“Heaven and earth will pass away but My words will never pass away” Luke 21:33
“Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3
“Every Scripture is God-breathed, inspired by God, and profitable for instruction, reproof, conviction of sin, for correction of error and discipline in obedience, for training in righteousness, that is, in holy living, in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose and action.” 2 Timothy 3:16 (Amplified)
A Word on the Word: When a house is built, the most important feature is a strong foundation. While wood floors, beautiful finish work and distinctive furniture all make the house appear attractive, these will do little should a natural disaster strike, such as an earthquake. Without a firm foundation, the house will utterly collapse.
In the Christian life, God has given us the power of His Word as the foundation to our faith. While exciting services, dynamic worship, conferences and even miraculous experiences are always nice, these will do little in sustaining a consistent life in Christ. When trials come, it is then a firm spiritual foundation carries us through. Such a foundation is established through knowing and living the Word of God.
May all of us fall in love with the wonder of God’s Word, or perhaps for some, fall in love with the Word of God all over again. May it become a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path (Ps 119:105). And may you enter into one of the greatest promises found anywhere in Scripture, where we are told what happens when we delight ourselves in God’s Word.
“You will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in due season. Its leaf does not wither and in whatever you do, you will prosper.” Psalm 1:3,4
Our Church and the Word: One of the greatest and enduring strengths of Little Church is the verse by verse instruction given every week, both from the Old and New Testaments, and the focus of the Word in Morning Prayer, the Men’s Study and Deeper Walk Study, Alison and Robin’s Bible Study and a number of other studies. Our children and youth ministries embrace the Word of God as Pastors Sam and Toby are so committed to it. This is a major reason why they are so fruitful.
“Take the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.” Ephesians 6:17
From Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “Do not try and make the Bible relevant. It’s relevance is axiomatic. Do not defend God’s Word, but testify to it. Trust the Word. It is a ship loaded to the very limits of its capacity.”
And From Me. “You will always live under one of two authorities. It will either be God’s authority as revealed in His Word, or your own.”
Prayer Focus This Week – It’s always important to pray for others so I’d like us to pray for India this week, a country that has quickly morphed from a friendly nation to Christianity to outright hostility. Cases of Christian persecution and violence have increased 57 percent in the first two months of 2019. I have good friends, Sean And Paige Whiting, who oversee a wonderful children’s ministry in the south of India and I’d like us to pray for protection over all they facilitate. And I have other friends who have told me India is asking many Christian ministries that have been there for decades to leave. An ultra-radical Hindu is now president, and has approved of the increased persecution. When one part of Christ’s Body suffers, we all suffer. So let us all hold up India this week.
Thank you for praying,
Pastor Jay