Marching Forth!

Being a prophet doesn't make someone perfect.  God corrected the prophet Samuel's assumptions concerning Eliab, the oldest son of Jesse who had a "royal bearing."  He looked at Eliab and thought, "This must be the LORD's anointed!"   1 Samuel 16:7 says, " But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart ."  Physical height was no qualification to be king when the heart of a man disqualifies him.  It is good for us to realise that we, like Samuel, can be led astray by first impressions and what can be seen. What is true for individuals rings true for the Body of Christ, the church.  As long as I have been a part of the church there have always been people who come and go.  It is interesting to hear their perspective and how it impacts their decision to...

It is wise for us to work towards obtainable goals.  A goal can be a motivation as well as a guide to focus our efforts and remember why our labours will be worth it in the end.  Whether your goal is to fit into last year's pants again or to make the perfect pavlova, there can be great satisfaction in accomplishing what we set out to do.  It is also wise to consider our motivations in setting goals:  one could want to slim down for health reasons and another out of vanity and pride. This need to examine our motives can ring true with goals like planting a church or increasing church membership.  People can be enthusiastic to obtain their ends like a dog that chokes himself on the lead his master uses to restrain him.  I have walked dogs that pulled so violently on the lead during a walk it almost resulted in their own strangulation!  Outside the confines of the yard some dogs are so excited to walk and explore they frankly lose their minds.  Why?...

" Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,  12  all the valiant men arose and traveled all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan; and they came to Jabesh and burned them there.  13  Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days ." 1 Samuel 31:10-13 After the death of King Saul and his sons, the Philistines hung their desecrated bodies on the walls of Beth Shan as trophies of their victory.  When the men of Jabesh Gilead heard of the death of their king, all the valiant men arose and traveled all night to retrieve the bodies and give them a proper burial.  Early in the reign of Saul the people of Jabesh Gilead were delivered from Nahash the Ammonite when Saul mustered all Israel to battle at the report of their trouble.  He had saved them from the reproach of having to gouge out their right eyes, and th...

There is no reasonable justification to compare God to a cruel, ruthless murderer.  The good reputation of men and women are often smeared by their enemies, and it seems the almighty God is no exception.  Those who believe God created the heavens and the earth in His wisdom celebrate the brilliance of God for fine-tuning the earth and celestial bodies to sustain life on this planet.  No one complains about the natural law of gravity that is perfectly suited for our survival, but plenty of people oppose the spiritual law that sin ultimately brings death.  God is gracious to reveal this reality  before the penalty is imposed, and when it comes to fruition He has been much maligned. God has done everything to take the sting out of death for people created in His own image by experiencing death Himself in the person of Jesus Christ.  The God who is the same yesterday, today and forever desires none would perish and that all would come to repentance.  This...

When I played baseball as a kid, I enjoyed batting practice.  That was the most fun part of training that never lasted as long as I wanted.  Sometimes we went to batting cages where the ball was spit out from a machine at a preset speed.  While batting in the cages was good to improve hand-eye coordination, balance and bat control, there were several drawbacks.  It wasn't long before a batter began to suffer fatigue and potentially develop bad habits (as well as blisters!).  The worst drawback is the repetition of the same pitch, pace and location caused batters to anticipate it.  Unlike a machine, a pitcher who knows you are looking fastball will throw a curveball or changeup, some off-speed pitch to throw off the timing of the batter.  Unless the batter is able to quickly recognise the pitch and adjust accordingly, he is an easy out. I believe the Bible is full of "curveballs," unexpected spiritual truths and applications the natural or carnal man wi...

There is a memorable scene in Disney's Finding Nemo when the strapping great white Bruce compelled Marlin a clownfish and his companion Dory (of course a dory!) to accompany him as "friends" to a support group with fellow sharks.  Patterned from a cliche "AA" style gathering, the meeting was called to order by Bruce who lead them in the recitation of their motto in unison:  "Fish are friends, not food."  During the meeting Dory was bopped in the nose and a faint trail of blood wafted up to friendly Bruce's nostril.  Suddenly his pupils dilated as instinct to feed kicked in.  "Just a bite!" Bruce shouted as his shark friends attempted in vain to restrain him and made excuses for his ravenous behaviour. This is a fitting demonstration of how good intentions, willpower, knowledge and even a support group are inadequate in themselves to keep sinners from sin.  Bruce was triggered to attack by a drop of blood in the water because he was a sha...

" For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness,  19  for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God ." Hebrews 7:18-19 The Law God gave Israel was good, a divine revelation of God and the standard of righteousness required to draw near to Him.  The writer of Hebrews, however, pointed out the demonstrated weakness and unprofitableness of it to perfect those who were under it.  It had no power to make a man sinless, for by the Law is the knowledge of sin.  It is like a doctor who skillfully diagnoses a fatal disease but is powerless to provide a cure.  The Law was of no profit to save a man or render him rightoues, for it could only condemn. The weakness of the Law was also displayed in the fallibility of human administration.  One does not need to delve far into the priesthood to see those who anointe...