Pray from September 2013 Knox, Waimate

 So let's pray together. Hallelujah. What a Saviour! Father as we come before You this morning, we need to really keep reminding ourselves that it was Your great love that moved us to come and have a relationship with You. 

It was You who first initiated it, it was You that reached out to us, it was You that pursued us and sought us out in the midst of life, and in due course revealed Yourself to us, and we want to say thank You this morning. Thank You that You are a God of love and that You did reach into our lives and reveal Yourself to us and we responded to that great love, as the Scripture says we love because he first loved us, and so Father, thank You so much for that. 

And as we journey through life. Lord, we know that there are so many times when we don't seem to live up to the new identity we have, we seem to drift so easily. We seem to be side-tracked so easily. Old habits and old ways seem to still grip us somehow but it's good to be reminded that, that’s not who we are because You've reached into our lives and because You're such a wonderful Saviour, You have literally saved us out of the old life into the new, out of darkness into light of Your kingdom and into Your family and right into the circle of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. What a Saviour, You have saved us into that, and that's what we are grateful for, and sometimes Father as we look over our shoulder, sometimes if we stop and we start to look at our performance, we could easily be cast down, we could easily be depressed and despondent thinking here I go again but You don't look at our performance. 

You look at our new identity. You look at who we now as Your children, and in that relationship, as You work within us by Your Spirit, You bring about change, healing and wholeness. It might be slow at times we might falter at times, but You continue to work as the apostle said that He would continue the work, that He shall complete that which he has begun. And so Father we to say thank You for the work that You're doing in our lives. None of us are perfect, but we are new creations. We are Your children, and so as we look to You in relationship. We say that was stupid. That was silly. I'm sorry and we step on again without any condemnation for there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. And so we thank You Lord for that wonderful relationship.  O what a Saviour!  Hallelujah. What a Saviour that He would save us from all of that, into a beautiful relationship with Father Son and Spirit.  Thank You Father for that this morning in Jesus name we pray. 

Amen

Human

 

Purpose in that Pain

 

My Conscience

 

Have You Forgotten Who God Is?

 

THE EARLY CHRISTIANS HAD NO BIBLE.

THEREFORE, IT IS NOT NECESSARY THAT WE HAVE OR USE A BIBLE.

This is a common argument from those who want to do away with the "dead letter" and be moved only by the Spirit, but it is a specious argument at best.

It denies the value of progress.

People got along fine before the printing press, therefore we do not need printed materials.

People got along fine before refrigeration, therefore leave your vegetables and meat on the table.

People got along fine before the automobile, so let's return to horse and buggy.

Simply because the Bible has been wrongly used by many for centuries is not proof that it is useless. Guns have been wrongly used by people ever since their invention. Cars have been wrongly used by people. Alcohol has been wrongly used.

It was the printing press which brought the proliferation of the Bible and other reading materials. As a result, education and learning among the populace increased. For a while, that education and learning helped to propel civilization.

Now that education is on the decline, understanding is becoming a precious commodity found among fewer and fewer people.

Christianity was propelled beyond the borders of Israel by a man who was educated in one of the best schools at the time, and in his later life still wanted his books and parchments (2Tim. 4:13).

Do we NEED the automobile? No. We can still walk, but the car makes locomotion easier.

Do we NEED electricity? No. Everything electricity does for us makes life easier, but it is not necessary for our survival.

Do we NEED the Bible? No. But having that resource has brought us a freedom of existence in both mind and matter. There is an understanding that can be gained through reading the Bible, which can be gained elsewhere through other means.

However, as in the case of the other above-mentioned items, the journey is much easier with the Good Book.

What is faith?

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:29–30)

The gospel declares that God will provide the faith that you need. Indeed, the gift of grace comes wrapped in faith (Romans 10:17). But what is faith?

Faith is a rest: “Take my yoke upon you and you will find rest for your souls.”

Faith is allowing yourself to be persuaded that God is good and he longs to be good to you. When you are persuaded, the issue is settled and your mind is at rest.

In a world of heavy burdens, Grace comes offering rest. Unbelief responds, “Leave me alone, I’m busy.” But faith responds, “Rest, you say? I’ll have some of that, thank you very much!”

It’s a totally different way to live and nothing like the DIY religion many of us have been raised on.

“For anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest” (Hebrews 4:10–11).

The gospel is not an invitation to pick up tools, but to drop them.

The gospel is not a job advertisement, but a holiday.

The gospel is not a day of work; it’s a day of rest.

Grace declares, “It is finished, the work is done,” and faith responds, “Thank you, Jesus!”

Faith is not something you must do or manufacture. Faith is resting in the restful persuasion that God is at rest, and in him so are we.

Why not share this good news with friends today?

- Paul Ellis