Maggz

I agree that corporate prayer needs a unity of thought and purpose. Unfortunately, the ravages of Covid have meant that any form of Bible study or prayer group has had to be shelved for the time being, as we are severely limited in the numbers we can have at any meeting. Even our church services are limited in number, although we have had some relief over the last week. Returning to corporate worship and prayer will be a wonderful experience

Jesus offers us the power to witness about him without hesitancy and embarrassment. He puts the words into our mouth to replace our inadequate efforts. The book of Acts is a series of concentric circles, radiating out from Jerusalem, and gradually becoming wider and wider until it reaches the edges of the known world. Verse 8 shows how this is going to happen - first to Jews in Jerusalem, and then gradually further and further afield, until it includes Gentiles as well as Jews, thanks to Paul's pioneering work. We may not be able to trudge on foot from town to town, as he did, but we are commissioned to spread the word among our communities and to the edges of our particular world.

It would have been so easy for them to lose faith and return to the security of their daily work. Look how, in the midst of the Resurrection appearances,, Peter declared "I am going fishing." There was a human impatience there - had they gone through all this for nothing? What was the Lord's plan now? We are incomplete when we try to act in our own strengths - and the Spirit fills up that lack. Whenever we set out on our own, we come to grief. The Holy Spirit comes upon us with a light touch, like the dove that landed on Jesus' head at His baptism. It show to others that we are made Holy (separate or different). The clothing covers our nakedness, the nakedness of our insecurity and helplessness. The Holy Spirit wraps us around and protects us from the world around us

4. Why is it so hard to maintain a Quiet Time? What have you found that enables you to set aside this time? Any tips to share with the rest of us? My quiet time is early in the morning, before the rest of the world is awake. It consists of prayer, devotional reading and meditation. Like so many others, I find it difficult to stay focused all the time - other thoughts creep in, like "I must remember to put sugar on the shopping list!". It is frustrating, but I read a description in a book recently that suggested that one studied a bird in flight - surrounded by air, yet the air is invisible. Even so, we are surrounded by the arms of the loving God, and we do not need to go to seek Him - He is all around us, and knows our cares and worries - even the sugar on the shopping list!! I find that, when something else intervenes, one has to draw one's mind gently back, without any feeling of guilt, to the Lord Who is always patiently waiting.

6. Who are the oppressed in your community? Where do we start? Those who are oppressed by the state because they advocate a way of life other than the official one. Those who are oppressed by poverty and sickness, particularly at this time of the Covid epidemic, when so many jobs have been lost, family members ill or dying and the way of life disjointed and different. Those who are oppressed because they lack hope, and have no solid foundation of faith to fall back on. Those who are oppressed and confused by unrealistic demands made on their adherents by some religions. Those who are oppressed through loneliness. Those who are oppressed by mental illness. There are so many examples that one could give

1. What do you think Jesus was saying to the Father as He was praying after His baptism. Jesus and the Father were one, and He knew the Father's will for Him. He might have been saying, like Samuel in the Temple, "Here I am, send Me", or He might simply have been praying for strength for the task ahead. 2. Why would Jesus be baptized along with all the sin-laden people on the river that day? Wasn't He in danger of mis-communicating to them who He was? Jesus was baptized to fulfil all righteousness - although He had no sin, He was identifying with sinful humanity. We see throughout His ministry that often people misunderstood who He was, and this might have been the first time, but His preaching and teaching were aimed at showing them who, in fact, He was. Only when Peter made His confession of faith at Caesarea Philippi was there the beginning of understanding of who Jesus was, and even that was followed by Palm Sunday, when they greeted Him as a conquering king. 3. Why do you think God staged the dove to descend in a visible way? Human beings need to see before they can understand so often, and the dove was a sign, just as were the tongues of fire at Pentecost, which made the descent of the Holy Spirit obvious to the bystanders. 4. What was the significance of the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus at this time in His life? Jesus was about to begin His earthly message, and the voice of the Father and the dove representing the Holy Spirit showed the Trinity in action together, supporting Him at this time. 5. How did Jesus interpret the Voice that sounded from heaven? It was the voice of the Heavenly Father, setting the seal of approval on His ministry, and showing the Father's support and pride in Him. 6. Did Jesus become the Messiah at this point? Or become divine? Or how do you understand this decisive event? Jesus was, is and always will be divine, the second person of the Holy Trinity, so there was no question of becoming divine. He was the Messiah from His incarnation (Immanuel, which means "God with us". When Simeon saw Him as a baby in the Temple, he hailed Him as the salvation which God had prepared, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to His people Israel. (Luke 2: 30-32). This event marked the beginning of His public ministry, but His divinity had already been hailed by the angel Gabriel, Simeon and Anna, to name only three.

1. Why do you think John the Baptist calls the people a brood of vipers, a den of snakes? Vipers are poisonous - they can attack and spread their poison. In Genesis, a snake is used as a symbol of the Devil, to tempt Adam and Eve. The people are sinful and in need of repentance, and so he likens them to an animal which is feared and dreaded 2. How did the Jews' religious pride in Abraham keep them from taking John's call for repentance seriously? How could religious pride have that same effect on us? The Jews were self-righteous in their descent from Abraham, and their position as the Chosen People. Because of this, they felt that they had already "arrived" spiritually, and had no need for repentance. We can fall into the same trap, when our religion creates a self-satisfaction, a feeling that we are superior to others, and an inability to realize our own sinfulness. 3. In what way does sharing clothing and food with the poor constitute meaningful repentance? What ways do you find to do this in your everyday life? Jesus gave the command to feed the hungry and cloth the naked. When we share our worldly goods with others, we are showing love in action, and this was the second of the great commandments given by Jesus - to love our neighbour as ourselves. We cannot think of others if we are too wrapped up in our own pride and satisfaction. 4. Tax collectors were tempted to collect more than was due them. How does this same temptation show up in your line of work or education or home? In neglecting to give to others the full amount that they have paid for. 5. How will we know that we have repented? What are the fruits of genuine repentance? We will know that we have repented when we put God at the centre of our lives, and put others before ourselves. The fruits of genuine repentance are the fruits of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Galatians 5:22 6. How does discontent with our lot cause us to sin? What would constitute repentance in this circumstance? Discontent with our lot shows a lack of trust in God, who gives us every good thing which is necessary for our well-being, therefore we should need no more. Repentance would involve a study of our circumstances, to develop gratitude for what we have - and a study of the circumstances of others, to realize that so many are worse off than us.

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1. Why do you think God chose someone like John to be Jesus' forerunner? John was courageous, comfortable in his calling, and prepared to stand up against the religious leaders of the time. 2. How can we be sure that all our personal differences are part of God's plan and purpose? Can't some be patterns of sinful reactions to past events? It is always encouraging to look at the disciples whom Jesus chose - rough fishermen, a despised tax collector, Sons of thunder, a coward who denied him three times and one who would betray Him. Each of these was chosen with a plan and purpose in mind, and we are similarly chosen, to be moulded to God's plan. 3. John was raised in the desert. What kinds of circumstances has God used as training ground for your preparation? A loving Christian home, with parents who demonstrated, in their different ways, a commitment to the Gospel 4. How dependent are you upon what others think and say about you? How can you change this without becoming callous? Probably, as I have got older, I have become less dependent upon the opinion of others, and better able to make my own decisions. However, it is always true that all our actions and reactions influence others, and we must be sensitive to the needs of others, even if their opinions no longer drive our actions. 5. What would you say to a person suffering from chronic guilt over past sins? How can guilt be healthy? How can guilt be unhealthy? Once a debt is paid, it is no longer owing. Similarly, once one has repented of past sins, they have been forgiven by the cross of Christ, and no longer need to be a burden. True repentance is metanoia - turning away. We leave our sins behind, and turn away, by God's grace, into a new path. Guilt can be healthy if it leads to repentance, but wallowing in guilt can be unhealthy, and can block true forgiveness. 6. Why is humbling (such as repentance and baptism in John's day) necessary to form disciples of Jesus? Only when we acknowledge our sinful natures, and cast ourselves wholly on the Saviour's forgiveness can we be made whole again. We have to confess our helplessness and our need of divine assistance before we receive the grace of forgiveness. God can only place a gift into empty hands 7. What kind of cutting, filling, straightening and smoothing work has God been doing in your life? What does he still need to do? Why is this necessary preparation for disciples? Sanctification is an ongoing process, and one in which God is moulding us day by day. I am aware of many sins and inadequacies which still need to be ironed out before I am worthy to be called a disciple, and am empowered to be his messenger.

1. What sources does Luke use as he prepares his Gospel? He uses both written sources (i.e. Mark's Gospel, which already exists, and other documents) and also eyewitness accounts. He would have spoken to many apostles as he travelled around with Paul. I often wonder whether he spoke to the Virgin Mary, since his description of the Incarnation and the childhood of Jesus is so much fuller in detail than the other Gospels. 2. What does it mean to be a servant of the word? What does such a servant do? How does such a servant act? What is the word he serves A servant, one who serves, is one whose whole life should be dedicated to serving his master. He acts according to his Master's will, does his Master's commands and fulfills His wishes. The Word is the Gospel, the teaching of Christ about the Kingdom of Heaven 3. What makes Luke an especially good narrator of Jesus's life? How has he prepared for this task? He is an educated man, with a good flow of language. His koine Greek is sound, and he is articulate. He is also meticulous in his facts, and accurate in his writings. He has prepared for this by sifting through the knowledge that is available, and putting it in careful order. 4. Is there any way to find "certainty" about the Christian faith? How certain is the Gospel of Luke? What is the certainty we seek? Why do we seek certainty? The Christian faith cannot be proved in a scientific laboratory, or by a mathematical theorem. But we can be certain through the inpouring of the Holy Spirit, which enables us to cry "Abba, Father." We believe that all scripture is God-inspired, therefore we may be certain of the accuracy of the Scriptures. A lifetime of study will take us deeper and deeper into the truth, and give us a certain faith. But we are human, and it is only natural to doubt. This is why we often seek certainty - a proof.

From rejoicing in the greatness and majesty of the created world, the psalmist turns to a more intimate and personal view of creation. God has not created only the universe, but he has had a personal interest in the creation of each person, beginning from his knowledge of that person as a foetus in the womb. this knowledge turns the psalmist to self-evaluation, to opening his mind and heart to be "known" by God, which can be a frightening concept. We think that we are hiding our sins and dark places, but all is known to God. Therefore, in his concluding prayer, the psalmist asks God to look into his inmost thoughts and desires, to know the thoughts that cause him disquiet. Only by opeing ourselves in this way to God can we be properly cleansed, and fit to be led by God in the way to everlasting life.

The psalmist is studying the different ways in which God speaks to us - firstly through creation, and then through His word. The psalmist basks in God's word, because as one meditates on it one revives the inner life of the soul, becomes wise and becomes glad and righteous His wonder in creation makes him aware of the greatness of God and His perfection, against which we should become increasingly aware of our own imperfections and, like the psalmist, repent of all our sins, secret or overt. David is asking God to purify not only the words of His mouth, but also his inner life, his meditation and to make them pleasing or acceptable in His sight. He also asks that God becomes his strength (his Rock) and the one who redeems him from sin and trouble (his Redeemer.)

The psalm teaches that God is omnipotent, all glorious, worshipped not only on earth but also by the hosts of heaven. He has created all things and all things belong to Him and owe Him worship and homage. Human beings are as nothing compared to the greatness of God, and yet He still cares for us. We are His creation, but He has not created us and then abandoned us. He is still "mindful of us" and cares for us. We have to acknowledge our utter dependence on our Creator. God cares for us to the utmost - even to the extent that He sent His only son to join our human condition, to die for each of us. No greater love could there be than this, that God Himself entered our human condition and became subject to all human restrictions. God has created a perfect world, a world in which everything fulfils the purpose for which it was made. He has given Man dominion over it - over all plants and creatures - and the implicit responsibility is that we will maintain the world in this condition and not destroy it.

Hi, I am Margaret, from Port Elizabeth, South Africa. I am a semi-retired music teacher (music teachers never seem to retire) and have just finished (and thoroughly enjoyed) the Bible Study on Paul, the passionate disciple. I am looking forward to the Psalms, as they contain some of my favourite parts of the Bible, and I read them every day.

I think that it is inevitable that the Christian life, like any other great enterprise, will have peaks and valleys. Anything new is attacked with great enthusiasm, but, like the runner, we have to maintain that enthusiasm to the end. Exciting moments may be triggered by a sermon, a retreat, a book and we are once again on top of the mountain. But intimacy with Christ is something that we have to work on throughout our Christian life, never faltering or becoming complacent. Richard of Chichester summed it up so well: "That I may love Him more dearly, follow Him more nearly and see Him more clearly." - an ongoing process. We need to guard against a feeling that we have "arrived" - that we can be complacent in our Christian walk.

It is only as we acknowledge our utter dependence on God that we can achieve any measure of righteousness. Our human efforts, in which we take such pride, are as nothing. If we are caught up in our own "achievements" we gradually grow away from knowing God and depending on Him completely. It is very easy to confuse intellectual knowledge with the intimate knowledge that comes with a personal relationship.

If we are "in Christ" we have been born anew, a new creation. We have been adopted into the family of God and we have been redeemed by the death of Christ so that, being cleansed of our sins we may truly be part of His Body, the redeemed. It is important because, when we are in Christ we have been saved from the darkness of sin, and transferred into His heavenly kingdom. If we are in Christ, and Christ dwells in us, we will be better able to resist temptation, and will be able to live as one of the redeemed sons of God.

In becoming a human, Jesus displayed humility. In many of His parables, he stressed the importance of humility. Finally, in the Garden of Gethsemane, he displayed complete obedience to God's will and sublimated His own, becoming obedient, even to death. We are likely to find ourselves humbled, either by God or other people, and we lose sight of our own insignificance in the sight of God's omnipotence. I would call this self-aggrandizement.

If Paul is to die, he will move into the closer presence of God and will be with Him in a more special sense. He would rather depart and be with Christ, but he still feels a responsibility to the churches that he has created, and a need to remain and to keep working with them. He feels that this is more necessary, for to die is a more selfish wish, for it would be only for his own benefit.

The idea that one's performance is being assessed is always a frightening one, whether it is a music exam at one end of the scale, or the final judgement at the other. Although we know that accepting Christ has washed away our sins, we still wonder whether we have been "good enough." But, because we are Christ's and he has died for us, we are already justified. However, we are still accountable to God, and must face the final judgement. But we face it secure in the knowledge that we have put our faith in Christ and received the Holy Spirit.

For a Christian, to be "at home" is to be with Christ. In John's Gospel, Chapter 14, he states very clearly that He is preparing a home for us "where He is." i.e. in Heaven. It is hard for many Christians, like myself, to grasp this, because this world is all we know, and we cling to the familiar. Our minds are too small and confined to understand the concept of our eternal home. Therefore, we have to accept, in faith, the fact that this world is only temporary, and that our eternal home is with Christ. Many brilliant minds have tried to explain what this will be like, but in the last instance, none of us actually know. But we know Jesus Christ, and we know that His promises are true. Therefore, in faith, we have to turn our backs on this temporary world, and on the possessions that anchor us to the earth, and look forward, in joy, to our eternal home.

We are so often conformists - wishing to fit in with those around us, not to stand out as different, but to be "one of the crowd." But being a Christian demands that we are, in fact, different from the world as Christ's disciples, in the world, and yet not of the world. This may often call upon us to stand firm for our faith, even if it means societal disapproval.

An ambassador is one who represents his country and speaks on its behalf in a foreign land. In this way, Paul is a representative of God, sent out among unbelievers, to speak for Him. The same applies to us. Through our speech and our actions, we show God and His love to those around us who may not yet have met Him. This also means that, just as an ambassador is well-versed in his country's policies, and able to make decisions and speak on its behalf, so we also must understand our faith and know what it is that we believe in, so that we are able to share our testimony, since the spread of the Gospel depends on each individual being an ambassador in this way.

Our life is not our own, it is a gift from God. If we forget this and live as though our life is to be valued only for its own sake, we lose the focus that should be on God alone. we are not to live only for self-gratification, but in order to fulfil the will of God. To do this, we must deny ourselves (take up our crosses) and live our lives according to the pattern that Jesus gave us. This will involve self-sacrifice and, in extreme cases, even being martyred for the gospel. We find this difficult because we are hedonistic - we prefer to make our desires and wants the centre of our lives, rather than the will of God. To be "crucified with Christ" means to be dead to sin. Christ died so that our sins may be wiped out, and we might be justified. Therefore we can no longer be slaves to sin, but must overcome sin and temptation just as Christ did. Unless we conform to God's will and give our lives up to following Christ we cannot be His disciples, so therefore we must be prepared to turn our backs on self-gratification.

The prophecies about imprisonment in Jerusalem do not conflict with Paul's leading from God, but rather make it clear to him what the outcome of this journey will be. Paul is still to follow the Lord's prompting and go to Jerusalem, but to do so in the open-eyed awareness of the dangers that will confront him there. The conflict comes from his well-meaning friends and disciples, who seek to turn him from God's purpose so that he can be kept from danger. Paul encourages prophesy by way of edifying or building up the young church. He compares it with speaking in tongues, which, although also a spiritual gift, benefits only the one who speaks, unless there is someone who can interpret the tongues. Prophesy, on the other hand, is understandable by all who are present. I think that it is safer to say that some Christians treat prophesy with caution, rather than despise it, because of what Paul goes on to say in 1 Thess. 5:21, "but test everything." We must be sure that the prophesy is indeed inspired by the Holy Spirit.