Matthew 6:25-34 is well known and loved because it contains truth that the world often denies or forgets. Because God has promised to look after the needs of His people, we can live free of the love of money and this will enable us to live worry free under God’s care, confidently under His hand and entirely for His Kingdom in this world. In a world that promotes the idea that you can never have enough, Jesus reminds us that putting God’s Kingdom first in our priorities will reap a different kind of riches that will last for all eternity.
Philip Burns
Rev Philip Burns is the minister of Bendigo Presbyterian Church.
‘Heaven or earth? Treasures true and false’ (Matthew 6:19-24)
In Matthew 6:19-24 Jesus gives some counter-cultural teaching in relation to the way God’s people ought to view money. He spoke of a different place to invest, reminding us that heavenly treasures will never be stolen, eaten or fade away. He also spoke of a different Master to serve, reminding us that we cannot serve God and money. It should be obvious to the world that believers do not view money the same way as the world does, simply because we are called upon to have a whole different set of values to the world and give as much as we can for the advancing and growth of the Kingdom of God.
‘Worldly ways; causes, consequences and cure’ (James 4:1-10)
There’s something wrong when the water is in the boat, or when the world is in the church. In this last message from ‘Sundays@Six’ for 2012, Rev Philip Burns highlights the real issue from James 4 and where the solution to it all lies.
‘Wisdom: The good and the deadly’ (James 3:13-18)
When is wisdom not wisdom? When it’s the wrong kind of wisdom! Did you know that there is such a thing as heavenly and earthly wisdom? Can you tell them apart? James enables us to do just that…
‘The Apostle Paul’s view on the eldership’ (Acts 20:13-38)
The text of Acts 20 concerns Paul’s meeting with the elders from Ephesus and his parting words to them. From this we can glean what Paul understood to be the role of an elder in God’s church. The elder is to minister to people with sincerity, handle the truth of the Word of God with care and protect the flock of God’s people with truth. No-one is perfectly suited to this high calling in themselves, yet this does not negate the fact the God calls and appoints men to lead His people. In the end being like Jesus the Chief Shepherd is what makes a man suitable for this noble task.
‘Of snakes and salvation’ (Numbers 21:4-9)
The text of Numbers 21 concerns the snakes that bit the people of Israel after they grumbled against Moses and the Lord. In an act that would foreshadow the salvation that Jesus would bring, Moses lifted up a bronze snake upon a pole and all who looked to it were healed and kept from certain death. Jesus spoke of this in John 3:15-18 and said that He would be lifted up (on the cross) and all who look to Him in faith will be saved.
‘Faith: the real and the not so real’ (James 2:14-26)
Faith is a concept that both unbelievers and believers can struggle with. This part of the book of James tackles the question of faith head on, showing that genuine faith will be seen and shown by deeds. No deeds will mean that there is no faith present or even that we have the faith of demons (whose belief in God leads them to do no more than quake in their boots!). So how do faith and deeds sit together? James points to the examples of Abraham and Rahab so that we might know!
‘The fall of a great man’ (Numbers 20:1-13)
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‘Breaking the law of God without knowing it’ (James 2:8-13)
Following on from James’ practical warnings about showing favouritism (2:1-7) comes this Scriptural foundation. While we may think that showing favouritism ‘hardly’ breaks God’s law, James reminds us that in God’s sight sin is sin and all sin deserves His judgement, yet (thankfully) that He also acts mercifully to those who show mercy. By these James challenges those who claim to love God and keep His law, if we would pass His test.
‘Lessons from a dead stick’ (Numbers 17:1-13)
Numbers 17 relates the important story of Aaron’s rod that budded, proving that he was the one chosen by God to be the High Priest of Israel. While mankind hates the notion of needing to be saved by another, God has made it clear that salvation can only be found in the Lord Jesus Christ and not in any other. Aaron’s budding rod also reminds us that (as Jesus taught in John 15) that it is only those who are ‘connected’ to Him who produce fruit.