Grace and Peace Multiplied

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,”
2 Peter 1:2 NKJV

Peter writes some encouragement for his readers, a blessing numbering just a few words but limitless in scope. And the blessing didn’t stop after it rested on the inhabitants of the five provinces – it has reverberated down through the ages right to the present day. Peter opened a door for his readers, a door labelled “Grace and Peace”, and by it he provided a glimpse into the world inside, a vista of God’s blessings disappearing without limit into the distance. 

Grace is a word that encapsulates the unmerited favour and divine kindness that God has poured out upon mankind. The benevolence that God displays started with the creation of the world and is still with us today. There is no end to His favour, and Peter presents an opportunity for his readers, of receiving more than a single portion. God’s grace, Peter says, is “multiplied” to them from a bottomless reservoir that will never be exhausted. He spoke out that blessing over them through his pen, and I’m sure his early readers would have felt the Holy Spirit pour over them.

Peter could have left his blessing just with grace, but he added to it the concept of peace. Grace paves the way for peace, creating a harmonious synergy between God and us pilgrims. Through His grace we can experience a peace so profound that it is life changing in our world, conflicted as it is by sin. But the peace that Peter wrote about is not just the absence of conflict but a profound tranquillity that surpasses understanding. Paul also wrote about this peace in Philippians 4:7, “and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus“. In an age marked by chaos, the assurance of multiplied peace becomes a beacon of hope to a sad world in despair.

We pilgrims are the enlightened ones. We know God’s grace and peace. We have experienced Peter’s prayer in our lives and have warmed ourselves in the glow from God’s multiplied blessings. But we must act as reflectors, focusing the heavenly rays to those around us, alleviating their distress and despair. We pray that we have the words to say, the deeds to act, to bridge the gap and penetrate the hard outward crust covering the hunger inside our Godless friends and neighbours. Paul wrote in his second Corinthian letter, “He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us” (2 Corinthians 1:4). That’s multiplied grace leading to the comfort of an inner peace. The grace we receive can be multiplied to others.

But we pilgrims must never forget that God’s boundless blessings of multiplied grace and peace is for us too. We need more grace, more peace, more of God, to help us gain “the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord”. There is no limit to God’s grace and peace except ourselves.

Dear Heavenly Father. We thank You for Your many blessings and all the resources we need for our journey through life. All supplied through Jesus. We worship You today. Amen.

The Authority of Elders

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“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.””
1 Peter 5:5 NLT

Peter moves on in his writings to include the relationship between elders and the rest of the flock. In particular, he singles out the younger members of the congregation, young in either age or the faith. And he says that they should “accept the authority of the elders”. Perhaps in Peter’s days, there was more in the way of respect between generations, but today there seems to be little. Even in my younger days, we respected anyone in authority, be they policemen, or bank managers, school teachers or ministers. But today, if we believe the news reports, there is a reluctance for anyone to assume an authoritarian position in case they conflict with “human rights” or have to challenge bad behaviour, all for fear of legislative hassles. And when it comes to social media, even the most innocuous expression of a view that is different will potentially invite a torrent of abuse. Thankfully, there are still young people today who have a different spirit, and who gain respect because they grant it to others.

But cutting through all of this is God’s model. He has laid down an authoritarian structure in His church, and the elders are responsible for implementing it, admonishing or correcting the younger members if necessary. And the “young” are told to accept what the elders say.

But Peter didn’t stop there, and went on to say that all the church members should dress in humility. Did he mean that all clothes should be similar in style using dark colours, preferably black or grey? Was Peter promoting at least one of the features of the Amish people? I don’t think he meant physical dress at all, but rather was promoting humility in the relationships we have we each other. And he quotes Proverbs 3:34 from the Greek Bible version. But from the Amplified translation this proverb reads, “Though He scoffs at the scoffers and scorns the scorners, Yet He gives His grace [His undeserved favour] to the humble [those who give up self-importance]”. Paul wrote a lovely few verses in Philippians 2, and amongst them is verses 3 and 4, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too”. By reading this passage from Philippians again I find a witness in my spirit, confirming God’s model for His children. But the verses that Paul wrote are hugely different from world group-think, a counter-cultural presentation showing how far our societies have moved away from God’s relational model.

A good Bible verse about humility is Proverbs 11:2, “Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom”. Solomon wrote that many centuries ago and it is amazing that it still applies as much today as it did then. The Apostle James wrote, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honour” (James 4:10). Showing humility before God and the human beings around us can be hard because something within us rises up and says, “What about me!” But that’s not God’s way. If there’s any promotion of an individual needed, then it is best left to God. He will do the honouring.

Dear Father God. We bow before You today in all humility and worship. It’s all about You, Lord, not about us. Amen.

Eldership Qualities

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t Lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honour.”
1 Peter 5:1-4 NLT

We continue our examination of who elders are and the qualities required for this job. We have considered how an elder is entrusted with looking after the “flock”, the members of the congregation in the churches that they lead. And we also ventured into the contentious area of eldership gender. But moving on, we find that an elder must be above reproach. Titus 1:7, “A church leader is a manager of God’s household, so he must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money”. Nothing contentious there, I would think. An elder is someone who believers in his church will look up to and whose behaviour they will emulate. After all, the elders pastor those in the church, and bad behaviour or poor leadership will hardly be of value in accomplishing their core mission.

Another quality of an elder is that he must be hospitable. Titus 1:8a, “Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home … ”. Being hospitable is mentioned in several places in the Bible, and the Greek word for hospitality is, apparently, “love of strangers”. To be hospitable to anyone is often not a convenient act but one that nevertheless is something Christians are encouraged to do. When Paul was shipwrecked on the island of Malta, he, and his colleagues and captors, were looked after through the hospitality of a local landowner called Publius, and in Acts 28:7 we read, “Near the shore where we landed was an estate belonging to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us and treated us kindly for three days“. That’s hospitality. We also note from Hebrews 13:2, “Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!” An angel in my home? Amazing? Jesus also taught on hospitality, as we read in Matthew 24:35, “For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home”.

‭‭‭‭Paul added the requirement of being able to teach to the role of an elder,  “ …  and he must be able to teach” (1 Timothy 3:2b). To teach in a church context means having the ability to take and read the Scriptures and expound them in a way that imparts knowledge to the listeners. The Apostles and elders in the church in Jerusalem appointed deacons so ” … we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word“. 

‭Being an elder is sometimes a thankless task but one that can also be very rewarding. We pilgrims, who sit under the ministry of elders must pray for them. Hebrews 13:17, “Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit“. 

Dear Heavenly Father. We do indeed pray for our church leaders, those whom You have appointed to oversee Your local expression of the Church. Please be with them, keeping them safe, we pray. Amen.

Elders

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And now, a word to you who are elders in the churches. I, too, am an elder and a witness to the sufferings of Christ. And I, too, will share in his glory when he is revealed to the whole world. As a fellow elder, I appeal to you: Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly—not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t Lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honour.”
1 Peter 5:1-4 NLT

Peter starts the next chapter in his first letter by writing directly to the “elders in the churches”. These men (always men in those days) are the church leaders, the “pastors and spiritual leaders” as the Amplified Bible version explains. What these church leaders are named today depends on which denomination we belong to, but every fellowship of believers will have a leader or leaders. Peter himself explains that he was an elder as well, but one with a special qualification. He walked with Jesus for three years and was “a witness to the sufferings of Christ”. 

The work of an elder hasn’t changed over the years since the first appointments in the First Century. It is a role that can be very demanding and time consuming. It involves interactions, sometimes painful, with the church members, dealing with issues, good and bad. But the elder’s role is essential for the discipline and spiritual growth of pilgrims everywhere. Elders can be involved in decision-making, as we read in Acts 15. In verses 1 and 2, we read how a dispute over circumcision was settled by a meeting of the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. An elder is also required to minister and pray for the sick people in the fellowship. We read in James 5:14, “Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord.” In our verses from 1 Peter today, we read an elder should, “Care for the flock that God has entrusted to [them]”. So an elder can end up taking services and preaching and teaching, leading Bible studies and prayer meetings, and generally building up the believers in their church. The role of an elder is an essential appointment in a church, as we can see.

Do we pilgrims know an elder? Are we in a church with one or more of them? We may even be elders ourselves. But we must always pray for our elders, because they have a heavy responsibility. We read in James 3:1, “Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly”. Many believers have been led astray by false teaching, and even Christian sects have been established and built on a wrong foundation. To take an extreme example, I read about a church that emphasised Mark 16:18a, “They will be able to handle snakes with safety … ”, with apparently disastrous results when they brought snakes into the meetings.

Thankfully, our Heavenly Father is always on hand to lead and guide us. He cares for His children, and we believers must always remember that we have direct access straight to His throne. 

Dear Lord. We pray for the leaders in our churches today, that You will lead and guide them in Your paths. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The End of the World

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.”
1 Peter 4:7 NLT

This is a sobering verse, with a theme that Peter repeated in 2 Peter 3:10, “But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment“. Will the earth as we know it end soon? The answer is that we really don’t know what “soon” means. To us humans “soon” means in the next few hours or days. But certainly no longer. But as we know, God lives without our time system. Instead He will do what He has promised to do at just the right time.

There is an expectation in the Bible that one day the world as we know it will cease to exist. This is because one day God’s grace will be replaced by His judgement. We live in a moral universe and the sin and evil that is endemic in our societies will have to be accounted for. There are a series of events that the Apostle John wrote down, and which form the book of Revelation, the last book in the Bible. If you wish to find out more what these are, please read my devotional book “The End Times” (author Adrian Clark), available on Amazon. But we’ll pick up the narrative in Revelation 20. 

The devil will be chained and incarcerated, and the saints, including those whom were martyred for their faith, will rule and reign with Christ on earth for a thousand years. John’s vision included the explanation that these dead people were brought back to life as the first resurrection; the resurrection of everyone else was not to happen until after the thousand years were up. Satan was then released from his prison and he made a last attempt to conquer God and His people. But to no avail – he and his armies were defeated by fire from Heaven, and he ended up in the “fiery lake of burning sulphur”, a place of eternal torment (Revelation 20:10), joining his proteges, the beast and the false prophet. 

Revelation 20 ends with the events we call the Great White Throne judgement. We read in John’s account, “I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books … And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:13,15). But when we turn the page, we find an amazing event – the new Heaven and Earth. But more on that in my book.

Peter exhorts his readers to “be earnest and disciplined in your prayers”. But he doesn’t say what those prayers should consist of. Knowing what is to come must, by its very essence, focus the minds of us pilgrims. We must keep short accounts with God, ensuring forgiveness for the sins we might commit. We must, with clarity of thought, examine ourselves. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 13:5, “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith”. David, the Psalmist, wrote the prayer, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life” (Psalm 139:23-24). We must pray appropriately, knowing that “the end of the world is coming soon”. 

Dear Father God. We can never thank You enough for Your grace. All we can do is to fall on our knees before You in worship. Amen.

The Judge

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“But remember that they will have to face God, who stands ready to judge everyone, both the living and the dead. That is why the Good News was preached to those who are now dead—so although they were destined to die like all people, they now live forever with God in the Spirit.”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭4‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We start with the “they”. These are the people who were guilty of slandering their “former friends” just because they believed the Good News about Jesus. These “former friends” were living a life of debauchery, blissfully unaware that one day “they will have to face God“. But we pilgrims know, of course, that it is not just these particular individuals who were at risk. Everyone one day will give an account of their lives to God. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 14:11-12, “For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will declare allegiance to God.’” Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.” Jesus, replying to an accusation that He was casting our demons by power from the devil, said, “And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you”” (Matthew 12:36-37). Another verse of truth from Paul, “For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Peter wrote a strange thing, in that he said the Gospel “was preached to those who are now dead”. In those days Jesus was expected to return before the current generation had passed away, so perhaps Peter was clarifying the salvation status for those who had apparently died prematurely. In our days we still expect the imminent return of Jesus, but God’s timing is exact and the Second Coming won’t happen until the right time. In the meantime we pilgrims march on in obedience to Jesus, sharing the Gospel with those around us. But for all I know this blog may never be read, because its publication will have been overtaken by Divine events.

So the question to be answered is where we all stand before God. We can be counted in the “former friends” group, which will probably make up the majority, or we are one of those who heard the Good News, believing it and applying it to our own lives. There are no other categories of people. No third group made up of people who consider that they have lived a good life, and therefore believe that they are worthy enough, through their own efforts, to enter Heaven. As Paul wrote, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard” (Romans 3:23).

Peter wrote “that they will have to face God, who stands ready to judge everyone, both the living and the dead“. We know that this is the case from what the Spirit revealed to the Apostle John, and as he recorded it in Revelation 20. A “great white throne” appeared with “One sitting on it” (Revelation 20:11), an event so terrible that even the earth and sky “fled from His presence”. But there was no hiding place for anything in creation on that terrible day. We read what is to happen in Revelation 20:12, “I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books.” And there was only one possible verdict – guilty – except for those whose names were recorded in a Book containing the names of all the repentant believers in Jesus. Revelation 20:15, “And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire.”

Thankfully, believers will not have to face that awful event, and we pilgrims share our stories of God’s saving grace with those around us, in the hope, the expectation even, that the Holy Spirit will bring salvation to all those He has called.

Dear Father God. We pray for our family and friends, that they also will desire to see their names written in Your Book of Life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
‭‭

The Resurrection

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
1 Peter 3:19-21 NLT

To a Christian, the “resurrection of Jesus Christ” must be another of the most significant events in human history. Of course, many will dispute this, but in the context of eternity, few could argue otherwise. It is the foundation stone, the Cornerstone even, to the believer’s faith. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:13-14, “For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless”. Without the resurrection our “faith is useless”. 

Nearly two thousand years ago, Jesus, the Son of God, was crucified. A man innocent of any crime except that He dared to challenge the spiritual authority of the Jewish leaders. John wrote, “He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him” (John 1:10-11). It is astonishing that His life ended up in the way it did. But this was all part of God’s plan. He looked down from eternity at the world’s events and selected a time when His plan would come to fruition. Paul wrote in Romans 5:6, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners”.

So why is the resurrection so important to the faith of a believer? This act of God demonstrates that He is capable of raising a dead person, and not only that, giving Him a resurrected body with special powers. Because of that we can have confidence that through our faith in Him, we too will have a resurrected body one day. God’s power over life and death is absolute.

We should note that the evidence for the resurrection of Christ is indisputable. Paul wrote, “I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him” (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). There have been reports of sceptical lawyers who have examined the evidence for the death and resurrection of Jesus, and have concluded that there is sufficient proof to stand in a court of law. 

Jesus knew what would happen to Him. He said to Martha just after Lazarus had died, “ … I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying” (John 11:25). Because we pilgrims believe in Him we too will live with Him after we die. The Apostle John wrote about the significance of Christ’s life. “And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life” (1 John 5:11-12).‭‭ Paul wrote that death has been conquered and the new bodies we will one day receive will never die. “Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).

‭‭We pilgrims are a favoured and God-valued people. We have stumbled on a priceless treasure, one without limit. One that can extend to all. Why won’t unbelievers become believers, grasping this priceless offer with both hands? Probably because they take the short term view, valuing a sinful life over the consequences of believing in Jesus. The devil blinds their eyes and silences the inner whisper that leads them to Christ. But their intransigence won’t stop us reaching out to them anyway. Jesus died and rose again for everyone, not just us.

Dear Lord. We pray today for our loved ones, that they too will come to know Your wonderful love and grace. Please help them we pray. Amen.

The Baptismal Flood (2)

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
1 Peter 3:19-21 NLT

From a cursory glance at 1 Peter 3:21, we might misconstrue what Peter meant when he wrote, “that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you”. Of course he did not mean that people must be baptised to be saved. That would contradict many other Scriptures, for example the salvation of Cornelius and his family. In Acts 10 we can read the story of their salvation, which came as Peter preached, followed by the baptism in the Holy Spirit, evidenced by the Gentile family speaking in tongues. Lastly they were baptised.

Peter wrote that the ritual of baptising someone in water will only wash away dirt. He was of course describing full immersion baptism – Scripture does not describe a process of sprinkling a few drops of water on a baby’s head and calling it “baptism”. Peter then went on to write that the act of baptism is “a response to God from a clean conscience”. So what he was saying was that after a person repents of his or her sins and is saved, the act of baptism is a response to God.

As far as Noah and his family were concerned, they escaped the flood through their faith in God. Peter painted a picture demonstrating their salvation from drowning, meaning they were effectively “baptised”. And he could see forward to the day when Jesus was resurrected following his death. 1 Peter 3:21 is one of those verses that require a bit of meditative thought to extract what the meaning really is.

We pilgrims, believing followers of Jesus, will most likely have been baptised in water. The word “baptise” in the Bible originally meant the full immersion of a person, and in the church today the symbolic act of baptism is a public declaration of the washing away of sins, and the alignment of the person with the death (going down into the water) and resurrection (the subsequent rising up out of the water) of Jesus. In Acts 2:38 we read, “Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”. David Pawson calls these four events the normal Christian birth. He uses the acrostic RBBR – Repent, Believe, Be Baptised and Receive the Holy Spirit. After Peter’s Acts 2 sermon, we read, “Those who believed what Peter said were baptised and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all” (Acts 2:41). That must have been an amazing baptismal service!

God flooded the earth to a depth of 22 feet above the highest mountain peaks (Genesis 7:20) and all those who failed to believe in Him perished by drowning. But Noah and his family were saved through their faith in God, being baptised into a new life on a very different world. We pilgrims have experienced the symbolic repeat of this event, and through our faith in God we too have become citizens of a very different world, the Kingdom of God. Noah was joined by his family. We too need to ensure that our families join us in God’s wonderful Kingdom, which extends throughout our remaining lives on Planet Earth and onwards into an eternity with Him.

Dear God. Thank You for our salvation. Amen.

A Clear Conscience

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.”
1 Peter 3:15-16 NLT

Our consciences are deeply embedded within our minds, and they are a very important driver of our thoughts and actions. A person without a conscience doesn’t exist, but a conscience can be trained to be more or less sensitive to certain behavioural patterns. Our thought processes can rationalise what we do and override our conscience-generated feelings and emotions. But, generally, our consciences make us feel bad when we do wrong and feel good when we do right. A big driver of how we feel and behave is related to our morality. The modern ideology of “if it feels right just do it” is a conscience-busting principle where our personal morals have failed in keeping us free of guilty thoughts.

So we must ask the question – what is our moral or values system? Where do we find the standard which we can use to programme our consciences? This is where the world view clashes with the God view. There is obviously some behaviours that are essential in society, driven by a pragmatic understanding of what Jesus said in Matthew 7:12, “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets“. This, called the Golden Rule, cannot be disputed even by those who are not believers. Bluntly, we don’t abuse our neighbours because they would then feel entitled to do the same to us. 

We must operate a system of self-evaluation within us, but we know that we can’t depend on ourselves in this process. We read all about this in Jeremiah 17:9-10, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve“. We need that external guidance to eliminate any possibility of our consciences being tarnished by our own deceit. Paul, on more than one occasion, publicly declared that he had a clear conscience. Acts 23:1, “Gazing intently at the high council, Paul began: “Brothers, I have always lived before God with a clear conscience!”” 

So we pilgrims must work hard to maintain a clear conscience, and the only source of the data we need to ensure our consciences are in line with what God requires is through His Word, the Bible. We must constantly read the Scriptures, because we forget and are often in danger of being subtly lured away from the straight and narrow path by the whisper of the enemy bringing half-truths into our thoughts. Remember what the serpent said to Eve? “Surely God did not say …”. Thankfully God’s presence is always with us. By constantly flushing our thought processes with the water of His Word we will maintain a soft heart.

One final thought. There will be others around us in the family of God who will perhaps not be in the same place as us when it comes to matters of the conscience. We pilgrims treat them with love and compassion, as God does with us. 

Father God, we thank You for the way we are “wired”, with a conscience aligned to Your Spirit. Amen.

Maintaining Peace

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil.””
1 Peter 3:10-12 NLT

Peter didn’t just say be at peace or accept peace in a passive way. His advice was to “search for peace“, with the implication that it must be something we actively pursue. But in this world it seems peace is an elusive commodity. The war in Ukraine is still with us and the repercussions hurt everyone in Europe and beyond. The constant tension between different world ideologies occasionally bubbles up into a limited confrontation between nations. Even in our communities, a lack of peace is always with us – just read the local news. People yearn for peace but seem powerless to make it happen, because within us are desires and emotions that displace even the personal peace, an inner peace, that God has designed for us. Perhaps we can all echo Paul’s wail of frustration in Romans 7:24, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” A lack of peace is often the fruit of wickedness and a popular verse is found in Isaiah 48:22, ““But there is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.” But we know that of course – the world is under the jurisdiction of a person, the devil, intent in propagating wickedness and evil wherever he can.

There are many causes of a lack of peace in the lives of people. Even we pilgrims often find ourselves debilitated by internal strife. Thankfully, Jesus came to give us peace with God, and that is the most precious of all types of peace. In fact, in Isaiah 9:6 we read, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Jesus had the title “Prince of Peace” in Isaiah’s prophecy and He truly demonstrated that in His time here on earth. At the time of Jesus’ birth the angels announced, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased” (Luke 2:14).

We pilgrims discover peace with God through Jesus. Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us”. When we find peace through God we have a foundation on which we can build a peaceful society. We may feel our own contribution is too small to make much of a difference, but Jesus asked us to be salt and light in our communities, amongst our neighbours and friends. Peace can be infectious, and a Godly influence can make a difference in the lives of many people. And when we find peace with God we find peace indeed that ripples through every facet of our lives.

Dear Father. You wish the world to experience Your peace. We have our part to play – please help us. For Jesus’ sake. Amen.