Come All Ye Unfaithful

Come All Ye Unfaithful

by | May 9, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“O come, all you unfaithful
Come, weak and unstable
Come, know you are not alone
O come, barren and waiting ones
Weary of praying, come
See what your God has done”

O Come All Ye Unfaithful, Sovereign Grace Music

“Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.”

Luke 15:1-2, NKJV

The word ‘prodigal’ is defined as being wasteful.

In Luke 15 the Pharisees and the scribes – the religious folk of the day – complain about Jesus receiving and eating with the undesirables of their society.

“This Man receives sinners and eats with them…”

Jesus responds with a series of three parables.

The first is the story of a shepherd who loses a sheep and leaves the 99 to go find the one. When he finds his lost sheep he calls his friends and family and they all rejoice together.

The second is the story of a woman who loses a gold coin. When she finds it she calls her friends and family and they rejoice together.

The third is probably one of the most misunderstood of the three stories that Jesus tells. We get distracted by the sin and shortcoming of the young man who squanders his inheritance – and ignore the purpose of the story altogether.

It is the story of a father who loses a son – and when the son returns the father calls his friends and family together so that they may rejoice, but the eldest brother, who had stayed behind is upset.

He says to his father: ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’ (Luke 15:29-30, NKJV)

The first two stories end with a similar refrain – the thought that when a sinner comes home all of Heaven rejoices.

The story of the prodigal son does not have this refrain.

The eldest son in this case is just as ‘prodigal’ as the one who had left. He represents the Pharisees and the scribes.

Many in the church today are represented by the eldest son. There is no love for the sinner, the backslider, the addict, the prostitute…

But Jesus is married to the backslider (Jeremiah 3:14-15). He desires their return to the fold.

Shall we then, as the hands and the feet of the Father, refuse to seek them out? Shall we then, as the hands and feet of Jesus and agents of His grace, refuse to welcome them with open arms?

Are we perhaps the prodigal eldest son – wasting God’s grace by keeping it for ourselves, stashed away somewhere on a shelf – or are we sharing the joy unspeakable and full of glory, the hope of a restored life and eternal communion with Christ with our struggling brothers and sisters?

The church squanders its inheritance by receiving the grace that saves but refusing to become conformed to the image of Christ.

Both sons are the ‘prodigal son’, but only one ever gets restored in the parable. The one who had left and come back broken, empty, weary and burdened. The son who had been in his father’s house had absolutely no idea how far he had fallen and how wasteful he was being.

And so it is with the church. The parable of the prodigal son is a call to introspection. Is our judgement of others preventing us from seeking them out, welcoming them and loving them as Christ would have us do?

The father answers the eldest son with these words: ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ (Luke 15:31-31, NKJV)

Let us go then and receive the sinner, break bread with them, welcome them home. Even if they fall a thousand times, let us be there, willing like our Father in Heaven, to forgive, to love and to help them back up – as many times as it might take.

If you are perhaps more like the younger son today – the one who left and devoured his livelihood with harlots – consumed by the idolatry of sin and carnality – weak, unstable, barren, unfaithful – Jesus is calling you home!

Addicted, tired, bitter, guilty, fearful – Jesus is calling you!

And you don’t have to do it alone. No matter where you are in the world, reach out. Send me a message or an email (andre@adlabuschagne.co.za). We want to journey with you. You are not alone.

Prayer: Lord, help me be more like You. Break my heart for what breaks Yours and open my eyes so that I can see what You see. Help me love my neighbor. Help me love the sinner. Help me love the backslider. Give me the desire to see them saved. Equip me, Lord, through Your Spirit to reach out and call them back home. Equip me through Your Spirit, Lord, with the necessary grace to guide them, to make disciples and above all to help them back up when the slip, slide or fall. Help me stay true to Your Word and Your Will as I strive to be more like You. In Jesus Mighty Name. Amen.

Manna For Today

Manna For Today

by | May 2, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“There’s mercy in the waiting
Manna for today
And when it’s gone I know you’re not
You are my hope and stay
When the sea is raging
Your Spirit is my help
He’ll fix my eyes on Jesus Christ
And I’ll say that is well
Oh I know that it is well”

You’ve Already Won, Shane and Shane

“And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.”

Deuteronomy 8:3, NIV

In Exodus 16 the Lord sends bread from the sky – the Manna which we have so often heard about as a symbol of God’s provision – these frosted flakes reminiscent of coriander seed, white and tasting of wafers with honey that fed the camp of Israel.

An interesting aside is the direct translation from the Hebrew. The Hebrew word ‘Manna’ is not so much a description of the thing itself, but rather a description of the feeling it elicited in those who saw it – the word Manna, or Mahn, translates as “what is it?!

So baffling was the provision of God in the desert that the people walked around, wondering loudly, “what is it?!”

The Israelites took, day by day, whatever they needed for their homes and nothing more – processing it into bread to eat.

Numbers 11:8: “And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil. (KJV)”

The fear of tomorrow, at first, did cause some of the people in the camp to hoard more than was necessary – but it would spoil overnight and breed worms.

The Manna was for today. It was an exercise in trust.

If we really think about it, our needs are always temporal – we are hungry until we get fed, thirsty until we drink, and so forth.

Jesus makes a very important point when He tells us to consider the lilies and the birds. Are you not worth more?

The truth is this, God had better in store for them. This whole exercise in trust was to get them to the Jordan River where they would ‘write their final faith exam’. 

Yes, today you might be waiting and praying for that  increase or promotion, but you are missing the manna in the situation – the opportunity to prove yourself. The manna needs to be processed into bread.

Yes, today you are waiting for ministry doors to open – for a platform or a pulpit – but you are missing the manna in the situation – study to show yourself approved, getting down on your knees and seeking His presence. The manna needs to be processed into bread.

Today you are waiting for your family relationships to be restored but you are missing the manna in the situation – the opportunity for fellowship and communion with your loved ones, the opportunity to build a relationship right now. The opportunity to reach out and plant the seeds of reconciliation is there  – now! The manna needs to be processed into bread if you are to make it to your Jordan.

But often we get discouraged, not being mindful of God’s timing and process, waiting for the big things and missing out on the miracles of our daily lives.

There is a point in their wandering where the people grew tired of the Manna that God was providing. They craved other food – forgetting the goodness of the Lord and how He had seen them through. Even though they were getting meat in the evenings, they craved more.

Numbers 11:31-34:31 Now a wind went out from the Lord and drove quail in from the sea. It scattered them up to two cubits deep all around the camp, as far as a day’s walk in any direction. 32 All that day and night and all the next day the people went out and gathered quail. No one gathered less than ten homers.Then they spread them out all around the camp. 33 But while the meat was still between their teeth and before it could be consumed, the anger of the Lord burned against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague. 34 Therefore the place was named Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had craved other food.

Kibroth Hattaavah translates as the “graves of craving’.

God is giving you the ingredients for your daily bread – the bread that will sustain you all the way to your own Jordan. Let us not look to the left or to the right – but let us trust that the Lord knows what He is doing. This is the secret to contentment.

Let us eat with gratitude that which God prepares for us. Let us trust in Him knowing that His ways are higher than our own.

If we desire more, let that more be more of Him – and not the temporary satisfactions of this world.

God knows what we need. Keep waiting. Keep trusting – the land of His promise awaits those who are faithful and do not get sidetracked by the lusts and cravings of the carnal mind.

He will see to every need on your way to the banquet spread out for you.

Prayer:Lord, in the waiting, let my eyes be set on You. As those who have come before me in the faith have prayed, if You provide the bread and water, that will be enough. Help me bring my own desires into submission to Your perfect will, trusting fully that You know what You are doing. Help me see that Your plans for my life will always be better than the plans I have for myself, and do not let my small ambitions get in the way of what You want to do for me, in me and through me, in Jesus name. Let me run this race with endurance and stay true to my faith in You. In Jesus Name. Amen. 

 

Thank You Jesus For The Blood

Thank You Jesus For The Blood

by | May 1, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“Thank you Jesus for the blood applied
Thank you Jesus, it has washed me white
Thank you Jesus, You have saved my life
Brought me from the darkness into glorious light”

Thank You Jesus for the Blood, Charity Gayle

“9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”

1 Peter 2:9-10, NKJV

Fruit grows in the valley.

I heard a while ago – although I can’t remember where – that fruit grows in the valley and not on the mountain top.

As Christians we often equate success with being on the mountain, where God is. Like Moses, we are always climbing Mount Sinai in the hopes of an encounter with God. 

Unlike Moses, very few of us want to go back down to share what God gives on the mountain.

In just a few chapters in Exodus (from 19-34) Moses makes his way up and down the mountain 7 times.

Each time God gives him something to share with the Israelites down in the valley.

How tempting it must have been during those 40 days with God in Exodus 34 to just pitch a tent and stay there in the glory and the presence of the Lord – but Moses knew and felt the burden of his people and knew that there was work to be done.

In Exodus 34, after a particularly glorious encounter with God, Moses’ face radiated with the Glory of God – so much so that he had to wear a veil and cover it up – as the people were filled with awe and fear.

For many of them, coming out of a place of idolatry, seeing God upon this man’s face must have been a thing of awe-inspiring beauty – as Moses brought the light from God’s Kingdom down to the valley of the idols.

And in time this would yield much fruit – his exercise of running up and down that mountain would sow the seeds of a mighty ministry.

Fruit trees need light to grow. In the valley of ‘civilization’ we find that there are idols, ideals and ideas that have often grown to overshadow what the Lord would want as a plantation for Himself.

Just like Moses – we cannot pitch a tent in the Mountain of  the Glory of the Lord and stay there – there is work to be done in the valley. 

I find it too often in churches, especially those run by ‘prophets’ and ‘apostles’, or other silly charismatic titles – that their congregations get a taste of the mountain life and start believing that they have made it, that they are somehow better off than those in the valley below. Growing fat on the bread instead of distributing it freely.

It is important to understand that if you fall into this category you will bear very little fruit for the Kingdom.  

In this current age we find ourselves in we don’t think much about mountains and valleys. I don’t have to climb a mountain to encounter God. The most I need to climb are some stairs. And we climb those stairs often. Some of us even have our own dedicated seats based on how dedicated or important we might be. 

We go to our churches – such beautiful mountains – and we hear from God, and perhaps even enjoy a cup of tea afterwards. We have made it…

But what are we taking out of that meeting – what are we taking back into the streets – the valley’s of our neighborhoods? What light do we bring to the valleys of addiction and unemployment, homelessness and abuse? What radiance? What joy? What love? What hope?

Where are we producing our fruit? When our neighbor is yet to see His glory, is it clear upon your face? Or are we too busy arguing about the karaoke that went a little loud last night? Or a parking space? 

We were called out of darkness into His light – to be transformed, ignited and lit up as torches – to go back into the darkness and make a difference.

Moses went up the mountain to be transformed, ignited and lit up as a torch so that he could go back down and make a difference.

God gives us each a garden to tend – a personal mission field – and one of the responsibilities given to us is to make sure that the garden gets enough light.

Are you helping your garden grow? Are you showing it enough light? Or are you leaving it in the sanctuary, in a box under your reserved seat.

It is time we take our testimonies back into the world.

Prayer: Oh, Lord, let us not be selfish with the grace you have poured out upon us. Let it be our desire to go back to the ‘undesirables’ still stuck in the darkness of our past – carrying your light with us so that they might catch a glimpse of who You are. Let us tend, diligently and ardently, the garden given to us. In Jesus Name. Amen 

 

The Goodness of God

The Goodness of God

by | Apr 26, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

Hearing God’s Voice

“I love your voice
You have led me through the fire
And in darkest night you are close like no other
I’ve known you as a Father
I’ve known you as a Friend
And i have lived in the goodness of God, yeah”

Goodness of God, Bethel

“27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

John 10:27, NIV

How do we learn to hear the voice of the Lord? 

The Good Shepherd cares for His flock – loves His sheep. The sheep trust Him and know His voice just as He knows them.

The Good Father cares for His children – loves them. His children trust Him and know His voice just as He knows them.

Our relationship with Jesus will determine the degree to which we hear and recognize the Voice of the Lord.

Samuel was sleeping in the temple when he hears the Lord call his name. Because there was no relationship yet he could not recognize the voice for what it was and goes to Eli instead.

God is always speaking. He never stops. 

We just need to get tuned in – like those old ‘rabbit-ear’ antennas we had growing up. They would ‘hear’ the signal and convert it into a vision on our TV screens. Sometimes it would take a little bit of effort – tuning your set, adjusting the position of the antenna, maybe even moving around the living room until you could see and hear clearly.

We need to get tuned in to God. We need to learn to hear, recognize, trust and love His voice.

Relationship helps us distinguish between the voice of our Father and the multitude of other voices around us.

Through daily prayer and meditation we get to know the Voice of God.

We learn to recognize His voice by spending time with Him.

I am reminded of Elijah. At one point he finds himself in a cave, hiding from the forces of King Ahab and Jezebel, despairing even unto death.

In 1 Kings 19 we read about how God spoke to Elijah – the Presence of the Lord came by in the form of a mighty rushing wind, an earthquake and even a fire – but the heart of God for Elijah was communicated in a soft and gentle whisper.

And in this whisper we find direction – in this intimate communication from God.

It is time that we draw near to God – near enough to hear the gentle whisper of God. Near enough to hear His heartbeat for us.

Too often we are waiting for the mighty rushing wind and the earthquake – an encounter full of goosebumps and sensation – but God is speaking to you in a much deeper way.

It is in the stillness of the secret place that we will hear Him much clearer.

Elijah tells God: “I have been very zealous for You.” (1 Kings 19:10,14)

“I have been burning with love for You…” 

And there is no indication in his words that he had ever stopped loving God. 

Take 15 minutes and retreat from your surroundings – your situation, your circumstances. Pour out your love for the Lord.

Another thing that Elijah does is bring his fear, insecurity and brokenness to God.

Take 15 minutes out of your day. Pour out your need for His love and mercy. Pour out your love like precious perfume. And then…

Wait… 

And hear what God wants to tell you today. Respond to this whisper with obedience. Act on what God is impressing upon your heart. Let His answer flood your heart and see how He fills your life with His presence.

Prayer: Lord, anoint the ears of my heart that I might hear Your sweet and gentle voice. Open the ears of my heart so that I might hear the whispers of Your love, mercy and grace. Fill me with Your presence. Saturate me with Your peace. I love You Lord. Help me seek You and see You more clearly. Draw me closer. Pull me deeper. And when You speak, Lord, in whichever way You deem fit – give me the wisdom to act and obey so that I might see Your Kingdom come in my life and the lives of those around me. In Jesus Name. Amen.

 

 

Firm Foundation

Firm Foundation

by | Apr 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

Blind faith is not mature faith.

“Christ is my firm foundation
The rock on which I stand
When everything around me is shaken
I’ve never been more glad”

Firm Foundation, Maverick City Worship

“And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.”

Luke 6:48b, NKJV

During His Sermon on the Mount Jesus tells the story of two builders. We see, in the story, that the foolish man built his house on the sand, and it was soon washed away by the rains and the floods. The wise man built it upon the rock, and it stood firm!

Jesus says the following: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

It is easy for us to take this story and make it about the situations we face in life, our trials and tribulations: “when financial storms come, when the floods of family drama and illness come, as long as your house is built on the rock you will be fine…”

And while this is true – Jesus offers us peace, shelter and refuge in times of trouble – that is not what Jesus is saying here.

It is important to note that this story is not a standalone vignette but part of a larger message. In the preceding verses Jesus is imparting a vision of Kingdom life to His followers and disciples. He is imparting the basics of a Christian worldview to His believers.

Immediately preceding the story of the builders Jesus talks about true and false disciples.

“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven…”

“Building on the rock” then is not just about confessing your faith in Jesus – but about making a concerted effort to live your faith in a tangible and practical way – it is essentially about making a concerted effort to live out the vision and worldview of Christ and His Kingdom.

And once again we come back to the question of what we believe.

Too often we are functioning by faith alone – and there is nothing wrong with that – but the mature Christian should learn to employ reason as well. Reason shaped by faith and the faithful study of the Word.

God does not desire a relationship built on only ‘what feels right’. He desires a relationship in which we give Him our all – all of our power, all of our faculties engaged and employed in the love, the adoration and the worship of Him. This includes our minds – not just our hearts.

The building is our concerted effort – and the ‘rock’ in the context of this passage is our worldview – a worldview formed by the teachings and the life of Christ.

This cannot exist without a measure of reason. Reason is our wrestling with the Word, our working out our faith with fear and trembling – our faith shapes the faculties of reason and this then further shapes our faith towards maturity.

Blind faith is not mature faith. Mature faith is faith that has seen. Faith that has wrestled. Faith that has weathered the storm. Mature faith is not blind – rather it is a situation where the believers eyes are wide open and set upon Jesus.

We should strive for understanding. We should strive to go deeper. We should strive to be theologically equipped – and not just as pastors and teachers – but as everyday believers with a mission and the ministry of reconciliation.

Theology – or rather – God-Logic (Theos, God) (Logos, logic) – is for everyone.

We all deserve and should strive to know God better, to understand Him better, to go deeper in our relationship with Him.

A good way to start is to have a look at the courses at https://ailbeseminary.org/ or our online training page at https://ailbe.org.

Start getting equipped – it is not enough to just believe anymore, it is time we learn to understand.

Prayer: Lord, it is so easy for us to come to faith and stagnate. It is easy for us to come to faith and never outgrow our need to be bottle-fed the milk of Your Word. Open the eyes of my heart Lord to discern the call to action in Your Word. Help me become a person who takes action. Not complacent or complicit in the deterioration of our world, but actively working to grow in understanding and my knowledge of You and Your Kingdom. Help me embrace my calling as a minister of reconciliation. Give me a fire that will not be quenched – a hunger for more of You. A hunger and a need to do more for You. To know You better and help others do the same. In Jesus Name. Amen.

Come Emmanuel

Come Emmanuel

by | Apr 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

O come, Adonai, Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,
In ancient times didst give the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.”

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, John Mason Neale

“Seek the Lord while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.”

Isaiah 55:6-7:, NKJV

In this present dispensation of grace it is often easy for us to lose sight of the heart and will of God.

The message often proclaimed from the pulpits of seeker-friendly churches is this: “Jesus loves you just as you are. Don’t be religious church. Grace is what saves us!”

This is only a half truth.

Jesus loves you – but He loves you so much that He offers you the chance to change. A chance for a better life.

The grace of God – the love of God, undeserved – goes hand in hand with the mercy of God: God refraining from pouring out the wrath that we DO deserve.

Shall we then cheapen this great gift of grace by staying as we are?

It seems to me that the modern believer wants the benefits of the Kingdom – deliverance, freedom, healing, peace, prosperity – but what we really need is the Rule and Reign of God.

The love of God is free and without restriction – but relationships have boundaries. Covenants, like contracts, have conditions and clauses.

We are saved by grace, but this love of God poured out is only the beginning.

Jesus came preaching repentance.

This call for repentance is a call to action. Yes, we are saved through faith by grace – but grace without works is dead.

Much of the Psalms and the Prophets is a heartfelt cry for repentance and salvation – and not just individual repentance and restoration – but that of the nation. For us as Christians, having strongholds of the faith around the world, the call is not for the individual nor the nation – but for the nations! The whole world.

Crying out on behalf of the world, come, o come, Emmanuel!

It is time for Christian brothers and sisters to heed this call to action and take up the work of prayer and evangelism.

The church, as a Body and as a movement – as an institution – has failed. We have strayed from the Truth. We have become seeker friendly rather than seeking the lost.

Brothers! Sisters! Let us take up the work of prayer – taking no rest and giving God no rest. Let us pray until we see the light of His salvation breaking through!

Let us endure for our loved ones. Let us endure upon our knees.

And as we pray, let us do so with the knowledge that He inclines His ear to us. He hears us.

Let us pray and seek the Lord while He might be found and urge others to do the same.

Let us pray for and with our loved ones at every opportunity that presents itself.

Let us pray also for ourselves – the Body – that we may be faithful witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ. That He might give us the strength to resist scandal and controversy, to avoid falling into the temptation of false doctrine, and that we might incline our ears to His Holy Spirit working in our lives, through our lives and in the lives of those around us.

Let us, as the Body and as the Bride cry out to our Beloved: Come, o come, Emmanuel!

Let us pray for His Rule and Reign to be established in our churches, in our schools and in our governments yet again – that He might impart to us His righteousness, as He did at Mount Sinai. Let our prayer be for His Dominion, His Authority and His Kingdom to come in our lives. For His face to shine upon us – so that He might have preeminence – the highest praise and the highest place in our lives.

Prayer: Lord, as I take up the work of prayer, give me the words to pray for my loved ones, for my community and for my country. Wherever I might be, Lord, let me be a stronghold of the Faith. Guide me in my quiet time, equip in my solitude so that I might be a faithful witness of Your Kingdom come. Come, o come, Emmanuel – come and establish Your throne in our midst – and let us see revival, reformation and restoration in our lives and the lives of those around us. In the Mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.