GALATIANS 1

11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

THE REVEALED REVELATION

Paul the great apostle to the gentiles, had to defend his apostleship in virtually every epistle, the Holy Spirit urged him to write, as false teachers had crept into the church and sought to bring the gospel into disrepute and disgrace.

The Bible… The written word of God is given by God, it is His love letter to Man.

The gospel is the good news…Amen.

The gospel that Paul preached and that we preach does not come from some far-fetched ideas, it is not man’s words, it is God’s words.

We receive it by the teaching of the teacher, blessed by the Holy Spirit.

He takes Christ and shows it to us.

Christ has been given everything of the Father and now Jesus is giving it all to us.

The gospel is so precious and indeed we should protect it with our lives, as the apostle Paul did.

We can learn vast amounts of information from books, conferences, and sermons.

God uses those methods to teach us, but the best method is to sit at the feet of the master with an open Bible.

When I read my bible every day and I don’t get anything out of it, then I know that something is wrong.
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The Bible is not a collection of stories, but it is a life-changing and life challenging book.

What has God revealed to you from his revelation today?

God bless you
kk

GALATIANS 1

15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace

16 To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:

TWIDDLING OUR THUMBS:
Now I know the subject of election is a sore point with some Christians and I understand some of you will disagree with me.
Scripture clearly teaches election, but it also teaches free will; there are two sides to any coin yes.

Whatever side you are on, let’s work together for the glory of God…Amen (please don’t write to me, disagree but in love please)

Paul says he was separated at birth by God; As Paul, those of us who belong to God are chosen by God.

Let me explain it in the best way I can.

When I married Helen, I chose her and she chose me, but we had our own free will to say yes to each other…Amen.

My main focus is verse 16.

Why Did God choose us?

What is the point of salvation?

God saved us so that He may display to the world the riches of His grace through Christ.

Paul says that Jesus would be revealed in Him and that through Him the gospel would be preached to every nation and every tribe.

Now to fight and argue about things like election may seem justifiable to some, but consider this:

There is a world out there which is dying; we talk of Nero who fiddled whilst Rome burnt to the ground, but are we fiddling with doctrinal issues, whilst the world is dying.

Let’s get over our differences and glorify Christ by declaring His gospel.

An atheist once wrote a letter to Ray Comfort saying these words,

If you believe one bit that thousands every day were falling into an eternal and unreachable fate, you should be running the streets mad with rage at their blindness.

That’s equivalent to standing on a street corner and watching every person that passes you walk blindly directly into the path of a bus and die, yet you stand idly by and do nothing.

You’re just twiddling your thumbs, happy in the knowledge that one day that ‘walk’ signal will shine your way across the road.

Think about it.

Imagine the horrors Hell must have in store if the Bible is true.

You’re just going to allow that to happen and not care about saving anyone but yourself?

Let us spend each and every moment seeking to glorify Christ and reaching the lost…Amen

Time to stop arguing over points of doctrine and start loving each other.

Jesus said, “All men will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.

The world is dying and God is saying to his church…WAKE UP!!!!!

God bless
kk

NUMBERS 13

26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.

27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.

28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.

29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.

32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.

33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

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THE BIGGEST BUT IN THE BIBLE

The word isn’t in the passage. It’s disguised, but can you see it?

At the start of verse 28, we have the word: Nevertheless.

They told them of everything that was good, and there was much that was good, and indeed the good outweighed the bad 10 to 1.

The conversation of these twelve spies would have been interesting. On their way, they were filled with excitement and anticipation, but coming home they had spilt into two distinct camps. Maybe Caleb and Joshua were cold shouldered by the ten? We don’t know.

All twelve spies saw the same things, but they came to two different conclusions. The answer lies in what the Lord said about Caleb in Chapter 14. He had a different spirit. As for Joshua, who the assistant of Moses, surely some of that rubbed off on him.

They said good things about the land they had seen, but there was a catch and that was the “But.” It turned out to be the but of unbelief, the but of failing to believe the promises of God. These people knew what God had promised, they had seen him deal with the Egyptians; a more powerful force than even the Children of Anak and yet they still didn’t believe.

The ten spies saw everything through the eyes of man, but Joshua and Caleb saw everything through the eyes of God.

The ten spies saw the giants in the land.
Joshua and Caleb, saw the power of God?

Whose eyes do you see through?

If you see through man’s eyes, there will always be a BUT.

Remember that saying BUT cost the Children of Israel dearly.

Don’t say But, say like Caleb and Joshua.. let’s do it!!

God bless you,
，

KK

GALATIANS 1

9 As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

 12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

NO OTHER GOSPEL

Paul is reading the riot act to the Galatian church, they have left the gospel and have become trapped in legalism and false teaching.

He sets out his stall here, he states what his calling was and how he has shared the gospel.

He tells the Galatian church that if any person preaches any other gospel that he has preached they should be accursed.. strong words you may think, but it is so important because if you get the gospel wrong, then you get your whole christian life wrong..

So how can we tell the true gospel.. first of all

It does not seek to please men, it seeks to Please God.

This is one of the reasons, we can tell the true gospel and true ministers. Those who were preaching the false gospel always preach Jesus plus something, when in reality , the gospel is Jesus only.

The second reason is that those who preach the gospel are under the Lordship of Christ. They seek to serve Christ, they are not serving their own pockets etc.

The third reason is that the person who preaches it, acknowledges that it doesn’t come from him/her, but comes from God.

Grace is nothing to do with man and everything to do with God.

Paul puts it so beautifully in ! Corinthians 15

Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;

2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures:

This is the true gospel, it doesnt come from man, it is not grace + something else, it is grace alone through faith alone through Christ alone.

God bless you

Keith

BUT .. BUT .. BUT

Luke 9

57 And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.

58 And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

59 And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

60 Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.

61 And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee; but let me first go bid them farewell, which are at home at my house.

62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.

BUT…BUT..BUT

Jesus calls us to radical discipleship, the reasons given by the last two people seem very reasonable, after all aren’t we supposed to respect our parents?

The first man wanted to follow Christ, but Jesus told him that he would lose his comfortable life. When we follow Jesus, we leave our comfort zone. Jesus had no place to lay his head, he had no comfy bed to lie in. He was saying to the first man, you want to follow me, do you? Realise this, if you do follow me, you may have no place to lay your head, earlier in Luke 9, Jesus makes this strong statement.

23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?

Jesus said many times people had to count the cost, are you prepared to count the cost?

The final two said they would follow Jesus, BUT gave reasons, why they couldn’t. The first one said he had to bury his father, was his father dead? If he was dead, then this son, had to stay with the family for one year after his death, he said he would follow, but in his time, he wanted to set the agenda, he wanted to say to Jesus, I will serve you, but in my time. It doesn’t work like that.

Obedience has to be immediate, God sets the agenda.. not us.

The second man made another excuse, he said
but let me first go bid them farewell

He put himself before anything else, it seems he cared about his family, when in fact, he didn’t want to lose his comfort.

Jesus makes it clear that you cant start something and then turn back, you do one thing or another, you either follow Christ or you don’t.

He makes this clear in this passage:

Luke 14

28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?

29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,

30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’

31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?

32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.

33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

Count the cost, Jesus repeats this over and over to the crowds, he lost followers because he said it.

Joshua 24

14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.

15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Jesus says:
If you follow me, you must count the cost, are you prepared to count the cost?

God bless you
keith

The Wow Factor 

“And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on), but stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God…1 Samuel 9:27.”

Chapters 8-10 are the story of the anointing of King Saul, and the Lord has laid this particular verse upon my heart. Before Samuel anointed King Saul, he did one thing. That was to tell Him to stand still so that he could show Him the Word of God.

Before God places us into ministry, He will tell us to do this, because you cannot be in ministry, handling God’s Word, before you know God’s word and its author intimately.

Many Christians are doing much activity. They are busy doing something, but they are not studying and meditating on the Word of God. Even after nearly 50 years of being a Christian, the Word of God gives me things that make me go wow!

Moses before he was sent to Pharaoh, was trained on the backside of the desert. The Apostles spent 40 days being trained by Jesus after his Resurrection and Paul spent time training after his conversion. Note that Samuel says to Saul, “Stand still”. We have to be still before God, so that he can train us. He also says that it will be for a while; God does take us aside for a time, until he feels that we know His Word enough.

God’s Word is a double-edged sword. Let me say this, you do not give a double-edged sword to a child and neither does God give ministry of the Word to people until they are fully mature in Christ.

Let me use a personal example, the Lord told me in 2003 that I would write devotions and articles, and so I started to write, but it was not until he trained me and through people He used to help me and studying His Word, have I come to the level I am at now…which is not all that high…as I am still learning all the time.

The Lord wants his children to stand still and know His word. Are you prepared to do this? The Lord says to people wanting to do ministry of teaching and preaching etc., that they have to be like Mary in Luke 10:38-42 and spend much time at His feet and in his Word. You need to sit at his feet before you can stand up and preach/teach to others.

Jesus spent 33 years on this earth; he spent the majority of these in a carpenter’s shop and only 3 in public ministry. Let us learn from His example. God is the ultimate trainer. He has the ultimate training tool – The Word of God. Sit at his feet and let Him open the book of books to you. You may well be a minister with many degrees, or you may be a babe in Christ, it doesn’t really matter. The Bible is the only book with the WOW factor… Amen. Have you had the wow factor as you HAVE read its pages today?

God bless you,

Keith

DANIEL 4

29 At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon.

30 The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honor of my majesty?

Nebuchadnezzar’s pride

The 4th Chapter of Daniel is one of the greatest examples in scripture of a changed life.

In the verses above, we see an arrogant man, one steeped in pride, walking in his palace, looking at all he had.

Does this remind you of anyone, yes David, walking on his palace roof, probably thinking, I’m ok, no sin, can touch me here, how wrong he was!

In the intervening verses, we see that God deals with this arrogant king, he brings the king of the whole earth at that time and makes him eat grass and act like a dog.

It not only shows God’s power but his mercy too, God could of swatted Nebuchadnezzar out of existence, but he didn’t.

God has and always will have control, man thinks he is in control, but that is not the reality. When we see some leader shouting off and saying how wonderful they are and how much money they have, may they remember what happened to this king and how he was brought to the lowest point in his life.

Let us not be anxious what is happening in the world, what some people are saying about themselves, it is God who is in sovereign control.

AMEN

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ECCLESIASTES 5

2 Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

FAST WORDS OR FEW WORDS

Solomon was full of wisdom, apart from the Lord Jesus, he was the wisest man, who ever lived.

What we are to remember is that God sees and hears everything we say, you mutter under your breath, he hears that, he hears every little bit of gossip people say.

We think the more words, we say the better, we look and think, if I say this or that, I will be recognised. Job’s friends were ok, until they opened their mouths!

Their words did not edify Job, they did not bring Job closer to God.

How many words are you saying?

What words are you saying?

Are they words of encouragement or words of blessing?

Do your words draw people closer to God or drive them further away from him?

Remember God is in the heavens and hears everything, he weighs all our words.

God bless you

DANIEL 4

34 And at the end of the days I Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding returned unto me, and I blessed the most High, and I praised and honored him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation:

35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?

36 At the same time my reason returned unto me; and for the glory of my kingdom, mine honour and brightness returned unto me; and my counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added unto me.

37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.

Nebuchadnezzar’s praise

Bible scholars have differing opinions, but it seems to me, that this man is truly saved and repentant.

He acknowledged his sin and also acknowledged that he was nothing, this king who was so high in his eyes, now had the right view of himself and God.

He realized that God can do and does do whatever he pleases Psalm 115:3

He acknowledged the absolute authority of God over the affairs of men, no one, not even him, could tell the Lord what to do.

The words What doest thou?, are so true. Job in chapters 38-42, was asked by God, who are you to question me?

Do we say What doest thou?, to the Lord.

We are have no right to do say those words, they should never pass our lips.

Not only did he have a repentant heart, he had a praising heart, praise was coming from his lips, where there was pride before, this is what happens when someone acknowledges God as Lord of their life.

Every judgement and decision the Lord makes is right and true, his whole heart, had been turned around.

God rewarded him, not only did he get back his sanity, but his kingdom and influence was increased.

This truly is the story of a saved man.

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LUKE 18

10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.

11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.

13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

14 I tell you; this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

RELIGIOUS OR REPENTANT

So, which one are you?

The pharisee sought to justify himself, he was arrogant and prideful. Everyone thought he was addressing God, but he was in fact addressing himself. You see these people in church every week, they are just a little bit better than the rest, but that’s only their opinion.

The publican was a man who knew what and who he was, he was a sinner and he was aware of his sin. Unlike the pharisee who knew only one thing, his so-called righteousness.

This publican talked to God, but he couldn’t even look up to heaven, but he showed a holy reverence for God, the beating of his breast or his chest was a sign of sorrow and repentance c/f Chapter 23:48.

So, which are you?

Are you a hypocrite or holy?

Are you someone who goes to church twice a week and give their tithes and has a form of religion, but is like a tomb full of dead men’s bones? You have a form of godliness, but you deny the power of God. Do you know Him when you pray or are you talking to yourself?

There are many like this, they may even hold high office in the church. They are filled with self-righteousness and of their own importance. Jesus will say that he never knew them when it comes to judgement day.

How do you become Holy or justified?

You come like the publican, he stood afar off. Remember the prodigal son, when he was a great way off the Father saw him and ran to Him. God sees your heart; he sees the heart that is repentant and he will accept you right where you are.

There must be a real sorrow for sin, there must be an admission that you have sinned before a holy God and that you are guilty before Him.

The publican beat his breast for there was deep repentance and sorrow for his sin. So, who are you like? Are you like the self-righteous religious person who talks to himself or the repentant sinner who talks to God and is justified because he is truly repentant?

God bless you

2 TIMOTHY 1

16 The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:

17 But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me.

18 The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.

THE REFRESHER

In verse 15, Paul says that everyone deserted him, well not everyone.

Here is one person who didn’t.

Paul was in prison, he felt very deserted, after all he had given much of his life to these churches, but no one had come to his aid.

In Acts 23:11, the Lord had stood by him, and Luke in Chapter 4 was the only one left, that is why he asks Timothy to come urgently.

This man although he was a stranger to Rome, sought Paul out. He came to Rome and had no idea how to find Paul. He refreshed Paul, not once but often.

He brought refreshment and encouragement to Paul, maybe he wasn’t highly educated or a great bible scholar, but by his very presence, he made Paul feel better, after he left, Paul felt better.

Let me ask you the following questions:

Do you actively seek out your fellow brothers and sisters? Would you go out of your way to visit them?

Are you ashamed of your fellow believers? Onesiphorus wasn’t, Paul was public enemy No 1, why be associated with him?

This wasn’t a one-off thing; his ministry to Paul was a consistent thing. Maybe he showed Paul hospitality, maybe he gave him lodging, maybe he gave him money, we don’t know.

How often have you sought a believer to refresh and encourage them?
Are you a consistent refresher?

To this man, it was not an option, but it was a lifestyle.

Is it your lifestyle?

God bless you

KK

1 PETER 1

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time

INCORRUPTIBLE INHERITANCE

Have you ever received an inheritance?

It usually comes in the form of money or some gift, but these inheritances are subject to rust and decay, they fade away, you use money once and it is gone.

The inheritance we receive is God’s gift, it is grace and mercy combined, we do not deserve it, we should not expect it, but still God gives it to us.

He through his great mercy has caused us to be born again, literally to be made alive or to be reborn Ephesians 2:1-8.

This living hope is based on facts, it is based on the death and resurrection of Christ, it is not based on myths or legends, it is built on the solid ground of the finished work of Christ and what God’s word says. We can have confidence for the future based on God’s sure word.

We have an inheritance and this is called Salvation, we are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ Romans 8:16-17, all that heaven is, will be ours, to see and have fellowship with the Father and the Son, worshipping them for evermore, this is our inheritance.

During our life here on earth, we get a little taster of this, but the full payment, will be in eternity.

We are kept for the last time by the power of God, but again we have to exercise our faith. We are kept by God’s power as a soldier guards a fortress.

So, we rejoice because one day the inheritance gained by Jesus for us, will be fully realised.

What a glorious day that will be.

YOU CAN COUNT ON IT!

God bless you

kk