What God says to us; what we say to him.

"God has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’ So we can say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.'" (Hebrews 13;5-6). God speaks to us words of grace: "I will never leave you or forsake you." We speak to him our words of faith: "The Lord is my …

The laughter of unbelief and the laughter of faith

Genesis 21:1-34 There are two very different kinds of laughter in the story of Sarah. There is the laughing in Genesis 18:13-15. This is the laughter of unbelief, laughing at the Lord, with the proud attitude that God's Word cannot be taken seriously. There is the laughter of faith, the laughter which rejoices in the …

Satan Spells Trouble.

“Satan stood up against Israel” (1 Chronicles 21:1). This is ominous. Satan spells trouble - trouble for God’s people. Later on, we read of God’s judgment upon Israel (1 Chronicles 21:14). Beyond God’s judgment, there is God’s mercy (1 Chronicles 21:15). In 1 Chronicles 21:30-22:1, we read about the fear of the Lord - “David …

God Will Have The Last Word.

Revelation is a complex book, yet it is for ordinary people. Its theme is simple and straightforward: Jesus is Victor! There are many things we don't understand, but there's one thing we do know: God will have the last word. * Satan has a great deal to say about our lives. He is "the accuser …

Looking at life in the light of God’s Word, God’s Son and God’s Kingdom

How do we decide which things are really important and which things are not really so important? We turn, again and again, to God's Word. We let Jesus Christ be our Teacher. We learn to see things in the light of God's eternal Kingdom.

The Kingdom Of God: 1 and 2 Corinthians

The kingdom of God is a power. Paul tells us, "The kingdom of God is not in word, but in power" (1 Corinthians 4:20). It is the power of God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit, breaking into our lives and transforming them. "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God …

The Kingdom Of God: Acts

Jesus preached the kingdom of God. His apostles preached the kingdom of God. In moving from Jesus' preaching in the Gospels to the apostles' preaching in Acts, we're not really moving away from Jesus at all. Luke, the author of Acts, describes his Gospel as an account of "all that Jesus began to do and …

God’s blessing

There's nothing better than God's blessing. It's nice to have friends. People like you. It feels good. God's blessing: that's so much better. Friends come and go. God's blessing remains. You can be surrounded by friends, and still feel very lonely. Sometimes, they're great friends. Sometimes, they disappoint us. When you're surrounded by God's blessing, …

How do we enjoy God’s blessing?

Trust him. Walk in his way. Wherever life's journey takes us, he's there. He's our faithful friend. He's the friend who'll never let us down. In our happy times, he gives us his joy. In our hard times, he gives us his peace. Is there anything better than this? No! There isn't. this is not …

How are we to walk in the Lord’s way?

We must never imagine that walking with the Lord will be easy. It wasn't easy for Jesus. It won't be easy for us. Sin is always near. The devil sets many traps for us. He's always trying to draw us away from Jesus. Sin may be very near, but the Lord comes even closer to …

God’s Eternal Love – In the story of God’s salvation, we see love, eternal love, the love of God.

In Zephaniah 3, we have a story of sin, 'Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled! She has not obeyed His voice. She has not accepted correction. She has not trusted in the Lord. She has not drawn near to her God’ (Zephaniah 3, verses 1 and 2). We, also, have a story …

God is leading us on to greater blessing.

Saul sinned against the Lord (1 Samuel 28). God’s judgment came upon Saul (1 Samuel 31). While Saul is still king, in these final chapters of 1 Samuel, the chief emphasis is placed on David. God’s work is moving on. It doesn’t stand still. God is looking to the future. Saul was yesterday’s man. David …

Love, Grace, Mercy

Love, grace, mercy - Here are three words we can use to describe God. Grace and mercy are two sides of love. In mercy, God withholds from us the judgment we deserve. In grace, he pours upon us the blessings we don't deserve. Mercy  - the God of mercy, the mercy of God  "Lord, have …

God’s Grace And Our Faith

The relationship between grace and faith is neither (a) co-operative nor (b) coercive. (a) We do not contribute to our own salvation. It is always, "Nothing in my hands I bring, simply to Thy Cross I cling." We do not come to the Lord with our religion in one hand and our morality in the …

A Human Problem That Needs, And Has, A Divine Solution

"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure" (Jeremiah 17:9). What did Jeremiah mean when he said this? The words of the Rev Eric Alexander sum up Jeremiah's point very well: "The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart." When we read Jeremiah's words on their own, we …