Five Words

Posted on by korgrocker

“I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you. But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language. Dear brothers and sisters, don’t be childish in your understanding of these things. Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind.”
1 Corinthians 14:18-20 NLT

Paul was apparently a great tongue speaker, but the Corinthians would have known that because he started the church there and pastored them for the first few months. Paul started in the synagogue, found much opposition, and so ended up meeting in a place right next door. But the people in the church had become believers in Jesus, responding to a message which had been the central thrust of Paul’s evangelism. They found that when they believed the Gospel message and were baptised for the forgiveness of their sins, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit in a way that astounded them with its power and its impact on their lives. Apart from when he used the other gifts, Paul was a great tongue-speaker, and that fact wasn’t lost on the Corinthian believers. 

But Paul had to address the overabundant use of the gift of tongues, and he laid out the necessary balance in a church meeting. Great to use the gift of tongues for their personal devotions, he said, but not in a church meeting, please! Instead, he encouraged them to seek God for five helpful words to build up the church. 

Fast forward to today and our church meetings. Whatever and wherever they are, there is always an opportunity to help other believers. Sadly, when we encounter another person, a negative situation often develops. There was a lady I used to know who got to church, which was a miracle in itself, because when she arrived, she unburdened herself of all her family problems. Negative after negative came up in conversation, but in return, a message in tongues would have been no help to her at all. Instead, she needed some words of encouragement to lift her and give her hope again. Sometimes five words would have been sufficient. 

“[God] will never leave you nor forsake you”

As we pilgrims go out and about, there are plenty of opportunities to bring five words of encouragement. It will probably be appropriate to say a few more words than five, but sometimes all another person needs to hear is that God loves them and cares for them. We need to have a word of Scripture ready and waiting. Something like 1 Peter 5:7, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you”. Or how about Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus”? Or there is Deuteronomy 31:6, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you”. As we read our Bibles every day, we must squirrel away useful and encouraging verses for future use so that when we meet people, we have a few words to edify them. We live in a sad and bad world, but we have a Heavenly Father who loves us, and He hates to see His children struggling unnecessarily with worldly burdens. 

Dear Heavenly Father. We love You and praise You today. We are so grateful for all You have done for us, for the times when You have lifted us up out of the miry clay and put a song in our hearts. Please help us to be Your mouthpiece to bring encouragement to the discouraged in our churches and neighbourhoods. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

We Need Each Other

Posted on by korgrocker

“But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. How strange a body would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.””
1 Corinthians 12:18-21 NLT

Paul continues with his analogy, using the human body, with all its constituent parts, as a comparison to the body of Christ, the church. In the verses we are considering today, Paul notes the interdependence of the various parts of the human body, something that we take for granted. In fact, if most parts of the body are removed, both they and the body from which they have come will die. Take, for example, a stomach. Not a very nice and visible part of the human body, but if it is removed, then the person will die. Other parts can be removed without a terminal result, and the body will continue to live, although its capabilities will be restricted. All of this is implied in Paul’s analogy, and the same sentiments apply to our churches and fellowships today. 

Human beings need each other, whether we like it or not. We look around our congregations, seeing the diverse backgrounds, nationalities, ages, employment statuses, and all, and often wonder how such a motley crew could ever function in the way that God intends. But Paul wrote, “God has put each part just where he wants it”. Right back in Genesis 2:18, we read about God’s plan for Adam. “Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him””. With the arrival of Eve, the basis for God’s plan for families was established. Genesis 3:20, “Then the man—Adam—named his wife Eve, because she would be the mother of all who live”. Over the page we read, “Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, “With the Lord’s help, I have produced a man!” Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel. When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground” (Genesis 4:1-2). Families and communities are all parts of God’s plan for human beings. They can, of course, be separated from the body of people of which they are a part, but most will then suffer from loneliness, and their lives will be the poorer for it. 

“Father to the fatherless, defender of widows— this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy. But he makes the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land”.

Psalm 68:5-6.

From these two verses, we note some principles that apply to our churches and fellowships as well as our communities. 

Firstly, we note God’s interest in the disadvantaged, such as orphans and widows. James wrote about this in James 1:27, “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you”. In our fellowships, we will have those who are on their own, and not just the widows and orphans. God’s plan is for the church to look after them, because the disadvantaged are still part of the body of Christ. 

Secondly, there are prisoners among us, and God has promised to set them free. We are, of course, all redeemed sinners, set free from the consequences of our sins by Jesus’ sacrifice at Calvary. Galatians 3:22, “But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ”. But for the others still bound up by their sins, or those who are prisoners of addictions and other lifestyle choices, God will set them free with our help. And their joy will know no limits. 

Thirdly, we read that those who are rebellious and who may even leave their church or natural families will find themselves in a place where they don’t want to be, wallowing in their loneliness and misery. A “sun-scorched land” indeed. Such people may not want to be part of a family, particularly God’s family, but by leaving, they will be the poorer. After all, one day we will be in Heaven, and we are told that the souls there will be countless in number, a big family indeed!

So, in conclusion, we need each other. This is how God has designed us, and going against His design will not end well for us.

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your care and provision, particularly with respect to Your family, the church. Please help us to look out for one another at every opportunity. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

One God, the Father

Posted on by korgrocker

“So, what about eating meat that has been offered to idols? Well, we all know that an idol is not really a god and that there is only one God. There may be so-called gods both in heaven and on earth, and some people actually worship many gods and many Lords. But for us, There is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live.”
1 Corinthians 8:4-6 NLT

I met a lady the other day, standing outside Dunfermline Abbey. She was listening to the organ being played, the soft tones carrying through a quiet but rather autumnal day. We started a conversation, during which I mentioned the God worshipped by the congregation that met in this ancient building, probing for an opportunity to share the Gospel. She mentioned that she believed in God but expanded on what she meant, explaining her understanding of a “god” who was in all world religions, and who was embedded in the very fabric of nature. She explained that to her, the adjacent tree was also “god”. Where do people get such weird ideas, ideas impregnated with a false understanding of God that has become so skewed and wrong? As we discovered yesterday, within every human being there is a “God-shaped” void that only He can fill, but without a voice declaring who God is, people create their own “god” in the hope that the empty ache inside will be somehow filled. In Paul’s day, created gods were called idols, and they obviously still exist today.

People have always created their own gods because something within them needs a spiritual being, a god, and it is far less hassle for most to worship a “god” that makes no demands of them. A “god” within them rather than a deity outside. And if they can include the possibility of pandering to their many human lusts, then even better. So, a popular “god” in ancient Greek days was Aphrodite, the goddess of love and procreation, but there were others in the Greek and Roman pantheons of deities. We won’t find temples dedicated to such deities in our towns and cities today. However, their influence lives on in the sinful practices of those in our societies, and we even still use words derived from their names, used to describe lustful acts associated with them and their ancient worship. But Paul wrote to the Corinthians saying that, even though there were so many idols, there is only “one God, the Father”.

The Jews were commanded to worship the one and only God. Exodus 20:3, “You must not have any other god but me“. And then we have the Shema prayer from Deuteronomy 6:4-5, “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength“. These verses establish the foundational belief in the absolute oneness and uniqueness of God, refuting the polytheistic beliefs of surrounding cultures and affirming that only the Lord (Yahweh) is the true and singular God. 

Paul expanded on God the Father as being the One “by whom all things were created”, something we know from Genesis 1. However, there is another sad religion, which has emerged in our schools and places of learning, and that is evolution. The high priests of this religion are people such as the prominent atheist Richard Dawkins, who say they believe in no god at all, and they have spent much of their lives promoting their beliefs, rubbishing the one true God in the process. But the evolutionists believe that given the right mix of chemicals, a flash of lightning, and billions of years, a living entity will emerge from the sea somehow, and then stand up on two legs and walk the land. Someone once described to me that the beliefs of an evolutionist are like putting all the constituent parts of an old-fashioned clockwork wrist watch, cogs and all, into a bag and then shaking it, and keep shaking it, because eventually, given enough time, a watch will emerge intact and fully functional. Really? There is much more that can be said, but what these people forget is that at some time all the chemicals and other matter had to be created, something they conveniently ignore. Many years ago, my teenage daughter, well-versed in the church’s Sunday school teachings, challenged her biology teacher about the evolutionary “facts” being promoted and got him to admit that the Theory of Evolution was just that —a theory.

Paul finally described God as not just a Creating God, but One “for whom we live”. Now there’s a challenge! Do we live for God or do we live to satisfy our own desires, and in the process, live for the god of this world, the devil. Jesus was asked by a Pharisaical religious legal expert the question, “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” (Matthew 22:36). We read what Jesus said in return, “ …  “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments”” (Matthew 22:37-40). That was what Paul was meaning when he gently reminded the Corinthian believers that they must live only for God. There is no middle way for a pilgrim, then or now. We are either totally for God or totally against Him. Yes, in our daily lives we will occasionally lapse back into the human world of “the lusts of our flesh”, but through Jesus we have forgiveness and the resources we need to continue our journey. 

Jesus said to the Laodicean church, “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realise that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” (Revelation 3:15-17). Do we pilgrims need the same wake-up call, or are we on fire for God, “hot” in all the things that we do? A little later, Jesus said to the Laodiceans, “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” (Revelation 3:20). Can we hear a gentle knock at the door of our hearts this morning? Can we feel a hunger in our souls? Then all we have to do is allow Jesus to enter into our lives, our hearts, so that once again we can feast on His love, grace, and presence. He has done so much for us. Don’t let us ever lock Him out of our lives. We live for God and only God, this day and forever.

Dear Lord Jesus. Thank You for all You have done for us. We thank You too for this rich life we have found as we live for God. Please help us through the hard and difficult times, and show us the way so that we don’t take a wrong turning and lose heart. In Your precious name. Amen.

Gifts From God

Posted on by korgrocker

“Dear brothers and sisters, I have used Apollos and myself to illustrate what I’ve been saying. If you pay attention to what I have quoted from the Scriptures, you won’t be proud of one of your leaders at the expense of another. For what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?”
1 Corinthians 4:6-7 NLT

Paul continues in his rebuke about preferring one leader over another and making judgments, both demonstrating worldly behaviour not appropriate for believers. We can just imagine the quarrels that had been going on as they discussed the merits and strengths of one leader, only to find disagreement from other believers who instead preferred another leader. Today, the same thing happens, with one congregant perhaps saying, “Good sermon from Fred today, the Holy Spirit was really moving”, only to hear someone else say, “Didn’t think much of Fred’s message today; it was rather boring, don’t you think?” And it is issues such as this that have caused people to quarrel and disagree with one another, and even leave one church to find another with a preacher who has a delivery style they prefer. But Paul said to them that they had to stop making such judgments, which is true both then and today. If we view the preacher as being God’s messenger, as Paul and Apollos were, then the responsibility for hearing what God wants to say rests just as much with the hearer as the deliverer. As an aside, perhaps today, should the preacher not be to our taste, then we must try all the harder to hear and understand what he is saying, and definitely we must not switch off and potentially miss what God wants to say. Taking notes of the sermon helps, as does an opening prayer asking for God’s help.

We must also remember what Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:11-12, “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ“. Viewing our church leaders through the lens of these verses, perhaps, will help us to understand where the responsibility lies for our spiritual growth as believers. Many a message from these men will be uncomfortable to hear because they may expose what God wants to deal with in our lives. So a teacher one Sunday might base his message on Ephesians 6:4, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord“, but we men might possibly start to squirm in embarrassment in our seats because of our behaviour in the home. It would not be any good rubbishing the preacher just because we don’t like what he is saying. He is only delivering a message based on what God has said to him, something that he might have heard during his prayers that week. As is often said, “don’t shoot the messenger”!

But Paul continued to labour his point. The Corinthians were not just saying that they didn’t like a sermon. They went much further in judging its worth. For some reason, they believed that they had the right to assess the message and, from that, make judgments on the ability and character of the preacher. And in the process, they totally missed what God wanted to say to them. The points in the message were drowned out by personal feelings, judgments and arguments. So sad. But Paul was having none of this and said so quite forcibly. But he went on to make the point that although he and Apollos were gifts to the church in Corinth, the Corinthians were boasting about this not being the case. What gave the Corinthians the right to judge the merits of their leaders? It’s the same today – what gives us believers the right to make judgment over another believer, let alone the church leaders? The only criterion for judging a preacher or leader about what they had said was if the message being delivered was not in alignment with the Scriptures. Something like this is easier today because we have the full Canon of Scripture, but that didn’t stop the Berean Christians, who only had what we refer to as the Old Testament – Acts 17:11, “And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth”. 

The Corinthians didn’t really recognise Paul and Apollos as being gifts to the church in Corinth. But that didn’t change anything, because these faithful men continued to do their best in delivering God’s message. They lived in the light of Ephesians 4:11-12 through the power of the Holy Spirit, gifts to the Corinthian church, whether or not the people there believed it. But we believers have many gifts granted to us by our Heavenly Father. The Apostle James wrote, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). We mustn’t forget the best and greatest gift of all though, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Paul wrote that everything we have is a gift from God, and we must be continually grateful.

Dear Heavenly Father. Thank You for this life that You have granted to us. Please forgive us for our grumblings and lack of gratitude, and help us instead to look to You as the Source of everything that is good in our lives. When sickness or difficulties come our way, we look to You and pray because You have the answers and the remedies. We trust You, Lord, and thank You for Your love and kindness. Amen.

Unimaginable God

Posted on by korgrocker

“But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.””
1 Corinthians 2:8-9 NLT

Worldly people, unbelievers in God, have no idea about God and His wisdom. A human being has no natural contact with the spiritual world, a super-natural place which we cannot see, touch, smell, taste or hear using our natural senses. And so anything a human being tries to work out about a mystical and elusive world beyond their senses is bound to fail. But a person rooted in a world driven by their senses bolstered by human reasoning and logic, comes up with a wisdom that falls far short of what God has made available. There is of course nothing wrong with human wisdom when properly utilised. That is why God has created humans with a brain that is amazing in its capabilities, but imaginative scientists and philosophers come up with much that pushes boundaries but inevitably finds limitations. Hardly a day goes past without some new discovery about our natural world, be it an atomic particle, or a new vaccine. Sadly, theories regarding the origins of the universe and the purpose of life itself change regularly and we find that human wisdom is woefully lacking, with significant limitations.

But what about God’s wisdom? Inaccessible although it is to mere unbelieving humans, we pilgrims are allowed a glimpse of the thoughts and plans of God. They are not available to people who fail to recognise Him and believe that He exists. But in those thoughts and plans we find God’s wisdom, and in His Word, the Bible, we find hints, glimpses, advice and assurances about this Heavenly world that we will one day find. Paul quoted a verse from Isaiah 64 in his Corinthian letter, which in the original reads, “For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!” (Isaiah 64:4). Paul’s memory came up with slightly different words, but the meaning is much the same. We have a loving Heavenly Father who is working for us and preparing a world, an environment, something and somewhere, but we cannot even start to imagine what it will be like. And even though the prophets of old were given tantalising hints of what was to come, no one can get anywhere near discovering what lies ahead. Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah and even the old Apostle John all had thoughts and visions inspired by the Holy Spirit, but there is a problem. What they “saw” is so far beyond anything seen or imagined that we will find they are not even close to what God has for us in His plans. 

So human wisdom, thoughts, imaginations, and discoveries are silent when it comes to God’s spiritual world. Jesus said to His disciples, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am” (John 14:1-3). We know that one day we will have a home where Jesus lives, because we know and believe that He is alive today, but what form that home will take we don’t know. Our imagination usually starts at the point of human knowledge but then ventures into unknown places. Places that “no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined”. The Holy Spirit revealed something to Isaiah about God, ““My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). Human wisdom cannot bring us to the understanding that the Creator God loves His people and that He has prepared the glories of eternity to share with them. Our intellects will try and work it all out, but will come up painfully short. But we cannot trust in what God say He has for us without faith in Him. It is only by having faith in God, by believing the hints, glimpses and prophetic words contained in the Bible, that we will be able to be assured of our destination with our “unimaginable God”. The writer to the Hebrews wrote, “ … it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). 

But can we pilgrims start to feel a little excitement starting to build in our spirits? Are we feeling a little like a small child promised a trip to the seaside, feeling the anticipation starting to appear in our minds, our imaginations? What will the sea and sand be like? Will it be sunny? And so on. And of course we mustn’t forget the cry from the back seat – “are we nearly there yet?” The wise old pastor and expositor, John MacArthur, died recently and he will now be finding out if what he preached was in fact the reality he is now experiencing. Such revelation will also become available to all of us one day. But we pilgrims at least know where we are heading, having been given a glimpse of what is ahead. Pity all those who don’t believe because they are heading for a nasty shock and a future about which they can do nothing. All those poor people who have relied only on their human wisdom and knowledge, and who have rejected the King of Glory.

Dear Heavenly Father. Our human minds can never work out what plans You have for us in the future. But we believe in You and in the Words of Your Son Jesus, with a faith that will never be rocked by world events. We praise and worship You today. Amen.

World Rulers

Posted on by korgrocker

“No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God—his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord.”
1 Corinthians 2:7-8 NLT

How grateful we must be for God’s Secret Plan, the mystery of God, and the Message of the Cross. Through them all, they all came to fruition on the fateful “Good Friday” when Jesus lost His life in terrible circumstances. Why did God allow it to happen? Because it was all in His plan, established before the foundation of the world, the plan that would lead to “our ultimate glory”. We know that the plan, involving His secret wisdom, would make it possible for our sin to be forgiven by Christ’s death instead of our own and for us to be declared righteous based on Christ’s righteousness and not our own. 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. 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” (Romans 8:29-30). In fact, the saints in previous generations used to describe what would happen to them after they die, as being “elevated to Glory”, using a definition of Heaven to describe what will happen after they crossed the Great Divide. God’s plan for us wasn’t just about forgiveness of sins, important as that is, but it also involved giving each one of us Jesus’ righteousness and glory. And all planned and kept secret “before the world began”. 

Paul saw the irony of the situation and said that if the “rulers of this world” knew what they were doing, they would not have allowed Jesus to be crucified. The devil thought that by killing the Son of God he would win the final battle in his tussle with the God who evicted him from Heaven. But how wrong he was. He must have heard the times when Jesus predicted His death, with scriptures like John 3:14-15, “And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life“. He must have read Psalm 22:16b, “ … They have pierced my hands and feet”. We know that the devil knew his Bible because he quoted from it during Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. But he of course knew nothing about God’s Secret Plan and the final outcome that would defeat death once and for all. No believer in Jesus, no-one who was a chosen child of God, will ever experience the finality of death at the end of their lives. Instead, as Jesus promised, they will live forever, ruling and reigning with Him.

But who were these “rulers of this world”? They divided into two camps, spiritual and natural, with one being influenced by the other. Paul wrote about the spiritual rulers in Ephesians 6:12, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places“. These were the rulers that Paul warned believers in Ephesus about, and by implication, believers who have lived ever since. As we know from Ephesians 6, Paul used the pieces of armour worn by the Roman soldiers sent to guard him in prison, as a template for the spiritual armour God has supplied for our defence. But these “evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world” were behind the natural rulers, the Roman authorities and the Jewish scribes, lawyers, Pharisees and Sadducees. It is interesting to note that God’s plan was nearly thwarted by the Roman Governor, Pilate, when Jesus was brought before him. He had the power to release Jesus but instead he bottled it because of the baying mob before him. Pilate was in a difficult position and frightened witless by the situation before him. John played down Pilate’s reaction in John 19:8, stripping out the emotion, “When Pilate heard this, he was more frightened than ever”. We know from another Gospel that his wife had warned him not to have anything to do with Jesus’ sentencing, and in John 19:10, we read, ““Why don’t you talk to me?” Pilate demanded. “Don’t you realise that I have the power to release you or crucify you?”” Jesus’ reply convinced him that He was innocent, and Pilate tried to release Him, but to no avail. God’s plan came to fruition and many people present at that time will find themselves having to give an account as to why they demanded the crucifixion of the very One who was sat on the throne before them, the One we know as the Saviour of the World. We don’t have time to review the role of Judas in all this, another pawn in God’s Secret Plan.

What about the “rulers of this world” today?  They are still trying to frustrate the Plan set up by God “before the world began”. Just in the UK, we find legislation passed to murder innocent pre-birth babies in a direct challenge to one of God’s laws. We find legislation passed to approve marriages between people of the same sex, again in contravention of God’s definition and requirements for Holy Matrimony. Do they not understand what they are doing?  God’s Plan has still some way to go because Jesus has not yet returned to rule and reign this world (Revelation 20:4). At this time the devil will be locked away for a thousand years and Jesus will govern this world along with the believers who have prevailed to the end. And at this time the “rulers of this world”, spiritual and natural, will have no say at all. Perfect government with Jesus the King.

So what do we pilgrims think of all this, and how do we live in these dark times, in our sad, mad and bad world? Paul set out our response to our leaders in Romans 13:1-2 and the verses following, “Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished“. Hard as it is for some to accept, there is a Higher Power at work in the world, and in our lives, and we must be obedient to our rulers. We may look on in dismay as they make an absolute hash of government, thrashing around apparently with no idea of what they are doing, lacking any sort of moral compass, and unaware that there is One in Heaven who can give them the correct guidance, if only they asked. But we remember it was God who allowed them to be there. Romans 13:4, “The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong“. It is extremely comforting to know that God is still the ultimate King and He is still occupying His throne. 

So we pilgrims pray for our rulers and authorities, for those who govern our lands. We pray for God’s people everywhere, especially those who are being persecuted for their faith. And we pray for ourselves and our families, that we will all be kept safe from the evil one. We remember that we live “under the shadow of [God’s] wings”. There is no better place to be.

Dear Heavenly and Glorious Father. We thank You that You hold the whole world in Your hands, and that nothing happens unless You have allowed it. We pray for opportunities to share Your Plan with those around us so that they too will come to know Jesus, the One crucified. And we praise and worship You today. Amen.

Boasting

Posted on by korgrocker

“God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.””
1 Corinthians 1:28-31 NLT

Who are the “boasters” in society today? usually, these are the people, men and women and even children, who think they have something significant in their lives to boast about. Perhaps they are great sportspeople, with a string of awards for athletic prowess, being the fastest at running, or the highest long-jumper. There is much boasting going on after a goal is scored in a football match or for the winner in a boxing match. Or consider a bore at a social gathering, boasting about his success in the business world, or a woman boasting about her wonderful new house. In the academic world there are boasters who brashly brag about the paper or book they have just written referring to some obscure mathematical theory, or medical procedure they have invented. Yesterday I met a man who was a great boaster. Recently retired, he outlined all that he was doing, and he talked much about his boat moored in the Forth Estuary, his camper van and where he’s been, his motorbike and sports bicycle. Sad really, and the first thought that came to my mind was the parable of the Rich Fool, who tore down his barns and built bigger ones to store his bumper crops, and then said to himself, “ … You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry” (Luke 12:19). and then we read in the next verse, ““But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’” But all these boasters have two things in common – they think they are better than their fellow members of society, and consequently God has no time for them. Psalm 5:5, “The boastful and the arrogant will not stand in Your sight; You hate all who do evil“. Paul wrote about the foolish people who have rejected God, and with them those that boast, “They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents” (Romans 1:30). 

Yesterday we considered ordinary people, the majority in our societies, who go about their daily business with little, if anything, considered of value to society. They would be struggling to find anything to boast about at a significant level, although there is always something that could be found. Perhaps they could boast about having met a member of royalty or they have a certain number of great grandchildren. But the one thing that Paul singled out was those people in society who boast about their wisdom and knowledge. 1 Corinthians 1:20, “So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish”. These people who the world considers wise and knowledgeable have to work very hard to avoid being labelled “boasters”, but they fail to realise that in God’s sight such attributes are worthless because He considers them “foolish”. We read more about Paul’s perspective in Philippians 3:3b-5, “ … We put no confidence in human effort, though I could have confidence in my own effort if anyone could. Indeed, if others have reason for confidence in their own efforts, I have even more! I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law“. In Acts 23:6 Paul claimed he was a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees, promoting himself upwards into the elite in his society. But in Philippians 3:7-8 he wrote, “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ“. Paul got it, and his life was a living example of a man who had rejected all that the world considered of value and instead he started right at the bottom, on his knees, before the cross of Christ.

There is a sober lesson for us pilgrims today. It doesn’t matter what we have done or think we have done. It doesn’t matter how well we were educated, or what job we have, or where we have lived and so on. We have nothing to boast about because before God our human achievements don’t impress Him at all. Jeremiah wrote, “This is what the Lord says: “Don’t let the wise boast in their wisdom, or the powerful boast in their power, or the rich boast in their riches. But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things. I, the Lord, have spoken!” (Jeremiah 9:23-24). We humans always like to have something to boast about because, so we think, it makes us look better than those around us. In a secular society with many people, anything that somehow elevates them above their fellows is to be sought out and promoted. But not us pilgrims. We instead promote our faith and belief in Jesus, because this is the only wisdom or knowledge that is worth anything. And, paradoxically, such eternal knowledge and wisdom is thought foolishness to those around us and unbelievers discard it as being worthless and to be pitied. Such people, fully of their worldly boasts, puffed up with pride, will find one day that when they cross the Great Divide, they can’t take anything with them. Before God, they have empty hands because all the rubbish that they used to contain has been burnt up and not even ash will remain. God doesn’t need human prowess and knowledge – after all, He created it in the first place. The only knowledge worth anything is the knowledge of Christ. As Paul said, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!” (Philippians 3:10-11). 

Do we pilgrims truly know the Lord? Are we able and willing to boast about His saving grace and love? Are we aware of the dangers of focussing too much on our human abilities and in the process boasting about the wrong things? One day we will be, and of course we won’t want to look back in regret at what we left behind. With Paul, we cast aside our human inclinations and ” … press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us”(Philippians 3:12b-14). Paul also wrote, “Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

Am I labouring the point? Probably, but human wisdom and knowledge has no place in the Kingdom of God, and He has labelled such attributes foolishness. But along with Paul I am looking ahead, in the knowledge that the past contains much that could skew my faith. At every opportunity I will tell people about Christ and all that He has done for me. I don’t care much for those who consider me foolish, but the important thing is that I can hear Jesus cheering me on, and that is all that matters. And one day will I hear those words, “well done …”? I hope and pray that this will be the case, and I know that all pilgrims everywhere hope to hear the same.

Dear Father God. You are the only Source of knowledge and wisdom that really matters. So we praise and worship You, asking that Your reveal to us all that we need for our lives lived in this world. And as we journey on in our faith, we look forward, reading Your Word and marvelling about finding all that we need to confound the wisdom of the wise. Thank You. Amen.

The Holy Place

Posted on by korgrocker

“Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies. They will receive the Lord’s blessing and have a right relationship with God their Saviour. Such people may seek you and worship in your presence, O God of Jacob.”
Psalm 24:3-6 NLT

David asks a question – “Who may climb the mountain of the Lord”? But before we move on to the answer, we must ask what the Lord’s mountain is, or was, and where it actually was. To the Jews there was a sacred place on which the Temple could be found called Mount Zion, a hill located in Jerusalem. So David was perhaps focused on a specific place when he wrote this Psalm. But in answer to the original questionnaire “Who may climb“, the “mountain of the Lord” was a “holy place” and was not to be defiled by anyone who was a sinner. Anyone coming into the Lord’s “holy place” needed to be clean and pure inside and out, and telling lies and the worship of idols were specifically highlighted as impure actions. Not just that, however, their hearts had to be pure. David may have written this Psalm in anticipation of the day when the Temple was finally built by his son Solomon (2 Chronicles 5) and he could foresee a procession of priests carrying the Ark of the Lord into the Holy Place. Or perhaps it was earlier than that, with the Ark brought into the special tent prepared by David to his City, Jerusalem, as we read in 2 Samuel 6. But there was a misconception in those days that to worship God you had to be in a special place, somewhere considered holy, somewhere such as when Jacob had the ladder experience in a dream. We read in Genesis 28:16-17, “Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!” But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”” Before he left Jacob anointed a memorial stone, naming the place the House of God, or Bethel. 

Much later, when Jesus stopped by a well on a journey from Galilee to Jerusalem, he had an encounter with a Samaritan woman who asked him a question, “So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?”” (John 4:20).In response, Jesus told her, “ … Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem” (John 4:21). In Matthew 6:6, Jesus said, “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you”. Jesus set the scene for believers everywhere that the “holy place” in their lives was somewhere private where they could be on their own with the Lord. 

At first glance, these words about mountains, holy places and idol worship seem to be a million miles away from us pilgrims on 21st Century Planet Earth. But there are some lessons to be learned, and some spiritual insights that we would do well to follow. We pilgrims look around our country, the UK, and can see many churches, considered sacred places of worship by many. Apparently, there are over 40,000 “places of worship”, many of them ornate and impressive buildings. But it may come as a surprise to many of our fellow believers that they don’t have to go there to find God. For many years, particularly as a young boy, I was convinced that there was something of God underneath that ornate cloth draped over a table called an altar at the front of the church, the place where the minister went through certain ceremonial functions particularly in the communion service. Every time the minister or church official walked in its vicinity, they genuflected before moving on, further affirming my thoughts. Without a doubt, many Christians are helped in their faith by the stained glass windows, the altar ornately decorated, the carvings and the statues. God may be there but only inasmuch as He is everywhere, always on hand for those who call upon His name. In Jeremiah 23:24 we read, “Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord”. David wrote, in another Psalm, “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me” (Psalm 139:7-10). God is omnipresent. And regarding all the churches, Isaiah wrote, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting-place be?”(Isaiah 66:1). No matter how wonderful and amazing a church building is, it will never be good enough for God to live there. The answer to the question “where is God” is perhaps found in the hearts and minds of believers everywhere, wherever they are.

We pilgrims can draw close to God regardless of our location, latitude or longitude. My favourite place is in God’s creation, the woods and parks that adorn our countryside, because it is there that I find that God listens to my fumbling prayers. Amongst the trees and birdsong I find a “holy place”, where, in His presence, I first confess my sins so that I can indeed “climb the mountain of the Lord” with a pure heart. Others find a place of communion with God in their bedrooms or studies or even a prison cell. But cleansed of our sin, regardless of where we are, we can indeed climb into God’s presence, where we will receive His blessing, and worship Him once again.

Dear Father God. In Your presence we find peace for our souls and comfort in our struggles. You are the only One worth worshiping. Amen.

Unfailing Love

Posted on by korgrocker

“You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honour me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. 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 23:5-6 NLT

David identified God’s goodness and includes with it His “unfailing love”. Other translations translate verse 6 as “Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life …” (AMP) or “faithful love” (CSB) or “love” (NIV). But we get the picture. God’s love is faithful and unfailing and it will pursue us “all the days of [our] lives”. The theme of God’s love is impregnated within the Bible from cover to cover. A favourite mention of God’s love for me can be found in another Davidic Psalm. We read in Psalm 36:5, 10, “Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. … Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts”. We enlightened men and women in the 21st Century know that the extent of the “heavens” have not yet been discovered , adding weight to the extent of God’s love. More and more powerful telescopes just find more and more of the universe, with no end in sight. And we know that the region “beyond the clouds” has no end to it either. 

There are some human examples of “unfailing love” in the Bible, and the Book of Ruth tells the story of an extraordinary woman who uttered the statement to her mother-in-law, “ … Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!” (Ruth 1:16-17). We could also turn to the Book of Hosea, a man who went to extraordinary lengths in love for his wayward wife, Gomer. But Jesus told a parable about a father and two sons, one a waster who squandered his inheritance before finally realised that his way of sin could not be sustained and that he had to repent and get things put right with his father. The son put together a humble and repentant statement and started for home. We read in Jesus’ parable what he was going to say, “I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant“” (Luke 15:18-19). But look at the unfailing love of his father, who daily kept watch just in case his wayward son was returning home, “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him” (Luke 15:20). That’s “unfailing love” pursuing a sinner.  That’s human love, so imagine how much greater God’s love is. In fact, we know it’s extent from John 3:16, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life“. There is no greater love than that, and throughout the Bible the theme running through is God pursuing mankind, His love unstinting and so extensive that it would not stop at anything to restore His creation back to its rightful place. 

Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:17-19, “Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God”. Paul wrote about the extent of God’s love with an unlimited three dimensional picture of width, length and height, which we know from Psalm 36 completely fills an infinite universe. But Paul added an additional dimension, “depth”, and I take from this that Paul was referring to a fourth dimension, time. God’s love not only fills the universe but it is also eternal and timeless, and it pursues us whatever the age in which we have been born. 

And there is more about God’s love. Paul wrote in Romans 8:38-39, “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord”. 

Do we pilgrims feel God’s love today? Even if we don’t, we know it is there. There is nothing we can do to stop it. We can deny it. We can refuse it. We can even throw it back into God’s face. But we can never stop it. God’s love for us humans knows no bounds and He keeps on loving us day after day, hour after hour, and forever. And in worship we offer our grateful hearts, in an offering of love and service, “forever and ever”.

Dear Father God, thank You for Jesus, the One who loved us so much that He was prepared to die for us. Such love! Thank You Lord. Amen.

Darkest Valleys

Posted on by korgrocker

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honour to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.”
Psalm 23:1-4 NLT

Notice that David wrote “when” not “if” when he considered the darkest valleys. We know that David suffered some dark times in his often eventful journey through life. Take what he wrote in Psalm 31:9-10 for example, “Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am in distress. Tears blur my eyes. My body and soul are withering away. I am dying from grief; my years are shortened by sadness. Sin has drained my strength; I am wasting away from within“. Was that a “darkest valley” for David? 

Elijah came to suffer in a dark place too, as we read in 1 Kings 19:4, “Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.”” In Elijah’s case, he had just been God’s front man at the epic event on the top of Mount Carmel, where God sent fire to consume the sacrifice, after which Elijah despatched 450 prophets of Baal. But the miracles didn’t stop there, because the three and a half year drought came to an end and “the Lord gave special strength to Elijah” allowing him to run faster than Ahab’s chariot. But then we read that Elijah literally did a runner after Jezebel’s threats, ending up in a “darkest valley” in the wilderness and under a broom tree, whatever that was.

One of the darkest Psalms in the Bible is Psalm 88. It was written by a man called Heman the Ezrahite and contains eighteen verses of gloom and depression, describing a valley so dark that it is a wonder that he could have written it at all. Verse 6, “You have thrown me into the lowest pit, into the darkest depths“, and he finishes “Darkness is my closest friend”. Oh dear! But to Heman perhaps the most poignant verses are 13 and 14, “O Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day. O Lord, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face from me?”

Being in a “darkest valley” is indeed a terrible place to be. A blackness descends over all aspects of a person’s thinking, to the extent that no good can be found anywhere. But there are varying degrees of “darkest valleys”. Today we would perhaps suggest that such a place as a “darkest valley” is the mental state of depression, which seems endemic in today’s world. In the context of Psalm 23, a spiritual “darkest valley” is more likely than a physical “darkest valley” of which there are many around the world in the wildest and most remote parts, valleys sometime scary but mostly harmless. But why should we pilgrims ever experience depression, because, after all, God loves and cares for us. There are many causes of depression, a study of which is beyond our morning’s read, but the reality is that a Christian is no more immune from a valley experience than an unbeliever. Sadly, some consider depression as a sin, and although that could be the case in some situations, it is unhelpful to treat the depressive as a sinner. 

I occasionally meet people who tell me that they are depressed about the state of the world, usually in response to me sharing about my hope in Jesus. Their response is a forerunner to a question that goes something like this – “If God is a God of love why does He allow so much suffering and mayhem in the world?” They reject God because they consider Him to be the architect of all their, and the world’s, woes, or, if not, He is at least powerless to stop them. Without waiting for an explanation, such a person walks away, continuing in their depressed state, one more hopeless person in a hopeless world. But we pilgrims have a message of hope for such people and we pray for the opportunities to share all about God and what He has done for us. God is indeed a God of love, but He is also a God of righteousness and justice, and we will never know, in this life, the extent of His gracious power in holding back the forces of evil, intent on destroying God’s created human beings.

But what should we pilgrims do when we get depressed? We get medical help just in case the condition is treatable, and we call on our pastor and Christian friends to pray for us. We remember all of God’s promises. Ones that have helped me include 1 Peter 5:7, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you“. David prayed Psalm 43:5, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Saviour and my God!” Jesus said to His disciples, “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And we pray for ourselves, believing God for a solution. But in those “darkest valleys” where things are so black that we cannot even contemplate anything to do with God, we are assured that He is close behind us, protecting and comforting us. And we remember that every valley is followed by a mountain top. Valleys won’t last forever.

Dear Father God. We know that in Your presence there is no sickness and pain, and we look ahead to the time when “darkest valleys” are no more. Thank You Jesus. Amen.