In That Day: Trusting God for What Lies Ahead

Posted on by Adrian Clark

Isaiah 30:20-24 NLT

20 Though the Lord gave you adversity for food
    and suffering for drink,
he will still be with you to teach you.
    You will see your teacher with your own eyes.
21 Your own ears will hear him.
    Right behind you a voice will say,
“This is the way you should go,”
    whether to the right or to the left.
22 Then you will destroy all your silver idols
    and your precious gold images.
You will throw them out like filthy rags,
    saying to them, “Good riddance!”
23 Then the Lord will bless you with rain at planting time. There will be wonderful harvests and plenty of pastureland for your livestock. 24 The oxen and donkeys that till the ground will eat good grain, its chaff blown away by the wind.

Isaiah lets his Holy-Spirit-anointed imagination run to a time coming when the Lord will once again bless His people. Was it all to be “pie in the sky”, with blue skies, balmy winds, roses growing around the door and bonhomie all around? A time when there would be no fighting and peace reigning everywhere? A time when the people transitioned from idolatry to worship of God alone? A time when God’s discipline on His wayward people would be replaced by unlimited blessings? I’m sure there are times when we pilgrims muse on what life will be like when we “dwell in the house of the Lord forever“. There is nothing wrong with God-inspired “day-dreaming”; in fact, Paul wrote, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20). Think about this verse: there is the power of the Holy Spirit within us, and with His power we can achieve far more, “immeasurably more”, that would at first seem impossible to a mere human being. It seems Isaiah knew that as well. But Isaiah’s imagination knew no bounds because He knew His God.

Solomon the philosopher wrote, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” and “a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,” (verses from Ecclesiastes 3). The Judeans were facing into an invasion from the Assyrians but instead of turning to God, they turned to the Egyptians for help. Their season of uninterrupted idolatry was coming to an end, and we know from history that those who were not killed by the invaders were deported into exile, prevented from being able to live in their lands for a season, during which most of the people died, and a new generation started to appear. This happened to the Israelite slaves when they finally arrived at the promised land. After the twelve spies explored the Promised Land of Canaan, ten of the twelve spies brought back a frightening report about the inhabitants. The people believed the bad report, wept, grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and refused to enter the land God promised them. So God judged them based on the 40 days the spies spent exploring the land—assigning one year of wandering in the desert for each day of spying (40 years total). The punishment ensured that the adult generation (aged 20 and older) who rebelled would pass away in the wilderness, allowing their children to inherit the Promised Land instead (with the exception of the faithful spies, Joshua and Caleb). God is patient and He has all the time in the world. But human beings don’t; they only have a short season of life before the grave beckons. The sobering thought for Christians everywhere is that “in that day”, the day when the existing world will be replaced by a New Heaven and a New Earth, the day when God will live with His people here on earth, a day that will not come until Jesus’ commands have been fulfilled. Jesus said, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). God is indeed patient, and to those who are obedient in doing His work, He will be waiting for them with a “Well done …” welcome. 

In recent years I have been increasingly aware that time is short, not just my time here on earth but also the time that all pilgrims have to communicate the “gospel of the kingdom” to those in our society who haven’t heard it. Here in the UK there is a new generation who are growing up without having heard anything about God and the Bible stories. They have never been in a church. Many don’t even know why churches are there at all. Gone are the days when schools had an assembly, sang Christian hymns and enjoyed a nativity play at Christmas, and in the process implanted a God-consciousness that would stand the pupils in good stead in their later lives. We pilgrims must increase our efforts to plant Gospel seeds at every opportunity. Unless we do, we commit our generation to another metaphorical forty years, wandering in a Godless wilderness.

“In that day”, will be a day when we “will see [our] teacher with [our] own eyes. [Our] own ears will hear Him”, a day when our relationship with God will not be vague and tenuous. Instead, it will be a day when we will be able to reach out and touch Him. A day when we will arrive in our new home, finally aware of why God created us in the first place. And a day in which we will realise the Lord’s blessings, as Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:3, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ“. These blessings are available now for all those who dare to embrace the God who is all that He has said that He is and can do all that He has promised. And then we can go further and dream like Isaiah and Paul, that God will do “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine”. But it’s not a dream for those able and willing to reach out to God in faith. It can also be a reality for us pilgrims because we have the power of the Holy Spirit within us.

Dear Heavenly Father. Anoint our imaginations, we pray, by the power of Your Spirit, so that we can do Your work in our families and communities. We praise and thank You for all You have done for us. Amen.

Understanding Human Weakness and God’s Power in Our Lives

Posted on by Adrian Clark
A fallen log entwined with glowing, luminescent vines and leaves over a small forest patch

“I will give you all the proof you want that Christ speaks through me. Christ is not weak when he deals with you; he is powerful among you. Although he was crucified in weakness, he now lives by the power of God. We, too, are weak, just as Christ was, but when we deal with you we will be alive with him and will have God’s power.”
2 Corinthians 13:3-4 NLT

Human weakness and the power of God. Opposites mentioned by Paul in our verses today, as he encouraged the Corinthians with a warning that unless they dealt with their sin, his impending third visit was going to be painful, both for them and for himself. We are all aware of the first, our weakness as human beings, with limitations that get in the way of our pilgrimage to Glory. Those times when we do something we shouldn’t, or when we don’t do something we should. Those times when we echo what Paul experienced when he wrote, “I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong” (Romans 7:21). And he continued, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” We believers are still slaves to the sinful nature that is alive and well within us, and at times we seem powerless to do anything about it. 

But that brings us on to the second of Paul’s opposites. The power of God. We read the first two verses of Romans 8 and find a link that bridges the gap between our weakness and God’s power. “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death”. We now live the Spirit-filled life, a Christ-centred existence directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit rather than our human strength. But it is a hard and difficult road to walk, because it involves a daily, conscious and sanctifying surrender to God’s control, resulting in transformed character, spiritual growth, and the ability to produce the fruit of the Spirit. 

The problem for the Corinthians was summed up in another Romans 8 verse, “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit” (Romans 8:5). Paul’s fear was that when he arrived in Corinth he would not like what he found and they wouldn’t like his response. He wrote, “For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarrelling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behaviour” (2 Corinthians 12:20). These qualities are all symptomatic of their sinful natures being allowed full reign. But Paul was coming to them with God’s power, willing and able to deal with the sin amongst them and bring them back to living in the right Kingdom in the right, Spirit-filled way.

But what is the “power of God”? First and foremost, it is the Gospel, the “Good News about Christ”. Romans 1:16, “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”. That is the starting point with God’s transformative power, and for all who respond positively, they receive the promise of spending eternity in God’s presence. That is power indeed! But there is more. In Ephesians 1:19-20, we read, “I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honour at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms”. Just think about it for a moment, or longer if necessary. We pilgrims have access to the power of God, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. And with that power, we have the ability to triumph over sin, bringing a new life, both now and forever. In our places of weakness, that same power will give us strength. Referring to his “thorn in the flesh”, Paul wrote, “Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

We receive a glimpse of Paul’s motivation in Colossians 1:28-29, “So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me”. What was there within Paul that enabled him to endure the beatings, abuse, shipwrecks, imprisonment, even stonings, as he journeyed bringing the Gospel to the lost? Here we have the answer – “Christ’s mighty power that works within me”. 

But there is one further verse that never fails to excite and challenge me. Ephesians 3:20, “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think”. We earthbound pilgrims have within us the potential, through “God’s mighty power”, to achieve infinitely more than we can ever get our minds around. God’s power is limitless.

So Paul would soon be at Corinth, and the Holy Spirit would empower him to challenge and resolve the problems in the church there. Somehow, having been forewarned, I would have taken his warning seriously. Did they respond positively to this letter? We don’t know, but the warning that Paul wrote down still hangs over Christians and congregations, even to this day.

Dear Father God. We who are Spirit-filled are indeed a blessed people. We pray for Your power to work within us, making us more like Jesus, as You desire. And we pray, too, for the same power to reach out to those who are lost, so that the Good News about Christ will penetrate their thinking and transform them into new children of God. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

God’s Spirit (2)

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.”
1 Corinthians 2:10-12 NLT

Yesterday I started with a question: in that the Bible is full of references to the third member of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, but His work and presence in believers is often played down or even ignored. Why is that? We then looked at some Scriptures that took us up to that momentous day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came with tongues of fire and the sound of a rushing wind, followed by Peter’s dramatic and hard-hitting sermon that led to 3000 men being saved. In that sermon, we then read that significant verse where Peter explained what was required. Acts 2:37-38, “Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”. As we pilgrims know, if we want to be a follower of Jesus, wholeheartedly believing in Him, then two steps need to be taken and a gift from God follows. Peter made this very clear. But this is not totally prescriptive because I always think of the penitent thief on the Cross next to Jesus’, who was not baptised either in water or, apparently, in the Holy Spirit, but he was still promised a new life with Christ. And then we have Romans 10:9-10, where Paul explained, “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved“. It would therefore appear that the Holy Spirit will not automatically accompany our salvation. However, God will not withhold His gift of the Holy Spirit to anyone who asks.

What does the Holy Spirit do in each believer? We remember that God is sovereign, and He will give spiritual gifts to us through His Spirit to whom He chooses. The Bible is clear that to receive a spiritual gift, we must first experience a true conversion to become a whole-hearted believer and follower of Jesus. A worldly person will not receive any spiritual gifts, because such a person does not know the gift-Giver, God Himself. But for us pilgrims, believers in Christ, we will each have received at least one spiritual gift. 1 Corinthians 12:7, “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other”. We, of course, take note of the purpose of the gift, and that it is not something for our benefit but for the benefit of others. As we read further down in 1 Corinthians 12, we will see some of the gifts that Paul has listed, such as wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment, tongues and interpretation. 

So, when do we receive this gift or gifts (some people receive more than one)? Most people apparently believe that the gift of the Holy Spirit is given to us at the point of our salvation. The Holy Spirit provides gifts for us as God chooses. But there are Scriptures such as 1 Timothy 4:14, “Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you”. In this verse, Paul reminded Timothy that there was a time when he was being resourced for ministry, and a further gift was released to him through the laying on of hands by the Elders present. God also encourages us to seek His gifts, because it is through them that the Holy Spirit will enhance God’s work. 1 Corinthians 12:31a, “So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts. … “. Yesterday we read what Jesus said about gifts, “ … So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him” (Matthew 7:11). Paul wrote that we should “earnestly desire” the gifts granted graciously to us by God. There is an old saying, “if we don’t ask, then we won’t get”. But we know that being earnest means that we aren’t making a casual request, soon to be forgotten. 

An excellent example of a Holy Spirit-inspired gift can be found in the account of the healing of the lame beggar. In response to the request for money from the beggar, we read, “But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!”” (Acts 3:6). The resulting miracle reverberated around the Temple and the rest of Jerusalem, and led to the severely-threatened Jewish leaders having Peter and John arrested. Another Holy Spirit miracle can be found in Acts 9:17, “So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you might regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit”. These weren’t natural events that happened. It was the power of the Holy Spirit doing miraculous works through ordinary men exercising the gifts God had given them. 

A challenging verse can be found in Ephesians 3:20, “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think”. Don’t we realise that the Holy Spirit within us is limitless in what He can achieve? Within each believer dwells the Holy Spirit, and from His work in our lives, encouraged and supplemented by the gifts He has granted to us, great things can be accomplished for God. So, what do we think? Coming back to our starting question, why do so many people downplay the potential work of the Holy Spirit in their lives? At least one denomination believes that the gifts of the Holy Spirit died out with the first Apostles, basing this conclusion on the verses at the end of 1 Corinthians 13. Others, particularly of Pentecostal persuasions, believe that the Holy Spirit and His indwelling and gifts are just as available today as they were two thousand years ago. For me personally, I believe in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and I pray earnestly for more of God in my life, His Spirit and all.

Dear Father God. You have graciously granted us many gifts, and they all start with the Holy Spirit. We are so grateful, and we praise and worship You today. Amen.

Power of God

Posted on by Adrian Clark

““Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?” “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him. We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work. But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.””
John 9:2-5 NLT

That poor man had been born blind in a culture that left him with no option but to be a beggar. A sad situation where the man would have had no self respect and he would have been reliant on others for most of life’s basic requirements. But Jesus assured the disciples that the man’s blindness was not caused by sin. Instead, He implied that on this occasion there was an opportunity to demonstrate that the “power of God” was able to cure this otherwise incurable condition. Should the man be able to see would be a miracle that the Pharisees and the other religious leaders could never be able to explain away.

There is a connection between this man being blind, living his life in a world of darkness, and Jesus being “the light of the world”. In a physical sense the blind man was walking in a dark world that could only be illuminated by the “power of God”. In a spiritual sense, the far more common condition of sin could only be remedied by belief in God and the One whom He sent, Jesus, His Son. There is an immediate connection between physical and spiritual blindness and Jesus demonstrated for that, and subsequent, generations that it is only the “power of God” that is capable of bringing a remedy. 

Jesus told His disciples that there were things to do that could only be done while it was daylight. Once the night had come, these tasks would no longer be possible. Because Jesus was the “light of the world” perhaps He was implying that once He had left the world the opportunities to perform the “works of God” would leave with Him. That would certainly have been the case except for one thing – the sending of the Holy Spirit. We read in John 14, “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. …. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognise him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you” (John 14:12-13, 16-17). 

Sadly, there are many Christians today who believe that the “power of God” was only for the apostolic age and they deny that God’s power is manifested anymore in works of healing. But Jesus left us with His Great Commission, and we read in Mark 16:15-18, “And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptised will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned. These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages. They will be able to handle snakes with safety, and if they drink anything poisonous, it won’t hurt them. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.”” We Christians agree that we must share the Gospel, the Good News about the saving love and grace of God, but the Commission goes on to describe manifestations of the “power of God”. Speaking in tongues, casting out demons and healing the sick were specifically mentioned by Jesus. We have the power of God through the Holy Spirit who lives within each and every believer. And so, we believers have a challenge. The Holy Spirit works through us to do the works of God – if we let Him.

Dear Father God, please forgive us for taking those elements of Scripture that we feel comfortable and safe with, but ignoring or forgetting the rest. We have Your Heavenly resources at our disposal, and through faith we can use it to Your glory. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Song Ends

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They sang: “Blessing and honour and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.” And the four living beings said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped the Lamb.”
‭‭Revelation‬ ‭5:13-14‬ ‭NLT

The song rings out through all creation. The verse, chorus and bridge reverberate through all creation, and then comes to an end. Just imagine the echoes dying away through the universe, before there is silence. And it is then broken by the four living beings saying the single word, “Amen”. This is a word we often use to end a prayer, or it may appear at the end of a hymn or song. It has the meaning, “so be it”, implying that what has been prayed or sung about, has finished. Finally, the twenty four elders fell down before Jesus and worshipped Him. 

Revelation 5:14 brings the fifth chapter to an end, almost as though it is introducing a pause in the events that were unfolding before John, the Apostle. Of, course, there was no pause, but certainly things were about to change, as we shall see in Chapter 6. 

What do we pilgrims think about introducing a pause into our lives, before we restart afresh on a new venture, or a new phase, perhaps, in our relationship with God? Are we in a place of wonder, touched by a move of God? Have we come through a time of great spiritual blessing? And are we now saying a big “Amen” before the echoes of our worship of God stop reverberating through our souls? In any time of blessing, the Sunday will come to an end, but there is always a Monday morning.

The God we worship is an amazing miracle Worker. The God we worship walks and talks with us. Perhaps, like the psalmist in Psalm 103:2-5, we can say, “Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!” But the challenge we pilgrims have is how we carry our wonderful life of blessings into a transforming experience to those around us. There will always be people who don’t want to hear our message. There will always be the spiritually deaf and the blind, who are comfortable in that. But the Apostle Paul wrote the following in 2 Corinthians 4:7, “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves”. Folks, we have to share what we have no matter how ill-equipped we feel we are. We might very much relate to Paul’s fragile clay jars, not feeling strong enough to share our faith, but the clue behind it all is the “great power” of God. A power we have within us.

Father God. John experienced amazing Heavenly worship in his vision. And we too can join the Heavenly song of worship to Jesus. We pray for Your help in sharing that song with those around us; those in this lost and unhappy world. We worship You today. Amen.