Assurance

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine:
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God;
born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.


This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Saviour all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Saviour all the day long.


Perfect submission perfect delight,
visions of rapture burst on my sight;
angles descending, bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love.


Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Saviour am happy and blest;
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

A Daily Prayer.

Lord and heavenly Father,
you have brought us safely to this new day:
keep us by your mighty power, protect us from sin,
guard us from every kind of danger,
and in all we do this day
direct us in the fulfilling of your purpose,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Why Do We Praise God?

Why do we praise God?

For many reasons....one clear summary is found in Psalm 68, verses 19 and 20.

"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour,
     who daily bears our burdens.
Our God is a God who saves;
     from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death."


Let's read through that carefully and pick out why we can praise God.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

God's Grief.

In 1 Samuel 15:10-11 we read these words.....

"Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel: "I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and had not carried out my instructions." Samuel was troubled, and he cried out to the LORD all that night."


Do you remember another time that God "grieved"?

Yes, that is correct....in Genesis 6 and verse 5f.

"The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The LORD grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain."


TFTD: What do we have to do lto grieve God?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Cherishing Sin.

Psalm 66:18 "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the LORD would not have listened...."


This tells us something about prayer - we cannot expect God to listen to us if we are harbouring sin in our lives.

I think there is also the challenge for us not to secretly enjoy sin and feed on it.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Samuel's Farewell.

In Samuel's farewell speech to the nation one of the things he told the people was this....

"But be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you." (1 Samuel 12:24)

Hold the LORD in awe, serve Him well and remember what He has done for us (we actually do that as we partake of the Lord's Supper).

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Unbelievable!

How hard do you have to be to actually see something happen in front of your own eyes and still not believe it.

It happened in New Testament times. In my reading today (from John 12:37) we see this:

"Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him."


Don't you think that is unbelievable?

I suppose that is why Jesus said, "Blessed are those who have believed, but have not seen."


TFTD: I want to make sure that I am not one of those unbelieving ones.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Cleaning Up Operation.

In John 12 and verse 31 Jesus says, "Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out."


That must have occurred with the death and resurrection of Jesus, which was about to happen.

What this means for us is that the enemy has no power. There is only scattered resistance. Let's not give the evil one more power than he actually has.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Afraid!

This morning I was reading of the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, a week or so before he was killed.

John quotes Zechariah 9:9 "Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt." (John 12:15)

There are numerous times in the Scriptures when people are afraid on seeing God.

Like, after Jesus had cast the evil spirits into the pigs, they had run down the hill and drowned.

The locals asked Jesus to leave their district because they were afraid.

Perhaps we should be afraid in the presence of God.

Our Prime Minister is not afraid - she says she does not believe in Him!

I wonder if God believes in the Prime Minister?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Not Guilty.

In John 9 and verse 41, Jesus is talking to some Pharisees, he says, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin...."

Does it mean that if they had no knowledge of God's Word, His laws or who Jesus is - that they would be free of the sinful nature inherited through Adam?

No I don't think so.

It more likely means that if they were "blind" then they would have no guilt over violating teachings or commands. It is like Paul argues in Romans 1 through 3.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

"And He Worshipped Him"

When Jesus heals the man born blind, he ends up being ejected from the Synagogue because he suggested that the Jewish leaders might want to become a follower of Jesus also.

Jesus finds this man who he has healed and the man comes to faith.

"Lord, I believe" he said, and he worshipped him. John 9:38

My question is: What did that worship involve? Any ideas?


Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

The Aftermath Of Lazarus.

Jesus called Lazarus out of the tomb - away from death into life.

That event had an enormous backlash - some good, some not so good.

1.     Many Jews put their faith in Jesus (John 11:45; 12:11)

2.     The potential is that "everyone will believe in Him" (John 11:48)

3.     From that time on the Jews plotted to have Jesus killed. (John 11:53)

4.     Jesus could no longer move around publicly. (John11:54; 12:11)

5.     Crowds also came out to see Lazarus. (John 12:9)

TFTD: We need to read the Scriptures slowly and deliberately to get the full meaning and implications.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Great Hope.

In John 11 (on the death of Lazarus) Jesus encourages Mary and Martha with these words:

"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"


They are fantastically, encouraging words. It is no wonder that they are included in the funeral service. That is a period in people's lives that they need to be pointed to great hope.

Have a terrific day,


Peter Clark.

The Danger Of Growing Richer.

The danger of growing richer is a relative thing - we do not have to grow filthy rich for money to be a problem.

Psalm 62:10b

".....though your riches increase, do not set your heart on them."


TFTD: We have to be VERY careful.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Psalm 62

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
     my hope comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
     he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honour depend on God;
     he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
     pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge."

(Psalm 62:5-8)

The Great Divide

When Jesus healed the man born blind...some believed what they saw...some didn't. (John Chapter 9)

They were divided over what they believed.

They had the healed man there in front of them - and yet some still would not believe that he had been healed.

People say, that if they could see that they would believe. "If only God could let them see......"

But that doesn't work. People do have evidence AND still not believe.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

No Room For God's Word.

Today in my reading I was reminded of a truth that is very comforting to leaders of churches.

I know a lot of clergyman, serving the LORD to the best of their ability, and with the gifts that they have been given.

Nearly all of them have trouble. Why?

Jesus was suffering persecution and rejection and in John 8:37 He says this, "I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are ready to kill me, because you have no room for my word."

The very bottom line is that there is a rejection of God's Word ad the reason for this is that those who oppose Jesus do not belong to the Heavenly Father, but to their father, the devil (8:43)

TFTD: The context helps


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

A Great Promise.

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)

Have you ever been completely in the dark? I mean TOTAL darkness....it is very scary.

Never having to walk in spiritual darkness is very reassuring.

It only comes through our relationship with Christ....but it does come.


Have a great day,



Peter Clark.

Essential Work For God.

The crowds asked Jesus, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" (John 6:28)

This question is not far from any of us....what do we need to do to get into heaven?

Jesus answers by saying that is not so much what you have to do..... but who you are.

He says, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." (v.29)

Not what we DO. We could never, ever do enough, and, there is no equity in what we do. Is being a minister any different from being a missionary? Is helping on Sunday with the morning tea any different from visiting the hospital on Monday?

No...it is not what we do..... but whether or not we have responded to the initiative of God in sending Jesus to die for our sin.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

The Good Wife.

The good wife - Not the television show, but the girl I married 38 years ago yesterday.

What do I find in today's Bible reading?

"A wife of noble, character is her husband's crown....." (Proverbs 12:4)

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

A Few Among The Crowd.

This morning in my Bible Reading it was the passage in John 6 about many of the followers of Jesus deserting Him.

Jesus had said to them, "Yet there are some of you who do not believe." (v.64)

John then writes, "From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed Him." (v.66)

My suspicion would be that (even today) there are many in churches "who do not believe". This could be so for different church traditions - formal or informal. In the formal situation people might be there for the formality, for the pomp, for the ceremony, for the music etc. In the informal situation people could well be there: to meet other people, for the music etc etc.

The reason I believe that this might be the case is because Jesus Himself told us that "no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him." (v.65)

TFTD: Churches provide "religion", Christ gives faith and life.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Motivation For Mission

Romans 10:13,14

"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"

Praise To God

"Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing, "To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honour and glory and power, for ever and ever"  (Revelation 5:13)

Near But Yet So Far....

We are just back from two weeks in Asia.

There are many temples, and many people following various religions, but without all theirs efforts really making a difference to their lives.

At least that is how it appears!

In Jesus' day they had the Pharisees. They seemed so keen. The trouble was....that they seemed to miss the point.

Jesus said to them, "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These Scriptures testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." John 5:39,40

Near but yet so far.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

On The Roundabout.

My Bible Readings have moved on to the Judges.

The theme, which is repeated throughout the Judges is seen in Chapter 6....

Verse 1 "Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD....."


Verse 6 "...the Israelites .....cried out to the LORD for help."


That pattern is repeated again and again.

TFTD: The question is, "Is that the way we live our lives too?" - forgetting God, and then crying out for Him?

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Lord, Teach Me To Pray.

Almighty God,

renew us through the gift of your Spirit,

that we may always do and think

what is righteous in your sight,

that we, who can do nothing good without you,

may live according to your holy will;

through Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever. AMEN.

Not Obvious In The Eastern Suburbs.

After Jesus was "caught out" with the Samaritan woman, when the disciples came back from hunting food, among other things Jesus says this....

"I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together" (John 4:35)

I am in a sad part of the world where there is no fields that are waiting for harvest.

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

The Results Of Disobedience.

The Hebrews were to drive out the inhabitants of their new land.

But they didn't.

God says to them in Judges 2:2 & 3....

"Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you."

TFTD: Disobedience does have consequences, even if it is not immediately apparent.

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

A Challenge To Live For God.

Continuing in Joshua, we see a challenge being laid down to God's people to live for God and to serve Him.

Chapter 24:14-15

14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

Six Things To Do.

The Book of Joshua is very encouraging.

This morning I was reading Chapter 22 and found these very practical imperatives.

"But be very careful to keep the commandments and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul." (Verse 5)

TFTD: Something for us to work on.

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

Jesus - The Eye And Mind Surgeon.

Jesus is a real eye opener and mind surgeon

In Luke 24:31 he opened the eyes of the disciples on the Emmaus Road...

"Then their eyes were opened and they recognised him...."

Then later in verse 45 when Jesus met the other disciples, He opened their minds to the Scriptures...

"Then he opened their minds so that they could understand the Scriptures..."

At any time, when we realise a spiritual truth or understand the Scriptures....it is Jesus who gives us that experience. Because we are so centred on ourselves we tend to think that it comes from us.

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.