WHO IS ON THE LORD'S SIDE?

Who is on the Lord's side?

Who will serve the King?

Who will be His helpers?

Other lives to bring?

Who will leave the world's side?

Who will face the foe?

Who is on the Lord's side?

Who for Him will go?

By Thy grand redemption,

By Thy grace divine,

We are on the Lord's side,

Saviour, we are thine.

Fierce may be the conflict, 

Strong may be the foe, 

But the King's own army,

None can overthrow.

Round His standard ranging

Victory is secure,

For His truth unchanging

Makes the triumph sure.

Chosen to be soldiers

in an alien land;

Chosen, called and faithful,

For our Captain's band;

In the service royal,

Let us not grow cold, 

Let us be right loyal, 

noble, true and bold.

The above represents verses 1, 4 and 5 together with the chorus from the rousing old hymn, "Who Is On The Lord's Side?" written by English Christian poet and hymn writer, Frances R. Havergal. She wrote the hymn somewhere around 1877.

    The words of the hymn remind us of the fact that all Christians are enlisted in an army, soldiers of the Cross, and as such, should be giving full allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ, whom the Bible says is "the Captain of our salvation." Hebrews 2:10; Joshua 5:13-15

Rick Joyner, the Founder and Executive Director of MorningStar Ministries, a multi-faceted missions organisation based in Fort Mill, South Carolina, has stated in several of his more than fifty books that "the end-time body of Christ would become an army. God uses the title "Lord of Hosts" or "Lord of Armies" more than ten times more than all the other titles combined. He is a martial God. We must understand this aspect of His nature and how His people are going to conform to it. To do this, we must understand the many ways in which human martial demeanour is not the same as God's martial demeanour. As we read in Isaiah 55:8,9 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts," says the Lord. NKJV

In the Old Testament times, the people of Israel, God's chosen people, fought many physical wars. The Book of Joshua is a book outlining their conquest of Canaan, the Promised Land, although at the close of the book, the land had not been completely conquered. There were great victories, when the people were obedient to the Lord and took direction from their Commander, Joshua - as in the defeat of Jericho through a strategy which had to be from God. Who would have thought that marching around the city once every day for six days in silence, then marching round seven times the seventh day, after which the priests would blow their trumpets (shofars) and the people would raise a shout - would result in in the wall of the city being levelled, enabling it to be conquered? That is exactly what happened, though! Amazing! God's ways are indeed higher than our ways.

The Lord God had indeed had indeed promised His servant, Joshua, in Joshua 1:3 "Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses."

Sadly, Israel suffered defeats though, just as spectacular as the victories, when they walked in disobedience to the Lord, or sought direction from sources which were not Godly.

The title of this blog post "Who Is On The Lord's Side?" is originally a question posed by Moses, who preceded Joshua as the God-appointed leader of the children of Israel.

Moses had been on Mount Sinai in the presence of the LORD, where he received the Ten Commandments, supernaturally engraved on two stone tablets - as well as instructions on building the Tabernacle, a movable structure, where the priests would offer sacrifices, and also where the Ark of the LORD would dwell in the Most Holy Place, a compartment in the tabernacle where only the high priest could enter - and that only once a year "not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the people's sins committed in ignorance;

the Holy Spirit indicating this, that the way into the Holiest of All was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was still standing.

It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience -

But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.

Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

For if the blood of bulls and goats, and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh,

how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" Hebrews 9:7-14 NKJV

Moses came down from the mountain, with the Ten Commandments to find the children of Israel paying homage to a golden calf fashioned from items of gold provided by the people - under the direction of Aaron, the brother of Moses, worshipping and making sacrifices to this molded image - therein breaking the first and second of the ten commandments. Exodus 20:1-6

Moses, jealous for the honour of the Lord God, burned the golden calf in the fire, ground it into powder and scattered it over the water. After rebuking his brother, Aaron for allowing this idol worship to occur, Moses lifted his voice in the camp and asked loudly: "Who is on the LORD's side? - come to me!" And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. Exodus 34:26 NKJV

TO BE CONTINUED

 

THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

Behold, I will do a new thing,

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:18,19

So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten,

The crawling locust,

The consuming locust,

And the chewing locust,

My great army which I sent amongst you.

You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,

And praise the name of the LORD your God,

Who has dealt wondrously with you;

And My people shall never be put to shame. Joel 2:25,26

While many people in the world are living in fear and despair, and confusion, and a sense of hopelessness with all the bad stuff that has been happening over the past two years, those who have their full trust and confidence in the Living God, and are fully committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, as both Saviour and Lord - have a sense that God is about to do something in the nations that will see multitudes turn from darkness to light, despair to hope, fear to faith, and see a harvest of souls for Jesus in the multiplied millions. Not only will there be salvations from the penalty and power of sin, but this will be a perhaps hitherto not seen outpouring of God's healing, delivering, miracle-working grace and power, enveloped in His great love for people.

Truly, I believe for the fully committed child of God, we can confidently decree that, for this year of 2022: THE BEST IS YET TO COME!

That is not to deny the reality that, for Christians, persecution is a reality, and will increase, or that there will not be any trials of our faith. But, we can boldly proclaim with the apostle Paul that "through Him [Jesus], we are more than conquerors." and

 we can stand on His Word that "no weapon formed against us shall prosper, and every tongue that rises against us in judgment, the LORD will condemn." Isaiah 54:17

This truly is a time when we need to draw close to God, knowing that as we do, He will draw close to us. As the psalmist tells us clearly in Psalm 91:1 

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

 shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge 

and my fortress;

My God, in Him I will trust."

Almost three years ago now, a number of significant confirmations were given to us by the Lord concerning the Lord's decree that: The Best Is Yet To Come. Within nine days, the following things spoke to us concerning this reality:

1.    I reconnected with an old friend in New Zealand through Facebook. I had had no contact with Bruce for over thirty years. He and I boarded with a young couple in Christchurch in the early eighties for several years, while I was working for Radio Rhema.  Bruce related to me that he had been through a period of eleven years of severe debilitating health issues from age thirty seven, followed by a period of several years seeing their only daughter taken from them through a terminal illness. Yet, through all these severe trials, Bruce and his wife have remained faithful to follow the Lord Jesus Christ and to trust Him, even though they have unanswered questions as to why God has allowed them to face such severe tests.

At the time, I wrote back to Bruce with a desire to encourage him in the Lord, saying: It might sound like a cliche, but I want to believe for you, as for us, that your best days are ahead. In reply, he answered that he agreed that "The Best Is Yet To Come," if not totally here on earth, then definitely in heaven as I am totally convinced that just one second in heaven will be far greater than all our earthly years.

He also shared a link to a song he had written and recorded while singing at church called "The Best Is Yet To Come."

About ten days after Bruce sent me the song, for a period of twenty four to thirty six hours, this song, or at least the chorus to this song kept going around in my head. Some of the lyrics are:

"The best is yet to come,

Yes, the best is yet to come!

The rain will fall again, heal you inside.

Has the flower bloomed into many colours

Or has the blossom come and suddenly gone?

Oh, the best is yet to come,

The best is yet to come.

Living waters will flow again

Out from your heart,

Oh, the best is yet to come!"

At that time, the Lord confirmed the truth of this song to us as an encouragement then, and I believe again for this year of 2022 that the best is yet to come. To use a colloquial expression, I believe the Lord is saying for us, for our family, and for our church family, as we position ourselves for blessing and breakthrough - 'You ain't seen nothing yet!'

Over a nine day period, we received five further confirmations of the Lord's decree that: The Best is Yet To Come!

1.    One Saturday, while Bruce's song was "playing in my head," I was scrolling through my News Feed on Facebook and suddenly saw a post with a picture of a big cinema screen with the words boldly emblazoned: "BUT WAIT - The Lord says 'THE BEST IS YET TO COME"'

2.    That same day, in the evening as I was getting ready to go for my shower, Tessa called out to me that she had just turned the radio on - tuned to Vision Christian Radio, the Australian Christian Radio network. The song playing was "The Best Is Yet To Come," by a man named Matty Mullins.

3.    Several days later, we listened to my hour-long program on Tasman FM, a community radio station in South East Tasmania, which I pre-record at home. After listening, I drove to the service station not far from our place. When I got back in the car, I turned on the car radio to Tasman FM to see what the lady announcer was playing. She forward announced the next three songs she was about to play. The second song in the set she announced as "The Best Is Yet To Come," by Michael Buble. I could not believe what I was hearing. Of all the thousands of songs she could have chosen to play, she chose to play that song at that time.

4. A few days later, we received in the mail our quarterly copy of "Creation" magazine, produced by Creation Ministries International. While flicking through the magazine to get an overview of the articles contained therein, when I got to page 42, I gasped at seeing the title of the article: "The Best Is Yet To Come."

We feel really excited about our future, knowing that God is going before us and there is a sense of wonder at what the Lord is preparing us for in this next season of our lives. 

Another word I have heard from the Lord from time to time is: "Position Yourself!"

Part of that positioning for us was to move to a new church home, after being in our previous church for almost seven years. This was not done in any sense of us being disgruntled or being offended by anyone in our previous church home, but with a clear sense of leading by the Holy Spirit to Living Waters Christian Centre in Campania, a small church family at present, with a huge vision to reach the lost, and the nations for Jesus Christ. We truly believe that as far as we are concerned, "we have come to the kingdom for such a time as this." 

God is speaking to His people today in various ways so that we will align with His will and purposes for us individually and as the body of Christ, the Church. He is speaking through His Word, through prophets, and other God-ordained ministries, through visions and dreams, through signs and wonders, through symbolism within the parameters of His Word etc.

I have been greatly blessed in recent times by the online ministry of Aussie Revivalists, Ben and Jodie Hughes who lead "Pour It Out Ministries," and are now based in Phoenix, Arizona. They have written several greatly inspiring books which I would encourage anyone to get a hold of to bless you and set you on fire for Jesus. Ben's book "When God Breaks In" and Jodie's book "The King's Decree" can be bought online through their website pouritout.org as a package deal, and the exciting news is that Jodie's new book "The King's Prophetic Voice" will be released through their ministry on 22/2/22 or 2/22/22, depending on which side of the Pacific you are on. We are looking forward to receiving and reading this new release.

GOD BLESS!

 

BORN FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.............." so commences the book "A Tale of Two Cities" by Charles Dickens.

With every passing day, it seems that the battle lines are being drawn, and increasingly, as Christians, we are being faced with choices which not only affect our own lives, but those of our families, and the wider communities in which we live, and beyond that, the nation - and nations of the world.

If Dickens was writing today, would he not say the same about our world and society, which brings me to the passage in Isaiah 60: 1-3

Arise, shine;

For your light has come!

And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the LORD will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you.

The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising.

It is not a time for Christians and the church of the Living God to have a spiritual slumber party. We need to take a clear stand for the Lord in our lives, even if it goes against popular society attitudes that are clearly in opposition to the non-negotiable teaching of the Word of God in the Bible.

The Apostle Paul states in Ephesians 5: For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.....

Therefore He says, "Awake, you who sleep,

                                  Arise from the dead,

                                   And Christ will give you light." (verses 8-10, 14)

I have always been challenged by the words of the Keith Green song "Asleep In The Light", where he says in one of the verses:

                                The world is sleeping in the dark

                                That the church just can't fight

                                'Cause it's asleep in the light.

                                How can you be so dead

                                When you've been so well fed?

                                Jesus rose from the grave,

                                And you, you can't even get out of bed! OUCH!!

Jesus said of Himself in John 8:12.....I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.

He also said of His disciples, then and now, in Matthew 8:14 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden."

We are admonished by the apostle Paul to redeem the time, because the days are evil. Ephesians 5:16

He again pleads with those who claim to be followers of Jesus in Romans 13:

And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore, let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. vs. 11,12

Can we hear the anguished heart cries of Isaiah, Paul the apostle, and the Lord Jesus Christ Himself to each of us in the Church to: ARISE AND SHINE THE LIGHT OF GOD'S LOVE AND POWER, TO AWAKE FROM SPIRITUAL SLUMBER.... and in so doing, to help bring an eternal difference to individuals, to communities, and to the nations as we glorify Him with our lives.

More than probably since wartime, people are living in such fear, anxiety and uncertainty, and confusion and do not know where to turn. The pressures coming upon those in the world who are living by the world system, and who are being fed by the negative doom and gloom of mainstream media and social media is seeing a rise in mental illness, suicides, marriage tensions, and domestic violence, and a multitude of other destructive societal trends.

There is only one answer for the world's woes! It isn't in a political party or charismatic political leader. The LORD God tells us in Isaiah 26:3,4 You will keep him in perfect peace,

                                                                           Whose mind is stayed on You, 

                                                                           Because he trusts in You.

                                                                           Trust in the LORD forever,

                                                                           For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.

2022 is set to be a wild ride for those whose trust is not in Jesus, but in the world governments, and whose minds are molded by the secular mainstream news cycles, designed to instill fear and anxiety in the masses. The Bible refers to Satan in Ephesians 2:2 as....the prince of the power of the air - a fitting title for the unseen evil being controlling the lies and manipulation of the secular news cycles, increasingly biased towards presenting propaganda and untruths.

Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount in  Matthew 7:24-27 speaks about the necessity of building our lives on the firm foundation of God's Word, so that we can STAND up under all the storms of life. Jesus said: " Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:

and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it fell. And great was its fall."

To find out how you can become a Christian, and, as the Bible says be "born again," go online to www.vision.org.au This is the online home of Australia's Vision Christian Media. Click on the Grow your faith tab near the top of the page, then from the dropdown menu, click on the heading "Looking for God?" God Bless you, and thank you for reading this blog. Please feel free to comment below.

NO LONGER A BABY 

We are at the end of another year, and on the threshold of another year before us. Christmas celebrations have come and gone. We remembered once again the incredible provision of Almighty God for the redemption of Man from the eternal consequences of sin and rebellion towards Him - by sending His Son in human flesh to be born as a baby in an unlikely setting for a king - a dirty, dusty stable. As Rick Joyner of MorningStar Ministries states in his book "The Harvest":  That the Lord of Glory would choose such a place to make His entry into the world is one of the more profound revelations of His message to man.....Human reasoning would never lead us to a stable to find God. The only way He could be found was by revelation, only those who were led by the Spirit would come. That which is born of God is usually found in a place that is repulsive to the pride and presumptions of carnal men. As the apostle Paul stated it: "God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised, God has chosen, the things that are not, that He may nullify the things that are, that no man should boast before God." 1 Corinthians 1:27-29

Jesus did not remain a baby. That baby grew up to become Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, who after three and a half years of ministry to all who would receive Him - words of Life, physical and emotional healing, deliverance from demonic oppression and many other works and miracles, some recorded in the Gospels, many more unrecorded, according the apostle John in John 20:30,31 and John 21:25 - was condemned to death on a cruel Roman cross, the sinless Son of God, fulfilling the will of the Father in dying an agonizing death in our place, taking the penalty for our sins, in order that we might be reconciled to God the Father. Romans 5:8 says: God demonstrated His love for us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

If that was not good news for us in itself, the Lord Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, conquered the power of death and hell, rising triumphantly from the grave on that first Resurrection Sunday.

The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are not only recorded as actually taking place in the Bible. There have been scholars who have set out to disprove the resurrection of Christ, only to conclude, after honest research, that the events recorded in Scripture are historically verifiable. Two such scholars of note are Simon Greenleaf (1783-1853), a law professor at Harvard University, who became one of the forerunners of the disciplines known as Christian Apologetics  - and Frank Morison, who also set out to disprove the "myth" of the resurrection, only to come to the conclusion, like Simon Greenleaf, that the Biblical record of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is true. Frank Morison wrote the book "Who Moved The Stone."

Another well known Christian author and former pastor, Lee Strobel, who was once an investigative journalist, and an atheist, set out to disprove the claims of Christ, following his wife's conversion, and after his research, he too became a Christian and had to conclude that the Biblical accounts of Christ's life, death and resurrection were indeed true.

For forty days following His bodily resurrection from the dead, Jesus appeared to multitudes of people, including the eleven remaining original disciples - Judas Iscariot, who having betrayed Jesus, took his own life. At one time, Jesus appeared to five hundred people at once 

(1 Corinthians 15:6). 

After commissioning the disciples, and telling them to wait in Jerusalem for the Promise of the Father, the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father. On the Day of Pentecost, an annual Jewish feast commemorated fifty days after Passover, while waiting in the Upper Room, the 120 gathered were filled with the Holy Spirit, receiving the gift of speaking in other tongues - a gift which is still available to Christian believers today, along with other gifts of the Holy Spirit as listed in 1 Corinthians 12-14. Jesus said before His ascension to Heaven that "You shall receive power after the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and you shall be witnesses" starting from Jerusalem and spreading to the farthest corners of the earth. The power to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, bringing in the hearts of the hearers, a conviction of sin and the need for repentance is part and parcel of the equipping by the Holy Spirit of the believer in Jesus.

The ministry of Jesus in the world and in the Church continues unabated today through the lives of Bible-believing Christians who have taken Jesus at His word to "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men." He said to His disciples in John 14:12 that the works He did on earth they (and those who followed them down through the Church age) would do and greater works than these they would do, because He was going to the Father. 

Down through the Church age over the past 2,000 years, millions upon millions of lives have been transformed, many radically, by the same resurrection power of the Holy Spirit which raised Christ from the grave.

The dead are being raised to life today. Miracles of healing and provision are occurring all over the world, where the name of Jesus is proclaimed as Lord. You won't hear about these happenings in the secular media, but they are happening. JESUS CHRIST IS THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY AND FOREVER!

As we enter a new year, with all its challenges personally, as well as nationally and internationally, while darkness is increasing in this sin-sick rebellious world, let those of us who claim Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Lord consecrate ourselves afresh to live uncluttered, and fully committed lives to honour and glorify Him.

If you are reading this, and have never made a commitment of your life and will to Jesus Christ, please know that, as you come to Him with a repentant heart for the sin and rebellion in your life towards God, He will cleanse you from sin as you call upon His name, and acknowledge His death on the Cross in your place as the means to your salvation. Just as Jesus rose from the dead after three days, you too can know the power of the Holy Spirit to help you live a new life in Him.

The true disciple of Jesus will face persecution, but know that God is dwelling in you by His Spirit to enable you to be strong for Him in any and every circumstance of life.

For further help in becoming a Christian, one resource I can direct you to is www.vision.org.au

This is the online home of Australia's Vision Christian Media. Click on the Grow your faith tab, then from the dropdown menu, click on "Looking for God?" God Bless. Thank you for reading this blog.

THE POWER OF ONE 

My wife and I live in southern Tasmania, Australia's island state, separated from the Australian mainland by  Bass Strait to the south of the state of Victoria, some 150 miles or 241 kilometres away. With the Coronavirus pandemic leading to severe lockdowns of cities, particularly Sydney and Melbourne over the past eighteen months, with much negative impact on business, family life, mental health, and the general ability of millions to live normal lives - to say nothing of all the border closures,  Australia  now seems to be a set of autonomous regions lead by control freak Premiers imposing draconian restrictions on the populous, with the sole purpose of containing a virus, which has no sign of going away!

The coercion for the masses to be vaccinated with the experimental "vaccines" in order for life to return to normal has seen apparent violations of human rights, and bullying tactics of government and business to try to exclude the renegade unvaccinated. Never mind that there have been tens of thousands of adverse reactions to the AZ and Pfizer jabs, and an undisclosed number of deaths from these drugs, and mainstream and social media giants are pushing the official government - health bureaucrats narrative for all its worth, and seeking to shut down any and all contrary concerns.

The above is not to deny the reality of the coronavirus and its seriousness as a communicable illness - and the need to take measures to seek to protect the weak and vulnerable. The fact that governments have felt it necessary to take extreme measures, whether fully justified and justifiable has impacted millions around the nation.

Now that I have gotten the above off of my chest, as it were, let me come to this point in time, from where we live in southern Tasmania. As of 6pm yesterday, the Greater Hobart region and other outlying local government areas (LGA's) have been placed into a three day lockdown, closing down most business, and schools until 6pm Monday. Residents of these areas are only permitted to leave their homes for clearly specified reasons, and can only travel in a radius of 5km from places of residence. THIS IS THE NEGATIVE DESTRUCTIVE POWER OF ONE!

These drastic measures have been made necessary to be enacted by the State Premier, Peter Gutwein, because of the totally selfish and irresponsible and rebellious behaviour of ONE MAN, who returned from New South Wales by plane, testing positive, was placed in hotel quarantine in Hobart, and subsequently absconded from the hotel. He was in the community for eighteen hours, apparently, visiting an unknown number of places, but including a supermarket - before being apprehended by police and returned to quarantine. He has been most uncooperative with the authorities, as well. 

It is astonishing, but true, that one man's actions will cost businesses in southern Tasmania probably hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars in lost income over this three day period. Livelihoods of many workers will also be affected to some degree.

It is true, as the Bible tells us that: Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. 1 Samuel 15:23 

We are not islands unto ourselves. How true it is that our actions and behaviour can have ripple effects, affecting those around us and beyond - for good or evil.

If we turn to the Bible, and go right back to the first book of Genesis, we see that the sin and rebellion of one man (and his wife) lead to separation from fellowship with the Living God, and that separation because of sin and the sinful nature of man has blighted the human race ever since.

BUT, PRAISE THE LIVING GOD, because of the POWER OF ONE, the Saviour of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ, God's only begotten - His One and only Son, came to earth as a baby, grew to be a man, ministered life and healing and deliverance over three years from the age of thirty, then died a criminal's death on the cross of Calvary, the sinless Son of God, dying in our place for our sins, and triumphantly rose from the dead three days later, ever more to make intercession for the saints, seated at the right hand of the Father in glory.  This is the greatest and most profoundly wonderful POWER OF ONE!

God is calling His committed Bible believing, Holy Spirit anointed followers to lay down their lives, to take up their cross daily, to count the cost of being a true disciple of Jesus - then shining forth the Light of Jesus to a lost and hurting and dying world, and to display to those who need to receive God's grace and His mercy and His love and His forgiveness and His wholeness - the awesome, Holy Ghost and fire POWER OF ONE (wholly sold out to Jesus).

To find out how to become a Christian, go online to: www.vision.org.au This is the online home of Vision Christian Media in Australia. Click on the "Grow your faith" tab, then "Looking for God?" God Bless!

SALT AND LIGHT IN A TASTELESS AND DARK WORLD

Part Two

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"You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and to be trampled underfoot by men.

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:13-16

These words were spoken by Jesus to His disciples in what is known as the Sermon On The Mount, the longest single discourse of Jesus in all of the four Gospels, as recorded in Matthew 5-7.

Jesus used the two metaphors of salt and light to attribute qualities by which His disciples - those who would follow and live by His teachings, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and would be distinguished from all others.

Jesus said of Himself, in John 8:12 "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."

The apostle John in the fourth Gospel bearing his name, introduces us to Jesus, the Light of the world in the first chapter of his book.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God

He was in the beginning with God.

All things were made through Him, and without Him, 

nothing was made that was not made.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

[John the Baptist]

This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through Him might believe.

He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 

He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:1-13 NKJV

1 John 2:5 says.....God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.

The Bible says of God, in 1 Timothy 6:15,16 that He is God, the blessed and only Ruler the King of kings and Lord of lords,

who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, 

whom no one has seen, or can see. To Him be honor and might forever. Amen. NIV

James 1:17 tells us: Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change or shadow of turning.

Just like the dramatic portrayals in countless movies of the clashes of good and evil, darkness and light, or using the vernacular of the past, between the good guys and the bad guys, the overarching battle of the universe is between two opposing and diametrically opposed dominions, that of darkness ruled by Satan, and the Kingdom of Light, ruled by the all-powerful, all-knowing and ever-present Eternal God-in-three-Persons, the One True and Living God, represented by the Trinity - Father, Son (the Lord Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit.

When we speak of God as Light, all that is pure, holy, righteous, of the Truth, and displaying the character of God in His love for mankind, in both His mercy and His just judgments, are contained in that brilliant metaphor.

On the other hand, Satan, as the ruler of darkness, is totally evil. There is absolutely nothing about his character to be commended. He is, as the Bible says, a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44.

He is the thief, who comes to steal, kill and destroy, as Jesus says in John 10:10. Jesus also says Satan has been a murderer from the beginning.

That the vast majority of mankind are dwelling in spiritual darkness, under Satan's dominion is borne out in John 3:19-21, where Jesus says: "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

"For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

"But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God." NKJV

Speaking prophetically to the kingdom of Judah at around 700BC, but also prophetically down through the ages to the church in the present day, Isaiah wrote these words: 

So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west,

And His glory from the rising of the sun;

When the enemy comes in like a flood, 

The Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.

"The Redeemer will come to Zion,

And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob," says the LORD.

Arise, shine;

For your light has come!

And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.

For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the LORD will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you. 

The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising. Isaiah 59:19,20; 60-1-3

From the above prophetic verses in Isaiah, it is evident that, just as Jesus spoke of Himself as the Light of the World in John 8:12, as mentioned earlier, and that He addressed His disciples, saying: "You are the light of the world," He intended for His followers to shine the light of God's love, power and holiness to a world filled with darkness, by the authority bestowed on them by the Lord, to see people transformed by the power of God, in turning their lives from darkness and bondage to light and freedom only found in a relationship with Christ.

The apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:20 says....we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you, on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.

Paul further admonishes Christians in Ephesians, chapter 5 with these words: 

For you were once darkness, but now you light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

(for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness and truth),

finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,

but rather expose them.

For it is shameful to even speak of those things which are 

done by them in secret.

But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the 

light, for whatever makes manifest is light.

Therefore He says:

"Awake, you who sleep,

Arise from the dead,

And Christ will give you light." Ephesians 5:8-14

The apostle John, in 1 John 4:18 says....as He (Jesus) is, so are we in this world.

Even when Jesus walked this earth as a man, He commissioned His then disciples to go out and do the works He was doing, as a foretaste of the life of witness and power that they could and would walk in, when He left them, following His death on the cross, and subsequent triumphant resurrection. Filled with the Holy Spirit's power, they would shine the light of God's love and power to a lost and dying world - to a people desperate for a way out of the darkness and emptiness of life without ultimate purpose and meaning.

The apostle Paul, in Philippians 2:14-16, says that Christians are to:

Do everything without complaining or arguing, 

So that you may become blameless and pure,

Children of God without fault

In a crooked and depraved generation

In which you shine like stars in the universe

As you hold out the word of life. NIV

More than ever before, Christians, the Light-bearers, need to be shining for Jesus, holding forth the Word of Life, filled with the Holy Spirit - living lives wholly committed to the Word of God, without compromise - even when it means going counter to the culture in aspects at odds with the Word of God. The world is waiting and watching for the Church to arise and shine with all the brilliance of the risen Christ (The Anointed One and His Anointing). The time to simply blend in with the cultural surroundings in order to seem to be relevant is over.

Christ is calling forth a people who, as His ambassadors are living pure lives, who know the power of His love and forgiveness, who know the pit from which they have been lifted, and who are not ashamed to stand up and be counted as those who fully align with God's standards of love and holiness.

If you have read this blog, and would like to know more about becoming a Christian, a useful resource I suggest is: vision.org.au This is the online home of Vision Christian Media in Australia. Click on the "Grow your faith" tab, then click on "Looking for God?" 

Come out of the darkness into the light of God's love and power to transform your life as no one or no thing can do. God Bless!

SALT AND LIGHT IN A TASTELESS AND DARK WORLD 

Part One

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavour, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and to be trampled underfoot by men.

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."  Matthew 5:13-16

These words of Jesus were spoken by Him in what is known as the Sermon on The Mount, as recorded in Matthew 5-7, to His disciples. It is believed that the disciples hearing the words of Jesus at this time were a larger group than the twelve. The Sermon on the Mount, as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, is the longest discourse of Jesus recorded in any of the four Gospels. It includes some of the most quoted teachings of Jesus, including the Beatitudes in chapter 5, and what is known as "The Lord's Prayer" in chapter 6, really a model prayer for His followers. To most believers in Jesus, it contains the central tenets of Christian discipleship.

In this particular blog, I am looking briefly at the above verses from Matthew 5:13-16, where Jesus speaks of His disciples as being both salt and light.

In verse 13, Jesus says: "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and to be trampled underfoot by men."

Salt is a necessity for life and was a mineral that was used since ancient times in many cultures as a seasoning, a preservative, a disinfectant, a component of ceremonial offerings and as a unit of exchange. The Bible contains numerous references to salt in both the Old and New Testaments. In various contexts, it is used metaphorically to signify permanence, loyalty, durability, fidelity, usefulness, value and purification.

In Biblical Israel, the main source of salt was the Dead Sea. The Hebrew people would harvest salt by pouring sea water into pits and letting the water evaporate until only salt was left. It was used as a seasoning, a preservative and to disinfect wounds. In 2 Chronicles 13:5, King Abijah referred to God's covenant promise to David that he will not lack a man to sit on David's throne as a Salt covenant - that is, a covenant that can not be broken.

Salt used for food seasoning only accounts for around six percent of salt production, apparently. There are in the order of 14,000 different ways in which salt is used - as varied as in the manufacture of plastic, paper, glass, polyester, rubber and fertilisers - to household bleach, soaps, detergents and dyes.

In relation to its use as food additive, it adds flavor to many of the processed food products we eat.

It is necessary for the maintenance of life and healthy bodies, not only for humans but for animals as well.

Christians, using the analogy of salt, in society, act as a seasoning and as a preservative. If the salt is tainted by impurities, it will not be effective as a flavoring condiment. In order to be "the salt of the earth," followers of Christ need to display Christlikeness in character, and to stand up for righteousness according to Biblical standards for life and godliness. 2 Peter 1:2-9

The Bible says in Proverbs 14:34 Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. In times of revivals, and other visitations of the Lord to nations, society has been greatly impacted with thousands coming to faith in Christ, broken relationships restored, deliverance from drug and alcohol addictions, droughts broken, and other positive impacts resulting from the blessing and favor of God on nations and localised places of Holy Spirit outpourings.

Most Christians will be familiar with the verses in 2 Chronicles 7:12-14, or at least, verse 14. Following Solomon's prayer of dedication of the temple he had built for the Lord's presence, God spoke to him at night: Then the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: "I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself for a place of sacrifice.

"When I shut up heaven, and there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people,

"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." When the church of Jesus Christ truly humble themselves before the Lord to seek His face, and to walk in holiness, the people of God have a seasoning and preserving effect on wider society, as the favor of God touches cities, towns and literally, the land. No politician, be it Prime Minister, President, Premier or Chancellor, or their governments can be a nation's Saviour.

Only God Almighty, through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ can truly be the Saviour for individuals and for nations, as they recognize Him as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Christians, as His ambassadors on earth, filled with and lead by the Holy Spirit, are salt to society, seasoning every area of influence with Godly wisdom and insight, and an integrity of life that values people from every culture, ethnicity, socio-economic background, race or creed - and dare I say it, vaccination status, knowing that Christ died for all, and His desire is that all should come to a place of repentance and be saved. 

In Mark 9:49,50 Jesus says to His disciples "For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another."

Salt was used in various sacrifices and offerings by fire in the Old Testament, as a symbol of purification.

We do not offer to God physical sacrifices today under the New Covenant of grace initiated by the Lord Jesus Christ, but the people of God today, Christians and Messianic Jews, are to offer up spiritual sacrifices. Romans 12:1,2 says: And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice - the kind He will find acceptable. This is the way to truly worship Him. 

Don't copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good, and pleasing and perfect. New Living Translation.

In a world that is increasingly hostile to Christians, as the antichrist spirit pervades every area of society influence, it is more imperative than ever that true followers of Christ retain their "salty flavor" as they live Godly lives grounded in the Truth of God's Word, filled with the Holy Spirit, and living uncompromising lives of integrity motivated in everything by love for God and people.

An added anecdote from Tessa

SALT - As a teen, I saw the immensity, the beauty, the dazzling purity and intensity of the salt drainage ponds near Adelaide in South Australia. It was literally awesome. Salt is essential for life - physical and spiritual. Let us be salt that is not flavourless or trampled!