Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

 Proverbs 18:24 ESV A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Having several hundred Facebook 'friends' is meaningless if only a few dozen bother to turn up to your own funeral! Fair weather friends are as common as muck. You get to know your true friends when you go through storms in life. Rich people are popular, because people want to get a taste of their riches. Yet if they came to ruin, their companions would disappear. We need a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Jesus is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. He is a friend of sinners. He didn't come for self-righteous people but to call sinners to repentance. If we repent, confess and renounce our sins, we make friends with Jesus as our Saviour and Lord. He will never let us down. He's more faithful than the closest brother. 'Dear Lord, please befriend us with your love. We're grateful for your friendship through all the changing scenes o...

 Ephesians 5:1 ESV Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  'Imitation is the highest form of flattery.' Children tend to imitate their parents, for better or worse. We are to imitate our heavenly Father. What would it look like for us to imitate God? God is love personified. So we would be defined by love. Love isn't just a mushy feeling, some indefinable 'love is love'. Love isn't just whatever we want it to be. 1 Corinthians 13 is one of the greatest definitions of love. One of the several aspects of love in 1 Corinthians 13 is that it never fails. So if it fails, it wasn't love. We often fail, but ultimately we will prevail if we trust in the love of God for us in Christ crucified on our behalf. 'Father God, may we imitate you, and so be defined by love. We praise you for your love for us in Christ crucified, in whose name we pray, amen'.

 Psalm 37:4 ESV Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. This verse isn't a lottery ticket. We don't delight in the Lord as the means to an end of getting a private jet or something! God isn't the means to an end: he is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. If we delight ourselves in the Lord, he himself will be the desire of our heart. So God will give us of himself. By his Spirit he will come to dwell within us. I like that the Psalmist says God will give us the desires in the plural of our hearts. So if we desire for people to delight themselves in the Lord, God will answer that. We're to seek first God's kingdom, and he'll provide everything we need. We may be the answer to our own desires. If we desire for people to delight in the Lord, then let us call for them to do so. Let's encourage people to put their trust in Jesus. 'Dear God, please prove the truth of this verse in our lives. May we delight in y...

 Isaiah 25:1 ESV O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure. What a privilege to be able to call the Lord our God. Sinners though we are, we can be adopted in his family through faith in Christ crucified. This calls for us to exalt him as he deserves. It is right and fitting that we should praise God's name. He is the great 'I am': the Faithful One who's unchanging yesterday, today and forever. Christ's death may have been 2,000 years ago, but it's still effective for salvation to this day. God knows the end from the beginning. His plans are formed of old. Jesus is the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world. The plans of God are faithful and sure. He doesn't give up on his people half way to glory. He will lead us safely home. 'Faithful Lord, may we praise and exalt you, for you are worthy. We thank you for Jesus' death on our behalf. In his name...

 Matthew 13:44 ESV The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. There's at least two ways of reading this. The first is to apply it directly to ourselves. When we discover God's Kingdom, we should realise that it is invaluable- worth giving everything up for. Note Jesus's emphasis here. The man doesn't grit his teeth and bemoan that he's had to give everything up. He knows that it's worth it. Another way of reading this verse is to apply it to Jesus himself. Most worldly kingdoms are inherited. King Jesus establishes the kingdom of heaven in the hearts of all who trust in him. For the joy set before him, Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame, and is sat down at the right hand of Father God. This parable can be read with us or Jesus as the man. I take it as both/and rather than simply either/or. 'Sovereign God, may we invest everything i...

 Ecclesiastes 12:13 ESV The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  Here is the take of the wisest man ever. His verdict on the meaning of life is that it is to fear God and keep his commandments. This might not seem to fit in a book that says that 'everything is meaningless'. Some scholars have even speculated that this verse is a more 'acceptable' appendix added later by others. I beg to differ. Solomon has been emphasising the meaninglessness of life without God; now he emphasises the meaning of life is God. We tend to assume fear is a bad thing. Crippling terror is. Yet the child afraid to displease their loving father is a good thing. Fear should drive us to God in faith, not from him in terror. Like a child seeking to please their dad, we should seek to obey him. We shouldn't be like spoilt children. 'God, may we fear you as we ought, and obey you as you deserve. For your honour we pray...

 1 Chronicles 16:11 ESV   Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! When we truly know the Lord, we're not stingy with him. We call others to get to know him too. David was no exception. Jesus promises that those who seek will find. If we seek the Lord we will find him. If we seek his strength, weakness won't define us. We're to seek God like someone seeks a relationship: with passionate desire. He isn't just a means to the end of salvation. He is salvation personified. We're not just saved from hell. We're saved into a relationship with the Lord God Almighty. We are to pursue him wholeheartedly. 'Lord, we seek you and your strength. May you ever be present within and among us. In Jesus' name we ask this, amen'.

 John 14:6 ESV Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  This is a bold claim for a carpenter turned itinerant teacher. For Jesus to even say he is a way to God might seem presumptuous. Yet he insists that he's the only way to God the Father. Jesus told Roman governor Pilate that all who are on the side of truth listen to him. Pilate dismissively questioned what truth is, without sticking around for the answer. Jesus is the truth personified. Jesus is the life. In him we enjoy life. Through him we can gain everlasting life. God has ordained it that his everlasting Son is the only way we can get adopted into God's family. He came to give us life, and life to the full. Truly, he is the only way to God's glorious presence. 'Heavenly Father, thank you that we can approach you through the Lord Jesus, may we do so, in his name we ask this, amen'.

 Acts 20:24 ESV But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.  It's not how we start that matters so much as how we finish. Paul was determined to finish well. Finishing well doesn't happen by osmosis. What we value says a lot about us. Paul valued his ministry to testify of the good news of God's love. He wasn't some self proclaimed, self promoting 'apostle': he was commissioned by the Lord Jesus himself. We might not be eyewitnesses of Christ's majesty. Yet he has commissioned all of us to testify of God's love in him. The gospel isn't something to be miserly with. Maybe we haven't started out well. Neither did Paul: he was a violent, insolent blasphemer. Yet God showed him mercy so everyone can see there's hope for us too. 'Almighty Father, we're so grateful for the hope we have i...

 Hebrews 12:11 ESV For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. No kid likes being disciplined by their dad. Yet the purpose of discipline isn't punitive so much as restorative. Parents don't want their kid to grow up spoilt: we want them to grow up in the way they should go. God is a loving heavenly Father. His discipline can feel severe at the time. Yet he's seeking restoration for us from going astray. The gospel teaches us that something painful like discipline can have a peaceful result. Jesus didn't need to be disciplined, but he bore the cross for us s that we can have eternal life. God can bring good out of something that feels bad at the time. As an aside, the devil does the opposite to God. He seeks to bring bad out of things that feel good at the time. He wants to laden us down with guilt and shame; God wants to set us free. 'Loving Father Go...

 2 Timothy 4:7 ESV  I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.     We could read this verse in isolation and think that it is individualistic. It is a personal testimony, but it is in the context of Christian community. This is part of an open letter from the Apostle Paul to pastor Timothy after all. I don't think Paul's thinking of a one to one boxing match with the devil in terms of the good fight. I picture him in the tortoise shell of Roman legionnaires battling horses of barbarian demons in the spiritual realms. There's no retirement in God's kingdom, but he knew his time was drawing to a close. I think of the race of life as being like the London Marathon. Yes, there's competition. Yet it's also collegiate: people spurring one another on and encouraging each other. How do we keep the faith? By battling the doubt that so easily assails us. We don't have to guilt trip ourselves over doubt, but we do have to overcome it...

 Habakkuk 2:14 ESV  For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.    At first glance, this seems like a typical verse we might expect from the Bible. Yet in the context of Habakkuk's prophecy, it's surprising. Habakkuk starts out by complaining about injustice amongst God's people: they didn't seem to have knowledge of the glory of the Lord. The Lord revealed that the Babylonians would punish God's unjust people. Habakkuk went on to complain that the Babylonians were even more unaware of the glory of the God of Israel. So this is an unexpected verse within the book of Habakkuk. Previously, God had told Habakkuk that 'the righteous will love by faith. It takes faith to believe this verse. Unbelief and ignorance are rampant. When Jesus returns, this verse will come to full fruition. In the meantime, he's given us the Great commission to go and make him known to the world. We can play our part in helping t...

 2 John 1:6 ESV  And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it.     The Beatles came close when they sang 'all you need is love'. Yet we don't necessarily need romantic love. We absolutely need God's love. We love because God first loved us. His love for us in Christ crucified is our motivation. We can't earn his love.  There's harmony between the old and new testaments. We're to love God and one another. We're to do so as Christ has loved us and given himself for us.  We're never to graduate from love. It's not like there's some deeper, secret truth. God is love and we are to be godly and loving. 'Loving heavenly Father, please help us to love as you have loved us. Forgive us for times we don't. In Christ's loving name we ask this, amen'.  

 Proverbs 23:24 ESV    The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him.    It's early days even for my eldest daughter at seven, but I greatly rejoice in her and am glad in her. When trying to confess some sin to her and saying I was bad, she replied beautifully. 'Don't say that dad, God made you a wonderful person'.   I hadn't taught my daughter Psalm 139, yet out of the mouths of children God has ordained praise. The praise goes to God for making me fearfully and wonderfully. He gets the glory. Then just the other day my eldest daughter gave me a card she'd made. 'Sorry about the news' (that I'm a bad person) it said, 'but I still love you and give me a hug. God will still look after you'  Of course, when our children say and do anything like that for us, it melts our hearts. May that gladness and rejoicing translate into an iron will to do the best for our children. May God help us to do so. ...

 Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves. Romans 12:10 NIV We're not simply to wash our hands of one another when we don't feel like loving each other. We are to be devoted to one another in love. That means we govern our feelings; we're not governed by our feelings. There's no exception to this verse. It's not that we're to be devoted to one another in love if we feel like it. The Apostle Paul is unequivocal in his command. We're to honour one another above ourselves. We're not to be selfish in any way. We're not to be self-absorbed or self- righteous. Note that Paul doesn't say we're not to honour ourselves. We should have self respect. It's just that we should honour others above ourselves. 'Lord our God, please help us to honour you and be devoted to you and to one another. May you forgive us when we fail, in Jesus's name, amen'.  

 1 Peter 4:16 ESV  Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.     Everyone suffers. Some suffering is deserved; some isn't. Christians have extra sufferings. On top of worldly sufferings, Christians also get mocked, ill treated, spoken badly of, and persecuted. Many to this day are even martyred for their faith in places like Nigeria and North Korea. Suffering feels shameful. Counterintuitively, the Apostle Peter commands us not to be ashamed, not to shame us if we feel that way, but to encourage us. If we suffer as Christians, we have no need to feel ashamed. Even if we were to deservedly suffer for some sinful action, we can leave our shame at the foot of the cross. The early church rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Christ. To this day, the 'persecuted church's doesn't tend to ask for persecution to stop. 'Blessed are the persecuted': they tend to ask for prayer for divine ...

 Philippians 4:13 ESV  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.  Paul wasn't talking about being able to climb Mount Everest. In the context of this verse he was saying that he'd learnt to be content in any and every situation. Whether he had plenty or little, he was happy in his God. Our love of God shouldn't be conditional on having a lot. We should love him for the eternal life he gives us. We can be grateful for our daily bread. I'm sure there were times Paul went without food, so bad were his circumstances at the time. Yet he didn't moan at God. He continued to rely on him. God will give us the strength we need for any and every situation we face. He won't let us bite off more than we can chew. He will look after us until he calls us home. 'God Almighty, we're grateful for your provision and ask that we would be content in you even in hard times. For we ask in Jesus' name, amen'. 

 2 Corinthians 9:8 ESV And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.   The Corinthian church was wealthy, but not so generous. He wasn't asking them to 'sow' into his ministry like some charlatan. He was asking them to provide for their impoverished Jerusalemite brethren. I love how positive Paul is with the Corinthian church. He doesn't metaphorically beat them about their heads with a stick. He gently encourages them to step into all that God has been gracious to them for. God isn't gracious to us so we can pay ourselves on our backs. He doesn't show us mercy to make us self-sufficient and uncaring about anyone else. He wants us to abound in every good work. The Lord expects us to be generous. We can't say 'I don't think that's my calling'. It's all of our callings to be generous. 'Sovereign Lord, please forgive any stinginess in us. Hel...

 Romans 5:3-4 ESV  Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope   We might think we have to lie down under a rock when we suffer, but Paul insists we can rejoice. Suffering isn't meaningless. It can produce endurance. If we never suffered, we'd have precious little endurance. The slightest little bump in the road would knock us for six. If we want to develop good characters, we need to endure suffering. Good character is developed in the furnace of affliction. Our dross is skimmed away. We come out purer than gold. If we can see that our characters are developing positively, we can have hope that God is working on us. He wants to transform us into the likeness of Christ. If we can see him doing that, we can be encouraged. 'Sovereign Lord God, please help us to see that you work all things together for good for those that love you, who are called according to your p...

 Psalm 94:19 ESV When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.   I'm sure most of us have many cares at some point in our lives. Bereavement, separation, unemployment and illness can all add to our cares for example. This verse assures us we don't need to be overwhelmed by our cares however. In the context of the Psalm, the Psalmist's cares weren't selfish. He was concerned for the plight of God's people. They were being oppressed. God consoled the Psalmist that the oppressors of his people would assuredly get their comeuppance. That might sound harsh. Yet it is what they deserved. Just to know that the God of justice is on our side should be enough to console us. We shouldn't need clement circumstances to console us. We can be fearless even though the valley of the shadow of death with God by our sides. 'Dear God Almighty, we're so grateful for your consolations in the midst of our cares. Please help us to rest in you. In Christ...

 James 1:2-3  Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.       What brings us joy? Our families, friends, fun etc.? Chocolate, coffee, or cheerful chatter? James commands us to rejoice when we have trials!  Our gut reaction with trials and tests is to feel nervous about them. Yet if we're well prepared, we can actually look forward to proving ourselves. God never gives us a trial we can't pass with his help. The devil tempts us to throw in the trial. God tests us like precious metals. In his trials he skims away the dress in our lives and purifies us. Of course, joy is counterintuitive when we go through hard times. Yet if we can see what the hard times are producing, we can be encouraged. God is proving our faith and making us steadfast and enduring: by his power we will assuredly prevail over all that assails us.  'Dear Lord our God, please help u...

 1 Timothy 4:8 ESV  for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.   The Apostle Paul doesn't say bodily training is of no value. Neither however does he say that bodily training is of value in every way, like some gym enthusiasts might be tempted to say! Instead, he insists that physical exercise is of some value. Paul wasn't Gnostic. He didn't think our bodies are irrelevant and unimportant. He knew the importance of being healthy. Godliness isn't just important: it is essential. We need to be holy if we want to see the Lord. How do we get holy? By trusting in him to be our righteousness and salvation. Some people might describe trying to be Christlike as 'pie in the sky when you die'. Others might say that it is 'steak on a plate while you wait'! Living God's way isn't a killjoy highway like the devil might try and deceive us; it's the ...

 Hebrews 12:1 ESV   Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us   God doesn't ask the impossible of us to follow him. Many have gone before us. We can take encouragement from their example.  I think the writer differentiates between weights and sins because some things aren't necessarily sinful, but they can weigh us down with wrong priorities. Money for example is a good servant but a bad master. I'm reminded of the parable of the Sower where Jesus warns about the deceitfulness of riches. We don't get to take anything with us into eternity. So it's best to travel light. There's nothing wrong with making money; just not to be miserly and greedy with it. We're in a race. We can invest our money for example in the Kingdom of God. We can be generous and help needy brethren.  'Dear God, please help us to f...

 Proverbs 12:25 ESV  Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.  What word can cheer up a man who anticipates homelessness for example, or loneliness and rejection? Jesus commands us to seek first his kingdom, and everything we need will be added to us as well. Jesus reframes worry and tells us not to be selfish with our concerns. Instead, he tells us to put him first, and to leave everything else to him. Anxiety is disbelief in the goodness of God.  God doesn't want us to be anxious. He doesn't want us to be weighed down by worry. He wants to set us free. The good news is that anxiety isn't the unforgivable sin. William Cowper, that melancholic saint of a poet, told us and himself to fear not, because the 'clouds we so much dread, are big with mercy and shall break with blessings on our heads'. Even through the storms of life, God can and will guide us his people safe home to glory. 'Sovereign Father, we're so grateful that we...

 Matthew 7:12 ESV   “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.    This verse is nicknamed the 'golden rule'. Other religions often have a negative version: 'don't do to others what you don't want them to do to you'. Jesus puts his command in the positive. Elsewhere, the Law and the Prophets (the Old Testament) is summed up to be love of God and  of one another. That's what we (sometimes subconsciously) wish for ourselves and should do for others, to love them as Christ has loved us. We're to be prepared to lay down our lives for one another. I appreciate 'love' could be seen to be vague. I don't just mean a mushy feeling. I don't even just mean being prepared to die for someone. True love is daily acts of joyful service for one another. An important application of this verse for believers is to tell people the good news of salvation in Christ crucified. People told us, for us ...

 Psalm 23:4 ESV  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.     Note that we may have to walk through the valley of the shadow of death, not death itself. Physically, we all face death, unless Jesus returns first. For the believer though, it's like falling asleep until Jesus wakes us up again. The Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for the sheep. He gives us eternal life from the moment we believe, and no one can snatch us out of his hand.  Evil is real, but we don't need to fear it with the Good Shepherd alongside us by his Holy Spirit. We face the 'triple whammy' of the world, the flesh and the devil; but we're born again by God's Spirit to overcome. Because Jesus gave his life and rose victorious over death, we can conquer and have the victory too. God's rod and staff don't sound too comforting at first. He may have to nudge and s...

 2 Corinthians 12:10 ESV  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.    This is a counterintuitive verse. We might assume that we can only be content when the sun is shining and our lives feel okay. The Apostle Paul insists that it's possible to be content even in difficult circumstances. I need to clarify that Paul wasn't content with these hard things for their own sakes. He wasn't a sadist. Instead he was grateful for an opportunity for God to display his strength in Paul's weakness. We might assume that when we face things like insults and persecution that we might just throw in the towel. Paul knew however that such things were causing him to rely consciously on God instead of himself. 'Blessed are the persecuted, for great is their reward in heaven'. Weaknesses, hardships and calamities can either drive us from God in bitterness, or to him in dependence...

 Luke 1:46-47 ESV  And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour   Mary knew the meaning of life. Mary knew that our purpose is to magnify the Lord and to rejoice in God our Saviour. She fulfilled her purpose in life. In one sense, Mary was never more than a humble peasant woman. At the same time she had the immense priviledge of bearing the Son of God in her womb as the virgin born and conceived of the Holy Spirit. Magnification of the Lord and rejoicing in her Saviour meant for Mary to bring him up into his Divine destiny! For us, magnification of God and rejoicing in him, our Saviour doesn't require us to say 'hail Mary', but hail Jesus. Mary needed a Saviour. We certainly do. Mary had the horror of witnessing her Son's crucifixion. Yet she came to understand that he died to save her as well. She was a matriarch in the early church, not because anyone 'hailed' her, but because she knew the meaning of life: to magnify and...