OUR HERITAGE

Time with Jesus - Sunday, 23 September 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation is about our heritage; the heritage of those who love God and seek to follow Him. We know very little about the New Jerusalem. He has revealed some of it in the Book of Revelation. How the end times fit together until the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven is still the topic of much discussion. What we can say is that we will be there with all the saints of God from the fall to the present day. We also know that He will be there. That’s what is really important.

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Sunday, 23 September 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 HERITAGE
My mother told a great story about me from way back in 1948. We were living in Durban at the time in the Esau Hotel. It was quite close to the Durban beach. The hotel has probably gone by now. I was about 6 and was taken to a little school fairly close to where we were staying. She said that after my third or fourth day at school, I came home and told her that it was not necessary to go back. I had learned all I needed to know! Of course it was a preposterous thought. But it does have a parallel with today’s Scripture. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him." 10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by His Spirit. For His Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets.1 Cor. 2:9-10 NLT We can and do laugh at a child who says he knows everything, when he knows nothing. We know that the child is speaking in ignorance but is expressing his perception of knowledge. At the same time, we forget that when it comes to the things of God, we are all just as ignorant. We have our concepts of what is good and beautiful. Most of it is. But when it comes to what God has prepared for His children, it is beyond our limited imagination. I have great sympathy for the prophet Ezekiel at the Kebar river. He had been greatly blessed by God. He experienced a “touch” from God and saw something indescribable. Read Ezekiel chapter 1 and see what the Prophet tries to depict. How do you describe the indescribable? How do you write it down? How do you begin to grasp what you have seen? As I read this chapter, I sense a huge “frustration” in the man. How can such a vision be explained? What do you write in such circumstances? It’s reasonable to assume that his personal knowledge of God was not grossly different from ours. What did he know about God? What do we know about God? A truthful answer would be, “precious little”. We can’t even imagine The God Who “contains” the universe and everything inside it! But Ezekiel sees something. It’s so far beyond his understanding that he can hardly put it in writing. We know that the Bible contains all the information God has chosen to make available to us. How much is that? We have no idea. For example we know that most of an iceberg is under water. We also know that a polished diamond has many facets. How many can we see? We can’t see them all because we can only see the portions facing us. To know more, we would need to be able to handle it to make a thorough examination. It’s impossible for us to “pick up God” The little He has revealed to us tells us something about Him. He is infinite. But what does infinity look like? We have no idea unless the Spirit of God reveals it to us. We can’t begin to imagine the future without God’s Spirit. Occasionally, for example in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, we are given a number of hints. Hints that whet our appetite to know more. Will we be shown more? I suppose that if it was in His interests He would do so. He does give us the overall dimensions. Whether it’s a cube or a pyramid, we don’t know. Rev. 21:10-27 gives us an idea of the appearance of the New Jerusalem. The Spirit revealed it to John. Read it and be astonished! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. Revelation 21:7 ESV 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. 1 Corinthians 15:19 NLT 16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. Hebrews 11:16 NLT 4 We have been born into a new life which has an inheritance that can't be destroyed or corrupted and can't fade away. That inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 1 Peter 1:4 GW 21 So don't brag about people. Everything belongs to you. 22 Whether it is Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life or death, present or future things, everything belongs to you. 1 Corinthians 3:21-22 GW 9 It is written, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has known what God has prepared for those who love him." (Isaiah 64:4) 10 But God has shown it to us through his Spirit. The Spirit understands all things. He understands even the deep things of God. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10 NIrV 4 No one's ears have ever heard of a God like you. No one's eyes have ever seen a God who is greater than you. No God but you acts for the good of those who trust in him. Isaiah 64:4 NIrV 8 Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. 2 John 1:8 ESV 1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. Hebrews 12:1 NLT	The Hebrews and the Gentiles both have a heritage. One which they all have to share and not get as a wage. No one knows exactly what it is they will see. All they know for sure is that each beneficiary, Will be with God Almighty when Jesus Christ comes back. All those who’re ready, will never suffer lack. It’s been like this since Abraham first saw the Promised Land. A little bit of real estate; that God said He had planned, To give to Abraham’s offspring. Exactly where or when, Was something that they didn’t know, at least not way back then. We know that under Joshua, they took the land by force. But it was not their heritage. Such thoughts are way off course. For sure, the land was fruitful. The Bible makes that plain. But it was not the paradise they thought they should obtain. They seemed to be quite satisfied, when it had been inspected. But it was not the place their holy men had all expected. It wasn’t such a bad place and they could settle down; Until the Lord provided them a city or a town. The centuries rolled by them. The people came and went. They didn’t get the city and settled for a tent. The towns they had were beautiful but how do you compare, The promised Holy City with the tents they had back there? So what is it we’re waiting for? This City from on High, Where all the streets are paved with gold and people do not die? No one has ever seen it; at least not in this life. But many people think they know and man’s opinion’s rife! The only thing we know for sure, the architect is God. We know about the gates and walls but what is very odd. Is when we talk about the size. We’re told there’s lots of room; And looking at its size, it would fit right into the moon! It has a tree-lined river flowing from the Father’s throne. No one ever dies there and no one is alone. The tree of life is growing and there is no more night. The Trinity abides therein and they provide the light. We truly can’t imagine it. No human mind has known, The things Almighty God has made for those who are His own. And here is what’s exciting. The saints who’ve gone before, Are waiting for us all to come; They can’t wait any more. And so they stand and clap their hands, they ululate and cheer. For God has said we’ll all receive, when all of us are here! So hang in there and overcome. For they who say and do, Will all receive their crown of life. I cannot wait, Can you? Jim Strickland Written 23rd September 2012

YOUR HEART’S DELIGHT

Time with Jesus - Saturday, 22 September 2012

Hi all,

We all know that we are certain to achieve victory if we keep on going until the very end. One question? How do we do this? We are told that if we love the Lord we will keep His commandments. The obvious corollary is that if we don’t love God, we won’t keep His commandment. These are not merely a couple of recommendations from God. “You will do well if you do this!" Husbands and wives are given separate commands regarding their interpersonal relationships. You don’t have to like them. You have to keep them. Life will be better for the whole family if you do!

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Saturday, 22 September 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	YOUR HEART’S DELIGHT
Most men have a “soft spot” for women. That’s exactly what God planned. In Genesis it was as true then as it is today. 18 GOD said, "It's not good for the man to be alone; I'll make him a helper, a companion." Gen 2:18 MSG The first thing that springs to mind is what was meant by God saying it was not good for man to be alone. God had just stated that everything was very good. (Gen 1:31) By implication, even in the perfection of God’s entire creation, which was very good, something was not quite right. God saw Adam had no-one like himself to love. This is very important. To obey God and love someone else, there must be someone else! Every creature except Adam had a mate. They couldn’t multiply and fill the earth without a mate. Now this didn’t particularly bother Adam. He was “totally absorbed” in tending the garden. Today, generally speaking, most men are totally absorbed by their work. They would do it 24/7 if it was physically possible. It occurs to me that Adam was so focussed on his job that he didn’t know there was a problem. Don’t be surprised. In a perfect environment with no “female” distractions he’d still be there today. Why not? He didn’t even know he had a problem! Sure, he had a very gregarious nature. But being on first name terms with the animals - he did name them all - he must have thought he was in paradise! There was a minor problem. God had told all the “animals” to 28 “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it”. Gen 1:28 It must have puzzled Adam. They could, but he couldn’t! God knew all about this and had created Adam with this in mind. Adam needed a creature like himself. He didn’t need a boss or a servant. He needed an equal to help him. They would have had different roles in the order of things. But there would be no “battle of the sexes”. There would be perfect harmony between them. Their love relationship would have been impeccable. They would both have been seeking ways to enrich each other’s lives. Children would do that. Each “child” would have been perfect and equal in every respect other than gender. So what! There would be no shame or embarrassment. Not one of them would have even been aware of their own nakedness. Today we are familiar with the differences between the male and female anatomy. But in that perfect environment, would these differences have been so obvious? The question is academic. One thing we can say for certain is that Adam and Eve were pleased with each other. What did they look like? We don’t know. We know that Adam was delighted. In our fallen world with fallen faculties and minds, when we read of them being brought together, we tend to think of gender differences and sexual pleasure. But did they think and feel like that? It’s difficult to imagine anything else. But we should. Today, the highest form of pleasure is glandular. This is fact, not fantasy. The guys chase the girls. The girls enjoy being chased. According to some, every aspect of human life is governed by sexual attraction. How can this be changed? Only by a decision to follow Jesus Christ and the New Testament pattern for family life. Husbands love your wives as Jesus loves the church and laid down His life for her. It is done by a decision he makes. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands. This is done by a decision she makes. When we follow this model, fulfilment becomes the norm. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			39 He went on a little farther and bowed with His face to the ground, praying, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from Me. Yet I want Your will to be done, not Mine." Matthew 26:39 NLT 27 "Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. John 12:27 ESV 38 I came down from heaven not to follow my own whim but to accomplish the will of the One who sent me. John 6:38 MSG 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8 ESV 7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. Hebrews 5:7-8 ESV 53 Don't you realize that I am able right now to call to my Father, and twelve companies--more, if I want them--of fighting angels would be here, battle-ready? Matthew 26:53 MSG 46 He told them, "This is what is written. The Christ will suffer. He will rise from the dead on the third day. 47 His followers will preach in his name. They will tell others to turn away from their sins and be forgiven. People from every nation will hear it, beginning at Jerusalem. Luke 24:46-47 NIrV	Submission is the strangest word, most women do not like. Not enough for them to think that they should go on strike. I must admit the attitude is sometimes hard to bear, Particularly thinking, that the men don’t seem to care! There’s much misunderstanding about what the Lord intends. There is no subjugation He imposes on His friends. Yet that is what most people think submission really means. And ladies are subservient because of female genes! But women aren’t inferior at all, in any way. A wife is not a slave, a husband doesn’t have to pay. But there is still an attitude that men can have it all. And women must bow down to every word the men-folk call. That isn’t in the Bible. It really isn’t true. A woman is permitted to do all that men can do. The model is the Master and all that Jesus did. He made it clear He’d only do that which His father bid. He wasn’t “second fiddle” to Someone way up high. Whatever He was told to do, not once did He reply, I do not have to do this. I’m not some kind of fool, Who walks round in obedience to any petty rule! I’m following My Father for it’s the finest way, For Me to get the very best on each and every day. I know that we are “equal” for I am God as well. But I am in submission to all that He may tell. A wife is just like Jesus in the way that she relates. She has complete authority to govern her own fate. But of her own volition she chooses to submit, And it’s so liberating, she never wants to quit. Her husband doesn’t rule her. That never was God’s plan. But there’s Divine relationship between her and her man. He was “hoop-ak-o-ay” is the word we find in Greek, Harkening attentively; obediently meek; Comes from Strong’s Concordance, where it very clear. (Heb. 5:8) He was in submission to His Father ever near. Look at where it took Him. To death upon a cross. He didn’t want to do it, but Father was the boss. In spite of all His suffering, He held on to the end. And gave us an example on which we can depend. So do not be discouraged. You ladies have it best, If you’re loved as Jesus was by Father, you are blessed. You don’t have to worry if your husband’s wrong or right. He’ll know what you need and give to you your heart’s delight. Jim Strickland Written 22nd September 2012

THE WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT

Time with Jesus - Friday, 21 September 2012

Hi all,

Nowhere in Scripture are we shown a “test-tube” to identify the Spirit of God. We cannot put Him under a microscope and say, “Here is God”. That can never happen. We are told ⁶ It's impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him. Heb. 11:6 MSG.  It’s not “seeing is believing”. It’s “believing is seeing”. We have to get it right or we won’t get it at all!

Blessings

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 21 September 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 WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT
Jesus made it clear that 24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:24 NLT The question we have to grapple with is, what did Jesus mean in a way we can try to understand? The point from which we must begin is that God is the creator. He dwells in a “dimension” with which we are unfamiliar. This is important. God created our time/space continuum. In other words, we dwell in Him rather than He dwells in our dimension. We know this is true because 28 “In him we live and move and have our being”. Acts 17:28 ESV A little illustration that has helped me, is to point out that fish live in water. Water doesn’t live in fish. If water lived in fish, they would be aware of it. They could see and feel it. But fish live in water. I suspect they are not aware of the watery world around them. We are like those fish. We live in a time/space continuum, all of which is in God – in Spirit. Occasionally, God has opened men’s eyes to “see” what is taking place in the Spirit. Normally we are unable to do so. We do know that the world we live in is not permanent. It is passing away. But the things of the Spirit are eternal. The day will come when the pyramids of Egypt will be gone. But those who love God continue. Occasionally, God sends something from the Spirit into our dimension. The Holy Spirit descended and alighted on Jesus in the form of a dove. The Holy Spirit “came upon” the 120 in the outer court of the temple (not the upper room) in the form of tongues of fire. Most likely, the pillar of fire came down in much the same way as in the wilderness. Then, tongues of flame reached out from the pillar and touched the heads of those present. The Spirit was in contact with God’s people in a way that was similar to the time of the Wilderness wanderings. No wonder the recipients almost “freaked out”. Here was a touch from Him which their forefathers had known ±1500 years previously! Note that it was the Spirit, visible and touching this world. In a sense, an invasion of our dimension by the Spirit dimension. Those of us who have read science fiction will have come across the idea of a “portal”; a gateway between one dimension and another. There is no doubt that this world and the Spirit are separate “dimensions”. Yet Jesus instructs us to worship God in Spirit and truth. Is it possible that in some way we don’t understand, God opens something like a “portal” whereby we are able to take our worship into His dimension to truly worship Him? There would be one important “key” into His dimension. The key is truth. Jesus Christ is that “key”; that “portal” 6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 ESV. Thus Jesus is our “portal” to the Father! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 2 Corinthians 13:14 ESV 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17 TNIV 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own but will tell you what He has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14 He will bring Me glory by telling you whatever He receives from Me. John 16:13-14 NLT 5 And hope will never let us down. God has poured his love into our hearts. He did it through the Holy Spirit, whom he has given to us. Romans 5:5 NIrV 17 But anyone who is joined to the Lord becomes one with him in spirit. 18 Keep far away from sexual sins. All the other sins a person commits are outside his body. But sexual sins are sins against one's own body. 19 Don't you know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit? The Spirit is in you. You have received him from God. You do not belong to yourselves. 1 Corinthians 6:17-19 NIrV 30 Don't grieve God. Don't break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don't take such a gift for granted. Ephesians 4:30 MSG 26 At the same time the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we don't know how to pray for what we need. But the Spirit intercedes along with our groans that cannot be expressed in words. Romans 8:26 GW	God’s Spirit is within me. The Saviour said it’s true. This should always be enough for folk like me and you. But I’m a bit inquisitive. I like to check things out. Make sure that something’s factual and far beyond a doubt. And so I started poking round to find out “where?” inside. I wanted to locate Him, so He could never hide; And ask me what I’m looking for. So I began to hunt. The liver, spleen and kidneys; the back and sides; the front. But I was unsuccessful. I couldn’t find the place, Where I could worship Jesus and look into His face. This sort of had me bothered. The Lord won’t tell a lie. And so I started over and had a second try. Then, after lots of digging, acknowledged my defeat. I knew that I could never find the Precious Paraclete! And then I started thinking. I must have got it wrong. The Message from the Master was really very strong. Finding a location was not what Jesus meant. He was the Holy Spirit, Whom Father God had sent. We cannot see the Spirit realm. We cannot feel or touch; And recognise His presence. We do not need that crutch. Faith is what is needed. To see beyond this realm, And know the Holy Spirit is surely at the helm. God’s Kingdom isn’t physical. Realise that’s true. You cannot eat or drink it; you cannot touch, or chew, What the Lord has given. Believe it and you’ll see, The evidence that He is there; alive at work in me! Its righteousness and peace and joy, within us, animated. Each of these is abstract and all are concentrated, To make our life here liveable; that other men may know, The action of the Holy Ghost, everywhere we go. Always put the emphasis on other men’s perception. If you’re looking at yourself, it’s probably deception. Yet there is a place to look where He is always found. Deep inside your spirit man you’ll find the Heavenly Hound. Your Spirit will bear witness that He indeed is there. This way you can be Christian and never have a care. So never be flustered and ask, “Where can He be”? Focus on the witness of the Spirit within Thee! If there is no “witness”, there’s one thing to be done. Get the problem “sorted”; Ask Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Jim Strickland – Written 21st September 2012