FRESH Official Podcast

Have you ever eaten a tough piece of meat? Meat’s allegedly good for you, and you can even pay a bit extra for a superior cut, but if it comes up tough after you’ve cooked it … well, you’d have been better off without it. Some things are good if they’re tough – the soles of your shoes for instance. Of course you want them to be tough. But there are other things in life that we’d much prefer to be tender rather than tough. Take a person’s heart for instance. Of course I’m speaking metaphorically, but you know what I mean. Their attitude towards you and the rest of the world … sure, we need people who are strong too, but we want them to be gentle, kind, and thoughtful along the way. The Apostle Peter was writing to people who were under severe persecution for being Christians. Under those circumstances, when you’re under extreme pressure as they were, it’s easy to have a heart that’s hardened against adversity – even a heart that’s hardened against the people around you. 1 Peter 3:8,9 Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing. (NRSV) How do you respond under pressure? It’s a question we all need to ask ourselves. Because the last thing God wants is for us to harden our hearts. But instead, have a tender heart. Be sympathetic, and love the people around you. Be humble and don’t repay evil for evil, or abuse for abuse. Instead, repay it with a blessing. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Might I ask you today, what’s the one thing in your life that you’d struggle to lay down if God demanded it of you? What possession, what position, what proclivity … would you struggle to give up? For me, it’s technology. I’ve always been something of a geek – I ran an IT company for almost two decades. My hobby is to have all my tech – watch, phone, tablet, computer – working together to their maximum ability. If God asked me to give all that up and go back to pen and paper, that’d be a huge struggle for me. So … what is it for you? The reason I ask is that those of us who profess to believe in Jesus, those of us who claim to be His disciples, need to have a sharp focus on anything that we might be prone to putting ahead of God Himself in our lives. Exodus 20:2,3,5 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me … for I the LORD your God am a jealous God. (ESV) So why is God a jealous God? Because He loves us more than words could ever say, so He sent His Son Jesus to die for us, that we might be forgiven our sin and know just how much He loves us. And He doesn’t want us being led astray by any imposter that this world or the devil would use to lure us away. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Have you ever been sunburnt? I remember as a child, a few times being burnt red-raw. And my mother would pour olive oil on my skin to soothe the pain. That oil, absolutely, was the most wonderful remedy. So, over the last few days we’ve been following along with Israel at a time when, through their own sin, God visited a plague of locusts and a severe famine upon their land. It was terrible. But God’s purposes in our suffering are always – always! – redemptive. So through the prophet Joel, he spoke of the good times to come if only His people would turn back to Him. Joel 2:26,27 You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is no other. But that’s not all … not by a long shot. Because there was an even greater blessing that God had planned for His people … that God still has planned for His people today: Joel 2:28,29 Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female slaves, in those days, I will pour out my spirit.  (NIV) Friend, listen to me! When we choose to repent of our sins, when we earnestly turn back to God, He will pour His Spirit out on us like a healing balm – even upon the least of the least. That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

When we’re struggling through difficult times, when we’re living out the consequences, frankly, of our own sin, it’s easy to imagine God sitting up there in the comfort of heaven watching us squirm, and enjoying it. But nothing could be further from the truth. That Germanic idea of schadenfreude – the joy of watching someone get their just desserts – is something that we’ve all experienced. Serves them right! Right? But that’s not an idea that ever enters God’s mind. Because although, as we saw yesterday, He’ll visit the consequences of our sin upon our lives, His heart towards us is always – always! – redemptive. He wants us back in His arms. He wants to bless us with His love, the way any good father would. That’s the very point He makes to His people through the prophet Joel: Joel 2:25-27 I will repay you for the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent against you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is no other. And my people shall never again be put to shame. (ESV) Friend, listen to me. If you, through your sin, have wandered away from God; if you through your sin, find yourself in one of those terrible wildernesses, then today God is speaking to you of His redemptive love. Today, God is calling you back to Himself. That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Life has a funny habit of taking a sharp turn from good times into bad; from a time of abundance to a time of famine; from a time of joy to a time of sadness. And the further we drift away from God, the worse it gets. The Old Testament prophet Joel was writing at such a time; a time of locust infestation and drought; desperate circumstances for God’s allegedly chosen people. Why had this happened? What was its cause? Well, God answers that pretty directly through His prophet: Joel 2:12,13 Now come back to me with all your heart. Cry and mourn, and don’t eat anything! Show that you are sad for doing wrong. Tear your hearts, not your clothes.” Come back to the LORD your God. He is kind and merciful. He does not become angry quickly. He has great love. Maybe he will change his mind about the bad punishment he planned. God’s chosen people had drifted away from God through their sin. It’s happened to you too, right? I get it. And rather than punishing them further, rather than admonishing them even more deeply, He calls them to come back to Him with all their heart. Come back to the LORD your God. He is kind and merciful. He does not become angry quickly. He has great love. Sometimes, oftentimes, that all too familiar turn for the worse in life’s road happens as a direct consequence of our sin – yours and mine. But as much as God allows the consequences of our sin to be visited upon our lives to bring us to our senses, His heart – His great and mighty heart – is to draw us back close to Him. Come back to the LORD your God. He is kind and merciful. That’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Every relationship in our lives at some point is at risk of growing stale. What was once a vital, passionate, rewarding relationship – whether with your spouse, or a friend … or indeed, with God – one day seems far less important than it once was. I wonder if you can think of a relationship in your life right at the moment that’s grown stale. And you sit there and wonder … how did that happen? The truth is that for many a person who at some point decided, with a fire in their heart, that they were going to live their lives for Jesus … their relationship with Him is indeed in that place. Stale. How did that happen? Well, the business of simply living life and dealing with all the stuff you have to deal with has a habit of leading you in that direction. Perhaps you even find yourself in one of life’s wildernesses at the moment, wondering what to do about it. King David was going through such a patch. In fact, he was out in the wilderness of Judah. So he prayed this to God: Psalm 63:1,3 I am searching so hard to find you. Body and soul, I thirst for you in this dry and weary land without water …Your faithful love is better than life, so my lips praise you. It seems to me that the main reason our relationship with the Lord our God can go stale is for lack of a deep desire in our hearts for Him. We focus so much on the dry and weary wilderness circumstances in which we find ourselves that we forget that in that place, in any place, His faithful love is better than life itself. Don’t grow stale. Thirst for Jesus! That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.

There are times in our lives when our circumstances are far from ideal; when everything appears to be going against us. And it’s in those times that God means for us to live in victory, not in defeat. Victory amidst difficult circumstances – well, it sounds too good to be true. Because when we’re facing adversity, what the word “victory” means to us is that we overcome it, that we win and in winning that those terrible circumstances go away because they’ve been defeated. But when we’re in a wilderness like that, rather than instantly teleporting us out of it, God more often than not chooses to show us a way through it. Because He wants us to learn what it means to live in victory right out there in the wilderness. That’s where character is forged. Such was the case for slaves back in the 1st Century AD, when this particular Scripture was written: Titus 2:9,10 And tell this to those who are slaves: They should be willing to serve their masters at all times; they should try to please them, not argue with them; they should not steal from them; and they should show their masters that they can be trusted. Then, in everything they do, they will show that the teaching of God our Saviour is good. In that place, living in victory meant doing good; it meant slaves demonstrating through service, through dedication, through submission, through honesty, that they could be trusted. It meant shining the light of Christ out into the lives of their fellow slaves and of their masters. It meant showing that God is good. And that’s exactly what victory looks like in your wilderness and in mine. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.

The Christian view of the respective roles of men and women these days is often sneered at. It’s often criticised because it seems out of touch with today’s 21st century realities. The fact that God’s Word clearly teaches mutual respect, mutual love and mutual submission between men and women, in recognition of the fundamental differences between the male and female psyche that no serious psychologist would have any argument with … seems completely lost on those who criticise it. In my marriage, as the husband, I am the head of our household just as the Bible teaches. But just as the Bible teaches, I serve my wife, I’m also subject to her and I have absolutely no right to lord it over her. Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives the same as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it. The last time I checked, Christ died for us and that’s the model for every husband in every marriage – to lay down his life for his wife. And when these powerful truths are lived out, they produce a fruit that others simply can’t ignore. Titus 2:8 And your teaching should be clearly right so that you cannot be criticised. Then anyone who is against you will be ashamed. There will not be anything bad they can say about us. Look … when it comes to male-female relationships, the world’s wisdom has, by and large, thrown the baby out with the bathwater. Men, women … when it comes to your relationships with one another, stick to God’s Word. The world may criticise you, but they won’t be able to argue with the fruit they see in your relationships. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Monogamy is one of Christianity’s greatest contributions to the society in which we live today. Requiring men to show love, to serve and to exercise self-control in their relationships with women has brought incredible benefits. Of course, things are still far from perfect when it comes to male-female relationships. In most countries, women still don’t get the same deal as men – in jobs, incomes and many other ways. And yes, many, many men still haven’t learned self-control, still haven’t developed the sort of wisdom required to treat women with love and respect, the way God always intended. We’ve been working our way through a few verses these past few days talking about older men and women being role models and teaching the younger men and women how to behave. Titus 2:6,7 In the same way, tell the young men to be wise. You should be an example for them in every way by the good things you do. When you teach, be honest and serious. Like it or not, men are by and large physically stronger than women, which in ancient times led to a brutal world for women – and in some places, in some marriages, in some relationships, that’s sadly still true today. So even though that scripture was written two thousand years ago, teaching young men to be wise remains just as important today as it was then. You older men, you should be their role model. You should teach them how to treat women by how you treat women. If only we older men, by our great example, deliberately, kindly but firmly taught our younger men to be wise, honest and serious – what a different world this would be. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.

Any psychologist will tell you that, despite the whole gender-fluidity thing that’s being pushed in some quarters, there are some very fundamental and powerful differences between men and women. Yesterday we kicked off a bit of an old-fashioned mini-series on the different roles of men and women in society and in families, according to God’s Word. We began with the older men, who as role models in society, ought to be self-controlled, serious, wise and strong in faith, love and patience. That’s hard to argue with. So what about the older women? How should they live? Titus 2:3,4 Also, teach the older women to live the way those who serve the Lord should live. They should not go around saying bad things about others or be in the habit of drinking too much. They should teach what is good. By doing this they will teach the younger women to love their husbands and children. One of the differences between men and women is that women are far more prone to gossiping, especially older women who have more time on their hands. But, older women, listen up. That’s not what you’re called to do. Neither are you meant to get sozzled – as many do – attending impromptu soirees to while away their time. Because they (you, if this is you) have a job to do; it is to teach the younger women how they should love their husbands, and how to bring up their children.   That may not sound all that politically correct, but when you think about it, it’s hard to argue with. And given the complexities younger women have to navigate here in the 21st century, it’s never been more necessary or important. That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.