Truth

He was oppressed and afflicted, 

yet he did not open his mouth; 

he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, 

and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, 

so he did not open his mouth.                              Isa.53.7

How did Jesus fare when He lived, and died, on earth? We make much glorious celebration of Christmas, and so we should at the birth of the Saviour who would offer salvation to the whole world. Yet He was born in circumstances which were far from comfortable.

He grew up in a family that was not well off. I imagine them as a happy family, but I believe their living arrangements would have been without embellishment.

When He began His ministry, Jesus became a nomad. He wandered from place to place. He had no permanent abode to “rest His head.” His earthly, everyday life would have been Spartan rather than lavish.

Whilst many received Him and the gifts of healing and release that He brought, He was despised by the authorities of the day. His acceptance by the people varied between adulation and rejoicing to despising and rejection. By popular demand He suffered the most appalling death, preceded by degradation and the torments of the most cruel and torturous treatment. He was treated with scorn, and ingloriously and cruelly nailed to a cross to die. On the cross He was lifted high for all to deride and mock. The final insult and crushing rejection came as He hung, weighed down by the sins of all humanity, and His beloved and adored Father turned from Him. A difficult life ended in the most degrading way possible.

In all of this He did not complain. He said nothing. This was the life and death of the divine Lamb who rescued me.

My Lord Jesus, I can fool myself by thinking that Your time here on this earth was sweet and quite wonderful, but the reality is so different. Please forgive me if I overlook the truth of Your whole earthly experience. I humbly and sincerely thank You for the life and death that You endured for me. I love You.        Amen.

Supreme

My help comes from the LORD, 

the Maker of heaven and earth.                      Psalm 121.2

The Lord God, the one true God is supreme. He is the Creator of all things. Nothing exists that has not been brought into being by Him.

This is the power that helps me. I wonder if I can truly take this in. I have many opportunities to experience and marvel at the wonder of creation. I live in a most beautiful part of the world, in a country that is breathtaking in natural beauty. Now, can I fully take in the power and wonder, majesty and awe of the Creator of all that I see?

And it is this Creator who helps me. He watches over me at all times. He does not sleep or ever take His focus from me. He will not let my foot slip. He is my shade in the heat of the day and my protection during the night. He keeps me from all harm. He watches over the whole of my life. He blesses me as I come in and He blesses me as I go out. I am in awe at what this great and wonderful God does for me. He calls me son, and delights when I call Him Father.

Father God,

I am wrapped up in this mixture of who You are. You are the omnipotent, awesome God, the Creator of everything that is, the most powerful force of all. You are also Abba, my loving heavenly Dad. You love me in the sweetest, most tender relationship, the depth and intimacy of which I may never fully understand, or even realise. But I know these things. I know them and I declare them. My prayer is that they will become fully real to me.

I give You this prayer and ask You to bring me into the fullness of relationship with You. I declare and acknowledge You as the one true God, supreme. I receive You as my heavenly Dad. I delight in You. I ask You to draw me closer. Let me feel Your heartbeat. Let me share in it, and share You with others, in Jesus’ name I ask.                 Amen.

For me

But he was pierced for our transgressions, 

he was crushed for our iniquities; 

the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, 

and by his wounds we are healed.                        Isa. 53.5

I really need to take in these words and understand the significance and relevance to me. Isaiah is talking about “The Servant”. To me, this, means Jesus.

Jesus was pierced, most assuredly, by the nails in His feet and the wound in His side. Whilst He took this on Himself for the whole world – at least for those who would receive Him, I take these words, and His action, for myself. Jesus died for me. He gave His earthly life that I might live.

The ultimate promise to me is eternal life, but I can also live in Him in this present, earthly life. He is with me now, at this present moment. He will be with me tomorrow, and every day to follow. This comes to me through the suffering He endured for me. He was pierced and crushed. As He did this for me, as He gave His earthly life vicariously in place of me, let me try and place myself in His position. It is too painful to bear. I know I could not have endured the vicious actions of ruthless people.

Jesus suffered for me. Now He is beyond suffering. He lives in glory, seated in majesty and splendour with the Father in the heavenly realm. And I am still in His thoughts and His prayers. I know His peace most wonderfully. I receive healing through the wounds that He bore for me. I am assured of eternal life in glory. I owe Him so much, which I know I will never be able to repay. All I can do is to thank Him.

Lord Jesus,

I give You thanks from the entirety of my heart and my being. I gratefully and humbly receive all that You have done for me.

I know I can never repay You, but I aim to devote my life to You. Receive me, please, and lead me forward in witness to You.                  Amen.

The Servant

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, 

yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.                                                                                          Isa.53.4

The whole chapter 53 of Isaiah is poignant yet, at the same time, strangely beautiful It speaks to the depths of my being. It tells me of the amazing love that God has for me, and how this love was demonstrated through Christ.

Isaiah talks of the suffering and glory of “the Servant”. Jesus is the ultimate servant. His life, death and suffering cove the extent of His service to humanity. He redeems us; He sets us free, and He leads us into glory.

Jesus gave Himself for me and for all who receive Him. He took my woes and sins upon Himself “surely”. This tells me that there is no uncertainty over what He has done for me. It is sure; it is certain; it is done, and will not be undone.

Yet we considered him stricken by God. It sounds as if God placed a horrible disease upon His Son. But the disease was ours and not God’s. The Son placed the disease on Himself. We could say that God did it, for the Son is indeed God. The disease was sin, the sin of all people, of all time. The sin is mine. This wonderful servant took my sin upon Himself, thereby not only releasing me from the burden sin but, wonderfully taking away all dreadful consequences. 

The Son has set me free for all time. I am immensely and inexpressibly grateful. I am no longer bound, but free. I desire to use my freedom by being a solid and true witness for Jesus. I hope I can live out this desire.

Jesus, my most precious Lord,

Words cannot begin to express my gratitude to You. I am humbly filled with wonderful thanks and praise.

I give myself to You, and I desire to live my life in witness to You. I ask You to endorse me in this desire. I will experience failings in my own efforts, but You can, once again, rescue me. I pray that You will show me clearly when I stray or err in my witness. I ask that Your Holy Spirit will convict me. May I come before You in confession and repentance. Would You please forgive me, and lead me forward in the right way? 

I know that You are with me, and I believe that You will never leave me. I thank You.              Amen.

Praise and glory

May the glory of the LORD endure for ever;

may the LORD rejoice in his works – 

he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, 

who touches the mountains, and they smoke.           Ps. 104.31,32

God’s glory is displayed in all of creation and this psalm is a wonderful song of celebration, a prayer to God in beautiful poetic form.

But God Himself is much greater than creation. He could undo so much with a simple look or a touch.

I exalt this wonderful God, my Lord and my Saviour. I join with the psalmist in lifting up praise to my wonderful Creator, clothed in splendour and majesty.

I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. (Psalm 104.33)

Praise the Lord, O my soul.

Praise the Lord.

Lord God,

Great Creator, Heavenly Father, wonderful Saviour and Precious Friend,

I lift Your name up to the highest heavens. I glorify You for the almighty being that You are. I bow in humble adoration before You. I join with the psalmist and pray that my meditation will be pleasing to You as I rejoice in You.

Glorious Lord, my heart sings out to You. I rejoice in You with all of my being. I seek You in all things.

I bring myself before You, repentant of all my sins. Father, forgive me, and strengthen me in Your Words and Your Spirit to resist sinful thoughts and actions. I ask You to lead me away from temptation into the fullness of Your holy ways. Deliver me from all evil. Let me live in the joy of Your presence. I rejoice in You. Receive my praise. Draw me to You. Lead me through his day in Your blessed and wonderful company, in Jesus’ name I ask.         Amen.

The Gate

“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.”                                    John 10.9

The gate is the entry point, the place at which we enter into what is before us. Jesus is the gate to salvation. He is the entry point to eternal life, and He is the only way.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”(John 14.6) 

Inside this place there is welcome, safety and belonging. And from this place, the security of salvation, one can go forth and find pasture, and the satisfying of all needs.

I believe it’s important that the going forth, into the world to satisfy earthly needs, is grounded and saturated in the knowledge and experience that we have entered through the gate, and live in salvation in Christ, and the assurance of eternal life.

Lord God,

I thank You for the gate to salvation, eternal life, and You, that is provided in Jesus. I thank You also that You have called me and allowed me to pass through the Jesus gate. I thank You that I am able to “come in” and know the security of being in Your Kingdom, experiencing and living daily in the reality of Your love.

I thank You that I can also “go out”, into this world to gather what I might need to sustain my life here. I want this “going out” to be firmly based upon the “coming in”. I believe this to be so. I ask You to affirm and consolidate this in me.

I pray for opportunities to lead others through the Jesus gate. I ask You to prepare them such that they will be ready to receive Jesus. I pray for God-ordained meetings with these people. I ask that You lead the whole process through Your Holy Spirit.

I commit this day to You. Lead me in the fulfilment of Your plans for me today, that Your purposes might be achieved in my life. I ask this is Jesus’ name. Amen.

Challenge

The Pharisees challenged him, “Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid.”                          John 8.13

Jesus has been challenged in His testimony. He has appeared as His own witness. The Pharisees were insisting upon the letter of the Jewish law (Deut. 19.15) which required two witnesses to attest to any matter. Ironically, they have totally ignored His specific revelation : I am the light of the world”, and side-tracked the dialogue with distracting legalism.

Jesus answers their challenge by nominating two witnesses – Himself and the Father (v 18). He then proceeds to challenge them about who their father is. After some mention of the fatherhood of Abraham, He accuses them of being children of the devil and not children of God.

What has spoken to me as I have read and reflected on this passage and this verse in particular, is the strength, visibility and validity of my witness to Jesus. How effective am I as a witness to Jesus and His Gospel? He has done wonderful and amazing things in my life, but do I share His impact on me as freely and as willingly as I might?

Jesus named two witnesses – Himself and the Father. I, likewise, can name two witnesses – myself and the Holy Spirit. Jesus knew this before He left this earth, and He spoke it into being:“… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…”(Acts 1.8)

I have been commissioned to go into all the world and proclaim the Gospel of Love. I am empowered by the Holy Spirit of the Mighty God, the Spirit of Jesus the Christ. I am assured that I will bear fruit (John 15.5). I can do this by remaining in Jesus, and allowing Him, with His Spirit, to inhabit me.

Lord God,

I have been called to be a witness for my Lord Jesus. I come.

I have been endued with power from on high by the presence and in-dwelling of Your Holy Spirit. I receive this.

I have been commissioned to go forth, journeying to the ends of the earth if needed, to proclaim the Gospel of Christ, to baptise, and to make disciples. I offer my obedience.

I speak as Samuel spoke in answer to Your call: “Here I am, Lord. Speak for your servant is listening.” I echo the words of Isaiah, saying, “Here I am. Send me!”

I repeat the words of the psalmist, “Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for you are God my Saviour.” 

Show me your ways, Lord, and lead me in them. Lead me in the way You have appointed specifically for me. Strengthen me for the journey. I know You will never leave me. Let me be a true witness to my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.