This coming Saturday (May 6^th 2023) we will crowning the sovereign of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, King Charles the Third, and during the service the will be asked to pay homage to him. On reflecting on this occasion I am reminded of the fact that there is a Heavenly Kingdom out of which this earthly Kingdom and the universe was created by God and that Jesus is at the right hand of his Father God and bears many crowns as King of Kings over all the earth. One day this earthly kingdom will be completely subsumed and transformed by this heavenly kingdom where the earth and heaven become one, with Jesus undeniably the King.

Christians recognise that Jesus is the Christ – the King promised in the pages of the Old Testament who will re-establish God’s kingdom on earth, ensuring that God’s will is once more done ‘on earth as it is in heaven’Isa.11: 1-9 . Right at the beginning of his ministry, he went through Galilee proclaiming that “The kingdom of God is at hand” Mark 1:15. And by the time his ministry ends his disciples have reached the conclusion that Jesus is himself the king to which that kingdom belongs.And this is why we are taught by Jesus to pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”Matthew 6:10 The central message of Jesus is the coming of God’s kingdom.

The kingdom of God is already with us in the hearts in those who love our King Jesus. We bow before his majesty for he is a King like no other. He does not Lord it over us but exercises his rule by serving us; whose kingdom is about justice and unity, where greatness is found in true humility. “I tell you the truth,” he says, “whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” Mark 10:15. His is a kingdom of love where in obedience to to his Father in heaven King Jesus voluntarily laid down his life to restore us wayward citizens into a righteous relationship with God our heavenly Father. And perhaps most extraordinarily of all, this is a kingdom whose law is optional. There can be no reluctant citizens of this kingdom. One of the great gifts this King bestows on us is freewill. But that freewill is best exercised when we choose Jesus as our King, because to do so is to choose goodness, humility, peace, justice and truth and a ticket into God’s kingdom for eternity– the very things our souls need the most.

Of course, giving people choice means that many will choose other paths and at times those paths may be in the ascendant. God’s kingdom may at times seem fragile, limp, impotent, but in fact with Jesus as King it is far more powerful than any force in this world. Ultimately selfishness will self-destruct and implode. Anger and violence will burn itself out.Those who live by the sword will die by the sword. Those kill the body cannot harm the soul. If a soul chooses the way of truth and light, peace and justice, humility and love, nothing can extinguish it. When the hatreds of human beings have burned themselves out, faith hope and love will be seen to endure. In the end, God’s kingdom triumphs. And even in the whirlwind of battle, and we are in the heat of battle right now, God’s kingdom triumphs, for these are the things, faith, hope and love, that make life worth living, more than all the gold and passing power or fame this world can offer.

To pray “thy kingdom come” is to long for a different world, a better world; to long for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven; to long for a world where the meek are honoured as the great ones, where quiet humility is listened to reverently, where wisdom is valued, where the mourning are comforted and where the poor are rich. But it is also to long for hearts to be reconciled to God and to choose God’s will, not out of obligation, or fear, or grudging duty, but out of love and out of freewill. For that is what sets our souls free and enables God’s eternal life to come alive in us. To pray for justice and peace requires hearts to be re-made and minds to be re-oriented back to God. And that is why praying “thy kingdom come” requires us to pray both for peace and justice on earth and for our friends and neighbours to know and love Christ, for it is all part of the same kingdom movement by which human souls choose the life of our servant king. And if we pray that for our world and for our neighbour, then to pray “thy Kingdom come” is also to invite God into our hearts; to deal with our pride; to give us compassion; to grow a passion for justice; and to cultivate, deep in our souls, those three eternal things: faith, hope and love.

So as we are asked to pay homage to king Charles, let us pay homage to his Majesty King Jesus who rules over all that is in heaven, earth and the universe.

His kingdom come, his will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

This is a familiar phrase which many of us will know as part of the Lord’s Prayer.

Forgiveness is a key part of Jesus’s teaching. It is included in the prayer he taught us to pray.

Forgiveness is a very important aspect of leading a healthy spirit filled life. It is mentioned 56 times in the NewTestament and 68 times in the Old.

This weekend we are remembering Jesus’s suffering and his excrutiatingly painful death on the cross. Yet as he hung there he was able to say “Father forgive them for they no not what they do” indeed he shed his blood for the forgiveness of all of our sins.

But what does it mean to forgive? A definition of forgiveness could be- giving up the right to get our own back on the one who has hurt us. To wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt. Forgiveness is a choice to keep no record of wrongs.

Forgiveness is the key to God’s blessing. Forgiveness and repentance open up our hearts to allow the river of God to flow freely in us and overflow into those around us.

1.Forgiving Others.

Many people can live a life of unwellness because they are not able to forgive those who have hurt them. They say things like, “He doesn’t deserve to be forgiven,” or “I can’t forgive him. You don’t know what he did to me.” It’s true, we may not know the full horror of what has been done to them, and from a purely human perspective the perpetrator doesn’t deserve to be forgiven. But neither do we deserve to be forgiven. And yet God in His love forgives us; and it cost Him the life of His Son. We sent him to the cross and yet he was able to say, “forgive them [and that includes you and I] for they no not what they do.” So forgiveness and love go hand in hand together.

When we don’t forgive those who have hurt us we may become full of bitterness and resentment over what has been done to us. These things spoil our lives and may cause disease. Some people deliberately choose to hang on to resentment and bitterness. But all the time they do so, they are in torment and can become physically and mentally sick.

When we say, “I hate so and so and never want to see him again; he deserves what he gets.” we are making a judgement that is rooted in that bitterness and we are stepping back into spiritual legality that has the power to demand justice and payment for our own sins as well. Surely it is far better to show mercy rather than demand justice. Lord, let mercy triumph over judgement. In combination with God’s love for you and I and those who have hurt us, mercy becomes easy to give. In his agony Jesus was still able to reach out and show mercy and by implication forgiveness to the thief on the cross.

In Ephes.4:31-32, Paul instructs us to get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander along with every form of unforgiveness and unkindness(v32) – it is these things that bring about petrification of the spirit.

Modern psychology also shows that it is these things that often cause physical illness. Unresolved anger and bitterness can lower the immune system and reduce the bodies defences against infections and disease.

Nothing contributes more to sickness than resentment, and more to healing than forgiveness. When we forgive we are not saying that what was done to us doesn’t matter. We are not forgiving them to let them off the hook; we are forgving them because God says we are to do so in his love, and also the parable of the unmerciful servant. Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?” “No not seven times,” answered Jesus, ”but seventy times seven, because the Kingdom of heaven is like this. Once there was a king who decided to check on his servants accounts. He had just begun to do so when one of them was brought in who owed him 10,000 talents. The servant did not have enough to pay his debt, so the king ordered him to be sold as a slave, with his wife and children and all that he had, in order to pay the debt. The servant fell on his knees before the king. ‘be patient with me,’ he begged, and I will pay you everything!’ The king felt sorry for him, so he forgave him the debt and let him go.

“Then the man went out and met one of his felllow servants who owed him a hundred denari. He grabbed him and started choking him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ ‘he said. His fellow-servant fell down and begged him, ‘be patient with me and I will pay you back!’ But he refused; instead had him thrown into jail until he should pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very upset and went to the king and told him everything. So he called the servant in. ‘You worthless slave!’ he said. ‘I forgave you the whole amount you owed me, just because you asked me to. You should have had mercy on your fellow-servant, just as I had mercy on you.’ The king was very angry, and he sent the servant to jail to be punished [some versions say tortured] until he should pay back the whole amount.” And Jesus concluded, “That is how my Father in heaven will treat every one of you unless you forgive your brother from the heart.” ( Matthew 18:21-35)

We need to forgive because God has forgiven us through the sacrificial death of his son-Jesus. We all need to receive the forgiveness of God again and again.

2. Receiving Forgiveness.

Forgiveness of our sin is our greatest need without we are living a futile life which is incapable of bringing happiness. Bur merciful forgiveness must be followed by reconciliation.

In 1942 Eric Lomax was taken prisoner and with others sent to build the Thai-Burma Railway. In 1972 Eric returns and in the Thai-Burma Railway Museum meets the man, Takashi Nagase, who was complicit in his and his friends’ merciless torture. There is a emotional filled scene where Takashi asks for forgiveness and Eric in giving it. They both hug reconciliation and healing begins.

Receiving forgiveness from God is the first step toward our own healing. It is interesting that in the Lord’s prayer the request to God to forgive us our trespasses comes first before ‘as we forgive others’. Forgiveness by God is freely given before we even ask for it. Jesus asked God to forgive those who crucified Him because they did not know what they were doing.

Story of the paralysed man on a stretcher is recorded in both Mark 2:1-12 and Luke 5:17-26. Once the dust had settled, on seeing their faith Jesus’s first words are “Cheer up(take heart) your sins are forgiven you.” He doesn’t say “Cheer up you are healed.” Here we find Jesus meeting a man’s spiritual need first. Because he knew that forgiveness was the road to health & happiness.

We must trust in Jesus Christ his person and his work. He died that we might be forgiven. By his blood we are forgiven and healed.

Do you recognise areas of your past life where you need forgiveness, do you feel undeserving of God’s forgiveness and don’t believe you can receive it? Rom 3:22-25. ‘God puts people right through their faith in Jesus Christ. God does this to all who believe in Christ, because there is no difference at all: everyone has sinned and is far away from God’s saving presence. But by the free Gift of God’s grace all are put right with him through Christ Jesus, who sets them free. God offered him, so that by his sacrificial death he should become the means by which people’s sins are forgiven through faith in him.’ Wow

3. Accepting God’s Forgiveness

But let us first ask God to forgive us also for the hurts we have caused others. Having asked God for his forgiveness let us receive it as a Gift from him.

Many of us find that this is the most difficult part. We find it difficult to forgive ourselves. But there is so much encouragement in those words: “Cheer up!” “Take heart.” John records Jesus saying elsewhere Jn16:33b “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Why do we find it more difficult to forgive ourselves?

An Austrian psychiatrist Dr. Viktor Frank says that it is difficult for us to forgive ourselves because of the power of guilt. Authentic guilt he says is a negative emotion experienced by the conscience that passes a personal moral judgement on itself. This is something that is peculiar to human nature and perhaps Christians are more vulnerable to it than most. Nature does not forgive which is why it is difficult for us to forgive ourselves. This can lead us into unhappiness and illness. God addresses this when he says to the paralytic man “your sins are forgiven you.” And he says that to you and me. Why be burdened with personal guilt – why not accept the gift that God in his love and mercy has given you in the forgiveness wrought for us by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.It’s almost an affront to God NOT to accept it!

Having accepted that gift, then if we have wronged another we should not only ask God for forgiveness but also seek forgiveness and reconciliation from any individuals involved.

Because Forgiveness is the key to inner healing which is necessary for physical well being & happiness; but we only receive healing ourselves when we forgive others who have hurt us paving the way for their inner healing.

Maybe you are someone who finds it difficult to accept his gift of forgiveness for you or you find it difficult to forgive someone who has hurt you. Turn to Jesus in prayer and put all your burdens at the feet of Jesus and knowing his forgiveness, open you heart to healing & transforming power of his holy spirit who can lead you into the forgiving and healing arms of Christ.

Lord we ask you to help us to let mercy triumph over judgement. You have forgiven us all this great debt of our personal sin. Now that you have given us the keys to the kingdom, help us to forgive everybody who owes us anything or has hurt us in any way

So at this time of Easter let’s take a moment to examine our life. Are there any deep seated resentments and unforgiveness that you need to address.? Give the Holy Spirit permission to bring to mind the things that need to be resolved in your hurts. Invite Jesus into those areas and ask him to help you to forgive. This is also the first step to receiving Jesus’s healing touch.

You may like to pray this prayer.

Heavenly father, thank you for sending your son, Jesus Christ, to save me, to forgive me my sin, to die in my place. Lord Jesus Christ, I believe in you by the faith you have given me. Save me O Lord, forgive all my sins. Cleanse me from all unrightiousness. Make me a new creation. Heal my soul. Heal my body. Heal my mind.

Jesus says to you and me “Sons, daughters rejoice your sins are forgiven. Rise up and walk home.” Praise you heavenly Father for hearing our prayers, for filling us with peace, for removing the burden of sin and guilt and taking it with you to the cross; setting us free.

Amen.

In 1948, a remarkable religious phenomenon occurred in the US. It began in a tent near Hollywood California, under the preaching of a young evangelist. The crowds were sparse at first but as the preaching continued, the crowds began to grow. Finally some rather prominent Hollywood celebrities attended the meetings and were converted. At first, the media totally ignored these gatherings. But when some of Hollywood’s well-known names became involved, the press began to take a special interest. Eventually reporters were sent to investigate and interview this rather strange young preacher, who dressed in pistachio-coloured suits, wore flaming red ties, spoke with a pronounced Southern accent, and yet had incredible appeal to the masses. It was evident God was doing something. That was the beginning of Billy Graham’s career. And as news of those meetings spread across the country, other cities invited him to come and preach and soon Billy Graham’s ministry blossomed into what it has become today.

As it was with Billy Graham in 1948, so it was with John the Baptist in the first century. He too was a young man (in his early 30s). He too dressed rather strangely for his day. He did not wear green suits but animal skins (and ate locusts and wild honey). He too preached a powerful message that seemed to have a great attraction to people. At first they came out by dozens, then hundreds, then thousands left their cities to hear this remarkable desert preacher. Finally the response was so great and this man so popular that even the religious establishment of Jerusalem became curious. They sent a delegation to investigate this strange man with a unique message. John records this event for us in his Gospel.

John introduces the Apostle John the Baptist to us in 1:6-8, 15. His primary role was that of a witness, a testimony to the light. In these verses, John the Baptist illustrates for us what it means to be a proper witness of the Light.

I. To be a proper witness, we must recognize who we are not (19-21).
Drawing such a large following, John the Baptist naturally attracted the attention of the religious leaders of Jerusalem. They could not ignore someone who attracted such a large gathering. John was an enigma. He did not conform, so they wanted to know more about him.

“Who are you?” they inquired diligently.

John responds by vigorously telling them who he is not

John’s day was one of great Messianic expectation. Everyone was looking for the promised Messiah, so naturally John’s actions and message created a lot of speculation as to who he was. Might he be the promised Messiah? John denounces any speculation regarding these messianic expectations. “I am not the Christ,” he asserts. Whatever John was, he was certainly not the Christ. There was a Christ, but he was not him.

– “Are you Elijah?” they question. The OT prophesies that Elijah would precede the Messiah (Mal. 4.5: “See I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord”). Perhaps John is the reincarnated Elijah. After all, his appearance is similar. His message is similar. And apparently, Elijah did not die. Was this the great Elijah? “I am not,” replies John.

Although he did fulfil the preliminary ministry of which the prophets spoke (in the form of Elijah, he was not the actual prophet himself).

– Are you the great Prophet?
Deut. 18.15-19 speaks of a great prophet like Moses who would come and restore Israel. This promise was taken to refer to a special end-times figure who would fulfil the role of the great Prophet. Surely John is the great prophet. Again with an emphatic, no, John denounces this title.

As a proper witness, John recognized who he was not. His three-fold denial makes his witness clear. The increasing curtness of John’s successive answers cannot be missed here. The Baptist seems to have a dislike for answering questions about himself. He had come to bear witness about another.

If we are going to be a proper witness, we must recognise who we are not. We are not the Messiah. We are not the great prophet. We are not Elijah. We cannot think of ourselves as more than what we are. It is not our glory we seek but His. As witnesses, we need to remember that we are not Jesus. We are not God. We are only witnesses to what Jesus has done in our lives and can do for others. John knew who he was not, but that leads directly into our second point.

II. To be a proper witness, we must know who we are (23-24).
This religious delegation was not content with John’s denials. They must have some response to take back to their leaders; so they question him further, “If you are not any of these people, then who are you?” What is your role? What do you have to say about yourself? Show us your resume. They turn the matter over to John.

Wow! What an opportunity. At this point, John could have said anything. He could have said, “I am the great forerunner.” I must be a prophet or a great preacher. Look at how many baptisms I have performed. Look at how many people I have attracted. Wow! I must be something. I must be awesome. I need to be leading church growth seminars or teaching preaching classes. I need to be invited to preach at the evangelism conferences.

But John did not flash his credentials. He did not flatter himself or build his own name. He did not attempt to make himself great. John knew who he was. Look at his reply (taken from Isa. 40.3): “I am a voice…” John knew that he was merely a voice. He is not an important person, like a prophet or the Messiah. He is merely a voice.

A voice, other than God’s, is temporary. A voice is fleeting. A voice is fading. And that is John’s view of himself. I am merely a fading voice that is crying in the wilderness.

John’s message is one of preparation: “Make straight the way of the Lord.” John summons the people to be ready for the coming Messiah. He is the one preparing the way for the coming king (an important role in ancient times: involved levelling the land and clearing the road). He saw his role as the voice preparing the way.

Even so, we are called to be voices. We are the temporary voice chosen to prepare the way in our generation. Each generation has a voice, and we are the voice for this time and this place. Our role is temporary, but it is essential. Without the voice, the people will not hear. And the voices are becoming quieter in England; we, who believe in the message of the Gospel and know the eternal choices before us, must re-ignite our passion and speak up. We must be voices crying out in the wilderness

Being a proper witness, however, involves recognising who we are not and who we are. We are not Jesus. We are voices. We are to get people ready, to prepare them, to make the path straight. We are to prepare the way for the coming King. Christmas is a good time of year to exercise our voices to touch the hearts of those around us – oh, that they might hear!

III. To be a proper witness, we must point people to Jesus (25-34).
John’s examiners are still not satisfied with his responses, so they question him, “If you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet, why then are you baptising?” Their interest lay in John’s authority. Who gives you the right to baptise?

Baptism was not a new practice in Judaism. It was the regular rite for the admission of converts from other religions into Judaism. What upset these Jewish leaders was that John performed baptisms upon Jews and Gentiles alike. In their minds, the Jews were a part of God’s chosen people. They had no need for baptism. They were secure. What right does John have to baptise?


John’s response reveals clearly the role of the proper witness. What does John do? He points them to Jesus. In essence, John says, “This is not about me. It is not about the rite of baptism. It is not about by whose authority I baptise. It is all about Jesus.” John’s interest is in Christ and Christ alone. In accordance with the Gospel’s purpose, John the Baptist’s testimony tells us who Jesus is.

What a testimony! What a witness! What a voice! John points people to Jesus. He recognizes that it is not about him. He understands both who he is not (the Christ) and who he is (a voice). He understands his role: point people to Jesus.
As Christians this to is our role: to point people to Jesus.

So let us prepare ourselves and draw closer to God this Christmas and seek to be enthusiastic witnesses for Jesus to those we meet. Just like John the Baptist let us make ourselves of no account so that others see the light of Christ shining through us as we gaze on him.

A father and his small son strolled down the street in London passing by the Gherkin building. Glancing up, they saw men at work on the high up on the building. “What are those little boys doing up there?” asked the son. “Those are not boys, they are grown men,” replied the father. After a pause, the boy pondered, “I guess when they reach heaven there won’t be anything left of them.”

The nearer we come to Christ, the less others see of us and the more they see of Christ. Point them to Jesus.

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18

During this first week of June 2022 we are celebrating the Queens 70 years on the throne. I am full of admiration for her Majesty as she continues well in to her old age to perform many of her sovereign duties in serving this Country. This Jubilee is as much a celebration of old age as it is of a long reign.

It appears to me that there is an ambivalence towards ageing in that all of us want to live a long time, but none of us want to grow old. This is fueled by our mass media which depicts old age as a calamity, something to be avoided, a drain on the NHS. In fact, we try to mask the signs of old age or hide it with dyes and creams and elective surgeries to show people that we are not growing old.

The Apostle Paul wrote 2 Corinthians about 20years into his ministry, so he was getting on a bit, probably about 60ish. But he never considered retiring. He experienced what ageing is as well as its effects, and he dealt with it very appropriately. He tells us how we can deal with it ourselves. Growing old and ageing can be a very satisfying, very fulfilling experience if we follow Paul’s advice.

We need to develop a positive image of ageing, we need to take our lives off what is seen. I am not saying that we should deny reality. Paul himself does not deny the effects of ageing. He says that outwardly we are wasting away.

There are a lot of benefits to growing old. One benefit is the fact that we are alive. If we are over 70 we should praise God because you have already beaten the averages. We are the survivors, the fortunate ones.

We can relax and enjoy the things that really matter to us. We can be comfortable with who we are, and see ourselves as God sees us. It can be an incredible time of creativity. Some of the best artists and poets painted or wrote during their retirement years. Colonel Sanders of KFC built his business after he retired. Abraham and Moses were old when called by God initiate and develop a nation.

Paul tells us that the proper image is not to focus on the hazards of ageing, but to focus on the unseen. What is the unseen? For Christians, it means not focusing on the temporary, the material, or the past. It means, as Paul states in 2 Corinthians, to focus on the eternal, the spiritual, the purposeful, on what lies ahead: eternal life, heaven, God’s kingdom and resurrection. It is realizing that with every day that passes, and I give thanks and praise to God for every new day he gives me, we are not counting down our lives, we are counting up to our experience of heavenly glory.

If we do that, Paul says that we are renewed day by day. We experience an eternal glory that will not fade.

Paul says that what seem to be insurmountable problems will become light and momentary as we focus on heaven. As we become older, we come closer to the light. If we are going to experience a more satisfying life, one thing we can do is to spend time getting closer to God and Jesus, our welcomer into that unseen world, that spiritual world. One of the great gifts we have is time. We can spend more time drawing close to the light.

As our lives are drawn closer to that light, our hearts and souls are drawn as well. As we draw closer to God, his promise is that he will draw closer to us. And as he draws closer to us we become spiritual magnets drawing others to him. And this is, perhaps, the greatest positive of old age. We have a story to tell, a testimony to give, that can be an encouragement to others. In many African villages young men gather around the old man, mzee, eagerly listening to the stories he has to tell of his life, the village ancestors of wisdom gained and encouragement to give.

Although our bodies are wasting away, our spiritual experience will be a growing satisfaction of being renewed day by day, so much so that, in walking with our Lord, when we hit those shadow times the light of his glory will penetrate that darkness and we can walk through the valley of the shadow of death without fear because he will be with us always.

The unseen represents much more for Paul. Paul did not retire to give up. We find that Paul lived his life to the full, despite hardships, imprisonment and ridicule, serving his Lord, giving all that he could, until Christ took him home. And what did he have to say at the end of his life? What was his attitude? He says: “Therefore, we do not lose heart. Although outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”

We oldies still have much to offer. At the time of writing this I am in my 83^rd year. Don’t let society, don’t let your kids, and don’t let yourself put you on the side-lines or on a shelf. You are very useful. Make your life count. At the very least it is a time to look back over your life giving thanks and testifying how God has been at work in you. The longer you live the greater this testimony. Finish well.

As we grow older let us take on board Paul’s advice. Don’t focus on the problems and the hazards. When you see a rosebush, do you see a flower with nasty thorns that prick you, or do you see a thorn bush beautified by flowers? Think of the difference in focus. What is your focus of ageing. Our focus should be on the opportunities that we have and things that we can do, the unseen, drawing closer to the Lord, living our lives so that we can walk with him closer. Giving our testimony. Helping and encouraging others. If we do this, ageing can become like an antique car, much more valuable than when it was first made. Think of that image. That could be your image of old age. Let us celebrate, with the Queen, the long lives that we have been given!

RAS 31/05/2022

Have you ever been thirsty – I mean really thirsty! I was once on a project in Africa where I was losing over 4 ltrs a day in fluid. I ran out of water and we still had a couple of hours to go through the heat of the tropical sun. I became very focused on the final destination where I knew several bottles of cold beer awaited. I got irritated at the little hold ups that occurred along the way. Thirst can actually drive you mad. Water is vital for life. Without any trace of water on Mars or evidence that water had been present in the past it would be pointless searching for life. Two hormones come into play when our bodies start to develop what’s known as a water deficit. One affects the kidneys causing them to produce less and more concentrated urine and also slow down or stop the secretion of the salivary glands to conserve water. The other hormone affects a region of the brain called the hypothalamus producing an increased desire for water. It can reach such a point that our minds become one tracked forcing our bodies to spend most of it’s time in the pursuit of water, because we can only live 4-5 days without water.

The Israelites must have been really thirsty for they had for some time been travelling around the Desert of Sin, ‘traveling from place to place as the Lord commanded.’ As they set up camp in Rephidim after hard days of trekking you can imagine what they felt as they discovered that there was no water. This was the last straw. Murmurings grew into grumbles which grew into rebellion where they actually began to quarrel with Moses to the point where they were almost ready to stone him. You can imagine them saying “Woe is me! Why on earth I agreed to follow this man and come on this foolhardy journey I do not know. Promised land indeed! Why? There has been nothing but scrabbling around for food and never enough water and now we have run out altogether. I’m going to die of thirst. The old ways back in Egypt weren’t so bad. We may have been slaves but at least we had food and plenty to drink!” The desire for water was causing them to regret the trust they put in God. Which was strange because they had no other choice in the predicament that they appeared to be in.

Perhaps like me you can identify with these travel weary Israelites. I have often been stuck in my desert of Sin unable to find an oasis. Getting cross with myself and with God who seemed to be punishing me rather than helping to overcome and find my way out of the desert of sin. In retrospect this has nearly always been at times when I was trying to find my own way out. Actually ignoring God. It was only when I came to realise that I had forgotten that that it is only by trusting God that we can be saved in all circumstances of life. For God has always got our best interests at heart.

2000 or so years later we find another scene. Jesus had left Judea on his way Galilee. He had decided to go through Samaria rather than take an avoiding route that would have doubled the time of the journey. This is the same area where the West Bank is today and it is dry and arid. When the sun was at its highest & hottest he came upon the town of Synchar. While his disciples went on a shopping spree Jesus sat down by Jacob’s well. The well was ( and still is) over 100 feet deep and Jacob, who dug it, had watered his many flocks from this well many centuries before. Joseph was buried in a field near this well. It was therefore considered a holy place. Jesus looks down the road and unusually he sees a Samaritan woman coming to draw water. She is lost in thought and thirsty in the mid-day sun. For many months now she has been wandering around in a spiritual desert. She is irritated with herself and her predicament. You can imagine her thinking, “if it wasn’t for my past life I wouldn’t have to come out here in the midday sun to draw water. I wouldn’t be an outcast if I’d stuck at three husbands instead of 5 and I’m not even sure the man who is living with me at the moment wants to marry me. Life is hard. Just as I am feeling thirsty on this dusty road to the well I wish things were different deep down in my soul. But what can you do. There’s no hope.”

She now meets with Jesus and he asks her for a drink. She protests how can you ask me for a drink when you are a man and a Jew and I am a Samaritan and a woman. But Jesus recognises that this woman has a great spiritual thirst and the story goes on to show how Jesus comes to show her how her thirst is really spiritual and how he can quench that thirst.

So Jesus now gives her the answer to all her problems – he says “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” The Lord was there with her. At first it is clear that she does not understand. She was so concerned with her own wretchedness that she had become spiritually blind.

Sometimes we become so concerned with our own predicaments that we become spiritually blind. She put Jesus to the test with her questioning.

Just as the Israelites centuries before had put the Lord to the test with their grumbling. They to had become blind to the fact that the Lord was with them and would provide. God tells Moses to go before them with the elders to the rock at Horeb and to strike the rock with his staff and it will gush with water for the people to drink. You can imagine what might have been said when people learnt of this water providing strategy given by God to Moses. “There’s no water around the rock at Horeb, it’s still desert, not a plant in sight. You can’t get water out of a rock!”

Just as the woman thought Jesus was mad and tried to humour him “Why you haven’t even got a bucket and the well is deep. Where you going to get this living water? There’s none around here which is why Jacob had to dig a well.” She adds, perhaps sarcastically “Do you know better than him?”

In ordinary language to the Jew Living Water was running water. It was water of the running stream in contradistinction to the water to the stagnant cistern. Jacob’s well got its water by percolation from the sub-soil. To the Jew running, living, water was always better. Jews however had another way of using the word water. They often spoke of the thirst of the soul for God; and often spoke of quenching that thirst with living water. Jesus was not using terms that were bound to be misunderstood. The promise was that the chosen people would draw water with joy from the wells of salvation (Isa. 12:3) Jeremiah’s complaint was that the people had forsaken God, who was the fountain of living waters, and had hewed themselves out of broken cisterns which could hold no water (Jer.2:13). Ezekiel had had his vision of the river of life (Ez.47:1-12). In the new world there would be a cleansing fountain opened (Zech.13:1). Jewish pictorial religious language was full of this idea of the thirst of the souls which could be quenched only with the living water which was the gift of God.

But the woman chose to understand Jesus’s words with an almost crude literalism. She was blind because she would not see. She could not see that, as was written in Jer.17:13. It is the Lord who is the fountain of living water.

If you are anything like me you may often be burdened by your past. Like me you may have said in the past if only I had trusted God more and lived more like he has wanted me to live. If only I had more faith in Him I would feel less burdened and more at peace.

The Israelites went on to see a miracle. Water gushing from a rock. Water which enabled them to quench their thirst. Which gave them hope that they would not die of thirst. Living water. They had tested the Lord, saying “Is the Lord among us or not?” And the Lord had answered showing them that just as he stood before Moses at the Rock he was always with them.

Sometimes it may seem that God is far from us when he is there with us “the Rock of our salvation” Ps 95 just waiting to fill us with living water.

Jesus replies: “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks this water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give him will become in him the spring of water welling up to eternal life.” In Rev.22:1 we read that it is from the very throne of God that the river of life is to flow. Jesus is saying just as water is essential to life, living water is essential to spiritual life. “Go on then, tell me where this living water is” she says “so that I can get some and will not have to walk to the well day after day.” She was jesting with a kind of humouring contempt about eternal things. But Jesus reveals to her that he knows all about her and she realises he is who he says he is. She realises that at long last she has found someone who can accept and love her for who she is and is offering her the gift of himself as the rock from which she can obtain this living water freeing her from the bondage of her sins.

Are you feeling far from God, is your soul dry and alone in that desert? Is being a Christian difficult for you, are you saying I wish I had never set out on this journey? Are you grumbling at God for not leading you beside still waters? Then take heart because Jesus is with you. He was tempted in the desert. He knows how you feel. For he too found the journey difficult. But He is the rock from which living waters gushforth filling us all and quenching our thirsty soul with living water. In Rev. 21: 6 we read the promise: “To the thirsty I will give water without price from the fountain of the water of life.”If you feel that you are in a dry spiritual desert you are promised in Rev: 7:17 that the Lamb will lead you to the springs of living waters.

But first like the woman at the well we have to face the truth about ourselves and when at last we do see we must turn away from our old selves, drink of this living water, receive God’s forgiveness, love and acceptance and like the Samaritan woman tell others about it and where they must go to find the rock of salvation so that they too may drink of its water and never thirst again.

RAS 24th May 2022

A Meditation for Good Friday

John 18:28-40

In this word from the gospel of John we learn of a discourse between Pilate and Jesus where the discussion is a matter of Life or Death. In this meditation I want to turn our attention to just two of the players in this scene: Pilate and Jesus.

Pilate.

As a governor he was complete failure. He had contempt and complete lack of sympathy and religious sensibility for the Jews. He’d already killed and threatened Jews in an argument over bringing graven image of the Emperor God on his standard into the Old Palace of the Herods. He’d also raided the Temple treasury to resource the building of a new Aquaduct, causing a riot in which he and his soldiers finished with killing many of the rioters. At another time he’d refused to remove special shields made in honour of Tiberias the Emperor god from the palace of the Herods, for which the Jews reported him to Tiberias who ordered him to remove them.

Little wonder, then, that Pilate acted as he did. The Jews blackmailed him into crucifying Jesus. They said in effect: “Your record is not too good; you were reported once before; if you do not give us our way, we will report you again to the Emperor, and you will be dismissed. On that day in Jerusalem Pilate’s past rose up and haunted him.

Have there been times in our own lives when fear of loss of security, status or job have forced us to make decisions we know are wrong that later cause us to be racked with guilt.

Pilate did not want to condemn Jesus, because he knew that he was innocent; and yet he was caught in the mesh of his own past.

So how did all this affect his conduct of the trial?

1. Pilate began by trying to put the responsibility on to someone else.

He said to the Jews: “You take this man and judge him according to your Laws.” He tried to evade the responsibility of dealing with Jesus; but that is precisely what no one can do. No one can deal with Jesus for us; we must deal with him ourselves.

2. Pilate went on to see what compromise could do.

He ordered Jesus to be scourged. This he perhaps thought might satisfy, or at least blunt the edge of Jewish hostility and avoid him having to give the verdict of the cross. Once again, that is what no man can do. No man can compromise with Jesus; no man can serve two masters. We are either for Jesus or against him. Let us seek forgiveness for the times we have compromised our faith when challenged by the secularity of our culture.

3. Pilate then tried to see what appeal could do.

He led the scourged Jesus out to the people and asked: “Shall I crucify your King?” He tried to swing the balance by this appeal to emotion and pity. But no one can expect the appeal to others to take the place of his own personal decision. No man can evade a personal verdict and a personal decision regarding Jesus.

In the end Pilate abandoned Jesus to the mob because he lacked the courage to make the right decision and do the right thing.

Now let us come to the central character of the drama – Jesus.

1. First and foremost we can see in this encounter the sheer Majesty of Jesus There is no sense that he is on trial. When a man faces him, it is not Jesus who is on trial; it is the man. Pilate may have treated many Jewish things with arrogant contempt, but he did not treat Jesus in this way. We cannot help feeling that it is Jesus who is in control and it is Pilate who is floundering and at sea in a situation which he cannot understand. The majesty of Jesus never shone more radiantly than in that time when he was on trial before men.

2. Jesus speaks with utter directness to us of His Kingdom .It is not, he says, of this earth. The atmosphere during Passover was particularly explosive which is why extra troops were always drafted in, but if Jesus had wished to raise the standard of rebellion and to fight it out he could have done so easily enough. But he makes it quite clear that he claims to be a King and equally clear that his kingdom is not based on force but is a spiritual kingdom built on love. His was a conquest of love. Have we understood the immensity of the suffering that Jesus voluntarily endured on the cross to bring us all through the gates of heaven. Have our hearts been conquered by his supreme act of love?

3.Jesus tells Pilate, and us, why he came into the world.

He came to witness to the truth; he came to tell men the truth about God, the truth about themselves, and the truth about life. That is one of the reasons why we must either accept or refuse Christ. There is no half-way house about the truth. And Christ is the truth regardless of what the world may say. He is the way and the life. And He is the only way by which we can pass into eternal life.

4. There is the physical courage of Jesus. Jesus stood a scourging from which few remained conscious and some died or became raving mad. Pilate led him to the crowd and said: “See the man!” It is always true that whatever else we do or do not say about Jesus, his sheer heroism is without parallel. Here indeed is a man! Oh, that those of us who know him would show one small iota of that courage in witnessing and spreading the good news of his kingdom. Were better at keeping it a secret than spreading the news!

5. We see here in the trial of Jesus the spontaneousness of his death and the supreme control of God. Pilate warned Jesus that he had the power to release him or to crucify him. Jesus answered that Pilate had no power at all, except what hade been given to him by God. The crucifixion of Jesus reads like a story of a man caught up in a web of circumstances over which he had no control. Jesus was not hounded to his death; those last days of Jesus were a triumphant procession towards the goal of the cross with all its agony and pain. Let us ponder on the infinite sacrificial love and courage that that entailed.

6. There were the times when Jesus was silent.

Not only before Pilate, but also before the Jewish authorities. Let us think about, with regret, the times when our minds have been so shut by pride and self-will that there is nothing that Jesus can say that will make any difference. At these times he remains silent; but never absent, waiting patiently for us to turn back to him, seeking forgiveness and re-aligning our wills to his.

So in the dramatic trial scene in which matters of life and death are discussed we see the immutable majesty, the undaunted courage and serene acceptance of the Cross of Jesus. Never was Jesus more majestic as when men did everything to humiliate him.

Lastly in one final scene we find Pilate, faced with an urgent decision as to what to do with a man he knows to be innocent in a politically charged situation turning to the crowd appealing for them to make a choice – this guilty man Barabbas or this innocent man Jesus.

The choice that faced the mob in Jerusalem is still before our world. Whom will we follow? Whom will we make our king? Ourselves? Our Career? Our sporting heroes, etc? Barabbas continues to represent an alluring alternative, the fulfilling of worldly ambitions and dreams, the gratification of human lusts and hungers, the nationalist dream, the political kingdom. But Jesus still stands before us also, knocking on the door of our hearts, offering his truth, a knowledge of the Father which, beginning in the valley of confession and repentance, leads forward along the pathway, guided and directed by the Holy Spirit, of daily surrender to him as King. Though on the surface less attractive, however, that choice frees those who make it to serve him in the world. It carries them at the last beyond the passing shadows of this earthly life into the enduring order of the heavenly kingdom which will have no end.

Every day we are faced with a decision to choose Barabbas or Jesus as our King? Maybe, like me, and like the apostle Peter there have been times when you rejected him; usually when the going gets tough. However, perhaps more importantly, can we like Peter accept the forgiveness that comes with repentance.

Let us meditate on, confess, repent and accept Jesus’ loving forgiveness of wrong choices, let us accept the righteousness before God which he bought for us on the cross, which gives us a pass into his eternal kingdom. And let us also have the courage of our convictions.

It is a matter of life or death.

Jn 9:1-41; Ephes.5:8-14.

In these dark days of winter and of darkness penetrating many areas of our fractured culture I am reminded that Jesus’ birth is described as the unquenchable light shining in the darkness. We are now in the season of Epiphany where the birth and significance of Jesus was revealed to three wise men from the East as a bright new star in the heavens [possibly a Super-Nova] they were motivated in their spirits to follow the star which guided them to where Jesus was born.

Light is the energy source upon which all life exists and is maintained. This was one of the first acts of God in creation; He spoke let their be light, and there was light in the creation of stars. Life receives light by a process of photosynthesis carried out by chlorophyll bearing organisms that convert solar energy into chemical energy. The source of this light is our Sun. If the world became blind to light, for some reason plunged into darkness unable to receive light through, say, a thick blanket of dust cloud, all advanced life would soon cease. Light is also very important to us in revealing the make up of things around us we “Hold things up to the light to help us to see the detail of what things look like, to avoid obstacles in our path.” Without light things are hidden from us, often dangerously so. Imagine walking blindfold along the road outside your house. You would be feeling your way groping and stumbling over obstacles that are in your way. You would risk bumping into people and falling down man-holes! What a daft thing to do you would say!

But spiritually this is the exact cause of humanities problems. We are groping around unable to see who we are, where we have come from or where we are going. We go through life blindfolded, groping in the darkness, stumbling and tripping over many obstacles. The man Jesus saw was blind from birth (Jn.9:1) but are we not all born spiritually blind at birth, worse still we are born into a dark world without light.

God saw that what we needed was light to drive away the darkness. According to Strongs concordance there are over 250 references to light in the Bible about a hundred of them in the New Testament. God’s love and grace made provision to meet our need. Jesus came as Light for our Darkness. He describes himself by the words: “I am the bread of life. I am the door. I am the good shepherd; I am the way, the truth and the life, I am the resurrection and the life; I am the light of the world.” Jesus Christ is the light of the world. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” Jn.1:1-4. We need Light to see; and what we see with our eyes is only possible when there is light. When there is absolute darkness, we cannot see anything even with exceptionally good eyesight. When however the problem is with the eyes no amount of light will enable us to see unless sight is first restored.

The man Jesus met was born blind and for him everything was in darkness since the day of his birth. He had never seen the light of day and, since he couldn’t work, was forced to beg. Asked by the disciples the reason for the man’s blindness Jesus declared that he was born blind so that God could reveal his great work of salvation in him; so that God, through Jesus, could show his majesty, his power and his great mercy (Jn.9:2-3). In the sovereign providence of God, this man was born blind so that the Lord Jesus Christ could heal him of his physical and spiritual blindness as a symbol or a sign for all mankind.

Since we are all born spiritually blind into a dark world because of sin, we need Christ the light of the world, to restore our sight. Jesus is the great sight giver. Without this inner sight we grope around in a spiritual darkness. What does this imply?

When we are spiritually blind we are unable to discern the truth (Ephes.5:9 ) and as a result we cannot see things as they really are and therefore run the risk of valuing the wrong things. Without light and without sight we cannot see and understand the truth about God. Our eyelids are often closed over those weaknesses in ourselves. Sometimes when the light exposes these things to us we develop spiritual cataracts of guilt which blind us to the solution. Only Jesus can restore our sight to enable us to see things as they really are; illuminated in the light of Christ.

The tragedy for many people is that they are not conscious that they are blind and are in darkness because they have rejected the light. Why? Because one of the properties of light is that it exposes things that are hidden in the dark.(Ephes. 5:11-13) We often are fooled by the dark into believing we do nothing wrong. We often do things in secret that we do not want others to know about. We prefer to live without the light because being in the light means that we have to give up too much.

The Pharisees accused the blind man of being “steeped in sin at birth” (Jn.9:34). What they did not see was that they too were sinners who needed to be saved. They were blind to their own sin and the need for salvation. Instead of rejoicing that people were being healed and lives changed and taking advantage of the healing taking place they were only concerned about the observance of the Sabbath (Jn.9:16). Keeping the Sabbath was more important to them than caring for the needs of others. Because of their blindness they did not realise that God never intended the Sabbath to prevent an act of mercy or kindness.

Christ the light of the world disperses our darkness and restores our sight. He brings us into the light so that we can also become light (Ephes.5:8). When certain materials are exposed to light they absorb that light and re-radiate it in the form of fluorescence. Paul asserts that we should witness to others the difference that light makes in our lives. We should live as children, a re-radiance, of that light. Many of the people that Jesus healed wanted to go with him. He always refused and advised them to stay where they were to serve as a fluorescing light for those who had known them and where the difference in their lives was evident for all to see. Christ came into the world to give light but it is left to us to accept that light or reject it. The gospel is not only good news to those who receive it but bad news to those who reject it. The gospel heard and accepted is life ; the gospel heard and refused is death.

The story of the healing of the blind man is both a miracle and a drama of central conflict going on in the gospel. When first healed and asked about the miracle the man replied that “a man called Jesus” healed him (Jn.9:11). The next time he was asked he replied that “He is a prophet”. When pressed again about Jesus he asserts: “If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.” And when he finally came face to face with Jesus, he fell down and worshiped him. The man who was healed gained not only physical sight but also spiritual sight as he recognised Jesus as his Lord. Contrasted with this is the hostility of the Pharisees. At first some of them defend Jesus but soon they all decide that Jesus’ defiance of the Sabbath is inexcusable and they told the man who had been healed to “give glory to God,” declaring that they new him, Jesus, to be a sinner.

Light represents what is good and holy and darkness what is sinful and evil. In the dark good and evil look alike. In the light they can clearly be distinguished. Just as darkness cannot exist in the presence of light, so sin cannot exist in the presence of a Holy God. Let us come into the light and put aside our sinful ways of living.

There is to be a distinct walk on the part of those whose sight has been restored and who are in the light. It is a walk and lifestyle that is different from that of the world. It is a life that is blameless and pure. We are to live in such a way that our behaviour is above reproach (Ephes.5:9 -11). It is not living a perfect life, but a life that nobody can point a finger at. We should live a life that will astonish a darkened world. “People may doubt what you say, but they will always believe what you do”. As people in the light we are to be light. It is only when we feel at home in the light of Christ that we can face many challenging temptations, which come to us in the ordinary experience of life. Whenever Jesus performed a miracle, it provoked all kinds of questions. Often these questions give the believer an opportunity to witness for the Lord.

The man who had been blind, at first did not know how or why he was healed, but he knew that his life had been miraculously changed and he was not afraid to tell the truth. His testimony was simple, yet convincing. Like the blind man we do not need to know all the answers to share the light of Christ with others, it is only necessary to tell others how he has changed our lives.

Unfortunately the world seems to prefer the darkness to light. We live in a fallen world, in a culture that today I believe has lost its way and gone astray blindly groping in its own way, where absolute God given morality has given way to relative personal standards of liberality, blind to the light of guiding star that leads to Jesus; the source of eternal truth and true freedom. When blind to the light of Jesus we trip and fall down the ‘man-holes’ of life. Today Jesus has sent us the gift of Holy Spirit to heal us and and remove the cataracts from our spiritual eyes.

Those who admit they cannot see are given sight, but those who insist that they can see perfectly, without Jesus, are confirmed in their blindness. Spiritual sight comes from a personal encounter, an Epiphany, with Jesus and leads to a new life in relationship to Him. In the world today there is light and darkness. There are those who accept to live in the light and those who chose to remain in the dark. Darkness prevents us from seeing things clearly. It hides the reality from us. It also hides the dangers that threaten our well being and even our life itself. Light enables us to see clearly. We can see where we are going, see what we are doing and have a fuller awareness of all that surrounds us. Turning on a light in a dark room brings darkness to an end. Jesus is the light for our darkness. By his death on the cross he has disarmed and overcome the powers of darkness so that we can turn away from the darkness, come into the light and become a light. The light of Christ will never be overcome by darkness; nor will those who live in the light.

Those whose blindness Christ has restored, those who see the light of our Lord Jesus Christ become children of the light and will remain in his light forever.

Do you have a clear vision of your future with Christ? Are you sharing that vision with others who may yet see? I hope so.

LUKE 1;26-38

There are three 3 lessons we can learn from the life of Mary,
the mother of Jesus Christ, which are found in Luke 1:26-38.

• NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE, THE LORD CAN USE YOU. (v.
  26-27)
  Do you remember the last time you filled out a job application?
  You have to give them all your vital statistics, summarize your
  background, your education, your experience. Many of them
  now ask that all important question: what is it that makes you
  uniquely qualified for this position? How do you answer that
  question without coming off as a snob? Employers assume
  your availability, but what they really want to discover is your
  liabilities (things that would make you unsuited for the job)
  and your usability- what skills, talents will help you do the job.
  But God doesn’t operate this way. Mary teaches us God is not
  as interested as your abilities as He is in your availability. No
  matter who you are, God can use you. Vs. 26-27. Look at Mary
  – she was an ordinary girl with some serious liabilities:
  • She was young. Mary was pledged to be married. At that
  time, it was customary for girls to be engaged at 12-13 years
  of age (around the time of reaching puberty). One reason was
  to ensure girls maintained their virginity until marriage. It’s
  very possible that Mary could have been as young as 12-13, or
  as old as 16 when Gabriel visited her. You and I might think
  this girl is too young for God to use her, but apparently God
  didn’t think so. But also
  • She was poor. We read Luke 2:22-24 that Mary and Joseph
  took baby Jesus to the temple to be circumcised. They were
  required to bring one of two offerings: either a lamb for a burnt
  offering and a dove or a pigeon for a sin offering.
  If a lamb was too expensive, the parents could bring a second
  dove or pigeon instead. Mary and Joseph brought the two
  doves, because they couldn’t afford a lamb. You and I might
  have thought this family is too poor to provide for Jesus but
  apparently God didn’t think so. Mary was young, and poor, but
  also
  • She was from Nazareth. Apparently, Mary was a young girl
  from the wrong side of the tracks. Nazareth was a town with a
  bad reputation. Remember what Nathanael said when He
  learned Jesus from Nazareth?
  John 1:46 And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good
  come out of Nazareth?” …
  You and I might have thought No way. No telling what this girl
  grew up seeing and hearing and doing in a bad town like that.
  Apparently, God didn’t take this into consideration in choosing
  Mary to be mother to His Son.
  Mary was young, poor, and from Nazareth—all characteristics
  make her seem unusable by God. But God chose Mary for one
  of the most important jobs He ever asked anyone to do.
  Through God’s choice of Mary, He teaches us: no matter who
  you are, the Lord can use you.
  You might think you are too young, that you don’t have enough
  money or talent for God to use you. You might think your
  background or past mistakes might make it impossible for God
  to use you. Don’t limit God. He can use you if you trust Him.
  Out of all the queens, princesses, daughters of the wealthy
  and influential, God chose a poor teenager from a town with a
  bad reputation to be the mother of Jesus. She had two vital
  characteristics God looks for: humility and faith. She knew she
  wasn’t worthy of the honour God offered her. Yet she still
  believed God could use her, if she trusted Him. Do you believe
  God can use you? Or do you think you’re too small—too young,
  too poor, too weak to be used by Him?
  If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never
  been in bed with a mosquito.
  Do you think you are useless to God? Think again. God is
  searching for humble people to take part in His amazing plans.
  Will you be one of those people in 2022? Mary teaches us no
  matter who you are, God can use you. She also teaches us
• NO MATTER WHAT PROBLEMS YOU FACE, THE LORD IS
  WITH YOU. (v. 28-33)
  There are some things you just don’t want to go through alone;
  Christmas, for instance. I don’t know of anybody who likes to
  spend Christmas all by themselves. I’m sure there are some,
  but most of us want to be share the celebration with people
  near and dear to us. Let’s pray that we will be free to do
  But we don’t like to go through trouble alone, either. If we get
  sick with nobody to sit up with us or comfort us, we’ll probably
  be more miserable. When we lose our job, or our spouse or our
  child, we need somebody with us to help you make it through.
  Of course, the One Person we need more than anybody else
  when we face problems is the Lord. Mary teaches us that no
  matter what problems we face, the Lord is with us.
  The angel says in vs. 30, “Do not be afraid.” But we wouldn’t
  blame Mary if she were afraid. Imagine the fears she might
  experience as a result of her pregnancy:
  • Possible divorce by Joseph. Joseph at first assumes that
  Mary has been unfaithful to him. What else would he have
  thought? He decided to divorce her (which, according to their
  law, was necessary to end the engagement) before he was
  told in a dream that Mary’s baby was, in fact, conceived by the
  Holy Spirit.
  But right now, Mary doesn’t know how all of that will work out.
  But she does know God will be with her, whatever Joseph
  does.
  • Possible rejection by her family. Did Mary’s family believe her
  story that the baby growing inside her was the Son of God?
  Would you believe that if your daughter told you that story? We
  are never told anything about Mary’s parents’ reaction to her
  pregnancy. But it’s very possible that they didn’t believe her
  story. But Mary believes God is with her, no matter how her
  parents may react.
  • Certain rejection by her community Imagine the gossip that
  must have circulated Nazareth. The people have Nazareth
  would have accused her of adultery—a sin that was not looked
  on lightly as it is today. It’s likely that Mary was shunned by
  those who had once been her friends. But Mary believes God is
  with her, even if her friends abandon her.
  • Possible death by stoning
  According to the law, this was the penalty for adultery. By
  New Testament times stoning was rare, but it was still a
  possibility.
  The message from the angel totally changed Mary’s life. She
  was getting ready to be married and live a normal life. But now
  her life would be anything but normal. How could she be calm
  and courageous as she faced all of the problems that her
  pregnancy might cause? She would cling to the words the
  angel spoke in vs. 28: “The Lord is with you.” The Lord would
  be with her. He would help her. He would give her the strength
  and courage to face anything.
  The same Lord makes that same promise to you and to me.
  Psalm 118:6 The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can
  man do to me?
  Hebrews 13:5 …For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you
  nor forsake you.”
  Mary’s story teaches us that no matter what problems you and I
  face, the Lord is with us.. Mary faced the possibility of
  rejection from Joseph, her family, and her community and even
  the possibility of being stoned, but she knew that the Lord
  would never abandon her.
  One of the titles given to Jesus was “Immanuel,” which means
  “God with us.” One of the great themes of the Old Testament is
  the concept of God living with His people. Jesus is our
  Immanuel. He is “God with us.”
  Human life was meant to be dramatic. We are meant to be
  God-inhabited. Our religion is not organized around keeping
  God at a distance. It allows us to go see him when we want. If
  we really want God to be with us, then our lives will be
  different from ordinary human life – we will be peculiar people!
  We are meant to be God-inhabited. Jesus came to make God’s
  presence a conscious, living reality in our lives. Whatever
  problems you are facing right now–whatever worries and fears
  are harassing your heart–don’t let them discourage you. No
  matter what your problems, the Lord is with you. Bring those
  problems to Him and trust Him to work them out, and He will,
  just as surely as He worked them all out for Mary.
  Two lessons from Mary: no matter who you are, God can use
  you. No matter what problems you face, God is with you. Look
  at one more:
• NO MATTER WHAT HE PROMISES, THE LORD CAN DO IT. (v.
  34-38)
  A little boy asked his mother where he came from, and also
  where she had come from as a baby. His mother gave him a
  tall tale about a beautiful white-feathered bird. The boy ran
  into the next room and asked his grandmother the same
  question and received a variation on the bird story. He then
  scampered outside to his playmate with the comment, “You
  know, there hasn’t been a normal birth in our family for three
  generations.”
  The Bible records several instances where there was not a
  “normal birth.” God sent a son to Abraham and Sarah long after
  they thought having a baby was possible. In Judges 13, an
  angel of the Lord told Manoah and his barren wife, Hannah,
  twould have a special son they would name Samson. John the
  Baptist’s mother, Elizabeth, was in her sixties or seventies
  when she gave birth to the prophet. But none of those special
  births was as amazing as the birth of Jesus Christ. His birth
  was a virgin birth conceived by the miraculous work of the
  Holy Spirit.
  Now that sounds even more abnormal today than possibly it
  did then. But look at Mary’s reaction in vs. 38 (read.) Even
  though the angel’s news was unbelievable, she believed it.
  Mary didn’t understand it, but she also didn’t doubt it. She
  believed that no matter what He has promised, the Lord CAN
  DO IT.
  Jesus’ miraculous conception remains impossible to
  understand by human reason alone. God chose not to explain
  the details of it to us. The real issue is not whether a virgin
  can conceive; the real issue is whether anything is impossible
  for God.
  Mary knew that a virgin birth is impossible, but she also
  believed that “nothing is impossible with God.” And if he
  considered it necessary for the salvation of mankind, then she
  was obedient to God’s will. Whatever God promises, He
  delivers. No matter what He promises, He will do it.
  What promises of God are you tempted to doubt? You’re
  reading the Bible one day, and your eyes light on one of the
  promises of God.
  John 11:26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never
  die. Do you believe this?”
  1 John 5:14 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him,
  that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
  John 10:10 …I have come that they may have life, and that
  they may have it more abundantly.
  Do you ever read promises like these and say, “Yeah, right.
  Like that’s gonna happen. Not for me, not now, not after all I’ve
  been through.” But those promises are made by God. It doesn’t
  matter how impossible they seem—there is nothing, nothing
  nothing impossible with God. Whatever He promises, He
  always does, without fail. What you have to do is what Mary
  did believe and obediently say, “Let it be to me according to
  Your Word, O Lord.”
  Little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but great faith will
  bring heaven to your soul.—Anonymous
  
• ‘That’s the way it worked for Mary. That’s the way it can work
  for you, if you will believe
  
• So Mary can teach you and I:
  No matter who you are, the Lord can use you.
  No matter what problems you face, the Lord is with you.
  No matter what He has promised, the Lord can do it.
  
• Won’t you take these truths to heart this Christmas? Won’t you
  take them with you as you walk into 2022, into your home,
  your school, your work, and live out a Mary Christmas in your life.