30th July 2010

Acts 3:11-26 – Peter speaks to the onlookers.

• For the second time Peter addresses a group of people who are stunned by what God has just done.
• Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Peter expresses a number of possible feelings that I would have had if I were him. After this amazing healing he basically rebukes them. Why are they surprised about this he asks if they truly believe in the God they are worshipping?
• He then invokes a simple remez [hint] by reciting “The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers [has glorified his servant Jesus.]”
• They were at the afternoon Minchah prayer and he purposely puts this into his speech because these words are found in the first paragraph of the Amidah – the central section of the Minchah prayer service. He is quoting what they have just prayed!
• The irony it seems was not lost on him.
• Here are a group of religious people praying again for God to reach out to them and yet they could not see His response when it was right in front of them.
• The main reason we miss God’s move in our life is not because we don’t know what a move of God looks like but because we have decided in advance what a move of God looks like.
• Peter then says something that really helps the people to be able to respond: “you acted in ignorance”.
• Peter continues the pattern I saw on the 27th.
• He still loves; telling them they were ignorant is a hugely significant statement. According to their Judaism; In the Torah, certain atonement only covered sins that were unintentional. If their sin was pre-meditated they you were in some very real danger of not having that sin atoned for.
• He links the past to the future and therefore shows how what has just happened was all part of a historical plan. There is still hope!
• He tells them what to do to move on.
• I’m learning so much in these two situations where Peter addresses the crowds in such a way as to move on from the past. To do this he sees the importance of helping them understand. Without understanding they will continue to be ignorant. Ignorance always leads to sin and sin always has really bad consequences for us all.
• Peter does not berate them out of frustration even though they are so fickle; he forgives because he knows that he made the same mistakes.
• He is not better than them; he has just understood a little earlier.

29th July 2010

Acts 3:1-10 – Peter heals the crippled beggar

• I like the contrast here – it displays in a simple way what the Kingdom of God looks like when it breaks into our world.
• This takes place during the second prayer time of the day; the first was at 9am, this second at 3pm and the third was at sunset.
• This one took place at the ‘Beautiful Gate’ – Hebrew jafah. The ‘jaffa’ gate is at the end of the road lead from the port of Jaffa/Joppa named for its beauty.
• A man with an ugly crippling affliction is healed in a place of beauty.
• Again Peter follows Jesus pattern; the crippled man instigates the interaction. He would not have been healed had he not asked.
• This 3pm prayer was called Minchah – meaning offering, gift. Peter came to give one type of gift but was prepared to give more than that. He was not boxed in by the duties of the day. He did not walk around blind to possibilities because he thought he had done his duty.
• I need to be aware that there are other opportunities to give and not be bound by thinking I have done everything if I have done my duty.
• I must pray into this because the miracles come when we go the extra mile. 

28th July 2010

Acts 2: 42 -47 – The Fellowship of the Believers

• Interesting how the study of God’s Word is so strongly linked to fellowship.
• Breaking of Bread did not look like the ‘Eucharist’ that happens in most churches today and was instead a meal or ‘love feast’ as it was referred to later. Jude 1:12.
• A Rabbi who lived around one hundred years after this event describes how the Jews of the 1st Century saw the connection of the teaching and the meal;
• If there is no meal there is no [study of] Torah, and if there is [no study] of Torah there is no meal. Rabbi El’azar Ben-‘Azaryhan
• It’s all about intention; being aware of God’s purpose and presence in both activities.
• Head knowledge about God is dead unless it is applied within our relationships. We cannot truly learn about God simply from teaching.
• Relationships are impotent in teaching us more about our relationship with God if we are not practicing His presence within our fellowship.
• It’s all about the Kavanah that we have that gives us what this passage is demonstrating to us; God’s power has the ability to transform communities.
• It has; but only if we make the connection.
• The connection between the Word and the Body.
• This is the first time that the disciples are really seen teaching as opposed to simply proclaiming the good news. Here they unpack [Didache] Jesus’ oral Torah.
• Why only now?
• Because only now were they filled with the Holy Spirit and their minds were being transformed. They could be guided more clearly and it seems they now finally begin to get it – Jesus’ message.
• It is the Holy Spirit who helps us make the connection.
• Without Him our lives will always see our religion in lots of separate boxes of things to do and think.
• It seems to me that the Holy Spirit brings flow and sense to all we do.

27th July 2010

Acts 2:14-41 – Peter addresses the Crowd

• Peter uses a form of Jewish exegesis and drashes the Psalms.
• To help move people forward and to help them successfully repent there are a number of things he does that I can learn from.
• He links the past to the future. This is important – we will see why shortly. He shows how what has just happened was all part of a historical plan. This is not a new direction that God has had to think up on the spot because He was outmaneuvered.
• He still loves; he is strong but has not given up on those he is trying to influence.
• These things are important because it enables the crowd to do the things it needs to do to successfully repent.
• They still call him brother. They don’t shoot the messenger but appreciate the one bringing the message as stinging as it is to their hearts.
• They do not wait to be told that they should change but they pro-actively ask; what should we do?
• The Jewish word for repentance is t’shuvah – meaning; turning; returning.
• Perhaps the biggest failure in the way we repent. The thing that stops me seeing any real change is because my understanding of the English word repent does not give me a full understanding of repentance.
• We turn but we rarely return.
• We turn away from something and ask forgiveness but rarely pro-actively ask what we should return to.
• A great prayer for successful repentance?
• “Turn us to you, O Adonai, and we will be turned” – Lamentations 5:21
• The signs of failing repentance that does not change us:
• We shoot the messenger.
• We are forced to change.
• We turn from but do not return to.

26th July 2010

1 Samuel 13 – Samuel Rebukes Saul

• "Men of Pause"
• A different devotional today. I have spent a long time over my holiday thinking on this particular passage as I feel I am in a waiting time. I am being challenged to pause. But why?
• Shortly after Samuel anoints Saul, the King is told to wait for 7 days when facing the Philistines for Samuel to turn up and do two things;
• Make the appropriate sacrifice
• Tell him what to do
• [1 Sam 10:8].
• As Saul is waiting, the fear of the Philistine army begins to overtake Saul’s army. The Philistines had 3000 chariots and their soldiers were as numerous as the sand on the seashore. A standard Israelite army was around 3000.
• Saul’s army began to hide and then they began to scatter. Saul’s faith was tested; whilst facing a huge army and therefore a huge task; his army was deserting him. He was left with only around 600 men.
• Eventually the people’s faithlessness infected Saul. Their panic panicked him. On the 7th day, before the day was fully finished, Saul forces the issue. He makes a move that he should not, he makes the sacrifice himself.
• Samuel turns up and accuses Saul of stupidity and a lack of faith.
• Saul then displays a common characteristic of defending a sin; he gives a long answer to a short question. [v 11-12].
• It was not illegal for him to make the sacrifice but it was also not humble or submissive. Saul is replaced by another man… why? Because of the heart. [v14].
• Faith is in the waiting.
• Sometimes we can rush into something although God has clearly told us to wait. As a visionary, I don’t believe in just waiting around for something to happen but sometimes if God clearly indicates that I need to wait I must not panic and jump into something I will regret. Even though others may force their hand; I must not allow them to force mine.
• My question is… why wait? Why pause?
• Here is what the NIV stuidy Bible says about a different leader; Moses. I was given this today by one of the Global Pais team, Paul Green. Moses made His people wait for the following reason;
• "but in that long pause on the threshold of the promised land Moses reminded Israel at length of what the lord required of them as his people if they were to cross the Jordon”
• Is that why I should wait? In order to be reminded and in order to remind?
• Sometimes leaders need to make sure the right culture is in place before we make the next move – it’s a kind of filtering process we must not be afraid of. God sifts intentions, motives, dreams etc.
• On the trip home from my holiday, Andre the Pais:Germany director sent me the following email that once again confirmed this to me.
• Viele, die ihrer Zeit vorausgeeilt waren, mußten auf sie in sehr unbequemen Unterkünften warten. - Stanislaw Jerzy Lec polnischer Satiriker
• Many, who rushed ahead their time, had to wait for her in very uncomfortable housings.

Holiday - Vacation - Tour - etc.

On Friday I started a three week tour including vacation and ministry.

I will therefore not be updating my blog for about three weeks.

Feel free to look over old blogs - I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts!

30th June 2010

Acts 2: 1-13 – The Holy Spirit comes at Pentecost

• The Festival of Shavu’ot [weeks] - The Day of Pentecost - had various other names and was deeply rooted in the minds of Jews as a celebration of harvest and the Giving of Torah. It was also on the day that King David had died and was thought to be by some the day Judaism was born.
• God emphasizes the connection between the Torah [His word] and the Ruach HaKodesh [His Spirit] by giving both with the same signs. Fire and Sound.
• Another connection would be seen by Jews because in their teaching [Shabbat 88b] it talks of how God’s word is split into 70 languages – 70 being the traditional functional/symbolic number of Gentile nations and languages. In Exodus 19:16 people heard ‘thunders’ but the Hebrew word translated is Kolot – meaning ‘voices’ – it seems it was many voices that sounded like thunder. Now as the giving of His Spirit they hear again many voices praising God in many languages.
• Babel was being reversed. God’s word had been split into many languages to bring disunity. And yet now through His Spirit there was a symbolic pulling together for the sake of the Gospel.
• Priesthood was being modified - previously the Holy Spirit had come upon certain individuals, at certain times, for certain acts – but here it was being poured out to all people.
• So the Holy Spirit’s outpouring was meant by God to bring people together for a common cause.
• And yet…
• The day before yesterday I was told of a prominent Bible seminary that told its professors that they must sign a paper promising not to have ‘friendly relations’ with anyone in the Pentecostal movement.
• I have to be honest and say that I struggle to believe that could be true – I feel God's call to be a brother to all who believe - yet apparently it is.
• How could a group so dedicated to God’s word ignore the heart of God so wildly? Jesus challenged His disciples to be the friend of sinners and yet 2000 years later we have group of religious law makers commanding their staff not to be friends with fellow followers of Jesus.
• Can it really be true?
• What could they be afraid of?
• There were two reactions to what happened on the day of Pentecost;
• Some were confused but leant forward and asked why.
• Others did not even want to know why – they immediately disassociated themselves.
• I guess to connect means to be confronted with.
• If we don’t want out thoughts, ideas or beliefs to be confronted we disconnect.
• It must be a sad place to be where you are so uncertain of the things you base your life upon that you are afraid to connect with anything different.
• Praying I will be truly secure in my faith that I don’t need to protect it.
• It has never been me who protects my faith – it has always been God.