Aptiva

Proverbs 27:10 (ESV) Do not forsake your friend and your father's friend, and do not go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbour who is near than a brother who is far away. The Carpenter found that during his earthly existence his family of half-brothers and sisters choose not to believe in who he revealed himself to be. It was only after his resurrection we find James and Jude coming to the position of belief. During his ministry, Jesus himself calls those who believe in him, his family. Matthew 12:48-50 (NLT) Jesus asked, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 49 Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 50 Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!” Thus we should realise that the family of God given to us in the ecclesia, the Church, is the one which we should turn to for help when it is needed. When the body of believers functions correct...

God's word tells us many things about his character. Two are his Holiness and his Goodness. Jesus claimed that "no-one is good except God alone" (Luke 18:19). God set the definition of what "Good" is. His character defines it, his character reveals it. In his goodness, he witnesses to a fallen world, unwilling to condemn it the judgement it deserves without first offering it a way out from its fate. In his goodness, he shows that he is "just" by dealing with the consequence of humanities sin and rebellion, by Jesus death on the cross. In his goodness, he applies the Holiness of his character to those who would repent and allows us to be righteous in his sight, for he sees us in the risen Christ.

God who is, Present, Pure, Powerful and who Provides, Pardons and Protects You surround me oh God. In waking and sleeping, your words whisper to me. They tell of your goodness, and your desire to see the pure prosper. Nothing is beyond your eye or hand. You decree and it is done. I find all I need in your shade, from food and shelter to friends and family. My many sins and failings are not counted when a contrite heart is shown to you. You declare me clean. I walk safe in my future, assured that you will cover me in all things.

The Bible tells us to put on the Armour of God. I think we need to get used to wearing it far more than the normal follower of the carpenter seems to indicate. Roman soldiers lived in their armour, it was about them all the time. It was their second skin, and without it they were ineffective. Like most things, when initially worn it hurts, rubs, and chafes, but this process needs to be endured for it to become part of who we are. Most of us today don't wear armour, but we can experience the same process with a new pair of shoes. It's not just the wearing of the item, it's becoming used to the purpose of it. Training with a sword means when it comes time to use it in battle it is second nature. Using your shield gives you confidence that it will withstand a blow when you need it to. Finally, working with a shield brother (or sister) lets you build the sense of unity need to protect and trust one another. All of this means spending time with one another, apprec...

You may have seen a movie with this scene. The hero is facing a beast, in this case, a dragon, they have one shot with their weapon of choice, a bow. The hero nocks the arrow to the bow and waits, sighting the best moment to release the shot to allow it to do its job, to slay the beast. This scene can be found in many movies, sometimes it's bow and arrow, sometimes it's a ballista. In the modern version, it is a sniper's rife, and the dragon is the evil mastermind who desires to take over the world. In any iteration of this, the audience is watching the hero and keeping a wary eye on the target. The projectile itself is not the focus of attention. No one is concerned about the arrow, except that it hit the target. One arrow is pretty much the same as another, it's the skill of the one who fires it that matters. Which is fine, assuming you are not the arrow! But what if you are? What if you are the instrument being used by the wielder, how do you react? Wai...

In God's book, an unknown disciple of the carpenter wrote a letter known as "Hebrews", in part of it is recorded,  "Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it."(Heb 13:2) The Author continues the chapter with practical advice for living in a manner which will bring glory to the name of Jesus. Through its pages, those who follow the carpenter are instructed with behaving as a blessing to all in this world, regardless of whether these strangers believe in Jesus as Lord and Messiah. I believe in real angels, and take the verse to mean how it reads, that at times we could entertain mystical beings which are God's messengers, but I don't think that it's most important message. That is conveyed in the understanding that all are made in the image of God, and when you reach into this world of the unknown person, you will find some who need to be reminded of who God c...

Joshua chapter 6 tells the account of the fall of the walls of Jericho. A new nation was planning to enter the promised land from the one which had left Egypt. Bar Joshua and Caleb, all males over twenty years old who had left Egypt were now dead. A new group of adults had to fight for the God they had come to know. For many, the crossing of the red sea was a history lesson. A fierce enemy, the Egyptian army had been wiped out via an act of God. How was God going to fight for his chosen people at this point in their lives? They had witnessed the miracle of crossing into the promised land, when the Jordan river had stopped flowing (Joshua 4), and this must have inspired hope. God keeps his promises, as they walked around the walls of Jericho their voices silent, only the horns proclaiming God were heard. Finally, at the last moment, the people joined in a massive shout, their faith joining with God's promise to see the walls of the enemy nation come tumbling down. The hope...