Being a Pilgrim

Keeping His Covenant

Posted on 26th Jun 202527th May 2025 by korgrocker

“The Lord is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way. The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.”
Psalm 25:8-10 NLT

God made a covenant with Israel, as David knew when he wrote, “The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands”. This verse implies that those who don’t keep His covenant, obeying what it means, will fail to live with God in the ways that He intended. It also means that such covenant-breakers will fail to experience His “unfailing love and faithfulness”, leaving them outside the “shelter of the Most High” (Psalm 91). A scary thought I’m sure for God-fearing Israelites, but when we look back at their history we find many times when they generally failed to “keep His covenant”. The prevailing covenant in David’s time would have been the Mosaic covenant, given to Moses many years before. This was a conditional covenant, summed up in Deuteronomy 11:26-28, “Look, today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse! You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the Lord your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before”.

God also made a covenant with David, promising long life for his kingdom. 2 Samuel 7:16, “Your house and your kingdom will continue before me for all time, and your throne will be secure forever”. And we pilgrims know, of course, the Man who subsequently sat on the throne of David, as we read in Isaiah 9:7, “His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!” The Angel Gabriel also told Mary, Jesus’ mother-to-be, the same message, “He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David” (Luke 1:32).

We pilgrims are very grateful – actually our feeble attempts at gratitude hardly give it justice – for Jesus coming to this world and giving us a New Covenant. Jeremiah prophetically wrote down, ““The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. … “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people” (Jeremiah 31:31, 33). Although Jesus said He would fulfil the Law of Moses (the Mosaic Covenant – Matthew 5:17), he also promised a New Covenant. Luke 22:20, “After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you“. The New Covenant was given first for the Jews and then the whole of mankind, but what was this covenant? In many ways the whole of the New Testament is based on the premise that Jesus, the Son of God, came to this world to shed His blood to take away the sins of the world. Hebrews 7:22, “Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God”. The New Covenant is the promise that God will forgive sin and restore fellowship with those whose hearts are turned toward Him.

But what does all this mean for us pilgrims? We now live in the wonderful Kingdom under God’s grace.“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it” (Ephesians 2:8-9). And this salvation is gained through faith in Jesus, that He died for us at a place just outside Jerusalem called Calvary so that our sins can be forgiven. What an amazing giving and loving God, that he would do all of that just for you and me! We have the wonderful promise, originally given to David, that He will lead us “with unfailing love and faithfulness“. He did then and He still does today.

But there are two parties to a covenant. God has promised our eternal salvation through grace, through the blood of Jesus. Paul wrote, “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you” (Romans 8:11). Our responsibility is to exercise faith in Jesus, the One who fulfilled the requirements of the original Mosaic covenant on our behalf and brought an end to the required sacrifices through His own sacrificial death. We pilgrims now share in the inheritance of Christ, as we read in Hebrews 9:15, “That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant“.

We pilgrims are highly favoured and very blessed. And so grateful, that we have so much in response to so little from our side of the Covenant. The most valuable possession that can ever be considered and imagined is ours for free. It costs us nothing, but it cost Jesus everything. What can we do other than praise and worship Him. Today and every day.

Thank you, Lord, for the blessings you have bestowed on our lives. You have provided us with more than we could ever have imagined. We praise and worship You today. Amen

Leading the Humble

Posted on 25th Jun 202527th May 2025 by korgrocker

David wrote, “He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way”. This simple and informative sentence is also profound and fundamental, and essential for the health of pilgrims everywhere. Quite simply, to continue our journey in the right way, receiving God’s teaching to help us, means we have to be humble. Three words that are the opposite of “humble” are “proud, arrogant and conceited”, and, unfortunately, I have come across many people, particularly in employment, whose actions and personality are described perfectly by these three words. There again, I suppose that everyone, at one time or another, has behaved in the same way at some time in their lives. But in our secular world, humility is considered with negative connotations, associated with words such as meekness, and humble people are often considered as being inferior to their more arrogant and assertive peers.

So what does it mean to be “humble“? There are two New Testament Scriptures that make it clear that humility is something we have to work at. 1 Peter 5:5-6, “In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honour“. And then we have Ephesians 4:2, “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love“. And of course we mustn’t forget what Jesus said in Matthew 5:3, “God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth“. Paul wrote in Colossians 3:12 that humility is something that we put on much like when we get dressed, “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience”. So being humble is a mindset, a life-choice, and humility something that a pilgrim must adopt if he or she is to grow to be more like Jesus.

Humility is not an option for Christians, because some commentaries even state that it must be a prerequisite before we can even be saved. A humble person is one who has put to death their “old man” and replaced it with the “new man” Paul wrote about in Ephesians 4:22-24. “Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy”. A proud person, puffed up with a sense of their own importance, will never empty themselves to the point that God’s grace will flow and provide His resources for their journey. An un-humble person will be full of themselves and they go round singing the old song “I’ll do it my way”, but, unfortunately for them, they can’t. It has to be God’s way, or no way.

Jesus gave His disciples, and us, an example of what being humble looks like. In John 13 we read the story of how He left the dinner table where He was enjoying the Passover meal with His disciples, and adopted a servant’s role to do the most menial and demeaning job a servant could be called to do. He washed His disciples feet. Peter objected because, after all, this was His Lord and Master, and anyway, rabbis don’t go around washing people’s feet. After all the feet had been washed (including those of Judas, by the way), Jesus gave an explanation. John 13:14-15, “And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you”. So we pilgrims look around at our peers, our friends and family, and must ask ourselves the question – have I washed any of these feet? Not necessarily literally of course, but do we have the attitude that we look out for ways in which we can do something similar?

Perhaps we pilgrims, myself included, need to do a regular checkup and set ourselves a humility test. Unless we pass the test we will limit God’s grace in our lives. God will lift up those who are humble – Luke 14:11, “For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted”.

Dear Lord, help me to be humble. Grant me the grace to see my own flaws and shortcomings, and to recognize that my gifts and talents are not my own but a gift from you. Help me to prioritise others’ needs and well-being above my own desires and ambitions. May I be more concerned with serving you and others than with pleasing myself. Forgive my pride and arrogance, and fill me with your humility. Amen.

God Does Right

Posted on 24th Jun 202522nd May 2025 by korgrocker

David wrote that “the Lord … does what is right”. Of course He does, we say. What else could the God and Creator of the Universe ever do, because if He didn’t we probably wouldn’t be here at all because chaos would have prevailed. But then we think, God does what is right from his perspective, not ours. So someone who enjoys being a sinner might not be very happy at all about God doing what is right, especially when they come to stand before the Judge, sitting on the Great White Throne! There are, of course, those who would dispute that God does right, as they survey the mayhem going on around them in the world. They hold God accountable for all the bad things that are happening in the world and, they say, surely a righteous God would not allow such suffering, because it is not right that children, for example, get caught up in wars or catch infectious and debilitating diseases. But such superficial thoughts come from a general lack of understanding and knowledge about God.

Human thoughts about righteousness are based on morals and justice. The laws of the country in which we live set out what is right and what is wrong, so that all those in the society will benefit. So there are laws against breaking a speed limit, because someone might be hurt through a speed-related collision. Or it is not right to provide a false testimony in a law court, because someone might be fined or incarcerated because of it. But where do these laws come from? Here in the UK, most of them are based on a morality that originated with God. From way back He commanded that the Israelites must not murder anyone, or steal something that belongs to someone else. Laws based on this are accepted as common sense and breaking them will result in a punishment of some kind. We also have to remember that we are all made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27) and so we will have within us some of God’s DNA, giving us a conscience even if we are ignorant of the law.

God “does what is right” because He is perfect and His righteousness is perfect too. So in all matters, God’s standards of morality, justice, and so on are set at a standard that is perfection. But achieving God’s gold standard of righteousness is impossible for human beings because of sin. Thankfully, through Jesus, we can attain God’s righteous because He has cleansed us from all our sins. 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God“. We call it the Divine Exchange, in that Jesus took on our sins on Calvary’s cross, and in return gave us His righteousness. What a bargain! An eternal gift of God that is beyond any price.

But such a divine act of love cannot pass without a response, and we must live our lives accordingly. We cannot just continue in our sinful ways without taking the necessary steps to live God’s way instead of our ways. Some people give up the journey, saying that it is too hard to try and live God’s way. They become quite fatalistic about God’s righteousness, thinking that their destiny was probably pre-determined meaning that there was nothing much they could do about it, and as a result they don’t bother themselves about God and His righteousness. There was a priest in Israel called Eli and he had two sons who ministered with him. Eli’s sons were scoundrels who abused their positions as priests and Eli was too weak to do anything about it, other than offer them a mild rebuke. Even after a man of God pointed out to him the error of his ways, Eli still failed in his responsibilities. So God spoke to the young Samuel in a nighttime conversation and Eli, the priest at the time, asked Samuel what it was all about. We read in 1 Samuel 3:18, “So Samuel told Eli everything; he didn’t hold anything back. “It is the Lord’s will,” Eli replied. “Let him do what he thinks best””. We can be like that sometimes, giving up on doing something that we know we should do, but we lack the will and courage to do it. But Paul wrote some encouraging words in Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up“. Hebrews 12:12-13, “So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong“. Because of God’s love, we have all the resources we need to live in the light of God’s righteousness. Romans 8:37, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us“.

We pilgrims are on a journey to become more like Jesus. Romans 8:29-30, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory”. Let us not give up. Our challenges and difficulties in this life are insignificant compared with the time we will spend with Jesus in eternity.

Dear Father God. In times of trial and uncertainty, grant us the strength to persevere. Help us to remember that our struggles are not signs of weakness, but opportunities to grow in faith. May we find your guidance and strength in every step we take, even when the path seems unclear. Help us to trust in your plan for us, even when we don’t fully understand it. Grant us the courage to not give up, but to continue seeking your will, knowing that your love and grace will see us through. Amen.

Youthful Rebellion

Posted on 23rd Jun 202522nd May 2025 by korgrocker

“Remember, O Lord, your compassion and unfailing love, which you have shown from long ages past. Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth. Remember me in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O Lord.”
Psalm 25:6-7 NLT

Oh dear! Those youthful years, teenage challenges and sins, trial and error, hormonal changes. Years spent casting around for meaning and morals, years marked by rebellion against anyone in authority, including parents. Difficult years, as an adult desperately tried to emerge from a child into the light of further education or employment. Oh dear! Those youthful years. Why did David ask God not to “remember the rebellious sins of [his] youth”? Because he, like us, still had the memories lurking in the dark recesses of his mind, always ready to emerge and cause pain. “If only I hadn’t …” is a thought that surfaces if we let it, bringing shame and regrets in the process. So David, like us, committed “rebellious sins” in his youth.

Of course, we pilgrims have confessed all our sins. We read and followed 1 John 1:9, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness”. So the sins of our rebellious youth have been forgiven and dealt with, and if we ask God to forgive us for them again, then His reply is “What sins”? We remember the verse, “He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12), which is a good way of saying that God had wiped our sin-slate clean. So why did David bring it all up once again? Probably for the same reason we do, but perhaps David’s approach was better, because he made a statement, written down to remind him and perhaps God that his sins were not to be remembered.

But what were those rebellious sins? They are not just limited to those tender in years. There are many who behave like children all their lives, and we see such people represented in our political and business classes today. Isaiah wrote, ““What sorrow awaits my rebellious children,” says the Lord. “You make plans that are contrary to mine. You make alliances not directed by my Spirit, thus piling up your sins”. Those who watch the goings-on in the UK parliaments will see increasing secularism dominating the proceedings, the Christian roots of British society long forgotten, binned with all thoughts of Heavenly morality, and, as a consequence, their sins “piling up”. It’s not a democratic and God-less state that we need but instead one based on the principles of the Kingdom of God, and a population embracing revival once again. Thankfully, one day God will rule and reign here on earth, firstly Jesus for a thousand years, and then God Himself in the New Jerusalem that we read of in Revelation 21. There is no democracy in God’s Kingdom.

We pilgrims are never rebellious of course. Well, never rebellious to God, although we might rebel against the God-less laws that are infiltrating our societies. So we will sometimes find fellow believers demonstrating against laws that conflict with God’s Word. We are led by the Holy Spirit in our day-by-day lives and with His wisdom we navigate the secularism so prevalent. We are like guerrillas, believers infiltrating the kingdom of darkness, seeking to disrupt the works of the devil, and doing what we can to promote the Kingdom of Light. The going is tough sometimes, because the forces of darkness want to close us down, but we are on the winning side.

Rebellion and sin are close bedfellows, because the focus is against God and His ways. And we remember what Paul wrote in Romans 8:5-6, “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace”. We pilgrims are led by the Holy Spirit, and through our relationship with Him, the “rebellious sins of youth”, or at any other stage in life, will disappear. We dedicate our lives to God and he will lead us in His ways.

Dear Father God. Once again we thank You for cleansing us from all our sins. We commit our lives to You, this day and every day for the rest of our lives. Amen.

Unfailing Love

Posted on 22nd Jun 202521st May 2025 by korgrocker

Twice in these two verses, David mentioned the Lord’s “unfailing love”. Love is just one of God’s attributes, along with His justice, holiness, righteousness, and even His anger. But we pilgrims know all about these but only in an imperfect way. In Genesis 1 we read, “Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. …”. So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:26a-27). If we are made in God’s image then we will have His attributes as well, although sin has corrupted them greatly.

So what is God’s love? Paul gave us a good definition of human love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance”. God’s love is all of this but taken to the nth degree, and the Bible is the story of God’s love for mankind, with a crescendo coinciding with the first coming of Jesus. We all know the Scripture, “for God so loved the world ..”, and there was no greater demonstration of God’s love than that. To think that the Creator of the Universe would stoop so low as to visit this planet at all would have demonstrated His love for us, but then to die for us so that we could receive forgiveness for our sins in the Divine Exchange was, and still is, beyond human understanding. David wrote, “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6). It’s this pursuing thing that we humans greatly underestimate. God’s love is something that is active and vibrant, and the very thought must drive us to our knees in grateful worship.

Paul wrote about the pinnacle of God’s “unfailing love” in Romans 5:6, 8, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. … But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners”. There were other examples of God’s love for His people in the Bible, and perhaps the most poignant and telling is the story of Hosea, who God asked to prophetically marry a prostitute, demonstrating His love for the adulterous nation of Israel. Time and time again, God’s “unfailing love” leaps from the pages of Scripture, a love that never died or failed.

God made covenants with His people, covenants of love and commitment such as with Moses that we can read in Exodus 34:6-7a, “The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. …”. The thing about God is that, once a covenant is made between Him and His people, He never breaks it. The human party to the covenant, as the Israelites demonstrated time and again, would often break their side of the covenant, but God never did. In Exodus 34:10a we read, “The Lord replied, “Listen, I am making a covenant with you in the presence of all your people. …”. That Mosaic covenant, sealed with the blood of animals for forgiveness of sins, was superseded by Jesus, as we read about Jesus, God’s Son, in Hebrews 9:15, “That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant”. God’s “unfailing love” was such that He sent His Son as the ultimate blood sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins. Now that’s “unfailing love”, the ultimate demonstration of God’s love for all eternity.

Dear Father God. Your love for us knows no bounds. We can never thank You enough. Amen.

The Teachable

Posted on 21st Jun 202522nd May 2025 by korgrocker

“Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.”
Psalm 25:4-5 NLT

David asked the Lord to teach him, but what was the curriculum and method of the teaching? After all, David was skilled in most of what he put his hand to. Perhaps there’s a hint in the previous few words, “Lead me by Your truth”, because the teaching that David required was to be based on God’s truth. There is more information in Psalm 86:11, “Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name”. The curriculum for learning God’s ways must be unlimited, so how long would it take to complete the course?

A prerequisite before we apply David’s request for God’s teaching to our own lives is that we must be teachable. How open are we to receive any sort of teaching let alone that from God? How did we get on at school or college? Can we accept correction or embrace new ideas? And do we rely on someone else to deliver us teaching in a form we can understand and accept? Or, do we individually ourselves rely on the master Himself to teach us through the Holy Spirit within us? If we are to learn God’s ways we must be teachable, and prepared to stick the course even when there going gets tough. There was a time when Jesus’ teaching was too hard for some of His disciples. About His teaching, “Many of his disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, “Does this offend you? … At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him” (John 6:60-61, 66). So, we must be open to what God has for us because He wants us to become more like Him. Paul wrote, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters” (Romans 8:29), so if God chose us to be like His Son, Jesus, then we had better be prepared for much teaching.

In a secular setting, to be taught about anything, we need to go one of two routes; either a formal educational path delivered and monitored by teachers and tutors, or a self-help route, where the student uses published resources to learn what is required. There may of course be a combination of both in certain educational environments, but there is then usually an exam followed by a certificate or diploma for the successful candidates. But in the Kingdom of God, things are different. We went to be taught the ways of God but the course curriculum will be different for each one of us. But the bottom line is that we want to be more like Jesus and to get there we have to follow and obey His teachings. “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). A secular education has one major difference to being educated by God and that is about ourselves. In the world an education does not ask anything of us and we can continue to live our lives as we always have done, sin and all. In the Kingdom of God, being taught costs us our lives because we have to hand them over to God. That’s what taking up a cross is all about. There is one other thing that we must be aware of and that is the length of the course. We do not embark on, for example, a two year diploma in whatever. Instead the course we enrol on for lasts for the rest of our lives. And one day we will cross the Great Divide and receive our diploma, hearing the Master Himself say “well done. ….”.

Jesus also told us that we must be teachers. Matthew 28:19-20, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age”. As disciples ourselves we are taught by God’s Word, through prayer, and through the pastors and teachers who lead our churches and fellowships. And we communicate what we have learnt to those around us, those who have perhaps started on the course a bit later than we did. Are we pilgrims teaching anyone? Before we go down the tubes, admitting that we aren’t, don’t forget that as we shine in our families and communities, we are unconsciously teaching them. But we must be prepared nevertheless, to sit down with a friend or family memory and share the Word and our testimony with them, praying with them and encouraging them. We tell them our stories about Jesus and all that He has done for us, helping them too along the narrow way that leads to glory.

Dear Lord, we praise you for being the author of all truth and thank you for our ability to be able to learn. Please help us humbly pursue wisdom and learning for your glory and to serve others. Lead us by your Spirit, we pray. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hope in God

Posted on 20th Jun 202521st May 2025 by korgrocker

“Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.”
Psalm 25:4-5 NLT

A humble prayer from David, as he asks God to teach him, to lead him, and save him. He then finishes verse 5 with the statement “All day long I put my hope in you”. There is no better focus for our God, as I’m sure we agree, but human beings are notorious for hoping and trusting in other things and in other ways. But that hasn’t changed since the days of Adam. Psalm 20:7, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God”. “Hope” and “trust” go hand in hand in life. We hope in God for our future, and we trust Him to lead us in His ways.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, we must think about how worldly people understand hope. They use it in contexts such as, “I hope I don’t get Covid”, or “I hope it doesn’t rain on my birthday”. There is an element of doubt in such a definition of hope. A response to the question, “will you go to Heaven when you die” is “I hope so”, again demonstrating that they have doubts, though not strong enough to make them do anything about it.

The whole concept of “hope” comes about because we cannot see what will happen in the future. That introduces another word – “faith”. Hebrew’s 11:1, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”. What do we pilgrims hope for? There will be many things, depending on our stages in life. We hope for the right job, house, partner, and so on. But one thing we all will agree on is our hope in God for our eternal home. And we can see the extraordinary experiences believers have gone through because within them was the hope of a better life ahead. Biblical hope is different from the hope that the world understands. Biblical hope carries with it a surety that what is hoped for, aligned as it is to God’s Word, is definitely going to happen. We might not see it taking place, but we have faith that whatever it is will come about. Jeremiah wrote, “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). That’s a great promise of God, and one we must believe for our lives and those of our loved ones.

We pilgrims have a firm and unshakeable hope in the future, and we share it with those around us. 1 Peter 3:15, “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”. Do we have our answers ready? Are we a people who are living out God’s truth in our lives, so that others can see it? Are we beacons set on a hill, for all to be illuminated by, standing out from the crowd around us? On Easter Sunday this year I met a dog walker and the conversation came around to what she referred to as the terrible state of the world. She was scared about the wars and threats of war. Of the politicians and their messages of gloom. a poor woman with nowhere to turn to where she could find hope for her future and her family’s. But I shared about Jesus and his resurrection, that through Him we have hope for the future. She admitted that she was an atheist and hurried off, but hopefully I was able to plant a seed of hope. The Holy Spirit I’m sure will water and nurture the good seed of the Gospel planted in that lady’s life that day.

We pilgrims really need to understand the meaning of God’s “hope” and apply it to our lives. We mustn’t be like the house wife in Wales who prayed, when she went to bed, that the coal slag heap behind her house would be cast into the sea, hoping that God would answer her prayer with a much better view when she woke up. On opening her curtains the next morning, the slag heap was still there, her hopes dashed. Her comment was that she knew that her prayer wouldn’t work anyway. When we hope for something we must have faith that the God of hope will answer our prayer.

Paul wrote, “ … We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)” (Romans 8:23b-25). We hope and we wait in faith for our hope to be realised.

Father God, in difficult times it is easy to lose hope and faith in You. Father, we admit that we have lost sight of You. In this prayer for hope, Lord, we ask that Your Holy Spirit reignites within us the hope and faith in You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Truth Leads

Posted on 19th Jun 202521st May 2025 by korgrocker

“Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.”
Psalm 25:4-5 NLT

It’s logical really. In theory, if we knew the perfect truth then we would have the perfect teaching and we would walk the perfect road throughout our lives. The problem is that we are sinful and imperfect human beings and we hear what God says in imperfect ways, if at all There is a verse at the end of Judges – “ … all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25b). And that’s the root of the human ailment. We start with whatever seems best to us rather than what seems best to God. Proverbs 14:12 reminds us, “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death“. But thankfully there is Proverbs 3:5, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding“. There is much truth contained in the Book of Proverbs.

So how do we find God’s truth, so that we can be led by it? There is a hint from David here, because these verses in Psalm 25 read like a prayer. So we pilgrims pray for God to reveal to us His truth, in faith, as David was, that he will answer our prayers. Jesus told His disciples, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come” (John 16:13). We pilgrims have the Spirit of Truth living within us, ready and waiting to be called upon in our prayers.

But we start from the premise that God is truth. That’s what He is. That’s what He has always been and will always be. It’s in His DNA. In John 18:37 we read about Jesus’ response to Pilate. “Pilate said, “So you are a king?” Jesus responded, “You say I am a king. Actually, I was born and came into the world to testify to the truth. All who love the truth recognise that what I say is true””. Pilate followed with the cynical response “What is truth”, which is where our world has been ever since sin entered through Adam. In John 8:31-32 we read, “Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free””.

We find God’s truth in His Word, and we need to live our lives in the light of His truth. But the way of the world is living in the darkness of lies. Lies are the opposite to truth, and they have permeated our societies at various levels. Some lies are blatantly obvious and they are exposed in the law courts or similar places, but others are more subtle and embedded in our society, even being taught in our schools. I can remember my daughter pointing out to her biology teacher that evolution was just a theory and was not the absolute truth about the origins of life, a brave thing to do in a secular environment. Our politicians are sadly prone to tell lies about what they would achieve if elected to government, only to forget the promises they made once elected. Lies can also be subtle, holding a hint of truth to give them traction, but they are still lies in the end. There is also a tendency to tell “white” lies, perhaps to a loved one who we think would be distressed if they knew the truth about, for example, their medical condition. But we pilgrims are obliged to tell the truth, and we ask God to help us choose the right words for the occasion.

Jesus was all about truth, because He was, and is, God and could not tell a lie. Sometimes He prefaced His teachings with the word, “Truly …”, or as the old KJV puts it, “Verily, verily …”. John 5:24. “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life”. When we read Jesus’ confirmation that what He was about to say was true, then we need to sit up and take notice. Again, God doesn’t lie. So we pilgrims ask God to simply guide us in His ways of truth. There is no other path available to a believer in Jesus.

Dear Lord, Heavenly Father, we are grateful that you have blessed us with the bounty and richness of our lives. We pray you, God, look down upon us and see fit to share with us the truth of your ways. We wish to know your will, that we may follow it till the end of our days, ever praising you and glorifying your name. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Trust Not Disgrace

Posted on 18th Jun 202512th May 2025 by korgrocker

“O Lord, I give my life to you. I trust in you, my God! Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat. No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.”
Psalm 25:1-3 NLT

David starts Psalm 25 with a declaration of intent, that he has given his life to God. This is something that all believers must do, but only rarely do we hear this in a testimony. The Apostle Paul was very clear about his commitment to God; in Philippians 1:1a, Paul introduces himself, “This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus. …“. A slave is someone who belongs to another and who puts his master’s needs above his own. Jude said the same in Jude 1:1a, “This letter is from Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ …”. Those early apostles knew the importance of giving their lives to God because there is no other way of faith. We talk about being “sold out for Jesus” but do we really know what that means and the impact it will have on our lives? Paul did, and we read about what it meant for him in 2 Corinthians 11:23 and the following verses. “Are they servants of Christ? I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again”. Of course, not everyone will be asked to make the sacrifices that Paul did, but giving our lives to Jesus is a necessary part of discipleship. Paul wrote, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him” (Romans 12:1).

The KJV translation of Psalm 25:1 reads, “Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul“. In some ways this perhaps gives the impression that in the lifting up of our souls, we still have hold of them, able to take them back when the lifting has been completed. But that is not what David intended, and he devoted his life totally to God. When we devote our lives to Jesus, we also trust Him to know what is best for us. Don Moen wrote a song some years ago and the chorus goes, “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey“. We used to sing it. We felt the warm glow inside. But what happened on Monday morning? Giving our lives to the Lord and trusting Him with them is a big ask, but one that we need to consider and apply if we’re going to be true disciples and followers of the Master.

David, however, asked for something in response to his commitment and trust in the Lord. He asked Him to keep him from disgrace. David was probably once again in a perilous place, with his enemies around him looking for an opportunity to boast about how they had overcome him or how they had made him look stupid, undermining him before his people. So a simple prayer flowed from his pen to God – he wrote “my God”, perhaps emphasising the personal relationship that he had with the Lord. But we pilgrims have enemies, as David did. Peter warned us in 1 Peter 5:8, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour”. Note that this may not be a direct attack but one that could be routed through his earthly assistants, who we will find whenever we do something bold and significant for Jesus. The Bible on our desk in the office may invite a sarcastic comment or two. A public testimony will invite threats and abuse. And we must always be aware that once we have come out as a Christian, those around us, confronted by the Holy Spirit living in us, will look for opportunities to make us objects of disgrace. But David was certain that no-one who trusts in the Lord will ever be disgraced. And neither will we, as we stand firm and see God work in whatever situation is confronting us.

David wrote, “disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others”. That is what will happen to those who try and accuse us and rejoice over our defeat. There is always that temptation for us to respond to the cutting remarks and abuse of others within our own strength, but we remember what Jesus said to His disciples, and to us by extension. “And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said” (Luke 12:11-12). So when we are facing those who confront our faith, we must pause for a moment and wait for the Holy Spirit’s answer. It will come, as we trust in the Lord. He will never allow us to be disgraced.

Father God. We know that we try to hang onto our lives and live them on our terms. But today we repent and commit ourselves to You once again, and put our trust in You, the One who is worthy of all the praise and all the worship. Amen.

Gates and Ancient Doors

Posted on 17th Jun 202517th Jun 2025 by korgrocker

“Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty – he is the King of glory.”
Psalm 24:7-10 NIVUK

Theologians have determined that the “gates” and “ancient doors” refer to the gateways to Jerusalem, and the context of this Psalm applies to the courtesies rolled out for special guests, perhaps royalty from other nations. Important people required special measures being applied so that royal entries could be achieved through the gates and doors. Some gates were portcullis affairs that were lifted much higher than usual, so that their tops, their “heads”, appeared over the top of the City walls. Sometimes doors were removed from their hinges, “lifted up”, making the opening in the wall as wide as possible. Quite a lot of fuss, probably, but then we stop and think about the importance of the King of Glory, “the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle“. David made the point about the importance of the “King of Glory” because he repeated verses 7 and 8 again in verses 9 and 10. The phrase “king of Glory” was mentioned four times in these four verses.

In our Western cities, there are a few with some residual parts of medieval city walls that had gates to keep out the more undesirable elements of society. London once had a city wall, with seven gates into it, although they weren’t used after the mid-eighteenth century. Southampton still has its “Bargate” located at the end of the High Street and a remaining part of the old sea port’s city wall. In the walled parts of cities, there are occasions when certain traditions are re-enacted, reminding observers, mainly tourists, of how things used to be, but in modern Britain gates are of little use for security purposes.

But this Psalm is far more than being just an architectural nicety connected to ancient royal customs. Jesus used the analogy of a door or gate when He said, “ … I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.” (John 10:7-9). This illustration would have been easily understood by the common people of Jesus’ day. The shepherd would have positioned himself at the entrance way to a walled pen, a sheepfold, where the sheep would have gone for safety at night, and no-one would have been able to steal or harm the sheep without the shepherd knowing about it. Jesus’ illustration confirmed that there is only one sheepfold and only one Shepherd; there is only one way to be saved and only through one Person can it be achieved. Later, in John 14:6, Jesus said, “ … I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me“. Of course, there are many who would claim other ways to get to Heaven and experience eternal life, pointing to other religions as the alternatives. There are even others who claim that they can get there just by being good, without needing any knowledge of Jesus at all. Still others claim that everyone will go to Heaven one day regardless of how they behave or what they think. But there is only one way, as we pilgrims know and understand. In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus said, “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it”. By God’s grace, we found the narrow gate leading us on a journey that at times is difficult. At times it seems to be populated by people on a broad highway, who are coming towards us and trying to get us to turn round and journey with them to the place we call hell. It is hard to find ourselves swimming against the tide sometimes. But we stick it out, persevering along the narrow road that leads to Glory.

In Revelation 3:20, Jesus said to the church in Laodicea, “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends”. The believers in Laodicea were admonished for being neither hot or cold in their faith. They claimed that they needed nothing but failed to realise how spiritually impoverished they were. But after giving them a hard time, Jesus’ grace prevailed with an invitation to listen for His voice and open up their hearts to allow Him to minister to them once again. But what an invitation it was, and one we can receive personally! Think about it. That Jesus would deign to share a meal with us, if only we would cast aside our pride and arrogance and in all humility bow at His feet. We must open up our gates and ancient doors before Him so that the King of Glory can be admitted. Jesus is waiting, but we have to do the opening.

Father God. You are the King of Glory, the Lord strong and mighty. We praise and worship You today. Amen.