Marching Forth!

On the night Jesus was betrayed, He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane concerning His disciples in  John 17:14-17 :  " I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  15   I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  16   They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  17   Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth ."  Those who are born again by faith in Jesus Christ are not of this world, even as Jesus is not of this world.  Though Jesus would soon be received into heaven after His death and resurrection, He did not leave His people in a vulnerable state.  Our LORD did not pray we be taken out of the world, but that His redeemed followers be kept and preserved from evil in the world.  The child of God need not assume a defensive or combative posture in Christ, for tho...

Recently at a worship night, I was encouraged by a reading from God's word in  Jeremiah 17:7-8 :   " Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD , a nd whose hope is the LORD .  8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, w hich spreads out its roots by the river,  a nd will not fear when heat comes;  b ut its leaf will be green,  a nd will not be anxious in the year of drought,  n or will cease from yielding fruit ."  Those who place confidence in God and rely upon Him will be most blessed, for the LORD is faithful and His promises sure.  The God who created the heavens, earth and all that is in them knows those who trust Him, and He rules over all the affairs of mankind.  He is never rocked by financial struggles, political intrigue or health issues.  He is not distracted or forgetful, for He is ever faithful to protect, provide and guide. Similar to Psalm 1 , Jeremiah wrote one who trusts in the LORD is compared ...

" You are worthy, O Lord, t o receive glory and honour and power;  f or You created all things,  a nd by Your will they exist and were created ." Revelation 4:11 John witnessed 24 elders worship the LORD God and proclaim His worthiness, having creating all things by His will as it pleased Him.  While the modern use of "pleasure" leans almost entirely into involving the gratification of fleshly desires and senses, Webster recognised it also means, " What the will dictates or prefers; will; choice; purpose; intention; command ."   Isaiah 44:28 is cited as an example:  "... Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd, a nd he shall perform all My pleasure,  s aying to Jerusalem, "You shall be built,"  a nd to the temple, "Your foundation shall be laid ."  God affirmed King Cyrus would gladly do all God's pleasure in fulfilling His command to send Jews back from captivity to Jersualem and provide materials to rebuild the templ...

I have been reading through the R.A. Torrey classic, The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit , and it is an illuminating resource with great benefit for all Christians.  One aspect I have enjoyed thoroughly is how Torrey illuminated the deity of the Holy Spirit by referencing Old Testament verses where God plainly spoke and the New Testament attributed the quote specifically to the Holy Spirit.  While the Old Testament is God's word, passages from the New Testament help us to understand more perfectly what was being said and to apply timeless truth personally. For instance, Isaiah 6:8-9 related when the prophet heard God speak:  " Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send,  a nd who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."  9  And He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand;  k eep on seeing, but do not perceive .'"  The Lord (Adonay) spoke to Isaiah, and Paul attributed ...

Because all sin is equally deadly to the soul guilty of committing it, there is not much of a point of arbitrarily categorising sins like some do with lies.  From a biblical perspective, there is no such thing as a "little" or "white" lie.  God identifies all lying as abominable in His sight full stop, and to think we can benefit ourselves or practically help others by lying to them is a deception.  To claim we have chosen to lie out of the goodness of our hearts is plain hypocrisy.  There are many sinful things people justify themselves doing and saying, but God's righteous standards do not sway with societal tendencies. While it may not provide great benefit for us to comparatively rank sins against one another--as we are called to do good rather deferring to a lesser sin--there are a handful of occasions where the Scripture does speak of one sin being greater than another.  Since God has provided this knowledge, it would be wise for us to consider why that is...

God reveals in Scripture idols are an unnecessary burden.  For all who are in Christ, if you find yourself burdened by anything it may be you have made an idol of something!  This fact struck me yesterday as I read Isaiah 46 and how the idols of Babylon were dead weight that needed to be hauled around.  Though they were spiritually powerless and "nothings," unable to hear the cries of worshippers or save them, they wearied those who struggled to carry them.   Isaiah 46:1-2 says, " Bel bows down, Nebo stoops;  t heir idols were on the beasts and on the cattle. Your carriages were heavily loaded,  a  burden to the weary beast.  2 They stoop, they bow down together; t hey could not deliver the burden,  b ut have themselves gone into captivity ."  It is ironic beasts that grew weary pulling heavy idols had more strength than the gods of Babylon which were useless and hopeless. Later in the chapter God showed the futility of idol...

Scripture shows belief is not a straightforward binary, that you either believe or you do not.  It would be convenient if this were the case, but at the same time any our unbelief would surely doom us!  The truth is, people who believe in God's existence, the truth of God's promises and His power to fulfil them do not always walk by faith in God.  A man who brought his demon-possessed son to the disciples of Jesus exclaimed after they were unable to help him in  Mark 9:24 :  " Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief !"  While all things are possible to him who believes in God, this man recognised nagging doubts and fears within himself he could not shake.  Without God's help, we cannot even believe--for without Him we can do nothing ( John 15:5 ). I read a passage in John 4 today that also illustrates how people can have degrees of belief that fall short of saving faith.  The smallest...

When we observe people making careless, forgetful or foolish choices in the Bible, it means we too could make the same mistakes--likely have already done so.  God's word is able to discern the thoughts and intents of our hearts, clearly identify sin and exposes our fleshly propensity to practice it.  I have learned by experience I can identify with the villains in scripture because all people spiritually share sinfulness in common in its countless forms.  Spiritual maturity enabled Paul to say without exaggeration he was the "chief of sinners," and thus when God's people observe sinfulness in scripture it always hits close to home, having been written for our instruction. Yesterday I read the passage that followed a miraculous victory God provided over the Philistines by Jonathan and his armour bearer who trusted Him.  After King Saul built his first altar to sacrifice unto God, we read in  1 Samuel 14:36-37 , " Now Saul said, "Let us go down after the Phili...

The Scripture makes plain Jesus had miraculous power to heal in every case.  We read in  Luke 6:17-19:   " And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,  18  as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.  19  And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all ."  When God put on human flesh and dwelt among His people as Jesus, this aligned with what the psalmist sang of the LORD God in  Psalm 103:2-5 :  " Bless the LORD , O my soul, a nd forget not all His benefits:  3 who forgives all your iniquities, w ho heals all your diseases,  4 who redeems your life from destruction, w ho crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,  5 who satisfi...

 " So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him ." Luke 5:11 After Jesus taught the people from Peter's boat, He directed the experienced fisherman to launch out into deeper water and lower his nets for a catch.  Peter was not enthused about their chances, for they had fished all night and caught nothing.  "Nevertheless," Peter replied, "at your word I will let down the net."  He and his fellow fishermen were shocked when their nets were full of fish and breaking apart, and it required two boats to carry the net full of fish--and their boats were sinking under the weight of their haul!  Peter, James and John were astonished at the great number of fish they had caught. Peter exclaimed, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man!"  Jesus replied in  Luke 5:10 , "... Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men ."  When they had brought their boats and catch of fish to shore, these fishermen forsook...

Reading God's word every day provides important reminders that guide our outlook and perspective.  We can be so dependent or reliant on our physical senses we neglect to consider ways God works and accomplishes His purposes in the world.  Every day we observe interactions which leave us wondering, amazed or confused, yet nothing is a surprise to God who knows and does all. My evening reading has been in the book of Judges  and the parts of the life of Gideon and his sons picture Bibles rarely cover.  Though Gideon feared God and trusted in Him, he erred by setting up an ephod in Ophrah fashioned from spoils of war that led to people being ensnared in idolatry.  Devoid of godly leadership after the death of Gideon, the people of Israel did not remember God who delivered them from their enemies on every side, nor did they show kindness to Gideon's house.  With the support of the men of Shechem, Abimelech the son of Gideon was proclaimed as king--something his...

" For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect ." 1 Corinthians 1:17 At Bible study last night, we discussed how the Jews sought a sign and the Greeks desired wisdom.  When Jesus came as the Saviour of the world the LORD provided both of these things and much more, yet God coming as a human being, dying on the cross and rising again was not what they were looking for.  Paul did not appeal to people's minds with the use of clever oration, for he preached Jesus Christ crucified which seemed like foolishness to Jews and Greeks--but is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.  It is not slick arguments or persuasive words that possess power to transform the hearts of lost sinners, but simple faith in Jesus Christ can and does. Paul's statement suggests it is possible to place our faith in ourselves, our manner of presentation or our own wisdom rather than relyin...

" He has not dealt with us according to our sins, n or punished us according to our iniquities.  11  For as the heavens are high above the earth, s o great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;  12  as far as the east is from the west, s o far has He removed our transgressions from us ." Psalm 103:10-12 Everyone living today can truly echo David's sentiment, that God has not punished us as our sins deserve.  The wages of sin is death forever, and the fact we still live and breathe is evidence of God's mercy which is greater towards us than the heavens are higher than the earth.  While flames of fire and divine wrath is stored up to be released upon this world for sin on the day of judgment,  2 Peter 3:9 tells us:  " The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance ."  Looking back, we ought to acknowledge ...

" Understanding is a wellspring of life to him who has it.     But the correction of fools is folly ." Proverbs 16:22 Our ability to understand is a gift given us by God.  Elihu said in Job 32:7-9 , " I said, ‘Age should speak, and multitude of years should teach wisdom.’   8 But there is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding. 9 Great men are not always wise, nor do the aged always understand justice ."  God who knows all things and created mankind is able to give eternal life and understanding by His grace.  Unless the living God had revealed Himself to us, we could never know Him or experience the abundant life He delights to provide all who trust in Him. Solomon described understanding as a "wellspring of life" to those who have it.  This understanding is more than observing or accepting reality as we perceive it, but it is knowledge of what is true and the desire to submit our lives to it.  This wellspr...

Early in my Christian walk, it was common vernacular to say someone was "on fire" for God because of their overt zeal and passion for Christ.  I heard it preached if you were not "on fire" for God, something was wrong with your relationship with God.  This was a source of confusion for me because it seemed to be subjective.  Another problem was it was often determined by comparison with other Christians and was dependent on what we did.  A Christian could be deemed "on fire" because they were more enthusiastic than their peers.  Could it just be an outgoing personality? Another issue I found difficult to navigate was the terminology concerning being "on fire" was not typically taught from Scripture.  The verses I remember people using to emphasise this need to be "on fire" quoted the words of John the Baptist who spoke of Jesus who would baptise with the Holy Spirit and fire.  Some might have alluded to when the Holy Spirit came upon Ch...

There are certain words that are commonly found in the Bible and nowhere else.  We do not hear people in business, politics or in casual conversation use such words, nor do we see them in advertisements or on signs of protesters.  One such word is "lovingkindness" that describes the faithful love and kindness of God combined at full strength.  As if this is not a sufficient description, we can also observe a plural version of "lovingkindnesses" (which spell check flagged as incorrect!) as found in  Psalm 25:6 :  " Remember, O LORD , Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses, f or they are from of old ."   Because God is awesome and words can only begin to portray the vastness of His love, goodness, mercy and favour, lovingkindness is a word that attempts to describe our indescribable God. Last night I was reminded of one of those looping scripture songs that were especially popular in the 70's and 80's taken from  Psalm 63:3-4 :  " B...

Paul wrote in  2 Corinthians 1:3-5 , " Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,  4  who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.  5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ ."  Paul was no stranger to suffering for Christ's sake, and his experiences joyfully endured demonstrated the comfort He received by faith in Jesus in the most trying times.  What Paul dubbed "light affliction" people who have suffered less would have called soul crushing without Christ who gave him strength.  Our God is the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our tribulation so we might also comfort others.  Compared to a meal set before us, the consolation of our Saviour is the main course while troubles that confront us are a light du...

This morning I was struck with a phrase I found in the King James Version of  Hosea 12:4-5 that speaks of Jacob wrestling with a Man near the Jabbok river crossing as the day began to break:  " Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us;  5 even the LORD God of hosts; the LORD is his memorial ."  Jacob prevailed over the angel by refusing to let him go, even after his hip was permanently injured by the touch of the Man's hand.  As Jacob wept he begged for a blessing, and the angel (who seems to be much more than an angel) replied in  Genesis 32:28 :  " And He said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed ."  God changed Jacob's name to "Israel" which includes God's name, meaning "God strives" or "one who struggles with God." Before Jacob...

" He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity ." Ecclesiastes 5:10 Wise king Solomon observed things people love and pursue will not end up satisfying them even when they obtain their desire.  The one who loves money will have an insatiable appetite for it after acquiring it, and those who seek increase are pleased with the prospects of a bit more.  This concept can be widely applied in this world of vanity whether it be tattoos, cosmetic surgery, praise, recognition, likes and acquiring goods.  People can make great personal sacrifices to become famous, and after they acheive their dreams they can hate and love it at the same time. Because we are naturally restless and dissatisfied, we often busy ourselves with fruitless pursuits.  Though we seem to gain ground, our desire remains just beyond our reach.  There are those like Solomon, however, who obtained and achieved more than anyone...