Luke 4:1-30 Jesus was ‘tempted by the devil’(2). He was rejected by His enemies (28-29). When we look around us, we see nothing but temptations and rejection - What a negative way of looking at things! There is something more positive here - the presence of the Holy Spirit (1,14,18). Do not be afraid. There …
Continue reading God has given us His Spirit of power and love and self-control.
The work of God is not done in our own strength. We need the superior power of God's Spirit (Zechariah 4:6). The power of the Spirit comes to us as the power of love, the power of Christ, the power of the Gospel. This is the power that reaches us and changes us. There is …
‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows’ (Psalm 23:5). We are to feast on God’s Word. We are to be filled with God’s Spirit. The ‘table’ is the place of feasting. ‘Oil’ is a symbol of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus speaks about the end-times: "The earth and heaven will disappear." He also speaks about something that will never come to an end: "My words will never disappear" (Matthew 24:35). In all of life's changing circumstances, we must hold on to this great truth: God's Word is forever.
"As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more. My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds, of your saving acts all day long — though I know not how to relate them all. I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone. Since my …
Genesis 3:23-24 Genesis 2 ended with "no shame." Genesis 3 ends with something very different - driven out. What has changed? - Satan has come in, and he has brought sin with him. If the human story ended here, it would be a tragic story. It may have seemed that Satan had the upper hand, …
In Ezekiel 26, we find an awesome Word of judgment, spoken against the city of Tyre. The Word, spoken by God through His prophet, is uncompromising - “Tyre, you famous city, you have been destroyed” (Ezekiel 26:17). The effect of Tyre’s fall is described: “Your defeat will make the people, who live by the coast, …
2 CHRONICLES 19:1-20:37 - ‘I have the desire to do what is good , but I cannot carry it out... When I want to do good, evil is right there with me’ (Romans 7:18,21). In 19:2-3, we see the two sides of Jehoshaphat. In his heart, he wanted to do God’s will, seeking and serving …
"How lovely is Your dwelling-place, Lord Almighty!" (Psalm 84:1); "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news" (Isaiah 52:7). Lovely, beautiful - what do these words mean? Where God is, there is love. When He comes into our hearts, He comes in His love - and we, sinners, become …
Continue reading Lovely, beautiful – what do these words mean?
Psalms 113:1-114:8 ‘The Lord is high above all nations... Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high?... Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, who turns the hard rock into springs of water’(Psalm 113:4-5; Psalm 114:7-8). Lord, You are greater than we could ever imagine. There is no greatness …
"The large crowd enjoyed listening to Jesus. As He taught, He said, “Watch out for the experts in Moses’ Teachings! They like to walk around in long robes, to be greeted in the marketplaces, and to have the front seats in synagogues and the places of honor at dinners. They rob widows by taking their houses …
Lord, we like to take it easy. We like to have a comfortable life. we don't want to be too committed. We've become half-hearted. Where does this apathy come from? Does it come from You? Are You not calling us to be whole-hearted? Lord, lift us out of a life pf paying lip-service to You …
1 Kings 14:1-15:8 It makes depressing reading - a lot of bad news from the north (16), a lot of bad news from the south (22). Many people wondered, ‘Will there be peace in my lifetime?’. Sadly, the hostilities continued for a very long time (15:6). Were there no glimmers of hope? Was there no …
Revised Common Lectionary – Year CFirst Sunday of Advent: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36 Every spiritual blessing – in Christ: Come to Him and receive His blessing.‘I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before. I will cleanse them from all the sin …
2 Kings 8-9 Chapter 8'Go and meet the man of God and inquire of the Lord through him' (8). God's servants, appointed by Him to serve the people in His Name, play a significant part in leading the people to a deeper knowledge of God. They bring the Word of God to the people. That …
“Now I’m convinced that you are a man of God and that the Word of the Lord from your mouth is true” (1 Kings 17:24). “the Word of the Lord from your mouth”: What a privilege this is! – God gives us His Word to speak for Him. What a responsibility it is! – May God …
There were many people who tried to silence blind Bartimaeus. Here was the voice of prayer – and they were saying, “Shut up’! Thank God – he didn’t shut up. He shouted out. They more they said, “Shut up”, the more he shouted out. Because our praise is loud, that doesn’t mean that it’s real …
Continue reading ‘Many warned him to be quiet, but he cried out all the more’ (Mark 10:48).
“Give me wisdom and knowledge so that I may lead these people ... This great people of Yours” (2 Chronicles 1:10). Wisdom is not given to us for our own benefit, It is given to us for the benefit of others - so that we might lead them to the Lord. We are to follow …
PROVERBS 20:1-30 – ‘Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler; whoever is led astray by it is not wise’ (1). We need to learn the truth of these words – before it’s too late! There is a better way than the way of drunkenness. It is the way of being filled with the Holy …
Continue reading A better way than the way of drunkenness: being filled with the Holy Spirit
Genesis 11 * "Scientists can become so fascinated by what they could do that they do not even stop to think about whether they should." (Dr Ian Malcolm). * "God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs" (Dr Ian Malcolm). * "I was overwhelmed by the power of …
Continue reading "Jurassic Park" – a modern ‘Tower of Babel’
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to give me my share of the inheritance that our father left us.” Jesus said to him, “Who appointed me to be your judge or to divide your inheritance?” He told the people, “Be careful to guard yourselves from every kind of greed. Life is …
Continue reading Are we listening to the Lord – or are we listening to the world?
2 Samuel 21:19-23:3 You never know what’s going to happen next! There was repair work going on at the House of God (2 Samuel 22:5-6). It seemed so mundane. What happened next was certainly not mundane. Revival broke out! A book was found. It was ‘the Book of the Law’ (2 Samuel 22:8). The rediscovery …
Matthew 25:14–46 We are to be faithful to God (21). There is a reward for faithfulness (29; 1 Corinthians 3:10-15). Our ‘reward’ is not to get more glory for ourselves: ‘what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord’ (2 Corinthians 4:5). Bringing glory to God - this is to be our greatest …
Continue reading Bringing Glory To God – This Is To Be Our Greatest Joy.
"Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you" (Romans 8:8-9). The flesh and the Spirit are very different. This is what Paul says here. It's what Jesus said in John 3:6. In John …
The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit Advent is the time of preparation for Christmas. Make sure that you prepare your heart for a real celebration of our Saviour. Remember that Christmas is not about us. It’s about God – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit: “an angel of the Lord” comes with …
Continue reading Watching, Waiting, Worshipping; Hope, Happiness, Holiness
Awaiting Christ’s Return , let us worship God and walk in His ways. God calls us to worship Him - ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord... ’ - and walk in His ways - ‘Come, let us walk in the light of the Lord’ (Isaiah 2:3, 5). We are moving …
John 8:32 Much modern preaching tends, in the words of the prophet Jeremiah, to say to men and women, "Peace, peace" where there is, in fact, "no peace." The Gospel, on the other hand, to use the words of the prophet Joel, places "multitudes in the valley of decision." The Gospel places you and me …
Numbers 12:1-13:33 In his leadership of God’s people, Moses faced problems. It was not an easy pathway towards the promised land. There was opposition from Miriam and Aaron (Numbers 12:1). There was an unbelieving report, brought back from the land of Canaan by most of the spies (Numbers 13:31). Alongside these problems, there was the …
Deuteronomy 32:19-33:17 Here, we have both the warning of judgment and the promise of salvation. Rebuking 'a perverse generation' - 'They are devious people, children who can't be trusted' - God says, 'I will hide My face from them' (20). When, in our need, we look to Him for mercy, we have His promise: 'The …
Deuteronomy 15:1-16:20; Luke 13:31-14:14; Psalm 44:1-12 The people of God had been blessed by God. They had much to celebrate. The Lord had brought them out of the land of bondage. He was about to bring them into the land of promise. As we celebrate the love of God, we give the place of highest honour to …
Continue reading Blessed by God, we have so much to celebrate.
In Ezekiel 38:23, we read about God's purpose in history - "I will show My greatness and My holiness. I will reveal Myself to many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord." It is important that we see the divine dimension in the events which take place here on earth. There are …
Continue reading God’s Purpose, God’s Spirit, God’s Glory, God’s People, God’s Blessing
Jesus was also called Emmanuel (Matthew 1:23). Emmanuel means ‘God with us.’ This is the great message that comes to us from the first chapter of the New Testament. God has not remained in heaven. He has come to earth. Along with the Name, Emmanuel, there is the better - known Name - Jesus. The …
Continue reading God has come to earth. He has come to save us.
Psalm 2 The book of Psalms has been a precious possession of the Christian Church and the Christian believer. More than any other book in the Bible, the book of Psalms has influenced the life of the worshipping congregation and the life of the individual believer. The Psalms have become an integral part of Christian …
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... 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" (John 1:1,14). This is …
“Don’t be afraid. We have more forces on our side than they have on theirs.” We need our eyes opened to see “the mountain ... Full of fiery horses and chariots” (2 Kings 6:16-17), The victory comes from “the Lord” (2 Kings 7:6). “This is a day of good news” (2 Kings 7:9). In the …
In Ezekiel 6, we have a message concerning divine judgment. Note the emphasis - “you (they) will know that I am the Lord” (Ezekiel 6:7,13-14). If we are to appreciate the greatness of God’s salvation, we must see the greatness of our sin and the greatness of the judgment from which we are delivered through …
The book of Nehemiah begins with distressing news - “The wall of Jerusalem has been broken down, and its gates have been destroyed by fire” (Nehemiah 1:3). Nehemiah takes this situation to the Lord in prayer (Nehemiah 1:4-11). With the help of God, the work of rebuilding begins. This work was pleasing to the Lord …
Isaiah 24:1-23 ‘They raise their voices, they shout for joy; from the west they acclaim the Lord’s majesty. Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord, exalt the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea. From the ends of the earth we hear singing: “Glory to the …
As the story of Christ’s becoming one of us - His birth - moves on towards the story of His dying in our place - His crucifixion, the story of His baptism is a significant step forward. Jesus identifies with us. He stands in the place of the sinner. John the Baptist said to Jesus, …
In Your Word, Lord, we read about "a city of refuge" (1 Chronicles 6:67). We take refuge in You, Lord. You are "our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1). Refuge, strength and help - What great blessings You give to us! Where do we find these blessings? - we …
What, Lord, do we do with Your Word? How do we respond to Your Word? Do we respect Your Word? Do we despise Your Word? There’s a right way and a wrong way of hearing Your Word (Proverbs 13:13). Teach us, Lord, to turn from the wrong way, and to turn to the right way …
Continue reading Teach us, Lord, to turn from the wrong way, and to turn to the right way.
"Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth" (Psalm 124:8). Everything in this psalm leads to this final verse - God is "the maker of heaven and earth" - and He is also "our help."
Leviticus 27:1-34 The underlying theme of this final chapter is giving ourselves to the Lord to belong to Him, to be dedicated to Him, to be set apart for Him, to be holy. Such dedication to the Lord is to affect the whole of our life. We learn this from the variety of details in …
Lord, we do an awful lot of talking about ourselves, and not very much listening to You. When it seems to us that our problems are bigger than Your power, help us to start listening to what Your Word is saying to us. There are many questions for which we have no answers – Why …
“The divine revelation that the prophet Habakkuk saw” (Habakkuk 1:1) – This is a Word from the Lord. It is given to Habakkuk. It is given to God’s people, Israel. It is given to His Church in every nation and every generation. God’s Word is to be received by God’s people. God’s Word is to …
PROVERBS 12:1-14 – The Word of God shows us the way we are not to go as well as the way we are to go. We are told that ‘the root of the righteous stands firm’ (12). We are warned: ‘he who follows worthless pursuits has no sense’ (11). Do you have any sense? Here’s …
'A Saviour, who is Christ the Lord' (Luke 2:11). The Name, 'Jesus', means 'Saviour' (Matthew 1:21). Focus your thoughts on Him: The Lord Jesus Christ. Here is a prayer to help you make your response to Him: 'Lord Jesus Christ, You have come to us, You are one with us, Mary's Son. Cleansing our souls …
Psalm 85:1-13 We are to pray for revival - ‘Restore us again, O God our Saviour…Will You not revive us again that Your people may rejoice in You?’ (4,6). We are to pray that God will ‘grant us His salvation’. We are to pray that ‘His saving presence will remain in our land’. We must …
“Apart from divine revelation neither human reason nor human experience as a whole is a source of divine truth.”― Carl Henry “Whatever else the Bible affirms about divine revelation and its relationship to reason, it nowhere considers the natural light of reason per se as a source of true knowledge of God.”― Carl Henry “The Bible acknowledges …
* "In my distress I called to the Lord, and He answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and You listened to my cry" (Jonah 2:2). What are we to do when the going gets tough? We've heard the saying, When the going gets tough, the tough get going. We …
Berkouwer's concept of the depth-aspect of salvation may be viewed as a serious attempt to understand the complex problem of the relation of human language to divine revelation. It need not be dismissed as a denial of what Scripture says. It may be regarded as an interpretation of what Scripture says, an attempt to understand …
Simon the magician was impressed by the ‘signs and great miracles’, but his ‘heart’ was ‘not right before God’(Acts 8:13,19). The Ethiopian’s conversion was real. Searching the Scriptures, he found the Saviour (Acts 8:30-35). From the Ethiopian’s conversion, we learn of Jesus’ promise: ‘Seek and you will find’. From Simon’s tragedy, we hear Jesus’ warning: …
The people of God faced many obstacles, but the Lord gave them His victory and they praised Him - “All day long we praise our God. We give thanks to You forever” (Psalm 44:8). The words of Psalm 45 point forward to Jesus Christ, who is “King of kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16). …
Genesis 3:6-9 Once we were innocent. Now we are guilty. The story of Adam and Eve is repeated over and over again. This is our story as well as Adam and Eve's story. Even in the face of sin, we see something else. We see the God of love, seeking to restore the fallen to …
Continue reading A Passionate Appeal From The Heart Of Our Loving Father
"Here comes that dreamer!... We’ll see what comes of his dreams." (Genesis 37:19-20). Joseph had dreams. His brothers didn't take him seriously. What are we to say about the dreamer and his dreams? We must not make up our minds too soon. Time will tell whether the dreams are from the Lord, As we read …
Isaiah 51:17-54:17; Ephesians 1:1-23; Psalm 109:21-31 ’“With everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,’ says the Lord your Redeemer” (Isaiah 54:8). “In love, He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1:5). This loving kindness has its origin in the heart of the eternal God. It continues for all …
Jeremiah 8:4-22 ‘Wise people are put to shame, confused, trapped. They have rejected the Word of the Lord. They don’t really have any wisdom’ (Jeremiah 8:9). Deliver us, Lord, from thinking that we’re smart. Keep us from becoming wise in their own eyes. Deliver us from the ‘know it all’ attitude. May we not have an answer for everything – …
Far too easily, Lord, we accept defeat - when You're leading us on into Your victory. What's wrong with us? It's sin. That's our problem. It never goes away, this problem of ours - but we don't have to fight against it in our own strength. Our sin may seem to be inevitable - "That's …
"Sing for joy to God our strength" (Psalm 81:4); "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Where does our joy come from? Where does our strength come from? Our joy comes from the Lord. Our strength comes from the Lord. It's not really our joy and our strength. It's the joy of …
Continue reading The joy of the Lord and the strength of the Lord
But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31
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