Fifth Sunday.

Once again we have a fifth Sunday in the month so, as is now my custom, I wish to share some information about the persecuted church, and also to promote one of my books - remembering that all royalties go to Release International in support of persecuted disciples of Jesus in many countries around the world.

The land-locked west African country of Burkina Faso is bordered by Mali and Niger to its north, and the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin to its south. It is one of the poorest countries in the world. Known as the Republic of Upper Volta until the mid-1980s, Burkina Faso was formerly part of French West Africa, gaining its independence in 1960. French is still the language of government and the business world.

Since gaining its independence the country has been subject to on-going insecurity, with several military coups (including two in 2022) and has been prone to repeated droughts and famine. The vast majority of its people rely on subsistence agriculture. Cotton is a major cash crop.

Pastor Emmanuel*, who serves in Burkina Faso, has seen church members killed and has been forced to flee, in the face of attacks from Islamist militant groups.Serving the Lord has not been easy, particularly when persecution has meant moving from one place to another. In 2024 his village was attacked. ‘During the attack, four of our church members were killed,’ he said. ‘Many of us survived, because we managed to hide in the corn field. They targeted mostly men, but all of us were afraid.’

Emmanuel has benefited from a project supported by Release International, which seeks to help displaced pastors in Burkina Faso. He said, 'Today my heart rejoices and I thank my Saviour for what He has done for me and my family. Also, I want to thank the supporters, who are in a different part of the world, for their act of mercy. We have already received funds for food and housing for two months, together with aid for our [ministry].' ‘You have remembered us; may God remember you in every moment of your life. May God bless you and all you do for him.’

* Name changed for obvious reasons.

"I warmly commend this excellent piece of work from the pen of Brian Ross on the New Testament Letters of John.  There are three characteristics of the work which are admirable. First, it is expository in its intention: the author's concern is to explore what the text of Scripture teaches.  Secondly, it is applicatory in its form: that is, the truth is applied to Christian life and behaviour.  And finally, it possesses clarity in its structure.  I would expect it to have a wide uptake throughout the Christian church." 

Rev. Eric Alexander, M.A., B.D.

Formerly minister of St George’s-Tron Parish Church, Glasgow.

Building for the storms.

My late father spent the early part of his adult working life in the building trade.  Accordingly, as a young boy, I spent a lot of my Saturdays, and my school holidays, around building sites (‘Health & Safety’ hadn’t yet been invented!).

Perhaps that’s why I appreciate this parable of Jesus.  Once again, it is a well-known one, and it concerns two builders.  You’ll find it in Matt.7.

One of these builders had been listening to his Techy Ed teacher.  When he decided to build a house, he made sure that he had good solid foundations.  He dug right down until he hit bedrock.  Then, and only then, did he begin to erect his house.

The other man was what might be called, nowadays, a bit of a cowboy.  He knew the shortcuts; he knew where he could get materials at the ‘right’ price – albeit of an inferior quality; he was more interested in ease and speed than in durability.

From the outside, it is true, each house looked as good as the other.  Then the storms came.  Violent storms.  The wind howled; the rain lashed against the houses; the nearby river overflowed its banks. 

One house stood – taking all that the elements could throw at it; the other collapsed.  You don’t need me to tell you which was which!

Life can be like that – your life, and mine.  Each of us, whether or not we realise it, is in the process of building – building a life.  Some of us have been at it for years; some are only digging for the foundations.  However, whether a building of bricks and mortar, or a life, we need a good foundation.  Only if we have such a foundation will we be able to withstand the storms of life – those times when it seems that the whole world is against us; when we quickly reach the end of our tether; when there is no light visible at the end of the tunnel.

Disciples of that same Jesus Who first told that story claim that, in Him, they have a solid foundation.  Being His follower doesn’t mean that we avoid difficulty.  Indeed, for those in more than fifty countries around the world, declaring one’s discipleship is paramount to asking for trouble – persecution, imprisonment, torture, death.  However, although He never promised that His followers would spend their lives lying on a bed of roses, He did promise that He would be with them – and that makes all the difference!

Who is at your side when the storms of life rage?  I commend Jesus to you.

How important is the Bible?!

In my study, I have a large number of copies of the Bible, in many versions and translations. The vast majority of them were gifts, which is one reason why I retain them. However, in all honesty, whilst I sometimes find it helpful to check out a verse, or passage, in something other than my favoured RSV (Revised Standard Version), there are a number of those Bibles that are very rarely used.

So, if I were to receive yet another gifted Bible, I would be grateful; I would say "Thank you" to the giver; and then I would add it to the long line of Bibles that stretches only inches short of the width of my study desk (all 5' of it!).

What a difference if I were a Chinese disciple of Jesus like those in the video-clip below. They are students, receiving their first ever copy of the Bible. When, as you will see, they kiss it, it is not in any form of bibliolatry (worship f the book as an object), but because of what it represents to them.

The video is from International Christian Concern, one of a number of Christian Ministries that support those who are persecuted for their Christian faith, in more than 50 countries in the world today.  

Width, or Depth?

It had not been my intention to send out another post for January. However, an e-mail from Jeff King,  President of International Christian Concern, that arrived a little earlier, caused me to change my mind!

In the letter he writes: "I met with a group of pastors in China who had been imprisoned for a decade or longer during the peak of the Cultural Revolution. We sat together in a private room at the back of a restaurant, and I spent the following hours absorbing their thoughts. 

I was struck and convicted by what they said. They told me that “the Church would be a mile wide and an inch deep” without persecution. Their main concern wasn’t that the Church would experience more persecution: it was that the church would lack depth without it. 

Today, there are millions of believers in China. There is a connection between faith and suffering, between pain and growth. There is a lesson in there for you and me: to hold on tight to God through the storms of this life." 

It was that comment that, without persecution, "the Church would be a mile wide and an inch deep" that caught my eye. It was not a new thought to me. Indeed, about 35 years ago, my wife and I hosted a Nigerian church leader for a week. Thomas was what might be described as "larger than life"! He was in Scotland to attend a Christian International Conference, for which I had been the organiser, and we had many interesting conversations. In one of them, I commented that the southern part of his home country was a Christian area. His comment was to the effect that it might be considered to be such, but that, having no problems, it had no depth! Certainly, the early church knew the effect of persecution. It is the early Church Father, Tertullian, who is usually regarded as having made the statement that: "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church." - meaning that as people saw disciples of Jesus die for their faith, they realised that this faith must be very important, and decided to follow it, and the Saviour Whom it proclaimed.

However, as I read those words in Jeff King's letter, I found myself thinking, not as much about the persecuted church (which, of course, is something in which I have had a deep interest for some fifty years. Indeed, all royalties from the sale of my books - see the head of the blog - go directly to Release International, the first organisation that I discovered that supports persecuted disciples of Jesus. Please consider purchasing one, or more - and telling others about them!) as about my own Christian walk!

It is so easy to become involved in many different aspects of Christian service. There is no shortage of opportunities and, it often seems, so few willing to take them! Yet is "busy-ness" the sign of great faith? Or is it just a means of ensuring that we don't have to delve too deeply into the written Word of God; or spend too much time in prayer? Is it the case, for some of us, that we have "width", but no "depth"?

It's interesting, is it not, that while the Lord Jesus was constantly helping others, and teaching His disciples, and all who would listen to His words, He also took time to be with the Father, and in prayer. If He, the very Son of God, needed that depth in His earthly life, how much more do I?

I am not one for "New year resolutions" (and the end of January is probably a bit late, in any case!), but may each of us endeavour, in the coming eleven months, to deepen our Christian lives. And, if you are not yet a disciple of the Lord Jesus, perhaps this is the time for you to give serious consideration to what God, in the Lord Jesus, has done for you - and to respond with the love, and obedience, of your own heart. It will be for your eternal good, and His eternal glory.

I.H.S.

The letters of the heading are well-known to many. They are found on pulpit-falls (the piece of material that hangs down in front of the lectern in most church building pulpits) in many church buildings - certainly in those of the Presbyterian persuasion in which I was reared, and in which I ministered for many years. They stand for three Latin words: "Iesous Hominum Salvator" that translate as "Jesus, Saviour of Mankind" - the basic message of the Gospel.

I was reminded of the letters when I watched the "Big Hymn Sing, 2020" from the Scots Church in Melbourne, Australia, recorded in the church building. There was the pulpit; and there was the pulpit-fall. By the way, for those who appreciate some of the "old" Christian hymns, it is worth watching - at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3l66Qz2ScIQ&t=1688s

When I was much younger, I realised that I could 'play with' those letters. Indeed, they could be formed in three different ways, each of which teaches us another important truth for the true disciple of the Lord Jesus. The first combination is H.I.S. That's pretty obvious! If I am a disciple of Jesus, then I belong to Him - I am HIS! So Paul, writing to the early believers in the great metropolis of Rome, refers to them as "... who are called to belong to Jesus Christ;" (Rom.1:6; emphasis added). There is something good about 'belonging'. That is, basically, why people join all sorts of groups and organisations - from cycling clubs to choirs; from political parties to painting classes; from sporting groups to stamp collectors. However, the best group to which anyone can belong is the family of Almighty God - those who have been born again through the work of God the Holy Spirit in their lives, as they have come, in repentance and faith, and accepted the salvation that was gained for them by the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus, at Calvary.

A second combination follows on from the previous one. If I am H.I.S., then I am S.I.H. - Safe In Him. In His "High Priestly Prayer", recorded in John 17, (and, by the way, the true "Lord's Prayer"!) the Lord Jesus refers to His disciples with these words: "While I was with them, I kept them in Thy name, which Thou hast given me; I have guarded them, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled." (John 17:12-13; emphasis added). Again, in Paul's letter to the early Roman believers, he pens these wonderful words: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, 'For thy sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom 8:35-39; emphasis added). If I am truly His, then I am safe in Him.

The final combination returns to I.H.S. but, this time, I see "In His Service". Again, going back many years, we young believers were often taught that we are "saved to serve" and, of course, the One Whom we serve is the Lord Jesus Himself. This was the 'boast' of those first disciples of Jesus. Indeed, the word usually translated as "servant" is, more correctly, "slave". So Paul introduces himself to the early believers in Rome as "Paul, a slave of Jesus the Christ" (Rom.1:1); James commences his letter in a similar manner: "James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus, the Christ." (James 1:1); Peter is "Simon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus, the Christ." (II Peter 1:1).

Jesus, Himself, spoke these words: "I am among you as One Who serves." (Lk.22:27) - and serving Him is the greatest privilege that mortal man may enjoy. Of course, if I am truly HIS, and am assured that I am Safe In Him, then it will be my great desire to be In His Service!

"Iesous Hominum Salvator"; "Jesus, Saviour of Mankind". May He be your Saviour, your Lord, and your King. It will be for your eternal good, and to His eternal glory.

When life is tough!

As I continue my readings in the Psalms, during my personal devotions, I arrived, this morning, at Psalm 88. Unlike many psalms that begin with pain and perplexity, but end on a note of triumph, this psalm ends (in my RSV!) with the word "darkness". There is no relief; no improvement; no divine intervention. It could well have been titled "A Psalm for the hopeless"!

However, that very fact makes this an important psalm! As we read through the words of the psalmist, we may remember that not every life has a happy ending - but that that does not mean that the Lord has forsaken us! I think of individuals who, like Heman (the writer of this psalm) spend almost their whole lives in pain of one kind or another (see v.15). I think of my brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus who live in one of those 50+ countries in which to be one of His followers is to invite persecution - some forms of which are beyond my imagination. 

We may also take heart from the fact that this apparently God-forsaken author seems to have been one of the pioneers of the singing guilds that were set up by David, and to which we owe the psalms of  the Sons of Korah - one of the richest veins in the Psalter. Heman may have been under a great burden; he may have been totally despondent; but his life was far from pointless! In the most difficult of situations; in the most depressing of moments; in the most painful of lives; Almighty God can bring about the bearing of much fruit.

There is also a lesson, in this psalm, for those of us who do not suffer in the ways in which others do. We must be careful that we do try to persuade the sufferer that their situation of the result of Father's anger against them! This was the problem that was displayed by some of the 'friends' of another character from the pages of the Tanakh (the "Old" Testament), Job. They were quite convinced that the tragedies that had befallen that godly man were the result of some unconfessed sin. They were wrong!

Heman's inspired words - yes, even words like these are inspired by God the Holy Spirit - remind us that no life need be in vain. Our eternal destiny does not depend on what we are considered to have achieved - or to have failed to achieve! - in this life. It is by the grace of God that I am saved, not due to my works, even the best of which are as a polluted garment (see Is.64:6).

Tomorrow's newspaper!

Well, the 'moratorium' is over - much sooner than I had expected. However, the previous post was viewed by a considerably larger number than I had seen for some time, while not a great number had indicated that they were reading the last couple of posts on Facebook! So, the next plan is to publish here, on the blog (AussieJohn will be pleased!) and to also publish on Facebook - but not quite the full post! This is because only blogs with a high number of 'hits' are quoted when someone does a search on any of the 'key words' in the blog! So, please keep accessing the blog (non-commercial - I do not receive any pecuniary benefit!), and encourage others to do the same!

I have often heard, and used, the expression that "The Bible is more up-to-date than tomorrow's newspaper". It came to mind, this morning, as I continued in my daily readings in the Book of Psalms, and read Psalm 12. The Psalm begins with a plea to YHWH for help - and the reason why that help is being sought!

"Help, Lord; for there is no longer any that is godly; for the faithful have vanished from among the sons of men. Every one utters lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak." (vs.1-2; emphasis added).

Now remember, that David, the psalmist-king of Israel, penned those words about 3,000 years ago! Yet, as I read them, I thought of what I had read in yesterday's newspaper - and what I fully expected to read in today's (and tomorrow's!).

My mind raced! I recalled George Orwell's prediction of "newspeak" in his well-known (if not widely read!) novel, 'Nineteen Eighty-four'! Words are important, but vocabulary is constantly changing. When I was a boy, the "bin-men" came around, every week, and emptied the dustbin that my dad had left out at the front of the house. However, the 'bin-man' eventually became the "domestic refuse disposal operative'!

Today, we are used to the expression "fake news" - that, with the assistance of the internet, can span the globe more quickly than I can type this post! Sadly, because education systems have been taken over (it would appear!) by what would be described as "left-leaning" ideologies and their proponents, and dumbed-down to mediocrity, so many do not even question the information, let alone seek to analyse it! I read, this morning, in Warren Wiersbe's comments on this Psalm, that "... in military jargon, 'retreat' is 'back-loading of augmentation personnel'. If, while you're 'back-loading', you get shot, the bullet hole is a 'ballistically induced aperture in the subcutaneous environment'. (Be Worshipful, p.52). That made me think of Gus Hedges, the Chief Executive in "Drop the Dead Donkey" - a UK television satirical sit-com, set in a fictional TV news-room, that was broadcast throughout most of the 1990s - who’s full of appalling management speak. Twenty years later, the situation has, I would contend, deteriorated even further! David wrote about his own situation and circumstances - but wrote, more truly, of the future than he could possibly have realised!

Lies, flattery, 'double-speak' - how much more contemporary could one be? David continues:

"May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, those who say, 'With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is our master?'" (vs.3-4). I thought of the majority of politicians! Great boasts; great promises; great oratory! It would appear that many people are, at last, catching on! However, the fact remains that a political manifesto is only as good as the number of votes it garners. 

You may know the story of the man who died, and was informed that he could check out both heaven and hell, before making his choice as to where he would spend eternity. (It is only a story!!!). He was taken in an elevator, first of all to hell. He got out, and was astonished by the beauty of the vista that met him. People were so happy; he saw many of his old friends; there was a marquee with tables laden with the finest, and most exotic, of foods; there was a bar with a banner above it announcing that "All drinks are free"! It certainly wasn't the hell that he had expected from what he had heard preached on the rare occasion on which he had attended a worship service in a Christian church building!

Next, he was taken up, in the elevator, to heaven. He stepped out into a similar scene, but quickly realised that he didn't actually recognise anyone who was there! He made his decision. "I choose hell", he announced to the angel who had been accompanying him. "You're quite certain?" asked the angel. "You do realise that, once you have made your choice, you cannot change your mind!" "No," said the man, "I won't want to change my mind. I mean, this place looks good, but I saw so many of my friends in hell - and it's much nicer than I had been led to expect!"

He was sent down - alone this time - in the elevator to hell. As the doors opened, he was met by a scene of total devastation. Those friends whom he had recognised, and who had looked so happy and contented, were now looking haggard, and obviously in agony. The devil approached him, to welcome him to an eternity in this terrible place. "I don't understand", said the man. When I checked before, this place was wonderful. It had everything that I could want. What has happened?" "Ah," said the devil, "last time we were campaigning. Now you have voted!"

It's only a fictional story - but it does have a clear message!

David ends his Psalm "On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the sons of men." (v.8). As I look around, I see so much of this. In the margin of the copy of the Bible that I use in my devotions, I have noted Is.5:20 - "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!" Is that not what we see today. The murder of an unborn child in its mother's womb is, according to some, a "human right"! It may be argued that it is for the mother - but hardly for the child! We see criminals receiving three good meals each day; access to educational courses; access to the internet; calls for mobile 'phones to be issued; etc. At the same time, some of our elderly are have to exist on one of the smallest pensions in western Europe, and military veterans are sleeping on the streets. 

However, there is hope! David was not a man to allow despair to totally overcome him. Read these words from the middle of the Psalm: "'Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,

I will now arise,' says the Lord; 'I will place him in the safety for which he longs.' The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. Do thou, O Lord, protect us, guard us ever from this generation." (vs.5-7).

I love that word "safety". It comes from the same root as the name Yeshua - the Hebrew from which we get (via the Greek!), the Name that is above every name, the name Jesus. In the margin I have written this, and added: "The only true safety is in Jesus".

However difficult the times; however low mankind sinks in the mire of his own making; however much we may despair as we see our society and culture crumble before our eyes; we may have hope! God is still on the throne. He is still the Sovereign Lord of the universe. He still controls the affairs of mankind, however much some may think that their Soros-like fortunes mean that they are in charge. Read Psalm 2 for an overview of what is really happening!

Those who are in the Christ; those who are true disciples of Jesus; are assured of His presence in every situation and circumstance. Most of those who read these words will be living relatively comfortable lives. Hundreds of thousands live is situations of severe persecution. But, to each and all, the promise is true: "'I will never fail you nor forsake you.' Hence we can confidently say, 'The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid; what can man do to me?'" (Heb 13:5-6).

May that be your personal experience, today, and every day.

Revelation - Part 2

It is highly unlikely that I will be able to publish a post every day until I reach the end of the Book of the Revelation of Jesus, or even until September 24th, but here goes with a second offering!

This morning I read the remainder of what we refer to as the first chapter. Of course, the original was not written in chapters and verses - that was a much later innovation to make it easier for a specific phrase, sentence, or paragraph, to be looked up.

Turning to the margin of my study Bible (a wide-margined one) I have noted, beside vs.12-16:

"Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands One like a Son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden girdle round His breast; His head and His hair were white as white wool, white as snow; His eyes were like a flame of fire, His feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters; in His right hand He held seven stars, from His mouth issued a sharp two-edged sword, and His face was like the sun shining in full strength."

that this is a word-picture of "The majesty of the King of kings, and Lord of lords. His garments symbolise a Judge-King." He is, indeed, the risen, glorified, exalted Son of God Who has the authority to judge all of mankind - including His own people (see I Peter 4:17). 

The Revelation is, of course, full of symbolism - which is why many today find it difficult to understand, and why so many interpret it to suit their own ideas. In v.20, the risen Saviour refers to "... the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, ..." However, as I have noted in the margin, the word 'mystery' "... is not used in the modern sense of 'something that cannot be understood' (the very opposite of 'revelation'!), but as something that is waiting to be revealed and which will, when correctly explained, convey understanding."

Of course, as I pointed out, yesterday, it was initially sent out to a Church that was undergoing great persecution from the Roman authorities. The late John Stott comments: "The placing of this vision of Christ right at the beginning of the book is significant. This book is an unveiling or revealing. The Christians were a pitiably small remnant, persecuted by mighty foes. To all outward appearance their situation was hopeless. But it is only as Christ is seen for what He really is that anything else can be seen in its true perspective. So for these persecuted ones it was important that first of all the glory and the majesty of the risen Lord be brought out." 

You and I may not be undergoing the persecution that believers at the end of the first, and beginning of the second, centuries suffered - and that so many, in some fifty countries around the world, are suffering today - but we, too, need to be constantly reminded of Who Jesus is. He is not merely a great man; an excellent teacher; a good example. He is all of that - but He is also God the Son, the second Persona (not a typo - see my book, "Great Words of the Faith", the chapter on the Trinity) of the Godhead; the Saviour Who voluntarily gave His life that your sins, and mine, might be forgiven.

Of course, that wonderful free gift of salvation, whilst available to all, is only realised by those who come to Him, in repentance and faith, and who seek to live their lives for Him. Have you done that? If not, why not?! It would be the most momentous decision of your life - and the only one, the results of which stretch into eternity.

So - what IS a "Christian"?

It was a headline in an online newspaper that first caught my eye: "A third of French ISIS fighters were born CHRISTIAN and converted to Islam, expert reveals." (emphasis in the original).

My first thought was, of course, that no-one is "born a Christian".  That, as Jesus pointed out very clearly to Nicodemus, requires that one be "born again"! (See John 3).  My second thought, coming from a Christian perspective, was that no-one is "converted" to Islam. If anything, one would be PERverted to that particular ideology.

So, what is a Christian?  Well, I am not the only preacher to have preached on that question - and on more than one occasion!  I could give a list of criteria that would define a Christian, in Biblical terms - and anything else is, at best, suspect!  My idea was to share some of the points that I have made, in the past, in this post.

Then I read today's 'Daily Article' by Dr Jim Denison - whom I have quoted before in this blog. In it, he refers to a couple who appear on American television.  He states that "Their HGTV show, Fixer Upper, is one of the most popular shows on the network. They are smart, funny, and entertaining. And the good they do in helping couples renovate houses into homes is terrific." We are informed, however, that this couple are "Christians" - and when Jim Denison uses the term, he knows exactly what he means!  He tells us that a reporter from a particular publication asked this couple where they stood on the issue of same-gender "marriage" (my quotation marks), and whether or not they would ever feature a same-gender couple on their show.    

The reporter then turned her attention to the Fellowship of which this couple are a part, carefully editing a sermon by the pastor that he preached on the Sunday after the USoA Supreme Court had declared that same-gender "marriage" was to be legal in all fifty States of the Union. (Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts are all officially Commonwealths, but are counted as States for all administrative purposes!).

Now you may be wondering what has all of this to do with the question "What is a Christian?"? Well, Jim Denison makes the point that "Christians facing persecution is an escalating theme today." and, while he readily concedes that "... it is unfair to compare believers facing execution and/or confiscation of their churches and property with believers being ridiculed for their biblical beliefs regarding marriage.", he also concludes that "What the two kinds of persecution have in common is that both intend to pressure Christians to change their convictions."

That, as I read it, gave me a clue to the answer to my question. What is a Christian? A Christian is one who puts Jesus first - every time, in every situation, in every place. I recalled those young Egyptian Coptic Christians, murdered on a Libyan beach simply because they were faithful followers of Jesus. It was reported that they had the opportunity to deny Jesus, and recite the shahadah (the basic Islamic creed). Each one refused, even although they knew that it might be the means of saving their lives. I think of a Pakistani Christian named Asia, who has now spent about seven years in prison because she had the temerity to offer a cup of water to a fellow-worker in the fields, on a hot day. That fellow-worker was a Muslim - and was so offended by this, that Asia was reported under the "Blasphemy Laws" of Pakistan, and sentenced to death! She has been given many opportunities to become a Muslim, and be set free - but she has steadfastly refused to do so.

I wonder where you, and I, if we claim to be disciples of Jesus, stand in our faithfulness to Him? The anonymous (human) author of the Letter to Hebrew disciples of Jesus writes: "Consider Him Who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Heb 12:3-4; emphasis added). I wonder if, with the knife-blade of a fanatic already at my throat, I would be as faithful as those young Copts.  I wonder if, after about seven years in prison, in solitary confinement for my own safety, I would still be faithful to the Lord Jesus. I trust that I would - and believe that, if I were to be in any such situation, I would indeed receive the grace that I needed to remember to "... take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." (Eph 6:13).

Let us never forget those who, on a daily basis, are indeed called upon to show that they are truly His. Let us pray that we, who enjoy so much relative ease in the "west", will be likewise faithful if, and when, real persecution comes to us!

The fourth anchor!

In Acts 27:29, we read these words: "... fearing that we might run on the rocks, they let out four anchors from the stern, and prayed for day to come."
Over the past few posts, I have been suggesting that certain 'anchors' are essential if we are to survive the storms that life so often sends our way.   So far, I have suggested hope - hope that is in the Lord Jesus, the Christ; duty - duty that is steadfastly carried out; and prayer - prayer that is fervent and believing.

In this post,  want to suggest that the fourth 'anchor' which is so very necessary if we are to voyage safely, should be love.  I wonder, is there any anchor in the world that is quite like it?  Of course, I am not referring to the sentimental 'love' of the Mills & Boon novel; or the natural love of, e.g., a parent for a child; and certainly not the 'love' that is actually no more than lust.  What I am thinking about is the love that is described in the Greek language word: agape.  This is the love that has been described as "the minimum of emotion, and the maximum of evaluation." (Rev George B Duncan).

It was this love - extended towards you and me - that brought the Lord Jesus to this sinful Earth.  It was this love - extended towards you and me - that took Him to Calvary, there to suffer what has been described as the most cruel form of the execution of the death penalty that the twisted mind of man had yet devised. 

And those of us who claim to be His disciples are bidden to love in like manner.  We are called to love one another: "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love (agape) for one another." (John 13:35).  Indeed, we are called to go much further than even that!  We are called to love our enemies - those who hate us!  "...  Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ..." (Matt 5:44).

The anchor of Hope - hope that is founded in a living relationship with the Lord Jesus, the Christ;
The anchor of Duty - duty that is faithfully, and steadfastly, carried out;
The anchor of Prayer - prayer that is fervent and believing;
The anchor of Love - 'agape' love, that is modelled on the infinite love of God.

Four anchors.  Do you have them on board as you travel through on that voyage that we call life?  May none of us find, when the storms of life are raging, that our anchors have grown rusty with neglect or, even worse, that we are at sea with no anchors aboard!

The point of tension!

Yesterday, my wife and I drove down, via Manchester, to Maidstone, Kent, where we spent the night with dear friends prior to crossing the Channel (La Manche!) in the very early hours of tomorrow (Saturday), leaving at 0030!.

As we drove down through Scotland, and northern England, I was struck by the number of wind turbines that were standing there, in the calm, almost totally still, weather conditions, with not even a hint of movement from their massive, propellor-like, vanes.  I have always thought of these monstrosities as a blot on so much of the landscape, but now they were showing themselves to be absolutely useless.  They were not generating a single watt of electricity.  They were merely taking up space!

Of course, I am aware that, as the wind strength increases, then the vanes begin to turn, increasingly quickly (although, if the wind is too strong, then the turbines must be turned off, lest the vanes spin off and cause much damage!) and that they would, then, be generating power at a substantial rate.  However, with no force coming against them, they just stood there - achieving nothing!

I suddenly found myself thinking of so many "church members"in the affluent western church.  Looking important, as they make their way to their particular meeting-place each Sunday (or less often!), they are achieving nothing!  Their idea of the Christian faith is built upon social requirements, rather than upon a living relationship with the Creator, through the Son, in the strength of the Spirit.

Then I thought of those in what we refer to, simply, as "the persecuted church".  They know what it is to face up to challenge, to hardship, to adversity.  They have experienced, and continue to experience, the harsh wind of secular humanism blowing hard against them.  And the result?  They grow!  It is in such difficult circumstances that their trust in the Lord Jesus is purified - as gold in the refiner's furnace.

The last thing that I want, for myself or for those who are nearest and dearest to me, is the same kind of physical persecution that is suffered by my brothers and sisters, in Christ Jesus, in North Korea; in northern Nigeria; in Iraq; in Iran; in a total of more than fifty countries around the world.  However, such persecution could well come!  If it does, I predict two things - (a) there will be droves of people who will leave the church (whatever the denomination) as quickly as they possibly can.  They will be those who like to look good, and who are content to stand up in the calm, but who have no personal relationship with the Lord, and no true allegiance to Him; (b) the church will grow!  This is the experience in countries in which disciples of Jesus are persecuted.  As someone has said: "A faith worth dying for is a faith worth living"!

A minister with whom I worked, a long time ago, had a background in engineering.  He was constantly reminding me that "the point of tension is the point of growth."  I have never been absolutely sure what that means in engineering terms, but I do know that is has been shown to be true in terms of church growth.   If, and when, real persecution comes to "the west", I trust that those who follow this blog (and its writer!) will be found among those who are, if necessary, "faithful unto death". (Rev.2:10).

Blessed Assurance

The hymn, written in 1873 by Fanny J. Crosby, is possibly one of the best-loved of Christian songs.  Certainly, its use at countless Billy Graham Crusades, as large choirs raised their voices under the direction of Cliff Barrows, has ensured its general popularity.  However, it is just a song!

What makes the words of that song special is their being made true in the life of an individual.  Many years ago, a young girl named Maggie worked, 'downstairs', in a large house in the city of Edinburgh.  Sadly, she contracted an incurable illness and realised that she would not have long to live.  Her employers were kind, and kept her on 'light duties', but she knew that, with her sins unforgiven (it was an age when people were aware of their sinfulness!), she was not bound for heaven.

One day, the household staff were informed that some important guests were to be addressed by a certain John Thompson - a former fisherman who now made it his business to witness to the saving power of the Lord Jesus.  Maggie was very happy to hear this news for, she reasoned, she would probably learn the way of salvation from this plain-spoken street preacher.  However, when all had arrived, the servants were dismissed, and the door was shut.

Lingering in the hallway, and allowing her colleagues to go on, Maggie returned to the door and pressed her ear against the keyhole.  The down-to-earth evangelist was sharing the Good News that sinners may, on repentance, freely receive eternal life through faith in Jesus.  The aristocratic audience, however, was little moved, and he saw no positive reaction to his message.

Some months later, John Thompson was asked to visit a young woman who was on her deathbed.  It was Maggie.  She repeated some of his own words : "If anyone puts their own name in the place of the 'whosoever' of John 3:16, they will be saved."  She continued, "The audience in that room, that day, wasn't interested, but I was. I asked the Lord to make me His child, and I felt the burden of sin roll from my heart.  Now I can die with the blessed assurance that heaven lies ahead, because God's 'whosoever' took me in.  His peace and joy now flood my soul.  I thought that you would want to know that I was saved at the keyhole!"

Do you have that same blessed assurance that was Maggie's experience - and the experience of countless millions down through the ages.  Follow her example.  Put your name into John 3:16.  It won't mean that life is suddenly rosy - ask those in the countries in which to confess the Lord Jesus as Saviour and Lord is to invite harassment, persecution, and even death.   But you may be assured of His presence with you, in every situation and circumstance - even if you "walk through the valley of death".  You can face it, as Maggie did, with peace and with joy. 

What God offers by promise, we must take by faith.

What's in the glass?

Most of us, I suspect, are familiar with the comparison between the optimist and the pessimist that involves referring to a glass tumbler as being either half-full (in the case of the optimist), or half-empty (in the case of the pessimist).  Same glass; same amount of liquid; totally different perception.

However, a glass full of liquid may be used to make an additional point.  As we remembered, yesterday, the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings, I was reminded of the story (which I believe to be true) of a nurse in a service-men's hospital who complained to a doctor that she had been treated rudely by some of the patients.  "Thank God for that!", he exclaimed.  "What do you mean?" Chaplain inquired the nurse, in astonishment.   "Well," explained the Chaplain, "if you are holding a glass, and someone knocks against you, all that can spill out is what is already inside.  When people misjudge us, and persecute us, we soon reveal what is in our hearts.  If we are Christ-filled, and governed by God the Holy Spirit, we will manifest the gentleness and meekness of our Saviour.  In fact, father God may even allow us to be pushed around, and mistreated, in order that unsaved people may be astonished at His grace, as we overflow with love and forbearance."

Sometimes. we too meet various trials and difficulties, but James, writing under the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit, tell us to count them "... all joy ..." (1:2).  Knowing that God perfectly directs our lives, we should praise Him, rather than complain.  Seeming difficulties then become opportunities; the testing of our faith produces Godly patience; and, as Godly patience has its full effect, we will "... be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (James 1:3-4).  Paul writes that "... we have blessed those who cursed us.  We have been patient with those who injured us.  We have replied quietly when evil things have been said about us." (I Cor.4:12-13).

It is said of John Bunyan - who knew his share of suffering for the Gospel of Jesus the Christ - that he actually revelled in cruel mockings, and severe trials, because they gave him opportunity to show his love for Jesus, and to display God's grace.

In the church that is persecuted in some fifty countries today - persecuted in ways that we who are privileged to live in places that know a relative freedom of belief, cannot even begin to comprehend - the request that comes to us is not that we pray for release from persecution, but that we pray that these dear brothers and sisters in Christ will bear a good witness to their persecutors!

Are you irritated, grumpy, and full of complaints when the going gets rough?  Or do you welcome these experiences as a challenge, and count them "... all joy ..."?   Of course, if we have Jesus on the inside, we can stand any kind of trouble on the outside, because He has promised, "I will never fail you nor forsake you." (Heb 13:5).

So, what's in your glass, as you read this post?

Down-sizing - or ditching?!

Okay, so we are in the flat.  We have only a few boxes left to unpack - well, only a few that are really urgent!  Problem is, we (Note from my wife: "Change that 'we' to 'I'!!) still have a lot of stuff in the house that we have now left (simply because it has not yet been sold!).

We have also encountered a couple of difficulties with the flat, the worst of which is that the boiler has broken down and is, apparently, beyond repair.  The solicitors are now 'fighting' over who should be responsible for the cost of replacement.  Still, we take comfort from the assurance that not even any of this has caught the Lord by surprise (read the chapter on 'Predestination' in my book Great Words of the Faith).

I have also realised that it is something of an illustration of the Christian life!  When a person submits to Jesus, and accepts Him as No.1 in their life, they are 'born again'.  That's a Biblical expression that means that they have started a completely new life.  It's Jesus' own words: "Jesus replied, 'I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.'" (John 3:3).

I suggest that it's a bit like moving house.  When we make that submission, we have to get rid of a lot of old 'baggage'.  The writer of the great Letter to Hebrew disciples of Jesus encourages us to "... lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." (Heb 12:1-2).

However, we don't merely need to clear out the old, sinful, baggage that we have carried around, perhaps for many years.  We also have to be aware that,contrary to what even some preachers claim, following Jesus is not guaranteed to be a 'bed of roses'.  Indeed, the Lord constantly made that clear to those who heard Him speak.  "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matt 5:11-12; emphasis added).  Perhaps we in the so-called 'developed' world have much too easy a life as those who claim to be followers of the Way!  In some fifty countries around the world, that is certainly not the case! (see some of the links below).  I sometimes wonder what would happen in, for example, the U.K. if we were suddenly to be faced with the persecution that is common-place in those countries!  I suspect that many would be withdrawing from 'church membership' - perhaps even some of those who were preaching on the previous week!  By the way, please do not make the mistake of thinking that such a thing would not happen here!  Watch the trends!

Down-sizing, and dealing with difficulties.  Part and parcel of moving house - and part and parcel of the new life, in Christ, to which all are called, even if so many reject, or ignore, that call!

Egypt – Political developments, but continued persecution.

Political developments in Egypt have raised hopes for the future of the Christian community. The committee tasked with re-writing the Egyptian constitution has voted in favour of articles that would grant religious freedom to all citizens. It also adopted a transitional article cancelling the existing requirement that Christians must obtain a special presidential permit before building or renovating a church.

These positive moves come as Egypt’s Christians continue to suffer at the hands of Islamists. For example, on 1st November a group of Islamists marched on a church in Cairo, shouting anti-Christian slogans, immediately after leaving Friday prayers at a nearby mosque. The attackers tore down a banner in front of the building and daubed the façade with graffiti insulting Christians.

The Christian community has also been beset by a spike in kidnappings since demonstrations by Islamic hardliners were broken up on 14th August. One Christian man, Hany Sedhom, endured a horrific ordeal in late September. His captors dragged him out of his car, slashed his face with a knife, hit him on the head with a rifle butt and drove him into the desert. For 48 hours he was beaten, threatened and denied food and clean water. But Hany remained steadfast; he said, “… every step of the way, every moment of pain, I could feel God there with me, telling me, ‘I’m going to save you.’”

Let those of us who also claim to be disciples of Jesus give thanks for Hany’s faith under pressure, which is typical of the trusting and non-retaliatory response of Egypt’s Christians to their recent persecutions.

Give thanks too, for the planned moves towards full religious freedom. The draft of the new Egyptian constitution is due to be completed at the end of November and will then be put to a referendum.

Pray that the final version will guarantee true freedom to Egyptian believers, and relieve them of crippling restrictions on their ministry and mission.

Is this the thin end of the wedge?

Rev Josh Williamson, who was arrested in Perth last Wednesday, was arrested again on Saturday (21st Sept.) for "breach of the peace".  What had this minister of the Gospel done?  Was he roaming around the town centre accosting passers-by?  Was he drunk and disorderly (which would actually have been a specific, chargeable, offence)?  Was he emptying the content of rubbish bins all over the street?

The answer to all of the above, and to anything else that might be considered to be even mildly illegal, is a clear, and resounding, "No!"  What Josh Williamson had done was to proclaim the Gospel truth that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners! (see I Tim.1:15).

He was to be held in custody until Monday (23rd Sept.) but, thankfully, was released at 9.30pm on Saturday evening after having being held, in the custody cells, for more than five hours.

The whole incident was recorded on camera, and Josh also made an audio recording, on his 'phone, of the trip to the police station in the police car.

You can, here, watch the full recording of his arrest (with subtitles). Police begin talking to Josh at 6mins 52secs.


His MP3 player has been kept as crown evidence and the Procurator Fiscal (the public prosecutor) will review the evidence.



Is this the shape of things to come in the UK?  If it is, then one thing is certain - the church will be weeded out! We may still be a long way away from the persecution experienced by our brothers and sisters in Christ, in Pakistan; in North Korea; in parts of China; in Afghanistan; and in a total of about fifty countries around the world.  However, this type of what is, at the very least, harassment may well be the thin edge of a very thick wedge that is being pushed, with increasing force, into British society.

May those of us who are true followers of the Galilean Carpenter be able to echo the words of the Old Testament leader who shared His Name; "... if you be unwilling to serve YHWH, 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." (Joshua 24:15; emphasis added).

Personal Testimony.

"God is working His purpose out, as year succeeds to year."  So wrote A.C.Ainger, in 1894.  I have no doubt at all that his words were, and are, completely true.  One of the 'bench-marks' of God's plans and purposes is the nation of Israel.  They are still the Chosen People, and the inheritors of the covenants with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (inter al).  Those of us who are under the new covenant of grace need to remember that, as Paul states in his letter to the first believers in the city of Rome, we are but wild shoots grafted on to the branch. (11:17-24).


I find it interesting, indeed more than interesting, that my Inbox is currently receiving an unusually large amount of information about Israel, and the Jewish nation. The latest arrived earlier today.  It's longer than my usual posts as it is the personal testimony of Simon Deng, once a Sudanese slave. He is addressing the Durban III Conference, held in New York, under the auspices of the United Nations. 
This marked the 10th anniversary of Durban I at the same time and place as the 10^th anniversary of September 11, 2001. Durban I, the platform for violent, pro-terrorist, and anti-Semitic rhetoric that included such speakers as Yasser Arafat and Fidel Castro, ended just three days before 9/11, and produced the infamous Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (DDPA), which charged Israel with racism but named no other state in the world! Durban II, held in Geneva in April 2009, was headlined by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who saw the occasion as ideal for issuing another denial of the Holocaust and an endorsement of genocide against the Jewish state. Timing Durban III for the annual opening of the General Assembly of the U.N. was meant to guarantee the extensive involvement of presidents and prime ministers, most of whom eluded the  organisers of Durban I and II.

And so, Mr Deng's speech (I urge you to persevere to the end):

"I want to thank the organizers of this conference, The Perils of Global Intolerance. It is a great honour for me and it is a privilege really to be among today's distinguished speakers.

I came here as a friend of the State of Israel and the Jewish people. I came to protest this Durban conference which is based on a set of lies. It is organized by nations who are themselves are guilty of the worst kind of oppression.

It will not help the victims of racism. It will only isolate and target the Jewish state. It is a tool of the enemies of Israel .

The UN has itself become a tool against Israel . For over 50 years, 82 percent of the UN General Assembly emergency meetings have been about condemning one state - Israel . Hitler couldn't have been made happier!

The Durban Conference is an outrage. All decent people will know that.

But friends, I come here today with a radical idea. I come to tell you that there are peoples who suffer from the UN's anti-Israelism even more than the Israelis. I belong to one of those people.

Please hear me out. By exaggerating Palestinian suffering, and by blaming the Jews for it, the UN has muffled the cries of those who suffer on a far larger scale.

 For over fifty years the indigenous black population of Sudan -- Christians and Muslims alike --- have been the victims of the brutal, racist Arab Muslim regimes in Khartoum .

In South Sudan , my homeland, about 4 million innocent men, women and children were slaughtered from 1955 to 2005.  Seven million were ethnically cleansed and they became the largest refugee group since World War II.

The UN is concerned about the so-called Palestinian refugees. They dedicated a separate agency for them, and they are treated with a special privilege.

Meanwhile, my people, ethnically cleansed, murdered and enslaved, are relatively ignored. The UN refuses to tell the world the truth about the real causes of Sudan's conflicts. Who knows really what is happening in Darfur? It is not a "tribal conflict."

It is a conflict rooted in Arab colonialism well known in north Africa. In Darfur, a region in the Western Sudan , everybody is Muslim. Everybody is Muslim because the Arabs invaded the North of Africa and converted the indigenous people to Islam. In the eyes of the Islamists in Khartoum, the Darfuris are not Muslim enough. And the Darfuris do not want to be Arabised.

They love their own African languages and dress and customs. The Arab response is genocide! But nobody at the UN tells the truth about Darfur .

In the Nuba Mountains, another region of Sudan, genocide is taking place as I speak. The Islamist regime in Khartoum is targeting the black Africans - Muslims and Christians. Nobody at the UN has told the truth about the Nuba Mountains .

Do you hear the UN condemn Arab racism against blacks?

What you find on the pages of the New York Times, or in the record of the UN condemnations is about Israeli crimes and Palestinian suffering.

My people have been driven off the front pages because of the exaggerations about Palestinian suffering. What Israel does is portrayed as a Western sin. But the truth is that the real sin happens when the West abandons us: the victims of Arab/Islamic apartheid.

Chattel slavery was practised for centuries in Sudan . It was revived as a tool of war in the early 90s.

Khartoum declared jihad against my people and this legitimised taking slaves as war booty. Arab militias were sent to destroy Southern villages and were encouraged to take African women and children as slaves. We believe that up to 200,000 were kidnapped, brought to the North and sold into slavery. I am a living proof of this crime against humanity!

I don't like talking about my experience as a slave, but I do it because it is important for the world to know that slavery exists even today.

I was only nine years old when an Arab neighbour named Abdullahi tricked me into following him to a boat. The boat wound up in Northern Sudan where he gave me as a gift to his family. For three and a half years I was their slave going through something that no child should ever go through: brutal beatings and humiliations; working around the clock; sleeping on the ground with animals; eating the family's left-overs. During those three years I was unable to say the word "no". All I could say was “yes,” “yes,” “yes.”

The United Nations knew about the enslavement of South Sudanese by the Arabs. Their own staff reported it. It took UNICEF – under pressure from the Jewish-led American Anti-Slavery Group -- sixteen years to acknowledge what was happening. I want to publicly thank my friend Dr. Charles Jacobs for leading the anti-slavery fight.

But the Sudanese government and the Arab League pressured UNICEF, and UNICEF backtracked, and started to criticize those who worked to liberate Sudanese slaves. In 1998, Dr. Gaspar Biro, the courageous UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Sudan who reported on slavery, resigned in protest of the UN's actions.

My friends, today, tens of thousands of black South Sudanese still serve their masters in the North and the UN is silent about that. It would offend the OIC and the Arab League. As a former slave and a victim of the worst sort of racism, allow me to explain why I think calling Israel a racist state is absolutely absurd and immoral.

I have been to Israel five times visiting the Sudanese refugees. Let me tell you how they ended up there. These are Sudanese who fled Arab racism, hoping to find shelter in Egypt . They were wrong. When Egyptian security forces slaughtered twenty six black refugees in Cairo who were protesting Egyptian racism, the Sudanese realized that the Arab racism is the same in Khartoum or Cairo . They needed shelter and they found it in Israel. Dodging the bullets of the Egyptian border patrols and walking for very long distances, the refugees' only hope was to reach Israel's side of the fence, where they knew they would be safe.

Black Muslims from Darfur chose Israel above all the other Arab-Muslim states of the area. Do you know what this means!!!?? And the Arabs say Israel is racist!!!?

In Israel, black Sudanese, Christian and Muslim were welcomed and treated like human beings. Just go and ask them, like I have done. They told me that compared to the situation in Egypt, Israel is "heaven."

Is Israel a racist state? To my people - the people who know racism - the answer is absolutely not. Israel is a state of people who are the colours of the rainbow. Jews themselves come in all colours, even black. I met with Ethiopian Jews in Israel . Beautiful black Jews.

So, yes … I came here today to tell you that the people who suffer most from the UN anti-Israel policy are not the Israelis but all those people who the UN ignores in order to tell its big lie against Israel: we, the victims of Arab/Muslim abuse; women, ethnic minorities, religious minorities, homosexuals, in the Arab/Muslim world. These are the biggest victims of UN Israel hatred.

Look at the situation of the Copts in Egypt, the Christians in Iraq, and Nigeria, and Iran, the Hindus and Bahais who suffer from Islamic oppression. The Sikhs. We -- a rainbow coalition of victims and targets of Jihadis -- all suffer. We are ignored, we are abandoned; so that the big lie against the Jews can go forward.

In 2005, I visited one of the refugee camps in South Sudan. I met a twelve year old girl who told me about her dream. In a dream she wanted to go to school to become a doctor. And then, she wanted to visit Israel. I was shocked. How could this refugee girl who spent most of her life in the North know about Israel ? When I asked why she wanted to visit Israel she said: "This is our people."  I was never able to find an answer to my question.

On January 9 of 2011 South Sudan became an independent state. For South Sudanese, that means continuation of oppression, brutalization, demonisation, Islamisation, Arabisation and enslavement.

In a similar manner, the Arabs continue denying Jews their right for sovereignty in their homeland and the Durban III conference continues denying Israel's legitimacy.

As a friend of Israel, I bring you the news that my President, the President of the Republic of South Sudan, Salva Kiir -- publicly stated that the South Sudan Embassy in Israel will be built--- not in Tel Aviv, but in Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the Jewish people. I also want to assure you that my own new nation, and all of its peoples, will oppose racist forums like the Durban III. We will oppose it by simply continuing to tell the truth! Our truth!

My Jewish friends taught me something that I now want to say with you.

AM YISROEL CHAI !

The people of Israel lives!

Thank you."

"God is working His purpose out, and the time is drawing near."

Please feel free to share this on social media sites, or to your own e-mail contacts.
sh’alu shalom yerushalayim.   (Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.)

Death in Ethiopia.

Yesterday's reference to the famine in Ethiopia, in the mid-80s, in which many people died, leads me to share about a death that occurred, in that country, much more recently.  When I returned from our latest trip to France, the mail that awaited me included a regular update from Open Doors - one of the organisations that we support in its work amongst those disciples of Jesus who suffer great persecution because of their faith in Him.  This is just one such situation:

Lalisa Lergesa had only been married for six months when her husband was killed. A 30-year-old teacher, church planter, and pastor, Debela Mergesa was hacked to death by three Muslim extremists.

The church he had planted had grown into a strong, independent congregation.  Many villagers in the region had come to Christ. However, Debela's 'success' soon attracted opposition, and numerous death threats.

On 1 October 2012, Debela was going to the village.  Before he left his wife he told her, "We need to remain faithful in the face of threats against our faith."  A few hours later, he was dead - a martyr to his faith.

The suspects have been arrested but, for Lalisa, the pain and the grief are still obvious, and her psychological wounds are still raw.  "She is mourning, day and night." said her father-in-law. "I lost my son, but I am scared that I am also going to lose my daughter-in-law as a result of this grief.  Please pray for her."

Lalisa and her late husband were from a small town in Oromia, a region in western Ethiopia.  There was a time when this region had the second largest Christian population in the country, but a former regional state president resettled the area with thousands of Islamic families from eastern Ethiopia, resulting in the region becoming a Muslim-majority area.  It was the arrival of majority Islam that started the opposition that is experienced by Christian churches - especially those that are involved in outreach and evangelism.

These are the realities for so many disciples of Jesus in the world today.  If you would like to know more, and find out how you may best offer support, please use the links to some of the relevant organisations, that may be accessed by scrolling down this page, and clicking on one of the names in the right-hand-side column. 

Marriage - the fight continues!

Another brief video message - letting us know of some of the realities that occur when marriage is redefined!  It's worth taking the less than two minutes to view!

So where were the Christians?

Bombings across Pakistan killed more than one hundred and fifteen people yesterday, including eighty-one in an attack on a snooker hall in the troubled south-western city of Quetta, in one of the country's bloodiest days in recent years. Some of those who went to help victims of an alleged suicide-bomber were, themselves killed as a car-bomb exploded.

On the same day, the co-founder of the Kurdish PKK separatist movement and two other female activists were found dead in Paris on Thursday in a suspected assassination that has dealt a blow to "historic" peace talks between the movement and the Turkish government. 

Last month, a twenty-three-year-old student was gang-raped on a Delhi bus, and died from the horrific injuries she sustained in the attack - an attack in which her male companion was also badly beaten.

Each of these incidents, involving Muslims and Hindus, have been widely reported in the British media, and there can be no decent person who is not appalled at such wanton, and destructive, behaviour by other human beings who seem to be intent on delivering death and destruction, or on satisfying their own physical lust, regardless of the cost to their victims.

However, I must have missed the reports in the British media concerning Nigeria where at least twelve Christians were killed in Christmas Eve church attacks in northern Nigeria, and fifteen others were murdered in their sleep on Dec.28th.  Boko Haram (Islamist) militants are suspected in both cases. On Christmas Eve, gunmen opened fire during a time of prayer at the Church of Christ in Nations in Jiri village, Yobe province, killing five worshippers and the pastor. The attackers also set the church on fire, and several other Christians were seriously injured. On the same night, a deacon and five other Christians were killed at the First Baptist Church in Maiduguri, Borno state. Four days later, attackers invaded the homes of Christians in Musari, outside Maiduguri, and slit the throats of fifteen Christians during the early morning hours. A number of Christians had moved to the Musari area to get away from the violence in Maiduguri. This is the third consecutive year that Christians in the north have been violently attacked during the Christmas season. Understandably, church buildings in northern Nigeria were nearly empty on Christmas Day.  

So where, in the British media, were the reports of these, and other, atrocities?  Could it be that, in a country with such a rich Christian heritage, everyone else is important, but that Christians are not?

Perhaps editors of newspapers, and of television and radio news, and current affairs, programmes would be willing to check out what is happening to people of all belief-systems, rather than apparently discriminate against some!

PS  Apologies if this is displaying in upper-case letters only.  This is not the case as I type but is in the preview!  Any expert advice, as a comment, will be gratefully received!