Category Archives: manna

bread and wine, bread of life, Holy Spirit's ministry, Living bread, manna

Godly Wisdom

Leave a comment

Godly wisdom

1 Kings 10: 1- 13. Acts 13: 1 – 13. John 6: 24 – 35.  RSV Bible

Have you had one of those conversations where you hear about a place where there is a movement of the Holy Spirit going on? The last one that I heard of was at ‘The Victory’ Church in Newport, Wales. Godly wisdom always checks out the information. I went on line to investigate. A number of people had been healed and hundreds of people were going to substantiate what they had heard.

The Queen of Sheba had heard of the Godly wisdom of Solomon she travelled from East Yemen to Jerusalem to find out first hand if the reports were true.

The Queen sought some answers to hard questions, the Jewish Midrash, suggests that these questions were riddles, but maybe they were the problems she faced, the things that would impact her rule over her kingdom.

We read that Queen Sheba noted Solomon’s wise administration of his kingdom, the way he structured his governing body of officials, their seating and dress code. The people were happy in their day jobs; she discerned they respected his leadership. She was pleased with the outcome of her visit; they exchanged gifts from their abundance of wealth: gold, precious jewels, and goods.

Our nation needs Godly wisdom at this present time. The outcome of the complexities of the ‘Brexit’ negotiations will I pray be fair and just.

Jesus remarked on the Queen of Sheba’s visit, she travelled far in order to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Significantly he said, ‘Someone greater than Solomon was here.’ Luke 11: 31

People in Jesus’ day flocked to hear his words and to see the miracles and healing.

In John’s gospel we read that Jesus questioned the spiritual integrity of the people as they were seeking signs from him.

The late Derek Prince said about Jesus, “In the Old Testament you will find prophets who healed and raised the dead, but Jesus was different he cast out demons, he did what no one else had previously done and so many wanted to see this new sensational ministry. He had a great following” YouTube Derek Prince “Spiritual Warfare’

Word of wisdom

“When you get tangled up in our own problems, be still, God wants us to be still, so He can untangle the knot.” Author unknown.

In Acts 13 Paul and Barnabas have been sent out to visit the synagogues with the good news proclaiming the resurrection and that Jesus was the Christ. On the island of Cyprus Paul and Barnabas were asked by the proconsul Serguis Paulus to visit him and share with him their message. At the meeting another man was present Jewish magician Bar Jesus and Paul discerned that he opposed their message, and tried to stop the proconsul from turning to faith. Paul responded and directed his words to disarm the spirit of the man. He found himself unable to see for a period of time. The proconsul when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.

Jesus’ word of wisdom

Jesus’ wisdom being greater than Solomon’s, for example: Jesus in conversation in the synagogue at Capernaum said, “Do not labour for food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life which the Son of man will give you; for on him has God set his seal.”

What kind of food perishes: the words coming from religions that promise eternal life through the sayings and teaching coming from idol worship, atheists are people who deny the existence of God and humanists who have their own ideals of a pinnacle of self -expression, a self- actualised state, they can fix everything themselves.

The food that lasts for eternity

“The food that endures to eternal life which the Son of man will give you”.

This ‘Food’ he refers to as the bread coming from God and not from Moses.

When Jesus said that he was the bread coming from heaven, the people listening took his words literally, when he said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.” John 6: 51 He continued saying that they should eat his flesh and drink his blood was against all of the laws relating to food, ‘as food was spiritually part of them,’ as a result: some were appalled as they kept Kosher laws especially not eating the blood. So even some of Jesus’ followers couldn’t accept these words and didn’t follow him anymore. John 6: 52, 66

‘Spiritually part of them’  Paul wrote in his letter to the Roman church said that the law was holy and spiritual and we can understand this when Jesus fulfilled the law in himself. As a result where the law couldn’t change our nature, but through faith and grace his death and resurrection,  his indwelling spirit is in every Christian, the spirit of the law is written in the heart. Romans 2 29. 7: 12, 14. 8:10, 11. Hebrews 8: 10-12.

Jesus fulfilled the law: the bread of ‘Presence’ the Shrewbread that was baked for the priests to eat in the temple. Leviticus 24: 5-9.

Mark recorded hearing Jesus say that wasn’t what they ate that made them unclean in God’s eyes, it was what came from the heart, “What comes out of a man is what defiles a man. For within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. These are what defile a person. Thus he declared all food clean.’” Mark 7: 14-23.

God’s wisdom to Peter in the vision in Acts 10  

“And there came a voice to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “No, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.”     
Soon after Pentecost the apostle Peter was staying at Simon the tanner’s house at Joppa. While Simon and Peter were preparing the evening meal, Peter had a vision, he saw the heaven opened, and something descending, like a great sheet, let down by four corners upon the earth. In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter said, “No, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.” And the voice came to him again a second time, “What God has cleansed, you must not call common.” This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

We read that Peter was perplexed as to what the vision might mean, while he was pondering the vision, three men called at the house asking for Peter. The Holy Spirit had spoken to Peter (in his inner ear), to go with these men. They told Peter that Cornelius a Centurion had seen a vision of an angel who directed him to send for Peter. Peter went with the three men to the home of Cornelius. On their arrival he remembered the words in the vision, “God has shown me not to call any man common or unclean,” he told all who had gathered there about Jesus, as he was telling them the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. Peter’s companions were amazed that Gentiles had received the Holy Spirit.

Following on we read, “Peter went up to Jerusalem and the circumcision party criticised him, saying, “Why did you go to the uncircumcised men and eat with them?” Peter began and explained to them in order.” When they heard this they were silenced, and they glorified God . . . “ Acts 11: 2, 3, 18.

Peter had discerned that the Gentiles he met had fulfilled the vision. Also we discern that Peter had been given the keys of the kingdom; here he used the second key to open the door of the kingdom to the Gentile, the other nation. At Pentecost with the first key he opened the kingdom to the Jewish nation.

Paul wrote about the law being written in the hearts of Gentiles, “When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law unto themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, while their conscience bears witness on their conflicting thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them”. Romans 14, 15.

God’s wisdom is hard to understand.

From my own experience when God gave me a word to start a pottery business for the church, my immediate reaction, ‘the church doesn’t have businesses.’ I asked two ladies to pray with me from my church and soon afterwards I found myself going to evening class on pottery at the local college. The end result was that I bought ready glazed china mugs and decorated them with floral transfers and Bible verses. I stepped out in faith and over ten years ‘The Decade of Evangelism,’ I worked voluntary full time any profits went to my church and local charities. The pottery was a success with 400 going into Londonderry Northern Ireland during 1994 when the peace process was going on.

God has set his seal of approval on his plan of salvation through His Son Jesus 

Jesus saying “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and me in him,” he was referring to the partaking of his sacrifice becoming one with him laying down his life for sin and the food laws.

Having been sealed with his atoning sacrifice by Jesus the bread that came from heaven sustains human life, through his death and resurrection.

Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians;

22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1 Corinthians 1: 22-24

At the Holy Communion the bread and the wine are symbols of Jesus’ sacrifice of his body and blood; it’s in the wisdom of God that we are reminded of God’s saving grace in the communion. 

Jesus pointed to his words as being living bread.
Jesus went on to say, “It is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh is no avail; (profits nothing) the words that I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.” John 6: 63.

The joy of giving and receiving the word of God spoken in love acted on by the Holy Spirit is the best thing ever, to see a person’s whole life change, their demeanour change, their manner, attitude and appearance, and conversation; it’s like a flower opening and their fragrance filling the air.

18, 666, Abba Father, cube, daily bread, debt to God, manna, Moses, Mt Sinai, The Lord's Prayer, Welsh revival

The Messiah’s Secret – The Lord’s Prayer

Leave a comment
The  Messiah’s Secret – The Lord’s  Prayer
   Our Father in heaven , hallowed be your name
Your kingdom come your will be done on earth
as in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. 
Lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil. 
For the kingdom the power and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
 
During this time we had ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ as a meditation in two ways: pictures and words on the screen and the prayer sung from a CD. Prepared by our Worship Leader.
 
A frame of another cube.
With each of these boards there was a verse from the Lord’s Prayer and one or two pictures that related to the readings: Hebrews 12: 18-29.   Luke 13: 10-17
The children came to the front of church and described the pictures that they had stuck on the board and the adult with them related to us all, the pictures with the Lord’s Prayer and readings.  Matthew 6: 9-13 
When you look at the contents of the Lord’s Prayer it embraces our Christian way of life, in our humanity.
In the prayer we are touched by the nearness of God, we give thanks as he upholds the structures that provide the practical requirements for daily living. The importance of forgiveness. The awareness of our faith being tested and as children of the kingdom of God applying Jesus’ victory over the devil and his activities.
1/   Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
Your kingdom come your will be done on earth as in heaven. 
The pictures on the board: Moses and the Israelites at the foot of Mount Sinai. A family representing the church. Pictures of people. Universe. Light. Tell the World about Jesus. 
 
God is our Father; he loves us and cares for us. We are allowed to call God, Father or daddy, a very personal term. 
The Chorus ‘Abba Father’ beautifully describes our relationship with God our Father.
“Abba Father, let me be Yours and Yours alone, May my will for ever be ever more your own. Never let my heart grow cold, never let me go. Abba Father let me be Yours and Yours alone.” Mission Praise No 3 Dave Bilbrough, Thankyou Music,

 

*The Israelites could see the smoke and fire surrounding the upper reaches of Mount Sinai. God was almighty and awesome and even Moses trembled with fear. Israel’s relationship with God was reverential.
2/ Give us this day our daily bread.
                                           

The pictures on the board: Loaf of bread (2). Moses in conversation with God. Grapes and figs. Jesus feeding the 5,000 people. Evangelism –sowing the seeds of the kingdom. A wheat field. Hope reaching out in mission. A bird.

On the Israelites wilderness journey God provided manna (bread) daily from heaven. God feeds daily the birds and all living creatures. Jesus in his prayer asks God to give us this day our daily bread.
Jesus is the bread of life; Jesus said that his words were spirit and life
3/ Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.

 

The pictures put on the board: God would provide a lamb, Jesus on the cross. The prodigal son embracing his father. The empty tomb.

God our Father knows that we will fall into sin, the pictures express the forgiveness we received when we first turned to Jesus and the ongoing forgiveness that is ours in Jesus.
We ask Jesus to forgive us, when by our words and actions we fail to walk in his love. We revere God by keeping his word. Jesus said that if we love him we should keep his words to us, by loving one another.
*In the true story of the Israelites Exodus from Egypt they held God in high esteem and tried to be obedient to his commands. Moses interceded on behalf of the people and God forgave those who rebelled against him. Exodus 14: 10-16.  17:3-7
 In our reading the Israelites before they approached the mountain had to consecrate (set apart) themselves by washing their clothes. Even then they were held back from going closer to the presence of God.
*Debt to God
The first-born redeemed for 5 shekels.
“Every first-born man among your sons you shall redeem.” Exodus 13: 1,13.
“Everything that opens the womb of all flesh, whether man or beast . . . . nevertheless the first-born of man you shall redeem, . . . .And their redemption price (at a month old you shall redeem them) you shall fix at five shekels in silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.” Numbers 18: 15, 16.
“And the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him (Jesus) up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtle doves, or two young pigeons.” Luke 2: 22-24.
*Our Redemption through Jesus’ Passover
The Hebrew people at the start of their wilderness journey were instructed by God that only the people who were circumcised could eat the Passover Meal, they were a sanctified people, set apart by God’s covenant with Abraham, and the many Gentiles who accompanied them out of Egypt could not participate in the meal. These were the people who had connections with the descendants of Jacob but were not circumcised.
This gives insight into Jesus’ words concerning sanctification.”I have given them thy word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not pray that thou should take them out of the world, but that thou should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; thy word is truth, as thou didst send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth.” John 17: 14 – 19.
The words of Jesus in his prayer spoke of his disciples being in the world but not part of it.
Jesus – The Passover the Lamb of God laid down his life for us for the forgiveness of sins. In repentance and faith Jesus releases us from the bondage of sin and the devil.  The blood of Jesus written on the door posts and lintels of our hearts sets us free from all that stands against us.
The Holy Spirit the sanctifier acting on the word, Jesus. –  We are sanctified, set apart for the righteousness of God dwells in our being; we are in the world but not a part of it.
“You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you.” John 15: 3, 4.
 “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6: 20.
“But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6: 11
*In the second part of this verse “as we forgive those who sin against us.” 
Jesus asks us to forgive those things were other people have offended or hurt us. Jesus does not want his church to condemn people and bring them under judgement and punishment.
*Moses was a judge among the people of Israel. The people brought their disputes to him for his judgement believing that God would speak through him.
The Jews expected Jesus to be like Moses, but he did not judge people: when the two brothers came to Jesus to settle their dispute over their inheritance. Jesus responded by saying, “Man, who made me a judge or divider over you?” Luke 12:13, 14.
The woman caught in adultery was not condemned by Jesus. He asked those who brought her before him asking him to make a judgment over her under the Law of Moses. Jesus’ response “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.” John 8: 3-11.
4/ Lead us not into temptation.

 

The pictures on the board: The cockerel. The hen. The barren landscape. The open door.
 
The writer of Hebrews tells us that God will discipline us by gently showing and convicting us when we are not listening to his words.
God will test our faith as a result we strengthened and our faith increases.
 
*The temptation must have been very great to disobey Moses and God. The people of Israel were not to set foot beyond the designated area on the Mount Sinai.
5 Deliver us from evil.
On this board: The tank relating to war. The boat rescuing merchant seaman taken hostage at sea. Jesus praying for the lady bound for 18 years with the spirit of infirmity. The life changing experience of the cross and that’s expressed with the caterpillar being changed into a butterfly.

 

In our gospel reading the lady had been bound by Satan for 18 years and Jesus healed her releasing her from the spirit of infirmity.
The number 18 is mentioned twice in these verses 10 – 17.
The significance of the number 18
18 made up of 3 sixes 666.
666 are associated with Satan’s activities in the Bible.(see blog God the Mathematician) 

At the beginning of Chapter 13: 4 Jesus said, “Or those eighteen upon whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worst offenders than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, No; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” 18 people of Jerusalem who were killed when the tower fell on them, unless they repented 
The 18 who were killed when the tower fell on them, came under judgement because of Israel’s sin. The fig tree that bore no fruit, again symbolized Israel’s sin. The tree was given a reprieve for a year hoping that the gardener’s tender loving care would help it to produce fruit  
In Jesus’ compassion he gave them the sign of Israel’s reprieve when he released the woman from Satan’s bondage with the spirit of infirmity. It also is prophetic of the restoration of Israel in the last days when Jesus returns. 
Applying Jesus’ victory over the devil and his activities.
The Lord’s Prayer has been used as a sword in releasing a person from Satan’s afflictions and bondage.
The power of forgiveness in bringing healing to soul and body, the prayer of deliverance from the spiritual activities in peoples’ lives and homes. Truly an amazing prayer.
6/ For the kingdom the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.

 

This last sentence was added between 1st and 2nd Century. The church calls it the ‘Doxology’ a sentence of praise. The King James Bible includes this last sentence in Matthew 6: 13.
The pictures express worship and mission. People singing and praising God. A passport. A disciple in conversation with a man pointing the way to find Jesus.
.
Everything on the board includes what the Church is about: worship, praise, healing and communicating the gospel so that people come to know Jesus by having faith in him.
 The churches praise in this Doxology re-enforces that the kingdom message, that there is great celebration in heaven over each person who accepts Jesus as their Saviour.
Good news
On Wednesday I heard from my sister who worships at a Pentecostal Church in Manchester that a revival has begun in South Wales. The outpouring began in April of this year in the  Victory Church, Cwmbran, Wales.