Time with Jesus - Monday, 30
January 2012
Hi all,
As
I looked at the evening Scriptures, I found I had a bit of a problem. Not with
the Scriptures but with the theme behind them. They seemed to reflect
discipline, suffering and God’s promises related to them. Since I’ve written a
couple of meditations this year along these lines, I felt that something
different was warranted.
To
be different, I changed the style to truncated limericks and focused on God’s
promises in each of the seven Scriptures. For identification purposes the
Scriptures are numbered 1 to 7 and the limericks have the corresponding
numbers.
As
stated previously, God’s promises are nearly all conditional. If we do ------
God will do ------. One or two are “automatic”. The following from the book of
Jeremiah is an example of this. 10 This
is what the LORD says: "You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then
I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised and I will bring
you home again. Jer 29:10 NLT The
only “condition” appears to be the passing of time. However, if we look further
back in history we will find that they went into exile because of God’s
promises. God had told them through the prophets that if they were disobedient
to Him, they would be thrown out of the Promised Land.
There
is a tendency among Christians today to forget the less “favourable” of God’s
promises. A good example is: 23 For the wages of sin is death,
but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom 6:23 NLT. This is a promise from God. Each and
every one of us has sinned. Sure, some have sinned less than others. But it only
takes one sin and the “reward” is death. These are our wages. We are always
entitled to our wages. We work for them. So we will be paid in full. Just one
sin is all it takes. God said so. So, in spite of hyperinflation or depreciation’
the “reward” is the same. So unless Jesus comes first, we are all going to die.
It’s a “promise” from God; so much for the negative side.
On
the positive side we have the promise of eternal life! Yes, it is conditional. But
it is a promise. In a way it is God’s guarantee. We will all be resurrected; some
to eternal life, others to the second death.
The
most wonderful thing about this is that it applies to everyone. There is no
pecking order. It’s true for the Pope the same as it is for me. It’s the same
for Billy Graham as it is for Desmond Tutu. There is no favouritism. Personally,
I’m glad it’s this way. Not glad we are going to die. I’m glad that we will all
be treated the same way.
Blessings
Jim & Phyllida Strickland.
His Promises
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If
you’ll depend upon the Lord,
His
goodness will appear.
If
you will wait,
He
won’t be late.
You’ll
find that He comes near.
Just
wear His yoke of discipline,
Submitting
from your youth.
Sit
quietly,
And
you will see,
The
things He said as truth.
It
never is too early, 2
To
train a Child God’s way.
You’ll
never scold,
Him
when he’s old;
He’ll
follow Him each day.
The
Lord will bring His discipline,
And
love to everyone.
If
you endure,
He’ll
keep you pure.
You’ll
want to carry on.
Yes,
He corrects His children,
The
way that fathers do.
And
He will beat,
You
on your seat.
To
keep your lifestyle true.
Indeed
the Lord is righteous,
And
He will keep us right.
A
holy life,
That’s
free from strife,
He
wants by day and night.
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Before
you made me suffer,
I’d
wander and I’d stray. 4
Those
days are gone,
I
won’t go wrong.
With
You I’ll always stay.
No
longer can I ever be,
The
way I was before.
For
day and night,
You’re
my delight.
While
teaching me Your law.
The
teaching You have given me, 5
Means
more to me than gold.
You’ve
filled my head,
With
what You’ve said.
Your
riches still unfold.
The
Lord spoke to His people;
When
seventy years are done,
You
will return,
From
your sojourn,
Back
home to Me you’ll run.
My
plans bring satisfaction
And
you’ll be glad to hear.
Till
your release
You’ll
know my peace
For
I am always near.
A
person who is humble 7
Beneath
God’s mighty hand
Will
know His care
Regardless
where
He
goes within the land.
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Jim Strickland - Written Monday 30th Jan 2012
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