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May
6
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Reading 1 - Deuteronomy 23
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Peter Cresswell
Peter Cresswell
Peter Forbes
Peter Forbes
Peter Forbes
"If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand him over to his master. Let him live among you wherever he likes and in whatever town he chooses. Do not oppress him." (Deuteronomy 23 v 15 - 16)
Israel were slaves in Egypt. They could remember what it was like to be slaves and so were able to have mercy on other slaves just as God had had mercy on them. And like Israel, we have all been slaves too. Paul describes us as having been slaves to sin, whose only reward was to look forward to death. But God has freed us from our slavery to sin through Jesus Christ and we are no longer oppressed by it. Instead we can look forward to the gift of God - eternal life.
Now, when a sinner comes to us for refuge, we, having already been freed from sin, should give them shelter. No slave is too bound to be free and neither is a sinner too sinful to be forgiven. So let us make sure that we, and our churches, are a refuge for the sinner, a place where they will find support - not oppression, freedom - not bondage, as they change their way of life to serve a new master, Jesus Christ.
Robert Prins
Reading 2 - Song of Solomon 3
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Peter Cresswell
Peter Cresswell
Peter Forbes
Consider these three links with Psalm 45. [taken from the list on Study papers Site]
| 1:2 | Love | Psalm 45 [title] |
| 3:8 | Sword on [his] thigh | Psalm 45:3 |
| 3:11 | Gladness | Psalm 45:7 |
The bridegroom
is seeking for his bride And has done battle to purchase her. Christ has
battled with sin and overcome - he is now waiting for the marriage supper
of the lamb.
Peter
Forbes
Peter Forbes
Barbara Strizand sings a song entitled, "You Don't Bring Me Flowers." The first few lines of the song go like this,
"You don't bring me flowers,
You don't sing me love songs,
You don't talk to me any more..."
When did we last bring our husband or wife flowers? When did we last sing them a love song? Or tell them how much we love them? Or write a note describing what we love about our husband or wife? The words we read in the Song of Songs that exchange between the lover and his beloved are not just flattery. They are the product of a heart felt love and joy for their spouse, a deep genuine commitment and appreciation for their character and beauty.
To those of us brought up in western culture the words we read can almost seem embarrassing, but God does not call us to always sit in our comfort zones. So let us be radical today, step out of our comfort zone to give our husband or wife the love they need so badly from us.
Strengthen your marriage today. Show your genuine love and appreciation in flowers, in song, in words.
"May you rejoice in the wife of your youth, ...may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be captivated by her love." (Proverbs 5 v 19)
Robert Prins
Reading 3 - Acts 16 & 17
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Peter Cresswell
16 v.17 Consider the use of the phrase most high God in the rest of Scripture Genesis 14:18,19,20,22 Psalm 78:56 Daniel 3:26 5:18,21 Mark 5:7 Acts 16:17 Hebrews 7:1 A review of these passages will help us to understand why the phrase is used here in Acts.
17
v.6 The phrase
'rulers of the city' - 4173
only occurs here but archaeological finds at Thessalonica show that the
right word is used to describe the rulers. As the disciples were at Thessalonica
at this time we have an undersigned coincidence which helps
to prove the authenticity of the Acts of the Apostles.
Peter Forbes
Chapter 16 begins what is traditionally called the second missionary journey. I suppose it is taken that missionaries start out from Jerusalem and that is why this is the second journey as Paul has just been in Jerusalem but in reality Paul did not take a break from the work. From his conversion to his imprisonment was one long preaching mission. When he was imprisoned he turned to the only tool available to him - letter writing.
17:7
The charge made by the Jews - that {Paul preached another king - is just
like the charge levelled against Jesus by the Jews. So these Jews, like
the ones in Jerusalem, were compromised. They thought of themselves as
citizens of this world rather than strangers and pilgrims.
Peter Forbes
16 - Whilst Paul and Silas may well have wondered why the had heeded the 'man from Macedonia' (:9) when they were in prison at Philippi (:23) but these events were the way in which a whole house obeyed the faith.
17:1-2
'they' indicates that Luke, the writer of Acts, was not with Paul and
Silas at this time.
Peter Forbes
What do you do when you find yourself in prison? The story of Paul and Silas in prison never ceases to amaze me. In the dark, dungy, smelly prison, with their backs bleeding and in pain from their beating, their feet fastened in stocks, in the darkest part of the night, they sat praying and singing hymns to God. They were songs sung loud so that the other prisoners and even the jailer could hear. Normally if we found ourselves in that sort of situation we would get depressed, think angry thoughts, or yell and scream. But Paul and Silas chose to praise God instead, and, as a result of their praise, God released them from their bonds.
We may never have been in prison like Paul and Silas and we may never end up in one, but we all have things in our lives that imprison us - worry, sin, habits, rules or circumstances. Do we get depressed about them, grumble and criticize or complain? No! Let us follow the example of Paul and Silas and choose to pray and sing praise. Maybe God will release your bonds too.
Robert Prins