Connecting to the world

Nehemiah was the Persian king's cup-bearer. When God has work to do, he will never want instruments to do it with. Nehemiah lived at ease, and in honour, but does not forget that he is an Israelite, and that his people are in distress. He was ready to do them all the good he could; and that he might know how best to do them good, he makes inquiries about them. Point one: We should inquire especially concerning the state of the church and the gospel. Every Jerusalem on this side of heavenly will have some defect, which will require the help and services of its friends. Nehemiah's first application was to God, that he might have the fuller confidence in his application to the king. Our best pleas in prayer are taken from the promise of God, the word on which he has caused us to hope. Other means must be used, but fervent prayer of a righteous man is what is needed most. Point two: Communion with God will best prepare us for our dealings with men. When we have intrusted our...

There is therefore now no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus Rom-7:23. Waring against the law of the mind; burden and grief to the soul as the worst drudgery and captivity could be. I give my life to the Lord Jesus and it brings me into captivity. (Rom-7:25), with the flesh I serve the law of sin; that is, the corrupt nature, the unregenerate part, is continually working towards sin. Rom-7:24, O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? This is the body of death; either the body of flesh, which is a mortal dying body (while we carry this body about with us, we shall be troubled with corruption; when we are dead, we shall be freed from sin, and not before), or the body of sin, the old man, the corrupt nature, which leads to death, that is, to the ruin of the soul. (Heb-9:14), original corruption is a dead body. It was as troublesome to Paul as if he had had a dead body tied to him, which he must have carried about with him. This made him cry ...

The lord came and lived here on earth and ministered to people. Some loved Him - some did not love Him. No matter what think of Christ, He lived and ministered the Father's love. In the western world today we are in great need of the Father's love. The enemy has stolen the idenity of many men today - even among Godly men the temption to fill our lives with all sorts of ideas, instead of God's Word - To know the purpose of our life. The Lord left instruction to remember His death - In His death He fullfilled the requirement of the Law for all time. He did not ask us to celebrate His birth - the baby grew into a man to fullfill His purpose for coming to earth. The only way we find the purpose of our lives is to surrender our life to the Lord Jesus Christ - to the man who died upon a cross.

Several years ago Keith Miller wrote a book, A Second Touch, in which he tells about a twelve year old boy who had a conversation with his dad. The boy was unhappy and resentful. He had no friends. He was having trouble in school. He thought his classmates were the problem and they needed to change. This young boy noticed a change in his father. He wanted to talk to his father about it. His dad replied, “Well, son, I was making a mess out of my life. A big mess, and I decided to let God take it over and to show me how to live it.” And then he said, “I don’t know how else to say it, except to say that it has made all the difference in the world to me.” That boy said to his father, “Dad, I think I would like to do that too.” Then an interesting thing happened. The father was out of town for a couple of weeks. When he returned home from his business trip, his twelve year old son met him at the airport. As they were walking through the concourse the young man said something extremely perce...

It was more than we could have hoped for! First they gave themselves to the Lord; and then, by God’s will they gave themselves to us as well. (2Corinthians 8:5) Hebrews 10:25 tells us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, we are to encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer. So why is Fellowship so Important? You see you and I belong in God’s Family with other Believers. Galatians 6:10 So then, as often as we have the chance, we should do good to everyone, and especially to those who belong to our family in the faith. We are no longer as those who have no part or place in the kingdom of God, but we are numbered among the saints as the family of God. We resting on the base of the Apostles and prophets, and Jesus is the chief keystone, and He keeps all rightly joined together as the holy house of God. (Ephesians 2:19 - 21) And though we are many different people, we are one family and we are all joined to e...

John 17:20-2520 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one — 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. Bible references: John 17:20-25; Acts 4:34-5:11; 1 John 1:10; Psalm 63; Luke 14:27; Luke 14;33; Luke 9:23; John 8:31-32; James 1:22; Psalm 143:5; 1 Corinthians 3:16-18; Ephesians 4:13; Romans 8:38-3...

John 18:36 Jesus said, "My kingdom does not belong to this world; if my kingdom belonged to this world, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish authorities. No, my kingdom does not belong here!" 37 So Pilate asked him, "Are you a king, then?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. I was born and came into the world for this one purpose, to speak about the truth. Whoever belongs to the truth listens to me." 38 "And what is truth?" Pilate asked. Then Pilate went back outside to the people and said to them, "I cannot find any reason to condemn him. What is 'Truth'? Is anything really THE truth? In our postmodern times, it is popular to think that all things are equally true. Buddhism is true for some, Hinduism is true for some, and Christianity is true for some in this age. Of course, like the Christian, the Hindu believes Hindu doctrine is true, and so cannot agree with the Postmodernist, just as t...