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Retired pastor

Daily Bible thoughts 977: Monday 28th September 2015: Psalm 119:38-40: For the glory of the Lord.

Psalm 119:38-40: For the glory of the Lord.(please click here for todays Bible passage)

Can you say that you ‘’long’’ for God’s Word? Is there an element of ‘panting’ in your soul? So often we find in Biblical religion an intensity of desire that seems to be lacking in much of church life as we know it.

And have you got to a place where you want God’s ‘’promise ‘’ to be fulfilled more for His glory than for your good. What you want most is for people to see how wonderful He is. It’s not wrong to want the promises of God to come to pass in your life so that personal needs are met. But is there an even deeper desire for the lifting up of His wonderful Name?

So today’s thought is brief and to the point. But it is no less important for being short. Let’s join with the psalmist in prayer, picking it up at verse 36:

‘’Give me a bent for your words of wisdom, and not for piling up loot. Divert my eyes from toys and trinkets, invigorate me on the pilgrim way. Affirm your promises to me – promises made to all who fear you. Deflect the harsh words of my critics – but what you say is always so good. See how hungry I am for your counsel; preserve my life through your righteous ways!’’ The Message.

Go after God and the things of God with all your heart.

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Daily Bible thoughts 976: Friday 25th September 2015: Psalm 119:36, 37: A double turn

 Psalm 119:36, 37: A double turn.(please click here for todays Bible passage)

Here are two complimentary turnings, the one positive; the other negative: ‘’Turn my heart toward…Turn my eyes away…’’

Consider:

  • We need God’s help if we are going to love His Word. He creates spiritual appetite;
  • Spiritual desire can help us to overcome selfish ambition. God’s Word is life’s truest treasure. It matters much more than money in the bank The more we love God and His Word, the less material things will captivate our hearts;
  • There are empty, vain and ‘’worthless things’’ that do not warrant our attention. They may seem to offer life, but they are nebulous and hard to hold on to. They burst like bubbles in the bath. Their promise quickly disappears;
  • On the other hand, true life is to be found in the Bible. There our lives are renewed.

Although we can and should pray that we will love God’s Word and that we won’t give time and attention to meaningless things, it strikes me that we also have responsibilities to do what we can with God’s help. Let’s do those things that cultivate spiritual appetite, and make wise choices: take steps to close off unhealthy (and dirty) streams. In my experience, the more time and attention we give to the things of God, the more time and attention we will want to give to them and our desires for lesser things will weaken. So, let’s ask God to turn our hearts toward and our eyes away, but let’s also do everything we can to fight. Jesus shows us how:

‘’Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour.’’ (Matthew 4:8). Jesus was not deceived. He saw that although ‘Sodom’ looked good (Genesis 13:10a), it was corrupt and doomed (Genesis 13:10b, 13). He dealt with the temptation by means of the Word of God (Matthew 4:10, 11). He used ‘’the sword of the Spirit’’ (Ephesians 6:17) to fend off and chase away the evil one.

Prayer: ‘’May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep the commands, decrees and regulations he gave our fathers.’’ (1 Kings 8:58).

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Daily Bible thoughts 975: Thursday 24th September 2015: Psalm 119:35: Direction and Delight.

 Psalm 119:35: Direction and Delight.(please click here for todays Bible Passage)

The prayer requests regarding God’s Word keep coming thick and fast: ‘’Teach me…Give me…Direct me…’’ This third request speaks of God’s authority over our lives. Which way do I need to go? God will tell me, and primarily by means of His Word.

‘’Direct me…’’ This is one thing a person is saying to God when they become a Christian, and they are baptized. They are affirming the ‘Lordship’ of Jesus over their lives. They are handing over the keys to another Driver, saying, ‘’Steer me. Take me where you want me to go.’’

There is a story told about a driver in a Surrey town who wasn’t quite sure if he was where he wanted to be. Winding down his window he asked a passer-by: ‘Leatherhead?’ The suddenly angry looking pedestrian replied: ‘Fish Face!!’ You have no doubt been in a situation where you have similarly needed to ask for help. God’s directions take us down the ‘’path’’ or ‘’road’’ of His Word. It is a ‘delightful’ road. Expect to find direction for your life in the systematic reading of the Scriptures. Also, you can check any so-called guidance with it. Does it line up with God’s Word or somehow contradict it? Keeping on His road is necessary for joy.

Over the last year or two, Jilly and I have been discovering Yorkshire – particularly on days off during the summer months. Again and again we have turned down roads where the views have been simply stunning. We have found ‘delight’ in breath-taking scenery. It is regularly like this as we travel through the Bible; we find a beauty and a wonder and a joy that surpassed our expectations. God’s directions and your delight are inextricably bound up together.

Where will you find ‘’delight’’? God’s answer is not the world’s. Have you yet found ‘’delight’’ in God’s Word? The key to life’s greatest joys and most enduring pleasures is found there. What do you delight in? Job could say: ‘’I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread.’’ (Job 23:12).

One final thought: If you are taking a certain ‘’path’’ you are not taking others. You are choosing this pathway over other potential routes. Following God will mean rejecting other possible ways which may, superficially, appear more attractive. But if you let the Lord choose the route, you will go through the most stunning scenery, even if the road is sometimes difficult. Once, on a visit to the Isle of Skye, I turned down a narrow road with passing places. It was just a black line on the map: the road to Kylerhea. I found it a little bit scary. It took me over hills and through a wild, rugged landscape. A sort of nervous, insecure feeling went through my veins. Then suddenly the road fell away before me into a steep descent, and opened up a vista that felt like a foretaste of heaven itself, and moved me in a way that I cannot put into words. On that challenging road I found unexpected delight. It is like this for all serious students of God’s matchless Word.

Prayer: ‘’Guide me down the road of your commandments; I love travelling this freeway?’’ The Message.

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Daily Bible thoughts 974: Wednesday 23rd September 2015: Psalm 119: 34: Light and life.

 Psalm 119: 34: Light and life. (Please click here for todays Bible Passage)

When God enlightens you, you have a responsibility to live it!

‘’Give me insight so I can do what you tell me – my whole life one long, obedient response.’’ The Message.

Someone described the life of a Christian disciple as ‘’a long obedience in the same direction.’’

We come to the Bible with an urgent request that God will shed His light on the pages He has written. We need the understanding that He gives, and we are not too proud to admit our need. We come like beggars with outstretched hands: ‘’poor in spirit’’, but never doubting that our loving, divine Benefactor will give us what we need. Even as we confess our lack, we believe in His generosity.

  • When God gives you understanding, you will see that you can ‘’obey’’ His Word; that His endless supply of help is at your disposal. You will ‘get it’ that God never calls without also equipping. Even though you may fall again and again, God will cause you to see that power is available for you to get up and keep going down ‘obedience road’.
  • When God gives you understanding, you will grasp how vital obedience is. It could never be an ‘optional extra’.
  • When God gives you understanding, your ‘’heart’’ will be profoundly affected. It is out of our hearts that we live, and there is a constant need for our hearts to be stirred and moved and changed. I read recently about a Christian mother who survived a devastating divorce, and raised four sons in the aftermath, by learning to live on the promises of God. She carefully went through her Bible and took note of every promise and then learned to ‘stand’ on these faithful words and ‘claim’ them in prayer. One of her boys said, ‘’She not only survived, she thrived.’’ That’s what can happen when God’s Word gets into your heart.

Has God shown you something in His Word today? It is to be translated into action. If it really sinks into your heart it will be!

‘’Do whatever he tells you.’’ (John 2:5).

Prayer: ‘’Give me understanding, and I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart.’’

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Daily Bible thoughts 973: Tuesday 22nd September 2015: Psalm 119:33-40: ‘’Teach me’’

Psalm 119:33-40: ‘’Teach me’’(please click here for the Bible Passage)

‘’It is only with God’s help that we can even begin to keep God’s law.’’ Tom Hale: ‘The applied Old Testament Commentary, p.912.

‘’The spirit of dependence continues with nine requests in eight verses…The section is in three parts:33-35, total commitment, keeping God’s word with the whole heart; 36-37, inner threats, the divided heart; 38-40, divine, faithful care and supply.’’ J.A.Motyer: ‘The New Bible Commentary, p.567.

As we focus on verse 33 today, please remember that God wants ‘doers’ of His Word and not just ‘hearers’.

When I was a young boy I started to have piano lessons. I was unable to play the piano and I needed someone who could (an expert) to teach me how. A teacher is someone who is further on than you in knowledge and ability. They help you know what you don’t know and do what you can’t do.

The Bible is to be obeyed. More to the point, God is to be obeyed. He is ‘’LORD’’. Our obedience to it (to Him) is not meant to be spasmodic; hit and miss, but continuous. God’s ‘’decrees’’ are to be kept ‘’to the end’’. For this to happen we will need a Teacher. We have the very best. The One who wrote the Book will be your personal tutor. Begin each session with your Bible with a prayer to the Divine Author: ‘’Teach me…’’ But let that always be with a view to obedience: ‘’Teach me…then…’’ As you read your Bible today are you looking for directions; wanting to see what you must ‘’follow’’? It is important to not only read the Bible but also pray before you read. Be humble enough to ask for help. Don’t assume that you can just suss it out for yourself. Yes, of course, apply your mind; use the wonderful mental ability God has given you. Think. But do it all prayerfully. Stay in the place of humble dependence on God. When I got into my teenage years, for a time my mum arranged for me to have a personal tutor in maths, because I was struggling a bit as I approached my ‘G.C.E.’ exams. He was convinced that he could help me. (I think he was less certain after a few weeks!! But that’s another story!) Mum had to pay for this personal tuition, but our ‘lessons’ with the Divine tutor are totally free. What a gift! What a Teacher! Make the most of the opportunity. You, who are book lovers, just think if you could have an hour with your favourite author! How excited you would be. Yet our Christian privileges go way beyond that.

I think one of the ways God teaches us to stay on the right road is by allowing us to experience the consequences of taking wrong turnings. These sobering and salutary experiences encourage us to keep listening to God’s ‘Satnav’, and to heed His map. Stay on the clearly marked path today.

By the way, in case you were wondering, I still can’t play the piano! I can read a bit of music, and that is, in part, a legacy from that time. But I cannot play the instrument I love so much. When I was a young boy, the call of riding my bike was louder than the need to tediously labour over scales. It was getting more and more difficult to practice, and I gave up. Mum told me I would regret it, and I do. She was right. But I can’t expect to play. I gave up on my lessons. Don’t do that with the Bible. Keep asking the Teacher to teach you.

Prayer: ‘’GOD, teach me lessons for living, so I can stay the course.’’ The Message.

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Daily Bible thoughts 972: Monday 21st September 2015: 2 Thessalonians 1:12b: Serving grace.

 2 Thessalonians 1:12b: Serving grace.(please click here for todays Bible passage)

‘’…according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.’’

Everything in the Christian life is ‘’…according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.’’

This applies to:

  • Our entire experience of salvation (5-10);
  • The ability to persevere through trials (3,4);
  • The answers to prayers for spiritual growth (11, 12). In our passage it seems to particularly relate to this latter point – and especially to the request about the double glorification: Christ in us and us in Him.

Grace is (God’s) undeserved favour. Everything we receive from God comes to us as an unearned and undeserved gift. We can’t boast about these things or consider that we merit them. We don’t.

John Stott wrote that not only is there saving grace, but there is also such a thing as serving grace. It takes grace to make a person into a Christian; but it also requires grace to live as a Christian. We sometimes fail to grasp this. We can’t live the Christian life from out of our finite resources, but according to God’s infinite riches.

Grace:

  • It is God’s undeserved blessing on our lives in Christ;
  • It is the divinely bestowed ability to live the life of a Christian disciple;
  • It is deeply humbling and reminds us that we will always be incapable on our own;
  • It brings us to our knees in wonder and causes us to sing that it is

‘’Grace is behind and through all of this, our God giving himself freely, the Master, Jesus Christ, giving himself freely.’’ The Message.

Could there be a more fitting conclusion to this first chapter? It provides the key to everything we have read in it.

Prayer: Thank you that I am not alone, or left to my own devices.

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Daily Bible thoughts 971: Friday 18th September 2015: 2 Thessalonians 1: 11, 12

 2 Thessalonians 1: 11, 12(please click here for todays passage)

Paul practiced what he preached! (11a; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). It wasn’t a case of just, ‘Do as I say’, but ‘Do as I do.’ We can’t be continually saying prayers, but we can live in a spirit of prayer. It’s been said that you can take the teaching of Jesus on prayer, as you find it in the gospels, and essentially summarise it in one word – perseverance. Stick with it. Never stop praying for the church; don’t stop asking for each other’s spiritual growth. There is a link between what is requested and what happens. Do you believe this?

‘’Understand that God hears every prayer you pray in Jesus’ name – and that he will either do exactly what you ask, or something even better, which he probably would not have done had you not asked (Mt.7:7-11).’ Steve Fuller.

What did Paul pray here?

  • That God would count them worthy of His calling (11c). He already saw this happening in their persistence and progress through persecution (5), but Paul was not one to rest on his laurels. We have seen elsewhere in the Thessalonian correspondence that where Paul saw a good fire going he was quick to put on another log or two (1 Thessalonians 4: 1, 2; 9, 10).
  • That God would enable them to do everything that was in their hearts to do (11b). He wasn’t asking that the Lord would enable them to do every single thing that entered their heads, but everything that God put into their hearts to perform.
  • In all of this, his heart’s desire was to see Jesus ‘’glorified’’ in His church (12a).
  • But he also looked to the ultimate goal of believers being ‘’glorified’’ in Christ (12b). When someone becomes a Christian, a process is set in motion that will lead finally to their glorification – to their being made perfectly in the image of Jesus and shining with His glory. This final outcome is so certain that Paul could write about it as if it had already happened, even when it hadn’t. But, for him, God’s sovereign purposes were so certain and sure it was as good as done. God finishes what he starts.

Prayer: Lord remind me to pray for the spiritual growth of my brothers and sisters, and help me to believe, as Paul clearly did, that praying will make a difference.

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Daily Bible thoughts 970: Thursday 17th September 2015: 2 Thessalonians 1: 5-10: Pay back.

 2 Thessalonians 1: 5-10: Pay back.(please click here for todays message)

‘’God is just…’’ (6a). You may not want to hear that. You may prefer it if I say ‘’God is love’’ (1 John 4:16). Both statements are in fact true of God. His love is seen especially in that He has made a way for us to be forgiven through Jesus. But if we reject His way we will keep our sins and we will experience His justice (8). If we refuse ‘’the gospel’’ – the good news of Jesus, then we will be left facing the bad news of eternal punishment. The offer of the gospel is addressed to the human will and it can be declined (8). There has to be a response of faith (10b).This passage could hardly be clearer in spelling out the results of such rejection.

At least three things stand out here:

  • God will ‘’pay back trouble’’ to the church’s troublers (6). The apparent triumph of the persecutors is but for a season. ‘’You’re suffering now, but justice is on the way. When the Master Jesus comes out of heaven in a blaze of fire with his strong angels, he’ll even up the score by settling accounts with those who gave you such a bad time.’’ The Message. (See also Isaiah 66:15, 16; Matthew 13:40-43; Luke 3:17).
  • God will ‘’give relief’’ to His suffering people, and to all who care about them (7).
  • Those who do not want Him will not have Him: ‘’Those who refuse to know God and refuse to obey the Master will pay for what they’ve done. Eternal exile from the presence of the Master and his splendid power is their sentence.’’ The Message. To my mind (9) expresses the essence of Hell. Those who do not want God’s company/companionship in this life will not have it in the next. As Jim Packer notes in his fine book, ‘Knowing God’, ultimately all that the Lord will do in judgment will be to underline the choices we have already made. Surely no-one can read the words in 2 Thessalonians and not see that there is going to be a day of division, of separation in the universe. Not everyone will get to live with Christ in heaven because many have made it clear they do not want Him. We will not all live ‘’happily ever after.’’

As someone said, ‘’We make our choices, and then our choices turn around and make us.’’

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Daily Bible thoughts 969: Wednesday 16th September 2015: 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4: The snail and the Ark.

 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4: The snail and the Ark.(please click here for todays passage)

I remember well the May night in 1999 when Manchester United won their first European Championship under the management of Alex Ferguson, in the Nou Camp Stadium, Barcelona. Really and truly, United looked like they had been screwed down by the efficient German team, Bayern Munich, who took a one nil lead in with them at half time. But throughout the second period there was a sense of growing momentum with the Manchester team. They kept trying; coming back at Bayern in wave after wave. With a matter of minutes to spare, Teddy Sheringham scraped an equaliser. Then on came ‘super-sub’, the Norwegian striker Ole Gunner Solskjaer. With almost his first touch of the ball he scored from a corner, and United had won an improbable victory. Interviewed after the match, an elated Alex Ferguson said he was so proud of his team. ‘They never gave in’, he said. It was obvious to everyone watching that this was the case. They refused to be beaten.

However much the odds may seem to be stacked against you, God will help you to keep going if you trust in Him. That was the experience of the Thessalonians. This church was persecuted from the beginning (see 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:5), but, with Divine help, they never gave up.

In his opening thanksgiving (a thanksgiving that Paul says is right and should be continuous), he expresses appreciation for:

  • Their ever-increasing faith (3a);
  • Their continuously growing love (3b);
  • Their endurance in trials (4).

These things surely link to the triad of graces we saw in the first letter as hallmarks of genuine Christianity: faith, love and hope.

The wind was blowing fiercely against the Thessalonians, but they just kept going.

Perseverance has been called ‘’stick-to-it-iveness.’’

C.H. Spurgeon said, ‘’By perseverance the snail made it to the ark.’’

It is said that Sir Winston Churchill spoke at his old school and delivered the shortest message of his political career: ‘’Never give in; never give in; never give in!’’

There are more serious things at stake than a football result. So, ‘’Never give in.’’

Prayer: Lord, at times life is so hard. You know this for you lived here as a Man, and you experienced the worst that this world had to throw at you. Still, you endured. Please give me the grace to follow your pattern.

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