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Episodes
Wednesday Jan 03, 2024
Wednesday Jan 03, 2024
Psalm 42
1 As the deer pants for the water brooks,
so my soul pants after you, God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
3 My tears have been my food day and night,
while they continually ask me, “Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember, and pour out my soul within me,
how I used to go with the crowd, and led them to God’s house,
with the voice of joy and praise,
a multitude keeping a holy day.
5 Why are you in despair, my soul?
Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God!
For I shall still praise him for the saving help of his presence.
6 My God, my soul is in despair within me.
Therefore I remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon, from the hill Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep at the noise of your waterfalls.
All your waves and your billows have swept over me.
8 Yahweh will command his loving kindness in the daytime.
In the night his song shall be with me: a prayer to the God of my life.
9 I will ask God, my rock, “Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”
10 As with a sword in my bones, my adversaries reproach me,
while they continually ask me, “Where is your God?”
11 Why are you in despair, my soul?
Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God!
For I shall still praise him, the saving help of my countenance, and my God.
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Tuesday Jan 02, 2024
Tuesday Jan 02, 2024
Psalm 114
(Read by Heather)
the house of Jacob from a people of foreign language;
114:2 Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.
114:3 The sea saw it, and fled.
The Jordan was driven back.
114:4 The mountains skipped like rams,
the little hills like lambs.
114:5 What was it, you sea, that you fled?
You Jordan, that you turned back?
114:6 You mountains, that you skipped like rams;
you little hills, like lambs?
114:7 Tremble, you earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
114:8 who turned the rock into a pool of water,
the flint into a spring of waters.
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Thursday Dec 28, 2023
Thursday Dec 28, 2023
A Christians' Commitment
Matthew 7:21-29
Matthew 7:21-29 Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,' will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?' Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.' Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn't fall, for it was founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn't do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it fell-and great was its fall." It happened, when Jesus had finished saying these things, that the multitudes were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them with authority, and not like the scribes.
A Radical Choice
1. The danger of a merely spoken profession (v21-23)
2. The danger of a merely intellectual knowledge (v 24-27)
3. What is our response?
4. Jesus the Great Teacher
Go and be different from those around you
The claims of Jesus were spoken so naturally, modestly and indirectly that many people never even notice them. But they are there, and we cannot ignore them. Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, we have seen the Jesus is teacher, the Christ, the Lord, the Saviour, the Judge, the Son of God and also God.. Either all these things are true, or he was a power seeking maniac suffering with insanity. But the Sermon on the Mount could never be the product of someone who was either insane or a seeker of power, because it would go against what was taught in the Sermon on the Mount. Our only alternative then, is to take Jesus at his word, and his claims for all that they are worth. The Sermon on the Mount contains the picture for God's alternative society, with the standards, values and priorities of the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of man. Too often throughout history, the church has conformed to the pattern set by the world, and ignored the pattern required by God and by Jesus. Sometimes, there is no difference, with the Church having lost its saltiness, and its light put out. It is only as we the church, live the truths in the Sermon of the Mount that a true Christian community will be attractive to those outside in the world, and let God be glorified. Jesus therefore, when he calls us, calls us to be the unique Christian culture in a world full of lost culture.
So here is a challenge for you. Are you, as a Christian heeding Jesus' words and being obedient to them and therefore living a life worthy of being called Christian? Are you being salt and light amidst those who are in darkness and in a lost culture?
Finally, if you would not call yourself a Christian today, and this Jesus appeals to you, this Jesus who speaks with authority, and you want to become a Christian there are three simple steps to follow. Firstly, admit that you have done wrong against God and His ways. Secondly, believe and trust in Jesus. Call on Him, receive, trust, obey and worship Him, recognizing Him for who He is and what He has done. Lastly, confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. Once sin has been confessed, and Jesus is believed in and trusted as Saviour, then you are a Christian. Now you are ready as Peter writes in the Bible, "to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). Welcome to the family of God. God has chosen you; Jesus has paid for you and has put His mark within you through His Spirit (Ephesians 1:1-13).
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Thursday Dec 21, 2023
Thursday Dec 21, 2023
Psalm 21
(as read by Richard A)
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David.
1 The king rejoices in your strength, Yahweh! How greatly he rejoices in your salvation!
2 You have given him his heart’s desire, and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah.
3 For you meet him with the blessings of goodness. You set a crown of fine gold on his head.
4 He asked life of you, you gave it to him, even length of days forever and ever.
5 His glory is great in your salvation. You lay honor and majesty on him.
6 For you make him most blessed forever. You make him glad with joy in your presence.
7 For the king trusts in Yahweh. Through the loving kindness of the Most High, he shall not be moved.
8 Your hand will find out all of your enemies. Your right hand will find out those who hate you.
9 You will make them as a fiery furnace in the time of your anger. Yahweh will swallow them up in his wrath. The fire shall devour them.
10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth, their posterity from among the children of men.
11 For they intended evil against you. They plotted evil against you which cannot succeed.
12 For you will make them turn their back, when you aim drawn bows at their face.
13 Be exalted, Yahweh, in your strength, so we will sing and praise your power.
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Tuesday Dec 19, 2023
Tuesday Dec 19, 2023
Psalm 99
As read by Sarah
1 The LORD reigns, let the nations tremble;
he sits enthroned between the cherubim, let the earth shake.
2 Great is the LORD in Zion;
he is exalted over all the nations.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name- he is holy.
4 The King is mighty, he loves justice- you have established equity;
in Jacob you have done what is just and right.
5 Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his footstool; he is holy.
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel was among those who called on his name;
they called on the LORD and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud;
they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them.
8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were to Israel
a forgiving God, though you punished their misdeeds.
9 Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his holy mountain,
for the LORD our God is holy.
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Monday Dec 18, 2023
Monday Dec 18, 2023
Psalm 8
For the director of music. According to gittith. A psalm of David.
1 Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
in the heavens.
2 Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?
5 You have made them a little lower than the angels
and crowned them with glory and honour.
6 You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
you put everything under their feet:
7 all flocks and herds,
and the animals of the wild,
8 the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
9 Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
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Friday Dec 15, 2023
Friday Dec 15, 2023
Psalm 35
1 Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me.
2 Take up shield and buckler; arise and come to my aid.
3 Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Say to my soul, "I am your salvation."
4 May those who seek my life be disgraced and put to shame; may those who plot my ruin be turned back in dismay.
5 May they be like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the LORD driving them away;
6 may their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.
7 Since they hid their net for me without cause and without cause dug a pit for me,
8 may ruin overtake them by surprise- may the net they hid entangle them, may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.
9 Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD and delight in his salvation.
10 My whole being will exclaim, "Who is like you, O LORD ? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them."
11 Ruthless witnesses come forward; they question me on things I know nothing about.
12 They repay me evil for good and leave my soul forlorn.
13 Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered,
14 I went about mourning as though for my friend or brother. I bowed my head in grief as though weeping for my mother.
15 But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee; attackers gathered against me when I was unaware. They slandered me without ceasing.
16 Like the ungodly circle of maliciously mockers; they gnashed their teeth at me.
17 O Lord, how long will you look on? Rescue my life from their ravages, my precious life from these lions.
18 I will give you thanks in the great assembly; among throngs of people I will praise you.
19 Let not those gloat over me who are my enemies without cause; let not those who hate me without reason maliciously wink the eye.
20 They do not speak peaceably, but devise false accusations against those who live quietly in the land.
21 They gape at me and say, "Aha! Aha! With our own eyes we have seen it."
22 O LORD, you have seen this; be not silent. Do not be far from me, O Lord.
23 Awake, and rise to my defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord.
24 Vindicate me in your righteousness, O LORD my God; do not let them gloat over me.
25 Do not let them think, "Aha, just what we wanted!" or say, "We have swallowed him up."
26 May all who gloat over my distress be put to shame and confusion; may all who exalt themselves over me be clothed with shame and disgrace.
27 May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, "The LORD be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant."
28 My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long.
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Friday Dec 15, 2023
Friday Dec 15, 2023
The O Antiphons - Emmanuel
We continue looking at the 7 O Antiphons used by some parts of the church in their Christmas worship. Each of them addresses Jesus Christ using a Messianic title drawn from Old Testament prophecy.
Today Is Day 7 - O Emmanuel
God with us, our King and Law-giver, desired of the nations and their salvation, you came to save us, Lord our God.
Old Testament reading:
Isaiah 7:13-14 - Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well? All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).
New Testament Readings:
Matthew 1:23 - ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).
John 3:16 - For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Acts 4:11-12 - Jesus is ‘“the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.” Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.’
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Thursday Dec 14, 2023
Thursday Dec 14, 2023
Psalm 44
44:1 We have heard with our ears, God;
our fathers have told us,
what work you did in their days,
in the days of old.
44:2 You drove out the nations with your hand,
but you planted them.
You afflicted the peoples,
but you spread them abroad.
44:3 For they didn’t get the land in possession by their own sword,
neither did their own arm save them;
but your right hand, and your arm, and the light of your face,
because you were favorable to them.
44:4 You are my King, God.
Command victories for Jacob!
44:5 Through you, will we push down our adversaries.
Through your name, will we tread them under who rise up against us.
44:6 For I will not trust in my bow,
neither shall my sword save me.
44:7 But you have saved us from our adversaries, and have shamed those who hate us.
44:8 In God we have made our boast all day long,
we will give thanks to your name forever.
Selah.
44:9 But now you rejected us, and brought us to dishonor,
and don’t go out with our armies.
44:10 You make us turn back from the adversary.
Those who hate us take spoil for themselves.
44:11 You have made us like sheep for food,
and have scattered us among the nations.
44:12 You sell your people for nothing,
and have gained nothing from their sale.
44:13 You make us a reproach to our neighbors,
a scoffing and a derision to those who are around us.
44:14 You make us a byword among the nations,
a shaking of the head among the peoples.
44:15 All day long my dishonor is before me,
and shame covers my face,
44:16 At the taunt of one who reproaches and verbally abuses,
because of the enemy and the avenger.
44:17 All this has come on us,
yet have we not forgotten you,
Neither have we been false to your covenant.
44:18 Our heart has not turned back,
neither have our steps strayed from your path,
44:19 Though you have crushed us in the haunt of jackals,
and covered us with the shadow of death.
44:20 If we have forgotten the name of our God,
or spread forth our hands to a strange god;
44:21 won’t God search this out?
For he knows the secrets of the heart.
44:22 Yes, for your sake we are killed all day long.
We are regarded as sheep for the slaughter.
44:23 Wake up!
Why do you sleep, Lord?
Arise!
Don’t reject us forever.
44:24 Why do you hide your face,
and forget our affliction and our oppression?
44:25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust.
Our body clings to the earth.
44:26 Rise up to help us.
Redeem us for your loving kindness’ sake.
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To download all 150 Psalms to your device,
click or tap here to visit our Psalm page on this website.
Thursday Dec 14, 2023
Thursday Dec 14, 2023
The O Antiphons - Rex Gentium
We continue looking at the 7 O Antiphons used by some parts of the church in their Christmas worship. Each of them addresses Jesus Christ using a Messianic title drawn from Old Testament prophecy.
Today is day 6 - Rex Gentium
King of the Nations for whom they long, the corner-stone who makes of both one, you came and delivered humanity whom you made from clay.
Old Testament readings:
Genesis 2:7 - Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Isaiah 2:4 - He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war any more.
Isaiah 9:7 - Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.
Isaiah 28:16 - Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone. It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken.
Haggai 2:8-9 - “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,” declares the LORD Almighty. “The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,” says the LORD Almighty. “And in this place I will grant peace,” declares the LORD Almighty.’
New Testament reading:
Ephesians 2:14-16 - For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.