Salvation Comes Through the Jews

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. 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?” Jesus replied, “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. You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews.“
John 4:19-22 NLT

‭Jesus said to the Samaritan woman, “salvation comes through the Jews“. Of course, what Jesus said was totally true and accurate. The Old Testament was all about God’s plan for the salvation of mankind and it focused on one Person, the Messiah. Isaiah 53 sets out a graphic prophecy of the coming Messiah, and about Him we read, “But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins“. The Messiah, Jesus, finally came with a lineage that stretched all the way back to Abraham, as we read in Matthew 1. Jesus was, and still is, a Jew. He still is, because He is alive today.

But to many today, the thought, the reality, the truth, that through the Messiah and His crucifixion at Calvary, God finally completed His plan for the salvation of mankind, is a problem. Jesus, the Son of God, said in John 14:6, “Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me“. The reality is that there is only one way to Heaven and that is through Jesus. Only He can save us from the punishment we deserve for our sins. And He was, and is, a Jew.

As the war between Israel and Hamas rages on, the devil has been stoking up anti-Semitism on a scale never seen for many years. Most people correlate being a Jew and being an Israelite as one and the same thing, and Jews everywhere in the world have found that persecution has increased. But God promised to protect His people. We read in Deuteronomy 33:29, “How blessed you are, O Israel! Who else is like you, a people saved by the Lord? He is your protecting shield and your triumphant sword! Your enemies will cringe before you, and you will stomp on their backs!” In spite of many times of unfaithfulness, God has remained faithful to His people, because He made a covenant with them. And in many ways the Hebrew Scriptures read like a love story between God and His people.

The enemies of Israel walk a dangerous path, and if we want to know what will happen to them we only have to read the book of Revelation. Of course, this does not justify actions taken by the Israelites, as they too will have to stand before God one day and give an account for all that they have done in this life.

So what should we pilgrims do about the Jews, God’s chosen people? We pray. Psalm 122:6, “Pray for peace in Jerusalem. May all who love this city prosper“. And we keep praying in the certainty that we are in the will of God for His people. And we give thanks for the Jewish Son of God, who died for the sins of the world at Calvary so that many will be counted righteous.

Dear Father God. We thank You for Your plan of salvation delivered through Your people, the Jews, and through Jesus Your Son. We pray for Your people and for peace not only in Jerusalem, but in Palestine as well. We pray for the innocent people caught up in the conflict and pray that these days will be cut short. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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.

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.

God’s Peace

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And now may God, who gives us his peace, be with you all. Amen.”
Romans 15:33 NLT

This verse, the last in Romans 15, is almost as though it’s Paul signing off from his long letter. He’s said all he wants to say and this is his “Yours sincerely” moment, or something similar but less formal. It’s the sort of statement that would be made by a minister at the end of a church meeting, before walking to the exit door to say his goodbyes. And it’s not unusual for Christians to say to someone on the way out of our home, “May God be with you”. On my business card I have included the verses from Numbers 6:24-26, “May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favour and give you his peace.”

But two things emerge from this verse, Romans 15:33. Paul asked that God was with all his readers. Why would he say that because God is with all His followers. It is in fact a form of greeting with which he encourages the Roman believers. In those days of severe persecution, knowing that God was with them would have brought a smile to their faces. It would have reassured them that their trials were all worth going through because God was alive and well. Isaiah 41:13 was a verse with which the Jewish exiles were similarly encouraged. They too were going through a difficult time in a land where they didn’t want to be. We read, “For I hold you by your right hand— I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you”. Whatever situation we pilgrims are in just now, we too can be encouraged by the reminder that God is with us.

The second piece of encouragement from Paul was the reminder that God is the Source of our peace.  In John 14:27 we read Jesus’ words about peace. He said, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid”. A Christian isn’t so much concerned about peace in its worldly sense. We might of course pray for peace, and particularly about the war in Ukraine. But the peace Jesus was referring to was something far more important and beneficial. It describes the peace we have with God because we are in a right relationship with Him. As our bodies, souls and spirits line up with God and His ways, we find that we are experiencing a precious gift from God. Jesus taught about it. Paul reminded the Roman believers about it, and we experience it too. In Philippians 4:6-7 Paul wrote about some practical help to those who are anxious and worried. He wrote, “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”. The remedy for the sickness of worry is firstly prayer, and then thankfulness, leading to “peace of mind and heart”. 

Just a few words at the end of Romans 15 would have had a profound impact on the readers of Paul’s long letter of teaching and encouragement. We too can read these words, perhaps at the end of a day, as we head into a night of restful slumber, secure in God’s peace.

Dear Father God. We thank You for Your real and precious presence with us. We praise and worship You today. Amen.

Paul’s Prayer

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:13 NLT

The word “hope” appears twice in this verse, and it points out that the hope Paul is writing about is something that comes from God. So it isn’t a natural hope, like “I hope it doesn’t rain today” or “I hope we have a good holiday”. Paul continues to pray in the next sentence that this “hope” is something full of confidence and powered by the Holy Spirit. And the consequence of this “hope” is a complete infilling with two qualities enjoyed by Christians – “joy and peace”. Perhaps when we consider this verse we are looking for a meaning to the word “hope” that is different from the world view.

As we look into other parts of the Bible we see that “hope” is a word often associated with “faith”. We read Hebrews 11:1 from the Amplified version, “Now faith is the assurance (title deed, confirmation) of things hoped for (divinely guaranteed), and the evidence of things not seen [the conviction of their reality—faith comprehends as fact what cannot be experienced by the physical senses]” (emphasis mine). It’s the fact that a Christian’s “hope” is “divinely guaranteed” that is exciting. We believe through faith that the promises of God will come to pass. We “trust in Him”, as Paul wrote.

What God-given promise is most likely to fill us with “joy and peace”? A “hope” that God has guaranteed? There are many such hopes written in the Bible, but where else can we initially turn to other than to John 3:16? We read, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life”. The promise is that one day we will “have everlasting life”. Eternal life. Endless life spent in God’s presence. In Revelation 21:3-4, we receive a hint of what this future life will be like. “I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” “Death or sorrow or crying or pain” just about sums up every negative human emotion and experience and we “hope” that one day God will deliver the promise to do away with them “forever”. And, poignantly, God will personally be involved with each one of us, wiping away our tears.

In the meantime, we have a “hope” in this life. Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope“. As we journey through the years remaining in our natural lives, God reminds us that He has good plans for us. He sees our years laid out before us, and He knows what’s coming our way. Perhaps some people view this as a negative. Weary people populating a pew and waiting for the day when they cross the Great Divide and enter eternal life. But God has so much more for us in this life. Exciting things. Things that are the manifestation of our hope in Him. And Paul’s prayer was that we would experience “joy and peace” as we “trust in Him”. What a prayer! But what a Saviour!

Dear Lord. Thank You for showing a world without hope that there is a future. We are a part of Your plans, and so we declare our trust in You with our future, in this life and the next. Amen.

Living the Life

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. Then you will not be criticised for doing something you believe is good. For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.”
Romans 14:15-19 NLT

Paul now moves on beyond writing about right and wrong foods to what really matters. He wrote that we should live a life of “goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit”. Rather than look around us at what other Christians are doing, we should instead get our own lives in order. And I’m sure if every believer focused on that, there would not be an opportunity to criticise others. We’d be too busy sorting ourselves out. We should always remember that we are not responsible for another believers’ walk with God. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:12b-13, “ … continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil his good purpose”. Our journey through life hand in hand with the Holy Spirit is an intensely personal thing.

Paul also wrote the following to the Ephesian church, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24). There is a lifetime of activity here. The “old man” within us died with Christ – Colossians 2:20, “You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world..?” We are now a new creation “created to be like God”. So with His help that is what we do, casting aside all the things that we used to do and that hold us back.

Paul wrote the following to the Philippine church, “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise” (Philippians 4:8). That’s living the life. By doing so we can guarantee ourselves a life of “goodness and peace and joy“. And the Holy Spirit can live within us, enjoying the experience too. Paul went on to point out that living life in this way will please God. And other people around us will notice someone who is different and someone they will approve of.

It may be a big ask. We’re only human, some will say. Excuses such as “you don’t know what I’m going through”, or “my mental health isn’t good at the moment” will emerge. Did Paul write something that is impossible to keep? Was he setting the bar too high? The key is in the words, “in the Holy Spirit”. In our own strength, we don’t have a hope of always pleasing God. But with the Holy Spirit within us we have a chance. Isaiah 40:31, “But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint”. That’s really living the life!

Dear Father God. We really want to live a life that is pleasing to You. No “if’s” or “but’s”. Just a life lived in the Holy Spirit. Amen.


Finding Peace

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“They rush to commit murder. Destruction and misery always follow them. They don’t know where to find peace.”
Romans 3:15-17 NLT
“Their feet run to do evil, and they rush to commit murder. They think only about sinning. Misery and destruction always follow them. They don’t know where to find peace or what it means to be just and good. They have mapped out crooked roads, and no one who follows them knows a moment’s peace.”
Isaiah 59:7-8 NLT

Paul quotes from more Old Testament Scripture, this time from the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah seemed to be in a similar situation to Paul. A prophetic voice crying out God’s message to an audience of sinful people. In Isaiah’s day, his message was directed at God’s chosen people, the Jews. In Paul’s day, his message was being delivered to the early Christians, some of whom had Jewish heritage. But there was one problem that united both peoples over the years, and that was sin. Isaiah put his finger on the problem in Isaiah 59:2, “It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore”.

The word “sin” is not a word that appears very often, if at all, in our secular society. We don’t find it appearing in newspaper reports, or on our Facebook or Twitter feeds. Television dramas don’t generally use the word, unless they have a religious element, such as the portrayal of a priest. Even the religious stalwart programmes, such as the BBC’s “Songs of Praise”, carefully avoid the use of the word, just in case offence is caused. But just because the word “sin” has fallen out of fashion or society’s memory, it doesn’t remove it from God’s vocabulary. 

Society is full of people with a guilty conscience. The problem (for them) is that God has wired us to have a conscience because it will lead and direct us in how to behave in our sinful society. In the event that a conscience is violated by sin, all sorts of knock-on effects can result, not the least being illnesses which are very difficult to diagnose. So the guilt-ridden person, if they can afford it, engages the help of someone in the psychiatric profession to offer all sorts of therapy, in the hope that the problem will be resolved. But their money could be saved, and symptoms relieved, by an act of repentance, with perhaps a change in life choices. Turning to God and taking on board His remedy is the most effective cure for a guilty conscience. Only this will bring inner peace, so elusive otherwise to find.

There is another tendency for people to rationalise sinful behaviour by dealing with it as a treatable illness, or by referring to sinners with a more socially-acceptable term. Just this week a news report emerged in Scotland, with our policing body, “Police Scotland”, referring to paedophiles as “Minor-Attracted People”, or MAP’s, and in the process offering them treatment and other forms of help. However, sin is sin, regardless of what we call it. Renaming a good old-fashioned definition of a sinful act won’t fool God one bit. An unrepentant paedophile standing before God pleading that he’s not sinning because he’s a MAP, won’t wash.

Paul reminded his audience in Rome that there are consequences to sin. We still find the same consequences today. Sinful behaviour is followed by a lack of inner peace. A guilty conscience makes sure of that.

Dear God. We thank You that You have built within us a conscience. We pray that through Your Spirit You keep us alive and well, always aware of Your ways and not sinful ways. Always aware of Your peace. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Glory and Honour and Peace

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on doing what is evil—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. But there will be glory and honour and peace from God for all who do good—for the Jew first and also for the Gentile. For God does not show favouritism.”
Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬-‭11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

There is a dichotomy between evil and good, as Paul explained in these verses from his letter to the Roman Christians, that we are considering today. Considering a person’s behaviour, there is “trouble and calamity” for doing evil, and “glory and honour and peace” for doing good. Black and white. No shades of grey. But what does “for all who do good” actually mean. What was in Paul’s thinking?

There are plenty of verses in the Bible about doing good. In Galatians 6:9-10 we read, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith“. Doing good to everyone is not a difficult concept to understand. We look out for our elderly neighbour, helping them with shopping or a task in their house. We use our resources to perhaps take someone to hospital when they visit the out-patients. We provide a meal for someone in need. we help our children with their homework. The list of possibilities for doing good is endless. Doing good within our societies, communities and families holds them together, as otherwise they would fall apart.

But these are all ways in which we do good to others. But what about doing good to ourselves? We read in Philippians 1:6, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns“. We must also consider doing good to ourselves. Now, this is far more contentious because it means we should perhaps be considering our inner persons, body, soul and spirit. Take our bodies, for instance. I think we will all agree that some foods are good for us, and others are not. Should we be considering doing good to ourselves by eating the right foods in the correct quantities? And are we engaged in practices that are harmful to our bodies? Enough said on that one! And then we have our spirits. They need feeding as well. A daily diet of Scripture and prayer can only do us good.

Paul said we will receive “glory and honour and peace” by doing good. Honour may happen in our lifetimes, recognised perhaps by an award of one kind or another. But most people who are doing good will not be recognised in this life. It’s the same with glory. Something that we are banking for the next life. However, we can experience peace in our lives today. That comfort we achieve in knowing that the life of someone around us has been made a bit easier. Peace, because we don’t have on our consciences something we should have done for someone else, but didn’t do it. Peace, in these troubling and challenging times is something that is invaluable.

We pilgrims are the glue that holds our societies and communities together. And we achieve that by doing good. Being examples to those around us. Doing good enables us to enjoy “glory and honour and peace from God” both is this life and in the life to come. 

Dear Father God. You have blessed us so much. We thank You and worship You today. Amen.

 

Grace and Peace

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.”
Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NLT

The structure of Paul’s letters is not something we use today. We are more likely to end our missives with sentiments such as “grace and peace”, rather than start them. But why did Paul think the Roman Christians needed these qualities. Both of these words define necessities for the human soul. Without them conflicts within and without us will lead to destruction. Medically, illnesses and conditions like heart attacks and strokes, can be caused by reacting to the situations around us without grace and internal peace.

Take for example a modern phenomenon called road rage. The occurrences of anger that is invoked when another driver behaves in a way that we think is dangerous, or unfair. Such events happen in road works, when another driver thinks he can jump a queue of traffic, cutting in dangerously and forcing another driver to brake suddenly. Without a supply of grace, the driver who thinks he has been wronged may react with anger, resulting in a rise in blood pressure and risking a stroke or some other heart-related ailment. There were no road rage incidents in Ancient Rome but there would have been other occasions where a similar response would have been common.

So what is “grace and peace”? Taking grace first, the Cambridge On-line Dictionary has several meanings, but the one closest to what we’re interested in is “approval or kindness, especially (in the Christian religion) that is freely given by God to all humans“. That definition is for something that theologians refer to as “common grace”, demonstrated by verses such as Matthew 5:45b, “… For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike“. In those terms, there is no advantage to being a Christian – God’s common grace covers all that mankind needs for life, and it extends to everyone. However, there is a much nobler definition of grace, and that extends to God’s willingness to forgive everyone of their sins if they believe in Jesus’s sacrificial death at Calvary. There He took on Himself the sins of mankind, exchanging them for His righteousness. And now those who repent of their sins before the Cross will experience the grace of God. A common acronym is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. So Paul asked that “God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” gives us grace. We need it for our continuing relationship with God and we need it for living redemptively with those around us. And more of it, please God!

Similarly, peace is something much needed in our pilgrimages through life. We’re not talking just about peace as being the opposite of war. Again, our dictionary defines peace as being, “the state of not being interrupted or annoyed by worry, problems, noise or unwanted actions“. But this only partially applies to what Paul was talking about. Philippians 4:7 reads, “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“. Godly peace involves faith in God Himself. A faith that is built on the foundation that God is who He says He is, and that He keeps His promises. A faith that will sustain us through all the trials and tribulations of life. A faith that, through Jesus, we will one day be able to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. Now that is real peace. In John 14:27, Jesus said, “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid“. Now that is real peace. More of it, please God!

Paul, in asking that God gives us grace and peace, was calling down a blessing as essential to the lives of believers as the food we eat. Real soul food that we need for our spiritual lives. Food that will sustain us through our earthly lives. And we need a constant supply of it. Day by day. And the amazing thing is that God’s grace and peace is unlimited. We only have to reach out and accept the gifts so tenderly offered to us by our loving Heavenly Father. Gifts far more precious than any shiny earthly bauble.

Dear Father God. We are so grateful that You know exactly what we need for a godly life, and have made provision for us to receive it. We purchase our soul-food direct from Heaven through the blood of Your Son, Jesus. Thank You Lord. Amen.

The First Seal

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then I heard one of the four living beings say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” I looked up and saw a white horse standing there. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭6:1-2‬ ‭NLT

After the tremendous worship experience in Heaven, John’s focus now returns to the scroll. It has seven seals and each was broken in turn, revealing the writing on the scroll. So the scroll seemed to be structured in seven sections, each sealed so that the previous seal had to be broken before the next section could be read. But what was written on this scroll? And why was each broken seal followed by an act of apparent judgement?

Revelation 6 sees the start of the time of what is called the Tribulation, where God’s judgements are carried out on a world of unbelieving, sinful and rebellious people. We have to bear in mind that our Heavenly Father is not just a God of love, but He is also a God of righteousness. One day the period of grace in which we are now living will come to an end. One day sin will have to be judged. So with the sound of the worship still reverberating through the universe, Jesus opens the first seal.

John was perhaps startled by one of the living beings thundering out the word “Come!”. And John saw a white horse with a rider who had a crown on his head and who carried a bow. And we’re told he went out and won many battles. We don’t know for sure who the rider was, or what he represented. The crown would imply someone of authority, the white horse would indicate peace; perhaps the rider was a devious person, promoting peace when carrying an instrument of war, in the shape of a bow. The false prophets Jeremiah wrote about in Jeremiah 8 come to mind, and we read in verse 11, “…They give assurances of peace when there is no peace“. Some have suggested the crowned rider was the Antichrist (see the prophecies in the book of Daniel), but whoever the rider was who rode out on the white horse, he created mayhem, fighting and winning battles on earth.

With the conflicts of the twentieth and now the twenty-first centuries, we could ask the question if the first seal has already been broken. Certainly, some evil leaders have emerged on the world stage, and to one or two, even divine qualities have been assigned. But when the first seal is broken, I don’t think we will have any doubts. We will know.

When the first seal is broken it will be a difficult time for the pilgrims still alive, but for us pilgrims today, still living in this time of grace, we can only look on with some trepidation, and pray. We pray for our families, for our communities and for ourselves. And we pray for mercy from our God of love and righteousness. Ever since Jesus ascended from this earth, there has been an expectation that He will return again “soon”, ushering in the end times. We don’t know when that will be, but we do know that it could be at any time. So we mustn’t waste the moment, and instead not miss an opportunity to extend God’s grace to a lost world around us with our messages of hope.

Dear Father God. We thank You for this period of grace in which we live. Please help us not to hold back when we have the opportunity to reach others with the Good News that Jesus saves.