Thursday 29 September 2011

THE WORD BECAME FLESH

The apostle John, the beloved, at the age of about 95 plus, after having been tortured by being thrown in a container of boiling oil, and being banned to the isle of Patmos, when he after some years returned to Ephesus, reflects on the life of Jesus and writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit:

            "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
             was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through
             Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life,
             and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the
             darkness did not comprehend it." John 1: 1-4

             "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory,
              the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."
              John 1: 14

At the time when he wrote this, he probably had all the various books of the Bible, as we know it, at his disposal, although it was not yet bound as one Script, as none of the other authors of the Scriptures lived to his ripe old age.

He was one of the three disciples in the inner circle of the close companions of our Lord, and was therefore present throughout the years of Jesus's ministry. He was there when a number of the disciples were called, he was there when Jesus performed all the miracles, he was there on the mount when Jesus was glorified, he was there when Jesus taught them to pray, he was there at the triumphant entry into Jerusalem, he was at the last supper, when Jesus was betrayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, at the cross, at the grave, at the ascension, when the Holy Spirit was poured out on them....he was there all the time... he heard everything, saw everything, learnt everything...

              "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have
               seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled,
               concerning the Word of life-  the life was manifested, and we have seen, and
               bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father
               and was manifested to us- that which we have seen and heard we declare to
               you, that you also may have fellowhsip with us; and truly our fellowhip is
               with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." 1 John 1: 1 - 3

And as Jesus taught all his disciples, so He also taught us everything through the Scriptures which we have in our hands, through the Word that is being preached to us, through our own personal experiences of the renewing power in His Name, through miracles that we see and hear that are still happening today.

When He became flesh and lived on this earth, by His life, He set us an example of how He wants us to live and what He wants us to be doing to build His Kingdom.

So why don't we go and out spread the Word? Why don't we go out and perform the same miracles?

             "Most assuredly, I say to you He who believes in Me, the works that I do he
              will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My
              Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father
              may be glorified in the Son." John 14: 12-13

So why don't we?

Is it because we carry around guilt about the way we live or the things that we do? About the sin in our lives? Well, then we should repent and accept forgiveness and live according to His Word.

Or is it that because we think that we are to perform the miracles that we feel unworthy or unable, or incapable of performing miracles and therefore do nothing instead?

Why don't we just realise that it is in fact God who performs the miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit. Then it would be easy to leave it up to Him to do what He wants, when He wants, for whom He wants, as He wants. All he asks of us is to obey His commandments to go out, be witnesses, teach people about Him, pray for the sick, feed the needy, comfort the mourning, assist the helpless...

             "...Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

Thank You, Lord, that you have taught us all we need to know to obey Your commands. Thank You that you are able and willing to perform miracles even in this day. Please help us to overcome our own feelings of inadequacy and to go out there and help those who are seeking You to find You, those who are hurting to mend, those who are sick to be healed.
          

Monday 26 September 2011

WHEN ARE WE GOING TO LEARN THAT HE KNOWS IT ALL?

About three weeks ago, I spent a weekend with a very dear friend of mine and her husband.

The Saturday, as usual when I am with them, we went to visit her mom in an old age centre.

On the way back, we discussed how there was only enough funds left in her mother's banking account to cover one more month's excess regarding the board and lodging at the old age home and that from that point on, she would somehow have to find the funds every month to supplement her mom's income.

We also discussed how for that reason, although she was due for retirement, she would not be able to do so. Of course, she appreciated the very great privilege to still have her mom around and she would provide lovingly as long as necessary, but at the same time, she had been looking forward to retirement.

Well, last Saturday, her mom woke up in the morning, said she was not feeling well, and by the evening, she had passed on to be with the Lord...

After the initial shock - who knows it is always a shock when someone who is close to you passes on  - even if they are in their late eighties... I marvelled that her finances worked out so perfectly... and then I reconsidered ... and then thanked God that He who knows everything from everlasting to everlasting, also knew from many years ago, exactly how much her mom would need and the precise provision  needed was there for exactly that purpose.

When will we learn that we can ALWAYS trust God in ALL things?

                "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of
                 peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jer. 29:11

                 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, 
                 those who are called according to His purpose." Rom. 8:28

Thank You, Lord, that we can always trust You. Thank You that You not only provide but You will also comfort us in times of heartache and loss.

Monday 19 September 2011

FOR ALL THE WORLD...

Historians tell us that there is a lapse of approximately 400 years between the Old and New Testatments.

Four hundred years during which no prophet or priest heard from God. Silence from heaven. Not a word written down. No inspiration through the Spirit of God. Imagine that...

Imagine not hearing the voice of God throughout your whole life... However, I do believe that there were individuals to whom God spoke during that time. Even as when Noah was living on earth and God found only one righteous man to whom he could give instructions, so there will always be at least one... somewhere... who hears the voice of God.

But then, after 400 years, everything changes! Suddenly, God sets the scene for the arrival of His son on earth. And the birth of this, His Son, is announced in the most extraordinary manner. Angels, a multitude of them, appearing in the night skies outside Bethlehem, singing and announcing His coming! What a wonderful sight that must have been. What a awesome sight that must have been. I bet the shepherds were dumbstruck and scared out of their minds. And the first then to whom God announces the birth are the lowly, "blue collared" labourers - the shepherds, and the sheep, dumb animals that they are! The very animals that were used for sacrifices for sin in those days! I bet God decided He would tell them first so that they would know that before long it would no longer be necessary to steal their lives from them!

Do you not believe that God talks to the animals? I have news for you! How do you think He got them all into the ark on time? What about the plagues He sent on the Egyptians? How did he get swarms of insects and locusts there at the exact time He wanted without directing them? And listen to this:

                 "And it shall come to pass in that day that the Lord will whistle for the fly that
                 is in the farthest part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land
                 of Assyria. They will come, and all of them will rest in the desolate valleys and
                 in the clefts of the rocks, and on all thorns and in all pastures." Is. 7:18-19

So, after He told the shepherds and the sheep, He told the wise men of the East by showing them a new star! And of course they had the prophesies left by Daniel while he was in Babylon so they knew the time was right  and were expecting a new King. So now the intellectuals, the wise, also knew about it! And they went and told King Herod! So royalty knew about it! And then Joseph and Mary (ordinary people) took Him to the temple and presented Him to Simeon, of whom it was said :

                  "and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation if Israel, and
                    the Holy Spirit was upon him." Luke 2:25

(he was one of those we wrote about earlier who still heard the voice of God) and there was Anna, the prophetess, who lived in the temple, who recognized the Christ, so now we also had the godly and the church of the time knowing that He had arrived. So you see, God announced it to the whole spectrum of human beings - albeit individuals only!

Why am I saying this? Because Jesus, the Son of God, came not only for the lowly, or the priesthood, or the ordinary, or the intelligent, or royalty, or the wise, no He came for the whole world, and that includes you and me.

Isn't that something?

                "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
                believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

Thank You, Lord, that you thought of me, the lowly, the ordinary, when You announced the birth of Your
Son, so that I would never have to doubt that He died for me also. Thank You, for your mercy and grace in including all your creatures and not just the wise, or the rich, or the priesthood, or royalty.

Friday 16 September 2011

IN THE LIGHT


God is light.
He can never be in shade or darkness. There is no darkness in Him. Light dispels darkness. The only part of any object that can ever cast a shadow or be in darkness, is that part which is turned away from the light.
Christ is the door between us and God - the only way for us to become part of the Light. Through Christ we can come so close to God that we can be totally absorbed by His Light so that there is no longer any darkness in us. How can we get so close to Christ as to be one with God as He is one with His Father? Thru personal fellowship with Him.
              "...which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked
               at and our hands have touched - this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.
              The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the
              eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to
              you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with
              us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ."
              1 John 1:1-3
What is fellowship? I looked up the words "fellow" and "fellowship" in the dictionary and found "a room mate, a replica of, a fellow traveller, a fellow citizen, a co-worker, a fellow soldier, a participator, a sharer, a friend".
If we examine our lives how close are we to the Light? How close is the fellowship we have with the Triune God?       
John writes in 1 John 1:5:
               "...God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship
               with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But 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 sin."
In Durban, years ago, I had a friend who was blind. Or, let me rephrase that - she was totally blind in one eye and could distinguish between light and total darkness with the other eye. But she was the first one to reply if someone asked the time and the first one to notice if there was a car door not closed properly whilst I was driving.
She had a guide dog as well as a white cane to help her get along, and she was as independant as she could possibly be. She lived by herself in a first floor flat, and worked as a switchboard operator at a financial institution in Pinetown, a town approximately 20 km from Durban.
She was therefore functioning to the best of her ability, and almost as any other person with sight, but that changed not the fact that she was in fact 98% blind and in darkness.
One morning as she left her flat for work, her neighbour shouted, "Where are you going?". "To work", she replied. "What! With only a petticoat and no skirt?" the neighbour asked. Although she could feel the material against her legs, she was unable to see that she had forgotton to put on her skirt. She needed light and sight for that.
She lived in a block of flats next to a hotel. Many evenings drunks from the hotel would get no further than the pavement in front of her block of flats and would sit their in their drunkenness and be a nuisance to the tenants of the flats. My friend would bump against them coming in and going out and chase them away.
On one occasion I dropped her off at the flat in the evening. As soon as she started crossing the road to get to her flat, I heard her talking out loud and swinging her walking stick. When she got to the opposite side, she started hitting a black refuse bag sitting on the pavement and telling it to get up and go!
You see, although she THOUGHT she saw another drunk sitting on the pavement, she was wrong!
              "If we claim to have fellowship with Him, but walk in the darkness, we lie and do not
               live by the truth." 1 John 1:6
Sometimes we also think we are walking in His light, when in fact we are stumbling around in the darkness.
Thank You, Lord, that we may approach Your throne of glory through the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You, that, as did the Father of the prodigal son, You see us coming from afar, and run and embrace us. Help us to walk in Your light daily.

Tuesday 13 September 2011

...IF MY WORDS REMAIN IN YOU...

Reading the words of the apostle Paul to the Phillipians:

                  "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of
                   mine making request for you all with joy...just as it is right for me to think
                   this of you all, because I have you in my heart..." Phil. 1: 3,4,7

I suddenly realised that using similar words more in line with the current use of the English language, we may sound exactly the same talking about our friends and family in Christ - even when we send them SMS's, for example.

That made me smile.

And then it made me wonder if I were to read the Word from beginning to end, how much of what is godly and righteous in the Word would be applicable and relevant to and in my life, remembering that my life, and yours, may be the only "Bible" that some people would get to read throughout their entire lives.

It may be a good and fruitful exercise to read the Word with specifically this in mind and remembering at the same time the words of Jesus:

               If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it
               will be given to you." John 15:7
and
               "...and find out what pleases the Lord..." Eph. 5:10

Thank You, Lord, that we are assured that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ". Phil. 1:6 Please help us to remain in You and for Your words to remain in us.

Monday 12 September 2011

GOD'S RESTRAINING POWER





Sometimes on news flashes shown on the TV channels  we see another side of God: His awesome power and might!


I am specifically thinking of the news broadcast showing the devastation caused by the earthquake in China and the cyclone in Mianmar (formerly Burma) resulting in the terrible loss of life; in total about 45000 lives known to have been lost. And suddenly we are once again forced to a standstill reflecting on the destructive power of nature.

Yet, who is in charge of nature? Who controls it? Who has the right to control it? The creator, God, of course! And whenever I hear, or see, these terrible tragic, destructive, disasters happening, I have questions...

Who gives me the right to have questions? What power or might do I ascribe to myself that I consider posing questions to the Creator of the universe?

Job 38 and 39 paints a powerful picture of the might and power of Almighty God. Should I not instead bow low before Him, acknowledging his Majesty and Power, His Omnipotence?

I believe God's greatest attribute to be His restraining power! Is there a day which goes by that we do not sin against Him; we do not thwart his Will in our lives; we not rebel against Him; we are not disobedient to His Word; we not disappoint Him; we not act in a loveless manner towards Him and one another as human beings?

Why should He not destroy us instantly in His righteous anger and frustration towards us?
Why should He always be loving, kind, longsuffering and gracious towards us?
Why don't we ask why, in His loving kindness, He lets the sun shine on all mankind everyday?
Why He provides oxygen and rain everyday?
Why He lets the earth bring forth its produce in its season?
Why He does not destroy us all and the earth when there are wars being waged nation against nation, murders, rapes, sexual abuse, robberies, thefts, corruption, drug abuse, deception and whatever other crime every day?
We may agree that we see lots of people living in ways that we know will anger and/or disappoint God! But what about ourselves? Yourself? Myself?
How much time do we spend each day cultivating our relationship with Him; finding out His will for our lives, and knowing His will, submitting to it; loving Him, worshipping Him? King David once prayed words to this effect: "Who am I, Lord God, that You have brought me and my house this far?" 
That our lives have been spared to this date?
That we experience the measure of joy, health, happiness and success that we do?
That His loving-kindness, mercy, provision and grace surround us from day to day?
That He sent His Son to die for us so that we may attain salvation?

I want to repeat after King David: "Who am I, Lord, that You have brought me and mine thus far?

Thank you, Lord God, that you have not yet in your anger destroyed the earth with one fell swoop of your hand. Thank you, Lord God, for exercising your restraining power!


Saturday 10 September 2011

WHERE ARE MINE?

WHERE ARE MINE?

From under scanty cover of balcony overlay
You raise from cold, wet, concrete slab your grizzled head
And slowly reach for the proffered bread.
Thru livery ochre stained, blood shot eyes
You vacantly peer at the dark, rain pelting skies…
Through trembling, fever blistered lips I hear you say,
“Lady, from my position, here, where I lay,
if I may, I have one question to ask of you today:
Where are mine?”

I looked at him, and had no ready reply.

Where indeed were his family, his wife and/or children, his erstwhile friends?
Did he have a home somewhere? Was he once employed? Perhaps ‘dressed to kill’?

Then Jesus asked, “Which of these three people was a real neighbour to the
man who was beaten up by robbers?” The teacher answered, “The one who showed
pity.” Jesus said, “Go and do the same!” Luke 10: 36-37


Note the beaten up man had no choice in who his ‘neighbour’ would be; it was up to a ‘neighbour’ to choose him to bestow his gifts and assistance on.

Thank You, Lord, for our daily bread. It does not really matter who we get it from, all good gifts ultimately come from You. Thank You that we have sufficient to share with someone in need, even if it is only a slice or two. And if we are able, in addition, to add a little cheese or jam, a coke or a pie, all the more reason to thank You. All the more reason for us to live with an attitude of gratitude. Help us to identify the need around us and to be Your hand extended, to reach out to the oppressed.

Friday 9 September 2011

SURVIVAL


Fat round worm squirms helplessly
in beak sharp and specially primed
gullet quivers with delight
-another juicy, delectable bite!

Fish eagle gracefully soars;
swoops with undetected purpose, precise accuracy and speed
reflected movement halted,
cold blooded life lifted from lifegiving waters.
Clutching its prey - once more cleaving the sky -
the fish eagle’s victory squawk pierces the skies.

Doe veers, desperately swerves
Fleeing from swift, silent lioness
propelled by sensual anticipation, in full flight,
it’s strong, ready claws extended...
Bared yellowed fangs find
racing pulse, quivering target.
Dust settles – soon it will be night.
Ecstatic cubs rush in to gorge their fill.

Of malice prepense the sinister stealthy stalker’s
gleaming knifeblade flashes;
slashes unexpectantly thru skin,
supple muscle, lukewarm flesh -
a gasp, a shudder, iridescent irises dim to unseeing dull.
A last ripple of movement, ebbing in unison with the flow of blood …
Another life is ended…for what?
For a wallet, a watch, a handful of coins…
To sate
Without guilt, flinching, remorse or recoil
the unsatiable lust called greed
or primitive, primal animal creed:
the fittest shall survive!