DON'T LET US YIELD TO TEMPTATION

Time with Jesus -16 Oct 2013

Hi all,

In 1945, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II composed their hit musical “Carousel”. Then in 1956 a film adaptation of the show was made. 

The 1956 film starred Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones and contains what many critics consider some of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most beautiful songs, as well as what may be the most serious storyline found in their musicals.

I remember going to see Carousel in Port Elizabeth in the late 1950’s. For some reason, I didn’t enjoy the movie, in spite of the unquestioned singing talent of Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae. Perhaps it was something to do with the title? As a child, I’d loved riding on the “Roundabout” in the PE Fair Ground which visited every year over the Christmas season. It went round and round and the horses on the ride went up and down, much to the amusement of young children and their parents. 

Moms and Dads would hold their giggling and occasionally hysterical offspring as the carousel went round. But when you are a teenager, the whole affair is so “tame”. It feels a bit embarrassing to remember how much you had enjoyed it doing the same thing.

There’s another reason why I didn’t enjoy the movie. When you are a teenager, with all life in front of you, (DV) you don’t want to be reminded that death is just around the corner. Furthermore, as an emotional and “star-struck” young man, for the “star” of the film (Gordon MacRae) to die and leave his beautiful young wife (Shirley Jones) behind, was intolerable. 

In those days, young men and young women all believed in their own “indestructability” and “they all lived happily ever after”. It was a period of time during the “growing up” years that all of us went through consciously or unconsciously.

YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE

When you walk through a storm Hold your head up high And don't be afraid of the dark At the end of the storm Is a golden sky And the sweet silver song of the lark Walk on through the wind Walk on through the rain Though your dreams be tossed and blown Walk on walk on with hope in your heart And you'll never walk alone You'll never walk alone

From Carousel (Rogers & Hammerstein)

Three songs remain firm favourites with me in spite of my dislike of the movie. These are, “If I Loved You”, “June Is Bustin' Out All Over” and “You'll Never Walk Alone”. Of the three, my favourite is “You'll Never Walk Alone”.

There are a number of reasons for this. The first is that the song was adopted by the fans of Liverpool Football Club and later by other clubs in the 1960’s. Why Liverpool, I’ve never found out. I vividly remember the fans singing the song during football matches. Incidentally, during the 1960’s, while I was in UK, I considered myself to be a South African though I was originally from UK.

The second and for me, the most important reason, is the significance of the words and the relationship Phyllida and I have with Jesus and each other.

Real life is always very different from what you had thought it might be during your teenage years. It’s always a disappointment, when you find that reality does not correspond with your expectations. We start off with dreams of being the very best at whatever we decide to be. It doesn’t matter what they are, we always think we will be the very best of the bunch. There is no doubt in our mind; we will scale to the highest point on the ladder of life. Getting going is not too bad. We get a qualification, whatever that might be. 

At first, climbing the ladder is not too difficult. In order to do so we have to stand on a couple of our colleagues on our way up while they are on the way down. It’s not too difficult really. The ladder is broad with plenty of space for others in both directions.

Then we notice that the ladder gets a bit narrower. It’s not quite as easy as it used to be. There are delays in both directions. To get higher, means overtaking colleagues and friends who are a bit closer to you. Nevertheless, you continue to climb, even though you realise that you are beginning to fill the shoes of those who have already died.

You also find that there are other up and coming folk, who are quite prepared to kick you out of the way and stand on your fingers in order to get past you. After a couple more years, you realise that you will never get to the top of the ladder. There’s only room for one at the top. The ladder you’ve been on only leads to the top of the muck heap – and who wants to be at the top of a muck heap? You begin to wonder whether it was all worth it. 

Success in this world is merely temporary and empty. Yes, there are bigger houses, more cars, and expensive holidays – if you can find the time to be away from work. Yes, there is a nice bank balance, but stress has taken its toll and medical bills are starting to exceed what you are paying for medical aid. Then there are the children and their children. Hopefully they are not strangers who pass you by in the night. You and the wife will both be running out of steam a little and don’t quite have the energy you once had. Hopefully, you’ve both managed to survive the typical mid-life crisis. If you haven’t quite arrived there, please be aware that when you get to the top of the muck heap, you are still on the top of a muck heap!

Phyllida and I decided to get off the ladder and be servants of the Most High God! Sure the monthly salary was nothing to get excited about. However, there was and is, always more than enough for us to enjoy a moderate lifestyle. We realised that wealth and fame were not nearly as important, as extending His Kingdom and being a blessing to others. This reminds me of a comment made at the funeral of a very wealthy man. “How much did he leave?” was the question asked by several of the “mourners”. “All of it,” was the comment of one of the man’s Christian friends.

We have found that there is nothing in this world more satisfying than serving Jesus. We have seen Him revive the “souls” of those whom we had thought were beyond hope. We are witness of transformation in our own lives and in the lives of others that power and wealth could never compensate. 

Jesus taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation!” He has shown us that when we have met Him and have given our lives to Him, we are never alone. In fact, we’ll “never walk alone”. We have joined Him on the Carousel of life. We may giggle or scream hysterically as the “horses go up and down” and the machine goes round and round. But Jesus is holding us so there is no need to fear. 

One day the carousel will stop and we will be with Him for ever. Then we will hear from His lips the words we desire more than anything else in this world. “Well done, good and faithful servants.”

Shalom

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Well Done, Good and Faithful Servants

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 16 October 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	DON'T LET US YIELD TO TEMPTATION
We are approaching the end of Jesus’ model prayer. Here He refers to temptation. He knew very well what He was facing. He knew He was destined for the cross. He knew He would be tempted, to avoid that which He would have to endure, to the very end. We know that He did. We need to distinguish immediately between a trial and a temptation. Trials in life are inevitable. They are as certain as the fact that until Jesus returns, death will eventually call for us. A trial is almost anything we must endure. For example a music examination. Perhaps a dentist appointment? Perhaps an operation in the hospital? For Christians, it could be being thrown to the lions, or being burned at the stake. This was the trial many had to endure. There may have been an associated temptation. To deny their faith in Jesus Christ. In many cases, if they chose to deny Jesus, they would be set free. That would be an enormous temptation. The book of Hebrews focuses on this. If a Christian was a Jewish convert, by denying Christ publically in the synagogue, he/she would be received back into Judaism and would no longer be persecuted. Some did this. Others did not and suffered accordingly. Certainly the temptation to apostatise was huge. It could mean avoiding persecution for the whole family. Many chose to go through the trial of being persecuted, rather than fall into the temptation of being unfaithful to Jesus. When people ask me what I would have done in those circumstances, I confess that I really don’t know. Part of me wants to pretend to be willing to endure to the end. The other part reminds me, that under these circumstances, I’m still a coward. God alone knows what I would do! Paul in his first letter to Corinth speaks about temptation. He wrote, 13 The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure. 1 Cor. 10:13 NLT It’s comforting to know that even under such terrible circumstances; the Lord will be faithful to us. I won’t be expected to endure the unendurable. He will show a way out. That way may well be martyrdom. Others have passed through being martyred for their faith. I’m not more special than they were. The same is true for my wife and children. My way out, may be martyrdom. What if it’s martyrdom, not only for me, but for my family? Am I ready for that? It’s a very brave man who can say in advance that he would choose martyrdom. The answer may be easy for me alone. But for wife and children as well? That’s a horse of a different colour. Can I face the prospect of my wife and children being thrown to the lions or burned at the stake? What will I do? What would you do? Jim & Phyllida Strickland			13 And don't let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.] Matthew 6:13 NLT	Temptations come, temptations go; our God is not the cause. Most of them originate within our human flaws. They’re accentuated by the devil and his wiles. If he can deceive you, he’ll wipe away your smile. A prayer about temptation was common among Jews. “Do not lead me into sin”, is what they’d sometime use. “Not into transgression; nor in iniquity. Do not let sin’s power, overshadow me. Such a mighty onslaught perhaps would make me sink; So keep me safe, Almighty God, from what I do or think.” But there are some temptations, we simply can’t avoid. Even though they irritate and make us feel annoyed. Sometimes they are useful and we must overcome. They must not destroy us; or to their power, succumb. There are some temptations which we must all endure. Hard and disagreeable, designed to make us pure. Perhaps in an affliction, the type Job underwent. Where Satan was permitted to test his real intent. God loosed the reins of Satan, to test and try His man; To show that Job was “righteous” was actually God’s plan! He may “withdraw His presence”, to demonstrate His grace, And show that you can overcome the problems which you face. He also lets false prophets arise among His folk, To see if we will tolerate their rough and heavy yolk. But even in these trials, we know that He is near. That we can still depend on Him and there is naught to fear. Such trials are essential. Through all of them we grow, In grace and perseverance, so all of us will know, That we’ll continue faithful and watchful unto prayer. Following the Master, regardless when or where. Then there are temptations Satan often brings; Testing our ability to stay beneath God’s wings. Tempting us with evil and prompting us to lie. Filling us with doubts and fears; to quit and go awry. Putting thoughts of blasphemy and evil in our head. He’ll continue trying this until we are all dead. But if we resist him, we know that he will flee! And through Jesus Christ the Lord we will have victory! Jim Strickland Written 16th Oct 2012
			26 Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe. Proverbs 28:26 TNIV
			13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, "God is tempting me." God is never tempted to do wrong, and He never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. James 1:13-15 NLT
			17 The Lord says, "Get away from unbelievers. Separate yourselves from them. Have nothing to do with anything unclean. Then I will welcome you." 2 Corinthians 6:17 GW
			10 Then Lot looked in the direction of Zoar as far as he could see. He saw that the whole Jordan Plain was well-watered like the LORD'S garden or like Egypt. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 Lot chose the whole Jordan Plain for himself. He moved toward the east. They each went their own way, 13 (The people who lived in Sodom were very wicked. They committed terrible sins against the LORD.) Genesis 13:10-11 & 13 GW
			7 But God also rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a righteous man who was sick of the shameful immorality of the wicked people around him. 9 So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment. 2 Peter 2:7 & 9 NLT
			4 Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. Romans 14:4 NIV

FORGIVE US OUR SINS

This is Forgiveness

Time with Jesus - 15 Oct 2013

Hi all,

⁴⁸ "In a word, what I'm saying is, Grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” Mat 5:48 MSG

Children can be incredibly cruel. Particularly to those who don’t quite conform to their norms. Any child who is slightly different from the others, often becomes the object of their collective criticism. I remember from my school days that anyone who was “fat” was called “fatty” or “tubby”. Those who wore glasses were often called “goggles”. 

One of my school friends was called “blocks” because he appeared to have a square head. Interestingly enough, when we all met in PE for our 50th matric reunion, we found he was still called “blocks”. His name had stuck to the point where he used it himself 50 years later! God has given me a new Name! He calls me His son!

“The Lord has forgiven my sins, past present and future. His blood covers everything. I’m a child of the Living God, so there is no longer any need for me to be concerned with what I do. I am redeemed from the curse of the law so I don’t have to worry about sin in my life. My Heavenly Father will forgive me because He understands how difficult it is for me to live this life with temptation all around. His love is unconditional so I will be forgiven!”

No doubt you have heard or read one or more of these statements dozens of times. Perhaps you have even said them or even used them yourself. Many people make statements like this in order to justify the things they do. They argue that they are justified by the blood of Jesus Christ and that, through His atoning death, resurrection and glorification; they are now justified - seen by God “just as if I’d never sinned”.

The trouble with this is, it is not the whole truth. God’s love is infinite; so is His justice, righteousness, mercy and all His other many attributes. All of them are absolute. There is a sense in which His attributes are His quandary and have thus become ours.

God hates sin. He hates sin with hatred beyond our comprehension. This is not merely an intense dislike. It’s much, much more than that. His hatred of sin is an all-consuming infinite hatred beyond anything we can possibly comprehend. Nothing, absolutely nothing sinful can approach God. It would be utterly annihilated. That is His nature. That’s the way He is. He doesn’t have a hatred of sin, He is hatred of sin; totally, utterly and infinitely.

This is also true of His love. It is infinite and absolute. He does not have love, He is love. In fact everything God is, He is infinitely. He is infinite love, infinite justice, infinite mercy, infinite holiness, infinite knowledge and infinite righteousness. The list of His attributes is beyond comprehension. It’s likely to include qualities we don’t know exist.

People have asked, “How big is infinity?” I confess I don’t know and probably never will. What I do know is that the universe is not infinite. It is contained in God. Only God is infinite. It therefore follows that His attributes are the same “size”. Of course size is meaningless when we speak of God. He has no dimensions. He cannot be measured. He cannot be defined. He has no beginning and no end. He always was, always is and always will be.

When we think of Him we should tremble with fear. He cannot be played with, lied to or shrugged off with disdain. His demands are absolute and complete. He does as He pleases and nothing can gainsay or say, No!” to Him. This is The One who confronts us. He is the One we must satisfy. He is our judge. Nothing escapes His knowledge. Nothing can hide or flee from Him. And there is no one who can overrule His decisions. Can you imagine anyone more awesome than this One? No! He is the Ultimate One. He is God!

Is it possible that such a One could have a problem? No? Not really. Yet God does have a difficulty. One He could solve without further thought. He could snuff out mankind in an instant. That’s probably what I would do in His position. But I’m a mere mortal. He is not. And His predicament was this, “What do I do with the creatures I made who will not love Me? How do I deal with them without annihilating them? How can the demands of My infinite love and mercy be addressed so that there is no “conflict” with My demands for infinite righteousness and justice?” To us, there is no answer.

But this is God we are dealing with. Problems of this magnitude are nothing to Him. He came up with an answer. His answer; the only possible answer was the cross of Jesus Christ. This is where the problem was dealt with. It was a costly answer. His demand for justice was poured out on His one and only Son. Jesus paid the price for our sins. But this does not mean we can now lead a life in sinful disregard for His Holy demands. It means we must lead a holy life fully conscious of even a hint of sin in ourselves. We will never have a license to sin – that would be abhorrent to God - but a longing to live a life pleasing to Him. In this way, justice and mercy meet at the cross in your life and mine.

Today’s meditation looks at forgiveness. This is one of the most neglected topics in churches today. We see that God will only forgive us as we forgive others. It blows holes in many evangelistic statements. Not that the evangelists are wrong. They just don’t give the whole truth. 

The truth is, God will not forgive you if you don’t forgive others. He uses your measure of forgiveness to measure His forgiveness to you!

Shalom

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – 15 Oct 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	FORGIVE US OUR SINS
Perhaps the greatest problem confronting Christians today, is the problem of un-forgiveness. It shouldn’t be like this. Sadly, it’s true. The words spoken by Jesus immediately following His model prayer in Matthew were: 14 "Forgive people when they sin against you. If you do, your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive people their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matt 6:14-15 NIrV These are some of the most terrifying words spoken by the Saviour. They have a huge implication concerning our own salvation. These words tell us, if we don’t forgive others, we won’t be forgiven! So why don’t we Christians forgive each other? The most likely reason is that there is so little fear of the Lord in most Churches today. Christians prefer to think that they have been given a ticket to heaven, so their behaviour doesn’t really matter. They say “God knows and understands! His love is unconditional! He’ll be tolerant of the things we say and do”. I can’t forgive my granny because of what she did to my hamster. I won’t and I never will. That’s a huge mistake. That’s not what the Bible teaches. His grace may be free, but it is not cheap. Furthermore, although His love is infinite, it is not unconditional. To say it’s unconditional, implies that all are saved regardless of what they say and do. That’s a terrible lie. He will not overlook sin in the life of a believer, He condemns in the life of an unbeliever. To do so would make Him a respecter of persons. Furthermore, it would mean that sanctification was unnecessary. It’s been said that today, God’s people want justification (forgiveness of sin) in this life and sanctification (holiness) in heaven. But God wants us to be justified (made right with Him) in this life and sanctification (holiness) in this life too. We may not like this. We may “belly-ache” about it too. But in the final analysis, He makes the rules! His decisions are not subject to the democratic process. He always does as He pleases. But what’s this got to do with our failure to forgive? Everything. The Lord uses our own standards on us! Our own standard becomes His yardstick for every Christian. He will deal with me using my standards. Likewise He will deal with you according to your standards. Bear in mind the following basic little equation. No forgiveness = no salvation. If God has not forgiven you, you are not saved. Likewise, for you no forgiveness = no salvation. If you do not forgive others, you are not saved. That is the bottom line. No matter how delightfully your pastor or minister may preach. No matter how many times you confess with your mouth and believe in your heart, unless you forgive others, you will not be forgiven. No matter how many times you may go to the front by invitation of your pastor. No matter the amount and quantity of your tears, if you do not forgive others, your efforts are worse than useless. Incidentally, the same is true for your pastor, your favourite healing evangelist, and the head of your denomination or anyone else – including me! If they do not forgive others, they are not forgiven. Scripture makes this abundantly clear. If anyone requires full salvation he/she must give full forgiveness. In fact you set the standard by which He will deal with you. That scares me. It should make us a forgiving people. I know I need it. Several buckets of water the size of the Atlantic ocean would merely dampen the surface. What about you? Jim & Phyllida Strickland			12 Forgive us our sins, just as we also have forgiven those who sin against us. Matthew 6:12 NIrV	Peter asked the Master, “Lord how many times, Must I forgive my brother for the many crimes, That he has perpetrated and committed against me? I think it should be seven times. But Lord, what thinketh Thee? Anyone who murdered Cain would truly cost him dear. God would punish seven times. The Word makes it quite clear. (Gen 4:7) If that is the standard which God said should apply, Surely that’s the standard for folk like You and I?” “Seven’s insufficient. See what Lamech said. Seventy and seven times for striking Lamech dead.          (Gen 4:24) But by implication, it’s so much more than that. Peter, stop your counting. You’re speaking through your hat! You can never calculate how often to forgive. If you want a number, what number would you give? For there is a principal that always must apply. That’s the number God will use when you’re the one He’ll try. He brings perfect justice. He says that you will set, The standard of forgiveness which you yourself will get. If you say that seven times is what he has to pay. God will use your seven times on you on Judgement Day. If you’re unforgiving, He’ll be that way with you. You will find the torturers know what they have to do. They will carry on until the total price is paid”.                 (Matt 18:34) This is terrifying and makes me sore afraid! Do not be vindictive. Be tender-hearted, kind, Always be forgiving. For then you too will find, He’ll be tender-hearted and treat you with compassion. You’re the one directing what the Lord above will fashion. If you’re harsh and cruel, my brother, hear me well. You will be consigned into the lowest pit in hell. Isn’t Father wonderful! He knows what you should get! What you have dictated, by the standards you have set! So, if un-forgiveness, is the order of your day, Better you repent of it and turn to God and pray, You will be forgiven. Then here’s what you must do. Go and tell the people, who have sinned and damaged you, You need their forgiveness for the things which you have done. Then you’ll be forgiven by Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Jim Strickland Written 15th Oct 2012
			21 Peter came to Jesus. He asked, "Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" 22 Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but 77 times. Matthew 18:21-22 NIrV
			32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, 'You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn't you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?' 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. 35 "That's what My heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart." Matthew 18:32-35 NLT
			32 Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32 NLT
			13 You were once dead because of your failures and your uncircumcised corrupt nature. But God made you alive with Christ when he forgave all our failures. 14 He did this by erasing the charges that were brought against us by the written laws God had established. He took the charges away by nailing them to the cross. Colossians 2:13-14 GW
			13 Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Colossians 3:13 NLT