Scripture Treasures

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me´~ John 14:6 We live in a day of super-abundant tolerance. This is good if it removes those things of life which are damaging to a human spirit such as hate crimes, oppression of the poor, the sick, those of a different culture, and educational preferences due to privilege. We can and should be tolerant of other religions too, but, not to the point where we say heaven’s door is open to all. Here, we have to draw the line, for it is only by believing in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, as the Saviour of the world, can we come to the Father. Our God is a jealous God. There is no other way, but through the sacrifice and saving grace of Jesus Christ. Christ shows us the way through His example, His sacrifice, and by His Spirit. Only by obeying His instruction, through which He communicates truth of His salvation can we have favour and access to the throne of the Father. Jesus receives...

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me ~ John 14:1 In the calendar year, we are drawing closer to Ascension Sunday, the day when Jesus left His disciples and this earth for the heavenly kingdom, where He would stand at the right hand of the Father. It is His disciples He is addressing now, to give them hope, and to not lose courage. They had not yet received His Holy Spirit, so the men spoken to here were still weak in their own confidence and power. Jesus is asking them to expect the utmost from God, through their confidence in God as Father, and through Jesus, who would stand as their mediator and protector. These men had seen Him suffer, die, and now, as the Resurrected Christ they will witness His leaving them, though promising them a spiritual and heavenly inheritance. Their hopes for a secular kingdom had been lost to them only to find there was a better kingdom waiting for them. They experience sadness and fear and joy all mixed together...

For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose ~ Philippians 2:13 This is called, “working out our salvation.” I do not mean we work to be saved, no, that was done for us on the cross, but it means that we need daily to make an effort, we need to obey. God leads us to His will, but we must do the work of following His will. We cannot sit patiently still and wait for Him to powerfully accomplish in us what He will, for God will not force us, or compel us against our will. God works in us to sanctify us, to help us overcome our spiritual enemies and our sins, but we too have to have our eyes looking toward the One who saved us for His example. We were created to do good works, we are new creatures fitted now to do acts of righteousness, and holiness. God will implant into our soul principles of action, faith and love, grace and strength that is above what is naturally ours. But all this is inactive without our will. We are filled with the Hol...

I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing ~ John 15:5 Around my block there are several homes which have vines growing on fences near the sidewalk so that I can observe them with the changing seasons. In the dead of winter, the leaves may still be there on the branches, but they are brownish in colour and look dehydrated. As spring has come upon us, I see more and more greenery that is bright and new, and leaves which are just beginning to grow, thus making the vine branches look fresh and new again. This verse reminds me of those vines I pass each day. We are those branches. Without the sustenance brought into our bodies by the power of the Holy Spirit, by connection with the Father and Son, each day, we begin to wither and become dehydrated. We turn brownish in colour, and unappealing to be near. If we want to attract others to us, to our church, to our Christian family, we must look our bes...

I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds ~ Psalm 77:11, 12 How and where do we see God at work in our lives? Are we even looking for Him? Is God evident in our lives, or, do we just carry on, going on our own way with God in the background somewhere? I did not choose this scripture to meditate on today, but it is amazing that it has come up as the one I should write about. Recently I asked this question of a group. The best answers I received were in the little children one worked with, and the next was answered by seeing someone whom had been ill present again in their company. My heart was broken that from a group of Christ-following people, only 3 or 4 answers came. Where is God in our lives? The psalmist here says he remembers the deeds, not only of long ago, but he will consider all God’s workings in his life, in his times of meditation, and in God’s actio...

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding ~ Proverbs 9:10 Wisdom and understanding go hand-in-hand. We can be thought to be wise in our own eyes, but it is not necessarily so. True wisdom, divine wisdom and knowledge come from the Lord alone, and it comes to us through relationship with Him. These two blessings come because we fear the Lord, in other words, we revere Him, we have a right understanding of His Majesty. We have a right conception of His holiness, His mercy, His judgement, of His perfection. In all this we take joy. In this grasping of God we then can be taught by His Holy Spirit, for we will listen. As we fear the Lord’s wisdom and knowledge, we will place the right value on the temporary and the eternal, rightly living by the principles which the Lord calls us toward. We can walk the right path as we follow His will for our lives. Without the fear of the Lord, we live a life of folly. Devotion by Pastor Julia ...

If anyone causes one of these little ones- those who believe in me- to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depts of the sea ~ Matthew 18:6 Jesus was gentle, yes, here though, we see His firmness. This speech is directed toward his disciples, not the Pharisees, as we often read. As a leader, I have always taken these words very seriously, as should every leader, but so should every lay person. How well do we know the word of God so that we can answer or teach with sound guidance, rather than with what the world mixes into our words? If false doctrine is professed for the “children”, that is, those who do not have as much experience in the Christian life, and their trust is in you because of their faith in you, they will be led astray when mixed messages enter their minds. We all have a responsibility to train and educate with the Gospel in mind so that we can face the world, and the enemies of the soul. Not...

Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows ~ Galatians 6:7 What Paul is talking about is hypocrisy. Our thoughts, words, and deeds, our acts in our life, can seem to be good, but in actual fact they are deceptions which cover a sowing to the flesh. We can draw close to God, yet it can be mere lip service, and not heart service. Yet, God penetrates into our very heart and knows its most inner thoughts. What our brother or sister may see is not what God sees. God is mocked when we pretend to be what we are not. A Christian sows seeds to the Spirit, not to the flesh. His thoughts, actions, deeds, are done in reference and in reverence to the Holy Spirit. He aims his sights at God’s glory, loves Him, serves Him, in his desires and motions. So how does a Christian sow? They sow seeds of faith in times of discouragement, in difficulty, with encouragement and endurance to run the race. They sow seeds against temptations and against nature, for our nature leads us...

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day ~ 2 Corinthians 4:16 Jesus said, I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty (John 6:35). This is spiritual life to the max. Paul says truthfully that everyday our bodies are growing closer to death. But inside, it is new life, everyday. Through the grace of Christ, we have a new inner make-up, which by the Spirit’s leading and prodding, brings us deeper into the sanctification process of becoming more life Jesus. We will go through hardships, yes. We may find ourselves persecuted, absolutely. But because of the grace of Christ, and the ministry He has placed upon us, Paul claims rightly that we change from our past life. We leave that which was behind, and we take on the likeness of Jesus more each day. Earlier in the chapter, Paul says we have “this treasure in jars of clay”, that is, our body. ...

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son ~ John 3:18 Not long ago a man said to me, “I cannot believe.” “Whom?” I asked. He stammered, and again said, “I cannot believe.” I said, “Whom?” “Well,” he said, “I can’t believe.” “Whom?” I asked again. At last he said, “I cannot believe myself.” “Well, you don’t need to. You do not need to put any confidence in yourself. The less you believe in yourself the better.” (D. L. Moody.) Jesus died on the cross for the whole of the world, and He died to put sin away for good, by His sacrifice. If we believe in this, if we believe Jesus died to remove the sin from our mortal beings, then we do not stand condemned before Him. Unbelief, on the other hand, is not only foolish for a man, but his fate is fixed. He has rejected the salvation offered by his Redeemer. Unbelief leaves him just as he was found. A true Christian beli...

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus ~ Philippians 4:7 This is the peace that says God has everything under control, that I can go confidently through my day without any anxious thoughts, that my needs will be met, and that I have committed everything to God. This wonderful peace is incomprehensible, for it is also more than could be anticipated. It is above what we could bring by our own powers, and nothing else will bring it but by committing to the Lord all the cares held in our heart. Plans made without the Lord, or with a friend does not always lead to full confidence in the making. Nothing can grant this peace but the simple trust in God. Then will your mind be preserved from anxiety and agitation. It takes faith, and trust, and hope, not in ourselves, but in Jesus Christ, the giver of peace. The world will be in chaos around us, that is a given, but through the intervention of Jesus Christ, we can kn...

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you ~ James 4:7 To submit to God means we are to give up that willful part of ourselves. It is the part that says “I”. It is not easy, for “I” fights hard and strong to take control. For me personally, that “I” said I would not move more than 2.5 hours away from my grandchildren. Submitting to God meant I would live for 10 years 2.5 hours by flight and 3,000 or so km’s away from my grandchildren. Submitting to God means that I will go to the church He calls me to, when He calls me, even if it is away from a people I care very, very deeply about. For me, submitting to God means I won’t put myself first, but I will put Him first, even when I question what He wants me to do. For you, it could be a myriad of different ways in which you have, or will, submit to God. Maybe for you it is to stay in a marriage that has many challenges, but you do so because God called you into it. We all submit, or we don’t. With Go...

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit ~ Psalm 34:18 “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine, O what a foretaste of glory divine…Filled with His goodness, lost in His love” (Frances Crosby). These are just some of the lyrics of that wonderful old hymn. It is what came to mind when I read the scripture verse this morning. When heartaches come, I know I am lost in the love of Jesus, I know He is there with me in my pain, and I know He feels what I feel and will bring me comfort. Hearts can be broken in so many ways, the pain comes in waves at times as well. And when the waves hit it may feel as though we are drowning! It is then when we turn to Jesus we find Him in the midst of it all, walking along with us. What a blessed Saviour we serve. Devotion by Pastor Julia

Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power ~ Ephesians 6:10 Paul had just outlined the relational duties which they were to perform in all their interactions of life – marriage, children; family interactions. He knew they would need strength from the Lord to fulfill these duties. Relationships do take work, sometimes more than other times, but we have a responsibility toward each other in its keeping. He also knew there would be “foes” from the spiritual world in which they would have battle. Paul then goes on in what is the great completion of this section, the putting on of the armor necessary to fight the battle they will encounter. This strength, he reminds them, does not come from their inner self, but from the Lord alone. In Him they can hope for victory. Today, we need these words just as much as they did in Paul’s time. We need to be strong in faith, knowing and being sure in what we believe. Christians have not always been strong, indeed, we are often weak. Weak in ou...

Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil ~ Proverbs 3:7 God teaches us in various ways – through experiences we encounter, and through those others encounter, but also, over and above these two by the warnings He voices into our conscious mind. This is the voice of revelation, to help us discern right from wrong. When we become wise in our own eyes, we set ourselves above God’s teaching and pride takes hold, and fear of the Lord vanishes. To fear the Lord, is not to be afraid, but to revere Him. That is the beginning of wisdom, says the writer. Evil is not always so clear. For sure we would not, and do not applaud murder. But other things in life, though they might be clear to faithful enquiry, may not be so visible to one who is not looking through wisdom’s eyes. Doubtful areas of life are to be areas we are wary of. The humble person will walk carefully here, whereas the one whom feels they are wise will walk there because he enjoys the challenge and thinks ...

Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it ~ Proverbs 22:6 Children’s minds are perceptive and open, trusting and believing. Is it any wonder Jesus told us we must have the mind of a child so that we may enter into heaven? (Matt 19:14). What we teach then when they are young takes hold of their young minds and hearts, and the promise here is, that it will never depart from them. Yet, often, we see our children take wandering routes in life, and we grieve for them. I know I am not the only one who has a prodigal child or grandchildren. It is hard in today’s world to keep our children and successive generations interested in following Jesus. In today’s world there are too many other options (which I call mini-gods) and the world beckons with a loud voice. But, this I do know…the Word of God is still in their heart. It comes out every now and again. Just for example, a granddaughter sent me a song on messenger and wrote, “I th...

All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work ~ 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 We read the words “all scripture” is God-breathed. Primarily, this is talking about the OT, as still much of the NT had not been written, though some had and are included in this statement. Paul affirms what some contest these days – God was actively involved in the writing of Scripture. His involvement was so powerful and prevalent that what is written is the infallible (unfailing, effective, flawless) and authoritative word of God. God-breathed is recognition the Holy Spirit himself inspired scripture. As such, God’s word stands true in its teaching, in its rebuking, in its correcting and training. We cannot read over Scripture, or re-write scripture to mean what we want it to say. God’s word is infallible and inerrant (incapable of being wrong). The church has a responsibilit...

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments ~ Deuteronomy 7:9 There were many gods surrounding the Hebrew people; there are many gods which surround us, too. But there is only one true God, that being the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Son Jesus, who is our Redeemer, and His Holy Spirit, our Guide. This God is faithful, and loving, and never changing. If His Word said it, He will keep it. If His Word promises it, it will come to pass. This is a promise we as Christians hold on to, especially when we have prodigal children. To know that our God will keep His covenant with multi-generations gives us hope that our children will return to the fold of God’s people. There is of course, a condition: that we love Him and keep His commandments. We live a life of grace in New Testament times under the saving power of Jesus Christ. This grace though, is...

But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord ~ Joshua 24:15 Choose whom you will serve today. Serving the Lord may not seem undesirable, but yet there may remain within a real devotedness to idols and that which you ought not to serve. You may feel, you may also act, and think, as if it were not evil or undesirable to serve the Lord, but the truth is, God requires your whole heart – with all its principles, and character and feelings. The idea that you are submitting to Christ’s way, when in fact, you are the slave of another, is inconsistent. Choosing the Lord means we forsake the world and our connection with it. Some may hesitate, thinking that they can just take hold of some pleasure of the flesh before turning over their lives to the Lord. Go...

I thank my God every time I remember you ~ Philippians 1:3 Today is Mother’s Day, a day we set aside to think about the sacrifices our Mother’s made for us, and those we as Mother’s make for children. The list of what our mother’s do is numerous, how they support us is at times humbling, how they unconditionally love us is overwhelming. They put up with a lot from us sometimes. I cannot help but turn from Mother’s to our loving God who treats us in the same way. He grants to us numerous gifts, along with peace and joy in our relationship with Him, He is our support and comfort in times of grief and sorrow, and His love encompasses us with resounding grace. And, at times, He puts up with a lot from us as His children. And as a Mother will discipline her children to teach them, so our God will do the same for us. He is love and justice, He is peace in His children’s lives, and yet too, there is a spiritual war set in place for His children. He is grace and kindness and acceptance, ...

As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; and you will be comforted over Jerusalem ~ Isaiah 66:13 We are often in need of comfort from our God, and here the comfort is likened to that of a mother figure. God’s comfort arises, not as that of a stranger, but with the warm affection and indulgent care of a mother. As her attention is prompt, so is God’s, though His is divine in its origin. It is also free. Just as a mother brings herself to the level of her child, and will even deny herself for her child, so God does as well. What the prophet declares here is a promise of consolation. When the trial is over God will be there, just where he always was. We are subject to many fears, to sins which upset us, to discouragements of life, and we may feel we are in danger. “Yet,” says God, “I will deliver you.” Not only will He deliver, but He will instruct and strengthen us. Yet again, not all are participants of this Godly and heavenly consolation, for not all are qualified t...

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse ~ Romans 1:20 Where and how do you sense God? We look around and can see where nature has not been disturbed, the immense beauty of it, the expansive diversity of it, the finite details of its make-up. We look at all this and wonder at its Creator, for all around us is the fullness of imagination and sometimes suspense. The “how’s” and the “why’s” come to our thoughts as we look around. Paul is not talking about those ways of sensing God, for he says his “invisible” qualities have been clearly seen. So where do I see God in these invisible times? When a prayer group gets together just to pray, when a function brings people together in oneness where there had been no communion before, when a person has been healed and prayer was the intervention, or when an answer comes in an unexpe...

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death ~ 2 Corinthians 7:10 It is important to remember Paul is talking to Christians here, not to the unbeliever, and it is a demand to bring to repentance our sins. We sin, and as such, we must repent, just as should all people. In the experience of sin, Christian or not, repentance is required. And we who know Christ, if we commit sin, until we repent, are not in a saved condition. Repentance is not sorrow for sin which results from the inconvenience of being “found out”. Repentance is a change of the will with regard to sin. It means I will leave it behind me and not return to it. Recognition of the sin must be acknowledged before God and so must His will for our life. Repentance does not take us from God, but toward God. Worldly sorrow comes from the viewpoint of worldly consequences. Worldly sorrow does not look to God for pardon. They look to the world for their value, and...

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms ~ 1 Peter 4:10 What is your gift? Is it hospitality, or a listening ear? Perhaps it runs along the lines of financial, or being a benefactor. Or maybe your gift is organizing, or extra time for helping in some other way for meeting the needs of another. Whatever gift you have, do not keep it to yourself, but use it and thereby benefit not only another, but find a deep and rich satisfaction in your own life as well. A steward is one who uses resources wisely for the kingdom and for the glory of God. His grace was given to us in the form of a Saviour on a cross, willingly and freely. It is in this attitude we too use our gifts in sacrificial love for others. Devotion by Pastor Julia

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now life in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me~ Galatians 2:20 Paul is not speaking of his literal crucifixion with Christ, but that he has put to death the law, the world and sin. When one dies, when our Lord died, all the surrounding objects of the world ceased to be. He did not see, or hear them, and it was as though they were not. Paul is speaking in this voice of shutting out the world in pride, in the lordship of worldly evil, and hateful passions. Paul identified himself with Christ, rather than the world, because of his intimate relationship. This relationship made him aware that he might suffer for it through contempt. Yet, he says, he lives. He is not dead to the spiritual appeals from God. He is not dead to that which calls our minds to view the eternal. The Gospel is not a call to do nothing, to stifle or paralyze people. The Gospel...

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved ~ Romans 10:9 Salvation in Christ is a precarious thing. It demands from us that Jesus be declared as Lord of our life. Our human nature finds that challenging, as we erroneously think this means giving all my control to Another makes me less than. Yet, the truth is, when I give up all I am to Christ, He makes me more than! We live in an age where I want to be my own person, do my own thing, set my own values, faith, morality. I want to claim my rights to do what I want to do. This is a dangerous time. Yet Jesus said, “if any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?” (Matthew 16:24-26). Jesus came that all might...

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer ~ Romans 12:12 Hope is what comes in tomorrow, it is what we keep striving toward, in what gives us strength for today. Our hope is placed in One who is faithful and loving, and in One whom has gone before us in our trials. He who was no sin, became our sin conquering even the final sin of death, so that He might stand now at the right hand of the Father, beckoning us to come to Him. And so, our hope is also in the eternal! It is in this stance we have the ability to be patient in our trials of this life. Many afflictions may come upon us; mental, physical, and emotional. We cannot stand alone in these times; it is the strength of the Lord which fills us so we may endure. This is where our prayer life fills us. Without communing with our Lord in faithful practice, we stand as a soldier without his armour. The arrows will pierce us, the enemy will advance. Without a faithful prayer life, we cannot avail of a God which wi...

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord ~ Romans 6:23 All sin separates us from God. All sin leads to death when it is unrepented, for God cannot draw close to us when we are far from Him in our own desires, lusts, greed, and, well, the list goes on. The greatest sin is to turn away from the Lord, to turn away from accepting Jesus Christ as Saviour. This sin will keep us from eternal life with our Lord. We were born into a fallen world with fallen bodies. It was not God’s plan from the beginning, but it is the state of where we are since the fall from the Garden of Eden. But God had a plan in place, knowing that He gave us free will, and that plan was the life and atonement of His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus died that all might live eternally with Him, but not only eternally, but in this life as well. When we take Jesus as our Saviour, we surrender all to Him and in that amazing giving up of ourselves, we are made new in Him and co...

Pray continually ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17 Yesterday I asked questions about why we should pray. Why, if God knows everything, should I pray. Today I want to address praying in the right way, as well as what about praying aloud, will people judge me? I often hear people say, “I don’t pray very good,” when I ask them if they will pray for a group. Or, I hear the words, “I can’t pray.” I don’t believe either statement, but to encourage them is essential. Whether we pray to God inside our head, or outside for others to hear, the only “right way” or “very good” way, is to pray from our heart. That is the only way to pray. That is the prayer God hears and answers. If our heart is not in the prayer, whether it is a written prayer or an impromptu prayer, God is not in the room with you. Prayer is conversation with your best friend. It is simple and honest. There are no other requirements. And, as I have said before, we can pray at any time, in any moment, of any day. We can pray on a subwa...

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful ~ Colossians 4:2 If God knows everything, why should I pray? If God knows what I need, If He knows me through and through, why do I need to come before Him, and pray? And how, as this verse says, can I devote myself to prayer? Do you ever ask these questions? They are good questions! God doesn’t want to be a dictator in your life, and neither does He want to be just an invisible hand providing for your needs. He created you for relationship. He wants to be your best friend, the one you go to when all others fail you, and the One you go to before all others fail you. Prayer is our intimate conversation with the God who created us, who loves us, who uses us as His hands and feet in this world. We can pray while we cook, or drive, or sit at our desk. Always we must be mindful that God is desiring to be a part of our decisions, to help guide us in their making. And we are to thank Him for how He does this, even when we have to ...

Fixing our eye on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God ~ Hebrews 12:2 The way of a true Christ follower is not easy. We have our cross to carry as we follow the path Jesus wove to the hill of Calvary. We look from the world, from the secular, to Jesus, and all the spiritual things connected to Him. We are to look to His holy life; to His patience and perseverance in the trials He underwent; to what He endured in order that He might stand at the right hand of the throne of God. He is the first and the last, the pioneer and perfecter as an example of faith and confidence in God the Father. He is in fact, the source of our faith. Jesus suffered and was tempted as we are, but He prevailed and passed through to joy unspeakable. What is true for Him is true for us as well. When we “look to Jesus” we focus our spiritual vision upon the Lord. While Jesus lived on...