Daily Devotionals in Verse and Rhyme: 10/26/12

Friday, October 26, 2012

OUR BE-ATTITUDE

Time with Jesus - Saturday, 27 October 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation is on the beatitudes. Matt 5:3-12. I’d love to have seen the expression on the faces of the apostles and the crowd as Jesus launched into what we refer to as the Sermon on the Mount. If people thought the Law of Moses was “tough” these went to the next level! In brief we could say the Law of Moses focused on things people did. Now Jesus implies that to think about these things is to do them. “Take a fancy for the neighbour’s wife and you’re an adulterer”. It’s a brand new level of impossibility! Don’t believe me? Try it and see!

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Saturday, 27 October 2012			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	OUR BE-ATTITUDE
It was inevitable that Jesus Christ would draw the crowds. He had received a revelation from His Father that He is the Son of God. He was either crazy, a liar, or it was true. Take your pick. I made my decision sometime in the early 1950’s. For me, it is, was, and always will be the truth. In the early days of His ministry, He was followed by the crowds to the point where He often had to hide away. How do you hide when you have the reputation as the greatest walking miracle worker ever seen? If you can do so, please tell me! Matthew 5 advises us that on one occasion, He was on a mountain-side talking with His disciples. As He did so, a great crowd gathered round Him. Then He began to speak. What the crowd was about to hear, is the greatest and most remarkable “sermon” ever given. 2000 years later, it remains unsurpassed as the simplest and most beautiful lesson on the Kingdom of God that any person before or since has ever delivered. No man or woman other than Jesus Christ Himself has ever lived up to the impossible requirements of this sermon. Indeed, it is only “Him-possible” in and through His life in us. He set the ball rolling with the beatitudes. If you boil them all down you find that there are eight of them. They might possibly be considered as the eight gold medals of our “Olympic Games” of life. Individually, it may be possible for us to achieve one or two of them. Even a dedicated and committed Christian might succeed and put four or five of them into practice in daily life. Most Christians look at them, shake their head and say, “Don’t bother; they are beyond the likes of you and me.” I’ve heard it suggested that there are 8 because if we only succeed with one per day, a week will not be long enough for any of us. What we have to remember is that Jesus was not speaking about what you and I can achieve. Forget that. It’s a pipedream. But when we live in Him, as we are meant to, we find that they produce the most wonderful lifestyle possible. One day, Christians will realise that none of us can live the Christian life. We aren’t supposed to do it anyway. The beatitudes should force us onto our knees to cry out to God for help. We can’t do it. If we could, we would have no need for Him. We could say that these beatitudes are God saying, “This is how I live. Match it if you can!” It’s a bit like the Old Testament Law. It was impossible for the Jews to keep. The beatitudes are a type of Christian equivalent. “Here is My lifestyle” says Jesus. Come to Me. Make Me your Lord and we will do it together.” This makes me tremble. Please Lord; empower me to live like that! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			⁶ Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that whoever you bless is blessed, and whoever you curse is cursed." Numbers 22:6 TNIV ³ "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. ⁵ "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. ⁶ "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. ⁷ "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. ⁸ "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. ⁹ "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. ¹⁰ "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:3-12 ESV ²⁷ As He was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, "God bless Your mother--the womb from which You came, and the breasts that nursed You!" ²⁸ Jesus replied, "But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice." Luke 11:27-28 NLT ¹⁴ Blessed are those who wash their robes. They will be permitted to enter through the gates of the city and eat the fruit from the tree of life. Revelation 22:14 NLT	We call them the beatitudes; the attitude to be, When thinking of the Scripture; what it means for you and me! We wish that we could find them, but they are very rare, Very few are manifest of which we are aware. Tell me where they’re hiding; they’re difficult to spot. Life is very stressful, so most we haven’t got! Matt 5 We aren’t poor in spirit if we are filled with pride. 3 Which means that from God’s Kingdom we run away and hide Mourners will be comforted; that’s wonderful to know. 4 But mourning doesn’t happen, when we’re always on the go. Meekness is a quality we seldom understand. 5 If we lose our temper, we’ll also lose the land. Hungering and thirsting, in a quest for righteousness! 6 If we’d only do it, we won’t get in a mess. But if we’re committed, to putting Jesus first, We will never hunger and we will never thirst. When we’re being merciful, we will not bear a grudge. 7 Or take a position, from which we will not budge Jesus brought forgiveness and set the sinner free. Having a pure heart is an impossibility, 8 For normal sinful people; the likes of me and you. And though this sounds so logical it really isn’t true! By the blood of Jesus, our hearts have been made pure! We shall see the Master; that’s absolutely sure. Are you a peacemaker? Is Christ your source of peace? 9 Take Him to your neighbours; and help them find release, From their dreadful bondages, when He becomes their Lord. We will all be sons of God when Jesus is adored! Are you persecuted? Called a “righteous freak”? 10 Do you hear the comment, “Don’t listen to him speak. He is just a hypocrite! So do not you waste your time. He has no authority from Jesus Christ Divine! Righteousness and heaven; what can he know of that? 11 Tell him that it sounds as if he’s talking through his hat.” When they make such comments is when you should rejoice. 12 Shout out “Hallelujah” in your very loudest voice. Jesus Christ has promised a reward for you on high. Everlasting glory with His prophets in the sky. Jim Strickland Written 27 October 2012

TRAPPINGS

Time with Jesus - Friday, 26 October 2012

Hi all,

Ministry today can be a trap. We are always strongly influenced by the people we meet and hear about. Many of us rely on modern business methods to bring us the “success” we so sincerely seek. Advertising is one of the more popular methods. Today’s meditation looks at this and asks whether we should do so or not.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 26 October 2012			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	TRAPPINGS
Advertising! The Western Church seems to be besotted with it. Some of our “big name” preachers have an itinerary that is fully booked for more than a year ahead. A month or so ago we went to see one of the best known names among Astronomy and Christianity. Dr David Bloch gave a presentation at local South African Methodist Church. It was wonderful stuff. But if you want him to come and give a lecture, try booking something like two years ahead. Much the same can be said for men like Benny Hinn and T D Jakes. You may find it easier with women like Joyce Meyer or Paula White, but I have my doubts. Incidentally, I’m not seeking to criticise these men or women in any way. They are doing the best they can under tremendously difficult circumstances. Personally, I would be greatly intimidated by having to generate the finance for the number of people who are working in their ministries. They can’t afford to have a poor “turn-out” where they have been invited to preach. If this means that there is insufficient money coming in to finance them, it will very quickly be “game over”. Incidentally, don’t be put off (or on) by the comment “God will Provide”. Charlatans and wicked men have succeeded without God’s help. So don’t be impressed by the “size” of their Ministry. It can be a real trap. You have to preach what the people want to hear. If you don’t, the people will soon go elsewhere. The fame is fabulous but what about motive? Jesus put it like this: ⁵ "When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth that is all the reward they will ever get. Matthew 6:5 NLT Now people may point at me and say, “You are speaking from an envious spirit”. Perhaps that’s true. At least I’m willing to consider that possibility. In the final analysis, the Lord will decide! Jesus used none of these advertising tricks. He didn’t “pander to the crowd”. At times He deliberately avoided them. He didn’t publicise. He relied entirely on word of mouth and the power of the Holy Spirit. I’ve heard it said it’s doubtful if even His ministry could have survived the “fall-out” from a modern advertising campaign! I believe that people didn’t only come to watch a miracle worker. They came to see a man full of the Holy Spirit. A Man in Whom the Fruit of the Holy Spirit was visible in abundance. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Even during His closing hours, hanging on the cross, these “qualities” were on display. From these qualities, the very Nature of God was revealed. But crucifixion invariably exposes hidden agenda. He had none! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			¹⁵ Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth. Malachi 2:15 ESV ⁴⁹ John answered, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us." ⁵⁰ But Jesus said to him, "Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you." Luke 9:49-50 ESV ⁵⁴ And seeing, His disciples James and John said, Lord, do You desire that we command fire to come down from Heaven and consume them, even as Elijah did? ⁵⁵ But He turned and rebuked them and said, You do not know of what spirit you are. Luke 9:54-55 MKJV ²⁷ And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp." ²⁸ And Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, "My lord Moses, stop them." ²⁹ But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the LORD's people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!" Numbers 11:27-29 ESV ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:22-26 ESV	Jesus, when He walked the Earth, was not like us at all. His hunt for reputation was very, very small. He didn’t use the internet, or send out bulk email. He had no use for Google. And measured on a scale Of one to ten, publicity would not have helped one jot. The “Galilean Herald”, He totally forgot. He didn’t use these trappings. There truly was no need. Dependence upon word of mouth was what had been decreed. Was it a disadvantage? Not from the things I’ve read. You don’t need 10 inch headlines, to say you’ve raised the dead! And when you cleanse the lepers; and recreate an eye. You don’t need a press agent! The folk won’t pass you by! And what of competition? He didn’t really mind. If you’re not against Him, I’m sure that you will find, That He is not against you. That’s what the Scripture says. And He retained this attitude. Big-heartedness still pays! He had no hidden motives; God’s Kingdom was His goal. He came so He could rescue us and save our sinful souls. He didn’t have to look around at the itiner’y, Of other big name preachers, within the ministry. He didn’t have to do that. He knew He wouldn’t fail; And it would be accomplished on a vast eternal scale! Moses was the first one; when others prophesied. “Don’t think I am jealous” this man of God replied. “I wish the Lord’s anointing was resting on them all! If everyone could prophesy, I think we’d have a ball! So leave Eldad and Medad and do not make them stop. If it isn’t from the Lord, you’ll find their words will flop!” This was the Master’s attitude! He wanted folk to try. No lost opportunities should ever be passed by. His face was not on street-pole adds and there was no campaign. I’m sure He would regard such things with absolute disdain. If folk were not attracted, by Holy Spirit power, To come along and hear Him, the meeting would go sour! And that is what we’re seeing throughout the world today. If we advertise it, we will not have to pray! No wonder signs and miracles are now so seldom seen. The only way that this will change is when our hearts are clean. Jim Strickland – Written 26^th October 2012