Matthew 11:28. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Well mih people, Sunday, the first day of the week has rolled around again! And what a beautiful day it ought to be, one filled with praise and worship and fellowship celebrating the Sabbath of our great and awesome God!
So it’s only right that we begin the proceedings today with some worship in the form of the old and greatly beloved hymn, ‘Rock of Ages,’ written in 1763 by the Rev. Augustus Montague Toplady. Let’s belt it out with plenty verve, enthusiasm and sincerity nuh.
‘Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee; let the water and the blood, from thy wounded side which flowed, be of sin the double cure; save from wrath and make me pure. Not the labors of my hands can fulfill thy law’s demands; could my zeal no respite know, could my tears forever flow, all for sin could not atone; thou must save, and thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling; naked, come to thee for dress; helpless, look to thee for grace; foul, I to the fountain fly; wash me, Savior, or I die. While I draw this fleeting breath, when mine eyes shall close in death, when I soar to worlds unknown, see thee on thy judgment throne, Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee.’
Yes friends, that’s the wisest and most sensible move a human being can ever make; turning to the Rock of all ages, Jesus Christ for comfort and succour! For He is the ONLY Being who can provide ALL that we need! Other beings can provide some of this and some of that, but Jesus Christ is the repository of everything that’s needed to live life successfully, both on earth and in heaven.
NEVER forget that my brethren! Whatever we need, Jesus has it – and in abundance too, and He is also very willing to share whatever it is with those who come to Him in humility, sincerity and truth!
Otherwise, why would He extend to all mankind what we refer to today as the Great Invitation eh, which is our Bit for today? ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’
Oh my fellow believers, how wonderful is that invitation eh? No other living being in the history of mankind could ever truthfully offer such an invitation! None but our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! And that’s not even all of His wonderful invitation.
Listen to the remainder. ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of (from) me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (gentle and humble): and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ (Matt.11:29-30)
Tell me friends, have you ever received a better invitation than that? Certainly not! Because no one else can match it! That’s why men of God, men of strong faith like Bruh David and Peter advise us to: ‘Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer (permit) the righteous to be moved (shaken). (Ps.55:22) ‘Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.’ (1 Pet.5:6-7)
Now why would two such godly men tell us to cast all our care on Almighty God if it wasn’t true eh? But as usual, we the finite, know it all humans, refuse to do as advised. Yeh, we think that we know more and can do more than the One who created us and still provides for us. Hn!
Instead, we listen to that fool Lucifer, who has nothing that’s good or lasting to offer us. All he has going for him are lies and deceit, plus fancy, flimsy, gold-plated worldly goods set up in a false front, a facade. But yuh know what friends, behind all that gloss and glamour there’s nothing but sin, death and hell!
Oh, we all know that working for Jesus is not glamorous, but it certainly is glorious and adventurous! And besides, the same worldly goods you get from Lucifer, you can get from working for Jesus, and these last much longer than Lucifer’s flimsy, marginal stuff.
It makes me wonder though, why sensible people follow an unwise dissident like Lucifer, who had it all going for him as the Lord’s right hand man, but foolishly tried to overthrow Him, was kicked out of heaven, and now walks the earth to and fro seeking to do evil to all that he can.
Remember friends, the evil one has no real power over us, unless we allow him to. Christ has already defeated him, trod him underfoot and captured the keys to hell, death and the grave. So there’s nothing to really fear from him, unless we let the glamorous but unsustainable things of the world that he offers, trip up our minds and hearts.
Anyway, enough about Lucifer, we didn’t come here to talk about him, but about God. (smile) And by the way, let me offer my sincere apologies to my second homeland, Jamaica on the 54th anniversary of their Independence which was celebrated yesterday! Chuh! I knew of it, but yet I forgot it. I can imagine the celebrations that took place.
And though I may live all over the world, Jamaica will always have a special place in my heart. I experienced some of the roughest days of my life there, but also some of the most heart-warming and adventurous. As the old people would say, it’s there that I turned man. (smile) Happy 54th Xaymaca – the Land of Wood and water!
Now let’s end with this Benediction from Uncle Charles (Charles Stanley) adapted from his writing ‘Enter His Gates.’ ‘Yesterday’s troubles, today’s problems, and tomorrow’s circumstances are all part of the pilgrimage you’re on with God, through the good times and the bad. Someday you’ll reach the finish line, and your exhaustion and perplexity will be over.
And when that day comes, you’ll be in the Lord’s presence forever. But right here, right now, your life has meaning and purpose. Don’t ever give up. Always remember that the Lord Jesus Christ is there for you, with you even now. He alone is the source of our strength, our endurance to continue, and our reward when the journey is done.’
Gospel truth all of that my fellow believers! So please let’s take it all to heart and put it into action – right now, if not before, for it is indeed the wisdom of heaven! Much LOVE!
…Christ is our end all and be all…the first and the last…the Alpha and Omega…
SCRIP-BITS 
Today’s Scrip-Bit 3 September 2016 Psalm 37:21.
03 Sep 2016 Leave a comment
by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: a figment of our imagination, a good man, after one time is two, Anselm, at the mercy of, Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, children of God, Christians, common sense, consciences, cruel and unjust punishment, deceit, deceitful times, discretion, do good, do not repay, drunk or sober, Eastern Parkway, followers of Jesus, forgiveness, fraudulent, generous, gracious, Granny's wisdom, greedy, guide his affairs, hands slapped, he is kind to the unthanksful, indisputable truth, Jesus, labour day weekend, lend, lends, Love your enemies, merciful, mercy, mince words, mind yuh business, our duty, peace, perpetrate fraud, piddling things, prioritize our efforts, put it into action, reward, righteousness endures for ever, rocket science, show mercy, shows favour, sorry comment, strife, talk to your enemies, tattooed to your heart, the Big Apple, the children of the Highest, the evil, the righteous, the righteous show mercy and give, the wicked borrow, want to make peace, with the help of God, you reap what you sow, your reward shall be great
Psalm 37:21. The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again (does not repay): but the righteous showeth mercy and giveth.
Well friends and neighbours, it’s Saturday; Labour Day Saturday to boot! You know I didn’t even remember that this was the long, Labour Day weekend. That just goes to show how things and times have changed. As my Auntie Anne told me the other night when we were talking on the phone; ‘After one time is two yes nephew!’
And that’s ever so true. I never used to miss a Labour Day in the Big Apple. And my Auntie thought I was calling to say that I was coming down this weekend, because that’s how it would happen. I would say that I wasn’t coming, then last minute I’d call and say, I’m on my way. But unfortunately, that’s no longer in vogue. I can’t even handle the walking in Toronto’s Caribana street parade, much less that on the Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn.
And besides, the parades and them not as good as they were; the mas and the music are of inferior quality compared to earlier times. That brings to mind my last Labour Day in New York, I believe it was in 2007. My Auntie Anne and I had to park miles from the parade because there were no parking spots to be had close by, and then walk to the Parkway. Hn!
The walk there in the afternoon hot sun was bad enough, but walking back later in the evening after the parade ended…Steups! That was murder; cruel and unusual punishment! (smile) Anyway, with the help of the Good Lord we made it back in one piece, but certainly aching in the joints and body.
However, before I forget, let me dispense Granny’s wisdom, for it’s on occasions such as this, that it’s ultra-important. ‘Sonny Boy, a beg yuh please…when yuh go out there… drunk or sober…please mind yuh business, because is times like these, when the devil is most likely to pounce unsuspecting…!’ Oh my people, this Labour Day weekend, as you celebrate, please don’t leave home without that critical piece of advice tattooed to your heart, mind and soul!
And now, since it seems to have become a Saturday routine, let’s check out a couple of quotes from our friend Anselm, who always aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. The first quote says: ‘If you want to make peace, you don’t talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.’
Now that’s not rocket science, but strictly common sense, for you and your friends should always be at peace. Unfortunately though in today’s strife –filled world, not too many enemies are seriously and sincerely talking to each other, consequently peace is mostly a figment of our imagination.
And the second quote from Anselm tells us that: ‘Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.’ That’s also not rocket science but simply common sense. In this crazy and busy world of ours, where so many things call for our attention, we must prioritize our efforts and plans on those things which are more important to the successful running of our lives.
However, too many of us tend to get tied up in the small, unimportant things and thus make our lives harder than necessary. Time is of the essence my brethren, so we need to use it wisely, don’t waste it by getting too involved in the piddling things of life. (smile)
That brings us to our Bit, some interesting words of Bruh David from Psalm 37 – The true state of the wicked. ‘The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again (does not repay): but the righteous showeth mercy and giveth.’
And isn’t that indisputable truth my brethren? Of course it is! And it’s indeed a sad and sorry comment on the state of our society, especially in these fraudulent, greedy and deceitful times, when consciences seem to have disappeared, where honour and truthful dealings have apparently been turfed out, and we lie and deceive with impunity.
White collar crime has certainly been on the rise in the last decade or so and seems to be getting worse with each passing day. And the sad part is that many of the people who have been defrauded by the wicked, don’t ever see a penny of their money again and are basically left to suffer while the defrauder merely has his hands slapped. But that’s our modern-day society for you!
Meanwhile the righteous, of which there are never enough, are the ones who show mercy and give to those in need. And so it should be friends, if we’re to be true followers of Jesus. Christians ought to be amongst the most merciful and generous, although I’m not so sure that we are, for we perpetrate a lot of fraud and deceit on one another too.
But nonetheless, let’s check out a few scriptures that encourage us to be merciful and generous. From Psalm 112 – Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord – come these two beautiful verses. ‘A good man showeth favour (is gracious), and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion… He (a good man) hath dispersed (distributed abroad), he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth for ever; his horn (strength) shall be exalted with honour.’ (Ps.112:5, 9)
Yes my people, that’s how a true believer in Christ ought to behave. But how many of us really behave that way eh? I’d venture to say, certainly not enough, otherwise the hunger, poverty, sickness, and other negative things that are currently engulfing our world would not be half as bad.
Now let’s end with some words from Jesus Himself. ‘But LOVE ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again (in return); and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.’ (Luke 6:35-36)
Aye friends, Jesus didn’t mince any words there, He spelled it out as simply and straightforwardly as possible. Now it’s our duty to go out and put all that He said there into action, if we want to be true children of God. Much LOVE!
…he who wants mercy and forgiveness…must also mete out mercy and forgiveness…for what you sow…is what you will reap…