
Amen!
A time now to confess our sins! Now we are free to give our God praise, knowing that we have confessed our sins, He has forgiven us and there is no impediment to our praise!
Time of praise with Psalm 134!
Psalm 134
You priests of God, posted to the nightwatch in God's shrine,
Lift your praising hands to the Holy Place, and bless God.
In turn, may God of Zion bless you - God who made heaven and earth!
My Jesus!
That's my Jesus! My Jesus who is fully divine, fully human, glorious in His death and resurrection! My Jesus who is supreme over all, the creator of all! My Jesus who is my eternal leader, eternal sustainer! My Jesus who has all power and all authority! My Jesus who reconciles me with God, my peace-maker with God and is the one who gives perfect peace!
There is only one Saviour for the world. There will never be another because there is no need of another. This Jesus is coming back as well!!!! But Jesus is not coming back as baby next time but as the living holy Almighty Son of God!
What does Jesus look like now? His close friend John saw him some years after Jesus' ascension back to the right hand of God! Here is what John saw!
Jesus, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on Jesus' head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. Jesus' feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace! Jesus' voice was like the sound of rushing waters. Jesus' right hand held seven stars! Coming forth out of Jesus' mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. Jesus' face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
That was an amazing moment when Jesus beloved friend, John, saw Jesus in all his majesty!
This John, who records these words from Jesus! "It is finished! It is complete! I, King Jesus, am the Alpha and the Omega-the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I, King Jesus, will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I, King Jesus, will be their God, and they will be my children.
"But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars-their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulphur. This is the second death."
"Look! I, King Jesus, am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. I, King Jesus, am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End."
That's my Jesus, who called me to follow Him almost 30 years ago now! It has been a rollercoaster ride, but I have always known that He is in charge! Are you one of His followers or are you continuing to be one of His deniers?
Song
Jesus! Jesus! You are the King of Kings! Blessed Jesus, Sweet Jesus, You are my everything.
And, Lord, I love you. I love You. And I'll love you more and more. O Lord, I love you, I love You. You loved me long before.
Lord, I worship You. I worship You. You are the Ransomed Lamb. O Lord, I worship You. I worship You. You are the Great I Am.
O Lord, I praise You. I praise You. Praise You for all You've done. O Lord, I praise You. I praise You. You are God's Only Son.
Yes, You're Jesus, blessed Jesus. You are the King of Kings. Blessed Jesus, sweet Jesus. You are my Everything.
And, Lord, I love You. I love You. And I'll love You more and more. Oh, yes, I love You. I love You. 'Cause You loved me long before. You loved me long before.
Words and Music by Marjorie Reece (c) 1986 by TJM
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Monday Sep 28, 2015
Think Spot 28 September 2015
Monday Sep 28, 2015
Monday Sep 28, 2015
28th September 2015
Deceivers or Receivers
Approaching two young ladies and two young men who belonged to a certain religious cult (I knew this as I had met the two men previously. They were now resting from their door to door visitation at a local coffee house I go to regularly.. I had felt deep concern for them for some while and feeling compassion for them after prayer really felt pressed to ask them a particular question . This question along with its answer had been on my mind and heart all morning and I knew I was meant to use it in my work as an evangelist with someone who God would place in my path that day.
Now it seemed God had led me deliberately to these particular four people. God is sovereign and never makes a mistake. So I began. “May I ask you a question. I am unsure as to what your organisation would teach you to say to someone you came across who had little time to live.
For instance, If you as Bible Believer's were visiting a very sick man who had been told by his doctors he might die at any time what would be the most important, most wonderful, encouraging, news in the Bible you could share with him? Say, he only had ten minutes to live, what would be the most important truth from the Bible you must share with him.?”
I admit I was desiring most assuredly to share the gospel message to all four young people before me, who I believed were blinded by their teachers and presented with false teaching concerning our Lord Jesus Christ. So I considered this was a good way to go about it. With this particular cult they are hungry for questions put to them as they believe they alone have the answers to life and death and love to impart knowledge to those of us who are lacking it in their opinion. They just love to be the teacher.
So I was pretending I was not as knowledgeable as they were. So how did I get on, you ask? One of the men said “I would tell him it was important for him to address God as Jehovah.” I encouraged the speaker by saying “good point”. But added “But was this the most urgent news he needed to hear? Is there a scripture which helps us in that situation? What was the vital information this man needed to hear in order for this man if he was about to die if he was to be assured of a safe arrival in Heaven?
Surely with eternity at stake this man needed to be able to hear the answer to this very important question. One of the young men said “Well he hasn't time to be taught the way to eternal life in the new earth so he would miss out” The truth is they didn't know so I gently asked if I might quote a scripture which I considered would be a brilliant illustration to help the dying man. This they readily agreed to.
I took them to Acts 16 and the question asked by a very frightened Philippian jailer whose life was about to be taken from him by those who employed him if his prisoners escaped. You see an earthquake had recently taken place causing the doors of the cells to come off their hinges and they were flung open wide allowing the prisoners to flee.
So what question was asked by this Jailer as he fell trembling on his knees before Paul and Silas who had been his prisoners “Sirs what must I do to be saved?” Paul instead of running for his life answered with the most wonderful news he could have given to anyone in need of knowing the way to heaven. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.”
The young ladies who had been listening intently were very impressed by this illustration from the Bible and said ”Yes surely that is great news , the best” However they didn't know that it would be upsetting to the young men who were their teachers that morning. Guys who were teaching them what their cult taught that Jesus is not the Son of God. Yet the Bible addresses Jesus as The Lord Jesus Christ. A term for God.
Well, very little else was said after that but I had placed Scripture in their minds and Hebrews 4:12; informs us how important that was. I only hoped that later they may have looked up Acts 16:31; in its context, and saw how that man was gloriously saved through the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ as well as his family who on hearing from Paul the gospel, made a quick response and became followers of Jesus Christ and were made ready for heaven.
There are none so blind as those who do not want to see. Blinded and none so deaf to Jesus words. These peoples minds were closed to the great gospel truth and needed their eyes and ears opened by God. There are many people who follow teachers who lead them away from the Bible. They teach them only to use the scriptures to their own movements advancement. They are are on a slippery slope 'the blind leading the blind” and need to be taught a better way and be brought to a true understanding of scripture which will then place their feet on a sure foundation, secure as an anchor in Christ our Saviour.
If you have been taught the better way (see John 14:6) be thankful and be ready to share with others as opportunities fall your way. Remember when you do so to use the “Sword of the Spirit,which is The Word of God” (Hebrews 4:12;)
Joy's Prayer
How thankful we are that you have put good Bible teachers on this earth and placed them in our way to show us the Truth concerning the way to Heaven. Help us to be discerning as to what is The Truth and to study God's Word to show ourselves approved by God and to always read the Bible in context as we know a word not in context is a pretext.
Many fall into error because of false teachers. If we are to come to a knowledge of the truth we have to take special care to listen to evangelical teachers who believe all of the Bible and rely on The Holy Spirit to speak through them . We know there are some cults which do not even believe The Holy Spirit is a Person sent by You to help us to discern and steer clear of such teachers. Show us clearly which churches are truly biblical and those which are not. Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers In Jesus name.
Amen.
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Saturday Sep 26, 2015
Gems in the Gospel of John - Part 05
Saturday Sep 26, 2015
Saturday Sep 26, 2015
Part 5 - John 1:6–8, 15, 19-28 - John was not Jesus
The other John, John the Baptist as we call him, though he is never called that in this Gospel, flits in and out of this chapter. Reading John 1: 6 – 8 and then 15 and 19 – 28.
First in the prologue, the introduction to the Gospel we read ‘There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.’ This introduces John as that most important person, a true witness giving testimony to Jesus.
Those words ‘witness’ and ‘testimony’ are just about the same in the original Greek, both coming from the word ‘martyr’. John is important in his role as the first and most prominent witness to Jesus. He gets more space than Jesus does in the history of the time written by a guy called Josephus, probably because he acted much more like an Old Testament prophet than did Jesus and so was more easily understood by the Jews of those days.
He is a good reminder to us that we too should be good witnesses to Jesus. As Peter said, ‘Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect’.
Second: later in the chapter we read that ‘(John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.“)’ and then there are several verses explaining how John testified. ‘Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”
They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord. ’”
Now the Pharisees who had been sent questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”
“I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
All of which is a sharp reminder that when we witness we should not do it to increase our own self-image to ourselves or to the Lord, but purely for the sake of our Savior Jesus. Such a caution is probably unnecessary if we are witnessing privately to one or two other people, but if we are up on a platform, or behind a microphone, then we may well fall into the trap of glorying in what we are doing. John did not do that.
The people sent down from Jerusalem were fairly sure he was someone very important: the Messiah, Elijah come to life again, or the promised prophet like Moses. No – says John. ‘I am just a voice in the wilderness preparing the way for a much more important person who is to come. Not even slaves were expected to take people’s sandals off but John was prepared to do even that for the one who was to come. You can’t get much lower, more humble than that. And that is the way we should be. Oof!
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Wednesday Sep 23, 2015
Wednesday WOW Worship - 23 September 2015
Wednesday Sep 23, 2015
Wednesday Sep 23, 2015
Worship Wednesday
Order of ServiceOpening Prayer
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
We praise you and give you glory:
We bless you for calling us to be your holy people.
Amen!Abigail Miller - Lord, I Must Be Yours!
Visit her at: http://www.abigailmiller.com/
(Song originally downloaded at http://www.godlychristianmusic.com)
Bible Talk
The Apostle Paul writing in Philippians 2:3-4 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."
The Apostle Peter writing in 1 Peter 5:5-6 "All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time."
Those verses probably highlight what those who call themselves the Lord's people are to be and do! Humility! Looking to others first! Contrast those values to those of the twenty first century society. A society where the prevalent attitude is: "There are no other people. The order is 'me, me and more me! I am far more important and higher than anyone else!'"
This is individualism, an individualism where the individual's importance is placed higher than all others! Individualism, which is imbued with self-reliance and personal independence. Even when help and compassion are offered, so often there are strings attached and hoops to be jumped through: "If you do this, we will do this for you."
That's the view in 21st century Western countries such as the USA, UK and Australia. Sadly, it is not just within society that this exists, but also within the church and amongst Christians. How opposite is that view, compared to the view of Peter and Paul in the Bible reading! It is as if we are denying the basic rule of compassion and mercy, which dictates that we, as Christians, are to be serving others, because they are also humans created in the image of God, loved by God and so should be loved unconditionally by those who proclaim to be God's people - the Church. Denying that basic need to others is pure unadulterated selfishness and places others below our own selves. Individualism within the church, lends itself to hypocritical behaviour and attitudes, which are inconsistent with Scripture and behaviour.
Individualism, where you as an individual are placed at the front of the queue, is not loving others and not considering others higher than yourself. It certainly could not be construed as serving other people to always place your own desires above all others. There is an old acronym JOY - Jesus first, Others second, Yourself last. So as we live our lives, let us be determined to be counter-cultural, love and serve others, being willing to listen to them and giving them practical support when we can.
Think time
Now a time, where I put before you a couple of questions for you to ponder and think about.Q1. In what areas of my life do I usually put myself before other people and sin against them?
Q2. What impact could I make on my church and local community if I was more willing to serve and practically love others, rather than be served and supported by them?
Bryony Prays!
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Monday Sep 21, 2015
Think Spot 21 September 2015
Monday Sep 21, 2015
Monday Sep 21, 2015
21st September 2015
Why Read the Bible?
“Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe practice it to be holy.” These words are written in the front of my Bible. They remind me how important the Bible is to me. It is my food and drink. It is described that way in the Bible It is also described as Honey as well as a hammer. A lamp and light to my path. Strong meat, a sword, milk and I am sure a good number of other words because it is so important and so indispensable to the Believer. Men and women around the globe have died rather than recant words from this book explaining Who Jesus is. It contains the very words of God spoken to 40 writers over 1600 years and today speaks still as loud to billions upon billions who pick it up and begin to realise what a treasure is contained here. The very Creator of the Universe, the Maker of sun moon and stars speaks to us from this very book. The Bible is also described as quick and powerful, pure and unadulterated, strengthening and stimulating, It is above all books and is a world's best seller.It has been translated into many different languages and is still being translated into the language of tribes who need to hear God's Truth today. Above all information in this amazing Book is the incredible story of God the Creator of the vast Universe. It is made out of nothing. Even more incredible it tells the story of man falling out with His Maker and the story of how God reconciled the world to Himself through His Son Jesus Christ.
It explains the way man is to live his life in every detail and the source of His needs to be met and the very purpose of his being here on earth. In fact no stone is left unturned in explaining all we need to know in this world into which God our Creator has placed us concerning our lives and our future.
My friend, if this book is so wonderful and is so helpful why is it that it is often pushed to one side in so many homes? Why are so many Bibles finding their way into charity shops and even being thrown away? Because the enemy of our souls Satan does not want us to find the way to God and Heaven. He wants us to be uninformed how to live out our lives . He wants us to despair rather than find the answers to our many questions. Do you remember the words I read at the beginning? Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to be holy.
We need to get to know the author and ask His help as we look into its many pages of wisdom. We need to set up a daily plan for reading it and digesting its contents. We need to realize how unsafe this world is for us without the knowledge of The Holy and the vital need of His Presence with us every step of our earthly journey to our final destiny. We need to take time to be holy and spend much time with His Word.
We live in a world of darkness and need the Light of Gods Word to show us the way ahead. We need to know how insufficient we are and our need of direction and and redirection when we have the left the straight path and wandered off. Practice it to be holy. To be like Jesus we need to have a soaking of God's Word into our lives daily, to be washed by the pure water of God's Word and to be filled anew with His Spirit Who explain the Scriptures to us. May we all find some more time to spend in this wonderful Book and delight ourselves in it. If not it will be to our cost and will affect our destiny.
Joy's Prayer
Dear Lord and Heavenly Father, Teach us to revere the Bible more than we do. To have it by our side, ready to be referred to rather than hidden away out of our sight only to be brought out next Sunday to take to church with us like an ornament. It is our daily manna so please give us an appetite for it to even a craving for it when we miss a days reading. Imprint upon our minds to read it to be wise, believe it to be safe and practice it to be holy.Sorry, if we have neglected it, especially if we have been afraid to look into its pages in case it made us feel guilty of sins we have committed. Lord may we be an open book before you ready to be spoken to by You and ready to readjust our lives when shown the error of our ways. If downcast lift us up through its many pages of encouragements where your people have been in similar circumstances and needed to be strengthened by you. Lord we love the psalms, may we read and see ourselves there with David and others who faced difficult times and discover how they found their peace and rest in You. Lord we do love you and thank you for the Bible .May we treasure it for ever. In Jesus Name Amen
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Saturday Sep 19, 2015
Gems in the Gospel of John - Part 04
Saturday Sep 19, 2015
Saturday Sep 19, 2015
Part 4 - John 1:14 - Jesus is amongst us
John 1:14‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.’
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.’
How can John possibly talk in one and the same breath about flesh and glory in relation to God the Word? Answer - because of the Incarnation – as we call it. My dictionary says incarnation is: the assuming of a human body by the Son of God; the presence of God on earth in the person of Jesus.
Can you imagine yourself taking on the form of an ant and going to live in a vast woodland anthill? That is something like an equivalent of what Jesus did in leaving heaven and coming to live on this earth of ours; not in a big palace or grand house either, with all the nice luxuries that the fortunate folk of the world have these days, but to a working man’s small house in an occupied country long before all the things that we think make life comfortable existed.
In our excitement over the great sacrifice Jesus made for us on the Cross and the way in which his Resurrection makes us sure that all he said and did was true we may forget the importance of the Incarnation that made those things possible. John did not forget the importance of this; indeed he emphasizes it much more than any of the other three Gospel writers as we shall see as we work through what he wrote.
John starts with ‘the Word was God’. He has now said ‘the Word became flesh’. What a wonderful contrast that is.
This is, in many ways, a rather awkward passage. It is often, and rightly, read in church at Christmastime – but it doesn’t quite fit! In many churches the children do a Christmas pageant. Two senior ones are Joseph and Mary with a doll as Jesus. Three older ones are the three wise men, suitably dressed in turbans and robes. Several are shepherds with walking sticks as shepherds crooks. The youngest and smallest children are sheep in woolly clothes. There may even be a donkey somewhere. All very nice and picturesque but where is the scene for the ‘WORD was with God’? Missing. It doesn’t fit.
Yet it is the most important passage in any Gospel on the subject of the Incarnation. God became man.
That is so important. Behind all the fuss and glitz of Christmas: big meals, parties, family get-togethers, presents, commercialization and so on we must never forget the real thing. Many must think - if God has come down to earth we cannot be such a bad lot after all. Wrong! This Gospel is full of judgment and the need to follow Jesus.
One writer lets his imagination fly to get an image of what Jesus did. He points out that almost all the Western films in which someone rescues a town from the bad guys have the good guy, the hero, riding in from outside the town. He is greeted with ‘who are you stranger?’ So it is with our Saviour Jesus. He rides in to our rescue from outside the town, outside the human world. He is the good guy. He is the hero. We must love, honour and worship him. Particularly at Christmas.
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Friday Sep 18, 2015
Friday Prayers 18 September 2015
Friday Sep 18, 2015
Friday Sep 18, 2015
Partakers Friday Prayers!
18th September 2015!
We pray together and when Christians pray together, including across the internet and from different times, different nations, different churches and different denominations - that reveals Church unity!
Behold, Lord,
I am an empty vessel that needs to be filled.
My Lord, fill it.
I am weak in the faith;
strengthen me.
I am cold in love;
warm me and make me fervent,
that my love may go out to my neighbour.
I do not have a strong and firm faith;
at times I doubt and am unable to trust you altogether.
O Lord, help me.
Strengthen my faith and trust in you.
In you I have sealed the treasure of all I have.
I am poor;
you are rich and came to be merciful to the poor.
I am a sinner; you are upright.
With me, there is an abundance of sin;
in you is the fullness of righteousness.
Therefore I will will remain with you,
of whom I can receive,
but to whom I may not give.
Amen
(A prayer of Martin Luther)
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Wednesday Sep 16, 2015
Wednesday WOW Worship - 16 September 2015
Wednesday Sep 16, 2015
Wednesday Sep 16, 2015
Worship Wednesday
Order of Service
Song: Father God, We Come
Bible readings
Hebrews 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.Hebrews 6:19-20 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
Bible Talk - Dean Roberts ( www.deanroberts.net )
Prayer
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: help us so to hear them, to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and for ever hold fast the hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. AmenClick or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file
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Monday Sep 14, 2015
Think Spot 14 September 2015
Monday Sep 14, 2015
Monday Sep 14, 2015
14th September 2015
When Adam and Eve were tempted or tested in the garden of Eden they were doing so as the representatives of mankind. What would man do when tempted by the devil?
It was a dramatic occasion when Eve and then Adam were tested to see if they would obey the one rule God had given to them. The price of failure had already been spelt out clearly to them "the soul that sins will die" (Genesis 2:17;) They both failed the test and we read in the book of Romans that consequently death came not only upon them but upon all mankind from that day to this. This was the result of this failure to obey. (Romans 5:12)
Man was out of step with the Lord and needed to be changed. They had been distanced from God through their disobedience and needed to be reconciled to God . They needed to be really sorry for their misdeeds in order to receive the gift of forgiveness from God and that was still a long way off until the coming of Jesus to whom all the sacrifices pointed., Meanwhile though their sacrifices of animals birds etc they showed their need to repent and believe in the coming Reconciler. That was the purpose of Jesus Christ's coming to reconcile us to God. (Romans 5:10;) Sin makes the righteous God angry. Sinners become God's enemies. Jesus through his death restored this relationship between us as sinners and God by His grace. The Greek word 'katallasso' means "put into friendship with" Reconciliation comes through God's initiative. Man, on his own would never be able to return to that relationship without God opening up the way through His Son and our Saviour Jesus Christ . (John 14:6)
Meanwhile God overlooked their wrongs as they offered their sacrifices.Reconciliation and forgiveness could only to be obtained by The Reconciler Jesus Christ. Adam and Eve's act of disobedience broke their sweet communion with God. He had come down and met with them daily in the cool of the evening to fellowship with them. But one day when he came they were not at their usual meeting point. They were in fact hiding from God( Genesis 3). They were conscious of their guilt and were ashamed. Thankfully God took the initiative so that the solution to theirs as well as ours, is spoken of here in the very same chapter. Genesis (3:9-10) What a moment?
The God of all history in the early days of His creation.
When we come to the New Testament and Luke 15 and the parable of the prodigal son we see a beautiful picture of a loving father and his wayward son being reconciled. We can sense the moment when tears flowed, hearts beat faster and arms embraced each other and the word got around "he is home all is well again"
If you are reconciled to God and you are at peace with Him be thankful and praise the Lord for restoring you.
When a woman I had been talking to about her need of our precious Saviour and realised how precious she was to Him and how He had sought her out and given the chance to be back in fellowship with Him she was overwhelmed and saw immediately a vivid picture of the evil devil who had kept her away from Him for 60 years. She saw how she had forgotten God her heavenly Father but He certainly had not forgotten her. The tears flowed and she then rejoiced in her Reconciler, Jesus Christ her Saviour Lord and Friend. Friend you cannot be happy away from God , The sooner you return to Him the sooner you will have peace restored in your heart and joy unspeakable. Why stay outside the door when there is such a warm welcome on the inside.?
Joy's Prayer
How thankful I am that you set up your wonderful recovery programme to restore us almost as soon as the first person decided to disobey and leave your company. Such amazing love, its difficult to take it in.
I love you Lord for your very deep interest in me and the fact that you love me with an undeserving love, but also an eternal love which never fades.
An 'agape' love which is prepared to forgive me time and time again when I fall. Oh!, dear Lord strengthen me in those areas where I mess up and help me conquer my failings and serve you more faithfully and love you more earnestly. Thank You that I can talk to you at any time as I cast my care on You. Hold me close please and never let me go
In Jesus name
Amen
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Sunday Sep 13, 2015
Sunday with Sammy 13 September 2015
Sunday Sep 13, 2015
Sunday Sep 13, 2015
13th September 2015
What say you?
At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered round him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’
‘No one, sir,’ she said.
‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.’
The Ash Wednesday reading for this year is from John 8:7… What is interesting about this passage is that it didn’t actually make it into the Bible until the 3rd century. It is unlike the usual way that the rest of this gospel is written – ignoring the pro and epilogues, we will cover those another time, but if you get the chance do have a look at the ending of John’s Gospel…all three of them! It is thought that the copyist who inserted it here was possibly trying to illustrate Jesus saying that he will pass judgement on no-one later in the chapter, in verse 15.
Anyway, Jesus had returned from the Mount of Olives, and is being harassed yet again by the Pharisees. They have bought a woman to him who they claimed had been caught committing adultery (nothing is ever said about the man with whom the alleged crime took place you’ll notice!) This married woman knows there is very high chance of being killed by the then common practice of stoning under the guise of the Law of Moses, as written in Deuteronomy 22. The Pharisees tell Jesus this has to be the outcome, and are trying to test him, again. They want him to either go against the word of Moses, and as a teacher of the Jewish faith of course he could not, or they want him to go against the authority of Rome, as Roman law had deprived the Jews of their rights to stone people to death – they thought they had him!
The gospel says, When they persisted in questioning him, he straightened up and told them, "Let the person among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." In the same situation now, knowing what we do, as the woman, you would be petrified! It is a wonderful thing to say, and it should be said more nowadays if you ask me – ok then, the one of you who is without sin and has NEVER done anything wrong can judge… that would make people stop and think before acting in certain ways! Of course, there WAS someone there who was without sin – Jesus – and he and only he had every right to cast that first stone…and we can only imagine the carnage that would have occurred after that.
What would have happened if one of the Pharisees had cottoned on to this, picked up a stone, handed it to Jesus and said ,’here you go then…’ But they didn’t. Thankfully. Because they understood not a jot of whose company there were truly in. There is a wonderful part when Jesus seems to simply ignore them, and starts to write on the ground with his finger. We’re not told what or really why., and there are many, many schools of thought about this, but in Jeremiah 17:13 in some translations it is written, ‘Those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth for they have forsaken the Lord’ …but in the Pharisees’ trying to get Jesus on the back foot and make a mistake, his calm demeanour must have had them all hopping from foot to foot in madness – how funny! So, Christ neither found fault with the law, nor excused the woman's guilt; nor did he tolerate the pretended zeal of the Pharisees.
People are actually self-condemned who judge others, and yet do the same thing. All who are any way called to blame the faults of others, are especially concerned to look to themselves, and keep themselves and their lives in order. In this situation, Jesus did precisely what he came into the world to do, and that was, to bring sinners to repentance; not to destroy, but to save. He aimed to bring, not only the accused to repentance, by showing her his mercy, but the prosecutors also, by showing them their sins; they thought to ensnare him, he sought to convince and convert them. Check mate to Jesus! AND he declined to meddle with the magistrate's office. Many crimes merit far more severe punishment than they meet with; but that isn’t for us to concern ourselves with. When Christ sent the woman away, it was with this caution, Go, and sin no more. If you help to save the life of a criminal, you must also help to save their soul with the same care. They are truly happy, whom Christ does not condemn.
And as we moan that our lives could be so much better, they could, remember, be so much worse. When I think about when Jesus was writing in the dust the following Lenten poem by George Herbert springs to mind…
Lord, who hast form’d me out of mud,
And hast redeem’d me through thy blood,
And sanctifi’d me to do good;
Purge all my sins done heretofore:
For I confess my heavy score,
And I will strive to sin no more.
Enrich my heart, mouth, hands in me,
With faith, with hope, with charity;
That I may run, rise, rest with thee.
May God bless and keep us all safe,
healthy and though able to cast a stone
be always unwilling to do so.
Christ's favour to us
in the forgiveness of past sins
should prevail with us,
So, Go then,
and sin no more. Amen
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