TEXT: ‘Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions. For I was ashamed to request of the king an escort of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy on the road, because we had spoken to the king, saying, “The hand of our God is upon all those for good who seek Him, but His power and His wrath are against all those who forsake Him.” So we fasted and entreated our God for this, and He answered our prayer”’ – Ezra 8:21-23. THOUGHT: I enjoy having breakfast, starting the day with food. Break-fast is not really anything to do with fasting, more to do with awaking from sleep. Fasting is not a form of dieting but the denial of drinks and foods and other things, for a set period of time, in order to achieve a higher, more important goal. This can be for just one meal, a day or even weeks. Reading the Book of Ezra recently, the Holy Spirit drew my attention to some fasting principles revealed in our text. Ezra ordered a fast but why and for what purpose? Fasting is a form of submission – ‘we might humble...
Learn More
TEXT: ‘Go, sell the oil and pay your debt: and you and your sons live on the rest’ – 2 Kings 4:7 THOUGHT: In Part 1, we looked at Debt, Death and the Desperation of this widow. How a bad situation got worse and was about to deteriorate even further with the imminent arrival of the creditor to take her two sons into slavery. How did this great need get turned around? She brought God into her problem God needs to be invited into our lives as He will not force His way in. God does not seem to mind if we turn to Him as a last resort when we have run out of all other options. The widow appealed to Elisha for help. Those with crippling debts, either end up talking to no one and trying to hide their problem, or to everyone as they try to borrow more money. But do they talk to God? Eventually the widow had no other direction to go in other than heavenward and it became the best move she had ever made. She acted in faith when told what to do Crying out to Elisha, I wonder what she expected him to do! Lend her some money, pay the debt...
Learn MoreTEXT: ‘Go, sell the oil and pay your debt: and you and your sons live on the rest’ – 2 Kings 4:7 THOUGHT: Just seven verses describe the amazing miracle of 2 Kings 4:1-7. Key principles lie hidden within these verses that can help us when facing financial difficulties or prevent them from happening in the first place. So that there is not too much reading I have divided it into two teachings. In this first part we will look at the debt, death and desperation of the widow who was left to pick up the pieces. The Debt The reason why they were in debt is unclear. Perhaps it was a mortgage to buy their first home, a business venture that went wrong or the payment of back-taxes. We can only speculate, but whatever the reason, the consequences had become disastrous. God’s intention for His people was very clear. He wanted them to be the lenders, not the borrowers. ‘You will lend to many nations but you yourself won’t have to take out a loan’ – Deuteronomy 28:12 (The Message). Yet He also recognised that not everyone would achieve such a lifestyle and so provision was made under The Law of Moses to safeguard lending to fellow Israelites....
Learn More
‘Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!’ – 2 Corinthians 9:15 THOUGHT: Reading the Book of Ephesians recently I was struck by the number of times Paul refers to the grace of God. Our text says, ‘Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!’ Ephesians 2:8 states that grace is the gift of God. No wonder Christians can sing enthusiastically the hymn “Amazing Grace!” Ephesians reminds us of four ways God’s grace can help us. Saving Grace – ‘In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace’ – Ephesians 1:7. ‘It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!’ – Ephesians 2:5 NLT No one deserves it, but anyone can receive it. Never think you can make it without God’s grace, the mistake the Galatian Christians were making – ‘When you attempt to live by your own religious plans and projects, you are cut off from Christ, you fall out of grace’ – Galatians 5:4 The Message. Grace keeps our feet firmly on the gospel road, helping us against any temptation to get to God any other way. Serving Grace God’s grace is given to help us function as a Christian within our church and community. The Inclusion...
Learn More
TEXT: ‘Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’ – Matthew 24:3 THOUGHT: In this teaching on “A Returning Jesus”, we will see how Jesus answered the third question His disciples asked, “What will be the sign of the end of the age?” Today’s Teaching ends with how we can prepare for the return of Christ. WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN OF THE END OF THE AGE? Jesus guided His disciples as to when the end of the age would occur. Great trouble nationally can cause Christians to wrongly think the end has come – ‘All these things must come to pass but the end is not yet’– Matthew 24:6 The destruction of Jerusalem and the temple was bad enough, but there is worse to come. So it was with WW1. I am sure that many thought that was the end Jesus referred to, especially after the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Azusa Street, California in 1904 which spread to churches throughout the world and became the impetus for vigorous evangelism. But after that WW2 with even greater casualties and destruction. Since then many more wars yet still no return of Christ....
Learn More
Recent Comments