Showing posts with label witness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label witness. Show all posts

Sunday 23 February 2020

Fulfil Your Vows

Faith
“Fulfil your vows” (Nahum 1:15).
We’re going to think together about our Church membership vows. These vows can be summarized in five words: Faith, Worship, Devotions, Giving, Witness.
The first vow is the foundation upon which the others are built.
The other four vows are the practical implications of the first vow: our confession of faith.
The first vow emphasizes that there is a faith to be believed, a faith to be confessed: “I believe in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and I confess Jesus Christ as my Saviour and Lord.”
We are called to have faith. The Bible calls us to have a personal faith. It is not only the faith of the Church. It is to be my faith. It is to be your faith. Each one of us is to say, “I believe.”
What does it mean to have faith? It means believing something. there is something to be believed. Faith also means trust. When you and I say, “I believe in one God,” we are saying, “I am trusting God, putting my trust in Him.”
The question is asked, “Do you believe in God?” The real issue is not so much the existence of God. The real issue is the importance of God. Many people claim to believe in God’s existence, but it’s very clear that this belief makes no real difference to the way they live their lives.
Do you believe in God? How important is He to you? What difference does He make to your life? These are the practical questions of faith.
“I believe in God.” There are many different ideas of God. What are we to believe concerning Him? Who is the God in whom we are called to put our trust? We are to believe what the Bible teaches us about Him. In the Bible, we have God’s self-description. God tells us what he is like. He reveals Himself to us.
How does God reveal Himself to us? What does the Bible teach us concerning Him? God reveals Himself as “Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” The Bible speaks of this way – Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14). We cannot fully understand this, but we can believe it. The important question is not so much, “Do we understand it?” It’s “Do we believe it?”
Many people believe in a God who cannot be described – an “unknown god.” The Bible speaks to us of a God who has introduced Himself to us, a God who can be known. At the heart of our faith, there is a Man – “the Man, Christ Jesus.” He is “the one Mediator between God and man” (1 Timothy 2:5).
How do we know what God is like? We know Him through Jesus Christ – “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). How do we get to know God? We get to know Him through faith in Jesus Christ.
Who is Jesus Christ? He is our Saviour and Lord.
* He is my Saviour because He is my Lord. Jesus is “my Lord and my God” (John 20:28). That’s why He can be my Saviour.
* He is my Lord because He is my Saviour. Those who have trusted Him as Saviour consider it their privilege to submit to Him as their Lord.
At the heart of the Trinity – God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit”, there is the Man, Christ Jesus. The Father points to Him (Matthew 3:17). The Holy Spirit leads us to Him (John 16:14).

Worship
"Fulfil your vows" (Nahum 1:15).

Do you promise to worship regularly, with your fellow Christians, on the Lord's Day?

Let us worship God. we are called to worship Him. We are to worship Him in "wonder, love and praise." In our worship, we are to exalt the Lord our God. we are to glorify Him. We are to proclaim His greatness in "humble adoration." In simple and sincere faith, we are to say to him, "Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory for ever and ever."

Our worship is concerned with God. The "who" of worship is far more important than the "how" of worship. Who we worship is far more important than how we worship. Before we ask, "What is worship?", before we ask, "How do we worship?", we must ask the first question, "Who do we worship?"

To understand what worship is, we need to be clear about worship is not.

* Worship is not superficial emotionalism. We need sound teaching from the Word of God. We need Christ-centred preaching, which strengthens our faith and inspires our worship.

* Worship is not barren  intellectualism. We need the moving of God's Spirit in our hearts and lives. We need the power of God, moving among us. If our worship is to be whole-hearted, if we are to grow strong in our praying and strong in our caring, we need the presence of the Holy Spirit.

What is worship?

The question, "What is worship?", is directly related to the question, "Who is God?"

We learn, from the Bible, what God is like. As we learn what God is like, we learn also how we are to worship Him.

The Bible teaches us that God is holy. The Bible teaches us that God is love. Our worship should focus our attention on the holiness and love of God. There should be reverence, as we enter the presence of the holy God. There should be joy, as we come to the God of love.

(a) We come to the Lord to express our gratitude to Him.

(b) We come to the Lord in fellowship with His people.

(c) We come to the Lord so that we might be changed by Him.

* Expressing our gratitude to the Lord

In Psalm 107, the importance of thanksgiving is emphasized five times.

- "O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever" (Psalm 107:1).

- "Let them thank the Lord, for He is steadfast love, for His wonderful works to the sons of men" (Psalm 107:8,15,21,31).

We worship the Lord with joyful thanksgiving. We worship Him in the fellowship of His people.

Following the last of these calls to give thanks to the Lord, there is, in Psalm 107:32, a call to worship the Lord in the company of His people - "Let them extol Him in the congregation of the people, and praise Him in the assembly of the elders." 

* What does it mean to worship in the fellowship of His people?

- God speaks of His people as His "remnant", as the "survivors" (Isaiah 37:32). We live in an age of darkness, a generation in which the vast majority of people have little or no time for God. Even in such an unbelieving age as ours, God still has His faithful people. It is the Lord Himself who gathers His people for worship. It is the presence of God Himself which draws His people to worship.  This is more than meeting with one another. We come to meet with the Lord.

- God calls His people to be His witnesses. Before we can be His witnesses, we must be His worshippers. We are to "exalt Him in the assembly of His people" (Psalm 107:32). We are to worship the Lord as those who have been saved by Him. We sing praise to Him who has given His salvation to us (Isaiah 38:20).  Our commitment to worship is to be a life-long commitment. We are to worship "all the days of our life at the house of the Lord" (Isaiah 38:20).

* We worship the Lord so that we might be changed by Him. An excellent description of what it means to worship is found in Revelation 1:10 - "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day."

When John was "in the Spirit on the Lord's Day," he became a changed man. How was he changed? He was changed in the presence of the Spirit. He was changed through the hearing of God's Word. "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet." In the presence of the Spirit, John heard the Word of the Lord, and he was changed. We, too, can be changed by the Spirit and the Word. Through the Spirit, the "parched ground" of our lives can become the "flowing springs" of His blessing (Psalm 107:35). As God's Word is sown into the hearts of men and women, it yields a fruitful harvest (Psalm 107:37) - "By His blessing they multiply greatly" (Psalm 107:38). This is God's purpose for us. It's His purpose of blessing.

Together, with His purpose of blessing, there is a warning. It is a warning addressed to those who do not take seriously the call to worship God. It is addressed to those who are content with formal religion, those who have no real desire to be "in the Spirit on the Lord's Day." Where the Lord is not honoured, "rivers" will be turned into "a desert," "springs of water" will be turned into "thirsty ground," "a fruitful land" will be turned into "a salty waste" (Psalm 107:33-34). Why does this happen? It is a judgment of God upon the wickedness of men (Psalm 107:34). How does it happen? - "They are diminished and brought low through oppression, trouble, and sorrow" (Psalm 107:39).

* Whatever your response to the Word of the Lord, you will be changed. Either you will draw closer to Him, or you will draw back from Him. Which will it be? Drawing closer to Him or drawing back from Him?

Psalm 107 ends with some words of challenge: "Whoever is wise, let him give heed to these things, let men consider the steadfast love of the Lord." In view of the Lord's great love, will you not confess your need of Him? - Lord, my life is "a desert," "a parched land" (Psalm 107:35). Will you not invite Him to meet your need? - Lord, turn the "desert into springs of water, the parched land into springs of water" (Psalm 107:35).

Devotions
Fulfil your vows” (Nahum 1:15).
“Do you promise to be faithful in reading the Bible and in prayer?”
Religion can make you immune to reality. You can get so used to a form of religion, which is comfortable, that you fail to hear the voice of the Lord. His voice is the only voice which can awaken you and bring you out of the slumber of shallow superficiality.
Are you prepared to take Jesus Christ seriously? Are you prepared to break out from the comfortable atmosphere of shallow, superficial religion? Are you ready to be gripped by the Spirit of God? Will you read the Word of God with a real desire to be changed by the Lord? Will you seek God in prayer with an earnest desire to become more like Jesus day-by-day?
These are searching questions. They take us beyond the superficial questions – “Do you go to church?”, “Do you like the minister’s preaching?” These questions are inviting you to think about your relationship with God. Are you content to remain a spiritual ‘baby’, to be spoon fed by the minister?
God wants us to go on with Him. He wants us to grow in faith. He wants us to grow in our love for Him. This is why Bible reading and prayer are so important. This is not just about religious habits. It’s about getting to know God. It’s about being changed by God.
We talk about the church changing the world. If this is to happen, the Church needs to be changed. We need to be changed. You need to be changed. I need to be changed.
This is where the personal discipline of Bible reading and prayer becomes very important. You and I cannot really be changed if we do not take time to listen to God and speak to Him.
“God often visits us – but most of the time we are not at home” (French proverb). We hear the prompting of the Spirit – take some time to read God’s Word, take some time to pray. “Do not quench the Spirit.” “Do not grieve the Spirit.”
We are to grow into maturity. This involves the opening of our eyes to see Jesus, the opening of our ears to hear Him, and the opening of our lives to serve Him. This growth begins with conversion – the new birth, but it must not end there. We must go on to maturity. If there are no signs of spiritual growth, then your profession of faith must be called in question. This deep questioning does not come from the minister or the church. It comes from the Spirit of God and the Word of God.
The Word of God calls us to grow in Christ. The Spirit of God longs to re-create in us the character of our Lord.
Are you at home when God visits? Do you take time to read His Word? Do you take time to pray?
There will be no spiritual growth if you fail to find time for God, for His Word, for prayer.
Let’s think about our spiritual journey. Have you and I pulled back from following the Lord? or Have we gone on with Him? We must not think only of the public hearing of God’s Word and public prayer. We must also think about personal Bible reading and prayer.
The personal and the public – we need both. Let’s think about prayer – public prayer and private prayer.
When we speak about prayer, we must emphasize public prayer as well as private prayer. What is prayer? Is it always and only a private matter between myself and my God? No! There is also the call to God’s people to gather together for united prayer.
In most churches, few people pay much attention to the call to gather together for prayer . Often, the attendances are shameful. We look around, and wonder, “Where is he? Where is she?”
What are we to say about public prayer? It’s a duty. It’s a privilege. It’s a blessing.
Small groups lend themselves to greater sharing in prayer. We are not, however, to be content with small numbers. We must pray earnestly that more people will commit themselves to gathering together for prayer.
There are differences between personal prayer and public prayer.
In personal prayer, there can be a real outpouring of the soul. In public prayer, it is more than the individual pouring out his or her soul before the Lord. We are leading others in prayer. This doesn’t mean that there is just one person praying, and the others are just listening. The others are silently praying along with the leader. They are giving their silent “Amen” to the prayer that is being prayed aloud.
In public prayer, we cannot just ‘let go’ and say everything that comes into our minds. Wisdom requires us to leave some things unsaid when we are praying in a meeting. Other people are listening to what we say.
In public prayer, we must not fall into the trap of using our prayers as a way of getting at other people, ‘preaching’ a message that we want them to hear. When prayers start to sound more like sermons, we should pray for a rediscovery of the real purpose of prayer – speaking to God.
Alongside public prayer, there is to be personal prayer, spending time alone with God.  He is our Father. We are His children. A good father will want to spend time with his children – sometimes, with all of them together; sometimes, with each one on their own. God is like that. There are times when He wants us to gather together in prayer. There are times when He wants each one of us to be alone with Him.
Whenever we think about prayer – public and private, we should also think about hearing God’s Word and reading God’s Word. Our prayer life will grow strong when we give careful attention to hearing and reading what the Lord has to say to us from His Word.
When we pay close attention to both the Word of God and prayer, we are emphasizing that our conversation with God is a two-way conversation. God speaks to us. We speak to Him.
Let’s think about this two-way conversation – reading the Bible and praying.
* Where do I start in reading the Bible?
Some start at the beginning, and get bogged down in the second half of Exodus, or in Leviticus. It would make better sense to begin with the gospels. they tell us about Jesus. You could, then, go on to Acts. It tells us the story of the Gospel being preached by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
* Which Bible should I read? Some people stop reading the Bible because they find the king James Version difficult. They have never taken the trouble to look for an appropriate modern version. If you want to be able to say, with the Psalmist, “Oh, how I love Thy law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97), find a version of the Bible you are likely to understand and enjoy reading.
 * How much should I read?
Some people read too much too quickly, and they end up with spiritual indigestion. There are various Bible reading plans which will help you to start reading the Bible and keep on reading it. Following a plan will help you to be faithful in reading God’s Word.
 * How can I understand what I read?
Are you serious about reading God’s Word? You should be. I hope that you are. If you are serious about learning from God’s Word, day-by-day, you may find Bible reading notes helpful. Look for notes that will help you to walk more closely with the Lord.
 * As well as reading the Bible, we should pray.
If, like the Psalmist, you are to grow in wisdom as you are to grow in wisdom (Psalm 119:98), if you are to grow in true, spiritual understanding (Psalm 119:99-100,1o4), if you are to take delight in God’s Word (Psalm 119:102), to live in obedience to His Word (Psalm 119:101), you need to pray. You need to ask the Lord Himself to be Your Teacher (Psalm 119:102).
 * When you pray, remember that you are speaking to God. Remember that He is your loving, heavenly Father.  Remember that He loves you. Remember that He wants the best for you. Remember that He wants to help you to grow in faith. Remember that He wants to help you to grow  more like Jesus.
 * When I pray to God, what am I to say to Him?
 - You can praise Him for who He is.
Let the lessons you have learned from God’s Word feed into your prayer. God’s Word will lead you into praising the Lord. In your prayer, lift up your heart to the Lord. Praise Him.
 - You can thank Him for what He has done for you, what He is doing for you, and what He will do for you.
 - You can confess your sins and receive God’s forgiveness.
 - You can pray for others – for your family, for your friends and neighbours, for the church, for ministers, for missionaries.
 - You can pray for yourself. Don’t be so preoccupied with your own problems that you forget to pray for others.
“Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord; Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.”
Take time for God. Take time to be with Him.
There are so many other things we can do with our time. Don’t let time slip away. “Take time to be holy.”
Giving
"Fulfil your vows" (Nahum 1:15).
"Do you promise to give a fitting proportion of your time, talents and monry for the Church's work in the world."
The Gospel calls for a change in our way of living. Before we speak about giving, we must speak about living. What are your priorities in life? How are you responding to the Good News of Jesus Christ?
How do you use your time? What takes up most of your time? Do you find time for God? or Does everything revolve around yourself? Do we think so much about ourselves that we never really pay much attention to our Lord Jesus Christ?
What about the gifts God has given you? Everyone of us has gifts. They have been given to us by God. Are we using these gifts for God? How much we use our time and talents for God shows how much or how little we care about Him.
When we think about giving, we’re also thinking about caring. Do we care enough to give well? Do we care enough to give quality time to God? Do we care enough to give quality time to the service of Jesus Christ? Do we lay our talents before the Lord and invite Him to use us in His service? Do we care enough to give ourselves to the Lord? or Do we say, “I can’t do that”, and really mean, “I won’t do that”? The level of our giving of time, talents and money shows how much or how little we care about God.
God has a mission. It’s an “all the time” mission. Do we want to get involved in His mission? or Does His work suffer because of our indifference?
A self-giving response to the Gospel of Jesus Christ calls for a change in our way of living. We get so used to things we don’t really need, and the work of the Lord suffers. We get so used to the way things are that we lose sight of the way things could be if we allowed the Lord to take control of our lives. When you and I think about our lives, there are two questions we need to ask ourselves: “How do I live?” and “How should I live?” These are two very different questions. The first asks, “How am I living right now?” The second invites us to make a response. It calls for change. It calls us to be changed by the Lord. It calls us, to say from the heart, “I want to walk with Jesus Christ, all the days I live of this life on earth, to give to Him complete control of body and of soul.”
Christian living – This comes before Christian giving. Some people say, “Money doesn’t matter to God. He’s interested in the heart.” Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21).
In our giving, we give thanks to God, and we provide for His work to be done. When we do not honour God in this way, our worship lacks depth and reality, and the work of God suffers. The giving of money for the Lord’s work emerges out of the giving of ourselves to the Lord.
- We are to give quietly – not as spiritual show-offs.
- We are to give consistently – as part of the giving of ourselves to the Lord in His service.
- We are to give whole-heartedly – as an act of worship.
- We are to give sacrificially. We need to exercise greater discipline in our use of money. We need to manage our money wisely and well. Where there has been a misuse of money, we need to seek and receive God’s forgiveness, and we need to receive His wisdom and strength to redirect our lives towards the greatest priority of all: the priority of God’s Kingdom.
What is your attitude towards this highest priority, the priority of God’s Kingdom?
There are some who have become very materialistic in their way of thinking. When they hear the call to increase the level of their giving to the Lord, they dismiss this out-of-hand. They don’t want to be bothered. Their reaction shows the things they really care about – the things of this world.
Our giving is to be an act of worship, offered to God. We come to the Lord with joyful praise – and we bring our offerings to Him. In our giving, we express our attitude towards the Lord, our desire to honour Him in every part of our life.
We seek to give glory to Him. We’re not to be like the Pharisees – honouring Him with our lips while remaining far from Him in our hearts.
God wants to bless us, but His blessing will be hindered if, in our hearts, we have no real desire to honour Him.
Do you want to know more of His blessing on your life? – Honour Him as the Lord of your life.
Give yourself more fully to the Lord, and you will have the joy of discovering that the Lord has more satisfying and more significant work for you to do for Him.
If you draw back from committing yourself, more truly and more fully, to the Lord, He will withdraw His blessing from your life. If, in your heart, there is a resistance to the Word of the Lord, God has something to say to you. It is something very serious. he says this: “Today, when you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 4:7).
If,in your heart, you find a greater openness to receive the Word of the Lord, then I ask you to pray with me, “Lord, help me to open my heart more widely. Help me to receive Your blessing more fully.”

Witness
"Fulfil your vows" (Nahum 1:15).
"Do you promise, depending on the grace of God, to confess Christ before men and women, to serve Him in your daily work, and to walk in His ways all the days of your life?"
* First, we note the words, "depending on the grace of God." Without the grace of God, we cannot even begin to confess Christ before men and women, to serve Him in our daily work, and to walk in His ways."
This is a rebuke to the attitude which says, "I do my best", while never recognizing the fact that our best is never good enough. When we say, "I do my best," God calls us to bow before Him, and receive His Best - Jesus Christ, our Saviour.
It's also a word of encouragement. When we become painfully aware That our best can never be good enough, God comes to us with His Word of encouragement - "I am with you. I am your Helper. I will not fail you. I will give you the strength that you need to live for Me."
* The Christian life can be described in different ways.
(a) Confession - confessing Christ before men and women;
(b) service - serving Christ in our daily work;
(c) Walking - walking in His ways.
When we speak about Christian living, we must emphasize this - "depending on the grace of God."
* How can we sustain this kind of life? We can't. Only Christ can.
This is why we must place great emphasis on Paul's description of the Christian life: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Galatians 2:20).
- This is what it means to be a Christian - Christ lives in us.
- This is what we mean when we use the phrase, "depending on the grace of God."
Jesus says to us, "The Holy Spirit is the Helper who dwells with you and will be in you" (John 14:15-16).
* (a) The Holy Spirit helps us to confess Christ before men and women.
- "The Holy Spirit ... will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" (John 14:26).
- "The Spirit of truth ... will bear witness to Me; and you also are witnesses" (John 15:26-27).
We are Christ's witnesses, in the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8).
"The Gospel must first be preached to all nations ... Do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say; but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit" (Mark 13:11).
You may say, "I am not a preacher. I am not a teacher." There is something else that needs to be said, "If you are faithful in your personal witness for Christ, confessing Him to others, your witnesses part of the preaching of the Gospel and the teaching of God's Word." This witnessing for Christ is grounded in a relationship with God, in a life of discipleship.
* (b) The nature of our relationship with God becomes clear as we consider what Jesus teaches us concerning serving Him.
"No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing, but I have called you friends, for all hat I have heard from My Father I have made known to you" (John 14:15).
We are more than servants in our Master's house. We are sons and daughters of our loving, heavenly Father.
Before you can serve the Lord, you must become His child. The service that we offer to the Lord is not the service of hired hands. It is the service of His children.
The life of service does not begin with the words, "I will give my service to the Lord."
It begins with the words, "I will receive salvation from the Lord. I will receive Jesus as my Saviour."
Before you can give to the Lord, you must receive from Him.
The life of service is a response to God's love. It begins when we receive God's love, when we realize that He loves us. Our love for Him arises out of His love for us. Through faith in Christ, we are born into the family of God's love. Our obedience is an expression of love (John 14:21). It is Gospel obedience. We must not try to obey God in the hope that we might receive forgiveness because of our great obedience. That's legalistic obedience. It has nothing at all to do with the Gospel. Gospel obedience is very different. The Gospel is not about our great obedience, and what it can do for us. The Gospel is about God's great love. It's about what He has done for us - not what we can do for Him. We experience the love of God. We receive the forgiveness of God. Out of gratitude to God, with love for God, we give ourselves in service to Him.
* (c) We are to walk with the Lord, all the days of our life.
Everything that we may do for Christ, as His witnesses, arises out of our following Him, as His disciples. "Follow Me" - This was the first thing Jesus said to His disciples. We are to walk with the Lord. Before we can run, we must learn to walk. If a child never moves beyond walking to running, there's something wrong.
"Those 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 40:31).
Is this a word for enthusiastic young people? Are we 'too long in the tooth' for this kind of enthusiasm? No! This is a word for all who will "wait upon the Lord" and "renew their strength. We are told, in Isaiah 40:30, that "even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted." This is followed, in Isaiah 40:31, with these great words, "Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength."
How can we keep on walking with the Lord all the days of our life? How can we "run and not be weary"? How can we "walk and not faint"? The answer is the Lord (Isaiah 40:28-29).
If we are to confess Christ, serve Him and walk with Him, we must come to Him, at His Cross, and receive His forgiveness for our many failures. We must come and receive His power, the power of His resurrection, the power of the Holy Spirit, the power that changes us, the power that renews our life.

Seven Words On Seven Chapters (John 1-7)

We look at the first seven chapters of John's Gospel. Our seven words are (1) Who; (2) What; (3) Wind; (4) Worship; (5) Wholeness; (6) Word; (7) Witness.
(1) Who is Jesus?
  • Chapter 1: (a) the Word (v. 1); (b ) God (v. 1); (c) the life (v. 4); (d) the light of men (v 4 ) and the true light (v. 9); (e) the only begotten Son (v. 18) or the Son of God (vs, 34, 49); (f) the Lamb of God (vs. 29, 36); (g) Master (v. 38); (h) the Messiah or the Christ (v. 41); (i) the King of Israel (v. 49); (j) the Son of Man (v.51).
We focus our attention on another description of Jesus - "this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit" (v.33). This is based on the Spirit's descending, like a dove, to abide on Jesus (vs.32-33).
(2) What kind of Spirit does Jesus baptize us with? What kind of Spirit does He pour out upon us? What kind of Spirit does He give to us to live in us?
  • Chapter 2: The Holy Spirit is "the Spirit of Jesus (Acts 16:7), "the Spirit of Christ" (Romans 8:9). To answer the question, "What kind of Spirit does Jesus baptize us with?", we look at Jesus Himself.
In chapter 2, we see the grace (vs.1-10), glory (v. 11) and holiness (vs. 13-22) of the Lord Jesus.
In these three words - grace, glory and holiness, we have a description of the work of the Spirit in the whole course of the Christian life.
  • The beginning of the Christian life is grace.
  • The destination of the Christian life is glory.
  • The way by which we travel from grace to glory is the way of holiness.
The life in the Spirit is the way which takes us from grace to glory in the highway of holiness.
(3) The wind of the Spirit (3:8)
The Christian life is to be a life of going with the wind of the Spirit, and not against the wind of the Spirit (3:8).
The fourfold direction of the wind of the Spirit (3:16): The wind of the Spirit blows us in the direction of (a) the love of God; (b) the Saviour; (c) faith in Christ; (d) eternal life.
The life which goes with the wind of the Spirit, and not against the wind of the Spirit, is a life which is becoming, increasingly, more Christ-centred and, increasingly, less self-centred.: "He must increase, but I must decrease" (3:30).
This Christ-centred life in the Spirit is a life which is characterized by worship (chapter 4), wholeness (chapter 5), the Word (chapter 6) and witness (chapter 7).
(4) Worship in the Spirit and in truth (4:24)
Worship in the Spirit is not, simply, a warm feeling inside, a pleasant emotion which says, "I enjoyed that." It is not, simply, a vague inward spirituality which is characterized by inner contentment. Worship in the Spirit , true spiritual worship focuses attention not so much on our feelings but on Jesus Christ and all that He has done for us.
What we must remember is this: When we speak about the Spirit, we are speaking about the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit who delights to glorify Jesus Christ and to point us to Him, who is the Saviour of the world.
This is true spiritual worship - worship which leads us to magnify and exalt Jesus Christ, worship that leads us to give glory to the Saviour who love us and gave Himself for us, to give praise to the Christ who was crucified for us, to give honour to the Lord who was raised from the dead for us, to sing "Hallelujah" to the King who is coming again for us.
When the Spirit of God is at work in our worship, He will lead us to say of Jesus Christ, "this is indeed the Saviour of the world" (4:42).
(5) Wholeness in the Spirit
When we are truly worshipping in the Spirit, the Lord Jesus Christ will ask us this challenging question, "Do you want to be made whole?" (5:6).
He calls us to leave behind the old life, which is characterized by the weakness of the flesh. He calls us to live the new life, which is characterized by wholeness in the Spirit.
"Do you want to be made whole?"
The first essential for experiencing the mighty power of the Spirit of God is an intense desire for the Spirit of revival and renewal to be at work among us.
"Do you want to be made whole?"
Jesus Christ will pour upon us the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of revival and renewal, as you and I say, "Yes, Lord, I want you to do this for me?"
"Do you want to be made whole?"
(6) The Word of God and he Spirit of God
The call to wholeness comes to us through the Word of God. The Spirit of God speaks to us through the Word of God. The Holy Spirit speaks to us through the Holy Scriptures.
The contrast between the Spirit and the flesh (3:6) is re-emphasized in 6:63.
While the Spirit and the flesh are contrasted, the Spirit and the Word are not set against each other. The Spirit and the Word belong together. The Spirit uses the Word to bring us out of the weakness of the flesh and into the wholeness which is ours through faith in Christ.
(7) Witness (7:37-39)
This wholeness, which comes to us through the Spirit and the Word, is not for our own benefit only. The Spirit uses the Word to point us to Christ - the source of our wholeness, so that we, in turn, might point others to the Saviour.
When the Lord Jesus speaks of "rivers of living waters", He does not say that they will flow into the believer's heart. He says that they will flow out of the believer's heart.
The Spirit is given to us on the basis of Jesus' glorification - His death, resurrection and ascension. Because Jesus, the Lamb of God, has died to take away the sin of the world, the Holy Spirit is given to us so that we might share this good news with our needy world.
The Spirit empowers us for the work of mission, Christ's mission in the world.
  • Ezekiel 47 - the development of Christ's mission
  •  vs.3-5: ankle-deep - Jerusalem; knee-deep - Judea; up to the loins - Samaria; deep enough to swim in - the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
  • v. 6: "Son of man, have you seen this?"
  • Revelation 22 - the outcome of Christ's mission, the healing of the nations (v. 3); reigning for ever and ever (v. 5).

Monday 28 October 2019

Waiting on the Lord, witnessing for Him and winning others for Him

Waiting on the Lord, witnessing for Him and winning others for Him
‘The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him that is weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught’ (Isaiah 50:4).
We are to listen to God. We are to speak for God.
We cannot speak for God unless we are listening to Him. Before we can speak for God, we must speak to Him.
We must pray, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening’ (1 Samuel 3:9-10). Listening to God comes before speaking for God.
First, we wait on the Lord – ‘I waited patiently for the Lord’.
Then, we witness for the Lord – ‘He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God’.
Waiting on the Lord and witnessing for Him, we will win others for Him – ‘Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord’ (Psalm 40:1-3).
Waiting on the Lord – let us look to Christ, crucified and risen for us.
‘Into Thy hand, I commit my spirit’ (Psalm 31:5).
These words were spoken by Christ when, in death, He gave Himself for our sins (Luke 23:46).
For Christ, there was suffering – ‘I am the scorn of all my adversaries’ (31:11).
His suffering was followed by rejoicing, the joy of the resurrection – ‘I will be glad and rejoice in Your love, for You saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul. You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place’ (Psalm 31:7-8).
God answered the prayer of His Son – He brought Him into the ‘spacious place’ of the resurrection, the ‘spacious place’ which is, for us, ‘eternal salvation’ (Hebrews 5:7-9). We look to the crucified Christ and we say, ‘Praise be to the Lord, for He showed His wonderful love to me’ (Psalm 31:21). In the risen Christ, we are ‘strong and our hearts take courage’ (Psalm 31:24).
In our witness for the Lord, may our whole life declare that Jesus Christ is Lord.
Do you feel like you can`t go on? Do you feel like giving up? Here`s God`s Word of encouragement for you: ‘He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the Day of Jesus Christ’ (Philippians 1:6).
God finishes what He starts – ‘He didn’t bring us this far to leave us. He didn’t teach us to swim to let us drown. He didn’t build His home in us to move away. He didn’t lift us up to let us down’.
In all the changes of life, we must remember this: God is faithful.
His love is unchanged, unchanging and unchangeable.
We don`t keep going because we are strong. We are ‘kept by the power of God’(1 Peter 1:5).
In ‘humility’, let us live ‘to the glory and praise of God’ (Philippians 2:3; 1:11). ‘Jesus Christ is Lord’(2:11) – He will give you the strength to keep going when you feel like giving up.
Jesus asks, Do you love Me? Let us say Yes – and go out to win others for Him.
Peter and Judas Iscariot had something in common. They both failed their Lord (Matthew 26:14-16, 34).
Things turned out very differently for them (Matthew 27:3-5; Acts 2:38-42).
When we fail the Lord , we find ourselves at a cross-roads. We can turn to Him. We can turn away from Him.
In view of His great love for us – His ‘blood’ has been ‘poured out for the forgiveness of sins’ (Matthew 26:28) – how can we turn our backs on Him? How can you and I say ‘No’ to such love?
There is no reason why we should say ‘No’ to Him – yet we do!
Do we doubt that He is there for us? Do we wonder if He really loves us?
What about you? Do you think that He cannot or will not forgive your sins?
He can and He will. That’s why He died – ‘for the forgiveness of sins’ (Matthew 26:28).
Jesus’ suffering is increasing.
What pain His disciples caused Him. Three times, He ‘found them sleeping’ (Matthew 26:40-45), ‘My betrayer is at hand’ (Matthew 26:46), ‘all the disciples forsook Him and fled’ (Matthew 26:56)!
Was this the end of the road for His disciples? No! With one exception – Judas Iscariot, whom Jesus still called ‘friend’ (Matthew 26:50), the others became men of prayer (Acts 1:13-14). They stood with Peter as he preached the Gospel, as he led many sinners to the Saviour (Acts 2:14, 37-38).
Jesus loved His disciples. He died for them. Then – after Jesus was ‘glorified’- the Spirit was ‘given’to them (John 7:39).
The fleeing disciples became men ‘on fire’ (Acts 2:3). No more ‘fleeing’. Now it was ‘flowing’- ‘rivers of living water’(John 7:38). ‘Blaze, Spirit blaze. Set our hearts on fire. Flow, river, flow. Flood the nations with grace and mercy’(Mission Praise, 445).
‘Peter followed Him at a distance’ (Matthew 26:58). He didn’t want to get too close!
Keeping your distance from Jesus leads to trouble!
Trouble was not the end of Peter’s story.
Three times Peter denied the Lord (Matthew 26:69-75).
Three times Jesus asked him, ‘Do you love Me?’, three times Peter answered Jesus, ‘I love You’ (John 21:15-17) – for each denial, an opportunity to re-affirm his love for Jesus.
Three thousand souls won for Christ (Acts 2:41) – for each denial, one ‘thousand souls’brought to Christ.
The contrast between the ‘Peter’ of the Gospels and the ‘Peter’ of Acts is striking. When Jesus first met Peter, He said, ‘You are Simon… You shall be called Peter’ (John 1:42).
‘Peter’ means ‘rock’. Peter’s confession of faith – ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’ (Matthew 16:16) – is the Rock on which our faith is built.
With Peter, let us confess Christ.
Jesus went to the Cross for us. Refusing to protest His own innocence, He took our guilt upon Himself.
Observing this, ‘the governor wondered greatly’ (Matthew 27:14).
We also should wonder greatly at this – Christ took our place, receiving the punishment that should have been ours. Barabbas was released, Christ was crucified (Matthew 27:26).
This is the great exchange – the sinless Saviour takes the place of the guilty sinner (2 Corinthians 5:21).
As well as its divine aspect – ‘God so loved…’ (John 3:16) – the Cross has a human dimension – the people, Jews and Gentiles (the whole sinful world), sent Jesus to the Cross.
For Jews and Gentiles (‘the whole world’), Christ has provided salvation (Romans 1:16; 1 John 2:2).
In the release of Barabbas and the crucifixion of Christ, we are invited to ask ourselves, ‘What shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?’ (Matthew 27:22).
The ‘King of the Jews’ wore ‘a crown of thorns’ (Matthew 27:29).
In the Cross, we see the King.
The way of crucifixion – this is the way of the Kingdom.
The prayer, ‘Thy Kingdom come’ (Matthew 6:10), could only be answered by way of the Cross.
From the Cross, we hear the call for decision. It is the call of love. The love of Christ calls for our answer: ‘What shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?’ (Matthew 27:22).
Here, we see different responses to Christ – derision, mocking, reviling (Matthew 27:39-44); misunderstanding (Matthew 27:47-49); believing worship (Matthew 27:54).
How are we brought out of unbelief and into faith, out of derision and into rejoicing? By the mighty working of God in our hearts, we are brought out of darkness and into light (2 Corinthians 4:6).
Salvation comes from above, from God – ‘The curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom’ (Matthew 27:51).
‘Mary the mother of James and Joseph’ was also the mother of Jesus (Matthew 27:56; 13:55).
She began by receiving Jesus, not only as her son but also as her Saviour (Luke 1:38). She was still following Jesus – ‘kept by the power of God’(1 Peter 1:5). None of us – not even the mother of Jesus – can walk with the Lord without His grace keeping us in the way of faith.
The unbelieving world still denies Christ – ‘that imposter’ (Matthew 27:63) – and His resurrection – ‘fraud’ (Matthew 27:64).
As believers, we must maintain our testimony: ‘He has risen from the dead’ (Matthew 27:64).
The unbelievers expected a ‘fraud’. They did not expect a resurrection! For them, a resurrection was out of the question. God had a surprise in store for them!
Unbelief says, ‘Resurrection? – Impossible!’. Faith says, ‘it was impossible for death to keep its hold on Him’ (Acts 2:24).
He has risen (Matthew 28:6) – Hallelujah!

Friday 18 October 2019

Build For The Future - Pray And Witness.

"The Lord is your keeper" (Psalm 121:5); "My help comes from the Lord" (Psalm 121:2).
Such words fill us with hope - and they call us to prayer. They do not fill us with a superficial optimism. They stir us to receive more of the Lord's help, and to know more of His keeping power.
When we come to God in prayer, we come with questions: Will the Lord hear our prayer? Will He not dismiss us as guilty sinners who have no right to come to Him, no right to ask for His blessing?
  • The Scriptures speak with unmistakable realism, about our sin: "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way" (Isaiah 53:6).
They also speak, with tremendous encouragement, about God's salvation: "And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6).
  • In the great first chapter of John's Gospel, which speaks so majestically of Jesus Christ, the eternal Word (vs. 1-3) and declares that "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth" (v. 14), we hear John the Baptist, describing Jesus as "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).
This is our assurance that our prayer will be heard: Jesus Christ died for sinners.
  • We also read of "person-to-person" evangelism: vs. 35-42 - Jesus speaks to Andrew. Andrew speaks to Peter. Jesus speaks to Philip. Philip speaks to Nathaniel. As well as speaking to God for others, we are to speak to others for Him.
God's work moves forward to a brighter future as His people learn to pray to Him and witness for Him.
When we read the words spoken by Jesus to Nathaniel: "You shall see greater things than these" (John 1:50), we are encouraged to believe that the Lord has great things in store for His people - not only in this life but in the eternal life that lies ahead of us: "you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man" (John 1:51).

Tuesday 5 March 2019

"One thing I know ..." (John 9:25).

"One thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see" (John 9:25).
Every believer can share his /her personal experience of Christ.
Many people say, "I don't know very much." They use this as an excuse for their failure to speak a word for Jesus.
The man, who received his sight, didn't use his lack of knowledge as an excuse for not speaking for Jesus. He said, "I don't know." Then, he said, "One thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see" (John 9:25).
To help us learn the lesson that every believer can and should share his / her personal testimony, when the opportunity, let's look at the context in which these words were spoken.
There are three factors which contribute significantly to this context:
  • the relation between Jesus and the man;
  • the relation between the man and his world;
  • the man himself.
(1) Jesus and the man
There are two moments of contact between Jesus and the man:
In both instances, we note the initiative of Jesus.
  • In the first instance, there is no indication that the man came looking for healing from Jesus. All we are told is this: Jesus healed him.
  • In the second instance, we are told that Jesus "found" the man. Isn't that the right order? Sometimes, we say, "I found Jesus." Is it not more true to the Gospel and Christian experience to say, "Jesus found me"?
When Jesus found and healed this man, He changed the man. When a person encounters Jesus, he / she can never be the same again.
One of the first changes was this: the man's new-found faith was put to the test. No-one can become a disciple and expect to evade the testing of his / her faith.
(2) The man and his world
The man's world was made up of three groups of people. Each of these groups had a different attitude towards him.
  • the man's neighbours had an attitude of indifference towards him;
  • the man's parents had an attitude of compromise towards him;
  • the Pharisees had an attitude of rejection towards him.
These attitudes of indifference, compromise and rejection face us today.
  • Think of the indifference of the person who hears the Christian's personal testimony and says, "So what!"
  • Think of the compromise of the person who hears the Christian's personal testimony and says, "I know, but ... "
  • Think of the rejection that comes from the person who hears the Christian's personal testimony and says, "Rubbish!"
We must learn not to be influenced by such attitudes. we must learn to be faithful to God.
(3) The man himself
Here, we look at the man's experience, testimony and influence.
  • The man's experience: his eyes were opened. This is what happens to the believer when Christ is received into his / her heart (2 Corinthians 4:3-6).
  • The man's testimony: he had received his sight. This is the Christian's testimony (Acts 26:18).
  • the man's influence: a whole lot of people started thinking about Jesus.
This man gave Jesus the opportunity to call the Pharisees to trust Him as their Saviour.
As we consider the man's experience, testimony and influence, we must ask some important questions about our own experience, testimony and influence.
  • Have I any personal experience of Christ, opening my eyes to see Him as my Saviour?
  • Have I a personal testimony to Christ as the Saviour, who has changed my life?
  • Has the Lord used me to bring other people to Him?
These are questions which require a personal response from each and every one of us.

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