February 25, 2022 -- Isaiah 40:10-11 -- When the dogs of war are unleased Trust the Sovereign LORD

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
and he rules with a mighty arm.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
he gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
Isaiah 40:10-11 NIV-UK

The juxtaposition in the passage of God’s sovereign power and
His gentle care of His sheep is striking. The arm of the Lord in Scripture
is always a symbol of His mighty power and strength; and the title shepherd,
when used of God, always indicates His tender care and constant watchfulness.
Jerry Bridges, Trusting God. Colorado Springs, CO: NAVPRESS, rpr 2018, page 142

God’s sovereignty is always to his people in wisdom and in love. This is
the difference between sovereignty in God and sovereignty in man. We
dread sovereignty in man, because we have no security of its being
exercised in mercy, or even justice: we rejoice in the sovereignty of God,
because we are sure it is always exercised for the good of his people.
Alexander Carson, as quoted in Bridges ibid. page 142

This is the comfort, that we stand at the disposal of a merciful
heavenly Father to whom we can with confidence abandon 
ourselves...He makes an eternal covenant of grace with us, adopts us
for His children and heirs, and therefore will provide us with every good 
thing and avert all evil or turn it to our profit.
Professor Berkouwer as quoted in Bridges, ibid, page 143

Sovereign LORD the nations tremble and the dogs of war are unleased. In Your great care and tender mercy, remember the people of the Ukraine and end the aggression of the Russian leadership. You Rule the nations, raising one up and casting another down and it is confusing for us and difficult to understand; all our trust is in You. In wrath, remember mercy. Good Shepherd, remember Your people in China who face terrible persecution and abuse for their devotion to You. God, wise and loving in Your sovereignty, remember the people of Canada--the missing indigenous women and children; the divisions stirred up by all the recent government actions on vaccines and the Emergency Act, the political divide, and the breaking of the will of many Christians who have been tumbled against one another by all the bewildering requirements and seemingly contradictory information given by various levels of government. In all of these explosive times, thank You once again for the clear, ringing words of affirmation found in Your word:  
If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

‘For your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:31-39 NIV-UK)

https://youtu.be/IVyRd9mlGyQ
 

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 24, 2022 -- Psalm 85:4-7; 10-13 -- Believer do you see the love and faithfulness of God all around?

Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us!
5 Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
6 Will you not revive us again,
that your people may rejoice in you?
7 Show us your steadfast love, O LORD,
and grant us your salvation.

Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
righteousness and peace kiss each other.
11 Faithfulness springs up from the ground,
and righteousness looks down from the sky.
12 Yes, the LORD will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.
13 Righteousness will go before him
and make his footsteps a way.

Psalm 85:4-7;10-13 ESV

Why read the Bible over and over again? It is a question often asked, and not answered often enough. The Bible is not like any other book. It is God-breathed. The Spirit of God carried men along so that they were inspired to speak the revelation, the Self-Revelation of God, teaching believers Who He Is; how He acts. There is always more to learn. The Psalmist began this poem-prayer of praise recognizing that the LORD God had forgiven the iniquity of His people. It is how He acts towards to His people. That is why the sons of Korah led Israel, and through this writing, all future generations of people belonging to God, in this song of hope and praise.

Look at the second quoted section of the today’s psalm, the verses 10 through 13. The people who prayed for restoration and peace know how He will answer—for God the LORD is the same yesterday, today, and forever. All around the people of God are steadfast love and faithfulness—the fact you draw breath, you are made in His image, you are restored to the Father through the redeeming love of Jesus. Righteousness and peace kiss each other—the believers who are in Christ experience the gift of Jesus’ unity, sustained in them by the powerful presence of the Spirit. The Spirit clothes the believer in Jesus’ imputed righteousness. The Father sees each believer through the accomplished work, the righteousness, of Jesus. The reviving goodness of the LORD your Savior is not just all around you. Look at verse 11 and be encouraged.

From below you, under your feet faithfulness spring up. Death could not hold Jesus. He is risen from the dead. Every Spring as the snow melts and tulips and daffodils, hyacinths and crocuses break through the surface of the soil and display their splendid colors, I am reminded of the glory of God, risen in Jesus Christ. Above you also the restoring work of God is carried out. Righteousness looks down from the sky. Jesus is enthroned, next to the Father, pleading for you, for all His people, so that those who are saved will persevere and endure until He returns. To that end, the Father and the Son give the Spirit in great and ever greater measure to all who ask! Above and below, and from every side, your are surrounded by the mercy and love, the faithfulness and righteousness, in fact, every evidence of the salvation of the Triune God. Open your eyes, open your hearts, receive every blessing He is giving this day. More blessings than you can possibly carry. Do you see it?!

Father in heaven, thank You for the mastery of the psalms, expressing so much which the believer’s heart might otherwise be inarticulate to voice. Thank You for the beautiful, powerful, constant work of Your Spirit stirring up believers to greater faith in Jesus and sharper clarity of vision for all He is doing. Thank You, Triune God, thank You for the teaching of scripture which instruct the eyes of every faithful believer not to look to the world for comfort, security and hope—no! Instead to see Your steadfast love and faithfulness meeting in the circumstances of every believer’s life; to know that Your righteousness and abiding peace are all around those who are crying out to You. Looking up or down, side to side, churning all around the believers is the ocean waves of bless—rich and beautiful and full of glory that will lead the believer to You in all eternity. Amen.

https://youtu.be/cuDHqICIpAg

February 23, 2022 -- Isaiah 46:5-10 -- Who Can Make Sense of Chaotic World Events?

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

“To whom will you liken me and make me equal,
    and compare me, that we may be alike?
6 Those who lavish gold from the purse,
    and weigh out silver in the scales,
hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god;
    then they fall down and worship!
7 They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it,
    they set it in its place, and it stands there;
    it cannot move from its place.
If one cries to it, it does not answer
    or save him from his trouble.

8 “Remember this and stand firm,
    recall it to mind, you transgressors,
9     remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
    I am God, and there is none like me,
10 declaring the end from the beginning
    and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
    and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
Isaiah 46:5-10 ESV

Dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ, what tumult churns,  confusing times in our world today. At this moment the Ukraine is being invaded by Russia while the world watches on. China hosted the Olympic games, fraught with political tensions—doping scandals, China’s leadership conducting torture of its prisoners just a few miles from where the Games were held. Who raised a voice of protest? Canada’s Prime Minister has given himself extraordinary emergency powers. Police were called in to break up a peaceful protest; whereas in the past crowds that pulled down statues were not interfered with by the police in any way. Bank accounts are being seized, even poor folks who donated small amounts of money to the trucker's convoy are now threatened by their own government with having their accounts frozen. Drug overdoses ravage our youth. Suicide is rampant. The coronavirus headlines continue to weary people. Who can understand it?

People, deeply loved by the Father in heaven, look at the great assurance today’s text brings you. God the Eternal One is in charge. The world is bowing down to idols of its own making, but their idols are useless, senseless, voiceless, dead. The LORD of Salvation knows the end all things and all history, and He knew it right from the start. He works in and through every moment of human history so that, one day, every eye will see Jesus Christ, and every knee will bow before His throne of power and the Father, Who has ordered all of history well, will receive shouts of blessing and praise and honour and glory. I leave you with the words of J. L. Dagg. Keep in mind, when he penned those words the Great Powers had just convulsed through the Crimean War. Since he penned these words, the world experienced the Boer War, the First World War; the Spanish Flu; The Great Depression; World War II; Colonies across the world fighting for independence, like the Indonesian War; beyond these, The Korean War; Vietnam; Ebola outbreaks and countless children murdered by abortion.

It should fill us with joy that infinite wisdom guides
the affairs of the world. Many of its events are shrouded
in darkness and mystery, and inextricable confusion
sometimes seems to reign. Often wickedness prevails,
and God seems to have forgotten the creatures that He
has made. Our own path through life is dark and devious,
and beset with difficulties and dangers. How full of
consolation is the doctrine, that infinite wisdom directs
every event, brings order out of confusion, and light
out of darkness, and, to those who love God, causes all
things, whatever be their present aspect and apparent
tendency, to work together for good.
J. L .Dagg, Manual of Theology (Southern Baptist Publication Society, 1857; rpr. Harrisonburg, VA: Gano Books, 1982), 86-87.

This day we pray scripture, the promises of the LORD God, as a stirring hope and affirmation of all that is yet to be:
Who told this long ago?
   Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the LORD?
   And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and Savior;
   there is none besides Me.
Turn to Me and be saved, 
   all the ends of the earth!
For I AM God, and there is no other.
By Myself I have sworn;
   from my mouth has gone out in righteousness
   a word that shall not return [ineffective]:
To Me every knee shall bow,
   every tongue shall swear allegiance,
Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me,
   are righteousness and strength;
to Him shall come and be ashamed
   all who were incensed against Him.
In the LORD all the offspring of the Israel
   shall be justified and glory.
Isaiah 45:21-25 ESV

https://youtu.be/GzlponYvF30

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 22, 2022 -- Luke 13:24 -- Entering the Fullness of Life in Christ

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
Luke 13:24 ESV

This morning, very early, long before day-light, I heard the trashman’s truck. The sound of the heavy motor teased its way into my sleep. I opened my eyes. Through the gaps in the curtains I could see, playing on my ceiling, the reflected yellow and white lights of the truck. A house or two away the huge maw of the truck opened and the garbage in the back bins of the truck, where the man had been hurling it, were scrapped away and brought into the depths of the bed of the truck only to be disgorged at the dump.

What will it take to enter through the narrow door? The Christian who knows Jesus Christ must continually carry away the trash of his life. The wanton sins. The rebellious acts. The subtle deceptions. The huge wreckage of sins unconfessed lingering like the proverbial unspoken of elephant in the room. All must be carried out of the mind and the heart. This is done by confession. The Spirit of God then brings the cleansing flood of God’s grace poured out in Jesus Christ so that these sins are carried away in the redeeming flood. Washed to the maw of hell. You cannot carry your sins with you and follow Christ. You cannot hold onto sin because your hands are too full then with things and stuff and junk to hold out your hands to Christ. Let go of these sins. Trust once you have repented of them and turned from them, it is the Spirit of God Who has enabled you to do these things and the Spirit will strengthen you for clean living in Christ.

The narrow door is Jesus Christ. Run to Jesus. In your prayers, having confessed your sins, seek to know Jesus more and more. The narrow door is Jesus. Continually ask the Spirit what great and heavy furniture-like sins you are trying to carry with you through the narrow door; what is impeding your progress? The Spirit will show you. The Spirit will lighten your load. The narrow door is Jesus—bring praises to the Father, on the basis of the accomplished work of Jesus in the power of the Spirit. The things of earth will seem useless and empty in comparison to the glory and grace and splendor and majesty of the Triune God.

Thank You King Jesus, that today is the day of salvation; now is the moment of Your invitation to lay aside every sin and burden and walk with You. Spirit of God the precious word, which You led men to pen and preserve through history and across generations, is the lamp You use to show believers their sins and all the things which weigh them down so that they cannot enter the narrow door if these are continually hoarded. Spirit of the Living God, make brave Your people, so that in the household of faith they will confess their sins and confidently trust these hoarded burdens are finally, truly removed. Father in heaven, let the hearts and minds, the lives and actions of Your children, adopted as such by the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and kept for the day of salvation by Your Spirit, bring You honour and praise, glory and blessing. Amen.

https://youtu.be/MW_F1MMH2r4

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 21, 2022 -- I Corinthians 14:1a -- Appropriate for Family Day

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts
I Corinthians 14:1a ESV

This fragment of the first verse of I Corinthians 14 is a summary of what has been explained in the previous two chapters. The people of God are the family of God and they belong to one another. They are assembled at the good pleasure of the Father in heaven. They are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ and so are reconciled to God. The redeemed in Christ are reconciled to one another in the family of faith. Very appropriate for Family Day, or Heritage Day. Believers in Jesus Christ are also reconciled within to their own hearts so that former sins and wayward rebelliousness against God is not remembered but one’s whole life is given in service to Jesus in the power of the Spirit.

So, believer, pursue love. Step out and make sure the people in Christ who are part of your local body of believers know they are welcome and belong because you speak to them, care for them, spend your strength offering spiritual gifts to them.

That is the point. Love is just a word, nearly meaningless unless there is a force of action behind it. Facebook users know they can click a like or love or care icon and someone else’s post is affirmed, noticed, or challenged. It costs the one clicking the icon nothing. There is no personal interaction in this activity. This is not what pursuing love looks like in the New Testament, or among believers today. That is why the second phrase is so important, before Paul continues his teaching.

Earnestly desire spiritual gifts. When you are a teacher, you show love by showing up and teaching with respect and tenderness so others grow in the faith. The use of the spiritual gift is love in action. If you are hospitable, you invite others into your home, feed them, listen to them, make them feel part of the family of God. That is love in action. The manifestation of the Spirit, that is, the evidence that the Spirit of God is living in you, is revealed when you use your spiritual gift for the glory of God and the blessing of others and in turn, the confirmation of your own faith in Jesus Christ. So, if you are given the gift of helps—help others. If you are a prayer warrior, pray for, and also importantly pray with, those in need. It is love in action.

Many believers feel lonely—outside the family of Jesus Christ. Even those who attend church can feel distraught and isolated. If this speaks to you, I encourage you to use your spiritual gift to bless others. Fight the feelings of not being needed or valuable. Use the gifts the Spirit of God has given you. As you activate those spiritual gifts, Jesus’ beautiful redeeming work is expressed among the people God has placed in your life, the Father is glorified, and the person (or people) you help is blessed and amazingly, in God’s wonderful economy of grace, you will find you feel part of the circle of belonging as well. The strangulating feeling of isolation is destroyed because you served. This too is the mercy of God.

My God,

Thou hast helped me to see,
that whatever good be in honour
and rejoicing, how good is he who gives them,
   and can withdraw them;
that blessedness does not lie so much
   in receiving good from and in thee,
   but in holding forth thy glory and virtue;
that it is an amazing thing to see Deity
   in a creature, speaking, acting,
   filling, shining through it;
that nothing is good but thee,
that I am near good when I am near thee,
that to be like thee is a glorious thing:
This is my magnet, my attraction.

Thou art all my good in times of peace,
  my only support in days of trouble,
  my one sufficiency when life shall end.
Help me to see how good thy will is in all,
   and even when it crosses mine
   teach me to be pleased with it.
Grant me to feel thee in fire, and food and
   every providence,
   and to see that thy many gifts and creatures
   are but thy hands and fingers taking hold of me.
Thou bottomless fountain of all good,
   I give myself to thee out of love,
   for all I have or own is thine,
   my goods, family, church, self,
to do with as thou wilt,
to honour thyself by me, and by all mine.
If it be consistent with thy eternal counsels,
   the purpose of thy grace,
   and the great ends of thy glory,
   then bestow upon me the blessings of
   thy comforts;
If not, let me resign myself to
   thy wiser determinations.
THE ALL-GOOD; The Valley of Vision: Puritan Prayers and Devotions. Ed. Arthur Bennett; Carlisle, PA: THE BANNER OF TRUTH TRUST. Reprint 2020, page 4.

https://youtu.be/50kEqdXz3ao

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 20, 2022 -- Psalm 84:1-2; 10-11 -- Better is one day in the courts of the LORD of Hosts

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus

TO THE CHOIRMASTER: ACCORDING TO THE GITTITH. A PSALM OF THE SONS OF KORAH.
How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD of Hosts!
My soul longs, yes, faints
   for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh sing for joy
   to the Living God.
For a day in Your courts is better
   than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
   than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the LORD God is a sun and shield:
   the LORD bestows favor and honor.
Psalm 84:1-2; 10-11 ESV

The trucker convoy is dismantled. The aftermath politically and socially will linger for a long time. Will you go to church? Will you delight in the fact that your salvation and your honour do not depend on what a government does, what protesters do, what the media portrays or does not portray, will you faithfully turn to Your God and delight in Him?

Our land is experiencing a famine for the Word of the LORD. People are prepared for political discourse all over social media, but are not prepared to go to the House of God twice on a Sunday. People are prepared to express all kinds of pro or anti sentiments with regards to what should be happening, but how willing are you to defy the standards of the world and the cultural norms of the day and get into a church and confess only the LORD can bestow honor and favor?

That word “bestow” is old-fashioned, but so appropriate. When someone bestows a gift or honour to other, it is the greater who in mercy or kindness gives this gift to one who is subordinate. God is the Greatest, beyond description kind and glorious; He stoops to grant to His feeble, wayward people, such generous gifts of honor—to be called His sons and daughters. He grants favor—that is, to live in His presence now and for all eternity.

Return people of God to worship. Gather in the sanctuary blessing and praising God the Most High. Sing to Him. Honour Him. Recognize the convulsions and seething of this age are the birth pangs of the New Heave and the New Earth, when Jesus Christ will return to take all His holy ones with Him. He will judge the nations, He will judge politicians and truckers, protesters and movement organizers. He will examine the heart and life of those whom He judges, did they receive the honour and favor He was so ready to pour out before His return?

Today is the day of salvation. Today is the day of confession of sins. Today is the day of worship and recognizing true glory—the Might and Splendor of God the Father, and the radiance of the Son Who is the exact representation of the Father and the Spirit Who leads all the people who belong to Jesus in joyful procession through all the valleys of death each age presents until the believer is brought into the eternal courts of the LORD of Hosts.

Blessed God, Father of Faithfulness, the hearts of Your people often seek satisfaction in a dozen different places--anywhere except in the lovely place where You have promised You will be: in the midst of Your people. Forgive our pointless wanderings. Thank You for the mercy and favor You show in welcoming Your people to worship. Thank You for the restoration of the heart and soul, the renewal of hope and joy which Your Spirit gives to all who set their hearts on Jesus Christ. Thank You for the blessing You shower on Your people in times of worship. Thank You that You are the Sun of righteousness, Jesus, arising with healing in Your wings. Thank You LORD God, that You shield Your people from the world, the devil, and even our own worst excesses, so it is possible by the power of Your Spirit to spend time in Your courts. Amen.

https://youtu.be/iLxqHjctAN4

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 19, 2022 -- Psalm 25:1 -- To the LORD I lift up my soul

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

OF DAVID.
To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.
Psalm 25:1 ESV

These 11 words of the verse today are all-encompassing. David, the powerful king of Israel, is not giving himself to the conquest of his enemies, he is not focused on becoming the richest man on the planet, he is not building a statue that will commemorate his reign for ages to come—he is lifting up his soul to the LORD.

First, it is to the LORD, the Covent-making and promise-keeping God, Who has saved David; to Him, this mighty and glorious God, David is giving his life. He is yielding to Himself to the One Who is Good and Upright. He is submitting to Him, continually offering God his heart and reputation.

Second, he lifts his soul. His mind and heart, his strength and his will are focused on the Living God. Before he makes a decision he will pray. When he fails in his actions, he will confess. The trials of life batter David and challenge him to focus on everything, anything, other than God. David will not have it.

Finally, it is his soul that will be dedicated to the Living God, the One Who is strong to keep David safe. His deepest spiritual self is not dedicated to what he thinks God is—David is yielding himself to God; the High King of Heaven Who revealed Himself. David has the first five books of the Old Testament. He has written them out in his own hand and these words and revelation of God, the Living One, are his guide.

As believers in Jesus Christ these 11 words are powerfully appropriate. The LORD has fulfilled the promises He has made to His people. God the Father sent Jesus, and in Jesus Christ believers see God has kept His promises and thereafter the Spirit is given to believers so that they will be guarded in Him until Jesus returns.

Believers will be battered by all kinds of circumstances. What separates believers from the non-believers of this world is how one responds. The believer will face every trial and every storm standing on the promises of God. The believer will give his heart, promptly and sincerely, to the Living God knowing it is the God of Salvation Who rides the storm, directing it according to His holy and perfect purposes.

The atrocities of the world around us will continue. This world is convulsing and thrashing against the reign of Jesus Christ. Even so, Jesus is seated in power at the right hand of the Father in heaven. He is bringing all things into submission so that, when, at the end of time, Jesus stands and the trumpet sounds and He will return with all His holy ones. Jesus will give the kingdom, life and even death itself, all things to the Father and the Father will be all in all. The word of God is precious now because the more a believer reads, the more willingly one yields himself to the God of Victory and realizes he is kept safe by the Spirit of Power.

To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.
Make me know Your ways, O LORD;
   teach me Your paths.
Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
   for You are the God of my salvation;
   for You I wait all the day long.
All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness,
   for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
For Your Name’s sake, O LORD,
   pardon my guilt, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
   Him will He instruct in the way that he should choose.
His soul shall abide in well-being,
   and his off-spring shall inherit the land.
The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear Him,
   and He makes known to them His covenant.
My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
   for He will pluck my feet out of the net.
Psalm 25:1,4-5,10-14. ESV

https://youtu.be/iFw42tZVDKI

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 17, 2022 -- Psalm 119:173-176 -- Amazing love for straying, wandering sheep

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Let your hand be ready to help me,
for I have chosen your precepts.
174 I long for your salvation, O Lord,
and your law is my delight.
175 Let my soul live and praise you,
and let your rules help me.
176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant,
for I do not forget your commandments.
Psalm 119:173-176 ESV

Notice how the Psalmist speaks of the tender care of God. He is trusting the God of Salvation to help him. In fact he prays this with such confidence because the Promise-Keeping God has proved Himself faithful to this man. In fact, God has proved this faithfulness over and over again. At the end of this long Psalm, one would expect the writer to finish on a high note, claiming victory and confidence in his walk with God. Instead there is the jarring confession of verse 176—I have gone astray like a lost sheep.

Not that long ago some of the men who I’d spent much time with and often prayed with and prayed for decided to go astray. It was very painful. These are men who I genuinely care about and spent much time with in conversation, bible study, prayer and social time. If just three men could impact me this much that I grieve and struggle and feel pain, suddenly the merciful kindness and love of God—Who is persistent in seeking us—was highlighted. He has the whole population of the planet in His Sovereign care. He is tender-hearted to billions. At the same moment another thought hit me: I am as much a wandering sheep as these others. What great love the Father has for us that we should be called His sons and daughters. What amazing love and patience the Father has for us, and for the people of this planet! 

How amazing God is that He should send His Spirit to guard His sheep from irreparable harm and He has sent His Son, the Good Shepherd of Souls to bring us back to Himself.

I really was humbled this morning at the thought of this.

I was really brought to my knees in praise of God and in renewed passion to pray for those who are currently going astray like lost sheep. As I type this, I have been renewed in my praise and thanks to God for those who prayed for me when I was in my times of wandering.

The goodness and love and blessing and might of the LORD of Hosts is displayed in the fact that He is our rescue story; He is our song of victory; He is all our boast.

Who is like You, O God our Father? That is easy to answer—there is none in the great expanses of the cosmos, on the earth or under the earth or in the depths of seas. You alone are Great and Glorious, worthy of all praise and thanksgiving. Thank You for never giving up on us, Your people, the sheep of Your pasture. Thank You for raising up prayer warriors, who are led in this work as they look to Jesus, the Captain of our Salvation and the One True, Praying-Mediator. Humbled and aware at Your throne of grace of how much kindness and mercy we ourselves have received, we pray, with renewed zeal and hope for those who are currently going astray. Seek Your servants, rescue Your straying sheep—as we anticipate their return and receive others known to You and unexpected to us, yes all of us together may bless You and freed from all vanity praise You. This to the praise of Jesus and in His Name we pray—Amen.

https://youtu.be/9Yr48Berkqc

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 16, 2022 -- Genesis 1:27 & Philippians 2:6-11 -- What it means to be made in the image of God

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

So God created man in his own image,
   in the image of God he created him;
   male and female he created them.
Genesis 1:27 ESV

though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:6-11 ESV

Yesterday I listened to a Sinclair Ferguson sermon given two years ago. The illustration he gave was so striking I borrow it freely here and trust it will bless you. Imagine a rich man commissioned a self-portrait. It cost him a great sum. It was stolen from him. The police searched. For a long time there was no word on the painting. Then one day, the police officer returned and said, “the man responsible for stealing your painting is now in custody.” You can imagine the response of the rich man, “Never mind that! What about the painting? Is it safe?” His longing is for the restoration of the painting—his image.

Now, see the verses we read today. God made us to be His image-bearers. We are, in a very real sense, God’s portrait. Sin separated us from Him. At great cost Jesus came, took on the form of a man and He restored the purity of the image of God. The devil is chained. More importantly even than that, Jesus Christ, true Man, is seated at the right hand of power, next to God. God’s image-bearer, self-portrait, is seated next to Him and in Jesus Christ, all of us, once marred, are now restored as God’s prized possession. We took will take our place as the image-bearers, the splendid portraits of the Living God. Isn’t that a powerful illustration?

Beloved people of the LORD Jesus Christ—what a great cost the Father and the Son have given—Jesus taking the form of flesh so that we, God’s image-bearers, might be restored. What power the Spirit exercised to sustain Jesus in His flesh and raise Him from the dead. What glory is ours. Oh praise Him and bless Him; serve Him with all your strength. This is also why we are so persistent in our evangelism. We see the image of God in others. The beauty of our Faithful God may be smudged and dirtied by circumstances and sins of people. Yet, believers who have been restored in Jesus Christ, know how they themselves have been restored in beauty in the image of God look past the dirt and smudges and disfigurements others bear. This is why believers speak eloquently and urgently of the glory of Jesus Christ calling others to share the joy of being the apple of God’s eye.

O LORD, I fling myself with all my weakness and misery into Thy ever-open arms. I know that I am ignorant and much mistaken about myself. Thou, Who seest in very truth, look mercifully on me. Lay Thy healing hand upon my wounds. Pour the life-giving balm of Thy love into my heart. Do for me what I have not the courage to do for myself. Save me in spite of myself. May I be Thine, wholly Thine, and, at all costs, Thine; in humiliation, in poverty, in suffering, in self-abnegation, Thine; Thine in the way Thou knowest to be most fitting, in order that Thou mightest be now and ever mine. Thou art my Strength and my Redeemer. I am Thy poor little creature, dependent on Thy merciful charity alone—Amen.
Père Besson (1816 - 1861) Prayers Ancient and Modern. Ed. Mary Wilder Tileston. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1928. page 226.

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February 15, 2022 -- Psalm 78:1-4 -- Teaching the Next Generation Wonderful Words

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

A MASKIL OF ASAPH.
Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2 I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
3 things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.
Psalm 78:1-4 ESV

There is something about reading this passage as a grandparent, that is very different from reading it as a teenager. God be praised, in His kindness, He has allowed me to be Christian from my youth. When I read a passage like this as a teen I had very limited understanding or appreciation for the heritage of faith in which the LORD had set me. Now, as Carolyn and I have raised children in the fear of the LORD, and these children are raising our grandchildren, or through their work and volunteering, raising up others to believe in Jesus Christ, the truth of this beautiful text strikes home with a powerful force.

Asaph was the chief Levite musician under King David. He was appointed to teach the people songs to God so that people would sing praises to God their Father. While working out at the gym there’s usually loud music blaring. Sometimes the soundtrack includes songs from the eighties. There are songs that play which I am fairly sure I have not heard in a couple of decades; as soon as the music starts, I can remember so many of the words it is actually surprising to me. King David appointed a musician to compose songs that would impact the head and the heart for the Gospel. Songs that would carry intergenerational weight. Asaph music, many of the Psalms, have impacted and continue to impact generation after generation. Sometimes just a few words will be enough for the hearer to be able to recite and contemplate so much more. If you need an example: "The LORD is my shepherd..." Tell me, does this help you recall the rest of the Psalm? I am sure it does and the LORD is praised.

The image of the singer changes in verse 2 to that of a father—he uses every means necessary to instruct his children in the LORD. Parables—teachings which are stories of daily life that have a heavenly theme and reveal the Kingdom of God. He will speak “dark sayings”. To be honest, this one was more difficult to understand. So I had to dig a bit. In the original language “dark sayings” is “enigmatic sayings”. When a parent teaches a child math, the concepts are dark, or enigmatic. They seem difficult—because they are difficult. But these teachings help children to think. Puzzling through this and working out the problems helps a child’s mind to learn how to think, how to work out difficult things in every area of life. Interestingly enough, that enigmatic saying forced me to dig deeper into the word in order to find what it means. The effort is totally worth it. That too is an example of a dark saying, Job 28:1-6 teaches us that wisdom must be mined from deep, dark places and its treasures brought forward into the light to bless and instruct others. 

At this place in my life, thinking about these things increases my sense of wonder. How kind, how patient, how merciful, how loving, how faithful is God our Father. He has allowed me, with all my foibles and follies, all my weaknesses and inconsistencies, to work with my lovely wife Carolyn so that our children are raised in the knowledge of the LORD. More than this, He has allowed us to live to see their children grow in the knowledge of God. He has blessed us so that we can see how, in their work and volunteerism, our children seek to make the knowledge of Jesus Christ known among their peers and to the youth of this generation. Thanks be to God.

Mighty Ruler of Nations, King of Glory Who deposes nations and raises up others up, we, Your people, the sheep of Your pasture, will give thanks to You forever; from generation to generation we will recount Your praise. Amen.
(Prayer based on Psalm 79:13)

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February 14, 2022 -- I John 2:15 -- Real Valentine's Day Love

People deeply loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Do not love the world or the things in the world.
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
I John 2:15 ESV

Recently I had the privilege of traveling for work. While waiting for the flight and during the flight, I read the book “Worldliness: Resister the Seduction of a Fallen World”, edited by C. J. Mahaney. It challenges the reader to ask the question: what, or who, do I love more than the Lord my God? It is Valentine’s Day and many people are making all kinds of crazy statements about their love to their love. Such love might only be feelings based and will grow cold with the next argument or fight.

The positive side of the verse is implicit—the love of the Father. It is His love for you brings order to all your life and brings into proper perspective all the loves in your life which flow from the grace and strength of His love to you.

It is impossible to love others, truly and honourably love others, without first being filled with the love of God which is perfectly demonstrated and given in Jesus Christ. This love of the Father and the Son is guarded in you by the Holy Spirit. Such love as you have received comes at the great cost of Jesus Christ—His perfect submission and obedience to the Father. Love is sacrificial.

As a believer, drenched in, surrounded by, and filled with the love of the Father, you are able to love others selflessly. You are not dependent on the other person’s love for you. You don’t require the other person to be everything to you. It is God the Triune—God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit—Who is all things and all strength so that from the depths of His love you are able to love others, whether or not they love you back. You can love others when they struggle to love you back. You can love others, bearing all things, because Your Father in heaven showers you in His never-ending love. Such love makes for marvelous marriages. Such love brings friendship to a whole new level, where Christ is the anchor-point and the friends are seeking the best for one another. Such love makes for wonderful citizens of any country, because the citizens do not expect their leaders to provide all that is needed, they have all what is needed from the merciful hand of the Father, Who holds His people in the grip of His grace and His love.

Our Father in heaven, blessed and great is Your Name! Extravagant is Your love for Your people. Let the light and warmth of Your love, so perfectly given in Jesus Christ, be for us the fuel which the Spirit uses so that we will be a people who shine Your love appropriately and brilliantly to this sin-darkened world. Faithful God, help us to be faithful in living out covenant love within our homes, schools, churches, communities and workplaces so that the Light of Your love will be seen and believed by many. Let our lives increasingly reflect more love to You; in Jesus' Name we pray it. Amen.

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February 13, 2022 -- Proverbs 24:15-18 -- When the Righteous Fall

People loved by the Father, in the power of the Spirit: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the righteous;
    do no violence to his home;
16 for the righteous falls seven times and rises again,
    but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.
17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
    and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles,
18 lest the LORD see it and be displeased,
    and turn away his anger from him.
Proverbs 24:15-18 ESV

Verse 16 is often quoted; read it again. I’ll wait. Seriously, it’ll take you six seconds. Okay. So, if you read this verse out of its full context you will miss the point that it is the trouble among the people of God. This is written to believers and believers are told not to do violence against one another. In these challenging times, that is exactly the message needed.

Are you for the truckers’ convoys, or against them? For some this is the litmus test, how a person answers this question means there will be conflict or communion. You are the ones the verse is speaking off. You are waiting to pounce on your fellow Christian, if he doesn’t answer exactly as you expect him to answer. What pride all of us have, imagining we have the right and final word on any topic. I say this to my own shame and to the shame of our broader Christian community.

The fact is, Christians are the servants of the LORD. You do not get to dictate what a man does or does not do. When a man sins and breaks the commandments, by all means, speak with tender urgency. When a man follows his conscience to join a convoy; or follows his conscience and does not join a convoy or promote it, be wary how you speak of the servants of the LORD. Pray for those who are in disagreement with you. Pray for the peaceful resolution of this growing conflict between the government and protestors.

Christians are unified by the Holy Spirit. It is both a gift and a task. This unity is based on the fact that the closer the Spirit of God brings you to Jesus, the closer you’ll draw to other believers. The task of believers is to get closer to Jesus. Read the Bible. Listen to the Spirit. Believers in the household of faith must show love to one another—contentious and difficult as those other Christians may be. Love must begin in the household of faith. If a man does not love his brother, whom he has seen, how can he love God Whom he has not seen? Choose once again today to intentionally love your brother or sister in Christ; seek to understand his position on issues especially when it is different than your own; and in all things love one another while holding to the highest standards of faithfulness to Jesus.

Recognize this, the LORD is watching over you and He is watching over the one who seems to be an enemy because of his opinion. Let the Spirit of God draw out whatever is wrong in you and draw out whatever is wrong in your fellow Christian. Let the Spirit of God teach you true community. Who knows, but you might be surprised at what the Spirit shows you and how the Spirit corrects you as you follow the Savior, Jesus Christ, to the honour and praise of the Father in heaven.

Blessed Father, as Your people gather for worship this day, bind us together by Your Spirit so that we will draw closer to Jesus Christ and in Him draw closer to one another. Mighty God, teach us so that the peace of Christ rules in our hearts and the love of Christ is given and received in true community among believers. Amen.

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February 12, 2022 -- Jeremiah 1:9-10 -- When will we return to Normal?

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the LORD said to me,
   “Behold, I have my words in your mouth.
   See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,
     to pluck up and to break down,
     to destroy and to overthrow,
     to build and to plant.”
Jeremiah 1:9-10 ESV

When will Canada “go back to normal”? There are variations on that headline running through all media platforms. The desire behind that headline is for things to go back to the way they were. People somnambulating through life with the false sense that they are in charge of their lives. Normal is upheaval. Normal is the awareness the LORD God is in charge of all things and it is His pleasure to pick a nation up or to break a nation down. His purpose in all such things is to have the kingdoms and nations, peoples and tribes return to Him.

Consider what is truly happening:
   “for my people have committed two evils:
     they have forsaken me,
     the fountain of living waters,
and hewed out cisterns for themselves,
     broken cisterns that can hold no water.” Jeremiah 2:13 ESV
The message is clear. The people of the earth have in Jesus Christ, living water that wells up to eternal life (John 4:14). Yet people try to drink the sands of evil philosophies and mix it with soothing liquids which are actually the poison of heresy.

In the land of Israel, the dry season is long and very dry. People have large cisterns, that is underground reservoirs which collect rain-water. This stored water is a precious commodity in the dry season. Rather than storing up treasures in heaven, where nothing can destroy the wonders stored up for them, the people have put their treasure in leaky cisterns so that their worthless treasures are endlessly pouring away from them.

Consider this, the person who trusts in the LORD of Glory cannot be shaken. His hope is anchored in the One Who sets up nations, or Who lays nations low. The Father in heaven is the security for the Christian who endures these troubled times. More than this, Father gives the Spirit so that the treasures of Christ are guarded safe within him. When the days of disaster come, the Christian can boldly kneel before his Father in heaven confident that Jesus remains for him the water of life and the treasure guarded safe which can never be taken from him.

Faithful God, You have broken the chains of slavery; You set the captives free; in Christ You have delivered Your people from death in the kingdom of darkness, bringing them into the Kingdom of Light, the Kingdom of the Son You love. How faithless we are. How readily we run to the darkness, positioning ourselves to take hold of old sins and enslaving addictions. Mighty Father, by the powerful presence of Your Spirit within us, show us again and again how empty this all is. Spirit of God renew us in Jesus Christ so that the poison of sin is drawn. Revive us in Jesus, Who is given as the healing water which wells up to eternal life. Triune God, let the light of Your goodness so powerfully shine in us and through us, that neighbours and co-workers, friends and family members will desire the pure, healing waters of life, found in Jesus! Continue to shake the nations, pluck up and break down, until the glory of Your Name fills the earth as the waters cover the sea. Amen.

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February 3, 2022 -- Romans 5:10-11 -- Saved by Jesus' life

Believers loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Romans 5:10-11 ESV

Sometimes believers need to be assured and reassured of the wonderful gift the Father has given them in Jesus Christ. It is quite familiar news to you, that God in His mercy sent Jesus Christ—the full and final sacrifice for sin. It is why Christians praise the King of Heaven. Notice the second part of verse 10: “much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life”. It is easy to overlook these words, but critical for you believer, so you understand what the Triune God is now undertaking on behalf of sinners who are now reconciled.

The sinner is declared “not guilty” because of the work of Jesus at the cross. A sinner’s rebellion and hatred toward God, all of which made him absolutely punishable and worthy of hell, have been set aside, punished on the Person of Jesus so one who believes in Jesus is declared not guilty! What great mercy. Now, a week after one’s salvation, a month, ten years, what if sins continue? What if the believer struggles against such agonies of the soul which nearly make him impotent with hopelessness, guilt and shame?

The life of Jesus Christ, His position at the Father's right hand, the place of power, is the guarantee that believers will be completely saved. Jesus is praying for believers (John 17:20-23; Hebrews 4:14-16). The Spirit of God is given to believers, living in their hearts (Romans 8:9-11). The Spirit which raised Jesus from the dead is the Spirit is the same Spirit Who lives in you. Consider the power it takes to make a dead man live! This dynamic, powerful Spirit lives in you, making you fully alive in Christ and putting to death all that is unworthy and unholy.

Rejoice, believer, rejoice in the glorious work of God. Read the Bible and feed your heart and mind and soul on its nourishing truth. Pray, urgently asking that old sins and wicked patterns will be thrown out of your life. Fellowship up—that is, find Christians whose walk you admire and encourage each other to ever greater acts of faithfulness and thankfulness before God so your life, fully belonging to Jesus already, will more fully reflect His right living with God in your own words and actions. The LORD, Who saved you, will work out His salvation in Jesus Christ, so that by His Spirit, every part of your mind, and life, present, past and future will be fully submitted to God. Welcome His sanctifying (that is, making holy) work which is having in your life right now. You are under renovation and what you will be is now shown in glimpses and tender, young form—and on your life the triune God has declared: to be fully matured in eternity.

Glorious God, thank You for the work of Your Spirit, working in believers, resurrection power, this same power which raised Jesus from the dead. Faithful God, thank You for the work of Jesus Christ, in Whom there is salvation and there is on-going holy-making renovations taking place in the soul, life, mind and heart of every believer. It is obvious Your goodness, Triune God, is never-ending. Forgive Your people for focusing on fears rather than having a laser sharp orientation to the praise of and confident trust in You. Scriptures makes it clear, You, Who started the work of salvation, You will see this work to its fullest completion. Great are You, LORD. Glorious are You, Savior of the World. Mighty in Power are You, Spirit of the Living God. 

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February 2, 2022 -- Psalm 73:1-3 -- What is capturing your thoughts?

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,
my steps had nearly slipped.
3 For I was envious of the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
Psalm 73:1-3 ESV

Well, this is pretty accurate. Even though tis was written more than two thousand years ago, it remains incredibly relevant. It captures the real fluctuations of the heart. It begins with the assertion that God is good to His people and specifically to those who are pure in heart. Without even a pause for breath psalmist turns his attention to others, what they have and what he perceives is lacking in his own life. This is coveting what others have. This is idolatry, setting up a standard or an ideal and moving towards that, instead of delighting in the Goodness of God.

Thankfully the Psalm writer turns His attention back to the Living God—finding in Him wise counsel, strength and his life’s portion. Whatever it is the LORD gives to His people, it is right and good and will result in His people turning towards Him in confidence and trust. Or, as the psalmist sees while in the sanctuary, those who turn away from the LORD of Glory will in fact receive the punishment which their wickedness deserves. The fear of the LORD is the holy awareness that a man cannot trifle with God and His goodness.

Where is your heart at today? Are you thinking about the successes of others, what they have and noticing what you don’t have? Are you becoming discontent with your lot because others seem, effortlessly, to be doing so much better than you are? The more you look at the spoils the wickedness, the more your heart will be spinning with anguish.

Life finds its meaning in knowing God, the Father. Those who are aware of the endless, pitiless cycles of sin and the exhausting bottomlessness of chasing wrong are invited to turn to Jesus. Confession is the way to set down the burdens of sin. Admitting one’s failures and wrongs and hopelessness is the way to truest freedom in Jesus Christ. The Spirit will give pure thoughts and the words of life those who fully turn their eyes on Jesus.

Mighty God, Whom have I in heaven but You and there is nothing on earth that I desire beside You. As I echo the words of the psalmist, written so long ago, may my sins be thrown down. More than this, let hope which is anchored in Jesus Christ keep me close to You. Amen.

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February 1, 2022 -- Romans 1:28-32 -- Answering the Atheist's Objection

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
Acts 1:28-32 ESV

Will a good person, who doesn’t know God, go to heaven? It is a test question. Many Christians have had it posed to them. Often the one asking it already knows the answer, he is merely seeking to be justified in his own eyes. To put it bluntly, there are no completely innocent people, no good people. In fact, the world portrays this truth of this over and over again. Think about the last time you watched a murder mystery. Consider how often the murderer, when finally caught, was the least likely person. Someone who from the viewer’s perspective was unexpected. It is what makes the genre so mesmerizing.

It turns out the murder is the kind, grandmother figure who is hiding a horrid past. Perhaps the chain of evidence leads the police officer to an upstanding member of society, who has long hidden this murder under layers of guilty-conscience-driven acts of good deeds performed as penance for a long-hidden crime which seared the conscience but remained unconfessed. Even the detective relentlessly pursuing the murderer is proved to be compromised, cutting corners, plunging deeply into grey areas of what might be considered dishonorable practices in order to uncover the culprit. Odd, isn’t it, murder mysteries are fascinating exactly because there are many viable suspects. Every person presented in each episode has some sort of secret which shows the evidences of evil which resides in the heart.

In presenting this list to the Romans, which includes everything from disobedience to parents, a debased mind, to murder and being heartless, Paul is diagnosing the condition of the human heart. There is no good person. It is a fact established long ago in Scripture: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). This is exactly why the goodness of our God and Father is so great—while we were yet sinners, deceitful, rebellious, hating Him—He provided the way of salvation. Jesus punished in the place of wicked, ruined sinners. The Spirit given so that wicked people receive a heart transplant—completely new life, new thoughts, an alien goodness which is from God given to the believer.

The believer knows his guilty past. The Christian knows the full-on wickedness of former days and she praises God because what she was she no longer is. In Christ, one is a new creation. The old is dead, the new life has come. Even then, it is not the Christian who is good, it is Christ Who is for the Christian every boast, every evidence of goodness. It is the Spirit Who leads the believer to kneel before the God of Glory and confess—”this heart, once beyond human cure, has been transplanted from above, so that it is no longer I who live, but Christ Who lives in me!”

Contemplating Your Greatness, Father in heaven, leads the believer to borrow the words of the hymn writer who declared: ^"Praise, my soul, the King of Heaven! To His feet your tribute bring, ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, evermore His praises sing!" King of Wondrous Blessedness, Source of Every Good, by the presence of Your Spirit help me to walk in the way of Christ, the Redeemer-Savior. Let my life and actions, words and deeds be a bold boast of Christ and Him alone because it is in Him I have this heart transplant and everlasting life which are for the honour and praise and glory of the Generous Father. Amen.

^Henry F. Lyte, who based his hymn on Psalm 103

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January 31, 2022 -- Acts 28:28-31 -- Witness with boldness and without hindrance

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.”
He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.
Acts 28:28-31 ESV

Paul had been on trial. He’d been accused by the Jews, falsely accused, of bringing Gentiles (non-Jewish people) into the inner court of the Temple, where no foreigner was allowed to enter. If this were true, the Jewish people could demand the death penalty. It was not true. It was not even being vigorously prosecuted. He’d spent two years in limbo while the governor Felix waited for Paul to bribe him and release him (Acts 24:22). When two years passed a new governor took power. This new governor, Festus, wanted to favour the Jews and he left Paul in prison. Finally Paul appealed to Caesar and was sent to Rome.

This background is helpful as you look at this verse today. Paul was unjustly imprisoned, however, because of his imprisonment, he was able to preach Good News to the leaders of Rome and to Gentiles. Many believed. Paul was unjustly imprisoned, but along the way, various people dealt kindly with him. Paul was unjustly imprisoned, yet he did not complain to His Father about his bad treatment. Paul was unjustly imprisoned and had to pay his own expenses for this and the Lord provided for his needs. Paul knew these circumstances were all being used so that the glory of God would be revealed.

The passage before you today is Paul’s summary statement against the Jews in Rome. Julius, Paul’s centurion guard, allowed Paul to have guests over to the home (where he was under house arrest). So Paul could freely preach to his own people. Many of the Jewish people he was preaching to rejected his teaching. However, this meant Paul was able to preach to the Gentiles. He freely took the opportunity to preach Good News wherever he could.

Lessons for you today. Trust that whatever your circumstances are, God has placed people in your path who need to know about Jesus Christ. Strike up conversations and tell others the Good News. Expect many people will mock you or reject you. Keep praying and trusting that the Living God is accomplishing His purposes through you. Keep studying the Word. When you are posed questions that are hard to answer, read and study the Word so that you can give a defense of all you believe. Know that Your Faithful Father will provide for you--it is why Jesus taught His people to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread". Now, go light your world with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Father in heaven, You have blessed Your people with the riches of knowing Jesus Christ, with the honour of being called Your sons and daughters in Jesus, and with the treasure of the Spirit's presence to guard this wealth within them so that the work of salvation which You initiated in Your people will be completed. Thank You for Your goodness! Thank You for Your love! Forgive Your people for the times of hoarding the Gospel and refusing to witness to others. Let this day be a fresh start and by Your Spirit's work may the glory of Jesus and His saving work be proclaimed with boldness and without hindrance. Amen.

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January 29, 2022 -- Psalm 66:1-4 -- Praise! Worship! Adore! Honour and Bless!

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Shout for joy to God, all the earth;
2 sing the glory of his name;
give to him glorious praise!
3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.
4 All the earth worships you
and sings praises to you;
they sing praises to your name.” Selah
Psalm 66:1-4 ESV

What a glorious summons to praise! Yesterday I was listening to a sermon given by Alistair Begg, who noted something to the effect that praise dispels gloom. Praise takes the believer from self-centredness. Singing out to God and worshiping Him requires one to put down his selfie-stick and behold Him Who is Wondrous. Begg's reference to the selfie-stick got his audience laughing...but Begg was serious. The world is so self-focused.

As one who struggles against depression, some days the dark cloud seems to cover everything, I do know the power of praise. Years ago one of my doctors suggested that I recite reasons for thankfulness, because thanksgiving and depression can’t co-exist. What a beautiful truth this has proved to be in my own life.

No doubt a hundred excuses can flood your mind; lame and oft-repeated ones like: I don’t feel like praising. I don’t feel like giving thanks. I laughed at what a friend posted this morning, it was a meme: Every morning 2-year Jenny cries “Help! I’m awake!”. I am smiling to myself even as I type this. Isn’t that so like us as adults—our inner child is shrieking against the morning especially as we think of all the things we need to do. I don’t want to walk to work in the cold. I don’t want to be nice to that family member. Interestingly enough, we do the things we protest against because: we are adults, we know these are important things for us to carry out, and once we start a project, the momentum of beginning gets us through.

God is worthy of praise. He is glorious beyond description. I am speaking to you, adults, you who are wrapped up in countless unacknowledged blessings, urging you to push through the inertia! In spite of yourself begin to praise Him. You’ll find the Spirit will lift you up so that what began as forced effort soon becomes easy, delighted, soul-refreshing songs which pour out of your heart.

Complaints make the problems seem bigger. Murmuring focuses on what is wrong. Banish complaining and mutterings. Instead, name the attributes of God the Triune. Naming the attributes of God, like love, justice, faithfulness, and the fact He is all-powerful—just to barely scratch the surface of His immense awesomeness—puts your problems into their proper perspective. The LORD of All the Earth is bigger than all your problems. The One Who Keeps Your Soul among the Living is forever blessed and honoured and the highest desire of the heart. Praising the LORD of the Cosmos reminds you life here on earth is so short, and it is to be lived in view of the grand purpose of our existence which is to know Him and glorify Him. Such praises and singing out in glorifying Him you are being prepared for the adventures and blessings and never-ending joy of eternity. No wonder the psalm-writer proclaimed:
Shout for joy to God, all the earth:
   sing the glory of His Name;
   to to Him glorious praise! Psalm 66:1-2

The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!
   He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
The LORD is great in Zion;
   He is exalted over all the peoples.
Let them praise Your great and awesome Name!
   Holy is He!
The King in His might loves justice.
   You have executed equity;
You have executed justice
    and righteousness in Jacob.
Exalt the LORD our God;
   worship at His footstool!
   Holy is He!
Psalm 99:1-5

https://youtu.be/ZMwGTbnknCM

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 28, 2022 -- I Corinthians 13:4-5 -- Erasing the record of wrongs

People loved by the Father, the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful…
I Corinthians 13:4-5 ESV

The word resentful in the New International Version is translated as the phrase ‘keeps no record of wrongs’. What a good description. A few days ago the name of someone, who I had not thought about for a long time, suddenly popped up in conversation. Prior to this conversation, if you’d asked me “are you resentful?” better yet, if you’d asked me “are you keeping a record of the wrongs someone has done against you?” I’d have honestly answered with a simple no. What changed?

Part of my work with Redemption Prison Ministry is helping men who are in drug and alcohol recovery. On Tuesday and Thursday mornings, 9 to 10 AM, I lead Bible Study classes. As part of their recovery the men are encouraged to examine their lives each day against 24 character traits. This is a self-examination which prompts them each one to privately ask himself: am I living in the way in which God requires the righteous to walk, or am I chaffing and rebelling? This January, as part of my New Year’s resolutions, I decided to complete a daily character inspection, using the same chart as the men do.

How helpful it is to see, for example, if I am being honest or deceitful, temperate or gluttonous, forgiving or resentful. The fact that these character inspections take place every day means that I am open to examining my life against the Word of God. The twenty four areas of inspection help me to think about areas of my life that might not, otherwise, be inspected. With the Spirit’s help, I determine as truthfully as I can, whether I am truly lining up my life and my actions in accordance with the will of my Father. It is because of this daily inspection I was made aware of my long dormant resentment.

Isn’t it beautiful that our Father in heaven keeps count of all the tears we have cried (Psalm 56:8)? Isn’t it amazing, that our Father in heaven, Who has perfect memory “keeps no record of our wrongs” (Psalm 130:3)? How is this true? It is the glorious fact that sins confessed, are sins that have been cleansed, washed away by the blood of Jesus Christ. Knowing this means there are a few things believers must recognize.

Forgiveness is costly. Sins have been punished. No one ‘got away’ with the sins they committed against you, against God, against creation, against others. Anyone who rejects God or refuses His mercy, will be punished in hell. It is a terrible and frightening thought! The believer recognizes this profound truth: sin has been fully punished. My sins, and the sins of all who are in Christ, these were put on the Person of Jesus Christ and at the cross He took up our punishment. When I think about the Father in heaven, Who in amazing love, gives to sinners like me forgiveness in Jesus Christ, I am humbled. It is the only way in which resentments can be released, because I know their wrong has been fully, and finally punished...or the wrong-doer's sins will be punished...in which case knowing from the Word how terrible hell is, I am driven to my knees praying for the one who formerly was my enemy.

Forgive me, Father in heaven for the times I have been able to name all the wrongs things someone committed against me, and yet at that same moment held up my hands to You and expected You to forgive me! What a contradiction asking for glorious forgiveness while I was myself wallowed in the wickedness of an unforgiving heart. Thank You that in view of the great love of Jesus Christ, forgiveness full and free can flow from Your throne of grace to believers and then such forgiveness, without any loss of efficacy or strength, can flow and overflow among believers so that the world can witness the truth of the Gospel when they exclaim: “see how those Christians love God and love one another”! Spirit of God, direct us deeper into the love of Jesus Christ so that our lives will declare the Greatness of God the Father, now and forevermore! Amen.

https://youtu.be/Jbe7OruLk8I

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 27, 2022 -- Psalm 72:1-4 -- Grappling with justice and righteousness

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Give the king your justice, O God,
     and your righteousness to the royal son!
2 May he judge your people with righteousness,
     and your poor with justice!
3 Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people,
     and the hills, in righteousness!
4 May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
    give deliverance to the children of the needy,
    and crush the oppressor!
Psalm 72:1-4 ESV

There is a beautiful interplay between the words justice and righteousness. Both of these are covenant words. Both of these are important terms for the Christian, however, justice seems for many to be the default word and priority. David Griffin, in his reflection on justice and righteousness, gives a number of reasons why so many in the church opt for justice, rather than righteousness.

1: It gets the church a seat at the table of public engagement. Bishops can argue for justice for the poor with governments, but not for greater righteousness.

2: It functions as a ‘natural law’ equivalent: that is, it functions as a universal form of moral language that enables all religious and secular people to talk meaningfully to each other.

3: It is popular amongst educated millennials in their fight against exploitation and oppression of people in the two-thirds world. It has a ‘cool factor’.

4: There is disenchantment with excessive inward piety or personal righteousness.

5: It has no ‘wowser’ factor like the word ‘righteousness’. [Note: Wowser is an acronym for We Only Want Social Evils Removed. Perhaps if we put ‘injustice’ instead of ‘evils’, getting Wowsir, we might be onto something? No?]
Justice and righteousness - Ethos

Notice in Psalm 72 how justice and righteousness are intertwined. They belong together. There can be no true justice without reference to the righteousness which the LORD of Heaven and Earth requires of His people. The Father in heaven has declared that the believer who is in Christ, is no longer guilty. His justice has been satisfied. That is where many people would like to stop. However, how then should the believer live? In true righteousness—setting aside sin and choosing the path to God. Righteousness is a joy for the one who is in Christ—just as a man deeply in love his wife will set aside all temptations and lusts which do not honour his bride, so a Christian will joyfully set aside all temptations and lusts to sin which do not honour Jesus, the Bridegroom and Captain of Salvation.

Fellow Christian, give thanks to God for His great justice and righteousness, and live out loud in this world as those carrying forward justice and righteousness.

Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
   Who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be His glorious Name forever;
   may the whole earth be filled with His glory!
             Amen and Amen!
Psalm 72:18-19

https://youtu.be/uUiwA1JNDig

Copyright © 2022 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.