p>"floodgates of heaven". See God’s abundance, so different from the Israelites. They had become tight-fisted, concerned that they should have enough for themselves rather than giving to the Lord. As a result, even what they had was destroyed and their hearts were now far from God. Putting ourselves first pushes God away and will always ... Read more

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Many today will have formidable obstacles to overcome, problems to solve and awkward situations to face. The key to success is walking through the day with the Lord - seeking His face, listening for His voice and obeying His word. Then it is that His ... Read more

"God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean". Tradition had led Peter to believe that some were common or unclean. He was the product of his upbringing. Like us all, he had ideas ingrained which would have hindered if not prevented the growth and spread of the gospel. It ... Read more

"as they went, they were cleansed". The ten lepers called out to Jesus for mercy. He answered them and told them what they must do. It did not demand reason but obedience. Lepers went to the priest when they were healed for him to verify this. And these lepers recognised that in Jesus' command to ... Read more

"the daughters of Zelophehad". Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, had five daughters and no sons. As the law of Moses stood at that time there was no provision for daughters benefiting from their father's will. Their brothers were expected to look after them. So these five ladies found themselves disinherited on ... Read more

"bread here in the wilderness". This world is in many ways a wilderness. And when something good begins to grow in the wild terrain of life it is often cut down before it reaches what we call maturity. But Jesus said, 'I am the bread of life' and a true appreciation of the barrenness of ... Read more

"The heart of the righteous weighs its answers". Why? Because a hasty answer can cause much mischief. Words spoken cannot be retracted. We say we withdraw a statement made but we can't: in fact, we contradict it and the listener must decide which he will believe - the original statement or its contradiction. Answers need ... Read more

"I will follow you wherever you go". To the scribe who spoke these words, Jesus answered by telling him that foxes have holes and birds their nests, but He and His followers had nowhere (of their own) to lay their head. Perhaps the scribe was unaware of the hardship and thought that becoming a follower ... Read more

"whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely". We recognise the Bible as the written Word of God conveying to man the great rescue operation that the Lord put in hand to counter the Fall. It is an exercise that is seen to engage the Almighty in the affairs of men throughout the ... Read more

"of this he has given assurance to all men". "Of this" - of the fact that God has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom He has appointed. The Day of Judgment that is needed to put wrongs right and the crooked straight. "He has given" ... Read more

"Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites". Gomer had a history of unfaithfulness, even when Hosea first married her. An adulterous wife is not good for your reputation, especially when you are a prophet of the Lord. But the Lord is not so concerned about reputations. Jesus made that clear in His ministry. God's ... Read more

"he cried with a loud voice". Nothing muted about the cry that woke Lazarus from the sleep of death. No mistaking the command of the One Who said 'I am the resurrection and the life' as He stood in the family cemetery. A loud voice is needed to awaken those who are felled by the ... Read more

"I find no fault in him". There was no fault in Him! The Apostle Peter says the same when describing Jesus as holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners. Yet while being faultless made Jesus unworthy to die, He needed to be faultless and without sin if His life was to atone for the sin ... Read more

"Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to thy name give glory". There is always the temptation to take a little of the glory that should be the Lord's. We can easily feel we have had a part in securing the blessing and benefit experienced. It may be because the temptation is ever ... Read more

"ashamed of me". 'Who would be ashamed of Christ?' we might ask - ashamed of One who went about doing good; whose words and teaching have been the foundation of the great. Be religious if you will, or a church-goer or philanthropist and you will be commended. It is no threat to the hearer. But ... Read more

"stand … still, and see the salvation of the Lord". There are times when everything is done for you, when the matter is completely out of your hands: you just stand still and see it all happen. Those who have never stopped and stood still are likely to have missed the great experience of seeing ... Read more

"I have suffered many things this day in a dream". Was Pilate's wife a devout and spiritual lady, because she had such disturbing dreams? Her name was probably Claudia and tradition made her a proselyte to Judaism. She may have been the Claudia mentioned by Paul in his Second Letter to Timothy. She stands out ... Read more

"being in an agony he prayed more earnestly". Jesus sets an example we should follow. More difficulty calls for more prayer. When things are running smoothly, prayer becomes smooth and easy - a sort of good habit that calls for little energy. It is when faced with mounting problems, with difficulties that will not resolve ... Read more

"And the people stood beholding". The execution of Jesus was in public. God ordained it so. All and sundry gathered to witness the awful scene - soldiers, religious leaders, commoners and men of rank and even the two malefactors whom He predeceased by a few hours. Jesus was atoning for the sins of the whole ... Read more

"they kept watch over him there". We are not told why the soldiers felt it necessary to watch Jesus as he died on the cross. They had done their job, shared the spoils just as they had done many times before. But they specifically sat down so as to watch Jesus as he died. Perhaps ... Read more

"rolled back the stone and sat on it". This is a wonderful moment in the gospel narrative. The rolling back of the stone was not to let Christ out, He had already gone, but to let the women and disciples in. Then having done the job the angel sat on the stone. Just as Christ ... Read more

"spices which they had prepared". God rewards diligence in preparation as much as success in putting to good use. The spices that the women prepared to anoint the body of Jesus illustrate this. Nobody says they wasted their time, though it is most likely the spices were never used for anointing Jesus. Rather we see ... Read more

"walked along with them". In their sadness and despair, the two disciples did not recognise Jesus walking along with them. They must have been pretty downcast to have the best travelling companion and the best Bible study ever, yet not appreciate either! But Jesus stayed with them. He walked along with them, at their pace ... Read more

"torn in two from top to bottom". The veil separating the Holy Place from the Holiest place in the temple was torn, not cut. The same word is used to describe the earthquake that also happened when Christ died. The death of Jesus had a violent impact on man's relationship with God. That which had ... Read more

"I will lift up the cup of salvation". The Psalmist teaches us a true lesson and shows us what we may all do. We can add nothing to the treasury of God for all is His already. When we take the cup of salvation we accept God's bounteous mercy with a thankful heart. This life ... Read more

"why has all this happened to us? ". This was Gideon's question when the angel told him that the Lord was with him. He wanted to know why he needed to thresh his wheat in the winepress because of the invading Midianites. He asked where all the wonders he heard about had gone: why had ... Read more

"Better a little with righteousness than much gain with injustice". So it is not how much you have, but how you came by it. All too often this world's assessors look at the end and ignore the means whereby it was reached. You can reach the top by treading on other people - but the ... Read more

"the Way of Holiness". In his great prophetic vision, Isaiah sees the city of Zion where the redeemed of the Lord will dwell. The main thoroughfare running towards it and through it is the Way of Holiness. All who have repented of their sin and seek to follow the Lord should know what it is ... Read more

"they heard that he was alive". Some of their associates told them, but they could not believe what they heard. Later two others who met Jesus on the road to Emmaus repeated the news but the disciples did not believe. When Thomas was told that Jesus had appeared, he thought the disciples were all hallucinated! ... Read more

"Praise the Lord, O my soul". This phrase found at the end of several psalms comes like the crash of symbols on the final beat of a great anthem. The Psalmist has been picking his way through a harvest-field of blessings. Now he calls on everyone to praise the Lord - the angels, mighty ones ... Read more

"What things". Jesus asked this of the two He joined on the Emmaus Road when they asked Him if He knew what had been happening in Jerusalem over the last few days. He knew the answer, of course, but He let them tell him the details. Jesus still asks His disciples 'What things?' What things ... Read more

"that you may heal him of his leprosy". Naaman and his entourage arrived at the King of Israel with the request for healing on the strength of a servant girl's word taken captive from Israel some years earlier. The king was completely at a loss what to do. He had the prophet Elisha in his ... Read more

"He is going ahead of you". If the empty tomb bewildered the visiting disciples, the message of the angel resurrected them. Mark the steps in the revelation that He gave: Don't be affrighted - Jesus who was crucified is risen. He is no longer to be found in a tomb. You may see the place ... Read more

"the lion and the adder: the young lion and the dragon". This personification of our enemy can represent three kinds of trouble. The lion coming at us with a bound: we can see him coming. And we can see many of our troubles coming. The adder or cobra comes on us silently and unexpectedly until ... Read more

"Put this fellow in the prison". Micaiah the prophet was not the last man to be interned at the whim of a ruling despot. He did not prophesy favourably according to the king's desire and lost his freedom as a result. But putting Micaiah in prison did not silence the voice of truth, or King ... Read more

"What I have written I have written". Pilate meant that the wording of the superscription above the cross of Jesus was not going to be changed. How little did he realise the import of his words! The enemies of the cross, urged on by the devil himself, would have had these words removed. They would ... Read more