February 7, 2024 -- Hebrews 12:28-29 -- Getting off the Treadmill

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.
Hebrews 12:28-29 ESV

Ever heard of the hedonic treadmill? It is a theory that what makes us happy can only make us happy for a little while and then we go back to our set point of happiness. For example, you might hear your favorite song on your play list. You hit repeat. You might still enjoy it a third time, but what happens if it is played fifty times in a row? You might think “I never, ever, want to hear that song again”. Those who take drugs or alcohol become like hamsters on a wheel. The faster they go, the more exhausted they become, and they never get anywhere. Where once a bit of a chemical made you happy, soon you’ll need more and more and your exhausted brain and body can’t process it but you still crave more in order to get the same high you had before.

Paul is writing to a people who were looking backwards. They were focused on the old ways of Jewish practices. They had hoped what they used to do might now bring greater happiness and peace. They were going in the wrong direction. All the practices of the Old Testament were all pointing forward to Jesus Christ. He is the ultimate fulfilment of God’s plans and promises. In Him, there is joy unspeakable full of glory (I Peter 1:8). 

The worship of God is not like a treadmill, or a hamster wheel, because the more one knows about God, the more there is to explore, to know, to love, to respond to with awe and praise. He is a consuming fire—He is infinite in His wisdom, infinite in His glory, infinite in His being. The more we explore, there more there is to know. So worship is not a treadmill, or a stationary experience, it is a journey that leads us onwards and forwards our whole life through. Knowing Jesus Christ, and His perfect obedience and faithful love is enough to fill a whole life-time of contemplation. The Holy Spirit takes the things of God and the Word of God and sets them ablaze for us so that it is with reverence and awe that we approach the Majestic High King of Heaven offering our praise, ourselves, our contrition, our humble adoration. The more we yield to Him, the greater is our desire to know Him and submit. The greater our submission and love, the greater is the pull to know Him and adore Him. It is proper hedonism—pursuing God with all we have, all we are and with all our mind.

Mighty God, Who brings peace to His people through Jesus Christ—the Great Shepherd of the sheep—equip us by Your Spirit so that we can respond to Your steadfast love. Work in us what is pleasing to You, so that we can offer to You acceptable worship, with reverence and awe that never grows old, or boring, or cold. Amen.

https://youtu.be/u0a1Pq9avbg?si=X3dmj5lOHq0hEMq_ O Worship the King

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 6, 2024 -- Psalm 92:1-3 -- Name that Tune

It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
to sing praises to Your Name, O Most High;
to declare Your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,
to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.
Psalm 92:1-3 ESV

“Well, it’s one for the money, two for the show”. Can you guess the song? Can you guess the singer? (Blue Suede Shoes, Elvis). Well, it was originally written and performed by Carl Perkin, but Elvis covered it a year later. (Of course it has been covered by other singer and that phrase is also used in other songs.) What is the point? Well, with a couple of words you can begin singing a whole song. For more contemporary audiences, here’s another example, “Hello, it’s me”. (If you guessed “Hello” Adele, 2015 you’d be right on the money lol).

What is the point? The music playing in the background of stores, what we laughingly call “elevator music” or “muzak” has a really big influence on you. The music blaring at your work-site is not leading you closer to God. Words penetrate your thoughts and become brain worms weaving in and out of your consciousness. This is happening more than you even realize, until you play "I can name that tune in four words or three notes". These songs on the various music stations are not bringing glory to God. The musical accompaniment is meant to drive a wedge between you and God.

So, it is good to give thanks to the LORD—morning, noon and night. It is appropriate that musical selections are skillfully written—both the words and the tunes—so that believers hum and sing praises to God their King through-out the day and night. There are many songs that based on the bible, so that in hearing them one begins to know the Bible and more importantly, to sing praises to Him Who is the Most High God. These songs are reminders of His steadfast love. These are songs that lift the soul from the pit of despair and the gloomy contemplations of one’s troubles and bring the believers to the place where the believer sees the beauty of the Father through the work of Jesus—the One Sacrifice who has reconciled you to Him—and the work of the Holy Spirit Who seals this to your mind and heart.

It is an interesting question. If you should happen to get dementia and the songs you’ve stored up in your heart break out on your lips, because your filters are all but gone—what will you singing? “I’m on the highway to” (I can’t bring myself to write the rest, no doubt many of your know it already). Here’s the contrast “The LORD’s my Shepherd”.

For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
    at the works of your hands I sing for joy.

5 How great are your works, O Lord!
    Your thoughts are very deep!
6 The stupid man cannot know;
    the fool cannot understand this:
7 that though the wicked sprout like grass
    and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;
8     but you, O Lord, are on high forever.
9 For behold, your enemies, O Lord,
    for behold, your enemies shall perish;
    all evildoers shall be scattered.

5 How great are your works, O Lord!
    Your thoughts are very deep!
Today's prayer is Psalm 92:4-9 with the repetition of verse 5 ESV

https://youtu.be/OoojA0cLPWY?si=zU_UT9q3MvKexaba “Psalm 23” Shane and Shane

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 5, 2024 -- II Corinthians 5:17 -- Official Portrait

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
II Corinthians 5:17 ESV

Don’t know about you, but my cell phone, computer and some social media sites scrolling along various sites I visit have non-stop newsfeeds. Headlines on various topics are designed to catch your attention. This morning one of the top ones on my phone was a headline to the effect that some Australians are eagerly awaiting a new official portrait of King Charles III, one year after his ascension to the throne. It got me thinking about this text from the Bible. You might wonder about the link, but I ask you, just follow me on this, it will make sense.

When a new British Monarch ascends the throne, he gets an official portrait made and it is sent to official offices, like post offices, court houses, police stations, schools, universities, government offices through out the realm. When King Charles III has his official portrait made, it will go to such offices through out the United Kingdom, to his distant realms and territories, as well as to Commonwealth countries such as Canada and Australia. The point is, citizens of these lands will know who the king is, what he looks like, and portraiture will also give the careful observers a sense of what the king is like. One of the last official portraits of Queen Elizabeth II showed her wearing the regal sapphire tiara with the matching sapphire necklace which has equally large stones surrounded with diamonds. Shows her wealth. There was the order of the insignia of Canada pinned to her shoulder (displaying her right to rule Canada) and the order of military merit (reminding the historically informed of her dedicated service in World War II). She was in an ivory gown. Pointing to her purity in dedicated service and her dignity for office.

Dear family in our Lord Jesus Christ—God has His portrait clearly displayed in heaven. Jesus Christ, the Victor, the One Who has overcome sin, death, hell and the grave. His throne is the Eternal Throne and before Him saints and angels cry out in shouts of dedication, love, and awe-filled devotion. Our Father in heaven has proudly sent out official portraits of His Son, these portraits are living. The portraits are Christians who are His new creation. Believers bear the mark of Jesus Christ, which is the Holy Spirit living within. By the Spirit’s presence and power Christians have renewed in them the image of God—true holiness, true righteousness (Ephesians 4:24) and true knowledge (Colossians 3:10). Christians live to please God their Father, even as a loving son on earth loves to please the father who is his hero. The fruit of such active obedience becomes obvious as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control ripen within and are expressed in every aspect of the believer's life. We are posted in His official buildings—churches. However, as we leave worship we are living portraits, going out into all the world, showing people the beauty of the One, True King.

Beautiful Savior, You are the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by You all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through You and for You, Jesus. And You are before all things, and in You all things hold together. You are the Head of the Body, that is, the Church. In the strength of the Holy Spirit we bless You Jesus and bring to You our praise and worship that through You, the Father will be honoured and blessed and glorified. Spirit of the Living God, clean us, from the inside out, that we may ever more fully reflect the image of Jesus unto the glory of God and this so that many people will be drawn into the Kingdom of the One, True, High King of Eternal Splendor. Amen.

https://youtu.be/px-eU1QjQiU?si=ScYzD2D_Ad3bJUjN Psalm 51

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 3, 2024 -- Proverbs 3:25-27 -- The LORD is Your Confidence

Do not be afraid of sudden terror
    or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes,
26 for the LORD will be your confidence
    and will keep your foot from being caught.
27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
    when it is in your power to do it.
Proverbs 3:25-27 ESV

Recently I saw news headlines that the E.U. and the World Economic Forum founder and the WHO Director-General were all leading their respective organizations efforts at making plans for Disease X. That is some unknown virus or disease which might devastate humanity. Of course people are always devouring news about the latest virus, or snow-bomb, or financial disaster, or climate change, or (well, you fill in the blank). Notice in the first verse that sudden terrors will be predicted, though they may or may not happen. In contrast the ruin of the wicked is assured. There is no question that the doomsayers will themselves be thrown down. The downfall of the wicked should not surprise the Christian, instead it should leave him in no doubt of God's rule over all things.

For terrors real, imagined, impending or occurring, the second verse give reassurance which is beyond all measure comforting: for the LORD will be your confidence. Humanity is not improving—look at the greed, the wars, the research to find newer, more lethal viruses for warfare, the plans for M.A.I.D.’s expansion—though that is currently slowed in Canada, it is not off the books! Your confidence is fixed on the LORD. When you see His Name all in capitals it refers to Exodus 3:15, where the LORD assures Moses, and all the subsequent generations, that He Is, He Was, He Will Be. Nothing surprises God. Nothing is beyond Him. He has the ability to guard His people, save His people in Christ, and direct the course of history. The great confidence of the Christian is the saving work of God.

Notice the impact that should have. So many people have funds for a rainy day. The problem is that such funds can become for them a prized hoard that never gets used. When there are needs and crisis all around, the ones who have the LORD as their confidence can freely give. The LORD will provide (that is Genesis 22:14). So ask yourself, are you using your wealth, your time and your abilities to bless the people around you so that in your generosity they see the LORD is your confidence? The LORD's got this, He can provide, He does give His children exactly what is needed so that their faith grows and their submitted obedience to Him can flourish.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.

https://youtu.be/G2uPU-NY-sc?si=nDCp-v1EG-TFxjXw (The Lord’s Prayer - It’s Yours)

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

February 2, 2024 -- Proverbs 1:24-31 -- True Fandom

Because I have called and you refused to listen,
    have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,
25 because you have ignored all my counsel
    and would have none of my reproof,
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;
    I will mock when terror strikes you,
27 when terror strikes you like a storm
    and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
    when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
    they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
29 Because they hated knowledge
    and did not choose the fear of the LORD,
30 would have none of my counsel
    and despised all my reproof,
31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way,
    and have their fill of their own devices.
Proverbs 1:24-31 ESV

Yesterday I was listening to a preacher who noted that a man died. His coworkers at the office, who knew he was not a Christian, nor were any of them Christians themselves, commented, “Well, at least he’s in a better place”. No, according to the Bible you can count on the fact that those who do not believe in God do not go to a better place. Jesus described Hell as the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth (Luke 13:28). It is a place where the consuming worm never dies and the fires of torment never go out (Mark 9:48).

Is God unjust in sending people to Hell? Look again at the text today. God the Father has sent all kinds of proofs of His willingness to hear people who are here, on earth. He will send His help to those who are in all kinds of distress. The greatest evidence of His wisdom is Jesus Christ—yet people refused to hear His call or accept His invitation to obedience. His hands are stretched out inviting weary sinners to come home to Him. Those who continuously refuse Him will “eat the fruit of their way”—that is, the natural consequences of refusing the LORD of Heaven and Earth will ruin them and their own sinful ways will destroy them.

Many people believe this is just “Old Testament angry-God”. Not so. In the New Testament Jesus spoke of the terrors of Hell for those who refuse Him. The Book of the Revelation shows Jesus as the Faithful and True One, riding on the horse of judgment “From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations (Revelation 19:15). Now is the Day of Salvation. Now is the opportunity for people to fear the LORD God. Those Who appropriately fear Him will find all their other fears subjected to Him and He will by His Spirit rule the hearts of those who believe. The Holy Spirit will direct the the hearts, lives and hands of believers in wisdom. It is work to turn away from the prevalent sins of this age and keep directing one’s steps in the way of the Living God.

Believers worship the Father through the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit—aware that in Jesus they are rescued from Hellfire and torment. But the more they look to Him the more He changes. Let me explain. Those who look to Him see Him as the Glorious Captain of Salvation. He is the Hero of Salvation. He is the Rescue Story of those who trust Him. People have soccer idols and hockey heroes, on an infinitely grander scale, Jesus is the Glorious Champion, the Hero bar-none. Those who recognize Him as such, give Him all their fandom praise!

Faithful Father in heaven, thank You for the instruction of wisdom and the teaching You give through Jesus Christ and His Word. Thank You for the patient repetitive invitation to receive from You guidance which guards the way of the wise from all the wiles of evil. We confess how easily we fall back in step with our former wicked ways and how readily we forget our pledges to serve You. Father in heaven, direct us by Your Spirit to the way of wisdom and the paths of obedience and the life of surrender to the Son, in Whom You bless believers with all joy, life, and true satisfaction. Let our lives so shine for You that many will be drawn to Jesus. Amen.

https://youtu.be/W5EUvOnQr4Y?si=ADfgCs-nmuxUSaV4 “His Mercy Is More”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 31, 2024 -- Matthew 5:14-15 -- Shine for Jesus!

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

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16 ESV

One of my friends complained: “Every time I truly give myself 100% over to God and try to serve Jesus, it seems the Devil doubles down and makes things miserable for me”. Can you relate? I sure can. The trouble for me in my life is how often I am content with 90% obedience, perhaps slightly more, often far less. So the lack of surrender of that last 10% of my life to God means I am holding on to things I want. I am holding onto things which by twisting justifications I think don’t matter to God…though I clearly know they do matter. I just want what I want.

When a life is illuminated by Jesus Christ, then all the areas of sin and strongholds of the enemy are clearly seen. The Spirit then works in you to purge what is sinful, eliminate what is holding you back and enable you to tear down the strongholds of the Devil and sin. If I am truly honest, it is not even that the Devil has to be added into the equation. My own sinful heart is often so wicked and warped that I am always inclined to follow my own sin rather than the light of Christ.

This is precisely why a Christian who conscientiously and consistently obeys Jesus, confessing his sin and fighting against the old temptations and lusts and habits of his nature is so striking to the people around him. His peers are always looking for a chink in his armor and imperfections in his walk so that they don’t have to worry about their own compromises, sins, and the party-house the Devil has set up in their lives. However, a man or a woman who consistently shines the light of Jesus Christ is truly an inspiration to the people around him. Even the acknowledgement of one’s sin and the willingness to turn from it and confess his sins to God is something the world doesn’t understand.

You life shines before all men because you talk to Jesus. Your life is a blinding brilliance when you go to church, when you take time out of your day to talk to God. In fact each time you turn away from your own willful desires and follow Jesus the people around you take note. It is so unusual in our world. The Father is glorified by your joy in Him. The people who hope, secretly wanting there to be something bigger, some grand purpose in life, will see what you are doing and give glory to God the Father as they follow you in your submission to Jesus. A life lived full on for Jesus will face resistance from many around him, but will also cause others to go to him and say, "what you got, I want it!"

O God my Father, thank You that in Jesus I have recognized the poverty of my own life and spirit and by confessing this find fullness of life in Christ. Thank You that mourning over sin has given me greater comfort in Jesus Christ than I ever could have imagined. Thank You, Father in heaven, for the righteousness that is mine in Christ sealed to me by Your Spirit, so that I have a pure heart and a deep desire to remain pure for Jesus. Thank You, Glorious Father that the purity of Jesus and the His Light shining out from me means I will see You, Triune God, now by faith and soon through-out eternity! Amen.

https://youtu.be/m8y3IKarEVY?si=hOQ4f-n9otoL9m6S “Shine” Newsboys

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 30, 2024 -- Revelation 22:21 -- The grace of Jesus

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.
Revelation 22:21 ESV

Pictured at the very end of the Revelation of John is the glory of heaven. The river of the water of life will flow from the throne of God and the Lamb. What glories will result as this precious flood nurtures the tree of life, the leaves of which are for the healing of the nations. God Himself will be the Light of His people and the light of the city.

Then chapter 22 gives the final summary—evil doers, despite the glories to come and the anticipated splendour, will still do evil and the filthy will still be filthy. What is amazing is that those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life are those whose deeds and works were evil and filthy. It is the Lamb Himself, Who has been slain, Whose blood has been spilled so that the formerly evil and filthy are now reconciled to God. Believers who read these words know they are unworthy. They know their deeds. They know their past and would be shamed, thoroughly humiliated and looking for rocks to fall on them if their lives would be broadcast to the world. What makes the difference between those who are evil and filthy and those formerly filthy and evil whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life?

It is the grace of the Lord Jesus. Men and women who see the extent of their evil and filthiness and cry out to Jesus, help me! Clean me! Make me pure within! Interestingly, it is by the Spirit of God that men and women realize their wretched condition. It is the Spirit of God, the same Spirit poured out by the Father and the Son upon the people, so that men and women crying out and appealing to the grace of Jesus will be marked with the grace of Jesus Christ—His atoning blood—this Spirit makes men and women long to be completely changed inside and out.

It is the grace of the Lord Jesus—He Who is fully God and fully man—Who in obedience to His Father’s decree uttered before the creation of the world left His place at the Father’s right hand and the deep throne-room fellowship with the Holy Spirit in order to take on flesh and blood so that He could be our Redeemer and King.

It is the grace of the Lord Jesus sealed to us by the Holy Spirit, His grace that leads us to ever deeper anticipation of healing here on earth and the final healing and the full restoration of our God-designed humanity in heaven. It is His grace, which will cover us through-out eternity, so that beholding Him face to face our hearts rejoice, forever, in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Father in heaven how great and faithful is Your love for Your people. Thank You for the great grace of Jesus Christ. Spirit of the Living God, Deposit Guaranteeing our eternal inheritance in Christ, move us to declare the love of our Father which is so magnificently revealed in the grace of the Lord Jesus, to declare this love to friends and family, neighbours and coworkers. Spirit of the Living God refresh missionaries and evangelists this day so that they will witness to Jesus to the glory of the Father. Oh Triune God, gather men and women from the North and the South, the East and the West, fill up to full measure of those whom You have chosen for glory and bring to each one Your holy healing. Amen.

https://youtu.be/HsCp5LG_zNE?si=br5zccZj-D7IqtpY “Amazing Grace” Celtic Women

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 27, 2024 -- Revelation 7:9-12 -- What are you worshiping? Come on be honest. You are giving yourself to something.

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
Revelation 7:9-12 ESV

One of the strangest things Christians do (and there are, to the watching eyes of the world lots of strange things) is to gather for worship. They dress up in nice clothes. They prepare for times of worship by praying for the preacher, praying that their own hearts will be open to the message to be preached. They join together single and married, young and old, whole families as well. Why?

It is what people were created to do. Humanity will worship. It will be sports or booze—maybe both. It will be video games or gossip. It will be anger or lust. Sins overtake people especially if they do not having the over-arching glorious vision of the One, True God. If men do not worship the God of Splendor Who alone lives in unapproachable light they will choose things that are inanimate, things that will kill them, things that are unworthy of consideration and give their time, abilities and money to that. Or, having known the Father by the work of Jesus the Son, in the power of the Spirit all people will rise, will shout, now on earth and one day in the unimaginable sumptuous resplendence of heaven, “Salvation belongs to our God, Who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

It is the delight of the Christian to worship God. Even in times of calamity and strife. Men know the wars, earthquakes, violence against the believers, great sins—all these things are birth pains which point to the coming of the New Heavens and the New Earth. People of this world see the hardships and evils (which are multiplied by their own wickedness) and rather than repenting before God, gnaw of their tongues and curse the God of heaven (Revelation 16:10-11). Not so believers. The hardships of this life, the pincer tactics of the Devil and his vile hosts are exposed as ultimately futile. Jesus has overcome the world, the Devil, and death itself. In view of this, the Christian all the more delights to worship.

Worship builds fellowship, camaraderie. Believers know they are not alone. When Christians gather and worship the Living God, Who is holy and true, their hearts are encouraged, their souls look to Him, minds are prepared for the battles that face them. Christians are not alone. First and foremost, the Spirit of the Living God lives in every believer so that it is sweeter to trust in Jesus than have all the world’s treasures. Jesus is the treasure beyond all calculation. Second, believers like soldiers in the army, have each other’s back. Soldiers encourage one another, remind each other of the righteousness of the cause. In the case of Christians, there is no great cause, no stronger or nobler reason for fighting than to lift high the Name of Jesus.

Finally, worship builds anticipation for what will soon be. Eternity will not be boring. If men can be stirred by hockey arenas, if women can shout and get excited by packed concerts, and these things will soon fade away, imagine how much greater, better, more lasting it will be to join the people who have lived in every age and generation and then to participate in the concert of the ages?! Worship reminds you that this life is fleeting, passing more quickly than you can even keep track of, but oh, you were built for eternity in the presence of our God and Glorious King. So, each day presents a stark choice: refuse to worship the Amazing, Great, and Almighty God. You will be gnawing off your tongues in favour of the trinkets and baubles of this world aware that one day the judgment that leads to everlasting hell awaits you. OR decide today to join the thronging worshipers and bless the LORD God, the Lamb on the Throne and this by the power of the Spirit. You will be tuning your attitude, voice, and whole self for the beauty and worship of eternity.

“Great and amazing are your deeds,
    O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways,
    O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord,
    and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy.
    All nations will come
    and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

Revelation 15:3b-4 ESV

https://youtu.be/_irIeaAWVyw?si=2EinY119h4bYQwo6 We Shall Behold Him

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 26, 2024 -- Psalm 139:13-16 -- Why are you valuable?

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

13 For you formed my inward parts;
    you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
    my soul knows it very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
    intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
    the days that were formed for me,
    when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13-16 ESV

Why are people valuable? Why is every life precious? Each one is made in the image of God. Each person who was ever conceived had a start of life by the design of our Heavenly Father. What tenderness you find in our passage today—He knit us together. He knows all our days. When a society loses this fundamental truth, then life becomes shockingly disposable.

Medical assistance in dying (M.A.I.D.) has reached such a fevered pitch that in 2023 up to 7% of all deaths in Quebec were by M.A.I.D. In February of 2023 a bill was passed by the North Dakota State House stating people are superior to animals and inanimate objects. Why is this necessary? Think about it, people are sheltering dogs and cats and killing people. It has been reported that in the United States when a test for the markers of Down’s Syndrome are administered on a preborn child, the consequence is that to up 90% of the children thought to be Down’s babies were aborted. Dr, Jean Bethke Elshtain, author and professor of Social and Political Ethics, comments “^I worry that, in the name of reason, we may be eliminating whole categories of human beings”.

Fears expressed more than a decade ago by Elshtain, and in the previous century by C.S. Lewis, are proving valid. Veterans are being offered M.A.I.D. Homeless individuals. Our country aborts a over 70,000 babies a year. Senior citizens are being offered M.A.I.D. How much it echoes Nazi Germany! Then the regime carried out experiments on babies and those with dwarfism. The stated goal was the elimination of the Jewish people. In Nazi Germany it was the logical consequences of social Darwinism. In Canada and the United States today, the elimination of whole categories of people, of human beings, is considered acceptable—again, you are seeing the logical consequences of social Darwinism. Life is not valuable. And as it is acceptable to destroy one category of people, soon, it will be others. The culture of death is a hunger that is never satisfied.

Dear family and friends in our Lord Jesus Christ you are valuable. People--old and young, sick and healthy, housed or homeless, mentally ill or on the spectrum of normal, all are valuable, not because of what we can or can not contribute in our world. Our worth comes from the fact that we are made in God’s image. We are precious to Him. He sent His Son Jesus to reconcile us to Himself and sealed the relationship by the powerful presence of His Holy Spirit. This is the gift conferred to believers by faith. When a man or a woman knows he is God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which He prepared in advance for him to do, then the dignity of whole categories of people is once again restored. Pray for Christian revival to sweep across our land.

O God, Father in heaven, how precious to me are Your thoughts! How vast is the sum of them! If I were to count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with You. Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. This I pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

https://youtu.be/05jKxv8ApuI?si=Bc-4f1FbzQjLoQy5 “My Worth is Not in What I Own”

^J. Elshtain, “Who are We? C.S. Lewis and the Question of Man. Socrates in the City. Ed. E. Metaxas, Toronto: Penguin Group. 2011, page 138

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 24, 2024 -- Revelation 5:11-14 -- True, Regal Power

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

11 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
14 And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
Revelation 5:11-14 ESV

On Saturday May 6, 2023 tens upon tens of millions of people all around the world watched live, or later recordings of, the coronation of King Charles III. There were stirring hymns and regal music and shouts. It was pageantry with all its attendant pomp. At the end of it all, King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla have a throne without power, bound by the dictates of the UK Parliament and this aging couple will go the way of all flesh. They will die.

In sharp contrast, the people of the Great King of Heaven, look to the splendor of heaven, where Jesus, the Lamb of God that was slain, is honoured and adored as the King of kings and LORD of lords Who does, did, and will reign forever. There is no sense in which Christianity is boring. We are taken up in wonder at our new citizenship—those who have by faith in Christ a passport for the New Heavens and the New Earth where death will be no more. Then sin and the Devil and even death itself are utterly vanquished and thrown into eternal hell.

Dear people of God, perhaps the Christian faith seems boring to you? Let me suggest it is because you are considering a truncated, shriveled, mocked view of Christianity. One that is paraded before you as it is portrayed by its enemies and adversaries. Yet what have the enemies of Christ to offer? A world where the drug crisis is growing by the hour. A world where governments put their citizens to death with abortions, and ever expanding definitions where M.A.I.D. is an option. Homeless is a crisis in our affluent land—more and more cities are crushed by it. Fear of climate change. Fear of death. Fear of other nations. Fear of war. Fear rules so many areas of life. All these ills are caused by sinful people who rule as if they have a solution but who are, in fact, ruled by fears.

By way of sharp, insightful contrast, the psalmist writes: “My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer” (Psalm 45:1 NIV). One day, all the heavens and the earth will be swept away. There will be the New Heavens and the New Earth where God the Father because of the reconciling work of Jesus will live among His people. Our cloudy and foggy brains now barely can conceive the majesty, wonders, splendour, beauty, holiness and you can see language breaks down to adequately explain or depict what it to be.

Dear family in Christ, do not give up hope. The world and its troubles will soon pass away. The troubles and pains and griefs we see today are rooted in the evils which reside in the hearts of men. Jesus Christ has, by His cross, conquered sin and death and hell and their attendant shames. By the Spirit of God, contemplate what is yet to be. Hope in Christ brightens the eyes of faith so that the glorious future that is in store motivates the heart to pray now and the hands to work now for the glory of our All-Powerful King, Jesus!

Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
The scepter of Your Kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.^
King of Glory, rule in our hearts by Your Spirit so that our eyes made alive by faith in Jesus see things as they are and as they will be. Spirit of God strengthen us for the battle of prayer so that we will not sink into hopeless lethargy. Spirit of Truth, speak to us through the Word of God so that the radiance of our King will fill our vision and our words, His effulgence will motive our works and our aspirations. Amen.

^Psalm 45:6-7 ESV

https://youtu.be/C_2cnqvoMFE?si=OCZwoLc0uKACCLDO “By the Sea of Crystal”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 22, 2024 -- Ephesians 6:4 -- Godliness and manliness

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

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger,
but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Ephesians 6:4 ESV

In our society today fathers get a bad rap. Think of TV shows and sitcoms, how the father seems to be dumb and his children know all the answers. Fatherless households are considered normal, with no regard for the spiritual order which the LORD our God laid down in Genesis.

Consider the words of Dr. Paul Vitz, senior scholar at the Institute for Psychological Sciences, New York.
…at the center of the crisis in the family is a crisis of what
it is to be a father. We’ve lost this understanding of the
capstone, in my judgment of what it is to be a man, because
I think all men are called to be fathers. Now, I don’t
necessarily means they are called to be biological fathers.
I mean that they’re called to be fathers to at least some
of the younger people in their life.
If you’re going to take away one message from my talk,
it is this: You fathers are of great importance in forming
the religious attitude of your children. As we have seen,
many an atheist was damaged by negative personal
relationships, especially with a father or a father figure.
In summary I think, all this evidence should be a call
to men to rediscover what fatherhood is about. It is
about helping other people, leading them in a self-
sacrificing way. Yes, it’s about self-sacrifice. That’s the
only way you earn genuine respect, and when do that,
the public responds. The wife responds. The children
respond.
After 9/11, one of the reasons we responded so
positively to the firemen and their deaths was that we
saw self-sacrifice by manly men who weren’t in it for
the money, weren’t in it like the CEO who needs
more than enough money to work for his company
They weren’t in it for themselves. That is why all
these jaded New Yorkers on 9/11 stood and applauded
when the firemen went by.
Dr. Paul Vitz, “The Importance of Fatherhood” Socrates in the City Conversations on “Life,
God, and Other Small Topics” Ed. Eric Metaxas. Toronto: Penguin Group; 2011. pages 83 & 96.

Dear brothers and fathers heed the call of God on your life. Act like men who notice the yearning need younger boys and teens and young men around you have for men who will mentor them, training them to walk in godly manliness. How are your words and your actions leading them to know Jesus Christ? How are you denying yourself, and your desires, and your sports and gaming, so that the next generation and the one after that are rising up and blessing the Lord our God?

What a privilege it is, O God, to call You Father! Thank You for our elder brother, Jesus Christ, in Whom is all manliness and self-sacrifice. Thank You for the work of Your Spirit, by Whom men receive the instruction of Scripture, grow in Christ-likeness, and live as godly men impacting the people around them for the honour and glory of the Triune God. Amen.

https://youtu.be/bQsX8tl9W5Q?si=jU7qg9lmS1f2HWlp Stuart Townend “O Church Arise”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 21, 2024 -- Job 42:7-9 -- Why did God accept Job's prayers and why was God angry with Job's friends?

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

7 After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. 8 Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the LORD had told them, and the LORD accepted Job's prayer.
Job 42:7-9 ESV

Job, the upright and blameless man, was tormented by the Devil. He lost all his children. He worshiped God. He lost his possessions and his wealth. He worshiped God. His flesh was consumed with boils and sores and his wife nagged him, encouraged him to curse God and die. Job had many questions for the LORD his God. His friends seem orthodox. How does one understand this? I am reading the philosopher-theologian Peter Kreeft. Here is his answer.

These men are accused of not speaking rightly about God, as Job has. “But they had spoken perfectly rightly about God, and Job had spoken wrongly. Kreeft will be quoting from the philosopher Martin Buber.

“Wrong,” says Buber. Since God is the Thou who can only
be addressed and not expressed and since God’s divinely
revealed name is I Am, not It Is, therefore, Job, who talks
to God, pleases God, unlike the three friends, who never
talk to God, never pray, and never talk about him and thus
do not please God.
I said, “That’s right.” Suppose I was teaching a class, and
two of my students interrupted my lecture by breaking out
into loud, animated conversation about the professor: “Do
you think Professor Kreeft is crazy?” “No.” “Yes, he is.”
“No, he isn’t.”
“Wait a minute!” I would say. “Hello, I’m here.” I wouldn’t
be offended that they thought I was crazy. That is quite
reasonable, but not that you would talk about me in front
of me without realizing that I’m here. Well, that’s what we’re
doing to God all the time.”
Chapter 3, Making Sense Out of Suffering. Peter Kreeft.
Socrates in the City. Edited by Eric Metaxas. Toronto:
Penguin Group, 2011, page 69.

Now that makes things clearer. How often we people, even Christians, talk about God, with Him right there—He is everywhere—and do not speak to Him. Engage Him. Worship Him. Ask Him. Cry out to Him. Yield to Him? Today is Sunday. Get to a Bible-believing gathering of Christians where others will join you in speaking to God, worshiping God. Get to this gathering with the expectation you will learn how to engage in a conversation with Him, that begins now and stretches to eternity

Those who speak to God, know Him by His Son Jesus Christ can, with Job pray:
“I know that You can do all things and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.
I had heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You;
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes. Job 42:2,5-6

Faithful God, now Your people see You in Jesus Christ, Who is revealed in Scripture’s every page. Help us, God of glory to speak to You, ask of You, wrestle in our prayers and thoughts with You, until, by Your Spirit’s powerful presence in us, and in the community of believers around us, we know You ever more fully into eternity. Amen.

https://youtu.be/UV8bv4QuDtM?si=He8oSdE26fnMeAik “Behold Our God”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 20, 2024 -- I Peter 3:8-9 -- The Blessing That Restored Fractured Christian Community

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

Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
I Peter 3:8-9 ESV

This passage follows right after Peter’s instructions to husbands and wives. Now, the broader Christian community, the people who are united in Christ, are like a husband and a wife, commanded to have unity of mind. Literally it says to have one mind, that is, the mind of Christ. Sympathy means that you intentionally soften your heart and your attitude towards those who are of the household of God. Brotherly love, which has been fully described in I Corinthians 13. A tender heart which is one prepared to help those who are stumbling in the faith; not proud as if you’d never stumbled and needed the restoring kindness of your Christian brothers and sisters. A humble heart is one that is acknowledges God’s grace is needed as much in your own heart and life as it is in the life of the people around you.

When someone has spoken evil of you (like on social media) or in anger spoken evil of you publicly in a church setting or to your face, it is so hard to stop yourself. The opening blessing of the letter reads: “May grace and peace be multiplied to you” (I Peter 1:2). Oh how a wounded heart can tear at another person, disregarding the impact on the community, the future relationship one might have with this family member in Christ. We need the grace of Jesus Christ and His peace-making to be multiplied in us. Like white blood cells, when the body senses there is an infection, rush to the site of the infection and swallow it up preventing the whole body from receiving contagion, so we too need grace and peace multiplied when the infection of evil actions or words are introduced.

Reviling. It can mean one who is contentious. It can mean someone who speaks maliciously about others. It is the after effect of an evil infection. Though there might have been an end to a particular evil deed by a member of the church reviling can still be stirred up. It is the back talk and the statements like “I told you he was worth watching” or “I knew she had it in her. She is a catty person”. Such reviling breeds factions and reintroduces evil. Such reviling keeps the church membership, or the family of God, from being restored in unity

When you face the fractures and the trials of living in true, deep, Christian community, where the saints stumble, you will have all kinds of forces pulling against the unity of mind that must be yours in Christ. The newly forgiven, once sin-broken slowly heal in Christ. It is right after forgiveness has been offered and received it is critical that the family of God minister to one another with great tenderness. The only way to overcome the slide back into evil words and actions and reviling is to bless, as thoroughly and as deeply as you have been blessed in Jesus Christ. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil by the good you have received in Christ. You achieve this by giving a blessing to one who is being rehabilitated; giving a good word and encouragement in season and at timely moments. Live in this way fully aware of the fact that you have already received the greatest blessing ever, you have been “born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heave for you” I Peter 1:3b-4 ESV.

Just think of how many smoldering and simmering situations linger in various churches today. Ah, there is a deep need for this word of God. Among many believers there are reviling accusations and factions around how the Covid-19 crisis was handled (or not handled). There are brothers and sisters whose public sins are well-known, they’ve been restored, but rather than embracing them when they’ve sought forgiveness, the members of the church are stand-offish, waiting for the next failure. Even as those who are waiting on others to fail are themselves stumbling around in need of God’s multiplying grace and peace. Ah, fellow believers, give God’s great and extravagant blessings to those who are sorely in need of it.

Father in heaven, help us always to honour Christ Jesus as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks us for a reason for the hope that is in us, and to do so with gentleness and respect. Father in heaven, we praise You with awe-filled thanksgiving for the suffering of Jesus, Your precious Son, our Savior, by Whom we are reconciled to You! Father in heaven, let Your Spirit continually work out this salvation in us so that we conform more fully to the image and likeness of Jesus and this to Your glory. Amen.

https://youtu.be/h-wYZLd_FIk?si=N77dXVxlQnneWlgR Awake My Soul (Christ Formed in Me)

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 19, 2024 -- I Peter 2:24-25 -- A passage using the Old Testament so believers know Who Jesus Is

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

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
I Peter 2:24-25 ESV

Sometimes when I am reading a Bible passage, like the one before us today, it is so incredibly obvious how the Old Testament and the New are tied together in Jesus Christ. The two verses before us are filled with Old Testament references. Peter is explaining to the readers (who are spread out through many territories and countries) like the people of Israel who were exiled in the Old Testament. Now as true Israel in Jesus Christ believers are dispersed and spreading out so that many will hear the Name of Jesus and believe.

There is an echo of Deuteronomy 21:23 and Jeremiah 17:5—both these passages point to the fact that Jesus will bear the curses of God on a tree (the cross). He bears them away from us so that we will be healed. Righteousness is a word that fills the Old Testament—generally it is the absolute consistent righteousness of God that is in view. However there are many passages, like Psalm 106:3 which reads “Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times”. The point of pulling these passages together and tying them to Jesus and His accomplished work, believers understand their sinful condition, their need for a personal Savior and then the work of Jesus. Realizing His glorious work is for them, they respond with thankful living: righteousness. The difficult word righteousness means doing what is right according to God’s word—and this with an attitude of joy because we belong to Jesus.

The astute among you will hears the references to Isaiah 53—by His wounds we are healed and we are like sheep who have gone astray. But there are also wonderful references to Psalm 23--Jesus is the Shepherd; and Psalm 119:176, testifies believers are prone to wander away from all the blessings which are ours in Him (and this testimony comes after 175 verses extolling the believer's joy in obedience to the law and ways of God!).

All of these words are written so that you will have deep and abiding assurance that God, our Father, knows the worst about you, your sinfulness, and have the confidence that Jesus truly bore away all of God’s curse against our sin. Now we long to live for God. We are those who hate sin, realizing its siren-song like allure and know sin’s objective which is to crash our life’s boat on the rocky shores of ever greater wrong-doing regardless of it consequences. We know we are wandering sheep. We know we are easily distracted, entertained so that we are lulled into stupor of waywardness therefore we need Jesus to be our Great Shepherd.

Read the Old Testament, knowing it points to Jesus.
Read the Old Testament so that you understand more fully Who Jesus Is, and what He has done for you.
Read the Old Testament so that you know how great a hold sinfulness has one all people, you included.
Read the Old Testament so that you will comprehend the New, and the need you have for Jesus the Savior.

Father in heaven, we bless You and thank You that Jesus became the man of sorrows, despised and rejected, Who was crushed for our iniquities and that by His wounds at the cross and the sword-pierced side proving His death, we are given peace with You, peace with others and peace in our own souls as those who are reconciled to God. We confess how easily we go astray, how readily we forget the gifts of His grace and the cost of our salvation and so turn to our own destructive ways. Spirit of the Living God, renew in us an ardent desire to meditate on Jesus and His wondrous work and rising from such contemplations be prepared, from now on, by Your Power, to live wholeheartedly for Him unto the glory of our Father in heaven. Amen.

The prayer is composed with words and phrases from Isaiah 53.

https://youtu.be/MWOvD06hJqM?si=NAwKYZbMe-nYaMLh “Hallelujah! What a Savior”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 17, 2024 -- Acts 16:25 -- Suffering. Reprint from Feb. 15, 2023

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

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them,
Acts 16:25 ESV

10 For
“Whoever desires to love life
    and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil
    and his lips from speaking deceit;
11 let him turn away from evil and do good;
    let him seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
13 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed.
I Peter 3:10-14 ESV

Suffering. We all go through it. Could be sickness. Could be the death of a loved one. Could be suffering under an unjust boss. Could be strains and stresses within your family. Could be any number of things. How do you endure suffering and the wrongs committed against you?

Paul and Silas were in prison, suffering for the sake of the Gospel, and they were praying and singing hymns to God. Now that is a powerful testimony. The other prisoners could hear them and must have wondered how they could be so confident in God in that place. In his letter to believers, Peter reminds them and us our lives will have suffering. How you endure this suffering points to whom you serve. Those who follow Christ Jesus will suffer all the suffering common to all people, and in addition will suffer for belonging to Jesus. The Scriptures today remind us to endure all suffering of any kind with the grace of the Spirit in such a way that the people around us will see Jesus Christ and His glory revealed in you.

Have you failed in your suffering? Been a complainer. Been a mutterer. Been angry and cursing? Written off the people around you because of their lack of compassion? Confess it to God. He has placed you where you are. He has given you the opportunity to shine for His glory in the times of trouble. He has provided His Holy Spirit so that you can endure all things and suffering for righteousness’ sake, be blessed. Trust God the Father in this and know His love and mercy are greater than your circumstances. Know that He is preparing for you a weight of glory that far outshines whatever it is you are going through.

Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. It seems almost too embarrassing and simplistic to confess it, to acknowledge all people will suffer and that I too have suffered and not carried it well. I have complained. Pointed a finger at others and discredited Christ the Captain of Salvation and the very One Who is praying for me to endure to Your glory, O God. Forgive me. Lead me to the cross where love and mercy are mingled and given to believers with such a great measure that we can, with renewed strength and confident hope in You, live as those who are suffering for righteousness' sake. Let our God-centred, and hope-fueled suffering, bring You honour and glory, King of kings and LORD of Lords, for we endure and vow to continue to endure it in the grace of Jesus and through the strength of the Spirit's work within us. Amen.

https://youtu.be/MxRnzJT5mvo

Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross — Ernie Haas

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 16, 2024 -- Romans 3:22b-25a -- Are You Bent Out of Shape?

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

For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
Romans 3:22b-25a

Yesterday I was listening to a talk given by Martyn Iles. Iles is the Chief Ministry Officer of Answers in Genesis, U.S.A. Iles noted: “The day I learned I was a sinner going to hell was the best day of my life. Because then I knew where to go, where to look, where to find the Truth” (YouTube “What God’s Kingdom ACTUALLY Looks Like in Today’s World). Seems like a shocking statement, doesn’t it? Iles is making the point which Paul made almost 2000 years ago. Unless a man knows he is a sinner, violating the very purpose for which God made him, he will be rushing head-long to hell with no idea of his destination.

How many of you have bent butter knives in your drawer? You needed a screwdriver, to tighten the screw holding a loose knob in the kitchen and you were too lazy to go all the way to the garage to get the screwdriver, so you used a butter knife. It did the job. But the butter knife now has a slight bend in it. You can tell it did the job, but not well. That is not what it was designed to do, and it can’t handle the required tension.

My friends, we were designed to show off the glory of God. Sin has twisted us so that we do not walk in the glory God intends for us. When a man knows he is a sinner, like a bent butter knife in the kitchen drawer, and he confesses his sin—he is trying to do things we was not made to do—then God’s gavel goes down. “Not guilty” is the verdict God the Father proclaims, as He accepts the righteousness of Jesus in the place of the man’s former sinfulness. Propitiation means that the anger of God against our sins has been turned away, from us to Jesus. While Jesus was on the cross, He bore the full-on anger of God against all our sins. Every.single.one.of.them.

Now, we accomplish the task for which we were created—we bring glory to God. Like a butter knife smoothly going through room-temperature butter, our lives accomplish the task for which we were created. It is natural for us to give glory to God. It is what we do because we are doing the very task for which we were made.

Sometimes the knife spreads butter over hot toast—the butter smears, gets liquidy (is that even a word?) and drippy. Messy work. But the knife is accomplishing the task for which it was made. The results are not up to the knife. In the same way, we are in the hand of God, and He directs us to His purposes so that all our lives bring Him honour, and glory, and praise. If we are out of step with this glory-design of God, our whole lives are bent, twisted out of shape, because we are not doing what we are made to do. Perhaps this might be the best day of your life? If you realize you are a sinner, then you also know where to go, to look for help, to find the Truth.

Ah, gracious Father, with the psalmist we cry out
“^Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
And whose sins are covered;
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”
Thank You for the new life You have given us in Christ. Thank You for the re-purposing You have accomplished in those who are in Christ by which You have given us the glory You intended for us. By the powerful working of Your Spirit help us to shine glory and honour to You. Merciful Father, for our friends, our neighbours, our family members who don’t yet know You, or who have wandered away, give us opportunities to speak. Let our lives makes them curious so that they want the gift of redemption which You have so wondrously, so freely given us. Amen.
^Psalm 32:1-2a

https://youtu.be/HEV_Lj8ITX0?si=WdpT8Wj_NacNAGC- “How Blest Is He Whose Trespass”
 

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 12, 2024 -- Titus 3:4-8 -- Salvation and Good Works

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

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.
Titus 3:4-8 ESV

Why are Christians to devote themselves to good works? Well, Paul spends the verses four, five, six, and seven explaining why. Look at the riches of the salvation that is ours in Jesus Christ. The lovingkindness of our Savior—think of this, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. We were utterly undeserving, but God’s mercy reached us. Consider the washing of regeneration, the work of the Holy Spirit in us. The Spirit of God Who always points believers to Jesus. This is one of the cautions I would speak to our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Pentecostal assemblies—are the works of the Spirit directing the believers to Jesus Christ and the lifting up of His Name? If the demonstrations of the Spirit’s power are focused on the Spirit alone, then they are wrong worship. The Spirit always points to Jesus.

After a plethora of reasons explaining why Christians are tremendously blessed then Paul comes to the imperative, the command. Those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. The good works are a response to the great and glorious blessings the Father has poured out on us in Christ Jesus which are kept sealed in us by the working of the Holy Spirit. Good works are not something extra we are required to do, these are the outworking of the Spirit’s presence in our lives. The flood of joy which wells up in us by Jesus’ salvation prompts us so that we cannot help but do good works.

Notice the promise of God included here. Such good works are excellent and profitable. Good works show the excellencies of our God. All our good works lead us to boasting in Jesus Christ. He is the One Who has blessed us with salvation. He is the One Who demonstrates for us the Father’s love so that God’s glory is reflected from our lives shining to the credit of our God. And good works are profitable. Others come to know Jesus Christ because of our good works. We are confirmed in our precious faith as we serve God and realize, as the Spirit’s power works in us prompting us to good works, we belong to God.

Our Father in heaven hallowed be Your Name! In Christ You have gifted believers with the Holy Spirit so that we will grow in knowledge of the truth which accords with godliness. You have confirmed Your goodness through the preaching of the Word. Oh, blessed God, draw Your people to worship. Stir in us a longing for the Truth of God made manifest in Jesus Christ and guarded in our hearts by the Spirit’s presence. Spirit of God so rule in our hearts that we both desire to do and are empowered to carry out good works which are excellent and profitable. Amen.

https://youtu.be/u0a1Pq9avbg?si=xCvKgeEy6ypy8KJT “Oh Worship the King”
 

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 10, 2024 -- II Timothy 4:1-5 --Everyone has a fav Bible verse

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

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. 3 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. 5 As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
II Timothy 4:1-5 ESV
 
Recently I have been listening to a series Ligonier teaching on Christian worship. Jason Helopoulos teaches the course. He has a wonderful phrase “everyone has a favorite bible text, even heretics”. Consider how true that is. People caught in the act of wickedness of some sort or another coyly say, “Judge not”. Of course, they are ripping those words out of context and twisting their meaning. Jehovah’s Witnesses blaspheme the very name of God by twisting John 1 so that they claim “the word was with God and the word was a God”—you see they have added the article “a” where the Greek does not have it, so that Jesus’ status as fully God is brought into question.
 
Certainly, this is an age that wanders off into myth. Sometimes the myth is science. Sometimes the myth is human sexuality as if this is not to be subjugated under God’s Sovereign control. Sometimes the myth is ignoring one’s own sinful impulses whereas the Scriptures declare the strong pull of the iniquitous heart.
 
How does one counteract this? Simply, one must go to a Bible-believing, faithfully Word-preaching church. Where the believers gather and confess their sins and look to God for His grace poured out in Christ. Believers hear the Bible preached and look to the Spirit of God to rescue them from every evil deed, and corporately the people of God encourage one another in living for Jesus. The world around mocks and despises Jesus and His claims of ultimate Truth, so it takes corporate Christianity, the gathering of believers, to sing together, to pray together, to hear the word preached so that the power of Jesus Who has overcome the world will be made obvious in the life of believers individually, as families and corporately.
 
Father in heaven we confess how easy it is to neglect the gathering of Your people. How readily we find excuses or allow plans to keep us from gathering with Your people for the worship You command. Already in Paul’s day he warned of believers who are in love with this presence world; this wicked infatuation with the world has increased greatly in this generation. Blessed be Your Name, Father in heaven, for You have rescued Your people through the redeeming work of Jesus Christ and sealed His blessings to believers through the powerful work of Your Holy Spirit. By Your Spirit rule in our hearts so that the world and all in it that is rotten with sin will be repulsive to us and by magnificent Christ will be for us the fragrance of life and the marvelous Captain of Salvation. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/_irIeaAWVyw?si=EpIhBONVJ15vbytB “We Shall Behold Him”
 

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 9, 2024 -- II Timothy 2:1-5 -- Soldiers of the cross, battered, strong, all in need of grace

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

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. 3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.
II Timothy 2:1-4 ESV

Be honest. How many New Year’s resolutions did you make? It is merely a week ago since you made them—have you kept them? Can you remember them? No doubt there are many which are already broken and crushed and you might even experience embarrassment at the remembrance of them. Today’s text is for you.

Paul’s friend Onesiphorus searched Rome until he found the place where Paul was imprisoned. He ministered to Paul. Now, if a human friend can offer help and grace, how much more can a Christian be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus! That is the point made at verse 1 of our text.

Soldiers encounter battles. They are exhausted. They are wounded. They are hungry. They are caked in blood (not all their own) and mud. They stumble and fall and are protected by fellow soldiers. They do not get discouraged. They knew the fight could cost them their lives. So it is with those who are in Christ. They can get wounded, stumble and get separated from the main fighting. Look to the grace of Jesus Christ. Trust He will strengthen you and His Spirit minister to you so that you will be ready for the battle. It is the only battle worth fighting—going hard against one’s own wayward fleshly desires, the devil and the world.

If you are wounded and weary, find a Christian friend to encourage you and keep you going. If you see a fellow Christian struggling and falling—rush to his aid with prayer and the word of Truth for that is the healing grace we have in Christ.

Father in heaven forgive us for the times we thought we were alone in this fight. Forgive us for the times we got into quarrels and controversies with fellow soldiers instead of focusing on the fact that we are soldiers of the cross of Christ. Grant us repentance which leads us once again to the knowledge of the truth. Faithful God, by Your Spirit, heal those whose minds are battle scarred, whose hearts melt because of the terrors of past conflicts. Triune God our lives are fixed on the truth that You, Lord, know those who are Your Own. As soldiers of the cross of Jesus Christ, who bear this Name as our standard, help us to depart from iniquity. As those who are strong help us to rescue others who are shell-shocked and in need of Jesus’ healing. Glorious God let the triumph of Jesus be our song of joy and our battle cry until Jesus returns with all His holy ones. Amen.

https://youtu.be/BXfwBETWQiU?si=ycOGIgDkLag0hzig “Am I A Soldier of the Cross”

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

January 8, 2024 -- I Timothy 4:15 -- Lady Wisdom calls to you to leave Wayward Folly

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

15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
I Timothy 4:15 ESV

During the pandemic, it was reported that students were on their smart phones on average more than seven hours a day. Prior to the pandemic, students were on their smart phones an average of three and a half hours a day. Nearly one third of Canadians watch sports every day. Statistics like these show how people practice the ways of the culture, immersing themselves in them.

By way of contrast, a Christian is one who practices godliness. One Who sets an example in speech and in conduct, in love and in purity and faith. The practice of such things is what he is steeped in. Those who have been graced by God the Father through the redeeming work of Jesus Christ are fascinated and captivated by the all things that pertain to God.

Let’s face it, evil and wickedness are still a temptation. According to Proverbs the woman Folly is seductive, she is wooing the simple minded to leave all sense and all wisdom and shack up with her for a night. The warning of Proverbs 9 is that her guests are in the depths of the grave. They are headed for death.

Wisdom is a lady. Wisdom is preparing men and women for the moment when the siren song of Folly’s temptation would seek to sway their resolve. Practice wisdom. Immerse yourself in what is pure, what is love as the Father in heaven demonstrated love in Christ and conduct yourself in the way of Christian faith. Holy habits are momentum which help you to pass by the allures of temptation so that you will see your progress in holiness and those around you will also note your progress in holiness. Follow wisdom.

Father in heaven thank You for the gracious gift of Jesus Christ—in Whom we have grace and mercy and peace. By the Spirit’s presence in our lives train us in words of faith and in good doctrine. Guard us, Spirit of the Living God, from silly myths and the deceptions of Folly. Mighty God, Source of every good gift, our hope is set on You, the Savior of all people. Give us holy boldness to call others away from loitering at the door of Folly’s house. Spirit strengthen us so that by our example and joy, those being bedazzled by Folly be drawn instead to Lady Wisdom. Thank You, Mighty God that wisdom is life in Christ fully trustworthy now and also for the life to come. Amen.

https://youtu.be/_22zruhO-4w?si=_TdHoliLXb6kFqpl All Sufficient Merit

Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.