Devoted to The Apostles' Teaching

‘They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.’ Acts 2:42

I will begin this week with The Apostles’ Teaching.

Before I focus on The Apostles’ Teaching, why this verse?

Two things:

Firstly…. we read also…. ‘The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved’. This was a growing community of Christians. If we wish to see our numbers grow, there are lessons to be learned here.

Secondly, there is a vital word in this verse that we are studying; if we are not careful we can miss it and it is absolutely key to all that we will be speaking about and studying, it is central to our worship and witness. Without it we become what John Wesley most feared the Methodist People might turn into…. ‘a dead sect, having the form of godliness but without the power’. The word is ‘devoted’.

‘They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.’

The word is devoted, not committed. What is the difference? Think about it.

Do you get the impression that these four things were something they had to do, or something they wanted to do, because there is a difference. When Jesus said ‘Where your heart is, there will be your treasure also,’ he wasn’t just talking about money!
I tell you this;
when our hearts… yours and mine… can say with the Psalmist, ‘As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs for you, O Lord.’,
when it is our deepest desire
to know God’s word so we can obey it,
to share in fellowship with complete love for one another,
to break bread with broken and contrite hearts,
to pray as 19th century preacher William Arthur calls us to, for the power of the Holy Spirit; ‘Prayer, prayer, all prayer – mighty, importunate, repeated united prayer’…. If we can reach this devotion to the things of God, we won’t need to worry about Church growth because we will become as a powerful magnet is to steel.

The apostles’ teaching, then.

What is this teaching to which the early Christians devoted themselves?

Well, it includes the teaching of Jesus himself. In the great commission Jesus calls his apostles to make disciples, baptise and ‘teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Matt 28:20.
The teaching of the apostles is primarily the gospel or Good News, which was centred around his death, burial and resurrection.
vv 23-24 of Acts 2:
This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
Acts 3:15 : You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.
Acts 4:10 : then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4 :. Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
The apostles’ teaching was a unique teaching in that it came from God and was clothed with the authority conferred on the apostles
2 Cor 13:10 —the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.

1 Thess 4:2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
Today, the apostles’ teaching is of course available to us in the books of the New Testament.
We do well to study them.
In recent weeks at the Mens’ Meetings we have grappled with The Sermon on the Mount, so very important, crucial to our Christian living !

What are the ways in which we can devote ourselves to The Apostles’ Teaching? How can we read, mark, learn and inwardly digest God’s word. Well I’ve been doing it for 40+ years, and I can tell you there is no easy way.
It takes time.

1. Try and follow a Bible Reading programme to read the Bible in a year.
2. Read a whole chapter or read the whole book of Ephesians for example.
3. Meditate on one verse, take it into the day with you. One verse I worked through by learning it before breakfast and thinking about it all day was this: ‘Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever ask or imagine according to His power that is at work in us, to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations for ever and ever. Amen.’ Eph 3:20-21, and the same night when I was on Crossline duty I was able to help a struggling Christian over the phone.
Abbreviate it to learn the central phrase: He is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever ask or imagine according to His power that is at work in us. Eph 3:20

Meditating on God’s word is never a waste of time.
When the devil came to tempt Jesus he resisted him using the words of Scripture (see Matt 4) So must we.
4. Another way we can learn theology is through hymns and songs. This is what the early Methodists did. Many couldn’t read or write, but they could learn hymns easily, so they knew the gospel in its simplest form. This is a good tradition (not all hymns are good….not all traditions are good!) which has been handed down to us. Though we can all read and write, we still love to sing and it is a way of memorising the truths to be found in Scripture.
Look at the words of some of the songs* I have chosen for today.
Let’s page through them:
My God full of mercy
Only by grace
To God be the glory *
I’m special *
You’re the Word
Praise to the Holiest *
In Christ Alone *
Lord I’m grateful *
Use songs and hymns then to learn the truths to be found in Scripture.

5. Most of all, let the Holy Spirit speak to you. Always ask his help as you open the word.
Joyce Hugget uses 5 ‘R’s to help us.
This links beautifully with the word devotion, doesn’t it:? How might we read the Bible ‘God’s love letter’?
READ
RECEIVE/REPEAT
RESPOND
REST
REFLECT

May we devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching, the precious word of God.

….and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever Ps23:6b

One of the reasons Ps 23 is so popular at funerals is the twofold promise in the Psalm regarding the valley of the shadow of death… that God is right with us there….. but also in this last sentence ‘I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever’. Psalmist David writes of both death and life here.

So what have we to look forward to? There are many clues in Scripture, but as I wrote this sermon one came to mind, the promise of Jesus to the dying criminal nailed to a cross beside Him, ‘Today you will be with me in paradise’. Paradise in scripture is a garden, a place of bliss and tranquillity and rest.

Whatever picture we may try to paint,however, our language falls short.
C.S.Lewis concludes his famous Narnia Chronicles suggesting that the things which happened to his characters after the books ended were so great and beautiful that he could not write them. He writes, ‘All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia (and what adventures.. have you read them?) had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no-one on Earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.’Elsewhere Lewis described earthly life as being the Shadowlands. This life, the colours we see, the good we experience, the joy we have, the pleasures we know… these are as minor shadows compared to the extraordinary colour, beauty, joy and delight of heaven.

You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!

In the book of Revelation, too, every chapter is more thrilling than the chapter before.
Joyce Huggett writes:
Reading Revelation at one sitting (I don’t think I ever did that) is as tantalising as hearing the sound of running water when climbing a mountain on a hot summer’s day, and as thirst quenching as drinking long draughts from such clear crystal streams. Each promise is precious; the promise of a new Heaven and a new Earth, the promise that God will wipe every tear from our eyes, that death shall be know more, and never again will there be sorrow or crying or pain. (21:1-4). But the greatest thrill of all is that we shall see the beloved face to face. He will make his home with us and we with Him. For the first time in our lives we shall be set free to truly worship,

Listen to this: Rev 7:9-17

9 After this I looked, and there in front of me was a huge crowd of people. They stood in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb. There were so many that no one could count them. They came from every nation, tribe, people and language. They were wearing white robes. In their hands they were holding palm branches. 10 They cried out in a loud voice,
"Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne.
Salvation also belongs to the Lamb."
11 All the angels were standing around the throne. They were standing around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces in front of the throne and worshiped God. 12 They said,
"Amen!
May praise and glory
and wisdom be given to our God for ever and ever.
Give him thanks and honor and power and strength.
Amen!"
13 Then one of the elders spoke to me. "Who are these people dressed in white robes?" he asked. "Where did they come from?"
14 I answered, "Sir, you know."
He said, "They are the ones who have come out of the time of terrible suffering. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 So
"they are in front of the throne of God.
They serve him day and night in his temple.
The One who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.
16 Never again will they be hungry.
Never again will they be thirsty.
The sun will not beat down on them.
The heat of the desert will not harm them.
17 The Lamb, who is at the center of the area around the throne, will be their shepherd.
He will lead them to springs of living water.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

In this life God’s felt presence is, at best, fleeting, intermittent, transitory. Not so in heaven: there we shall enjoy a permanent intimacy with God…. Beyond the bounds of time and space into regions of eternal light, far removed from any evil or imperfection.
Words fail us as we try to express the inexpressible.

Paul tried to deal with a question from the Corinthians as to what our bodies will be like in heaven. Even the great apostle struggles with this. He describes our life like a seed which when we die flourishes like a plant into new life.

One caterpillar said to another as they gazed at a butterfly, ‘You’ll never get me up in one of those!’

That's a good illustration of the contrast between the earthly bodies we occupy for a time and the new body we will occupy forever in heaven. Hard to get your head around isn’t it? That’s why the stories of Jesus after He rose from the dead are so important. Because they tell us that He ate and drank. He walked and talked. He could be touched and hugged. This is the pattern for what life in heaven is. Heaven will be physical.
We won’t be disembodied ghouls drifting around unable to communicate or recognise each other. Far from it. We will immediately recognise each other and enjoy each others company.
One of the main pictures Jesus uses of heaven is of a banquet. Jesus characterises heaven as a place of celebration, parties, dances and feasts, a beautiful garden, everlasting bliss. Wow! We certainly aren’t going to be bored or unfulfilled.

Just one thing I want to mention here.
It always bothers me when we talk about having lost someone.
I was reminded of a joke, hardly fitting, but I’ll risk it:
‘My grandma took up running when she was 65. She’s 90 now and we have no idea where on earth she is.’ (Grandma’s lost in other words).
The point I want to make is… it is all too easy to allow our thinking, when we talk about having lost someone, to drift to some kind of concept that they are ‘lost’. Ours is the loss, not theirs.
An old hymn goes:
‘Rejoice for a brother deceased, our loss is his infinite gain’
Wesley in trying to compare Earth to heaven uses the best word he can find, ‘infinite’.
How much better is it to be with the Lord?… infinitely.Far from being ‘lost’ we are truly found when we’re in heaven.

The lost are those who reject Christ…. When we believe, and accept Christ as Lord and Saviour, we have eternal life. John 3;16.
In 1Peter1,Peter states that thanks to Christ’s resurrection we have an inheritance that can never perish spoil or fade… kept in heaven for us.
Wow.
‘I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.’
‘One thing I have asked of the Lord, and this is what I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord forever, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.’

The fear of the process of dying is humanly perfectly understandable. But we should never fear what lies beyond if we trust in Christ.
Rather we should look forward with eager anticipation.
Paul… ‘for me… to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know. I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far….’

The good old Spirituals were all about the heavenly hope. Life on earth for the African slaves was miserable, but the way they kept going was by singing about the life to come. ‘Deep river…, ‘Steal away…’

And so, in anticipation of living in the house of the Lord forever, how should we live in the here and now?

The first and most important reply to that is to put your trust in Christ. He has died to pay the price of sin and open the door to life eternal for all who believe in Him.

How then should we live?
Selwyn Hughes says we should live each day as though it’s is our last on earth, and work for God as though we’ve got another hundred years.
Jesus encourages us not to live as if this life were everything. While this present life is important, it’s not all important. We don’t need to store up stuff in the here and now, He tells us, but we can be free to be generous, realising that to give money and share possessions is laying up special rewards in heaven.
Jesus is in heaven, where He reigns, where He prays for each of us, and also where He has a place ready for us. There He waits to welcome us with joy.

So are we, like David, looking forward to living in the House of the Lord forever?
Whatever the world may throw at you, it cannot affect the certainty of future reality in Christ’s presence for all who believe in Him. And so, in anticipation of living in the house of the Lord forever, live in the light of eternity.

‘This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through.’

Temptation Lent 1

The subject on the first Sunday of Lent is Christ’s temptation in the wilderness.
We’re going to look at that, and then consider how we may resist and overcome temptation.
I have had a DVD of the Last Temptation of Christ (1988) for a couple of years. I don’t know where it came from, but I had not watched it. As I was destined to preach to you on the subject of Christ’s temptations I decided to watch it. I recall the controversy surrounding the film back in 1988, which may have put me off…. but now it was time to find out what it was about. Directed by Martin Scorsese the film is based upon the novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, whose written introduction, given to us at the beginning, indicates his own struggle in his life between the flesh and the Spirit. So, a very human Jesus is portrayed. Far from the Jesus I read about in the Gospels, he confesses his sins, he is driven almost to insanity, he wonders if he is no more than a man, and with each healing he anguishes over those whom he has not healed. He seems to vacillate between demanding love for all people, and joining Judas (who is portrayed as a Zealot) in encouraging armed rebellion against the Romans. In his final temptation, the subject of the film, as he hangs on the cross, Jesus apparently latches onto the taunts, ‘If you are the Christ come down from the cross.’ and what appears to him and us as an angel calls him to come down and live. Up to this point the film is rather rambling, but now it begins to reach its climax. Jesus imagines what his life might have been like as an ordinary man. He pictures himself marrying Mary Magdalene, having kids and growing old. But remembering that all this is a temptation he is experiencing as he hangs on the cross the dream takes him to where he is dying an old man in his bed. Judas turns up to reproach him for abandoning his special mission, shows him that the so-called angel that persuaded him to come down from the cross is in fact Satan, and he snaps out of it to his final suffering on the cross, crying ‘It is accomplished’. So, although Kazantzakis takes Christ’s humanity too far, making him fall into sin and fail, he does seem to get the story right at the end.

Many Christians were outraged by the film and considered it blasphemous, which it was if you judge it by the standards of Christian orthodoxy. Blockbuster refused to carry it. But what clearly outraged and threatened many Christians was the notion of a fully human Jesus who experienced bitter trials and temptations just like you and I do---torment, doubt, loneliness, nagging questions, fantasies, confusion, despair, and even sexual struggles. The last temptation includes making love to Mary Magdalene. For many believers that sort of temptation was, well, way too tempting, which is to say, way too human and hence the backlash to the film. For me, however, that was not the problem with the film …as he is seen to resist the temptation in the final analysis.

In the Gospel reading from Matthew this week we read that Jesus was tempted or tried: (read Matthew 4:1) The Spirit of God descended upon Jesus in baptism, and then the Spirit of God cast him into the desert for trial and temptation.

Trying to decipher the psychology of Jesus is risky business, but we should not miss the point that Jesus was tempted and tried by Satan. Matthew and Luke specify three temptations: turning stones to bread, throwing himself down from the temple, and accepting the glories of earthly kingdoms. Interpreters have variously categorized these three temptations…. but does that matter so much because we know these were not Jesus’s only temptations. Luke writes that at the end of the forty day trial Satan left Jesus only “until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). The EvilOne came back, again and again, those next three years. Jesus’s ultimate temptation, and the ultimate despair anyone can experience, was the sense of feeling forsaken by God in Gethsemane.

We can safely say that Jesus was tempted not only in the desert but throughout his entire earthly life. The writer to the Hebrews says as much, but he makes a very important statement in it.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are---yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16, NIV).
1. yet was without sin….. ‘there was no other good enough to pay the price of sin’. A fallen Christ could not have been a sufficient sacrifice.
2. Let’s just look at that again, thinking about temptation….I find it hard to take on board that Jesus was truly tempted and tried like I am.. But this is what the writer to the Hebrews tells us; Jesus was tried “in every way,” it says, “just as we are.”
3. It is because of these two things put together…. that he is able to help us. He could not have helped us had he sinned. But he has experienced that temptation AND was without sin.

What this means is that the God who loves us is fully aware of and empathises with all the ambiguities, complexities, trials and temptations of our lives. He is not a distant disinterested god. Quite the opposite. If you have felt weak, then remember that Jesus is not condemning you but sympathizing with you. If you experience trials and temptations, then don’t forget that he has too, perhaps far more than we ever will. When you feel forgotten and forsaken by God, Jesus knew what that was like. If your trials tempt you to despair and turn away from God, Jesus encourages us to do the opposite, “take confidence, come to me for grace and help because I have experienced what you are enduring.”

Having been tempted and tried himself, Jesus is the friend of sinners, not their enemy. One of the more remarkable characterizations of Jesus in the Gospels is that he was “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34). We read that social and moral outcasts flocked around Jesus, attracting the fury of the religiously righteous. They clearly felt safe with Jesus, accepted, embraced, and welcomed by Him.
As the friend of sinners who suffered trials and temptations, “he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). He is for us, not against us.
…and as we read 1 Cor 1013 the temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.



To conclude then:

No matter how desirable, alluring, appealing, tantalizing, or inviting the sin may be, we must not commit it. We cannot get sucked into Satan’s web of deceit. Nothing in this world is worth ruining our reputations, and far worse ruining our fellowship with our Lord.

We must say "no" to temptation; we must say “no” to sin!

…and to enable us to resist, we are to rely on the strength of God:

 (Eph. 6:10-11) “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”
That verse from Hebrews again:
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are---yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16, NIV).
So, this morning we come again to that throne of grace.

Christ the King!

Christ’s Kingship…. In what respect was He and is He the king? How was this understood and misunderstood when He was on Earth and do we belong to His Kingdom today?
As there are many republics across the world, and today Kings and Queens have reduced political clout, the concepts of ‘kingship’ and ‘kingdom’ are increasingly lost on us.
The earliest followers of Jesus used the language of kingship to describe who he was, what he said, and what he did. Every king enjoys a reign, a rule, and a kingdom. Jesus’s very first words of public ministry proclaimed that in him "the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1:15). But as we shall see, his ideas about kingship radically subvert our normal definitions of political power.

At the birth of Jesus pagan magi inquired, "where is he who has been born king of the Jews?" (Matthew 2:2). Their worship of Jesus with extravagant gifts reminds us that Jesus is not only the king of the Jews; he's the king of all nations and peoples. In contrast to our propensity to privilege one ethnicity or people over another, to view one's own people as exceptional to God, and to exclude other people who are different, the pagans from Persia show how king Jesus welcomes all people everywhere.
Whereas the magi worshipped king Jesus, king Herod tried to kill him.
We don't normally associate the birth of a baby with the demise of political power, but Matthew does. His political parody is writ large. Matthew contrasts two rival kings who rule not only over one people (the Jews) but over all the world. This is a baby, says Luke, who would "bring down rulers from their thrones" (Luke 1:52). No wonder that in the 1980s the government of Guatemala prohibited the public reading of Mary's subversive Magnificat — if Jesus is king and lord, then Caesar, Herod, Pharaoh, Pilate, are not lords. Nor are Mammon, materialism, and other 'isms' which try to replace Christ as No.1 in our lives. They are posers to be deposed.

The language of kingship also characterises the accounts of Jesus's death. His "triumphal entry" into the streets of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was a highly symbolic, and deliberately provocative act. It was an enacted parable or street theatre that dramatized his subversive mission and message. He didn't ride a donkey because he was too tired to walk or because he wanted a good view of the crowds. Jesus's triumphal entry was more like a "planned political demonstration" than the religious celebration that we sentimentalise today.
In a bold parody of imperial politics, king Jesus descends the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem from the east in fulfillment of Zechariah's ancient prophecy: "Look, your king is coming to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey" (Matthew 21:5 = Zechariah 9:9).

Jesus was later dragged to the Roman governor's palace for three reasons, all political: "We found this fellow subverting the nation, opposing payment of taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King" (Luke 23:1–2). In short, Jesus died as a politically subversive criminal.
Pilate met the angry mob outside the praetorium, then grilled Jesus alone back inside. "Are you the king of the Jews?"
"My kingdom is not of this world," Jesus replied. "My kingdom is from another place."
"You are a king, then!" mocked Pilate.
"Yes, you are right in saying that I am a king."
Back outside, Pilate then declared that Jesus was innocent. However, the mob hounded Pilate: "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar." Pilate thus found himself sandwiched between angering the mob and betraying his emperor.
He caved in: "Here is your king. Shall I crucify your king?"
"We have no king but Caesar!"
And so human identity is reduced to politics …how like our own age.
Pilate then handed Jesus over and had his soldiers beat, flog, and humiliate him with purple robes and a crown of thorns befitting a man whom he miscalculated was a political failure: "Hail, O king of the Jews!" they mocked.

When Pilate crucified Jesus, he insulted the Jews one last time by fastening a notice to the cross, written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek, that he knew would offend them: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." They objected, of course: "Don't write 'The king of the Jews,' but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews."
It was too late: "What I have written, I have written," said Pilate. To be sure, with his mockery of the Jews he wrote much more than he ever could have known or imagined (John 18:28–19:22), for later believers would worship this Jesus not only as king of the Jews, but also as "the king of kings" (1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 19:16), the "king of the ages" (Revelation 19:3), and "ruler of the kings of the earth" (Revelation 1:5).

When Jesus insisted that his kingdom was "not of this world" he didn't mean that it was merely spiritual, or relegated to a future age beyond history or in heaven. Far from it, as his detractors rightly surmised. In its simplest terms, the kingship that Jesus announced and embodied is not of this world in the sense that it is not established here. Imagine what life would be like on earth, here and now, if God were king and not Obama, Medvedev, Kim Jong-il, Mugabe, or Ahmadinejad.
Every aspect of personal and communal life would experience a radical reversal in such a kingdom. The political, economic, and social subversions would be almost endless — peace-making instead of war mongering, liberation not exploitation, sacrifice rather than subjugation, mercy not vengeance, care for the vulnerable instead of privileges for the powerful, generosity instead of greed, humility rather than highness, and inclusion rather than exclusion. The ancient Hebrews had a marvelous word for all this, shalom, or human well-being.

And so in the readings for this week we discover how Jesus is a king who instead of waging war, "he makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire." (Psalm 46:9). Jesus the king welcomes criminals (Luke 23:43). In the mission and message of Jesus, says Paul, God intends to "reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood" (Colossians 1:20). Peace and reconciliation for all of creation are thus signs of the kingdom of God in Jesus.

And where do you and I fit? Are we subjects of this Kingdom?

The Lord's Prayer just might be the most subversive of all political acts: "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." If we choose to live and pray this way we have a very different agenda than the world’s agenda… whatever our party political persuasion. Nothing will ever be the same. We have nailed our colours, entered a kingdom, pledged our allegiance to a ruler, and submitted to the reign of Christ the King.

(thanks to Journey with Jesus www.journeywithjesus.net)

pray always without losing heart

According to the Gospel of Luke, Jesus told his disciples a parable because they were having problems with prayer. We all have problems with prayer. Jesus disciples were having problems with prayer. That's why Jesus told them this parable.
We have many questions and issues and problems about prayer. Mainly we wonder if prayer is really heard by God. So many of our prayers seem unanswered: We pray for health, but there is still a spot on the X-ray. We pray for peace, but the troops aren't home and the war rages. We pray for doors to open, but they seem to be bolted against us.
We have problems with prayer, but when we look closely, our deepest problem with prayer is that we lose heart. We just lose heart. We lose confidence and trust and hope that our prayers will be heard and answered. We lose heart.
'And Jesus told them a parable that they might pray always without losing heart'. Say it with me...

John Wesley encountered many times of rejection and denial. I picked up a few of these instances from his Journal … paraphrased:
Sunday A.M., May 5:Preached in St. Anne’s. Asked not to come back.
Sunday P.M., May 5:Preached in St. John’s. Deacons said, "Get out, and stay out!"
Sunday A.M., May 12:Preached in St. Jude’s. Can’t go back there either.
Sunday P.M., May 19:Preached in St. Somebody Else’s. Deacons called special meeting, and said I couldn’t return.
Sunday A.M., May 26:Preached on street. Kicked off street.
Sunday A.M., June 2:Preached at the edge of town. Kicked off highway.
Sunday P.M., June 2:Preached in a pasture. Ten thousand came.
If you and I are to get an answer, it may take some action. Consistent, and persistent action! George Mueller, the great prayer warrior, said, "The great fault of the children of God is, they do not continue in prayer; they do not go on praying; they do not persevere!" So..pray always without losing heart'

The story that Jesus told his disciples was about a corrupt and selfish judge. This judge hated people and he hated God.
Unfortunately, appearing in his courtroom was a poor widow who needed justice but had nothing. She had absolutely nothing. She had no money, she had no husband, she had no standing, she had no power, she had no resources, she had nothing. She was so insignificant, she probably couldn't have got justice in a good courtroom with a good judge, but here she was in the courtroom of the worst judge in the land.
Now, did I say that she had nothing? That's not quite true. She did have one thing... note. She had the capacity to be a pest, to annoy. And, when you only have one weapon, you use it. So she annoyed this judge constantly. She shouted aloud for justice in his courtroom: “Give me justice! Give me justice! Give me justice!” She knocked on his chamber doors, left messages on his ansaphone. She probably even put him off his stroke at the Golf Club shouting, “Give me justice! Give me justice! Give me justice!”
Finally, she wore the old judge down. The judge said to himself, “You know, I don't care about justice. I don't care about this widow, I don't like people, I don't like God and I don't care about anybody. But this woman is about to drive me crazy! I'm going to give her what she wants just to get her off my back.”

And that's the story that Jesus told us that we should pray always without losing heart. It's easy to misunderstand this parable, or to fail to see the full picture.

Some may say Jesus wants us to keep our eyes focused on the bad judge. He does tell the disciples, “Pay attention to what this unjust judge says.” And if we pay attention to the judge, well, what do we see? What we see is that, even though he was a corrupt man, at the end of the day he did give the woman the justice that she demanded and needed. So maybe what Jesus is teaching us is that, even though the headlines in the newspaper often show a world of corruption and evil, this is, you know, God's world, this is a world ruled and overruled by a loving and just God, and at the end of the day, there is justice after all. Maybe that's what Jesus wants us to see.
Well, I believe that and I think that's part of it, but I don't think that's not the heart of Jesus' story, because if that's all Jesus wanted us to see, the moral of this story would be, “Take heart. Things are not as bad as they seem.” But the message of this story is “pray always without losing heart.”

OK, maybe Jesus wants us to focus our attention on the poor widow. Did you notice how she went after what she needed? It was, after all, her persistence—“Give me justice! Give me justice!”—that managed to wrangle justice from the unjust judge.

I read a delightful story about Mother Teresa. She went to visit Edward Bennett Williams, a legendary Washington criminal lawyer. He was a powerful lawyer. .. he was the lawyer for Frank Sinatra and Richard Nixon, among others. Williams' biography tells the story of when Mother Teresa visited him because she was raising money for an AIDS hospice. Williams was in charge of a small charitable foundation that she hoped would help. Before she arrived for the appointment, Williams said to his partner, “You know, Paul, AIDS is not my favorite disease. I don't really want to make a contribution, but I've got this Catholic saint coming to see me, and I don't know what to do.” Well, they agreed that they would be polite, hear her out, but then say no.
Well, Mother Teresa arrived.....a little sparrow sitting on the other side of the big mahogany lawyer's desk. She made her appeal for the hospice, and Williams said, “We're touched by your appeal, but no.” Mother Teresa said simply, “Let us pray.” Williams looked at his partner; they bowed their heads and after the prayer, Mother Teresa made the same request, word for word, for the hospice. Again Williams politely said no. Mother Teresa said, “Let us pray.” Williams, exasperated, looked up at the ceiling, “All right, all right, get me my cheque book!”

Maybe that's what Jesus wants: pray like that, pray like Mother Teresa, pray like the widow, cry out, bang on the doors of heaven with insistence.
Well, that's part of it, to be sure. But that's not all of it. If that were the whole meaning of Jesus' story, then the moral of the story would be “Be feisty. Pray always.”

But the message of this story is more...., “pray always without losing heart.”

No, Jesus' story is not finally about the bad judge and it's not finally about the insistent widow. It's finally a story about God and about you and me. This story says, if a poor widow with no standing can finally wrangle justice out of an evil judge, how much more will you—God's own child, the one God formed in the womb, the God who has loved you from the very beginning— how much more will you and I find and know our God who will hear and answer prayer. He says to us, pray always without losing heart, for I will answer.

There's a famous story about a young boy named Frank who was walking along the bank of the Mississippi River and he noticed in the river another boy about his age wrestling with a homemade raft. He said to him, “What are you doing?” He said, “I'm going to take this raft out to that island in the middle of the river. I dare you to go with me!” Well, Frank couldn't resist the dare so he scrambled down the bank and got on the raft. The two boys headed out to the middle of the river but the current was swift and strong. As they approached the island, the raft broke up and sank and they had to swim to the island. And there they were, abandoned on an island, late in the afternoon. Nobody knew where they were. What would they do?
Right at that moment a Mississippi paddle steamer started coming down the river and Frank ran to the edge of the island and began screaming and waving his hands, “Help! Help!” The other boy said, “Don't waste your breath. They can't hear you and even if they could they wouldn't pay any attention to boys like us.” But just at that moment the paddle steamer turned toward the island. The boy said to Frank, “How did you do that?” And Frank said, “Well, there's something you don't know. The captain of that boat is my father!”

Well, the captain of the universe is our father and how much more will He, who has loved us since before we began...how much more will He hear our cry. So pray always without losing heart.

Paul, In that amazing bit of the letter to the Roman Christians (8:31-32) cries out; 'If God Is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own son but gave him up for us all... how will He not also along with Christ, graciously give us all things?
So, people... pray always without losing heart

Surely Goodness and Mercy Shall Follow Me

Sorry if this one's a bit disjointed!! Stick with it...

Psalm 23 has been all about the care a good shepherd gives his sheep.The health and vitality of the sheep has been the shepherd's number 1 priority. In this last verse the care given the sheep is summed up.
I want to introduce you to two sheep dogs……God's two sheep dogs.
Remember, the shepherd is leading the flock…. I want you to imagine two dogs as rearguard.
God has two sheep dogs that always follow us and their names are goodness and mercy.
They are there not to scare us or hurt us, but to keep us in the fold and guide us to the next pastures.

1. Goodness.
God's goodness means we get things we don't deserve. If we believe in the goodness of God we can look to the future with hope.
Psalm 100:5
For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

A good parent does not fulfil every wish and whim a child has. Why? Because not everything will benefit the child. Sometimes a parent will need to say, ’No I don’t think you two should play with the carving knives’!! God knows what is good for us far better than we know ourselves. God's goodness is great…

It’s most important that we understand that the promise of God's goodness does not mean a problem - free life. In Psalm 23 David has needed his soul restored, direction, help with fear and assurance of God's presence.
Not everything in life is good but God works in all things.
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
When my wife makes a cake she mixes together ingredients that by themselves don't taste good but all are needed to make a delicious cake. Raw eggs, Flour. Baking powder etc are not palatable. So many things that happen in our lives are unpalatable, but God works them in to make something good out of it all. Even in our toughest times God moulds us into the people He wants us to be.
Those things which would prove to be detrimental to our good have been kept from us. Those things which will work together for the “good” God has planned for us, God arranges and controls in such a way as to produce that good. Everything in the life of the Christian is designed for accomplishing the “good” God has planned for us.

The “good” which God purposes for us is of course in the future and which we cannot presently see. That “good” includes our salvation, sanctification, and our future full adoption as sons of God. It will involve being tested perhaps by suffering, as the “good” which is spoken of here is not so much happiness as holiness.
So the “all things” which God causes to work together for our ultimate good includes hardship, includes our failures and our sins, our innocent suffering, for the cause of Christ, and that suffering which results from our sin and stupidity.
“All things” includes the malicious things others do to us. It includes, at times, Satan’s attacks by which he hopes to destroy us, but which God allows for our own growth.
The “all things” includes events which took place before we were even born. “All things” includes those things which happened before we were saved. It surely includes the things which have come about after our conversion and also those events yet to come. The “all things” over which God has control and which He is causing to work together for our good includes the minute details of our lives and not just major decisions and actions.

God causes all things to work together for our good.
Joseph is a very positive illustration of God working for our good. Joseph was cruelly sold into slavery by his brothers. They acted sinfully out of jealousy. Joseph was treated badly by others. He was not kindly treated by his father (his favoritism was no favour to Joseph). He was not treated fairly by Potiphar, and especially by Mrs. Potiphar! He was not treated kindly by the king’s wine taster. He could have wallowed in the suffering which he experienced. And yet Joseph seemed to understand God’s goodness better than anyone. He could tell his brothers, “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good” (see Genesis 45:5; 50:20). Belief in the sovereignty of God, at work for his good in the midst of his suffering, encouraged Joseph to be faithful, to look to God and to the future for his final “good.” It enabled him to forgive his brothers, knowing that God’s gracious hand was behind their sinful actions.

And there are numerous other examples in scripture and in history.

When our life is not going well we begin to question God's care. . Our natural reaction to trials is fear, worry and to ask "why?" We begin to think He really doesn't know what He is doing with me. We get tempted to panic and want to run from His care. We get the idea we can survive better on our own.
When our health breaks down, someone is taken from us in death, our job folds, we cannot meet our bills or our kids are going in the wrong direction we can wonder where God is…. But His goodness is not far behind!

2. Mercy /lovingkindness.
God's mercy means He bases His actions in our life on His lovingkindness. He has made an unconditional commitment to us to be merciful, because He's chosen to commit Himself to us.
On your best day and on your worst day God's commitment is the same.
God loves you just as you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay as you are. He wants to change some actions and thoughts in your life, but when you make those changes He won't love you more than He has already committed to love you, the fellowship will just be sweeter.
Mercy is not getting what we deserve.
If Romans 8:28 is one of the Bible’s great verses, so is Romans 5:8...
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
We are sinners deserving the penalty of everlasting separation from God… but He takes the initiative…. sending His Son to die for us… while we are still in sin. This is love, this is mercy beyond words.

I Timothy 1:15-16
15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.
16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

Mercy, grace and love are here. We are saved by the blood of Christ on the cross. We do nothing. All is of grace… the only thing I can offer is the sin from which I need to be saved. All is of grace…undeserved mercy.
Romans 5:1
Standing then acquitted as the result of faith, let us enjoy peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 8:1
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
What mercy, what love…. We are saved from sin and death.
But His mercy does not end there…. This sheepdog called mercy also follows us all the days of our lives, so when we mess up as surely we will, mercy pursues us again.
1 John 1:8-9
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
He is a merciful God.

3.All my life.
God's two faithful sheep dogs follow me all the days of my life. They will be with me as long as I am on this earth…. What a promise.
Heb 13:5
Be content with what you have; for God Himself has said, "I will never, never let go your hand: I will never never forsake you."
They follow me no matter the kind of day I am having. Discouraging days, distressing days, dangerous days, delightful days….days of sweet fellowship with the Lord.
David is pointing to the future. No matter what problems I may face, I am sure my shepherd will be there for me. Whatever David faced he chose to have complete confidence in God.He was confident that goodness and mercy followed him even when he could not see them.

4. Surely
What a great word. Not maybe, perhaps, possibly or hopefully. It is a certainty. No guess work, no doubts, no wondering, no hesitation, no question marks - absolutely without a doubt. When we go through times of confusion, discouragement and depression we can be sure that means we can be secure. We only become insecure when we forget how much God loves us. When the Lord is your shepherd He is for you.
Psalm 56:9
When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; This I know, because God is for me.

David said surely - God's goodness and mercy are following us.
God is always at work but with our limited understanding as finite human beings we cannot always comprehend His infinite wisdom.
God does not give up on us. He does follow us with His goodness and mercy because He loves us and despite our doubts and misgivings about His management of our life, He picks us up and brings us back to Himself.
It is so often in hindsight that we realise we were never out of His care. No difficulty can arise, no dilemma can emerge, or no seeming disaster can descend on our life without God eventually bringing good out of the chaos.
Heb 5:13 again “God Himself has said, "I will never, never let go your hand: I will never never forsake you."

The valley of deepest darkness

Thankyou to Kate for reminding me to keep my sermons blog up to date!
Not doing a lot of preaching at the moment...

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
This verse is probably most often used at funerals to remind us of the triumph of resurrection over death and that we no longer have to fear its dark shadow. We often think how this dark valley relates to the final journey in life. David was stating in Psalm23:4 his complete and utter trust in God's ability to lead and guide him through the actual valley of death as well as the dark valleys of daily life. From the perspective of the ending of our earthly life, the emphasis on this verse is found in the comforting words that "God is with us" and there is no need to "fear any evil" for God will lead us home.
God does not want His children cowering in fear of what lies on the "other side". As much as we fight to live.... and that's a natural instinct God placed within us, there comes a time in every person's life when the hope of what is to come overrides and replaces the pain of what has been. Fear of the pain of dying is understandably human... let's be honest.... but God wants us to know that when that moment comes when we literally find ourselves walking the valley of death, that He will be right there with us holding our hand and leading us to glory where there is no more pain, sorrow or death. There are many promises in the Bible which give us firm ground as Christians to be sure of eternal life. We hear them at every funeral service.
We will look again at this subject when, on another occasion, we examine the last phrase of Ps23; 'I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever'.

But what I want to focus on is not so much our last days, but on life's struggles.
The question really isn't whether we'll have a handful or a cartload of valleys to go through in our lives but, 'how?'; "how do we get through them." The key is in this verse because we don't go through life alone. The Good Shepherd is our constant companion.

There is a road that goes between Jericho and Jerusalem known as the "shadow of death" due to its narrow way and steep sides. David may well have known it. As a shepherd, he was very much aware of the dangers of these narrow trails that could result in the death of a sheep sliding down into the ravine.
When the shepherd of Bible times led his flock into the mountains to graze during the summer, there were valleys marked by cliffs and cold winds that must be crossed. The sheep had to go further and further up the mountains to graze, then later in the year go through it all again on the way home.
The comfort given in these dark, treacherous valleys was the presence of the shepherd, his rod, and his staff. The sheep had learned to depend on the shepherd for shelter, guidance, and safety. In these dark, shadowy valleys where there were life-threatening obstacles, a good shepherd protected of his sheep with his own life.
The word "shadow" implies it is late in the day when the sun has already gone behind the rocks and thus the ravine or valley would be darkened by late day shadows. The darker it would get, the more treacherous the attempt to navigate the trail. As it would get darker, the temperature would drop, and the vicious wild animals would appear looking for their evening meal.

David's soothing voice of confidence in this verse is that even if he must walk through the darkest valley late in the day with shadows abounding and potential for disaster with every step; he would fear no evil. In other words, he was able to walk through this valley with a deep assurance that God was with him and that God would guide him and bring him comfort.

Phillip Keller, once a shepherd himself, describes the closeness between the shepherd and the sheep.
Sometimes, I have been fascinated to see how a shepherd
will actually hold his staff against the side of some sheep
that is a special pet or a favorite, simply so that they are "in touch". They will walk along this way almost as though it were "hand-in-hand". The sheep obviously enjoys this special attention from the shepherd and revels in the close, personal, intimate contact between them...It is a delightful and moving picture.

The shepherd's rod and staff were not instruments of fear used to beat sense into the sheep or punish them for straying. These tools were simply used to keep the sheep on the "straight and narrow". When wild animals threatened, the shepherd would be ready with his rod. When the sheep would veer off course, the shepherd would gently nudge the sheep to the right or left to keep them on the trail instead of falling into the valley of death. The staff is the familiar crook which would be used to lift up and pull the sheep up out of danger.

As the Shepherd is with us we don't have to be afraid of the shadows. Do you know what a shadow is,? ... it's the outline of something blocking the light. The shadow is harmless except for the fear we let it generate in our hearts because of the unknown 'whatever' which it hides.
Would you rather be run over by a bus or the shadow of a bus? The shadow has no substance, you see. And also the shadow implies the light.....the Light of Christ reminding us there is nothing to fear for He is with us.

Donald English writes:
"We are no nearer to explaining why suffering is allowed as an element in our daily lives. Nor are we ever likely to be much nearer to that. We have seen how much of it we bring upon ourselves, either individually or corporately. But much more important is the assurance we have that however deep our sense of dereliction may be, God is actually in it with us....'

I was reflecting on the 62 mile walk we did for Christian Aid. The first bit from Melrose was going to be in the dark, so I walked it in daylight a few weeks before when Cindy and I were up there on holiday. So on the actual weekend of the walk I was able to lead and guide the other three easily in the dark since I'd been there.
The next morning, however, as we crossed the moor to Wooler in the dark, it was much harder, and we got lost. I hadn't done that bit in daylight.

Donald English continues; 'There is no place where we can go on earth's surface where the footsteps of God in Jesus have not preceded us. There is no deep place of suffering where God will not be with us. And God's presence is to redeem.... The God whom we worship is the one who, as Rabbi Hugo Gryn put it about his reaction to losing family in the concentration camps of WW2, 'wept with me'.
He's been there. He understands, and He's right beside you..... with His rod to protect and correct, and His staff to rescue and guide.

The valley of deep darkness will be ours sooner or later..
In more than 40 communications, published since her death, Mother Teresa bemoans the 'dryness,' 'darkness,' 'loneliness' and 'torture' she is undergoing.
Churchill spoke frequently to his family and friends about his 'Black Dog' which was a euphemism for depression.
He suffered with depression for most of his life and at times struggled to hide the extent of his black moods from his political colleagues. Interestingly he used to lay bricks as a means of distracting himself when depressed and felt that this kept the 'Black Dog' at bay.
. John of the Cross writes of 'the dark night of the soul', and two chapters of his book extol the benefits... not least that we learn to trust and depend on God more.
He leads us through these shadowy valleys, teaching us to trust and obey......"You are with me": The good Shepherd is with us even in what can seem the most troubling situations in our lives....working things out for our good.
And the Good Shepherd guards us with His life. 'He lays down His life for the sheep', says Jesus of himself.....the heart of the gospel is here, friends. Jesus died for me!

If I were to ask you now if you have known dark valleys, I don't think that one of you would say 'no', if you're honest. The trouble so often is we look at each other across the room and say to ourselves, 'He doesn't understand what I'm going through. She can't know the pain I feel.' Well, actually, he probably can. She probably does. Part of our commitment to love one another involves being authentic... honest with each other, being vulnerable, being available for each other...

As Jesus prepares to leave His disciples, as His time on earth is over, whilst assuring them of His presence always, He commands them to 'Love one another as I have loved you.'
That's perhaps a step beyond David's experience.
We must support and help one another. This love is the mark of the Christian and, reaching out, to come along side those outside these walls who suffer, not only to share the suffering, but to rescue and redeem ......that they may come to know the Good Shepherd as we do.

More of ‘my cup overflows’.

(sometimes I feel like Jeremiah. Everyone around is saying nice things. And here I am the only prophet banging away with the bad news. How can I expect people to like me? And like Jeremiah, I argue with God about it …. And God replies, ‘Michael, if you don’t say it, who will?’ Here goes again, then….)

"My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns-broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jeremiah 2:12-13

This verse has come back to me recently. I said some months ago that I should preach on it. Then this old mug of coffee (the mug was old, not the coffee!!) began to leak. I emptied the coffee into another mug and examined the leaky one. You couldn't see the crack at all, yet it was clear when tapping the mug with a spoon that it was unsound...

We tend to think of fountains like the one at Chatsworth, and that’s not wrong because it gives you the sense of the analogy.
Fountains in Jeremiah’s time would not be man-made but would be powerful springs welling up from the ground, pure, clean, fresh, powerful, thirst-quenching, refreshing, cooling, watering, restoring, reinvigorating, saving, cleansing, soaking, scouring, eroding, flooding,...
And as Jeremiah looks on in wonder…. After all it’s possible that the spring could have welled up suddenly from rain which had fallen many miles away…. Suddenly water bursts out into the desert. Can you imagine it? Living water… it is alive, and…. it brings life. The desert comes alive.
And the word of the Lord comes to Jeremiah:
'Which sort of water supply would you rather have, J, this…. Or a hole in the ground with mud at the bottom?'
'Would you rather have this pure, clean, fresh, powerful, thirst-quenching, refreshing, cooling, watering, restoring, reinvigorating, saving, cleansing, soaking, scouring, eroding, flooding,...…… which sprang up out of nowhere, for which you did no work, or here’s a spade…. Dig until you find some water…. And when you find it, for how long will it keep you supplied before it dries up?'
'It’s obvious what you would choose, isn’t it? So why have my people chosen the latter.'

Does your cup overflow, people of God?

I have coined the phrase ‘a club of like-minded people’ as referring to a church which is apparently no different from the local working men’s club (except there might be a bit less drinking), or the disabled club. Oh, plenty of activity, friendly, come-and-join-us atmosphere. There’s a lot of work going on…. Fellowship groups, young peoples’ groups, Sunday gatherings, and so on. It’s hard work….it really is! And you can see the difference for it.
And God says… 'it’s not that I am unimpressed by your hard work and dedication. My Spirit is around, but more is leaking out than is going in! Why? Because you have been doing it the wrong way. You have come up with wonderful ideas, you have worked so hard to find water, but you have been working to your agendas, not mine.'

'This is my agenda… go and be baptised in the Spirit…' That phrase used to be contentious… but I want you to understand that baptism simply means soaking. You might describe a sunken ship as baptised…. Water has got into every part where it wasn’t before.
And so at our baptism, the water symbolises the washing through, purifying, cleansing of our whole selves from sin… and we rise to new life.
Likewise, the Holy Spirit floods us reaching the parts that even a certain lager can’t get to.

‘My people have committed two evils.’ One evil is turning away from doing it God’s way. And the other is doing it the hard… not particularly successful… my own way, thankyou.

On the first leg of our 62 mile walk recently we came across a public watering place (at St Boswell's...) which had the impressive inscription:
Jesus said, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.". John 4:13-14 (King James Version)




When we turned the tap on however... nothing came out.

That reminded me of this Jeremiah verse.
Both refer to ‘Living water’.
In both instances there is a better way.
What, never thirst again?

Why would you settle for anything less than Living Water?
Rivers flowing out from you and me.

Go and look for the fountain of Living Water if you really want to do it my way, says the Lord.

I remember Rev John Wilson coming to Bible Study at Fred & Mary’s years ago.
He said something like this:
'You know your old granny used to use a dolly tub and a posh, and a mangle… it was such hard work. Washing the clothes was an all day job on Monday. Now you stick your clothes in the machine any time of the day and it does it all for you.
It’s like that with The Holy Spirit.'
You can graft away… like digging a cistern…. What a struggle! Or you can do it the easy way! God’s way.

How many times have I talked about getting serious with God… remember all that stuff last year about ‘If My people…. Humble themselves….Pray… seek My face…. Turn from doin it their way’. Get it?

Ron Dunn once described the spiritual life as like a boxing match. 2 boxers in the ring. Who are they? Is it you versus the devil? Is it you versus God? No the truth is the spiritual life is God versus the devil. They are the 2 adversaries. You keep out of the ring. The trouble is you want to do God’s job for Him… so you get up there in the ring… 'get out of the way God, I’m here, and I’m going to shine.' No wonder we fall and get hurt! No wonder we make no progress.
It’s about letting God be God.

It sounds too easy doesn’t it, but that is precisely what we actually have to do.
That is why prayer is of paramount importance. Jesus is knocking on the door. Prayer is to let Him in.
Remember what I said a few Sundays ago on the subject of Rev 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me …See below for the full text*… This is part of a letter to Christians. This is Jesus knocking on the door of the believer. You’re a Christian, but you left Jesus outside in the cold!! You thought He was inside, didn’t you? When the cup stops overflowing, and even dries up, we must ask why? …And the reason is really quite simple, we have made room for sin… and Jesus won’t share the house with sin. It really is that simple.

"My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns-broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jer 2:12-13

“But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.” John 4:14

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Rev 3:19

Let those who have ears hear!
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WITHIN A WEEK OF PREACHING THIS SERMON, I RECEIVED BY E-MAIL 2 MESSAGES BY WAY OF CONFIRMATION OF WHAT I HAVE SPOKEN... THESE ARE PUBLISHED ON MY REGULAR BLOG...SEE LINK ABOVE .... 6th Oct 2009
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*Rev 3:14-22"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. cc 20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. 21To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."h

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies

Ps 23v5a

Here’s the shepherd at work again for the benefit of the sheep.

The word table refers to tableland or mesa. It was a flat-topped plateau high in the mountains.
This high plateau land was sought after by the shepherds because it was the best grazing place for the sheep.
Phillip Keller in his book "A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23" shows how middle-eastern Shepherds prepare the tableland for the sheep.
Tablelands are remote and hard to reach, but energetic and enthusiastic shepherds take the time to get the land ready for the arrival of their flock.
As soon as the snow has melted the shepherd makes a trip up the mountain to see where the flock's summer grazing land will be. He will decide where the camps will be so that the sheep have the best grounds to bed down and the best places to graze. On one of his trips up the mountain a shepherd will take salt and minerals and distributes them over the grazing area. I was up on the North York Moors preparing for our Sept 60 mile hike for Christain Aid, and noticed little heaps of white minerals in amongst the sparse grass and heather placed there by the farmer for the sheep. The tableland doesn't have everything a sheep needs so the shepherd brings what the tableland lacks.
On the later trips just before the sheep arrive a shepherd will remove the poisonous weeds that have grown. Sometimes a shepherd will spend days removing these weeds.
The shepherd will also clear waterholes, springs and other drinking places as during the fall rains, winter snow and spring run off leaves, twigs, rocks and dirt will be washed into a water source. All this must be cleaned out.
A shepherd will also have to spend time repairing dams he has made in previous years so they will hold water for the sheep once again.

How has the Good Shepherd prepared the tableland for us?

1. He became one of us. He knows what we go through so He knows how to prepare the way for us. He has been there.
For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted. Hebrews 2:18
For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathise with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Hebrews 4:15

2. He gave us the Bible as our instruction book, our map and compass… paths to follow and pitfalls to avoid.

3. He prays for us.
And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail. Luke 22:31-32
Jesus warned Peter that Satan was after him and that He was praying for Him that his faith would not fail. The Good Shepherd knows what we are going to go through, what danger lays ahead and prays for us.
Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25

4. Not only does He pray, He also makes an escape route for us.
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. I Corinthians 10:13

5. In Christ we have everything we need
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Romans 8:32

6. His provision is daily. Give us this day our daily bread. The fact that God is providing for you today should give you confidence He will provide tomorrow.

7. He provides abundantly. Life in all its fullness John 10:10
This is one of the loveliest stories in the Old Testament:
1 Now David said, "Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?"
2 And there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba. So when they had called him to David, the king said to him, "Are you Ziba?" And he said, "At your service!"
3 Then the king said, "Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show the kindness of God?" And Ziba said to the king, "There is still a son of Jonathan who is lame in his feet."
4 So the king said to him, "Where is he?" And Ziba said to the king, "Indeed he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo Debar."
5 Then King David sent and brought him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo Debar.
6 Now when Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and prostrated himself. Then David said, "Mephibosheth?" And he answered, "Here is your servant!"
7 So David said to him, "Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father's sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually." 2 Sam 9:1-7
…And likewise we share at the table of the King, at Communion, the Eucharist. His table, His invitation, and we find sustenance here.
Jesus said to them, "Come and eat …." Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, "Who are You?" -knowing that it was the Lord. John 21:12

8. And we are protected too… in the culture of Jesus’s day whenever a host had a feast it became his responsibility to protect the people under his roof …. The Shepherd knows how frail we are…even the hairs of your head are numbered….there is not one second of the day or night that He is not watching over us.
How precious are your thoughts toward me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you. Ps 139: 17-18
It is great to know that He who created us, saved us in Christ, gave us Eternal Life and peace with God, never lets go of us, never.
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence,
"The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?" Heb 13:5-6

God provides a table for me then, even in the presence of my enemies. This I find intriguing.
Why did David mention enemies? He could have left us with the first phrase on its own… You prepare a table before me…It is enough is it not to know that He does for us all that we have mentioned above…..but David deliberately takes it further.
The shepherd is pictured providing for the sheep whilst looking out for the lion, bear or wolf he knows are there, and will never abandon the sheep, but will stand between them and the enemy .. he is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep.

Now Satan is our enemy.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 1Pet 5:8
..and Paul makes it clear… For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armour of God… Eph 6:12-13
People are not our enemies….powers at work in them may well be, for God hates the sin but loves the sinner.

People have put various interpretations on this business of ‘in the presence of my enemies’, but for what its worth, here’s my take on it:
Do you ever suffer from indigestion? Why?
One of the reasons is that you do not stop, relax, take time to eat and enjoy. If you are tense and wound-up about something it can be difficult to eat at all! If you do eat, when your stomach is churning, I do not need to tell you what may happen next!
I think that David is showing that our trust in the Good Shepherd needs to be like this:
I can sit down and relax and enjoy right in the face of all that might disturb and upset me.
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18
Can you see it? We are loved! There is no fear… you prepare a table before me and invite me to come and sit down and eat and enjoy with the full assurance that my enemy is watching. Satan is not a respecter of persons. He hates everyone including me with a passion and is out to destroy my life. But I am to trust in you, and not be even the slightest bit anxious because you are watching over me with love, and you lay down your life for the sheep.
In this context of love…there is no fear. That is how I see it. That I reckon is why David put that phrase in. It is about God’s love and care for us. Yes. But it is also about our trust in Him. Trust like this. Faith like this… that we can sit and eat where we should be trembling or running away. I want that sort of faith.
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you.
8 Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place Ps 91: 1-9
Staying close to the Shepherd does not guarantee a problem free life, but when problems come He is with us protecting and encouraging us. Remember always Romans 8v28… he is always at work for our good you see.

I hope when you read Psalm 23 again you will read it slowly one word at a time and allow yourself to feel its impact.
A. God prepares; He is the source of everything.
B. God prepares a table; He prepares a bountiful table.
C. God prepares a table for me ; I am welcome.
D. God prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies; Satan is out to get me but I will simply trust my Shepherd absolutely.
Today, thank Him for all He is doing as your source of everything, for the table He has prepared, for the fact you are welcome to sit at the table and for the fact that God is your protection from the enemy.
And for the faith you need to move forward fearlessly in your witness and service for Him.

My cup overflows.......

I want to visit again ‘my cup runneth over'. (click the title above to link you to a 'further study' on my regular blog)

At Pentecost, in my sermon, I said this:

We live through the most challenging of times. I don’t need to tell you that. It is a fresh outpouring, overflowing to the broken and lost, that we need today.
Peter said, ‘The promise is for you, right down the generations and right across the world.’
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows.’
And Jesus said to his disciples, this: ‘If you, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.’
This, friends is the key…. Asking.
Jesus makes it clear that God does not act if we are half-hearted in our asking. If however, we really mean it, we really want to serve and follow him, and we get down to serious persistent prayer asking God to act, He will.
A fresh out pouring of the Spirit is always preceded by persistent believing prayer.

I sensed after I said that, and I have now preached the sermon 3 times, that I needed to look at my own life (do I ‘really mean it’?) and whether the flow of the Spirit is uninterrupted, whether indeed my cup is overflowing, whether I am aware of God at work in and through me in answer to my prayers.
And as I meditated on this (this usually happens between 6 and 7 in a morning when having fed the dog and the cat I can be reasonably sure there will be no interruptions) I realised that although I was very much aware of God meeting my needs in response to prayer, there were blocks in my own life, unconfessed sin.
We all know Revelation 3:20 ‘Behold I stand at the door and knock etc.’ But what about the verse before it. Listen to this:
‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’ Rev 3:19 This and the verse following are addressed to believers, believers belonging to a church described as ‘lukewarm’. Believers who say ‘I am rich. I don’t need anything.’ … but whom Jesus describes as ‘wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.’ ..see Rev chapter 3.
The picture painted for us therefore when we come to read Rev 3:20 is of Jesus knocking on the door of the believer. Do you see what I’m saying? You’re a Christian, but you left Jesus outside!! You thought He was inside, didn’t you? When the cup stops overflowing, and even dries up, we must ask why? …And the reason may really be quite simple, we have made room for sin… and Jesus won’t share the house with sin. It really may be that simple.

‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’
What is it then that has blocked the flow and needs dealing with?
If we take time out and pray, God will reveal these things to us clearly. It is important at this point to say that if you are always feeling guilty that is unhealthy. The Evil One is constantly trying to drag us down with the discouragement that arises from our sense of unworthiness, and this develops into false guilt. Listen carefully: It is the work of the Holy Spirit when we pray to reveal the specific sins of which we need to repent. It is this sin of which you need to repent. There will be no nebulous sense of guilt.

Let me tell you of one of the specific sins the Holy Spirit showed me I needed to repent of: (at this point the congregation looks startled)
I have trouble with inanimate objects. Murphy’s law dictates that if it’s going to go wrong it will. That cable or string will always mysteriously tie itself into a knot. The bike chain will come off when you’re changing down 2 yards from the top of Leek Hill.
The computer will crash at the critical moment. You know what I mean.
And when that happens, irritation, anger if you like, so easily gets the better of me.
( here I tell the story of a typical wheel change after a flat tyre ... need I say more!!)

Underlying the symptom is the cause, and it is found in Galatians 5. Pretty well all the bad stuff is here on this list, and following it is the list of the fruit of the Spirit which is able to overcome it all.
19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Gal 5 v19-25.

Reading the bad list, we might say…oh’ I never do that!’ But how do we measure up to the good list. You see sin is best defined as ‘missing the mark’ (the picture is of the archer failing to get the bullseye). I missed the mark when it came to it. I lacked patience and self control, and could hardly say peace was at work in my life.
And so the Holy Spirit’s work in this context, is firstly to reveal your sin and mine specifically… so that we can see it clearly and repent of it. This is the rebuke. This is the dicipline.
‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’
See also Heb 12 v5-6….
5And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son
A word of encouragement? !

So, people of God, if your cup isn’t overflowing, why not?
If you want to be a disciple, discipline is needed. And that means allowing God to reveal our sins and weaknesses to us that we may repent, and determine not to fail God again.

7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.
8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1John 1v7-9.
Walking ‘in the light’ is a key theme of John.
See also John 3 v 19-21:
19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.
The light reveals the imperfections.
Walking in the light all day and every day…. In the power of the Spirit.
When we sin we grieve the Spirit, we quench the Spirit. How can we expect His streams of living water to flow in us and through us when we harbour unconfessed sin?
James 1v5-7 makes it clear that we have to be wholehearted in our asking:
5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
This should go without saying.
4The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love[b] is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2v4-6.

Here is how the Spirit is going to flow in you says Jesus….
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John 14v 12-14.
This is staggering, but we will only fully realise this, church, when we understand what ‘in my name’ means. The name of a person in Jesus’s day embodied the whole of that person’s character and purpose. ‘In my name’ means that we must wholeheartedly align ourselves to the will and purpose of Christ.
Then, and only then will the wells be unblocked and the rivers flow.

13 "My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water Jer 2v13

What an indictment!
What a contrast painted in this prophetic picture of Jeremiah!
Where do you and I fit on the scale?….
At one end…...Fount of living waters, freely available, fresh and powerful.
At the other end..Stagnant, leaky, requiring-hard-labour-to-achieve-nothing.

My cup overflows.
Does it?

Come Holy Spirit. Reveal our emptiness and therefore the sins of which we need to repent.
May we confess, and know our sins forgiven.
Make us wholehearted servants, ready and willing to endure discipline; to be your disciples. Let our cups overflow. Allow your Spirit to do His work in and through us.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,
all his woundrous compassion and purity.
Holy Spirit divine, all my nature refine
so the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
And so Lord, we come and we ask, in the name of Jesus, for your Holy Spirit.

You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows

You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows

Welcome to Pentecost and our Church Anniversary. It’s 3 years since the improvements to the building were completed. It’s 4 years since we had our first 24 hour prayer vigil… and we just did it again.
What do we expect to happen?
Someone once said, ‘What we receive from God is always limited by our expectations.’ William Carey, the father of foreign missions, said, ‘Expect great things from God, Attempt great things for God.’
And today we have come for another routine Sunday service?
I wonder if David expected the anointing? Samuel had seen all his handsome brothers, and there was still David the youngest to fetch in from the field. When he arrived, God told Samuel to anoint him king. God sees not the outward appearance, but the heart. How is your heart this morning? Do you have a heart for the lost, like the Good Shepherd?
The practice of anointing in the OT was reserved mainly for kings and also for priests. Anointing was often connected with the impartation of the Holy Spirit.
In the passage from Isaiah; ‘The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for He has anointed me…’ we see 3 results of the anointing of the HS which will help us understand why we need such an anointing today.
John Wimber said ‘It’s about meeting the needs of others with the resources of God’.
1. We go out and the good news is preached to the poor and downtrodden, hope and forgiveness is available for the marginalised.
2. The broken-hearted may be healed. We have a clear calling to rescue those around us with broken hearts and lives and relationships
3. Captives and those in darkness are set free. We know lots of people like that. Slaves to addictions, in deep depression, on drugs. Held captive by the Evil One and unable to help themselves.
This is our calling, Church. How is your heart this morning? Do you have a heart for the lost, like the Good Shepherd? Do you long for the anointing of the Holy Spirit on your life? Do you long for revival and for the Spirit to move again as he did at Pentecost and numerous occasions since. Who can say that the time is not right. We live in desperate times, and God is calling us back to Him to be instruments of His peace and purpose.
Feel inadequate?
Well here’s the promise:
‘You anoint my head with oil’, and that’s not all……
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows’.
No half measures.
Watch: (pour ‘wine’ into pyramid of glasses)
Listen to this:
John 7…. Rivers of living water.
God is a god of mega-generosity. There are no half measures. Your cup is filled and running over.
Look at the disciples on the day of Pentecost. The neighbours thought they were drunk. It was an outpouring which touched 3000 lives.
George Whitfield along with Wesley was greatly used of God in the 18th Century ‘Great Awakening’. It is thanks to that awakening that we are here.
Whitfield wrote in his journal, how he was filled with the Holy Spirit. ‘Oh that all who deny the promise of the Father, might thus receive it themselves! Oh, that all were partakers of my joy!’
He also describes on one occasion he began to pray a brief prayer before addressing the assembly but to his own astonishment could not stop. Petitions, praises, raptures poured forth from his lips.’ A wonderful power was in that room’ Whitfields prayer was drowned by cries which, he was sure, could be heard a great way off…. Cries and groans and quaking had sometimes accompanied the preaching…. ‘thousands cried out so that they almost drowned my voice’. Whitfield did not doubt that the Spirit of God was flowing…
It is well documented that the revival of Wesley and Whitfield probably saved England from a bloody revolution like that in France at the time.

Charles Finney described his experience of the Holy Spirit which occurred in the early 19th Century:
The Holy Spirit descended upon me in a manner that seemed to go through me, body and soul. I could feel the impression, like a wave of electricity, going through and through me. Indeed it seemed to come in waves of liquid love, for I could not express it in any other way. It seemed the very breath of God. I can remember distinctly that it seemed to fan me, like immense wings.
No words can express the wonderful love that was shed abroad in my heart. I wept aloud with joy and love, I literally bellowed out the unspeakable overflow of my heart. These waves came over me, and over me, and over me, one after the other……’
Finney went on to spearhead a revival in America which his biographer claimed ‘literally altered the course of history’. Over half a million people were converted under his ministry in an age when there was no PA or mass media. Billy Graham says ‘Through his Spirit-filled ministry thousand upon thousand came to know Christ, resulting in one of the greatest periods of revival in the history of America. In communities where he preached bars and saloons closed for lack of business and the crime rate dropped. Countless lives changed through the ministry of a man who let the Spirit flow in him, and out from within him, to the lost.
We live through the most challenging of times. I don’t need to tell you that. It is a fresh outpouring, overflowing to the broken and lost, that we need today.
Peter said, ‘The promise is for you, right down the generations and right across the world.’
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows.’
And Jesus said to his disciples, this: ‘If you, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.’
This, friends is the key…. Asking.
Jesus makes it clear that God does not act if we are half-hearted in our asking. If however, we really mean it, we really want to serve and follow him, and we get down to serious persistent prayer asking God to act, He will. So we have been praying this last 24 hours. So we need to be praying now.
A fresh out pouring of the Spirit is always preceded by persistent believing prayer.
Spurgeon, that great preacher recognised that.
So does John Kilpatrick, a pentecostal pastor in Pensacola, Florida, who in recent years has seen vast numbers of people come to faith. Prayer is the key.
Fred would tell you that the subject of our prayer time each Wednesday at 7am always comes round to young people and to revival.
‘Ask anything in my name and it’s yours’ says Jesus.
Let us get serious and ask God for revival.
We may be few, but remember the church began with a dozen unlikely characters whose lives were transformed by God’s Spirit at Pentecost.
We celebrate that today, and we look ahead as God’s people on this our Anniversary, and we say, ‘Lord, we want to see this church really grow. Come, revive us today. Pour out your Spirit. Send the fire!’
I’ve mentioned Count Zinzendorf and the 100 years prayer before. Here’s an excerpt from the revival amongst the Moravians:
Throughout the summer, the community interceded, Zinzendorf often leading the way with tears and loud cries. Groups met in homes to pray and confess their sins. Spontaneous nights of prayer were a regular occurrence.
Throughout July, the sense of urgency grew. A visiting preacher fell to the ground during the service, crying out to God for a new move of His power. In the prayer meetings, many would kneel or lie prostrate, weeping before the Lord. Zinzendorf recorded later:
"Everyone desired above everything else that the Holy Spirit might have full control. Self-love, self-will, and all disobedience were removed under the blood of the Lamb, and an overwhelming flood of grace swept us all into a great ocean of Divine Love."
A Holy Communion service was planned for the middle of August at the church in nearby Berthelsdorf. Everyone came with a deep sense of personal unworthiness and a dependence on God's mercy. During the service, the Holy Spirit descended in power, filling the whole company. Tears, shouts of joy, hugs and loud praise filled the air.
"Great signs took place in our midst", the count recalled. "From that time, scarcely a day went by where we did not behold His mighty workings among us. We returned home from this meeting with peace and joy and love in our hearts"
The anointing…the overflowing. It’s for us, here, today

'He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul?' (Ps 23:2,3).

Did you know that the only creature that has more trouble sleeping than we do is a sheep? Everything must be just right: no wolves, no insect pests, and no hunger. Since sheep can?t find pasture, spray insecticide, or protect themselves, they need a shepherd. So do we! Listen: ?He makes me lie down in green pastures.? (Psalm 23:2 NIV). Note: our Shepherd chooses the path, prepares the pasture, and protects the sheep. What?s our part? Just follow, eat, rest, and stay close! David said, 'He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul?' (Ps 23:2,3). Those things only happen in His presence. Ponder these three scriptures:
(1) 'Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God' (Dan 6:10 NIV)
(2) 'in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait in expectation' (Ps 5:3 NIV)
(3) 'Very early in the morning, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed' (Mk 1:35 NIV).
Jesus understood that solitude was necessary for intimacy with God, and intimacy with God was necessary for giving out to others. Job said, 'the breath of the Almighty hath given me life' (Job 33:4). Until God breathes His thoughts into you, you’re just recycling the ideas of others. In Genesis God said, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish?' (Gen 9:1). Have you learned yet how to 'replenish' your flagging emotions and drained energies? The message is clear you need more time alone with God!
Friends, the Shepherd is here today for you…and you and you….and me.

Most of what I want to say is about Sunday, the Sabbath Day…Sabbath means rest.…The fourth commandment: REMEMBER THE SABBATH. KEEP IT HOLY. EXODUS 20:8 Discussing his coming vacation to The Holy Land, a Scotsman told his pastor, ‘When I get to read the ten commandments on Mt. Sinai, I’ll feel close to God.’ His pastor replied, ‘Jock, if you want to feel close, just stay home and keep them!’

‘REMEMBER THE SABBATH and KEEP IT HOLY’. shouldn’t be interpreted:
1) In a legalistic way! Because God said, ‘Keep the Sabbath holy,’ people have made it heavy. In fact, by Jesus’s time there were over 1,500 things you couldn’t do, like bathing, walking too far or scratching a flea bite! The Sabbath’s for rest and celebration; a time to recharge your spiritual battery, not drain it. It should be the milestone, not the millstone of your week!
2) In a loose way! This is our problem The pendulum has swung so far the other way that now anything goes. People go everywhere on the Sabbath except to God’s house, and excuse it by saying, ‘I’ll be there in spirit,’ . Last time I was preaching at Scotter, there was me going South along Scotter bottom, and streams of cars going North, where to? St Tesco.
3) In a limited way! Do you attend church on Sunday, then ignore God the rest of the week? Is your Christianity so irrelevant to daily life that it’s just a one-day-a-week affair? Remember, He’s not just the Lord of the Sabbath, He’s the Lord of life. So stop confining Him to a church and start taking Him to a world that needs hope and salvation.

We’ve considered what the Sabbath isn’t; now let’s look at what it should be.
1) A day of rest! A man who went to his doctor suffering from burnout, was told he’d have to slow down. ‘Doctor,’ he replied, ‘I didn’t come for a lecture on burning the candle at both ends, I came for more wax!’ God meant life to have a definite rhythm, like work, worship, labour, rest. Why? Because the bow that’s always bent will eventually break! A group of African explorers hired some native guides. For six days they were up at dawn and ready to go. So on the seventh morning when the guides didn’t rise the explorers asked why. In broken English the head guide replied, ‘We not go today. We rest. Let souls catch up with bodies’. That says it all! The Sabbath was designed to let your soul catch up with your body. Of the ten commandments God gave to Moses, which one do you think required the most words? Adultery? Five words. Murder? Four words. Taking a day off - 94 words! (Exodus 20:8-11). God knows us so well: He knew the workshop proprietor would say, ‘Somebody’s got to work that day; if I can’t, my son will.’ So God says, ‘Nor thy son.’ ‘Then my daughter will.’ ‘Nor thy daughter.’ ‘Then an employee.’ ‘Nor thy manservant.’ God says, ‘One day a week you’ll say ‘no’ to work and ‘yes’ to worship. You’ll slow down, sit down, lie down and rest. After all, I rested on the seventh day and the world didn’t crash. So, my child, repeat after Me, ‘It’s not my job to run the world.’ Spurgeon said, ‘Even the sea pauses at ebb and flood; earth keeps the Sabbath of the wintry months and man must rest or faint, trim his lamp or let it burn low, burnout. In the long term, we shall do more by sometimes doing less.’ Today, if you allow Him, God will bring rest to your mind, your body and most of all your soul. With some airlines, before an aeroplane takes off the attendant tells you that if the plane gets into trouble, secure your own oxygen mask before attempting to help others with theirs. That's wise! Unless you get enough oxygen, how can you help anybody else? To use a timely illustration, ultimately you have to make deposits where the world you live in seems to make endless withdrawals, or else face insufficient funds. Pretty soon those cheques are bouncing everywhere: morally, emotionally, and spiritually. In His presence God will supply everything we need to thrive, to experience abundant life. He is utterly devoted to our good !!
2) A day of remembering! Toward the end of his life William Barclay said, ‘I’m old, and I’ve learned that there are very few things in life that really matter, but those few things matter intensely!’ Worshipping with other believers matters because we are bringing to remembrance all God has done for us in Christ. ‘Do this in remembrance of me’, we here at each Communion. We are reminded as we gather of His grace and mercy, His constant care and provision for us, His wonderful promises in His Word, His call upon our lives and last but by no means least, that we are members of a family.
3) A day of resurrection! For Christians every Sunday is a mini-Easter, a time to celebrate new beginnings. It’s the beginning of the week… we are launched into the challenges of the week with resurrection power!
4) It is the day the Spirit came…..’Come, Holy Spirit, revive and renew us today. Fill us, empower us with your love’.

He makes me to lie down… in this Psalm words like leads and restores are used but here the word is makes.
Does that mean we have no choice in the matter? I don’t think so. We can fight back if we so wish. But who would want to do so?
The Good Shepherd is giving His total attention to me, little me, why would I want to run away. ‘I have come that you may have life, and life in all its fullness.’
Matthew 28:20-and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen
His presence will dispel the fear, the panic and the terror of the unknown.
Jesus is here. The outlook changes and suddenly there is hope.

So here we are. It’s the Sabbath. Rest, the best of food, refreshment, restoration. He restores my soul.
Do you want some of that? Then you have to let go, and let Him make you to lie down and enjoy the immense blessings He has for you.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul

Where are you just now in relation to the Shepherd?
You have heard me preach on worry and contentment. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
Some of you have been online for another look at those messages.

What is God saying to you through these messages? Why are you here? God said that to Elijah. What are you doing here Elijah? He didn’t know… he’d ran away. Hope was thin. Desperation had set in.
Who here today is worried, lonely, depressed, uncertain, empty, weak, troubled, overwhelmed, lost, etc etc. ?
If any of these caps fit, you’re in the right place today.
Maybe you heard the message, believed the Good News, lived and worked for Jesus, but you have come to a place where you are now self reliant and you’re not sure how you got here. The ground is hard and dry and you are tired. You don’t know what to do next, how to find the way again, how to recover the strength you once had.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul

Whatever you need God for today, He is here.
I’m tired
He restores my soul
I’m lonely
He restores my soul
I’m hurting
He restores my soul
I need healing
He restores my soul
I need replenishing
He restores my soul
I’m frightened
He restores my soul
I’m uncertain
He restores my soul
HELP !@*$”#?%
He restores my soul

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
he rises to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!
O people …. you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. ISAIAH 30: 18&19

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