GOD KNOWS BEST

Time with Jesus - Saturday, 10 November 2012

Hi all,

Stress! The sound of the word gives us the willies. It should. It’s a six letter word containing three S’s; one at the beginning and two at the end. If the imagery in Genesis 3 depicting Satan as a serpent is still correct, then the word is surrounded by Satan himself. One bite at the front. Another two bites at the end. Today our meditation focuses on the pressures of this world. There is only one answer. His name is Jesus.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Saturday, 10 November 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	GOD KNOWS BEST
Have you ever come to a place in your life when everything seems to be impossible? Molehills look like mountains. The car has a flat tyre and a new one is needed. Where the money for a new tyre will come from is anybody’s guess. Perhaps a child or a spouse has died? Perhaps you are alone because your last child has left home to make a new home with his/her new spouse?  Perhaps you’ve been struck down with a dread disease e.g. cancer? Perhaps you’ve just discovered that your first-born is a drug addict? Perhaps the Bank is about to have you evicted because you can’t pay the mortgage? Perhaps you’ve done something silly and it’s possible that you will be sent to prison? There are so many possibilities. One answer is to trust God will provide for your need. Our prayer (Jim & Phyllida) is that the Lord will do so. The fact is, He also may not. Statistically Divine help does not come and you have to confront your situation “on your own.” Of course, as a Christian you will never be alone. Jesus will not desert you. But He may direct that you must go through the circumstance anyway. I remember on one occasion, Phyllida and I had to move home. My health dictated that it was necessary. I had not been healed miraculously and the only opportunity for us was to move from one power station to another. The idea was about as welcome as flies round the braai! Then on the morning we were moving, our faithful little cat died. We think it was poisoned. I found the body in the back garden and had to bury it. We were both distraught. I remember crying out to the Lord. These were real tears not something “put on” for effect. Then with tears streaming down my face I paused and raised my eyes to heaven. Lord, Your Word says, 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them. Romans 8:28 NLT I know it, but for the moment it seems impossible to believe. The pain is too great”. Later, as God’s will for Phyllida and I began to unfold, we began looking back and getting excited about His promise. I became progressively more ill and in the end Eskom decided that I should go off on early pension. So I was out of a job but started to draw a small pension. We still don’t know how He did it but He kept our heads above water and we were able to pursue a call into ministry. So it was that 3.5 years after leaving that power station, we were both set free to serve the Lord. We had learned a valuable lesson. Even in extreme circumstances, God continues with His purposes. All that was needed was to wait patiently for Him. It is now 22 years since I was an employee of Eskom. In all that time He has been faithful. I’m not sure Phyllida and I have been! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			1 Restless in bed and sleepless through the night, I longed for my lover. I wanted him desperately. His absence was painful. Song of Solomon 3:1 MSG 1 Israel, return to the LORD your God. You have stumbled because of your sins. 2 Return to the LORD, and say these things to him: "Forgive all our sins, and kindly receive us. Then we'll praise you with our lips. Hosea 14:1-2 GW 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. 16 So don't be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. James 1:13-17 NLT 14 Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the LORD. Psalms 27:14 NLT 26 It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. Lamentations 3:26 ESV 6 And the Lord said, "Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?" Luke 18:6-8 ESV For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of David. 1 I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from Him. Psalms 62:1 NLT 5 Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him. Psalms 62:5 NLT	O Lord my God I need you. I truly cannot cope. Distress is overcoming me and I’ve run out of hope. I’m lying in my bedroom; I’ve tossed around all night. The prospects of not seeing You, it fills my heart with fright. There is a pain within me, a yearning in my soul, Which only You can satisfy, none else can make me whole! My need for you is desperate. I’m red-hot with desire. My bones inside are burning; My heart is now on fire. O God please come and help me. Nothing can take Your place. And I am undeserving, to look upon your face. My sins are overwhelming. It feels like being crushed. My thoughts are all in overdrive. How can all this be hushed? Return O Lord; forgive me; O come to me once more. Come and soothe my spirit as in the days of yore. Cast out this dreadful emptiness which only You can fill. You know that I have loved You; and Lord I love You still, It isn’t You who’s tempting me. It’s from the other side. They drive me toward wickedness; to fill my heart with pride. I’m drawn to sinful actions. Temptation’s ugly head, Is standing right before me and seeks to fill my bed. Send that which is perfect; nought else will satisfy. Please send Your Holy Spirit. Without Him, I shall die. Resistance is now waning. My feet have almost slipped. But if You Lord will come to me, then I will be equipped, To stand against the evil one and see his power reversed. Save me from myself O God; then I will not be cursed. You tell me to be patient; courageous, strong and brave. You have made it very clear just how we must behave. But I can hardly stand it. I’ve waited far too long. My days have all been numbered; and soon they will be gone. But even so, I trust You. Lord even if I’m slain. It’s absolutely certain I’d do it all again. So if I die a million deaths; am crucified like You, There’s one thing which I know for sure; that You will always do, The right thing for your children. So I’ll lie down and rest, Knowing that in everything, My Master knows what’s best. And even though You slay me, it comes, Lord, from Your hand. And it will serve a purpose, which You will understand. Jim Strickland  Written 10th November 2012

THE OLD AND NEW COVENANT

Time with Jesus - Friday, 09 November 2012

Hi all,

Today’s meditation concerns the Old and New Covenant “laws”. Of course, Jesus summed up both with His statement, ³⁷ Jesus replied, "'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' Matt 22:37-39 NLT He did not give anyone the right to sin with impunity. He gave immunity from the penalty of sin under Jewish Law subject to certain conditions.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 09 November 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 OLD AND NEW COVENANT
Most of us think that when we refer to God’s Law we are referring to the Ten Commandments. This is not surprising. The ten commandments are just about impossible to keep. In fact Jesus is the only person who succeeded in doing so. According to Nelson’s Illustrated New Bible Dictionary, “There are eight distinct categories of civil law in the Old Testament: (1) laws regulating leaders, (2) laws regulating the army, (3) laws respecting criminals, (4) laws dealing with crimes against property, (5) laws relating to humane treatment, (6) laws about personal and family rights, (7) laws about property rights, and (8) laws regulating other social behaviour”. For the likes of you and me, these laws are equally impossible to keep. These laws had inflexible penalties. For example death was the penalty for fornication, adultery, homosexuality, prostitution, incest and bestiality. These penalties were absolute. Man had no authority to change these laws. In Jewish law, these penalties were rigidly applied. It’s important to understand that these laws have not been rescinded and are as true now as they were in days of old. What has changed is that in Christ, the penalty no longer applies. The curse of the law was the penalty applicable when the law was broken. Paul points this out: 13 Christ paid the price to free us from the curse that God's laws bring by becoming cursed instead of us. Scripture says, "Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed." Gal. 3:13 GW For those familiar with the game “Monopoly”, it’s a bit like having a “get out of jail free” card. If you get sent to jail during the course of the game, the card enables you to continue playing. You are “just visiting”. What we need to remember is that although we have been redeemed from the curse of the law, it does not mean that the law no longer applies. Jesus made this very plain: 8 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God's law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. Matt 5:18 NLT Note that the law is still in place. It’s just as true as ever. It’s the penalty that has been taken away. The danger for us is to think that because the penalty has gone, we can sin as much as we want. Paul discusses this at length in Romans 6. He points out that in Christ we are dead to sin and alive to Christ. In other words, 12 Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Rom 6:12 NLT Living under the Old Covenant was not easy. Living under the new covenant should not be thought of as “easy”! Under the New we can be forgiven for sins that demanded the death penalty under the Old. But to continue to live in sin under the New Covenant is anathema. The New Covenant demands repentance from sin. No repentance = no forgiveness = No salvation. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			5 "Gather to me this consecrated people, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice." Psalms 50:5 TNIV 28 In the same way, Christ was offered up once. He took away the sins of many people. He will also come a second time. At that time he will not suffer for sin. Instead, he will come to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Hebrews 9:28 NIrV 15 That is why He is the One who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant. Hebrews 9:15 NLT 24 Father, I want those you gave me To be with me, right where I am, So they can see my glory, the splendour you gave me, Having loved me Long before there ever was a world. John 17:24 MSG 27 And He will send out His angels to gather His chosen ones from all over the world--from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven. Mark 13:27 NLT 4 Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back. Deuteronomy 30:4 TNIV 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 TNIV	There are many differences for folk like me and you, Between the major Covenants. The Old one and the New. The Old had no provision for a deliberate sin. The penalty was final. There’s no way man could win. A murderer found guilty was taken out and stoned. There wasn’t a provision for such sin to be atoned. Taken in adultery? Death was the only way To satisfy the penalty for what was done that day. You couldn’t get forgiveness, no matter how you tried. If you had sinned deliberately, then you were going to die. David got away with it. He took Uriah’s life. By lying with Bathsheba. She was Uriah’s wife. Uriah was then murdered for Bathsheba was with child. Her marriage to Uriah was utterly defiled. David and Bathsheba. They both should have been stoned. But who dare challenge David while he was still enthroned? And so it’s very clear that David was above the Law. Who would dare accuse him and Uriah was no more. We know that he repented. He did the best he could, To satisfy the matter. But legally he should, Be stoned because of murder and for adultery. But kings were all untouchable; he had to be set free. The law was unforgiving. The penalties were clear. Accidental sins were all atoned for every year. They were “covered over” by the blood of sacrifice. A ram had to be slaughtered. There was no other price. There were different gifts that were all offered to the Lord But none of them were perfect. Each one of them was flawed. How many should be slaughtered to pay for just one man? Thus in the New Covenant, God had a better plan. The sacrificial system was still very much in place. But who could ever pay the price for all the human race?” The offering would have to be the Son of God Divine. His blood and His alone forgives all sin. Both yours and mine. So Jesus, by one offering, could pay for every sin. By His blood of sacrifice, we now can enter in. This means that the Old Covenant for us is obsolete. Jesus blood is final; and forgiveness is complete. Jim Strickland  Written  9th November 2012

GOD WILL NEVER FAIL

Time with Jesus - Thursday, 08 November 2012

Hi all,

John Starnes has been singing with Jimmy Swaggart for many years. He has an excellent voice with a considerable range on the octave scale. One of our favourites is called, “The God Who Cannot Fail”. The words are true. God cannot fail unless He chooses to do so. Then, it’s not failure but a deliberate choosing not to win! Today’s meditation looks at our undefeatable God!

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Thursday, 08 November 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	GOD WILL NEVER FAIL
At school, I loved playing cricket. Those were the days when Johnny Waite was the Springbok wicket-keeper. I tried to keep wicket back then but was not successful. Others were far more talented than I, so a place in the second team was about the best I could manage. But it was fun. As a batsman, I was indifferent. On the odd occasion I managed to score a few runs, but my average was somewhere between 1 and 10! One year the school team was sent to Pietermaritzburg for a contest between all the South African Marist Brothers Schools. I went as a substitute, if required. So I spent most of the time watching the games. The following year I had the misfortune of playing for the School against a touring Marist Brothers School. On that occasion the visitors had a fast bowler, the likes of which we had never seen. He was lightning fast and extremely accurate. He took wicket after wicket in spite of our best endeavours. Our team was all out for 15 runs. Would you believe that on that occasion I was top scorer? I went in to bat against this whirlwind. I sort of stuck my bat out in the general direction of where I thought the ball was. Somehow or other, the ball nicked off the top of my bat, flew over the top of the fingers of the slip fielders and went for four runs. I was bowled out next ball. So much for my cricketing career. In this fast bowler, the team was faced with an impossible situation. I would have loved to have the Lord on our side. I’m not sure what would have happened to our opponents. My guess is that we would have won. Provided He intervened. There is a poignant story in this regard dating back to Amajuba in the Anglo/Boer war. It concerns a devout young Boer looking down over the battlefield. The fighting had not yet started. He prayed saying, “Lord, looking at the enemy, I know that there are genuine Christians among them. I also know there are many unbelievers. They all look the same to me Lord. I can’t pray for us to win or lose. But there is one thing I can ask. Lord, please stay out of the fight.” Today, Christians all over the world are in a difficult position. We are confronted by the greatest army of unbelievers that this world has ever seen. Mainly it is an army of spiritual Philistines. We are vastly outnumbered and the Goliaths confronting us are pitiless and cruel. In many ways, we have become intimidated by our enemy. Without the Lord we will lose and be taken into a 21st century Babylonian captivity. The “odds” against us make our case hopeless. All we have on our side is God! But He is more than enough. Furthermore, as in the days of Gideon, the Lord delights in taking on an army vastly superior to anything we have. One with God is a majority! So let us take hands and face up to the fastest bowler ever known. With Jesus, we are unbeatable. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			27 The men of Israel were also brought together. They were given supplies. They marched out to fight against their enemies. Israel's army camped across from Aram's army. The men of Israel looked like two small flocks of goats that had become separated from the others. But the men of Aram covered the countryside. 1 Kings 20:27 NIrV 28 The man of God came up to the king of Israel again. He told him, "The LORD says, 'The men of Aram think I am a god of the hills. They do not think I am a god of the valleys. So I will hand their huge army over to you. Then you will know that I am the LORD.'" 29 For seven days the two armies camped across from each other. On the seventh day the battle began. The men of Israel wounded or killed 100,000 Aramean soldiers on foot. That happened in a single day. 1 Kings 20:28-29 NIrV 4 My dear children, you come from God and belong to God. You have already won a big victory over those false teachers, for the Spirit in you is far stronger than anything in the world. 1 John 4:4 MSG 10 Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with My victorious right hand. Isaiah 41:10 NLT 19 They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you." Jeremiah 1:19 ESV	Don’t rebel against the Lord. It’s utterly futile. He cannot be defeated. If you resort to guile, You’ll find He knows about it. He knew it long before, You ever thought of doing it! Perhaps if you implore, And ask Him for forgiveness, perchance He will decide, To come to your assistance and with you to abide. The Lord our God is awesome, invincible and strong. An Undefeated Hero; a Righter of all wrong. It really doesn’t matter whose side He wants to pick. The others will be slaughtered, post-haste and double quick. Think of Israel’s history. You’ll see just what I mean. Regardless of the army, if He would intervene, The outcome was a victory regardless of the odds! Even with a multitude of all their foreign gods. We can see this clearly in the Aramean war.                           (1 Kings 27-29) The Israelites, outnumbered by some 10,000 score.                (200,000) When the dust was settled, 100, 000 men, Lay slaughtered by the Israelites! The Lord was with them then! This occurred consistently back in those distant days. Israel’s obedience influenced God’s ways. Doing what He told them made everything go well. When they disobeyed Him, was always their death knell. Later, unassisted, The Angel of the Lord, Slaughtered the Assyrians with His great and mighty sword. One hundred eight five thousand perished in one night        (Is 37:36) No wonder what was left of them were quickly put to flight. Now that was all “Old Testament”. The one we have is New! We’re told it is a better one; and so the Lord will do, At least as much for Christians as in the days of yore. But frankly, with a God like Him, if we will but adore, And follow in obedience, while keeping clear of sin. There isn’t an alternative and we can only win! The Lord our God is with us. The foe will not prevail. Do not be discouraged. He’s not about to fail! His Spirit is within us; and He is very strong.                           (1 John 4:4) Stronger than the greatest, this world can bring along. He said He’ll deliver! His conquering right hand,                     (Jer. 1:19) Will deal with every enemy, in each and every land. Jim Strickland  Written 8th November 2012