Reflections

‘…and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace…’ (Ephesians 6:15)

It might seem strange to some that in the middle of a passage that is speaking about spiritual warfare and the need to put on the whole armour of God, that suddenly we have this reference to the gospel of peace. But the peace being spoken of here is that shalom, that inner peace that we can only know through having Jesus Christ in our lives and as we play our part in building up the Kingdom of God in this world in which we live, it’s a peace that we all need to know. That sure and certain peace we can have knowing that in all we do each day and in all we undertake in God’s name, by His Spirit, Christ will be with us. In that peace we not only know the full love of Christ, but find hope and faith to be the Disciples that He has called us to be.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me : Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘…having put on the breastplate of righteousness…’ (Ephesians 6:14)

No matter how strong a faith we may have, or how devoted we may be, there is none of us righteousness in the eyes of God – not by our own merits. We see this clearly in Paul’s letter to the Romans where he talks of justification through faith and the gift of righteousness that we receive from Jesus Christ. Our breastplate of righteousness, therefore, comes through faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. If we allow that faith to dwell in our hearts and souls and guide us in all we do, then through Christ we are justified and deemed righteous in the eyes of God and that breastplate of righteous will enable us to face up to any and all wickedness that comes our way.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me : Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘Stand, therefore, having girded your waist with truth…’ (Ephesians 6:14)

In everyday language, truth is usually thought of as being conformity to fact or reality, but it is also described as being the opposite of falsehood. In terms of a Biblical or Theological understanding the latter of these two is probably a better starting point in our understanding of truth. However, even here we fall short.

When He was being questioned by Pilate during His trial and asked if He was a King, Jesus answered, ‘You say rightly that I am a King. For this cause I was born and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice…’ (John 18:37)  Quite simply, Jesus is Truth personified and if we listen to His voice, if we hold fast to His teachings, if we try as best we can to follow in His footsteps in our everyday lives, then we too can know that truth in our lives. And it’s a truth we need to know in order to be able to dismiss all the false claims made by the spiritual powers Paul speaks of and all the falsehoods that we hear spoken of in our world today.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me : Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand…’ (Ephesians 6:13)

Again Paul reminds us that our whole body needs to be armed to withstand all that may come against us, but more than our own individual selves, the whole body of the Church needs the whole armour of God to withstand all it will face.  We all need God’s strength, God’s help, God’s encouragement – all that the Lord can give to us – each and every day of our lives. But look at the last two words in this verse – to stand. If we put our faith firmly in God and put on His whole armour, we will stand. That’s not to say we won’t face sad, difficult or even devastating days, but with the Lord by our side, we will stand.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me : Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘…our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm…’ (Ephesians 6:12)

For many these words might seem a bit extreme, yet the reality is that the moment we give ourselves to Jesus Christ, the moment we accept Him as our Lord and Saviour, these beings that Paul speaks of become our enemies. Through Christ victory has been won and our ultimate salvation is assured, but still we are called to stand up to and combat all kinds of wickedness and evil in the world, and if ever we should feel discouraged by verses like this we should remember what our Lord said to Peter in Matthew 16:18. By His Spirit God will give us the strength we need.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me : Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘Put on the full armour of God, so you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes…’ (Ephesians 6:11)

In these words Paul reminds us that beneath the surface an unseen spiritual battle is raging and as Disciples of Jesus Christ, whether we are consciously aware of this or not, we are part of this. But if we hold fast to our faith in the Lord, and put on the full armour of God (which we will look at in more detail in coming days) we can prevail. So as you come to the Lord each day in devotion, allow His love, power and strength to enshroud you and give yourselves to Him.

If there is any interest I’m looking to start a Zoom Bible discussion evening in the next few weeks. My plan would be to discuss the Bible passages that we looked at on the previous Sunday and just have a discussion about them in a bit more detail and end with 5 minutes or so of prayer. If you are interested please email me  Andrew.Graham@churchofscotland.org.uk I would need your email details to send you the Zoom link for you to join in. Each session would be no more than 40 minutes, as that’s the time limit I have on my zoom account, and could be on either an afternoon or evening.

‘Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power…’ (Ephesians 6:10)

These words begin a portion of Scripture that we will be thinking of over the next week – The Armour of God. But let’s just consider these few words first and pick up from what we thought of yesterday. As we live out our busy lives each day there may be times when we feel tired, downtrodden, even overwhelmed by all that we face and experience and it may bring us down. If ever we feel that happening these words remind us to look to the Lord, and to find strength in Him. We will still have to face whatever comes our way, but in the strength of the Lord we will be more able to do so.

‘Take courage. It is I. Do not be afraid…’ (Matthew 6:50)

Every day we may face situations when our courage and our faith is put to the test and we may become fearful – for ourselves, our loved ones, the world around us. These words spoken by Jesus as He walked on the water to His disciples remind us that we need not be fearful. Wherever we are, whatever we are doing, whatever we face, the Lord will be with us – all we need do is call on His name and He will be by our side.

‘I always thank God as I remember you in my prayers…’ (Philemon 1:4)

When we pray to God for others we are often thankful for what they may have done or for what God has done in their lives, but how often, I wonder, do we pause to give thanks to God for the wonderful opportunity we have to come before Him in prayer. Take time today, when you come to God in prayer, to thank Him that we are indeed able to approach Him in this way, knowing that He will listen and that He will answer.

‘The Lord is high above all nations and His glory above the heavens…’ (Psalm 113:4)

In a few words the Psalmist here reminds us of the sheer glory of our Lord and of His greatness, words worth reflecting on even more so now as we enter a period of further restrictions and uncertainty brought on by the pandemic. Things might look bleak at the moment, but the glory of the Lord is all around us, if we would but open our hearts as well as our eyes. So as we come to Him today, ask Him to help us to see His glory in all that we see and experience and to acknowledge His greatness.