Reflections

‘You shall not murder…’ (Exodus 20:13)

Life is precious, not just to us as individuals, but also to our Lord – we are all special in His eyes. This commandment states quite clearly that we should never wilfully take the life of another human being. But in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus seems to take it to another level.

Whilst confirming this commandment He adds that anyone who is angry towards a brother or sister will also be subject to judgement.

In this Jesus is taking things beyond the physical act of taking a life and looking into those emotions in our heart which may lead us down a path of hurting someone. This may seem somewhat extreme and the jump from one to the other a little much, however, how often have we lashed out at someone in anger – perhaps not physically but verbally – and if we allow such emotions to rule in our hearts we will never be at one with God as we should be.

Lord, help us to be ever mindful of our thoughts and emotions and to focus on You at all times. In Jesus name… Amen. 

Question Of The Day: Who was the son born to Hannah in answer to prayer?

Loving God in Heaven, as we come to You this morning we do so with hearts full of joy and adoration as we acknowledge You as our God and King. We thank You for each and every blessing You pour upon us and for the comfort and peace we have in simply knowing that You are always with us. And as we come to spend time with You now, help us to lay aside all the busyness and concerns of the week that is past and the week that lies ahead and just be at one with You. And all this we ask in Jesus name…Amen

Read Romans 5:1-8

I wonder, if you were asked this morning what you hope for today – I wonder how you might answer that question. And would it be the same as the answer you might have given 12 weeks ago.

Twelve weeks ago I was able to meet with you all in fellowship in both our churches, today I hope to be able to do that again soon. Twelve weeks ago I was able to speak to you and ask how you and your families were, today I hope and pray that they are all safe and well. Twelve weeks ago I was able to go and spend quality time with my family, today I hope to be able to do so again soon.

The 18th century English poet, Alexander Pope once said, ‘hope springs eternal…’ but does it. Where do we look to when we feel our hopes have been dashed or suddenly taken away. Is there any hope when the situation we are facing seems impossible and overwhelming. Faced with such thoughts, waiting for tomorrow, for a new day, a new week – for a better time sometime soon – is often the only approach we feel we can take, but surely there has to be something else.

Ancient philosophers used to debate the merits of hope and often thought of it as being a human virtue. But to many a consequence of this was that such a hope would make us wish for better things to happen instead of looking to make them happen ourselves. But is this indeed what hope is all about – and if so, what hope do we actually have. And what then does this mean to us in terms of our faith.

To us as Christians, hope is central to our faith and as such we live with a hope that is secured by no one less then God himself and his Son Jesus Christ. And as to what we hope for, we find that stated in Titus 1:2, ‘A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life…which God, who does not lie… promised before the beginning of time…’

When He ascended to heaven weeks after His resurrection, Jesus made a promise that He would physically and personally return to bring his children home. So we do not place our hope in a our own ideas and efforts, nor do we place them in some whimsical or mystical ideas. No, we place our hope, our sure and certain hope, in a real person – Jesus Christ – who has promised to make our hopes a reality, in person.

And God has promised that those who love Him will live with him for ever. Juts pause for a moment to think about that – to live forever in the presence of God. But more than that, the life we spend with Him will be free from all the things which cause us pain and suffering now.

But of course, as Christians we continue to live in hope here and now. Not just hoping for good things in the future, when God’s Kingdom becomes an eternal reality, but living with hope as an ever present reality in our everyday lives – and Paul tells us how this is possible.

As Christians, Paul tells us that we can, rejoice in the hope of the glory of God…for we have been made right with God, justified through faith.

Our hope in the glory of God, is knowing that God will be faithful to us and that no matter what may happen in the present, God will always be with us and our future is secure in Him. And this security leads us to the second mention of hope in this passage, at the end of verse four, at the end of a chain of events which begins with tribulation and ends in hope.

Indeed because of this hope Paul tells us that we can rejoice in our tribulations, which, to be honest, might be the last thing we would think of at such a time. But we can rejoice, says Paul, because we can trust that God will help us through them, whatever they happen to be.

Suffering doesn’t disappear from our lives when we make a step of faith toward Jesus and I’m sure we can all testify to that, perhaps especially so today. But through faith in God we are given the strength to persevere long after our own ability to endure has come and gone. And as we learn to persevere through this faith, our character is strengthened, and as our character – strengthened not by our own devices but by our faith in God – grows, we are then able to look to the future with more and more hope.

And this hope does not disappoint, says Paul, for God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom He has given us. Our hope is well grounded – because God has already shown us what he can do for us by giving us his Holy Spirit to help and guide us until our ultimate hope is realized. The Holy Spirit in our lives is like a deposit made by God – a guarantee if you like- that one day all He has promised and much, much more will happen.

As disciples of Jesus Christ we find our ultimate hope in Him and as his disciples we must live lives that show this hope to be alive and real, today. That if we are called to task by those who mock and criticise our faith…our hope will leave them not only silent, but wanting – wanting to know that hope for themselves.

So I hope and pray that for all of us this morning, we hold on to this faith and hope. And when we are hit by hard, difficult and painful circumstances, we might realize that no matter how severe they are, that there is nothing that can extinguish the hope that God gives, and that such hope can in turn, lead us even closer to God.

So may the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives lead us to live lives full of hope – hope that steadies our hearts in the present and prepares us for the future…Amen

Loving God, we thank You for that sure and certain hope You have given to us through Your Son and our Saviour, Jesus Christ, and we ask that by Your Spirit You would help us to look to that hope each and every day of our lives. And we think especially today for those who may feel as if they have no hope – because of bereavement, because of illness, because of circumstance, because of situations in their lives that have left them feeling devastated and bereft of any and all hope and we ask that You be with them. We think also of those images we have seen all week on our televisions and we pray for a sense of unity between all Your children and an end to all discrimination. Loving God, with all we are facing at this time we know there may be many who might feel like this so we ask that You would draw each one close to You and hold each one in Your tender loving care, letting them know that You are with them and will remain with them in all they are going through, and that in You there is always hope. And be especially with those in our own families and our own communities, those known and closest to us, and let them know also that we too hold them in our hearts and are thinking of and praying for them at this time. And all these things we ask for in Jesus name…Amen.

‘Honour your Father and your Mother…’ (Exodus 20:12)

At its basic and simplest level this commandment is all about respecting your parents and giving them the honour that they are due and certainly this is a theme which is consistent throughout the Bible. However, there is more to it than this; there is also an element of respecting all your elders, not just your own parents but all parents, all those who have more wisdom and life experience than you do. And again we also see this kind of theme repeated throughout the Bible.

However, during His ministry Jesus appeared to take it to yet another level in Matthew 12:48-50. When He was told that His mother and brothers were outside Jesus pointed to all His disciples and said they were His mother and brother – indeed anyone who did the will of His Father in heaven could be called His mother, brother or sister. So maybe that’s how we should look at this commandment; yes, honour our parents by showing them the love and respect we are due them, but also show this same love and respect to all God’s children because we are all brothers and sisters in Christ and all part of God’s one family.

Lord, help us to show love and respect to all whom we meet in our lives every day…in Jesus name. Amen.

Question Of The Day: Which Disciple replaced Judas?

‘You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God…’ (Exodus 20:7)

Blasphemy is an old fashioned word that many would scoff at today so it is perhaps not too surprising then to see the many ways in which the third commandment is violated in our modern day culture. At its simplest, this commandment is all about not taking the Lord’s name lightly and certainly not as some kind of thoughtless curse. Rather the Lord’s name should be treated with reverence and love, indeed the prayer Jesus Himself taught His Disciples He said that God’s name should be hallowed.

Yet how often do we hear the Lord’s name being used in exclamations of anger, frustration or joy and in expressions of hatred, contempt and disdain. Almost without any thought or consideration whatsoever the name of the Lord is inserted in to so many expressions like this that they are now part and parcel of our everyday language. Indeed so common are these kinds of expressions in our modern day society that many have their own acronyms and text message equivalents, the most common perhaps being OMG.

Have we ever in the heat of the moment – in anger or joy or whatever – have we ever taken the Lord’s name in vain this kind of way? God is our Sovereign Lord and through His Son and by His Spirit He has revealed Himself to us and is among us. His name should be uttered only in reverence as an expression of love and faith, giving thanks for all His grace and mercy to us and His continued provision for us. Praise be the Lord.

Lord, we know we live at a time when so many speak your name wrongly. Help us to begin to correct that by letting others hear how Your name should be spoken in love, that they too might come to do likewise.

Question Of The Day: Which of Jesus Disciple’s was initially a disciple of John the Baptist?

Read Luke 18:1-14

What are these two parables all about?

• Here Jesus pinpoints the two most important aspects of prayer.
• First and foremost, the need for us to practise constant contact and communication with God.
• God knows our needs but His wish is for us to speak with Him daily and acknowledge those needs in faithful expectation.
• It is important to note that he ere the judge does not ‘represent’ God – this parable is meant to show how much more infinitely superior God’s character is to that of human beings.
• The need for us to humble ourselves before God.
• A person’s attitude when he/she comes before God in prayer is all important. We need to acknowledge how far we are from God and how much we need His forgiveness.

Do we spend time in God in prayer as often as we should? Do we acknowledge how far we are from God and how much we need His forgiveness and provision in our lives?

Read Luke 18:15-31

What is the purpose of these two portions of Scripture? Why are they placed together in this way?

• For all that these two verses contain the simple most important lesson here is to contrast the difference in attitude between a child and a man who seems determined to hold on to his earthly possessions.
• In the child we have someone who is trusting and faithful and who gladly come to Jesus.
• In the rich man we have someone who, it would seem, is unable to let go of all he has in order to follow Jesus.

Which of these two parables resonant most with us – who are we more like?

Read Luke 18:35-43

What is most significant in this short story?

• Such was the man’s faith and belief in Jesus that he would not remain quiet when he was rebuked – he knew Jesus could help him.
• And when that help came he responded in faith, praising Jesus and following Him.

How persistent are we in our faith and how do we respond when Jesus comes to us?

‘You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them…’ (Exodus 20:4,5)

Over the years many have struggled to see the difference between the first and second commandment and look at them both as one in the same and at first glance it can appear that way. However, if we look at the second command more closely we see that, whereas the first commandment was about who we worship – the Lord God – the second commandment is more about how we worship.

Theologians will tell you that a good example of this is found later in chapter 32 of Exodus and the story of the golden calf. Moses was up the mountain speaking with God and the people asked Aaron to make them a god that would go before them and Aaron duly obliges by making the golden calf, which the people bow down and worship. However, this new ‘god’ could not have led the people out of Egypt and deep down they must have known that, they must have known that it was the Lord that led them from their bondage. And further evidence of this is found in the fact that we are told that the festival was indeed dedicated to the Lord.

So in effect the people here were certainly breaking the second commandment, but possibly not the first because they were worshipping the Lord. They were worshipping the right God but in the wrong way – through an idol. This idol had effectively become a representation of the Lord to them. The question for us today is how do we worship God? Do we come to Him through His Word, the living Word, Jesus Christ and by his Spirit; that is the only way that we should be coming to worship the Lord. Or do we allow some of those other gods and idols we thought of before to become some form of representation of the Lord to us?

Lord, You are the one and only true God and through Your Son and by Your Spirit You make Yourself known to us. Help us to worship You as we should, in joyful praise and adoration giving You the glory and honour that You and only You deserve. And all this we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

Question Of The Day: Who were the two sons of Zebedee chosen to be Disciples?

‘You shall have no other gods before me…’ (Exodus 20:3)

Today we begin a series of short reflections looking at the Ten Commandments, beginning with the first.

In a time and culture when people worshipped many different gods and idols the first makes it clear to the people that the Lord is the One and only true living God and the people are to have no other Gods but the Lord. Compared with the civilised Roman and Greek culture and the more barbaric cultures of the time, this was quite unique – but it sets the Lord apart as the only One who is worthy of worship and praise.

Today we perhaps don’t have the same idols and gods as the people back then did to compete for our devotion and worship, however, we do have our own more modern ‘gods’. Money, material goods and possessions, status, power, influence – the list goes on and on, and what we have to ask ourselves is this. How often do we put our love or desire for these things above the Lord, how often do these ‘gods’ detract us from our devotion to and worship of the Lord? Is it perhaps more often that we dare to admit to? If so, now is the time to put the Lord first in our lives once again.

Lord, help us to come to You in praise and devotion as we should, acknowledging You as Lord of our life and embracing Your Son as our Saviour. And we ask all this in His name. Amen.

Question Of The Day: Who was the first Disciple chosen by Jesus?

Trinity Sunday Reflection 

Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, You have unfolded before our eyes the wonderful story of our salvation. You alone are the creator source of all life, You alone are the word made flesh and You alone are the spirit of life. You are for us, You are with us and You are ahead of us. And as we come before You here this morning, three in one and one in three, we do so in faith, seeking to worship and praise your Holy name. So be with us now we pray and help us to open our hearts and souls to You presence with us wherever we are today. And all this we ask in Jesus name. Amen

Read Matthew 28:16-20

Many years ago I read a story of a young man who was going through a difficult time in his life. He had not long left home to go to university, but things just didn’t seem to be working out. The course he had chosen to study wasn’t what he thought it would be and he found it difficult to settle down into his new surroundings. Essentially he was homesick – and everything was just getting on top of him. So he wanted to quit – but felt he owed it to his parents to come to talk to them about it.

When he came home to explain all this to his parents his mum took him into the kitchen and put three pots of water on to boil. She then took a potato, and egg and some coffee and put each in one of the pots After about twenty or twenty five minutes she took the potato and egg out of their pots and place them on a plate. And she took the coffee out of that pot and poured it into a mug. She then turned to her son and asked him what he saw.

At first he was completely bemused and confused by this and asked her what on earth she was talking about. What do you see, she asked again. How have these three things changed? The young man was still confused so his mum explained. All three – the potato, the egg and the coffee had all faced the same difficulty. They had all been placed in boiling water and that boiling water had affected a change in them.

The potato had initially been hard and solid but was now fragile and weak. The egg had been fragile and vulnerable but was now hard and stronger. The coffee had gone in as granules but was now liquid. However, whereas with the potato and the egg the water remained unchanged, the coffee had changed the water it had been put in to. And the challenge from the mother to her son was this, which are you like – the potato, the egg or the coffee?
But what about each of us today?

The harsh reality is that we will all face difficult times in our lives and there will always be occasions when we will feel like giving up on what we happen to be doing at that time. But perhaps what this story teaches us is that how we approach these situations will go a long way to determining what the eventual outcome might be. And if we are totally honest with ourselves then for many of us when we do face these kind of situations in our lives. We do so like the potato or the egg.

We may approach our difficulty in a determined, unrelenting manner. Believing that we have the strength, the skills and the faith to persevere and get the better of things. Only to discover with the passage of time that this problem has gotten the better of us and we’re not as strong and faithful as we thought we were. Our strength and boldness of faith has been drained from us and our faith in our own abilities has been shattered. So much so that we have now become somewhat disillusioned and disheartened by it all to the point that our faith now seems weaker.

Or maybe we are not quite as certain and bold in the way we approach the situation, perhaps even a bit fragile. But, holding on to the story of the mustard seed, still we believe that we have enough faith to overcome and prevail. Only to discover, again as time goes on, that we do not and the difficulty we faced has now left us bitter and twisted with a hardness of heart and soul.

The problem with approaching any difficulty or any adversity in life in one of these two ways is that more often than not, the consequences that we later have to deal with, cause us even more pain and heartache. But here’s the thing, in the same way that a potato can’t become and egg, or vice versa, it’s very difficult for us to change who we are and the way in which we face all that life throws at us. And once our heart has been damaged and weakened, or once they have become hard and cold – it’s difficult to change that.

However, the good news is that we can all – every one of us – be like that coffee. All we need is something within us to affect that change, that transformation – and that something is God’s Holy Spirit. If we allow God’s Spirit to work within us then when difficulties and adversity comes our way, yes, it will impact upon our life and may affect some change within it. But with the help of God’s Spirit we will be able to affect change on the situation around us such that it will not affect our heart and faith in the same way.

Indeed when you go back to the analogy of the coffee and the boiling water. Being placed in the boiling water brought out the best of the coffee – it changed the coffee for the better. So it can be when we face difficult times. With God’s Spirit to help and to guide us, not only will we prevail, we may come through that period stronger, better and with a greater faith.

Times of difficulty and adversity will come to us all – and not just once – they will come to us on many occasions. However, through His Son and by His Spirit God will be with us. And if we allow Him to lead and guide us through all we face. If we put our faith and trust in Him, we will be able to do so in a way that will result in changing us for the better and a strengthening of our faith. Which in turn will not only give us more faith to face these kinds of situations when they come our way again. It will also help us to witness to others by our testimony of what it means to know God in our lives and how through His Son and by His Spirit we can face all things in faith…Amen

Eternal and everlasting God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we thank You for every sign of Your care in our society today. We thank You for the way in which You help and uphold us in time of need, for Your comfort and compassion and ask that You would be with us all today. We pray this morning for those who are most in need at this time, for those who suffer in some way in mind, body and soul. Keep them from all harm and evil and through Your Son and by Your Spirit be with them as only You can. Bring to them You healing, Your comfort and Your peace and let them know that You are with them and that we hold them in our hearts. Be especially with those in our own communities and families and surround each one today with Your love and protection. And all these things Lord we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

Sunday Evening:
The Following Is Taken From The Church Of Scotland Website:
Since the start of lockdown, Christians from across the country have been continuing to answer the call to pray at the same time each week, and Rt Rev Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, is looking forward to taking part alongside them this weekend.
“I’m delighted to have read that in the last couple of months online searches for ‘prayer’ have increased dramatically,” Dr Fair said.
“But reading about what prayer is and how to do it is only the start of it. After that it’s time to actually pray.
“And what better than to join with brothers and sisters from across the nation at 7pm on Sunday to pray our way through this ongoing crisis. I commend it to you and look forward to being with you, in Spirit, on Sunday evening.”
This week’s letter accompanying the prayer states:
“We are familiar with the words of Scripture that remind us that ‘now we see in a mirror dimly’ and we might think that these words are especially applicable to our present times.
“As our society continues in the journey out of lockdown, there are many things that we know only in part. We trust that greater clarity will be given in times to come.
“That said, there are some things that are clear and which our faith affirms to be so.
“In the Gospel of Matthew (28: 16-20), the disciples gather in the presence of the Risen Lord who assures them that in all they now face: ‘I am with you always, to the very end of the age’.
“The Gospel affirms that the life of God has been shared with us in the revelation of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and that our lives are to be lived out in the enduring presence of God. Knowing this to be so, we pray:”
We pray:
God whose name is Love,
You make yourself known to us
As the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Sustain us in the knowledge of your love through the times in which we live.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God whose love endures,
May we hear the words of your Son
That echo down the ages:
I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God whose love is generous,
You gift to us your Holy Spirit,
The very giver of Life.
Renew our lives and the life of the community in which we share.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God whose love is steadfast,
You know us as we are for you have made us.
In your compassion, be with all who struggle and grieve at this time.
Remember them and hold them safe in your keeping.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God whose love is from everlasting to everlasting,
Give strength to the weary and power to the weak,
That we might renew our strength
And soar on wings like eagles.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God whose love inspires,
May we love you with all that we are
And love our neighbour in response to your love.
Through our service of others, may your love be revealed.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

‘Let everything that has breath praise the Lord…’ (Psalm 150:6)

Read Psalm 150

We come to the end of the book of Psalms and it is perhaps fitting that our final Psalm is in itself something of a doxology. Yet at the same time it is also a call to worship; every single verse has something in it about praising the Lord – inviting us to praise God and then telling us where, why, how and by whom this praise should be expressed. And this worship should not be confined to one place or one time, it is not something that we practise only in a House of God, but with every breath we take we should praise God.

So as we end our look at the Psalms, just simply read through this Psalm – again and again – and feel the joy that it instils in your heart. If that in itself doesn’t lead us to praise God, then I don’t know what will. Praise the Lord!

Lord we do indeed praise You with all our hearts and souls for You are our God…Amen.

Question Of The Day: What is the name of Esther’s cousin who adopted her?

‘I will exalt You, my God the King…’ (Psalm 145:1)

Read Psalm 145

From beginning to end Psalm 145 speaks in fervent praise of the Kingdom of God, from the Psalmist himself and from all creation – praise that is eternal and everlasting – and when we look through these verses we see why such praise is so deserving. The Lord is good and righteous, He is gracious and compassionate, He upholds all who fall and uplifts those who bow down and He provides our every need. Only a few examples of why God is worthy of such praise.

But for all the many ways that this Psalm speaks to us in this way, perhaps the way it should speak to us most is to challenge us. Is our praise of God as it should be? Do we give thanks to God for His goodness, grace and compassion as we should? Do we tell of His glory and make His acts know to others by our life and witness? Do we, in the words of the final verse, speak in praise of the Lord, at all times?

If the answer to all of these questions is a resounding yes, then that’s fine and well. Yet, I suspect that we all fall short in some way in our praise of the Lord. So let’s use this Psalm as a continual challenge to us and let’s respond to that challenge in joy and worship, giving thanks and praise to the Lord for all He has given and for all He does.

Lord, help us to praise You with all of you lives and to share that praise with others in all we say and do. And all this we ask in Jesus name. Amen.

Question Of The Day: Why was Jeremiah thrown into a dungeon by King Zedekiah?