Marching Forth!

After protecting the child Joash in the house of God, heir to the throne of Judah in the line of David, the high priest Jehoiada set about crowning him as king.  He gathered the Levites to Jerusalem and made a covenant with them.  At the time the wicked queen Athaliah reigned in Judah, having murdered her own grandsons so she could rule in the place of the deceased king.  The high priest Jehoiada organised the Levites on the appointed Sabbath to guard the door and only allow Levites to enter the temple court.  There was another group directed to stand guard around the king with weapons to protect him from any harm.   2 Chronicles 23:9-10 then says, " And Jehoiada the priest gave to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and small shields which had belonged to King David, that were in the temple of God.  10  Then he set all the people, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left side of the tem...

" He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High  s hall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  2  I will say of the LORD , "He is my refuge and my fortress; m y God, in Him I will trust ." Psalm 91:1-2 These verses are a lovely picture of rest available to those who are joined to God by faith in Jesus Christ.  God is revealed in scripture as unapproachable in everlasting glory.  Moved by love for lost sinners, God has come to us in the person of Jesus to provide a way for all who trust Him to dwell in house of the LORD and rejoice in His presence forever.  The Holy Spirit inhabits those who are born again by the Gospel, and those who follow Jesus will chose to draw near to Him and abide as a branch is connected to the vine.  Jesus is the Vine, and His disciples are the branches He enables to grow and be spiritually fruitful.  Believers have been divinely joined with Christ as members of His Body, and as such we delight to seek Him and exp...

A song I have been thinking of since Sunday is "God My Rock" penned by Brenton Brown and Paul Baloche.  The lyrics are as follows: When my heart is overwhelmed I will look to You alone God my rock, God my rock, God my rock You will stand when others fall You are faithful through it all God my rock, God my rock, God my rock In the blessing, in the pain through it all You've never failed me You are the strength of my heart You are the strength of my heart I can rely on You, I can rely on You You are the joy of my life You are my song in the night There is no one as true Jesus I trust in You When I've struggled to believe You have not let go of me God my rock, God my rock, God my rock Carried through the darkest storms You have held me in Your arms God my rock God my rock God my rock It is good when the child of God understands that " in the blessing, in the pain " are not contradictory but complimentary.  We do not often think of pain as a blessing, yet consi...

" O house of Jacob, come and let us walk i n the light of the LORD ." Isaiah 2:5 In the beginning God said, "Let there be light!" and there was light.  Before the sun, moon and stars were created, God spoke light into existence.  In God is light and no darkness at all.  Jesus Christ is the Light of the World and the darkness could not comprehend it.  The apostle John wrote of Jesus in  John 1:9 , " That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world ."  Even as the sun shines over all the earth, Jesus Christ supplies salvation and eternal life to all who will believe. The exhortation to walk in the light of the LORD from the Old Testament is seen in the new as well.  The illuminating light of the Law of Moses was a shadow compared to the light Jesus has provided through the Gospel of grace.  Like the moon is only able to reflect the glory of the sun's brightness upon the earth, the Law reflects the righteousness and wisd...

It is awesome how God is a Saviour for those who trust in Him.  God does for us what no man can do in cleansing us from sin, imputing righteousness to us by faith and delivering us according to His grace and mercies.  Unlike idols that must be removed from burning buildings to preserve them or salvaged after a disaster, God saves His people.  Like the old song says, " Heartaches, broken people, ruined lives are why you died on Calvary ."  There is no medicine which are able to cure heartaches and ailments of the soul. Psalm 37:34-40 states, " Wait on the LORD , a nd keep His way,  a nd He shall exalt you to inherit the land;  w hen the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.  35  I have seen the wicked in great power, a nd spreading himself like a native green tree.  36  Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; i ndeed I sought him, but he could not be found.  37  Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright...

Flagging discipline can hinder us from forming or maintaining healthy routines, and even the most committed can find themselves in a rut.  We can do all the right things when our hearts are not in it, and it is easy to make excuses and be slack when there seems to be little immediate benefit for toiling or negative consequences for going back on our plans.  This is often true with physical and spiritual fitness.  An exercise regime is started with good intentions but we quickly lose interest.  Regular devotions and church gathering used to be impacted by work and holidays may now be flagging due to Covid restrictions and cold weather. Growing up I would hear people in the church speak as though they were two categories of Christians:  those walking with the LORD and those who were backsliding.  It seemed those who identified with being a "backslider" might have been better served to call themselves "in sin" and in need of repentance and to return to the LOR...

I love reading of God's people who rely upon Him and overcame impossible odds by the grace of God.  Because Jonathan knew God was awesome and mighty he said to his armour bearer as they approached a garrison of the Philistines, " It may be that the LORD will work for us.  For nothing restrains the LORD from saving by many or by few ." (from 1 Samuel 14:6 )  King Asa of Judah, when faced the army of Zerah from Ethiopia with a thousand thousand men and 300 chariots in battle array against Israel, looked to the LORD in  2 Chronicles 14:11 :  " And Asa cried out to the LORD his God, and said, " LORD , it is nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power; help us, O LORD our God, for we rest on You, and in Your name we go against this multitude. O LORD , You are our God; do not let man prevail against You !"  Through faith in God these and many others in scripture were given the victory by the God who gives power to the powerless...