September 14, 2024 -- Proverbs 14:2, 26-27 -- The Fear of the LORD is a fountain of life

Whoever walks in uprightness fears the LORD,
     but he who is devious in his ways despises him.
In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence,
     and his children will have refuge.
The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,
     that one may turn away from the snares of death.
Proverbs 14:2,26-27 ESV

The expression “the fear of the LORD” is used almost two dozen times in the Proverbs. Variants, such as is found in verse 2 where the verb is slightly different in the Hebrew but translated as fear into English, increase that number substantially. In Isaiah 11 the prophet speaks of Jesus when he declared “and his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD” (Isaiah 11:3). Obviously this expression of the fear of the LORD is something that Christians must consider, meditate on, and implement in their lives. Why would one delight in the fear of the LORD?

At the beginning of Proverbs the fear of the LORD is explained as the beginning of knowledge. When a believer credits the word of God in the power of the Spirit of God then his own opinions and former beliefs are put away in favour of pursuing the LORD. One no longer says, “I believe this, I am okay with that” as if the Bible were a smorgasbord where one can pick and choose items to believe and others to leave. No, the fear of the LORD leads the believer to bring his whole life into submission to God. Actively subduing the areas of his heart and mind that are still rebellious.

The LORD, with His Name all in capital letters, points to the personal Name of God. His Name by which He revealed Himself to Moses and the prophets. He is everlasting. He is self-existent. He is the Source of life and of every blessing. That is why such submission to the LORD is vital. He is the anchor in the storms of life, the only Source of true life and happiness.

Back to Proverbs 14, whenever someone lies in word or deed, or manipulates others for their own gain, they are despising the LORD. Remember, these words are written for Old Testament believers. Pagans don’t read these words. Unbelievers don’t mine the Bible for truth. Believers are supposed to read these words and by them be warned. To walk in uprightness is to confess all sin, turn from it in repentance and follow Jesus.

The fear of the LORD leads to strong confidence. The Psalmist wrote

The LORD is my light and my salvation,
   whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life,
     of whom shall I be afraid?”
Psalm 27:1 ESV

The LORD of heaven and earth, Who by the accomplished work of Jesus, believers call Father, is stronger than all bullies, all jailors, all despots and all false judges. Believers fear the LORD, putting all their confidence in Him because they realize it the LORD Who can, after one has died, cast him into hell or bring him into His majestic presence for all eternity. Such confidence in the LORD leads a believer’s children and children’s children to long to know the LORD.

A quick but important note here, Jesus is described as having descendants, though He never married, never had children the way in which we think of having descendants (Isaiah 53). The point of the prophecy is that Jesus has countless children, believers, whom He brings to His Father in heaven. In heaven there will neither be marriage or sexual intercourse. These gifts are for the earthly existence. Spiritual descendants, those who believe in Jesus Christ through your witness, are even more truly your children than those which are born to you. Spiritual descendants will still be spiritual descendants even in eternity.

What do people fear in our world? Climate change? Not having enough likes on a post? Once you start the list of fears in this world, it grows and grows. Those who fear the LORD have only one fear. Remember as well that Isaiah called the fear of the LORD delight. So, putting one’s fear and delight in Him is the fountain of life. All other fears are subjected to the fear of the LORD. When one realizes the LORD is in charge of all things through all eternity, then no other fear can rule you. Even death, which people seek to avoid, but are running head long to it by their own destructive behaviours, even death loses its sting because Jesus Christ has conquered death and the grave and all who believe in Him have everlasting life.

GENERAL INTERCESSION

O GOD, Who art mindful of Thy people everywhere; reveal Thy mercy unto all men, and remember in Thy great good will, those for whom we now make intercession. Remember Thy Church which Thou hast purchased of old; and let all the ends of the earth see the salvation of our God. Remember our nation which Thou hast established; give wisdom and power to Thy servants upon whom Thou hast laid the burden of authority, especially the King and his counsellors and all judges; and unite the whole body the commonwealth to promote the peace and welfare of the world. Remember all the persecuted and afflicted; strengthen the weak, confirm the strong, instruct the ignorant, deliver the oppressed, heal the sick, relieve the needy that hath no helper; and lead us all by the waters of comfort, and in the ways of righteousness, to Thine everlasting rest; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

DIVINE SERVICE BOOK FOR THE ARMED FORCES, 1950, page 21

https://youtu.be/NjOGX5zT8KU?si=iDtZikhDK-vcyrvd “The Lord is My Salvation”

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

September 13, 2024 -- Genesis 3:1-7 -- Hear Him!

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.
He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
Genesis 3:1-7 ESV

The lie of the serpent, Satan, is so blatant in this temptation, yet it is a lie that works over and over again. In order to see how blatantly wrong, grossly misleading his lie is, you need to recall the earlier chapters. Genesis 1:26 the Triune God declared “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Now consider verse 27: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him”. The repetition sears into the brain of the reader that God Himself has made Adam and Eve in His image. They are like God. In Genesis 2, before Eve was created, Adam was exercising his dominion over creation by naming the livestock and the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the field. As he did so, he realized there was no creature like unto him, created in the image of God. No other creature bore the unique stamp of God’s love and was created for fellowship with the LORD of heaven. Okay, you have this background. Now look at Satan’s lie at Genesis 3:5, when you eat of the forbidden fruit you will be like God, knowing good and evil”. See the lie? They were already like God. As close as ever could be because that IS how God made them.

Now, armed with the information on the image of God which is given in the previous two chapters, you can see how the lie of Satan is exposed as absolutely wrong. Adam and Eve are already in the image of God. Adam and Eve. They were created to walk with God in the cool of the evening. Adam and Eve were created for life which stretched on and would allow for constant growth in the knowledge of God, ever more delight in Him, and greater understanding of what it meant to be made in His image. Satan caused them to doubt the generosity of God and His goodness towards them. It is his most familiar, most often used tactic.

Jesus’s disciple, Peter, though having walked with Jesus for three years was still susceptible to the lies of Satan which started in the Garden of Eden. When Jesus was arrested, Peter and John stood in the courtyard of the place where Jesus was being tried. A young servant girl asked Peter “were you with Him?” He vehemently denied it. He was prepared to identify with the enemy, doubting God's good and holy intentions for him. So, he betrayed Jesus, rather than stay true to the One in Whose likeness He was made and Whose fellowship he enjoyed. All of us can see how easily we fall. We fail.

Be encouraged, dear fellow Christians, this same Jesus, risen and ascended to heaven, has given us His righteousness. He has poured out His Spirit so that “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (I Peter 1:3a). In fact, Peter goes on to write that this divine power, to which is added the God’s very great and precious promises, you escape “the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” (I Peter 1:4).

Sinclair Ferguson makes the point that the people of God might be deceived by what their eyes see, or are led by their feelings. However, the one sense which must be cultivated is the sense of hearing. The people of God hear the word of God. The people of the Savior listen to His voice. Think of Jesus’s words “The sheep hear His voice, and He calls His Own sheep by name and leads them out” (John 10:3). Believers reading the Word of God hear the voice of Jesus.

Believers when they are out in the world, tested and tempted, must recall the Word of God and His very great and precious promises. Those precious promises expose the lies of the enemy. His Word destroys the fictions we tell ourselves, and show how ridiculous the incessant catechism of the world is. A constant, spewing narrative that strives to dictate what is current, what is fashionable, what matters. It is an endless treadmill going nowhere but to hell. Believers hear the voice of Jesus, over the crashing waves of life’s wild restless sea. Believers hear His invitation to defy evil and not be fooled by the lies of the world and the temptations of the Devil, instead hearing His voice, returning again and again to Him. Jesus' voice is discerned in the Bible, from start to finish, it is His instruction in His very great, very precious promise of life.

IN THE MORNING

O LORD, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, Who has safely brought us to the beginning of this day; defend us in the same with Thy mighty power; and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by Thy governance, to do always that which is righteous in Thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE DIVINE SERVICE BOOK FOR THE ARMED FORCES, 1950, page 32

https://youtu.be/In-MtdNjF44?si=LmjBSaJDFBtBCuXN “Jesus Calls Us O’er the Tumult”

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

September 12, 2024 -- John 20:11-16 -- The Risen Jesus called a Gardener

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
John 20:11-16 ESV

One of the great blessings of my job is the opportunity I have to listen to bible teaching as I drive to and from various prisons. In the last five days I drove around 1100 KM, so there was a lot of time to delight in hearing other preachers. Sinclair Ferguson noted the double meaning in this passage. The author of the Gospel of John often employs “misunderstanding”, or double-meanings to direct his readers to see something deeper than what is going on in the ordinary events.

Jesus was crucified. Buried in a tomb. On the third day He arose. Mary had joined a company of women looking for Jesus presuming He was still dead. He had risen. She couldn’t comprehend this. When Jesus appeared to her she thought He was the Gardener. Amazing. One the surface, that makes sense to our modern ears. There are groundskeepers or gardeners at cemeteries. But remember Who Jesus Is.

Jesus is the second Adam. The first Adam sinned. Adam was representative of the whole human race at the Garden of Eden. His initial work was to extend the Garden of Eden through out the whole earth. He was the original Gardener. He failed. He sinned. He was thrown out of the Garden of Eden.

Jesus is the New Adam. He is our representative in righteousness. He lived His entire life in whole-hearted obedience to God and therefore at His death, He became the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. He had no sins for which He should die. Therefore, Jesus, is the New Adam and all who are united to Him in faith know Him as their righteous representative before the Father in heaven. In Christ, we are made alive. Then, Jesus also takes up the original Adam’s task. He is the Gardener. He will bring the blessings of Eden, the blessings of walking with God, to believers one by one, until all the earth is the New Eden. The glory of the original Eden was close communion with God, enjoying His nearness and love. In a very real sense Mary's misunderstanding was accurate: Jesus is the Gardener—the New Adam, Who can actually fulfil God’s first creation mandate to make all the world a place where the Father can meet with His people and bring to them the delight of His presence..

Those who are united to Jesus have had their lives upended and the ruin of their hearts transformed. What once was a barren waste, seeking pleasure like a banquet, while instead eating the sand and dirt of sinful living. Now  the life of a Christian is a garden, made beautiful in Jesus, so that our lives abound with blessings and the goodness of belonging to Jesus. In Jesus were are now His sent-ones, gardeners, who see the ruin in the lives of others around us and we cry, “Let me bring you to Jesus, He will make all things new, holy and beautiful”.
 

PRAYER FOR GUIDANCE AND BETTERMENT OF CHARACTER

ALMIGHTY and Everlasting God, by Whose grace Thy servants are enabled to fight the good fight of faith and ever prove victorious; we humbly beseech Thee so to inspire us, that we may yield our hearts to Thine obedience and exercise our wills on Thy behalf. Help us to think wisely, to speak rightly, to resolve bravely, to act kindly, to live purely. Guard us in body and in soul, and make us a blessing to our fellows. Whether at home or abroad may we ever seek the extension of Thy Kingdom. Let the assurance of Thy presence save us from sinning. O Lord our God, accept this prayer for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.

Divine Service Book for the Armed Forces, printed 1950, page 28

https://youtu.be/Jcl6WSNVcHM?si=QrE8v3YbNTvlD6Sd Christ the True and Better Adam

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

September 11, 2024 -- Psalm 124:8 -- Opening Worship

Our help is in the name of the LORD,
     Who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124:8 ESV

This brief text is very familiar to many Christians of the Reformed tradition. For almost 500 years it has been part of a responsive reading at the very start of worship. Many people will recognize it when it is printed out (in a bulletin) like this:

Minister: Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
     in Whom do you find your help?

PEOPLE: Our help is in the Name of the LORD,
     Maker of heaven and earth.

This responsive reading is called the votum. That is, a prayer for help, an entreaty from one who knows his own neediness as he stands before the All-Powerful, and All-Knowing God. Worship is a conversation between the believer and the LORD of Heaven and Earth. Worship is the act whereby the believer acknowledges all his life, from beginning to end, is in the hands of the Sovereign God.

Psalm 124 is a brief Psalm that emphasizes how small and helpless people really are. There are forces in history, enemies presently that hover all around, and yes, there are threats to believers even from within the community of faith. Many people who claim to be Christians shelter among believers, only the Sovereign LORD can weed out the wicked from the godly. So, it is the LORD Himself Who delivers His people from all their foes, threats, and enemies.

Note also how the minister intentionally asks the people of Jesus Who their help is, and the people respond with the Name: LORD. When the Old Testament Name of God is used in this way, with all capital letters, it is an expression of the Name which God has given Himself. LORD is expressed as: Who Was and Who Is and Who Is to Come. He is everlasting. He is the promise-making, promise-keeping God. The liturgy intentionally links Jesus to the Holy Name of God. It is a weekly reminder that the Father is God; the Son Jesus is God; the Holy Spirit is fully God. This triune God, He alone is the source of every blessing in your life.

Today’s prayer is Psalm 124

If it had not been the LORD who was on our side—
    let Israel now say—
2 if it had not been the LORD who was on our side
    when people rose up against us,
3 then they would have swallowed us up alive,
    when their anger was kindled against us;
4 then the flood would have swept us away,
    the torrent would have gone over us;
5 then over us would have gone
    the raging waters.

6 Blessed be the LORD,
    who has not given us
    as prey to their teeth!
7 We have escaped like a bird
    from the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
    and we have escaped!

8 Our help is in the name of the LORD,
    who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 124 ESV

https://youtu.be/CmNXeReZqAg?si=Sdx3cQsM8h2ypVMV “Be Still My Soul”

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

September 9, 2024 -- Acts 14:1-7 -- Zeal for Jesus and heretical counter-zeal

Now at Iconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. 2 But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. 4 But the people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews and some with the apostles. 5 When an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them, 6 they learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country, 7 and there they continued to preach the gospel.
Acts 14:1-7 ESV

Notice in this passage there are two kinds of zeal. First there is the zeal of the believers. But the passage also reveals the counter-zeal of the unbelievers. (BTW: zeal means eagerness, enthusiasm, joyful commitment to a cause.) Paul and Barnabas can’t help but preach and teach others about Jesus. Their holy zeal incited many Jews and Greeks to believe in Jesus Christ. Those who had become believers are zealous for Jesus and therefore their bold, joyful faith immediately puts them at odds with those who are zealous unbelievers.

The unbelievers are equally committed to a cause. Their cause is the destruction of anything that smacks of zeal for God. They have a counter-zeal. A reckless disregard for all that is holy and good and honourable. When a Christian preaches the audience is never neutral. There will be a zeal for Jesus that is created and encouraged to further growth, or a counter-zeal stirred up causing the wicked one to grip even more tightly to the rage and hatred that naturally occurs in the unconverted human heart.

Recently a dear friend, who’d previously been zealous for God, fallen away and by his own account had wandered in paganism, returned to God. He knew the depths of his recent depravity. He returned to God the Father compelled by the Spirit’s prompting and he began confessing his sins so that he received the merciful forgiveness so richly provided in Jesus. He can't stop talking about the goodness and mercy which God the Father showed him. Some fellow Christian recoiled at his zeal. They were sure he was too enthusiastic, too crazy for Jesus. There is a common pressure among Christians to be a “normal Christian”, that is, one who is not offensive to others, not too enthusiastic, too strongly guided by the Bible, so that one can be well-received among pagans. It is not possible.

Look at the Jewish people in verse 2, they’d walked the way of the Old Testament, expecting even longing for the time of Jesus. The sad fact is when Jesus arrived and His heralds proclaimed Him, they were content to side with Gentiles (whom they’d normally despise). Jews who were supposed to be dedicated to God and ready for His Son instead opposed God’s Son. That is the counter-zeal of wickedness. It leads to blind rage.

Dear fellow believer, where are you compromising with the world? Where are you allowing yourself to be a little less Christian, less zealous, so that people around you won’t be offended? Jesus rebuked the congregation at Laodicea because they were lukewarm. He warned them He’d vomit them out of His mouth, Revelation 3:16 (it is a sign of terrible judgment). In zeal for His Father’s glory and zealous for the joy of rescuing believers from hell and the clutches of the Devil, Jesus scorned the shame of the cross and became the Saviour of the world. The only response the Christian can offer is holy, life-long, in-all-areas-of-life-obedience that is zealous and infused with thanksgiving to Jesus.

Majestic Father Your holy angels never cease to cry out: “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, Who Was and Who Is, and Who Is to Come”. The accomplished work of Jesus should evoke from us equal life-long, enthusiastic praise but we humbly confess how easily our attention wanders and our hearts grow cold to the mighty splendors of Your salvation. Thank You for the beautiful Word of God, still warm with the breath of the Spirit. Thank You for the work of Your Spirit by Whom we realize the depths of our coldness and the insipid murmurings of praise. We confess how lukewarm we have been. Oh, we confess it. We hate it. Reignite in us a zeal for Jesus that touches every part of our hearts, minds, souls, and actions. Amen.

https://youtu.be/DV-V4xZMQx0?si=axnv7Fyl94uZfeeQ Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

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

September 8, 2024 -- Acts 2:5-13 -- The Spirit equips you to shine for Jesus

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
Acts 2:5-13 ESV

Dearly loved people of God, you probably recognize this text. It is from the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church. About 120 men and women received the Holy Spirit. The work of the Holy Spirit is to lead the people of God to Jesus Christ and His work accomplished at the cross. The Holy Spirit seals this work to the heart of believers so that they are kept in the merciful-love of God which was so beautifully demonstrated in the life, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus.

A few things to note here. Jesus when He was engaged in His public ministry sent His followers ahead into various towns and villages so that they’d be prepared for His coming. At Pentecost, men and women from fifteen different regions, cities, islands and nations heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached in their own language. The gift of tongues was given so that Jewish foreigners could hear the Good News of Jesus in their own language. When they went back to Cyrene and Rome, Crete and Egypt, and the other eleven nations, cities and territories they’d be like the disciples in Jesus’ earthly ministry days that is, they'd be sent out for the purpose of preparing their region for the arrival of the preachers of Jesus.

The implication for you today is, I believe, that as you go to church and hear the Good News preached, the Spirit of God is equipping you in the salvific work of Jesus so that you too can go in Jesus’s Name. As you live among the various people in your circle of family, co-workers, and friends you make Jesus known to them.

Someone, a visitor to our home, recently said to me, “I could never do what you do”. (By this she meant going into prisons and leading Bible Studies). I thought to myself, you don’t have to do this. You were never called to do this. However, this same woman had a difficult neighbour who for nine years made being a neighbour a miserable thing. So, our visitor friend explained she’d determined to make things right and win her neighbour over. After nine years this was accomplished. Think about it, over those nine years the mercy of Jesus was revealed by the Spirit’s persistent work in the life of this faithful woman. The Spirit has a task for each and every believer so that Jesus will be preached and your lives will be exactly the preparation an evangelist or preacher can use so that the Gospel of Jesus will take hold in the life of the hearer.

Go to church. Read your bible. Prepare to be equipped. Then go, share Jesus, wherever it you are, in whatever situation you are. Trust that the Spirit has uniquely prepared you for holy service.

Our Father in heaven thank You for Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Redeemer-King. Blessed Father and Holy Son, thank You for the magnificent Spirit through Whom believers see Jesus with the eyes of faith and understand Who He is through the gift of the Bible. Send us, Spirit, to the places where You have prepared people to hear of Jesus. Give us boldness, Spirit of God, and confident assurance that You have put us as witnesses for Jesus in exactly the right places so that He will be made known. Thank You, Triune God, for all those who spoke to us and demonstrated to us the love of Jesus; now, work in us so that our lives shine with the glory of Jesus so that many others will believe in Him. Amen.

https://youtu.be/Atc3AHLNp-0?si=BoQU96ccs7JDTz0g Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor

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

September 6, 2024 -- I Corinthians 6:9-11 -- God's incredible power to forgive

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
I Corinthians 6:9-11 ESV

Verse 11 states “and such were some of you”. It is easy to look at this list and go, “Phew, I am not one of those people”. The list misses murders, and those who hate their parents, Sabbath breakers, and meddlers, and gossips (as well as many other sins). What is Paul’s point? I’m going to quote Mez McConnell, himself a victim of terrible childhood abuse at the hands of his step-mother:

     Many people struggle with the thought of a loving God
     sending people to hell. Yet, these same people have no
     problem with paedophiles, rapists and the like going to
     hell. That’s not a problem.

     That would be justice.

     But God doesn’t differentiate between sinners. Sin is
     lawlessness and we all fall into that category. That’s a
     bitter pill to swallow. Here’s an even more bitter one.
     Some paedophiles and rapists will be in heaven. They
     will get to enjoy the glories of living with God for eternity.
     And some of their victims will be worshipping Jesus side
     by side with them. Even more incredibly, they will be
     there with them.

     I mean, that is just scandalous! thee is a verse in a famous
     hymn that says, “The vilest offender who truly believes,
     that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.” For many
     years I refused to sing that verse. I refused to believe
     that God would do that to me. That there was still an
     opportunity for my abuser to go to heaven.

     There was no way that I would accept any of this ever.

     Ever.

     Until I had a complete change of heart.

     What I’ve learned as a pastor is that God saves anybody
     and everybody He chooses. He doesn’t ask for my opinion.
     He doesn’t ask for your opinion. We don’t get to decide who
     is worthy and who is not.
Mez McConnell “The Creaking of the Stairs”, 2021 reprint, page 157

                             
O Lord God, Who inhabits eternity,
The heavens declare Your glory,
The earth Your riches,
The universe is Your temple;
Your presence fills immensity,
Yet You have of Your pleasure created life,
and communicated happiness;
You have made me what I am, and given me what I have;
In You I live and move and have my being;
Your providence has set the bounds of my habitation,
and wisely administers all my affairs.
I thank You for Your riches to me in Jesus,
for the unclouded revelation of Him in Your Word,
where I behold His Person, character, grace, glory,
humiliation, sufferings, death, and resurrection;
Give me to feel a need of His continual saviourhood,
and cry with Job, ‘I am vile’,
with Peter, ‘I perish’,
with the publican, ‘Be merciful to me, a sinner’.
Subdue in me the love of sin,
Let me know the need of renovation
as well as of forgiveness,
in order to serve and enjoy You for ever.
I come to You in the all-prevailing name of Jesus,
with nothing of my own to plead,
no works, no worthiness, no promises.
I am often straying, often knowingly opposing Your authority,
often abusing Your goodness;
Much of my guilt arises from my religious privileges,
my low estimation of them,
my failure to use them to my advantage,
But I am not careless of Your favour or
regardless of Your glory;
Impress me deeply with a sense of Your omnipresence,
that You know my path, my ways, my lying down, my end.
from: VALLEY OF VISION "God the Source of All Good"

https://youtu.be/C6yqC2sWcRc?si=kgfos3GPbAO2MIXw “To God Be the Glory”

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

August 30, 2024 -- Proverbs 30:5 -- God's Word: His command and His promise

Every word of God proves true;
     He is shield to those who take refuge in Him.
Proverbs 30:5 ESV

Where the English reads word the original Hebrew language has a few different nouns which have all been simply translated as word. It can be word, as in, this is the word of the LORD though it is His prophets who speak it. They do so as His ambassadors and as such these words carry the weight of the High King of Heaven Himself. In today's verse the original language word carries the underlying sense of both command and promise. Those who receive His word as a command and pattern their lives according to it, find He does exactly as He promises.

Look at the lives of various prominent men and women in the Bible who faced incredible hardships and yet walking in obedience to Him knew God as their shield of protection. Ruth, the Moabitess, left her peoples and all she knew and though widowed followed her mother-in-law from Moab (thus leaving her pagan life) going to the land of Israel. She walked according to the promises of God as Naomi her mother-in-law taught her. She was shielded by God’s goodness and given a place among the people of God. Stephen, the first New Testament martyr, was described as a man full of grace and power. He was filled with the wisdom of God. Saul, the killer of Christians before he became Paul the disciple of Jesus, was there overseeing the stoning-to-death of Stephen. As he was dying Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of Jesus (Acts 7:55) and thus shielded by the word of God with his dying breath, as his final statement, prayed for the forgiveness of his persecutors. Even as he was dying he took refuge in God His shield and under that shelter found courage and holy boldness to pray.

Stephen’s prayer certainly was uttered as one obedient to the word, where word means the command and promise of God. Interestingly, Saul would later be rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the kingdom of Light, where glorious Son of God rules His saved people by His gracious word. Interestingly, Saul, later named Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them” (Romans 8:14). Surely Paul as he penned those words he must have remembered the time he approved the martyrdom of Stephen and as he watched the man dying, nevertheless heard Stephen pray the blessing of God’s forgiving mercy be applied to all his persecutors. In a beautiful answer to Stephen’s prayer uttered with his life’s final breaths, Saul, one of the most prominent persecutors becomes a trophy of Jesus’ grace.

For Ruth and Stephen, and in the lives of the people once-sinners-now-by-grace-saints which the Bible records, you see how the word—the commands of God and the promises attached to it—shielded them. They encountered heavy and hard trials. Yet those hardships proved to be light and momentary in the view of God’s great salvation. Dear fellow believer, obey the commands of God and trust His promises are "yes" and "amen" in Jesus Christ.

Who is like You, O God of mercy and love? There is none in the farthest reaches of the cosmos, nor anywhere else in all creation who can even approach Your greatness, Your splendor, Your majesty and power. You alone are God and Your commands and promises are true and all-together lovely. Thank You for the accomplished work of Jesus Christ through Whom we are reconciled to You and to one another and set at peace within our own mind and hearts. Blessed be Your Name, Jesus, as You with the Father, give to us the strengthening Holy Spirit to live in us til this life’s fierce warfare shall cease. Guide us, Almighty God, that we may walk according to Your commands and live in the glorious light of Your promises fulfilled. Amen.

https://youtu.be/rmmJ900eL2s?si=1SDt-ErSaPFTDASL “Give Me Jesus”

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

August 29, 2024 -- Psalm 119:114 -- The Word of Life

You are my hiding place and my shield;
     I hope in your word.
Psalm 119:114 ESV

Why bother reading the Bible? A representative of the Canadian Bible Society sent me these results, from a recent Cardus Research survey. 40,000 people were surveyed. These folks were drawn from the general population and were people aged between 8 - 80. The comparison is between those who read the Bible 1x a week for 15 minutes versus those who read it 4x a week. For those who read 4x a week:

• feeling lonely drops 30%

• anger issues drop 32%

• bitterness in relationships drop 40%

• alcoholism drops 57%

• feeling spiritually stagnant drops 60%

• viewing pornography drops 61%

• sharing your faith jumps 200%

• discipling others jumps 230%

No wonder the psalmist praises God calling Him his hiding place. When the world and the accompanying peer pressures encroach upon the soul, God Himself is the security of His children. He brings the most satisfying relationship anyone could ever enjoy. God is the shield of His people—when memories of old sins haunt, the forgiveness of God given in Christ shields the soul so that there is no need to take comfort in the bottle or the needle.

The Word of God upholds the believer (Ps 119:116) and His word brings light into the life of His people (Ps.119:130). Funny, isn’t it, how people will follow all the latest fads for food, for vitamins, for exercises that make fitness claims to the effect that hard work will be eliminated. You'll achieve phenomenal fitness—but those same easily influenced people will not take 15 minutes a day to absorb the Word of God which has a proven track record for dramatic improvements in every area of life.
 

O THOU who art the Light of the minds that know Thee, the Life of the souls that love Thee, and the Strength of the hearts that serve Thee; help us so to know Thee that we may truly love Thee; so to love Thee that we may fully serve Thee; Whom to serve is perfect freedom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Divine Service Book For the Armed Forces, 1950, page 43

https://youtu.be/my90e3a_nlM?si=lMIJsrstBLqlESH2 “Speak, O Lord”

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

August 28, 2024 -- Romans 7:18-19 -- Wretched sinners filled with the knowledge of amazing grace

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.
Romans 7:18-19 ESV

The first question that must be addressed is to ask what Paul is describing here? Is Paul writing as a man who is not a Christian, or is he writing of the experiences he has as a Christian? A non-Christian would not be arguing that nothing good lives in him. Think about it. Many non-Christians, when asked if they’ll go to heaven, believe if their good deeds outweigh their bad deeds, therefore they reason God will be kindly disposed towards them. He won’t. In the Old Testament, a particularly godless period in Israel’s history is recorded in Judges. The key phrase that describes the faithlessness of the people is “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). It is the same wickedness that exists today, whereby people speak of your truth and his truth and her truth, denying ultimate Truth which is found in God alone. So, Paul is describing his life as a Christian. It is a difficult text. How are Christians any different than non-Christians then? 

R. C Sproul (1939 - 2017) was a theologian, philosopher and gifted teacher. He noted “In one sense, life doesn’t begin to get complicated until one becomes a Christian. When we are born of the Spirit we are born anew into a fierce struggle between the old man and the new man” (Pleasing God. 1994 reissue, page 150). When a believer is gripped by the grace of Jesus, his old life is revealed as wicked, sinful and rebellious against God. Even a man’s best intentions are prideful and selfish. Salvation is not a little light renovation of the soul, it is the complete demolition of one’s old nature and the conquering of every sinful inclination.

Are you finding it difficult to live for Jesus?

• Then take heart, the Spirit of God has awakened your conscience and is leading you in the way of salvation.

• Right and wrong will be revealed as very different. Even mostly right and right will be discernable because of the Spirit’s presence in your life.

• Keep reading the Word of God so that you will be instructed in the new life that is yours in Christ.

• The Word of God will reveal compromises in your life, areas where sin has a strong grip on you. That is why Scripture is compared to a light and a lamp (Psalm 119:105). Confess the sin that has been revealed and ask for forgiveness, seeking the strength of the Spirit to turn from those wicked ways.

• Spend time in prayer, ask the Spirit of God to direct your living so you will be prepared when temptations come your way.

• Know that friends with whom you used to spend time with, who are not Christians, will question your choices and hate your newfound way of life. Even if you don’t say a word, your old associates will know you are condemning their evil practices. Expect strong push back and pressure to return with them to sinful ways.

• When you face trials like those, rejoice, because each one is a confirmation that you belong to Jesus Christ. You have been counted worthy to suffer for His Name’s sake.

Father in heaven, with Paul, as each one of us sees the tide of faithlessness and sins that still swirl around within, frustrated and confused cry out “I am a wretch! Who will save me from this body of death?”  As Paul did in his day, so in our day and in each life also, help us to hear Your Spirit’s testimony deep within, offering this glorious response “thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord”! Yes, Merciful Father, thank You for the perfection of Jesus, credited to every believer so that His righteousness is the clothing of faith. Bless Your people so we are strengthened in this daily battle to live for Jesus, and are empowered by Your Spirit so that we do not grow weary in doing good. Amen.
(Quoted in this prayer is Romans 7:24-25)

https://youtu.be/eXp6XXBPiCg?si=xPB4uakUaRgRvjv4 Soldiers of Christ, Arise

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

August 27, 2024 -- Proverbs 27:3 -- Preparing for the provocation of fools

A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
    but a fool's provocation is heavier than both.
Proverbs 27:3 ESV

Have you ever seen people filling sandbags and piling them high against a coming flood? I’ve seen it on TV as people are preparing for the accompanying high tides of a hurricane or others preparing for rivers that are at flood stage. The sand is heavy. The bags are heavy. The work of stacking them is heavy. Yet people know this work is necessary in order to protect their house.

To understand this proverb you need to understand the Bible’s description of a fool. The fool says in his heart there is no god (Psalm 14:1). The fool and his destructive ways of life are so intertwined you can’t separate the fool from his self-destructiveness (Proverbs 27:22). The fool will oppose God even rejecting the offered mercy of God (Proverbs 26:24-25).

Why does this matter? It explains the hardships and challenges a Christian will face as he follows Jesus in this life. A Christian will walk in the wisdom of the Word and be guided by the Holy Spirit. A Christian will respond to the love the Father has shown by seeking to be gracious to the people all around. The fool will push back. The fool who hates anything to do with God and unable to touch God Himself will then hate the one who follows Jesus.

The Bible is warning you, dear fellow believer, to be prepared for the heavy cost you must bear of following Jesus. You will have to fight your own flesh and laziness. You will have to face people who subtly undercut you and seem to be friendly, all the while they are calculating how to hurt you. You will face people in authority who enact laws that are opposed to all that the Bible teaches and such provocation requires that you are prepared. Here are some examples that might help you prepare for the work of living in a world that is filled with fools.

• You have done a project at work and a coworker steals the credit for it. Trust God to vindicate you (Psalm 43:1).

• A classmate, or coworker, discovers you are a Christian and begins to tease you mercilessly. This is heavy provocation indeed. Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Romans 12:14). Why? So that they may be won to Jesus Christ and you will have turned an enemy into a fellow soldier of the cross of Jesus.

• You know there will be consequences for speaking against the agenda of those who wickedly promote a non-biblical sexual agenda that mutilates children, do not be afraid to confess Jesus. Those who are ashamed of Jesus in this life the Son of Man will be ashamed of when He comes in His glory (Luke 9:26).

• Trust that God has placed you in such a difficult circumstance so that His glory and His love will either win the non-Christian to Christ, or confirm his condemnation (John 16:8).

Dear family of God, you have been drenched in the forgiving love of God, reconciled to the Father through the work of Jesus Christ. Therefore, in the strength of the Spirit, protect the household of God and live boldly for Jesus. Be prepared to protect the honor and glory of the Church of which belongs to Jesus, that means you will be prepared for every provocation confident the Triune God sees and has His holy purposes for you.

O LORD God, when You give Your servants to endeavour any great matter, grant us also to know that it is not the beginning but the continuing of the same until it be thoroughly finished, which yields the true glory; through Him that for the finishing of Your work laid down His life, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prayer of Sir Francis Drake on entering the Cadiz Harbour, April 19, 1587

https://youtu.be/z-yJ3xMVUDI?si=1H0Yj6ihGg1MxUJM “Whate’er My God Ordains Is Right”

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

August 26, 2024 -- Romans 3:21-26 -- Amazing Grace (reprint from April 25, 2024)

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. 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. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Romans 3:21-26 ESV

You might already be very familiar with verse 23, but look closely at verse 24, sinners are justified by God’s grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. There is a double emphasis here. Grace is unmerited favor. It is not earned. So, the word grace itself already communicates the fact it is God’s loving, patient disposition toward His people. So grace by definition is a gift. However, Paul can't help himself. He underlines it. He calls the justification of sinners God's grace as a gift. It is His divine choice to be show His people good will, instead of the punishment and wrath they so richly deserve. Grace is the profound kindness of God which draws believers back from their sins and by His Spirit working brings brings them back to Himself. Grace is God’s blessing poured out into every of the life of each one of His people.

When you know the kindness of God and even so have chosen to rebel, and the Spirit makes you aware of your sinfulness, so that you turn from it and run back to God. More importantly, God receives you back! That is grace.

When you review all your sins, know all your weaknesses, and realize there isn’t anything in you that could ever commend you to God, yet the Word of God teaches you He has set His love on you. That is grace.

When you strive to do good, and your work and words fall short, but the Spirit teaches you that God is not frowning in heaven, but by the blood of Jesus Christ you are wearing the good works of Jesus as your mantle, that is grace.

Grace is the blessing of God, given constantly, steadily, unstintingly, on your life.

Grace is communicated to you by the Spirit’s powerful presence in your life, through the preaching of the Gospel, and the Lord’s Supper and baptism. Grace is communicated to you where there is Christian discipline unto repentance exercised in your local Christian church.

Our Father in heaven may Your Name be honoured and adored forever—on earth as in heaven above. Thank You for the free gift of Your amazing grace given to Your people through Jesus Christ. Father in heaven let Your Spirit hold us by the spout where Your grace continually pours out and the kingdom of Christ is all about us. Amen.

https://youtu.be/ZoJz2SANTyo?si=or9lzjYx117FgnpI Soweto Gospel Choir — Amazing Grace
Copyright © 2024 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 25, 2024 -- Isaiah 40:25-31 -- The powerful LORD God and His humble, much loved people

To whom then will you compare me,
    that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see:
    who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
    calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might
    and because he is strong in power,
    not one is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
    and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the LORD,
    and my right is disregarded by my God”?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
    his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
    and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
    and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
    they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:25-31 ESV
 

In the past, whenever I have read these verses, I usually focused on the last three verses and found great comfort in them. Oddly, doing so undercuts the meaning of the whole. It adds to pride instead of doing what the passage is designed to do, which is increase humility. “There are two things that are suited to humble the soul of men, a due consideration of God, and then of ourselves. Of God, in his greatness, glory, holiness, power, majesty, and authority; of ourselves, in our mean, abject, and sinful condition.” (John Owen Sin and Temptation. ed. J. M. Houston, 1995, page 17). The passage from Isaiah begins with the greatness and majesty of God. He is all-powerful. He is the source of life for all things in His creation. He is all-wise, notice that His understanding is unsearchable. You can never get to the end of all the things God knows. He will never say, “I didn’t know that”. Amazing! This requires a full stop. Due consideration. Knowing the LORD of Glory. (In fact, for a fuller sense of this, and to get the smack in the fact impact that is intended read Isaiah 40:9 to 24).

Now look at the state of humanity. Those who are in the prime of life, young men, grow weary. Life eats away at their strength. Those who are supposed to be vigorous have yielded their lives to sin and are emptied of all power. Those who are youthful have exchanged power for addictions. Those who are wearied from the battles of life can’t hold a sword against the powers of darkness for another second. When one has truly assessed his own condition then humility takes hold of the heart. It is at that moment a wise man turns once again, unfilled to the LORD, knowing that He alone is the source of forgiveness, of power and wisdom.

As New Testament Christians reading these verses, it is obvious that by the Spirit’s inspiration the prophet Isaiah has Jesus in view here. He is the One appointed by God the Father, to reveal the way in which true and lasting renewal takes place. Those who confess their sinfulness and the soul-weariness it has brought upon them will find in Christ Jesus the forgiveness of sin and the righteousness that allows one to stand up again, confident in His victory and alive with the power of the Holy Spirit Who continuously applies Jesus’s victory to him.

To wait upon the LORD is a term that means to braid, or to fix, like a net. So that catch will not flow through gaps too wide to capture the intended fish. When one waits on the LORD, he braids the knowledge of God into every part of life, head knowledge, heart knowledge, actions and words. The braiding of the LORD into every part of life (through prayer, Bible reading, and time with fellow believers) keeps the believer humble, able to receive the blessings which God has intended to give his weary people. The haughty, or proud man, doesn’t realize the gaping holes in his life. These huge gaps allow the blessings of the Mighty One to pass through his life and not affect him. The humble man, awed by the splendor, the power, the might, and the loving-kindness of the Living God, have so yielded themselves to Him that their lives , repaired by waiting on Him, receive the constant flow of His blessings. They are able to acknowledge, all my strength, all my hope, all my life is in Jesus.

Prayer

O LORD You are very great. Language almost breaks down because superlatives themselves are too simple, too ineffective to describe Your Mighty power which is beyond great. The Exodus showed the most powerful men of Egypt, when facing Your plagues claimed there is more power in Your pinky than there is in all of great strength of that once-powerful land. Even that is giving too much credit to Egypt. Isaiah noted the stars fit within the span of Your hand. You never need the advice of humans. Empires that rise before you last mere seconds, though many tribes of the earth had groaned under their fleeting power. You alone are God. You are beyond comparison; yet in wondrous consideration of the neediness of man, You stoop to their weakness, revealing Yourself. Therefore Your mercy and grace are even greater and higher and all the more excellent, for Your love reaches to Your people. Triune God, this Sunday, fill the thoughts of your people with the knowledge of Your greatness; then by Your Spirit’s power lead Your humbled people to the mercies of Jesus Christ, so that the weariest among us, will be renewed in hope, faith, and love. Amen.

https://youtu.be/MUZD0hgtSgE?si=Cw8TDSOo3R50zEI6 “All Creatures of Our God and King”

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

August 23, 2024 -- I Timothy 1:15-17 -- Sinners who find healing

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
I Timothy 1:15-17 ESV

It is tempting to read these words and half-heartedly affirm, yes, Paul was the worst of sinners. He was a murderer. He fought with the other apostles. He was angry with Mark. There are various sins that can be cited. The problem is I am pretty sure that is not how the passage is supposed to be read. Notice how the pronouns change. Paul received mercy, literally he received the forgiveness that is found in Jesus. The first time Jesus’s Name is used in these verses, His title Christ is mentioned first. This emphasizes He was anointed, sent by the Father as the Messiah, to accomplish the task of living in full obedience to Him. As the Christ He is the second Adam, the representative of those who will be deemed righteous through faith in Him. As the Christ He is the perfect Prophet, Priest and King—all the Old Testament offices are perfectly fulfilled in Him. Second mentioned is His personal Name, Jesus, which means He saves His people from their sins.

Paul noted he is the foremost of sinners. He is not claiming that his sins are the greatest on record. It is not a competition. When Paul looks to the Christ, he sees the One Who in every way lived perfectly in service to the Faithful Father in heaven. Paul, the more the Spirit showed him his life, realized with every glance how far he continuously fell short of the standard of this kind of perfection. He was not comparing himself to all other sinners, he was comparing himself to the One Who is the measure and standard for all people. Anything less than the perfections of Jesus will disqualify a man, a woman, or a child from eternity in the wondrous Presence of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

Thus Paul is an example to those who were to believe in Jesus for eternal life. Now the emphasis is on the saving work of Jesus. The mercy of God is perfectly displayed in Jesus. Ruined sinners, those who see the perfections of Jesus and in contrast with Him realize how truly vile their actions are the very ones to whom the mercy of God can be poured out. It is open to all. Just like Paul received mercy, so can you, having recognized your sin, casting yourself on Jesus’ saving kindness, receive forgiveness full and free.

What is the evidence of a heart that has been transformed? It is praise to God. Paul regularly breaks into songs, those are poetic expressions of love directed to God. After he has been inspired by the Holy Spirit to make profound theological statements which capture the beyond description greatness of God’s merciful kindness, his heart just overflows so that he can’t help but bless God in words that flow like music. Better than a final-second-touchdown-breaking-a-tie-so-that-the-underdog-team-wins-the-Superbowl is the cheering that breaks out from the soul that knows, in the guts realization, God has plunged his sins into the depths of the seas and has given him forgiveness full and free.

God of Mercy, sometimes I can barely lift my eyes to You. What Paul writes is too awesome to contemplate. Can it really be for me? I intimately know my own heart’s inkiness and horrible stains so long carefully, afraid-others-might-find-out-hidden from others sin. It seems too good to be true that You would, as You did for Paul, cancel the debt and bring life-healing forgiveness. Increase my faith in Christ Jesus. Help me to read the trustworthy statement that deserves full acceptance so that I will gasping with awe grasp hold of this extravagant gift of Your healing, saving, wondrous love. Mighty God, for those among us who have known this salvation for a long time, let it be new and rich for us, all over again, so that with enthusiasm and humble joy we will rejoice with those who are taking hold of this salvation for the first time

https://youtu.be/HLzEhE6Fe1g?si=Spw6IxwfQiqnxDh0 “I’m Healing” lyrics are included below

Verse 1
Jesus you see me
And God you really know me
You bring compassion
As sunlight greets the morning
Verse 2
Jesus you’re with me
You said you’d never leave me
Settle my heartbeat
As quiet slows the evening
Chorus
The sweetness of your presence My soul’s remedy
The sweetness of your presence
Clears the air I breathe
The sweetness of your presence
Covering my sleep In the sweetness of your presence
I’m healing
Tag
Oh I’m healing
Verse 3
We’ve had our history
Together through the hard things
You tend to my trauma
With nurture of a mother
Bridge
Oh I open up my heart to yours
Oh I’ll open up my heart (come in lord, come in)
Oh I open up my heart to yours
Oh I’ll open up my heart (come in lord, come in)

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

August 22, 2024 -- Galatians 5:16-17 -- Fighting Desires and Fulfilling Right Desires

 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

Galatians 5:16-17 ESV

The Wednesday night Bible Study is examining the Word of God to learn what appropriate boundaries God has placed around sexuality. The study material is a video series based on Christopher Yuan’s book “Holy Sexuality and the Gospel”. Tangled into the world’s distorted view of sex and desire and orientation is a mishmash of definitions. Yuan suggests it is important to keep Biblical categories, not the world’s categories, to help understand God’s will and direction for His holy people.

Instead of orientation (which is not in the Bible) or same-sex attraction (also a worldly expression, not in the Bible), Yuan teaches that the word “desire” is appropriate. If one’s desire, when acted upon, leads a believer to act in ways that are contrary to God’s clearly stated rule for life, then it is a sinful desire. If a desire builds healthy community, leading the believer in the path of God’s commands, which are for the benefit and blessing of His people, then they are appropriate desires.

Thus, same-sex desires, and all the variations which are promoted as acceptable in this world today, are by definition sinful desires. They encourage the flesh to remain in rebellion against God and His commands. It is critical that church leaders and folks who follow Jesus get this right. The world is hijacking the conversation, but it is the Heavenly Father Who made all people, Who has the right to tell people how to live.

Prior to the Fall, when Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, their desires were all good. They were created good. However, they rebelled against God’s command and ate the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Sin is a corruption that affects the inmost part of every man and woman. Sin clouds the judgment of all people. Sin has so polluted man’s understanding that he can not distinguish right from wrong without the Word of God and the Spirit of God’s powerful presence. One’s natural inclination, or desire, is for sin. Therefore, when Christ takes hold of the Christian, he must in the power of the Spirit distinguish right desires from wrong desires.

To walk by the Spirit is to pray, asking for the Spirit’s help in all decisions. Praying also to be conscience when temptations are near and to be alert to flee temptation and run to the power of the Holy Spirit so that all temptations are crushed before they get too powerful. To walk by the Spirit is to be committed to reading the Bible and planting its truth deep within. As the Psalmist wrote, “I have stored up your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” Psalm 119:11.

Yuan writes “A spiritual battle is raging ‘between God’s Spirit and the impulse to sin'. This impulse no longer enslaves the believer, but it can still have an influence. We therefore face a daily fight” (page 71). And, sadly, many fall into temptation and sin. Do not despair. The great promise of God is everyone who confesses his sins will be forgiven! Confess your sins. Find deep Christian community where you can talk about the struggles of your heart and flesh. Most importantly, deep Christian community also encourages walking together in the spiritual path of obedience to God’s commands.

Following God’s commands is not dreadful duty, it is in fact, affirming the new life that belongs to every believer. You are not struggling alone. That is the lie of the great deceiver, the Devil. No! You are under the watchful, loving gaze of your Heavenly Father. Jesus, Your King and High Priest, prays for You. The Spirit of God lives inside you, ready to help you fight every temptation. The Triune God, forever living in deep and rich community as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, give to you the blessings of Christian community, where you can experience the joy of following Jesus together.

O LORD our God, under the shadow of Your wings let us hope. You will support us, both when we are young, and even to gray hairs. When our strength is from You, it is strength; but, when our own, it is feebleness. We return to You, O Lord, that from their weariness, our souls may rise towards You, leaning on the things which You have created, and passing onto You Yourself, Who has wonderfully made them; for with You is refreshment and true strength. Amen.

Prayer of St. Augustine

https://youtu.be/io8GX4zMemg?si=85HkL3ZsEAI9USZC “Weary Traveler”

August 20, 2024 -- II Corinthians 2:14 -- The Fragrance of Jesus

But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.
II Corinthians 2:14 ESV

Recently I came across a sentence, a quotation from Thomas Watson (1620 - 1686) which reads: “Till sin be bitter, Christ will not be sweet”. Sin is attractive to the wayward heart precisely because of its false promises of sweet, guilty pleasures. However, the fact is sin leads to death. Sin has about it the stench of death.

Many of you know I work in prisons and also with those on parole. So many of the men and women on parole are heavily addicted to drugs, or live in shelters where many of the shelter client use drugs. Currently what is popular is something nick-named the “zombie drug”. Users have a characteristic bent forward position. Frozen like statues at a 45 degree angle or more! They will sway slightly, or standing, bent over, will sleep. Yet, when they wake up they crave more the drug that gives them a rush and then gives them sleep that makes them forget whatever it is that haunts them..

It is easy to react and say, “I’d never do that”. Okay. What is the stench of death that grips you? Addiction to shopping or uncontrolled impulse buying? Porn? Gossip? Anger? Laziness? Cheating on your taxes? Harboring ill-will against others? Meddling in other people’s business? Sin, whatever it is, makes you spiritually bent over just as much as those who have ingested the zombie drug. You are taking in what is bitter and displacing the sweetness of Jesus.

Until your sins are bitter to you, hateful and repulsive, you will dabble in them and not have a proper taste and appetite for the things of Jesus. Sins must be recognized as sin.

• Pray for the great power of the Holy Spirit to show you the consequences of your sins and how spiritually bent over you really are.

• Ask the Spirit to make the Word sweet to your taste so that you hunger for more. (Don't be surprised if this takes time! You have trained your tastes for what is bitter and evil, sweetness of taste will take some time to acquire).

• Spend time with Christians whose walk with God is inspiring to you. As you do so, your life too will be irresistibly attractive to others around you—those who are yet bent over in the zombie state of sin.

• Spread the sweet knowledge of Jesus to all so that they truly will be freed from their chains and sins.

Father in heaven blessed be Your Name. God of all healing power, break the chains addiction  and the dedication to sin that is gripping this land. Pour out Your Holy Spirit upon Your people so that sin will be most bitter and Jesus will be sweet to the mind and heart of all who believe. Amen.

https://youtu.be/iYpYofs8Xp4?si=dwHuMXfo4lZpCUu5 “May the Fragrance”

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

August 19, 2024 -- Proverbs 19:27 -- How can I jumpstart my Bible reading?

Cease to hear instruction, my son,
and you will stray from the words of knowledge.
Proverbs 19:27 ESV

The verb cease means everything from once in a while neglecting to completely stopping from hearing instruction. Instruction is training in the LORD. It is the discipline of putting into practice the words one hears through listening to sermons in church which complement your own Bible reading. You’ve seen stray cats, haven’t you? If they’re long gone from a home, they’re scruffy, ornery, and hissy. They are hard to call back to home. A recent stray goes from person to person seeking help and affection. Either way, the cat is lost and unless it gets the right person to care for it, will be taken into a bad home. So it is with the Christian who strays. He gets scruffy. She becomes onery. Such people forget who they are supposed to be as followers of Jesus Christ. The very knowledge that is supposed to keep them from sin and waywardness are forgotten. Basically, if you are not hearing the word of God preached and regularly reading it yourself, you will not be able to discern good from evil, nor what figure out what is God’s Truth so that you can distinguish it from whatever the world calls true.

Set a time for Bible reading. Sometimes the consistency of having set a time will be all the incentive you need to pick up the good habit of reading the Bible.

If you have ceased from reading, do not let the past neglect of reading stop you from starting up once again. Today is a good day to get right on it again.

Decide what your Bible reading will be. Sometimes Bible reading is neglected because you haven’t chosen what it is you’ll read. If it has been a while since you’ve read, start with one of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke or John.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you get started once again in the pathway of this holy habit. If you have been regular in prayer, ask the Holy Spirit to deepen your understanding, and increase your joy in reading.

Write down your questions and ask a Christian friend to answer your questions. it is a great way to grow in your faith and to grow closer to other Christians who will be honoured and happy to answer your questions.

Father in heaven thank You for the gift of the Bible. Please send me Your Holy Spirit so that I will understand what I read in the Bible. When I encounter hard passages or confusing statements, send me a Christian friend who will help me so that together we can find the answers. Father, help me to get started on a holy habit that will lead me closer to Jesus and more fully understand the rich salvation I have in His glorious Name. Amen.

https://youtu.be/aH1Wn4fTiBs?si=iqSTy81MxoB4tNS0 “Speak O Lord”

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

August 18, 2024 -- John 8:12 -- Jesus the Light of the World. Is He light in your life?

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 8:12 ESV

This contrast between light and darkness is a common motif in the Gospel of John. The very first chapter introduces this contrast between light and darkness. In Him, that is in Jesus, was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not understood it” (John 1:4-5). Darkness is the state of the heart and mind that does not know or obey Jesus. Many people know about Jesus. Many people claim to be followers of Jesus. Look at the fruit of their lives. Is there a change in their behavior, their words, their attitude? Can you tell by what they are devoting themselves to if they are truly walking in the light as Jesus is light?

According to Revelation 22 the New Heavens and the New Earth will not have sun or lamps because the Lord God is the light. There will be no more night, for the works of darkness and death are done. Jesus Who in the Gospel of John made the claim He is the Light of Life will in the New Heavens and New Earth by the Light and Glory of His presence be fully revealed and proven true and accurate and faithful through-out all of eternity.

Those who both know Jesus as their salvation and walk in the light, that is bring their lives into obedient submission to Him are described as having the light of life. The light and blessing of Jesus shines out from the words and actions of their life. People around them know they are Christians because the light and life of Jesus is evident in the believer’s confident trust in Jesus. Non-Christians howl at the claims of Jesus, like those whose eyes adjusted to deep darkness suddenly have bright light shining into them. The light is something they shield their eyes and faces against. They do not want the pain of the light.

Believers in Jesus Christ experience what is promised in Psalm 37. The presence of Jesus within them is the like the light of dawn that breaks and increases in their life until it is like the noon day sun (Psalm 37:6). Until Jesus returns at the Day of Judgment believers will wrestle the darkness that still lingers within them. They will face challenges, like getting themself to go to church, or spending time worshiping God. It is common. So, fight the darkness that is within. Pray for the Spirit of God to dispel the darkness so that the joy of Christ and His light will shine out in every area of your life. Encourage those around you who are struggling. Jesus, only Jesus, has the light of life. Seek Him.

O LORD You are my Light and my Salvation. Oh LORD, You are the stronghold of my life, of whom then shall I be afraid? One thing I ask of You, O LORD, and it is what I will chase after with all my strength, that I may spend my life in the Presence of the LORD all the days of my life. With the psalmist David, Whom You called a man after Your Own heart, I want to gaze on Your beauty my LORD and spend my life inquiring of You so that Your Spirit will lead me into ever fuller light for the rest of my days. Though I face troubles and enemies within me and around me, I believe I will glimpse at and with increasing frequency will see Your goodness, LORD, shining as light into every area of my life. Amen.
Prayer is based on Psalm 27

https://youtu.be/e2qzxY5a37o?si=R2RRnH2OUrP7qtJf “In the Light”

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

August 17, 2024 -- I Corinthians 15:58 -- Confident in Jesus and His resurrection power

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
I Corinthians 15:58 ESV

There is a pithy phrase related to the word therefore. Here is it. Whenever you read a therefore in the Bible you have to ask what was written there before. Okay, here is what was written there before this morning's text. Paul had just given the Corinthians a lengthy explanation that because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ death no longer has any power over the believer. The Christian who lives has been clothed with the strength of Christ and the Christian who dies puts off what is perishable, what can die, and puts on that which is imperishable, a body that is glorious and will never die. Believers have the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ. That is victory over sin, having been united with Christ in a death like His, united with Jesus through baptism. Victory over fear, because the Spirit of God lives in all believers. Victory over sin, because the Spirit of God gives everything needed for life and godliness.

So, believers are steadfast, that is steady, firm in their life's purpose, which is to obey Jesus. Immoveable, can’t be shaken from the confidence that is theirs in Christ. His work at the cross means sins have been punished on the Person of Jesus and His perfect righteousness is credited to believers. Though the whole world is increasingly godless, the Christian does not despair, for the eyes of faith see Jesus, enthroned in glory, He Who having opened up the way to Himself through suffering, death and the grave will bring His people to Himself in glory. Believers will rise with Him. So, what can people or governments do to harm the Christian or what person or circumstance could knock him from the grip of God’s grace? (Nothing. No one!)

Christians do not compromise their work or try to fit in with the world. Why? Well, whatever the world might do in response to the bold witness of the Christian: jail, beating, financial costs, mocking, or anything else you can think of, pales in comparison to the glorious future that is in store for believers. For the believer the attachment is not to the world, that is, to success according to its standards, power, money, big houses, or a trophy wife or husband nor anything else. The highest devotion of the Christian is fixed onto, anchored in Jesus Christ and the fullness of life and purpose that can only be found in Him. He is the deepest desire of the Christian heart.

Even if all your efforts seem, in the eyes of the world to fail and fall to the ground, the Lord sees. Even if you are deemed a failure according to the moving-target of a standard of the world (where what is right one day is ridiculed as wrong the next and forgotten the day after) the Lord’s holy purposes are accomplished whenever a believer serves God. Now, go and serve Jesus, no matter the cost here, for your reward is in heaven, guarded and kept safe for you by the power of the Spirit Who lives in you.

Father in heaven by the power of Your Spirit open our eyes so that by faith we see all that is ours in Christ. Spirit of the Living God, tear down every fear of man that grips us so that in strength of the new life and gift of godliness that You bring we can serve Jesus steadfast, immovable, abounding in hope as we serve Him. Amen.

https://youtu.be/Z32HiCoFzlU?si=Wlr8DPASriRgUizX “Build My Life” Pat Barrett

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

August 15, 2024 -- I Thessalonians 4:1-8 -- What is God's Will for your life? Your holiness.

Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
I Thessalonians 4:1-8 ESV

Though these words were written almost two thousand years ago, they are as relevant today as they were the moment they were penned. The world around us is sex-saturated. Invitations to lustful thoughts are splashed across magazines at store check-out counters. Even the recently held Olympics have very fit, very scantily clad people, parading across the screen completing in their sport. It is impossible to spend time on the internet and not be faced with all kinds of lurid ads. Even news programs focus on the outrageous sexual exploits of our society.

What is the will of God for those who live in a sex-soaked culture? For the answer, look at verse 3: your sanctification. While the world is getting more and more corrupted and plunges deeper into sexual perversity, the follower of Jesus Christ stands out because of his, or her, deep dedication to the will of God. The Spirit of God lives in the heart of every Christ-follower, revealing the ugliness of sin and contrasting it with the incomparable splendid beauty of life which is in step with the commands of God.

The Christian abstains from sex before marriage, not because God wants to steal the joy of His people, but He has decreed the proper boundaries for healthy sexual expression. A Christian can not see any point in beginning a dating relationship with anyone other than a fellow Christian. To join oneself to a non-believer is a deep rejection of the Father’s will for you, namely, your holiness. The follower of Jesus Christ yields his mind and his heart, his actions and his body to Jesus. To engage in any sexual promiscuity is to defy the will of God for you, namely, your sanctification. How can one grow in holiness if one is actively running far from God and defiantly engaging in sin? The pleasures of sin are quickly over. The consequences of sin linger and bite and wound. The pleasures of holiness increase in the life of one who practices the will of God. The disciple of holiness yields rich fruit.

For the sinner the hot passion of lust fills the senses and leads him away in uncontrolled sexual immorality. For the follower of Jesus Christ, the fiery zeal that fills his senses leads him away from uncontrolled sexual immortality because he knows this will pollute the prized possession of his life: knowing and walking ever more closely with Jesus Christ. When Jesus Christ is the highest prize, then all other areas of life are willingly and joyfully submitted to Him. Single or married, rich or poor, healthy or sick, struggling or at ease, every situation of life is found to be an occasion for the very holiness which is God’s desire for you. The disciple of Jesus restrains himself from sexual immorality (really, from any sin) with the joyful anticipation that whatever the Lord has in store is most perfectly enjoyed within the proper boundaries which He has established.

Oh God, our Father, and Jesus our Lord, direct us in Your way. Make us increase and abound in holy love for You and for one another. Spirit of God, establish our hearts blameless in holiness such that when Jesus returns with all His holy ones we can rejoice before the throne of God. Amen.

Prayer is based on I Thessalonians 3:11-13 ESV

https://youtu.be/lQ93HVuYd5Y?si=GNDDX4HK0wcRUUsT “Take My Life and Let It Be”

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