Within Limits

Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.—2 Corinthians 12:8-9

When you put your faith in Jesus Christ, a sign is effectively hung around your neck that says, "Under new management." You now belong to Jesus Christ, and He does not operate on a timeshare program. Isn't that nice to know? He doesn't say, "Okay, now I have Greg for six months, and the devil can have him for the next six months." That is not what happens. When we put our faith in Christ, He comes in and is the sole resident in our hearts and lives.

Although a Christian cannot be demon-possessed, the devil can affect a Christian outwardly. For instance, demons can tempt and oppress a Christian. The apostle Paul wrote, "And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure" (2 Corinthians 12:7). The word "buffet" means to hit in the face. So Paul was essentially saying, "Yes, I have come under some demon attack. But here is the good news: God will never give you more than you can handle."

The Bible tells us in James 2:19, "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!" Of course, just because you believe something is true doesn't mean you have committed yourself to it. Obviously, demons are in rebellion against God.

Paul's oppression was allowed by God and orchestrated by Satan. So God may allow the devil to tempt you or harass you in some way. But remember, He won't give you more than you can take. The only thing that will stop the devil is the power of Jesus Christ. He is our only protection. He is the one we need.

Finding a Refuge

Joshua 20

The law of supply-and-demand is something we face every day. Because there are those who need, there must also be those who provide. There are employers and employees. There are counselors and counselees. There are teachers and teachees (I couldn't resist).

But it breaks down when it comes to refugees. There aren't enough "refugers" to meet the demand.

Back in the days when the Hebrews settled in Canaan, they set up cities of refuge. People who were in danger—even those guilty of wrongdoing—could escape to one of these six cities and find personal relief and refreshment.

Don't misunderstand. These weren't sleazy dumping grounds for hardened criminals. These were territories dedicated to the restoration of those who had made mistakes. People who had blown it could flee to one of these places of refuge and not have those inside throw rocks at them.

Today, we have lots of places to meet and sing. To pray. To hear talks from big wooden pulpits. To watch fine things happen. Yes, even to participate occasionally in the action. But where is the place of refuge for those whose lives have gotten soiled in the streets?

More often than we want to admit, we're bad Samaritans. We're notorious for not knowing what to do with our wounded. Getting in there and cleaning up those ugly wounds and changing bloody bandages and taking the time to listen and encourage, well . . . let's be practical, we're not running a hospital around here.

That makes good sense until you or I need emergency care. Like when you discover your husband is a practicing homosexual. Or your unmarried daughter is pregnant and isn't listening to you. Or your parent is an alcoholic. Or you get dumped in jail for shoplifting. Or you blew it financially. Or you lost your job and it's your own fault. Or your wife is having an affair. Or your dad or mom or mate or child is dying of cancer.

Thankfully, in the church today, there are a few lights to help the hurting find their way back. There are dozens and dozens of small groups in churches across our land comprised of caring, authentic, but very human Christians who are committed to growing friendships and deepening relationships. Good Samaritans who have compassion. May their tribe increase!

These are our modern-day cities of refuge.

Genuine, New Testament Christianity doesn't hang out at headquarters; 
it gets into the trenches with the wounded and weary.

Forgetting

Philippians 4:13-14

I honestly believe that "forgetting" is the hardest part of "forgiving." Forgetting is something shared with no other person. It's a solo flight. And all the rewards are postponed until eternity . . . but how great they will be on that day! Forgetting requires the servant to think correctly which means our full focus must be on the Lord and not on humanity. By God's grace, it can happen.

Ask yourself these two questions:

Is there someone or something I have refused to forget, which keeps me from being happy and productive?

Am I a victim of self-pity, living out my days emotionally paralyzed in anguish and despair?

If your answer is yes, stop and consider the consequences of living the rest of your life excusing your depression rather than turning it all over to the only One who can remove it.

And lest you are still convinced it's "too late" . . . you are "too old to change" . . . your situation is "too much to overcome," trust me. Listen, it is never too late to start doing what is right. Never!

Better late than never.

T-R-U-S-T

You may wonder, what does trust really mean?  Let me help you understand by using the word T-R-U-S-T as an acronym.

"T" stands for trust…which means that if you are going to trust Him, you have to take Him at His word.  Even if it seems like it is not true, you take Him at His word.  If we will take Him at His word, He will guide us through the course of life and bring us across the finish line safely.

"R" stands for rest.  The Bible tells us to rest in the Lord.  1 Peter 5:7 says, Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.  Do not worry.  Worry is like a rocking chair.  It gives you something to do, but you don't get anywhere.

"U" stands for understanding.  Proverbs 3:5 says, Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.  Sometimes things just won't make sense to your understanding.

"S" stands for speech.  Our speech is an expression of our faith.  In Mark 11, Jesus said, "Have faith in God."  And then the very next thing Jesus said is, "Whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says."  Our faith in God is expressed through our speech.

The final "T" stands for thanksgiving.  We offer thanks to God in advance.  Philippians 4:6 says, Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.  When we offer thanks to God, it is an expression of our faith. 

That's T-R-U-S-T!

Gaining the Victory

We live in a society of addictions, of bondage to so many things.  Maybe you are in bondage to cigarettes, or alcohol, or pornography, or anger, or any number of other things.

Whatever the condition that has you in bondage today, God's hand and God's arm can lift you up and untangle you and set you free.  In Psalm 98:1 we are told,

His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory.

We find repeatedly throughout the Old Testament how, through God's mighty hand and His outstretched arm, He redeemed His people out of slavery and out of bondage.

Now here is the question.  Does it just sort of randomly happen?  Do we have to wait and see if we are one of the lucky ones God will choose to extend His mighty arm to help?  Or, is there anything that we can do to cooperate with God to see His arm extended in our behalf?

The answer is yes, we can, and we must cooperate with God.

In Isaiah 51:5 God tells us,

"My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, and My arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands will wait upon Me, and on My arm they will trust."

The way we cooperate with God is to trust in His arm; not in our own arm, but in His.  If you want to see God's mighty arm move on your behalf, then trust Him alone!  Do not trust your intelligence, your ingenuity, your education, your status in life, your wealth, or any other thing.

Trust in God alone.  And you will have the victory.

On Being Confidential

Romans 1:21-32

Be honest now, can you keep a secret? When privileged information passes through one of the gates of your senses, does it remain within the walls of your mind, or is it only a matter of time before a leak occurs? Do you respect a person's trust or ignore it, either instantly or ultimately?

The longer I live, the more I realize the scarcity of people who can be fully trusted with confidential information. And the longer I live, the more I value those rare souls who fall into that category! As a matter of fact, if I were asked to list the essential characteristics that mark a person of integrity and trust, the ability to maintain confidences would rank very near the top.

A portion of the physician's Hippocratic Oath comes to mind: "And whatsoever I shall see or hear in the course of my profession . . . if it be what should not be published abroad, I will never divulge, holding such things to be holy secrets."

We would be justly offended by a doctor who treated our "holy secrets" lightly. The same applies to a minister or an attorney, a counselor or a parent, a teacher or a secretary, a colleague or a friend. Especially a close friend.

Solomon wrote some strong words concerning this subject in his Proverbs. Listen to his wise counsel and remember it the next time you are tempted to run off at the mouth:

When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise. (10:19)
He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy conceals a matter. (11:13)
The one who guards his mouth preserves his life; the one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin. (13:3)
He who goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets, therefore do not associate with a gossip. (20:19)

In light of these scriptural admonitions, I suggest we establish four practical ground rules:

1. Whatever you're told in confidence, do not repeat. 
2. Whenever you're tempted to tell a secret, do not yield. 
3. Whomever you're talking about, do not gossip. 
4. However you're prone to disagree, do not slander.

Be honest now, can you keep a secret? Prove it.

A confidence kept gives others confidence in you.

The Prison of the Past

Luke 4:16-21

Imagine a man named Dan who, after serving his full sentence of 20 years, has just received his prison release papers. Now, after two decades behind bars, he's going to taste freedom again! Before leaving, he makes a strange request: "Please take this cell door off its hinges and strap it to my back." The jailers comply, and 
the freed man spends the rest of his life in this condition.

Dan's story sounds ridiculous. Yet many of us carry around guilt like a prison door strapped to our back. Jesus Christ liberated us, but we have trouble leaving the old jail completely behind. The problem is that we don't believe God has really forgiven. I've often counseled Christians who say, "I pray every day for the Lord to forgive me!" When I point out that God has already covered their sin, I hear, "Yes, but . . . "

There is no "but." Either God forgives or He doesn't. If you've trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior, then you are free of sin (Col. 1:14). The Lord promises that He will not hold our wrongs against us or even remember them (Heb. 10:17). No good can come of dredging up the old failures and sinful habits that He has put behind His back (Isa. 38:17). The Liberator has torn down the walls of your prison. So lay down your guilt and live free.

When God looks upon a believer, He sees a spirit washed clean of all sin. Don't allow guilt over past wrongdoing to hold you captive a second longer. Take God at His word, and believe that He has removed it from you as far as the east is from the west (Ps. 103:12).

Are You Hungry?

I love a good home cooked meal.
Kim makes the most delicious roast chicken you've ever tasted.


We all need to eat.
Our body makes a demand that we have to obey.
Eating is as natural as breathing.
We eat to get energy and we eat for the enjoyment.
But most of all we eat to live.


If you starve yourself you may survive for a few weeks but eventually you will die.
Not from sickness or disease, not by the sword or the gun.
You will starve to death.


The exact same is true of our spiritual life.
However I really don't think we truly believe this.
But Jesus said: It is written. That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. Luke 4:4.


Did you hear that? Man shall not live on bread alone...
In other words, if all you eat is physical food then you will not live.


So many christians are starving themselves day after day after day.
As a result they are weak, tired and have absolutely no energy.
It is a type of madness that fails comprehension.


When a person suffers from a weight related issue like anorexia, it is well understood that they are sick. It is a sickness.
Well the church is full of anorexic christians.
People who simply refuse to eat - or are so unhealthy that they only eat spiritual snack food like a verse here or there.
Do not be deceived! You cannot live like that!


If you want to experience a victorious life in Christ then you must become power-FULL in Him!
And the only way to become FULL is to eat as much as you can!


I think one of the problems people have with feeding on the Word of God is that its not their acquired taste.
It does not allow them to continue in the sinful lifestyle to which they have become so accustomed.


The bible even calls itself by food names.
It is bread, milk, meat and honey.
It is a completely balanced spiritual diet.
Don't settle for anything less than fresh from the word produce folks!


Why have soya when you can have meat?
Why fill yourself up on the musing of "other" authors when you can feast on the purest words on earth?
Are you feasting on the Word of God?
Or are you just nibbling on a sunflower seed here or there?


My sister suffered from anorexia and the hardest part of her recovery was getting her to see what she truly looked like.
In reality she was as thin as a rake but when she saw her reflection a fat person was looking back at her.


When you look into the mirror what do you see?
A healthy christian FULL of power and ready to serve God?


Well let me tell you the reality.
If you are not feasting daily on His word, through bible study and prayer, then I do not care what you see, I see a stick thin, starving very sick christian who will not be able to stand the trials of like that are sure to come.


Are you feeling hungry?

Who Are You Striking Against?

Picture from the telegraph.co.uk

With all the strike action affecting all South Africans I though i’d share some thoughts on a christian perspective on what is happening.

Working is God ordained.

In His plan for creation God made man to work.

We work to provide for our families and this is something God takes very seriously.

In his second letter to Timothy Paul wrote that “if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” 2 Tim. 5:8.

But what about the strike?

Is is biblical to take to the streets and use fear and intimidation to have your demands met?

Well before we answer this lets us examine our attitude towards our chosen profession first.

Paul had this to say to the workers in Colossians:

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.

This single passage reveals the truth behind the attitude of the heart.

This concept is almost alien to us today.

Who nowadays works to please their boss?

We work to get paid.

Paul is saying that our work should not be done in an attitude of getting paid, but rather that we should work to please our employer!

The fact that we even get paid should not be a motivator.

How can the Lord expect this of us?

Especially since many of us work for Beelze-boss  himself it seems!

The answer is found in the next verse:

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Paul is saying that we must understand that in reality the person we are really working for is Him.

Your boss may be your employer but He is your Provider and your attitude towards your work should reflect that truth.

The Word makes no exception here, Its is speaking to slaves who had no union to protect them.

The truth of the matter is that as children of God we serve God in EVERYTHING that we do.

I have had many people come up to me and say that its easy for me to as a pastor to be faithful because I work for God, whilst they work for a secular employer.

This is a deception!

You do work for God, wherever and whatever you do your attitude should be that of service.

Lets look at the next verse:

Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.

The strikers in the streets feel that they are owed something. We live in a society where everyone wants to be a victim.

But, you may say, what about the employers? Don’t they also need an attitude adjustment?

Probably yes, but it is not for us to adjust.

There are no favorites here in the sight of God.

If the master treats the slave unfairly then the Lord will repay his wrong for wrong.

And vice versa.

Chapter 4 speaks to the employer:

Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.

Ha! there you have it! its the employers fault!

Not so fast.

Here we need some interpretation and some contextualization of the word “fair”.

What is fair?

When is fair replaced by greed?

This is open for debate but in our country with an unemployment rate of over 25% it needs to be looked at very carefully.

Workers will always be under the impression that they are underpaid.

And employers will always want budget cuts.

There is no middle ground here. History has shown us this.

However with over one million teachers striking that 25% looks set to increase.

(or perhaps the striking medical workers will solve the problem by neglecting the dying and thus lowering the number of unemployed who rely of government hospitals.)

At the end of the day, or month by the look of things the only one who will suffer are the ones already in need.

If the teachers were true teachers then they would do what the Lord called them to do: Teach. And they would do it as unto the Lord.

Do we want to be Blessed?

Blessed - Its a word that we use so often. From an automatic response to a sneeze to a greeting and farewell.
But do we really want to be blessed?
What do we even think the word means nowadays?


Most folk would agree that to be blessed is to receive material and spiritual benefits from God.
And i thinks thats a pretty accurate description.
However I do also feels that most people tend to desire more of the material than the spiritual.
In our modern world we would not call the poor widow who gave her all blessed.
We would not call Elijah and his flour blessed.
We would never think of John and his diet of locusts and honey blessed.


And so we often look at our lives and take inventory of them by looking at only the material and for many of us this can only lead to one conclusion:
"Wow, but I sure am blessed! I must be doing something right."

However, the Bible tells us how we can be blessed, truly blessed from God in all matters.

This is how the blessing of God flow into our lives.


Psalm 1
¹ Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
²  But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

Now ask your self this question:
"Is this Psalm a representation of me?"
If not then your conclusion of being blessed and doing something right is inaccurate.

In Christ we have received all God's spiritual blessings, and because of that we should desire to please Him.

The only question that remains is "Do you want to be blessed?"
If so then seek God's perfect will for your life and submit to Him.

Welcome to Rudy's Blog.

Good day all!

With my blogs growing in popularity I though a change in location and functionality might be better.
Blogger allows me to archive my blogs and gives me greater flexibility with regards to content and function.

I will still share them through Facebook and I ask you to please share them as well for your friends and family.
It brings me great joy to bring the Word of God to you and to hear how you have been encouraged this day by His wonderful Presence and power.

So watch for my links and please share them for the Lord's glory.
In His Masters Service
Pastor Rudy Du Plooy