Water, Worship, and Work

This morning I am reminded of three verses from John's Gospel that I used to memorise and keep in mind many years ago. Each of these memory verses carry a spiritual truth essential for disciples of the Anointed One.

They are verses 14, 24 and 34 from John chapter 4, as shown below:

John 4:13-14, 24, 34  RSV  Revised Standard Version

13-14 . . . “Every one who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

34 . . . “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work.

Brothers and Sisters in the Anointed One, let us keep these three memorable verses in our hearts. Let us go to our Lord Iesus everyday to receive living water from Him, so that our spirits may never thirst. Let us worship God our Father in Heaven in spirit and in the truth that He is the Only True God (John 17:3). And let us follow the example of our Lord Iesus when He was on earth, to take the will of God and the completion of His work like food in our lives.

In these things I delight, says the LORD

From chapter 9 of Jeremiah today, I am reminded of a passage which I had memorised before many years ago. Verses 23 and 24 record for us the word of the LORD telling His children not to boast in their own wisdom, might, nor riches. Instead, they should boast in their understanding and knowledge of the steadfast love, justice and righteousness of the LORD.

". . . in these things I delight" the LORD says in verse 24.

Jeremiah 9:23 - 24  ESV  English Standard Version

23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practises steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

Brothers and Sisters in the Anointed One, let us refrain from boasting in our wisdom, our might, and our wealth. Let us instead "boast" of our knowledge of our God and in the things that He delights.

A parable and a prophecy revisited

This afternoon, I am reminded of a parable and a prophecy about the Kingdom of God from my reading of the Gospel according to Luke.

In Luke chapter 16, our Lord Iesus told a parable that had appeared to me somewhat vague, even confusing to me, for many years. Two verses, in particular, seem to contradict one another in this Parable of the Dishonest Steward. They are verse 9 and verse 11, as shown below:

Luke 16:9, 11  NIV  New International Version

9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?

About nine years ago, as I pondered over the above passage again, it occurred to me that, unlike other parables, this parable carries two lessons.

The first one is that we should make use of our earthly ("ungodly") wealth to bring new friends into the Kingdom of God so that, when our earthly wealth fails, these friends will welcome us in the Kingdom.

The second is that, if we are dishonest and untrustworthy with earthly wealth, as the dishonest steward was, how then can we be trusted with the true riches of the Kingdom of God?

This realisation led me to write down my thoughts in September 2013, please see link entitled, "One Parable, Two Lessons" at the end of this page.

From the same chapter in my reading of Luke's Gospel today, I am also reminded of the words of our Lord Iesus who explained to his followers that, beginning with the coming of John the Baptist, the Torah and the Prophets were no longer proclaimed. Instead, the Kingdom of God is being preached, and everone is "forcing" their way into this Kingdom. See verse 16 below:

Luke 16:16  NIV 

The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it.

What does our Lord mean by the saying that everone is forcing their way into the Kingdom of God? I have written my thoughts and observations on this passage, with reference to a prophecy recorded in Micah chapter 2, in two blog posts: first in April 2014 and again in December 2017. (Please see links below:)

• One Parable, Two Lessons (22Sep2013)
• The Kingdom of God is at hand (19Apr2014)
• Breaking out into the Kingdom of God (16Dec2017)

Brothers and Sisters in the Lord Iesus, let us endeavour to be found as faithful stewards in the Kingdom of God. Let us press on.

Give us each day our daily bread, Deliver us from the Evil One

Luke 11:2 - 4  WEB  World English Bible
"When you pray, say,
'Our Father in heaven,
May your name be kept holy.
May your kingdom come.
May your desire be done on Earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us day by day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

This afternoon, my New Testament reading brought me to the passage above, a account of the Lord's Prayer as recorded in Luke's Gospel. In this prayer, Luke recorded the words of our Lord Iesus as saying, "Give us day by day our daily bread" rather than "Give us this day our daily bread." as recorded in Matthew chapter 6.

The final petition at the end of the prayer is rendered by Luke as "deliver us from the evil one" rather than "deliver us from evil" in Matthew's gospel.

Three years ago, I made a similar observation when reading the same passage in Luke chapter 11 using the Revised Berkeley Version. Please visit the link below:

• The Lord's Prayer according to St. Luke

God has visited His people

Mon 25Apr22 2219 hrs

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This morning in my New Testament reading, I came across this passage of our Lord . . . in Luke chapter 7.

Luke 7:16  WEB  |World English Bible

Fear took hold of all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen amongst us!” and, “God has visited his people!”

God has visited His people by sending to them a great prophet.

This reminds me of my observations on the meaning of the term Emmanuel, "God with us", as used in both Old and New Testaments. Please visit the links below to read my earlier posts on this subject:

• The Real Meaning of Emmanuel (Jul2014)
• Immanuel, God with us (Mar2010)

Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall die . . .

In my long readings through the book of Isaiah today, I am reminded by a short passage in Isaiah chapter 22 of the imperative to stay sober, even to weep and mourn over our sins if necessary, instead of being reckless in eating and getting drunk with the excesses of life.

Isaiah 22:12 - 14  ASV  American Standard Version
12 And in that day did the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:
13 and, behold, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating flesh and drinking wine: Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die.
14 And Jehovah of hosts revealed himself in mine ears, Surely this iniquity shall not be forgiven you till ye die, saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.

Brothers and Sisters in the Anointed One, when God our Father calls us to repentance, let us go to Him with weeping and mourning over our sins. Let us be found bald and girded with sackcloth. Let us beware, lest we be found intoxicated in reckless feasting and drinking, thinking "tomorrow we shall die". Such a sin will not be forgiven by the LORD of hosts.

Mary pondered in her heart while the shepherds glorified God

Luke 2:13  RSV  Revised Standard Version
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!”

Today in my New Testament reading, as I read the passage in Luke chapter 2 about the sudden appearance of a host of angels to the shepherds in the field, my attention is drawn to two contrasting reactions after the shepherds found the new-born infant Iesus and told Joseph and Mary what they heard and saw in the field.

Luke 2:19 - 20  RSV  Revised Standard Version
19 But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.
20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

The first reaction is that of Mary, the mother of the new-born child who was sent by God to the the Anointed One. Verse 19 tells us that she kept all she heard in her heart and pondered over them.

The second reaction is that of the shepherds who, in contrast, glorified and praised God as they left the scene of baby Iesus in the manger.

Why did Mary react so quietly, keeping the good news brought by the shepherds and pondering over it in her heart? Why didn't she rejoice, glorify God and praise Him loudly as the shepherds did?

About twelve years ago I looked through several passages in the Gospels about Mary keeping what she saw and heard in her heart. Between December 2009 and January 2010, I wrote out my thoughts in three blog posts, some of which I preached in my Sunday Sermons to the church where i attend. Please visit the links below:

• What Mary kept in her heart, Part One (Dec2009)
• What Mary kept in her heart, Part Two (Jan2010)
• What Mary kept in her heart, Part Three (Jan2010)

Wash yourselves, Make yourselves clean

Many people would quote the well-known verse from Isaiah 1:18, "Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." and use it to tell us how gracious our God is, that there is no sin too difficult for Him to remove from our lives.

Today, while reading Isaiah chapter 1, I saw that this verse is written as part of a call from God Almighty to the chlldren of Israel to get rid of evil deeds from among them, and so cleanse themselves from sin. The part about scarlet sins becoming white as snow and crimson becoming like wool is a promise from the LORD for those who "seek justice, correct oppression" and who bring justice to orphans and widows.

Isaiah 1:16 - 18  ESV  English Standard Version
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes;

cease to do evil,
- - learn to do good;
seek justice,
- - correct oppression;
bring justice to the fatherless,
- - plead the widow's cause.

“Come now,
let us reason together, says the LORD:

though your sins are like scarlet,
- - they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
- - they shall become like wool.

Brothers and Sisters in the Lord Iesus Anointed, let us be vigilant in removing evil deeds from among us. Let us seek justice and correct oppression to all who are suffering around us, especially to the fatherless and widows.

May our scarlet sins be turned white as snow.

The drunkards' whirlpool

Proverbs chapter 23 from my Old Testament reading today appears to me as a poem depicting the never-ending whirlpool into which a drunkard descends.

Proverbs 23:29 - 35   WEB   World English Bible

29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

30 Those who stay long at the wine; Those who go to seek out mixed wine.

31 Don't look at the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it goes down smoothly:

32 At the last it bites like a snake, And poisons like a viper.

33 Your eyes will see strange things, And your mind will imagine confusing things.

34 Yes, you will be as he who lies down in the midst of the sea, Or as he who lies on top of the rigging:

35 'They hit me, and I was not hurt; They beat me, and I don't feel it! When will I wake up? I can do it again. I can find another.'

In the New Testament, Ephesians 5:18 tells us not to be drunk with wine, but instead to be filled with the Spirit of God.

Ephesians 5:18  KJV  King James Version

And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

Brothers and Sisters in Iesus the Anointed One, let us never drunk with wine. Instead let us always be full of the Spirit of God the Father Almighty.

Fruit of the mouth, Power of the tongue

This evening I came across two verses from Proverbs chapter 18 that reminds me of the power of our spoken words.

Verses 20 and 21 tell us that the "fruit of his mouth" a man satisfies his hunger, and that life and death are in the power of his words.

In the New Testament, James writes in chapter 3 that our tongues can defile our whole body and "set on fire" the course of nature.

Proverbs 18:20 - 21  WEB  World English Bible

20 A man's stomach is filled with the fruit of his mouth.
With the harvest of his lips he is satisfied.

21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue;
Those who love it will eat its fruit.

James 3:6  WEB

And the tongue is a fire. The world of iniquity among our members is the tongue, which defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature, and is set on fire by Gehenna.

Brothers and Sisters in the Anointed One, let us satisfy ourselves and fill our lives with good fruits from our spoken words.

In Thy Book were written every one of my days, when as yet there was none

While reading Psalm 139, I was awakened to a truth written in verses 14 to 18. In this passage, the psalmist praises the LORD for how wonderfully the LORD has created him, so wonderfully that even before he was formed, "every one" of his days were already written the the book of the LORD.

Psalm 139:14 - 18  RSV  Revised Standard Version

14 I praise thee, for thou art fearful and wonderful.
Wonderful are thy works!
Thou knowest me right well;

15 my frame was not hidden from thee,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately wrought in the depths of the earth.

16 Thy eyes beheld my unformed substance;
in thy book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.

17 How precious to me are thy thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
When I awake, I am still with thee.

Brothers and Sisters in the Lord Iesus, let us praise God our Father in Heaven for He has made us in a wonderful way.

To be seen or not to be seen?

Friday 01Apr2022

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Matthew 5:16  WEB  World English Bible

Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 6:1  WEB

Be careful that you don't do your chartable giving ("acts of righteousness") before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

In my New Testament reading today, I came across two verses in the Sermon on the Mount containing the teachings of our Lord Iesus the Anointed One that appears to contradict one another.

In the first verse, Matthew 5:16, our Lord commands us to live as light shining in this world, in such a way that people around us will see our good works and give glory to our Father in Heaven.

However, another verse, Matthew 6:1, seems to tell us to do the opposite: to ensure that our acts of righteousness, like giving alms, are not carried out to be seen by people around us. Otherwise, we will have no reward from our Heavenly Father.

How do we reconcile these two apparently contradictory statements from our Lord?

Should we do good works before men? Or do we make sure that our good works are not done before men?

The answer lies in the words "that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven in Matthew 5:16.

Our Lord commands us to let our good works, even our entire life, be seen by people around us as a testimony of Godly living, like light shining in darkness, so that when they see the good works we do in our Godly life, they will glorify our God.

However, there is a precaution to take. In Matthew 6:1, we are told "be careful" that our good works are not deliberately, purposedly, and intentionally done just to be seen by people around us, may I add, with the hope that people will praise us, even glorify us. If we do our good works to be glorified by men, we have no reward from our Father in heaven

Brothers and Sisters in the Anointed One, let us make sure that when people around us see our good works, they will glorify our Father in Heaven. Let us beware of doing good works to bring praise and glory upon ourselves.