Scripture: John 4 v 21 - 24: "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
As today is Father's Day I think its appropriate to give love and thanks to our true Father in Heaven first. He has done so much for us as He is the Father of all spirits.
We are spirit beings. We come from a spiritual Home called Heaven. We are marooned on Earth, where we need physical bodies to live and survive until our last breath.
We are born to parents, biological father and mother, who have the task of nurturing, teaching us the basics of humanity, showing us love care and honour. Some parents suffered under their parents and taught us harsh, sad and wrong things without much love attached.
No matter how we are brought up, in luxury and comfort, or hardship and sorrow, our Father in Heaven loves us all. He sends people across our path who know Him and His Son Jesus Christ so they can tell us about love, forgiveness and salvation.
When we become born again as Jesus insists that we must, then we start a journey towards our heavenly home. Our map is the Holy Bible, an infallible compendium of books written by those who have negotiated their way through the hazards of this journey and can enlighten us about some short cuts.
Moses survived being killed at birth by Pharoah in order to wait 80 years until he was ready to lead the captive Hebrew tribe towards the Promised Land. Over 400 years before they had lived in the land of Canaan but other tribes had wandered into it since then.
To Moses herding the Hebrews through barriers like the Red Sea, the waterless desert, without a Mall every mile for food, he needed a very loving Father to provide for millions of people and animals. Because of their disobedience to God and anger at Moses the journey of maybe 3 months became forty years. Forty is God's number for judgment. So Moses was almost 120 years old when he saw the Promised Land in the distance.
He was not allowed to enter it because he had been disobedient to God. He had been told to speak to the large rock in the desert and water would gush out of it. Previously he had struck the rock and water had poured out. So instead of talking to the rock he struck it again. God is not moved by sympathy. He speaks and must be obeyed. The wages of sin is death. So Moses died on that mountain outside of the destination he was leading them to.
King Saul and his sons died the day after consulting the Witch of Endor to bring up the spirit of the dead prophet Samuel as he needed help in his present war. To the shock of the witch the real Samuel did appear and not the usual false familiar lying spirit she was used to. He condemned Saul for gross sin resulting in his death. Saul was wounded but committed suicide by falling on his sword before the enemy could capture and torture him. Lesson ....do not practice witchcraft nor consult witches, psychics, astrologers, sorcerers or mediums.
This includes false religions, Yoga, Freemasonry, the Evil Eye, Horoscopes, I Ching, Palmistry, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses, Hinduism, Buddhism, New Age practices, and any church that does not preach the full gospel of Jesus Christ.
You must be born again, then baptised by immersion in water, then have hands laid on you to be baptized in the Holy Spirit to receive His gifts. This is the requirements to begin your journey towards God the Father in Heaven. If any of these are missing in your present church you are in danger of never getting to Heaven at all.
Fathers, God expects you to be the spiritual head of the home. It's up to you to present the needs of your family to Him every day. The prayers of a husband and wife are the strongest and the Lord is listening. Your children will benefit from Bible reading and prayers every night. They will grow up responsible teens, and good parents themselves.
If this could be a whole new experience for you make a decision today to implement this in your home. If you are already a wonderful spiritual leader in your home consider yourself blessed.
The path to Heaven has its twists and turns so we need the map to avoid stepping on landmines. If you are having frequent blow ups read Galatians 5 v 22 - 26: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another."
As you grow in grace the Holy Spirit starts a fruit tree growing in your spirit which manifests in a changed attitude to the negative moments you encounter. Temperance means self control which is very useful to have in problem situations.
Prayer: Heavenly Father our gift to You this day is love, worship, praise and thanksgiving for Your wonderful grace and favour towards us. We promise to be obedient to Your Word and to turn away from the things that displeasure You. Help us to help others to know You and love You. In Jesus' name. Amen.