LOVING GOD & OTHERS

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 06 July 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	LOVING GOD & OTHERS

About 30 years ago Phyllida and I went to a meeting in Nicky van der Westhuizen’s tent in the Krugersdorp area. We went to see a visitor from South America. His name was Juan Carlos Ortiz. Some of you may remember him. He had written a couple of books on discipleship. Books we had found particularly challenging. So we went along to the tent to hear what this physically small man had to say.

Juan Carlos spoke reasonable English so there was no need for an interpreter. He started talking about love and told us a remarkable story. He was the pastor of a fairly large church. Every week he had to preach to the people much the same as is done in South Africa, On this particular Sunday morning before the service, he had a talk with the Lord. “What are you speaking about today?” the Lord asked him. “Love” replied Juan Carlos. “Will they do it?” asked the Lord. “No!” replied Juan Carlos. “So why are you speaking about love if they don’t love each other?” stated the Lord. “I don’t know!” said Juan Carlos. “Don‘t you think you should do so before you continue with something else?” “Tell them to love one another!” the Lord added for”. That was the end of the conversation. But Juan Carlos didn’t know what to do.

Juan Carlos did what he could to prolong the preliminaries leading up to the “sermon”. When the time came, he went up into the pulpit. He then looked at the people and said, “The Lord says to tell you to love one another”, he said rather nervously. Then he sat down. The silence was deafening. After a couple of embarrassing minutes, he got to his feet and said, “The Lord says to tell you to love one another. Then he sat down again. After a few moments, one of the elders stood up and asked, “Aren’t we doing it?” “It seems not!” said another. This started a time of discussion in the church. They had to go back to basics and develop a system such that they didn’t move on to the next step until the Lord said they were ready. It took about six months. Then they could move on.

Even today Phyllida and I get excited about people being involved in the weekly meetings. For most people this becomes threatening. They are not used to participation in the services. All they have ever known is the lecture mode we see all around us. We don’t know how the Lord is going to do this.

Today’s meditation goes back to 1984. We had started to look for a new and better system. Two of the poems came out of that era. The final one, “Neighbours”, goes back to 1981. At that time a number of friends were instructed by their pastor to have nothing further to do with us. The issue was divorce. At that time the attitude toward many couples who had been divorced was, “God will forgive you but we won’t!” We were sad to lose the friendship of this couple. That’s when I wrote that poem. The sentiments are still the same. We subsequently overcame the problem and the four of us became friends again. Thank You Lord.

Thank God those days are over. We have all learned much from what happened; things we have been able to use when coming into contact with people who have been through the pain of divorce. Love is the only solution to such problems. Love that is genuine and willing to reach out to others.

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

³ For I am always aware of Your unfailing love, and I have lived according to Your truth. - Psalm 26:3 NLT

⁸ The LORD is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love. - Psalm 145:8 TNIV

⁴⁴ But I say, love your enemies! [Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you.] Pray for those who persecute you! ⁴⁵ In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. Mat 5:44-45 NLT

¹ You are the children that God dearly loves. So be just like him. ² Lead a life of love, just as Christ did. He loved us. He gave himself up for us. He was a sweet-smelling offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:1-2 NIrV

³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 TNIV

²² Now that you have obeyed the truth and have purified your souls to love your brothers sincerely, you must love one another intensely and with a pure heart. 1 Peter 1:22 ISV

¹⁴ Christ's love controls us. We are sure that one person died for everyone. And so everyone died.

2 Corinth 5:14 NIrV ³⁵ "But love your enemies. Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then you will receive a lot in return. And you will be sons of the Most High God. He is kind to people who are evil and are not thankful. ³⁶ So have mercy, just as your Father has mercy.

Luke 6:35-36 NIrV

JESU'S LOVE

On into eternity;

Beyond all of infinity

Is where the love of Jesus goes.

As precious as a fragrant rose

Which blooms and spreads its scent abroad;

That's how the Love of God is poured

Upon a person who is seen

As someone who's a king or queen!

It never ceases; never ends;

It never wavers; never bends;

t is as solid as the ground

On which the universe is found.

It is the cure for loneliness

And is the way the Lord can bless

A person throughout all his years;

The way to calm his deepest fears.

And, ultimately, you will see

That, though He is Divinity,

His care for you brings nothing less

Than everlasting blessedness!

Love One Another

How do we love each other?

How can I lay my life

Aside for every brother,

Sister child and wife?

Am I a good example

Of Christian love and care?

A little tiny sample

Of how we all should share?

We are so self-sufficient;

We don't identify.

But Lord, You are omniscient;

So, open every eye

And show us what is needed

To break our frozen masks.

For Lord, we all have pleaded

To find that simple task

By which, all of the emptiness

Our faces do conceal,

Can be replaced with blessedness

That's genuinely real.

Lord, help us smash the barriers

That keeps each other out.

May we all be carriers

Of what Your love's about.

Cut out our tongues and silence us

If loving is just words;

If all we do is make a fuss,

Ignoring what we've heard.

So, help us love, we beg You,

In practice and in fact.

For then, like You, the things we do

Will not be just an act.

Then, everyone who knows us

Will praise The Lord above

And say they know God chose us

For, "See how much they love!"

Neighbours?

Although we live along the street

It seems as though we never meet.

Which really is an awful shame;

Perhaps we're equally to blame!

For it must surely grieve God's heart

When Christian people have to part.

For I am sure He longs to see

The FACT of Christian unity!

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

GENUINE OR NOT?

Time with Jesus - Thursday, 05 July 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation looks at the topic of whether something or someone is genuine. The English expression is, “Is it the real McCoy?” We need to ask ourselves how we can tell. Is it genuine Christianity or is this a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Thursday, 05 July 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	GENUINE OR NOT?
In English we have a delightful expression, “It’s the Real McCoy”. The picture on the right is thought to be the origin of the expression. McCoy is derived from Mackay, referring to Messrs’ Mackay, Edinburgh, who made a brand of fine whisky from 1856 onwards and which they promoted as 'the real MacKay' from 1870 The question must be asked, is, why a brand of whiskey is referred to in a daily devotional. Apart from the fact that it’s an attention grabber, there is an excellent reason for this. As Christians, we need to be looking for the genuine article and not be fobbed off with a substitute. Over the past 50 years, I’ve come across many men and women who say they are Christian but are no more Christian than a gold fish. To some extent, this is because we tend to trust those who say they are Christians. I don’t know why we are so naïve? In some ways it’s a good way to be. History is littered with charlatans and flakes. Christians are “fair game” for the enemy. In addition, one of the easiest ways to get money is to start a religion. So we need to be able to identify the real McCoy. A major difficulty we have with this is, because we are reluctant to being thought of as judgemental. In Luke’s Gospel Jesus warns us: 37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: Luke 6:37 KJVR. But the same Jesus tells un in Matthew’s Gospel: 15 Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Mat 7:15-16 KJVR These comments are not contradictory. They make it clear that we are to be careful of those we listen to! Never just allow anyone to address you. Not until you have had a good opportunity to establish whether the person in question is a charlatan or a false prophet. You do not establish this immediately. It takes time to see what sort of fruit they produce. So don’t give them access to your platform or pulpit until this has happened. A full year is a good rule of thumb. Note that a fruit inspector is not a judge. He is exercising a defined rule established by our Lord. You are not judging the person. Never do that. You are examining what he or she is saying and doing. You are required to do this in order to protect the flock from wolves in sheep’s clothing. When this has been done always remember that you are not “judging” the person but his or her actions. You do not need to apologise for being reluctant to allow someone to minister to you or your flock. The Lord requires you to do so. Sadly this is not done often enough. Phyllida and I have seen many celebrities come and go in Christianity. Being who they are, they are invited to address the flock. Then, a couple of months later, we find that the speaker was a liar and a cheat. Jesus knew this would happen and warned us in advance about this danger. So, have a good look at the person’s label. Establish if he is the genuine thing. Make sure he is “the real McCoy”. Never settle for a substitute! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			16 Live in harmony with each other. Don't be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don't think you know it all! Rom 12:16 NLT 1 My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favour some people over others? Jas 2:1 NLT 5 Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn't God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren't they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom He promised to those who love Him? Jas 2:5 NLT 24 We should not look out for our own interests. Instead, we should look out for the interests of others. 1 Co 10:24 NIrV 8 If we have food and clothing, we will be happy with that. 9 People who want to get rich are tempted. They fall into a trap. They are tripped up by wanting many foolish and harmful things. Those who live like that are dragged down by what they do. They are destroyed and die. 1Ti 6:8-9 NIrV 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the things of this world that are common and looked down on. He chose what is not considered to be important to do away with what is considered to be important. 29 So no one can brag to God. 1 Co 1:27-29 NIrV A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David. 1 LORD, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I don't concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp. 2 Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother's milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me. 3 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD--now and always. Psalm 131:1-3 NLT	They called him a delinquent for all the things he’d done. His father was a rich man; he was his only son. In and out of trouble throughout his days at school, But he was rather clever; in fact was no man’s fool. At rugby he was excellent. He played for the first team. To represent his country, had been a childhood dream. And then at last it happened. He heard his country’s call; And joined the other players in the players training hall. He played just like a champion. He even scored a try. And he was a celebrity, now reaching for the sky. His lifestyle was unaltered. He’d yell and scream and swear. No matter who was listening. It didn’t matter where. He got a reputation. They called him ‘Mac the Knife’. And that is what he wanted to see him through this life. And then he met the Saviour. As best as we can tell. The reason that he did it was keeping out of hell. But he was a celebrity and churches everywhere, Came to him and asked him if he would like to share. He wanted to impress the folk and picked up “Christian-ese”. He only told the people the things he thought would please. But he was still a reprobate. He did it all for show. For he was still unaltered and people didn’t know. He tramped around the circuit. The people were all tricked. For he was very plausible and he had even picked, The proper words to tell them; and no one seemed to know. It was all on the surface. He did it all for show. And then one day it happened. He made a big mistake. The people quickly realised that he was just a flake. He’d tell the people anything if they would give him cash. And many folk looked at him and saw his life go crash! How often has this happened? A hundred times or more? We’re taken in by someone who doesn’t live Christ’s law. They know the proper standard, but that is far too hard. Their words sound very pretty; but in their own back-yard, The truth of what they really are, comes up and overflows. But it’s their “reputation” that only Jesus knows. What should we all be doing and how should we react? Don’t invite a stranger, until we know for fact, That what he says is genuine. Wait about a year, Before you ask celebrities if they’d like to appear. Do not share the platform with anyone until, You know about their lifestyle; the person may just kill, What you have been teaching. Don’t ever take the chance, That just because they’re famous, the tune to which they dance, Is absolutely Christian. If Jesus is their Lord, They won’t object to waiting till their lives have been explored. Jim Strickland  Written 5th July 2012

THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

Time with Jesus - Wednesday, 04 July 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation is all about becoming a Christian and the Christian life. Of course, living the Christian life is impossible. Try it and see. Only Jesus Christ can do so. But if we are “in Christ” He is able to do it in us. So the best thing we can do is die to ourselves so that He can live the life in us.

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 04 July 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	THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
When I say to people that living the Christian life is impossible, I get asked why? When I tell them I’ve never met anyone who can do it, they look at me as though I was something that had just crawled out from underneath a rock! “If that’s the case, what are you doing?” is their next question. The way they put it implies that I must be either a candidate for, or have just escaped from Tara. When I grin at them and say I can’t do it either, is when they start nodding and looking for a quick way to get away from me. My next comment raises eyebrows. “If I can do it, why would I need Jesus and the Holy Spirit?” For me, this is the most wonderful things about the Lord we serve. Nothing is impossible for God. For Him, the impossible is routine. Every second, every minute, every hour of each and every day, They deal with this sort of thing. “But that’s a miracle!” is what people then say. “Absolutely!” I reply. “That’s their ‘modus operandi’. Those of us who have committed our lives to Jesus Christ and have made Him Lord of our life, need to realise we are in direct contact with the supernatural. We don’t need to go anywhere or do anything heroic, to be in instant contact with Him. We tend to forget this. Years ago when I began the Christian journey, there was a story about a very wealthy man who deposited millions of Rand into the bank account he had opened for a certain young man. He sent the young man a message telling him what he had done. He even gave him the bank account number and PIN details. Needless to say, the young man was thrilled. Then he started to get into serious financial difficulties. He could easily have accessed the account that had been opened in his name. He didn’t! He knew it was there but somehow the significance escaped him. Many years later the young man died apparently penniless. When his estate was being finalised, the executor wondered why he had never accessed his money. In the end he concluded that although he had access to limitless finance, the young man didn’t understand that he could draw on it. The Christian life is very much like that this. We try and try and try to live the way a Christian should. We know how that should be, but we can’t do it. It doesn’t stop us trying. But we don’t seem to get it right. We have the account number and the PIN code but don’t use them. Why? Because we don’t realise we can. Many of us keep on digging ourselves deeper and deeper into sin and depravity. Jesus has done everything necessary for us. We know it, but don’t act on it. We prefer to mess about doing our own thing. Christianity is impossible. Christians can’t do it either. But Jesus can. When are we going to stand aside and let Him? Jim & Phyllida Strickland			1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:1-2 TNIV 20 The cherubim will face each other and look down on the atonement cover. With their wings spread above it, they will protect it. 21 Place inside the Ark the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant, which I will give to you. Then put the atonement cover on top of the Ark. 22 I will meet with you there and talk to you from above the atonement cover between the gold cherubim that hover over the Ark of the Covenant. From there I will give you My commands for the people of Israel. Exodus 25:20-22 NLT 9 Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, so our land will be filled with His glory. 10 Unfailing love and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed! Psalms 85:9-10 NLT 3 LORD, if You kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? 4 But You offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear You. Psalms 130:3-4 NLT 7 O Israel, hope in the LORD; for with the LORD there is unfailing love. His redemption overflows. 8 He Himself will redeem Israel from every kind of sin. Psalms 130:7-8 NLT 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. 24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, Romans 3:23-25 NLT	He ran round in a panic; his heart was filled with fear. He knew that he was dying and death was very near. He didn’t know for certain, what he would have to face, When he appeared before the Lord. Would he be in disgrace? He thought that on an average, his life had been quite good. He hadn’t cheated anyone and did the things he should. But he was agitated. What did his future hold? And all that he could think of was what he had been told! The Lord was very fussy. Unless you made the grade, Your prospects were quite limited and he was sore afraid. He hadn’t liked his parents. He thought that they were odd. He knew he hadn’t honoured them. What would he say to God? There was no point in lying. The Lord would see right through, Anything he mentioned, unless it was all true. He knew that he had pilfered some items from his work. He’d even taken something from the offering in Kirk. But it was not Important and wasn’t very much. He had put it back again so all was square – as such. He wasn’t very faithful. He’d had a brief affair. He hadn’t told a person. In fact he didn’t dare. His wife would take exception and sue for a divorce. Better she knew nothing; and marriage stayed on course. He was not a murderer. His hands were more than clean. People didn’t know about the bad things he had been! So thinking of his average, he thought he had done well, And when he met the Master wouldn’t be consigned to hell. This illustrates the thinking, of many of the men, Whom he’d been introduced to; he’d do it all again!  “What can I do?” he wondered. How can I put things right. He wondered what would happen if he would die that night? The more he thought about it, the worse his thoughts became. I wonder if I call on God and ask, in Jesus Name, To take me to His bosom and give a brand new start. But how to go about it? He couldn’t cleanse his heart. That’s when he started sobbing. My God, I know I’m lost. I haven’t been obedient. I didn’t count the cost. Is there something You can do, to help the likes of me? I cannot face the prospect of dying without Thee! And then he heard a whisper. Will you repent My Son? And ask Me for forgiveness, for all that you have done? The standards I have set for people coming into here, Is absolute perfection every second, year on year! I’m sorry, you don’t make it. It’s just a bit too late. But if you are repentant and want to change your fate, I will be your Saviour! But it is up to you. You are in the driving seat. What are you going to do? Jim Strickland Written 4th July 2012