Jezemeg

Psalm 139 affects the psalmist so greatly that he willingly surrenders himself to God...not just a part of himself, but his whole self; recognising that there is no part of him that God does not know intimately. In verses 23-24, the psalmist acknowledges that he will no doubt have anxious thoughts, that he was made human and that God know that...but at the same time he gives God permission to take away these thoughts, to constantly test his way of thinking and to bring him back to His ways when he strays. This psalm truly acknowledges humankind's weaknesses, that while one may intend to fully honour God, there are worldly things that encroach on this desire, that tempt us away from the path God would have us follow. While God does not need our 'permission' to keep us focussed, He prefers that we follow Him willingly, which is why He gave us free will on the day of our Creation, rather than making it impossible for us to do anything that would cause Him displeasure. God requires that we acknowledge that we need His direction, His discipline; and while it is not always a pleasant experience, we welcome the result...that of being drawn closer to God, Our Father.

Verses 1-6 are proclaiming about the display of God's Glory, whereas verses 7-13 are more about man's perception of God's Glory, asking for God to preserve this perception so that it always glorifies Him. God's Glory is the common thread that runs throughout these verses. In the days when I used to be able to get away from all the distractions and disappear to the most remote places I could, I used to enjoy basking in this same environment...I was surrounded only by God's Glory, I brought nothing of the surrounding world with me, so there were no worldly distractions such as blaring radios etc. The psalmist seems to be aware of his own insignificance in Creation, that he is powerless to prevent the pressures of the world from enveloping him and changing his actions. This is why he asks God to monitor his words and actions and to alert him when these things are not worthy of the God he loves and admires so much. The psalmist is fully aware that without God, he cannot withstand the ways of the world

The reference to children praising God from their lips I think refers to children's innate knowledge that they have little power to change their personal situation...they 'know' that God is all powerful whereas they are weak...and therefore rely more easily on God's power than we adults do. As adults, we tend to reason that we have the ability to change our circumstances, we are less likely to turn to God before invariably 'stuffing things up' ourselves. Verse 4 teaches us that God loves Christ 'son of man' as much as He loves us, His creation, man. We are on the same level when it comes to God's concern, although we are between God and the angels when it comes to our place in eternity.

If bringing Glory to God were paramount, the congregation at the Church I worship at would, I believe, ignore the petty rivalries and differences of opinions about order of service etc. These introduced aspects of humanity would no longer be considered worthy of any time being spent on them and the work we're meant to do to spread the Gospel to the unreached would be furthered, there being more time available because of the lack of disputes and defenciing individual agendas. In my life, I already try to make bringing Glory to God paramount in my life, but being human, I do fail. I've learnt to recognise the times I suffer physical and/or emotional exhaustion are the very times I've striven to fulfill my own agenda rather than to fulfill God's. If I was truly successful at ignoring all other agenda except for God's, I would be spared the energy sapping experiences, and I would likely be empowered to reach even more people. But is this what God wants us to be...does He want us to seem to be invincible, or does He want to demonstrate His Glory through our human weaknesses... showing that despite our faults He deems us worthy to serve Him and others??? I wonder....

I believe that being 'filled with the Spirit' means allowing yourself to continually surrender everything to God as they are revealed to you by the Holy Spirit. Don't hold onto anything not of Christ just because you feel that it is 'harmless' or has some 'value' as far as this world is concerned. This is a continuing experience, unless we are willing to totally submit to God everyday, holding back nothing we do not remain 'Spirit filled'...we block the healing force of the Holy Spirit. To me, this is slightly different to being filled with the fullness of God, which happens after one has surrendered their own will to God. The Holy Spirit reveals one's weaknesses so that we can all repent of our wrongdoings and stand in righteousness before God. After we've surrendered our will completely, it is then that God's wonders are exhibited through us...in otherwords God uses our actions to display His overwhelming Love and Grace. It is not necessary that we understand the reason behind God requiring something of us, it is important only that we remain in the state of righteousness and are willing to be obedient when God calls us.

Because of our 'human-ness' we lack the infinity of a divine Christ, in that when someone hurts us or does something to threaten us, our fear or feelings of resentment prevent us from 'loving' our aggressor in the way that Christ does us, despite our faults and actions. The closest to Christ's love, I believe is the love of a parent for his/her child, although even that is difficult to encapsulate at times. I believe few parents actually gets to the stage of 'hating' their child/ren, but they can get to the stage of not liking what they're doing at times. It is this way with any human relationship...no matter how much we 'love' (not **** after) a person, we needn't like everything they do or say. But Christ, as does God, loves us in our entirety inspite of our faults and it is because of this all encompassing love that He sends the Holy Spirit to help us firstly detect, and then surrender everything that is not of Christ; that is hidden even from us; up to God, never to be reclaimed.

I believe these two concepts are similar but not the same, just as each part of the Trinity is the same but separate. The Holy Spirit cannot enter the body until we surrender completely to Christ and receive salvation, at least that is how I interpret this. While it is possible to receive salvation without completely surrendering one's will to God, I believe that the Holy Spirit cannot completely enter one's body without surrendering one's will to God...in a way by keeping what we deem as necessary, ie keeping certain behaviour patterns or ideas or habits that we've come to treasure...we are putting up a barrier that prevents the Holy Spirit from fully strengtheining our hearts. Just as we've made our surrender 'conditional' so has God made the availability of the Holy Spirit's strength and presence.

We are to approach God in this way because we are no longer some insignificant speck of dust, we are His adopted heirs, we have equal standing with Our Lord Jesus Christ, by whose side we sit. However, we are commissioned to spread the Gospel, we are not commissioned to provide reasonning for the mysteries of the Gospel unless God has revealed them Himself; it is not for us to force the Gospel on anyone, God alone will be responsible for the ears of the hearers to be opened, for the seed sown to sprout. Our task is solely to preach the Gospel. We cannot stay in God's realm unless we continually maintain our personal relationship with Our Father, this means we must regularly (not just daily) be in His presence, in constant prayer even though it may not be apparent to those around us. It is not necessary for one to close one's eyes, or speak words audibly for God to hear us. It is our willingness to be in God's Presence, to receive His counsel that cements our relationship with Him.

Paul is so careful to remain humble because he knew that it was nothing he had done, none of his efforts, that raised him to the position God called him to fulfil. If not for God's saving Grace, Paul would have continued his work of blaspheming the very God he was trying to serve by destroying the early Church and disciples. But God revealed the Truth to Paul through his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, and it was by God's Grace that Paul was welcomed amongst the original apostles, the men who walked by Jesus' side during His earthly ministry. By remembering Paul's example we can be returned to knowing that nothing we have done, or studied has been the reason God called us, God called us because He had endowed us with the necessary gifts to fulfil the ministry He'd chosen us for. It doesn't matter if those in the world question our ability, all that matters is that we remain in the knowledge that God chose us.

I believe the mystery that Paul was referring to was that God had not declared that the unbelievers amongst the Jews were not as much a part of His family as the Gentile believers were, that the Gentiles were not to consider themselves above those of their brother Jews. God has not chosen to disown His first chosen people, unlike the thinking of many even today. He has a purpose and a timing for the unbelieving Jew, and it is not our (Gentiles) place to question or demand to know why, God will reveal in His timing if it is necessary for we mortals to know.

There are many religions in this world, but all, except the Christian faith, are derived from man's thought and understanding, whereas the Christian faith is God inspired, and as God alone sees the 'big picture', unlike the man-created religions, Scripture holds as true today as it did when God first inspired it's writing. There is no need for man, with his finite world view, to update or change Scripture to accommodate the modern times. The danger of mere mortals taking the audacious move to 'update' Scripture is that God's Word will be negated, after all how can a finite understanding of the universe and its future compare with the infinite knowledge of God?? This is when cults start forming and man begins to think himself more important than God, imagining that he and he alone is God's conduit. Scripture is corrupted in order to satisfy the agenda of these people, ever so discreetly in most cases, but corrupted just the same. This is one of the reasons I urge everyone who undertakes studies with me to always have their Bibles at the very least, and no matter how important or well known the teacher, no matter how many qualifications they've attained; no matter the cut of his suit; to always, always check back with Scritpute before accepting the teachings as truth, where there is confusion, then always go with Scripture, even if that means seemingly going against 'the crowd'.

Yes it is true that Scripture assures us that where two or more believers are gathered, there too is God...but a Body needs more than two members to be effective...and this is where it's necessary to be part of a Body of believer's; a congregation if you will; and not a 'Lone Ranger'. It is true that many of the prophets of old were hermitsfor the most part, but they didn't remain separate, if they had and not had any contact witht he people to whom they were to dispense God's message, then their prophecies would never have been heard. In these days it is more important than ever that the Body (congregation) be continually replenished by each individual member nourishing his neighbour on God's Word, ensuring that Scripture is not polluted or interpreted in a way that is not in agreement with God. We are not meant to be setting up individual cults, each with its own leader, our leader is Jesus, Our Lord and Saviour...God. The message that is to be spread throughout the nations is the same in America as it is in Africa, it doesn't alter for those in the Bronx, they are nourished from the same message that the Massai hear from their pastors. This is why it is so important that we are part of a living congregation, one that is immersed in the Word and is growing in Spiritual maturity, it is the main safeguard against a message being corrupted accidentally, the more witnesses, the more there are to testify to the Truth.

Prior to Jesus, if anyone came into God's presence, death was immediate, because sin was an abomination to God and unless if elaborate rituals and sacrifices were performed by people pre-selected as being worthy to approach God in the first place, ordinary mortals couldn't hope to enter into His presence. Even Moses never saw God's face, although he was called into His presence often. The Holy of Holies, God's footstool on this mortal planet was screened from view by a veil and could only be entered once per year and only after the priest concerned had performed the elaborate rituals etc. At Jesus crucifixion when He gave His spirit up, this curtain or veil that had separated God from man was torn from top to bottom, signifying that the old covenant was now completely torn asunder and that now there was a way for mortal man to approach God, and that path was Jesus, who is our mediator, our lawyer if you wish to call it that. He is the one who stands and pleads our worth before God, no longer are elaborate and lengthy rituals and sacrifices required, in fact to continue to practise them indicates that what Jesus did for us on the Cross was not sufficient, that somehow we mere mortals must add something that was missed.

Jesus was God's Only Son, The Lamb, perfect, unblemished, without fault, thus fulfilling the requirements of what was required of a sacrifice deemed worthy to be presented to God in order to redeem the Israelite's sin. When Jesus was died on the Cross and was resurrected however, unlike with the requirements of sacrificing animals, redemption from sin was secured for ever, regular animal sacrifices in order to fulfill the requirements of the Mosaic Law were no longer necessary, in fact the continued practice of these sacrifices actually served to 'cheapen' what Jesus sacrificed for us. Jesus's death and subsequent resurrection and ascension removed the 'veil' the curtain that prevented ordinary men from entering into the Holy of Holies. Prior to this a priest could only enter the sanctuary and then only after elaborate purification rites and offering blood of animals in atonement for their's and other's sins. Only in this way could God be approached, should any attempt to approach God on his own merits, the punishment was death. The priests themselves were selected from an exclusive class of people who had to exclude themselves from many common practices and avoid eating certain foods right from birth. Now that we are unified in Christ, both Jew and Gentile, we are all equally able to approach God without the need of an intermediary, Jesus Himself is the means by which we can do this. Because of the permanence of His sacrifice we no longer need someone to perform elaborate purification rituals, there is no longer a need to regularly offer up blood in atonement for our sins. Jesus's blood has forever removed that need, it continues to wash each of us clean. There is no longer a special class of society out of which men are selected to perform the necessary purification rites in order to approach God. Again, as a result of Jesus' permanent sacrifice, we are free to approach God on our own behalf, no longer do we need to fear death by doing so.

Before I came to know the God my Grandmother worshipped and loved, I thought I knew the God of my parents; each Sunday we paraded as a family to our Church, just as my parents did as children in their individual families....my parents were regarded highly by others...but I always felt alone, unwanted, my bruises and other injuries explained away as being caused by my clumsiness, after all, how could such 'Godly' people as my parents be guilty of child abuse...we lived in a 'good' neighbourhood, how dare I make the claim...I was a liar and an abomination to God. My reaction, I learnt to distrust everyone, and developed an affinity with animals, not even bothering to talk to humans, particularly not adults. Then my Grandmother, whilst we stayed at her place after arriving in our new country, witnessed the abuse that horrified her, and as a result she insisted that I live with her. It was then that I began to see that the God of my parents was not that of my Grandmother's, this God did not condone the abuse that I suffered, He was deeply upset that I suffered so, I was not a child of evil, as I'd always been told, I was loved even when I made a mistake. Unfortunately for me, my Grandmother became very ill unexpectedly and never got around to formalising my care arrangements, so when she was called Home, I was forced to return to my 'good' family. It didn't take long for this new image of God that I'd begun to know and love to disappear, to be taken over once more by that of my family's, and once more for me to be labelled, troublemaker, promiscuous, and being accused by my mother of deliberately stealing her husband from her. I began to be a habitual runaway, eventually that gave way to escaping in my mind, I would physically appear to be living at my parents house, but would be anywhere but in my mind. Even though I did well at school (it was a form of escapism for me, I learnt that people left me alone when I was 'studying') I was viewed as weird by the others. But my brief experience with the God my Grandmother loved changed me in a way that I didn't even recognise let alone acknowledge. Whereas prior to being exposed to this later God, I had no hope, I didn't care that people told me I would end up dying if I continued to hide in the wilderness areas of North America. Didn't I realise that there were wild animals out there who would kill me. Yet I didn't care...to me these 'wild animals' were far less of a threat to me than my 'fellow' humans. Now, whilst I would disappear into my own mind, I knew that there was something else, something better, somewhere that I wasn't weird, crazy and a troublemaker. However, it was to be many more years before I fully understood that the God that so many who called themselves 'Christians' was not the God that had called my Grandmother home, this god that so many used to pass judgement against me was one manufactured by man...and that while these 'Christians' would claim that the Bible upheld their beliefs, Scripture was used not to show God's unfailing love but to justify their own choices to allow abuse. When I did come to this realisation I suddenly realised that I was not 'an outcast' but an accepted and loved child of God. That while many bad things had happened in my life it was not because God had declared it should happen, that it was people who had delivered the abuse, God did not condone their actions, no matter how much Scripture was quoted to justify it. I have been blessed mightily by God by being given a ministry amongst the street folk, most of whom are survivors of abuse. I'm constantly blessed to witness the mighty changes that occur in the people who turn to God...no their physical conditions such as places of living, unemployment, or lack of health may not change...but suddenly there is a change in their attitudes towards themselves and each other. I've been honoured to be accepted as their friend and mentor, and will forever thank God that He thought me suitable to spread His Word amongst these so-called 'rejects'.

I equate faith in remaining in the belief that despite what current circumstances indicate, that God is with us, that He will ensure that what He's asked of us comes to fruition. My faith does not depend on whether I'm instantly acceptable, nor the message of God's Love that I'm attempting to deliver is heard by all around me, in fact more often than not I am ridiculed. I remember once, just after my best friend amongst the street folk had been killed, I was helping the street folk celebrate Christmas. Suddenly I was aware that three individuals, three who I was pretty sure knew more than they let on about how my friend was killed, were approaching me as I was packing up. I sent a small prayer up to God, beseeching Him to turn these people away, as I just couldn't cope with their taunts tonight, it had been emotionally draining just completing the celebrations. To my surprise the leader of this group said 'Hey, this Jesus stuff, how do we get it???' To say I was stunned is an understatement, in fact I asked 'Are you serious????', thinking that it was just another attempt to get the better of me. To my amazement not only did they fervently repent of their past lives and sins, but they pleaded with Jesus, with tears rolling down their cheeks to accept them into His family. I couldn't believe what I was witnessing. Afterwards, I hesitantly asked them what caused them to change their minds about Jesus, they responded 'You did'. Apparently the very fact that I continued in ministry in the area where my friend was killed, despite it being obvious my heart was close to breaking, and never once demanded to know which one or group had harmed my friend, instead leaving the matter in God's hands, had such an impact on these people, that they began to question just what caused me to continue, when so many others had abandonned them for far less reason. After my friend was killed, I did struggle with my faith, questionning that I would ever get through to this group, yet despite my doubts, despite the disaster, God reached through it all and touched the hearts of the toughest of the group. It was through nothing that I could boast about, given the choice I too would have turned my back on these people, but despite my pleas God gently turned me back to serve Him in that very area, and I trusted Him enough to know that He would protect me and turn this tragedy into good. These three people are now leading some of the studies we offer, reaching those who consider themselves to be above needing God, so great is their transformation. How would I explain 'faith' to a 10 year old, it would be with words like 'even when you see your greatest wish seemingly disappear before your eyes, leaving you with apparently no hope of ever attaining it, believe that you have it already in your hands, and when you do, you will discover something far better'

When people first meet me and realise I'm a Christian, often the first response I get from them is, '... others have tried to save me, I'm not interested'. To this I reply, ' You know, that's fortunate because the only way I could perhaps save you is if you should need CPR, and because I am now severely disabled, the success of me performing that procedure on you would depend largely on the willingness of my body cooperating with what my brain is telling it to do'. By this interjection of humor (or my form of humor anyway) I usually manage to show them the difference between what I am able to do and what God is offering them. Their ears are usually opened to the fact that God is not just going to restart their lives from where they ended, but He is offering them the chance of having it completely changed, renewed, their past mistakes completely forgotten and given another chance to make things right. Not only that, but when they do make further mistakes, they have the opportunity then too, to repent, to ask forgiveness and to move forward, without having the need of carrying the burden of past mistakes with them.

Ephesians 2:10 tells us that God created us to emulate Jesus in our lives, to let our lifestyle be our sermon. Many believe that just showing up at Church shows they are a believer, they then forget that their attitude towards their boss, employment and others, including their own families is far more relevant to their faith than in their mere fronting up at Church each Sunday, even if they do seek out the front pews. Matthew 5:16 I believe further reinforces this, in that it says that we should allow the light of God that should be shining from us, be reflected everyday, it shouldn't be saved until the next Holy day. People should identify that we've received God's grace because of the way we live, by the way we reach out to others, not just because they see us going into a Church. Yet this tranformation comes not through our own endeavour, many try to put on an act of 'holiness', however, by their own strength, on their own merit, it is impossible to maintain this front, and soon the facade crumbles and their true selves show through. By God's grace our character is changed from within, there is no window dresser trying to create an image that doesn't exist in reality. It is something we are powerless to do without God's enabling and it is this change that is testament to our faith not our own endeavours or pretense.

I believe it is so hard for us to understand the concept of Grace, because throughout our lives we've been conditioned to expect reward or punishment as a result of behaviour...in other words if we eat up all our dinner we get to have a special treat, etc. This has caused us to expect to have to perform in order to get good things, if we do something bad, then we can expect to get punished. From childhood we are taught that it is our actions that create rewards or punishment. Therefore when God offers us His Grace through salvation, it is hard for us to put aside our conditioned need to feel pressured to do something good in return. It's almost impossible for us to understand that God is not expecting anything from us, just our love and worship, that nothing we can do can improve our standing in God's eyes. To translate the word 'grace' as God views it into a language a 10 year old would understand I believe it would have to be by action not in words; such as after a day of the worst behaviour a 10 year old can produce and appropriate discipline, the parent or guardian of the child simply enfolds the child in his arms and maybe just sits and plays a video game or some other activity the child enjoys with him, not because the child deserved it but because his parent or guardian just feels like showing the child how much he is treasured, that nothing the child can do will cause that grace to disappear.

Through God's Grace and Mercy I have now been raised above the realms of Satan and human authority and am seated beside Christ. As before His Ascension, Jesus defeated Satan, there is no need for me to repeat His work while I remain at His side I can rest in the knowledge that for me and other believers Satan has no power over us. However, Satan does not give up easily, and many believer's are tricked into descending back to Satan's realm in the mistaken belief that they have to engage in battle with him, and it is here they face great danger. Paul attempts to warn us that as Satan has already been defeated on our behalf, then we are going to be called to work elsewhere, that it will not involve doing battle with Satan again. Those who attempt this are really declaring that what Christ has already done is not good enough, not complete. We are called to spread this 'good news' to others that are still trapped in Satan's realm, yes we may have to cast out demons from those current unbelievers, but Satan has no hold on us UNLESS we descend into his realm and GIVE him that power.

I believe Dr Ralph is asking about Eph 2:4-5 not Eph 1:4-5 so will answer using these verses. I think the word that best describes God's motivation and character in these verses is Mercy. I believe without the attribute God would not be able show Grace, Love and Forgiveness towards us, because none of us have done anything that deserves any of that. The verbs 'raised' and 'seated' best describes what has happened to us in Christ, although many believers still do not comprehend that God has placed us already far above Satan's realm and therefore reach, many of us still believe that Satan has power over us despite the fact that Jesus has already defeated him for us. It is only when we are deceived by Satan's whispers about our unworthiness that we are drawn down within his realms away from Christ's side, if we remain beside Christ then we need not cast Satan out, because Satan simply cannot reach and therefore has no power over us.

Satan has refined his skills of deceiving mankind over the years since he first deceived Eve. He is expert at twisting Scripture to make it appear to say something else, he is expert at using others as his tools, people who we've come to respect, from all walks of life. I believe that basically, we are most in danger of falling into Satan's trap when we think ourselves better than we are; for instance we believe we know the Bible well enough not to verify the Scripture that we read or quote readily. We are in danger when we begin to be drawn into man's thinking instead of God's; just because something sounds allright, doesn't mean that it is in agreement with God. Remember, Satan is a master at twisting words, and when man relies on his limited world view to judge whether something is right or wrong, instead of relying on God's infinite knowledge, we are in danger. Legislation is brought into make some things legal, and when the horrors associated with the legislation become noticeable, it is by then too late to close the lid, much like trying to get a cat back into the bag, once its been released.

Our unbelieving friends and family are dead in that they are spiritually dead and so separated from God. Unfortunately as Dr Ralph pointed out in the study, our society tries to cope with this 'death' by denying absolute truth, claiming that as long as nobody is hurt by our actions then everything is okay. The thing is, this claim can never be proved, how does one know that one's actions have not had a negative impact on someone else, and what has to happen to make the impact 'harmful'. Does it mean that as long as no one was killed, but seriously injured isn't that bad? We should be trying to show our unbelieving friends and family via our choice of lifestyle, not by our words, what being alive in Christ is, what the benefits are, that yes we do still make mistakes, but that we can also receive forgiveness, just as we can forgive others. Too often people choose to 'Bible bash' and then when their human-ness shows through (no one can keep up a fake holiness) they are castigated, and labelled bigots. This is why it is so important of us to have a living witness, not a pretense, and openly admit our mistakes when we make them, and just as readily forgive those who wrong us, whether or not they ask for it. After all, we don't deserve God's grace and forgiveness, yet He readily dispenses it.

By not actively participating in our local Christian community (congregation) we are much the same as, say, a leg on one's body that suddenly decided that it didn't want to be a leg at all. In other words we deprive the Body of Christ of our function and gifts that were bestowed on us by God. We also miss out on the nurturing from the rest of the Body, just as a branch cannot survive for long once it is separated from the vine, neither can our spiritual being remained fully nourished when we 'go it alone' and don't actively participate in a fellowship. Being a member of a Church is not merely a case of occupying a place on a pew once a week, it is a case of enriching and being enriched by the life of the Body of Christ.

We often feel powerless when confronted with spiritual warfare because we allow ourselves to be overwhelmed and thus forget that Jesus has already defeated Satan on our behalf, and that as we are seated with Jesus, we are far above the realms where Satan can reach us. Satan is not known as the great deceiver for no reason, he has successfully deceived mankind since Eve, and has only grown in his expertise and variety of ways in which he can use his tools against us. I believe that Paul thought it important enough to mention being prepared for engaging in spiritual warfare because Satan does not lose easily, he will do everything in his power to try to make us believe that we, as believers in Christ, are still within his reach. Paul was doing his best to prepare the Ephesians and other readers of his letters to be constantly ready for an attack, to not rest in the belief that a Christian's life is easy.