Time with Jesus - Tuesday, 25 June
2013
Hi all,
Is there a difference between
“praise” and “worship”? It’s difficult to worship someone you don’t praise. But
you can praise someone you don’t worship. We see this in the book of
Revelation. 10 I fell at his feet to
worship him, but he wouldn't let me. "Don't
do that," he said. "I'm a servant just like you, and like your brothers and sisters who hold to the
witness of Jesus. The witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." Rev 19:10 MSG
The angel could accept John’s
thanks, but not John’s worship. It’s much the same with us. We are allowed to express
our appreciation; our praise to each other for what we have done. Provided it
is genuine, it must not to be confused with the “praises” of men. 
For instance
we may say to someone that they have done a great job. But never worship that
person. He/she is no different from you.
In many church gatherings the
difference between the two seems to be associated with tempo and volume. Praise
is seen as loud, raucous and very noisy. Worship is seen as slow and quiet. I’m
not sure this is always the case, but it seems to be generally accepted and
followed this way.
On many occasions, our own
preferences infringe on the music. I know of one pastor who can’t abide “slow
stuff”. For him, it must be constantly loud and noisy. I’m not sure where
worship fits into that style. Fortunately for Phyllida and me, we are not faced
with this dilemma.
So, assuming you do go to heaven
to be with Jesus, are there any people you would like to talk with? In the introduction
I’ve mentioned a couple of names. I’d also like to chat with Isaac Watts and
Fanny Crosby. They were prolific hymn writers and I’d love to listen to them
explain how some of their hymns came to be composed.
I’m told that on one
occasion, Charles Wesley was talking with a fellow Christian. The man stated
that he wished he had a thousand tongues with which to praise and worship God.
Inspired by the words, Wesley went away and composed one of Methodism’s best
known and best loved hymns, “O for a thousand tongues to sing my great
redeemers praise”. Charles Wesley wrote ±6000 hymns; hymns
for many occasions. He wrote one for men and women going about their ablutions!
He even wrote one for a woman in the process of child-birth! He believed, as
Phyllida and I do, that there is no distinction between secular and spiritual.
Thus, his hymns covered every aspect of life.
In the 21st century,
denominational practices, including those of the charismatic movement, have
lent themselves to the separation of secular and spiritual activities. We go to
a church building on Sunday. Then we sit in rows in spectator mode, watching
the “entertainment”. Then we get up and go home. Many feel that attending such
a meeting once per week constitutes their weekly “subscriptions” to the
Almighty to get them to heaven.
They may just as well have gone to the movies!
The chairs in the movie house are a lot more comfortable!
Shalom,
Jim &
Phyllida Strickland
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Matt 10:8
Freely you received, Freely give |
Time with Jesus – Tuesday, 25 June 2013
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Matt 10:8
Freely you received, Freely give |
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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
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INTRODUCTION
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DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES
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What is it that you particularly like doing? Let’s
keep away from things that may hurt other creatures. e.g. Fishing and
hunting. Not that I’m opposed to these activities. What I mean is, what are you
looking forward to doing in heaven? There are certain activities we do here
and now that we won’t be doing there. Blood sports and violent sports are
likely to be excluded. It’s not easy to love your opponent in the boxing ring
if you are trying to beat his brains out. I do have an idea for hunters. Give
the animal a gun with which to defend itself.
So, what will we be doing? Some say it will be what
we might call a 24/7 praise and worship meeting. In principle, I suspect
there’s a lot of truth in this. My problem is that if heaven is such a
wonderful place and we are all constantly in a meeting, why has God made it
so beautiful? Also, what’s the point of having trees which bear fruit every
month and have leaves which heal the nations if no one gets a chance to get
to them.
It also strikes me as odd to be a part of the bride
of Christ and not get a chance to spend “time” with him on a personal basis
of some sort? What about the “honeymoon”? Will there be such a time with
Jesus? I’m sure there will be a heavenly counterpart. The “couple” need to
spend time together getting to know each other. Of course, he knows us fully
already. But at present, we don’t know Him. I can’t speak for you, but I’m
looking forward to personally getting to know the Son of God. The One Who
said He would “save” me all those years ago.
There are no straight forward answers here. An added
complication is that time, as we know it, will not exist. We will be with
God, so we will also be living in the ever present now. Thus 24/7 becomes
meaningless. It’s difficult to imagine timelessness. We are accustomed to
things being sequential. But all sequences are time related. All that we have
ever seen of timelessness is a photograph. Photograms do not move. Movies do;
but it’s an optical illusion we use to give us the impression of motion.
Probably the best conclusion we can come to from all
this, is that praise and worship will be a major feature in heaven. We will
also be able to fellowship with each other and with God. I must say there are
a number of saints who have gone before us that we will be able to meet. For
me, meeting Moses would be special. Likewise, Peter, Paul, Habakkuk and John
Wesley. I would like to share a hymn I wrote with his brother Charles. Today’s
poem is the hymn in question. It’s called, In Praise of the Lord Jesus
Christ. For me it would be extra special if we all sang it to Jesus!
Jim and Phyllida
Strickland
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7 "My sword, wake up! Attack my shepherd! Attack
the man who is close to me," announces the LORD who rules over all.
"Strike the shepherd down. Then the sheep will be scattered. And I will
turn my hand against their little ones.
Zechariah 13:7 NIrV
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JESUS IS
LORD; Let us rejoice!
JESUS IS
LORD; Lift up your voice;
To JESUS,
let your anthem raise
And
worship Him and give Him praise.
JESUS IS
LORD; Of sea and sky!
JESUS IS LORD;
He's Deity!
The one
whom, by His mighty hand,
Created
everything for man.
JESUS IS
LORD; Yes, He is strong!
JESUS IS
LORD; Of everyone;
For,
everything the eye can see
Was all
created, Lord, by Thee!
JESUS IS
LORD; All praises bring.
JESUS IS
LORD; My God and King;
I'll
praise him while He gives me breath
For He
alone has conquered death!
JESUS IS
LORD; Toward Him press;
JESUS IS
LORD; His Name, all bless!
Let's
magnify our risen Lord;
Salute our
King, the Living Word.
JESUS IS
LORD; All praise His Name!
JESUS IS
LORD; To Earth He came
To win
from Satan our release
And to
become our Prince of Peace.
JESUS IS
LORD; Yes, He achieved!
JESUS IS
LORD; Our sins relieved
And
snatched us from the jaws of Hell.
That's why
His praises, we forth tell!
JESUS IS
LORD; Let us adore;
JESUS IS
LORD; He did restore
To sinful
man what Satan stole.
He set us
free and made us whole!
Jim Strickland
Written 1985
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9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human
body.
Colossians
2:9 NLT
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19 Long ago You spoke in a vision to Your faithful people. You said, "I have raised up a warrior. I have selected him
from the common people to be king.
Psalms 89:19 NLT
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3 "I have trodden the winepress alone,
and from the peoples no one was with me; I trod them in my anger and
trampled them in my wrath; their lifeblood spattered on my garments, and
stained all my apparel.
Isaiah 63:3 ESV
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16 There is no doubt that godliness is a
great mystery. Jesus appeared in a body. The Holy Spirit proved that
he was the Son of God. He was seen by angels. He was preached among the
nations. People in the world believed in him. He was taken up to heaven in
glory.
1 Timothy 3:16 NIrV
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6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is
given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be
called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6 ESV
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3 He is the radiance of the glory of God
and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word
of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right
hand of the Majesty on high,
Hebrews 1:3 ESV
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8 But to the Son He says, "Your
throne, O God, endures forever and ever. You rule with a sceptre of justice.
Hebrews 1:8 NLT
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6 And when He brought His firstborn Son into the world, God said,
"Let all of God's angels worship Him."
Hebrews 1:6 NLT
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16 On His robe at His thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.
Revelation 19:16 NLT
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