Malcolm Cox

Introduction
A new thing! Welcome to your daily devotional podcast anchored in Isaiah 43:19: 'See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.' I'm Malcolm Cox. Join me in January and February for a daily devotional podcast aimed at inspiring your personal times of quiet with God.

In the first few podcast episodes we will set the scene by looking at the entirety of Isaiah chapter 43. Today it is verses 5-9.

“Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.
I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.
Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf.
All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of their gods foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, “It is true.””
(Isaiah 43:5-9 NIV11)

- He will gather you from the ends of the earth, return you to the promised land (a symbol of heaven)
- The identity of those gathered: Israel (true believers)
- All the children— sons & daughters— of God, Ro. 8:16–17; 2 Cor. 6:17–18; Ga. 4:4–6
    - “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” (Romans 8:16-17 NIV11)
    - “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba , Father.”” (Galatians 4:4-6 NIV11)
- All who are believers & created for His glory (see the new creation, 2 Cor. 5:17; Ep. 2:10; 4:24)
    - “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
    - For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
    - and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
    - (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 2:10; 4:24 NIV11)
- The summons for unbelieving Jews to see & hear: Believe God
- The summons for the unbelieving nations to assemble
- To acknowledge that the Lord foretold the restoration of Israel
- To prove their claim that their gods were real, that they could predict future events

For Reflection
- What does it mean to you that you are a son or daughter of our heavenly father?

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.

Conclusion
I hope you find your heart, your life, your congregation and your world inspired by God doing a new thing. Until tomorrow, take care, and God bless. 

God bless, Malcolm

"Carpe Diem" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Introduction

A new thing! Welcome to your daily devotional podcast anchored in Isaiah 43:19: 'See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.'  Malcolm here, and thank you for joining me in January and February for a daily devotional podcast aimed at inspiring our personal times of quiet with God. 

In the first few podcast episodes we will set the scene by looking at the entirety of Isaiah chapter 43. Today it is verses 2 to 4.

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
 Since you are precious and honoured in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life.”
(Isaiah 43:2-4 NIV11-GK)

The promises of the Redeemer

For Reflection

• Who or what has God rescued you from? Give him some praise and thanks!

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.

Conclusion
I hope you find your heart, your life, your congregation and your world inspired by God doing a new thing. Until tomorrow, take care, and God bless. 

God bless, Malcolm

"Carpe Diem" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Teaching Tip 343 | “Plain Speaking - Introduction” | Malcolm Cox

Introduction
How would you like to be more effective in your preaching and teaching? If, like me, you want to grow as a speaker of God's word, then I have a resource for you. 

It's a new year, so it's time for a new series of Teaching Tips. In a change from the normal approach I will be recording 2-minute tips based on chapters from the book, “Plain speaking: How to preach and teach effectively" by David Bercot.


From the rear cover of the book:

“Although many books have been written about preaching and teaching, most of them are addressed to seminary-trained pastors. They're not aimed at the churches that don't use professionally schooled ministers. That's what is different about this book. The New Testament Christians had no seminaries, but they raised up effective preachers and teachers. The Holy Spirit can use ordinary Christian men today to preach and teach just as He did back in the first century. Plain Speaking takes the reader through all of the steps of developing and delivering effective sermons and devotional messages.
Some of the topics covered are:
• Choosing the right topic
• Building your sermon
• Where to find illustrations
• Organising your material
• Preparing rousing introductions and conclusions
• Making eye contact with your listeners
• Controlling speaker's fright
• How to make your devotionals special
• Pet peeves of listeners
Although packed with practical information, Plain Speaking is written in an easy-to-read, conversational style.”

Conclusion
Each week will give you something practical you can implement in your next lesson. Why not bookmark these recordings and set time aside to listen to them? After all, it's got to be worth two minutes of your time, hasn’t it? 

Next week: It doesn't take a seminary education to preach

Consider joining AIM UK&Ireland to develop your understanding of Scripture: https://aimukandireland.com/. Our next module is Spiritual Life.

Contact us here with enquiries: [email protected]  

The website can be found here: https://aimukandireland.com  

Please add your comments on this week's topic. We learn best when we learn in community. 

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, or practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here's the email: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). 

If you'd like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, "How God grows His people", sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/). 

Please pass the link on, subscribe, and leave a review. 

Remember to keep calm, and carry on teaching.

God bless, Malcolm

Introduction

A new thing! Welcome to your daily devotional podcast anchored in Isaiah 43:19: 'See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.' I'm Malcolm Cox. Join me in January and February for a daily devotional podcast aimed at inspiring your personal times of quiet with God. 

In the first few podcast episodes we will set the scene by looking at the entirety of Isaiah chapter 43. Today it is simply the first verse.

“But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1 NIV11)

We are called to remember the source of our redemption — the LORD. 

““Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32 NIV11)

For Reflection

• What is the greatest fear you have at the moment? Can you pray it to God? 

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.

Conclusion
I hope you find your heart, your life, your congregation and your world inspired by God doing a new thing. Until tomorrow, take care, and God bless. 

God bless, Malcolm

"Carpe Diem" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

God is not static. He is involved in his creation. He is actively healing, redeeming and transforming the world and its people. In other words, he is always doing ‘a new thing’. These daily devotional podcasts accompany the teaching and preaching series of the same title for the Thames Valley churches of Christ and the Watford church of Christ.

The title of our series comes from this Scripture in the book of Isaiah:

“Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:18-19 NRSV)

Isaiah reveals God's plan for his people. They will not remain in exile forever. A return to the promised land is prophesied. The people in exile felt a mixture of fear and excitement. For some, living in exile had become comfortable. To uproot and return would be difficult. For others, it was the fulfilment of decades of prayerful expectation. The section of Scripture parallels the exodus with the return from exile. Leaving one land for another. Going on a difficult and dangerous journey. Leaving the familiar for the unknown. Having to trust God for provision. Pursued and surrounded by enemies. 

Perhaps you can relate to this challenge. The Christian life is one where we are secure in God, but always learning, growing and journeying towards something better. Moving forward and growing is exciting, but disturbing. There is a need to let go of old things, not to say they weren't useful — they taught us things and we should remember those lessons — but we do not live in the past. We are moving forward in time and maturity towards being with God for ever and growing more and more into the likeness of his son, Jesus.

As we enter a new year God surely has plans to do new things in us and among us. What those are we may not yet know. But we can be sure they will be revealed as the year progresses. In this series we are seeking to learn from the great men and women of faith in Scripture who encountered something new, were called to something new, took on something new, and left lessons in faith for us who follow after them.

Why not take a moment to pray and reflect on what you hope to get from his series? 

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.

Conclusion

I hope you find your heart, your life, your congregation and your world inspired by God doing a new thing. Until tomorrow, take care, and God bless. 

God bless, Malcolm

"Carpe Diem" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

A hearty 'thank you!'

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.

“Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)

God bless, Malcolm

I am a fan of the creativity and music of Carolyn Arends. The material for today's communion is taken from one of her advent reflections called, ‘Probably Not a Silent Night’. Her song on the same topic can be found here: https://youtu.be/I2zuPp0hiaA   

I think he cried the way that babies do 
I think his mama might have cried a little too 
I bet you Joseph didn’t have a clue 
What to do—he was new at fatherhood 
So I don't think it was a silent night 
I kinda doubt that all was calm that night 
But there were those who heard about a light 
They saw the sight and they understood: 
It was a holy, it was a holy, it was holy night 
Perhaps you have participated with your children in holding a lit candle at a church service while singing “Silent Night.” We did this many times at my Father’s church during their carol service. When our children were young we tried to keep them quiet during the song. We did not want to disturb the peace. “Silent Night” is a beautiful carol with a wonderful history, but a crying baby is probably much truer to the original Christmas story. 

Jesus was a real human baby, born to young and no doubt soon-to-be-sleep-deprived parents. He came to a real world, rife with politics and scarcity and disease and conflict. 

That means there’s no need to follow an idealised script this Advent. Jesus is close to us in candlelit tranquility, no doubt. (And I heartily recommend candlelit contemplation whenever it’s available to you!) But rest assured that Jesus is not the slightest bit afraid of bad lighting and noisy spaces. He has a long track record of coming to be with us in the nitty-gritty. 
O, when the herald angels sang 
I bet they thought it odd 
That such a poor and broken place 
Should be a home for God 
And did they gasp to see him shiver 
Cold and hungry in our skin? 
Did they tremble, did they wonder 
How we deserved a gift like Him? 
Oh, but just the same 
The baby came … 

‘…though he was in the form of God, [he] did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.’ Philippians 2:6-8 

Questions for Reflection 

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community.
 
Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [email protected].
 
If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://www.malcolmcox.org.
 
Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review.
 
“Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11)
 
God bless, Malcolm

Introduction

Where is God taking your preaching and teaching in 2024? Last week we talked about assessing our learnings from this year in the areas by using personal reflection, friendly feedback and taking action. Today we look ahead……..

We will take the apostle Paul as our inspiration in this area. Consider what happened immediately after his conversion.

“Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.”
(Acts 9:19-22 NIV11)

Note, he ‘grew more and more powerful’. His speaking increased in effectiveness. Granted this resulted in people wanting to kill him (!), and that’s not the desired result of our preaching and teaching growth. But, it is instructive that he developed as a speaker. How can we do that for ourselves in the year ahead? I have three tips.

3.  Grow in technical proficiency

Conclusion

What will help you to grow as a disciple of Jesus? What is the most significant decision you can make that will enable God to unleash the full power of his Spirit into your inner being in the year ahead? In what way can you grow in your knowledge of the Scriptures this year? What plan can you make and what action can you take? What would help you to be more technically proficient as a speaker? What do other people think? 

This is the final teaching tip of the year. There will be no video next week, but we will pick up again in the first week of 2024. 

Consider joining AIM UK&Ireland to develop your understanding of Scripture: https://aimukandireland.com/. Our next module is Spiritual Life.

Contact us here with enquiries: [email protected]  

The website can be found here: https://aimukandireland.com  

Please add your comments on this week's topic. We learn best when we learn in community. 

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, or practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here's the email: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). 

If you'd like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, "How God grows His people", sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/). 

Please pass the link on, subscribe, and leave a review. 

Remember to keep calm, and carry on teaching.

God bless, Malcolm

Introduction

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24 NRSV)

2024 is round the corner. We have the opportunity to prepare spiritually for the upcoming 12 months. Just as we reflect on the past year, looking forward with faith and intentionality can deepen our relationship with God and guide our journey ahead. In Philippians 3:14, Paul encourages us to "press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." In this class, we'll explore two ideas to help you and your group prepare spiritually for the next 12 months.

We are going to do this today by looking at two sets of words that come up more than once in Scripture: Grace, mercy and peace; faith, hope and love.

1. Relationship with God

It is healthy to focus on our relationship with God before we attempt to achieve anything for him. Has God been getting your attention in an area of connection with him? Consider the three words grace, mercy and peace. We see them grouped together three times in the New Testament. The references are below:

“To Timothy, my loyal child in the faith:   Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.”

“To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.”

“Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.”
(1 Timothy 1:2; 2 Timothy 1:2; 2 John 1:3 NRSV)

Paul and John wish for their readers to experience God’s grace, mercy and peace. These divine gifts come from God and Jesus. The world is in desperate need of grace, mercy and peace these days! Our groups need them, and we need them personally. These qualities are not things we can manufacture ourselves. They are donated to us by a generous God. Are you enjoying God's grace? Are you experiencing his mercy? Are you wrapped up securely in his peace? These questions are relevant because we struggle with fear, guilt and anxiety. 

Do you sense that your group could grow in experiencing one of these gifts? What about you yourself? Might it be a good idea to make one of these areas a focus of prayer and Bible study for you and/or your group? Perhaps you could take some special time to pray about God's grace, his mercy and his peace.

2. Areas of Growth

Once we have looked at our relationship with God, we are ready to think about growing in the way that we express that relationship with God in how we live. Let's consider another grouping of three words that comes up three times in the New Testament. These are the words faith, hope and love. The references are below:

“And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”

“We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.”
(1 Corinthians 13:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 5:8)

These three words connect to our relationship with God as well as our activities in the world. However, I would like to focus on their outward expression as written in 1 Thessalonians 1:3.  Once we have a good grasp on the grace, mercy and peace of God in Christ, we have a full fuel tank to supply our life of discipleship.  That discipleship is expressed in work, labour and endurance inspired by faith, hope and love. 

The questions to discuss in your group could be, “Our works of faith in 2024 could look like…", "Our labours of love in 2024 could look like…", “Our endurance inspired by hope in 2024 could look like…"  Take some time to pray and brainstorm together with God as to how you can excel in loving labours, faithful works, and hope-filled endurance. Are these areas worthy of Bible study and focused prayer? 

Conclusion

It appears to be rare that God gives an individual or any group specificity of vision and tasks to be undertaken in the year ahead. Instead, what we tend to see is that when people are inspired by the grace, mercy and peace of God, and then, from that firm foundation, they set themselves devotedly to working by faith, labouring by love, and enduring by hope, God reveals his will and his plans at his time and place of choosing.

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community. 

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). 

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/). 

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review. 

“Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11) 

God bless, Malcolm

Last Sunday we welcomed my good friend Dr Andy Boakye as a visiting speaker to the Watford church of Christ. He spoke on "The Advent of Jesus in Matthew's genealogy” from Matthew 1:2-6. 

Andy observed that four women are mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus — Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and ‘the wife of Uriah’. All are questionable as to dignity. The theme of dignity restored to those who have lost it is a theme in Matthew’s Gospel. Especially when it pertains to women. 

‘Jesus affirmed the dignity of women by accepting them as disciples and treating them with a respect that was considered scandalous in his patriarchal culture.’ Four views on women in ministry 

Jesus came to restore the dignity of the disregarded and the forgotten. We see that in his treatment of any who are marginalised including by race — Matthew 15.22, the Canaanite woman.

Please add your comments on this week’s topic. We learn best when we learn in community. 

Do you have a question about teaching the Bible? Is it theological, technical, practical? Send me your questions or suggestions. Here’s the email: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). 

If you’d like a copy of my free eBook on spiritual disciplines, “How God grows His people”, sign up at my website: http://[www.malcolmcox.org](http://www.malcolmcox.org/). 

Please pass the link on, subscribe, leave a review. 

“Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalms 100:2 NIV11) 

God bless, Malcolm