Psalm 2 ~ Meditation

Psalms 2:1-12 (NIV)
1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. 3 "Let us break their chains," they say, "and throw off their fetters."

Why indeed? Not only Israel with it’s rich history of deliverance by God’s direct intervention, but all other nations to today, continue to abandon the Divine Plan.

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. 5 Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 6 "I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill."

Who is the King? Saul, David, or Jesus?
God’s anointed is the King!

7 I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery."

A response from the King, “Ask of me.”
Are the Nations to be ruled by His subjects, when the earth is restored?

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. 12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Blessed are His people!
Are these the people whose names are in the Lamb’s Book of life? Revelation 20:15 (NIV)
If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Evaluate

How do you see your fellow humans?
What are the criteria you use for evaluating people?

We can see people as those who have more than us financially. Or possibly having more acceptable looks, or stature than us. Perhaps even a better quality of employment. This would have us following the ideas of perfection that the media industry, perpetrate on an unsuspecting public each day. So it is easy to fall into the trap of believing that the information packed ideas are the truth.

Psalm 1:5 (KJV)
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

The criteria the God uses, is simply those who have a personal relationship with Him, and those who do not. This is truly a case of the haves and the have nots, but on a spiritual scale.

The Battle is ON!

I want to use this Blog, as a more select group of people read it.

This afternoon, a man came to the office. He had been to our night meeting last Sunday, and arrived in an agitated state, and left with a calmness that was very evident. It was my privilege to sit in the meeting with this man. At times a breath of fresh air would have been appreciated also. I have seen glimpses of a beautiful person inside this man, who has put up many and varied barriers to the spiritual things of life. I believe that God is beginning to do some amazing things, and today I was able to pray over him, for the protection of this special man. There is a real battle going on, and he has a physical part to play, in this spiritual battle.
The battle has been going on for many years, but the signs at present are indicating a crisis, or culmination.

Holy Spirit, come, with more power!



Ephes. 6:12 (KJV)
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.


Rev. 3:20 (KJV)
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Alone

There may be times as a Leader, where you are left feeling all alone. In particular when you are given a vision or revelation to do with your current ministry. There are some things that you know deep down within your spirit, that the people around you are not ready to hear. One of the elements of ministry that requires great patience is to interpret visions and revelations in a way that will be understood by the hearer.



Daniel 10:7 (KJV)
And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.

Ahead of Time

Matthew 24:25 (NIV) See, I have told you ahead of time.
One of the fascinating aspects of the Word of God is its historical accuracy. Written over thousands of years, the central theme, and contents have not diminished, or wavered. The evidence of life events being written ahead of time have only confirmed that the Bible is truly the Word of God.
Examining the words of Jesus, they were relevant for the people of his earthly ministry time, and they are also relevant for the world of today, 2008. Jesus said, I have told you ahead of time, so what did He say about today?

Leaders

The use or misuse of position is an important aspect of leadership.
I have known leaders who have been supportive and encouraging, and others who have been bullies. There are also leaders who . . . !!!

Let me say at the outset that I am an introvert with a big “I”. It does take time to loosen up, it does take time to cope with a room full of strangers, it does take time to process questions and formulate the answers. If you are my leader, please wait with me, and do not run off. I know that I’m not the life of the party, but be courteous, do not walk away when I’m halfway through a sentence.


Micah 6:8 (Msg)
But he's already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women.
It's quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbour, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and don't take yourself too seriously—take God seriously.

What the World Needs Now

I thought that I would share one of my favourite, challenging passages of Scripture, Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian Christians. In a world where violence, hatred, maiming, murder, and suicide, are all too frequent occurrences. Where does our influence take root and sprout?

Ephesians 3:16-19. (NIV)
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Ephesians. 3:16-19 (Msg)
I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength— that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.

Has Burt Bacharach got it right?

What the world needs now is love, sweet love
It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of
What the world needs now is love, sweet love,
No not just for some but for everyone.

It s not a new song, but one that people need to hear!!!