Psalm 136

O give thanks to the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endures for ever. O give thanks to the God of gods: for his mercy endures for ever. O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endures for ever.To him who alone does great wonders: for his mercy endures for ever. To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endures for ever. To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for his mercy endures for ever. To him that made great lights: for his mercy endures for ever. The sun to rule by day: for his mercy endures for ever. The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endures for ever. To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for his mercy endures for ever. And brought out Israel from among them: for his mercy endures for ever. With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for his mercy endures for ever. To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endures for ever. And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endures for ever. But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endures for ever. To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endures for ever. To him which smote great kings: for his mercy endures for ever. And slew famous kings: for his mercy endures for ever. Sihon king of the Amorites: for his mercy endures for ever. And Og the king of Bashan : for his mercy endures for ever. And gave their land for an heritage: for his mercy endures for ever. Even an heritage unto Israel his servant: for his mercy endures for ever. Who remembered us in our low estate: for his mercy endures for ever.And has redeemed us from our enemies: for his mercy endures for ever. Who gives food to all flesh: for his mercy endures for ever. O give thanks to the God of heaven: for his mercy endures for ever.

Remember those who are in bonds

On April the 19th a grieving friend of mine in Turkey told me of the brutal murders of three Christians he knew. His pain, and the pain of the other Turkish Christians, was impossible to relate to; but all I could offer was reminders of God's promises and the assurance of our prayers.
The following Sunday night I shared his story with my study group and we prayed for both him and the Turkish church; and all through the week fellow Christians thought of and prayed for them.
At the beginning of the sermon this morning, I listened with mixed emotions as my pastor retold the story and accounts I had heard and read so many times in the past week. Truly God has been glorified by the response to this tragedy! The families, fellow Christiansm, and church leaders, have responded with genuine Christian love and forgiveness. Not only do they extend forgiveness to the murderers, they are also praying that God would have mercy on them and save them.
This evening at study group we took a temporary departure from reading John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life and focused on the global persecuted church. These Christians that are beaten, cast into jail, or fear for their lives, are a witness to what it means to risk all for Christ. They are daily living out what Paul says in Philippians 1:21 "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."
In obeying the Biblical command to remember those in bonds, we split into groups and prayed for specific countries and prisoners. Then we wrote personalized letters, often using Scripture, to encourage and uplift these brothers and sisters. Many of them have been imprisoned for a decade or more and gratefully welcome letters expressing care and concern.
I am planning to mail off several letters this week. It is not hard or even dangerous. Simply gather names and addresses, pray and ask wisdom for what you should say, fill your letter with encouragement, and let God ensure it reaches them. For assistance with this, do check out www.persecution.com
Living in the ease and freedom of North America, it is all too easy to ignore or forget the suffering of fellow Christians in other parts of the world. Let me urge you to keep them in prayer. Pray that God will comfort and strength them, and draw them close to Him. Spread the burden to other Christians and get them involved not only in prayer but in the aid to the global church. Organizations such as Voice of the Martyrs need our financial, prayerful, and volunteering support as they minister and build up.
Let's not get swept up in our culture, with its focus on the here and now. Instead, we need to embrace risk for Christ and live a life that is pleasing to Him, with a focus on eternity. In so doing, at the end of our lives we may look back and know that through His grace we have lived for His glory and it has not been a wasted life.


Heb 13:3 Remember those who are in bonds, as bound with them, those who suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.

To Learn Humility

I am reading a most excellent classic book called Humility by Andrew Murray. There is so much truth in it to quote, that I would not know where to start. However there is one section that seems so real and that is so relatable, it was necessary to blog about.
So I quote:

Every Christian virtually passes through these two stages in his pursuit of humility. In the first he fears and flees and seeks deliverance from all that can humble him. He has not yet learnt to seek humility at any cost. He has accepted the command to be humble, and seeks to obey it, though only to find how utterly he fails. He prays for humility, at times very earnestly; but in his secret heart he prays more, if not in word, then in wish, to be kept from the very things that will make him humble. He is not yet so in love with humility as the beauty of the Lamb of God, and the joy of heaven, that he would sell all to procure it. In his pursuit of it and his prayer for it, there is still somewhat of a sense of burden and of bondage. To humble himself has not yet become the spontaneous expression of a life and a nature that is essentially humble. It has not yet become his joy and only pleasure. He cannot yet say, "Most gladly do I glory in weakness, I take pleasure in whatever humbles me."
But can we hope to reach the stage in which this will be the case? Undoubtedly. And what will it be that brings us there? That which brought Paul there - a new revelation of the Lord Jesus. Nothing but the presence of God can reveal and expel self. A clearer insight was to be given to Paul into the deep truth that the presence of Jesus will banish every desire to seek anything in ourselves, and will make us delight in every humiliation that prepares us for His fuller manifestation. Our humiliations lead us, in the experience of the presence and power of Jesus, to choose humility as our highest blessing. Let us try to learn the lessons the story of Paul teaches us.

Can you not oh so totally relate with that?? Humility is filled with food for deep thought, but this was something I could look at and say, "That is me."
Jesus himself said that, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." I think that at least in part, to follow this command means we must learn to submit to His will and deny the flesh and self.
This must be why it is so hard for us to be humble - for it goes against our very nature as humans. We cannot be humble of ourselves, for even that we would do self-righteously or for selfish reasons. No, the only way to humility is through the work of God in us as He sanctifies and cleanses us. I quote again another fitting passage:

Place yourself before God in your utter helplessness; consent heartily to the fact of your impotence to slay or make alive yourself. Sink down into your own nothingness, in the spirit of meek and patient and trustful surrender to God. Accept every humiliation. Look upon every fellow man who tries or vexes you as a means of grace to humble you. Use every opportunity of humbling yourself before your fellow men as a help to abide humbly before God...It is the path of humility that leads to perfect death, the full and perfect experience that we are dead in Christ.

"Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus." - Philipians 2: 3-5

Sorrow? God is your comfort

The last week has been a hard one for many. Senseless bombings shredded public markets and buildings in Iraq, claiming dozens of lives. In Virginia, a college was left reeling in shock after a gunman ripped classrooms apart with a spray of bullets. And in Turkey, the tiny Christian population was devastated by the slaughter of three of it's own.
What to say in the face of this? Indeed, what should we as Christians say?
First, remember that God is sovereign. No matter what befall us, nothing takes Him by surprise and all is under His control. In the midst of sorrow and anguish we can rest in the knowledge of His care of and love for us. When things seem to go horribly wrong, open your Bible to Isaiah 40 and let the reminders of God's sovereignty comfort and uplift you.
Second, remember that God is perfect justice. The perpetrators of this evil will not go unpunished. Psalm 37 assures the righteous that the wicked will have their reward and that their apparent prosperity is fleeting. Truly, "shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" Rest, oh Christian, in the knowledge that your Father will deal rightly with all sin.
Third, remember that compared to eternity, life is gone in an instant. Our time on earth is as a vapour, given as a gift by God to be spent for him. Jim Elliot died at the hands of the Auca Indians but his was a life not wasted. No, for he lived the truth of what he said: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." In the same manner we need to keep our eyes on Christ and off the temporal. If we give our lives for Christ it is not a waste. If we must watch our friends die for Him, let us not mourn but rather rejoice that they are glorifying God whether in life or in death.
Fourth, turn to God for your comfort and peace. Only He can give joy in the midst of sorrow. His compassion is new every morning and great is his tenderness toward you. In Psalm 42, David wonders why he is cast down in spirit. The Psalmist reminds himself that even in the deepest grief, God is his hope and he can praise Him in the storm. Take this Scripture and apply it to your life, let it calm the tears and sooth the hurt. Cast your burden upon the Lord for He will sustain and strength you.

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Romans 8:18

"Holiness means that God is unique, there is none like the Lord.. He is totally and completely separate."

There is a difference between being a broken and confessing Christian who has victory over besetting sins, and just some Chrisitan who is drowning in sin."

Ezekiel 36 "I will cleanse you from all your filthyness and all your idols." If I had to use one passage to describe His work in me, His breaking me into a million pieces by His providence, and working to cleanse me...[this would be it]

Paul Washer "Regeneration and Self-Denial" - sermon available on sermonaudio.com