TEXT: ‘In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple’ (Isaiah 6:1). Thousands of people die every day. The saying goes, “The only thing certain about life is death!” Unfortunately due to the internet and social media, daily we are made aware of deaths around the world and how they came about, however awful they may have been. The same was true in Isaiah’s day. People were dying daily too but when the monarch died it was of national importance. How would the new king act? Would they lead the nation in a godly or ungodly way? From Israel’s history we read that many kings started off with good intentions but strayed from pleasing God to carrying out their own agenda, usually to detriment of the people they reigned over. Our Queen has been a shining example of faithfulness to God and to the nation. In the year King Uzziah died, Isaiah had a vision of God and Today’s Teachings focusses on three principles of that encounter which will help us as we come to terms with the death of Queen Elizabeth. 1. In the year of death, Isaiah saw the One...
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TEXT: ‘So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper”’ (2 Chronicles 20:20). The Bible is full of miraculous events that appear to be unbelievable because they are so amazing. The account of King Jehoshaphat’s reaction when being told he was about to be overrun by a superior army and what resulted, is no different. In Part 1, we considered 3 principles: wrong associations; reacting to God’s discipline; and how a crisis can suddenly arise and catch us unawares. Today’s Teaching focusses on another four as we see Jehoshaphat move from fear to faith. God said, ‘I am the Lord, I do not change’ (Malachi 3:6). Therefore we can adopt God’s principles and believe God’s promises because they are as true today as they were thousands of years ago. 4. Prayer – ‘Shaken, Jehoshaphat prayed. He went to God for help and ordered a nationwide fast. The country of Judah united in seeking God’s help—they came from all the cities of Judah to pray to God’ (2 Chronicles 20:3-4 MSG) Jehoshaphat got the...
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TEXT: ‘So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper”’ (2 Chronicles 20:20). It’s a shame when Christians avoid reading the Old Testament, because with a little digging they would find nuggets of gold hidden in the pages of Israel’s history. God said, ‘I am the Lord, I do not change’ (Malachi 3:6). Therefore we can adopt God’s principles and believe God’s promises because they are as true today as they were thousands of years ago. The biblical account of King Jehoshaphat’s actions when he faced being overwhelmed by a superior army reveals seven principles that we can learn from. 1. Wrong Associations – ‘Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance; and by marriage he allied himself with Ahab. So Ahab king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “Will you go with me against Ramoth Gilead?” And he answered him, “I am as you are, and my people as your people; we will be with you in the war” (2 Chronicles 18:1,3). Jehoshaphat was persuaded by Ahab to support him in a war against Syria. Despite a warning by...
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TEXT: ‘Now they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed. And as they followed they were afraid. Then He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them the things that would happen to Him’ (Mark 10:32). During the early hours of March 29th this year, the Holy Spirit showed me what I am sharing in this teaching. Some of it will be particularly relevant to what you are going through and I want to encourage you that God knew ahead of time what you are facing today. Our text is the start of Jesus’ final few days on earth before the cross and there are four key truths we can take from the text. 1. Ahead – ‘Jesus was going before them’ True leaders always lead and have others following them. Psalm 23:1-3 says, ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.’ To get horses moving, some drivers crack a whip. Others simply say, “Lead on” and the horses respond to the sound of their voice. Jesus said, ‘My...
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TEXT: ‘Not forsaking our meeting together [as believers for worship and instruction], as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more [faithfully] as you see the day [of Christ’s return] approaching’ (Hebrews 10:25 AMP). Recently I helped a 93 year old lady up the steps out of a church and along the gravel path to the car. She needed to use a walker with wheels on it. The gravel made the journey even more arduous than the steps. I asked her why she still attended church as she surely had a good reason not to go. She replied, “Because the Bible commands us to go and not forsake meeting together with other Christians!” I was so pleased with her reply and determination to obey God. In Part 1, we studied three reasons for attending church regularly: a declaration of our faith; to be fed spiritually; and to fellowship with other believers. Today’s Teaching highlights three more reasons for going to church. 4. Function God never designed church to be a one-man band and the congregation as mere pew-fillers. The church is a body and individually we have different roles to function in. The Bible says, ‘When you meet together, one will sing, another will teach,...
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