Help for the Lonely

 I know a half-blind widow in our neighbourhood. Christian neighbours visit her and help her from time to time. Another neighbour takes her for a walk.

Another neighbour is a very elderly widow. A Christian woman visits her and stays for hours because she is very lonely and depressed.

There are lonely people all around us.

• Many drink because they are lonely.

• Others are addicted to porn because they are lonely.

• Some visit brothels because they are lonely.

• Others become obese because they seek comfort in food, but other people look down on them and they become even lonelier as a result.

• Many men and women desire sex with many partners, but this does not satisfy their loneliness.

Even in the church there are often very lonely Christians. Some pastors have no close friends.
A good pastor knew about a woman who was very active in a large church. She sang in the choir.

One day she went home, took a gun and shot herself.  

There are so many substitutes for real companionship..

There are thirsty people in poor countries who don't have fresh water. They drink dirty water and get sick.

You probably sometimes see a Muslim woman with her head covered. What do you think?
Many Europeans react very unfriendly because they feel they are flooded with unfriendly Muslims.

But Jesus loves these women. They often experience rejection from Europeans or bullying from their husbands. Many are lonely. They need neighbourly love.

Prostitutes are rarely alone, but they are often lonely. They need real kindness.

There are also very rich people who can't buy real friendship with a heap of money.

If you look at all your fellow human beings with God's neighbourly love, God will help you to comfort a lonely person here and there.

In the Bible, lepers were very lonely. They were not allowed to have contact with family or friends. Jesus touched them and healed them.

Jesus said that his disciples must help lonely people with love. Whoever helps a suffering person with God's love helps Jesus himself, because Jesus loves such people.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,
I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Mt 25:34–36 NIV

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Mt 25:40 NIV

For many people, Christmas is the loneliest time of the year. How can you comfort someone?

Gratitude Releases the Power of God

 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. Mt 8:28 NIV

In Mark and Luke, we read the same story, but only one demonised man is mentioned. Some might claim that this is proof that you can find errors in the Bible, but that is not the case.

Speaking of only one person in a situation does not mean that there were no others.

Why do Mark and Luke only focus on one of the possessed men?

Because this man played a dramatic role in Jesus' mission after his deliverance.

Jesus commanded the demons to leave both men.

The demons threw themselves from the men into a herd of pigs. The pigs were forced by the demons to throw themselves into the sea, where they drowned.

The pagan population were outraged and asked Jesus to leave their neighbourhood.

One of these men wanted to stay with Jesus, because after his deliverance he believed in Jesus, but Jesus sent him on a mission instead.

But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.”

So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them. Mk 5:19–20 NLT

His mission was not in vain, for when Jesus later returned to the area, he was received very favourably.

Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.

A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him.

Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue.

Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!”
Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!

Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news. Mk 7:31–36 NLT

One of the two possessed men in the account in Matthew's gospel responded with extreme gratitude and devotion, but we know nothing more about the other man.

Many receive miraculous healing and deliverance from Jesus even today. Perhaps you too. How do you respond to God's love and grace?

Psychiatry for Christians

 My father was a very good psychiatrist. He often visited his patients in hospital in the evenings. He was not only a very good specialist, but also a compassionate man.

He was not a Christian, but he respected the faith of his Christian patients. He himself only converted at the age of 88, when he was bedridden in a retirement home.

He cared for all kinds of patients. He also worked in Catholic hospitals, where he often cared for priests and nuns with psychiatric problems.

As a student, I lived in a student residence. We were quite spoilt and we ate in a dining hall.

One day, one of the maids came to see me. She told me that she had been one of my father's patients.

She was a Baptist missionary. When she returned home from her service abroad, she had a nervous breakdown and needed psychiatric care.

She wanted to tell me how grateful she was that my father had restored her life.

There are some psychiatrists who don't respect Christian faith, and that can be a problem, but there are also many Bible-believing Christians who completely misunderstand mental illness.

Jesus is our healer. I believe that Jesus can and will heal all of our illnesses. I have experienced miraculous healings.

He forgives all your iniquity; he heals all your diseases. Ps 103:3 CSB

But there are Christians who do not understand mental illness as an illness. They assume all mental illness is symptomatic of demon possession. They often try to cast out imaginary demons.

I know Christians who have been treated in this way. When deliverance from imaginary demons does not help, the mentally ill person is condemned for lack of faith or sin. Jesus never abused weak people like that.

I once talked to a Christian who had been homeless, addicted to drugs and broken until he heard the good news of Jesus. He converted and became normal step by step. He claimed that we should not waste our time and money on psychiatry. The miserable people only need to hear about Jesus.

But I regularly talk to Christians who have been victims of abuse in Christian families or churches and who are traumatised and clinically depressed or mentally ill.

They believe in Jesus, but they are victims of abuse from other Christians. If I were to tell them that all they need to do is believe in Jesus, it could drive them to despair or suicide.

There are Christians who are dogmatic opponents of psychiatric medication.

Shortly after my conversion, I was harassed and excommunicated by a fanatical Christian sect. I was devastated and I had a complete nervous breakdown.

I am grateful that I had good psychiatric care, good occupational therapy in a hospital and was treated with effective medication.

Was I only saved by psychiatry? No. Many Christians prayed for me and I experienced God's miraculous healing.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NIV

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; Lk 4:18 NKJV

Prosperity and Poverty. Prosperity Gospel?

Do you believe in the prosperity gospel? I don't, but should I believe in a gospel of poverty?

Jesus said:

Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
 
Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Lk 6:20–21 NIV

“But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Lk 6:24 NIV

So should we all be poor? I read in the Old Testament that poverty is a curse.

Should wealth be a sin?

The first person in Europe to be converted through Paul’s ministry was a rich merchant, Lydia.

One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshipper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.

When she and the members of her household were baptised, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us. Acts 16:14–15 NIV

Most churches in the first Christian centuries were house churches. The large houses of wealthy Christians became house churches.

The question is not whether you are allowed to be rich, but what you do with your wealth.

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?

Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.

If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. Jas 2:14–17 NIV

There are some rich Christians who are politically conservative. They want to pay less tax. They can pay for the best care from a specialist, but they don't worry about poor people dying because they can't afford good care.

What does the Bible say?

Happy are those who consider the poor; the LORD delivers them in the day of trouble.

The LORD protects them and keeps them alive; they are called happy in the land. You do not give them up to the will of their enemies. 

 The LORD sustains them on their sickbed; in their illness you heal all their infirmities. Ps 41:1–3 NRSV

Miracles Still for Today

 There is a highly questionable and controversial teaching that the supernatural spiritual gifts that appear in the book of Acts and 1 Corinthians were taken away by God in the first centuries of the Christian era.

This idea is supposedly supported by some verses in 1 Corinthians 13.

For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Co 13:12 NIV

This clear recognition is intended to point to the appearance of the New Testament. But neither Paul nor most of the Corinthians had seen the complete New Testament.

How many Christians in our day who know the New Testament have a clear recognition of God that so surpasses the revelations of the apostles themselves? This makes no sense.

This verse in 1 Corinthians is not a new idea. David had the same revelation in Psalm 17.

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness. Ps 17:15 NRSV

The psalmist was David, who believed that in his afterlife he would see God himself directly.

I once looked for this text in various Bible commentaries in a Christian bookshop. The commentaries were not Pentecostal, but they all explained that 1 Cor 13:12 is supposed to be a reference to our encounter with God in the next life.

David expected that he would meet God directly and visibly after his death. This had nothing to do with the appearance of the New Testament.

In our time, we need God's supernatural help like never before.

And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” Mk 16:17–18 NRSV

In our time, millions of Muslims are becoming Christians. In millions of cases, they are converted after seeing Jesus in a dream or vision, and in many others they are converted after experiencing healing miracles.

I know an Arab Christian who was formerly a Muslim. A Muslim Arab tried to kill him with poison, but he was unharmed. When the would be assassin saw him alive, he was shocked.

The Christian man quoted Mark 16:18. … and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 1 Co 13:8 NIV

When will prophecies and tongues cease? When we see Jesus.
What about knowledge coming to an end? We still need knowledge because we are not face to face with God.
 

When you Need a Miracle ...

 A well-known evangelist was once praying. Then a dramatic thought occurred to him. God told him to tell his listeners: ‘Expect a miracle every day!’

Some will object that this is sensationalism or showmanship.  
But we don't need a miracle until we need a miracle.

We keep hearing about dramatic miracles in the Third World.

C Peter Wagner was a lecturer in a conservative Bible school. He heard these dramatic testimonies in South America. Instead of dismissing these reports as exaggerated fairy tales, he visited the revivals in Brazil and Argentina himself.

He saw many poor people suffering from terrible toothache because they had no money for a dentist. They attended meetings where they expected miraculous healings, and they were not disappointed. They came with rotten teeth and went home with gold fillings.

You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

In Europe and North America, many people think that we don't need such miracles anymore because we have modern medical care.

I am very grateful for good dentists and eye specialists. Modern medicine can help cancer patients and very often prolong their lives. But in the Bible, Jesus healed everyone who sought healing from him, everyone.

No modern doctor can do that. So many suffer with chronic pain and disabilities.

Many Christians claim that the miracles in the Bible only applied to that time. They quote a few proof texts and try to explain away the many promises of God.

But if you need a miracle, you need a miracle. Jesus healed because he was moved by deep compassion. Has God's heart grown cold?

But all Bible-believing Christians agree that God hears our prayers. When God answers your prayer, He supernaturally intervenes in the natural order of the world. That is a miracle.

We once visited a woman in a clinic in Germany. As we left the clinic, it started to rain. It was cold and the streets were empty. We needed a taxi, but our friend who was familiar with that part of town told us we would be waiting a long time for a taxi. My wife prayed and a taxi appeared almost immediately.

A friend told us his wife was dying. His heart was broken. The doctors were no longer trying to save her life and was just waiting for her to die. My wife and I prayed and the woman recovered and returned home.

This woman was over 70 years old and had all sorts of serious health problems. She had to be hospitalised again and again. Two years later, she was dying again. The doctors could no longer help. We prayed again and, against all expectations, she returned home.

When the time of miracles is past, God no longer answers prayers, because every answer to prayer is a miracle.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. Jn 15:7 NIV 

This statement is not a theological theory, but a promise from Jesus himself.

Many want to water down or question such promises, but please don't let this mislead you

You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

You can rely on Jesus. He loves you.

Mercy and Judgement

 A man took two dogs for a walk. When both dogs were disobedient, he chastised both dogs. He gave one dog a pretty hard punch on the nose, but he only scolded the other dog in a sharp voice.

A passer-by asked him why he was being so unfair. Surely he should treat both dogs equally. The man with the dogs replied that he loved both dogs, but they had different temperaments.

There are some people who never take God seriously except to hear harsh talk about the flames of hell. There are others who respond humbly when they hear only a gentle message about God's love and holiness.

There are those who have been deeply hurt by bullying from the pulpit. Even though they sometimes need to hear about God's holiness, they cannot endure harsh speech without feeling intimidated by the preacher or by God Himself.

There are Christians who need to hear harsh sermons often, and others who need God's gentle reassurance again and again.

There are Christians who have been so hurt by many harsh sermons that they overreact until they no longer want to endure the clear biblical texts about God's judgement.

Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mk 16:16 NIV

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. Jn 3:18 NIV

They imagine that everyone will end up in God's heaven at some point.

How would the believing Jews feel if they were to face Hitler in heaven one day? How could God be considered just in this case?

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. Jn 3:16–18 NIV

God loves us all, without exception and without conditions. We can never earn God's love, but we can accept or reject his grace and forgiveness.

Partnership With God

It is very important that we recognise our human limitations.

As a human being, I am only a very flawed part of a world that has been badly corrupted and mismanaged by my fellow human beings.

As a human being, I can only partially resist the corruption of this world with great effort and willpower.

In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;

and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Rom 8:26–27 NASB95

Despite all my endeavours, I remain a human being who is not fit to live in the presence of the holy God.

As a human being, I cannot save the humanity around me because I myself need salvation.
Jesus told his chosen apostles:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. Jn 15:5 NIV

The apostle Paul reminds us:

… it is not that we are so competent that we can claim any credit for ourselves; all our competence comes from God. 2 Co 3:5 NJB

God created you to enjoy a close relationship with Himself.
He loves you completely. His love is so warm and tender.

He wants you to stay safe and secure in His beautiful love every hour of your life.

This is such a sweet experience but God not only wants to give you joy but also the fulfilment of a meaningful life with Him.

He wants to give you a share in His great mission to save the world.
God is calling you into partnership with Jesus, the Saviour of the world.

You cannot even begin to work with God without a close connection with Him through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus told His disciples:

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Ac 1:8 NIV

This power enables us to heal the sick, bring people to faith in Jesus, and minister to drug addicts.

But we must always be aware that this power is not ours, and we cannot minister without the help of Jesus himself.

‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NJB

Our goal is to bring people into intimate fellowship with Jesus through God's love so that they come to know God as their Heavenly Father.

This makes no sense if you yourself do not live in close fellowship with God.

Finding New Strength

 Sometimes you get exhausted. You are overwhelmed. It's just too much. You've run out of energy. You can no longer find your drive.

He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. Is 40:29–30 NLT

The eagle is unique. Eagles can live up to a hundred years. Over the years, their feathers become old and worn. They can no longer fly well.

They withdraw and perch on a mountain top. Then they moult. They lose their old feathers and gain new ones. Without feathers, they can be vulnerable, but they find a safe remote place and wait until they are strong again.

But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. Is 40:31 NLT

With new feathers they are strong again, but even then they do not fly like other birds. They often glide like a glider.

Jesus said that the source of our strength is the Holy Spirit. Jesus is God, but as a man on earth he relied on the Holy Spirit.

Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.

So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’

The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” Jn 3:6–8 NLT

A truly converted Christian receives a completely new life through the Holy Spirit, but it is not enough to be born again by the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is not just there to save us. He is our companion, our guide and our strength, just like in the life of Jesus on earth.

Are you so overwhelmed that you can't find time for a day of rest?

Withdraw for a time, a few days, a few hours or if that is just not possible, for a few minutes. Focus your thoughts on the presence of God around you and also within you. Perhaps you can place your hand on your chest. This is not only your chest, but also the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, who loves you immeasurably.

If you have problems sleeping, pray for help and don't be afraid to seek medical help. Lack of sleep can do terrible damage.

Look at your routine. Are you just trying to do too much? Are you trying to please other people? What apparent duties are just not absolutely necessary?

You are called to do what God calls you to do, not what other people want you to do. Learn to say no.

God Heals Wounded Souls

 In my last post I wrote about how we can overcome negative thoughts and distractions.

When you fail, when bad thoughts shame you, when your worries overwhelm you, you need to know that God's love does not depend on your devotion, but on His unconditional love for you.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

If your prayers are distracted by anger and resentment, you need to know that God loves you dearly in spite of your anger.

Humbling yourself with repentant confession will not solve the problem. You need to discuss your hurts with God. God understands that you are hurt and that unhealed anger is not helpful, but He does not want to judge you.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, Rom 8:1 NIV

But we have to forgive, don't we? But you can't forgive abuse and bullying without God's merciful help. God loves justice. God is also appalled by abuse and bullying.

For you have upheld my right and my cause, sitting enthroned as the righteous judge. Ps 9:4 NIV

If you are willing to forgive abuse, God can and will heal your wounds and make amends for your losses.

God knows you are hurting. Forgiving does not mean excusing what has been done to you. It does not mean that you are not allowed to feel hurt. It means you hand over the offender to God, to God’s judgement and also God’s mercy.

If you forgive someone, it does not mean you have to remain associated with that person. You need to put a safe distance between yourself and a malicious bully, even if the bully is a partner or a member of your family.

He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Ps 147:3 NIV

Overcoming Bad Thoughts and Feelings

 You try to focus your thoughts on God, to pray with reverence and love, but you are constantly distracted by negative thoughts. You want to love God, but in your own eyes you are a failure.

You force yourself to praise God, to read the Bible more, perhaps to fast, but it often doesn't help.

What is wrong? What is holding you back?

• Financial worries?

• Unworthy sexual thoughts?

• Anger at difficult neighbours or relatives?

• Ashamed of your many shortcomings and misdemeanours?

• Anger about abuse?

Perhaps you're building on the wrong foundation.

You are not saved because your repentance and reverence are deep.

The foundation of your salvation is your redemption through the death of God's Son on the cross for you.
God redeemed you from sin and shame through the sacrifice of His Son.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Jn 3:16–17 NIV

When we feel shaky, we need to look to our foundation, God's saving love.

Because Jesus died for you, you can come to Jesus as a broken person who needs understanding, like a troubled soul sharing your feelings with a good therapist who is not judging you.

You can tell God how you feel and ask him to help you to untie the knots in your life.

‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ Jer 33:3 NIV

God Made you Different

 George Frederick Handel was no preacher, no evangelist and no theologian, but in his later years he composed his masterpiece. His brilliant career was seemingly over. He was overwhelmed by debt. One evening, the text of an oratorio appeared on his desk. It was ‘The Messiah.’

His whole life was a God-directed preparation for this masterpiece that reached countless people for Jesus.

CS Lewis was not a preacher or theologian, but an outstanding academic at Oxford University. He converted to Jesus and then wrote books in his own way with his own Christian thoughts. His thoughts were faithful to the Bible, but his way of thinking was by no means conventional.

In the Old Testament, a Jewish girl was kidnapped. She became a slave in the house of a Syrian general. When her master became leprous, she told him to seek the Jewish prophet to receive healing from God.

Are you a well-known person in the world, but you wonder if your life has meaning? Handel was such a person until Jesus commissioned him to proclaim the gospel through his music.

Are you a nobody, perhaps a failure or a victim, like the Hebrew slave in Syria? But Jesus can give your life meaning.

Do you believe in Jesus? You love God and want to do something for him, but maybe you don't fit in with the way things are done in your church. Don't give up. You can ask God how you can follow Jesus in a unique way.

Even the body is made up of many different parts, not just one.

Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body.

And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 1 Co 12:14–16 NIV

Friendship with God

 The angels are perfect servants and we can never be perfect servants because we are not flawless here on earth. Nevertheless, God is looking for people like you and me. He wants to be your friend. You can become his friend too.

We all want to have good friends. Jesus is the best of all friends. He will always remain faithful to you. But God also wants to have good friends. .

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. Jn 15:15 NIV

If you learn to trust Jesus deeply and intimately, he will share the secrets of his heart with you.

As faithful Jews, the disciples had learnt a lot about God. They knew Bible texts by heart. Some of them were already disciples of John the Baptist before they met Jesus.

Then they met Jesus. From that moment on, everything centred around Jesus.

I write blogs in German, even though my first language is English. God has commissioned me to do missionary work among German speakers. I am not flawless in German, but I have learnt German well.

How can you learn a foreign language really well? Through concentration! You have to focus intensively on the new language.

How can you know God well? Spend time paying close attention to His word and His presence.

The disciples became Jesus' companions. They followed him.

But you can also have companions without experiencing a great friendship. You can be travelling on a tourist bus or a cruise ship. Your companions are often just acquaintances.

For many Christians, the church is like a bus or a ship. Jesus may theoretically be the captain, but who has an intimate friendship with the captain?

Jesus invited the disciples to be his personal companions.

• Imagine the captain on a cruise ship invited you to eat at his table every day.

• Imagine that the Queen of England has invited you to live in her palace and eat at her table three times a day.

• Imagine you are a keen musician. Johann Sebastian Bach or Paul McCartney wants to invite you to live in his family home and be his student.

You are a friend of God if you know what God is doing.

How can you know what God is doing?

Only if God himself reveals or explains it to you.

How can you be sure that you are actually hearing God's voice? When you seek God's presence with all your heart, when you understand the Bible as a personal message from God.

You are my friends if you do what I command. Jn 15:14 NIV

God speaks to you because He loves you and He wants to have an intimate relationship with you.

But God also wants to help you and enable you to live a heavenly life.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NASB95

If you really know Jesus personally, you will experience peace with God, not as a theological doctrine, but from your own experience.

Only Jesus is Perfect

 In the Bible, I see that even great men of God were not flawless. Moses needed the advice of his father-in-law.

The great King David sinned and was exposed by the prophet Nathan.

Some Christians want to put Peter on a throne, but when Peter went wrong, he was rebuked by Paul.

After his conversion, the apostle Paul gave the impression of being faultless. But how did Paul himself evaluate his Christian life?

For in my inner being I delight in God’s law;

but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?

Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. Rom 7:22–25 NIV

Others want to worship St Mary as the Queen of Heaven. Jesus loved his mother. but Jesus had a different view.

While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him.

Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”
He replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”

Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers.
For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” Mt 12:46–50 NIV

If a preacher claims to always be right, don't trust him. That is prideful. If you think of your pastor or a prominent evangelist as always infallible, you're misguided.

The true disciples of the Lord learn to recognise the voice of God for themselves. They learn to think for themselves with wisdom.

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. Jn 10:27–28 NIV

Never Give up Believing

 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. Ps 91:7 NIV

Why do so many Christians pray for healing, protection or care but do not receive?

I have experienced miracles time and time again, but I don't want to be the kind of person who looks down on others because they haven't experienced a miracle.

We often don’t know why someone has not been healed, and we should not judge.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. Mt 7:1 NIV

When I was healed from a terrible nervous breakdown more than 40 years ago, I often felt fear. I had many panic attacks. I often doubted and needed strong encouragement from Christians with stronger faith.

I also saw other Christians who were mentally ill and were not healed.

I needed strong medication, and for me medication and prayer were both valid and important.

But I kept praying for healing, and strove to trust God and expect healing.

Never give up! Healing doesn't often come immediately. Don't be discouraged by setbacks.

Don't let yourself think or talk for a minute about the disappointments of other sick people.

It's all about God's love and healing power for you, for yourself.

Do you believe that God forgives your sins? Some believe that, but are not sure if God wants to heal them.

He forgives all your iniquity; he heals all your diseases. Ps 103:3 CSB

The same God who promises forgiveness of sins has also promised to heal all your diseases in the same Bible verse.

No matter who is not healed, no matter what other Christians believe, no matter how many times you yourself have been disappointed, just hold onto God's love and God's promises for yourself.

A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. Ps 91:7 NIV

So be careful to do what the LORD your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left. Dt 5:32 NIV

Pay no attention to other Christians who remain sick. Do not look to the right or to the left.

God Changes Everything

 When Jesus appeared in Israel, he was the saviour for many. Prostitutes were freed from their torment and shame. Lepers were healed and the blind were able to see again.

But through the presence of God's Son, many prominent leaders also failed.  

The official leaders of the Jewish religion were not interested in the Son of God. The self-righteous Pharisees and high priests were rejected by God. At the same time, God raised up a new leadership.

Scholarly rabbis and priests failed to recognise their Messiah and God appointed unknown fishermen as apostles.

Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, Lk 2:34 NIV

The official leaders of the Jewish religion had gone astray. God had to establish a new order.

When Jesus gave his life on the cross, religious leaders scoffed, but a Roman soldier believed.

Then God changed everything. Before the cross, non-Jews were allowed to come to God, but they had to submit to the laws that God gave through Moses. They had to become adopted Jews.

After the cross, non-Jews could be saved by putting their faith in Jesus. Jews could not be saved through Moses. They had to trust Jesus as the Son of God.

Before Jesus appeared, the Jews had expected their Messiah, but they could not imagine that God would transform everything so completely.

In recent years, many Christians have been praying for a mighty worldwide move of the Holy Spirit, but we can't imagine what God's new order will look like.

The mighty manifestation of the Holy Spirit in these last days will deeply shake the order in this world, but not only the order in the world, but also the traditional order in the Christian religion.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Eph 3:20 NLT

Are you hoping for a miraculous revival? God will work far beyond your wildest dreams, but God will also often intervene in a completely different way than you expect.

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. Is 55:8–9 NLT

See yourself as God sees you.

 Before the creation of the world, God already had an image of you in his mind. He saw in you a reflection of the beautiful humanity of Jesus.

Of course, I don't mean that you should be an itinerant Jewish preacher in Israel. You may be a woman. You may be an introverted academic. We are all different and unique, but we are to reveal the glory of God in different ways.

But almost everything has gone wrong with God's plan. The first humans rejected God's plan and were disobedient. Since then we have seen murder and war, lies and deceit, selfishness and perversion time and time again.

We are all born with shortcomings, with negative tendencies and character flaws. But God has never given up.

God can turn a run-down car into a Formula One machine.
But humanity needed a new beginning.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

Jesus took the punishment for all the sins of all people on the cross. He died so that we could have a new beginning, freed from guilt, because God's Son bore the guilt on his innocent soul.

Your guilt is taken away if you gratefully accept God's sacrifice and want to make a new start with Jesus.

We can have a new life with Jesus because Jesus not only died for us, but also rose again. Jesus is no longer a humiliated man on earth, but the eternal King of mankind in heaven.

Jesus wants to assure you.

… “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.
Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. …” Jn 11:25–26 NLT

Are you deeply dissatisfied with life? Are you perhaps at the end? What does Jesus have to say?

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NLT

Jesus loves you. He is waiting for your cry for help.

‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ Jer 33:3 NIV

Hope and Faith in Trouble

You do your best as a mother or father, but your child goes wrong.

If you lose your job, if you get sick, if life stabs you in the back, you have problems.

What does the Bible say about problems in life?

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy,
because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; Jas 1:2–3 NRSV

When you park in a shopping centre and come back to your car, you find a big, ugly dent. How do you react?

Do you celebrate? I don't.

Maybe we need to change our perspective. We can learn to trust God in all our problems. God always wants to help. Gratitude for God's help changes everything.

It is important to be grateful for God's help after He has helped.

If you are familiar with God's love, you can be grateful in advance that God has a solution to your problems where you have not yet found a way out.

In this earthly life, we will always encounter problems, setbacks and disappointments. We must learn to accept this reality as normal. Not so easy.

What did Jesus say about this?

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jn 16:33 NIV

If we don't expect difficult problems, we will always be stressed because the problems will always come anyway.

When we read in the Bible that we can overcome with God's help, we should expect that we will always experience something we need to overcome.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Rom 8:35–37 NIV

In the Bible we see how God has saved his children time and again with miracles. If we study these miracles, we will realise that in many cases the people who experienced a miracle had no other way out.

You don't need a healing until you are sick. You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

God's Invisible Protection

 I prayed for encouragement and inspiration from God. Then I had an impression in my spirit.

I saw someone walking on a tightrope. I didn't see a safety net, but there was another rope. The tightrope walker was wearing a belt or harness with a strong clasp. Another rope was attached to this  clasp. Somewhere above the tightrope walker, someone held the rope securely. If he fell off the rope, he was held from above.

We have an invisible bodyguard.

I am 75 years old and live in peace and security with my dear wife. We are retired and not sick or impoverished, but troubling storms rage around us.

Two close friends have passed away. People in my close circle of friends and family are asking for prayer because of serious illness.

What can I do? I am just a vulnerable man myself, no longer young.

But I have a mighty, loving God. He answers my prayers and I often see Him intervene in amazing ways.

Some time ago, I was sawing a branch off a small tree with a handsaw. I was leaning against the branch and when it gave way, I fell head first. That was extremely dangerous.

I fell headfirst into a pile of leaves. I tucked my chin in and did a half somersault. I did it instinctively, without thinking. Thank God.

There was hard concrete under the pile of leaves. If I had been a diligent gardener, I might have fallen onto the concrete and broken my skull or injured my spine. A hardworking gardener would have cleared away the dry leaves.

My wife was alarmed. She told me not to move. But I didn't feel any pain. I got up slowly. I had a little blood on one arm, but otherwise I was unharmed.

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Ps 34:7 NIV

Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,
no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. Ps 91:9–11 NRSV

I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Ps 34:4 NIV

Healing from God.

God promised the Jews health and healing in the Old Testament.

He said, “If you listen carefully to the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you.” Ex 15:26 NIV

This promise was not unconditional. The Jews had to obey all of God's commandments.

But then we come across an exception, Naaman.

Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy. 2 Ki 5:1 NIV

He had a Hebrew slave girl. She was a young woman with a good heart. Jesus later taught that we must love our enemies, and she cared for her master who had enslaved her as a captive.

She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” 2 Ki 5:3 NIV

The general went to Israel to look for the prophet Elisha.

Elisha sent his servant to Naaman with instructions. The general was to dip himself seven times in the Jordan River.

This hurt the general's pride.

But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.

Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage. 2 Ki 5:11–12 NIV

Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” 2 Ki 5:13 NIV

The general thought again and went to the Jordan River. When he emerged from the water for the seventh time, he was completely well.

Naaman was a pagan and worshipped other gods, but God spoke through the prophet and he obeyed.

Today, many Muslims are healed supernaturally in the same way. Many convert only after their miraculous healing, and others never convert.

It was similar in the New Testament. Many received miraculous healings from Jesus, and not all repented of their sins.

Jesus lamented this tragedy. He loved his countrymen with all his heart. His heart was broken.

And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.

But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgement than for you.” Mt 11:23–24 NIV 

In the New Testament, healing is an effect of the love of God, who loves everyone, and not a reward for virtue. Likewise, salvation and eternal life are a free gift from God.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Rom 6:23 NIV

God promises in Psalm 103 that he will forgive all your trespasses. In the same verse in the same psalm, he promises to heal all your diseases.

He forgives all your iniquity; he heals all your diseases. Ps 103:3 CSB

Some Christians think that the gift of miracle healings was only for the first apostles. But this misguided teaching is clearly contradicted in the New Testament.

Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.

And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Jas 5:14–15 NIV

Struggling with Faith

 You firmly believe that Jesus is the Son of God. You have often had wonderful experiences with God. You have received healings from God. God has answered your prayers in beautiful ways.
Nevertheless, you sometimes find it difficult to feel God's closeness.

You want to give your testimony, but you have a knot in your stomach, as if the loving Holy Spirit is no longer there.

Jesus promised love, joy and peace, didn't he? Sure, but does that mean we will always enjoy nothing but glorious peace every minute?

Take a look at the Bible. You'll see how John the Baptist, Jesus and then Paul had to overcome incredibly difficult problems.

John the Baptist was almost overcome by doubt. Paul told us quite openly how he had to fight against his own character flaws.

For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. Rom 7:18 NIV

The same Paul also wrote about peace with God.

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Rom 5:1 NLT

We have access to God's peace and grace, but we do not always experience this blessing. We have a human nature and we have an enemy in the spiritual realm.

We don't have to be driven back and forth by our human feelings.

If our peace in the Spirit were dependent on our own holiness, we would all be lost. But our peace comes from Jesus himself, through his sacrifice on the cross.

So now, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith in his promises, we can have real peace with him because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Rom 5:1 The Living Bible, Paraphrased

This peace comes through Jesus on the basis of God's grace. On the basis of this grace, we can continue to live in this peace. Through his infinite grace, God forgives us again and again and enables us to continue to walk in God's love despite our offences.

Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. Rom 5:2 NLT

Paul often wrote about grace and peace, but also about struggle. Struggle and peace?

Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 1 Tim 6:12 NIV

We have a mortal human nature. We are subject to fatigue, stress, trauma and illness. We have to make a decision again and again to hold on to God's grace and peace.

Salvation and Healing go together

 Many Christians think it is better to focus on our eternal destiny rather than on miraculous healings.

Forgiveness of sins or healing from all diseases. Which is more important?

If a cancer patient believes in Jesus and dies anyway, he will go to heaven and enjoy eternal love, joy and peace. There is no sickness of any kind in heaven.

If a cancer patient is cured but does not believe in Jesus, he may remain healthy on earth for many years, but after his death he will suffer eternal distress separated from God's blessings.

Jesus himself said that it is better to die disabled but in faith than to go to hell physically healthy.

If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. Mt 18:8 NIV

So if you have a pornography addiction, you may have to give up the internet for a while.
If your job makes it impossible to work without sin, you need to find another job.

God's first priority is to save our souls, to save us from sin and condemnation. That's why God's eternal Son died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins. God is just, and no sin can go unpunished.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Jn 3:16 NIV

But when we hear how Christians are doing missionary work in Asia and the Third World, we come up against a contradiction. Where many miraculous healings are taking place, countless people are turning to Christ. Churches are multiplying dramatically and discipleship is dynamic.

In the West, we see traditional Christianity in retreat. Whether the focus is on humanistic theology or reformed biblical teaching, we are not seeing dynamic growth.

Some Christians try to justify this sad state of affairs by pointing to passages in the Bible that indicate a falling away before the return of Jesus. But there are also passages that point to a great harvest.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Mt 24:14 NIV

How is the gospel being preached in the Third World today in Asia, Africa and South America? With signs and wonders, as in biblical times.

Conservative or Reformed churches focus on salvation rather than healing, and we see disappointing results. Humanistic churches emphasise theology, psychology, tradition, politics and good works. The world outside the church does not take this seriously.

In the Bible, we see something very different.

And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. Ac 10:38 NLT

Healing and deliverance from sin go together in the Bible.

 … who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, Ps 103:3 NIV

The same God, in the same Bible, in the same verse, promises forgiveness of sins and healing from all diseases.

God Calls All Kinds of People

 In China, Christians are multiplying every year. Over twenty years ago, missionary experts said that there were at least one hundred million Christians in China and that several million Chinese were converting to Jesus every year.

Nobody knows how many Christians there are in China now, but the communist government is afraid of Jesus. The basis of the powerful Christian movement in China is not an ordained leadership with professional preachers who have to undergo years of theological training.

Most meetings are not held in well-equipped churches, but in private homes. Many pastors are arrested or simply disappear. Someone then has to lead.

More than seventy per cent of the church leaders in these house churches are women with no extensive theological training, but they burn with love for Jesus and their devotion is unlimited.

Education is not worthless. Paul and Luke were educated men. Martin Luther and John Wesley were educated, but Peter and John were fishermen.

In the mighty move of the Holy Spirit that is soon to come, educated preachers will also be anointed with power, but the mark of the coming revival will not be education, but heavenly love, miracle-working faith and unstinting devotion.

A woman in Brazil was the daughter and granddaughter of high-ranking witches. She became a prostitute and then a witch with terrifying demonic powers, but true Christians love their enemies. Christians prayed for this woman until she converted to Jesus in a traumatic crisis. She became a preacher who was able to reach many lost souls for Jesus.

But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. Mt 19:30 NIV

A highly respected Muslim preacher in Africa led a double life. He secretly visited prostitutes until he was infected with AIDS. The Christians prayed for their persecutor and God answered. On his deathbed, he experienced a visitation from Jesus. He was converted. He was supernaturally healed and then became an influential evangelist for Jesus.

But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. Mt 19:30 NIV

In the revival that is coming in Europe, God will call evangelists who are now in other religions or in pubs or brothels.

The apostle Paul said:

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 1 Ti 1:15 NIV

Set Free from False Submission

 There are Christians who think they must fulfil all expectations and instructions from their family, their church and their boss at work, as if everyone around them were an officer in God's army.

When Jesus preached and ministered in his earthly life, he saw how so many Jews had to carry heavy burdens.

God had given the Jews more than 600 laws and rules in the Old Testament. It was almost impossible for a flawed human being to obey everything perfectly. Only the sinless Son of God was able to do this.

But for the Jews in those generations it was even worse. The rabbis and Pharisees had laid down countless additional rules.

For example, it was forbidden to work on the Sabbath, but the Pharisees had invented detailed rules whereby it was forbidden to minister to the sick through prayer on the Sabbath.

Jesus confronted the religious leaders directly by healing the sick on the Sabbath, in public services. There are still some Christians who are indignant when miraculous healings take place in church services.

The rabbis also required women to be extremely submissive, just like many strict Christian fundamentalists today.

Then came the Roman occupation. A Roman soldier was allowed to order a Jew to carry his luggage. If Jews resisted the Roman occupation, they were often crucified.
Most Jews were heavily burdened and many were traumatised.

Jesus did not abolish the Ten Commandments and the Old Testament by any means, but he wanted to open the way so that everyone could come directly to God, so that everyone would receive God's loving help.

One woman shared her story on Facebook. She was mercilessly harassed by her husband, but in her church she was told to just obey, submit, fast and pray.

She obeyed for years until she could bear no more. She was just about to kill herself when her mobile phone rang. God had moved a friend to save her.

She could finally understand that Jesus did not want to enslave her, but to save and free her.
She left her husband and her church and now lives as a liberated Christian woman. 

Jesus has a simple solution to our problems.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

“For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Mt 11:28–30 NASB95

Jesus does not mean that we should live our lives like lazy people in a rocking chair without any problems, but Jesus wants to accompany you as a friend in the midst of your problems.

There may be some in your church, family or workplace who want to dominate or manipulate you, but Jesus wants your trust so that you can follow his loving guidance.

Many of us are enslaved to a spirit of submission that is not from God, the spirit of false submission.

You can make a Difference

 I am God's creation, so are you. My sight and my breath only come from God. I can think because God created my soul and my brain.

I have a lovely daughter because God created me as a fertile man.

I am a creation, totally dependent on God, but I am not a puppet.
We are created by God in his own image.

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Gen 1:27 NIV

God is the ruler who governs everything. We humans are created to rule under God's authority. We are God's managers on earth. We must manage with God and for God.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Gen 1:28 NIV

The man is not to rule over the woman, but the man and the woman were created as partners to rule over the earth together. The dominion of men over women came later, after the fall.

The question is whether the subjugation of women was God's plan or a consequence of the sin that God allowed.

From the very beginning, God gave us humans important tasks. We received everything from God. God made everything.

Without God we can do nothing, but we are made in God's image. God is an active creator. That is why we are also active agents on earth. Anyone who truly believes in God is not a passive believer, but an active agent who does stuff, who influences the world in some way.

Even without obedience and without trust in God, people are active. People are doers, but without God we have brought God's world to the brink of destruction.

What is your task in life? God wants to guide and empower you.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Eph 2:10 NIV

Sin has ruined the world. What is the problem? People without trust in God.

What is God's solution? People who trust God and follow Jesus.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
not by works, so that no one can boast.
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Eph 2:8–10 NIV

Therefore do not grow weary in doing what is good. Do not be discouraged and never give up, for in due season we will also reap the corresponding blessing. Galatians 6:9 NLB

Jesus accomplished everything for us on the cross, but not so that we should do nothing.

We are meant to be God's active agents on earth.

What makes you tick?

Some people are different, we say, and that's not meant as a compliment, but in reality everyone ticks differently. 

No two snowflakes are the same. No two people have the same DNA.
We have had different birds as pets. We loved them all but no two birds were the same.

We once had a budgie that chased our young sons around the house.
This budgie loved music, especially classical music and particularly symphonies by Beethoven. When he heard Beethoven's great Fifth Symphony on the stereo, he would start dancing wildly and wouldn't stop until the music finished.

Then we had a rainbow lorikeet, a small Australian parrot that is bigger than a budgie. These birds love to play. They especially love balloons. They can be very loving and sweet, but sometimes stubborn and grumpy.

When I was a child, we had a black Labrador. No dog is more gentle and loving.
I love dogs, but I've never been a cat person.

I had good friends who loved God, like me, but they didn't love dogs, they loved cats. They had four cats that they couldn't live without.

Dogs worship their masters. They want to serve. Cats can be very friendly, but they have a mind of their own.

A cat asked a dog why it couldn't climb. The dog asked the cat why the police didn't have cats on duty, only dogs.

If you have a pet cat, dog or parrot, you will know that each species has a different character. Not only that, but each individual cat, dog or parrot is a unique individual.

It is the same with people. Beware of stereotypes.
 
There are many Christians who see their preacher or pastor as a role model. That can be a good thing. There are preachers who are enthusiastic about street outreach. Many in the church go on the streets, pray for people, tell them about Jesus, win lost people for God.

But that's not for everyone.

Maybe you are a nurse. You are overwhelmed in the hospital, but you care for patients with cancer or Covid with love. You pray for the dying and let them know that you are praying for them. You do all this humbly and with wisdom so that you are not dismissed as a fanatic.

You come home exhausted after your work. Should you condemn yourself as a worldly failure because you don't evangelise on the street? Not at all. We all tick differently.

Maybe you're an introverted academic. You study Bible texts for hours on end.

William Carey studied the Bible and foreign languages. He wanted to win the world for Jesus, but he only led one person to conversion through his missionary work.

William Carey moved from England to India. He learnt Hindi and translated the Bible so that the Indians could read it in their own language. As an evangelist, William Carey was a failure, but as a missionary he was still a trailblazer.

You don't have to despise your unique qualities and talents if you tick differently from the other Christians around you.

The body is also made up of many different parts, not just one.

Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body.

And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 1 Co 12:14–16 NIV

Overcoming False Guilt

 A girl is sexually seduced as a small child by her father, stepfather or family friend. As a toddler, she is sexually aroused and at first understands nothing about sin.

Her family is Christian, and the man convinces her that this sweet experience is real love.
Only later does she learn that this is taboo and shameful.

As a teenager in the church, she learns about sexual sin. She is no longer sexually active with the man in the family, but she has strong sexual urges and satisfies herself.

Then the church tells her that masturbation is a sin because it is supposedly unclean.
She feels overwhelmed by shame and guilt because she feels responsible for her forbidden sexual experience with the man who was supposed to love her.  

She then tries to suppress her sexual urges. When her desire becomes almost irresistible, she satisfies herself and then thinks she is a dirty damn sinner, and she is terrified of going to hell.

Is this girl or young woman really guilty in God's eyes, or is it about false guilt, guilt in her own eyes or in the eyes of the counsellors in the church?

Where do I find a teaching in the Bible that little children are responsible for such sin? I do not find this teaching.

Where do I find a teaching in the Bible that masturbation is always wrong? The subject is not mentioned in any biblical text.

Why should I discuss such a difficult topic? I want to help victims who are misunderstood. There are victims in such situations who become prostitutes or commit suicide.

The victims of such abuse are not only girls but also boys.

If guilt has been imposed on you with teachings that are not in the Bible, you no longer need to bear that guilt.

When Jesus hung stark naked on the cross, he bore your guilt but also your shame. He not only bore the guilt for your own sins, but also the guilt of the people who abused you and the guilt of the people who put false guilt on you.

If this post is relevant to you personally, please don't let false guilt ruin you anymore.

Masturbation is unfortunately often entangled with porn addiction and dirty fantasies, but maybe often not. Please don't misunderstand me. I am never advocating porn or pornographic thoughts.

Some find masturbation to be a kind of relief valve that can also help resist strong temptation.

Hold fast to God's word. Ask Jesus for help. He totally understands you, just as you are.

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Rom 5:1 NLT

So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. Rom 8:1 NLT

Seeing as God Sees

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Jn 8:12 NIV

When we have the light of life, we can see clearly. Few people are actually blind but different people can look at the same scene and understand it very differently.

For example, three men see a prostitute on the street. One man feels excited and strongly attracted.  
Another man sees a despicable, sinful woman who should burn in hell.
A third man sees a woman who has suffered much, who could have a new life through God's love.

Unfortunately, there are some Christians who think like the second man and condemn the sinful woman, but Jesus was not like that.

In the same chapter of the Gospel of John, we see self-righteous religious men who brought a woman to Jesus. 

The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group. Jn 8:3 NIV

The religious men wanted to stone her and execute her, but Jesus did not see an evil woman, but rather a woman in deep need, a woman who needed his love and salvation. He also saw the terrible injustice and unkindness of the men. Where was the man?

We may already know the story well. Jesus said that the man without sin should hurl the first stone. All the men recognised their own guilt and walked away.

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.

When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. Mt 9:10–12 NIV

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ Lk 7:34 NIV

John Dawson was the leader of Youth With A Mission in Los Angeles. Like Jesus, he did not despise anyone because of their sins. 

John Dawson wanted to lead a man to conversion. This man had a pornography business. John Dawson had breakfast with this man every Wednesday and explained the gospel until he understood everything, but he was not ready to give his life to Jesus.

Then John Dawson received a special insight from God. He saw that this man had the gift from God to share comfort, but porn was only apparent comfort and not truly satisfying.

He told the man that he had the gift of mercy and God wanted to transform his life so that he would provide real comfort. The man was ready to receive this insight from God and he was converted on the spot.   

Are you ready to see with God's eyes?
Are you ready to recognise your own potential through God's eyes?
Are you ready to look at bad people with God's eyes of love?

Jesus. The Way to God

Post-modern tolerance demands that we view all religions on the same level. We should respect both Mohammed and Jesus because they founded great religions.

I was once at the main railway station in Frankfurt and spoke to Jehovah's Witnesses. A young idealist joined us and began to lecture us with great enthusiasm. Discussing the Bible was a waste of time. All major religions are paths to God.

I asked him a difficult question and he was somewhat taken aback.

‘If all religions are from the same God, why does no sacred text claim that all religions lead to the same goal? You don't find that in the Bible or the Koran. You won't find it in any old world religion.
This idea came more recently, from humanism, from the Enlightenment, from German Romanticism.

If Jesus is supposed to be on the same level as Mohammed, then we must completely disregard some of Jesus' astonishing statements.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Jn 3:16–17 NIV

According to the Bible, all people must recognise Jesus as God's only Son in order to be saved.  
 
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Jn 14:6 NIV

Jesus declares that God is the Eternal Father.

In Islam, Allah is the ruler God and judge but not a father. He has no children. This is said to contradict his nature.

‘Believe in Allah and his messenger (Muhammad), but say nothing of a trinity. There is only one God, far from him, that he has a son. Verily these are unbelievers who say: Allah is Christ, the son of Mary. Whoever joins someone to Allah, Allah will exclude him from Paradise, and his dwelling place will be Hellfire’ (Suras 4, 172; 5, 73f.).

Anyone who believes in Jesus as God's eternal son is rejected by Muhammad in the Qur'an and will suffer eternally in the flames of hell, according to Muhammad.

The human heart longs for a loving father who loves us unconditionally.

Jesus died to reconcile us with our Father, if only we believe and trust.

All atheists, Hindus, communists, Muslims or mystics who recognise Jesus as God's eternal, almighty, merciful Son and also want to repent will all receive eternal life, all of them.

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.
Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” Jn 11:25–26 NLT

Mission to Offenders, Saving from Darkness

The apostle Paul was not a good man before his conversion.

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 1 Ti 1:15 NIV

It pained Paul to think of his crimes before his conversion when he had Christians murdered.

There was a chaplain in the American army after the war who spoke good German. He was given an unwanted assignment. He was to serve as chaplain to the worst Nazis in Nuremberg.

Some just wanted to stay bad. Hermann Göring did not want to stand trial. He committed suicide with a vial of poison.

But some criminals were different. Hitler's foreign minister, Von Ribbentrop, was executed, but before he died he begged his wife to bring up their children as Christians.

Jesus taught us to love our enemies. We never know who will be converted.
But be careful. Wolves are dangerous.

A convicted sex offender visited a church. A good Christian woman gave him shelter, and the pastor wanted to help him.

One night a young woman in the church went missing. In fact, the man had taken her away, but she was found and rescued.

“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Mt 10:16 NIV

It is not always easy to love the predators and at the same time protect our wives and children. We must not allow potential victims to be unprotected.

They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 2 Ti 3:6 NIV
 
But God's saving love requires us to reach out to people in bad places.

A small group of Christian women visited brothels. They were not aggressive evangelists. They were simply friendly.

One prostitute wanted to attend a meeting. In the middle of the service, she stood up and shouted loudly.

Now I believe in Jesus! Now I want to be baptised!

The Keys of the Kingdom

Jesus gave Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven. A key opens doors or locks doors.

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; … Mt 16:19 NIV

When Peter preached the good news of Jesus on the first day of Pentecost, he opened the door for 2,000 Jews from different nations to enter God's kingdom of heaven.  

... whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Mt 16:19 NIV

When Peter was anointed by the Holy Spirit and proclaimed God's truth and grace in his preaching, the power of unbelief was bound and the grace of salvation was loosed.

You could also visualise it differently.
The door to hell was closed and the door to eternal life was opened.

But was it only Peter's sermon that opened the door of faith?

“ ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Ac 2:17 NIV

120 disciples, men and women, were dramatically filled with the Holy Spirit. They uttered prophetic words from the Holy Spirit and they spoke these words in languages they had never learnt. These languages were also understood by the listeners from different nations.

God gives the keys of the kingdom of heaven to all disciples in all generations. If you let yourself be led by the Holy Spirit, he will give you words that will touch people.

God wants to give you words of love, words of grace and also words of truth.

The Gospel Includes Healing

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
 
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Mt 28:19–20 NIV

Was this assignment only for the first apostles? Not at all.

The first apostles did not reach the Japanese and they were never in America. The commission is to make disciples of all nations. This task is not yet complete. For example, there are millions of Hindus in northern India who know nothing about Jesus.

So we all still need to practise and pass on the commandments that Jesus taught his first apostles.

Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. Mt 10:1 NIV

When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases,

and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. Lk 9:1–2 NIV

Sadly, we see some Christians today who emphasise healings and miracles, but without humility and love.

Jesus was different. Jesus healed people because he loved them.

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”
Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. Mk 1:40–42 NIV

Jesus has called us to follow in his footsteps. Healing and miracles were not an option for Jesus. They were part of his way of being. That is our task too.

Do you need healing? Is someone in your family sick? Or in your office?

We need to learn to shake off the watered-down Christian faith we've been taught.

Jesus wants to do more for you than you think. Jesus wants to help you. He just loves you.