16. THE MOUTH. PSALM 34. 11.13. and others

We are all familiar with what James has to say about the tongue, however it is interesting to notice a few aspects of the head. For example there are seven openings in the head, (Biblically the number of perfection) two eyes, two ears, and two nostrils, but only one mouth. I don’t know anyone who would like to have two mouths, we seem to have enough trouble controlling the one we have. If we’re honest, we’ve all had that horrible experience of self recrimination, “Why did I say that?” We can’t retract it and an apology is not only difficult, but also sounds and often is hopelessly inadequate. So, I’ve put together a few words hoping to show us how and why to shut the door before the horse has bolted. I was amazed, when consulting my Concordance just how many references there are to this one opening in our face:- mouth, tongue, lips, speech, words etc. And with good reason. There is no other area in our personality more directly related to our total well-being than our mouths and tongues. The first Scripture I’ll use is (Psm 34. v11-13 which says,”Come My children listen to me; I will teach you The Fear of The Lord. Whoever of you who loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.(NIV) At this junction, I’d also like to point out there is nothing in all Scripture to which is attached greater blessing than “Fear of The Lord”.so when we are being offered a teaching on that subject it is often something of infinite value and well worth taking up. Also in Scripture fullness of life and fear of the Lord are always associated; and well worth taking heed of because, the measure in which we have the fear of the Lord is the same measure in which we enjoy true life both spiritual and physical. So what is, and how do we achieve the “Fear of The Lord” The Fear of The Lord is ;--Knowing who Almighty God is, What He has done for us. And How we should approach Him. This is very important for us to know, and there are several books available on the subject, “Knowing God”, by J.I. packer is one of the best I’ve read on this subject. However the psalmist, in the quote given tells us in simple, practical terms, “Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.” that’s a good start. The first area “The Fear of The Lord” manifests its self in our lives, will be through our speech, this is also a good way to evaluate very quickly, people who come into our lives, I maintain, “Play with dirt, you will get dirty.” So we see how it’s all tied together, out of The Fear of The Lord comes life, good days and proper use and control of our tongues and lips .I would venture to say, we can’t possibly have good physical or spiritual lives if we can’t control our mouths. In my experience, unfortunately, this is a problem with both Christians and Non-Christians alike. In proverbs 13. 3 we read; “He who guards his lips guards his soul, He who speaks rashly comes to ruin.” It’s black and white:-- because my soul is the real Me, and it’s there my personality is first manifest. that’s where the enemy will first gain access. The alternatives are clear, if we guard our lips we guard our souls, if we speak rashly we are heading for calamity and putting our souls in great danger. Calamity is a strong word and I believe the Bible uses it deliberately. I urge you to read the book of Proverbs, it’s full of such principles eg (Prov 15. 4) and Prov (18-21) These are two very good examples. Once again the alternatives are quite clear. It’s either life or death, they are both tied up in the power of the tongue. We need to remember whichever way we use our tongue we can be sure we’ll eat its fruit. Good or bad, God has ordained life that way. Derek Prince relates a story of when he was a Medic in the British Army during W.W.2. He says the first thing the Senior Doctor would ask the patient was “Show me your tongue.” Derek says the doctor could tell more about the soldier’s health and or illness by looking at his tongue than by talking to him directly. He said metaphorically speaking, God would know more about us by looking at our tongues than we’d possibly like to admit. The state of our tongues is a sure-fire guide to our spiritual condition. Many Scriptural passages show the connection between our heart and mouth, In (Mat 12. 33-37) Also in (Mat 7. 17-18) We read the nature of the tree determines the kind of fruit it will produce, so when we see the fruit we know what kind of tree we have, I believe the tree represents the heart and the fruit the mouth. So when the heart is good, what comes out of the mouth will also be good and vec-vercer., there is an absolute connection between heart and mouth which is the indicator. If the mouth indicates unrighteousness in any form, our own or anyone else’s alarm bells should ring. If what comes out of the mouth is corrupt, then the heart is also corrupt, there is no other conclusion. In (Mat 12.34) Jesus speaking-; “Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” In Jam (1. 26-27) We see there is a kind of religion which God does not accept. We may go to church, prayer group, give away money and know all the songs etc. But if we don’t keep our tongues under control all that is worthless and unacceptable to God. On the other hand James points out the kind of religion that is acceptable to God. Again it is different from the average church goer today. In fact the first positive requirement of religion is not church going or even Bible reading. So let me suggest that if we want to have a religion that is acceptable to God it must be demonstrated first and foremost by caring for those in need, I am not talking money here, although financial help is sometimes needed there are several other needs just as important and often less visible eg your time, your expertise, food, clothing or heating and sometimes just a shoulder to cry on. It’s often too easy to put our hands in our pockets, thus relieving us of all responsibility. Often the poorest of people can fulfil the greatest need. James uses a number of illustrations from the natural world, from which he brings out the unique significance and influence of the tongue for the entire course of our lives. If we consider the examples James uses; The bit in the horses mouth, The Rudder in the ship, The spark that starts a forest fire and a poison that is injected into a life-stream, the underlying principle is the same. The tongue is a small part of the body but can cause tremendous damage which may never be undone. In James (3.9-12) He once again points out the inconsistencies of Religious people, James is saying the exact same thing that Jesus said, What is in your heart will come out of your mouth, fresh and dirty water cannot come out of the same spring, an interesting point to consider here is, fresh water will never make dirty water fresh but it only takes a little dirty water to pollute fresh water. So we always have to be aware of the pollution of the world in our speech. Because we know that which comes out of our mouth indicates the true condition of our hearts. We need to really understand how Death and Life are tied up in the power of the tongue and how our words determine our destiny and why we need to keep our hearts visibly pure. Interesting isn’t it? How we settle our own destiny by what we say, Take a look at Joshua and Caleb going ahead to inspect the Promised Land. Those that said “We are not able.” were not able to go there and those that said “We are able” were able to get to the Promised Land. If we speak our assent with faith and courage on a particular promise of God and focus on the promise and not the problem which may or may not arise, then as Joshua said “We will be well able to receive God’s promises” Returning to Derek Prince, he maintains there are six diseases of the tongue, if kept unchecked could prove fatal, I will list them. 1. Excessive talking. Proverbs 10:19. Beware of the chatter 2. Idle/careless words Matthew 12;36 Think before speaking. 3. Gossip. Leviticus 19;16 Closely connected to jealousy 4. Lying. Proverbs. 6:16 Be careful not to slander. 5. Flattery. Psalm 12:1-3. Weigh up the compliments 6. Hasty speech Proverbs 29: 20 Peter had this problem. There are three practical steps I believe we can take to deal with the problem of our tongues. 1. We must acknowledge that we have a problem and call it by its correct name “SIN” As long as we use some fancy psychological terminology to cover, condone, excuse, or even pretend that our problem doesn’t exist, nothing will happen. We must come to the moment of honesty with ourselves and with God. When we do that, only then can God move. I have done quite a bit of counselling over the years and have found with myself and with many others, the only currency God deals in is TRUTH . As long as we try to cover up or misrepresent our problem, God does nothing. Then we say “God why don’t you help me in this area?” His answer is “I’m waiting for you to be honest.” 2. We must confess our sin and receive God’s forgiveness and . Cleansing. Read John (1;7-9.) again and see the importance of being honest, God’s blood does not cleans in the dark.”If we say we have no sin we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us,” so we are operating in the dark where God’s provision doesn’t work. Two words are used in this Scripture “Faithful and Righteous” God is Faithful because He has promised and He will keep His promise. God is Righteous or just because Jesus has already paid the penalty for our sins, therefore he can forgive us without compromising His justice. Now, because He is more interested in the state of our hearts towards Him than anything else in the Universe, after forgiving us He scrubs up our hearts (Cleanses us) But if experientially we keep committing the same sin, I would like to question the forgiveness, because the same God who forgives also cleanses. The same Scripture that promises God”s forgiveness also promises God”s cleansing. God never stops halfway, if we meet the conditions we get the whole package. If we don’t meet the conditions we don”t get half, we get nothing. “If we confess our sins God is faithful and righteous to forgive our sins and cleans us from ALL unrighteousness.” Once our hearts are cleansed the problem wont be there. The condition of the heart determines what comes out of the mouth. A clean heart cannot produce unclean speech. So it follows Unclean speech indicates an unclean heart. 3. We must say NO to sin and YES to God -; In Romans (6:12-14 ) Paul says: When next we get challenged by sin, we have to say “I will not submit to you that part of my body which I cannot control, but I will submit it to You Holy Spirit of God at this time to control it for me, help me now in my greatest need.” or a similar prayer. For my final word on this matter, I would recommend you read(James 3: 7-8. To sum up, I’ll go briefly through the three steps again. 1. Call the problem by its name “SIN” 2. Confess the sin and receive God’s Forgiveness and Cleansing. 3. Refuse to Yield to sin, and by Faith determine to yield to God the Holy Spirit . That is the climax of the process of deliverance and healing of that member of our bodies which according to James WE cannot control. Thank you for reading my thoughts on this subject May Almighty God direct our speech to His Glory. Phaline. -------------------------

15 THE FUTURE CHURCH. Dut. 6. 6-7.

Our Children. “These Commandments teach them to your children.” When things seem to be falling apart in our churches and, traditions and morals which we’ve held on to all our lives are not given any credence, we pray, “give us men and women of God to guide us”--- God gives us children. He gives us the material and says “Here are the building blocks, you do it” We are expected with God’s Grace, to help them develop into men and women of God. God told the Jews “These Commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.” If we don’t practice Biblical principles, Our children wont either. If we don’t live what we preach, our children wont either and our words will fall on deaf ears which create rebellious hearts. We don’t have to be perfect, but we do have to be genuine. Secondly, God told them, “impress them on your children,” How?-- We must emphasize, prompt, stress, Drum it in and make it clear. Now there’s nothing passive about that, it is to be deliberate, a thorough, active process until they know what God expectS of them. Thirdly, We have to talk about the Principals,Values, and Ethics we hold because children wont pick up the truth by osmosis, we have to talk not in “Religious” sounding terms which they don’t even understand, but in natural language, in natural ways in natural times. Talk about them when we are sitting in the comfortable surroundings of home, or when we are walking or driving to school in an easy give and take environment, watching for opportunities, because teachable moments come and go unannounced. A parent who seizes the day God will equip to mould their children into men and women of God. We have to let them know that standing up for what is right is very pleasing to God and consequently to us as their parents. Even though they naturally gravitate to whatever pleases the important people in their lives whether it’s right or wrong. Their need to be accepted by their peers is a very powerful influence on them. Use Scripture. Solomon is a good example Ch1.vs10-15 When counselling his son he said “If sinners entice you, do not go with them etc.” We have to explain to our children, they will become like the company they keep. Ask them if they really would like to be like the person or child in question, carefully pointing out their bad as well as their good points. To this end our children need instruction in several areas if they are to stand up for God against destructive influences. We need to tell them that true friends will want the best for them and anyone who wants to lead them into danger or sin is not a friend, tell them that the thrill of the moment only lasts a moment, but the consequence could last a lifetime. A man only reaps what he sows, if one sows to please his sinful nature, he will reap destruction. That is as natural a law as gravity. Galat. 6.7-8 says The one who sows to please the Spirit will reap eternal life. One of the hardest things we (my husband John and myself) had to do was not to give our children a way out of reaping the consequences of their sin. Yes we went with them and stood beside them but face the music they did, In that way they learned our love for them hadn’t diminished. And that the Saviour too would always be there for them to pick them up and take them back. Our children need the right kind of heroes, instead of Rock Stars and Sport celebrities of questionable character, we should try to introduce them to Biblical heroes who modelled Godliness, Righteousness and Courage under pressure. Children need to know how to respond to God’s direction and correction, to know the difference and not to think of correction as rejection. Prov 3.11-12 tells us not to reject God’s disciplines and that God disciplines those He loves, interesting to note here, Solomon was talking to his Son in this passage. FIRST;--One of the first things children learn from a very young age is how to respond to the discipline of the home and parents. The rules we don’t enforce now will be enforced by others later, at a higher cost. Our discipline needs to be fair, consistent and not excessive. I am convinced that children are born with a real sense of fairness, it is very confusing for them when they can’t relate to your fairness, it is the first sign of letting them know that you cannot always be trusted to do what is just and fair. We cannot permit today what we punished yesterday, “How many time have I told you...” or “If you do that again your grounded...” All that means to a child is you are not serious and they will get several warnings before you act. Enforce it. Don’t threaten unless you mean to follow through. SECONDLY, children need to know how to respond correctly to Authority figures. Romans 13.1 says That All Authority comes from God and we must submit to it. We should never belittle Police, Teachers Pastors the elderly etc. If we do, it will come back to bite us and our children. THIRDLY. We ought to share our own experiences of personal growth through correction, this lets them know that we are not perfect ands gives them hope and helps them to relate to our humanity as parents. Well chosen times of personal sharing are much more effective than nagging and sermonising! We have to teach our children about temptation, what it is, to expect it and also how often they have to face up to it but not to be overwhelmed by it. James 1-14 says “Every man is tempted and enticed when he’s drawn away by his own lust. ” Children need to know how to handle two powerful sources of temptation, First the temptation of sexual sin, TV and the internet make everything from normal to perverse as available as oxygen, enticing them to experiment with behaviours that destroy health, relationships and life., they need more than an embarrassed “birds and bees” talk. They need early, regular and clear instruction Go back to Solomon and read God’s take on it. Prov5.1-11 “The lips of an adulteress drip honey, but in the end she is as bitter as gall ... Her steps lead straight to the grave...Keep far from her, at the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent.” Solomon spelled it out loud and clear for his children, we should do likewise. The second big temptation for our children is Addiction. Again Solomon is right on the ball Prov.23.29-30. “Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? Those who linger over wine” The addicts life is not fun, in the end it bites like a snake. In Prov32vs 33 we read “Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind will imagine confusing things.” Don’t let the enemy deceive your children, pray faithfully ,speak Our Lord’s life-changing word into their hearts, believe God and watch Him work. Children need to be taught to handle money responsibly, make your home a classroom for money management, By putting God first they will see how He honours them. Prov. 3.9 says “Honour The Lord with your first fruits... Then your barns (bank account) will be filled. To avoid the Prodigal syndrome in Luke 15.11-32. The Prodigal Sons attitude towards money and his misuse of it cost him dearly. Give children Biblical financial wisdom in four areas Earning, Giving, Spending and Saving, and you will position them for God’s blessings. Teach them what God says about borrowing, lending and Credit. In a culture driven by slick advertising and easily obtained high interest credit cards, youngsters need to understand the consequences of their financial decisions. In Proverbs 22-6 Train up a child in the way it should go etc. is not an isolated one, the next verse is worth taking note of-- “The rich rule over the poor and the borrower is subject to the lender” What looks like the fast lane to plenty can become the sure road to poverty. Working and waiting for what one wants is much more rewarding, satisfying and long lasting than immediate gratification. To this end we should not guarantee loans. The Bible says ”You could very easily loose your bed.” and that would tough when you are getting old. As many of you know, My husband John was a Bricklayer. From a very young age he took the children to work with him. (I realise this wouldn’t work these days) but they loved taking their own little lunch box and bottle of drink with them. He would give them a hammer, some pieces of wood and a few nails and let them play in the sand, they were going to work with Dad, and that was very important. As they grew older they learned the names of the tools and were given little jobs like shifting barrows, blocks and buckets for which they were paid, they felt they were a real part of the family’s growing business, one of them has even taken up his dads trade and has contributed to the Christchurch rebuild after the devastating earthquakes in that city. I understand in New Zealand one eighth of our working population are jobless. I believe at least part of the reason for this problem is, There are a number of parents today who don’t give their children a work ethic, I am so pleased we did, and as a result The Lord has provided all seven of our children with good employment. Parents who think that allowing their children to avoid hard work is doing them a favour, are deluded. Such children become irresponsible, dependent, underdeveloped and end up resenting your overindulgence. Prov.10.4-5 says Lazy hands make a man poor...He who gathers crops in the Summer is a wise Son, but he who sleeps during the harvest is a disgraceful Son. Don’t cripple your child’s creativity or development, by doing for them what they should be doing for themselves. Honest work is God’s provision for Personal, Social and Spiritual growth and consequently human happiness. One day your child will thank you for requiring them to participate in family life and do their fair share, and so will their future husband or wife. Quite often it’s us Mums that think their youngsters are too young and we make excuses for them saying things like “But they’ve got homework” there’s no point in them knowing the three Rs and failing to become mature and responsible citizens. Lam 3.27 says “It is good for a man that he should bear the yoke in his youth” What they learn in their youth they will enjoy the rest of their lives as they become balanced men and women of God with the ability to lead the future church for God. Thank you for reading what I believe the future church will need, to face the coming onslaught that we seem to be heading for in the not too distant future. I believe we will need Christian Men and Women who will stand up for Our God and His Word, who are prepared to follow Him and His Bible based truths to the very end. Please God send us such people. May Almighty God Protect, Preserve and Provide for His future church. Phaline. ---------------------

Fourteen WATER WALKING FAITH. Matt 14:25 - 33

At about three o’Clock one morning, the disciples were crossing the lake when a huge storm struck. That was bad enough but when they saw, what they thought, was a ghost coming towards them on the water, they were beside themselves. Matt 14; 27-29 puts it this way.”Immediately Jesus spoke “Be of good cheer, it is I, do not be afraid.” Peter answered “Lord if it is you, command me to come to you.” So Jesus said “come” and when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to Jesus.” The first thing this story teaches us is... If The Lord isn’t calling us to do something “Don’t”!! There is a story of a man awaiting entry into Heaven, on being asked to name one great deed he had done while on earth, the applicant replied, “A gang of Bikies were threatening a woman, so I smacked one, kicked over their bikes and tore out their nose rings”. Impressed, the gate keeper asked “When did this happen”. The man replied “about thirty seconds ago”!!....To walk on water, you must first learn to discern between God’s voice and your own natural impulses. The second thing here is, Miracles require Faith and to experience them, we have to get out of our comfort zone. Now change places with Peter, a seasoned fisherman, the storm is raging but you know your boat is built to handle these conditions. So being secure and reasonably comfortable, wouldn’t you want to remain in the security of where you are? But you can’t! God has designed you to do more than simply avoid failure. He’s calling you to step out in faith and accomplish His Will. So where or what is your boat? It is anything you put your faith in when life gets stormy, e.g. your job, a relationship, your bank account. Your boat is anything that stops you from getting out of your comfort zone. Leaving it is the scariest but most rewarding step you will ever take. When Peter was sure it was Jesus who was calling him and that’s why he asked the question “If it is You Lord?” only then, did Peter leave the security of the boat, and entrust himself to the power of God. So far so good but when his senses encountered the wind, the rain and the huge waves, he was terrified and began to sink “Lord save me “ he shouted. Matt 14.30. Notice here, Peter hadn’t lost his faith in the identity of Jesus, he had seen him handle this sort of situation before, in fact, just a couple of minutes earlier Jesus had identified Himself, so what was Peter’s problem? Humanity! When we ask for a miracle, we cannot always expect the answer to make sense. In fact it seldom does. Miracles require not only faith but complete submission to God’s will. The miracle will happen, perhaps not the way we expect it to but always the way God wants it to. The miracle occurs in our submission to God’s Will, not in His submission to us. We all know what it’s like to see the approaching storms. We begin a new venture, new job, new relationship or area of spiritual growth, then come the setbacks and we encounter the storms. In John 16.33 Jesus said “Here on earth you will have many trials.” So you have to expect it, it’s part of the journey of Faith. Like Peter, we must feel the fear and act regardless. Growth requires taking on new challenges. Each time you do, you will experience fear, because growth and fear go together. But each time you risk leaving the boat it means you are more likely to do it again and each time you step out on the water without drowning, you realise that fear no longer has power over you. On the other hand, each time you resist God’s voice and choose to stay in the boat, His voice becomes a little softer, until eventually you don’t hear it at all. Wouldn’t it be worth any risk to avoid that. Furthermore staying in the boat doesn’t guarantee your safety, it only guarantees you will continue to live in a world of doubt and fear. In my experience, the answer to fear is to get out of the boat. A little more each day until fear looses its hold over you. In our walk with God we, like Peter, discover on the occasions we do sink, doesn’t mean we are sunk. There are two reasons for this. Failing doesn’t make you a failure, quitting does. In fact it’s just part of learning. Sir Edmund Hillary made several attempts to climb Mt Everest before succeeding. After one such attempt he shook his fist at a photo of the mountain and in front of an audience said “You will not beat me again, you have grown all you are going to, but I am still growing.” He would be the first one to tell you he had learned something from every unsuccessful attempt until he succeeded. Winston Churchill said, “I have never failed at anything in my life, I was simply given another opportunity to get it right.” That’s a winning spirit. Thirdly, The real failures were the ones who stayed in the boat, they failed quietly and privately, unnoticed. They also never experienced the euphoria of walking on water, Peter alone knew how it was to be empowered by God, to do what he could not have done by himself. Once you’ve walked on water you’re never the same. Peter would take this moment to his grave. In that moment he experienced the joy of being lifted up by Jesus, when his faith was at its lowest ebb. In that moment Peter knew in a way the other’s couldn’t have, that if he sank Jesus would be there to save him. He shared a moment, a connection, a trust the others didn’t, how could they when they didn’t get out of the boat? Failure doesn’t come from sinking, it comes from letting your fears stop you. There are many good reasons for stepping out of the boat and trying something new or something which you have been unsuccessful at before, it’s the alternative to being average, it’s the only way to develop your faith and its the way to discover your true calling There are even more important reasons. Jesus isn’t in the boat, He’s on the water. If you want deep water faith, you have to get out of the boat. You only develop that kind of faith when you are willing to give up that kind of security and predictability of where you are at and step out with your eyes on Him. Perhaps you have worked for years creating a manageable and orderly life, now God is shaking everything up and asking you to step out in faith, allowing you to face waves that are over your head. The reason God does this is to increase your dependency on Him. Even though there may have been times in your life, when you risked sharing your faith, even though it meant rejection or personal sacrifice and you felt totally inadequate, sometimes you sank and sometimes you walked but lived on the edge by faith. Now look at you in your comfortable boat, you don’t even get seasick. In fact you don’t even feel the storm when it comes. Any time you leave the security of the boat, two things will happen. First when you fall (and you will) you wont be alone, Jesus wont be more than an arms length away from you. Second, every now and then when you do walk on water, it will strengthen you and enable you to do greater things, just as Jesus said you would. Then don’t forget to worship Him, and acknowledge the Son of God, just as the disciples did I’d like to close with this encouraging Scripture from the book of Joshua Ch1 Vs9. God speaking “I command you be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”. Thank you for taking the time to read about Water walking Faith. God bless us all Phaline.