Partakers Christian Podcasts

Partakers Bible Thought 9 September 2021 – A Prayer of David 1 Chronicles 29

Partakers Bible Thought

9 September 2021

10 David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, LORD, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. 11 Yours, LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendour, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. 12 Wealth and honour come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. 13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name. 14 “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. 15 We are foreigners and strangers in your sight, as were all our ancestors. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. 16 LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things I have given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. 18 LORD, the God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep these desires and thoughts in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you. 19 And give my son Solomon the wholehearted devotion to keep your commands, statutes and decrees and to do everything to build the palatial structure for which I have provided.” 20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Praise the LORD your God.” So they all praised the LORD, the God of their fathers; they bowed down, prostrating themselves before the LORD and the king. (1 Chronicles 29:10-20)

In the podcast yesterday we looked together at our spiritual armour. Today we look at a prayer of King David, known as a man after God’s own heart. Why was he known like that? Because despite his faults, he demonstrated consistently that his faith was alive and that he was totally committed to following the Lord God alone! We look at this prayer to get some keys for our own prayer life but also to be reminded of God, who was the object of this prayer!

David, a man, who despite his many faults, is described as a man after God’s own heart. Israel’s greatest king, saying this prayer of intimate praise & adoration to his God in front of the assembled throngs. This prayer, like his gifts of gold etc., could be said, to be David’s legacy to the nation of Israel, to Solomon and by extension also to us.

Today we explore this prayer of King David, exploring questions such as: What do we see of God and His greatness, power, glory, victory and majesty? Whose kingdom and glory should be seen – God’s or David’s? What can we glimpse of David’s relationship with God, through this prayer? What keys can we take for our own prayer life? What can we take away from this prayer for our living as Christians in the 21st century? Listen or download the mp3 podcast to find out more concerning this prayer of King David!

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Partakers Bible Thought 8 August 2021 –The Christian Remembers Who They Are

Partakers Bible Thought

8 August 2021

4 Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths.
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Saviour, and my hope is in you all day long.
6 Remember, LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.
7 Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me, for you, LORD, are good.
(Psalm 25:4-7)

1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4)

The ability to remember is a wonderful gift of God to all people! Memories can bring about the full gamut of emotions –sadness, bitterness, anger, joy, ecstasy and love! I wonder what your ability to remember is like! Perhaps you are like me, and your memory sometimes fails. Sometimes I will think I have remembered something, but it turns out to be a false memory of an event that never occurred. Or other times I will forget to remember something, and then miss out on something important! So I have learnt to write things down, in order to remember!

As a Christian, sin still tries to entangle us, but remembering certain things will help you as a  Christian to live a righteous Christian life. Why is remembering a great help in your Christian life? How can remembering, be useful to the Christian in the 21st century? Come and discover more about the role of memory in the life of the Christian by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 7 August 2021 – God, the Christian and Redemption

 

Partakers Bible Thought

7 August 2021

13 So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 The women said to Naomi: “Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a guardian-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel! 15 He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.” (Ruth 4:13-15)

42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42-45)

18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 21 Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. (1 Peter 1:18-21)

In the time of the New Testament, this word was used to refer to the buying back of a slave - the price paid to buy the slave’s freedom. God paid redemption so that humans can be freed from the slavery to sin (John 8:35, Romans 7:14). The price was paid (1 Peter 1:18-19) and so we are redeemed with the precious blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

Our Bible Thought yesterday was propitiation. Today we look at another big Bible word, which is a consequence of propitiation. The thought today concerns the word redemption. What is redemption? Why is redemption required? What is the consequence of redemption for the Christian, the person following Jesus Christ? Once redemption has been accepted by a person, how should that Christian respond? Come and discover more about God, the Christian and propitiation by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 6 August 2021 – God, the Christian and Propitiation

Partakers Bible Thought

6 August 2021

15 “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. 16 In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel. (Leviticus 16:15-17)

25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:25-26)

When I talk to people I often hear things like, God is love, so I don’t have to worry about my own lifestyle or my morals, because God is love. When I die, He will accept me as I am providing I have tried your best. And of course that is partly true! God is indeed a God of love. But we must also remember that towards sin and sinful behaviour, He has great fury, anger and wrath (Psalm 7:11; Jeremiah 21:5). Nothing we say or do can appease His hatred of sin and sinful lifestyles. Nothing we can do is able to appease God’s anger, because His anger toward sin is unquenchable. Unquenchable that is, except for one thing.

Our word today, propitiation, means the turning aside of God's anger by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. What is your understanding of this Bible word, propitiation? How does it make you feel? Why the need for propitiation at all? Why are some Christians turned off by it? How should a Christian respond to propitiation? Come and discover more about God, the Christian and propitiation by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 1 August 2021 – A Strategy to Cope With Covid-19

A Strategy to Cope With Covid19 Pandemic

It is almost 40 years now since I first became a Christian and started following Jesus Christ. I haven't fallen away from Him in that time, but I have known some people who have. How can we, as 21st century Christians, keep from falling away from Jesus Christ, particularly at this time when we have a global pandemic due to COVID19. The answer I believe, is what I would call the COPE strategy: Consider, Persevere and Encourage.

1. Keep Considering! (Hebrews 3:1-6)

2. Keep Persevering! (Hebrews 3:7-12, 15-19)

3. Keep Encouraging! (Hebrews 3:12-14)

Conclusion

If you would call yourself a Christian and you are unsure where you are, then please do look back and remember what Jesus has done for you. Consider Him as you look back to your first profession of faith in Him. Consider that just as He died, you died in the waters of baptism. Consider that just as He rose to physical life, you rose from the waters of baptism and will also rise again when you physically die. Consider that just as Jesus will be glorified, so too will you be glorified before the Father - if you hold out until the end.

Be assured of who you are - you are a child of the living God - hold out to the end. He has a firm grip on you, so maintain your grip on Him! Remember who you are! The way to cope with the rigours of 21st century life as a Christian believer is to keep considering, keep persevering and keep encouraging others.

 

Download and listen to the mp3 to discover more as we explore together how as 21st century Christians, we can keep from falling away from our faith. Particularly at this time when we have a global pandemic due to the Corona Virus. Come and listen as we discover more about Considering, Persevering and Encouraging!!

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Partakers Bible Thought 31 July 2021 – God, the Christian and Love

Partakers Bible Thought

31 July 2021

16 “‘Do not go about spreading slander among your people.
“‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life. I am the LORD.
17 “‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt.
18 “‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. (Leviticus 19:16-18)

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one” answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with your entire mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." (Mark 12:28-31)

“Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.” (1 John 4:20)

As Christians we are commanded not to sin! It is fundamental to living the Christian life! Essentially, "sin" is a failure to love God as well as a failure to love other people. We break God’s commandment when we do not show love to Him or other people. The primary way of loving God is to love other people. Were you aware of that?

Oh it is easy to love your friends and those you actually like. It is easy to love those around you including those you don’t know. But Jesus, as ever, goes even further than that! He commands that those who declare they love Him also go and love their enemies. Jesus commanded his followers, all those who claim to be His disciples, to love those they don’t like or are ever wanting to like! Now that is a bit radical is it not?

As Christians, we should be so filled with God’s love that it acts as a magnetic attraction to God’s goodness and love. What kind of love is this? How is this love in evidence? How do we show others that we love God? Let’s discover together more about the Christian and love, by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 30 July 2021 – God, the Christian and Living Water

Partakers Bible Thought

30 July 2021

49 To purify the house he is to take two birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop. 50 He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water in a clay pot. 51 Then he is to take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the scarlet yarn and the live bird, dip them into the blood of the dead bird and the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn. 53 Then he is to release the live bird in the open fields outside the town. In this way he will make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.” (Leviticus 14:49-53)

24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. (Ezekiel 36:24-27)

37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (John 7:37-39)

Living water! A recurrent theme through the Old Testament. How so? In the Old Testament, the people of Israel were to make sacrificial offerings to God, in order to worship and have fellowship with Him. For without sacrifice, nobody could enter God’s presence! In the book of Leviticus, God commanded that the cleansing of a defiled house required sprinkling with a mixture of blood and ‘living’ water, the bird having been slain over the water (Leviticus 14:51).

At the time of the prophet Ezekiel, Israel were in exile due to their sin and idolatry. They needed to be cleansed before being allowed back into their own country. Ezekiel 36:24-25 tells us that “God will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols.”

These sacrifices pointed forward to the God-man we know as Jesus Christ. What did He say about living water? How can water “live”? More importantly, what does all this have to do with us in the 21st century. Let’s discover together more about the Christian and joy, by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 29 July 2021 – The Christian and Joy

Partakers Bible Thought

29 July 2021

23 Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. 24 Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell face down. (Leviticus 9:23-24)

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy that was set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3)

Joy! A wonderful word in relation to the Christian believer. Joy, a word which is often misused and often misunderstood in the life of the Christian! If that is so, what is true Christian joy? Is joy merely a form of bloated happiness as many people believe, including those in the church? Can joy be seen as going around everywhere with a silly grin etched into your face! That kind of joy is dependent upon circumstances and feelings! True joy is not to be confused with mere pleasure or feeling good!

So if that is what joy is not, what is joy in regard to the Christian and their life? Come and explore what the Bible has to say about God, the Christian and joy. What is true joy for the Christian? What does Jesus have to do with joy – in his earthly life and in his being now? How can the Christian recognize true joy? These and other questions we seek to answer! So come on in! Let’s discover together more about the Christian and joy, by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 20 July 2021 – The Christian and a God of Judgment

Partakers Bible Thought

20 July 2021

“22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. (Hebrews 12:22-24)

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:11-15)

Come and explore what the Bible has to say about God of Judgment. You may just be surprised! What does this mean for the unbeliever and for the Christian? Will Christians be judged, and if they are, what concerning? Let’s discover together more about several aspects concerning God and His judgments by listening to the podcast!

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Partakers Bible Thought 16 July 2021 – The Christian Fellowships With Other Believers

Partakers Bible Thought

16 July 2021

“3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people – 5 the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel 6 that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world – just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. (Colossians 1:3-6)

 

“5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:5-7)

Fellowship! I meet people who tell me they are Christians, but don’t want to go to a church anymore. But by not doing so, they are missing out on perhaps one of the greatest blessings of being a Christian: fellowship. One of the great things of being a Christian, is the simple act of fellowship, which results from walking with one another (1 John 1:7). God has created us for fellowship and Jesus Christ has redeemed us so that we can have this fellowship together.
Come and explore what the Bible has to say about the Christian and and fellowship. Discover more about what fellowship is, why the Chrsitian is to engage in fellowship and the various ways in which the Bible describes Christian fellowship in action. Being in fellowship with other Christians, is part of following Jesus Christ, so come and explore this dynamic word, Fellowship, by downloading and listening to the podcast!

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