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Leviticus 15:1-16:34  Each of us is unclean before God. Each of us needs Christ, who has given Himself as "a sin offering" to "make atonement" for us (Leviticus 16:16). Christ is the perfect Saviour, who "bears all our iniquities" (Leviticus 16:22). Concerning His great sacrifice for us, the Word of God says, "On this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean before the Lord" (Leviticus 16:30).

Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” This is our only starting-point. We begin with the eternal God. Before there was creation, there is God. There is nothing beyond God. He is the Beginning. Genesis 1:2 - “darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of face of the waters.” Before the Spirit of God has done his powerful work in our hearts, we remain in darkness. We can do nothing about this. The light does not come from ourselves. It comes from the Lord. Genesis 1:3 - “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.” This is the mighty work of God. Through His amazing grace, He brings us out of His darkness and into His light. Genesis 1:4 - “the light was good” What a wonderful blessing it is when the light of the Lord shines in our hearts.

“The Lord’s glory rose from the angels” (Ezekiel 10:4); “The Spirit lifted me” (Ezekiel 11:1 - These prophecies of Ezekiel bring us into the presence of God. “The sound of the Almighty God when He speaks” (Ezekiel 10:5); “The Lord’s Spirit came to me and told me to say” (Ezekiel 11:5) - When we are in the Lord’s presence, He speaks His Word to us. He speaks to us, so that we might speak for Him. “The Spirit lifted me up” (Ezekiel 11:24); “The Lord spoke His Word to me” (Ezekiel 12:1) - The Word and the Spirit belong together. The Spirit inspires the Word. The Word expresses the mind of the Spirit. “This is the divine revelation” (Ezekiel 12:10); “This is what the Almighty Lord says, Everything that I say will no longer be delayed. Whatever I say will happen, declares the Almighty Lord” (Ezekiel 12:28). Through His Word and His Spirit, the Almighty Lord is leading us on to His future. He is lifting us up to glory - His heavenly and eternal glory.

We already know about Judas - what he was planning to do. Of the other eleven disciples, Peter wasn't the only one who failed the Lord - "All the other disciples said the same thing as Peter" (Mark 14:31), and, like Peter, they let the Lord down. They kept well out of the way, making sure that they were not associated with Jesus. We see the same kind of thing in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus spoke to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping? ... " (Mark 14:37-38), but it wasn't only Peter who was sleeping (Mark 13:37). Even after Jesus had said to them, "Stay awake ... ", they fell "asleep" (Mark 14:40). To each of us, Jesus says, "Stay awake, and pray that you won't be tempted" (Mark 14:38). Jesus was betrayed by Judas. He was denied by Peter. Could Judas have been restored? From God's point of view, the answer is "Yes." The love of God was there - even for Judas. From Judas' point of view, the answer was ...

“As the waters cover the sea” – These words come from the Old Testament prophets, Isaiah and Habakkuk. Isaiah says this: “The earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (11:9). Habakkuk adds something else. He speaks about being “filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord” (2:14). It’s wonderful to look out over “the waters that cover the sea.” There’s something more wonderful than “the waters that cover the sea.” It’s the glory of the Lord. When you look out at the waters covering the sea, ask the Lord to give you a glimpse of His glory. Where does the glory of the Lord come from? Does it come from “the waters that cover the sea”? No! That’s not where it comes from. Many people look out – and they see nothing but water! The glory comes from the Lord. It comes to us when we look to Him. Beyond “the waters that cover the sea”, there is the Lord who created “the waters that cover the sea.” He created us. He wants to make us “a new ...

In true ministry, there is both the Word of God and the Spirit of God. God’s Word is spoken to us in the power of the Spirit, so that we might speak His Word in the power of the Spirit (Ezekiel 2:1-4). Ezekiel is described as “a watchman over the people of Israel.” He was to speak the word of warning (Ezekiel 3:17). This is the kind of preaching which calls its hearers back from the wages of sin - death. The hearers are called to “change their wicked ways in order to save their lives” (Ezekiel 3:18).

2 Thessalonians 1:1-2:12 Lord, we thank You that Your Son, Jesus, is coming again. For “all those who have believed”, “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” will be a great Day, the Day of celebration, the Day of our salvation, the Day of “our being gathered together in Him” (2 Thessalonians 2:1 & 1:10). It will also be a Day of judgment for “those who do not know God and do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus” (2 Thessalonians 1:7-8). You speak to us about the future – about salvation and judgment. You’re inviting us to have a heart-to-heart talk with You. From Your heart, You speak to us of Your love for us – and “Your desire for us to be saved” (John 3:17 & 2 Peter 3:9). Help us to say, from our hearts, “Yes, Lord. I believe in the Lord Jesus. I trust in Your promise – ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved'” (Acts 16:31). 2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:18 “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in all ways” (2 Thessalon...

Solomon was a wise man. His wisdom came from God: “He possessed wisdom from God”, “God gave Solomon wisdom” (1 Kings 3:28; 1 Kings 4:29). The work done by the king required wisdom. The gift of wisdom is to be received with praise to God: “May the Lord be praised today: He has given David a wise son to rule this great nation” (1 Kings 5:7). God gave wisdom for spiritual leadership - building the Lord’s Temple (1 Kings 6:1,37-38). God gives wisdom to us as we gather together in His House to hear His Word (1 Kings 6:19). We are not only to hear His Word. We are to do His work (1 Kings 7:51). For His work, God gives us His wisdom - holy wisdom.

Following the death of the evil king, Ahab, things changed. The new king, Jehoshaphat, was a different kind of man - “Jehoshaphat did what the Lord considered right” (1 Kings 22:43). Sadly, things took a turn for the worse after Jehoshaphat died: “Ahaziah ... Did what the Lord considered evil .... Ahaziah served Baal, worshipped him, and made the Lord God of Israel furious ...” (1 Kings 22:51-53). In all the changing circumstances of our lives, we must remember that the Lord is King. We are not to put our trust in kings. There are good kings. There are bad kings. There is only one true King. There is only One who is King over all. The Lord is the King of kings. This is the thought which we must take with us as we move on from 1 Kings to 2 Kings. The Lord is King. No human king can even begin to compare with the Lord, who is King over all.

Our concern is not so much with Abraham. Our chief focus of attention is on “the God of Abraham.” The story of Abraham is both the story of Abraham and the story of God’s grace and power. We see the grace of God, revealed in the promises of God. We see the power of God, revealed in the fulfilment of His promises: “God can do anything; God can do anything; God can do anything but fail; He can save. He can keep. He can cleanse, and He will. God can do anything but fail.” God’s promise to Abraham has three parts: (a) personal – “I will bless you; (b) national – “I will make of you a great nation”; (c) universal – “by you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” As the fulfilment of God’s promise moves forward from Abraham to Israel to Christ, we hear God’s Word speaking to us: “I will bless you” – saved, kept, cleansed. As we receive the blessing of God’s salvation, we discover how faithful God is, in His love towards us. “God can do anything but fail” – God cann...

In 1 Kings 10, we read about Solomon’s wealth. In 1 Kings 11, we read about his weakness - women. There is sadness about Solomon’s reign - “He was no longer committed to the Lord his God as his father David had been... He did not wholeheartedly follow the Lord as his father David had done” (1 Kings 11:4,6). Solomon’s sin led to God’s judgment: “So the Lord grew angry with Solomon because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel” (1 Kings 11:9).

Life is full of ups and downs. Sometimes, we’re up on the mountaintop. Sometimes, we’re down in the valley. This is life as we know it. Is it life as God wants it to be? To ask the question is to give the answer! We may face difficult circumstances – but God is there with us! He gives us the strength to rise above our circumstances: “The Lord is the everlasting God … He strengthens those who are weak and tired” (Isaiah 40:28-29). When we’re feeling low, God is there to raise us up. He reminds us of the great things He has done for us. He takes us back to the cross of Jesus. He takes us back to the empty tomb. He assures of His love. We may have stopped loving Him. He never stops loving us. We’ve failed Him so often. He has never failed us – and He never will! Sometimes, we seem to be almost overwhelmed by our own sadness and weakness. When we feel like this, there is something we must never forget: “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). The joy is t...

Speaking through the prophet Ezekiel, God uses very colourful sexual imagery to describe Israel’s relationship with Himself and her revolt against Him. The last word, in Ezekiel 16, is not, however, a word concerning the rebellion of Israel against the Lord. It is the message of redemption - the forgiveness of sins (Ezekiel 16:63).

"Hosanna!" (Mark 11:9-10) - This was a day of celebration, but the celebration didn't last long. The cursing of the fig tree (Mark 11:12-14,20-21) and the throwing out of the moneychangers (Mark 11:15-17) showed people that Jesus was different from what they wanted Him to be. We can't say, "This is what we want Jesus to be." We must let Him be who He is. "What gives you the right to do these things?" (Mark 11:26). Jesus has authority because of who He is. We recognize Him as the Son of God, and we live out this faith by submitting to Him as Lord of our lives.

“Behold, this alone I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought many devices” (Ecclesiastes 7:29). * Following the glory and majesty of the Creator and His creation in Genesis 1 & 2, the third chapter of Genesis begins with the enemy of God, the enemy of our souls, the devil, Satan (Revelation 12:9; Revelation 20:2). He is “subtle” – sly, cunning, crafty. He is evil.He sows seeds of doubt: “Did God say?” (Genesis 3:1). From his very first words, it is clear that he is the enemy of God. “Did God say? Did God really say?” One can almost hear the wicked, unbelieving tone of voice with which Satan spoke. * When the woman heard the voice of Satan, she ought to have turned away from him. She ought to have said, “Get behind me, Satan. I don’t want to have anything to do with you.” She ought to have said this, but she didn’t. She discussed the matter with the enemy. She had no right to do this. There was one answer she ought to have given to the devil: God has...

Psalm 1 The first Psalm speaks to us about two ways of living – the Lord’s way and the world’s way. Each of us must choose. When we choose God’s way, His blessing fills our lives. We must not turn away from Him, and lose out on His blessing. May God help us to keep on walking with Him, and to enjoy His blessing on our lives.

We look back to the past. We say, “That was then. That’s old.” We live in the present. We say, “This is now. This is new.” We shouldn’t be too quick to dismiss the past. Jesus Christ belongs to the past. He also speaks to us in the present. He is preparing us for God’s eternal future.     We read the Story of Jesus. We rejoice in His love. We say, “The old, old story – It is ever new. The old, old story – Praise the Lord! It’s true!” It’s true! That’s why it’s still God’s “new song.” There will always be people who refuse to trust in Jesus Christ as Saviour. Will they silence us? Will we fail our Lord because we’re afraid of what people will say about us? Let’s be like Paul. Let’s defy our critics. Let’s keep on saying, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).  Jesus is calling us on to His future. He's not merely a figure from the past. He is “Jesus Christ, risen fro...

“The Lord’s glory rose from the angels” (Ezekiel 10:4); “The Spirit lifted me” (Ezekiel 11:1 - These prophecies of Ezekiel bring us into the presence of God. “the sound of the Almighty God when He speaks” (Ezekiel 10:5); “The Lord’s Spirit came to me and told me to say” (Ezekiel 11:5) - When we are in the Lord’s presence, He speaks His Word to us. He speaks to us, so that we might speak for Him. “The Spirit lifted me up” (Ezekiel 11:24); “The Lord spoke His Word to me” (Ezekiel 12:1) - The Word and the Spirit belong together. The Spirit inspires the Word. The Word expresses the mind of the Spirit. “This is the divine revelation” (Ezekiel 12:10); “This is what the Almighty Lord says, Everything that I say will no longer be delayed. Whatever I say will happen, declares the Almighty Lord” (Ezekiel 12:28). Through His Word and His Spirit, the Almighty Lord is leading us on to His future. He is lifting us up to glory - His heavenly and eternal glory. “Listen to the Word of t...

Where do we see Jesus – and hear Him speaking to us? Does this only happen when we’re at Church or when we’re reading the Bible? Come to Church, read your Bible – and look for Jesus everywhere you go. He’ll give you glimpses of His love! “Open our eyes, Lord, We want to see Jesus … Open our ears, Lord, And help us to listen” (Songs of Fellowship”, 443). Let us celebrate the love of Jesus. May our hearts be filled with His love.

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 ...