The Apostle Paul used this illustration of the physical body to drive home an important point. Every single person has a vital role to play in the body of Christ. That means God has a specific purpose for each of us to carry out in our local church or community, and it is up to us to fill that purpose, with God’s help. This passage explains why this is so important.

The Church Consists of Different People with Different Roles, Corinthians 1:12 “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.” When God designed the Church, He did not intend for its members to be “Christian clones.” Instead. He chose to use the various groups and spiritual gifts found throughout the church to bring attention to the person who unifies us; Jesus Christ, Ephesians 3 10-11 “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord,” When the church operates as God intended, it serves as a powerful witness to a watching world.

No One Person Is More Valuable than Another. No gift of the Holy Spirit is “better” than another. Therefore, each individual has a special place of significance within the body of Christ. Even though our role may not seem as visible as others; for instance, God may be using us to visit convalescent homes while someone else leads a Bible Study; each of our role is just as vital. Corinthians 1:24 “For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked.”

We need One Another to Function as God Intended. If we fail to use the special gifts and abilities God has given us, we do a disservice to the church. God wants us to realize the importance of working together and building friendships with others. One could liken the church to a group of coals burning brightly together. Each coal not only emanates its own heat but also helps to keep the other hot, all the while benefitting from their warmth, as will, if we were to isolate one of those coals from the others, it would only be a matter of time until its heat dissipated. The same holds true for us as believers. We need one another to function as individuals and as the body of Christ.  Corinthians 1:27 “Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.”

The joyful news of the angels was not only meant for those shepherds who were keeping watch through the night over their flock, it was to bring joy to all people. When in Bethlehem the shepherds found the confirmation of what the angels of the Lord had told them so clearly, they did not remain silent about it. Praising and glorifying God they left the place of divine revelation and spread the words of the angel among the people. Luke 2:16-20 “And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it
wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.” They testified of what they had witnessed. The people of Israel were referred to the newly born Christ child, in whom they were to recognize salvation and the One who was to be Lord of His chosen people (Micah 5:2 “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

The souls constituting the prepared Bride of the Lamb, however, are being referred to the One who brings them salvation, but who moreover is their Bridegroom, who will come and fetch them to reward their loyalty and to crown their faith. The souls belonging to this Bride can in their trials and temptations lay claim to the comforting words: “Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by the name; thou art mine” (Isaiah 43: 1).

Let us not be put to shame by those shepherds who testified of the Saviour’s birth. We can testify of the imminent return of the King of kings, for the Spirit of the Lord has revealed it to us. This will be a day of indescribable joy for the people of God, this surety is our greatest joy at Christmas.

All of these are instructions from our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ and they all contain a promise. Yet in life we sometimes convince ourselves to question these words, when things do not go our way. Perhaps we should be questioning ourselves on these occasions. Ask! Who should we ask? I am reminded of a small story in a children’s magazine, of a farmer who sent his son to a field to remove a great rock that was hindering the planting of that paddock. After some days, the son returned and said to his father that he had tried everything. He had used tractors, he had got in a dozer, he had hired a digger, and he had even tried explosives. He had done everything possible, but it could not be moved. His father looked him in the eye and said; Son, there is one thing you did not try, and that was you did not ask me for help. We see therefore that all petitions that we ask for must be to our Heavenly Father. Christ confirmed this in Luke 18:27. “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
How then do men, ask, and seek of God .In the beginning of the Creation we read where God communed direct to man and woman, but when they fell into temptation, this link was damaged. We can read in Genesis 4:26 that when Seth, the son of Adam bore a son Enos, then began men to call upon the name of the Lord. This was the beginning of Prayer. A way given by God that all future generations could ask, seek and knock.
Once again by the downfall of man, this link was damaged and we see the period between the last Prophet Malachi and the events leading to the birth of Christ, some 400 years, called the silent years. Once again a reconciliation between God and man was required to open the way for prayer. God through Malachi, lamented the state of man but also made a promise regarding prayer. In chapter 1: 11. “For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles and in every place incense (prayer) shall be offered unto my name.” Prayer was to become a universal way of asking and seeking and knocking through our Lord and Saviour’s great sacrifice on the cross. Through Him was to become a way to God. A four fold ministry was to be put into place to help with these prayers. Revelations 5:8. ”The four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb having every one of them harps and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayer of saints.” We read further in Revelation 8, that these prayers are mingled with the sacrifice of Christ and then ascend up before God.
Now God has set down some rules if we wish our prayers – to be successful. These could be said to be the 5 Golden rules of prayer having first determined the way, through Christ.

1. Humbleness -2 Chronicles 7: 14. If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
2. Whole heartedness-Jeremiah 29:13. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
3. Faith -Mark 11:24. Therefore I say to you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray; believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them.
4. Righteousness-James 5:16. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may, be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
5. Obedience-1 John 3:22. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do these things that are pleasing in his sight.

In 1st Thessalonians Apostle Paul advises “Pray without ceasing” and this is very good advice, but let us always be sure we pray in the right way.

We see that our Lord was referring to the sower going into the world which is Himself and He is making the call, He is sowing that greatest treasure as seeds around the world, He is sowing the call to come unto the kingdom and many receive that as He said on stony grounds that does not bring forth any fruit for the deceitfulness of this world absorb it. Some falls by the way side and that is devoured by the cares and the troubles of this world and other falls on good ground and brings forth fruit. Therein we see a great obligation that we must bring forth fruit. What is this fruit that we must bring forth? Is it the fruit that we ourselves can generate? No, it is the fruit that can be brought forth on this good ground that enables others who have received the call to be able to be drawn into the church to also be partakers of that great promise. The seed has to grow and has to be nurtured and has to ripen and then bring forth fruit of its own and in the world that we have today if there is no place where good ground can be found, then this call of the Lord is destined to be lost for the world is so full of all those things that will overshadow this call of the Lord.
The English Apostles meditated and studied on the obligation of us all as part of the church in relation to what we must set into place if we are to be a magnet to draw that seed into good ground and they set forth a guide for their members in their days; They said that there were four things that must be displayed within the church that every church member must firstly come to grips with and get clear in their mind before the fifth can come into play, which is the bringing forth of the fruit, and they ran them in this order.
Firstly that we must have the full display of faith, we must have faith to receive that which is given unto us and to acknowledge that it is only from the Almighty God. We must have faith in the Almighty God as the Creator, we must have faith in the Almighty God as being above all and giving unto us His Son who has given us that call. Now that faith must not only be within our hearts, it must be displayed to the world, we must show to the world that we have this faith and this can be done every morning if we think first of the Creator and then we acknowledge this through having prayers we are displaying this faith to those souls that are in that household, it is ensuring that our children will also be drawn to this great call. If we do not have that faith and display it in our lives in simple things like attending service, attending functions in the church and all of those things, then we are not displaying that we believe that those things are from God.
The second attribute that is needed to be shown in the church they defined as worship and they said that this worship is not just simply something that happens every Sunday, it must be an ongoing thing in our daily life, we must be prepared to visibly show that we are worshipping the Almighty God and thankful for His blessings day by day, not only each Sunday, but day by day and that worship must go further than thanking Him for what we have received. In our worship we must acknowledge that we also thank Him for those things that He is yet to give us, in simple terms we acknowledge that He is guiding our life, He is guiding the world, His will, will be done and we worship Him for that and thank Him in advance for those things that He will do. Many things in our lives that happen unto us we may not feel it is what we want, but if we develop this strong worship unto Him to thank Him for what He will do for us into the future, then we will when those things happen accept that it is His will.
The third element required in the church is obedience, obedience to the commandments of God and His ways, it is no good understanding what God’s commandments are and displaying to the world that we are running with the world. That will not draw anyone into this security, but if all see that we can be obedient to the commandments of God and the will of God and the teachings of Christ, then they will see that we are receiving a joy from fulfilling that. It is not an obedience that is forced upon us, it is a joy that is displayed in our lives and through this joy others will want to partake of this also. Nothing they are doing is bringing them peace and contentment, nothing is bringing about anything that is stable, but if they see within the world that a group can be obedient to the commandments of God, be blessed for it, and have peace and contentment and that there is a future, a solid future that we are all looking for, then they too will be drawn to this good ground.
And the fourth and greatest virtue that must be shown within the church is hope. Hope of the final blessings that God will dispense that He has issued an invitation to come to His kingdom and we must never doubt this kingdom before us. If we display that hope in our lives and we can no matter what people say how troublesome the world is, if we can say that there is a hope in all this, and that hope is the kingdom of God. That will bring stability and the church, then will be able to be an active evangelist worldwide going forth, drawing those who are yet to receive the call into its circles and into its beliefs and faiths and hopes and understandings and worships and they too will find a stability in this troubled world.
We can see that the request to think first of the Creator, to follow the call of the Lord is not just simply something for us, it is God’s instruction to the whole world, it is us playing our part in this great field that He is sowing and we should be sad and sorry to see so many who are losing that seed, having it taken up by the cares and the troubles of this world, and we should be preparing that light into the world that will show that there is a better way, there is a better invitation that we can take up this seed, this invitation given unto us and honestly look forward to the kingdom of God.

In this life on earth, in spite of our efforts and endeavor to complete the race; still there are times we feel empty. Always remember this…When we trust Jesus Christ and live in fellowship with Him, we have all that we need for life and for service. When we were called, we have the opportunity to be complete in Christ. When the Holy Spirit came into our life, He came to give us fullness of life in Jesus Christ. We read in Psalm 36 that when we are walking in the Lord and seeking to serve Him, we have His protection. “How excellent is your loving kindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of your wings” (verse 7). I think David was talking about the tabernacle, about the wings of the cherubim in the Holy of Holies. How strange that the safest place in the world is under a shadow! What kind of protection is there in a shadow? It all depends on whose shadow it is. When we live in the Holy of Holies; in fellowship with God, under His wings, at the mercy seat, then we have His protection.

In verse 8, David changed the picture and said we have His satisfaction. “They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house, and thou shalt make them drink from the river of thy pleasures.” Our Lord is not only the One who protects us; He’s also the One who provides for us and satisfies us. A river is constantly changing, and yet it’s always the same. God is always the same, and yet He constantly wants to bring new blessings to us. When I think of a river, I think of power and abundance. “For with thee is the fountain of life,” said David in verse 9. We don’t just drink at the river and get thirsty again. We have that fountain of Living Water within us.

“In thy light shall we see light” (verse 9). We also have His Guidance. What more can we want today? In Jesus Christ we have all that we need. Be sure to live under the shadow of His wings.

What is our definition of satisfaction? Does the Lord alone satisfy us? Or do we look for satisfaction in our career, our relationship, our possessions, our activities? How can we apply Psalm 36: 8 “They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures.” and Psalm 16: 11 “Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Amen!

Although this event took place 3100 years ago, the teaching in the story is as important today as in the Days of Samson. We read how Samson was confronted by a young lion roaring against him. It would be very frightening. In our day, this is represented by the temptations and trials thrown against us by Satan. We too often think they are beyond us and they too, seem so frightening to us as that lion would have been for Samson. We see how Samson gained a victory only by the reason that “the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him.” We in our day also can call on this Spirit, the Holy Ghost, to strengthen us in our battle. As Apostle James writes, chapter 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” But we see Samson kept the matter to himself, he did not even tell his parents, in plain language, he did not boast about what he had done, because he knew a greater power than himself had been with him. Christ, while on earth, also taught us the same message in that great Sermon on the Mount Matthew 6:1-4. “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them, otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound the trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly,” and further the message on fasting in 16-18 has a similar instruction.

Certainly, this applies to Samson for when he returned later, he was to find in the carcase a swarm of bees and honey, and he was able to eat of that sweet food and also pass it on to his loved ones for them to share in this blessing. We see from this victory done in the right way, came sweetness, and so it is with our victories aided by God’s spirit and not boasted about, they too will be converted into a sweetness that the Bible refers to as ‘Righteousness’ and stored up for us to eternal life. This knowledge fills us with peace and contentment, and we are then in a position to spread this sweetness in the same way as the blessing from God could be shared by Samson with his parents. There is no happier moment in any parents’ life than when they can share the peace, love and blessings with their children.

This text gives us a promise of a blessing from our Lord. We all look forward to a blessing as it is a very good reward and if it comes from our Lord Jesus Christ, we know it must be a great thing. The blessings from God go beyond our understanding, but we know in part that we can relate this blessing to Eternal life, to be given to those who are prepared when our Lord does come again to this earth. John 14:3 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

There are two obligations that fall on us. One is to be a servant, who commits himself to serve the Lord.  Now to serve the Lord then extends to serving those that are the Lord’s. This is done individually or to co-ordinate a united effort, it is done in what we call the Church, the mystical body of Christ. The Apostle Paul learnt this lesson as he was persecuting the Church and its members, when the Lord called him at his conversion and asked him the question “Saul, Saul, why persecutes! thou me?” We see clearly, when we have made a commitment, we must spend our life as a servant in the Church, that body of Christ. It is like a journey we then begin in our lives, that takes us towards our destination, the Lord. The second obligation is to be found so doing at all times. Doing what? Of course, the short answer is doing the will of our Lord in our life. There would not be enough paper to record all of the things that we could be doing for the Lord. They range from attending service, and more importantly joining in, the singing, choirs, youth chorus, youth work, children’s activities, visiting the sick, praying, helping the poor, praying for those in need, keeping the places of worship clean, using the gifts we have been given by the Lord to help, mission work, teaching, helping in the service, making suggestions, open debate on ongoing  matters and the list goes on and on. The Church must be a living body of people, all doing something at all times, helping to keep moving on that journey towards the Lord.

I read an interesting article on the early journeys by the pioneers of this country, which were done by Cobb & Co. Coaches, that relates to our attitude to the journey of the Church and to our text. To go on that journey firstly a ticket had to be purchased. There were three classes of tickets. First-class, second-class and third-class. The holders of the first-class ticket had the free choice of which seat on the coach they occupied. When it stopped at a Way Station, they were seated at a table and food was served to them. If along the way a wheel came loose or fell off, they were given a seat under a shady tree until the coach was fixed. The second-class ticket holders had the next choice of seats, at the Way Station they had to stand and eat their food and if a break-down, could stand around in the shade. The third-class ticket holders were happy to sit where there was room left, at the Way Station they had to cook the food and serve others and if the coach broke-down, they had to help repair it so that it could continue on its journey. If we relate this to the Church’s journey, especially our text, it should be very easy to see what ticket our Lord wishes us to have when He returns.

The more science unravels some of the mystery of God’s creation the more we stand in awe of His magnificent design. The Hebrew understanding of wisdom was more than just ‘right use of knowledge’, but it was also applied to the practical elements of life.

Here, Solomon identifies four creatures who are small in stature but exceedingly wise and, through that wisdom, accomplish great things.

Mostly we only notice ants when they invade our living spaces and yet the wisdom we see them display is to work together to accomplish a goal while there is an opportunity (i.e. prepare their meat in the summer). Individually, an ant would seem incapable of carrying human food to its storehouse, but we have all seen the trails of ants working together to take significant food back to the colony. Worldwide, the household of God achieves magnificent feats when we all play our part and work together.

The conies, realising their vulnerability as easy prey for predators, make use of the strength of the rocks to provide protection for their household. So too, the House of God must be built on the rock as the chief cornerstone if it is to withstand the storms of history and remain standing. It must also remain ‘in Christ’, as the Devil goes about as a roaring lion seeking to devour any who do not choose Christ’s victory.

A swarm of locusts is enough to make the strongest tremble in their unrelenting march of destruction. They have no king, or leader, yet they work as a team as they all head in the same direction, ever moving forward without looking behind. The amazing aspect is that the locust is generally a solitary creature and only under certain conditions normally related to times of stress do they all come together. We see again the importance of unity where all are equal.

The tenacity of a spider is demonstrated with all eight limbs holding on in the most difficult situations and through that resilience it survives in all places, including kings’ palaces. The diligent work of her hands provides a home, protection and a food source and it shows the application of wisdom. The strength in her handiwork underscores the magnificence and detail of the handiwork of God in His creation.

We would all do well to continue to look to God’s creation for the wisdom He has made and how we can apply it in our lives.