CERTAINTY
Bird’s nest soup
Has not crossed my path or
inhabited my mouth
There are many such things in life
That have not crossed your path
Or left you without a doubt
Certainty is a thing much longed for
Certainty is a passing car
Certainty always seems afar
But certain you will be
When the Son sets you free
NOT HEARING
One of the ways of stopping a noise, is to walk as far away as possible from it.
Another way of stopping a noise is by shouting louder than the noise.
Another way of stopping a noise is by burying the noise so it can’t be heard.
Another way of stopping a noise is by cutting off it’s source, or oneself from the source.
Another way of stopping a noise is by applying greatly insulated earmuffs.
Any other ways?
Let’s think of this noise as hearing a voice. The same ‘rules of engagement’ apply. Different ways of drowning out the voice and not hearing what the voice is communicating.
Sometimes ignoring a noise isn’t enough to rid ourselves of it’s impact upon our being.
The voice of conscience can be very loud.
Let’s take note of these scriptures today:
While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly A VOICE CAME OUT OF THE CLOUD, SAYING, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”
And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, AND THEY WILL HEAR MY VOICE; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
Jesus said:
…Everyone who is OF THE TRUTH HEARS MY VOICE.”
He also said:
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If ANYONE HEARS MY VOICE AND OPENS THE DOOR, I WILL COME IN TO HIM and dine with him, and he with Me
Can you hear? If you do hear in your heart and mind – don’t try to find a way to drown ‘the noise’.
Acts 7/
…57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, STOPPED THEIR EARS, and ran at him with one accord; 58 and they cast him out of the city and stoned him.
WORLD TODAY 24
So what can we say of this world today?
Was this the world in your father’s day?
In work rest and play
Were things different yesterday?
Is – ‘discreetly put’ – still an option?
Or is all blasted out
Without a moral outlook?
Are they taking our lives away?
Like hungry gluttons
Power hungry-eating – throughout the day
Dictators and Potentates
Violaters and Perpetrators
Backstabbers and Burlesquers
Warblers singing us into oblivion
Dig yourself out
From below the trash
Run for your life
To the new horizon waiting for you
Find The Saviour – Good and True
Commands and\or wisdom
The dictionary definition of the word deliberation is this:
Dict:- 1 long and careful consideration or discussion:
In all our deliberations. In all the examination of situations in life, and in our endeavour to reach perfect conclusions, we must balance our thinking by the fact that there are no perfect human conclusions. [Perfect as in an ultimate all-knowing kind of perfection]
To see something perfectly from every angle is to have The mind of God Himself. And the bible says We (Humans) ‘know in part’. (I Cor. 13/12)
In an OT context, Solomon exercised wisdom by suggesting the baby be cut in two – thus revealing the true mother’s heart. But don’t think that – that was the only solution to the situation. (Read I Kings 3 for the context of my remarks)
Because of ‘The fall of mankind’, (as in man’s nature becoming corrupt) mankind will always fall short of a perfect conclusion or solution, when left to our own devices.
The best we can hope for is sound judgement.
Acting on the principles of God’s Word and embracing the wisdom we find there – we come to the best conclusion we can.
When we come to any important conclusion, [because besetting double-mindedness gets us nowhere], we must hold fast to it, provided it is not riddled with obvious flaws in the violation of principles.
Paul let’s us know that things are not always biblically black and white, cut and dry, when he informs us that having received ‘no commandment from the Lord’ he gave his judgement as one who was found faithful. (I Cor. 7/25)
This statement in The Word of God – fits a different category than commandment. It is sound judgement and guidance.
In other words he gave his advice not as a commandment from God – but we notice – that nevertheless it was/is God-inspired advice, and is perfect in its category, within the inspired Word of God.
I would suggest wisdom and advice is simply a different category than the commandments of God. Both can proceed from God Himself. (See e.g. I Cor. 12/8).
Conversely however there are many truths in the Bible which are dogmatic in the best possible sense. The virgin birth of Jesus to give but one example. This is true-truth – indisputably so.
If Paul, in the above passage (I Cor. 7) had received a commandment from God, then the solution, would have been even more black and white.
But as it was written, it was a man receiving the help of The Holy Spirit to give wise counsel. It is still the word of God and to be followed.
In that sense we might say it is perfect God-inspired wisdom.
We look for wisdom in difficult situations which do not always present a clear solution.
The apostles were privileged in that they did receive from The Lord on a higher spiritual God-given plane than the rest of us.
And they did write the Word of the Lord, (as a result). And so it was – that in God’s plan it was handed down to us. Preserved I believe supernaturally by God Himself.
Sometimes we can discover that in our attempts to reach perfect judgement in everyday life scenarios, we are setting the bar too high. We can be trying to achieve that – which we cannot achieve.
We are called to make wise and principled decisions, asking God for wisdom. But realising at the same time, that there may be another way to look at things, because of something we have missed.
This informs us, that it is unwise, to resent and become bitter towards others who hold a different view point. Even though their viewpoint might be riddled with error. In such cases pick the wheat from the chaff. Usually both are present.
At other times things are clear and even common- sense prevails to give us the right solution.
We certainly don’t embrace that which violates God’s principles, but we violate His principles when we allow bitterness to overcome us, in resenting the viewpoint of others.
Now of course there are diabolical acts taking place on planet earth and we clearly reject these that are usually based on no, or perverted, principles.
We especially should not fall out with those who have a different, yet principled viewpoint, which may just be in fact, another way of looking at the problem.
There may not be only one solution to a given situation.
In all these considerations, we should not stop holding fast to what we have decided.
It’s the double-minded man who is unstable in all his ways. (James 1/8)
There is no doubt that, based on scripture we can reach the best conclusion possible. It’s just that (after doing so) we should still commit our way to God, when we arrive at that place. Especially when further things/results are out of our direct control.
Knowing that He knows more than we do and may have a superior plan, approach or solution, is not a cop out, it is resignation to His will, in trust and faith, committing our decisions to Him.
If we don’t go that way – what alternative is there?
The alternative is double-mindedness, indecision, and things that should be done – left undone.
Thank God for the following as we oft times stumble in our decision making.
Psalm 103
13
As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
14
For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust.
BLIND TO BLINDNESS
There’s a blindness of the mind
In which – many cannot see
But with eyes wide open they look to perceive
And have no problem with what their eyes believe
They grasp readily – what is available
But examine nothing on the spiritual ‘table’
Life’s too busy to spend time on the hereafter
Preferring to remain at the secular altar:
“My mind’s made up with earthly guff
Don’t give me none of that god stuff”
For this they are willingly ignorant
Preferring to remain belligerent
They turn away from reason – based on fact
And look away from the God-man to act
Walking in the darkness with their back to the light
There is coming a day when they will receive such a fright
When suddenly the light will come into view
As they pass from earth into heaven’s queue
Goat’s from the sheep will the separation be
No person will escape the judge’s final scrutiny
‘Depart from Me’ or ‘approach in My Grace’
All Christians will go to their prepared place
So now is the time to let the light in
It must happen now to rid you of sin
Come to Jesus and ask The Master to approach
He is willing to come and wipe away your reproach
See it – that you don’t see
And you will be
On your way to getting a new mind
Where the gospel of ‘Seek and you will find’
Is your salvation and that by none other
Than Jesus Christ Your Lord – Saviour – and Brother
YOU TRIED
Over and over again
You reflect and remain
Down on Balcony Street
Where you meet
Acquaintances that don’t remain
You offer friendship – but they just complain
That you are ‘too-clingy’ and ‘full-on’
Before you know it – they are gone
You’re still searching in cafe – park and tree
Still looking for friendship you can see
Demonstrated in friendly gestures
Hands that help and shared futures
Shared hopes and failures to listening ears
But no real friendship appears
You stand up one more time
To greet a-friend-of-a-friend
They don’t want to engage
But take courage this is not the end…
TO BE LOVED…
There’s something within us all that I want to examine.
And at a guess I don’t think you have even thought of it. (?)
Just a guess of course, on my part. I can’t know for sure.
When performers/entertainers appear on talent shows, they are often found gushing – on ‘how much success on this show will mean to them’. ‘I really want this etc.’
“I want this more than anything…” – Those kind of gushings.
What is it they want?
Well firstly, we might say they believe they have talent and they want others to believe it too.
Backing up a bit from this desire, we can start by saying that before this, they want to be noticed.
To be noticed. But is this resultant attention, the right kind of love? Is this the love we need?
When two children, perhaps the same age, are together with their family, and one steps forward to ‘perform’ in front of their ‘audience’ – by perhaps reciting a rhyme, or singing a song, or doing a dance, they usually receive a large round of applause and affirmation from their loving family.
The other child usually feels immediately, the need to compete. So they set about showing what they can do.
Why?
Because it is within us all to want to be appreciated. And when someone else is getting that affirmation – it provokes the other child to want the same affirmation.
They too want to be thought highly of. And to receive/achieve this – the child performs.
And it feels good, or gives us satisfaction, to think we are loved and appreciated or thought to have talent. Everybody wants to be loved.
If we can think of this basic human need and examine it thoroughly – we still might be only scratching the surface of why it is so important to us.
Which brings us to the question of why we do anything in life. Literally anything that involves others.
Doing well at school, at our job, at our club, at our church, at our local government, at a sport, in a drama, musically, at the Duke of Edinburgh awards and so on.
We write a blog post. Why? Why send it out there to others? What do we want to ‘get out’ of it, doing so?
Is it right to say that there is something we are unconscious of wanting, that causes us to ‘do things’.
We are examining motive, here.
Sometimes we so enjoy exercising our ability that a sense of having produced what we set out to produce – is reward enough, without the affirmation of others.
In the case of celebrities, pop stars, actors, comedians, etc. – they need that constant affirmation – they like to ‘thank’ their fans, and as the attention continues and they get the rave revue’s – everything is thought to be exactly as they desired it to be.
Why then do so many of them end up a mess? Broken, addicted, and so on? Seems this crowd adoration isn’t enough?
They like to remain up the popularity charts. It is their career – and they do earn a living out of it – and want to remain financially secure, living in the manner they have become accustomed to.
But they like – beyond the financial reward – they like to be admired and for many they like to be ‘idolised’ by their adoring public.
What is that?
What does that feed inside a person?
The devil took Jesus (as in they conversed together) – up to a high mountain and said: Luke 4/
5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”
The bible talks about… I John2/
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – How much we are free from these things is THE BIG QUESTION.
Jesus was asked ‘on board’ by this fallen angel.
Had He yielded then, like the original Adam did, He too would have fallen under the dominion of sin, and this diabolic spirit’s dictatorship.
His nature would have changed, and that is the crux of the matter – God’s nature is the total opposite to man’s fallen nature.
—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life
All the above is the product or fruit of the fallen nature.
And success so gushed over and desired usually involves the above.
The enemy of mankind who is out to weaken the nations and keep the world in deception, offers us everything that will fulfil the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
So many find that the enjoyment of all the things that fit these categories find also that the serpent has a sting in his tail – ready to strike when the time is right. That’s why so many fall prey to collapse, bondage and death.
They enjoy the adoration for a season – on the way up – absorbing all the attention fame can give.
Slowly the over-exposure and constant scrutiny begins to grate on them and resentment takes its place. Or their ego is not satiated and they still continue to need more.
Mankind was not made to be worshipped, he was made to worship.
To be in a relationship with The Only Living and True God – is to be aware of the life of The Holy Spirit through acceptance of Jesus the Christ.
This awareness is living in a different dimension that must be maintained from the day of acceptance of Christ onwards.
By maintenance of this uninterrupted fellowship, we operate out of a different mind set, and are then able to understand and appreciate (when it comes to the things of this life) – that: I Timothy 6/
17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. 18 Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share,
SIMPLICITY
As we look at disparate philosophies and ideologies in our world today, if one was to be overly simplistic we come to the conclusion (and with this many would concur) that we have various activated scenarios that can be summed up in these terms:
Left wing and right wing.
Left (amongst many other things we could say about both) tending towards atheism and right toward a belief in God.
But things are a little (sic) more complicated than that, I’m sure you’ll agree?
And yet! Removing ourselves from all these philosophies, and ideologies, here is a verse from the bible that speaks to all who are and who will become Christians. I Corinthians 11/
3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
Highlighting the word simplicity. It is necessary to point out – simplicity not, as in ignorance, or naivety. Certainly not as in foolishness. It is not ‘bury your head in the sand’, and don’t use your brain.
But we find here and indeed throughout the scriptures a reference to the pure, loving, good, fruit-filled life of The Lord Jesus Christ.
Simplicity therefore, as in wholesomeness, and embracing of the fact that regardless of your intellectual prowess – the gospel message speaks to all of mankind. And with God’s essential enlightenment all can understand it.
Jesus The Christ, is wise, tender-hearted, compassionate and He speaks powerful direct and life-giving words, to all – in the hope they will listen.
The amplified version of this exhortation in I Corinthians 11/3 reads
But [now] I am fearful, lest that even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, so your minds may be corrupted and seduced from wholehearted and sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
So as the Word of God is nuanced, here simplicity, is replaced with wholehearted, sincere and pure.
This is far removed from the mental gymnastics of the doubting mind, filled with every invented philosophy that exalts itself against the intellect of God.
Here Paul tells us of how they went about spreading the gospel:
II Corinthians 1/12
For our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward.
Not with fleshly wisdom, Paul says.
The world has a modern version of a stacked high ‘bonfire of vanities’, that would seduce us from the…
wholehearted and sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
RHYMING LIFE 2023
All use it – from tinker to soldier to sailor
From butcher to baker to
Salesperson and e-mailer
Poetic rhyme – all-the-time – intertwined
In daily life
***
Wax lyrical if you must
With sudden spurt like a wind-gust
You write – ’n write – ’n write
And you just might
Break the charts with a song surge
That fills the ears of many-a-one
***
Lyrics that capture a human moment
Momentous in it’s result
The Fab Four did it – did it change humanity
In some ordinary or extraordinary way?
***
Ordinarily we hum a tune – attempt to sing –
Gurgle out a lyric
In autumn winter summer and spring
***
Not so profound you rightly say
But we are so into mediocrity
That lasts in thought
Captured in the day-to-day
***
So – so – much time that drifts away
We can’t catch it – to hold it tight
So a poetic rhyme or lyric might
Help us deal with it ‘waiting for no man’
***
The tide is out and time is up
But still we remember the silly things
As though they were important
***
And the unimportant in turn
That occupied our time
***
We get exhausted in our brain
There goes time yet again
***
We didn’t get it done
Too busy having fun
***
But here’s the thing
When all is said and done
The poetic line or lyrical turn…
Is in the fibre of our lives
Dyed to the wool –
You could say –
Unavoidable
We have to say
Let the lyrics come and the poems go
Looking to the future
With time in tow
Keeping things in perspective
We have to say – so much fuss
Over one-singer-one-song
Yet the rhyming still goes on
WE SHALL SEE… 23
We cannot express the distress
The anguish – the pain – the mess
Our hearts would fail us
If we stopped to dwell
On the awful carnage
straight out of hell
Hatred and bitterness
Nation against nation
Lord establish our
hearts in patience
***
There’s much
we can do-little about
Except get our hearts right
With the author of life
And reach out for Him
With strong intent
Forsaking our sin
As we repent
***
And as the earth caves in
Through man’s inhumanity to man
We hold fast and look
for the promised land
No earthly abode
Will suffice
Only God’s atmosphere
Free from all strife
Promised to us – is a place to dwell
Where the Saviour rules – and all is well
***
Meantime gird up the loins of your mind
Get ready with armour to loose and to bind
Through prayer alone we shall see
That heavenly kingdom where all are free
Holy Spirit come today
Lord Jesus wash away
All the hindrances to your glory
Lift us again and let us see
What is prepared for those who love thee
Smiles…
I looked for a smile
But got a frown
I searched everywhere
To no avail…
So I left town
I smiled over once
Yea twice
But the man
On the opposite seat…
Wasn’t very nice
I bought a note book
To record the smiles
It’s still empty…
after many miles
Looking at the policeman
And asking the way
He grimaced
his instructions back…
He was having a bad day
“Do you want your receipt?”
Said the lady on the till
“I do – thank you”
I smiled back
I could see she was thinking…
“What’s the craic?”
“There’s not much
to smile about”
I hear you say…
Never mind we live
to smile another day
IS GOD HIDING?
God has to hide Himself from human beings.
He is completely different from mankind, in His nature, character, thinking and manifestations.
“No one has seen God at any time…”.
We are told this, by one of the men God has chosen to communicate what is on His (God’s) mind. In this case the man’s name was John.
John 1:18
18 No one has seen God at any time…
There is a second part to that verse. We shall look at that later.
God sees mankind in his rebellious state of being. Rebellious by choice.
He gave mankind that gift of volition. Man is not a robotic being, programmed internally to do exactly what God says.
One of the latest developments in art – is AI (artificial intelligence). There is much controversy over this subject.
Including copyright debates, and artists losing their jobs as they are displaced by AI -generated art.
AI operates by accessing millions of images and re-inputting them, as it where, into a new creation.
Artists of course, have been doing similar things for centuries. There is nothing new under the sun.
But human artists are more than machines. (They are body, soul and spirit).
God having given mankind a brain and cognitive ability, does not want man to be programmed to draw upon fixed images or ideas to artificially produce something else, when it comes to spiritual matters.
Especially ideas gathered and embraced from others in the human race. What certainty is there in this when it comes to spiritual matters? None.
Only those who…
5 …have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come…(Hebrews 6:5)
can know of anything to do with the Living God and the things of eternity.
And so, we have those specially chosen to write God’s thoughts, as He elevated their human thought-ability to the divine level, imparting His revelation, and thus giving us the Pure Word of God.
Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
God wants mankind consequently, to draw from God’s thoughts to find a pure life.
Mankind has, this freedom-of-choice-mechanism, built-into him.
You can put tomato sauce on your chips or not – it’s up to you – you decide.
In order for man to walk with God, he must respond to what He says.
But mankind is busy being too-busy, uninterested, too caught up with what pleases him/herself, and therefore no time to listen to what could possibly be, God communicating to him/her.
If mankind won’t listen or take the time to find out how God has or will communicate. How can God make Himself known?
After all, God is well mannered. He won’t interrupt. God tries to get a word in edgeways, often to no avail in the case of the obstinate heart.
So then, even if God is willing to appear from His hiding place, and make Himself known – mankind is pre-occupied with other things, and doesn’t wish Him to do so.
Wrongly pre-occupied with vainly trying to appease his troubled conscience with the idea, scientific or otherwise, that God doesn’t exist.
God will try and try and try again to get man’s attention but too often, to no avail.
This ignorant behaviour, this rejection of God, this no time for God syndrome, is responded to by God with what the bible refers to as ‘the long-suffering of God’.
I Peter 3/ Speaking in the context of the deluge, the flood that God sent to cover the earth, referring to those days we read:
20 who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.
Notice:
…long-suffering waiting.
That’s an attribute of God right there.
Many believe that it is ok to not know God exists, and therefore it’s ok to live in a state of so called agnosticism. (A kind of Ignoramus-ism).
Even if God was to suddenly communicate in a way, that He sees fit, He often finds that mankind’s mind is already made-up: “No thanks God”.
Amongst mankind there is a ‘Please Do Not Disturb’ sign over the heart and mind of many, and therefore over the conscience, and mankind’s understanding remains uninformed, unenlightened, dull, dead, and blind.
Billy Graham the late American evangelist quoted the words of a sign at a political Rally.
One devotee to a particular political persuasion carried a sign that read: “My mind is already made-up do not disturb or bother me with facts”. (Or words to that effect).
So we have a scenario where it is not so much God is hiding, as those to whom He wishes to communicate, wish themselves, to remain hidden from what God wishes to say to them.
“I’m enjoying my sin too much – Do not disturb”. Hiding just like Adam the prototype man and his wife did in the garden (see Genesis 3/8).
And of course if we are asleep after a ‘hard day’s night’, we don’t take kindly to being disturbed. Leave us alone and let us sleep on.
But as these things are so, we have to ask who is doing the hiding?
Now it is true that as no man can see God and live, (Exodus 33/20) – God had to find a way to reveal Himself to mankind, desirous as He was and is – to communicate with the human race.
So the second part of the verse we began with says this:
18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
John 14/
8 Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.
So God who was hiding – appeared!
Appeared in a way that man could understand and essentially therefore, have no excuse for ignoring.
God entered a prepared body in the womb of a virgin. Impossible – But true. (Luke 1/37) And that’s your first stumbling block to get past.
And there are many ‘illogical’ stumbling blocks for your intellect to get past. (Often referred to as miracles)
But if your head is filled with every unbelieving reason to reject God who has appeared in His Son Jesus Christ – you will not hear Him.
There is coming a day when you and I will stand before God in the life hereafter. There will be no doubts then as to who the supreme ruler of the universe is, and what His name is.
He will appear in all His resplendent glory, as He exactly is. This observing of The Eternal God, can only be experienced by passing through death into the eternal heaven of heavens.
It is God’s desire however, to make Himself known to you now. For that to happen He must obtain your co-operative attention.
This post might be the beginning of your search.
Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. Faith arises in your heart and mind as you hear – then you see that:- God
4 …will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
So we must start from the place of inadequacy that we all share. And from there take steps to search, to seek, to knock, to ask, all descriptive terms for starting on a journey.
Beginning with the highway of holiness code of The Bible.
We start investigating in other words.
Some folks are already investigating, but they have not started with the only hand-book, (the Holy Bible) and therefore drift into by-path meadows.
Where are you on this journey to eternal life?
seedsinmotiontruthnart 