Marching Forth!

I am convinced that if I never suffered for my sin I would certainly never repent.  God is so wise in the ways that He chastens and leads us back to Him.  Under the burden of a guilty conscience a man will consider confession of sin and repentance, but usually not before!  When we fall into sin even as believers and our sins separate us from God.  This is not typically enough to get our attention:  God must go to great lengths to cause us to see the desperately wicked condition of our flesh. When King Saul became proud, arrogant, rebellious, and disobedient, God sent an evil spirit to torment him.  Instead of encouraging Saul to repent and offer sacrifice for atonement, though his advisers recognized that God had withdrawn His Spirit and sent an evil spirit instead, they suggested he find a man to play the harp to comfort him (1 Sam. 16:14-23).  The young man they found to play was a young shepherd, David.  When the unclean spirit would begin to...

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God by Martin Luther A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing: For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe; His craft and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate, On earth is not his equal. Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing; Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing: Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He; Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same, And He must win the battle. And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us: The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him; His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure, One little word shall fell him. That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth; The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth: Let goods and...

Moving to Australia has brought many changes to my life.  Some of the changes are huge while others are subtle.  One of the differences between Australia and the States is the coffee.  I will be the first to admit I am no connoisseur.  The quality of coffee is directly proportionate to the size of the mug!   If I want a cup of coffee, I want more than a shot of espresso:  give me some volume!  When it comes to discerning the quality of coffee, however, I might be among the worst.  I am like Emile, the brother of the rat-gourmet chef Remy in Disney's Ratatouille.  Remy appreciated all the dynamic flavor combinations of food, but Emile would eat just about anything without even noticing.  Today's events were proof I still have far to go in appreciating good coffee! I have a friend who works in the coffee business as a coffee roaster.  As we shared a "cuppa" this morning at his bustling shop, he asked a barista to provide a good espr...

" In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty ." Proverbs 14:23 Before I went to bed last night, I read this proverb of Solomon recorded in scripture.  I considered how this statement is true on many levels.  There are those who cannot speak and work at the same time.  Instead of working, they spend much of their working hours talking.  Then I thought about how common "chatting" is these days either online, with text messaging, or in person.  Not only does superficial chatting waste time that could be spent more effectively, but it leads to poverty in relationships. We all know marriages and other close interpersonal relationships require a good deal of labor and maintenance.  Unless we have conversations of depth where we share our feelings, struggles, and dreams, it is virtually impossible to really get to know someone else.  For me personally, when I have conversations of depth it enables me to better understand what I am ...

At church yesterday the message God placed upon my heart emphasized the necessity of Christians to be baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit.  It should be no surprise that the devil has sought any possible means to dissuade people from seeking the fullness of the Spirit.  Some have been deluded to think the gifts of the Spirit are no longer necessary today.  1 Corinthians 14:37-40 says, " If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. 38 But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant. 39 Therefore, brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues. 40 Let all things be done decently and in order ."  No longer need we be ignorant, nor must we remain without power.  A pastor recently told me most churches are so concerned about "decently and in order" that "all things" are not encouraged.  I believe all things should...

" So all the work that King Solomon had done for the house of the LORD was finished; and Solomon brought in the things which his father David had dedicated: the silver and the gold and the furnishings. He put them in the treasuries of the house of the LORD ." 1 Kings 7:51 Isn't it wonderful when God weaves a thread through your day?  Before going to church this morning, I read this passage during my devotional time.  There was a wonderful connection between this scripture and the message I later preached, not only confirming God's Word but the powerful operation of the Holy Spirit. As I read this passage, I considered the word "dedication."  When I thought of dedication, I though of Hannah dedicating her pre-conceived son Samuel for the LORD's use.  Though she delivered Samuel as a child for service in the tabernacle, Samuel had a choice to either serve God or rebel.  He chose to honor God with his life and became a prophet mighty in word and deed, an...

As I watched television last night, a man climbed a platform to be recognized with an award of excellence in Australian Rules Football.  The round medal was connected to a ribbon to be worn around the neck similar to medals awarded during the Olympic games.  The recipient bowed his head as a smiling presenter carefully placed the medal.  The man slowly stood up, and raised a fist in triumph as he acknowledged the cheering crowd.  It struck me that while the athletes generally receive the glory or recognition, the game of Australian Rules Football is bigger than each individual player.  Awards given for excellence are even greater than the star players.  The man literally had to bow to receive the award from the presenter who represented the league which gives the player any credibility at all! The Olympic games are greater than any single athlete.  That spectacle of sport is a bigger stage than any personality.  The greater the stage and the hig...

As a eating enthusiast, I enjoy cooking and baking a great deal.  The quality of ingredients used plays a key role in creating an edible masterpiece.  I appreciate an omelet packed with delicious contents, a well-formed Snickerdoodle, or sweet zucchini bread with a crack down the middle.  Though I have met with relative success in the kitchen, there have been occasions where everything seemed to go very wrong - like the time I put in a cup of sugar instead of a tablespoon in the pancakes.  Sometimes failures in the kitchen are not the fault of the cook.  When the oven will not heat up to the correct temperature, baked goods will not rise property.  If baking powder or yeast is very old, it will affect the amount of rise and texture.  Both ingredients for baking and medicines have a "use by date" because their effectiveness is directly tied to their freshness. But what about faith?  Is old faith just as good as new faith in Jesus Christ?  N...

The picture on the front page of the Rouse Hill Times this past week caught my eye.  On a hospital bed lay a man propped on pillows with a ventilator tube in his throat and a serene smile on his face!  Above the picture of this young smiling man the headline read:  " Selfless - He's 18 and paralysed, but he only wants to help others ."  Inside I read the inspirational story of Blake Nixon, a young man who days before this Christmas was left a quadriplegic as a result of a tragic car accident.  Though his circumstances have been harder than most could imagine, joy radiates from the smile on his face.  Instead of focusing on his lack of ability or drowning in sorrow, Blake decided to have his head shaved to benefit the Leukemia Foundation's World's Greatest Shave campaign. This is not the first time Blake has endured tough obstacles in his life.  His mother passed away in 2007 due to breast cancer.  Few people his age have endured these kind of st...

As we sang "Amazing Grace" in church yesterday, it struck me how amazing God's grace really is.  Like the peace of God which passes understanding, it is past finding out.  The brutal irony remains that the place where grace ought to flourish the most - among the people who profess to know God - is the one place grace is not found.  Instead of seeking restoration or salvation for the woman caught in the act of adultery, the Pharisees were gathering stones to injure and destroy.  It took Jesus stepping into the scene to prevent destruction.  Instead of sympathizing with the adulteress, Jesus desired the woman cease her sinning and be saved. In my own life I have struggled with giving grace freely.  It is very easy to limit the grace we dole out, but we are rewarding according to merit.  If we only give grace where it seems warranted, it is not grace!  All people are undeserving of God's favor, for we all have sinned against Him ignorantly, willing...

I have been reading the Philip Yancey gem Where is God when it Hurts ? and came across a terrific paragraph.  His point is that God made the world good, but it has been polluted by sin.  While we see the skill and beauty of God in His Creation, man has labored continually to destroy God's handiwork.  I speak not in terms of environmental destruction, through there could be a case easily made, but the wreckage man has made of His relationship with the Creator.  We have been separated by God because of sin:  sickness, death, and suffering have followed.  Praise God He seeks our restoration through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ!  Thank God for His wondrous grace.  This quote can be found on page 59: Imagine this scenario:  vandals break into a museum displaying works from Picasso's Blue Period.  Motivated by sheer destructiveness, they splash red paint all over the paintings and slash them with knives.  It would be the height o...

Much is made in Christian circles that Satan is a defeated foe.  Some downplay the attacks and deceptions of Satan through the broad application of 1 John 4:4:  " You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world ."  So why is it then, that so few Christians seem to live a life of victory and power?  Why is our labor futile and fellowships rife with division?  If the Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead fills us with that life-giving power, why do so few actually walk in the demonstration of it?  One of the main reasons is simple:  sin.    Though Christ has crushed the power of Satan under His feet, we can grant the devil legal authority through strongholds of sin.  He will gladly take back whatever territory we give him and fortify himself. Ephesians 6:11-12 reads, " Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ...

Yesterday I took Zed to his soccer practice and was blessed by the love of total strangers.  When Fred and Mary sat down and started a conversation, we didn't stay strangers for long!  For the duration of Zed's practice we talked about all kinds of things:  sport, family, work, Australia, WWII, the weather, and Jesus.  Towards the end of practice we exchanged details.  Our family has been invited to share a meal with two of the most delightful people imaginable.  Before we shook hands and left for the evening, I was struck by a statement Fred made:  "We love people."  And it really showed! A heart of love is not revealed by words but by caring actions.  God's love is so unnatural but comes through people in the most natural ways.  How many practical ways was I shown genuine love?  Fred and Mary sat right down next to me and started talking.  They were interested and happy to chat.  During our conversation I was offered a...

As Christians, our faith in God is exercised according to knowledge.  God has revealed Himself through creation, the perfection of His Law and Word, the person of Jesus Christ, and the person of the Holy Spirit.  Instead of telling us to believe without thought, we are to consider Christ's claims and choose to place our faith in Him willingly.  It is an amazing irony, that the intellect God has given us to consider the Gospel can both aid and hinder us in our spiritual journey in following Jesus. It is no recent realization to me that many Christians who take initial step of faith to follow Jesus stop short of the grace and gifts He desires them to operate.  The apostles followed Jesus while He lived, but remained in unbelief after His resurrection.  It is written in Mark 16:14 of Christ:  " Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him af...

" The LORD lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let God be exalted, the Rock of my salvation !" 2 Samuel 22:47   Our God is above all gods!  Since He lives whom should we fear besides Him?  How great is our God and worthy to be praised!  The earth shakes, the ground opens its mouth.  The rocks are torn with great shaking, waves destroy the face of the earth.  Trees are splintered, hills sink and become valleys.  The mountains are broken by fierce wind, and mud covers the land as a shroud.  Above this God reigns in glory and power, a Rock of Salvation that cannot be moved.  He holds the stars in His right hand, and the earth is His footstool.  His arrows are bolts of lightning, and His power is revealed in thunder.  He is a God exalted who reigns on high, mighty and full of glory.  What man or nation can stand before Him?  He makes the earth as water and the mountains melt in His presence.  Where shall you flee, O man?  Whe...

" And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, He was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. 16 And He took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them ." Mark 10:13-16 All morning the words of Christ have been running through my mind:  " Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not:  for of such is the kingdom of God. "  As I meditate upon this scripture, I am led to consider the context.  People brought their children to be touched by Jesus, but the disciples withstood and rebuked the parents who did so.  Why would they do this? I am convinced that we have sanitized our ideas of Jesus Christ by ...

I was reading Gurnall's classic The Christian in Complete Armour yesterday and discovered an amazing observation.  We know that God can work all things for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purposes.  But would you think anything good could come from Adam transgressing God's command and bring the scourge of sin and death to all mankind?  Yes!  God wrought good despite man's rebellion, because now by faith we can experience closeness with God even Adam did not possess!   We can have the fullness of God dwelling within us by God's grace!     If it wasn't written in scripture, it would be too good to be believed.   " The reconciled sinner hath the advantage of Adam in his union to God, as it is nearer.  The union is nearer, because God and man make one person in Christ.  This is such a mystery as was not heard of by Adam in all his glory.  He, indeed, was in league of love and friendship with G...

" Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins ." James 5:19-20 There is no shortage of needs in the world.  When we think of the "lost" our minds automatically pigeon-hole the group of people who have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Maybe we think of people in distant lands who speak foreign languages.  It is likely we do not consider the regular church goer to be included in the lost.  Even more incredible, we hardly believe a lost person could be a born-again Christian! Wait a second, you might be thinking.  What do you mean that a Christian can be lost?  I do not mean "lost" as far as eternally lost and doomed to hell, but lost in the sense they have wandered from the truth.  To illustrate the point, let's say you decide to hike in a thickly wooded area, at first c...

Have you ever been falsely accused of doing wrong?  As I circled a roundabout today, I was emphatically flipped off by a woman with so fierce a glare I could only laugh.  I entered into the roundabout with my right indicator on, planning on performing a u-turn.  The woman was on the opposite side on the outer lane and must have expected me to go straight through because halfway through my turn she entered the far left lane.  Seeing me directly next to her as we slowly turned, she did her best to insult me for her own blunder for not giving way. I have to admit I was a little confused by her response.  A part of me that wanted to be angry, and another part that thought the whole thing was ridiculous.  But it made me think about false accusations and how bad they can make us feel.  I thought about how Jesus was brought before Caiaphas and falsely accused as being a blasphemer.  How ironic that the Righteous One was falsely slandered and maligned b...

I was raised in a family of tradesman.  My grandpa is still laying carpet well into his 70's, and my late grandad was a shipwright and construction worker.  My dad is a carpenter and my brother and I both are trained as journeyman mechanical insulators.  As I grew up I was often exposed to many facets of construction between home remodeling and church renovations.  I remember the first day I worked eight hours:  my dad set me up to nail the floor/deck of our upstairs room addition with a bucket of eight-penny nails and a 16oz. hammer.  We snapped some chalk lines and it was on! Construction projects, like life, provide many opportunities to learn from mistakes.  It also provides many opportunities to follow builders and repair their mistakes!  Some of these repairs could be due to improvements in specifications or codes.  But quite often it is clear repairs must be made because of shoddy craftsmanship!  The evidence of cut...

Last night before I went to sleep, I thought about the great need of the world for Jesus Christ.  The world is full of people that deny God's existence and are willfully ignorant of the sacrifice Christ has given for their redemption and salvation.  My mind wandered to many groups of people that are largely unreached by the church.  People searching for the love and forgiveness of God are turned away by the hate and disgust they feel towards them from professing Christians.  "How can those lost people who impale themselves with their own lusts be brought to Christ?" I thought. When I got out of bed to close the window, I looked the dark street below.  Light from a street light behind my house flooded through the swaying vertical blinds.  I blinked in the light and I considered how Jesus reached the world and it was never again the same.  First of all, He was and is the Light of the World.  He was in the world but was not of the world.  His ...