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Even In Spite Of Death…

11th July

“As Paul reached the stairs, the mob grew so violent the soldiers had to lift him to their shoulders to protect him. And the crowd followed behind, shouting, “Kill him, kill him!”….“Please, let me talk to these people.””

Acts 21:35-36, 39c

As Paul entered Jerusalem, the city was full of worshippers who had already started the purification ritual’s as stated in the law of Moses. Paul knew that danger awaited in Jerusalem, as revealed to him by the Holy Spirit (Acts 20:22-23). He knew that everywhere he traveled, imprisonment, persecution and danger was waiting for him. Yet that did not stop him sharing the gospel with boldness and zeal wherever he went.

As Paul stood up to address the large crowds, almost immediately a mob of men, started stirring up the crowds against him, so much so, that the whole city joined in with this great riot. Can you imagine what Paul must have felt? A whole city against him, willing that he would die, with such hatred and venom! Paul barely escaped death, aided by the Roman army stepping in to help him. Yet Paul did not bask in his temporary freedom, but instead, asked to share further with the crowds. Isn’t this astounding?! The crowds who moments before were willing to rip him to pieces! Yet Paul, only had love for them and wanted to share the Good News of Jesus with them.

This is the radical power and love of Jesus’ life transforming work. From a persecutor to spokesman for Jesus, an ambassador for the Jewish religious law, to an ambassador for Christ. Jesus not only saves us, to give us eternal life, but saves us to make a difference. Paul is a perfect example of a complete life transformation. He was full of love for the people he once persecuted and for the people who were persecuting him. Even in spite of death, Paul wanted to share his conversion testimony, and the goodness of Jesus with his accusers. Doesn’t this remind us of Jesus too? Let us pray that we too may have the courage to share about Jesus, even in the face of persecution!

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The Rule For All Rules

10th July

“Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.”

Matthew 7:12

Have you ever heard about the Golden Rule? No, unfortunately, it is not a ‘how to get rich’ scheme! It is simply, as Jesus says, the ‘essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets’. Doing to others what you would want them to do to you, is putting together all of the things God wants us to do and all He doesn’t want us to do, into one manageable and simple lifestyle and spiritual discipline.

Yet notice that Jesus’ command is pro-active. He says ‘do to others whatever you would like them to do to you’!! We shouldn’t just wait for others to do good to us, then give back to them. We should love first without expecting love back, be generous without expecting generosity, be kind without expecting kindness back.

When we live out this ‘Golden Rule’ in our lives, we begin to see Christ-like characteristics in us and through us. If we live with Christ as our foundation, the solid rock on whom our faith is built, then these ‘Christ-like’ characteristics will become a natural part of our life. We will become sure of our place in His Kingdom, our worth in Him and we won’t need to live in fear.

Live out the Golden rule in all you do, and watch the wealth of His Kingdom, enrich your life.

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Bound By The Spirit

8th– 9th July

Weekend Edition

“I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike – the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus.”

Acts 20:21

The Gospel is simple. It is not over complicated and doesn’t need to be. Paul had a burning desire to share this Gospel, even at the sake of his own persecution and suffering. He was beaten, imprisoned and experienced all kinds of suffering, just so he could tell people, of the love of God shown to us by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, resulting in the forgiveness of our sins.

Paul even counted his life as nothing, but being a vessel to share this message. Even as he traveled back to Jerusalem, knowing full well the persecution awaiting him there, he was filled with so much joy in sharing the Good News and grace of Jesus Christ.

Friends the message of Christianity is so simple: repent of your sins, have faith in Christ, and receive the unconditional, everlasting, grace and love of the Creator of this world. There are so many people across the world who need to hear this truth. Paul said he was ‘bound by the Spirit’ to share this wondrous truth. Are you? Are you willing to share this message with people all around you too?

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God Doesn’t Always Work The Way We Think

7th July

“God gave Paul the power to perform unusual miracles. When handkerchiefs or aprons that had merely touched his skin were placed on sick people, they were healed of their diseases, and evil spirits were expelled.”

Acts 19:11-12

There are some things in the Bible, that really do fill us with all sorts of questions. Perhaps today’s verse is one of them. Yet we can rest assured knowing that if it’s in the Bible, then it is truth and we can be encouraged and grow through reading and understanding it, no matter how strange it may seem.

What is evidently clear, above the strangeness of these miracles, is that God has the power to use anything to bring about His will and to heal and deliver the sick and oppressed. Sometimes when we pray, we expect God to work in a certain way according to our thinking and reasoning. But these miracles show us that God is outside of our way of thinking. He is above it. What we do know, is that His miracles are for our sakes and for His glory.

When we read verses such as today’s, we are encouraged that although God doesn’t always work in the way we want or think, He is at work for our best. He knows best. Let us not get discouraged when we don’t always see the answer we may expect, but rather let us trust God that He knows best. He can use anything and anyone for His glory. Trust Him. He knows best!

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Don’t Be Afraid!

6th July

“Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent!”

Acts 18:9b

Fear of man, and fear of the possible consequences that await us, often stop us sharing the Gospel with confidence. We sometimes shy away from challenging immorality, from speaking up at injustices and sharing the message of hope with people who need it, solely because we are afraid of what they might ‘think’ or ‘do’. Yet the words Paul received in a vision from God, whilst in Corinth, stand true for us today: Don’t be afraid.. God is with us.

Yes there are many who do face severe persecution for their boldness to share the message of Jesus, but that doesn’t mean God has left them. Rather it is God in them, that gives them the boldness to speak, in spite of the persecution they may face. Let’s not let fear stop us from standing up and boldly sharing about Jesus. Speak out! Don’t be silent. If we don’t speak, who will?

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The Church Of Berea

5th July

“And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth. As a result, many Jews believed, as did many prominent Greek women and men.”

Acts 17:11-12

What would the church of Jesus Christ look like if all people who listened to the Word of God being preached, took the approach of the Bereans and searched the scriptures, in hunger of the truth? Listening to ‘preaching’ or ‘teaching’ isn’t just an opportunity for us to be fed, like going to a spiritual petrol station. Rather it is so much more than that. It’s an opportunity for us, individually, to allow God’s Word to penetrate our hearts and transform us completely.

As we search the scriptures for a deeper understanding and affirmation of what is being preached, we further allow the Holy Spirit to reveal His truth to us and implant the ‘word’ into our hearts. If we just listen to a Sunday service message and don’t prayerfully re-visit what we have learnt, how can we possibly expect our lives to be transformed? We will just end up being attracted to emotion driven sermons, that satisfy our feelings, but do not transform our lives! Look what happened with the Bereans, ‘as a result, many Jews believed, as did many …Greek women and men.’ When we actively are pursuing God, His Word becomes a necessity for our lives. It has the power to save and transform us completely.

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To The Known God

4th July

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since He is the Lord of heaven and earth, He doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve His needs – for He has no needs. He Himself gives life and breath to everything, and He satisfies every need.”

Acts 17:24-26

As Paul was walking around Athens, he noticed many shrines, temples, idols and altars that deeply disturbed him. He even saw a sign to ‘the unknown god’! Yet he did not dismiss their ‘false worship’ but rather saw in their hearts a desire to worship or at least know the One True God!! Paul went on to share the Gospel with them; to show them that God is more than just an idol, but the creator of the world, who wants to make Himself known to all. ‘His purpose was for the nations to seek after (Him) …..though He is not far from any one of us. For in Him we live and love and exist…’ (v27 – 28).

Friends, we too are faced with the same challenge. Rather than put our hope and trust in idols and false gods, let us lean on the God who created our very breath, who gives purpose to us and who leads us to Himself. He does not try to hide Himself from us, but He wants us to find Him and know Him. As Paul said, it is in Him we live and love and exist. He is not an ‘unknown’ god but the God we can know. He is Emmanuel – God with us.

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Pray For The Persecuted

3rd July

“But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.”

Acts 12:9

Persecution for your faith can come in many different forms and from many different places. We are blessed in the Western church to boldly share and practice our faith in most countries without fear of physical persecution. Yet sadly, across the world, there are many who do not share that privilege. The early church, in the book of Acts, also went through severe persecution, not just from the ‘Gentiles’, the ‘outsiders’, but from those they would call brothers, ‘fellow Jews’!

Peter, as one of the early church leaders, had to bear the brunt of a lot of persecution, as he was often the one boldly standing up for his faith, and preaching the message of Jesus Christ. Yet what is so clear throughout the book of Acts, is that the believers did not pray for Peter’s release, but rather for him.

Often we think that praying for freedom for persecution, or from hard situations is the answer, but when we read of the prayers of the believers, we are challenged to perhaps refocus our prayers. Perhaps we should pray instead, that God may give the persecuted strength to endure, because even in the midst of persecution, something beautiful can be birthed. Take for example, Paul and Silas’ imprisonment in Philippi, in Acts 16. Through their imprisonment and an earthquake, the prison guard and his whole family were saved, baptised and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Today, if you are going through some hardships, persecution, or you know of someone who is, why not try and pray, that God would give them the strength to endure it and birth something beautiful from it. After all, ‘in all things, God works good for His glory’. We might not always see the fruit of our suffering, but we can rest in the knowledge and peace, that God will always get the glory. Don’t give up. Something great is about to be birthed.

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I Will Sing About Your Power

1st and 2nd July

Weekend Edition

“But as for me, I will sing about Your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about Your unfailing love. For You have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress. O my Strength, to You I sing praises, for You, O God, are my Refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love.”

Psalm 59:16-17

David amazingly wrote these words when King Saul, in a jealous rage, sent soldiers to watch David’s house in order to kill him. He wrote this in the valley. He wrote it when going through pain. Yet his sure foundation was God. It always was. He only ever put his trust in God. He knew that there was no other place where he could find safety than in the presence of Almighty God, in the refuge of His loving arms. Moreover, David daily reminded himself of this fact. Daily, each morning, he would sing about the power of God’s unfailing love. God, was his refuge and strength.

We too can follow the lead of David. When the storm rages around us, even if the storm is from our own doings, let us remember that God our refuge and strength is full of unfailing love. Our world might shake, yet below our feet is an unshakeable foundation than cannot be moved; we just need to stand on it in faith! Let us daily remind ourselves through songs of praise, that God is full of unfailing love, a refuge in times of trouble and firm foundation in whom we find strength and safety. Let those words not just be empty words said out of repetition but rather let us believe with our hearts that God is truly where our help comes from.

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God Gives Wisdom Liberally

30th June

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.”

James 1:5-6

What do you do when faced with tough decisions? Do you try to find a solution for yourself or do you get down on your knees and give it to God? Giving our fears, worries and decisions to God is one of life’s hardest challenges. We naturally want to take and feel in control; to be in charge and have it all worked out. Yet that is not God’s best plan for us. He wants us to give our cares to Him, and seek Him in all we do. That is not to say that God will wave a magic wand and everything will be ok. Indeed, sometimes God does want to use us as part of the solution, but it is the Holy Spirit and God’s wisdom that empowers us and leads us, not of our own strength.

James tells us that when we ask for wisdom, our generous God will give it. We must, however, make sure that our faith is in God alone when we ask. There should be no doubt that God will give us wisdom from His generous store-house. We should trust 100% that His wisdom, is above all human wisdom. We should know that His wisdom always leads us to make choices in line and in tune with His will. Let’s put our faith in God alone. Don’t waver but trust Him completely.