G’day and welcome to Partakers Christian Podcasts! Join us for uplifting Bible teaching, inspiring readings, heartfelt worship, powerful prayers, and fascinating church history. Whether you’re new to faith or growing deeper in your journey, we’re here to encourage and equip you. 🎧 Tune in, interact, and be inspired—wherever you are in the world.
Episodes
24 hours ago
24 hours ago
Prayer
I wonder what you think prayer is and how much of it you have experienced? Is your vision and experience of prayer too small? Let us find out together, a small part of prayer! Prayer is to be at the centre of the relationship between God and the Christian. It is the major interaction and fellowship between God and humans, and of humans communicating with God, both in talking and listening. Prayer is allowing God to be consciously in to all aspects of Christian's life and enjoying God's companionship.
John Calvin, said that part of praying was asking for "what we have learned to be available" in God's love and of His being the infinitesimal good giver. He goes on to say our "only security" is achieved by calling on the Father for His providence out of His infinite mercy.
Prayer is ultimately what humans were made for: conversing with God. Regardless of status or maturity or any other man-made barrier, God is always accessible, through prayer, to all those seeking Him with a contrite heart and a humble spirit. This dynamic relationship enables the Christian to engage in prayer that is both personal and relational. All prayer consists of a desire or longing to know God better, and that is to be the prime motivation: to know God better and more intimately.
Prayer's function is to a constant yearning for God's assistance! It is to be a strengthening of desire towards eternal happiness, holiness and worship and knowledge of God. God Himself assists us as we pray! Did you know that? He does this by correcting and strengthening the yearning we express. Prayers express desires and thoughts in a contributory way to the journey of the Christian Disciple. Prayer emits our words from ourselves to the God we seek to know, as a response to His reaching out to us.
Through prayer, God is able to comprehend the Christian Disciple regardless of language, grammar or oratory skill as long as the Christian Disciple approaches with a correct attitude. Words however, are not just to be a mental action but also an emotive act, conveying emotions and feeling. Prayer is to convey deep emotions to God, regardless of our language skills. The words spoken in prayer portray our innermost feeling to Him.
Because God is personal, He values language and expects His people to talk to Him. Prayer is intimacy with God! If for some reason, the Christian Disciple is unable to convey their words in prayer, then Romans 8v26, intimates that the Holy Spirit intercedes. Prayer epitomises the Father-child relationship symbolized in the Christian Disciple's relationship with God. It further symbolizes the freedom and peace in prayer, advocated by Jesus to communicate His deepest desires, as in the Lords Prayer (Matthew 6v9-13) and in John 17. Don't just have your prayer time in the morning or evening and leave it at that. Pray throughout the day as well, asking God for His assistance as you go about your daily life! Go! Pray!
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2 days ago
2 days ago
Psalm 124
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 If the LORD had not been on our side - let Israel say:
2 if the LORD had not been on our side when men attacked us,
3 when their anger flared against us, they would have swallowed us alive;
4 the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us,
5 the raging waters would have swept us away.
6 Praise be to the LORD, who has not let us be torn by their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird out of the fowler's snare;
the snare has been broken, and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
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2 days ago
2 days ago
Thursday with Tabitha
9. Obadiah by Tabitha Smith~
Obadiah means “one who serves Yahweh”. We’re not told anything else about the prophet himself. In the course of the prophecy, the fall of Jerusalem (which happened in 586 BC) is referred to as a past event and the fall of Edom (which happened in 553 BC) as a future event. So it is likely that the book was written between these events.
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To understand the background to Obadiah, we need to head back to Genesis, to the account of the brothers Jacob and Esau. These two non-identical twins were born to Isaac and Rebekah. Even from their birth, they showed signs of not exactly getting along. Esau was born first, all red and hairy, and Jacob followed after him, grasping his heel. They grew up to be very different. Esau was a skilled hunter, favoured by his father, whilst Joseph was an introverted man who preferred to stay with his mother in the proximity of the family tents.
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Jacob famously tricked the hungry Esau out of his birth rite and later stole his father’s blessing by disguising himself as his older brother and fooling the elderly, blind Isaac. So Esau swore revenge on his brother and fully intended to kill him. Rebekah helped Jacob to escape and he fled to the territory of his uncle Laban. There he met and married his wives, Leah and Rachel. Esau, who was also called Edom, married several wives, including an Ishmaelite woman (that is, a descendent of Abraham’s first son by the slave girl Hagar).
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Jacob and Esau did meet again some years later, and much to Jacob’s relief and surprise, Esau didn’t kill him on the spot but appeared to have forgiven him. Jacob still didn’t trust him though, and he took his family off in a different direction to avoid having to be in close proximity to his brother’s family.
Jacob had 12 sons by his two wives and their two servants. His 4th son, one of Leah’s children, was Judah, and from his line the tribe of Judah came into existence. From Esau’s line came the tribe of the Edomites.
The Edomites lived in the hill country of Seir. This was a mountainous region about 1500m above sea level. Their territory appeared to be impenetrable and they felt quite safe in their high dwellings. In Numbers 20 we read that after the Exodus from Egypt, the Israelites asked the Edomites for permission to pass through their territory along the King’s Highway. The Edomites refused, adding to the tensions between these two tribes. However, in Deuteronomy 23:7-8, God commanded the Israelites that they should not hate an Edomite in view of the brotherly connection between the two tribes.
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Edom was defeated by king Saul in the 11th century BC and subdued again by king David 40 years later. Edom became a vassal state of Israel but it was never completely de-stroyed.
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Fast forward to the time of Obadiah, and we find that the tribe of Judah, the sole remnant of the original 12 tribes of Israel, had been conquered and the capital city of Jerusalem had fallen to the Babylonians. During the conquest of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, some of the Judeans had tried to escape from the city and flee into the surrounding coun-tryside. The Edomites, rather than helping their neighbours and brothers in the time of their distress, sided with the foreign invaders and handed over the fleeing Israelites to the Babylonians. Psalm 137:7 recalls how the Edomites gloated over the destruction of Jeru-salem: Remember, O LORD, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem, how they said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!”
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The main theme of Obadiah is the judgement of the Edomites for the way they betrayed the people of Judah during the Babylonian invasion.
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The first 15 verses of the book are addressed to the people of Edom. God scorns the pride and arrogance of the Edomites, who say to themselves, “who will bring me down to the ground?” (v3), referring to their perceived safety in their high mountain region. But God will bring them down and they will be punished for their evil deeds. The prophet mixes both past tense and future tense verbs when describing Edom’s fate. This is a technique that can be found in prophetic writing, when future events are sometimes described as if they had already happened.
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God’s message through Obadiah is that Edom will be completely destroyed, with not a trace left behind. The main charges against Edom are found in verses 12-14: "But do not gloat over the day of your brother in the day of his misfortune; do not rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their ruin; do not boast in the day of distress. Do not enter the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; do not gloat over his disaster in the day of his calamity; do not loot his wealth in the day of his calamity. Do not stand at the crossroads to cut off his fugitives; do not hand over his survivors in the day of distress."
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The judgement is summarised in verse 15: "As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head."
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The final part of the book relates to the people of Jerusalem. God promises that he will preserve a remnant of his people who will survive the exile and reclaim the land that is theirs, according to his plans and promise. To the devastated people of Judah, this would have been an incredible promise of hope. It seemed, to all intents and purposes, that their future was doomed and that God’s promises to Abraham had come to nothing. But God promises that Judah will become like a raging fire once more, whilst Edom is reduced to stubble. Judah’s time of judgement for her own sin would be over, and then God would judge her enemies.
The final words of the book, in verse 21, declare that “the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.” The promised land of the Old Testament foretells the reality of the greater promised land, which is the coming kingdom of God. Matthew’s gospel in particular speaks of this prom-ised kingdom, which Jesus ushered in during his time on earth. The whole of the Bible is the story of this ultimate kingdom, reaching its climax in the book of Revelation. The king-dom of God is already here, but it is not yet fully here. That won’t happen until Jesus re-turns.
In chapter 11 of the book of Hebrews, the writer recounts the names of the men and women of the Old Testament who trusted in God’s promises to them regarding the coming kingdom.
He then writes in verse 13-16: “These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.”
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This city is the new Jerusalem, the heavenly kingdom. Jesus used several metaphors to try to help his listeners grasp the nature of the kingdom of God. He described it as a tiny mustard seed which grew into a huge tree, or as a tiny amount of yeast which could make a whole batch of dough rise. From tiny, seemingly in-consequential beginnings, something great grows. When all seemed lost to the exiled people of Judah, God says “just wait and see what I will do”. And the glory of the final kingdom is made all the greater by the trial of the journey.
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You and I are invited to be part of this coming kingdom of God. No matter how small and insignificant we might feel in the great plan of God, and no matter how dire our circumstances seem to be, we can be assured that God’s kingdom is coming and we can be part of it. It is surprising and mysterious, hidden and yet revealed, wonderful and awesome. It is something new, something different, something glorious. It is possible for the wisest brains to miss it completely whilst little children understand and embrace it.
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God is doing a new thing and he invites us to come and see. The prophet Isaiah recorded God’s words to his exiled people: “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:18-19)
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Some 700 years after Isaiah, Jesus walked the streets of Jerusalem and declared: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)
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Even the seemingly obscure prophecy of Obadiah is part of Jesus’ great story. It’s all about him. Between the lines of prophecy about Edom and Judah we see the greater picture of God’s redemption plan and his justice, mercy and grace. When the risen Jesus walked on the road to Emmaus and explained to the amazed disciples how the Law and all the prophets spoke about himself, I like to think that he said a bit about Obadiah.
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We’ve got four more books to look at before this series draws to a close, and there are lots more interesting things to come as we look at Haggai, Zechariah, Joel and Malachi. Join me next week if you can! ~
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3 days ago
3 days ago
Psalm 23
1 The LORD is my shepherd,
I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever!
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3 days ago
3 days ago
Wednesday Wisdom
Proverbs 15
G’day! Welcome to Partakers and to Wednesday Wisdom, where we are listening to what the Bible has to say through the Wisdom literature of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. Come on in! Today we are listening and learning from Proverbs 15.
1 A soft answer turns away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools pours out foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
5 A fool despises his father’s instruction: but he that regards reproof is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous is much treasure: but in the revenues of the wicked is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge: but the heart of the foolish does not so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord: but he loves him that follows after righteousness.
10 Correction is grievous to him that forsakes the way: and he that hates reproof shall die.
11 Hell and destruction are before the Lord: how much more then the hearts of the children of men?
12 A scorner loves not one that reproves him: neither will he go to the wise.
13 A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
14 The heart of him that has understanding seeks knowledge: but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.
15 All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart has a continual feast.
16 Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.
17 Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.
18 A wrathful man stirs up strife: but he that is slow to anger appeases strife.
19 The way of the slothful man is as a hedge of thorns: but the way of the righteous is made plain.
20 A wise son makes a glad father: but a foolish man despises his mother.
21 Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom: but a man of understanding walks uprightly.
22 Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellers they are established.
23 A man has joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
24 The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.
25 The Lord will destroy the house of the proud: but he will establish the border of the widow.
26 The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord: but the words of the pure are pleasant words.
27 He that is greedy of gain troubles his own house; but he that hates gifts shall live.
28 The heart of the righteous studies to answer: but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.
29 The Lord is far from the wicked: but he hears the prayer of the righteous.
30 The light of the eyes rejoices the heart: and a good report makes the bones fat.
31 The ear that hears the reproof of life abides among the wise.
32 He that refuses instruction despises his own soul: but he that hears reproof gets understanding.
33 The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.
That’s it for today! Come back every day to Partakers Podcasts to hear something to encourage and uplift you as a Christian disciple, regardless of where you are in the world. You can also purchase our books via Amazon at Pulptheology.com
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4 days ago
4 days ago
Psalm 6 to Psalm 10
Often we hear the Psalms one by one, but today we offer you the chance to hear a group of Psalms read as a collection!
Psalm 6
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. According to sheminith. A psalm of David.
1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint;
heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 My soul is in deep anguish.
How long, Lord, how long?
4 Turn, Lord, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.
5 Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
Who praises you from his grave?
6 I am worn out from my groaning.
All night long I flood my bed with weeping
and drench my couch with tears.
7 My eyes grow weak with sorrow;
they fail because of all my foes.
8 Away from me, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my cry for mercy;
the Lord accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies will be overwhelmed with shame and anguish;
they will turn back and suddenly be put to shame.
Psalm 7
A shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.
1 LORD my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me,
2 or they will tear me apart like a lion and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.
3 LORD my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands –
4 if I have repaid my ally with evil or without cause have robbed my foe –
5 then let my enemy pursue and overtake me;
let him trample my life to the ground and make me sleep in the dust
6 Arise, LORD, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies.
Awake, my God; decree justice.
7 Let the assembled peoples gather round you,
while you sit enthroned over them on high.
8 Let the LORD judge the peoples.
Vindicate me, LORD, according to my righteousness,
according to my integrity, O Most High.
9 Bring to an end the violence of the wicked
and make the righteous secure –
you, the righteous God who probes minds and hearts.
10 My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day.
12 If he does not relent, he will sharpen his sword;
he will bend and string his bow.
13 He has prepared his deadly weapons; he makes ready his flaming arrows.
14 Whoever is pregnant with evil conceives trouble and gives birth to disillusionment.
15 Whoever digs a hole and scoops it out
falls into the pit they have made.
16 The trouble they cause recoils on them;
their violence comes down on their own heads.
17 I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness;
I will sing the praises of the name of the LORD Most High.
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?[c]
5 You have made them[d] a little lower than the angels[e]
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!
Psalm 9
For the director of music. To the tune of ‘The Death of the Son’. A psalm of David.
1 I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2 I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.
3 My enemies turn back;
they stumble and perish before you.
4 For you have upheld my right and my cause,
sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.
5 You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;
you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
6 Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies,
you have uprooted their cities;
even the memory of them has perished.
7 The LORD reigns for ever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
8 He rules the world in righteousness
and judges the peoples with equity.
9 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust in you,
for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.
11 Sing the praises of the LORD, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.
12 For he who avenges blood remembers;
he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
13 LORD, see how my enemies persecute me!
Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,
14 that I may declare your praises
in the gates of Daughter Zion,
and there rejoice in your salvation.
15 The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;
their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.
16 The LORD is known by his acts of justice;
the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.[c]
17 The wicked go down to the realm of the dead,
all the nations that forget God.
18 But God will never forget the needy;
the hope of the afflicted will never perish.
19 Arise, LORD, do not let mortals triumph;
let the nations be judged in your presence.
20 Strike them with terror, LORD;
let the nations know they are only mortal.
Psalm 10
1 Why, LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
who are caught in the schemes he devises.
3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;
in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
5 His ways are always prosperous;
your laws are rejected by him;
he sneers at all his enemies.
6 He says to himself, ‘Nothing will ever shake me.’
He swears, ‘No one will ever do me harm.’
7 His mouth is full of lies and threats;
trouble and evil are under his tongue.
8 He lies in wait near the villages;
from ambush he murders the innocent.
His eyes watch in secret for his victims;
9 like a lion in cover he lies in wait.
He lies in wait to catch the helpless;
he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.
10 His victims are crushed, they collapse;
they fall under his strength.
11 He says to himself, ‘God will never notice;
he covers his face and never sees.’
12 Arise, LORD! Lift up your hand, O God.
Do not forget the helpless.
13 Why does the wicked man revile God?
Why does he say to himself,
‘He won’t call me to account’?
14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;
you consider their grief and take it in hand.
The victims commit themselves to you;
you are the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked man;
call the evildoer to account for his wickedness
that would not otherwise be found out.
16 The LORD is King for ever and ever;
the nations will perish from his land.
17 You, LORD, hear the desire of the afflicted;
you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
so that mere earthly mortals
will never again strike terror.
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4 days ago
4 days ago
Faith
People always say that faith is blind! However the Bible says that faith is a total confidence in God’s faithfulness, which leads to reliance, trust and total obedience to Him (Hebrews 11v6). We see this faith in the Godly obedience of those around us and from the Bible and church history.
Faith in Salvation
For salvation, faith is a voluntary change of mind and heart in the sinner in which the person turns to God, relying on and accepting His offer of salvation through Jesus Christ.
- Mind - recognition of your need of salvation. Acknowledging Christ’s death on your behalf and your need of forgiveness.
- Emotional (Heart) – your personal assent to the gospel. You ask yourself, “What must I do to be saved?” and then you agree to make salvation a part of your life.
- Will - Personal trust in Jesus Christ.
Now as a follower of Jesus, you are to continue having faith in Him. Four things at least you are to have faith in Him for:
By faith - He is praying for you
Jesus Christ is making intercessions for His followers (Romans 8:34). He knew the disciples troubles (Mark 6:48), just as He knows your troubles now. He feels your cares and knows what you are going through (Hebrews 4:14-16).
By faith - He will come to you
Ever felt like God is far away? Well you aren’t alone! King David often felt God was far away and unconcerned. However he also knew God would ultimately rescue him. Jesus always comes to you through difficult times, although He may not come in the time you think He should come, because He knows when you need Him most.
By faith - He will help you grow
When the disciples were in the storm and Jesus came to them walking on the water (Matthew 14:22-33), the purpose of this incident was to show that Jesus would be leaving them soon, so they had to learn to trust in Him when He wasn’t physically present. Peter wrote later on in his life, “for the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayers” (1 Peter 3v12).
By faith, He will see you through
At the same event, Jesus said “Come” and Peter went with Him. This must have encouraged the other disciples, for upon seeing Jesus’ power they worshipped him. Whatever troubles you are undergoing are temporary, and Jesus will see you through.
By faith, you have salvation. By faith Jesus is praying, will come to you, grow you and help you through troubles. By being obedient to God, you are showing others your salvation and showing that faith, is not blind, but active!
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5 days ago
5 days ago
A God Of Love
We live in a world that is in love with love. Love, according to some people, is what makes the world go around. Valentines day and the endemic materialism associated with it is evidence of that! There are more songs written about all kinds of love than perhaps any other subject! In the Bible, God’s love is revealed. The Apostle John in 1 John 4 does not simply say that God loves, but rather that God is love. Remember that God is the Holy Trinity, three persons in one. The Trinity is a living, vibrant community of love, and every activity of the Trinity, is an expression of love. God loves because that is His very nature. Throughout the Bible, God’s love is described as an unfailing, everlasting, intimate, sacrificial, unbreakable, conquering, immeasurable and all-knowing. How is God’s love seen? It is seen in two ways.
Firstly, it is shown supremely in that He has given His Son to be the Saviour of the world, so that if a person takes up that opportunity, they can know and enjoy God in a personal relationship. God had only one Son, Jesus Christ, and He sent Him on a rescue mission to seek the lost and to reconcile people to God. This is love in action. The lover dying for the ones He loves.
Secondly, God’s love is shown when Christians love. As a Christian, you are a child of God, so you should want to be like your Heavenly Father, by showing the world your love for others and your transformed character. The Christian Church should be a community of love, for this is how the world sees God
If people see Christians that are not loving and kind, rightly or wrongly, the whole Church is branded as a bunch of fakes and hypocrites. Worse still, God is seen at best as nothing more than a distant uncaring irrelevant figure. The love between Christians is seen as a visible showing of the invisible God. The very character of the church should always be to reflect God in all aspects. The ultimate example of showing people God, is for you as a Christian, to love and be love. People should be seeing God’s love, through your love. For as Jesus said, “All men will know that you are my disciples if you have love one for another” (John 13:35).
His love releases us from the things that so easily entangle our daily walk with Him. The more you hold onto His love, the more you will desire it and the more it will be revealed in your daily life. Your love in action today, reflects God’s love in action on the cross. How will you reflect this God of love today, to the world around you? Go and love - to the glory of God! Maranatha!
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6 days ago
6 days ago
Psalm 128
A Song of Ascents.
For you will eat the labor of your hands.
You will be happy, and it will be well with you.
Your wife will be as a fruitful vine,
in the innermost parts of your house;
your children like olive plants, around your table.
Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears Yahweh.
May Yahweh bless you out of Zion,
and may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
Yes, may you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel.
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6 days ago
6 days ago
Freedom To Live!
Romans 8:18-30
In the Bible, all roads or paths seemingly lead to Romans. Paul here in chapters 5-8, is giving glimpses from different angles about the Christian living under and within grace – God’s unmerited favour to undeserving sinners. It’s like he is creating this fabulous stained glass sphere depicting life for the Christian believer who is now under grace and has Jesus as their master and Lord.
In our passage from Romans 8, we come to another angle with another scenario. This passage of the Bible is diamond encrusted gold. The purest of gold and clearest of diamonds! Some people consider that speaking about this passage is akin to somebody trying to describe Beethoven’s 9th symphony with mere words. If that were true, then tonight we have the Ode to Joy!
We live in a troubled world. I am sure you are aware. As did the original recipients of Paul’s letter. Now Paul is assuring his Roman readers that even when the troubles of life hit them, God is secure and their salvation is assured – despite what anybody can do to them or what troubles they may have to endure. Paul is assuring them that God will not separate Himself from them during their pains and trials of life.
I wonder what you are undergoing currently in your life. Suffering comes to us all in one-way or another. John! Cathie! Suffering of varying degrees is common to all people of all time and of all cultures. Whether self-inflicted or inflicted by others, troubles and sufferings unite all of humanity. It is a common denominator. And of course there are no easy answers. With that said, let us look together at this most wonderful piece of Scripture.
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1. Freedom from pain and suffering.
a. Creation groans (Read vs. 18-22).
However, this groaning is not a useless thing. Why? Paul goes on to compare it to a woman giving birth. There is pain, but the pain will end when the child is born. One day creation will be delivered, and the groaning creation will become a glorious creation! As people of the kingdom, Paul exhorts his readers to not focus on the sufferings of today; but look forward to the coming glory. Today's groaning bondage will be exchanged for tomorrow's glorious freedom.
b. The Members of the Kingdom groan (Read vs. 23-25).
The creation groans as do we. The reason we as Christians groan, writes Paul, is because we have experienced what he calls "the first-fruits of the Spirit!" That is a foretaste of the glory to come when we shall live with our King in glory. Just as the nation of Israel tasted the first-fruits of Canaan when the spies returned (Numbers 12:23-27), so we Christians have tasted of the first blessings of heaven through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. This should encourage us to want to see the Lord, receive a new body to live with Him and serve Him forever in everlasting life. We are waiting for "the great adoption," which is the redemption of our bodies when Jesus returns again. This is the thrilling climax to "the adoption" that took place at our conversion when the "Spirit of adoption" gave us the standing of an adult in the Kingdom of God. When Jesus returns, we shall enter into our full inheritance.
Meanwhile we wait and hope as Paul writes here in Romans 8v24. What hope is this we ask? It is "The blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13). The best is yet to come!! As Christians, people of the Kingdom of God, as God’s children, we should not get frustrated as we see and experience suffering and pain in this world as we live in the Kingdom. Paul exhorts that Christian believers should know and remember that the suffering of today, will one day give way to eternal glory.
c. The Holy Spirit groans. (Read vs. 26-30)
So creation groans. God’s Kingdom people groan. What about God? Is He a distant God who is not concerned with the sufferings of His creation or His people? By no means!! Our God is not a distant God but a God actively concerned for His creation and for His people! God is concerned about the sufferings we go through and the troubles we endure. He desires for the redemption of His creation and His people!
When Jesus walked the earth, He saw what sin was doing to men, women and creation (Mark 7:34; John 11:33-38) and this happened. Jesus wept. Isn’t that profound?
Paul writes that God the Holy Spirit groans with us and that He feels the burdens of our weaknesses and suffering and lifts us. He is the Comforter. He is the Counsellor! He is the Helper who lives within us. As we struggle to persevere as we sometimes do, is it because forget to ask for His help, His comfort and His wisdom?
But the Spirit does more than groan: He prays for us in His groaning so that we might be led into the will of God. We do not always know God's will. We do not always know how to pray, but the Spirit intercedes for us so that we might live in the will of God even though we are suffering in some way. The Holy Spirit shares the burden with us as we endure and persevere.
2. Freedom for God!
I would like to concentrate here on verse 28 and I like the way The Message translation of the Bible paraphrases it “That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.”
“For your good” is a recurring theme throughout the Old Testament. Joseph, Moses and Jeremiah were surely in Paul’s mind! For example, from Genesis 50, Joseph after he is reunited with his brothers said this:
Genesis 50:20 “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Moses as he tried to get Israel into shape, while they whinged and whined about the Law frequently told them it was for their own good.
Deuteronomy 10:12-13 “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the LORD’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?”
Or take Jeremiah, as the ancient Israelites were in exile
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Millions of Christians over the centuries have taken great comfort and hope from Romans 8:28. I wonder if any of the recipients of this letter, recalled Paul’s words to them when that horrible little man, the Emperor Nero butchered the Christians in Rome just a few short years later. I wonder what their response was and I imagine that they were comforted.
Paul writes here “In all things God works for our good.” Now the phrase, “all things” includes not only the good, the happy and the pleasant things in life, but also the bad, the unhappy and the unpleasant things as well. It includes evil, sickness and death. At the times when we are happy and things are going well, it is very easy to agree with this verse. But in times of trouble, this verse is hard to understand and still harder to believe.
For the millions, of Christians who have spent their lives in jail, or have been killed for the faith, we cannot possibly say that all things have been for their good in this world. If that is so, how then are we to understand this verse?
Perhaps we should understand it this way. All the things that happen to us here on earth, God will work for our good in heaven. In the previous verses, Paul teaches about our future hope and future glory. Therefore, in this verse the good that Paul talks about is heavenly good, not earthly good.
But having said that, it is also true that God is concerned for our welfare in this earthly life. He cares about our bodies, our health, even our food and clothing. When God allows trouble to come into our lives, He usually uses that trouble to bring about some good result in our lives here on earth according to both our writer, Paul and to the Apostle James (Romans 5:3-4; James 1:2-4). For example, I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t had that stroke back in 2003. It is through troubles that our faith is tested and strengthened (1 Peter 1:6-7). Through various kinds of trouble God disciplines us, so that we might become more that is more like His Son, Jesus Christ, according to the writer of the book of Hebrews (Hebrews 12:7,10-11).
The most important thing to remember about this verse, however, is that the promise given here is only applicable to those who love God - those who are his children and in His kingdom. That is those have been called according to His purpose and are therefore members of the kingdom of God. If we love God, called according to His purpose, and therefore members of the Kingdom of God, then we can fully trust Him to work for our good in all things. Our hope is in God; He is faithful and able to fulfil all He has promised. If this does not describe you, then please do see somebody after we finish in a short time.
As those who are in the Kingdom of God, that would call themselves believing Christians, Paul exhorts us to never give up in times of trial and suffering because God is at work in the world (Romans 8:28). Paul encourages us that God has a perfect supreme plan (Romans 8:29) and that He has two purposes in that plan: our good and His glory.
Ultimately we will be transformed into the Lord Jesus Christ – that is God’s ultimate goal for us – to be like His Son. Best of all, God's plan will succeed – He has the victory and that victory was gained at the Cross of Calvary. It started in eternity when He chose us in Jesus Christ. God predestined that one day we would be like His Son. The word predestination here applies only to those in the Kingdom of God, not to those outside the Kingdom. Nowhere in Scripture are we taught that God chooses who will remain outside the kingdom.
If people remain outside the kingdom, it is because they choose to, by refusing to trust and believe in Jesus Christ. Those whom He chose, God called (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14)' when they responded to His call. He justified them by taking away their guilt and sin, and He also glorified them. This means that the believer has already been glorified in Jesus (John 17:22); the revelation of the glory awaits the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Recapitulate
So let’s recapitulate and then conclude. There is no point somebody speaking up here if there is no application given to us to go on with as we walk the Christian life under grace.
We have seen together that God is not distant but is close and personal and that we know He Himself has suffered. He cares for His creation and for His people through the ministry of the God the Holy Spirit. Times of trouble may come, and we are being transformed into the image of God the Son, Jesus Christ.
We have seen that we will one day have freedom from pain and suffering. Freedom to truly live! We also saw that there is to be no fear from separation from God. God is for us. Christ died for us. God the Holy Spirit lives within us, praying for us, guiding us, empowering us and is the seal of our salvation. God has declared us His sons and daughters if we choose to follow Him. Jesus Christ prays for us and He loves us.
Do you sometimes get discouraged and frustrated in times of trouble as I do sometimes? I have to ask myself questions. Questions such as how can we believers ever be discouraged and frustrated when we already share the glory of God? Our suffering today, guarantees much glory for us, when Jesus Christ Himself returns in glory!
How can we be discouraged when the God we love and serve, who has called us to follow Him, who Himself had great anxiety the night before He suffered and died on the cross? How can we be discouraged, when we know that this Jesus rose from the dead and ascended back to the Father. Jesus still had his scars when he ascended. How can we be discouraged when this Jesus will come back again one day to gather us?
Where is God? What does He have to do with it? God does not shelter us from the sufferings and hard times of life because we need them for our spiritual growth (Romans 5:3-5) and for our transformation into the image of Jesus, God’s Son. As we read in vs.28, God assures us that the difficulties of life are working for us and not against us. God allows trials and sufferings to come that they may be used for our good and His glory. We endure trials for His sake (Romans 8:36), and since we do, do you think that He will abandon us? Of course not! Instead, He lifts us through the hard times.
Conclusion
Folks, we all have troubles. There are no easy answers to most of them. I don’t even have answers for my own troubles. My memory some days is like a sieve. Other days it is more like a funnel. But I know God is there – I may forget many things but I have not yet forgotten that. It is God whom I depend upon and personally know to be totally reliable in every way. For those in the community out there, we need to be God’s hands and feet. We need to radically show people out there and in here, that God radically cares and loves for each of them. Too often people in need, both within the church and outside it, are shown care and concern for a little while. But gradually as time goes on, the caring and loving of that person diminishes and ultimately ceases. Dogged persevering to love and care is required. We can love and care for all using the power and imagination of the Holy Spirit who lives within us.
All sorts of excuses are given for not showing care and love, but in reality, there can be no excuse or reason. Not caring means not loving. Love is to be for all people, regardless of personalities, conflicts, opinions, gender, sexuality, prejudice and bias. You don’t have to agree with people’s choices but you do have to show you love and care for them.
Lots of people leave churches through the back door, because they don’t get the care they need and desire. Lots of people won’t even listen to us because they see that churches and Christians are not showing love towards them or others they know. Too often, I would say.
Too often a church can be too interested in its own little world, concerned for its own little programme, rather than God’s programme of love and care for all people. They are churches that look after only the interest of select people within its walls and community. The church is to look after all interests of all members of its local community and those who come within its walls. .
If you are a Christian here tonight, the troubles and suffering we endure, are all part of living in the kingdom of God. Part of life. It is, as we look to the future, as we see that we are being transformed into the image of Jesus and to the supreme glory of God. Not for our own glory. In any pain or suffering we endure, we shouldn't give up, we persevere. God perseveres with us because God has not given us up and neither has He given up on us. God the Son died on the cross and rose again from the dead so that you may have new life! God the Holy Spirit lives within you! For it is when we are weak, that God is strong. Hold on to Jesus. The Jesus who said “Come to me all who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest.”
The Jesus that will one day take our face in His hands and wipe away our tears. Oh what a day! We will say, it was all worth it. And yet, even though I know this, I still have the impudence to often cry out with frustration and confusion to the Father “Why Dad?” And then He assures me that he loves me with an everlasting and enduring love.
As CS Lewis once wrote: “If God is wiser than us, His judgement must differ from ours on many things, and not least on good and evil. What seems to us good may therefore not be good in His eyes, and what seems to us evil may not be evil.”
Let’s go and radically love and care for others that we meet or others that we know who need to see God’s radical love and care in action.
However, if you happen not to be a Christian, you are separated from God. He doesn’t have you in His hand. To be in the kingdom of God, you simply have to trust in Jesus, and believe in Him for your future. If that is you, please do not leave here tonight without talking to somebody such as Chris and Sue about how you can take that step. They would love to help you.
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