Lord, we thank You that our lives are not controlled by what we are. They are transformed by who You are.

Praying through God's Word - Judges 14:10-16:3 Lord, we thank You that our lives are not controlled by what we are. They are transformed by who You are. We are sinners. You are the God of grace, Shall our sin triumph over Your grace? - "God forbid!" (Romans 6:1-2). "Sin shall not have dominion over us" (Romans 6:14). Your …

True faith is always faith in Christ, and never faith in anything we can ever offer to God.

Genesis 4:1-5 The name of Abel appears among ‘the heroes of the faith’ (Hebrews 11:14). The story of Abel is a story of grace, faith and obedience. Abel's sacrifice was a blood sacrifice while Cain’s was a fruit sacrifice (3-4). The blood sacrifice points forward - via the Old Testament sacrificial system - to the …

Jesus – the Name that is above every name, the Name of our salvation

Genesis 7:1-24 Here, we pick up on the words of verse 16 - ‘the Lord closed the door behind them’. What was going on outside of the ark is contrasted with the haven of salvation inside the ark. What was it that made the ark a place of salvation? - The Lord. What is it …

We have not been saved because of our own righteousness. We’ve been saved by the grace of God.

Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22; Luke 12:1-34; Psalm 42:6b-11 As they entered the promised land, the people of God received this reminder of the undeserved grace of God - “It is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this land to possess” (Deuteronomy 9:6). In His free grace, God gave the land …

It’s ‘make up your mind’ time.

Acts 25:1-27 Paul stood before Festus as an accused man. Festus listened. Recognizing his own shortcomings and respecting the accused wishes, he gave Paul a fair hearing (20-21,25). Festus made no decision - 'I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him' (26). Jesus was 'dead'. Now, He is 'alive' (19). This is …

God wants us to keep on choosing His way.

Proverbs 6:16-35 God's Word is our 'lamp' and 'light' (23; Psalm 119:105). It leads us in the way we are to go (22). It exposes the darkness of the ways we are to avoid. It shows us the 'things that the Lord hates', the things which are 'an abomination to Him' (16). Why does God …

God’s saving grace and His keeping power

Exodus 35:1-36:38; Mark 7:31-8:13; Psalm 25:16-22 “The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the Lord commanded to be done” (Exodus 36:5). “The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven baskets full of broken pieces that were left over” (Mark 8:8). Jesus always has more to give than …

The love of God – reaching out to us and changing us

"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. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him" (John 3:16-17). Here, we read about the love of God, reaching out to us. …

Who chooses what is important to us?

Who chooses what is important to us? Is it You, Lord? or Are we the ones who are in control?  Help us, Lord, not to pay lip-service to You, without really opening our hearts to You and giving You first place in our lives.

A call to return to the Lord

In Ezekiel 21-22, words concerning God’s holy judgment against sin are awesome. He does not take sin lightly. He takes sin very seriously. As we realize the seriousness with which He looks upon sin, we are called to repentance. We are called to return to the Lord, in sincerity and truth.

Trusting In Christ As Saviour, Let Us Walk With God.

Genesis 5 The most significant comment in this chapter is in verses 22-23: "Enoch walked with God". We should not, however bypass the reference to Noah who also "walked with God" (Genesis 6:9). In verse 29, we read of Noah ("Relief"): "This child will bring us relief from the work and painful labour of our …

Called by the love of God – to confess our faith in Christ and to live as his followers

"Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” 36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever!" (Romans 11:35-36). "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).  Where do …

The need for revival and the way to revival

Judges 20:29-21:25 Judges ends on such a sad note: 'every man did what was right in his own eyes' (21:25). This situation is not merely political - 'no king'. It is moral and spiritual. The people had no regard for the authority of God and His Word. In Romans 5:20, we have Good News: 'where …

Worshipping the Lord: Learning From The Psalms

In Psalm 4, there is a great message of the Gospel. By ourselves, we are sinners, turning God’s glory to shame, loving delusions and seeking false gods (Psalm 4:2). By grace, God has done something about this - ‘the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself’ (Psalm 4:3). When we pray, ‘Answer me’ (Psalm …

In all of our service, one thing must take priority: Worship.

Numbers 4:1-49 'The sons... from thirty years old up to fifty years old' (2-3,22-23,29-30...): The service of the Lord calls for maturity. Long before we ever offered ourselves to God, He had His hand upon us. If, however, we are to prove worthy servants of the Lord, we must press on to spiritual maturity. Why …

We Will All Be Changed.

1 Corinthians 15:1-11 An introduction to this great chapter on the Resurrection, the fact and its meaning The resurrection is more than a fact from the past. It's a fact for the future. "We shall all be changed... " (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). This is more than social change. It's more than personal change. Politics isn't …

The Law of the Lord is perfect, converting or reviving the soul.

Exodus 6:13-8:32; Matthew 26:47-68; Psalm 19:7-14 There is a clear similarity between Pharaoh and Judas. Pharaoh said, “I will let you go …” (Exodus 8:28). He didn’t keep his promise. ”Judas said, ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ and kissed Jesus” (Matthew 26:49). He betrayed Jesus. How are we to avoid this hypocrisy, this marked discrepancy between our words and …

Salvation is not a reward, to be earned. It is God’s gift.

Romans 4:1-25 Salvation is not a 'reward' to be 'earned'. It is God's 'gift' (4-5). Salvation comes from the Lord. 'God so loved the world that He gave His only Son' (John 3:16): Without the love of God, the gift of God, the Son of God, there can be no salvation. The way of salvation …

Listening to God’s Word of love, and speaking His Word of love

In Ezekiel 33, we read about the ministry of "the watchman." He listens to God's Word and speaks the Word of warning to the people (Ezekiel 33:7). He declares the love of God: "I don't want wicked people to die... I want them to turn from their ways and live" (Ezekiel 33:10). The warning is …