“I don’t want to send them away hungry, or they will faint along the way.” Matthew 15:32 NLT13/5/2024 Our Lord Jesus had been preaching and teaching for three days, and He was concerned for the physical well-being of the people. He didn’t want them to go away hungry in case they fainted. I am sure this would not have been His first thought, but it wouldn’t have been a good look, and He could have been open to criticism from His enemies if they had.
He never wants to send us away spiritually hungry. After we have been in the presence of God, whether at church or in our homes, we should be the opposite of hungry, filled with His presence. We should no longer feel ‘faint along the way’ but strong in the Lord and the power of His Spirit. The truth is, it is not always so. We often rise from our prayers not having found the presence of God deeply for ourselves. At an earlier point, Jesus had said: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6 NLT And so we must teach ourselves to expect to be filled, and if we are not being filled with His Spirit, we should look to remedy that. To connect with the Living God is vital for our spiritual well-being and sustenance. In this verse, Jesus gives us a clue about achieving this goal. It is by being hungry and thirsty for righteousness. He who seeks will find, but we need to seek first. Are there times when you feel weak and faint as a Christian? Do you give in to temptation? Is your Christian life filled with peaks and troughs? Then, you need to practice finding the life of God to sustain you daily. If a person isn’t well, they lose their appetite. Despite the fact they don’t feel like it, they know they must eat regularly so that they grow strong and healthy again. Only when a person is at the end of their life do they stop eating. Let this be a lesson for all of us. Perhaps you are not well spiritually, you have no appetite for spiritual things. You find reading your Bible a drag and attending church a chore, but you must eat despite the lack of appetite. Come daily and eat a little something of the word of God and speak little prayers to Him. Teach yourself to love the righteousness of God. If you do this, it will work like medicine, and your appetite will begin to grow. And so, eat morsel by morsel until you grow strong again and enjoy a healthy spiritual life. It will bring a sense of well-being and satisfaction. “Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.” Psalm 13:3 NLT
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What a strange question to ask the Lord Jesus. Had the disciples not realised that this Son of Man was Lord of all? They didn’t understand that He was omniscient: He had infinite awareness, understanding and insight. Of course Jesus realised He had offended the Pharisees! He would have been more aware than any other of how cutting His words would be, and how angry His words would have made them. He saw the hatred in their eyes towards Him and how frustrated they felt when they couldn’t do anything about it because of the crowds who gathered around Jesus to listen to Him.
It didn’t mean that He shouldn’t have said these things. Even though He riled the religious leaders and put His life in danger, the truth had to be uncovered. It had been hidden for years behind the religiosity of the times, and now the Light of the world had come to reveal the truth and to make those who lived behind the veil of religious hypocrisy uncomfortable. What a privilege to hear His words of truth. Christ was breaking through the religious laws which had created a bondage of tradition over the people and bringing heart-felt truths to the fore. No other could have had the courage to speak these words and cut through the darkness. No wonder He could declare: “I am the truth.” John 14:6 NKJV What a wonderful Saviour to bring Light and Truth into our darkness and to free us from the bondage of traditions and religion. Let us learn to embrace the truth of His words: meditate, absorb, and make them part of our lives. This is freedom from every form of pretence. “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36 NKJV Some love the age-old traditions and find the beauties of history linked to their ways and thoughts, and some cannot connect with the past and love only the new.
There is a sway in our more modern churches to move away from the age-old traditions into contemporary free-style worship. However, traditions are not there to be obeyed or disobeyed. Our religion or church should not be bound to the old or the new. We should not only be able to find God in the old, traditional, beautiful buildings with their stone pillars, majestic ceilings and Orpheus choirs, but we should also be able to find God in the contemporary ways of the modern church. It is the Lord we seek, not the way to find God. Although our natural frame of mind might sit more comfortably with one or the other, we must recognise that our God is bigger than the traditions of men and can move in any style of worship or culture. God is Spirit, not bound by our ways. Jesus Himself said: “The time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem.” John 4:21 NLT It doesn’t matter where you worship. It is who you worship that matters! In this story where Jesus and His disciples were criticised for not obeying the traditions, it seems pathetic that the Pharisees and teachers of religious law criticised Jesus because His disciples didn’t wash their hands! Step back and think of the Son of God being pulled up for such a thing. It is ridiculous! How easily we criticise if things don’t happen how we like them in the church. We are like toddlers going through the terrible-two stage of stamping their feet and screaming, “I don’t like this!” whilst our Heavenly Father looks on with compassion and gathers us into His strong arms to quieten and comfort us. How silly we become over little things in life. How we fret over that which doesn’t matter. Look to the God in heaven who says: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.” Isaiah 55:8 NLT Learn to stand quietly, show respect and stand in awe of Him who created heaven and earth. Remember, you are a child, a toddler, learning to understand the Creator, who is your Father, your guide and your instructor. Instead, turn to Him and, “He will quiet you with His love.” Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV The Psalmist was going through a difficult time and was looking for a refuge from the difficulties that overwhelmed him.
In the midst of it all, he remembers: “You are all I really want in life.“ Isn’t it so for so many Christians? Life can overwhelm us. Sometimes the troubles are within us and sometimes outwith us; and we can become consumed by the problems we encounter. We can forget why we were drawn to Christ in the first place, and sometimes, even for a moment, there comes that longing in our hearts to find the real reason again. It is because the presence of God is what we want in life. Never lose sight of this goal, no matter what life throws at you. Whatever stage you are at, there will always be something to draw you away from His presence. If only Satan could distract you a little longer. The presence we seek is like gold. It is the essence of our faith. It drew us in the beginning and has held us through many years. There will always be something to bog you down, whether it’s the passions of youth, the busyness of a young family, the pressures of work or even church problems. Nothing is worth losing your spiritual focus. Be like the psalmist who seemed to be surrounded by problems in this psalm. When your spirit is overwhelmed within you, when others have secretly laid a snare for you, when no one acknowledges or cares for you, or when you feel low, remember: “You are all I really want in life.“ And suddenly, in all your troubles, the breath of His presence will breathe life, relief and joy into your soul, and you will remember why you started this journey in the first place. If we don’t want to sink beneath life’s waves, we must continually remind ourselves of this principle: the presence of the Lord Jesus is what we really want in life. ‘At about that time Jesus was walking through some grainfields on the Sabbath.’ Matthew 12:1 NLT15/4/2024 What a lovely picture! The Lord Jesus walking through some grainfields. Can you see it in your mind’s eye?
One could imagine a beautiful day with blue skies and warm sunshine. The quietness of the countryside, the twittering of birds and our Lord Jesus strolling with His disciples through fields rich with ripened grain, just ready for the harvest. We know this because His disciples were hungry and broke off heads of grain to eat. A moment spoiled by the Pharisees who protested at the disciples for breaking the Jewish laws. The menacing cruelty of hell was all around, and even this peaceful picture was spoiled by criticising voices who found fault with everything. Have you known such a moment when all the world feels right, and suddenly there comes a breath of hell that seems to spoil it all? The enemy of souls is cruel. He will not want you to be sublimely happy and at peace with the world. He is here to create havoc, and he dared to try that with Christ. Our Lord Jesus deals with the situation in a moment. He deftly takes two portions of the Old Testament, puts them together and quickly demonstrates with the accuracy of the word of God that their religious teachings allowed this on more than one occasion. How bizarre! The Creator is being criticised for enjoying His creation. How wonderful! Christ defends and describes His disciples as innocent. How perfect! He draws out further teachings from the Old Testament on this occasion. How victorious! He turns the whole thing around against His enemies. Lessons indeed that we could all learn. When the enemy strikes at you because that is what he is good at, take a deep breath and learn to respond as Christ did. After reading through this portion, you get the unmistakable impression that the Lord Jesus was unperturbed by the comments from the Pharisees. The passage finishes with the glorious words: “For the Son of Man is Lord.” Matthew 12:8 NLT This verse immediately reminded me of our Sunday morning services. There comes such a sense of overflowing happiness amongst us as we give Him thanks, Sunday by Sunday, for His death and resurrection.
We have a group of happy, worshipping Nigerians who join us each Sunday. They are so zealous in their worship, so expressive, and somehow, we all find ourselves uplifted by their praise. As this verse says, my heart throbs and swells with joy. Easter Sunday is always a unique service for us. We love to rejoice in the victory of Christ over death. My heart swelled with joy as I saw our wee church looking almost packed last Sunday. I had to stop several times and ask folks to move up to allow others into the rows. Many years ago, when Graham and I married and moved to Cumbernauld, God spoke to me of starting a work here. We began as a small house group with five people. Over the years, it is as if God has shown me the next stage in the work. When we were 5, I had a vision of 20 people coming; when we had 20, I had a vision of 40-50 coming; when we had 40-50, I had a vision of 70-80 coming; and the last I had was of our church crowded, from wall to wall, not with visitors for outreach, but with the redeemed. Last Sunday morning was the nearest I have seen that vision fulfilled. It was fabulous to see what God is doing amongst us. My heart throbbed and swelled with overflowing joy. It was too much to contain! The surrounding verses say: “Lift up your eyes and look about you: All assemble and come to you; your sons come from afar, and your daughters are carried on the hip. Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come.” Isaiah 60:4-5 NIV These verses have held much significance for me for many years, and now I see them being fulfilled. The riches of the nations, not speaking of those who are wealthy naturally but those who are wealthy spiritually, are being brought to us. Even this week, a lad received a lovely baptism in the Holy Spirit. He has had to flee for his life from persecution in his country. During the prayer meeting, I felt compelled to go to him despite the fact he hadn’t responded to the appeal. The presence of God surrounded Him intensely, and I became aware as I prayed with him of his deep hunger for Christ. How accurate the word of God is! Perhaps He has whispered a word in your heart—a hope for the future of better days and promises of new things. Hold on to the promises of God. He will fulfil them in His time and in His way, and until then, be confident in Him with joy. His word makes us sing. ”For God’s Word is something to sing about! He is true to his promises, his word can be trusted, and everything he does is reliable and right.“ Psalms 33:4 TPT As the day broke that first Easter Sunday morning, Jesus' followers were broken men. They were afraid. They had no idea that there would be a sequel to the story.
The disciples were huddled together in fear, the door locked because of fear of the Jews, as they wondered what to do. Peter was broken because he had denied Christ. Yet, within a few hours, everything changed. The tomb was empty! More than sixteen of Jesus’ followers had seen Him on at least five occasions. Jesus showed them the wounds in His hands. He offered Thomas the opportunity to touch them. He talked with them and ate with them. Despondency and fear were things of the past, and now came indescribable joy! On His resurrection rests the whole of Christian history. Christ not only appeared to the sixteen but at a later point to over five hundred at one time. Since then, He has appeared to billions. All over the world, in every continent and country, there are those to whom Christ has revealed Himself. Some, like Paul on the Damascus Road, have had a vision of Christ. I found Christ through vision as a 16-year-old rebellious teenager. Others have listened to His voice. One in our fellowship heard an audible voice and came forward to give her life to Christ when no appeal had been made. Others have been convinced as they have read the Bible. Others found Him through dreams, whilst others have been floored by His power and been utterly convinced of His reality. There are to date over two billion people who follow Christ. It is the largest religion in the world, and all because Christ rose from the dead and has promised to be with us: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matt 28:20 NKJV Never look back and wish you had lived in Bible times. You are living in the most exciting times now, as the Resurrected Christ stands in the church today over two thousand years later, working miracles, convicting of sin, breaking chains, and transforming lives miraculously. Rejoice! No religious leader from any other worldwide religion has returned from the dead. No other can claim: “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.” John 11:25 NLT ‘As soon as Jesus heard the news, He left in a boat to a remote area to be alone.’ Matt 14:13 NLT25/3/2024 Our Lord Jesus had just received the bad news that John the Baptist had been beheaded. He wanted to be alone. Perhaps He needed time to process the whole event and to spend time with His Father. His childhood friend, cousin and most loyal supporter had been beheaded. We don’t know who was with him in the boat, but we know He wasn’t alone. The presence of the Almighty was there with Him.
Recently, in our garden, I could hear a lot of squawking from a resident blackbird. When I went into the garden to see what all the noise was about, a magpie was hovering, probably attempting to find the eggs in the nearby nest. I didn’t do anything but stand silently in the garden, but it was enough to drive the magpie away, and soon peace resumed. Sometimes, the devil looms large in our lives or circumstances, as I’m sure he did on this occasion in the mind of our Lord. Occasionally, we find ourselves squawking with fear! When the enemy intimidates, the presence of our Heavenly Father is enough to drive him away. When life is troubling and threatening and dark clouds attempt to rob us of peace, we must learn to do what our Lord did. Sometimes we yearn for the steadying hand or voice of a familiar friend. Let us learn to turn to the One whose calming presence brings total peace within our hearts. When we have learned to find Him once in this way, we can come again and again into His presence and find the quiet reassurance of His peace, no matter what life has in store for us. ‘And He said, “My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.”‘ Exodus 33:14 KJB Does it ever cross your mind that you will never fully know everything there is to learn about God? Even in eternity, I am not sure we will know all. Our God is infinite, eternal, and unending. We will never grow bored of learning about Him, for there is no end to God.
You might know everything there is to learn about your husband or your wife: their favourite meal, where they like to go, and the music they listen to. You might even know your son or daughter pretty well, but there will never be a day when you can turn around and say you know everything about God our Heavenly Father. How fascinating is that! You may have a great thirst to learn, listen to online sermons and attend all the meetings you can, but you can never know it all. “To those who listen to my teaching.” We find ourselves on this fabulous Christian journey absorbing His teaching. Now, mark these words: we are not listening to teaching about His teaching but listening to Him. That means not rushing from one sermon to another but, as you read, letting the teachings of Jesus sink into your soul. “More understanding will be given.” The words of Christ are eternal. Each verse in the Bible is like the title of a book. Meditate on the verse, and the book will open to you. You will begin to see untold depths and wisdom in His teachings, for they are profound. Let them unfold as you ponder. “And they will have an abundance of knowledge.” Each part of this verse is like a step into deeper waters. First, you listen to His words. Secondly, you meditate and begin to understand in a way you have never done before. Thirdly, there will come an abundance of knowledge. This is not describing learning about doctrines, although understanding in these areas will follow, but it is speaking of the abundance of the knowledge of God. We begin to listen, understand, behold, and worship Him. All because we have listened to His teachings, our journey into incredible depths of beauty and revelation has begun. 'Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime.' John 4:6 NLT11/3/2024 It's a comfort to know that our Lord grew weary. He had just walked a long way in hot weather, and he was more than a little tired.
Are you also weary? Have you had a long walk in challenging circumstances? Are you too tired even to read? Then here is a small word for you. Find a well where you can sit and rest. You are not meant to keep going until you can't cope anymore and feel exhausted. God will give you somewhere to pause and gather strength. There will be a well just for you. |
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