TEXT: ‘Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light”’ (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT) THOUGHT: “Come to Me” is one of the most wonderful promises in the Bible. God has provided these blessings, but it is up to each individual whether they will receive them. As the slogan says, “If it’s to be, it’s up to me!” How many times do we miss out on God’s best because of what others have wrongly told us or because we think we know better than God? The Queen of Sheba came to see for herself whether what she had been told about Solomon’s kingdom was true or just another exaggeration1. She discovered it was much better than she had been informed or had even imagined. Two days before I became a Christian, I told the person witnessing to me that I did not need God and there were things wrong in the Bible. Yet just two days later when I saw...
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TEXT: ‘But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized’ (Acts 8:12) THOUGHT: There is a fundamental difference between religion (which usually believes in a god) and Christianity. The difference is Christ! Religion puts the onus on a person to do enough good to earn heaven, whereas Jesus has done it all for us because we could not, and it is ours by faith. Philip, scattered by the persecution in Jerusalem, travelled to Samaria and started evangelising. His message was clear and concise. He preached about the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. Later, when he met the Ethiopian chancellor, he preached Jesus to him.1 The cause of that persecution is recorded. The religious authorities said, ‘We gave you strict orders never again to teach in this man’s name! They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them go’ (Acts 5:28, 40 NLT). The result of their threats and beatings, far from being like water to put out the gospel flames, became fuel on the fire that caused the message to...
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TEXT: ‘And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil’ (John 12:3) THOUGHT: The Bible records Jesus visiting the house of Lazarus, Martha and Mary on three separate occasions.1 The first visit was before He raised Lazarus from the dead and the last was shortly afterwards. The first and last visits are similar but there is one fundamental difference that makes the last visit something special. Today’s Teaching focusses on these two visits and what happened while Jesus and His disciples were there. 1. Welcome – ‘A certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house’ (Luke 12:38) The question is, “Would you welcome Jesus into your house or more importantly, into your life?” Martha welcomed Jesus and offered Him and the disciples hospitality. Little did she know that within a year or so Jesus would return and raise her brother from the dead. We may not see the need for Jesus right now in a physical or material way, but He knows the future and life was certainly better for Martha to face tragedy with Jesus in her life. We may wrongly think, that Jesus would not want to come into our home or life because of our past, but He made a promise that if...
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TEXT: ‘Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness’ (Psalm 145:3 NLT) THOUGHT: Psalm 145 contains seven statements about who the Lord is. In Part 1 we studied the first three: The Lord is great; The Lord is Gracious; The Lord is Good! We need to remind ourselves of these truths daily, for they will surely lift our spirits in testing times. Part 2 unpacks the final four statements. 4. The Lord Upholds – ‘The Lord upholds all who fall and raises up all who are bowed down’ (v14) It would be wonderful if Christians lived perfect lives, but we do not. When we are tempted to be critical of others’ shortcomings and failures, we need to remember we have this treasure in an earthen vessel.1 We can easily fall short too. Just as Peter cried out when he began to sink beneath the waves and Jesus took him by the hand2, so too the Bible promises God’s intervention to help us when we fall. ‘The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand’ (Psalm 37:23-24 NLT). Some wrongly think that God’s hand is there to slap us...
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TEXT: ‘Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness’ (Psalm 145:3 NLT) THOUGHT: Psalm 145 contains seven statements about the Lord, reminders about who God is. The author of the psalm, King David, made praise a daily practise because he wrote, ‘Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever’ (v2). He did not just praise God for a victory he had experienced, he used praise to get the victory when personal or national issues were getting him down. Regardless of your experience, belief or what others have said about the Lord, this is what the Lord is. What was David so thankful for? 1. The Lord is Great – ‘Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised’ (v3) Many verses in the Bible refer to God’s greatness. These are not listed as if God is boasting about Himself. They are there for our benefit, to remind us of what God can do. Let the following verses encourage you about God’s greatness working on your behalf. ‘Lord, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power’ (Jeremiah 10:6) ‘Blessed God … the one and only wonder-working God!’ (Psalm 72:18 MSG). ‘You...
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