Respect for all men

 

1 Peter 2:17

Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honour the emperor.

Everything mentioned in this verse does not come to us naturally but can only be cultivated in our lives after we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. And even then, it is no easy task to apply these godly principles without the supernatural help of Holy Spirit.

We are called to respect everyone, without exception. What about that boss that makes our lives miserable at work? Even that one, says Peter in verse 18 when he addresses household servants: Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. He was speaking to the fact that slaves who converted to Christianity were targeted by their masters because they did not participate in worshiping their idols anymore.

In verse 13 he exhorts us to Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, and this corresponds with his instruction to honour the emperor in our quoted verse. Did you know that the emperor he is referring to was Nero? The one who impaled Christians and set them alight to be human torches used as lamps in the streets; the one who let others be torn apart by dogs? Peter called on his readers to honour even this emperor. He pleads with us not to fall into lawless rebellion in verse 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.

Why?

We find the answer in two verses. Verse 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. It is God’s will that you should live in such a way that everybody who wants to slander and accuse you can find nothing in your conduct to use against you. And also verse 21 For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. Jesus was reviled; insulted; abused; and He suffered greatly, even though He was innocent of all charges. Yet He did not retaliate but left everything to God, Who will one day judge fairly.

To bear patiently with suffering that comes when you do right and which is undeserved, is behaviour acceptable and pleasing to God (verse 20).

Pearls to ponder:

We are confronted with dishonest and corrupt leaders all around us. How do we honour them? I think the answer lies in honouring the office of authority (president, magistrate, etc) and never letting our hearts develop a hatred towards the person occupying that office – we should instead stand in the gap for them and cry out for their salvation. We can identify wrongdoing and take steps to counteract these while still obeying the laws of the land, as long as these laws do not expect us to do something against God’s laws. Then civil disobedience (the nonviolent refusal to obey certain laws) is called for.

Vessel of honour

How many Gifts of the Spirit do you have

 

1 Corinthians 1:7

Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.

This verse is mostly interpreted as pertaining to the whole body of Christ, collectively. But what if Paul also had the individual believer in mind?

We receive Holy Spirit when we first come to confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord of our lives (Gal 3:2 …… Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ.). The question I would like to ask is, how much of the Spirit did you receive? Because He comes to live inside your spirit in His completeness, bringing all His gifts.

The next step after receiving Him, is the empowering event of the work of Holy Spirit in you, which is described as baptism of the Holy Spirit. We see this happening all through Acts, and a beautiful picture of this action is seen through the experience of the disciples of Jesus themselves. They first received Holy Spirit when Jesus blew on them (John 20:22 When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.) They then had to wait 10 days in the Upper Room to be empowered by the Spirit (Acts 2:3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.) This receiving of supernatural power (for Jesus-centred ministry) normally, but not exclusively, happens at the time of your water baptism, and is repeated throughout your life as Holy Spirit sees fit.

Paul himself is a good example of one person displaying many gifts of the Spirit. He operated in the gifts of prophecy, healing, miracles, teaching/knowledge, wisdom, leadership, faith, discerning of spirits and speaking in tongues.

Then what about 1 Cor 12-14 where Paul speaks about the gifts of the Spirit being given to believers according to Holy Spirit’s discretion? When I read 1 Cor 12 in its entirety, I count the word “body” at least 16 times. Overwhelming proof that the context of this chapter, is using the gifts for the edification of the whole body of Christ. Thus, even as I have all the available gifts potentially inside my spirit, Holy Spirit will bring specific gifts through me to the forefront to be of service in the Body of Christ. As I “practise” these gifts, (by being available to Him and having faith that He will do as He promised and then just acting on His prompting), I will eventually be known as the one who, for example, speaks in an unknown tongue in church – please note, not the one who can speak in tongues, but who actually does; or the one who prophecies; or has great wisdom; etc.

Another reason why I believe as I do, is that Paul writes in 1 Cor 12:31 Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way. How can we “eagerly desire” a gift if we are of the opinion that we might not have received it?

Paul also says in 1 Cor 14:13 So anyone who speaks in tongues should pray also for the ability to interpret what has been said. He is showing here that you can ask for a specific gift to work through you - you are not limited by what you think your gift is.

Pearls to ponder:

Let’s say you are the only person standing beside the bed of a very ill person, and Holy Spirit wants to heal that person at that moment. If you are willing, He is going to use you for His healing to flow through you, whether you think that you have the gift of healings or not!

The only important thing to remember, is that the total Holy Spirit is your Gift. Be available to be used by Him, believing that He has equipped you to do all things!

Holy Spirit Breath of God

How new is the New Covenant

 

2 Cor 3:6

He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life.

The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah spoke of the new covenant that would come, 600 years before it came to be (Jer 31:31-34). He revealed that it would shift the keeping of the covenant away from following external rules and regulations to inward transformation of hearts; it would pave the way for ordinary people to get to know God without having to rely on someone else approaching God on their behalf; it promised the forgiveness of sin by the mercy and goodness of God and would remove the hold sin has over people; and it would remove the burden of having to earn salvation through obedience to laws and show that we are saved through God’s grace alone.

Jesus then came and established this New Covenant through His death and resurrection ( Luke 22:20 After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.) We as Gentiles are now included in this New Covenant along with our Messianic Jewish brothers and sisters who also believe in Jesus, because after Jesus’ resurrection we all became one new man in Christ, guided by the Spirit, given a fresh identity: 2 Cor 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Have you ever thought about the fact that our new covenant is more than 2000 years old by now? How can it still be considered new? The answer lies in the original Hebrew words “brit haddashah”. Brit means covenant, but haddashah means so much more than new. It means fresh. It describes the nature of the covenant, not the time in which it came to be, so that it stays just as new throughout your life as a believer as the day you first entered it.

Pearls to ponder:

If something is left to stagnate, it stops flowing, stops being life-giving, much like a blocked riverway where water dams up and becomes a breeding ground for all sorts of unwanted pests. Keep the awareness of the New Covenant alive in your everyday life – ponder the love, the grace, the truth and the salvation that is always new for you every day! Here are a few suggestions to get started: When you wake up, do not grab your phone and start scrolling. Instead, thank Him for the breath in your lungs; for your position as a child of God; for everything! Read something from Scripture, even if only one verse. Pray from your heart, give Him a minute of silent adoration. Listen to worship music as you get ready for the day. And as you keep the river of the Spirit flowing every day you will become more aware of His presence in your life, and your covenant with Him stays fresh for you!

New Covenant

Can women speak in church

 

1 Cor 14:34-35

Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.

These two verses must be some of the most controversial verses in the New Testament, used to (erroneously) teach that women are not allowed to speak in church, and then expanded into a ban on women to be elders, pastors, leaders of home groups, etc. All based on the meaning of the words in today’s language and context – which can be very misleading to say the least!

The English language is still evolving, even today, so that words lose their earliest definition and take on more modern meanings. Examples would be nice, which originally meant “ignorant or foolish”; awful used to mean “full of awe and wonder”; silly once meant “happy, blessed or worthy”.

If we look at a few of the Greek words used in our passage above in their original meaning and usage throughout the New Testament, a very clear picture emerges of what Paul was really saying here.

The Greek word for “be silent” is sigaō which everywhere else in the New Testament means restraint in certain situations, not a blanket ban on speech. The verb for “speak” is λαλέω, which Paul used in this chapter to order specific worship activities, not to stop all vocal participation. If we know what kind of silence Paul wants, and what kind of speech he is regulating, then we can ask: what were the women doing that was so wrong?

And this is where two other Greek words come into play. In verse 35 Paul uses ἐπερωτάω which means a direct, pointed question aimed at a specific person, either to trap them, or genuinely to learn something. This is what Paul asks the women to do at home instead of in the assembly. Why would he do that?

 That word is joined with μανθάνω (to learn), which is the root word for disciple. It means to enter the long training period of discipleship, taking in knowledge by questioning it, debating it, owning it and living it – not sitting in a pew just passively listening to it. Paul used this exact same word earlier in verse 31 For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged, and when he says ALL may learn, he includes men and women.

He is not criticizing the women’s desire or right to learn, but in how they were doing it. They were interrupting the teaching with mostly elementary questions, because most women in that era had far less education than the men – not through any fault of their own - the culture simply refused to teach them. In ancient Mediterranean times, learning was interactive. Students interrupted the teaching sessions constantly, BUT there were rules governing who got to interrupt and how. Beginners were expected to stay in the background and learn quietly, while advanced students were allowed to ask questions during the lessons. In that setting, asking elementary questions in the teachings were considered shameful.

Can you now picture the scene in those early churches? Women who were recently set free in Christ and were hungry to understand but did not have the schooling of the men, interrupted the teachings and asked questions at a basic level. This not only shattered the order of worship, but in their culture, looked scandalous. This is why Paul uses that word, the scandal of it tainted the church to the outside world.

Pearls to ponder:

Woman’s voices inside church do not offend God. Paul wrote what he wrote because this particular behaviour, in this particular culture, went against all accepted norms of learning and honour for that time, and the Gospel was suffering because of it.

This is not muzzling women – Paul was assuming (quite correctly) that the husbands knew enough to answer their elementary questions in the privacy of their homes, and they could then naturally progress to the level of advanced students.

We are one

Only God can predict the future

 

1 Kings 13:2

Then at the LORD’s command, he shouted, “O altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: A child named Josiah will be born into the dynasty of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests from the pagan shrines who come here to burn incense, and human bones will be burned on you.”

And 300 years later, the events named in this prophecy played out, exact in all its detail.

The background to this dramatic outcry above (from an unknown prophet), is the story of King Jeroboam of Israel’s northern kingdom. This evil king had led the rebellion that split the kingdom of David. He then set up two places of worship for his people, because he was afraid that they would desert him and worship in Jerusalem. One of these places was at Beth El, and just as he was about to offer incense at the altar there, the prophet appeared and delivered the message from God that not only described what would happen but even named the one who would fulfil it!

We then find the righteous king Josiah 300 years later, on a mission to cleanse his land of idols and turning his nation back to God. He started breaking down the altars to the gods everywhere, and when he reached Beth El, he tore down the altar there and began beating its stones to dust, while also burning down the wooden images of the gods. He then ordered his men to collect the bones of the dead in the tombs he saw across on the mount and burn them on the altar, (just as he had done earlier to the altar that Solomon had built for various gods east of Jerusalem), in order to defile it.

He suddenly saw a monument, and on asking what it was, heard from the men of the city 2 Kings 23:17…“It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted the very things that you have just done to the altar at Bethel!”  Even though nobody that was present there had witnessed the prophecy being given, its remembrance had been kept alive by the people of Beth El!

Nobody had told Josiah of this prophecy, and he did not follow instructions to act in this particular way. He only did what he felt would destroy the idolatry from his nation and turn his people back to God. It is a clear demonstration of God predicting the future through one of His prophets, because He of course knows everything that will still happen in the future. His aim in revealing things to come before they come to pass, is to prove that He is God, and that He is reliable, and that nothing is impossible for Him. (John 13:19 “I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am.)

Pearls to ponder:

The number of fulfilled prophecies in the Bible amounts to hundreds, some even count to more than a thousand. This is proof of the reliability of the Bible, as no other book on earth can claim this; and it is proof also of the greatness of the God that we serve! Let us start looking at Bible prophecies that have not yet come to pass with great expectation - because surely, they will be fulfilled!

King Josiah

Worship in heaven

 

Hebrews 12:22-24

No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering. 23 You have come to the assembly of God’s firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect. 24 You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying out for vengeance like the blood of Abel.

We have to carefully consider the verb tense in the language that the writer of Hebrews is using here. It is written in present perfect tense, which means that he is connecting a past action to the present moment, describing actions that have started in the past, but are still ongoing. Think about that for a moment. The writer is telling us what is actually happening when we gather together as the body of Jesus Christ.

He is describing the room we are standing in - we are entering the heavenly assembly, joining the congregation already there. This is the court that God Himself has convened, and we are participating in a gathering that stretches across time and space, not just happening in a particular church meeting in a particular street in a particular town.

Mount Zion is the seat of God’s throne. The heavenly Jerusalem is the unseen counterpart to the city Jerusalem that we know here on earth. The angels joyfully gathering are His divine created beings in worship. The church of the firstborn is the assembly whose names are recorded in heaven’s books, the living and the departed together. God is the Judge of all. The spirits of the righteous made perfect are the saints who have died, who are therefore already present in the assembly. Jesus is our Mediator, Who stands enthroned in the midst of it all.

Evidence according to Jewish custom is only valid and accepted as truth if there are two or three witnesses to the event. God has provided us with these witnesses: Isaiah saw the same scene in chapter 6; Daniel saw it in chapter 7; John also in Revelation 4 and 5.

But somewhere along the way we have lost the wonder and awe of this reality. Angels became figures of speech; the spirits of the righteous and the heavenly Jerusalem became the content of funeral sermons. The unseen assembly became purely symbolic, mentioned in doctrinal debates but not preached in church gatherings.

Come on church, let us start impressing upon members that we are gathering under the torn veil, where access to heavenly places was bought by the precious blood of Jesus - whenever we gather, the unseen assembly is present. The departed saints are present (in heaven, not physically on earth with us). The angels are present. Christ is present as the enthroned Mediator. God is present as the Judge of all.

Think of the difference it would make to our worship if we understood this. That when we sing here on earth, we do not just sing the songs that were impressed on our anointed worship leaders’ hearts by the heavenly beings that are tasked for this – we get to join all who are in heaven in worship before God’s throne!

Pearls to ponder:

What would the effect of knowing that the church on earth and the church in heaven sing the same song, because they are in the same assembly, have on the way you participate in worship? Would your attitude to church gatherings shift if you used your imagination to step into the heavenly courts as you stepped into church?

God's throne room

Different functions

 

Rom 12:4

For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function…”

(An extract from an inspiring letter written by Steve Porter - posted with permission)

Beloved, the Body of Christ is beautiful when it is healthy. A healthy body is a wonder to behold. The heart beats faithfully in its hidden chamber. The lungs breathe without applause. The kidneys filter quietly. The eyes see. No organ competes with another. No member resents another. No part tries to become something it was never designed to be. Each part stays in its place… and because it does, life flows.

This is the mystery of the Church. When every believer begins to function in their God-given place, divine order emerges. But when members move out of alignment… weakness enters. When the kidney tries to become an eye, confusion follows. When the hand refuses to serve because it wants to be seen, the whole body is hindered.

Dear one, the same is true spiritually. God never intended one person to carry every assignment. He appoints callings. He gives burdens. He releases anointings. Some are called to heal. Some are called to teach. Some are called to pray. Some are called to evangelize. Some are called to shepherd. Some are called to strengthen hidden places no one sees.

Within the fivefold ministry we see this clearly. Eph 4:11“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers.”

Why? Because no single vessel carries the full expression. The apostolic may pioneer and establish. The prophetic may discern and awaken. The evangelist may gather the lost. The pastor may nurture and protect. The teacher may ground and mature. When all function together under Christ the Head, the Church grows in beauty and strength.

But when one tries to be everything… exhaustion comes. Now let me speak tenderly, beloved. Many precious saints carry sincere burdens. But something dangerous can happen. They may place their burden onto you. One says, “You need to start this.” Another says, “Why aren’t you doing this ministry?” Another says, “God showed me you should lead this.”

And if you are tenderhearted… if you love people… if you want to help… you may begin gathering burdens like stones in a sack. Soon you are juggling ten spinning plates. One plate is missions. One plate is outreach. One plate is events. One plate is counselling. One plate is everyone else’s emergency.

Then the crashing begins. Not because you are bad. But because you were carrying burdens you were never meant to carry. There are worthy burdens meant for another shoulder. But if you pick up every good thing, you may lay down the God thing. Be careful, dear one. Your devotional life can suffer. Your marriage can suffer. Your children can suffer. Your peace can suffer. Your focus can suffer. And eventually your soul can suffer.

When you move in your true assignment, grace flows. There is a holy ease—not laziness—but divine oil. What would crush another person becomes life-giving to you because it is your lane.

This is how many burn out. Not always from sin. Often from misalignment. Bloom where He planted you. Every ministry matters. Every calling matters. But no one person was meant to carry them all. We need each other.

Pearls to ponder:

Beloved, pause today and ask: What am I carrying that God never assigned me? What burden was transferred to me by sincere people? What good thing has stolen strength from the God thing? Let the Spirit speak. Return to simplicity. Return to your lane.

With Love,

Steve Porter

I lay it all down

God's accounting

 Daniel 5:5,25

Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. 25. “This is the inscription that was written: mene, mene, tekel, parsin

The background to the above verses is the great feast which Belshazzar, King of Babylon, gave to 1000 of his high-ranking officials. During the proceedings he commanded that the holy gold and silver vessels, which Nebuchadnezzar had stolen out of the Temple in Jerusalem, be brought out so that they could drink wine from them. As they did so, they praised the gods of gold and silver, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, but not the immortal, living God of Israel! Immediately the hand appeared….

The inscription on the wall is a brilliant play of words! The three root words (mene, tekel peres) are, if read on the surface, a list of weights or money – a mina; a shekel (tekel is the Aramaic form); and a peres, which is a half-mina.

So most probably, to all the wise Babylonian men who were first called to interpret the words, it might have looked like a meaningless list of currency, which is why they could not make head or tail of it. So how did Daniel understand what the words conveyed?

We find the most important reason in the words of the mother of the king written in verse 11 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. We know that Holy Spirit dwelt in Daniel. He prompted Daniel to take into account the fact that each of those weight-words were also the root of a verb word of judgement.

Mene sounds like menah, the verb “to number”.  Tekel sounds like teqal, the verb “to weigh”. Peres sounds like peras, the verb “to divide”.  This is what Daniel therefore laid out to the King:  God has numbered the days of your kingship and brought them to an end. You are weighed in the balances and are found wanting. Your kingdom and your kingship are divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.

But how did he know about the Medes and the Persians? Well, Peres (the dividing) also sounds like Paras, the Aramaic name for Persia. The very word that announces the kingdom’s division also names the people who will receive it.

This inscription has a divine double meaning, which only God could have brought about. On the surface, weights and coins. Underneath, a sentence of doom. The God Who numbers, weighs, and divides has done His accounting on Belshazzar’s reign, and the books have been closed!

Pearls to ponder:

It matters to God that a nation should glorify and praise Him, not just individuals in that nation. Daniel’s faith and faithfulness could not save Belshazzar’s kingdom. Ponder on how you can contribute to our nation turning around to serve the God of Israel. Perhaps you could organize prayer groups that specifically pray for the leaders of our nation to come to Christ. Perhaps you could use legal avenues to resist any and every godless decision Parliament makes or debates about. Perhaps you could get involved in politics as a Christian. Do you feel unqualified to bring about change in our nation? Remember that He qualifies the willing! Ask Holy Spirit to make avenues of action open to you.

He chooses the willing

Can I trust AI

 

2 Tim 2:15

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

I believe that the modern application of Paul’s advice to Timothy - to correctly handle the word of truth – has to do with the careful evaluating of what AI generates. It can produce content that sounds like religious truth, that appears well organized, fluent and even theologically skilful. But to what extent should we actually trust what is produced?

The large language models (LLM) that generative AI systems use to gather information from, are not Bible databases. These language models generate text by predicting the next word based on statistical patterns learned during training. What this means, is that it is increasingly not retrieving a verse from a Bible source, but chooses what seems to be a best-fit answer, based on statistical estimation – which really boils down to guessing what would fit here.

The Bible itself does not depend on guesswork; every verse is there with serious intent, rooted in thousands of years of accurate copying from original texts. But AI is drawing its answers from vast numbers of languages, quotations, paraphrases, commentaries, sermons, articles, blogs, etc. Who is to say which of these are simply misquotations from who knows where?

This is why everything coming out of the generative AI system must be evaluated, using the Bible itself, before it is preached or taught. An AI-answer may be mostly right but still be wrong in concepts that matter.

1 Thess 5:21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. is the way the church must handle AI in these times. We have to test the content of what we receive very carefully, using actual Bibles as references, and not rely on what we have heard or read somewhere else.

Anyone who addresses a congregation, (pastors/teachers/travelling ministers) especially should beware when they reach a point where they start using AI exclusively to write their sermons for them - and not using it just as a tool, maybe to improve language or organisation. AI can help with so many administrative things and if used correctly can be a very effective tool. But it cannot be used as the only source when dealing with sermon or teaching content, the Holy Spirit is the only One Who should be giving guidance on this!

Pearls to ponder:

Modern technology like cell phones, laptops, AI systems, etc. are all tools that can be used either for good, or with disastrous effects. Wisdom concerning this comes only from walking with the Holy Spirit and staying grounded in the Bible – both of which depends on whether we choose to make it happen. Are you prepared to choose to spend time with Holy Spirit and learn to recognize His voice, and to read your Bible diligently?

TRUTH

God's name is holy

 

Deut 5:11

“You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

The original word translated here as LORD, is called the Tetragrammaton (Greek for "four letters"), the four-letter Hebrew name of God, יהוה (transliterated as YHWH or YHVH). This is where the names Yahweh and Jehovah originated from.

Jewish people consider this Name of God so holy that they never pronounce it, in fact, the original pronunciation was deliberately erased so that no one would be able to misuse the power it represented. Instead, it is usually read as Adonai, meaning my Master. When the ancient manuscripts of the Old Testament were copied, the priests working on them would wash their hands every time they had to write YHWH, they were also strictly required to wipe their pens clean and recite a specific blessing before doing so. If a mistake was made when writing it, the whole page had to be copied over again. These faulty copies were then not destroyed or thrown into the trash – it was buried in a dedicated place to decompose naturally.

Jesus glorified the name of His Father in every facet of His life. When His disciples asked Him how to pray, the very first example He taught them was to sanctify the Father’s name (Matt 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “’Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,). It is interesting to note that Jesus also never used the Name casually. He instead referred to God as Father; the One Who sent Him; the Power; the Most High; the Lord of the Harvest; and many others.

How then are we to think about the use of God’s holy name as brand images? I recently became aware of soda cans bearing the name Yahweh and God; and His name is printed on all kinds of products from T-shirts to doormats (I am referring to His name here, not Scripture references). Supporters of the idea say that this serves as a conversation starter, a way to spread the Gospel. The question I ask is, do these objects really glorify His name? A soda can is casually thrown into the trash after use. So also do most T-shirts end up on the garbage dump. People wipe their muddy feet clean on doormats, literally stomping on the holy Name of God if it is printed there.

I am not suggesting that we build a superstition around the use of God’s Name, creating a distance between Him and us, but that we carefully consider how and where to use it in the most respectful and reverent way possible. Keep Deut 10:12 And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in your heart always.

Pearls to ponder:

How would it influence my spiritual life and my decisions if I approached the Name of God with utter reverence and respect and awe wherever I encounter it?

Holy is Your Name

God's promises

 

2 Sam 7:16

Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’

I used to think that the meticulous lists of genealogies written up in the Bible were so boring. Not anymore!

The above quote is God’s covenant with David. God promises here that there will aways be a King from David’s lineage to rule over Israel.

But history seems to indicate that the kings ruling over Israel came to an end. After David’s death, Solomon did indeed start reigning, and after him several other kings of Judah from his line. However, Nebuchadnezzar’s conquest of Jerusalem led to the dethronement of Zedekiah, and the exile in Babylon put an end to any king from the house of David ruling over Israel again.

The people in exile must have wondered, does this mean that God’s promises can be broken? God reassured them through Ezekiel, prophesying in exile, (Ez 34:23-24 I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken.) He foresaw a regathering of God’s people and a future Prince - a descendant of David - who would shepherd them.

This is why Matthew and Luke trace the lineage of Jesus so precisely, to show that both from Joseph and Mary’s side (even though Joseph was not his biological father), Jesus is a descendant from the house of David! It backs up what Luke 1:32-33 declares, “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end.” David’s line had come to an end politically, but the genealogical line continued.

There is even more. In 2 Sam 8:18 we read …David’s sons were priests. They could not, as coming from the royal line, be priests as well, as God had separated these two offices. But they were considered to be priests in the order of Melchizedek, serving in an intercessory role and not taking over the functional role (bringing offerings etc) that only belonged to the Levitical priests.

Jesus therefore inherited His role as King and as priest from David through royal succession as well. And because the lists of genealogies were so faithfully kept and published, no one can dispute His inheritance!

Pearls to ponder:

If God promises something, He will execute it, even though circumstances around us seem to indicate otherwise! Keep believing those promises, do not be lured into disbelief.

You keep Your promises

The Day of the Gift

 

1 Cor 1:22

it is He who has also put His seal on us [that is, He has appropriated us and certified us as His] and has given us the [Holy] Spirit in our hearts as a pledge [like a security deposit to guarantee the fulfilment of His promise of eternal life].

We recently celebrated Pentecost, the joyous celebration of the giving of Holy Spirit to the 120 believers waiting in the Upper Room in Jerusalem.

Many of us do not know that this was another way in which Jesus fulfilled a Jewish Feast, and that Jews throughout the centuries had faithfully been keeping this Feast without realizing what the spiritual meaning of their actions would eventually be.

Their Feast is called the Feast of Weeks or Feast of Pentecost, and begins when the Feast of Firstfruits (the actual day on which Jesus was resurrected, making Him the Firstfruit of us believers who will likewise be raised from the dead) is over, and Jews then start counting 50 days and celebrate the giving of the Law to Moses on that 50^th day (Pentecost means fifty).

And on this 50^th day centuries ago, God poured out His Spirit on His followers, writing the Law on their hearts!

There is another beautiful hidden meaning here. Jews also refer to this Feast as the Day of the Mattan, or the Day of the Gift. In their reference, the Law was a gift from God to them, but in ancient times the Mattan was the special gift from the bridegroom to the bride to encourage her in the days that they were still living apart while he was preparing a place for her. It was meant to be a sign of his love for her, the guarantee of his faithfulness to her, his pledge that the promises he made will be kept.

On this Day of the Gift, God gave the gift of the Spirit. The Spirit is the Mattan from the Bridegroom to His bride, His pledge that everything He has promised us will be fulfilled! We can be assured that even though He ascended to Heaven, He will never forget us, nor forsake us, nor leave us destitute – His Spirit dwells in us continually. His Mattan is the sign of His love for us, the down payment of things still to come.

Pearls to ponder:

Are you preparing for your Wedding Day with Jesus your Bridegroom? Practise living in the power of the Spirit, move in His flow and leading, so that you will be strong and beautiful and ready when that day arrives!

Wedding Day

Deception

 

Matthew 4:1

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Satan knew Who he was dealing with here. He knew that Jesus was his ultimate adversary, and therefore he decided to bring out his most effective weapons against Him, strategies that were proven to work successfully against mankind throughout the thousands of years before that day in the desert. At heart they all boil down to deception - to make men believe something that is not truth but certainly looks like it, a hidden lie. This he typically accomplishes through outright lies; omission; or distorting facts.

The first attempt was an appeal to the lust of the flesh. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” This was a hidden test for Jesus to use God’s gifts for selfish purposes to prove that He is the Son of God, ignoring God’s timing and will in all things. The deception lay in the fact that Satan did not ask Him to create wealth or precious things out of stones, something spectacular that would impress all who heard about it later and greatly enhance Jesus’s reputation- a suggestion that was so obviously deceitful that it would immediately be rejected by Jesus. Oh no. He suggested that Jesus create only that basic necessity which would satisfy the hunger pangs of a starving man, namely bread. Presuming that Jesus would see that this was a very legitimate action and only to His advantage. But Jesus deflected this test by quoting Deut 8:3 “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”, turning the whole bread trap against Satan himself by showing that the words from the mouth of God should be much more important to us than the bread we eat.

The second test was an appeal to the pride of life. Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “’He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” He was misusing a passage from Ps 91 here, omitting the words “to keep you in all your ways”. It distorts the meaning of the original which means that God will keep the righteous on their journey as they refrain from tempting God with needless and uncommissioned recklessness. Satan tried to trick Jesus into ‘forcing’ the Father’s hand to rescue Him with a supernatural event. He thought that this would bring about an attitude of pride in Jesus because this act would publicly show that the Father approved of Him. Jesus recognized this ploy as Satan trying to deceive Him into a spectacular act of self-promotion, to test God’s love for Him, as His answer shows: Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

The third test was an appeal to the lust of the eyes. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” This plays into what Jesus essentially came to do – to win all the nations back from Satan. Satan is offering them all to Jesus here, deceitfully only highlighting their splendour and hiding their sins, holding out a very enticing proposition. He offers Jesus a shortcut to what He wants to accomplish and asks only that that Jesus fall down and worship him in return. And Jesus, even while knowing about His coming crucifixion and the horrors He had to face, still resisted Satan and replied Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

Pearls to ponder:

Will Satan’s lies, omissions and distorting of facts deceive you? Will you be able to recognize that he is misquoting Scripture, or misrepresenting truth? The only way to discern these things is to read and meditate on your Bible faithfully, and to practise hearing the voice of Holy Spirit. Be a doer of God’s word, and not a listener only.

Temptations

God's unfailing love

 

Ps 103:17

But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—

We have all experienced a moment in our lives where we doubted that God could still love us – maybe after we had sinned against Him; or experienced a time where we felt that He was far removed from us; or even during a time where we were so focused on our own busy lives that we started ignoring our time with Him, and guilt set in.

The word for love used here in our verse above is Khesed – a rich Hebrew word in the Old Testament describing God's covenantal, loyal love, combining steadfast kindness, mercy, and devotion. It implies action-oriented, unconditional loyalty rather than mere emotion, often translated as "steadfast love" or "loving-kindness".

‘From everlasting to everlasting’ implies a faithfulness that few of us have experienced from people during our lifetime. But think about what this is also saying – His wonderful love for you is also from everlasting – this means that He loved you before you were even born. He has loved you for an eternity already, and will keep on loving you through all eternities ahead, and because He promised this for all who reverence Him, we can be absolutely sure that His loyal love for us will never cease, no matter what!

And this is why Paul can promise us in Rom 8:39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This does not mean that we will not go through some rough patches in our lives. We have His assurances that He will be with us through all the trials life may throw at us. Indeed, Paul names a few circumstances that we may be asked to face in Rom 8:35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? And the answer to this question is of course, NO, He always loves us!

Pearls to ponder:

Think about what this loyal everlasting love of God means in your life, and adjust your attitude about the difficult situations you are facing both now, and those in your past. Are you blaming God for them? Do you think that you are being punished for something, or that God has stopped caring for you, or that you are somehow not good enough for God to love you? Live humbly before your God, bask in His love and see how He lifts you up above your circumstances!

Unfailing Love

Feet for Danger

 

Habakkuk 3:19

The Lord GOD is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places.

Hinds are known for being highly agile and sure-footed, capable of navigating steep, craggy and dangerous mountain terrain. I recently watched videos of how they cross steep slopes, where there seems to be no secure footholds for anything to be able to jump or stand on – and yet they do! They can jump great distances over treacherous chasms and land on the other side on some ridiculously thin piece of rock – amazing to see!

They have a unique hoof structure to help them do this – two-toed hooves that can spread to provide a better grip on uneven and slippery surfaces. Also, when climbing, a hind places its back feet exactly where its front feet have just stepped, ensuring that the back feet land on stable footing already tested by the front feet.

This is the picture the prophet Habakkuk had in mind when he had to make the choice of how to react to the dire circumstances surrounding him then, and also facing him in the future. He lived in a society that was full of wickedness and injustice. Faced with this ever-increasing corruption, he started doubting that God was hearing his pleas for help. God answered the prophet and said that He was not passive in this situation, He was going to use the Chaldeans to judge Judah.

Habakkuk than presumed to question God on His decision to use such a wicked nation as an instrument of discipline. God reminded him that He controls the destiny of nations, and that He would in the future greatly punish the Babylonians for their arrogance and greed against Judah.

The prophet knew that the coming invasion of the Chaldeans would lead to utter desolation and famine, and this was the moment when he made his choice on how to react. He modelled for us how we are to manage the three things that we can control when circumstances around us turn hostile:

1.      Who we trust – Habakkuk chose to trust God unconditionally, and this choice initially caused him great anxiety.

2.      Our perspective - He chose to believe that God knows best, and his subsequent decision to wait patiently for things to develop, filled him with great peace.

3.      What we do – Habakkuk chose to write a psalm, which is recorded in chapter 3. It is set to wild, enthusiastic and triumphal music – he is rejoicing in Who his God is, in what He has done in the past, and in the fact that the future will lead to redemption!

Which brought him to the image of a hind, and the feet that it has. We cannot control our circumstances which are ever-changing and give us no stability, just as the deer cannot control the terrain that it has to speed over when running from its enemies. But when we joyfully put our complete trust in the Lord our Master and Covenant God (the meaning of the names Adonai and Yahwe which Habakkuk used) – we develop hinds’ feet, specialized to keep us safe from slipping or falling on high places.

Pearls to ponder:

The song that Habakkuk wrote was a way for him to remind himself that he had decided to put his unwavering trust in the Lord his God. Sing his song every time you feel uncertain or fearful of the future, to remind yourself also!

The God of my salvation

The mystery that is Israel

 

Gen 15:18

On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates—

There it is. Clear and precise. God’s promise to Abram that the physical land which today is known as Israel, is only a small piece of the greater landmass that God actually gave to Abram’s descendants, forever. And no, this does not include his offspring through Keturah (Gen 21:12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.) His descendants through Isaac are the people we know today as the Jews.

The country Israel makes the whole world feel uneasy and unsettled, and when people are asked why this is so, they will generally mention, politics, war, settlements, borders. But the truth goes much deeper - it lies not in what Israel does, but in what Israel is.

Israel is roughly the same size as the Kruger National Park; has no oil like many of its near neighbours; has a population barely even the same number of citizens living in some cities in the rest of the world. They are surrounded by bitter enemies; hated in the United Nations; boycotted; slandered; and attacked both physically and verbally. And still, they thrive! In technology; in security; in agriculture; in intelligence; in morality; in medicine; in military – the list is endless. They took a land that existed mostly of swamps and desert and turned it into fertile farmland. They have survived wars that should have wiped them out, and not only survived them, but won.

The world witnessed all these things since ages past and cannot understand any of it. The people of Israel were supposed to disappear a long time ago, as always happened with exiled, enslaved and hated minorities throughout the centuries. But against all odds they returned, revived their language and rebuilt their land.

Israel in the natural does not make any sense. How do you explain a people who had to endure the Babylonians, the Romans, the Crusaders, the Inquisition, the pogroms and the Holocaust, and yet are still showing up to work on Monday mornings in Jerusalem?

And what drives the world crazy is the knowing that if this maligned nation is somehow still chosen and protected by God and even thriving – then maybe God is not a myth after all. Maybe Israel is the testimony He chose them to be. Maybe their survival is divine. And this is what they are raging against – it is much easier to slander and ridicule Israel than to admit that God is real and keeps His promises!

Pearls to ponder:

One day, nations will be judged on how they treated Israel (Matt 25:32-46). Are you fervently standing in the gap and repenting on behalf of our leaders who are taking action against Israel and the Jewish people?

Israel - Land of Promise

A prophetic worm

 

Ps 22:6

But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

When Jesus was nearing His death on the cross, He uttered these words:

Matth 27: 46  About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

He was quoting directly from the first verse of Ps 22, validating the fact that it is a prophetic Psalm describing the agony that He had to endure there. What He experienced then was so dark and complex and extreme, it must have been beyond any emotional comprehension for someone who had already suffered the physical and mental torture that He had had to go through. For not only did He have to experience the withdrawal of His Father’s loving presence, but He also had to face God’s wrath being poured out on Him as He took our sin upon Himself.

In our quoted verse above, David refers to a worm. The word used is “tola”, or scarlet worm, and it is from these worms that the scarlet dye that they used to colour the Temple curtains, was made. We can easily see the symbolism of the sacrifices and spilled blood that was necessary for the Israelites to meet with their God here.

But there is much more. The lifecycle of the tola worm hides an incredible story – the story of our redemption! When the mature worm is ready to give birth, it climbs a tree, attaches itself to the bark and makes a cocoon for itself. After the baby worms hatch, they start feeding on the living mother for three days. The mother then dies, turns into a waxy white shell which falls to the ground, leaving a scarlet stain on the tree.

As David prophetically calls himself that particular worm, we can see Jesus being nailed to the wood; giving up His life so that we may be born again; dying in our place so that we can be seen as whiter than snow – sinless - before Abba; and His blood leaving a scarlet stain on the cross.

We can but stand in awe of the way in which God built the prophetic signs of His plan of redemption into nature itself!

Pearls to ponder:

We need to learn how to see and not just look; how to listen and not just hear. It is only then that these incredible pearls will be revealed to us. God sustains life on earth through a finely tuned interconnected set of complex systems. Choose an activity that will expose you to them, e.g. take a walk; visit the zoo; read a travel or nature magazine; do a Google image search for something basic like flower or mountain; look up intricate maths formulas that are inherent in nature. And fall down in worship before Elohim, our great Creator God that invites us to call Him Father!

The Beauty of God

The redemption price of the firstborn

 

Numbers 3:46-48

There are 273 more firstborn sons of Israel than there are Levites. To redeem these extra firstborn sons, collect five pieces of silver for each of them (each piece weighing the same as the sanctuary shekel, which equals twenty gerahs). Give the silver to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for the extra firstborn sons.”

According to the instructions the Lord gave Moses at Sinai, the firstborn of the womb of both animals and humans were considered holy and belonging to the Lord. Firstborn lambs specifically were to be offered as sacrifices; and the firstborn sons of Israel were to belong to the Temple and assume priesthood. Remember this, it becomes important later.

The Lord then said to Moses that He would claim the Levites as a substitute for the firstborn males of Israel, in other words take them to minister to Him instead of the firstborn males. When the two groups were counted, they found that there were 273 more firstborn sons than there were Levites. These extra firstborn sons were assigned a value in money (five pieces of silver each) and this money (to redeem them) was paid to Aaron and his sons. They were then free of the obligation to become priests. The total amount of that first redemption of sons came to 1 365 shekels – a number I will refer to later.

This practice continued throughout the years, with fathers of all firstborn sons paying a redemption price of five silver coins to the priests of the temple, to free their sons from mandatory priesthood.  

Now fast forward to the time of Jesus, and the priests of the Temple plotting his death. They were going to use the silver coins from that very Temple treasury into which all the redemption silver coins were paid over all these years, and with these coins purchase a human life back – the life of the firstborn of Joseph and Mary, Jesus the Firstborn of God. Giving these coins to Judas means the redemption fee is returned, and this means that the Son now assumes the role of priest. But more than that, as the Lamb of God He now has to be sacrificed! (Acknowledging Jonathan Cahn)

That number I referred to earlier – the number of years from when the first redemption of firstborn males occurred until the birth of Messiah, was 1365 years! He was the fulfilment of the redemption!

Pearls to ponder:

Jesus is our Redeemer. He paid the full purchase price for you – freeing you from the power of sin and death, freeing you from all religious obligations. Live in gratitude as someone that is free indeed!

Forgiven

Missing evidence

 

Matthew 26:59-61

Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. 60 But even though they found many who agreed to give false witness, they could not use anyone’s testimony. Finally, two men came forward 61 who declared, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

The Sanhedrin, the highest court of law who decided on internal legal and religious affairs for the Jews during Jesus’ time, faced a dilemma. They desperately wanted to get rid of Jesus, but they could not for the life of them find the necessary witness agreement to be able to make a case against Him. They were bound by law to heed God’s instruction in Deut 17:6 On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness., and this turned out to be a monumental problem – even though there were many men who were very willing to come and testify before them, no two persons’ testimonies agreed with one another. This is not surprising as they were all lying, so their stories did not reflect the truth and therefore could not match up.

Until at last they found two men saying the same thing, and this must have made quite an impression because Mark also recorded it in his gospel (Mark 14:58). I find it very interesting that this particular piece of evidence would grab the Sanhedrin’s attention, because it was so relevant to what was about to happen! The men quoted Jesus as saying that if they destroyed the temple, He would rebuild it in three days.

Which is the explanation of what happened a few days later – Jesus rose after three days in the tomb, His body being the true temple of God where God resides and meets humanity.

This saying of Jesus must have been well known and remembered among the Jews of the time, because we see in Matthew 27:40 that people passing by Jesus on the cross jeered at Him, saying “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!”

This knowledge, in conjunction with all the supernatural signs happening around the crucifixion, leads me to conclude that many scholars and rabbis of the time - men of great learning, schooled and experienced in linking spiritual facts from different sources together - must have come to the realisation that Jesus truly was the Messiah, and that everything He had said must be true.

Pearls to ponder:

If you had been one of those rabbis who started understanding that Jesus is Who He said He was, what would you have done? Would you have kept this secret like the majority of them did, because proclaiming the truth would adversely affect your status in the community, as you would certainly be ostracized, ridiculed, and lose everything you had worked so hard to achieve? What about your own faith - can you stand up and boldly proclaim Jesus as the Truth, even though your family and friends will ridicule you?

Confidence

Self-sacrificing stars

 

Dan 12:3

Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.

Daniel compares believers in the end-times to stars, shining brightly in the very dark world which will then surround them. Paul and Timothy do the same in Phil 2:15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky. Even in Revelation, John sees Jesus holding seven stars in His hand, and He explains to him in Rev 1:20 This is the meaning of the mystery of the seven stars you saw in my right hand and the seven gold lampstands: The seven stars are the angels (messengers of God, i.e. pastors/leaders) of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Who of us have not been fascinated when looking up at the night sky and seeing those millions of stars flickering there! Few of us realize how they get to shine. Deep inside the star, temperatures and pressures are so high that hydrogen atoms collide and fuse, releasing energy. The energy produced in the core travels outward through the star's layers, eventually emerging as heat and light. The problem is that hydrogen can be depleted, and stars may then burn heavier elements to keep shining, but as these are also used up, the star will eventually die. A star therefore lives by giving of itself until there is nothing left to give - a self-sacrificial life indeed!

We recently celebrated Purim, and in that narrative we find a perfect example of a self-sacrificing star. Hadassah was the orphan girl who was chosen to be the Queen of Persia. Hadassah is the Hebrew word for myrtle, and the flowers of the myrtle tree look like stars. She changed her name to Esther when she was taken into the King’s harem, and Esther means Star!

But it was only when she decided to sacrifice her own life to save her people that she became the star she was born to be.

The implication for us as end-time believers is clear - in order to live and shine as heavenly lights, we will have to become living sacrifices, existing only to do the will of our heavenly Father.

Pearls to ponder:

If we live to selfishly keep our lives, we will dwell in darkness. But if we live to give our lives to others, we will become lights that shine in that darkness – like the stars! So, choose each day to live as a living sacrifice, to die to self and follow God only. When God instructs us to do something, let us imitate Esther and say, “If I perish, I perish, but this I have to do!” Mordechai’s words echo down through the centuries, giving us hope and clarity: You were born for such a time as this. God planned for you to live at this exact time in history – you will not fail!

Born for this