Are you looking for true and lasting joy? Look to Jesus. Let him fill you with his joy.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; I come before him with joyful songs (Psalm 100:1). We are to worship the Lord with joy. As I was thinking about this, my thoughts went to two chapters from God's Word: Isaiah 12 and Philippians 4. With joy, you will draw water from the wells of …

God has given us new life. Let us live the new life.

"No one pours new wine into old wineskins... They pour new wine into new wineskins” (Mark 2:22). In John's Gospel, we read about Jesus turning water into wine (chapter 2), and, then, we read about Jesus, telling Nicodemus that he needed to be "born again" (John 3:3). Here, he speaks about new wine. He's telling …

May we keep on praising the Lord and giving thanks to him.

"When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day" (Deuterinomy 8:10). When the Lord has blessed us, let us not forget to give …

How did Jesus come to his baptism? Did he come as a sinner in need of salvation? No. He came as the Saviour who brings salvation to sinners.

"Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ Jesus replied, ‘Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then John consented" (Matthew 3:13-15). "Therefore, …

Reaching out with the Good News of Jesus Christ

‘Reconciled’ to God through Christ, we have received ‘the ministry of reconciliation.’ Saved by Him, we are to ‘work with Him.’ We are ‘not to accept the grace of God in vain’ by living for ourselves. We are to be ‘ambassadors for Christ.’ We must proclaim the urgent message of salvation - ‘now is the …

A new creation in Christ Jesus

What does it mean to become “a new creation in Christ Jesus” (2 Corinthians 5:17)? Does it mean that we become perfect? Does it mean that we will ever become perfect? No! It doesn’t mean either of these things. Throughout our life on earth, each one of us has to live with the fact that we …

The Lord bless you and keep you.

"Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven" (Psalm 32:1). The forgiveness of sins - this is such a great blessing. The forgiveness of sins: it's just the beginning of so much great blessing which will continue throughout our life on earth and for all eternity. "Create in me a clean heart, O God,    and renew a right spirit within …

Some words of encouragement – for the times when we feel discouraged

Two Bible verses are running through my mind. One of the verses is very discouraging. The other verse is very encouraging. The first verse would make us feel like giving up in despair. The second verse makes us want to keep on going with the Lord and for the Lord. The first of these verses …

Believing in the Lord and speaking for him.

"It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is …

Getting our priorities right

Trinity Sunday (First Sunday after Pentecost): Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Psalm 8; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20 Getting our priorities right: God, His Word, His Spirit - at the centre of our life The Bible’s opening verses challenge us to get our priorities right. (a) The priority of God (Genesis 1:1). God comes first. Before anyone else …

Out of the shadows of our past, into the light of His future

Micah 5:1-7:20; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10; Proverbs 21:17-26 God wipes out the shadow of our past - He “pardons sin” (Micah 7:18). He shines in the light of His future - “We will be “clothed with our heavenly dwelling” (2 Corinthians 5:4). From this standpoint of privilege, we are called to fulfil our responsibility: to be soldiers of …

Times of trouble can turn out to be times of great blessing.

2 CORINTHIANS 1:1-2:11  -  Times of trouble can turn out to be times of great blessing - ‘God… comforts us in all our affliction’ (1:3-4). Whether good things or bad things are happening to you, don’t forget this: God loves you. His Word is ‘not Yes and No’ - ‘Yes, I love you. No, I don’t love …

We need true lives as well as true words.

2 Corinthians 5:11-7:1  -  ‘Reconciled’ to God through Christ, we have received ‘the ministry of reconciliation’. Saved by Him, we are to ‘work with Him’. We are ‘not to accept the grace of God in vain’ by living for ourselves. We are to be ‘ambassadors for Christ’. We must proclaim the urgent message of salvation - ‘now …

Full salvation

Gen 3:10–15, Isa 64:6, Rom 10:11, 2 Cor 5:21, 1 John 1:9 Through Christ's Death On The Cross, God Has Provided For Us A Full Salvation! Having chosen the way of sin, we are ‘naked’ and ashamed (Genesis 3:10). The Gospel teaches us that ‘there’s a way back to God from the dark paths of …

The things that really matter

2 Corinthians 10:1-11:15  -  We are engaged in warfare. Is it ‘worldly war’? Do we use ‘worldly weapons’? No! It is spiritual  warfare. God has given us His weapons (10:3-4). Our enemy is ‘Satan’ - ‘the god of this world’ (11:13-15; 4:4). We face him with ‘the whole armour of God’, with ‘the Gospel of peace’ (Ephesians 6:11,13,15). We are not …

By the mercy of God, through the Word of God, in the power of God, for the glory of God

In the work of ministry, we are, often, discouraged by the lack of response. May God help us to remember that "we have received this ministry by the mercy of God" (2 Corinthians 4:1). May he give us the wonderful privilege of seeing more and more people, responding to the Word of God, which, by …

There’s something more than human love.

"Your Word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path" (Psalm 119:105). Without the Word of the Lord, we stumble along in the darkness. We stumble, and we fall. When we stop listening to what the Word of God says to us, the darker things become. It's not easy to keep on …

Jesus Christ our Lord: crucified for us and risen for us

"We do not preach ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord" (2 Corinthians 4:5). This post is, really, a continuation of an earlier post, "When we preach Christ crucified, let us, also, preach that he is the risen Lord." If you want to read that post before starting to read this one, here's the link for …

We are weak. The Lord is strong.

"The Lord said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9). We are weak. The Lord is strong. Here's a link to a song which reminds us that our real strength comes from the Lord, not from ourselves. It comes to us when we are reminded that …

Genesis 1

"Genesis 1" has become a battlefield. People argue about creation and evolution. A battllefield: Is this all that we have in Genesis 1? When we read our Bibles, do we leave Genesis 1 to "the experts" - the people who know what they're talking about? This raises some questions. Who, exactly are the "experts"? What …

You Raise Me Up.

"Your eyes are too pure to look on evil" (Habakkuk 1:13). The contrast between our sinfulness and God's holiness is an absolute contrast - never the two shall meet. Can we raise ourselves up from our sinfulness to God's holiness? - No! We cannot. We need to be raised up from above, by the Lord. …

The Attitude of Gratitude

At the heart of our life, there is to be thanksgiving - “Thanks be to God” (2 Corinthians 9:15; 1 Corinthians 15:57). We thank God for all all his good gifts. We give thanks to him for his greatest gift: the gift of his Son - our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 9-13

"If anyone wants to boast, let him boast of the Lord" (end of chapter 10). There is no room for human pride, but we are to be proud of the Lord. It is in the Lord that we have the resources that we need to battle against and triumph over Satan, the enemy of our …

2 Corinthians 5-8

God wants His grace to be multiplied. He has called us to be "ambassadors for Christ." We are to call men and women to "be reconciled to God" (chapter 5). If we are to be effective "ambassadors for Christ", we nust be godly in characterr. We are to stand out as those who belong to …

2 Corinthians 1-4

God's promises are not a combination of 'Yes' and 'No.' His promises are always 'Yes; (chapter 1). In Christ, God makes us partakers of His triunoh (chapter 2). He does this, as we look upon the glory of the Lord and are changed into His likeness (3:17). God hasn't saved us for our own benefit …

We will be changed.

"We will be changed" (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).We look forward to the great change - when death will be no more. We look forward to eternal life. Paul describes this great change as "a mystery" (1 Corinthians 15:51). Can we say more than this? We must emphasize the continuity between the change that begins here on …

God has spoken to us. Let us speak to him, and let us speak for him.

"The Sovereign Lord has spoken: so who can refuse to proclaim his message?" (Amos 3:8). As I was reading these words from Amos, I recalled the words of Paul, "I believed in God, so I spoke" (2 Corinthians 4:13). We receive the Word of the Lord with faith. We are not to keep the Word of the …

The light of God: this is what makes the difference.

"God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). The light of God: this is what makes the difference. When we feel like we're in a dark hole, the light …

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 …

Always seeking, never finding

"The word is very near you" (Deuteronomy 30:14). Some people are always searching - but never finding. They look here, there and everywhere ... and, then, they start again ... and so, the search continues ... always searching, never finding. They tell us, "It's all about the search." Jesus tells us something very different. He …

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

Here are some great words from Jim Elliot, an American missionary who died at the hands of Auca Indians in Ecuador in the 1950s – “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” * "To gain what he cannot lose" - Eternal life has lasting value. * "what he cannot …

The Word and the words (13): God’s salvation covers our past, our present and our future.

"I am the good shepherd" (John 10:11). "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing" (Psalm 23:1). I lack nothing - God has given us a full salvation. It's a salvation that covers our past, our present and our future. -- We begin by emphasizing that God's salvation covers our past. "He makes me lie …

The fire of love

"But if I say, 'I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,' his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot" (Jeremiah 20:9). When the going gets tough, what is it that keeps the …

The revival of our worship

2 Chronicles 29:1-31:1; 2 Corinthians 1:12-22; Psalm 103:13-22 A revival of worship does not come from the worshippers. It comes from the God whom they worship – “what God had brought about for His people” (2 Chronicles 29:35b-36). “It is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ” (2 Corinthians 1:22). If …

Saul replaced, Saul transformed

Two men with the same name - Saul, the first king of Israel, and Saul of Tarsus, the persecutor of Christ and His servants. In both stories, we read of a new man. * In the case of Saul, the first king of Israel, David was the new man. Saul was rejected. He was replaced. …

Draw back the curtain.

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18). In these words, Paul is encouraging us to draw back the curtain and catch a glimpse of a bigger and better world than this world, which …

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus came from heaven. He came to earth. What a wonderful story is the story of God's way of salvation! In …

The Light Is Switched On.

When the love of God reaches us, we step out of our darkness and into His light. It's Jesus  - the light of the world - who shows us how much God loves us (John 8:12). When the light is switched off, it doesn't do us any good. When it's switched on, the love of …

The strength that comes to us from the Lord

"Cast your cares (or your burden) on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken" (Psalm 55:22). This is a real word from the Lord. It's a word that we need to hear, over and over again. Things get on top of us. We fall down, and we feel …

The Lord our God is with us – to help us and to fight our battles.

2 Chronicles 31:2-33:20; 2 Corinthians 1:23-2:11; Proverbs 21:5-16 “With us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles” (2 Chronicles 32:8). The battle will not be easy. “Satan” is seeking to “outwit us” (2 Corinthians 2:11). Nevertheless, “we are not unaware of his schemes” (2 Corinthians 2:11). In our spiritual …

The Holy Spirit – living in our hearts

"On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy …

The Holy Spirit Is Our ‘Guarantee Of Heavenly And Eternal Glory.’

2 Corinthians 4:1-5:10 God has called us to salvation - ‘God has shone in our hearts…’ (2 Corinthians 4:6). He has called us to service, ‘having this ministry by the mercy of God’ (2 Corinthians 4:1). We receive salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ: ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be …

Praise the Lord. Thanks be to God.

"Praise the Lord, o my soul, and forget not all his benefits" (Psalm 103:2). When we read these words, we find our thoughts moving beyond the Psalmist to our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. We remember the words of Paul - "The Son of God loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20), and …

In times of trouble

2 Chronicles 26:1-28:27; 2 Corinthians 1:1-11; Psalm 103:1-12 “In his time of trouble King Ahaz became even more unfaithful to the Lord” (2 Chronicles 28:22). Times of trouble can lead people towards bitterness and further rebellion against the Lord. On the other hand, times of trouble can be precisely the times when God’s purpose is …

Our weakness – and the Lord’s strength

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). When I think of my weakness, I, also, think of something else; I think of the strength of the Lord. Let us not think too highly of ourselves. If we think too highly of ourselves, we will not think highly …

More than words to be said and heard at the end of a church service

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all” (2 Corinthians 13:14). We have often heard these words spoken. Here, we are reading them in the Word of God. How often do we think about these words? What do they mean? …

The glory of the Lord

"The glory of the Lord settled down on Mount Sinai" (Exodus 24:26). "The glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" (Exodus 40:34-35). From the revelation of God's glory in the Old Testament, we move on to the revelation of God's glory in Jesus Christ: "God, who said, let there be light in the darkness, has …

What does it mean to be free?

"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17). In today's world, there are plenty of people who speak of freedom in terms of I, me and my. I: I'm free to think what I like and do what I like. Nobody can tell me what I'm to think and how …

Living as a new creation

How are we live as a “new creation” (Galatians 6:15)? Paul speaks to us about “faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6). What does it mean to have faith? How are we to live a life that is inspired, controlled, motivated and directed by love? Paul speaks about the beginning of the life of faith: …

Spiritual growth – God’s gift of grace, not our own moral achievement

"Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever! Amen." (2 Peter 3:18). "Knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ" is more than knowing about him. We are to "grow in his grace", and we are to give "glory" to him. …

What are we learning from COVID-19? – God is in control.

Patrick Smith - preaching for Sandyford-Henderson Memorial Church Glasgow Scotland https://youtu.be/XqAxGs4E93U

The Lord’s Return

"Now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2).In our thinking about the Lord’s Return, it is very important that we do not forget that the decision between salvation and judgment is one which must be made here and now. The Bible speaks of the Day of the Lord’s Return as a Day of salvation …

You get nothing for nothing … ?

"You get nothing for nothing. You only get what you pay for." Is this cynicism - or realism? Let's think together about something else - something that lifts us above all of this - the love of God, the grace of God, the mercy of God, the gift of God, the peace of God, the …

Words from far away and long ago … or more than that?

"The Lord is my light and my salvation ... The Lord is the strength of my life" (Psalm 27:1). We read these words from a faraway place and a long time ago, and we wonder, "Are these words for us? Are they for today's world? or Should they be left in the past?" Does God's Word give …

We ask about suffering. God gives us his answer – salvation.

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18). Why has God allowed this to happen? Why do we suffer? Where is our salvation to be found? Make sure that you begin with the third …

Living with deadlines …

Tomorrow, next week, next month ... More quickly than we would like, next month becomes next week, and next week becomes tomorrow ... Here's a deadline that's more urgent than any of these deadlines: "Now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6:2). What makes "the day of salvation" so urgent? - We may not have …

Praying Through God’s Word: 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 1:1-2:11Lord, You “comfort us in all our affliction” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). You turn our times of trouble into times of great blessing. When bad things are happening to us, You keep on loving us. You don’t leave us on our own when the going gets tough. You’re with us in the good times …

The Word and the words (11): Giving our own testimony and inviting others to come to the Saviour

"I am the light of the world" (John 9:5). "It is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians4:6). In John 8:12, Jesus says, "I am the light of the …

The Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord

"You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High" (Luke 1:31-32) - What a special person Jesus is! He's the Son of God - and he's our Saviour! "And there were shepherds living out in …

The history of God’s salvation – Jesus is our Saviour and Lord.

"I have loved you with an everlasting love" (Jeremiah 31:3). When we think about the history of God's salvation, we begin with God's everlasting love. We go back beyond the beginning of the world - back to the everlasting God and his everlasting love. "That it might be fulfilled" (Matthew 1:21). When we focus our …