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Genesis 7:1-24 Lord, we thank You for Jesus - There is no-one like Him. What a great Saviour He is! He does for us something that we could never – ever – do for ourselves. He forgives our sins – and He forgets them! The forgiveness of all our sins - What a great blessing this is! We read the words, “I will remember their sins no more” – and we think to ourselves, “How wonderful is this?” We think of Jesus. We think of all that He has done for us. He was crucified for us. He has risen for us. Our sins have been forgiven – and forgotten. Can we even begin to understand this? Do we need to understand all of this? We do not understand it all. How can we possibly understand all that You have done for us?    “Jesus Christ, we greet You! … risen from the grave … You have come: not to answer our questions, but to show us Your face” ( Common Order , Prayer for Easter). Thank You, Lord, for Jesus – Your Son, our Saviour. Thank You for His love – Love is shining ...

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew (from above), he cannot see the Kingdom of God” ( John 3:3 ). (1) The absolute need of the new birth – because of sin ( Romans 3:23 ); (2) The Gospel basis for the new birth is the death of Christ for us ( Titus 3:3-7 ). (3) The indispensable condition for the new birth is personal faith in Christ ( John 1:12-13 ). (4) The spiritual character of the new birth – by the Spirit through the Word ( 1 Peter 1:23-25 ); (5) The spiritual benefits of the new birth:      (a) a child of God ( Galatians 4:4-6 );      (b) a new creation ( 2 Corinthians 5:17 );      (c) partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1;3-4);      (d) sharing in Christ’s victory ( 1 John 5:4-5 );      (e) eternal life ( 1 John 5:11-12 ).

Genesis 9:20-29     Lord, we need Your strength. Without Your strength, we fall. Without Your strength, we fail. With Your strength, everything changes. You lead us from our defeat into Your victory. Help us, Lord, to trust You. In ourselves, we are weak. In You, we are strong. Where does this strength come from? – It comes from this: Jesus has risen – and He lives in us! “Resurrect in our lives faith, hope, and love, as surely as You raised Jesus Christ from the grave” ( Common Order , Prayer for Easter).

Before we move on to Jesus' resurrection and His return to heaven, we must turn our thoughts to His death and His burial. The world doesn't want to hear about death, but this is something about which we must speak. There is no Gospel, if we stop short of Jesus' death, if we speak only of Jesus, the teacher and example. We cannot rush on to His resurrection - a message of joy - without speaking of His death. Resurrection has no meaning without death. The reality of Jesus' death is underlined in the description of His burial - "the body of Jesus ... Jesus was dead ... the corpse ... the body" (Mark 15:43-46). Jesus' experience of death was more than physical suffering. There was the suffering of the judgment of God upon our sin, as it was laid on Jesus - "My God, my God, why have You abandoned Me?" (Mark 15:34). The answer to this question is "reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:21). As we read about God forsaking Jesus - because our sin wa...

Isaiah speaks words of prophecy concerning Jesus Christ, the “Rock of our salvation”, the “precious Cornerstone”, the “solid Foundation” (Isaiah 28:16). Jesus Christ gives us the blessings of God’s salvation – “the deaf will hear the words, written in the book. The blind will see out of their gloom and darkness. Humble people again will find joy in the Lord” (Isaiah 29:18-19). With the Gospel proclamation – in Christ, there is full salvation – comes an appeal to come to Him and receive the blessings, promised to us by the God of love: “This is what the Almighty Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says, You can be saved by returning to Me. You can have rest. You can be strong by being quiet and by trusting Me” (Isaiah 30:15). The Lord is looking for our response. He longs to pour out His blessing on those who put their trust in Him: “The Lord is waiting to be kind to you. He rises to have compassion on you. The Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait for Him” (...

Love, given by God, is not returned by His people. “When Israel was a child, I loved him” (Hosea 11:1), “The more  I called them, the further they went away” (Hosea 11:2). “I was one who taught the people of Ephraim to walk. I took them by the hand” - This is the love of God, “But they didn’t realize that I had healed them” (Hosea 11:3) - This is the ingratitude of God’s people. “I led them with cords of human kindness, with ropes of love” (Hosea 11:4) - Again, we see the love of God. “They have refused to return to Me” (Hosea 11:5) - Again, we see the people of God, turning away from the God of their salvation. How deep is their rebellion against God - “My people are determined to turn away from Me” (Hosea 11:7). How deep is His continuing love for them - “How can I give you up, Ephraim?” (Hosea 11:8). What a great contrast there is between God and man: “I am God, not a human” (Hosea 11:9). He is so much greater than we are. His love is so much greater than our sin....

In Psalms 41-43, we see the Psalmist encountering great difficulties. He is not, however, overwhelmed by his problems. Each of these Psalms ends on the triumphant note of praise: “Thank the Lord God of Israel through all eternity!” (Psalm 41:13); “Put your hope in God, because I will still praise Him. He is my Saviour and my God” (Psalm 42:11; Psalm 43:5).