SCRIP-BITS

Oh Friends, that beautiful day Monday is here again! (smile) No, I’m not wacko, for Monday is just as beautiful as any other day. We just don’t like it because we have to get up off of our fat fannies and go out and labour. And here’s the proof that Monday’s beautiful. It comes from the comic strip ‘Adam @ Home’ in the weekend papers.  Adam’s wife asks him: ‘Why do you read the obituaries? Don’t you get depressed?’ And Adam’s answer: ‘I don’t get depressed. I get inspired. Every day is a blessing. Every breath a gift.’ Oh Friends those are certainly words of immense truth! Everyday is truly a blessing from our wonderful God, and every breath a magnificent gift. So even if Monday is somewhat of a pain in the derrière, it’s still beautiful because it comes from God. As the hymn says: ‘All things bright and beautiful. All creatures great and small.’ And having established that Monday is not our enemy, but our friend, (smile) let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn with great gusto, as we get ready to go out and do battle with the evil powers of the world. All together now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together. We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies. But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’ That brings us to our Bit: ‘Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.’ Oh Friends, yesterday we read how Moses instructed the Israelites, re the great commandment, (Deut.6) today we’ll look at some more warnings from Moses along the way to the Promised Land. ‘And now Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to LOVE him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good (benefit).’ (Deut.10:12-13) Oh my brethren, that directive hasn’t changed since Moses spoke it, and thus still applies to us, the descendants of Abraham and followers of Jesus Christ. And we have to give Moses credit for perseverance, for later on, in talking of the blessings of the Promised Land, he reiterates: ‘And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken (obey) diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to LOVE the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.’ (Deut.11:13) Then their land would be blessed and they would prosper. And finally, in warning them about idolaters, he declares: ‘If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth (is testing) you, to know whether ye LOVE the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after (follow) the Lord your God, and fear him, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave (hold fast to, cling) unto him.’ (Deut.13:1-4) But despite all these warnings, the Israelites soon forgot the God of their fathers, and paid a high price for their disobedience. Likewise Friends, our society has done the same thing, and I don’t have to point out the high price we’re currently paying for that disobedience. Oh my people, what’s wrong with us eh? Why are we allowing the idolaters among us to lead us astray and thus suffer the wrath and punishment of God? That doesn’t sound very wise, especially when we see the disastrous results it brought other societies. Please, let’s wake up and smell the roses nuh, and return to following the ONE TRUE God, Creator and omnipotent Ruler of the Universe; Yahweh. That’s the only way our society will survive. Much LOVE!…a word to the wise is sufficient…

Oh Friends, it’s a brand new day, and we’re still here on earth, alive and kicking, filled with a burning passion for God! Wow! What an honour! And all God’s people shouted up to heaven a grateful: ‘Thank You Lord! It’s truly good to be alive! We give you all the glory, and praise your Holy Name, now and forever! Amen’ Yes Friends, it’s sure good to be alive, regardless of all the negativity that’s happening in our world, because it gives us a chance to be involved in the great miracle of turning it around, in furthering God’s wonderful kingdom. Anyway, before we get into our Bit, I want to share some info from the scholars re the root and literal meanings of some words used interchangeably to describe God’s Word, especially in Psalm 119. It will give us better insights into what the authors of the Good Book were thinking when they used those words. According to the scholars: ‘The multifaceted character of God’s Word is revealed by at least eight key synonyms for it in the Psalm. (1) Law (torah) is the most frequent of the words. It comes from a verb meaning ‘to teach,’ and thus came to be applied to a wide range of revelation, from an individual directive to the entire Pentateuch (5 Books of Moses – from Genesis to Deuteronomy). It emphasizes that God has taught us in His Word what he requires of us. (2) Testimonies (edot) emphasizes the content of the Word as that which God has testified of Himself and His will. (3) Precepts (piqudim) refers to instructions from a superior regarding the duties of those under him, in this case from God to man. (4) Statutes (huqim) is related to a verb meaning ‘to engrave’ and thus implies permanent and unchangeable regulations. (5) Commandments (mitswot) is a word assuming the authority of the commander and the inherent necessity of obeying the content of the charge. (6) Judgements (mispatim) or ordinances refers to decisions God has made as a judge in order to make earthly behaviour conform to His heavenly standard. (7) Word (dabar) is an all-embracing term for God’s revelation in any form. (8) Word (imra) might also be translated ‘promise,’ though the translation does not distinguish it from the preceding term to whose meaning it relates closely. It comes from the verb ‘to say’ and assumes that the content of revelation is from the mouth of God. Other terms that seem to speak of God’s Word include ways, name, and faithfulness.’ So there we have it Friends, a breakdown of some of the words used to identify God’s communication with us. I sure hope it’s as enlightening to you, as it was to me. Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Blessed are they that keep his testimonies and that seek him with the whole heart.’ Like our Bit yesterday (Ps.119:1) it again tells and/or reminds of how to be blessed by God in this earthly life. We need to conform to the will of God, as written in His Word, and most important of all to seek Him with our whole hearts, with the very fibre of our beings, with everything that we possess. Remember that our first and foremost duty on earth is to glorify God through our words and deeds, and we can only do this by focusing on His Word and sincerely trying to walk humbly and LOVING like Jesus did. And this speech of Moses to the Israelites, re the great commandment, as they were trudging through the wilderness, just out of slavery in Egypt, on the way to the Promised Land, is possibly one of the most memorable and important passages of scripture. ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.’ (Deut.6:4-9) Oh Friends, yuh see how important the Word of the Lord ought to be in our lives! Wherever we go and whatever we do, it should always be before us, written both physically on something and also indelibly in our hearts. Everything we do should be based upon it. We’re also supposed to teach it to our children and have it circulating in our houses all the time. Hn! But sadly we have fallen down terribly on that aspect and thus our children have not received the proper instruction and guidance, hence their inordinate attachment to the lusts and trifles of this world. Oh my people, we only have ourselves to blame for whatever is taking place in our lives and world today. If we had followed the instructions given by Moses so long ago, we would surely have been living more prosperous lives, not only in terms of earthly possessions, but also in terms of spiritual wealth, close communication with the Father. But it’s NEVER too late to change Friends. As we keep saying, while there’s life there’s ALWAYS hope, so since we’re still alive, let’s seriously set out to raise our hopes and actions and do something positive about our sad and sorry world nuh. If we, believers in Christ want it to change, then WE have to bring about the change. Lucifer and his evil cohorts like things as they are, so they will not try to improve it, only to further destroy it. More on this tomorrow, if we’re still alive and kicking. (smile) Till then, please, let’s truly LOVE our God, LIVE our Faith, and SPREAD His Word. It’s the only way for us to prosper. Much LOVE!…if God’s our be all and end all…then it’s to Him we must turn for help…

Ah my wonderful Friends in Christ, it’s another bountiful day of blessings and mercies being bestowed on us from our heavenly Father! Wow! What an awesome and LOVING God we serve! Now our first and foremost bounty is the breath of life, that wonderful opportunity to see another day on planet earth, for which we should all be exceedingly thankful. Oh I know some of us would rather not see any more days on earth because of the sorry state of our world and our own, rough, impoverished circumstances, but we have to remember that while there’s life, there’s ALWAYS hope. That means hopeless looking situations can be turned around in the twinkling of an eye through our omnipotent God’s touch. So as believers we must NEVER give up, regardless of how desperate and hopeless our situation seems. And that’s exactly what our Bit today tries to make us understand. ‘Blessed are the undefiled (blameless) in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.’ Yes Friends, if we follow God’s law to the best of our ability, we shall surely be blessed, both down here on earth and in heaven. Psalm 128, the rewards of faithfulness, spells out some of those blessings. ‘Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord, that walketh in his ways. For thou shalt eat the labour of thy hands (fruit of thy labour): happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides (in the heart) of thine house: thy children like olive plants about thy table.’ (Ps.128:1-3) What more can we ask eh Friends than the prosperity of our labour, to be happy and contented without too many serious problems, our wives procreating plentifully, and our children strong and vibrant around us, and also serving the Lord?  Note too that the promise is made with certain assurance; if you follow the Lord, you will be blessed, as the next verse compellingly states. ‘Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.’ (Ps.128:4) Furthermore, there’s no ambiguity about what’s required of us in the Lord’s Law, which comes from the Hebrew word ‘Torah’ meaning to teach, and emphasizes that God has taught us all we need to know in His Word. Answers to all questions can be found written in His Book, the Holy Bible. So there can be no excuses about what we should or shouldn’t do. Exodus 20:1-17, spells out the basics in the form of the Ten Commandments, and Jesus later paraphrased them down to two: ‘LOVE your God with your whole heart, soul, body and mind. And LOVE your neighbour as yourself.’ (Matt.22:37-40) In other words, if we simply follow those two dictates, we shall be blessed. And Friends, being blessed by following God’s law is nothing new. Adam heard that on day one: ‘And the Lord God commanded the man saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.’ (Gen.2:16-17) Obviously Adam didn’t listen and suffered the consequences of disobedience. Then Moses proclaimed it to the Israelites when they left bondage in Egypt, on the way to the Promise Land. ‘Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee (you may prosper), and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days (live long) upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.’ (Deut.4:39-40) Later on, he again reminded them about the blessings of obedience: ‘Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken (listen) to these judgements, and keep, and do them, that the Lord thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers. And he will LOVE thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine (cattle), and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware (promised) unto thy fathers to give thee. Thou shalt be blessed above all people.’ (Deut.7:12-14) It’s all so straightforward Friends; follow the Lord’s will and you’ll be blessed, if not, you’ll suffer much calamity. We saw what happened to Adam, also to the Israelites when they didn’t obey God’s law, and unfortunately we’re doing the same thing today? Oh my people, our God is certainly a caring, LOVING, merciful and forgiving Deity, but when we blatantly go against His orders we’ll pay a terrible price. Just look at the price our ungodly, evil, violent, greedy, oppressive world is paying today. All of this could have been avoided if we hadn’t strayed from His law. He never said it would be all wine and roses, but He did guarantee a good, prosperous and fulfilling life for all those who faithfully followed His commandments. So if things aren’t going right with us, we may need to check how we’re walking with Almighty God, if we’re truly walking in His way. And to end, here’s another tidbit on the subject courtesy of Isaiah: ‘Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.’ (Is.3:10) It can’t get any clearer than that Friends, so please, let’s buckle down and truly follow God’s will, if we sincerely want to see long life and prosperous days nuh. It’s the only way. Much LOVE!…to walk with Jesus…is to live the good life with Him…

‘Stand up, Stand up for Jesus! The trumpet calls, obey! Till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed!’ Yes mih true Friends in Jesus, it’s Monday once again, which means it’s time to resume the ongoing workweek battle. And though you’re not pleased to have to go out there and battle, tough beans! (smile) It’s all part of your covenant with Jesus, so let’s get swinging by singing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn. As one voice now; loud and proud! ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein! We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together. We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies. But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle. Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’ And now that the adrenaline’s pumping Friends, let’s go get them ‘good fuh nutten’ scallywags that kowtow to Beelzebub, show them the error of their ways, and have them change their allegiance to our wonderful Leader, the ONE and ONLY Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour! And all God’s people declared a loud and passionate ‘Amen!’ Wow mih breddren! Like the adrenaline and the Holy Spirit really working in the ole fella this morning! Hn, hn, hn! However Friends, before doing all this good stuff in Jesus‘ name, we need to strongly consider and follow the wise advice of our Bit: ‘Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not (do not set your mind on) high things, but condescend to men of low estate (associate with the humble). Be not wise in your own conceits (estimation).’ Yes mih people, we all need to be on the same page, humble, not arrogant and full of ourselves, because there’s nothing that turns others off like a proud, know it all. To be successful in any pursuit, those involved need to live in harmony, which cannot be said about the current church, as we saw yesterday when dissecting the three statements Bruh Paul made in our Bit. Neither can we gloat over the less fortunate re our earthly power and possessions, for that’s definitely not a part of Jesus’ platform. Now, let’s deal with the last statement in our Bit: ‘Be not wise in your own conceits (estimation).’ Unfortunately Friends, that’s the going thing in our evil, ungodly world today. All of us think more of ourselves than we ought to. In our own estimation, we’re the greatest thing since sliced bread, (smile) and that’s exactly how too many of us behave, both believers and non-believers. I don’t think the world has ever faced such an overwhelming ego problem as it does today. We were taught to be humble, but this is the age of unfettered pride and arrogance. However, please note carefully, the wise words of Cousin Sol, re pride and arrogance: ‘Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall (stumbling). Better it is to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil (plunder) with the proud.’ (Prov.16:18-19) Indeed wise words my brethren. But just in case they didn’t get through to your prideful heart, then to listen to God’s pronouncement on Edom through Jeremiah: ‘For, lo, I will make thee small among the heathen (nations), and despised among men. Thy terribleness (fierceness) hath deceived thee, and the pride of thine heart, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, that holdest the height of the hill: though thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the eagle, I will bring thee down from thence, saith the Lord.’ (Jer.49:15-16) Yes Friends, the Lord will lower the boom on those whose pride and arrogance makes them feel strong and independent. Why? Because it makes Him feel not needed, not wanted, unnecessary, unappreciated. Nuff said my people. I now implore us to go and do as we ought; shun the evil of the world and hold on the righteousness of Almighty God, through the sacrificial blood of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, which paid for our disgusting sins and thankfully reconciled us to the Father. Much LOVE!…without God…man has no power whatsoever…so all his boasts are baseless… P.S. And check out these most appropriate words of the old Brook Benton song: ‘Remember, in your search for fortune and fame. what goes up, must come down again. It’s just a matter of time.’ Words of Wisdom, my people! Please take serious note. Much LOVE!

A good Sunday morning to you all Friends! The world has successfully rotated on its axis and thus another day is born. Wow! What a showcase of God’s power and ingenuity! The earth does not stand still, neither does human life. As Everett M. Dirksen (1896-1969) U.S. Congressman and Senator, reputedly said: ‘Life is not a static thing.’ And that’s the living truth! Life indeed does not stand still. It is all about changes. The problem though is that man dislikes change. Slow, small changes we can accept, but the big, sudden ones are much more difficult to handle and we fight against them. That’s not surprising since it’s in our nature to resist change because it takes us out of our comfort zone and disrupts our normal, staid lives. Disruption is not something the human animal takes lightly. The essential fact though is that we can’t get away from change. And we’re not talking change just for the sake of change, but positive, useful, empowering change. So it will probably do us all a lot of good if we focus on the words of the Serenity Prayer, and ask the Lord to help us understand what things we can and cannot change, and grant us the wisdom to know the difference, otherwise change will create untold havoc in our lives. And having said all that, let’s tackle our Bit: ‘Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not (do not set your mind on) high things, but condescend to men of low estate (associate with the humble). Be not wise in your own deceits (estimation).’ Oh Friends, in this age of extreme ungodliness and numerous divisions within Christ’s Church, that statement of Bruh Paul could safely stand as a blazing, glaring testimony of too many believers. Please note in that simple passage Bruh Paul tells us three things we ought not to do, but unfortunately the church is rife with all of them. How sad eh. Now let’s look at each statement separately. The first says: ‘Be of the same mind one toward another.’ That means we ought to live in harmony with each other, which should not be too difficult to do since we’re all supposedly living and abiding under God’s will. But sadly it is one of the biggest problems the church faces, as we fight, argue, quarrel and divide over how the church and our individual lives should be run. Living in harmony was a subject that was very near and dear to Bruh Paul’s heart. Listen to him plead with the Philippians. ‘Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same LOVE, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem the other better than themselves.’ (Phil.2:2-3) And later on, he begs: ‘I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.’ (Phil.4:2) Obviously those two were in disagreement over some matter(s) which Bruh Paul thought should not be happening between believers. And sadly Friends, at a time when the church needs absolute cohesion to successfully fight the evil powers that are currently in ascendance, we are foolishly fighting amongst ourselves and separating like crazy, being easily divided and conquered by Lucifer and his buddies.  None of this augurs well for the livelihood and growth of the church, which brings us to the second aspect of our Bit. ‘Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate.’ Personally, I believe that ‘condescend’ was the wrong word to use there because it carries an inherently negative connotation, the stigma of lowering oneself to those whom you consider inferior. Now unfortunately that kind of thinking is also too prevalent in the church; from an hierarchical point of view amongst the clergy, as well as amongst the lay people. Too many of us think we’re better than others, for whatever reason, and those negative thoughts and feelings only create disharmony, not the harmony Bruh Paul was seeking, and which we so desperately need in these troubled times. Now hear Jeremiah comment on this. ‘And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil (adversity) upon all flesh, saith the Lord: but thy life I will give unto thee for a prey (as a prize) in all places whither thou goest.’ (Jer.45:5) Oh my people, those words were meant for Baruch, the scribe who copied Jeremiah’s words in a book. According to the scholars, ‘Baruch’s lofty calling was simply to be a faithful minister, content with the Lord’s appointment. Faithfulness has its own reward.’ That’s gospel! So please Friends, I implore us to take heed of God’s words, for they do not change, and He faithfully keeps all His promises. More on this tomorrow, if we live to see it. Much LOVE!…a believer’s duty…to LOVE God…LIVE their Faith…and SPREAD God’s Word…