KEEP MY COMMANDS

Sheep and Goat

Time with Jesus - Wednesday, 10 April 2013

Hi all,

Jesus’ words are not always what we would like to hear. Three verses in Matt 7 are far from being comforting. They occur directly after His teaching about good and bad fruit. Its, therefore, reasonable to assume, that this portion of Scripture is intended as a warning, to those who say they are Christians, but their actions belie their confession. Certainly His words are very challenging and even though I’ve followed Him for over 50 years, I tremble a little when reading this passage.

Separating sheep and goats

  ²¹ "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Fa ther who is in heaven. ²² On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' ²³ And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.' Mat 7:21-23 ESV

Sheep and Goat Judgement

When I think of the number of evangelists, preachers and teachers who preceded me down through the ages, it is intimidating to think, that some of them, may be among those He turns away! People ask me where I think I will stand at that time. I would love to say that all is well for me. I would like to be able to do so. I pray that He will receive me. But I’m not naïve to the point where I don’t tremble, when I think of the time, when I will be called before Him to His bar of judgement. I tremble when men tell me, they have no fears in this regard. My prayer is that their comment does not originate from a heart filled with pride. 

Sheep Rejoice

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 10 April2013			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	KEEP MY COMMANDS
“One potato, two potato, three potato, four.” Does that ring any bells? As a youngster it was the way we decided an issue. Choosing the boys for two sides always worked this way. I suppose if you were a mathematical genius you would have known very quickly who was on which side. For the rest of us, “decision by potatoes” worked fine. Mind you, when it got down to only four or five “potatoes” left, some cheated and changed position! In their own innocent way they changed the rules. Thank God, we didn’t choose Jesus that way, and He doesn’t change the rules. He still approves of that which he approved 2000 years ago. Conversely … let’s not go there. God never changes the rules. Yesterday’s sin is sin today and will always be sin. The rules of society may change, but His don’t. Mostly, we choose to sin. Sure society now blames everyone and everything for what happened. If someone steals something today, it gets blamed on the way their mother didn’t smile at them. Perhaps their father was rude? Anything at all!! Just don’t blame the culprit. Perhaps he has been robbed blind. But as far as God is concerned, a thief is still a thief. Incidentally, how do we “un-steal”? If I’ve stolen something, even if I return it, it changes nothing. If we bear in mind that every sin is a sin against God, we start to feel the pressure of what we have done. It’s better not to take the chance. It’s better to obey His commands. John makes a fascinating comment in his gospel: 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love. In the same way, I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. John 15:10 NIrV At face value this seems an innocent statement. But it’s so much more than that. It’s actually an alternative way of checking if you are “in the kingdom” or not. Are you obeying His commands? Think back over the past several weeks. Have you kept His commands consistently? David Pawson tells of the time he asked his congregation, to check things out with the Lord. He told them to ask God if there was anything in their lives He (God) would like them to change. One lady immediately responded,” I know what it is”. “No you don’t” said David. “Go home and ask Him”. She came back the next day to David and told him she had been right! I must confess that the question bothers me! However, Jesus told His disciple in John’s gospel, that if we have kept His commands, we will abide in His love. More than that; He compares it with the way He stays in His Father’s love; which means we have another method of checking to see if we are still in His love.  Today’s meditation explores this in the light of Song of Songs and the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			16 My lover is mine, and I am his. Nightly he strolls in our garden, Delighting in the flowers SoS 2:16 MSG 20 And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I'll be there." Mat 18:20 MSG 24 A person who doesn't love me doesn't do what I say. I don't make up what you hear me say. What I say comes from the Father who sent me. John 14:24 GW 10 If you keep my commands, you'll remain intimately at home in my love. That's what I've done--kept my Father's commands and made myself at home in his love. John 15:10 MSG 16 "Wake up, north wind! Come, south wind! Blow on my garden. Then its sweet smell will spread everywhere. Let my love come into his garden. Let him taste its fine fruits." SoS 4:16 NIrV 1 I have entered my garden, my treasure, my bride! I gather myrrh with my spices and eat honeycomb with my honey. I drink wine with my milk. Oh, lover and beloved, eat and drink! Yes, drink deeply of your love! SoS 5:1 NLT 22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Gal 5:22-23 NLT 8 When you produce much fruit, you are My true disciples. This brings great glory to My Father. John 15:8 NLT 2 He removes every one of my branches that doesn't produce fruit. He also prunes every branch that does produce fruit to make it produce more fruit. John 15:2 GW 11 May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation - the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ - for this will bring much glory and praise to God. Philip 1:11 NLT	We have just been reading of the witness in our heart; The Holy Spirit gives us, to show we are a part, Of Jesus and His Kingdom. This method never fails. But what is it that we can do if we’ve “come off the rails”. We probably haven’t, it’s usually a lie, That Satan tries to put on us, our trust in God to try. But the Scripture tells us of something that reveals, A method that does not rely on how we think or feel. It tells us in John’s Gospel, Chapter fifteen and verse ten, A way that we are certain we are not serving men. Keeping His commandments, in all we say and do, Proves to us conclusively that unto Him we’re true. Willingly obeying Him, demonstrates our love, And keep’s us intimately with Jesus Christ above. Look back on your recent past and see if you’ve obeyed. If you’ve been consistent, you needn’t be afraid! Jesus Christ has told us, that if we’ve kept His Word, Never be concerned about the lies which we have heard. Jesus was obedient to Father God’s commands. He was quite at home therein and that’s how His love stands! So we can please the Father, by loving Christ His Son. Keeping His commandments till all of life is done. If you’ll be His lover and love intimately, You’ll always be at home with Him for future history! Smell His myrrh and spices and eat His honeycomb. Eat and drink your wine and milk and you’ll be in His home. Make Him your Beloved and surely He’ll be yours. Give to Him your garden; He’ll wash away your flaws. You will be His “woman”; a pure and spotless bride. You’ll dwell with Him forever and never leave His side. He will make you fruitful; the fruit which you will bear, Is love and joy and gentleness; His patience will be there, With faithfulness and kindness; with self control and peace, And goodness motivating you, to never ever cease, To be that special lover that Jesus Christ desires. Totally committed to lighting inner fires; And being what He’s wanting to praise His Holy Name. For when you fall in love with Him, you’ll never be the same. Jim Strickland Written 10th April 2012

THE HOLY NAME-TAG

By their fruit you will know them

Time with Jesus - Tuesday, 09 April 2013  

Hi all,

Years ago, if you wanted to know Who’s Who, you would have to go to the local library and use their copy. Alternatively, you could buy a copy from a bookseller. Today that’s been replaced by “Google” on the web. I know because I’ve just tried it. Mind you, how to get any further remains something of a mystery. Of course, this has more to do with age than anything else. I’ve found that the best computer people are between the ages of 12 to 18. Thereafter it’s downhill all the way. In computer technology, you are fully fossilised at about 28.

Pear not apple

Who’s Who may have given me a clue about identifying people and establishing who and what they are. You see, most Christians are naïve. If someone says they are a Christian, we tend to believe them instantly, without question. Sadly after a year or two, you find that those who call themselves Christian, are not necessarily Christian. How can you tell? Not by listening to them preach or teach or the sounds of their speech. We identify them by their actions. We see it by what they do! As Jesus succinctly put it, ¹⁵ "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you pretending to be sheep. But on the inside they are hungry wolves. ¹⁶ You can tell what they really are by what they do. "Do people pick grapes from bushes? Do they pick figs from thorns? Mat 7:15-16 NIrV

Thorns not Fruit

Jesus was referring to false prophets. Nevertheless, the principle is the same. A thief is identified by stealing. It has nothing to do with speaking in tongues or quoting lengthy passages of Scripture! Satan can also do that. But Satan is a thief.

In 1982, Phyllida and I met a young man we thought was a wonderful Christian gentleman. He could preach up a storm; prophesy at length; speak with tongues and interpret. We were completely taken in. A month or two later we found he was a predator. He was into “conning” wealthy Christians, particularly ladies and stealing their money. His speech was intended to deceive. He was good at it. We learned a valuable lesson.

Apple Not Grape

The danger is to overemphasise this problem. As Dr Ken Stewart put it, we can look for a demon under every bush and lose focus on Jesus. We could be like old Mac Donald’s farm. Here a demon, there a demon everywhere a demon, demon! The “secret” to getting the balance correct, is to copy Jesus’ lifestyle. Don’t go out looking for demons or false Christians. Instead, be constantly checking with the Lord, concerning the people you meet. Look and listen to the Lord, while looking and listening to the person you are talking to. Ask God to show you “flakes”. He will!

Shalom,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Tuesday, 09 April 2013			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 Holy Name-tag
Memories can be difficult to understand. There are times when they are painful. There are other times, in exactly the same place, the memories are sweet and enjoyable. One of my most painful memories is how I felt on the day my parents “dropped me off” at boarding school. I’d never been away from them before and it was traumatic. I felt as though I had been deserted. Of course it wasn’t true. But feelings don’t always go with fact. Later in life, as a young Christian, I got to know that feelings follow facts, not the other way. I’m pleased to record that it wasn’t long before I settled down at school and often look back on those days as among the best days of my life. The truth that feelings follow facts, was an essential piece of knowledge, I needed to learn. I remember well the time when I committed my life to the Lord Jesus Christ. A week or so later, when the initial euphoria over my having been “saved”, began to subside, I was faced with a major problem. I didn’t feel any different. A couple of features were in place. I’d stopped using foul language and my lifestyle had changed such that I wanted to attend church meetings. Any sort of church meeting would do as long as it was Christian. (Whatever that meant back then) So although I was in the Methodist Church, I visited as many other churches as I possibly could, when I could find the time. This gallivanting had a lot to do with my not feeling any different. Furthermore, I had other male/female issues that typically haunt a teenager. This led me to the Prudhoe Street Mission and into contact with the Billy Graham association. They were holding a crusade in Manchester and Cliff Barrows came to Prudhoe Street Mission, to assist with counsellor training and choir instruction. So I had good reason for attending. Looking back now, it seems odd, that someone who didn’t know he was “saved” could think of being a counsellor for Billy’s crusade! Incidentally, there was no TV links in those days. We just sat together in the large, full, City Hall and listened to the service. Later in that week at the City Hall, I was able to share with a fellow apprentice the love of Jesus. Over a period of about six months, many of my concerns about salvation evaporated. Something I heard then is still true. If I am a married man and wake up the next morning and didn’t feel married, my feelings are fooling me. The facts are there. My wife has the wedding certificate to prove it! Thank God she is also lying sleeping on her side of the bed just to prove the point! At the same time, I needed to find assurance – in spite of feelings. The New Testament was opening up for me. I learned that the assurance of salvation comes from the Holy Spirit. In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians he states: 22 and He has identified us as His own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first instalment that guarantees everything He has promised us. 2 Cor 1:22 NLT For me, it was a “clincher”. The Lord transformed my life. If not, I’ve wasted 53 years of life chasing a myth! Believe me, it’s no myth. Furthermore, I’ve had a fabulous “ride”. Jesus Christ has exceeded all my expectations and I’m happy to serve Him until my dying breath and beyond! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			7 I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love. Isaiah 63:7 ESV 2 I was sliding down into the pit of death, and he pulled me out. He brought me up out of the mud and dirt. He set my feet on a rock. He gave me a firm place to stand on. Psalm 40:2 NIrV 20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Gal 2:20 NLT 32 If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us? Rom 8:32 MSG 8 But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him. Rom 5:8 MSG 22 By his Spirit he has stamped us with his eternal pledge--a sure beginning of what he is destined to complete. 2 Cor. 1:22 MSG 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that He will give us the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased us to be His own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify Him. Eph. 1:14 NLT 4 But God is so rich in mercy, and He loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!) 6 For He raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. Eph. 2:4-6 NLT 7 I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love. Isaiah 63:7 ESV	Back in 1951, I went to boarding school. I really missed my parents. Some thought I was a fool, Because I started crying and wanted Mom and Dad. But when you’re only nine years old. How can you blame a lad? I didn’t want to run away. Besides, where would I go? What would I tell my parents? I really didn’t know. There was a little problem with my school uniform. I kept it in a locker that was outside my dorm. But when it came to laundry, how could I tell my own? My mother had been very wise and she had carefully sewn, My name on all my clothing. She’d hidden it away, But I knew where to find it. So every single day, As I was busy dressing I made sure things were mine. I knew it by the label. Mom’s system worked just fine. As I continued growing up, one thing I found was true. There had to be a system for identifying you! A name tag or a label; I knew how it was done. And I could prove conclusively, I am my father’s son! So every time I met someone and said, “How do you do?” I found it was the formula for saying, “Who are you?” I then learned about fingerprints. They said they were unique. They put them on a database; and if they wished to seek, To find out what my name was, they’d know if I was me! They said, “Until the day you die, it’s your identity. It didn’t really bother me. I didn’t want to hide. I surely wasn’t perfect; but wouldn’t go “off-side”. When I became a Christian I asked, “Lord show to me, The way I can identify a person who loves Thee. You do not have that problem. In fact, You’ve always known, The people whom You have redeemed and love You Lord alone! I cannot find Your name-tag. I’ve hunted high and low. So Father won’t, You show to me the way I too can know? He said, “There is a ‘name-tag’ inscribed upon your heart. My Holy Spirit put it there when He set you apart. He’s deep inside your spirit man and will not go away, Unless you have decided you don’t want Him to stay. So look deep down inside you, in places you can’t see. Use your ‘spiritual eyes’ and look around for Me. You’ll know that I am present, by the witness you will find, Confirming you’re My servant. Your life to Me’s consigned. There, in your inner sanctum, is where I’ll always be; Alive in you and proving that you belong to Me!” Jim Strickland Written 9th April 2012