Month: August 2018

Key Text: Psalms 116:12

“What shall I render to the Lord For all His benefits toward me?”

Fellow travellers, hope you all enjoyed the movie “indescribable”? Amazing isn’t it? There is a sequel that will just leave you mouth agape! I will paste the link below for your pleasure.

Our God is fearfully awesome and His creation and creative abilities are way beyond the scope of human comprehension. In other words, we can’t wrap our limited minds around an unlimited God!

So why would God, the awesome Creator of the stupendous universe ever really notice any of us? In part 1 of this discourse, I stated clearly that we cannot impress God. He can’t be impressed. He is the only one who can impress Himself. When He created in the beginning, He said it was good. But no man can ever impress God. We should never try to impress Him. This will lead us into religion and striving and we will only end up miserable. Let me say it clearly. God is already impressed with Jesus Christ. He is not looking for us to impress Him. However, He remains very interested in what we do and can be pleased with our actions and tickled by our meagre means of honouring Him.

Today, I want to consider a man who so pleased God that God called Him His friend. Not many people in the bible have ever recieved such complement from God. For a man to be the friend of God is almost absurd. But it is true. Abraham was and remains a friend of God.

In Genesis 22, we read the story of God testing Abraham by asking for his loved son Isaac as a sacrifice. God instructed Abraham to take Isaac up a mountain in the region of Moriah and offer him as a burnt offering. Abraham took the lad and went as God instructed bound him and was about to plunge the knife into his heart, when God restrained him and showed him a ram caught in a thicket as a substitute offering for Isaac.

Then God said in Genesis 22:11-12 (NKJV) 11 But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.”
12 And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”

This act of obedience by Abraham so moved God that He reconfirmed His covenant with Abraham and added a few more points to make absolutely clear His intention towards Abraham and his descendants. Please read these words: Genesis 22:16-18 (NKJV) “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— 17 blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18 In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

God expanded the promise by stating that the descendants of Abraham will possess the gates of their enemies, that is they will have dominion and the biggest one of them, IN YOUR SEED all the nations of the earth will be blessed. This SEED is Jesus Christ.

In a what can only be a divine exchange, God asked Abraham for his beloved son Isaac to be offered as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah, but instead of that God stopped him and showed him a ram as a replacement for Isaac; then God eventually offered His only begotten Son on the same Mount Moriah as a sacrifice for the redemption of all mankind, and all who put their faith in Jesus Christ and what He did on that mountain 2000 years ago are referred to as children of Abraham. What an awesome God. Selah!

What am I trying to say. We can’t impress God, yet our actions can please him. Our thoughts, actions, words all have a way of making Him happy or otherwise. I know we all would love to bring a smile to the face of God. (A thought just crossed my mind, what if you said something to God just this moment that puts a smile on His face and all the angels see Him beaming and wondering what just happened and then he lets them hear what you just said).

I learnt a song in school as a child that seems just so apt for this moment. Here are the words.

Wise May Bring Their Learning
Hymn Lyrics

The wise may bring their learning, the rich may bring their wealth,
And some may bring their greatness, and some bring strength and health;
We, too, would bring our treasures to offer to the King;
We have no wealth or learning; what shall we children bring?

We’ll bring Him hearts that love Him; we’ll bring Him thankful praise,
And young souls meekly striving to walk in holy ways;
And these shall be the treasures we offer to the King,
And these are gifts that even the poorest child may bring.

We’ll bring the little duties we have to do each day;
We’ll try our best to please Him, at home, at school, at play;
And better are these treasures to offer to our King;
Than richest gifts without them yet these a child may bring.

Let this be our prayer today!

Part 2 of Indescribable.

Key Text: When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, 4 What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him?

This question is rhetorical. I am not really asking for answers but to use this question to call out some deep thinking in us and perhaps through this we can be inspired to act with deliberate precision.

God is the Creator! If you look at the world, the universe, the cosmos, you will discover that God’s ability to impress is totally unattainable. He is totally alone in that realm. I watched a movie called ‘Indescribable’ and was completely blown away by the splendour of His created world. Really simply Awesome. If you have not seen this movie, please watch it. I will attach a link at the end of this piece.

But with all that God does and God is able to do, He often gets tickled by what we mere mortals do. He seems to have this uncanny ability to be intrigued by the reaction of His creation.

Psalms 8 (NKJV) 1 O Lord, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth,
Who have set Your glory above the heavens!
2 Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength,
Because of Your enemies,
That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
4 What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
5 For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
7 All sheep and oxen—
Even the beasts of the field,
8 The birds of the air,
And the fish of the sea
That pass through the paths of the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth!

Today let’s look at another story. In 2 Samuel 7, (Please read if you can) David had just finished building his magnificent palace. He had brought the ark of God to his back garden. He however felt unfulfilled and thought he had one more major feat to perform. Build God a house. Yes, build God a befitting house. Not just a simple tent. This simple thought of David really struck a deep chord in God’s heart. Though God told David he could not build this house because he was a man of war and has shed too much blood, but his son Solomon will build this house for Him. God was so touched by David’s lofty ambition, that God responded with equal and surpassing gesture and promise. He simply told David you want to build me a house? I will build you a dynasty. Actually your dynasty will be everlasting. Not only that, I will make sure that you have a son to always sit on your throne. This promise is what brought the Messiah, Jesus Christ to the lineage of David. He is THE SON OF DAVID. He is the eternal King of Israel and His throne is in Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel.

What are you contemplating in your heart concerning the Lord. How can you make His heart glad?

Let your actions be inspired to express love to a God who loves us so much and has given us so much.

Tomorrow we travel deeper and further…

Enjoy the movie and be awed.

Let’s Pray: What an awesome God you are. Let me always be in awe of you and let my heart be inspired to make you glad. Thank you for being my God and Father. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

 

Key Text: Proverbs 10:1 – (NKJV) A wise son makes a glad father…

 

If we agree that God knows everything and God is never taken by surprise by anything or anyone, then He can hardly be impressed by anyone. Yet, the bible is filled with examples of God taking note of individuals, recognising and rewarding their actions.

I have been brought up with the notion that God is not impressed by anyone, that we really do not need to seek to impress Him, and I still believe that, but I have a very different understanding of this now. God loves us unconditionally. God is pleased with us, not because we did anything right or wrong, but because we simply believe in His Son, Jesus Christ and that is all. We can’t impress God, yet we can please Him. We can’t earn His love, yet we can make His heart glad. We can make His heart rejoice.

Let’s look at an example from the bible. In Numbers 25:7-13, we read the story of Phinehas a grandson of Aaron. Numbers 25:6-13 (NKJV) .

7 Now when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose from among the congregation and took a javelin in his hand; 8 and he went after the man of Israel into the tent and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her body. So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel. 9 And those who died in the plague were twenty-four thousand.

10 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 11 “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the children of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal among them, so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My zeal. 12 Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him My covenant of peace; 13 and it shall be to him and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was zealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.’ ”

God noted his actions and made a covenant of peace with him and his generations. Was God impressed? Was God pleased? Whatever your verdict, God was moved to act. He noted this young man and his act.

Proverbs 27:11 ‘My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may answer him who reproaches me.’

God looks and notices our actions and though what we do does not alter His unwavering love for us, our actions can gladden His heart or sadden it.

Since our relationship with God through Christ is a loving one, then it is only right for us to seek to please and gladden the heart of the One we love.

Today, just think about what you can do to make God smile. That’s it in a nutshell, tomorrow we would look at this more deeply.

Let’s Pray: Father God, thank you for loving me unconditionally and eternally. Because of this great love, I want to always bring joy to your heart. Grant me the simple understanding that Your heart can be gladdened by my actions. This I ask in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.