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Episodes
Sunday Nov 13, 2016
Sunday Nov 13, 2016
WOW Tour USA 2016
Minnesota - let's go WOW!
We are in a series for these Sundays, whereupon I give some personal reflections on my recent 7 weeks tour of the the USA... During that time in the USA, I sought to enable and encourage others in their faith byteaching, training and most of all, WOWing for God! It is my prayer that I was able to do that for the glory and honour of God alone.
Today I talk briefly about my time in Minnesota - preaching, WOWChurching, making people's jaws drop in amazement and the newspaper reporter! Come on in to listen...
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Saturday Nov 12, 2016
Saturday Nov 12, 2016
Part 75 - John 18:10
Malchus
There wa a brief clash of swords – which must have been a dangerous business in the dark. As a result one of the temple servants loses a bit of his ear. We read, “Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)” This leads to the rebuke by Jesus of Peter who was acting, true to his usual nature, with unwanted impetuosity.
Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me.”
The most extraordinary thing about that statement is that John has told us what the name of the wounded man was. Very few people, except the apostles and a few of the closest women to the group, are named by John or any of the other Gospel-writers. John names some apostles, some women, Nicodemus, Lazarus and Joseph of Arimathea. Elsewhere we hear about blind Bartholomew but that is about it. Why then do we know the name of Malchus?
There would seem to be only two possibilities:
1) John, or the person who may have told him all about what happened that night, knew his name because they were obviously closely acquainted with the members of the senior households;
2) Malchus was a well known person later in the story of the early church, and although he must have been distinctly old by the time John was writing was sufficiently important to merit this mention.
Of these only the second would seem at all likely. Why would John mention the name if Malchus was only a servant in the governor’s household 40 or 50 years earlier? He would be of no importance to John’s original readers and the fact that Jesus healed his ear was only one of many such healings. No! It is a safe guess that Malchus became a Christian and of sufficient stature in the very early church to be mentioned by name. What are we to make of that?
Two things come to mind: first, that no one is excluded from the fellowship of the Kingdom and therefore of the church. They weren’t in those early days and they should not be now. There can be problems in some cultures, where if any stranger comes into a church meeting there is always a concern that they may be a spy sent in to see who is involved. It is impossible to set down any guidelines as to what should be done in such cases. The people involved can only use their best wisdom in what they do – but they must be careful not to exclude any genuine person.
The second thing is this: it is you and I who must ensure that no one is excluded who should not be. It is a difficult trap - the closer the fellowship in a particular meeting of the Lord’s people the easier it is to overlook the stranger, the incomer, the new convert. It is so easy to let them stand round the edges of the group while all the close friends talk together in a close knit huddle. Only by having some whose duty it is to lookout for such people is it possible to make sure that all are drawn into the centre of the fellowship. Watch out for it in your church. It will be surprising – and good – if you cannot see it happening.
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Friday Nov 11, 2016
Friday Nov 11, 2016
Partakers Friday Prayers!
11th November 2016
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!
Why do we do this? For this reason:
“At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month the guns fell silent on the Western Front, to bring to an end the First World War. Our nation and commonwealth has recalled that moment through our Armistice and Remembrance events down the decades, decades during which the men and women of our armed services have continued to pay the ultimate sacrifice."
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Monday Nov 07, 2016
Monday Think Spot
7 November 2016
Tomorrow is the Presidential election in the United States of America! Most of us in the western world would be aware of that! So today I thought we would look at what the Bible has to say about Government? Are you ready? Come on in!
Daniel 4:25, Daniel reminds King Nebuchadnezzar that “the Most High God is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.”
After you have heard this, you may like to ask yourself the following questions:
Q1. In what way can I influence and encourage my government
Q2. How can I help my government authorities to protect, punish and promote?
Q3. When was the last time I actively prayed for those in authority over me, whether Christian or secular?
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Saturday Nov 05, 2016
Saturday Nov 05, 2016
Gems in the Gospel of John
Part 74 - John 18:5
The man in the garden
It is impossible to tell how much of this was done by prior arrangement between Jesus and Judas. Perhaps Jesus had quietly made it completely clear to Judas that they were going to follow their usual practice of walking in the garden in the cool of the evening even although the city was in a somewhat dangerous tumult and he was the centre of the problem.
Anyway, when they got there the posse turned up, as expected, and Jesus asked who they were after - as if he didn’t know!
The answer they got surprised them. “I am he” as the NIV has it. Basically ‘I AM’, once again the Old Testament name for God. ‘ego eimi’ in the Greek.
Seven times John has told us about an occasion when Jesus said of himself ‘I am, something’, or as the scholars say ‘I am - with a predicate’. Six times he has told us that Jesus said of himself plain ‘I AM’, even if it was not always clear that it meant any more than ‘it’s me’. On this the last and most significant occasion when Jesus says those two words it was quite clear to the arresting posse what he meant. They ‘fell to the ground’’. They immediately recognized, even in the dark only illuminated by flaring torches, that here was someone very special indeed. Part of the Triune God, of the Trinity, stood in front of them - though of course they would have had no idea that that was the true situation. It is a mighty puzzle how they managed to recover themselves so that they could arrest him. (I wonder whether they actually tied his hands together or anything until they had to do so when they met the top people in Jerusalem.)
The message for us is crystal clear. This was God. God the Son was on his way to his great sacrifice for our sins - for yours and for mine. The world would never be the same again. To that point men and women had had no satisfactory and satisfying way out of their inability to live good decent and upright lives. All had been clouded by their inability to do so. Now as Jesus led them out of the garden (I am sure he must have walked in front, leading the way!) the great process that would change all mankind’s situation was beginning. The personification of God in this world of ours was about to present himself as a sacrifice for sin – yours and mine. Praise be!
You can now purchase our Partakers books including Roger's latest -
The Puzzle of Living - A fresh look at the story of Job!
Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!
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Friday Nov 04, 2016
Friday Nov 04, 2016
Partakers Friday Prayers!
4th November 2016
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!
For we ask these things O Father God, through the name of Your Son, Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. Amen
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~Click on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!Monday Oct 31, 2016
Monday Oct 31, 2016
Monday Think Spot
31 October 2016
We read this in Luke 2:42-52 - Every year Jesus' parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they travelled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."
"Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
And later on in his life, this event occurred!
Matthew 13:53-55 - When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. "Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?" they asked. "Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?
Wise
Jesus is the ultimate wise man! As we read the Gospels, we see that when Jesus spoke words, people were amazed! They were astounded that He spoke with wisdom, elegance and yet with authority. They had never heard anyone speak like He did - with both grace and authority. The same is true today, if we are listening. That is why we read the Bible to find out what He would say to us. That is why we seek to hear Him speak to us and why we speak to Him. That is why preaching is to be seen as an act of worship - by both the preacher and the listener! Jesus' wisdom meaning I can ask Him for advice and seek His imagination to solve problems!As you go into this week ask Jesus to help you, guide and speak to you through the Bible, regardless of what situation you face! Jesus, Son of God, the ultimate wise man!
Prayer
A prayer to help you into this new week. Father, we thank you for your Son, Jesus Christ! We thank you for the Bible! We thank you for godly men and women who preach and teach this wisdom of Jesus to us, explaining and exploring how we can put this wisdom into practise! May the Holy Spirit within each believer, rebuke and counsel, as that believer seeks to live a life worthy of Jesus Christ. Amen!Thanks for joining us on Partakers ThinkSpot! See you again real soon!
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~You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!
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Sunday Oct 30, 2016
Sunday Oct 30, 2016
WOW Tour USA 2016
We start a new series for these Sundays, whereupon I give some personal reflections on my recent 7 weeks in the USA... During that time in the USA, I sought to enable and encourage others in their faith byteaching, training and most of all, WOWing for God! It is my prayer that I was able to do that for the glory and honour of God alone.
Today I look back at the Why I went, my accent or lack thereof, and I also share about a vision of me, that was given by God to a friend of mine, Jenny, about this WOWTour. Come and listen!
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~You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!
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Saturday Oct 29, 2016
Saturday Oct 29, 2016
Gems in the Gospel of John
Part 73 - John 18:4
Who is in control?
We need to note one all important fact about these next three chapters - easily missed. Who was in charge? Who was in control of what happened? We read in 18: 4 “Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?” That is indicative of all that was to follow. The amazing fact is that he knew he was the one they wanted and all that was to follow. He was the one who asked who the arresting squad were after. He argued with Pilate as an equal even as the blood poured off his back and brow; He organised the future of his mother even as he hung on the cross; He directed events after his death and resurrection. Always it was Jesus who was in control even in the hour of his death and throughout the subsequent events.
Jesus did not just go knowingly to his death; he went deliberately; he went of set purpose; he went controlling what was happening when he might at any moment have changed his mind and called in squadrons of angels to the rescue. He had made himself of no reputation; he had taken on the form of a servant; he had humbled himself, he had become obedient to the wills and passions of other people – yet he was, in a strange way, still in control.
And why did he act in such a counter intuitive way? The answer is for you, for me. Isn’t that absolutely amazing!
“at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. … God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
John said in the introduction to his Gospel, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” It was very unclear then what John meant. Now we can see the full glory of it – the Glory. His glory was in his death, for us, for you, for me, which he carried out through every awful detail, in control, in command. The Lord of all the earth reigned in his death.
You can now purchase our Partakers books including Roger's latest -
The Puzzle of Living - A fresh look at the story of Job!
Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site!
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Friday Oct 28, 2016
Friday Oct 28, 2016
Partakers Friday Prayers!
28th October 2016
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!
God of all comfort, for those who are tortured both in body and mind, give them the grace to endure and to see their suffering as part of following in Christ’s footsteps. Merciful God, for those asked to pay the ultimate price; who are martyred because of their love for you, may they truly know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death. Amen
Father God, for those who are widowed and orphaned may they know the comfort that comes from your promised presence even when they walk through the valley. May they be strengthened by your Spirit, enabling them to rejoice with the psalmist as they proclaim that the LORD will not abandon them in death. Amen
Heavenly Father, we ask that you would make us ever mindful of our brothers and sisters around the world who need us to stand with them as they suffer in your name. Teach us what it means to overcome by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony; we pray that we would not love our lives so much as to shrink from death.
We ask these things O Father, through the name of Your Son, Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. Amen
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