Partakers Christian Podcasts

Bible Thought - Minor Prophets - Part 3 Amos

Minor Prophets - Amos

Today we are looking at the book of Amos! Amos was a prophet during the time of King Uzziah of Judah and King Jeroboam of Israel. His prophecy came somewhere roundabout the year 760 BC, give or take a few decades! At this time Israel and Judah were enjoying an unusual spell of prosperity and political stability. This was especially the case in Israel, where the land was very fertile and abundant crops were growing. The threat from the kingdom of Assyria seemed to have lessened, at least for the time being, so life was pretty good. 

Amos’ words speak to us today. Come and listen to find out more of how these ancient words speak to you!

Click or tap here to download as a mp3 file

 

 

Bible Thought - Minor Prophets - Part 2 Jonah

Minor Prophets - Jonah!

Today we are looking at the book of Jonah! Of all the books of the Minor Prophets Jonah is perhaps the one that people are most familiar with, or at least they think they are familiar with the story line. Many people will have heard about Jonah and the giant fish. But there is a lot more to the book of Jonah than this! Come and listen!

Click or tap here to download as a mp3 file

 

 

The Minor Prophets - Part 1 An Introduction

Minor Prophets with Tabitha

Introduction

 

I met Jesus when I was 11-years-old. God had blessed me with a believing family and I sung in church choirs from the time I could read. But I didn't have a personal relationship with Jesus until a certain day in 1990. I'd gone to a violin exam, which was being held in a local church. Waiting nervously for my turn to perform for the examiners, I picked up some leaflets that were sitting on a table in the church foyer. I read one of these leaflets on my own later that day. The message of Jesus dying and rising again for the sins of all people was not brand new to me, as I'd heard it many times before, but at that moment, it was like I heard it and understood it for the first time. I cried my 11-year-old eyes out and then asked my mum if I could get my own Bible. Of course, she agreed! I’ve always identified very strongly with the words in Amazing Grace, “I once was lost but now I’m found, was blind but now I see”, because that’s exactly what it felt like. I made the decision to follow Jesus from that day onwards.

Over the last couple of decades God has been teaching me from the Bible with the help of the Holy Spirit and many great human teachers. It’s gradually become clear to me that my primary spiritual gift is teaching. I feel very privileged to be able to share in the ministry of Partakers.

Over the next few months I'm going to be taking a tour through the books of the minor prophets. I reckon that if you lined up the Bibles of a sample of believers (myself included!) and looked at the pages that looked least worn and thumbed you would find that the minor prophets account for a substantial proportion of the most pristine pages! Even those prophets that we feel more familiar with, like Jonah, have often only featured in our Christian lives in the form of Sunday school stories. Well, it's time to do something about that! The books of the minor prophets are full of incredible truths which will help us to understand the character and heart of God. If you've ever felt intimidated or confused by these particular books in the Bible then I hope you will join me as I give an overview of each book and I really hope you'll be inspired to have a closer look at each one for yourself.

The minor prophets are no less important than the major prophets (such as Isaiah and Jeremiah) but their prophetic books are shorter in length and therefore referred to as 'minor'. The books of the minor prophets were written over a long time span, ranging from the eighth century BC to the fourth or fifth century BC. We're going to look at them in roughly chronological order, which is a little different to the order they appear in the Bible. The dating of certain books, such as Obadiah and Joel, is uncertain and scholars disagree about when these books were written. So please forgive me if the order in which I tackle the books is not the precise order that you expect!

It's first helpful to consider what the role of a prophet is. When we think of the word 'prophecy' we often think about predictions relating to the future. Now, the prophets did sometimes speak about things that had not yet happened, but much more often they spoke about present events and announced God's thoughts and messages to the peoples of Israel and Judah. Prophets were not generally regular teachers of God's word (that was the task of the priests). Instead prophets were raised up at particular times and for particular situations, to speak God's words to the people. They were able to see things and understand things that other people could not.

As we look at the 12 books of the minor prophets we will see some common themes emerging. The prophets repeatedly spoke of the fact that God had chosen Israel for a covenant relationship; they declared the sad truth that the majority of Israel had sinned against God and turned away from him; they warned about coming judgement; and they declared the promise of renewal and restoration that would follow judgement, both in the immediate future and at the end of history.

As we study each book we need to first look at what book meant to the people who first heard the message. When we have understood this we can then consider how each book speaks to us today. Our first study will begin next Thursday in the book of Jonah. I hope you'll join me then!

Tabitha

Tap or click here to download this episode as an audio mp3 file

Holy Spirit - Exploring Words In Scripture

Holy Spirit

 

The Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of the Trinity. As such we do not refer to the Spirit as “it” or “that”, but rather Him! Wherever the Holy Spirit is, the Father and Son are also present because they are one (John 14v18-23).

The Ministry of the Holy Spirit

What is the ministry of the Holy Spirit and His relationship with you as a Christian Disciple?

1. Glorify Christ: His prime role is that He will glorify Jesus Christ the Son of God (John 16v13-14). He does this by testifying (John 15v26) and witnessing for (Acts 1v8) Jesus Christ.

2. The Paraclete – Comforter: He stands alongside (John 14v16) and lives in all believers (John 16v7).

3. Declares God’s Word: For you, the Holy Spirit interprets and illuminates the Bible, as you submit to Him and the Bible (John 16v12-15; 1 Corinthians 2v10-16)!

4. Convicts: The Holy Spirit convicts you of sin, righteousness and judgment (John 16v8)

5. Salvation: As Christian Disciple, you are born of the Holy Spirit (John 3v3-8). For without the Holy Spirit, nobody can be a Christian Disciple (Romans 8v9; Gal 2v20; Colossians 1v25-27)

6. Sealing / Ownership: The Holy Spirit indwelling you is assured proof of you being God’s possession (2 Corinthians 1v22; Ephesians 1v3), for the Holy Spirit is a deposit, guaranteeing your future redemption, salvation and inheritance (Ephesians 1v13; 2 Corinthians 1v22).

7. Filling: This speaks of the Holy Spirit’s control or domination of your life. The imperative here is that we are to be filled, and go on being filled (Ephesians 5v18).

8. Sanctification: As you walk, live in, and are led by the Holy Spirit, you are being transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 7-18), (Galatians. 5v16; Romans 8v13).

9. Baptism: While this Holy Spirit baptism usually occurs at your conversion, it does sometimes after afterwards! The Biblical accounts show both of these occurrences. As Billy Graham once said “I don’t care how you get Him – get Him!”

10. Service: The Holy Spirit equips you for service by giving you spiritual gifts and working in you to will and to act according to His purpose (Philippians 2v13).

 

Finally, how is the Spirit seen? The Spirit’s work is in greatest evidence, where people’s lives become more holy and more like Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 12v3; 2 Corinthians 13v7). Look back on your life and see how the Holy Spirit has been working in and transforming you since your conversion. Then ask Him to reveal to you the areas you still need transforming.

Click or tap here to download as a mp3

 

Bible Thought - Story of Ruth

Obedience Of Ruth

There are perhaps two reasons why we study about people in the Bible - to learn how not to do some things like being deceitful, and how to do the right things. Our example today is Ruth.

 

Come and listen to find out more with us and discover who Ruth was, what is her story and how we can learn from her as we seek to live a godly and righteous life where we live, particularly concerning her obedience to God.

But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me."  When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her. (Ruth 1:16-18)

 

Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file

~

You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!

Bible Thought - The Story of Athaliah and Jehosheba

 

The Story of Athaliah & Jehosheba (2 Chronicles 22-23)

When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family of the house of Judah. But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes who were about to be murdered and put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Because Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and wife of the priest Jehoiada, was Ahaziah's sister, she hid the child from Athaliah so that she could not kill him. He remained hidden with them at the temple of God for six years while Athaliah ruled the land. (2 Chronicles 22:10-12)

Jehoiada and his sons brought out the king's son and put the crown on him; they presented him with a copy of the covenant and proclaimed him king. They anointed him and shouted, 'Long live the king!' When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and cheering the king, she went to them at the temple of the Lord. She looked, and there was the king, standing by his pillar at the entrance. The officers and the trumpeters were beside the king, and all the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and musicians with their instruments were leading the praises. Then Athaliah tore her robes and shouted, 'Treason! Treason!' Jehoiada the priest sent out the commanders of units of a hundred, who were in charge of the troops, and said to them: 'Bring her out between the ranks and put to the sword anyone who follows her.' For the priest had said, 'Do not put her to death at the temple of the Lord.' So they seized her as she reached the entrance of the Horse Gate on the palace grounds, and there they put her to death. Jehoiada then made a covenant that he, the people and the king would be the Lord's people. All the people went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed the altars and idols and killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altars. (2 Chronicles 23:11-15)

This story has all the makings of a Hollywood blockbuster! I can see Angelina Jolie playing the role of Athaliah and Julie Andrews as Jehosheba! What do you think? As hard as it is to believe, our two characters tonight are related! There is their family line. Clearly there is a lack of creative imagination in the naming of children though! Jehosheba had the same father as Ahaziah and was Athaliah's step-daughter! All very confusing! With that in mind, let us persevere together.

Right Mouse click or Tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file

~

You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!

Bible Thought - Yael’s Story

Heroes and Villains Explored

Yael (Judges 4-5)

There are in the Bible, both heroes and villains - people of great character, from whom we can learning to apply lessons to life in the 21st Century. Today we are looking at Yael from Judges 4 & 5.

Judges 5v24 - "Yael shall be blessed above women, the wife of Heber the Kenite; blessed shall she be above women in the tent. Yael (also spelt 'Jael') is mentioned in one place and 5 times in all the Bible. Yet as was just read in Judges 5:31, she was accorded great honour and blessing? Why?

Yael's name, like other Bible names, means more than just a name. It means goat, a graceful goat and the term implies that she was an attractive woman.. In the west, comparing your wife to a goat would be an insult, so most translations apparently use the word hind or deer. So we could quite properly, call Yael the name ‘Yael Doe'.
Yael was the wife of Heber the Kenite. The Kenites were not true Israelites, but were the descendants of Moses' non Jewish wife. Because they were a roaming nomadic people they lived in tents. In the days of Deborah they had camped at the foot of Mount Tabor. In fact, they were situated very near the place where Barak and Deborah had destroyed Jabin's mighty army, including his 900 chariots of iron. Jabin had permitted the Kenites to stay in his country because he hoped they would prove to be his ally against the Israelites whom he hated intensely. But they disappointed Jabin's hopes. Perhaps from the beginning, because they remembered Moses's great deeds, the Kenites had occasionally sided with Israel.

Come and listen to find out more about Yael, answering some questions which naturally come to us.

1. Did God answer prayers through this bloody and violent act?

2. Should we bless or blame Yael for what she did?

3. How is God's purpose realized in the world?

4. What principles and lessons for living as a Christian, can I learn from God, through the life of Yael?

Click or tap here to save this Podcast as a MP3.

~

You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!

Prayer of Augustine

Prayer - Augustine

 

We pray together and when Christians pray together, from different nations, different churches and different denominations - that reveals Church unity! Come! Let us pray together!

Watch, O God,
over those who wake, or watch, or weep tonight,
and give Your angels charge over those who sleep.
Tend the sick ones,
Rest the weary ones.
Bless the dying ones.
Soothe the suffering ones.
Pity the afflicted ones.
Shield the joyous ones.
And all, for Your love's sake.

Amen

 

Based on a prayer of Augustine (4th century)

Tap or Click here to save this Podcast as a MP3.

Partakers Prayers For Refugees

 Prayers for Refugees...

Today on Partakers we are praying a series of prayers - ancient and modern - for refugees worldwide regardless of where they are from. Currently there are over 21,000,000 refugees, those who have been forced to leave their home country due to natural disasters, war or persecution due to race, religion, politics, or social group. As we know, Jesus our Lord, was a refugee when a baby, as Joseph & Mary escaped to Egypt with him. Come on in, download the mp3 and pray with us!

We commence with a prayer from the ancient Syrian church...
O my God,
You are the unsearchable abyss of peace,
the ineffable sea of love,
the fountain of blessings,
and the bestower of affection!
You are the God who sends peace to those that receive it;
open to us this day the sea of Your love,
and water us with the plenteous streams from the riches of Your grace.
Amen

Download or listen to the mp3 to hear more prayers! Come on in!

Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file~

Prayer - Psalm 91

Psalm 91

91:1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

91:2 I will say of Yahweh, "He is my refuge and my fortress;
my God, in whom I trust."

91:3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler,
and from the deadly pestilence.

91:4 He will cover you with his feathers.
Under his wings you will take refuge.
His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.

~

91:5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
nor of the arrow that flies by day;

91:6 nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
nor of the destruction that wastes at noonday.

91:7 A thousand may fall at your side,
and ten thousand at your right hand;
but it will not come near you.

91:8 You will only look with your eyes,
and see the recompense of the wicked.

~

91:9 Because you have made Yahweh your refuge,
and the Most High your dwelling place,

91:10 no evil shall happen to you,
neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.

91:11 For he will put his angels in charge of you,
to guard you in all your ways.

91:12 They will bear you up in their hands,
so that you won't dash your foot against a stone.

~

91:13 You will tread on the lion and cobra.
You will trample the young lion and the serpent underfoot.

91:14 "Because he has set his love on me,
therefore I will deliver him.
I will set him on high,
because he has known my name.

91:15 He will call on me, and I will answer him.
I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him, and honor him.

91:16 I will satisfy him with long life,
and show him my salvation."

Right mouse click or tap here to save/download this Psalm as a MP3 file