Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not be in want,
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord,
forever.

A Doxology.

Romans 11:33-36

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom 

   and knowledge of God!

How unsearchable his judgments,

and his paths beyond tracing out!

Who has know the mind of the Lord?

Or who has been His counsellor?

Who has ever given to God,

that God should repay him?

For from Him and through Him and to

   Him are all things.

To Him be glory forever.

Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

All That Is Necessary.

The biggest errors and heresies that turn up in the Christian faith result from people ADDING to or SUBTRACTING from the Gospel of God.

Paul writes in his letter to the Romans, Chapter 10, verses 9....

"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is LORD," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

There is no room for adding more laws.

"Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." (Romans 10:4)

Paul is writing to people who he says "are very zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge." Romans 10:2)

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Comfort.

"Comfort, comfort my people...." (Isaiah 40:1)

Judah still had 100 years of trouble before Jerusalem would fall, and then 70 years of exile. This is the situation in which God tells Isaiah to speak tenderly and to comfort Jerusalem.

The seeds of comfort for us may take root in the soil of adversity.

When our life appears to be falling apart ask God for comfort. He is not short on compassion.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Enjoy Life While We Can.

Ecclesiastes 7:1-4

A good name is better than fine perfume,
   and the day of death better than the day of birth.
It is better to go to a house of mourning
   than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man;
   the living should take this to heart.
Sorrow is better than laughter,
   because a sad face is good for the heart.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
   but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

Solomon has just told us to "eat, drink and be merry", to find satisfaction in one's work, and to enjoy what God has given us. This last advice seems to contradict what he has previously said.

We are to enjoy what we have been given, but realise that adversity also strikes. Adversity reminds us that life is short, that we need to live wisely. It also refines our character.

In other words --- it is all a part of living.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

In The Presence Of God.

Psalm 122

I rejoiced with those who said to me,
"Let us go to the house of the Lord."
Our feet are standing
in your gates, O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is built like a city
that is closely compacted together.

That is where the tribes go up,
the tribes of the Lord,
to praise the name of the Lord
according to the statute given to Israel.
There the thrones for judgement stand,
the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
"May those who'd love you be secure.
May there be peace within your walls
and security within your citadels."
For the sake of my brothers and friends,
I will say, "Peace be within you."
For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your prosperity.

David longed for, and rejoiced in the presence of God. Do we?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Depending On God.

Psalm 121.

I lift my eyes to the hills-
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip-
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you-
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm-
he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

The writer of this Psalm shows such confidence, trust and dependance in God.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

When Bad Things Happen.

Could I remind you of Romans 8 and verse 28....

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose..."

God loves us, and even when bad things happen we know that God is sovereign and in control.

Remember that in the good times, so that we can recall it in the bad times.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Not Guilty

What if you were on death row and you heard the words "Not guilty, go free".

How great would that be? Imagine. How would you feel?

The truth is of course, that the whole human race is on the pathway to death....condemned because for rejecting God's sovereignty over their lives.

If Jesus had never come there would be no hope at all.

And there IS no hope for those who continue to reject God, but thank and praise God, if we have responded to God's call to "Come to me" we have been declared as being not guilty.

We have been offered freedom from the power of sin, and given a different power - the power to do His will.

How good is that?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Fully Accepted.

Romans 5:1,2

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand."

It is great to remember that we are complete in Christ - we need nothing else, and our acceptance with Him is secure.

Having said that, we are growing in Christ - we are becoming more like Him.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

A Great Father

Abraham is described as our Father (Romans 4:18)

Further on in that Chapter there is a great description of him...

"Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised." (vs.20, 21)

He did not waver.........was strengthened..........gave glory to God..........fully persuaded.

Wouldn't it be great if that was a description of us.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Two Ways To Live

In Romans 2:7,8 we are presented with two ways to live.

"To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honour and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger."

On the one hand: those who persist in doing good and seeking after honour and immortality will be given eternal life,

But, on the other hand those who just want to do everything for themselves, those who reject the ultimate reality of truth and consistently follow evil pathways, there will be the opposite of eternal life with God.

No a good prospect,

Have a great day with God,


Peter Clark.

God's Kindness

In the first few verses of Romans Chapter 2 we see the kindness of God, begging to be accepted.

Is we do not respond, then we are showing contempt.

"Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realising that God kindness leads you toward repentance."(Romans 2:4)

Food for thought.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

If That Is What You Wanted

In the last half of Romans Chapter 1 we see the refrain of "God gave them over...".

Why did God give them over?

They "exchanged"...

..."the glory of the immortal God for images..."

..."the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things..."

..."Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones"


What did God give them over to?

..."sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another"

..."to shameful lusts."

..."to a depraved mind, to do what not ought to be done."

Is that what you really want? To be given over by God?

I don't think so.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Without Excuse

Is God fair?

Does He give everyone an opportunity to acknowledge and to put their trust in Him?

Romans 1:19

"...since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- his eternal power and divine nature -- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse."

What are doing, with what has been made plain to you?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

God's Compassion.

My reading this morning took me to the Book of Jonah.

I was reminded of the great compassion of God in Chapter 3 and verse 10.

After hesitation, Jonah ends up in Nineveh and as a result of his preaching, the Nineties repent.

And they really repent.

In verse 10 we read: "When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened."

How good is that we have a compassionate God.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

A Prayer For The Elderly.

Psalm 71

"Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man...Do not cast me off in the time of old age, forsake me not when my strength is spent.... O God, be not far from me; O my God, make haste to help me.

A good reminder to call on God and not forget him in our older age.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Watch Who You Follow.

2 Kings 17:15

"They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the Lord had ordered them, "Do not do as they do", and they did the things the Lord had forbidden them to do."

Soon after this we see the Israelites reaching as low as they could go - child sacrifice.

If we are not following God we are on a downward slide.

God says, "Do not do as they do."

That is clear enough isn't it?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

The Greatest Helper There Is.

Paul is on the carpet before King Agrippa.

He testifies...."But I have had God's help to this very day, and so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen -- that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles" (Acts 26:22,23)

Paul found his strength and inspiration in God.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark

When "Right" Might Not Be Right.

I came across this verse today in Proverbs 16:25.

"There is a way that seems right to a man,
    but in the end it leads to death."

We can think that something is right, we might even be totally convinced that it is right....but in the end it is not right....and leads to a very bad outcome.

Be careful about your decisions.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Where Help Comes From.

Psalm 28:7

"The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped..."

Isn't this a great reminder when we witness our world in chaos and loved ones around us are growing sick and dying.

The Lord is our strength when all else fails.


Have a great day,

Peter Clark.

True Repentance.

2 Chronicles 7:14

"If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

In Chapter 6 of 2 Chronicles, Solomon asked God to make provisions for the people when they sinned.

God answered with four conditions for forgiveness:

(1)          We are to humble ourselves by admitting our sins,

(2)          We are to pray to God, asking for forgiveness,

(3)          We are to seek God continually,

(4)          We are to turn from our sinful behaviour.

All this means that true repentance is more than just talk - it is changed behaviour.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Furthermore, Be Transformed.

Romans 12:2

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will."

As Christians, we are called not to "conform to the pattern of this world", with it's behaviour and customs that are usually selfish and anti-God. As Christians we should be deciding that these patterns of behaviour are contrary to Godliness.

But that must not be the end for us....we must be transformed by the renewing of our mind". Other versions say that we need to let God transform us into a new person by changing the way we think.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Beware Of Hypocrisy.

In Acts 23 Paul is before the Sanhedrin and he is struck on the mouth by one of those in attendance.

Paul retorts, "God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck" (23:3)

Jesus referred to the Pharisees on occasions as "whitewashed tombs" - all clean and attractive on the outside but filled with unclean contents.

We have to be very careful not to practice the art of looking good on the outside - appearing pious and godly, but being filled with all sorts of unclean thoughts, habits and actions, hidden from general view.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

Eternal Life.

John 10:27-28

"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand."

Jesus is speaking. His sheep listen to/ read his Word. They follow(actively) Him - not passively.

He gives us eternal life and we have the assurance that we will NEVER perish and also that NO-ONE will ever be able to SNATCH us way.

We are people who have been given free will and so (sadly) we can turn our back on God.

But there is great assurance for us.

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

On The Winning Side.

In 2 Kings 6 we see the prophet, Elisha being made aware (by God) of the movements of the King of Aram. He was at war with Israel.

And so, Elisha "sent word to the king of Israel: "Beware of passing that place, because the Arameans are going down there". This made the Israelites aware of all the Arameans movements.

The King of Aram found out that Elisha was responsible for this and of course decided to hunt him down.

When Elisha wakes one morning, the city in which he is staying is surrounded by the Arameans.

The servants are very concerned. But Elisha says, "Don't be afraid....those who are with us are more than those who are with them". The ones hunting Elisha end up being blinded and are guided to another foreign city.

That is a good reminder for us. We have opposition but those who are with us are more than those who are with them".

In the end GOD WINS. We can be assured of that.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

What Is Important.

Acts 22:14

"Then he (Ananias to Paul) said: "The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth..."

To see the resurrected Jesus was crucial for Paul. See Acts 26:16 and 1 Corinthians 9:1.

It was that experience that had convinced him of the truth of the gospel and this truth became the foundation of his theology.

The resurrection of Christ should be all important for us and shape our Christian experience and witness.

Does it?


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

The Problem With People.

In my reading of the Psalms today (Psalm 78:56f) there is a list of ways that people offend God...

...they put God to the test

...they rebelled against Him

...they did not keep his statutes

...they were disloyal and faithless

...they were as unreliable as a faulty bow

...they maintained high places to worship

...they had idols

...isn't that enough

Let's try and be faithful and obedient.


Have a good day,

Peter Clark.

Priestly Benediction.

Psalm 80 is a prayer for restoration after Israel being ravaged by a foreign power.

Verse 3 particularly jumped out at me - the phrase "make your face shine upon us that we might be saved". A prayer of pure desperation.

This phrase reminded me of the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:25...

     "The LORD bless you
    and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine upon 
                  you
      and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you 
      and give you peace."

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

The Word Of The Lord Stands Forever.

We are reminded in this 1 Peter passage that we have been "born again....through the living and enduring word of God. For
"All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers
of the field;
the grass withers and flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord stands
forever"

These verses today are quoted from Isaiah chapter 40. In it's context there is "The voice of one saying, "Cry!' One said, "What shall I cry?" (Isaiah 40:6). Neither the speaker nor the person addressed is identified. But before the prophet or preacher can proclaim the word of God faithfully, the Lord must reveal the word to him or her.

Then comes the message...."All men(flesh) are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field".

In a pastoral economy where people herd sheep, grass is valuable. The sheep have to eat, and grass is what they eat. A shepherd who cannot find grass for his sheep is doomed to lose his flock and his livelihood. Shepherds develop an eye for good grass. In that dry climate, grass would quickly become parched and brown - poor food for sheep. A shepherd would look for green grass - or at least , grass with a hint of green.

Like grass, flowers are fragile. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus speaks of this fragility: "But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, won't he much more clothe you, you of little faith?" (Matthew 6:30).
But, "...the grass withers and the flowers fall".

In Isaiah (and not in 1 Peter) we see the reason for this..."because the breath of the Lord blows on them" (v.7). Shepherds would be very familiar with the winds that dry and suck all the moisture from plants, and the hot temperatures that then bake them.

The metaphor is then made very plain. The grass and flowers will fade in the winds and that reminds us of our own impermanency - our own fragility. Just as the grass and flowers prosper for a while and then wither and die so did the people of Israel. They prospered when living faithful lives devoted to Yahweh, but they ran into trouble time and time again because of the inconstancy of their faith.

Isn't this also true for us as individuals?

We are then reminded (in v.25)..."the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stand forever".

Isn't that a great reminder to us? Like grass and flowers, humans wither and fade, but the word of God will stand forever. The word of God is the constant on which we can depend day in and day out. God gave his word to Abram and David and others in the form of a covenant in spite of their sin.

This is a hopeful word for us. We too, fail God, but God will not fail us.

These verses are included in the Anglican Prayer book Funeral Service. I have pronounced these words to grieving congregations for over 30 years, probably over 300 times. What a great reminder it has been for me personally, that this body that I have will not last - it is not made to last, but that there is a reality that stands forever - our great God and Heavenly Father.

God bless you and have a great day,

Peter Clark.

God In Proverbs.

How is God described in Proverbs...

He is aware of all that happens (15:3)

knows the hearts of all people ((15:11; 16:2; 21:2)

controls all things (16:33; 21:30)

is a place os safety (18:10)

rescues good people from danger (11:8,21)

condemns the wicked (11:31)

hears and lights in our prayers (15:8,29)

loves those who obey him (15:9; 22:12)

cares for the poor and needy (15:25; 22:22,23)

tests and purifies hearts (17:3)


How are we to respond...

fear and revere God (10:27; 14:26)

obey God's Word (13:13; 19:16)

do what is right and just (21:3)

trust God (22:17-19; 29:25)

(adapted from the Devotional Bible)

Have a great day,


Peter Clark.

The Danger Of Pride.

Proverbs 16:5

The LORD detests all the proud of heart.
Be sure of this:They will not go unpunished."

We tend to think that pride is not so bad. Perhaps we are of the opinion that there are a lot worse sins that we could be involved in. Not so.

Pride is that very confident voice inside us that assures us that our way is best....that we can work it out better than anyone else.

At it's very worst it is resisting God leading of us and believing that we are able to live without His help.

Isn't that at the very core of how our society is living?

Thought for the day (TFTD): Watch your life. Look out for the times that you want to just do everything your way, and perhaps when you are looking down on people as lesser beings.

It is only when we eliminate pride (or at least begin to) that God can help us become the people we are meant to be.


Have a great day,


Peter Clark.