Songs Of Friendship

A Song of degrees of David

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;

Psa 133:3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew] that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

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A True Prophet Gives The Glory To God Alone.

God gave Joseph power to overcome temptation (Genesis 39). Now, He gives him power to interpret dreams. Here, Joseph the dreamer (Genesis 37:5-11) becomes Joseph the interpreter of dreams. Joseph may be viewed as a prophet: ‘Surely the Lord does nothing, without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets’ (Amos 3:7). As a true prophet, he gives the glory to God alone: ‘Do not interpretations belong to God?’ (Genesis 40:8). Joseph became the forgotten man (Genesis 40:23). For Joseph, life had become very difficult. He had known prosperity (Genesis 39:2-3). Now, he was suffering adversity. God is in both our prosperity and our adversity. He uses adversity to produce in us a heart of humility. What was Joseph doing while he was in prison? He was keeping close to God, waiting patiently for his ‘time to speak’ (Ecclesiastes 3:7).

Let’s Be Like Jesus - Walking In The Ways Of Our Heavenly Father.

Ahab’s repentance (1 Kings 21:27) didn’t last long! He continued to live in sin (22:8). He died in shame (1 Kings 22:37-38). Ahab’s son - Ahaziah - was just like his father - ‘a chip off the old block’: ‘He … provoked the Lord, the God of Israel to anger in every way that his father had done’ (1 Kings 22:51-53). Jehoshapat was a different type of king - ‘he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord’ (1 Kings 22:43). Here, we catch a glimpse of our Lord Jesus Christ - ‘I do as the Father commanded Me’ (John 14:31). Don’t be like Ahaziah -‘he walked in the ways of his father… the ways of sin’ (1 Kings 22:52). Let’s be like Jesus - Walking in the ways of our Heavenly Father. God says to us, ‘This is the way; walk in it’ (Isaiah 30:21). Let us say, ‘As for God, His way is perfect’ (2 Samuel 22:31). Let us pray, ‘Our Father in heaven… Your will be done (Matthew 6:9-10).

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Kingdom Explosion


Kingdom Of Heaven


Theologica

What Kind Of Effect Do Your Actions Have On Other People?

Joshua 7 begins with the word, ‘But’ - This is ominous! What comes next? - Sin: ‘the people of Israel broke faith with regard to the devoted things’. The sin was Achan’s, yet it affected the whole people of Israel: ‘the anger of the Lord burned against the people of Israel’ (Joshua 7:1). Sin is like infection - it spreads! What kind of effect do your actions have on other people? Cain asked, ‘Am I my brother’s keeper (Genesis 4:9). His question was an expression of callous indifference. There is no place for this attitude among God’s people: ‘Decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother’ (Romans 14:13). Read the story of Achan, and remember this: ‘Be sure your sin will find you out’ (Numbers 32:23). Let no one have good cause to ask, ‘Why did you bring trouble on us’ (Joshua 7:25).

"Is There Any Hope For Us? ... "

Is there any hope for us? Our situation seems hopeless - until we look to Jesus.

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Job 40:15-41:34

"Who can stand before Me?" (41:10). God puts this question to every one of us. God's Word gives two answers to this question. The first answer speaks to us of our sin. The second answer speaks to us of our Saviour. The first thing God says to us is this: "There is no-one righteous, not even one" (Romans 3:10). The question is asked, "ho shall ascend the hill of the Lord? Who shall stand in His holy place?" The answer is given, "He who has clean hands and a pure heart...He will receive blessing from the Lord" (Psalm 24:3-5). We read these words, and we wonder, "Is there any hope for us?" Our situation seems hopeless - until we look to Jesus, the Man "without sin", "the beloved Son with whom God is well pleased", the Saviour who "died for our sins" (Hebrews 4:14-16; Matthew 3:16-17; 1 Corinthians 15:3).

Bible Reading Notes At "The Promises Of God" Blog

At "The Promises of God" blog, you will find Bible reading notes on numbers , Psalms , john, Colossians, and Ephesians.

The Greatest Wisdom Of All

‘Give me wisdom’ (2 Chronicles 1:10). What is the greatest wisdom of all? - It is the ‘wisdom’ which leads to ‘salvation through faith in Christ Jesus’. Where do we find this wisdom? - Read ‘the Holy Scriptures’. Ask God for wisdom - ‘Open my eyes that I may see the wonderful truths in Your Word’. Ask the question concerning salvation - ‘What must I do to be saved?’. God will give you His answer - ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved’ (2 Timothy 3:15; Psalm 119:18; Acts 16:31). Salvation cannot be earned. It can only be received as a gift. It is ‘the gift of God’ (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8). What is wisdom? - It is to say, with Solomon, ‘Our God is greater than all other gods’ (2 Chronicles 2:5). Nothing else and no-one else can even begin to compare with the Lord. Be wise. Build your life on Him (Matthew 7:24-27).
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This post is taken from my notes on 2 Chronicles.

We Receive God's Strength As We Give Him Our Worship.

Here, we are called to worship - ‘O give thanks to the Lord... Sing praises to Him... Glory in His holy Name... Seek His presence continually’ (1 Chronicles 16:8-11). We are to ‘remember the wonderful works that He has done’. We are to call on others to worship Him - ‘Sing to the Lord , all the earth!’. We ‘worship the Lord’ and, filled with heavenly joy, we say to those around us - ‘Let the earth rejoice... “The Lord reigns!”’ (1 Chronicles 16:12, 23, 29, 31). In a book of so many names, this marvellous song of praise stands out. It is a high point. Everything else seems so commonplace. Treasure God’s special high points of praise and worship. Don’t despise the ordinariness of everyday life. Why does God give us His high points? - He wants us to return to our everyday life with renewed strength. ‘Wait on the Lord and renew your strength’ (Isaiah 40:31).
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This post is taken from my notes on
1 chronicles.

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (11) - "We Are To Be Changed By God's Word" (iii)

As we read the Book of Revelation, we must remember that "we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). We don't need to pretend that we can understand all that we read in the Book of Revelation. We can, however, know the true comfort of the Gospel. We read the Book of Revelation. It directs our attention to Jesus Christ. Trusting in Him, we receive eternal salvation. We travel on life's journey, assured that this earthly life is not all that there is. Through Christ, our Saviour, God is calling us on to something better. He's saying to us, "The best is yet to be." This is the great message which the Book of Revelation, with all its difficult passages, proclaims emphatically - "This world is not my home. I'm just a-passing-through." Let's be honest in acknowledging the difficulty we have in understanding all that God is saying to us in the Book of Revelation. Let's make sure also that we don't miss out on the great comfort which "the revelation of Jesus Christ" brings to us. As we read the Book of Revelation, let's learn to bow down before the Lord, rejoicing in our Saviour, Jesus Christ and giving thanks for His gift of salvation. We may not understand all that we read, but we will be learning to worship the Lord - and that is more important than anything else!

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (10) - "We Are To Be Changed By God's Word" (ii)

The call to obedience and the promise of blessing - This is very different from the view that sees the Book of Revelation as an essentially closed book - "Don't read it. It will only confuse you." God's way is the way of comfort. It is not the way of confusion. Through "the revelation of Jesus Christ", we are led out of confusion. We must begin by being honest with ourselves. We must stop imagining that we have great understanding of the mysteries of God. When we acknowledge that we do not have a full understanding of the deep things of God, we will learn to live with unanswered questions. We will learn to say, with Paul, "Now, we see through a glass darkly. Now I know in part." This confession of our failure to understand the mysteries of God will not hinder us from confessing our faith in the ultimate triumph of God's love: "then shall I know even as also I am known. And now there abides faith, hope and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:12-13).

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (9) - "We Are To Be Changed By God's Word" (i)

We are to be changed by God's Word.
The Bible doesn't leave us as it found us. The Book of Revelation calls for a change in our way of thinking, a change of our way of living. It calls for a change of heart: "Be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any one opens the door, I will come in to him" (Revelation 3:19-20). God's Word comes to us with a call for obedience. It calls us to receive comfort. It calls us to worship. We haven't been given the Bible so that we can build up a great treasury of Biblical knowledge, and pat ourselves on the back, taking pride in our great knowledge. The Book of Revelation hasn't been given to us so that we become conceited in our supposed knowledge of the things to come. We have been given the Word of God so that we might learn to be obedient. This is the way of comfort. No less than any other part of Scripture, the Book of Revelation calls for our obedience. When we seek to obey its message, we will find that it will bring great blessing into our lives - "Blessed is he who reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written here" (Revelation 1:3).

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (8) - "Seeing History From God's Point Of View" (ii)

We see God at the centre of our life. We see Him, working out His purpose of grace. He is fitting us for heaven. This is the goal of our life on earth. This is a glorious goal - "Eye has not seen nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). This perspective of glorious hope, proclaimed in the Gospel of Christ's resurrection, is developed more fully in the Book of Revelation. The message of glorious and eternal hope is brought to us by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15. This message is emphasized more fully in the Book of Revelation. "A door is opened in heaven" (Revelation 4:1). The glory of heaven shines upon the earth. The people of God are called to press on to the heavenly glory that awaits them. Through "the revelation of Jesus Christ", we are raised above a life that's going nowhere. We're going somewhere. We're going to be with Jesus. We're going to be where He is. On earth, we're learning to give all the glory to Him. We're being prepared for the glory of the heavenly worship, so wonderfully described for us in the Book of Revelation.

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (7) - "Seeing History From God's Point Of View (i)

Seeing history from God's point of view
What does this mean? There are really only two ways of looking at history. There is the way of faith and there is the way of unbelief. For the unbeliever, history is no more than a meaningless series of events. There is no sense of direction. There is no goal toward which history is travelling. We're going round in circles. We're on a journey, but we're not going anywhere. We're on a wild goose chase, looking for something and finding nothing. For the believer, everything is different. The believer sees a sense of direction in history. He sees history as a journey toward a destination - a glorious, heavenly and eternal destination. What is it that makes the difference? How is the believer able to see more than the unbeliever? Is there something special about the believer? No! The difference comes from this - "the revelation of Jesus Christ." It is Jesus who gives us something to live for. Through "the revelation of Jesus Christ", we are able to look at life with new eyes. We see our life with the eyes of Jesus. He gives to us the eyes of faith. Through faith in Him, we see God at work in all things. We see God at the centre of our life. We see Him, working out His purpose of grace. He is fitting us for heaven. This is the goal of our life on earth.

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (6) - "The Revelation Of Jesus Christ (iii.b)

Whatever questions may remain unanswered, let's never forget that God has given us His answer to the question of salvation: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:30-31). In the Bible, there is great variety. The Gospel of Luke is very different from the Book of Revelation. The Book of Acts is very different from the Book of Psalms. The Letter to the Romans is very different from the Prophecy of Isaiah. What does this mean? Does it mean that the Bible is no more than a collection of books that don't connect with each other? Must we abandon the idea that the Bible has one central Theme - "the revelation of Jesus Christ"? While there is great variety in God's Word, we must see this as a great opportunity for looking at our Saviour, Jesus Christ, from a variety of different angles. The psalmist, the prophet, the gospel writer, the apostle to the Gentiles, the writer of the Book of Revelation - they're all speaking to us about our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. They're all pointing us to the One in whom alone there is full salvation. They're all saying, "Look away from me. Look to Jesus." They're all saying, "I'm only the servant. Jesus is the Saviour." Who is it that enables us to see the Bible as one Book? It's Jesus. He's the One who holds it all together. With Jesus at the centre of our attention, we come to the puzzling and difficult Book of Revelation and we say, "Here is Jesus. Here, we have more than a whole lot of strange and confusing visions that don't make much sense to us. Here we have a single revelation - the revelation of Jesus Christ." We read the Book of Revelation, and we pray, "Lord, whatever else I may see as I read this mysterious Book, let me see Jesus. Let me see Him, standing at the very centre of this Book. Let me see Jesus standing at the very centre of my life. Let me keep Jesus always at the very centre of my life."

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (5) - "The Revelation Of Jesus Christ" (iii.a)

"The revelation of Jesus Christ" (1:1)
What does this mean?
Thirdly, it means this. The revelation is one revelation. It is not many revelations. The final book of the Bible is called the Book of Revelation. It is not the Book of Revelations. This is important. It emphasizes that the Book of Revelation has a single focus of attention. It directs our attention to Jesus Christ. It is not a Book of Revelations which takes us here, there and everywhere. Right at the very beginning, it tells us, "This Book is about Jesus Christ." When we read the Book of Revelation, there will be times when we're not sure how a particular passage relates to this great Theme, "the revelation of Jesus Christ." We find the same thing when we're reading other parts of the Bible. We read something that is difficult to understand, and we wonder, "How does this relate to our Saviour, Jesus Christ?" We should not get over-anxious about this. We have many questions, but let's not forget this: Jesus is the Answer to our most important question: "What must I do to be saved?"

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (4) - "The Revelation Of Jesus Christ" (ii.b)

There will always be an element of mystery in our Christian Faith. We are mere human beings. We cannot fully understand the deep things of God. This element of mystery does not, however, take away from the trustworthiness of God's love, which has been so wonderfully revealed to us in Jesus Christ, our great Saviour. In Jesus Christ, God has shown us how much He loves us. We can trust God. He loves us with a faithful love. He loves us with an everlasting love. How do we know that God loves us with a faithful love? How do we know that He loves us with an everlasting love? We look at the Cross of Jesus Christ, and we see the greatest love of all - "God so loved the world that he gave His only Son" (John 3:16), "The Son of God loved us and gave Himself for us" (Galatians 2:20). The element of mystery is, however, a reminder that God is God, and we are simply human beings, created by Him. The element of mystery reminds us that we must bow before Him in deep humility. "The revelation of Jesus Christ" - This comes from God. It cannot come from ourselves. We must bow before the Lord and acknowedge that "salvation comes from the Lord" (Jonah 2:9). It is "the gift of God" (Ephesians 2:8).

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (3) - "The Revelation Of Jesus Christ" (ii.a)

"The revelation of Jesus Christ" (1:1)
What does this mean?
Second, it means this. The purpose of the Book of Revelation is not to mystify. It is to reveal. This is the reason God has given us the Bible. God is not putting a veil over our eyes. He is lifting the veil from our eyes. He is opening our eyes. He is revealing Jesus to us. Certainly, there are many things we do not understand. We read the Book of Revelation, and we wonder, "What does this mean?" We turn to other parts of the Bible, and we still have many unanswered questions. If we had lived in Biblical times, we might have had a better understanding of some of the things that are written in the Bible. If we had lived at the time when the Book of Revelation was written, we might have had a clearer understanding of its message. In our search for understanding of Scripture, there is a very important point that we must never forget. There are many things that we cannot fully understand for this reason. We are human. We are not divine. Full understanding belongs to God. Our understanding of God's Word will never be more than partial understanding. There will always be an element of mystery in our Christian Faith. We are mere human beings. We cannot fully understand the deep things of God.

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (2) - "The Revelation Of Jesus Christ" (i)

"The revelation of Jesus Christ" (1:1)
What does this mean?
* First and foremost, it means this. Jesus Christ is the great Theme of the Book of Revelation. Jesus Christ is the great Theme of the whole Bible. Why has God given us the Book of Revelation? Why has He given us the Bible? Is it just to teach us all sorts of interesting information about ancient times? - These are the kind of things that people believed in ancient times. No! God's Word is for us. God's Word is for today. God is revealing to us His Son, our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is leading us to a true knowledge of Himself. He is showing us the Way through which we come to know Him. He is showing us Jesus Christ - "the Way, the Truth and the Life." Jesus is the Way. He is the True and Living Way. Jesus Christ is revealed to us so that, through faith in Him, we might come to know God as our Loving, Heavenly Father.

Approaching The Book Of Revelation (1)

The Book of Revelation is a puzzling book. It is difficult to understand. The Book of Revelation is part of the Bible. The way in which we approach the Book of Revelation is directly related to the way in which we approach the rest of the Bible. What is the message at the heart of the Book of Revelation? It's the same message that's at the centre of the whole Bible: "the revelation of Jesus Christ." What are we reading about in the Book of Revelation? It's the same thing that we're reading about in the rest of the Bible. We're looking at history from God's point of view. We're looking at history from the point of view of "the revelation of Jesus Christ." Why do we read the Book of Revelation? Why do we read the other parts of the Bible? We read God's Word so that our lives may be changed. We look at "the revelation of Jesus Christ." We pray that we may catch a glimpse of His grace and His glory. We pray that, as we turn our eyes upon Jesus, we will become more like Him.

That The Everlasting God

Isa 40:28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.

Isa 40:29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

Isa 40:30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

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"My Help ... "

My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
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The Lord has listened long enough! He's listened to a lot of 'empty-headed words.' He has listened to a long, heated debate. There's been a lot of heat and not much light. Everything seems to be as clear as mud (Job 38:1). Now, it's His time for speaking! What does God have to say? He invites Job to look at the bigger picture. Being preoccupied with our own problems doesn't really solve anything. 'Why has this happened to me? Why did it not turn out that way? Why this? Why that?' - We go round in circles, thinking about these kind of questions. We don't have all the answers. There are plenty of things we don't understand. Even when we don't understand what's happening, we can still say, 'I lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth' (Psalm 121:1-2).

"Come To The Saviour ... "

Come to the Saviour. Look to Him for His blessing. He will not disappoint you.
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"Can God spread a table in the wilderness?" (Psalm 78:19). We are living in a spiritual wilderness. We wonder, "Can God continue to bless us in this wilderness?" How does God's Word answer our question? - "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.". In the "wilderness", there are many "enemies". There is also the "table". At the "table", God blesses us - "You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows" (Psalm 23:5). We are in the "wilderness", surrounded by many "enemies". What are we to do? - We must come to the "table" - the Lord's Table. We must come to Christ. We must drink from "the cup of salvation" (Psalm 116:7). Come to the Saviour. Look to Him for His blessing. He will not disappoint you. You will be "anointed with the oil of gladness". His blessing will be poured upon you "like precious oil" (Psalms 45:7; 133:2).

What Is The Will Of The Father

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

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"With Christ, We Have More ... "

With Christ, we have more than life under the sun. We have life in the Son - abundant life, eternal life.

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This thought is taken from

Ecclesiastes 1:1-2:26

Without Christ. life is empty. With Him, everything changes. He fills our life with God's blessing. With Him, we have more than life "under the sun." We have life "in the Son" - abundant life, eternal life (1:3,14; 2:11,17; John 10:10; 1 John 5:11-12). Which life do you want? You can settle for life "under the sun." Many people do. They never think about the meaning of life. They never ask , "What is the purpose of my life?" There is another life, a better life, a life with meaning, purpose and direction. You can come to Christ and receive life "in the Son." This is life "from above." This is our "foretaste of glory divine": "Angels descending bring from above echoes of mercy, whispers of love" "Looking above", we are "filled with His goodness" and saved by "His love." In our "Saviour", we are "happy and blest" (Mission Praise, 59).

Rejecting True Friends

Rejecting true friends who have done you no wrong is not a formula for being embarrassed when you fall short. What does that accomplish? Shutting true friends out when you have fallen short is not a recipe for hard times. What fruit does that produce?

WWJD?

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Dealings With Abandonment

There is nothing worse than when a friend abandons you.

However when the peace of God is flowing richly in your life and home, well, it just seems to make sense.

Resting in God, trusting in God and being faithful in God is a way of life. Love, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Blessings,
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Are You Called By His Name

2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

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