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31 August 2010

Elijah James




Hello everyone. I have tried several times to write my next blog posting and I feel at the moment that it would not be doing the passage justice to quickly put something together so I am leaving it for this month. When I next post it will be on Colossians 3:5-11, a rather confronting passage so we shall see how I go with the self examination aspect of my preparation!
For now I offer these photos. This is my beautiful family, I hope you enjoy this little snapshot into our lives. Elijah is doing really well (he is four weeks old today), and Abigail is settling into her new role as big sister very well. I hope that you are all doing well at the moment, and thank you for your posts. I have been reading them and enjoying them although I haven't had the time to comment just yet. May God bless you all this coming week and month, Taliah.


22 August 2010

The Preeminence of Christ

Over a year ago I heard a sermon on Colossians 1:15-19 that has come back to my memory many times since then. As I have been considering the insights I gleaned from this sermon, I thought I would share some of my notes and thoughts.

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross." Colossians 1:15-19

Matthew Henry adds:

"Christ in His human nature, is the visible discovery of the invisible God, and he that hath seen Him hath seen the Father. Let us adore these mysteries in humble faith, and behold the glory of the Lord in Christ Jesus. He was born or begotten before all the creation, before any creature was made; which is the Scripture way of representing eternity, and by which the eternity of God is represented to us. All things being created by Him, were created for him; being made by his power, they were made according to his pleasure, and for his praise and glory. He not only created them all at first, but it is by the word of his power that they are upheld. Christ as Mediator is the Head of the body, the church; all grace and strength are from him; and the church is his body. All fullness dwells in him; a fullness of merit and righteousness, of strength and grace for us. God showed his justice in requiring full satisfaction."

From this we are reminded that Jesus is preeminent in all things and His preeminence is past, present, and future. Jesus is the Creator of all things and the sustainer of all things.

It is worth noting that Jesus never went more than 100 miles from His birthplace of Nazareth, yet nearly 2 billion people describe themselves as followers of Christ! As Christians, we agree that Christ is preeminent, but do our lives show that Christ is preeminent? What does it mean for Christ to truly be preeminent in our lives? Luke 6:46-49 provides the answer to this question:

"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great." Luke 6:46-49

We often assume that the man building his house on the sand is not a Christian, but actually, Jesus is talking about people like us. In order to build our lives on the preeminence of Jesus Christ, we must first come to Him. So often, we come to Jesus on our way to something else. We use Him as a ticket to something else. We come to Jesus with our eyes fixed on what He's going to do for us.

Jesus says, "Come to me." Saving faith is faith in Jesus. We often make His teaching more about what we can do "for Him", not what He has done for us. The rock of our faith is the person of Jesus Christ. Everything we do should be an expression of what Jesus has done for us.

Next, as we endeavor to make Christ preeminent in our lives, we must hear His words. Jesus is speaking to us, but are we hearing Him?

Luke 21:33 "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away."

Our doctrine should be made up of truths from the Bible. Studying Jesus' words and understanding what they mean involves effort. This is so challenging to me because I often struggle with going through my entire morning devotions without even really taking the time to think deeply about what I am reading!

"If you want to feel deeply, you need to think deeply." - CJ Mahaney

"A lot of us want an experiential, deep feeling, but feeling built on feeling is empty. Emotion and feeling need to be built on something solid and unchanging. Dig your way to the truth and then the emotions will come. You will be founded on the unchanging truth of who He is." -Joshua Harris

The third step is to put His truth into practice.

"You can know 'Christianity' backwards and forwards, but if you don't put it into practice, it is nothing. Christian doctrine is for living." - Joshua Harris

"It is not enough to have your life in close proximity to the rock. When Jesus is preeminent, He pushes other things aside. His demand on us is the greatest expression of His love for us." - Joshua Harris

I pray others will be challenged by these scriptures, notes, and quotes!

15 August 2010

Biblical Translations - Will There Be a Rapture?

Today I listened to a sermon on Revelation that was particularly disappointing. Why? Because some very plain passages foretelling the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy were simply spiritualised away. That propelled me to post this particular study because I believe that the Bible is to be understood in a literal sense (which, of course, does not exclude the normal use of metaphors, analogies and the like).

Imagine for a moment that you are going about your daily business and then, all of a sudden, you are gone. People no longer see you, but you have not died. You have simply vanished to enter another realm. Am I talking about science fiction or alien abduction? The answer is ‘No’. I am thinking of actual historic events, of encounters experienced by Enoch and Elijah. What’s more, I am thinking of something that is yet to happen, something that may affect you and me. Looking forward in time, the Bible predicts a third occurrence of transformations...

ENOCH


First, let us take a look at Enoch’s experience. This man was born into the seventh generation from Adam and had a son called Methuselah. Paradoxically, Methuselah became the longest-living man on earth – 969 years, to be exact – while Enoch had the shortest life experience among his contemporaries. He was only 365 years old when he left this world, merely one third of the average ante-diluvian age. Why am I emphasizing this fact? Because it is due to his transformation: “Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” (Genesis 5:24). As simple as that – God took him home, and Enoch became the first person to be translated into the realm of God without experiencing physical death.

No further reason is given for this unusual event except for one short sentence in the book of Hebrews (11:5): “By faith Enoch was translated so that he did not see death, and was not found because God had translated him; for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” Nothing more is said, and Enoch is never again mentioned in the Bible except for Jude 14, where he is said to have foretold the judgment of false teachers, and Luke 3:37, where he is confirmed as representing the seventh generation from Adam and as part of the earthly lineage of Christ through Mary. Could this short account of Enoch’s translation be the initiation and foreshadowing of similar occurrences? This seems very likely, because the Bible records three such events in total; two that are past and one yet to come.

ELIJAH

The second event involved Elijah, who was also taken away from this earth without going through physical death. He had the same experience as Enoch, although the circumstances were a little more flamboyant: Elijah was whisked away by a fiery chariot drawn by fiery horses, taken up into heaven by a whirlwind - read his story in 2nd Kings, Chapter 2. The Bible recalls another interesting fact about this particular translation: both Elijah and his successor Elisha knew about it in advance, and Elisha kept waiting for the unusual event to occur. Could this have a foreshadowing significance for the last event of this kind?

You may not have heard about these disappearances before today, but God had a purpose for recording them in the Bible. Furthermore, you may be wondering what Enoch and Elijah’s experiences have to do with you in today’s world. Well, event number three has not yet happened, and if you belong to God, you could be involved in it. How do I know? Because I believe what is written in the Bible.

CHRISTIANS


The apostle Paul spoke about this exciting moment as something new, something hitherto unknown: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep [die], but we shall all be changed – in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we [who are alive at that time] shall be changed” (1 Cor.15:51-52). He also emphasized the fact that this revelation came directly from God: ”For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17).

What an exciting event to look forward to! The writer of Hebrews agrees: ”Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him, He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation” (Heb.9:28). Should we ask ourselves whether WE are eagerly waiting for His appearing? Are we expecting Him to return from heaven to whisk us away? Are we looking forward to the possibility of being transformed while still alive in order to meet Him in the air? What a wonderful expectation for those who have trusted in the Son of God for their salvation, for those who are near to the heart of God through faith.

08 August 2010

Who is God?

“There is none holy as the LORD” (1 Sam. 2:2).

To worship God properly we must know something about Him. True worship must be based on a deep heartfelt appreciation of who God is, what He has done for us, and what He has promised to do: it must be based on truth rather than the inconsistency of our feelings. “They that worship [God] must worship Him … in truth” (John 4:24). Today I just wanted to impress upon you, mainly through scripture verses, one characteristic of God, His holiness. This understanding brings the sinner into a relationship  with God that is founded on Him: His character, His work, His promises.

“Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness” (Psa. 30:4).

“He sent redemption unto His people: He hath commanded His covenant for ever: holy and reverend is His name” (Psa. 111:9).

“In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims … and one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory” (Isaiah 6:1-3).

The declaration of the holiness of God will ring out in heaven throughout eternity: “And the four beasts … rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come” (Rev. 4:8).


Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning let songs arise to Thee!
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty—
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy! all Thy saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea,
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee,
Which were, and art, and evermore shalt be!

R. Heber

What then do we do with this information? How should it change our perceptions, our actions and our attitude? Go back to Isaiah, hearing the seraphim proclaim in rapturous chorus, “Holy, Holy, Holy”. What was Isaiah’s response to this truth?

“Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5).


However holy Isaiah may have been in comparison to the other Israelites, in the presence of God and His holiness Isaiah became thoroughly aware of his own utter unholiness. So many people, Christian and non-Christian alike, say they are a “good person” and therefore do not deserve the judgement of God which culminates in Hell. If only we would compare ourselves to Him, then we would gain a more realistic assessment of our own sinfulness and see how fitting His judgement is.

Understanding our sinfulness in the eyes of God is not simply a self deprecating experience that ends in despair. No, no! It leads to joy indescribable, appreciation unable to be uttered and a liberty unequalled. In Christ we are no longer held held under the bondage of our sin: we are no longer separated from our Creator. Through the saving work on Jesus Christ on the Cross the relationship God always wanted for us to have with Him is established. When He returns this relationship shall be fully consummated and we shall be as He sees us.

I hope this short study on the holiness of God has been of some encouragement to you. Doing a word study on holiness is a good place to start should you wish to understand this topic in further depth.

God bless,
Laura

PS: On a personal note let me publicly congratulate my dear sister Taliah on the birth of her second child; Elijah James. We are all praying for you and your family (hubby Shane and daughter Abigail) as you welcome this new addition into your homes and lives.
 

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