A wonderful promise

Jesus promised his followers that he would not leave them as orphans (John 14:18), which may have seemed strange for them at the time. At this point in their discipleship journey they probably had very little idea of what was to come - they didn't yet understand the pain and heartache that lay in the future. However, I am sure that these words from Jesus (v.18) came back to them, as they grieved his death.

It is interesting that the Greek word 'orphanos' is used in this instance, which is easy for us to see how we come up with the English word 'orphan.' Most scholars believe that what Jesus was saying was deeper than, "I won't leave you without a Father," but that it could also mean, "I won't leave you without a teacher."

We should remember that one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is that He is our teacher and He helps us to understand the words of Scripture. I love the fact that the person of the Holy Spirit is so multi-faceted, that He is hard to confine to a single definition.

Thought: In what way have you experienced the Spirit as a Father or as a teacher? 

Living in Grace

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What is God really like?

What is God really like?

This question has been on the lips of millions of people over the millennia. And as much as we can delve deeper into this question, the answer is staggeringly simple. 

Jesus said: Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9). 

In other words, if we want to understand who God is, all we need to do is study Jesus. If we can comprehend the nature and 'person' of Jesus, then we will have a best foundation to understand Yahweh. The apostle Paul actually put it like this:

Colossians 1:15: “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

Hebrews 1:3: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.”

Thought: If you want to discover what God is really like, please don't look at other people (pastors included) - rather study the life and person of Jesus.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

If you don't know me by now...

The song "If you don't know me by now" was written in the 1970's, but gained world-wide fame in 1989, when Simply Red released their version of the song. The opening lines of the song raise an interesting point. They state:

"If you don't know me by now,
You will never, never, never know me..."

The reason I mention this is because the question we reflected on in yesterday' sermon was: "Don't know you me as yet?" - this is the searching question that Jesus asked Philip. It was a gentle rebuke of Philip suggesting to him that he should know the ways of Jesus a lot more, especially since he had spent enough time with Jesus already. 

"Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? - John 14:9

For me, there is a difference between the 2 statements. The first one implies that we will never get to truly know the other person, no matter how hard we try. While Jesus' challenge leaves room for us to decide to 'know' God on a deeper level. I am not sure if that makes sense to you, but I am inspired to lean into the scriptures to get to know Jesus as my brother and friend. What about you?

“I am not asking whether you know things about Him but do you know God, are you enjoying God, is God the centre of your life, the soul of your being, the source of your greatest joy?” - Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Living in grace

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Don't let yourself be disturbed!

 

Have you felt yourself becoming restless and disturbed lately? It could be down to a lot of different reasons, but we can easily become anxious and worried about many things. Life is complex and we are facing may tough situations all around us. 

When Jesus was preparing his disciples for his imminent departure, he encouraged them not to be afraid. He says to them in John 14:1 - "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and also trust in me."

In the Complete Jewish Bible, the verse reads like this: "Don’t let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me." I like the variation in this translation because it really speaks to me. 

I pray that whatever you may be facing at the moment, that you would Trust in Jesus, and allow God's Spirit to keep your heart from becoming too anxious and disturbed.

Living in Grace

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The illusive gift

If you hadn't realised it as yet, the world offers us many gifts to try and appease our feelings of unease. These take the form of many disguises and facades, but in the end, they usually fail to meet our deepest needs. Jesus steps into the fray and offers us something remarkably life-giving - it is the gift of himself. 

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." - John 14:27

In my experience, the PEACE that we are invited to share, is not just a 'feeling', but a relationship with the ONE who is PEACE personified.

What do you feel?

Where do you find your peace? 

Living in Grace

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Paving the way

"God not only begins, but conducts to the end, the work of our salvation, that his grace in us may not be useless and unprofitable. As he opens up the way, he paves it, and removes the obstacles of every description, and is himself the leader during the whole journey. In short, he continues his grace towards us in such a manner that he at length brings it to perfection." - John Calvin

As we read these words is there a passage from scripture that comes to your mind?

Perhaps I can prompt us a little...

... John 14:6?

... Isaiah 35:8?

If you have the time to search these two passages you will find the answer in each one of them. For me, the key in this quote and in the scriptures is that God's grace continues with each one of us, as we journey on the way. Instead of creating obstacles for us, God paves the way.

Living in Grace

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No comforter

It has been said that Mark Twain wrote so bitterly at times because he felt so deeply about things. I can't argue this point at all, but I do feel we could suggest the same for Solomon. As we move into chapter 4 we see that his writing continues to be filled with desperation. Even though he turns now to address issues on a society level, we clearly see his despair.

"Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:

I saw the tears of the oppressed—
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
and they have no comforter." - 4:1

It is interesting that he see that both the oppressor and the oppressed seem to have no one to comfort them. Initially I thought 'why should the oppressor have someone to comfort them?Surely, it is only the oppressed who need comfort?' But, then I was challenged by a Biblical commentator who suggested that the reason why the powerful oppress others is because the lack contentment and peace. They take their frustrations out on others - usually in a very destructive way.

Thankfully, Jesus offers to bring comfort to all people and to those who call on his name Jesus offers perfect peace.

John 14:16 - And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate (Comforter) to help you and be with you forever.

Living in Grace

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Dietrich Bonhoeffer prayer

                                                
                                                            

"In me there is darkness,

But with thee there is light,

I am lonely, but thou leavest me not.

I am feeble in heart, but thou leavest me not.

I am restless, but with thee there is peace.

In me there is bitterness, but with thee there is patience;

Thy ways are past understanding, but

Thou knowest the way for me." - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

This prayer reminded me of a few scriptures. I am not sure which passages came to mind for you, but these are the ones I thought of. God bless you.

Matthew 28:20 - "Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

John 14:27 - “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Living in Grace

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All I want is ...

 

Apparently when Dante turned up at the door of a Franciscan monastery a monk asked him what he wanted. Dante replied in one word - "PEACE!"

I think his desire is probably the desire of most people. What we wouldn't give for peace? Peace of mind. Peace in the world. Peace in our communities.

Lloyd John Ogilvie wrote: "Christ is peace. Christ is patience.

We could never produce these graces in our own strength in our own strength in the quantities they are needed in our families and our world. But we do have access to an unlimited stockpile of patience because the same Spirit that enable Christ is in us."

John 14:27 - “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid."

Living in Grace

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Blessed with peace

^“The Lord gives strength to his people;
  the Lord blesses his people with peace.” – Psalm 29:11

In reflecting on today’s reading John Stott writes some insightful words: “God, whose voice is heard in the thunder, can also pacify the storm, making Himself known in the still small voice as well as in the earthquake. He is thus able to give to His people not only strength but peace.”

For millions of people struggling to make ends meet in this crazy world of ours, if you offered them strength and peace, they would take them both with open hands. Some would even be willing to pay exorbitant prices for the blessing of peace and strength. 

The irony is that Jesus Christ offers us both of these gifts for free – through trusting in God’s grace, we get to benefit from His perpetual peace and strength. Jesus said: 

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid (John 14:27).

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). 

Living in Grace

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Don't you know me?

Many of us want to know what God is like? We think that if we could just get a handle on God, then it would make our faith a little easier and we would be much more committed to the cause. 

Philip was having a conversation with Jesus about some important matters, when Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? (John 14:9)

For me, this reveals a key truth. If we want to know what God is like, then we can begin by reading about Jesus. The life, character, words and person of Jesus will give us the clearest image of the Eternal God. Of course we can start by opening up a Bible and starting in the Gospels - that is the best place to begin.

Let us stop looking for signs of God that may not appear and instead study the ones that are right in front of us.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Help

One of the regrets of people who are in the caring professions (I will include Pastors in this bracket for today) is that we can't help everyone. It is always my desire to try and help as many people as possible, but inevitably I will disappoint someone. I have learnt to stop beating myself up about this, but it does make me disappointed in myself at times. 

 

The reality is that there will always be something "unfinished" and we have to trust in God's provision for all people. Thankfully, the Lord gives us ALL a helper - the Holy Spirit - and He is with us always. 

 

John 14:16 - "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever."

 

Psalm 10:12 -"Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless."

Psalm 18:6 - "In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears."

I like the quote from Ronald Reagan, which is attached - "We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone."

Who is your "Someone" today?

Living in Grace
D3LM3