Who is your Rock?

  Who is your Rock?

                 The Psalmist writes,

“For God alone my soul waits in silence;

from him comes my salvation.

He alone is my rock and my salvation, 

my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.”

                                                                       Psalm 62:1,2 (ESV).

Do you take time just to be quiet and seek God’s will?

Is God truly your rock and salvation?

Is God your fortress?

When trouble strikes where do you go for help?

Is your faith built on the Rock?

Jesus told this parable,

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  

The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.  

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  

The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." Matthew 24-27.

Do you put the teachings of Jesus into practice?

Please think about it.

Can you say

  Can you say

The Psalmist writes,

"I lift up my eyes to the hills— 

where does my help come from? 

My help comes from the LORD, 

the Maker of heaven and earth.”

                                                      Psalm 121:1,2.

When you need help where do you turn for it? When things are going wrong do you turn to God first?

For me as a believer in Christ Jesus it is comforting to know that when I need help I can turn to God the “Maker of heaven and earth”.

While things in life may not turn out the way we want them. God is still there for us. There to comfort us through the hard times of life. And there to rejoice with us through good times in life. So can you say with the Psalmist,

"I lift up my eyes to the hills— 

where does my help come from? 

My help comes from the LORD, 

the Maker of heaven and earth."

                                                      Psalm 121:1,2.

Please think about it.

Proclaiming His Name

  Proclaiming His Name.

Isaiah the prophet writes,

"Behold, God is my salvation; 

I will trust, and will not be afraid;

for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song,

and he has become my salvation."

"With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.  

And will say in that day:

Give thanks to the Lord call upon his name,

make known his deeds among the peoples,

proclaim that his name is exalted." 

                                                         Isaiah 12:2-4

Can you say “God is my Salvation”?

Can you say “The LORD GOD is my strength and my song”?

Can you say, “He has become my salvation”?

From personal experience I know that God is my Salvation my strength and it’s a wonderful feeling. And it gets better!

In the book of Acts we read this interaction between Paul, Silas and their jailor,

“The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.  

He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" 

They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household." Acts 16:30,31.

I know my family is saved. I know both my children are saved. Both are serving the Lord in their own way as is my daughter in law. 

I know my late wife is with the Lord. Some of her last words were “I just want to be with Jesus”. 

All of this come to be, because both my wife and I believed in “The Lord Jesus” while still in our early twenties before we met each other.

And while we are not household names. Just a small family who love The Lord. We have had the privilege of proclaiming the Love of Christ and the Salvation He offers both in word and in deed to all we come in contact with. 

And if we can do it anyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ can do it also.

If you consider yourself a Christian, A true believer in Christ Jesus. Are you proclaiming the Salvation that comes through Christ in word and in deed to the world around you?

Please think about it.

Acknowledge sin

  Acknowledge sin

The Psalmist writes,

“Then I acknowledged my sin to you 

and did not cover up my iniquity. 

I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"

 and you forgave the guilt of my sin.” 

                                                                Psalm 32:5

The apostle Paul writes,

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.  Romans 3:23,24.

Sin separates us from God. But scripture tells us that if we confess our sins God will forgive us our sins. But God doesn’t stop there the apostle Paul reminds us,

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8.

Writing to the Corinthians Paul states,

"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:20.

It was for us. You and me, that Christ died on the cross.

The apostle John writes,

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  

If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." 1John 1:9-10.

Thus the choice is ours.

Are you willing to confess your sins directly to God in prayer or not?

Please think about it.

What will God See?

  What will God see?

In the book of Proverbs we read,

"For a man's ways are in full view of the LORD,

 and he examines all his paths." 

                                                                      Proverbs 5:2.

I don’t believe the idea that God is a big old self-centred man with a big stick ready to hit us when we do wrong. We only have to read John 3:16,17 to know that. 

John 3:16,17 states,

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:16,17.

At the same time God is watching us and will judge us fairly in according to what He sees.

So my question to you is. When you stand before God and He examines your life What will God see?

Please think about it.

Pray without ceasing

 Pray without ceasing 

In 1Thessalonians we read,

“...pray without ceasing,”

                               1Thessalonians 5:17.

One commentator (Colin Nicholl) writing in his commentary in the English study Bible,  noted that this verse suggests that we should have,

 “a mental attitude of prayerfulness, continual personal fellowship with God, and consciousness of being in his presence throughout each day.” Colin NIcholl.

Which I think sums this verse up.

We need to have that personal relationship with Christ, daily. We need to know that God is with us all the time. That we can speak to Him anytime. Both in good times and in bad.

Praying to God is one of those good habits that all believers need to practice.

Are you in the habit of praying continually?

Please think about it.

The way you love

  The way you love

Jesus said,

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  

By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34,35.

Love is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith.

In the book of Ephesians we read,

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1,2. 

It is our duty as Christians. As believers in Christ Jesus to Love as Christ Loved. Unconditionally. Our love should have no bounds.

The apostle Paul defines Christian love this way,

"Love is patient, love is kind. 

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, 

it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil 

but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails....

And now these three remain:

 faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."  

                                                                                   1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.

Is this the way you love?

Please think about it.

Believers in Christ are to...

  Believers in Christ are to....

In the book of Colossians we read,

“Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  

Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  

And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.  

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.  

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:12-17.

Here is a list of what true Christians. True believers in Christ Jesus should be doing.

We are to:

Clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

Forgive whatever grievances we have with one another.

Forgive as the Lord forgives us.

We are to love.

Let the peace of Christ dwell in our hearts.

Let the word of Christ dwell richly in us.

We are to teach and admonish one another with all wisdom.

We are to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.

We are to sing with gratitude in our hearts to God.

We are to do all this in word and in deed, to God in the name of the                     Lord Jesus.

So here’s a simple question:

So if you consider yourself a true believer in Christ Jesus are you doing what is listed above?

Please think about it.

Our focus

  Our focus

The apostle Paul writes,

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."  Galatians 2:20.

In this statement the apostle Paul makes it clear that once we have accepted Christ as our saviour it is no longer we who live but Christ in us.

Upon accepting Christ into our lives our focus should change form ourselves and what is good for us. To one of doing the will of Christ.

If we claim to be a Christian a true follower of Christ Jesus we should be studying the scriptures to see what God requires of us. 

We must do this in order to grow in Christ Jesus. To become Christ like. Because wether we like it or not when we claim to be a Christian people will look at our lives and judge Christ by our words and deeds. As Francis of Assisi wrote,

"The deeds you do 

may be the only sermon some persons will hear today" 

                                                                             Francis of Assisi

Please think about it.

Remember

  Remember

In the book of Hebrews we read,

“Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.” Hebrews 13:3.

We who live in the western democracies quite often forget our brothers and sisters who a being persecuted around the world.

According to a United Kingdom house of commons report in 2023, 365 million Christians are “subject to high levels of persecution and discrimination this compared to 340 million in 2021. 

That is 1in 7 Christians are persecuted, worldwide, including 1 in 5 in Africa and 1 in 7 in Asia in 2023, compared to 1in 8 world wide in 2021.

As believers world wide we have an option at the very least to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world.  At the same time we should consider helping support organizations that are helping the persecuted such as Open Doors Canada and Global Christian relief in the United States.

If you consider yourself a true follower of Christ Jesus, do you at least pray for the persecuted and imprisoned Christians around the world?

Please don’t just think about praying for those being persecuted and imprisoned PRAY for them.

When people see you

  When people see you.

Jesus said,

"Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  

I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 

"Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  

When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  

When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 

"The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" Matthew 25:34-40.

This is a follow up to the blog I posted yesterday about helping the refugees, innocent men women and children. Here Jesus tells us that in helping the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, those in need of clothing, the sick and those in prison. We are helping Him. Jesus saying,

"The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" Matthew 25:40.

While it is true that having faith in saving grace offered by God saves us. Our faith should spur us on to doing more. In the book of James we read,

"In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." James 2:17.

When people see your life do they see you as a follower of Christ Jesus. A person who does what you can to help those in need?

Please think about it.

Who welcomes

  Who welcomes 

Jesus said,

“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me” Mark 9:37.

When I read this I cannot help thinking of all the child refugees and their parents that are fleeing war and bad situations in their homeland. Innocent people who only want to live in peace. And while I get the need for border security. I also think we as Christians need to do what is right. We should not be getting political and demanding the borders be closed and legitimate refugees sent back to unsafe conditions.

We should however be doing all we can to help those refugees both before they reach our borders and at our borders. 

Having said that there are many Christian organizations that are doing just that. As true believers in Christ Jesus we may not be able to go to the refugees but we can contribute to those organizations that are doing their best to help those in need both outside our borders and inside.

Remember the words of Jesus I quoted above,

“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not be but him to sent me” Mark 9:37.

In helping the innocent men women and children in the name of Christ we are receiving not just Christ but God the creator of the universe and everything in it.

Will you do what you can today to receive those in need?

Please think about it.