Faith, Hope and Love (2)

Posted on by korgrocker

“When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”
1 Corinthians 13:11-13 NLT

We continue to look at the three eternal qualities that will surpass the spiritual gifts that Paul has been writing about in 1 Corinthians 12. Yesterday, we briefly considered the first, faith. Today, we move on to consider the quality of hope, something that is misunderstood in today’s secular society. We may start a holiday with the thought, “I hope it won’t rain at the beach”, or we might walk into the exam hall with the thought, “I hope that I pass this exam”. There is a rather depressing verse in Ecclesiastes, “It seems so wrong that everyone under the sun suffers the same fate. Already twisted by evil, people choose their own mad course, for they have no hope. There is nothing ahead but death anyway” (Ecclesiastes 9:3). The author of this Book, traditionally thought to be King Solomon, was referring, I think, to people who had no eternal God-perspective in their lives and, like lemmings, they were rushing on to a sure death and eternal misery. But Solomon quite correctly went on to say that hope is only for the living, and it is through our lives that we are able to live a life of hope. In Hebrews 11:1 we read, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see”.

The Biblical view of hope is defined as being without doubt. Our examples above imply that it might rain or we might fail the exam, building in an element of doubt, but hope lived out God’s way does not doubt because it is underpinned by faith. Worldly hope is just a shadow of what our hope in God really means. In Psalm 16:8-9, we read verses that are permeated with a Biblical hope, “I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. My body rests in safety”. There is an assurance contained within these verses that is unshakeable and an eternal statement of hope. So what is it that we hope for?

“I do believe, but help me
overcome my unbelief!”

We pilgrims hope in God for eternal life, including forgiveness of our sins and being with God forever. This hope also includes the future resurrection of the dead, being transformed into the likeness of Christ, and the ultimate redemption of both believers and all of creation. We also hope for strength, guidance, and completion in our spiritual journey through the Holy Spirit’s power to live a life that honours God. There is no room for doubt with such a hope, and we pray the same prayer as the father of the evil-spirit-possessed boy did, “ … I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). Therefore, biblical hope is a confident expectation or assurance based upon a sure foundation for which we wait with joy and full confidence. In other words, “There is no doubt about it!”

The third eternal quality from the last verse of 1 Corinthians 13 concerns love. This is something that we considered a few days ago, and Paul reminds the Corinthians believers that this is the greatest of the three eternal qualities. So in conclusion, we read the last verse in 1 Corinthians 13, with the knowledge that “Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love”. Of course, we desire the spiritual gifts because God has provided them for us, to build up, encourage, and serve the community of believers, known as the body of Christ, for the common good and God’s glory. But underpinning them all are the qualities of faith, hope and love, and particularly love. Without them, the spiritual gifts will not be of any use.

Dear Lord, we love You, praise You and worship You today. Please forgive us for the times when we have failed to love others. Amen.

Faith, Hope and Love (1)

Posted on by korgrocker

“When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”
1 Corinthians 13:11-13 NLT

In the context of the verses we are considering today, we find that love is the essential quality required to enable the spiritual gifts to function. Paul started 1 Corinthians 13 with the thought that no matter how effective a person was in their Holy Spirit gifting, unless they loved others, anything they did, even in God’s name, would be ineffective and pointless. Love of others, true agape love, is the foundation upon which the spiritual gifts are able to function. It is the “glue” that binds believers together and enables God to bring Heaven into our earthly lives. But take away love and the whole Christian faith becomes pointless, indeed no more than a clanging bell peeling from a church tower on a Sunday morning, calling the believers to an empty void in a loveless building. There will come a day, Paul reminded the Corinthians, when the spiritual gifts they enjoyed so much would no longer be required, because once in Heaven there would be no need for them. In Heaven will be found Perfection, and Jesus Himself would eclipse any partial or incomplete experiences of the gifts. Sadly, there are some who believe the Perfect has already come in the form of the Bible, God’s Word, but how can that be possible? There is only One who is Perfect, and He is Jesus Himself. A man-made object, the Bible, even if it contains writings produced under the influence of the Holy Spirit, can never be totally perfect because it, too, only reflects God’s message in a way that is sometimes puzzling and dark. 

Faith, Hope, and Love

There are three eternal qualities that will last forever, even surviving the journey across the Great Divide, death itself. They are faith, hope and love, Paul wrote, and although essential to us pilgrims, they are qualities despised and ridiculed by the secular people around us, who have been prevented from seeing the truth that emanates from Jesus Himself. The devil hates these three qualities, and he will do everything he can to destroy and disrupt, because he knows that once a believer applies them in their lives, he has lost them forever. 

Faith we know everything about, because it is through faith that we have become believers. “A biblical definition of faith reaches beyond mere belief—the simple acknowledgement that God exists—into the realm of trust. Genuine faith involves abandoning all human reliance on self-efforts and placing total dependence upon God’s character, His actions, and His promises, as revealed in His Word” (quote from Gotquestions.org). We all know the verse in Hebrews 11:6, “And 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”. We pilgrims have that faith, I know, because we are believers in Jesus, who died in our place as a punishment for our sins. How can we ever thank Him for that? But our faith extends further as we apply God’s promises in our lives. This world will throw us many situations that threaten to overwhelm us, but through our faith in God, we are overcomers, applying it and affirming that He is who He said He is. 

Dear Father God. Many will ridicule and even attempt to turn us away from You, but we thank You that through Jesus, we have the strength and determination to be overcomers and stay faithful to You. We declare that we have the faith we need to know that You are who You say You are, and we stand on that foundation today and every day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Christmas Day 2025

Posted on by korgrocker

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.”
Isaiah 9:6-7 NIVUK

When we pilgrims celebrate Christmas, we are celebrating far more than a holiday, tradition, or season. Christmas is the story of God fulfilling His promises, drawing near to His people, and sending the Saviour the world had been longing for. It is a time to slow down, open the Scriptures, and let the Word of God remind us why the birth of Jesus matters so deeply. Christmas is rooted not in sentiment, tinsel, turkey and trivia, but in Scripture—God’s living testimony of His love. Long before the manger, God promised that a Saviour would come. For believers everywhere, Christmas is the fulfilment of these ancient prophecies. Isaiah declared, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Centuries later, Matthew quoted this verse when he wrote, “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet” (Matthew 1:22). This is why Christians celebrate Christmas with such awe: it is a divine reminder that God is faithful. Every detail of Jesus’ birth echoes God’s promise-keeping nature.

“Immanuel, God with us”

At the heart of Christmas is the name Immanuel, which means “God with us.” Matthew writes, “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (Matthew 1:23). This truth is central to Christian faith: God did not remain distant. He came close. The Gospel of John describes this mystery with breathtaking words: “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (John 1:14). The God who created the universe stepped into time, wrapped Himself in humanity, and lived among His people. For us pilgrims, Christmas means that God understands our struggles, walks beside us, and never leaves us alone.

The Saviour Has Come

Christmas is the celebration of the Saviour’s arrival. The angel told Joseph, “You are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Jesus’ very name means “The Lord saves.” Christians believe that the manger points toward the cross. From the moment of His birth, Jesus came with a mission: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). The birth of Christ is God’s announcement of salvation, not just for a nation, but for the whole world. The angels proclaimed this good news to the shepherds: “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people… a Saviour has been born to you; He is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:10 11). This is the heart of Christmas joy: salvation has come, wrapped not in royal garments but in swaddling clothes.

Light in the Darkness

We see Christmas as the arrival of God’s light into a dark world. Isaiah foretold, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light” (Isaiah 9:2). Jesus later confirmed this prophetic promise: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). For believers facing discouragement, grief, or uncertainty, Christmas proclaims hope. The Light has come, and “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

Peace on Earth

One of the most cherished themes of Christmas is peace—God’s peace offered to humanity through Jesus. When the angels announced Jesus’ birth, they praised God, saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favour rests” (Luke 2:14). This peace is not temporary or shallow. It is the peace Jesus promised His followers: “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:27). For us, Christmas renews the promise of a peace that anchors the heart in every season of life.

A Call to Worship

Every figure in the Christmas story responds to Jesus with worship. The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem, where “they found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger” (Luke 2:16). Then “the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God” (Luke 2:20). The wise men traveled from afar asking, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” (Matthew 2:2). When they found Jesus, “they bowed down and worshiped Him” (Matthew 2:11). Christians today join in that same worship—lifting their voices, their hearts, and their lives in adoration of the newborn King.

Christmas shapes how Christians live. Scripture calls believers to reflect the heart of Christ: “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4:11). The generosity, humility, and compassion seen in Jesus’ birth become daily invitations to walk in His footsteps.

Because God came near, we draw near to others.
Because Christ brought light, we shine that light.
Because the Saviour came, we share His good news

For Christians, the meaning of Christmas is summed up in one verse: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son” (John 3:16). Christmas is God’s love in action—His promise fulfilled, His presence revealed, His salvation offered, His light shining, His peace given. It is the story of a God who came near so that we could come home.

Dear Lord Jesus. Thank You for coming to this world, and we celebrate Your coming today, this Christmas Day. We pray for our friends and families today that the real meaning of Christmas will penetrate through the day’s distractions. In Your precious name. Amen.

Love is …

Posted on by korgrocker

“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT

We read the list of qualities that describe true agape love and wonder how we can ever live up to them. But intuitively, we know that if we behave with love towards our fellow human beings, we will transform our sad and troubled world into a Utopia, a perfect society, with ideal laws, government, and social conditions, free from suffering, conflict, and greed, all because it is based on God’s Kingdom principles. But Paul wrote about love to the Corinthian church, which at the time seemed to reflect the opposite of God’s Kingdom living with its selfish behaviour. Earlier, we considered 1 Corinthians 6, where Paul remonstrated with the believers in Corinth for taking each other to secular courts to settle disputes. Then we read in 1 Corinthians 11:20-21, “When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk”. They had turned the Lord’s Supper into a meal of sorts, with those who were able to bring food and drink refusing to share it with those who were poor and lacked the necessary resources. Where were Paul’s teachings on love in all of that?

“Love is patient and kind”

These are verses that should be applied to our relationships with family members, both natural and spiritual. We should examine the way we treat others through the lens God has provided, as seen through Paul’s eyes, of the qualities required of believers everywhere. There is much to be written about each listed feature, but little to be gained by such an approach. All believers are obliged to sit down and dwell on how they treat others in the light of 1 Corinthians 13. I recall a family wedding that I attended, where the mother of the bride recited these verses during the ceremony. They sounded great and struck a chord of agreement with those present witnessing the marriage service, but what happened afterwards is another story. As we think of people we know, we often find many who irritate or hurt us. We know the boasters, the arrogant, the proud and the ignorant. We read the papers and soon find reports of injustices. Further afield, we read of wars and strife, intolerance and persecution, betrayals and so on. Enough to provide a stark comparison of opposites – God’s way of love and the devil’s way of pursuing evil and hatred. 

But isn’t it strange that we always look to others to love in the way Paul described? Instead, we should look inward at ourselves. Human beings are quick to observe what others are doing wrong, but rarely apply the same rules to themselves. We sit in judgment of others but forget what Jesus said in Matthew 7:1-2, “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged”. 

In our churches and fellowships, there will be many opportunities to apply 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 to the relationships we have with others. Jesus summed up the driving force behind these verses with His words in John 15:12-13, “This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends”. And so today, we look beyond the faults of others and instead ask ourselves how Jesus would have behaved. After all, His love was such that He truly laid down His life for His friends. But more than that, Jesus loved the world so much that He died for everyone, past, present and future. Why? So that He could spend eternity with them, and save them from eternal life in a place without Him. That’s love, perfect love, just as Paul described and more. 

Dear Lord Jesus. You loved us so much that You died for us, so that through You our sins would be forgiven. Amen.

Tongues and Love

Posted on by korgrocker

“So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts. But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all. If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.”
1 Corinthians 12:31-13:3 NLT

“a noisy gong or
a clanging cymbal“

In the Corinthian church, it is believed that the believers there regarded highly all the tongue-speakers and those who could interpret the messages that came through the speaking in tongues. But Paul, at the start of 1 Corinthians 13, pointed out that such a gift was worthless unless it was used in a way that showed love for others. He was saying that no matter how good and accurate the message was, if delivered in a hurtful way that showed a lack of love, then it would not have any useful impact on the life of the church, or for the intended recipient, come to that. In fact, he was saying, it might have the opposite effect to that intended. Paul went further to describe how anyone, even with a perfect understanding of “God’s secret plans” or with a faith so deep that mountains could be physically moved, if they had no love for those around them, then their knowledge and faith were worthless. And he continued to labour his point with a reference to those who did wonderful philanthropic acts or even sacrificed themselves; this was also worthless without love. 

In our churches and fellowships today, there is not the same prevalence of the use of spiritual gifts. For example, it has been some years since I have heard a public message in tongues followed by an interpretation, even though I currently attend a Pentecostal church. However, in the days of the Corinthians, this was apparently commonplace to the extent that messages were coming one after another. There are those, of course, who deny that speaking in tongues today is valid, and a friend of mine who attends a Baptist church told me that should anyone bring such a message in tongues, then they would be closed down straight away. But the gift of tongues did not end in the first century, as some believe. In a place called Azusa Street, in Los Angeles, the Pentecostal movement was birthed, and tongue speaking was a feature of the revival there in the early part of the 20th Century. Since then, tongues in a public setting have been present from time to time, such as more recently in the Charismatic Renewal of the 70’s and 80’s, and should not be discounted. God is sovereign, and He will grant gifts as He sees fit to individuals who are open and willing to obey the move of the Holy Spirit within them. 

Love and the spiritual gifts
go hand in hand

However, the point Paul was making concerned love, agape love, which must essentially infuse our churches and fellowships. Anything else that happened, no matter how spiritual and wonderful it was, was of no good without love. I suppose, though, we could turn this around and equally say that a church with only love and no manifestations of the spiritual gifts was equally impoverished. Before believers can show love to one another, there needs to be a pastor and teacher showing them the why and the how. Biblical teaching is a necessary part of growing in love. Similarly, a prophetic message, whether from the pulpit or through the gift of prophecy, may highlight a situation where a manifestation of love is required. An evangelist is another gift of the Holy Spirit to the church, motivating the congregation to show Jesus’ love to the world beyond the church walls. And of course, we must not forget that the person in a wheelchair or in pain with an illness of some kind needs the love expressed through the Holy Spirit’s gift of healing and miracles. Love and the spiritual gifts go hand in hand and will work together to build up the church, making it more like Jesus intended.

So if we pilgrims were to gauge our prowess in love and the spiritual gifts on a scale of 1 to 10, where would we be? Good question, I’m sure you agree, but perhaps a difficult and painful one to answer. It’s much easier not to ask at all. We pray for God to continue to work in our lives. Yes, we will fall down from time to time. Yes, we will occasionally bottle it when a prophetic word comes to mind. Yes, we will fail to love someone as we should. But God will never give up on us, and He cheers us on when we fall. As we keep close to Jesus, we will find help in our hour of need.

Dear Father God. It is hard sometimes to love the unlovely, but that is what You have asked us to do. Please help us, we pray. Amen.

Signs From Heaven (1)

Posted on by korgrocker

“Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.”
1 Corinthians 1:21-25 NLT

Paul set out the response to “foolish preaching” from the various people groups present in his world at that time. He singled out the Jews “ who ask for signs from heaven”, the Greeks “who seek human wisdom”,and the Gentiles who “say it’s all nonsense”. That pretty much encompasses the peoples and nations in the First Century world. The implication, taking this in reverse order, is that the Gentiles, people groups who lacked a Jewish background and education, and who were not Greek intellectuals, discounted the message of the Cross as mere rubbish, considering it deluded messages from this strange and even fearsome, driven man called Paul. I always imagine Paul as being a John Knox type of person, a man so committed to delivering his message that he ended up in trouble with the authorities, beaten and whipped for his trouble. Much later John Knox also ended up persecuted because of his message, even spending time as a galley slave. 

The Greeks were great philosophers and thinkers. Well, the intellectuals amongst them, because they too would have had a population that got on with life eking out a subsistence-based living. But Greek thinking has dominated much of our thought today, with men such as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and others influencing even Christianity. For example, Aristotle’s emphasis on reason, logic, and the study of the natural world impacted Christian thought. His concept of a universe with an ultimate purpose and a prime mover (God) resonated with Christian theologians. But Paul knew what God knew, that Greek thought was based on human wisdom alone, and by being so rejected what they considered the foolishness of the message of the Cross. We pilgrims refer to a higher power, God Himself, for the wisdom we require. 

But the Jews were a nation much blessed by God and in their heritage they experienced many “signs from Heaven”. Take, for example, all the signs Moses produced before Pharaoh. The shepherd’s staff becoming a snake. The leprous hand, the water from the Nile turning to blood, the plagues of frogs and flies, and others. But then there was the big one, the first Passover, a festival still celebrated to this day by the Jews. God warned Moses that all the firstborn sons in Egypt were about to die, and the remedy for the Israelite slaves was to smear the blood of a Passover lamb on the door posts and lintels of their homes. We can read all about it in Exodus 12. And then we have the crossing of the Red Sea, the water from rocks in the wilderness, the food from Heaven called “manna”. Later on there was the miraculous relief from death for the three Jewish young men in the fiery furnace. Daniel in the Lion’s den is another story much loved by our Sunday school children. And we continue with David and Goliath, the floating axe head, and even the time when the sun and moon stood still in the sky to give the Israelites more time to kill their enemies (Joshua 10:13). But the expectation of the Old Testament Jews for a sign can be seen by the story of Gideon’s fleece, and in my early Christian days, there was one or two church members who claimed to get guidance from God by “laying out a fleece” of some kind. Their prayers went something like, “If You want me to do this God then please let the sun appear from the clouds at 11:15 this morning”. I was never convinced personally, but then it’s all about faith I suppose.

A good example of the Jewish expectation for a sign can be found in 2 Kings 20:8-11, “Meanwhile, Hezekiah had said to Isaiah, “What sign will the Lord give to prove that he will heal me and that I will go to the Temple of the Lord three days from now?” Isaiah replied, “This is the sign from the Lord to prove that he will do as he promised. Would you like the shadow on the sundial to go forward ten steps or backward ten steps?” “The shadow always moves forward,” Hezekiah replied, “so that would be easy. Make it go ten steps backward instead.” So Isaiah the prophet asked the Lord to do this, and he caused the shadow to move ten steps backward on the sundial of Ahaz!” God answered that particular request for a sign, but there were probably many requests that received no response from Heaven. 

In Matthew 16:1, we read “One day the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test Jesus, demanding that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority”. Jesus’ response was very telling, “He replied, “You know the saying, ‘Red sky at night means fair weather tomorrow; red sky in the morning means foul weather all day.’ You know how to interpret the weather signs in the sky, but you don’t know how to interpret the signs of the times! Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign, but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.” Then Jesus left them and went away“. It is interesting that Jesus knew what was ahead of Him, and He used the story of Jonah in the belly of a fish as an indication, a type, of His death on the Cross. Jonah 1:17, “Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights“. As we know Jesus died on the day we call Good Friday, and He was raised from the dead on the third day, the first Easter Sunday. But the message of “the sign of the prophet Jonah” went beyond that. After Jonah was vomited out of the fish onto dry land, he proceeded to Nineveh as God requested of him, and we read, “On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” The people of Nineveh believed God’s message, and from the greatest to the least, they declared a fast and put on burlap to show their sorrow” (Jonah 3:4-5). And we read the outcome in Jonah 3:10, “When God saw what they had done and how they had put a stop to their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened“. The Pharisees and Sadducees had observed at first hand a demon-possessed man who was both blind and mute being healed and yet they refused to believe this was a miracle from God Himself. What more did they want?

We pilgrims have faithfully believed the message of the Cross. To us it is not foolishness at all, as Paul wrote in Romans 1:16-17, “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life””. We believe that Jesus came to fulfil God’s plan for the salvation of mankind, and nothing will convince us otherwise. The “foolishness” of the message of the Cross is the most exciting and life-changing piece of news this world has ever seen or heard. We must shout it out from the rooftops so that all will hear it and experience salvation as well. We don’t need human wisdom, signs from Heaven or anything else. Our lives are focused on Jesus. Forever.

Dear Lord Jesus. We thank You for Your wisdom, grace and love. please help us to stay closest You and Your teaching because through it we grown to be the people You want us to be. Thank You. 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.

Peter Recommissioned

Posted on by korgrocker

“After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love you.” “Then feed my lambs,” Jesus told him. Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.” “Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus said. A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.”
John 21:15-17 NLT

After they had eaten together, Jesus put Peter on the spot. Peter would have still been hurting, his conscience shredded, after denying that he knew Jesus, not once, but three times, and after vowing to Jesus that he would even have died with Him. That this was an awkward moment would have been an understatement. The ensuing conversation, involving as it did the use of the word “love” and the different meanings in the original Greek, commissioned Peter for the rest of his life. Of course, sheep and lambs referred to people, human beings who had a relationship with Jesus, and Peter’s pastoral mission has led some to even believe that he was the first pope. Peter didn’t write a Gospel, as did his friend John, but he did write two letters, the first probably about thirty years or so after this “do you love me” conversation with Jesus. 

The first verse of 1 Peter reads, “This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia“. Here he was shepherding the early Christians, scattered around the area East of the Mediterranean, and the encouragement contained within his letters is clear to see and read. The Holy Spirit empowered Peter on the Day of Pentecost and he stood up and preached an amazing sermon straight afterwards, leading to a commitment for Jesus being made by over three thousand people. If anyone ever doubts the power of the Holy Spirit, just consider the change in a man who went from a God-denier to a God-affirmer over the space of a few days. As we read through the early chapters in Acts we see the prominent role Peter played in the birth of the church. And historical accounts record that Peter stayed faithful to his mission right up until he was crucified on a cross many years later.

We pilgrims have been commissioned to tell others of our faith in God, spreading the Good News to the lost and hopeless around us. We probably won’t have the opportunity to preach to thousands, seeing large numbers of people saved, but we might bring someone to Christ who might be the next Billy Graham. Ananias might not have achieved anything else, other than praying for Paul that day in Damascus, but his one act of obedience to God might have been all that he was asked to do. We followers of Jesus are called to be faithful and obedient, and a good prayer to start the day is …

Dear Lord Jesus. What do You want me to do for You today? Speak, Lord, for Your servant listens. Amen.

Crucify Him

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!” When they saw him, the leading priests and Temple guards began shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” “Take him yourselves and crucify him,” Pilate said. “I find him not guilty.” The Jewish leaders replied, “By our law he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God.””
John 19:5-7 NLT

Why were those days so cruel, with such a form of execution that combined unending and endless torture that only came to an end when death arrived? Why not a simple and quick method that would achieve the same end? And why such a sentence for someone who makes a claim, any sort of claim, about himself? Were those people of Jesus’ time, the Jews and their leaders, a particularly unsophisticated and bestial people placing no value on a human life? Of course, we 21st Century people, would never behave in such a way. Or would we? People today are just as wicked and evil as the Jews who were shouting “Crucify Him” two thousand years ago. The same devil. The same sin. We only have to open a media news report to find just how bad people are. And the sobering question is, would we too have shouted “Crucify Him” as we stood there in the Jerusalem crowd?

In 1 Peter 2:22-24 we read, “He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed“. Why didn’t those Jewish leaders just leave things to God for Him to deal with them, because, as Peter wrote, doesn’t He deal fairly with people? But human beings demand justice in this life, as most think little about the life to come and the final judgement. Human justice is flawed when it comes to things about God. But humans cannot and mustn’t stand in God’s place casting judgement on fellow humans in cases where only God can see the truth and decide fairly. 

Around us there are many strident voices demanding “justice” that aligns with their particular ideologies. Church history is littered with stories of people being condemned for “crimes” that are imagined or superstitiously derived. The cruelties didn’t end at Calvary and we soberly consider the fate of those caught up in the Inquisition in the Middle Ages, or the deaths of the Covenanters. But today in our hearts, cruelties are still prevalent. We look at another person who has done us wrong, even inadvertently, and anger and thoughts of punishment rise up within us. And every time we sin we are in danger of crucifying Jesus all over again. We read in Hebrews 6:4-6, “For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come— and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame“. 

We pilgrims are dedicated followers of Jesus. There is no turning back for us. The journey before us may not be easy. There may even be times when we think that the road is too tough. But there is only one way into God’s presence and that is through Jesus. There will be many temptations on the way, trying to draw us up some cul-de-sac or other. Little voices may whisper in our ears that just once won’t really matter. But, as Jesus did, we look ahead resolutely to what is before us, and as we do we see the glow of Glory appearing on the horizon. For believers in Jesus, a new dawn is coming.

Dear Father God. You are the new dawn in our lives, reality in times of human cruelty. We pray for the opportunities to share Your love and grace with those around us. And we pray for all those in a place of leadership, that they will come to know You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Understand Clearly

Posted on by korgrocker

“Pilate went outside again and said to the people, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.” Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!””
John 19:4-5 NLT

Pilate’s words “understand clearly that I find him not guilty” have hung in the air ever since the Jews of that time condemned the Son of God to death. They killed their Messiah. Pilate made the correct legal decision over Jesus and he had Him brought out before the crowd to make his point. In Luke’s Gospel he wrote, “Then Pilate called together the leading priests and other religious leaders, along with the people, and he announced his verdict. “You brought this man to me, accusing him of leading a revolt. I have examined him thoroughly on this point in your presence and find him innocent. Herod came to the same conclusion and sent him back to us. Nothing this man has done calls for the death penalty” (Luke 23:13-15). Earlier in His trial Pilate declared that Jesus was innocent, ““What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime” (John 18:38). There was no doubt in the Roman authorities’ minds that Jesus was innocent of any crime and Pilate declared as such no less than four times. 

On what grounds did the Jewish people overrule the verdict of the civil court, instead finding Jesus guilty of the crime of blasphemy, in claiming as He did that He was the Son of God? Their decision was based on their interpretation of Old Testament prophecies, that said the Messiah will come to fulfil events that have yet to happen. They also failed to accept that God is Three-in-one, a Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. And that appears to a layman such as myself to introduce a great divide between the Jewish and Christian faiths. 

Pilate said “understand clearly”, and that is what we pilgrims must do today. We must “understand clearly” the basis for our faith. We must use our time wisely in prayer and reading God’s Word. We must align our Kingdom lives with God’s principles. We must avoid sinful situations. We must be steadfast, resisting the attempts of the enemy to draw us away into sin. We must discern areas of weakness and make them strong with God’s help. Hebrews 12:12-13, “So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong“. 

Do we pilgrims feel a bit tired today? A bit lethargic in our faith? Thinking about giving church a miss this week? The we must “understand clearly” what Jesus did for us. We must allow His love and grace to flood over us, flushing away all thoughts of giving up. There is no other way. Only Jesus has the words of eternal life.

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your blessings of grace and love. In the power of Your Spirit, we stir ourselves up once again and press on with our journey of faith in You. Amen.