November 25, 2018 -- Haggai 2:6-7 -- Jesus, the Desire of All Nations

For thus says the LORD of hosts:

'Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,' says the LORD of hosts.

Haggai 2:6-7 NKJV

There are really only two times in my life that I can remember feeling the tremor of an earthquake. Both times it was pretty mild compared to what people in our world who live in earthquake prone regions experience! Yet I can tell you, to have the earth shake under you grabs your attention and focuses you.

In our passage to day Jesus is called: The Desire of All Nations. All our wanton and wrongly directed cravings are perversions of our one, true desire: Jesus. When God created Adam and Eve, He planted in them, and in us, all of us who are their biological descendents, a deep longing, a soul-consuming desire for relationship with God. In fact, Jesus is the soul's true Desire. Sin is the act of trying to satisfy the soul's craving with anything else or anyone else apart from Him, Jesus alone is the Desire of All Nations.

Get up and join with believers in a Bible-believing church today. Discover why you are living with such dissatisfaction in your life and answer the true craving of your soul by encountering Jesus, the Desire of All Nations.

Forgive me, Spirit of God, for the many times I ignore Your prompting and proddings and I go my own way trying to satisfy my desires. Forgive me Spirit of God, for trying to fill my desires with all the things that can never satisfy. Thank You, Spirit of Truth, for directing me to Jesus Christ, He Who is the True Desire of my soul. Spirit of Compassion, by Your summons You bring men and women, boys and girls to church. Often those attending church don't even realize it is Your work to bring them there--so help me to be a welcoming presence to all who You are bringing to church. Let my words and actions show others I walk with Jesus, the Desire of All Nations. Amen

November 24, 2018 -- Revelation 5:5 -- Jesus, the Lion

Behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.

Revelation 5:5 NKJV

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devils walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

I Peter 5:8 NKJV

Two descriptions of a lion. One is ascribed to the devil as a warning, the other is ascribed to Jesus Christ, seated on the throne of heaven, for our great comfort and assurance.

When a lion has a pride--female lions and cubs--he is a fierce defender of what is his. The devil had attacked the pride of Jesus. The devil tempted Jesus--and all his temptations fell to the ground. The roaring lion the devil attacked Jesus' followers, the disciples, and Jesus prayed for them and they were spared--except the one designated for destruction. The losing lion falsely accused the Lion of Judah, Jesus, and had Jesus put to death--at least, so it seemed to the world. But Jesus willingly underwent a trial, and gave Himself up to death so that the punishment of God against sin would be spent on Jesus and all who believe in Him would no longer face God's wrath against sin. The desperate lion, the devil, had the tomb of Jesus sealed, but Jesus the Lion was victorious and death lost its power, it could not hold in its chains a perfect man who died though He had done no wrong. Death itself was defeated by Jesus the Lion, the One Enthroned in Heaven.

The devil is a roaring, wandering lion. He is defeated. He is awaiting his final execution. Be cautious for the devil is real and brutal and cornered and angry.

Jesus is the Lion, Enthroned in Heaven, seated as King and He prays for His pride, all who believe in Him. Jesus is the Lion Who defends His people, so that the wandering lion-who-lost cannot gain the final victory over the pride of Jesus. No, even death itself is defeated. Be wise believer! The devil is for now a lion, one who is facing eternity in hell, but for now is loose. Do not toy with sin, fellow believers, but claim Jesus--the Lion Who has won the victory--as Your Savior and closely follow Him in obedience.

Blessed be Your Name, Jesus, the Lion of Judah and Ruler over all. Thank You for Your victory at the cross. Thank You for Your victory over death and the grave. Thank You, for Your great protection. Send Your Spirit to keep us close to You. Forgive our waywardness and wandering. Let our words and our actions bring praise to our Father in heaven. In Jesus' Name we pray this. Amen.

November 23, 2018 -- Psalm 31:5 -- The God of Truth

Into Your hand I commit my spirit;

You have redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.

Psalm 31:5 NKJV

Jesus said to them, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

John 14:1 NKJV

The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, for He dwells with you and will live in you.

John 14:17 NKJV

This glorious Name of God is desperately needed in our generation. God is the God of Truth. Jesus declares Himself God as He says He is the Truth. Jesus reveals the Spirit as the Spirit of Truth. The Spirit bears witness to the Truth of Jesus in the written Word and by His testimony in our hearts, speaking to the believer's heart: "Abba, Father".

Our world is awash in "your truth" and "my truth". It has lost any sense of the Truth. As Christians following Jesus Christ, obedient to His word, we walk in the Truth.

According to God, the Truth is He made the universe, created everything out of nothing in six days and rested on the seventh day. There was no primordial slime becoming, via evolution, politicians...I mean man. The world is wearing out like a garment. That is the Truth of the Word. Climate change is the big lie of our age. Billions being spent on this distraction. It is a political billy club wielded by those who do not fear the God of Truth in order to claim science alone as worthy of obedience. It is one of the lies of our age, even leading many Christians astray.

God will preserve His planet and this cosmos according to His divine purposes. The Spirit of God will shepherd the people of God in Christ to the moment when heaven and earth will be wiped away and all people who ever lived and all people then living will face God's judgment. Obedient believers will be ushered into the new heavens and new earth and all others will be sent to hell there they will bear God's punishment against their sin.

Jesus is Truth. There are not many paths to life with the Father in heaven. The Gospel is offensive to our culture and the people of this world precisely because of the exclusivity of Jesus' claim. He alone is Truth, He alone is the Way to God.

The Spirit reveals the Truth of the Word--the Scripture which is the written Word and Who Jesus Is, the Living Word. We know God made us male and female. Not all kinds of genders, but male and female God made us. The agenda of the LGBTQ is another great lie of our age. It is direct defiance against the Truth of the Word.

The fact is sin entered the perfect world. Adam rebelled against God and sinned. As the father of all people who would ever live, he was our representative and our biological father. By his sin all people are born sinners. Jesus Christ, Who is Truth, was conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb. He alone was and is without sin. He alone is the sacrifice, taking our place at the cross and bearing in His body and soul God's punishment against sin. All who believe in Him have their sins forgiven.

The Truth of the Scripture is this: there is still great temptation to sin. Christians are facing spiritual warfare all the time. The answer is not to let everyone wallow in their sins or allow people to follow the death-path of their temptations. Instead, we are to find victory in our Lord Jesus Christ. He will present us without spot or blemish into the presence of our Father in heaven.

O LORD, You live in Truth, in righteousness and in judgment. One day the nations will be presented before Jesus Christ and all will bow down to Him, as the Truth. Spirit of Truth, cause us, as Christians to walk in Truth, as the Light of Christ in this sin-darkened, lie-filled generation. Spirit of Truth, fill us with the strength and grace we need to walk in obedience to Jesus Christ. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

November 21, 2018 -- Jeremiah 17:13 -- the LORD, the Fountain of Living Waters

O LORD, the hope of Israel,

All who forsake You shall be ashamed.

"Those who depart from Me

Shall be written on the earth,

Because they have forsaken the LORD,

The fountain of living waters."

Jeremiah 17:13 NKJV

It is possible to go for a few weeks without food, but without water a man cannot go without water beyond three days. Water is one of the most essential, basic needs of life.

Who is God? He is the fountain of living waters. What a glorious Name for God. He is the most basic, most essential need of our life. Jesus claimed this Name for Himself also.

Jesus said: "Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." John 4:14 NKJV This is a clear claim made by Jesus of His divinity.

Our God is for us a fountain of living water springing up into everlasting life. God alone is our refreshment. In Christ alone we have our most basic, most essential requirement for life. By the powerful presence of the Spirit living within us this fountain of living waters, ever washes out the sin stubbornly clinging in us. This fountain of living waters within us bubbles up from deep within us and shoots up praise and thanksgiving continually offered up to God.

You, O LORD are the fountain of living waters, welling up within us to eternal life. Blessed be Your Name. Thank You for this wonderful new life You give us in Christ and for the healing stream which by the Spirit is flowing into every part of our being. Amen.

November 20, 2018 -- Psalm 99:8-9 -- The God-Who-Forgives

You answered them, O LORD our God;

You were to them God-Who-Forgives,

Though You took vengeance on their deeds.

Exalt the LORD our God,

And worship at His holy hill;

For the LORD our God is holy.

Psalm 99:8-9 NKJV

What a description of Himself God reveals to us. He is the God-Who-Forgives. Look at the context found in Psalm 99 for the important explanation of this Name.

The God-Who-Forgives is not a vending machine, offering forgiveness without feeling or consequence. Notice that God takes vengeance on the deeds of sinners. Sin, our sin, has been punished on the Person of Jesus at the cross.

Furthermore, note that God is holy. Those who call out to Him are not those trying to get away with as much sin as possible. Those who call out to the LORD their God recognize He has lifted us from the coffin of our sinfulness and rescued us from the open pit grave of our wickedness.

According to verse 1, those who bow before the God-Who-Forgives, tremble before Him. We know the holy angels who surround the LORD our God are commanded not to allow sinners to flirt with sins that would cause us to fall back into the grave. So we tremble before the God-Who-Forgives so that we with thanksgiving will praise Him and honour Him for His tremendous kindness shown us in His forgiveness of our sin.

Who is like You, O LORD God?! Blessed be Your Name, God-Who-Forgives. Forgive us our sins: murderous thoughts, meddlesome ways, greed, anger, callousness against the suffering of others, and our tendency to enthrone our desires as ultimate. Spirit of the Living God direct our will and working so that we walk in extravagant mercy shown us in Jesus Christ, in Whose Name we pray. Amen.

November 19, 2018 - - Romans 15:13 - - the God of Hope

Now may the God of hope fill you

with all joy and peace in believing,

that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13 NKJV

The Bible is filled with the Names of God and His Self-Revelation so that we know more about the God we serve. Consider this, He is "the God of Hope". Hope is not unfounded optimism, hope is the blessed assurance that all God says is true (Romans 5:1-5). This is true because hope is anchored in Jesus Christ--not in what we do or fail to do, but in Him Who gives us peace with our Father in heaven. Hope is expectant waiting on God (Psalm 130:5,7) knowing He will give us exactly what we need when He knows we need it. Hope is fueled in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. If your hope is flagging and failing this morning, cry out to God, the God of Hope, that He may refresh you and restore your confident hope in His goodness.

O God of Hope, thank You for powerful Spirit Who anchors our hope in Jesus Christ. For my friends and family members who are feeling lost and discouraged, I pray that you will fill them with all hope in believing. For those who are abounding hope by the power of the Spirit, may these brothers and sisters be a bright light that shines into the lives of their co-workers, coffee-klatches, among school friends and neighbours. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.

November 18, 2018 - - Isaiah 66:2 - - The Presence

For all those things My hand has made,

And all those things exist,”

Says the Lord.

“But on this one will I look:

On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,

And who trembles at My word.

Isaiah 66:2 NKJV

This concept of trembling at the word of God has taken hold of my heart and imagination. While reading a few psalms for my devotions another facet of trembling at the word of God shone forth brilliantly.

Consider these words:

How lovely is Your tabernacle, O LORD of hosts!

My soul longs, yes, even faints

For the courts of the LORD;

My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

Psalm 84:1-2 NKJV

The psalmist trembles with wonder, joy and expectation at the thought of spending time in the tabernacle, the place where God lives. It is the word of God that brings the people of God to understand the place where God dwells. It is the word of God that helps the people of God understand the fullness of the blessing of being in His presence.

Thank You, O LORD of Angel Armies, Sovereign of Heaven, for Your word. Bless all the people who hear the reading of the word today, those who gather secretly to tremble at the word, those who meet in prisons and chapels and those who gather freely in churches. May the glory of Jesus Christ rise above us all. Inspire in us all, Spirit of God, a deep appreciation of the truth, a willing spirit to obey the truth and a heart that trembles with the full expectation of meeting God. Amen

November 17, 2018 - - Isaiah 66:2 - - Tremble at the Mercy of God

For all those things My hand has made,

And all those things exist,”

Says the Lord.

“But on this one will I look:

On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,

And who trembles at My word.

Isaiah 66:2 NKJV

Why tremble at the word of God? Consider what the writer of Psalm 119 declared:

"I entreaded Your favor with my whole heart

Be merciful to me according to Your word."

Psalm 119:58 NKJV

The word of God exposes our sinfulness. When the Light of Christ shines in us through the word all our wrong-doing, all our spite, all our bitterness, all the rising stench-filled steam of our sins are visible. We tremble before the word of God because by it we know our neediness and we know God is just and right in punishing sin.

We tremble at the word of God because it reveals to us the never-ending mercy of God. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. For all who believe in Jesus and walk in His ways, the punishment for their sins has been taken by Jesus Christ at the cross. We receive mercy. No wonder the Christian trembles at the word of God.

Bold I approach Your glorious throne, O God, my Father, because of the rich mercy You have shown me in Jesus Christ. Spirit of God let the work of Jesus and His mercy have full control of me so that my heart and my hands, my brain and my brawn may be used for the glory of God. Amen.

November 16, 2018 - - Isaiah 66:2 - - Tremble at the Judgment of God

For all those things My hand has made,

And all those things exist,”

Says the Lord.

“But on this one will I look:

On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,

And who trembles at My word.

Isaiah 66:2 NKJV

What would cause the Christian to tremble at the Word of God? For the last couple of weeks, since reading this verse in devotions and coming across it in an audio sermon, the concept of trembling at the word of God has gripped my imagination.

Consider these words:

For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?

I Peter 4:17 NKJV

We tremble at the Word of God because God is using it point us to Christ. God uses the Word to judge Christians and cleanse us and prepare us to be the spotless Bride of Christ.

As Christians we are pretty content with ourselves. I confess I do not engage in much self-examination, so that sin is cast away from me and the good I should do is embraced. It is altogether too easy to be lazy in our faith and tolerant of our habitual sins. It is the Spirit of God Who takes the fiery Word of God and refines us. Such judgment by fire ought to cause us to tremble at the Word. And this word ought to give us joy-filled hope. For God the God Who claims us as His children in Christ is preparing us to be a holy people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, fit to live with Him for eternity.

Jesus, Captain of our Salvation, we can have no other master, our hearts must be Your throne, our lives we give, henceforth to live, O Christ for You alone. Spirit of God, hold us and keep us through the circumstances sent to purify us and the refining fires of trial so that we will be presented without spot or blemish and with great wonder and joy before the throne of our Glorious Father. Amen.

November 15, 2018 - - Isaiah 66:2 - - Tremble at the Word

For all those things My hand has made,

And all those things exist,”

Says the Lord.

“But on this one will I look:

On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,

And who trembles at My word.

Isaiah 66:2 NKJV

The Mighty Creator of heaven and earth knows us: every single person who lived, lives, is being formed in the womb right now, and who will live in the generations to come. The promise of this passage is that the LORD will see and therefore help those who are broken and teachable. These are the people who tremble at His Word. What does it mean to tremble at the word of God?

Scripture interprets Scripture. Read this:

The grass withers, the flower fades,

But the word of our God stands forever.

Isaiah 40:8 NKJV

The broken and teachable tremble at the word of God because it is more reliable than any testimony of man. Christians tremble at the word of God because theories change, world-views rise and fall, and those who propose them fall into disfavour--but what God has entrusted to us in His word, that is utterly reliable. Blessed be His Name.

Spirit of God, break my stone-hard heart and give me a heart of flesh, a heart that trembles at the Word of God. Father in heaven, thank You for the precious gift of the Bible. King Jesus, thank You that the pages of Scripture show You truly are the One Who brings us to the Father as beloved sons and daughters. Amen.

November 12, 2018 - - I Peter 5:8 - - battle ready

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

I Peter 5:8 NKJV

If you know you are going to meet an enemy as fierce as a lion, you prepare. Of course you'd be sober--clear-headed--and vigilant. For those facing spiritual battles on three fronts

--our own desire which war against our better judgment,

--the battles of worldliness versus godliness

--and the battles against the schemes of Satan

we arm ourselves with the Word of God.

Plan private times of bible reading, worship with song, and prayer. Plan for family times of bible reading, worship with song and prayer. For my Christian friends who are single, get together with other believers for times of bible reading, worship with song and prayer. If you do not plan for victory in these ways, you are planning for failure when the battles begin to rage against you.

Thank You, God our Father, for the blessing of this new day. Spirit of God, plant the Word deep into our hearts, fill our thoughts with the awareness of God's goodness. Jesus, Captain of our Salvation, prepare us for the battles we are going to face. As we listen to Your Word and obey Your commands remind us that You are only a prayer's length away. Praise be Your Name, O God our Shield. Amen.

November 11, 2018 - - Ephesians 4:29 - - Torrents of words

Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.

Ephesians 4:29 NKJV

According to a study from the University of California conducted Louann Brizendine women speak about 20,000 words a day and men speak about 7,000 words a day. I wonder, given all the time men and women spend on social media, if those words factored in or would they change the results?

Our text from Ephesians reminds us to guard our words. In fact, it is in the command form. Consider all the nasty posts made about politicians. All the jokes which are off-colour. All the snide remarks about co-workers, or managers, or the union rep, or THAT cousin, or the slow service at your restaurant.

Corrupt words are basically rotting, stinking words. They are like morning breath words which we breath out fouling the air and atmosphere.

Paul in this letter reminds Christians we have been brought from death to life by the gracious, powerful work of Jesus Christ. Therefore our words must be words of life. Our words must be the fragrance of Christ. Therefore our words must be prayers to God for others. Our words must be words that show we have a purified heart and a mind that is growing in sanctification.

Will you use your thoughts, your words and all that your type to impart grace to whomever is listening? Psalm 44:21 reminds us that God knows the secret thoughts of our hearts.

God, Who in Christ has raised us from death to life, by the powerful presence of Your Spirit living us, let the words of our mouth and meditation of our lips be pleasing in Your sight. Forgive us for the times our words have been torrents of stench. Grant us the holy joy of seeing how words of grace change the lives of those around us. Make it our purpose in Christ to ever impart words of grace. Be glorified, in our thoughts and words, in what we type and all we filter out of our words, be glorified O God of Splendour and Loving-mercy. Amen.

November 10, 2018 - - Titus 1:15-16 - - What fills your thoughts

To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.

They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient and disqualified for every good work.

Titus 1:15-16 NKJV

While driving for the car rental company I work for I often travel with four or five other people in the van as we go to our next assignment. Whoever drives the van chooses the music. Their choice of music is defiled and abominable. The truth of the text above is clearly played out whenever I am driving with others. If I were to put on Christian music, or even classical music, there would be howls of protest.

What a man puts into his heart and mind will flow out of him. Our choice of music, movies, reading material, TV and gaming (and so much more) can pour the filth of sin directly into the deepest places of who we are. Those who are defiled by sin will from the overflow of that sin be foul in word, thought and action. Those who are pure, clinging to Jesus Christ, will by His Spirit show by their words and actions good deeds bringing glory to God.

Tomorrow is Sunday. Plan on going to a bible-believing church. No, the roof of the church will not collapse, nor the building be hit by lightning if you, great sinner that you are, would chance to visit. The glory of God is displayed in this way: while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us! Be assured there is a welcome for those who seek Jesus and His cleansing power.

Mighty God by Your Son, Jesus Christ and His sacrifice, You have cleansed our souls, purified our minds and written Your law on our hearts. We pray for an ever increasing measure of Your Spirit so that we may walk as those purified in Christ, Who is the fragrance of life in a world that bears the stench of sin and death. Jesus, by Your Spirit help us to welcome new-comers to church. Spirit of God, add to the mighty army of Jesus, the Captain of our Salvation, many new recruits. Amen.

November 8, 2018 - - II Chronicles 20:20-21 - - Fighting battles

So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying:

“Praise the Lord,

For His mercy endures forever.”

II Chronicles 20:20-21 NKJV

What a strange picture this is! The armies of three nations, plus hired mercenaries, were gathered against King Jehoshaphat. The king urged the people to believe in God and trust God's prophets. Then, after consulting the people, he appointed singers to lead the army! It is an army praising God. You'd think the singers would be, I don't know, canon fodder for the enemy to cut down.

Instead, the singers, captivated by the beauty of the LORD, and aware of His terrible holiness--before which sinners cannot stand--praised the LORD. The LORD fought and the army choirs led the soldiers into battle only to find the enemy armies were fighting against themselves and there was a great slaughter. Not one enemy soldier remained alive.The LORD, Whose mercies endure forever, fought and gained the victory for His people.

Whatever battle you face this day: physical, mental, emotional, social, spiritual--sing praises to our God. He is faithful. He is promise-keeping. The Word promises: Greater is He Who is in you, than he who is in the world. The devil was disarmed and defeated at the cross of Jesus. Sing your praises to the LORD and fix your heart on the beauty of His holiness.

We praise You, O LORD,

For Your mercy endures forever.

We bless Your Name, Lord Jesus Christ,

For Your mercy endures forever.

We praise You, O Spirit of Truth,

For Your mercy endures forever.

Amen.

November 6, 2018 - - Psalm 31:6b-8 - - Wide mercy

But I trust in the LORD.

I will be glad and rejoice in Your mercy,

For You have considered my trouble;

You have known my soul in adversities,

And have not shut me up into the hand of my enemy;

You have set my feet in a wide place.

Psalm 31:6b-8 NKJV

How many of your apologies to your friends began with: "I am so sorry, I was not at my best because..." Then you fill in the reason, the excuse, the mitigating circumstance. When our soul is in adversity, what we have stored up in the core of who we are pours out. It can be ugly. It can poison friendships. The ugliness of our hearts can bring sour times into marriage. The twisting of adversity can damage our relationships with family members.

The LORD our King has seen our worst--in fact, He sees beyond just the outward evidences of our trouble. He sees not only our bad deeds and hears our stinking words, His penetrating graze stares into the utter blackest regions of our soul so that He knows all our troubles, our weaknesses and our failures and sees to the source of the foulness that flows out of us. Here is the glory of this brief text, the evidence of the cleansing salvation: He set my/our feet in a wide place.

Consider this wonderful New Testament passage which for me, shows the wide place of God's mercy to us:

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom the whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:14-19 NIV

This is the wideness of His mercy: The treasure of Christ and His immeasurable forgiveness and healing love directed by the Spirit cascade ceaselessly into the depths of who we are. Sin is displaced at its source and the beauty of Jesus takes hold. As long as we live trusting in Jesus Christ our hearts changed. We are a new creation, the old has passed and the old habits at being put to death at their source. Blessed be Jesus, our Righteousness.

Lord Jesus Christ--You are the Peace treaty between my sin-darkened soul and the Holy One of heaven. By Your glorious riches I am called a child of God. Spirit of the Living God continue to strengthen my inner being in Christ so that the darkness will be cast out and the Light of Christ's presence will fill me to the measure of all the fullness of God. Amen.

Nov 5/18 - - Matthew 6:11 - - Daily bread from heaven

Give us today our daily bread.

Matthew 6:11 NIV

Q. 104 What do we pray for in the fourth petition?

A. In the fourth petition (which is, Give us this day our daily bread) we pray, that of God's free gift we may receive a competent portion of the good things of this life, and enjoy his blessing with them.

Westminster Shorter Catechism

It does not take very much imagination to realize how shakey our finances actually are. One huge stock market crash can wipe out billions of dollars. The loss of a job and finances become precarious. A hike in interest rates unexpectedly makes a mortgage payment nearly impossible to maintain. Sudden illness and medications wipe out savings.

This simple petition from the Lord's Prayer reminds us that we are utterly dependent on God. In Christ, God becomes the Father, Who shows us mercy. He is our Father Who gives every good gift. Food. Clothing. Shelter. Our basic physical needs. We also believe plenty and poverty come from His hand as well. In fact, all things work together for in our lives so that we will be humbled and by the Spirit of God turn to Him for all things we need.

It is interesting to be in my mid-fifties and to be learning this truth all over again. As many of you know I have changed denominations. For more than 20 years I was a minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Now I am in the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. So, as I worked to be recognized as a minister in the ARP I have been jobless at times, and now under-employed, for three years. In all this time, I have learned once again, with humble thanks, the power of turning to God and asking Him for my daily needs. I have learned to give thanks for a wonderful wife who stands by me through all the vicissitudes of our life.

Faithful Father in heaven. Give me this day, my daily bread. Spirit of the Living God, teach me to find in Christ my highest joy and greatest peace. Spirit of God, in plenty and in poverty, anchor my soul in heaven, where Christ is seated, at the Father's right hand. Thank You, Mighty God, for all the blessings of this day. In Jesus' Great Name, Amen.

Nov. 3/18 - - I John 3:5-6 - - Who can tame sin?

And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in Him. Anyone who continues to live in Him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know Him or understand Who He Is.

I John 3:5-6

I have read of a young lion that could only be awed or kept down by the eye of his keeper. With the keeper anyone could come near the lion, and he would crouch--his savage nature still unchanged, thirsting for blood--trembling at the keeper's feet. You might even put your foot on his neck so long as this keeper was with you. But to approach him without the keeper would be instant death.

In the same way, we can have sin and yet not practice sin. The evil nature, the flesh, is unchanged in its rebellion against God, but the abiding presence of Jesus keeps it under control. In faith the believer can entrust himself to the keeping, the indwelling, of the Son of God; as he abides in Him, he can count on Jesus to be there for him.

~Andrew Murray

O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God--through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin--and through the power of the Spirit of Jesus living in me, my Keeper subdues the power of the law of sin. Blessed be the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Nov. 2/18 - - Luke 1:1-4 - - Confident Truth

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

Luke 1:1-4 NIV

Why do you believe what you believe? What is your authoritative source? For some people science is their greatest authority. Interesting because the "certainties", ideas and theories of science are always changing. Science textbooks are written by men and women who are just as fault-filled as the next person. There are disagreements within the various factions of science writers and theorists.

Others trust themselves. I am my own final authority. Interesting. Where are you getting your "truth" from? Teachers? Movies? If you can't even keep your own New Year's resolutions for more than a day or a week or two, how can you keep to your own principles?

For me, the Word of God is my final authority. From beginnings in Genesis to the triumphant victory of Christ over all in Revelation, it is given to us by God communicated to men who faithfully wrote it down. The Spirit of God preserved the Scripture through the centuries. It is my certainty in a world that is constantly changing its values as quickly as fashions change.

Thank You, Glorious God, for Your Word of Truth. Though the grass withers and the flowers fade, Your Word stands True forever and ever. Lord Jesus Christ, send Your Spirit to continually capture my heart and steer me ever deeper into the rich mine of wisdom found only in Scripture. Amen.

October 31, 2018 - - Psalm 149:4 - - vivified and beautified

For the LORD takes pleasure in His people;

He will beautify the humble with salvation.

Psalm 149:4 NKJV

A couple of the reasons to bring praises to God is given here in our text this day.

~The LORD--when His Name is all in capitals it emphasizes He is the covenant-keeping God of our salvation. He is faithful even when His people falter and stumble.

~Can you imagine it--the LORD taking pleasure in you? in me? When we truly realize He takes pleasure in us, we, the beloved strive to live up the way in which the lover sees us. As the bride of Christ, in Whom Christ delights, we long to live up to His love and joy in us.

~For the record, I hate Halloween. Men and women, teens and children, often dress us in the most disfiguring and disgusting costumes. It feels to me as if they are parading their own inner darkness. Here we are promised that the LORD will beautify us, those humble enough to walk with Him, will be made beautiful with His salvation.

~We are no longer hell-bound, dead men walking, but we are changed to heaven-bound, living representatives of Jesus Christ who are beautiful in His sight.

~A man, who in the eyes of the world, is not chiseled and handsome radiates the beauty of Christ. A woman who is not considered lovely or attractive is suddenly compelling because of the Spirit of the Lord Who is within. We are drawn to one another because of the beauty of Christ in us.

Who am I, O LORD of Glory, that You should condescend to look at me? Yet You have lifted me from the ash-heap and given me Your Name. You have made me Your child. You have taken the rags of my sins and the stench of death from me and in Christ have vivified me and clothed me with beauty. Great are You my God and my King. Praise the LORD! Let His praise be sounded in the assembly and in the streets, in the places of work and in the homes of His people. Praise the LORD: Father, Son and Holy Spirit! Amen.

(vivified: brought to life, animated)

October 28, 2018 - - Psalm 136:1-2 - - Repeated mercy

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.

Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!

For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 136:2 NKJV

This past week I was in Orillia at the Canadian Police Chaplains Annual Training Seminar. On the return drive I had the privilege of traveling with fellow Chaplain Angus Haggarty. As we drove along, we shared our favourite texts. What a blessing it was.

Angus reminded me of this Psalm. There are 26 verses. Every single verse ends with the refrain "For His mercy endures forever." Why all this repetition?

God is the Merciful One.

We are in need of mercy every moment of every day.

Our hearts deceive us and we sin despite our good intentions--we are creatures sorely in need of mercy.

Our hearts rebel against the way of God--we are trembling creatures held in the grip of embrace as He whispers mercy over us, to us, in us, until mercy accomplishes its work.

The enemy hisses in your ear: Can God really love you? And the Word of God echoes back: His mercy endures forever.

To the anxious heart, worried mind, and in response to the endless racing thoughts the refrain echoes: "For His mercy endures forever."

His mercy is for you.

Battle-weary, wounded heart--return to the strong tower, our Father in heaven, Who welcomes you with open arms.

Return to a bible-believing church and find rest for your soul.

Assured Christian, faithful church attender, welcome in the Name of Jesus, all those who hesitantly, fearfully are coming to church. They have been summoned by the Spirit's clear call of mercy. Show the mercy of God to them.

Thank You, God of gods, that You show us mercy that endures forever! Thank You, Father in heaven, that Your mercy is most clearly seen in Jesus Christ. Thank You, Spirit of God, for taking the truth of Scripture and bringing its wondrous assurances home to the deepest recesses of our troubled hearts. Thank You, Triune God, for mentors, mothers and fathers in the faith who show Your mercy in fresh and living ways. Blessed be Your Name, mighty God, now and forever. Amen.