Isaiah 46:10

ROADBLOCK

(February 05, 2024) Dr Jim McClure challenges…

I have been reflecting lately on the unexpected journey my life has taken over the years and I would never have guessed the direction it would take. It truly has been an amazing journey of discovery on roads that have been generally unplanned.  

Life can be compared to a journey. Sometimes the road resembles a journey down a 6-lane motorway and sometimes it is more like travelling down an unsealed, pot-holed lane.

In my last article, A Road Untravelled, we considered the account of the miraculous crossing of the Jordan river by the Israelites who were leaving their wilderness wandering of 40 years to begin the challenge of a new life in Canaan.

Of course, their journey did not end when they entered Canaan – they had many other roads ahead of them as they settled in, such as this one… 

Shortly after they had entered the Promised Land, they encountered their first roadblock in the form of the city of Jericho.

Considered to be one of the oldest cities in the world, it was rich in resources and its location was strategically important as it controlled the routes between north, south, east and west. Jericho was also one of the world’s first walled cities.  And what walls they were!

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GIFT OF THE PRINCE OF PEACE!

(December 08, 2023) Angeline Selvakumari shares good points…

Ever since I was a child, Christmas has always held a special place in my heart. It brings indescribable joy. When I was young, we didn’t have enough money to buy new clothes or gifts, or to decorate the house with fancy colored paper or lights. We lived in a small one-bedroom house with limited food, but… my parents always found ways to make our childhood beautiful and meaningful.

My brother and I are forever grateful for their efforts. It was an amazing time! Visiting grandparents, meeting cousins, going to church early in the morning with sleepy eyes, eagerly waiting to eat a delicious lunch with the whole family gathered around, playing games, and even the occasional sibling squabble – all these things made those days truly beautiful.

Even now, every year, the scent of candles, aroma of cookies, twinkling decorative lights, and the chilly wind, along with heartwarming carols, bring back great memories.

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BEGINNING, MIDDLE AND END

(September 12, 2023) Dr Jim McClure shares an encouraging truth… 

While the Bible is a library of 66 books of a variety of styles –  stories, history poetry, songs and letters – they all unite to form one ‘big picture’ that has a beginning, a middle and an end. 

Paul made a reference to this big picture when he wrote, ‘He (God) made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment  to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ’ (Ephesians 1:9-10).

The Bible reveals that God has a plan to bring all things to a conclusion according to His will. Nothing happens in the world that takes Him by surprise even when it may appear that everything is spinning out of control.  Before He created the universe, God knew exactly what was going to happen on earth and He knows precisely how everything is going to end.  

He has never abandoned the world and always get involved at exactly the right time! Paul again mentioned one of those ‘right time intervention’ in when he wrote,  ‘When the time had fully come, God sent His Son’ (Galatians 4:4).  While it may appear to us that our world is stumbling towards irrecoverable disaster, the biblical account, from Genesis to Revelation, reveals that things have not spun out of God’s control and that God has not, and never will, abandon us.

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THE ‘BIG QUESTION’

(October 11, 2021) Dr Jim McClure, noted theologian, shares in-depth on what can be a distracting issue…

Here is a topic that has often distracted Christians and divided home Bible study groups – Did God select in advance those who would be saved or is the exercise of our free will to accept Jesus as our Saviour the deciding factor?  How many fruitless hours have been wasted in argument that has often been dogmatic, hostile and divisive!

The ‘Big Question’ which often stirs people is this: Is our salvation determined by God’s decision or by ours? The problem is finding an unambiguous and unequivocal answer because there is an apparent conflict between the biblical concepts of God’s sovereignty and human free will. Does God decide in advance who will be saved and who will be lost? 

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This is a massive theological issue that has been addressed in multiple books by many profound theologians so I admit that my comments here are most inadequate.  However I hope that they may be of some help.

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WE CAN MAKE A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE

(October 22, 2019) Dr George Forbes, missionary statesman, brings an encouragement from his heart as he shares some personal memories…   

So often we hear great challenges from missionaries and pastors calling for Christians to make a difference for Jesus in this darkened world and to help build the kingdom of God. But, sadly, many of us belittle ourselves, thinking how could we make a difference?

Let me share something personal about myself, recalling some of ‘my story and journey’ so as to encourage readers who feel inadequate – or are wondering what God wants of them, what can they offer…

More than fifty years ago God revealed to me that we all can make a world of difference. Back then I was a new convert and knew little of God’s word and will. But… I can still remember clearly the moment after an inspiring service at a Christmas Christian camp when a man of faith laid his hands on me and prophesied that I could make a world of difference.

Me? Me? I had never been out of Australia!

But then, as his prophecy was concluding, I saw a vision of hundreds of thousands of people from multiplied nations around the world. Kevin Conner, who prophesied over me, finished with the words: ‘You will go to the nations, where God will use you for his glory.’

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