God Promises and does not Lie

 The devil twists God's words to destroy your trust in God.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” Gen 3:1 NIV

If you are seriously ill, you should read this.

When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. Mt 8:16 NIV

Then you hear someone say that these healings were only meant for that time, or that such stories of demons are just pious legends because people 2000 years ago didn't understand anything about psychiatry.

Then you look at the Psalms:

He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. Ps 103:3 NLT

The same God who promises to forgive all your sins, also promises in the same verse to heal all your diseases. Your eternal life depends on the forgiveness of God. Your healing depends on the same faithful promise of the same loving God.

Then you see many Christians who have been sick for a long time. You start to think that God wants you to suffer so that you can be sanctified. It's all rubbish, but the devil knows his trade.

Jesus said:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. Jn 10:10 NIV

God loves you. When he promises forgiveness and healing, he does not lie.

God Wants to Give you a New Life

 Religious duty can be a slavery. Religious guilt can lead to madness.

Fifty years ago I was a student. In my summer holidays I worked for a few weeks as an unqualified assistant in an old-fashioned psychiatric hospital. In those days, many patients were in permanent care in large hospitals.

One day I accompanied a group of chronically ill patients on a walk with a nurse. I struck up a conversation with a man who would probably stay in the institution for the rest of his life.

He told me how, as a devout Catholic, he felt obliged to pray almost all the time. This devotion to prayer had become an addiction for him. He was good for nothing other than repeatedly falling to his knees and praying in all kinds of situations.

Religious duty can be a slavery. Religious guilt can lead to madness.

There are feelings of guilt that lead to insanity, but there are also real feelings of guilt that come because of our sin. They don't need to destroy you, because God gave his only eternal Son as an atoning sacrifice for you on the cross.

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

What does it mean to believe? Fulfilling religious duties like slaves? Jesus did not die on the cross in terrible pain just to found a religion.

Buddha, Mohammed and the Hindu gurus founded religions. In these religions, their followers must strive to attain some kind of holiness, but they are constantly plagued by insecurity.

A Buddhist or a Hindu hopes to have a better destiny in his next life. A woman in these religions can hope to return as a man in her next life. A Hindu woman must serve her husband well to earn this supposed promotion.

Muslims hope to escape the flames of hell, but they are never sure if their virtue is enough to outweigh their sins.

Jesus said God's salvation is a free gift that we cannot earn. Those who surrender their lives into God's hands are forgiven and have eternal life.

Paul knew he could never make up for his offence against Jesus. He knew that Jesus had died for his sins.

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

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. Eph 2:8–9 NIV

We can't earn this new life, but that doesn't mean we don't have a purpose in life.

A well known preacher once said:

‘Jesus did not accomplish everything, so that you could accomplish nothing.’

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

When we receive the New Life from Jesus, prayer is no longer a religious duty, but a communication with the kind God who loves you from the heart.

God Raises Up Children

2020 was not just the beginning of a new decade. The pandemic has caused the conventional world order to fall apart at the seams. Many want to return to the supposedly normal world order, but the world of yesterday is never coming back.

Many of us try to explain the crisis with conventional ways of thinking, but conventional mindsets often lead us astray.

In times when yesterday's ideas are no longer enough, we see in the Bible that God often speaks through children or teenagers.
 
Mary was a teenager when she became the mother of Jesus.

David was also a teenager when he killed Goliath.

Samuel was a young boy when he became a prophet.

A seemingly successful pastor of a large American church attended a charismatic event. A very young girl came up to him, put her hand on his head and spoke with amazing boldness.

‘Lord, take the junk out of him!’

When the prominent pastor returned to his congregation, he was a completely different man. Until then, he had built up an active and well-organised church with his own abilities and spiritual gifts. He himself was the cornerstone of the congregation.

He recognised the pride and self-centredness of his Christian ministry. He began to focus on Jesus and give the Holy Spirit space.

Many members left the church, but in a short time the church was much larger than before.

When we try to solve new problems with traditional approaches, we become like ships without a rudder, sailing helplessly in circles.

The preacher who sparked the Welsh revival in 1904 was a man of only 26, Evan Roberts. He was supported by a team of intercessors, four teenagers, all girls.

Children and young people are often much more open to new ideas and revelations from God. We need this openness.

Very many Christians only want to believe and obey God when they understand God's leading. Children often have an open heart. They can believe and obey even if they don't understand.

Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Mt 18:4 NRSV

but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” Mt 19:14 NRSV

When the children hear directly from God, and explain things differently than our old way of thinking, we must take the children seriously. We must not stand in the way of the Holy Spirit.

One of the countless people who was raised up by God in the Welsh revival was a street preacher who was 15 years old. She preached with such heavenly power that thousands of listeners took her seriously and were blessed. Among them were prominent businessmen and despised prostitutes.

You won't find testimonies like this in many books. History is often manipulated to promote our religious traditions.

Where did I hear that? A few years ago we had a Welsh guest preacher at our church. She told wonderful stories of dramatic Welsh revival.

The dramatic works of the Holy Spirit are often glossed over, but those who seek will find. 

God loves you. God is Love.

 I want my blogs to reflect not only my thoughts but to share what God wants to say.

One day I asked God, ‘What is on your heart today, dear God?

I heard the answer in my heart, I should write that God loves you.

‘I love you, I love you, I love you.’

You may have read in the Bible that God loves the world, and that God loves everyone.

But the love of God is not just a doctrinal truth. God feels love for you right now and every moment of every day.

God wants you to receive and experience His love. God is not a long-dead great-grandfather who left his fortune to his heirs because he loved his family.

Many preachers teach that God loves all people, but you just have to believe what the Bible says, live virtuously and hope that when you die you might fly to God's heaven.

God may have prepared a much better world for us in heaven, but God is not far away. God is here with you. He wants you to get to know Him personally here and now.

God not only loves all people. He loves every single person with the tenderness of a mother with her baby, with the holy passion of a loving bridegroom.

In God's eyes, you are not just a specimen of humanity. You are you. He loves you, especially you.

Here are some Bible verses that explain God's love.

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

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 Jn 4:10 NIV

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 1 Jn 4:16 NIV

God is love.

Seeking God in the Darkness

 God sees your suffering and your distress, and it distresses Him. He wants to comfort you.

God sees your need and wants to help you.

God sees you being overwhelmed by the expectations of your family, your employer or your church, and he wants to give you new strength and wisdom. Not all of the duties that are imposed on you are from God.

You silently cry out in your heart, "Where is God?" But God is there, and He wants to open the eyes of your heart so that you can see His love.

Can you hear the silent voice of God?

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Rev 3:20 NIV

You are told to read your Bible, but the letters are cold and dead to you. God wants to awaken your spirit.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Mt 7:7–11 NIV

Please don't give up. God's heart beats for you. Is God hidden from you? If God is hidden, it is not so that you won't find him, but so that you will seek him and find him.

God Still Works Miracles

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps 46:1 NIV

 If your life always runs smoothly and successfully, you can hardly understand this Bible text. You don't need a miracle until you need a miracle.

You don't need God's provision until you need provision.

In early 1994, I lost my job. I hadn't failed, but they no longer needed some language teachers, and I was out of a job.

Just at that time, I had met a dear woman who has now been my wonderful wife of 29 years. I was in a tight spot. I had some money in the bank and I could only find a few hours of temporary work at first. But every time my money ran out, I got enough temp work to barely survive.

It got better step by step. Almost two years later I got married, but I was by no means wealthy. On the contrary. But a year later, I got my job back. A district judge ruled that my dismissal was unjust. I got $20,000 in compensation. Then I was able to buy my first computer.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps 46:1 NIV

Then we were told we could apply for a promotion, but I thought I had no chance. An older colleague told me I should try.

I spent two sleepless nights writing my application, still handwritten at the time. Then I had my application typed up and sent it by fax. The last page arrived at one minute to five on a Friday afternoon, the absolute deadline.

I was amazed when I got the promotion. I got $5000 more per year.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps 46:1 NIV

What is your problem?

I had a cancer diagnosis almost three years ago. I prayed earnestly and I received an assurance from the Holy Spirit that God would heal me, without radiation therapy. A year ago I got the good news. In September 2020 I had an MRI scan. No trace of tumours.

I had regular blood tests in the meantime. I'm not a spiritual fool. But the findings were not alarming and finally the confirmation came. God was reliable and faithful.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps 46:1 NIV

It was too late to brake. She could not avoid a collision. Then she felt a terrible heat. The vehicle drove through her car without making any noise, without causing any damage. It was like something out of a fantasy film.

I know the woman very well. This really happened.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps 46:1 NIV

God Still Heals Today.

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

If you remain in close fellowship with Jesus, you can ask for wisdom, and God will make His way clear to you.

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. Jas 1:5 NIV

We often have problems when we seek wisdom everywhere, but not first from God's Word and not always with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Imagine you are sick, but you are still functioning somewhat normally. You are not paralysed by pain and it is not a matter of life and death. You go to the doctor and take medication for weeks, but your symptoms remain a problem.

Some time ago I was praying. I heard a thought in my mind from the Holy Spirit.
How long are you going to put up with this problem?

God has promised in the Bible to heal all my diseases. I have experienced God's miraculous healings several times. Why shouldn't I pray and expect God's healing this time?

(He) forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, Ps 103:3 NIV

Are you a Christian? Then you believe that God forgives all your sins. If not, you would be condemned. If God only forgives some sins and not all, then we would all go to hell.

If God promises to forgive all your sins, then you must know that the same God in the same Bible has also promised to heal all your diseases, all of them.

In my dictionary, I find two very different words, ALL and MANY.

When God promises to heal all sicknesses, He doesn't mean some sicknesses.

So should we never go to the doctor, never take medicine and never need an operation? God never said that. Even good doctors are God's servants, whether they believe in God or not.

God Hears Women when they Cry

 A young woman working in the Australian parliament was raped by a colleague, but it was all treated as a political issue and hushed up by the ruling party.

A few weeks ago, this brave woman went public in protest. This sparked a 'Me Too' movement in Australian politics.

This week we saw another scandal. I was so outraged that I struggled to pray about it without anger and resentment.

Finally, I tried to pray for justice without anger. Then I had the clear impression that God was answering me.

"I have heard the cries of the women."

Then I said to the Lord. But many of these protesting women are not Christians. They are not praying in the name of Jesus.

Then the Lord spoke very clearly to me.

When the Hebrew slaves cried out in Egypt, do you think they were all holy and righteous?

The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. Ex 3:7 NIV

And do you think all these angry women are unbelieving feminists? Not at all.

I know Christian women who have been victims of brutal harassment in supposedly pious churches.

When women are victimised and speak out, they are often shamed and blamed by churches and by politicians who claim to be Christians.

One of the most prominent preachers in Germany is Gaby Wentland. She rescues women from trafficking and prostitution. She is also a political activist against human trafficking.

I heard her say: 'There are more prayers in brothels than in churches in Germany.

God has heard the cries of the women.

God speaks clearly in our hearts when we desire justice with all our hearts.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Mt 5:6 NIV

God has Better Plans

 Are you discouraged? Disappointed? Frightened?
Are you completely dejected?

Before the Last Supper, the apostles were disappointed and deeply shaken.

But how was that possible? They were Jesus' closest friends. They believed he was the Son of God, their Saviour and Redeemer. He was with them in the flesh. And they were dismayed?

A few days ago, Jesus had arrived in Jerusalem. The crowds had recognised him as the Messiah with jubilation.

The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!” Mt 21:9 NIV

The Jews, and probably also the apostles, expected that Jesus as the Messiah would then establish the kingdom of God in Jerusalem, that Jesus would rule the world.

But Jesus did not do this. Everyone was disappointed. The religious leaders were now able to manipulate the disappointed Jews.

Instead of the expected triumph, the disciples were staring disaster in the face.

What did Jesus say?

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. Jn 14:1 NIV

You expected a great revival, prayed for it for years, heard wonderful prophecies.

Nevertheless, the corona catastrophe came. Then came the war in Ukraine, and another war in the Middle East.

Where is God? You no longer understand anything.

What does Jesus say now?

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. Jn 14:1 NIV

You were expecting something wonderful from God. You have waited a long time for it and now you are shaken.

My father was 70 years old. He had smoked 40 cigarettes a day for many years and his lungs were almost destroyed. I had prayed for him for years but there was no sign of faith. But he was plagued by emphysema. That's a death sentence.

Then I started praying in a completely different way. ‘Please let my father live until he comes to faith.’

He made his peace with God at the age of 88. He was very weak but there was no sign of emphysema.

Finally he turned 91, he was nearly blind and life had become a burden to him.

Then I read in the Bible:

With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Ps 91:16 NIV

I thanked and praised God. I then prayed boldly.

‘Dear God, you have answered my prayer. But now life is a torment for my father. How would it be if my father could pass away peacefully exactly 16 days after his 91st birthday?

Exactly 16 days later, Jesus took my father to heaven without pain.

“In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.

“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. Jn 14:2–3 NASB95

God has good plans for us, including you.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. Jn 14:1 NIV

Believe Patiently. God Steps In

 Sometimes we pray with confidence in God, but we don't see an answer for days, weeks, months or years, but sometimes we see an amazing answer from God in minutes or seconds.

I was converted in 1974. I prayed for my father for almost 36 years. At 88, he was bedridden in an aged care home and he gave his life to Jesus. He died at 91 and is now in heaven.

Faith without patience often doesn't work.

In 2011, I was in Germany with my wife. We visited a friend of ours in a clinic. When we left the clinic, it was dark and cold. It was drizzling. We urgently needed a taxi, but we didn't see a vehicle in this quiet suburb. Our host told us not to expect a taxi here. Nevertheless, my wife prayed for a taxi and one appeared almost immediately.

Everything can change in a short time.

Jesus had to die on the cross. His disciples gave up all hope, but three days later Jesus came back from the grave.

Moses was a refugee. He spent forty years as a shepherd in the desert, but then God himself appeared as a fire in a bush. Suddenly his life was totally different.

After his resurrection from the grave, Jesus spent forty days with his disciples, but then he returned to heaven. After that, the disciples stayed together for a week until, in an instant, God intervened dramatically.

And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them.

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. Acts 2:2–4 NASB95

You may have been frustrated and disappointed for years, but God sees your heart and He cares for you. God has not forgotten you.

Don't give up hope. You can trust God. He will amaze us in the time to come.

God Uses Broken People

 God is perfect and you are not perfect. You will never be perfect on this earth, but God loves you in your imperfection.

Once I was in a church service.

The pastor, who is now in heaven, said after the sermon that we could come to the front. Anyone who needs healing can come forward on the left-hand side. The healing team will pray for them. If you want to hear a personal word from God, you can come forward on the right side.

I wanted to hear from God and I went to the right. A strange man asked me if I wanted to hear from God, and I answered yes.

Then he described a vision he saw for me.

He saw a hill. On the top was a tree with the sun rising behind it.

About nine months later, I landed with my wife at Frankfurt Airport at six o'clock on 25 December. An older man and his wife, who I didn't know, picked us up and drove us to his house in the Taunus Mountains. The hills were covered with fir trees and the sun was rising. This man's vision was true.

God loves very imperfect people like me and you. He uses very imperfect and often emotionally wounded people to proclaim his loving plans.

When Jesus began his ministry as an itinerant preacher, the first person to proselytise for him was a woman who was not highly regarded in the village.

Jesus was travelling from Judah to Galilee. He stopped at a well in Samaria and was thirsty.

There he spoke to a woman. At that time, it was very out of line for a rabbi to speak to a woman alone, but Jesus was never conventional.

After a short conversation, Jesus said:

He said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.”

The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’;

for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” Jn 4:16–18 NASB95

Jesus loves disreputable and emotionally wounded people, people who are often despised in synagogues or churches.

Then the conversation continued.

The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.”
Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.” Jn 4:25–26 NRSV

So the woman left her water pot, and went into the city and said to the men,
“Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not the Christ, is it?”
They went out of the city, and were coming to Him. Jn 4:28–30 NASB95

Is your life a mess? No problem for Jesus.

Do you have to wait until your life is in order before you can proclaim the good news of Jesus? No! No! No!

Knowing About God or Knowing God

 Nothing is as dead as knowledge without life experience.

What kind of teacher would you rather have? In some countries, there are English teachers with excellent knowledge of English grammar and vocabulary, but they speak English very poorly.

There are many Japanese who learnt English at school, but they can hardly speak English.

There are also some theologians who do not believe in God, and others who believe in God theoretically but they have no meaningful experience in prayer.

The Apostle Paul was one of the most prominent Bible experts among the Jews of his time. He was very religious, but he did not know God until he met Jesus in person.

As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. Acts 9:3–5 NIV

There are some Christians who believe in Christian doctrines but they have no personal connection to God.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Mt 7:21 NRSV

How did the first Christians do the will of the Father?

There are many today who believe that the Christian religion can save them if they live a reasonably virtuous and Christian life, Jesus taught otherwise.

In the New Testament, Jesus demanded trust and personal devotion, and he never changed.

Many of the first believers after Jesus' ascension did not see Jesus, but they did see the apostles and other disciples being endowed with spiritual gifts and shining with God's glory at the first Pentecost.

In the New Testament, it was normal to experience God's presence.

In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, 1 Pet 1:6 NRSV

Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, 1 Pet 1:8 NRSV

The priest cannot save you. The pope cannot save you. Your pastor cannot save you.

The Ten Commandments cannot save you. Your virtue cannot save you.

If you agree with all the doctrines of your free church, Protestant church or Catholic Church, your agreement with correct theology cannot save you.

If you zealously crusade for biblical truth and morality, that will not save you. Progressive activism will not save you. Conservative culture war will not save you.

Do you know Jesus personally? What role does Jesus play in your daily life?

How often do you experience God's presence? His tangible love?

Do you experience the Holy Spirit as your companion and personal guide?

The apostle John described the Christian life as fellowship with God and other Christians.

We declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 1 Jn 1:3 NRSV

Jesus did not allow himself to be tortured for hours on the cross just to found a religion.

Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me. Rev 3:20 NRSV

Experiencing Friendship of God

 What is important in your life?

On your deathbed will you regret that you didn't spend enough time watching TV?
Or not enough time at the office?

What is important to you?

Is your family important? Do you pray for your family? Do you spend time with your children?
Do you cultivate a beautiful friendship in your marriage?

If you are a Christian, Jesus wants to have a beautiful friendship with you.

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Rev 3:20 NIV

Jesus simply loves you. For many Christians, this is nothing more than a statement of faith.

There are Christians who feel guilty because they only pray for a few minutes and don't read the Bible much.

Other Christians are religiously dutiful people who pray often and are diligent Bible readers.

But when you talk to God, do you expect an answer? But when you talk to God, do you expect an answer? I don't just mean that God will hear your prayers and help you, although that is also wonderful.

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; Jn 10:27 NASB95

After his ascension, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to fill all Christians with the Holy Spirit so that we can live in close, friendly fellowship with God.

It is good to believe this, but it is useless if you only believe it as a statement of faith.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 2 Cor 13:14 NIV

God wants to have fellowship with you. God wants you to experience and feel His presence and love.

Many Christians hold on to biblical beliefs, but they are afraid of spiritual experiences. But that was never God's intention for you.

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 Jn 4:18 NIV

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Ps 34:8 NIV

‘Taste’ means that we are allowed to experience and enjoy God's love.

God sent his Son to suffer a terrible death on the cross.

Why? To take your punishment upon himself.

Why? Just to found a world religion?

Jesus wants to invite you to experience something much better than a world religion.

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

What does ‘refresh’ mean? To refresh, to comfort, to touch you with a love you can feel.

God is Thinking about You

 Are you stuck? Are your thoughts going round in circles? Your repeated prayers of confession don't change anything. Have you asked God what he thinks about it?

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jer 29:11 NKJV

God is thinking about you every minute. God is the creator and author of all things. His thoughts rule the universe, but he is not overwhelmed by it all. He still thinks about you every minute.

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

Perhaps you are already familiar with this verse. You know that God loves all people, but in God's heart you are not just a specimen of humanity. You are you. God loves you.

Have you already entrusted your life to Jesus? Maybe you still think of yourself as an unworthy sinner who seeks God's mercy from far away, but God thinks differently. Jesus hung stark naked on the cross. He endured the shame to abolish your shame.

Perhaps you have not yet surrendered your life into God's hands. You are still a sinner in God's eyes, but still dearly loved. God thinks of you with love. He wants to adopt you and love you as his own child.

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

Are you stuck? Are your thoughts going round in circles? Your repeated prayers of confession don't change anything. Have you asked God what he thinks about it?

God wants to tell you his thoughts.

‘Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. Jer 29:12–13 NASB95

‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ Jer 33:3 NASB95

God Lifts up Downtrodden People

 God promotes the lowly. He lifts up the humble.

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. Lk 1:52–53 NRSV

Over the last 250 years, we have seen how kings and ruling classes have fallen. Democracy has become normal in many nations.

Since the Reformation, we have also seen dramatic changes in the leadership of Christians and churches.

God has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
Leaders and rulers can become arrogant and tyrannise their subjects.

Jesus had a lot to say about this.

But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them.
It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, Mt 20:25–26 NRSV

In the Bible, we see how God chose shepherds and fishermen. Moses and King David were shepherds when God chose them to rule God's people. Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen before they became apostles.

The first king of Israel was Saul. He was the son of a farmer, not a sophisticated man. But when he was king, he became arrogant and stubborn. Then God took the throne from his family and chose the shepherd David as the next king.

Are you seemingly a nobody? In God's eyes, you are infinitely valued. God loves each of his children like a bride loves her diamonds.

Are you strictly controlled by your family, your boss or your church leaders, cruelly dominated, always put down? This does not come from God.

Do you keep thinking negative words that have been said to you for years like witches' curses? Are you perhaps convinced that you are a helpless failure, as others have said of you?

God is your Creator and your heavenly Father. He has planned your life for fulfilment. It's not too late for you.

Jesus still loves you. God wants to speak to you today as he spoke to his suffering Jewish people in ancient times.

‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ Jer 33:3 NASB95

Jesus is waiting for your cry for help. He sacrificed His life for you on the cross and He still loves you as He did at the beginning.

Grace and Truth

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Jn 1:17 NIV

We need truth. God is not a fairy tale. God created the world. Jesus was and is the eternal Son of God. The Ten Commandments come from God. Idolatry, murder and adultery are sins. That is the truth.

But we also need grace. Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins. Only through God's grace do we receive forgiveness and eternal life, and much more.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Rom 8:31–32 NIV

All Bible-believing Christians agree that we need grace and truth, but in the minds of many Christians it is the other way round, that is not grace and truth, but truth and grace.

But is the order important? In the Bible, it is not just concepts that are important, but priorities.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Jn 1:17 NIV

First came the Ten Commandments and then grace through Jesus. But we need to take a closer look at this teaching.

What came before the Ten Commandments?

And God spoke all these words:
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. Ex 20:1–2 NIV

Rescue from slavery in Egypt came first, and then the teaching of the Ten Commandments.
That is, first grace and then truth.

How did Jesus minister as a preacher? He began by healing the sick, and only later did he reveal the truth that he was the eternal Son of God. In the beginning, he appeared only as a miracle-working prophet. That means first grace and only later the full truth.

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. Mt 16:13–17 NIV

Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. Mt 16:20 NIV

What was Jesus' approach? First revealing God's love through miraculous healings and then, much later, proclaiming the truth of his heavenly identity.

Many Christians grumble because some are healed in charismatic events, but not all repent.

But Jesus himself healed many who did not become believing followers. This made Jesus very sad, but he continued to heal the sick even though not all became disciples.

Grace first and then truth. That was and is God's approach.

Salvation without Repentance?

 A Catholic friend of mine once told me that her husband was having an affair with another woman. He went to confession every week, confessed his sin, went to communion and then did the same thing again. It's not only Catholics who mock God's grace in this way.

There is no salvation without repentance, but is one not saved until one can demonstrate a completely virtuous life?

Some Christians claim that all sins are equally evil. If a man no longer visits the brothel, but he still smokes cigarettes, then he cannot be recognised as a Christian. But is that true?

Only perfect holiness can escape God's judgement. That is why God the Father sacrificed his Son on the cross to take our punishment upon himself.

But if all sins, big or small, are forgiven, do we have to give up everything that is not holy? Some Christians take this idea for granted, but how does God judge?

Are all sins equally evil in God's eyes?

If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that.

All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death. 1 Jn 5:16–17 NIV

What sins are so terrible that intercession is useless?

God does not explain everything in the Bible. That's why we need mutual communication with the Holy Spirit through prayer. We need a listening heart. Some Christians claim that all problems can only be solved with biblical teachings, but this is not the case.

But one thing is totally clear in this Bible text. Some sins are much worse in God's eyes than others. Even in the Old Testament, the offender had to be executed for some sins, but God would forgive many sins without punishment.

A Christian who visits prostitutes is on the way to hell, but in my opinion God will not condemn anyone for smoking cigarettes.

God will also forgive serious sins, like David's, but not without repentance.

A young woman had Christian parents, but she had not chosen the Christian life. As a teenager she was a party girl. When her father was dying, she visited her parents to say goodbye.

When he died, he was suddenly supernaturally revitalised. He sat upright and shone with the glory of God. His daughter was converted on the spot. From that day on, she loved Jesus with all her heart.

She often sat in the garden, smoked a cigarette and had loving conversations with Jesus. She had not experienced a visible visitation and she did not hear an audible voice, but her spirit was wide awake and she heard God's loving thoughts from Jesus.

One day she heard the voice of Jesus in her heart: ‘You don't need those cigarettes anymore.’ With God's grace, she gave up cigarettes without painful difficulty.

Jesus is holy but also gentle and loving.

“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. Mt 11:28–29 NASB95

God Created Men and Women Equal

 The Pharisees asked Jesus why Moses allowed a man to put away his wife. For the pious Jews, the law was the perfect standard, but for Jesus the law was not perfect.

Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. Mt 19:8 NIV

For Jesus, something was even higher than the law.

    For Jesus, the law was holy, but for him there was a higher principle, God's order in creation before sin entered the world.

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’
and said,
(Genesis 2:24) ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? Mt 19:4–5 NIV

We are familiar with these words, but we do not know how totally radical this statement really is.
In the biblical stories we read only once that a man left his parents, married a woman and stayed with the woman.

That was Jacob, who found his wife with his uncle but then she returned with him to his family. Also with Abraham and later with the Jews under the law, the woman had to leave her family and then she belonged to her husband's family.

Even the law given by God did not restore God's original order.
What was God's order for man and woman before the Fall?

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Gen 1:26–27 NIV

In the beginning, God showed his authority as Creator. Spiritual authority is creative.
God created both man and woman in his image. Both express God's nature and character, the man no more than the woman.

God gave man and woman the quality of fertility, the ability to transmit life, people who would also have God's nature.

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

God gave the man and the woman authority over the earth. He did not give the man authority over the woman and he did not give the woman authority over the man.

God's guiding principle from the beginning was partnership.

Some say God gave men authority over women in Genesis 3.16.

To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labour you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” Gen 3:16 NIV

Was painful childbirth part of God’s plan in creation? Of course not. It was the bitter fruit of sin. So too the domination of men over women was the tragic result of sin. Jesus died on the cross to free us from the curses of sin, including male domination.

God Answers Persevering Prayer

 Time and again, Jesus taught that our faith connects us with God, that faith releases God's miracle-working power.

Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak.

She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”

Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. Mt 9:20–22 NIV

But is it true that you cannot receive anything from God if you do not expect God's grace and do not pray for it yourself?

The apostle Paul was not always the holy man of God.

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 1 Cor 15:9 NIV

Did Saul, the brutal Pharisee, pray for God's mercy?

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest… Acts 9:1 NIV

Saul was authorised by the high priest to arrest the Christians in Damascus.

As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.

He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. Acts 9:3–5 NIV

God acts when people believe, but Saul only believed when he received a visitation from Jesus.

What role did faith play? Jesus taught that we must love our enemies.

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, Mt 5:44 NIV

Saul was the leader of the persecution and the Christians prayed for him. God hears our prayers for ourselves, but also for others.

In Islamic countries, Christians are cruelly persecuted, but millions of Muslims experience visitations from Jesus, mostly in dreams. Many believe immediately, but many believe later, sometimes only after years. Many probably never believe, despite God's grace. God respects our free will.

Why does this happen? Islamic countries are bombarded by evangelistic outreach, through radio, satellite TV and the internet. At the same time, millions of Christians are praying for Muslims and God is answering our prayers. The faith of Christians is sparking the intervention of God.

There was an Islamic preacher in Africa who was considered a holy fundamentalist, but he was a hypocrite who was secretly involved in sins. Then he reaped what he had sown and he was about to die with AIDS.

Then he saw Jesus next to his deathbed. Jesus healed him and he became a Christian preacher. The Christians had obviously prayed for him.

Do you have children who are mentally ill or addicted to drugs for a long time, or involved in prostitution? Please never give up!

I prayed for my family for years. My parents didn't believe until they were on their deathbeds. I have seen lost children restored after years of prayer.

Do you have enemies that torment you? Pray for your enemies. Jesus died for your enemies too.

Spiritual Warfare

 We see in the New Testament that the war has already been won. The devil was defeated by Jesus on the cross. But if Jesus has already won the war, why do we still have to fight? Do we still have to fight? Of course we do.

Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Eph 6:11 NIV

But some say we don't have to fight because the battle is not ours; the battle belongs to the Lord.

But this passive view leads to disaster. Turkey was once a region where the gospel spread marvellously. But the Christians gradually became religious and no longer devoted disciples.

Then Islam came and Christianity was almost one hundred per cent abolished. The devil can win battles if we don't hold on to Jesus and fight for our faith with God's power.

…  for the battle is the LORD’s, … 1 Sam 17:47 NIV

This Bible text is often quoted and misinterpreted. It is said that we do not have to fight against the devil because the battle does not belong to us, but to the Lord.

All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” 1 Sam 17:47 NIV

But we must understand Bible texts in context. David said these words and then he fought against the soldier of Satan and struck Goliath dead with the supernatural help of the Lord.

There are situations where we must fight the devil with God's help and we may defeat the devil, not with our own strength, but by God intervening supernaturally because the battle belongs to the Lord.

I prayed for a long time for some women who were mentally ill. These were not passive prayers, but a battle in the spirit with the help of God's Spirit. I persevered in prayer for a long time, and not just for a few years. I then saw amazing improvements.

Anyone who does not believe in spiritual warfare and does not believe that miracles are necessary understands very little about Christian love and prayer.

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

Justice, Forgiveness and Reconciliation

 Reconciliation is God's plan. Discord is not part of his nature. He does not bear grudges.

God is love and he loves all people.

God sent his only eternal Son to suffer and die for you and me.
Why did Jesus have to die to forgive us?

We need forgiveness and God always wanted and wants to forgive, but God is also just.

Jesus was humble and always sought reconciliation, but he never stopped demanding justice.

God's way of thinking is radically different.

A young woman in America was raised Christian, but she fell in love with a man who led her astray.

Her Christian mother never stopped praying for her, but one day she was confronted with a nightmare. Her daughter was murdered by her boyfriend.

The man had to stay in prison for years.

The mother of the deceased young woman was heartbroken, but then she received an unthinkable instruction from the Holy Spirit.

She was not only to forgive the murderer, but to visit him in prison. She was to help him and learn to love him as her own son.

Little by little, the evil man felt God's love and grace more and more until he finally repented and converted.

He was released from prison, and the mother of the murdered woman helped him to rebuild his life. Now they are travelling around and giving their testimony.

The murderer had to suffer in prison for years. That was justice.

But the mother of the deceased young woman adopted him and loved him until he repented and received God's grace. That is reconciliation.

For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. Rom 5:10 NRSV

Why did Jesus have to die? Because God demands justice. Sin must be punished.

Jesus died to take our punishment upon himself, so that if we repent, we will not suffer God's punishment in hell.

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

God loves all people, but you are not just a specimen of humanity. God loves you personally.

Do you want to repent now and ask for God's forgiveness?

Paul was very religious but not a nice person until he had a visitation from Jesus Himself.
Years later he wrote.

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 2 Cor 5:20 NIV

Knowing God Personally

 If we believe in Jesus, we are forgiven and saved from eternal death.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” Jn 11:25–26 ESV

What is this faith by which we are saved? Many are baptised as babies, but they do not know what has happened.

Some are baptised as adults, but there is no trace of brotherly love and mercy in their lives afterwards. Some become loving people, but others become merely religious and self-righteous.

‘everyone who lives and believes in me.’ Jesus speaks of an enduring life that is determined and characterised by faith.

Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples;
and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” Jn 8:31–32 NRSV

What does ‘continue in my word’ mean?

You should read the Bible every day? A good idea, but is that what Jesus meant?
Keeping God's commandments? Also good. We must not disobey God's commandments.

Jesus taught the Bible very differently from the pious Jews of his time.

Jesus was one hundred per cent a Bible man, but he spoke of something different, of a living relationship with himself.

Jesus rebuked the pious Bible experts who listened to him.

“You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf.
Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. Jn 5:39–40 NRSV

What did Jesus mean when he told the Jews to remain in his word?

They should live as Jesus himself taught. It is not enough to agree with biblical truth. We must put Jesus' teachings into practice every day.

But how can we love our enemies? Not just be nice to difficult people, not just pray for the conversion of sinners, but really be touched by the love of God for evil people?

We must take the teachings of Jesus seriously, but that is not enough.

When Jesus called his disciples to follow him before the cross, it was both a command and an invitation to live in personal communion with him. Peter and Andrew had to leave their fishing boat behind. Matthew had to give up his business.

Back then, Jesus was a travelling preacher. Following him often meant travelling with him.

Even today, there are newly converted Christians who have to leave their job or their home, but many should stay where they are.

What does discipleship mean today?

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. Rom 8:14 NRSV

We do not have visible fellowship with Jesus today, but we do have God's invitation to experience fellowship with his Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not a theological concept, but a loving person, a person who loves you like Jesus himself.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 2 Cor 13:14 NIV

We can only live the way Jesus wants us to live if we allow ourselves to be changed inwardly by the love of God. Jesus sent his Holy Spirit to bring about this inner healing.

Spiritual Warfare

We see in the New Testament that the war has already been won. The devil was defeated by Jesus on the cross. But if Jesus has already won the war, why do we still have to fight? Do we still have to fight? Of course we do.

Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Eph 6:11 NIV

But some say we don't have to fight because the battle is not ours; the battle belongs to the Lord.

But this passive view leads to disaster. Turkey was once a region where the gospel spread marvellously. But the Christians gradually became religious and no longer devoted disciples.

Then Islam came and Christianity was almost one hundred per cent abolished. The devil can win battles if we don't hold on to Jesus and fight for our faith with God's power.

…  for the battle is the LORD’s, … 1 Sam 17:47 NIV

This Bible text is often quoted and misinterpreted. It is said that we do not have to fight against the devil because the battle does not belong to us, but to the Lord.

All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” 1 Sam 17:47 NIV

But we must understand Bible texts in context. David said these words and then he fought against the soldier of Satan and struck Goliath dead with the supernatural help of the Lord.

There are situations where we must fight the devil with God's help and we may defeat the devil, not with our own strength, but by God intervening supernaturally because the battle belongs to the Lord.

I prayed for a long time for some women who were mentally ill. These were not passive prayers, but a battle in the spirit with the help of God's Spirit. I persevered in prayer for a long time, and not just for a few years. I then saw amazing improvements.

Anyone who does not believe in spiritual warfare and does not believe that miracles are necessary understands very little about Christian love and prayer.

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

The Leading of the Holy Spirit

 Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 2 Cor 3:5 NIV

It is very dangerous to be led by impressions or feelings without having firm grounding in biblical truth. All kinds of deceptions can lead to shipwreck. So many sects and false religions have arisen because of this.

Our foundation is God and his truth. Without the Bible, we are groping around in the dark.

Jesus himself said:

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. Mk 13:31 NIV

We may be guided by our own thoughts, but we must submit to God's truth, and this truth is found in God's Word.

Paul wrote the above verse. He had a problem. He knew the Old Testament by heart. Contact with non-Jews was strictly forbidden in God's law. A Jew was not allowed to eat with non-Jews.

But Jesus had given the command:

Go therefore 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 that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Mt 28:19–20 NRSV

How was Paul to fulfil this commandment? Jesus lived as a Jew and so did his disciples, but many of the newly converted Christians were not Jews. Many were slaves who always had to obey their unbelieving masters.

If their masters ordered them to work every day, they were not allowed to observe a holy day. A man was allowed to simply execute his slave for disobedience.

Paul had to be guided by the Holy Spirit. For Paul, God's law was still holy. In his letters we find commands against idolatry, theft, murder, adultery, etc. That is, the Ten Commandments, but if we research Paul's writings in detail, we find only nine commandments. The commandment to keep the Sabbath is missing.

We must hold fast to God's Word, but like Paul, let ourselves be guided by the Holy Spirit.

Is a Christian allowed to visit a pub or a brothel? If we look in the Bible for fixed laws, perhaps we can make a rule against it. But there are Christians who do mission work in pubs.

But there are Christians who do mission work in pubs or brothels and win people for Jesus. We need to be led by the Holy Spirit. For many Christians, such places are terribly dangerous, but there are some Christians who, like Jesus, have the grace to be a friend of sinners.

He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 2 Cor 3:6 NIV

We must never deviate from the truth in the Bible, but we must also, like Paul, be led by the Spirit of God.

We must read the Bible under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, we read with our own minds.

We can then become humanistic theologians or legalistic Pharisees.

If we understand the New Testament as an inflexible law book, without the guidance of God, we go wrong.

Jesus Heals Damaged People

Your thoughts change your brain. Are you psychologically damaged? Where can you find help? Jesus was and still is the healer, therapist and guide.

Our experiences shape our thoughts. Traumatised concentration camp survivors are permanently changed people. A wife and mother can never think like a virgin again. She can't.

Your experiences and thoughts also change the biology and architecture of your brain.
Scientists have dissected the brains of deceased people.

Bilingual people had more complex neuronal structures.

Learning changes the brain, either positively or negatively. That's why sexual abuse and pornography addiction are very dangerous.

Torture and brainwashing can permanently change the victim's way of thinking and also damage their brain.

Corrupting and cruel experiences can wreak havoc on your mind and brain, but there is an almighty good God who can restore your soul and brain.

Mary Magdalene was a holy woman. God chose her to be the first witness of the resurrected Jesus Christ.

We also read that she had a traumatic and perhaps shameful past.

When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. Mk 16:9 NIV

We don't know how Mary was demonised. Was she psychotic? Was she a witch? Was she a prostitute? Was she sexually abused? We do not know.

No matter how she was corrupted, her mind was mentally poisoned. Her brain was not functioning properly. She needed forgiveness and cleansing, but also healing.

Through God's word, we can learn to think very differently.

The Bible is pure and holy. God's word is the heavenly light. Light casts out darkness.

God's word is also a holy water bath that cleanses our defiled souls.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her
to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, Eph 5:25–26 NIV

When God's Holy Spirit has cleansed your soul, God wants to help you to think in a completely new way, so that your world of thoughts becomes better every day.

The devil does not give up. He keeps trying to lead you astray with evil thoughts, but when you have given your life to Jesus, God wants to encourage you with good and beautiful thoughts.

Bible Texts to Help You Pray

 Here are some Bible texts with short comments to help you pray.

Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. Ps 8:2 NIV

God hears the prayers of young children and newly converted Christians. Are you not a hero of faith? No matter, let God hear the cry of your heart. He wants to help you and perhaps surprise you.

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Mt 7:7–8 NLT

• Maybe you're praying and you're not getting an answer. Don't worry about it. God wants to hear you. Please don't give up.

• Seek more help.

• Seek more wisdom in the Bible so that you can pray better.

• Ask other Christians to pray with you.

• Ask God to give you intuitive insight into how to pray.

• Ask God to reveal to you if you are clinging to a sinful attitude so that your faith is blocked.

See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognise that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. 1 Jn 3:1 NLT

Do you believe in Jesus? You must understand that God wants to bless you.

What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Rom 8:31–32 NRSV

There are some Christians who have a distorted image of God. They see themselves as wretched sinners who deserve nothing and therefore should not expect much from God.

When the prodigal son returned to his father in Luke 15, he asked for the grace to serve as a servant. How did the father respond?

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. Lk 15:22–23 NIV

Are you weak in faith? You know that nothing is impossible for God, but you doubt whether your weak faith is enough to get an answer.

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.

Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” Mt 13:31–32 NIV

Start small and never give up. Your little faith can grow until you know God better and your faith becomes strong.

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Ps 37:4 NIV

Praying for Unbelievers

 Richard Wurmbrand was a preacher in Romania. He was persecuted under the Nazi occupation, but then things got even worse under the communists.

When the Russian army arrived, it was not really a liberation for the Christians, but Richard Wurmbrand evangelised fearlessly. He even tried to win the Russian officers for Jesus.
 
One Russian officer denied that he believed in God, but with God's wisdom Richard Wurmbrand was able to see through this atheism.

‘But you still pray in an emergency, don't you?’
The communist was caught out and embarrassed.
‘When we were besieged and surrounded in Stalingrad, we all prayed.’

When my mother was 70 years old and still healthy, she didn't want to take my prayers seriously, but at 76 she was close to death. Then she was very grateful for my prayers and she died in peace with God.

Between 1982 and 2000, Argentina experienced a powerful revival. One of the prominent preachers in this revival was Ed Silvoso.

Ed Silvoso explained that many Christians want to pray for unbelievers, but without speaking openly to the unbelievers. They are afraid that God might not answer these prayers and then their faith would appear weak and useless.

Ed Silvoso began his missionary work at the age of 16.

After many years, he has learnt that many non-Christians appreciate our help through prayer, even if they do not expect results and may not even have a clear idea of God Himself.

When we ask our colleagues or neighbours if we should pray for them, they are often grateful for our charity. When they experience that God hears them, his intervention can awaken their faith.

I once spoke to a witch. I tried to win her over to Jesus, but the conversation was very difficult. She had a cunning answer for everything.

Finally, I realised that I should stop striving. I asked God for wisdom on how to end the conversation, and God gave me the right words.

I told her, ‘I will pray that Jesus will visit you in a dream.’

Her demonic power could not resist this attack from the Holy Spirit. Suddenly I saw fear and uncertainty in her eyes.

Your prayers have a power that intimidates even the demons.

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Mt 7:7–8 NLT

Power of Hope and Gratitude

 Hope opens the door to God's help. Gratitude releases God's spirit.

God is sovereign, isn't he? But in the Bible, I see that our attitude can influence God's actions.

God saved the Hebrews from brutal slavery in Egypt. He also rescued them from Pharaoh's army and led them across the Red Sea.

God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and caused supernatural food to appear in the wilderness.
Despite all this, many Hebrews were ungrateful.

Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.

“They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshipped it and have sacrificed to it and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!’ ” Ex 32:7–8 NASB95

But Moses stood up in the gap. He begged God not to kill all the Hebrews, not to condemn them. And God answered.

At the end of the war, there was a miraculous revival in Germany. God also worked miraculous healings. There were huge crowds at the church services. But who remembers that today?

In Nuremberg, the Allies organised trials for Nazi war criminals. The Nazis had acted like devils, but many were still nominal Christians.

The Americans sent a Catholic priest and a Protestant pastor to help the prominent prisoners with pastoral care.

Some of the worst criminals in the Nazi leadership genuinely repented. When Hitler's arrogant ex-foreign minister went to the gallows, he begged his wife to raise their daughters as Christians.

But how many remember that? We humans tend to think negatively and ungratefully.

Since the war, God has blessed Germany amazingly. The Americans and British helped a lot in the beginning and the Germans themselves worked very diligently with wise leaders.

The economic miracle was a real miracle, but the basis of the miracle was the grace of God, the God of the Jews, the God who forgives.

God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant. Rom 5:20 NLT

God spared the Hebrews when Moses pleaded for their lives. Who prayed for Germany during the war? Who prayed for mercy before and after the war?

We know a few names, some British intercessors and also some faithful German Christians. We think of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, of course. God answers our prayers when we pray for our nation, for our world and for our enemies.

Hope opens the door to God's help. Gratitude releases God's spirit.

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

Empathy Softens Hard Hearts

 A senior councillor in a Canadian city was a women's rights activist. She was pro-choice and wanted to legalise prostitution. Pastors in her town visited her to explain her Christian views, but she wouldn't listen.

When the pastors came in, she said almost aggressively, 'You must know that
I am a feminist. A positive exchange was impossible.

As we were leaving, the senior pastor said, 'We want to pray for you. How can we pray?

The atmosphere changed dramatically and immediately. The councillor was really touched.

Pray that I will do a good job as a public servant.

The pastors prayed in exactly the same way. Gradually the councillor's attitude changed. She recognised the negative consequences of legalised prostitution, and her attitude to abortion also changed somewhat.

Here we see a principle that can be seen in the earthly ministry of Jesus.

Two blind men sat by the roadside and asked Jesus for help. How did Jesus respond? He did not preach repentance. He asked a question.

Jesus stood still and called them, saying, “What do you want me to do for you?”
They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.”

Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they regained their sight and followed him. Mt 20:32–34 NRSV

When we take the longings and needs of our fellow human beings seriously and pray for them in this way, they understand that we respect and love them, and often they begin to become aware of God's reality and love.

There are people who don't want to hear a sermon or a testimony, but they have problems at work or in their family. Maybe they have a headache. If we take their problems seriously and pray for them, we will often see wonderful results.

Wonderful Experiences with God

 The Hebrews were afraid of God's direct presence.

And they said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!” Ex 20:19 NLT

Should we look down on the Hebrews of that time? Not at all.

Many Christians today want to have a dry faith, clinging to the written Word of God but wanting nothing to do with dramatic supernatural experiences.

We read the Psalms of David, and we see a very different attitude.

O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Ps 63:1 NRSV

How precious is your favour, O God, that the children of men find refuge under the shadow of your wings!

They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. Ps 36:8 NRSV

It is good and important for your thoughts to be in line with God's Word, but did God save you so that you would be right in everything, or to experience his holy and tender love?

Many Christians theoretically believe in the bliss and joy of God's presence, but they only expect it after their death. David did not think so, nor did Paul.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, Gal 5:22 NASB95

So many Christians suffer anxiety and stress. The overwhelming experience of the Holy Spirit is a wonderful blessing that God wants to give you.

Christian Feminism. From the World of from God?

 Many conservative Christians believe that feminism is anti-Christian and has its origins in radical secular social reform movements.

Some radical feminists around the world aggressively promote abortion and gay marriage.

But who were the real pioneers of the movement that paved the way for women's equality?

250 years ago, John Wesley started adult Bible classes. Many of the groups were led by women.

The first college in North America where men and women studied together was founded by the famous revivalist preacher Charles Finney. At Finney's college, men and women, black and white, studied in the same classes.

In North America, Charles Finney and DL Moody trained women preachers. In England, William Booth promoted women preachers and women in leadership.

A. B. Simpson, the founder of the Christian Missionary Alliance (CMA), included women at all levels of his leadership.

Sadly, the organisations founded by Moody and others later reversed the policy of promoting women.

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, there were many Christian missionaries in China. There were twice as many women as men.

Women were only allowed to proselytise among women. So Chinese Christian women became the majority. Now, despite communist persecution, there are more than 50,000 house churches. More than 75% of the pastors and leaders are women.

The equality of women does not come from the world, but from God.

There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

What does 'no difference' mean? Of course mothers are women and fathers are men.

But women and men should have equal authority in marriage, in the family, in the church, in politics, in society, in the office, in Christian leadership and in all areas of ministry.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Eph 5:21 NIV

you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Pet 2:5 NIV

All believers are a priesthood. That includes men and women, ordained and lay members.

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
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 1:27–28 NIV

Men and women are both in the image of God, called to exercise the same authority.

Aim High, Start Small

 Jesus was not a trained theologian. He had no time for it. As a young man, he had to provide for his family as a carpenter.

Nevertheless, he lived in close communion with his heavenly Father and studied the Old Testament in his spare time.

But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. Ps 1:2 NLT

Even before his public preaching ministry began, Jesus was our role model.

Do you have no ministry apart from your family life and your work? When God sends revival in hard times, He will amaze you.

About 60 years ago, an American preacher received a prophetic vision from the Lord. He saw Christian housewives and other completely unknown Christians ministering on the streets. They prayed for the seriously ill and many were healed by God.

I know Christians in Australia who are already doing this. The sick are healed and many are converted to Jesus.

Unfortunately, there are some conservative Christians who question this. They quite rightly say that Jesus healed everyone infallibly, but not everyone is healed today. Quite right.

But if our faith and heavenly power are not on the same level as Jesus, should our ministry be completely invalid?

When the Jews returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, they began to rebuild the destroyed temple.

Some Jews criticised and complained because the new temple was not glorious like Solomon's temple. Perhaps they were like some critics today. All or nothing. In the healing ministry we are supposed to either be 100% successful, like Jesus, or our ministry is invalid or false.

Zerubbabel was the high priest who administered the rebuilding of the temple. His name means that he was born in Babylon. He was not a brilliant personality like Solomon, whose father was the great King David.

But God encouraged Zerubbabel, who was allowed to respond with anointed confidence.

“Zerubbabel is the one who laid the foundation of this Temple, and he will complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” Zec 4:9–10 NLT

Don't you have a pulpit? If a colleague or neighbour has a headache, you can pray openly.

I was once at an event. When the pastor arrived, his wife had a headache. I stepped aside and prayed fervently. When I came back shortly afterwards, the headache was gone.

Start small. Prepare for an amazing manifestation of God's power in these difficult end times.

Falling Away or End Time Revival?

 No matter how weak you feel right now, you can rely on God's strength.
God has brought you this far in his love. He wants to be your helper and friend for the whole of your life.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long. Ps 23:6 NRSV

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Php 1:6 NLT

God has a very special plan for his people.

When we look around us, we no longer see a Christian civilisation. It is hard to see how God is in control of this world.

In families and nations that took the Christian faith for granted 100 years ago, we see all kinds of other worldviews and ways of thinking.

Many faithful Christians see an urgent need for revival, but others don't believe because they point to Bible passages that warn of apostasy.

Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another.
And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.
And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. Mt 24:10–12 NRSV

The apostasy has long been underway in Western countries. Before the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, atheism was almost unknown. In formerly Christian countries, we see how biblical laws are increasingly being disregarded and abolished.

There are some Bible readers who claim, ‘So if apostasy prevails, we should not expect revival.’

But this is not the case. In this age of increasing unbelief, God has brought about the most amazing revivals of all time.

In 1727, a prayer movement began in Herrnhut, Germany. Under the leadership of Count von Zinzendorf, faithful Christians prayed around the clock for 100 years without ceasing.

The awakened Christians in Herrnhut sent missionaries all over the world.

It was through these missionaries that John Wesley came to a living faith. John and Charles Wesley became fires for Jesus. Their ministry transformed England.

The influence of Zinzendorf and Wesley reached North America, where amazing revivals emerged and shaped the whole culture.

In 20th century Russia, communist atheism became dominant, but they could not extinguish God's light. A persecuted underground church caught fire and a hidden revival was unstoppable.

The communists in China and the Muslims in Indonesia tried in vain to suppress powerful Christian revivals.

For 300 years we have seen apostasy and revival manifest simultaneously.

In the midst of the deepest darkness, God keeps producing new life in this difficult world. The devil wants to stifle God's life in you and around you, but God is still at work.

God is still the almighty God, the God of love and dramatic miracles.

The Egyptian Pharaoh wanted to exterminate the Hebrew babies, but Moses was saved by his own daughter.

Herod wanted to kill God's Son as an infant. All the babies in Bethlehem were slaughtered, but God had a plan for Jesus, and Herod could not overrule God's plan.

What does God want to say to you in this difficult time?

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.
For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you. Is 60:1–2 NRSV