Dissident disciples live with government but do not surrender the lordship of Jesus to any part of it. Disciples reject the lordship of the president and of Washington DC and call government to be a servant for the people in a way that mimics the service churches provide in their communities. Scot McKnight and Cody Matchett
Scripture
The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation. I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.
Observation
The glory of the Lord is shining on Jerusalem. All nations will come to its light. The people of Israel, scattered across the Earth, are returning home.
The merchants are flocking to bring their products and wealth. Foreigners will rebuild the towns destroyed in God’s judgement.
Violence will disappear from the land, and salvation will surround them like a city wall. They will no longer need the sun to see by day or the moon by night, because God himself will light up the land.
The smallest of families will become like a great nation. In its day the Lord will do this swiftly.
Application
One Sunday evening in our little church service, I read this chapter and was hit with force by the last verse. The ordinary word of God became a rhema word for me. Our church, though the smallest in our town at the time, would become a thousand. And in its day, the Lord will do this swiftly.
We do not have to strive to make things happen. This is a temptation for me – with my choleric personality, I am task driven. With God’s grace, we serve patiently and trust Him to take care of the results.
That takes a load off the mind. There is no pressure when you just have to obey rather than being responsible to produce results.
It doesn’t mean that we slack off and treat life like a long holiday. We seek the Lord, do the job He calls us to, and then we see what He can do with a life surrendered to Him.
Prayer
Lord, it’s not by might nor by power but by your Spirit that mountains are moved. Please help me to remember this. Amen.
A stunning morning weather wise. I went to the end of Haire Drive #cycling #Narrabri #Biketooter
The book of Revelation reveals to us that the way to counter the government’s overreach is to begin with worship of the One on the throne, the Lamb in the middle of the throne, and the Seven Spirits around the throne. Dissidents see their preeminent act as worship. Scot McKnight and Cody Matchett
Scripture
“This is my covenant with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit will not leave them, and neither will these words I have given you. They will be on your lips and on the lips of your children and your children’s children forever. I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Observation
The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save, nor his ear too deaf to hear. Our sins separate us from God. No one cares about justice or righteousness.
We stumble and grope like blind people. Our sins are piled up before God. He is ready to judge, but when people repent and turn back to Him, He will redeem them from their sins.
God promises His Spirit will never leave them and His words will remain on the lips of their children and grandchildren forever.
Application
God makes some strong promises that seem absolute and unconditional. He says,”This is my covenant” and ” I, the Lord have spoken!” That sounds like a strong promise.
Firstly He promises that His Spirit will never leave His people. It is a terrible thing when the Holy Spirit departs from a person. Spiritually, they are like a living corpse. God says that will not happen to us. We can be filled, baptised, and anointed by the Spirit of God, and as long as we stay close to Him, He will equip, enable, and empower us to serve Him.
Secondly, He promises that His word will not leave us, nor our children, nor our grandchildren. They still need to make faith their own, of course, but He will make sure that they will not stray too far from Him.
Parents and grandparents, keep praying for your children and grandchildren that the word of God remains in their hearts and on their lips. God will take care of the rest; He has he has promised it
Prayer
Thank you Lord for your faithfulness. Please help me to be faithful to you. Amen.
On the eve of the 76th anniversary of the proclamation of the state of Israel on 14 May 1948, Australia has betrayed the only democracy in the Middle East at the recent United Nations vote on Palestine.
On Israel’s Day of Independence or National Day, it will be asking if it has any allies in the world. Prime Minister Netanyahu has said he will go it alone if he has to so that more October 7s, promised by Hamas, will not occur and Israel can survive as a nation as it faces the existential threat from Iran and its proxies.
Egypt hails Australia’s recognition of Palestine.
Australia was the first country to vote in favour of the 1947 UN partition resolution, which led to the creation of Israel as a nation-state. Australia was the first country to recognise Israel, doing so in May 1949, and Dr Evatt of Australia presided over the vote that admitted Israel to the UN.
Arabs were given the opportunity to form their own state in the 1947 partition resolution, so Palestine could have been created then, but they rejected it, as they have every peace plan since.
Now our record is tarnished by Foreign Minister Penny Wong, supported by Prime Minister Albanese to recognise Palestine as a state at the UN. This is rewarding the terrorism, barbarism, murder, rape, torture and mutilation of children, women, and the elderly on October 7. It is rewarding hostage-taking, which is a war crime, as is the killing of civilians on October 7.
This is not surprising since Wong is the poster girl for Hamas and did not visit the areas where the slaughter occurred on October 7 when she visited Israel. Also, Albanese has been a supporter of Palestine since his university days.
The current Labor government has broken with years of bipartisan policy in Australia regarding Israel, put our relationship with Israel at risk and made Australia unsafe for Jewish people who have been good citizens.
The Australian government has failed to deal with the rising tide of antisemitism in Australia and allowed hate speech to prevail on our streets and in our universities.
Norman listening to families of those murdered and kidnapped on October 7 at Parliament House pro-Israel rally, 28 November 2023.
Palestine does not meet the preconditions of statehood, e.g. it does not meet the obligations of the UN Charter, is not a peaceful state, does not have internationally recognised borders, and it wants the same capital as Israel – Jerusalem. There needs to be a negotiated settlement with Israel, not a unilateral declaration.
The real problem is that Palestinians do not want a two-state solution. They want a one-state solution – all of Israel from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, plus the territories they currently live in, and they will use terrorism to get it.
They are willing to turn their people into martyrs, using them as human shields, also a war crime, to win the propaganda war against Israel, falsely accusing it of genocide when they are the ones committing genocide. Nations are failing to call Hamas to account.
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Republished with thanks to Indigenous Friends of Israel. Image courtesy of Niklas Jeromin.
