Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

  He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Psalm 121:3 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.121.3.ESV This verse reminds me of Paul's call in Ephesians 6 to take our stand against the devil. This verse is a great verse to cling to when we feel like we're under satanic attack. If it depended on us, we'd be hopeless. Thankfully, the battle isn't ours ultimately, it's God's, and He will assuredly give us the victory in Christ. Christ died and rose again in victory over death. Through faith in Him we too will overcome all that assails us. God doesn't necessarily ask us to be particularly progressive. He just asks us to take our stand against the evil one. We don't necessarily need to take ground off the devil, just to stand our ground. We naturally grow weary, and would give up if it was up to us. Thankfully, God never slumbers or sleeps. He'll always watch over us. 'God our Lord, we thank You for watching over us a

  My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise. Psalm 119:148 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.119.148.ESV What keeps us up at night? We have to be careful not to get too enthusiastic about things, because if it causes us to lose sleep, it's going to affect our mental health. David was enthusiastic  about the promises of God though. If we know God has promised us eternal life, that should encourage us to be enthusiastic about His goodness to us. All we need to do is to trust in Christ crucified on our behalf. Thankfully He has done everything necessary for our salvation. God even gives us the faith we need to trust in Him. So there's no room for boasting. Salvation is of the Lord, not of us. If we're going to be awake at night, it may as well be something worthwhile keeping us up. There's no point allowing worries to preoccupy us. Better to allow what is positive to be our focus. 'Sovereign Father, we're gratefu

  In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth. Psalm 119:88 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.119.88.ESV How are we even alive? We could talk about the heart pumping blood round the body, or the lungs taking in oxygen. Ultimately however it is in God that we live and move and have our being. What is the meaning of life? According to this verse, it is to obey God. That's why we're alive, in order that we might live for Him. It's because of God's love that we are alive. Because of His great grace, we can have eternal life. It's through Christ crucified on our behalf. The right response to God's goodness to us in Jesus is to seek to obey Him. We obey Him by loving Him back, and loving others as He has loved us. We should put others first, not ourselves. 'Lord our God, we worship You for Your love, and the life You've given us. Please help us to obey You as You deserve, in the name of Christ our Saviour, amen

  When I think on my ways, I turn my feet to your testimonies; Psalm 119:59 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.119.59.ESV Too often, we don't think on our ways. By default, we subconsciously drift through life. If we were to think on our ways, no doubt we'd need to change our ways. Naturally, we go astray. Until God finds us, we're spiritually lost. Even having been found, we have a tendency to wander. If, like David, we reflect on our ways, we will hopefully realign ourselves to God and His ways. God is in the business of drawing us back to Him, by His Spirit, so there's no room for boasting. God's word calls us back to Him. We are to love Him wholeheartedly, and to love one another as we love ourselves. Jesus embodies how we should be and saves us from our failures. 'God Almighty, please help us to realign ourselves to follow You wholeheartedly, for Your glory we pray, amen'

  I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me. Psalm 119:30 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.119.30.ESV The way of faithfulness doesn't come naturally to us. We naturally go astray. Like David, we need to actively choose the way of faithfulness. The way of faithfulness isn't something we can naturally do. By default, we're unfaithful. Faithfulness isn't easy in our broken world. Thankfully, the fruit of the Spirit is something that He delights to bear in us. God graciously pours out the Spirit of Jesus upon us who cry out to Him. He enables us to live for Him. We might think that having been saved by God we can ignore His rules. Yet although we're not saved by keeping God's laws, we still should. Having been saved, we should want to live to please God. 'Sovereign Lord, we praise You for Your law of love. Please help us by Your Spirit to faithfully obey You. In Christ's name, amen'

  Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! Psalm 118:1 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.118.1.ESV I heard a preacher say that the goodness of God is one of the scariest things about Him. We might assume that the fact God is good makes Him nice and inoffensive. The problem is that God is good and we are not. If God is good, then He is incompatible with badness. If He is good, He cannot tolerate all that is unlovely, like we so often are. Thankfully, God's unfailing love is indestructible. Not even our badness can cancel out His love. His love plumbs the depths even of our evil. Because the good God loves us, despite deserving condemnation, He is worthy of our thanksgiving. Being thankful is the only right response to His goodness and love. It might not come naturally, but supernaturally we can be grateful for His kindness. 'Our Lord God Almighty, we're grateful for Your Otherness: Your goodness and love. We're glad Your

  For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 1 John 5:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1jn.5.4.ESV This seems a counterintuitive verse. How can faith overcome the world? The world dismisses faith as a crutch, or a leap in the dark. Yet our faith can transcend this world. This world is passing away, yet our faith is in God who is eternal and can carry us through beyond this life. God has set eternity in our hearts: deep down, we know there's more to life than this world. It seems like the powers that be trample on people of faith. Those who trust in Jesus tend to get persecuted by those who don't. There's a spectrum from mockery to martyrdom. There's an eternity to come which will make all that we might suffer in this life pale into insignificance. Jesus tells the persecuted that they are blessed. We have a great reward in heaven to look forward to. 'Father God, thank You for that a

  So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 1 John 4:16 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1jn.4.16.ESV How do we know God loves us? Because He sent His Son to give His life for us and to always live to fight our corner. Even our belief in Him is a gift from Him. 'God is love' is one of the most powerful statements there is. It doesn't need a religion to tell us that God is great- we can see His greatness reflected in creation. Yet in this messed up world, it's helpful to have a reminder that God is love. Love is in God's very nature. His loving salvation of us isn't plan B. He always knew He was going to save us, out of His great love for us. We are to live lives defined by love. If we claim to know God, we know what love is, and we ought to live by it. We love because He first loved us. 'Loving Lord, how we praise You for Your love, lavished upon us

  But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 1 John 3:17 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1jn.3.17.ESV John concurs with James in his letter. It's not enough to say to someone in need, 'Go, I wish you well, keep warm and well fed'. We have to actually do something to help them. If we're able to help someone in need and don't, we betray the fact that God's love doesn't abide in us. If we don't help someone in need when we could, we don't just not love them, we actively hate them. This shouldn't be amongst the family of God. There were no needy people in the early church in Jerusalem. Quickly though, certain widows were overlooked in the distribution of food. So the church office of deacons was established. Just because the church has deacons to serve the needy amongst us, doesn't mean to say the rest of us can wash our hands of those in need. We all

 I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 1 John 2:14 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1jn.2.14.ESV    As fathers, we can be tempted to assume that our children are totally reliant on us, especially when they're younger. I like how John gives us some divine perspective. Father God is from the beginning.     Young men are often at the coal face of the faith, sharing the gospel, contending for the faith, and standing up against the evil one. Their youthful zeal is to be harnessed by the church for mutual upbringing. They are to support those who are weaker than them.     The word of God lives in young people who trust in Him. Therein lies their strength, that they know and do the will of God. We are to hide God's word in our hearts, that we might not sin against Him.     Young people, impressionable though they are, have overcome

He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:19 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/mic.7.19.ESV This verse is referring to God. I love how Jesus Himself is described as being moved with compassion for His contemporaries, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. The Son of God perfectly exemplifies Father God's compassion. Our iniquities are the sinful spiritual stains of our wrongdoing. God will trample them underfoot, to be seen no more. God will have the victory over our evil. Because of Jesus, our sins may as well have been thrown into the sea, never again to resurface. As far as the East is from the West, so far has God cast our sins from us. Our deliverance is in the Lord our Saviour. By His death and resurrection, Jesus has opened the way to everlasting life for us. He paid the price for our badness, and ever lives to plead for us. Because He is for us, nothing can prevail

  Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Psalm 107:1 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.107.1.ESV The cynic might question why we should give thanks to God. Ingratitude is unpleasant for a start. Also, 'all good gifts around us are sent from heaven above, so thank the Lord, o thank the Lord, for all His love'. God is good. That is good reason to thank Him. We might not be good but God can restore us to Himself. Thankfully, God is love. We might deserve His wrath, but He can pour out His favour upon us in the Lord Jesus. If we question how God loves us, we simply need to look to Jesus. God loved us so much that He sent Jesus, not to condemn us, but to save us. We might be deserving of condemnation, but we don't have to be condemned. God wants to save us. 'Lord God Almighty, we praise You for Your unfailing love for us in Christ. May we look to You for deliverance, in His name we pray, amen'

  Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against his people, and he abhorred his heritage; Psalm 106:40 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.106.40.ESV Why was God's anger kindled against His people? Because they sacrificed their children to false gods. Nowadays, people sacrifice children on the altar of convenience: if they're seen to be inconvenient, they're aborted. Abortion angers God. When we should be protecting the unborn, we're destroying them. Thankfully it's not unforgiveable however, but we must repent. The world would say that abortion is just a lifestyle choice. God finds it abhorrent, and so should we. A mother's womb should be the safest place in the world for a child, not a death chamber. Just as God was patient with His old covenant people, so He is patient with us too. We might deserve His wrath for our abhorrent deeds, yet He pours out His love upon us in the Lord Jesus Christ. 'Lord our God, in Your wrath, please remember mercy. Caus

  and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Micah 4:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/mic.4.2.ESV Gravity dictates that we're rooted and grounded. Yet Micah envisages a gravity defying day when nations flow up to God. That is the power of the good news of Christ our Lord: He defies all that would drag us down. Firstly, Jesus is our Saviour from drowning in our sins. Then, however, as Lord, He teaches us how to navigate this life without sinking down again. There's no point being saved if we're going to get in trouble again. Jesus saves us to the uttermost, we'll never be overwhelmed by sin, through faith in Him. We might not like the concept of law, with it sounding legalistic and restrictive. Yet God's law is simply His teaching to follow

  These all look to you, to give them their food in due season. Psalm 104:27 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.104.27.ESV David Attenborough would do well to read Psalm 104 over one of his nature documentaries. As we witness the wonders of creation, we shouldn't try to reason God out of the picture with talk of evolution and nature being a cosmic accident. Instead, we should praise the Lord! Even animals subconsciously look to God to provide for them. So when humans deny that we need God to sustain us, we're worse than animals. We are an anomaly of nature. Maybe we've lived our lives in denial of God's gracious provision. Today is the day to start acknowledging Him and being thankful for His goodness. We deserve nothing from Him, but enjoy every good thing from Him. Above all, God has provided in Christ a way for us to enjoy a perfect new creation with Him for eternity. Only when we acknowledge Him to we get to become part of a glorious future. Otherwise we only

  The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you. Psalm 102:28 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.102.28.ESV It's true the famous saying that God doesn't have grandchildren. Yet it's also true that He often graciously saves generations of the same family. We see something of that in this verse. The first generation is the servants of the Lord. The second generation is clearly the children of the servants. And the grandchildren are 'their' (the children's) offspring. I hope I'm reading this right, because 'their' could just as well be the servants' offspring. Yet in the Bible, offspring itself can refer to multiple generations. So however we read it, God often has mercy on entire families. We see this in the new testament when often entire households would come to faith. Grandparents weren't shipped off to old people's homes in the olden days, they would live with their families. How

  As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; Psalm 103:15 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.103.15.ESV In isolation, this comes across as a depressing verse. Flowers are nice, no doubt, but they're here today, and gone tomorrow. Likewise with the grass of the field. Are we simply destined to be worm food? Thankfully, because of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, we can have hope of a better outcome than oblivion. In Him, God sets His love upon us for eternity. Because He rose again, so shall we. If we trust in Jesus, we don't need to fear the day of judgement. We won't be judged as we deserve. Instead, God will recognise the work of His Spirit in our lives. If we don't trust in Jesus, we do need to fear the day of judgement. We will be judged as we deserve. God will punish us for our unrepentant rebellion against Him. 'God, have mercy upon us we pray. Please regard how fleeting our lives are, and cause us to rely o

  But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” Jonah 4:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jon.4.9.ESV Jonah was having an almighty sulk. He was so angry that God had mercy on the evil Ninevites that he was suicidal. To add insult to perceived injury, God had allowed a plant that sheltered him to die, leaving him exposed to a brutal east wind. I love God's question. The answer is clearly that Jonah was making a mountain out of a molehill. God goes on to say that He was within His rights to care for countless souls if Jonah cared about a simple plant. We are, if we're honest, all too often like Jonah. We have our own unique prejudices and peeves. We need God to smooth off our rough edges. If we think we're good people, we have to be godly. God loves people so much that Christ gave His life for us. We should have a similar heart for people to God's. 'God, have mercy upon us for o

  Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” Jonah 3:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jon.3.9.ESV I love the attitude of the king of the Ninevites. He has no sense of entitlement. There's no presumption that God's bound to have mercy upon his people. Jonah had finally come round to warning the Ninevites of impending disaster. As Israel's enemies, Jonah thought they were going to get their comeuppance. He didn't want God to have mercy upon them. The king of the Ninevites called a fast. He sat in sackcloth and ashes, hoping that God would relent from His wrath. Sure enough, God called off the destruction of Ninevah. Just imagine if someone shared the gospel with Putin, who repented and called a nationwide fast. God isn't just merciful to Jews or Christians, but even violent people like him. There's hope for the worst of sinners in the Lord Jesus Christ. 'Sovereign God, forbid that we should ever presum

  Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! 1 Chronicles 16:10 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ch.16.10.ESV What we glory in is what we worship. Many worship hobbies, work, family, friends, food and/or fun. David calls us to glory in the Lord God of Israel. The Lord is the eternal One. He was, He is, and He always will be. He's our Creator and Sustainer and He's everlastingly faithful to us. When David calls us to rejoice in the Lord, He's not asking us to have a stiff upper lip! He's got in mind dancing-in-your-underwear-in-of-a-vast-crowd kind of rejoicing. He doesn't ask us to do something he didn't do himself! When David danced in his underwear before the Lord (and a vast crowd!), his own wife despised him in her heart. When we rejoice in and glory in God, inevitably we'll provoke haters. We shouldn't let them put us off however. 'Dear God our Lord, help us to glory in and to rejoice in You, for You are wor

  and I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 1 Chronicles 17:8 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ch.17.8.ESV David wanted to build God a house, but God graciously refused. Instead, God told David He was going to build his name and legacy on the earth. I love David's heart for God's glory, yet I love God's astounding graciousness to David. From tending sheep, God took David to the kingship of His old covenant people during their golden age. He's remembered, especially by Christians and Jews, to this day, as a great leader. Perhaps David's greatest legacy was that he was a man 'after God's own heart'. David wasn't primarily self-interested and self-promoting. His main concern was the glory of God. The Lord rewarded him with victory over his enemies. In the Son of David, the Lord Jesus Christ, we too can have victory o

  Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. James 5:7 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jas.5.7.ESV Farming is hard graft. Yet it is also a waiting game. The farmer plants his seed, but then he has to wait for the harvest. We won't ultimately see all the fruit of our labours for God until Christ returns. Then our work will be shown up for what it was. If we sowed division, pride, greed, lust and rage for example, we'll be exposed for the frauds we are. If, on the other hand we're defined by the fruit of the Holy Spirit of God, we should have something to show for our labours on the day of the Lord. If He has produced love, joy and peace etc. within us, we will be able to rejoice in the harvest when Christ returns. Hopefully, there'll also be a harvest of souls who came to faith through our witness on the last day.

  For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. James 2:26 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jas.2.26.ESV This is a controversial verse for many Christians. Aren't we saved by faith alone, in Christ alone, according to God's word alone, according to grace alone, to the glory of God alone? James says faith without works is dead! Here's how we reconcile the two. We're saved by faith alone. Our salvation isn't dependant on our works. However, the faith that saves is never alone: it is always accompanied by works. James gives examples to prove his point. Abraham was saved by faith, but he still had to be willing to sacrifice his son Isaac. Rahab was saved by faith, but she still had to put the red cord in her window. If we wish a beggar well but do nothing to help them, James calls that dead faith. We might have faith that the beggar will be okay, but unless we do something to help them, our lack of works betrays the fact that

  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. James 1:6 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/jas.1.6.ESV In context, James is talking about asking God for wisdom. Wisdom isn't just about knowledge of the right thing to do. Wisdom is actually choosing the right way to go in life. None of us are naturally wise. That's why we have to ask for it. Yet we have to believe we're going to get wise. We might think we don't have faith, and we might be right. Yet even any faith we may have is a gift of God. So we can ask Him for the gift of faith in Him to help us live well. People often make excuses for doubt. James isn't so charitable. Doubters are like a wind tossed wave: here today and gone tomorrow. We must ask God to dispel our doubts. 'Dear God, please give us the faith we need to live wisely and for Your honour and glory we pray, in the name of Christ our Lord, amen'

  When they had finished eating the grass of the land, I said, “O Lord God, please forgive! How can Jacob stand? He is so small!” Amos 7:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/amo.7.2.ESV This verse in its context reveals the power, and limitations, of a believers' intercession for a people. God gave Amos a vision of a plague of locusts devouring the life out of Israel's farmlands. If we have a vision from God, it's not a foregone conclusion. Visions from God could be a warning of what would be if we didn't intercede for people. Israel was spared a plague of locusts at Amos' intervention. Yet they were ultimately destroyed by the Assyrians. We can plead with God that in the midst of His righteous anger He would remember His mercy. Yet ultimately, the day of judgement will inevitably come. We need to be ready for that great day. We would do well to plead with God against His condemnation, yes. Yet ultimately, those who persist in rejecting Him will be condemned. Only

  It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? Hebrews 12:7 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/heb.12.7.ESV We might not like the thought of being disciplined. Yet discipline is a quality we all need to develop. By being disciplined, hopefully we become disciplined. God can use difficult circumstances to discipline us. The Hebrew Christians were coming to realise that the Christian life requires endurance. They were being persecuted for abandoning Judaism for Christ. The writer to the Hebrew Christians was helping them to realise that God could turn what seemed like a negative into a positive. Getting disciplined by our parents never felt good at the time. Yet hopefully it produced the good outcome of making us disciplined. None of us are naturally self controlled. We need God to develop that fruit in us. He often does so through challenging circumstances, but He always gives us the grace to endu

  By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau. Hebrews 11:20 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/heb.11.20.ESV Nowadays, people might still say 'bless' or even 'God bless'. Yet we often don't think much of it. This verse shows there can be real power in blessing people. Esau was the firstborn son, so one might assume he'd get the lion's share of blessing. Yet he despised and sqandered his birthright. Still, he enjoyed temporal blessings as bestowed upon him by his father. Jacob might have been the younger son, but he cheated his brother out of the biggest blessing. Amazingly, God honoured Isaac's blessing of this deceitful son, and Jacob became the father of the Israelite people. God chose to set His love on unlovely Israel, as he came to be known. We might not be deserving of God's blessings. Yet that doesn't mean to say that we have to cheat Him into blessing us. God delights in blessing us. 'Blessed God, please help us to b

  But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls. Hebrews 10:39 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/heb.10.39.ESV We have a choice, if we've professed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We could shrink back or se could have faith. Both options have starkly different outcomes. The Hebrew Christians were being tempted to shrink back from faith in Christ. They'd had to sacrifice a respectable place in their society for ostracisation. Humanly speaking, it would be easier to just return to a bit of respect. The writer to the Hebrews pulls no punches however. If we shrink back, God will destroy us. Only those who endure to the end will be saved. Thankfully, our endurance is dependant upon God's faithfulness, not our performance. Paul teaches elsewhere that even our faith in Christ is a gift of God. So there's no room for boasting. Our souls will be preserved, by the grace of God at work in our lives. 'Our Fat

  For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. Hebrews 9:17 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/heb.9.17.ESV Jesus died, and had, as it were, a will. Materialistically He was poor: 'the Son of Man has no place to lay His head'- apart from a borrowed tomb from a rich man. Even this was in fulfilment of an old prophecy. Jesus's will was expressed to the dying criminal: 'today, you will be with Me in paradise'. That's what Jesus wants for us all, to be with Him in paradise. By paradise, He doesn't mean some kind of playboy mansion in the sky, but almost like a restored Eden, in a beautiful garden city. Jesus's will is that we should enjoy eternity with Him. He doesn't leave us to our own devices in the new creation. He desires an intimate relationship with us. Glory will be an embodied existence where we get to enjoy our inheritance in the presence of the One who died, and lives forevermore. N

  So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels. Psalm 81:12 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.81.12.ESV This might seem a strange verse initially. Shouldn't God be trying to remove stubborn hearts and replacing them with compliant ones? Shouldn't God be persuading people to follow His own counsels, not their own? The truth is that God is sovereign. He's not helplessly wringing His hands when we stubbornly go our own way. He leaves us to our own devices. If we humbly return to the Lord, He will welcome us with open arms. Yet He's not a dictator. He respects our decisions. If we want to go our own way, He's not going to stop us. This is actually a scary verse. We might think it seems great that we can do what we like and God won't stop us. Yet for Him to give up on us is the worst fate we could face. 'God, forbid that we should be given over to stubbornness and arrogance of heart. Please humble us and bring us back to You,

  that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, Psalm 78:6 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.78.6.ESV There's at least three generations included in this verse. There's the current generation, the next generation, and then there's the children of the children yet unborn. We're talking about a legacy to stretch on for at least a hundred years. What kind of legacy are we talking about? Remembrance and mindfulness of God: His laws, the deeds He has done on our behalf, and the hope that He brings to us. Laws might not be popular, especially God's law, but it's important. God's law in summary is to love Him wholeheartedly and to love others as we love ourselves. Of course we fail dismally at this. Thankfully our hope isn't in our attempts at lawkeeping, but in God's works on our behalf. God sent His Son to live the perfect life we can't. He then died in our place as our flawless sa

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  I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them. Hosea 14:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/hos.14.4.ESV Hosea was prophesying to a doomed people. They were destined to be destroyed by the Assyrians, assimilated into their empire. The Northern kingdom of Israel would cease to exist, and an ethnically and religiously mixed people called Samaritans would settle in thar region. Despite the bleak realism of Hosea's prophesy, striking rays of light break through the darkness, notwithstanding the thunder clouds of God's judgement. This verse is a shining example. Without negating the context, there would be those who would be healed, loved and forgiven by God in and amongst all the unrepentant apostates. What does this verse have to do with us? In Christ, all the promises of God are 'yes and amen'. So we can claim this verse for ourselves. If we, like the ancient Israelites go astray and get snared by the wiles of the evil one, God

 Sometimes   Sometimes songs need to fall silent And sometimes dancing must end For sometimes we must become hushed The moment we comprehend Sometimes the sun must disappear And sometimes rain turns to snow For sometimes when the clear becomes grey It is then that we know Sometimes laughing will transpose to tears And sometimes wisdom will thin For sometimes when in the shadow  Is the point we enter in  Sometimes life is but episodes of loss Sometimes of dimming and rain For sometimes it takes these dark things For insight to ripen plain And sometimes love goes to its cemetery plot And sometimes its ghost will pain But sometimes what we have lost Will come to us once again    This powerful and evocative poem is available in Thomas Crerar's book Every Broken Wing, available here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Every-Broken-Wing-Poems-Life/dp/B089M6P29Q/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=1HJ2PM6E8BIQN&keywords=every+broken+wing&qid=1678914935&sprefix=every+broken+wing%2Caps%2C563&sr=8-1  

  For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Hebrews 2:18 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/heb.2.18.ESV We often trivialise temptation. 'Can I tempt you with the last slice of cake?' we might ask! Yet the Bible is under no illusions: temptation can be deadly. I always think of a Spurgeon quote with temptation: 'we can't stop birds flying overhead, but we can stop them nesting in our hair'. In other words, temptation is inevitable. Giving in to temptation isn't inevitable however. To be tempted is to suffer. To deny ourselves one too many slices of cake isn't easy, to use a relatively trivial example. To not indulge in flirtation with that pretty coworker is harder, to use a more serious example. Thankfully, Jesus was tempted in every way just as we are- yet was without sin. He's our perfect Substitute. We trust in Him, not ourselves. 'Father God, we're so thankful for Christ our perfect

  I was brutish and ignorant; I was like a beast toward you. Psalm 73:22 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.73.22.ESV Asaph was envious of evildoers. After all, they often seem to have easy lives without a care in the world. He was like a bear with a sore head. Thankfully, this verse is in the past tense because Asaph didn't stay that way. He joined in corporate worship. He went to the old testament equivalent of church. Church can give us divine perspective. Yes, evildoers often have relatively easy lives, yet what does that matter in the light of eternity? There's a day of reckoning coming. The likes of Putin might seem to get away with murder, but ultimately we'll all have to give an account for how we've lived our lives. Before we judge others, we should do some soul searching. We need to make our peace with God before it's too late. 'Father in heaven, please give us Your perspective on evildoers. Help us understand their fate if they fail to repent,

  Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent. Psalm 71:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.71.9.ESV I recently had a birthday; I'm not halfway to three score years and ten, if I ever make it that far! So this verse is meaningful to me. I might not be old yet, but I'm getting there. All of us are aging, so we could all pray this prayer. We don't want God to give up on us when we get old. We trust that He will persevere with us to the end. Thankfully, we can have confidence that God will persevere with us til the end. He who began a good work in us will carry it through to completion upon the day of Christ Jesus. He's not going to abandon us half way there. We need to beware of overconfidence however, especially in our younger years. We can be tempted to try and do things in our own strength. As we get older and our strength dwindles, hopefully we rely more on God. 'Almighty Father, please help us to rely on You, not ju

  Bondservants are to be submissive to their own masters in everything; they are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, Titus 2:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/tit.2.9.ESV This is a strong verse. It doesn't say that we're to submit to our bosses only when we agree with them, or when they're being reasonable. Instead, it insists that we are to submit to our masters in everything. This isn't just a verse for slaves that doesn't apply to ordinary employees. It can be applied to us nowadays, whatever our occupation is. Clearly, we should remember that Jesus is the ultimate Master and Lord, and we shouldn't go against Him. Generally though, even if our employers are unreasonable sometimes, they're not asking us to go against our faith in Jesus as Lord. He tells us through Paul to obey our masters, so we ought to obey Him. We shouldn't necessarily be yes men, but neither should we be unnecessarily argumentative. Our concern shouldn't be to get our

  For he held fast to the Lord. He did not depart from following him, but kept the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses. 2 Kings 18:6 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2ki.18.6.ESV Hezekiah was a bit like the Zelensky of his day in that Assyria, like Russia with Ukraine, was trying to take over Judah. Unlike Zelensky however, the secret of his success wasn't support from another worldly power (like America or Babylon). This verse is the secret of Hezekiah's success. When the world wants to obliterate you, there's no point looking to some other worldly faction to deliver you. Instead, we should hold fast to the Lord, who is the only One who will never let us down. Nothing can separate God's people from His love. There's no point following God for a season and then deciding that we can't be bothered any more. We have to be all in, like Hezekiah. Only then will we reach the promised new creation. None of us keep God's commandments perfectly. Not even H

  For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind. The standing grain has no heads; it shall yield no flour; if it were to yield, strangers would devour it. Hosea 8:7 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/hos.8.7.ESV We reap what we sow. If we sow wheat, we get wheat; weeds produce weeds; and the wind produces a gale. Of course, the Bible isn't primarily about the natural realm. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The more we sow it, the more we'll reap it. The weeds are like lust, greed, envy, covetousness, laziness, pride, rage and lies. This specific verse has a strong implication of futility. If we try catching the wind, we're only going to fail. If we're simply weather watchers, we're not going to reap a fruitful harvest. So many people nowadays live with no sense of meaning in their lives. They're governed by their feelings, which come and go like a gust of wind. We o

  I will return again to my place, until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face, and in their distress earnestly seek me. Hosea 5:15 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/hos.5.15.ESV Does God ever seem distant? He might be omnipresent, but our sins can separate us from Him. How is the estrangement between us and God bridged? Ultimately, it is Christ who bridges the gap between God and ourselves. This verse however tells us that we have to cross the bridge. We have to acknowledge the canyon of sin that separates us from God. As long as we cringe away from God in shamefulness, we're never going to be reconciled to Him. Confession is the first step of a repentant heart, that's prepared to change its mind about all its assumptions about the allure of sin and the apparent intransigence of God. God might not seem to care about our distress sometimes, but He allows us to go through it in the hopes that it causes us to earnestly seek Him. He doesn't want insincerity. He want

  Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 2:3 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2ti.2.3.ESV Most of us shy away from suffering. The fact of suffering is why many question the existence, goodness and power of God. Yet soldiers embrace suffering for the greater good. Paul isn't saying that we literally have to bear arms for Christ. Jesus Himself commanded Peter to put his sword away, warning him that those who live by the sword die by the sword. Paul is using a metaphor here. Jesus's Kingdom is not of this world. We don't literally draw blood to establish His Kingdom on earth. His Kingdom won't be established in all its fulness on earth until He returns to establish His eternal, universal reign. Being a soldier is about being part of a band of brothers. Soldiers share in each others' suffering. Similarly, Christians are to support one another. 'Sovereign God, please help us to share sufferings as soldiers of Christ. May we fight for the

  For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 2 Timothy 1:6 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2ti.1.6.ESV We don't necessarily need some holy man to lay hands on us. Paul laid hands on Timothy to commission him as a church leader. We can infer from Paul's letters that Timothy was a naturally timid personality. Even if we're not commissioned as church leaders, we're all gifted by God. Our very lives are a gift from Him. The faith to believe in Him is also one of His gifts. God gives His church members many and varied gifts, for the purpose of cultivating the fruit of the Spirit. Paul's illustration of Timothy fanning his gift into a flame makes me imagine that God metaphorically gifted Timothy with a matchbox. It was up to Timothy however to strike a match and start a fire in the metaphorical wood burning stove of the church. Just as disused matches are a waste, so are gifted people who fail to

  But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.” Hosea 1:7 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/hos.1.7.ESV When the Lord Jesus Christ finally came to mercifully save His people, they seem to have forgotten this verse. At His arrest by the religious leaders, one of His followers, Simon Peter, drew His sword to try and prevent His arrest. James and John seemed to assume he'd have a conventional earthly Kingdom where they hoped to have the top jobs. Maybe Judas betrayed Jesus because He didn't fit what may have been his dream of a political Messiah to kick out the Romans from Palestine. Or perhaps it was simply because he was a thief who just wanted to make some money out of Jesus's arrest (thirty pieces of silver). Jesus had a far greater purpose than simply some political pipedream. We don't need an army to save us from an occupying power. That's

  Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. Psalm 56:9 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.56.9.ESV David was on the run from murderous king Saul. Such was his fear that he'd run into the arms of Israel's enemies, the Philistines. Still he had confidence that things would turn out alright in the end. How could David have such confidence? God had promised he'd be king, and David trusted that God would assuredly fulfil His word. He called out to God to honour what He'd said to him. Paul echoes David in Romans 8. God is for us. If God is for us, who can be against us? Nothing can separate us from God's love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord. Persecution can't separate us from God's love. Mockery and torture don't negate God's love for us. Not even death can defeat the fact that God is for us, and will welcome us for eternity to His home. 'Dear Father in heaven, we're so grateful that nothing can

  Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan, Psalm 55:2 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.55.2.ESV For the Psalmist, prayer isn't simply a mantra. It's not just a routine first thing in the morning or last thing at night. It is life and death. Being answered by God wasn't simply by-the-by for the Psalmist. They weren't just praying to make themselves feel better. They were desperate for God to answer. We can be honest with God about how we feel. We don't have to pretend that everything's alright if it isn't. God appreciates it when we pour out our hearts to Him. God is empathetic when we cry out to Him. Jesus in Gethsemane Garden was so stressed that He sweat drops of blood. As in this Messianic Psalm, He was betrayed by His close friend. He knows what it is to feel betrayed. 'Lord God, we're grateful that You know how we feel. Please help us to pour out our hearts to You, and to know Your comfort. In Christ's

  Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day. Psalm 52:1 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/psa.52.1.ESV David was on the run from murderous King Saul. He'd taken refuge with some priests, but some evil man saw them and reported back to Saul. He was then sent to assassinate the priests. Music often comes from a place of joy, yet it can also express anguish and lament. Clearly this Psalm is in the latter category. There's a sense of incredulity from David that Saul's assassin seemed so proud of his evil. Sadly, we can easily relate to this Psalm nowadays. Evildoers go from bad to worse. We could think of some of Putin's assassins who do his dirty work and kill off his enemies. Thankfully, David clung on to the second half of the verse. Whatever wrongdoers may be doing, God's love endures. He sustains His own, and will ultimately vindicate His people. 'O Lord our God, how grateful we are that Your love endures, despite

who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:4 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ti.2.4.ESV God is all powerful and all loving. So this raises the question: if this is so, why isn't everyone saved? The thing about God's love and salvation is that it isn't forced: He doesn't save those who refuse salvation. God wants to save everyone, yet not everyone wants to be saved, or is saved. Does that make God a failure? No, it just means He respects us. The truth is that we're destined for destruction if we don't repent and turn to God for salvation. Having turned to God to salvation, we are to call others to repentance and faith in Him. Through our witness is primarily how God saves people. The context of this verse is a call to prayer. Because God wants to save everyone, we ought to partner with Him in prayer to such an end. We should pray that we'd be good and effective witnesses for Him and His gracious truth. 

  the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, 1 Timothy 1:10 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ti.1.10.ESV This verse is part of a rogue's gallery of sins that God's law condemns. We tend to single out homosexuality as the sacred cow of secular Western society. Yet there is enough in this list to convict every one of us. We might like to think we're not sexually immoral. Yet the Greek word for this is where we get the word porn from. Many of us have been guilty of watching that. We might reserve 'enslavers' for people traffickers. Yet what about Amazon warehouse bosses who reportedly treat their workers worse than their machines? If we have the responsibility of employing people, we have a duty to do so well. 'Liars' surely encompasses the vast majority of us. If we say it doesn't, we're probably lying! The purpose of God's law is to convict us of whatever

  But now bring me a musician.” And when the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon him. 2 Kings 3:15 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2ki.3.15.ESV In some Christian circles, music isn't as highly regarded as others. This verse helps us to highly regard music. Music inspired Elisha to prophesy the outcome of a battle. The heart of the Bible, the Psalms, is a book of song lyrics written in praise to God. That gives us another hint of how highly regarded music is Biblically. Even Jesus Himself sang Psalms, many of which prophesy of Him. Another beautiful verse Scripturally is in Zephaniah, where we're told that God delights over His people with singing. God Himself is musical. Music is divine. Many people have a caricature of heaven as people sitting on clouds, strumming harps and singing to God for eternity. In reality, glory will be an embodied existence in a new creation. We'll be doing far more than music, although not less than music as well! Still, it will

  in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:12 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2th.2.12.ESV There's a stark dichotomy to this verse. Each one of us has a choice. We can either believe the truth, or take pleasure in unrighteousness. What is truth? Roman governor Pilate scoffingly asked that question, without even waiting for the answer. The irony is that he was interrogating the One who claims to be the Way, the Truth, and the Life. According to Jesus, noone comes to the Father God except through Him. We have to potential destinies. We will either be condemned as we deserve, for taking pleasure in unrighteousness. Alternatively, we will be justified by believing in the One True God. What do we take pleasure in? Does the truth delight us? Or are we more interested in indulging our sinful desires? We would do well to consider the outcomes of our heart attitudes. 'One True God, may we come to You th

  in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 2 Thessalonians 1:8 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/2th.1.8.ESV This is a powerful, arresting verse. The Good News isn't just a lifestyle choice. The gospel isn't something that can be picked and chosen. There are only two ways to live. There's God's way, or the highway to hell. It sounds a bit bleak and harsh, but the truth can hurt if it convicts us of the sins that would condemn us if we didn't repent. Jesus is Lord. He's not just a prophet, a guru, a teacher, a good man. He's in charge of all, and we must submit to His Lordship over ourselves. If we know God and obey the Good News, we ought to be calling others to get to know God and to obey the Good News. It's not enough to have a very individualistic faith. We must love our neighbours as we love ourselves. 'O Lord God, please help us to know and obey You. May we

  Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the Lord has declared disaster for you.” 1 Kings 22:23 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ki.22.23.ESV The devil wants our guts. He wants us to rot in hell with him. Thankfully, that can only happen with God's permission, the omnibenevolent (all-loving) One. We see something similar in this verse. God had had enough with evil king Ahab. His days were numbered. If he'd have known the means by which he would die he might have tried to avoid it, but God was going to make sure he did. Ahab thought to fight his enemies. All his false prophets 'blessed' his doomed plan. Only God's prophet warned him of his own impending demise. Truth isn't democratic. Let God be true, and all the world a liar. God plus zero even is a majority. We're invincible until the day God had decreed for us to die (unless Christ returns first). 'Lord God Almighty, help us to be governed b

  For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 1 Thessalonians 4:16 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1th.4.16.ESV This is the next and last great event in world history. Once Jesus returns, He will wrap history up. His return won't be done in a corner, but will be there for the world to see. This is no secret rapture of the saints. This is a very public event. God will command the dead to come alive. It doesn't matter whether we we buried, cremated or drowned: God can and will resurrect us for the final judgment. No one will miss this final chapter of history. Just because time will end, doesn't mean to say that eternity won't begin. We need to know Christ as our Saviour to give us eternal life, rather than as our Judge to condemn us for eternity. We must trust Him alone for salvation. 'O Lord God, help us to be ready for tha

  he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him. Daniel 2:22 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/dan.2.22.ESV Daniel wasn't just composing some nice sounding poetry. He was testifying as to what he knew to be true. In the context, he proved the truthfulness of this verse. King Nebuchadnezzer was one of the most powerful men to have ever lived. His kingdom of Babylon stretched from India to Ethiopia. He was worshipped and obeyed as a god. So when Nebuchadnezzar demanded the interpretation of his dream on pain of death, it truly was a life and death situation. In a stroke of genius, he wouldn't even share his dream which would have given his wise men the opportunity to improvise some kind of interpretation. Daniel took his death sentence to God, and asked for the interpretation. I love how this verse is Daniel's testimony even before he gave Nebuchadnezzar the interpretation. He was so confident in God's revelation tha

  And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:13 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ki.19.13.ESV Elijah was feeling pretty sorry for himself, and understandably so. Having won his showdown with hundreds of false prophets, Elijah was in the sights of the king and queen to assassinate him. He ran away to the wilderness, feeling exhausted and suicidal. God caused an earthquake to sound, but he was not in it. Instead, He spoke to him in a still, small voice. What God asked Elijah, He could well ask of us. Wherever we're at, we need to make sure we're in the perfect will of God. If not, he may have to question us as to what we're doing. We should always self assess as to whether we're in God's will. Elijah was pretty defensive as to how zealous he'd been for God. God's response was that He still had wo

  And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly, 1 Kings 18:3 ESV https://bible.com/bible/59/1ki.18.3.ESV We tend to assume that fear is a bad thing. Not necessarily! In fact, if we fear the Lord, all our other fears will melt away. Obadiah worked for evil king Ahab, who didn't think twice to kill a faithful follower of Yahweh. Yet Obadiah's fear of the Lord overrode his fear of Ahab. Thankfully, his fear of the Lord didn't drive him to become a rebel. Instead, Obadiah provided refuge for many prophets of God, and sustained them in their place of refuge. No doubt it was out of his own pocket that he fed so many people. I'm sure he didn't embezzle funds from his job! Our lives might not be in danger at this stage. Yet when the going gets tough, do we bottle it? Or do we stand firm for the Lord? 'Yahweh our God, help us to stand firm for You we pray, even in the face of persecution. In Christ's name we pray, a