Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

  But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. Psalm 5:11 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.5.11.ESV We all need the refuge that only God can provide. Having God as our 'safe place' doesn't make us immune from the storms of life. It just means we'll be able to ride out the turbulence we face, which should be a cause of great rejoicing. Having God as our refuge should inspire us to always sing for joy. Even if temporary circumstances are sorrowful, we have an eternity of rest to look forward to. Even when we're sorrowful, we can still rejoice in the Lord and in His mighty power, exercised on our behalf. Just because God might be our refuge, doesn't mean to say we don't need to pray to Him for protection. Even through life's final storm of death, God can carry us through. Death loses its sting when we trust in the resurrected Lord. We do

  Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Colossians 3:20 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/col.3.20.ESV This is a really strong command from Paul. Bear in mind though that he was writing to a church in Colossae. So most, if not all the children he was addressing will have been from Christian homes. If our parents aren't acting like good Christians- being abusive for example- we don't need to obey them. Insofar as parents are godly, we need to obey them. They might even be unreasonable from time to time. Instead of assuming we know best, we should obey our parents, even if we think we have a better idea than them. Parents will be accountable to God for their parenting. Children will be accountable to God for how they live before Him and their parents. Why should we obey our parents? Because it's always good to be subservient? Not necessarily, but because obeying our parents pleases the Lord. He wants what's best for us, and it's best

  And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, Colossians 1:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/col.1.9.ESV What an example Paul and team are to us of consistent prayer for our beloved brethren in the faith. They didn't even have apps to help them with prayer like we do with the likes of PrayerMate! Also, what an example Paul and team are as to what to pray for people. It's so important in life to know what God's will is. If we're struggling with decision making, we need to look to God to make the way plain. We're not simply to go with our guts or whatever seems like the easy option. Of course, God doesn't dictate how we should live our lives. He's given us free will and common sense to help us make decisions. We still need however to employ our God given wisdom to help us to decide what to do with our lives. Sometimes the Bible is

  Then he shall flay the burnt offering and cut it into pieces, Leviticus 1:6 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/lev.1.6.ESV To be honest, I've tended to simply see the flogging of Jesus as a brutal aspect of His passion for us. Reading this verse however brings home to me the prophetic fulfilment of the Roman executioners' actions. It wasn't just some dramatic event to illustrate a film many centuries later. For hundreds of years, Jewish priests were brutally carving up animal sacrifices. They weren't doing this to be sadistic. They were illustrating the brutal penalty required for our sins. What these animal sacrifices pointed to was the ultimate sacrifice of the Son of God, on behalf of all those who trust in Him. The animal sacrifices were only for those who brought them. Christ's sacrifice is only for those who trust in Him. It's not like Christ died in vain. He didn't die for those who reject Him. Not everyone will be saved. Either we bear our own pe

  The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honour. Proverbs 15:33 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/pro.15.33.ESV According to the world, you have to big yourself up to get on in life. Meekness and humility on the other hand are equated with weakness. The Bible teaches the opposite. The world sees fear as a bad thing. The Bible teaches that if we fear the only One who ultimately needs to be feared, we're on the path of wisdom. Once we get to know the fearsome Lord, we get to know His love, and that love banishes our fear. Why should we fear the Lord? Because He could send us to hell for our wrong thinking, speaking and doing. Once we find salvation in Christ however, we find out that fear is temporary; love is eternal. Biblically, pride comes before a fall. God humbles proud people. Humility on the other hand precedes honour. Those who willingly bow the knee to King Jesus get to stand before Him in the new creation. 'God Almighty, may we fear

  By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. John 15:8 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.15.8.ESV God doesn't save us so that we can put our feet up. We need to prove our salvation by our works. Our deeds don't save us, but they do evidence that we're saved. Father God isn't glorified by us failing to live according to His will. He wants us to obey Him. If we're fruitful, we are a blessing to others. It's not that God is unreasonably demanding of us. He is worthy of our service. Also, however, He wants us to bless the world. Not sure whether you're a Christian? Are you bearing the fruit of the Spirit- love, joy, peace etc.? If not, cry out to God to make you more fruitful. 'Father God, be glorified in our lives we pray. May we be fruitful for You, and so prove that we're Christ's disciples. In His name we pray, amen'

  "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. John 14:12 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.14.12.ESV When we read this verse, we might immediately think of healing the sick and raising the dead. Should we be expecting to do those things? Possibly, but in the context, Jesus seems to suggest that the works of God are to proclaim the message of Father God, the good news of salvation in Christ. Jesus ministered before the outpouring of His Holy Spirit. So He never quite had the joy of 'leading someone to faith' in Father God in the sense that people come to faith now His Spirit has been poured out upon us. That's what I think He's principally referring to in this verse. What is greater than leading someone from death to life, not just temporarily/physically but for eternity/in a spiritual sense? Physical healing might look impressive, but it's

  (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God), Exodus 34:14 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/exo.34.14.ESV We might think of jealousy as a bad thing, but there is a legitimate context for it. A husband ought to be jealous for his wife's affections, because he has a right to them, and his wife for his. A spouse who shrugs their shoulders at their partner's infidelity is wrong, not the jealous one. So is it any wonder that God is jealous for His people, whom He bought with His own blood? If jealousy is an integral part of the most intimate of human loves, why would we expect divine love to be any different? God is jealous for us! Because God is jealous for us, what should our response be? To worship Him alone, for He alone is worthy of our worship. All false gods are made up by demons to deceive mankind, no wonder the anger of God's jealousy burns like fire against them! God forbid that we should provoke the fire of His jeal

  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— Ephesians 2:5 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/eph.2.5.ESV The whole debate between faith and works is well addressed in this passage. We were spiritually dead. We couldn't work to earn our salvation. Having been made spiritually alive, we are to do the works that God has prepared in advance for us to do. These works don't contribute to our salvation however. They simply evidence that we have been saved. If salvation was partly down to our works, there would be room for us to boast. As it is, we are saved by grace alone through faith alone, in Christ alone. So Jesus must be our only boast. Just as Christ rose form the dead, so shall we who trust in Him. In fact, the moment we believe, we come alive spiritually. All praise is due to God's holy name. 'Lord our God, we acknowledge that salvation is all of You and none of us. May we produce fruit in keeping with

  that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, Ephesians 1:17 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/eph.1.17.ESV What Paul prayed for the Ephesian church, we could well pray for ourselves. We have received Jesus Christ as our Lord. We have been adopted into our glorious Father God's family. Having received Christ and been adopted by our Heavenly Father, we want Him to give us His Spirit in increasing measure. The Spirit makes us wise, not just for salvation though. The Spirit helps us get to know God better. We see how the triune God is perfectly united in His work within us. The Father adopts us, the Son saves us, and the Spirit helps us to get to know Him better. The knowledge Paul is talking about isn't just an intellectual knowledge. Instead of just being head knowledge, Paul is going on about heart knowledge. He's on about knowing God relationally. We don't just want to know

  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. John 10:29 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.10.29.ESV Is it possible for us to lose our salvation? Not according to this verse! Jesus is the Good Shepherd, who won't let His sheep get lost without finding them. Father God gives Jesus each one of us who trust in Him. He is greater than all. If satan could snatch us from the Father, he would, but he cannot. If it was possible for us to lose our salvation, we would. Like sheep, we naturally go astray and need to be brought back by the Good Shepherd. Thankfully, He gladly does so. Are you doubting your salvation? Maybe you feel like your sins have separated you from God. Like a lost sheep, cry out to God to come and find you, and to bring you home rejoicing. 'Good Shepherd of our souls, may we stick close to You, safe from all the perils of our earthly pilgrimage, until You call us home, to Your prais

  And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" John 9:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.9.2.ESV There's a cruel logic to the disciples' question. We assume that bad things happen to bad people. We like to think that good things happen to good people. So when the disciples see the man born blind, they assume some sin is involved. Despite any actual evidence of wrongdoing, they assume something must have been amiss in the man or his parents' past. Jesus goes to to blow their theory out of the water. Jesus explained that neither the man nor his parents sinned to cause his blindness. Instead, this had happened to display the glory of God. And Jesus went on to glorify His Father God by making the blind man see. We need to learn from this that just because something bad happens to someone, doesn't mean to say they're bad. The whole book of Job illustrates this too. We should always been looking to ho

  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. Galatians 4:7 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gal.4.7.ESV We might often think of ourselves as servants of God. But He doesn't need us to serve Him. In fact, He has served us with salvation. Rather than slaves, God has adopted us as His children. We might wonder why Paul specifies us as sons rather than sons and daughters. In that time, women had less rights than men. So by specifying us, men and women, as sons of God, Paul was emphasising our equal rights before God. Growing up, there might not appear to be much difference between a son and a slave, an ungrateful son might suggest. But although the son has to do chores around the house, he has a great inheritance to look forward to. A slave has no such hope. We are heirs of eternal life. When we inherit from earthly fathers, we don't get to enjoy our inheritance with them. But with our Heavenly Father, we get to enjoy eternal life with Him.

  Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Galatians 3:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gal.3.2.ESV The Galatian church was being troubled by false teachers who said they had to work to earn God's favour. Paul wrote Galatians to challenge this notion. Our salvation is 100% of Christ and 0% of us, thankfully, because if it depended upon us, we wouldn't be saved. Paul wanted to remind the Galatian church of their salvation, and the fact that their works didn't contribute to it at all. When we're saved, we freely receive the Holy Spirit. We don't earn Him, but receive Him as a free gift. Salvation is simple. All we need is to hear and to believe the good news of Christ crucified on our behalf. Then we enter into the Kingdom of God. No works are required to become a Christian. And even as we continue in the Christian life, our works are the Holy Spirit working in us. Our works aren't about us pulling ou

  I am the bread of life. John 6:48 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.6.48.ESV Bread was the staple diet in Jesus's day. It still is in many parts of the world, even as diets in the affluent West have diversified. Apparently, the Chinese translation of this verse is along the lines of 'I am the rice of life'. Jesus is spiritual bread for those who would feed upon Him. All others are bad for our health. He is the only staple we need in our spiritual diet. Jesus also declared that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed, and that they will be filled. Jesus Himself is righteousness personified. When we trust in Him, we find spiritual satisfaction. The first hearers of this statement wondered if Jesus was advocating cannibalism, with His talk of eating the 'bread' of His flesh and drinking the 'wine' of His blood. Before we judge their denseness, are we preoccupied with the physical and temporal, the here and now? Do we fail to appreciat

Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— Galatians 1:1 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gal.1.1.ESV Paul didn't normally emphasise his apostleship. He evidently saw the need to with the Galatian church however. They were getting led astray by false teachers and no doubt doubting his authority. Paul wasn't, like so many in his, and sadly our day, some self made apostle. He was an Apostle with a capital A. He wasn't just any old messenger of Christ. He was one who had witnessed Him in person. On the Damascus Road, the Lord Jesus personally commissioned Paul to take His good news to the Gentiles. And that's what Paul did. The Gentiles didn't need to become Judaised in order to come to faith in Christ, they just needed to trust His finished work on the cross. The Galatians were being deceived that they had to become Jews to be Christians. Paul laid out his credentials in order to totall

  I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less? 2 Corinthians 12:15 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.12.15.ESV Paul is exemplary here. What is the most precious thing on earth? A human soul. Paul's purpose was to see souls saved. His motivation was love. Why should we want to see souls saved? Well, we should see how pricelessly valuable they are. And we too should be motivated by love. If we have been saved by God, our life's purpose should be to glorify Him by calling other souls to faith in Him. Paul was sold out for such a purpose. What about us? Paul willingly spent and was spent for the sake of the Corinthian church. He wasn't falsely humble: he knew he loved them more than they loved him. We should be seeking to outdo one another in our love for one another. 'Loving heavenly Father, may we outdo one another in our expressions of love. May we make Your salvation known to lost and dying souls, and urge the

  And he had to pass through Samaria. John 4:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.4.4.ESV There are at least two ways of reading this verse. If we read it from a purely human perspective, we might assume that it was an unfortunate necessity for the Jewish rabbi Jesus to pass through mongrel Samaria. Certainly, when Jesus struck up a conversation with a Samaritan woman, He raised some eyebrows. I don't think we should read this verse from a human perspective however. We need to see things from God's perspective. Did Jesus absolutely have to go through Samaria? I'm sure that humanly speaking, He could have taken the scenic route to avoid Samaria. And yet Jesus 'had' to pass through Samaria. He 'had' to speak to the immoral Samaritan woman. He 'had' to reveal Himself to her as the Messiah, the Christ, the Saviour of the world. He 'had' to use that woman to glorify Himself amongst her entire community. It doesn't matter if the world see

  But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.11.3.ESV Paul felt a divine jealousy for the Corinthian church. Just as God will have been saddened by Adam and Eve's betrayal of Him, so Paul was afraid that the Corinthian church had gone down the same route. He wanted them devoted to Christ, but feared that that wasn't the case. Paul's letters to the Corinthian church reveal some of the issues with those believers. They weren't united. They were proud of their liberality/licentiousness and were tolerating scandalous, incestuous sin. Even in Paul's second letter, he had to remind them that the most important thing is that we are devoted to the One who gave everything for us. Until we make it home to glory, we can never presume to have 'made it' in the Christian life. Until Christ calls us home, we are to st

  And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." Luke 23:41 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/luk.23.41.ESV Some of the other gospel accounts record both criminals crucified with Christ as cursing Him. If we take Luke's account however, one of them evidently had an epiphany. He realised they were getting their just desserts, but that Jesus is innocent. The truth is, we all deserve a fate worse than death for our rebellion against God. We deserve hell for our iniquitous crimes against our Maker. Thankfully, Jesus went to the cross to bear God's wrath towards us. Only Jesus is the perfectly innocent One, the only Substitute for sinners like us. If we trust in Him, we will not be condemned as we deserve. Instead we will be justified by God. The dying criminal went on to ask the Lord to remember Him when He entered into His Kingdom. He didn't even presume to ask for salvation. He just wanted the Lord not to

  Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift! 2 Corinthians 9:15 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.9.15.ESV This verse is part of a passage about generosity. So whilst it's good to meditate on God's generosity (and we will), it's also good to consider what our response should be. If God has been inexpressibly generous to us, we should be extravagantly generous towards one another. Words cannot do justice to the gift of salvation that God has lavished upon us in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. And He hasn't left us as orphans, but has poured out His Holy Spirit upon us. The eternally beloved Son willingly gave up His life for us. He gifted us His very body and blood, so that we might be reconciled to the Holy One. Nothing we give can outlive the One who gave everything for us. The most generous gift any one of us could give pales into insignificance compared to what God has given His people. We receive eternal life,

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 2 Corinthians 10:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.10.4.ESV I don't think Paul is just talking about creating good habits to replace bad habits. I don't think he's simply talking about rewiring our brains from bad thought patterns to good neural pathways. I do think there's an element of that. Paul says this isn't just about the flesh. There isn't simply a psychological explanation for destroying strongholds/overcoming addictions. If there was, we wouldn't necessarily need God. If by our own strength we demolished strongholds, we would have a form of godliness but would deny its power. Through the power of prayer and the Holy Spirit, we can miraculously demolish strongholds. We can overcome our addictions. We might not necessarily be overnight success stories. He who is in us though, is greater than he who is in the world. So through Christ, we will ove

  And when he came to the place, he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." Luke 22:40 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/luk.22.40.ESV If we're awake, we need to pray that we don't enter into temptation. Temptations will inevitably come, but we need to pray that we resist. Jesus knew His disciples were about to enter into the temptation to abandon Him. He didn't want them to abandon Him. That's why He told them to pray against temptation. He didn't lead them into temptation, but He did restore them once He'd defeated death. Sadly, the disciples were exhausted, and fell asleep rather than to pray. Before we judge them, we would do well to ask how often we sleep when we should be praying? Probably more often than we would care to admit! Thankfully, even though they abandoned Jesus in His hour of need, the disciples were reconciled to Him after His victory over death. Though we too may fail our Lord often, our salvation isn't d

  Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 2 Corinthians 5:20 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2co.5.20.ESV Although Paul was writing on behalf of his mission team, there's a sense in which his description should be true of every member of God's Kingdom. As part of Christ's church, we're an outpost of the Kingdom of heaven on earth. So in that sense we are ambassadors of Christ. An ambassador is a representative of their bosses. Jesus Christ is the King of kings and Lord of lords. Do we represent Him well? How should we be as ambassadors of Christ? We should appeal to people- not just to implore them to be reconciled to God, but also to attract them to faith in Jesus by our exemplary behaviour. Francis of Assisi is attributed as saying 'preach the gospel, where necessary use words'. Words are always necessary, but so are our godly lives. People's impression of co

  Notes on 'British Values' British values are in summary, 'democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.'  A big question I have is whether these are uniquely 'British' values, or whether they are universal values. Britain is not unique in valuing such things, so to suggest that these are uniquely 'British' values seems to hint at a kind of 'cultural snobbery'. Democracy Democracy has its roots in ancient Greece. Although the UK is a leading democracy, democracy is by no means a uniquely British value, although it is important that British citizens value everyone's right to have a say in how society is run. Rule of law Again, Britain has been pioneering in developing the concept of the rule of law, but the UK isn't the only country that has respect for the rule of law. Traditionally, 'rex lex'- the king, or

  The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name. Exodus 15:3 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/exo.15.3.ESV Sceptics point to the violence in the Bible as a reason to disbelieve God. The Bible itself is unapologetic about God's sovereignty and man's responsibility in this violent world. If God is indeed sovereign, then we would do well to get on side, because there's no more powerful or fearsome enemy than Him. The world is at war, and not just with the countless manmade conflicts raging. There's a spiritual battle being fought between the God of the angel armies, and the devil and his demons. We all find ourselves on one side or other of this spiritual fight, and God wins. Thankfully, if we find ourselves enemies of God, we can be reconciled with Him through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood atones for our wrongdoing, thinking and saying. We simply need to repent and trust in God for our salvation. He doesn't hold our rebellious natures against us if w

 Rights and Responsibilities Human rights are what all of us inherently have as humans. These include the right to life, workers' rights, freedom of belief, speech and expression, and the right to privacy. I believe we share these rights because we are created equal by God. If we were simply evolved primates, then we wouldn't necessarily have any rights, except the idea that 'might is right'/survival of the fittest. As the American constitution states, we're all 'created equal, and endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness'. Whilst I don't want to negate the importance of human rights, from the womb to the tomb, I want to counterbalance a discussion of rights with a recognition of our responsibilities as humans as well. The danger is that an overemphasis on rights makes us selfish- 'I know my rights' (and I'm going to exploit them to get myself the best

  Does not he see my ways and number all my steps? Job 31:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/job.31.4.ESV If the Proverbs 31 woman had a male equivalent, it would be the Job 31 man. From verse 1, where he mentions his promise with his eyes not to lust after women, he goes on to describe how he has integrity in different aspects of his life. With Job, WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). This verse gives a clue as to why Job had such integrity. He knew that God saw his ways and numbered his steps. Because he knew God is omniscient (all knowing), he knew he needed to have integrity. If we're accountable to noone, we can do what we like. If however we're responsible to God for our actions, we need to make sure we do what is right. Job understood this well. What about us? Are we honest? Do we bear in mind that one day God will judge us? If not, we would do well to do so! 'Sovereign Lord, may we submit to Your majesty, and live in accordance with Your ways. Please keep u

  “I can choose or control what my identity is.”    To what extent do you agree with this statement?     I agree to an extent that I can choose or control what my identity is. There are certain aspects of my identity which I cannot choose or control. For example, I cannot choose or control where I am from or my class background growing up.     What I can do is that now I am grown up I can choose to change or control my geographical location and seek to improve my economic status.    Also, I have chosen and controlled the fundamental aspect of my identity, which is my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. My identity isn’t bound up in my ever-changing circumstances or how I happen to be feeling at any one time.    Instead, I am who God says I am. He ultimately defines my identity, not myself. Because I, alongside everyone else, am made in His likeness, I have inherent dignity, worth and value. Furthermore, He has given me certain talents which I am to u

  If anyone has no love for the Lord, let him be accursed. Our Lord, come! 1 Corinthians 16:22 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1co.16.22.ESV This verse sticks out like a sore thumb for modern sensibilities. Surely as long as someone is a good upstanding citizen who tries not to harm anyone, it's all good in the hood? Not according to Paul! Our Lord is coming soon to judge the living and the dead. We're not going to be judged according to some average level of goodness. We're going to be judged according to the perfection of Christ. 51% or 99% goodness isn't good enough. The Holy One demands 100% righteousness for entry into the new creation. The only way we can achieve that is through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. If we have faith in the Lord for our salvation, we love Him and are blessed. If not, we are accursed! If we think anything else, we have too low an estimation of the One who is enthroned in the highest heaven. 'Glorious Father, forgive us for havin

  "From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding? Job 28:20 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/job.28.20.ESV This is the kind of question a wise person asks. A fool couldn't care less where wisdom comes from. Wise people tend to get wisers; fools tend to go from bad to worse. Job answers his own question in this chapter, a poem dedicated to wisdom. He says that we can mine for gold and silver. Wisdom however proves more elusive. Wisdom is found with God. The problem is, we are naturally estranged from Him. So the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. If we realise we need to be reconciled with Him, that's a good start. We often think of fear as a bad thing. If however we're afraid of upsetting someone we love, that's a good thing. We should be afraid of getting on the wrong side of the Sovereign Lord. 'Almighty God, please give us the wisdom to seek after You, and forgive our foolish ways we pray, in Jesus' name, amen

  But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, as the Lord had spoken to Moses. Exodus 9:12 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/exo.9.12.ESV Sometimes we're told that Pharoah hardened his own heart. So it's not like he was helpless in the hands of God. He bore responsibility for his own hardness of heart. These two truths need to be held in tension: that God is in control and that we are responsible for our own behaviour. We can't blame God when we make mistakes. God can't be held responsible for our own decisions, unless He inspires us to do what is right. God wasn't wringing His hands in frustration when Pharoah hardened his heart. God wasn't helpless in the face of Pharoah's stubbornness. He allowed him to be so in order to magnify His glory. God doesn't necessarily make things easy for His people. What He does do is to empower us to endure the hardness of the likes of Pharoah's heart. His grace is sufficient for us,

  When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days. Genesis 50:10 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gen.50.10.ESV The ancient Israelites mourned their patriarch greatly. After 40 days of embalming and 70 days of official Egyptian mourning, Joseph still mourned for his father for an extra week. Culturally in the West, people often don't like a fuss when grieving. But ancient Hebrew culture was evidently to cry out against the unwelcome intrusion that death is in the human experience. Knowing that Jacob trusted the Lord and received His great and precious promises will have been a comfort to his son Joseph, but the sense of loss remains painful. Even if we know we'll be reunited, parting is such sweet sorrow. As Jesus said, God is the God of Jacob, and the God of the living, not the dead. If, like Jacob and Joseph, we trust in the promised S

  For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. Romans 16:18 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/rom.16.18.ESV 'Such persons' are those who cause divisions. Not everyone though who calls themselves Christians are united in faith in Christ. Some pay Him lip service but fail to live according to His commands. Some people claim that simply professing faith in Christ means that we should be united with them. But unity is also based upon practice, not just professed belief. If our lives don't match up to our claim of faith in Christ, we betray the fact we don't trust Him at all. 'Such persons' also create obstacles contrary to sound Biblical doctrine. Where saving faith in Christ is enough, some people would insist that we have Christ plus other things like prosperity, works, or baptism. We need to produce fruits in keeping with repentance, but they don't earn our salv

  I will say to God, Do not condemn me; let me know why you contend against me. Job 10:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/job.10.2.ESV What Job asked as a request, God promises in the new testament. Paul tells us that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What Job looked forward to, we look back on. Understandably, Job was full of questions for God, having lost his wealth, children and health. Suffering for him wasn't an academic question. He wanted to know why he suffered as he did. Interestingly, the book of Job never reveals whether God revealed to Job himself why he contended with him. When Job does meet God, He fires lots of rhetorical questions at him to put him in his place. The moral of the story seems to be that God is God and we are not, therefore we shouldn't assume we are entitled to anything other than suffering. Thankfully, God is gracious, and allowed Job respite from his suffering. A really helpful thing to remember when suffering is et

  And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? Mark 12:35 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/mrk.12.35.ESV Jesus's question might at first reading seem something obscure, the kind of thing dusty scribes in ivory towers ponder. But what we make of the Christ, the Jewish Messiah and Saviour of the world, is the most important of things to consider. Upon Him hangs our eternal destinies. The Son of David isn't just some obscure Jew. He's the promised King whose Kingdom will never end. We might be tempted to think that David's Son is subservient to him. What Jesus goes on to say is that David prophetically called Him Lord, not just Father God, but even the Son of David, the Lord Jesus Christ. By Son He means Descendant. Father Son and Spirit are equally God, and equally to be reverenced. It was by the Holy Spirit of God that David realised that his Son wouldn't just be any old person, but the eternal Son

  But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison. Genesis 39:21 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gen.39.21.ESV If we were exemplary employees, and got framed to be imprisoned for many years, we might excuse ourselves some bitterness. But there's a big 'but' in this verse! The Lord was with Joseph, even in a miserable prison. If God is with us, we can endure any and every situation that life might throw at us. If we know that God loves us, we don't need to worry about the rest of the world. God will work things out in our favour. Nowhere is Godforsaken if God is with us, not even a jail! Christ was forsaken by Father God so that we need never be forsaken. Even if the world persecutes us, we're blessed because our reward is great in heaven. God is able to give us favour even in the sight of pagan prison governors, or whoever we may come up against in our lives. When a man's ways are pleas

  "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. Mark 8:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/mrk.8.2.ESV Jesus is the opposite to some self serving politician who buries his head in the sand to crisis. Far from being indifferent or in denial about the need of the people, Jesus was filled with compassion for them. We might belittle apathy, but that kind of uncaring nature is an affront to our compassionate God. Note that Jesus wasn't concerned about Himself. Presumably He hadn't eaten Himself for three days, never mind everyone else. But His concern was for the crowd. The koine Greek word for compassion has the sense of a gut feeling, or butterflies in the stomach. Jesus wasn't just cerebrally aware of human need for daily bread. He had a heartfelt concern for the people. Whilst Herod the king was killing John the Baptist, and Pilate the governor would crucify Christ, Jesus Himself actually cared for the people.

  They said to him, "We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them." And Joseph said to them, "Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me." Genesis 40:8 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gen.40.8.ESV I love the humility of Joseph in the midst of his unjust imprisonment. Even though the prison governor respected Joseph, he didn't exploit that. Instead, when other prisoners came in, he served them. If you think it doesn't get more humble than unjust imprisonment, Joseph demonstrated greater humility by serving others, with no concern about humiliation. We might have criticised young Joseph for telling tales or bragging about his dreams. But now, in an Egyptian jail, he's displaying Christlike humility. We could learn a thing or two from him! Far from being consumed with his own sorry predicament, Joseph showed real compassion for his fellow prisoners. He wanted to know what was up with them, and he was determined to find a s

  Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth. Genesis 41:57 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/gen.41.57.ESV God miraculously used Joseph to provide for the ancient world during a global famine. What his brothers intended for harm, God used for the good of many people. His brothers sold him into slavery, and in a rags to riches story, he became prime minister of Egypt. God gave Joseph the wisdom and prudence to store up grain in the seven years of plenty, so that there was enough to go around in the seven years of famine. Joseph was a proper prime minister, who by definition is meant to be the leading public servant of the nation. He wasn't just out for lining his own pockets and belly. Joseph looked out not only for his own people, but also for economic migrants/refugees from the natural disaster that ravaged the world. All very good, but what can we learn for ourselves? There's a spiritual lesson to be learn

  For many are called, but few are chosen." Matthew 22:14 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/mat.22.14.ESV A wedding feast is a bit like heaven: the marriage of Christ and His bride, the church. Just imagine a wedding party where many of the original invitees fail to turn up! Jesus's parable of the wedding feast pictures His fellow Jews as mostly those who refuse the invite to heaven. Jesus might have invited His people to heaven with Him, but He has also sent His followers to the ends of the earth, to invite the likes of us to heaven with Him. As many as hear the good news are invited. As many who accept the invitation are chosen to attend the party of heaven. People often have a caricature of hell as a party where the cool kids go, and heaven as sitting on clouds strumming harps. Biblically, the former is tortuous regret; whereas the latter is a glorious new creation. The new heavens and earth will be a wonderful embodied experience of joyous bliss. So do you hear the call

  Then the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, "Stand up and bless the Lord your God from everlasting to everlasting. Blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. Nehemiah 9:5 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/neh.9.5.ESV Jeshua and his company of Levites might only be little more than a footnote in the annals of history, but their prayer is impressive. To bless God we shouldn't just slouch on our sofas. If we met our head of state, we would surely at least stand to attention! If we would pay respect to earthly powers, how much more to Almighty God! Unlike the worldly powers that be, God is only good all the time. He is worthy of us blessing Him. God is blessed already. Father Son and Spirit are in blessed unity in joyful delight together. But God loves to be blessed by us too, not because He's an egotist, but because He wants to share His blessedness with us. Of course, the id