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Blessed are those who Hunger and Thirst for righteousness, f or they will be filled Hungering and Thirsting for God How is your appetite today? How much of an appetite do you have for God? What do you hunger for today? Is it happiness, money, or a relationship, where will you find it? Be honest with yourself. How much of a thirst do you have for God? If it is success you long for, where will you find it? Or do you thirst for revenge, fame or fortune? What are you thirsting for today? When I was boy sometimes we would go to the cinema and find that we had come into theatre half way through the movie. This was no problem since you stayed on for the second performance and left once you had caught up all that you had missed. Today's message from the Lord resembles this situation a bit since we are coming in half way through the Beatitudes but nevertheless I believe that is God’s will for our message today. To set things in context you should know that the Beatitudes are part of that wonderful sermon given by Jesus to his disciples which is known as the Sermon on the Mount . Matthew 5 The beatitudes 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. The word ‘Beatitudes’ means simply the ‘ blessednesses ’ and each verse begins with the English word ‘blessed’ which means happy, fortunate, to be envied, enjoying the favour and approval of God and also enjoying God’s smile (my favourite). The Greek word for blessed is Makarios , and some of us more senior people may recall Archbishop Makarios in Cyprus many years ago. How would you like to have blessed as your surname? The best bible scholars have worked out that the beatitudes are a step wise progression so in a sense we can’t start in the middle. We all have start by being ‘poor in spirit ‘and begin to progress through the other beatitudes. When we realise our spiritual poverty we can begin to mourn over our sins and receive the comfort and direction of God. The next stage is we begin to develop meekness which is best described as strength under control like a trained stallion. Once we have developed strength under control we can begin to hunger and thirst for God himself. The Lord knows where each one of us is at spiritually and if he is ministering this message to us today that is what he wants us to receive. Motive Why should we want to hunger and thirst for God and his righteousness? Firstly Jesus tells us that we will experience the smile and approval of the Living God and it is his great delight to fill us when we hunger and thirst for righteousness. Psalm 16:11 says , You will show me the path of life: in your presence [is] fullness of joy; at your right hand [there are] pleasures for evermore. To hunger and thirst for righteousness is to hunger for God himself. Matthew 5:6. The late Martin Lloyd Jones says t his verse divides those who are believers from those who don’t know God. It only makes sense to one of those groups of people. Which group are you in? Hungering and Thirsting If we are what we eat then if we eat and drink righteousness then we will become righteousness! So this means following hard after God in our lives. It is a relentless pursuit of God and all that is good in Him particularly pursuing his will in every area of our lives. We will further explore what it means to hunger and thirst for righteousness in Part 2 of this study. Amen

Are the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of heaven the same thing? The Kingdom of God was so central to the preaching of Jesus Christ that the “Kingdom of God” you could say is like the 'catch-phrase' in Jesus’ preaching. Luke 16:16 The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. Mark 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Jesus was always talking about the kingdom of God, the kingdom of Heaven and the Gospel of the kingdom. In particular, the synoptic gospels are filled with texts about the kingdom of God. In the New Testament the phrase ‘the Kingdom of God’ occurs 66 times in 65 verses. The phrase ‘the Kingdom of heaven’ occurs in 32 times in 31 verses (Matthew only). Most bible scholars think the phrases kingdom of God and kingdom of heaven are interchangeable although there is a difference in the Greek phrases. The reason scholars think they are the same are, Only Matthew uses Kingdom of heaven and that he was trying to avoid upsetting his Jewish readers by constantly mentioning the name 'God'. 2. Matthew`s usage parallels that of the other Gospel writers i.e. it is used to say the same things, for an example see below, Matthew 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. Compare this to Luke 13:20 And again he said, Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God? 21 It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. The Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom from heaven, not heaven, not a kingdom in heaven. God reigns supreme in heaven. Heaven is the locus of His authority, the point from which he rules the universe. The words “of heaven” then are referring to the origin of this Kingdom. It is the place from which the Kingdom is coming from, not a destination in this context. Mark 1:14 (see above) The main thrust of the word for kingdom has the thrust of the reign of a king, or that which the king reigns over. Luke 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. Thus, it is a fundamental truth for each born again believer that the kingdom of God means the rule of Jesus Christ is within you . This means his kingly rule should be in each and every part of our lives, spirit, soul and body. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God Introducing the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, we learn that King Jesus became a man who took the sins of the whole world onto his body on the cross. King Jesus suffered and died that he might enter His Father`s Kingdom. If you are a seeker Believe on King Jesus today, turn from your sins and receive his pardon and welcome the Kingdom of God within you. Kneel at His feet, confess you are a sinner and make Him King over your life. Here is a way of how to do it. The bible is clear Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. We now need to turn this belief into a prayer spoken from your heart (below is an example of this). Dear Jesus , thank you for taking my punishment on the cross, which I deserve for all the wrong things I have done in the past. Help me turn away from the ways of this world and all its the false promises. I ask now for your forgiveness and a fresh start in my life. I invite the Holy Spirit into my heart and mind to show me how to live from this time on. Amen You now need to start praying, reading your bible and find a church where they teach and believe the bible. Bless you , the angels in heaven are rejoicing over your decision to turn to God. If you are a believer This is the Gospel of the Kingdom. Let us continue to introduce the unbelievers to King Jesus through his wonderful Gospel. Amen For a list of scriptures about the Kingdom of God please click on the link below https://www.psalmonesermons.com/post/intro-kingdom-of-god See also the teaching below 'Jesus explains the new birth'

Why is the kingdom of God important? The Kingdom of God was so central to the preaching of Jesus Christ that the “Kingdom of God” you could say is like the catch-phrase in Jesus’ preaching. Luke 16:16 The law and the prophets were  until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it. Mark 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,   15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Jesus was always talking about the kingdom of God, the kingdom of Heaven and the Gospel of the kingdom. In particular, the synoptic gospels are filled with texts about the kingdom of God. In the New Testament the phrase ‘the Kingdom of God’ occurs 66 times in 65 verses. The phrase ‘the Kingdom of heaven’ occurs in 32 times in 31 verses (Matthew only). Most bible scholars think the phrases kingdom of God and kingdom of heaven are interchangeable although there is a difference in the Greek phrases. The reason scholars think they are the same are, Only Matthew uses Kingdom of heaven and that he was trying to avoid upsetting his Jewish readers by constantly mentioning the name 'God'.      2. Matthew`s usage parallels that of the other Gospel writers i.e. it is used to say the          things for an example see below, Matthew 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven,  which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. Compare this to Luke 13:20 And again he said, Whereunto shall I liken the kingdom of God?   21 It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.  The Kingdom of Heaven is a kingdom from heaven, not heaven, not kingdom in heaven. God reigns supreme in heaven. Heaven is the locus of His authority, the point from which he rules the universe. The words “of heaven” then are referring to the origin of this Kingdom. It is the place from which the Kingdom is coming, not a destination to which we are going. Mark1:14 (above) The main thrust of the word for kingdom has the thrust of the reign of a king, or that which the king reigns over. Luke 17:20   And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:   21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.   Thus, it is a fundamental truth for each born again believer that the kingdom of God means the rule of Jesus Christ is within you.  This means his kingly rule should be in each and every part of our lives, spirit, soul and body. List of scriptures that give insight into the Kingdom of God Matthew 12:28 Mark 4:26 Matthew 19:24 Mark 4:30 Matthew 21:31 Mark 9:1, 47 Matthew 21:43 Mark 10:14-15, 23-25 Mark 1:15 Mark 12:34 Mark 4:11 Mark 14:25  Mark 15:43 Luke 4:43 Luke 6:20 Luke 7:28 Luke 8:1, 10 Luke 9:2, 11, 27, 60-62 Luke 10:9-11 Luke 11:20 Luke 13:18-20, 28-29 Luke 14:15 Luke 16:16 Luke 17:20-21 Luke 18:16-17, 24-25, 29 Luke 19: 11 Luke 21:31 Luke 22:16-18 Luke 23:51 John 3:3, 5 Acts 1:3 Acts 8:12 Acts 14:22 Acts 19:8 Acts 28:2-3-, 31 Romans 14:17 1 Corinthians 4:20 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 1 Corinthians 15:50 Galatians 5:21 Colossians 4:11 2 Thessalonians 1:5 Matthew 4:17 Matthew 5:3, 10, 19-20 Matthew 7:21 Matthew 8:11 Matthew 10:7 Matthew 11:11-12 Matthew 13:11, 24, 31-33, 44-47, 52 Matthew 16:19 Matthew 18:1-4, 23 Matthew 19:12, 14, 23 Matthew 20:1 Matthew 22:2 Matthew 23:13 Matthew 25:1 The Gospel of the Kingdom of God Introducing the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, we learn that King Jesus became a man who took the sins of the whole world onto his body on the cross. King Jesus suffered and died that he might enter His Father`s Kingdom. If you are a seeker Believe on King Jesus today, turn from your sins and receive his pardon and welcome the Kingdom of God within you. Kneel at His feet, confess you are a sinner and make Him King over your life. Here is a way of how to do it. The bible is clear Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. We now need to turn this belief into a prayer spoken from your heart (below is an example of this). Dear Jesus , thank you for taking my punishment on the cross, which I deserve for all the wrong things I have done in the past. Help me turn away from the ways of this world and all its the false promises. I ask now for your forgiveness and a fresh start in my life. I invite the Holy Spirit into my heart and mind to show me how to live from this time on. Amen You now need to start praying, reading your bible and find a church where they teach and believe the bible. Bless you , the angels in heaven are rejoicing over your decision to turn to God. If you are a believer This is the Gospel of the Kingdom. Let us continue to introduce the unbelievers to King Jesus through his wonderful Gospel. Amen Personal Prayer

How to put on the armour and enter into the battle Putting on the armour How we enter into the spiritual battle Ephesians 6:18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints… When we have put on all our armour, we are then ready to enter into all types of prayer as led by the Holy Spirit. All (types of) prayer is how we enter the battle. God also has provided some weapons of attack particularly in the pulling down of strongholds. We are obliged to move on from protection to attacking the enemy strongholds. Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. We will explore the idea of moving from defensive action to offensive like in Matthew 16:18 in a separate study. But the Lord does want us to go on the offensive from time to time. Something to remember is that we are not fighting to win a victory but rather we stand to enforce the mighty victory that Jesus Christ has won at the cross. Prayer for Putting on our Armour. We are now ready to put on all 6 pieces of our armour by prayer. We will use prayer as an approach you could also do it by reading and agreeing to the relevant scriptures. Before starting to pray, check to see if there is any sin or unforgiveness in your life. If so, it should be dealt with by confession using 1 John 1:9. Prayer Father God in the name of Jesus Christ 1. I believe and declare that my mind is girded with the truth, Your word is truth Lord and contains all the weapons of our warfare which are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. 2. I have a breastplate of righteousness which is faith and love and so I have right-standing with you Father through Jesus Christ and this protects my heart. 3. My feet, Lord, are shod in preparation of the gospel of peace. My shoes are ready to take the good news of the Gospel with me wherever I go seeking opportunities to bring your peace to all men. 4.Lord I am carrying my shield of faith which is able to quench all the fiery darts of the enemy. This shield will protect against every weapon of the enemy. 5. I now put on the helmet of salvation which gives me hope of seeing all of Gods promise for my life come to fruition. My helmet protects my mind from all the lies of the enemy that is trying to cast doubt on all the God has done for me. 6.I now take the sword of the Spirit which is your word Father just like Jesus did in the wilderness. Your spoken word will defeat all the lies and deceptions of the enemy. Amen Having put on the whole armour of God we are then fully prepared to enter into the spiritual battle as led by the Holy Spirit. Let us do so now…Amen.                                                             Materials Consulted Derek Prince: Spiritual Conflict: Defensive Armor Parts 1+2 and                             : Weapons of attack Part 1  All available on YouTube. Roger Price :STS 021- 022 Can a Christian have a demon? Christian Wake-up Call: John   Whole Armour of God https://christianwakeupcall.com/

The Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit Helmet and Sword 5.      The Helmet of Salvation Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The helmet protects the head representing the mind or the thought life. We must know how to protect our minds.  Satan will attack our minds with such things as mistrust. That is one of his favourite weapons.  We begin to mistrust our wife, our husband, our fellow Christians, our pastor. . . Then comes suspicion and then fear and doubt and depression. Depression is surprisingly common in Christians. Derek Prince tells how God set him personally free from years of depression which also affected his family life, using two scriptures.   Isaiah 61:3 The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Joel 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered… In Isaiah 61:3 he read this phrase: “The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” And when he read that word “the spirit of heaviness,” it was.  like the Holy Spirit said to him, “That is your problem. It is not you, it is not psychological, it is not mental, it is a spirit, it is a person. He saw the real identity of his enemy was a spirit of depression and he reminds us that ‘Evil is not something, it is Someone.’ Derek then realised that he needed one more thing and that was Joel 2:32 ‘’It shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered.” And Derek was completely delivered from the spirit of heaviness (depression). He also pointed out the need for Christians to develop their own healthy thought patterns over a period of time. Ephesians 6:17: “ Take the helmet of salvation .”  This is God’s protection for our heads. This ties in with 1Thessalonians 5:8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. The helmet is hope and we have got to cultivate hope. Hope, in the Bible, is a confident expectation of that which is good. Faith in our minds does not work. Faith has to be in the heart. But the protection for the mind is hope. Now somebody said everybody is born either a pessimist or an optimist.  For a Christian to be a pessimist is a denial of our faith. Why?  Because Romans 8:28 says, “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:24: For we are saved by hope. Ephesians 2:12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. Romans 8:24: For we are saved by hope . . . (KJV) No hope, no salvation.  Ephesians 2:12, speaking about those without Christ, the unsaved. Paul says: That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world. (KJV). From this we can see three things.  Without Christ, without God, without hope. They go together. We can see clearly, no hope, no Christ then our salvation hinges on hope. I am saved by hope. If I am without hope, I am without Christ.  And if I have Christ, I have hope.  Hebrews 6: 19 says: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast…  If a ship is to be secured, it has to have an anchor which passes through the unstable medium of water and fastens into something stable and secure such as a rock. If we want security and stability, we have to have an anchor that passes through time into eternity and fastens in the Rock of Ages. And this anchor of hope takes us beyond the second veil into the Holy of Holies, into the immediate presence of Almighty God where Jesus, our High Priest and forerunner has entered for us. Now when your anchor is fastened there, we can smile at the storms of life. But the anchor is hope. 6.      The Sword of the Spirit Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. For the first time we are passing out of the purely defensive into something that could be in a sense called aggressive. Because a sword you can use aggressively and defensively against your enemy. But a sword by itself is limited because it will go no further than your arm can stretch.  Now in Greek there are two words for ‘word.’ One is  logos , which means counsel, reason, a set truth. We often use it to describe the written word. The other is  rhema , which means specifically a word that is spoken. The word that is used here is rhema. The sword of the Spirit is not the eternal logos, it is the living word of God when you speak it.  And if you do not speak it, you have no sword. I think the best example of this is Jesus confronted by the devil in the wilderness.  Each temptation He met by saying, “It is written.”  Satan knows it is true. When Jesus said, “It is written, it is written, it is written.”  Satan backed off.  And we have to do the same as Jesus. We have to know the Word of God and not just have the Bible resting on our desk at night but speak the Word like a sharp two-edged sword out of our mouth. And then at least we can keep the devil at bay. Amen Personal Prayer In Part 5 (our final part) we discover how to put on all the armour and how to enter into thje battle.

The preparation of the Gospel of Peace (shoes) and the Shield of Faith Shoes and Shield 1.      Gospel of Peace (shoes)  Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Verse 15 says Your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace refers to shoes (or boots). The Roman soldier had boots which were bound around his calf with leather thongs.  And the Roman legionaries were famous for the long distances they could march under pressure. And one of the great requirements of any soldier is to be mobile. And our mobility depends before mechanized transportation, on our feet. Soldiers in a battlefield area are usually ordered to sleep with their boots on because if there is an alarm in the middle of the night and they had to wake up in the dark and feel around for your boots! Soldiers in a battle must be mobile and available, So, what Paul is saying here is ‘Make sure that in a moment of crisis you have your shoes on’’. And this is what Paul is saying. Having your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.  It has got to be done in advance. So what does that mean? It means two things. First of all, if we are to communicate the gospel, it requires advance preparation. We have to be acquainted out of Scripture with the basic facts of the gospel. Some believers who are saved and born again and members of churches are unable to explain the gospel. So the preparation is needed that we are equipped beforehand to explain to others what the gospel is. Then it says, “the gospel of peace.” There are two types of peace in the bible, first peace with God with followed by the peace of God. We receive peace with God at the point of our salvation and we then be to experience the peace of God in our lives. We can share the peace with God as we share the Gospel.   So, the shoes (or boots) are the preparation of the gospel of peace. 2.      Shield of Faith Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. In the Roman legions there were two kinds of shields. One was a small, round shield, the other was a long, oval shield. And the one that is referred to here is the long, oval shield which would protect every part of you from arrows and other missiles. And so, Paul talks here about a kind of faith that protects us totally. And we are going to need it because if we begin to minister for the Lord or challenge Satan, he is going to fight back.  And he will not only fight back at us personally, and our homes, our families, our business, and other areas of our lives. And we need a shield of faith that can cover ourselves, our family, our business, our car, whatever it may be. We need a total protection. And that is through faith and remember that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. In other words, we have got to take time in God’s Word to find out God’s provision. God does provide a total protection. It is there in His Word. But some of us do not have a complete shield. There may be areas of our lives which are unprotected.  We all know by now that when we are used by the Lord in any way, there usually is a backlash of the enemy who likes to step up the pressure on our family and life in general. And so Paul says very reasonably, “Take.  the shield of faith that will cover everything.” Please that we have to ‘take up’ each the shield. It does not drop.  into our hands. It does not grow. We have to lay hold upon it, grasp it. And it is true that the Roman soldier was trained to grasp the shield very firmly. It was strapped around his left arm. You have got to have it on your arm, firm and secure.  Amen Personal Prayer Next time in Part 4 we consider the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit.

The Girdle of Truth and the Breastplate of Righteousness 1.      The girdle (belt) of truth Ephesians 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, In verse 14, the first piece of armour is having your loins girt about with truth i.e. the first piece of equipment is the girdle of truth. Why did people need a girdle?  Men in Paul’s time did not wear trousers such as we wear today.  Today, you could have understood that they needed a belt. In those days men’s clothing was loose fitting and quite long.   And if a man was going to do anything that demanded free, active movement, the first thing he had to do was to get his long, loose clothing out of the way. And he did this by doing what the New Testament calls ‘girding up his loins.’ He would lift the clothing and fasten it around his loins with a girdle so that his legs from the knees downwards were free to move. Then he could do whatever else he had to do after that. So very logically the first step is to put on the girdle (or belt). Now the girdle represents truth. You could say it is the truth of God’s Word, but you will find that God’s Word, but it is even more basic. It simply means the plain truth. Truth means being honest. It is being real. It is putting away all our posturing and all our insincerities with which affects some religious people. This is the common problem amongst certain religious people which is called insincerity. Jesus said, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees,” which is hypocrisy. The word hypocrite is the Greek word for an actor. The actors of Jesus’ day had a small selection of masks (4) they could put on during the play but never appeared in with their actual face but only a mask reflecting the part being played. Derek Prince said that there were many masks being worn in the church of today with most denominations have their own mask!   What Paul is saying here “Take the mask off and stop acting. Be real. Tell it like it is.   How can we stand in the battle without a girdle, when we try to move, we will trip over our garments and get no further. So, the first essential requirement is put on the girdle of truth, which means we need to be real and be truthful in every area of our lives including in church! 2.      Breastplate of Righteousness Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, v.14 Having on the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate protects the heart. Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.   Everything we experience in life originates out of our heart. What you have in your heart will determine the course of your life. If your heart is filled with bitterness, unbelief, and fear, it is going to cause your life to go wrong. But if your heart is filled with faith, peace, and love, your life will take the right course. You need to guard your heart with all your strength. In the New Testament, righteousness is a condition of the heart, not of the head. 1 Thessalonians 5:8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. (KJV). Notice the breastplate in  1 Thessalonians 5:8 is faith and love yet in Ephesians 6:14 it is righteousness .  That is consistent for the following reason. In the New Testament righteousness is faith  which worketh by love see  (Galatians 5: 6) In Christ Jesus neither circumcision avail anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love . So the basic righteousness of the New Testament is faith working by love and it is a condition of the heart. Romans 10:10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness (KJV). There is a difference between believing with the head and believing with the heart. Believing with the head is mere mental acceptance of truth and often leaves a person unchanged in the way that they live. But when we believe with the heart, we believe unto righteousness.  It changes the way we live. And so Paul says we need to protect our heart with the breastplate of righteousness which is faith in the heart working by love. This means that we need to check our motives regularly! Amen Personal Prayer Next time in Part 3 we consider the Gospel of Peace (shoes) and the Shield of Faith.

Our Spiritual Warfare in Ephesians 6:10-18 Whole armour of God When we become believers, we soon discover that we have come into a battle! It is the spiritual battle between God with his holy angels versus Satan with his armies of evil spirit beings. We need to understand how to survive in our spiritual battles. The whole armour of God is a metaphor in the Bible (Ephesians 6:10-18) that describes the protection available to Christians in our spiritual battle. It is more than a metaphor since it actually describes spiritual realities. Here are 4 things you should know about the full armour of God. 1. The whole armour is the expression of your full trust in God and what He has done for you through Jesus Christ 2. The Armour of God is receiving and applying everything that God has done for you. This is explained in Ephesians chapter 1-5. 3. Your victory in spiritual warfare was secured at the cross of Jesus Christ and his blood that was shed there (Rev. 12:11). 4. Examples of spiritual attacks on believers might include things like the temptation to sin, doubting your faith, or feeling like you are not good enough to share God's word etc. The Bible says that such attacks originate by Satan and his evil forces and are directed at the believer’s mind. The Background to our Spiritual Warfare Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places… The church is engaged in a spiritual war, and its enemy is Satan and a host of unseen angelic and celestial enemies whose power vastly exceeds our own. With a few exceptions, our enemies remain invisible to our eyes, but they nevertheless are real, and so is their opposition. These celestial enemies come in various forms, as is suggested by the variety of terms used by Paul to identify them: “rulers” these are the 5-star generals, “powers,” “world forces of this darkness,” “spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places”.   In this war Satan employs a variety of strategies to oppose and to defeat the Christian.  Paul does not speak of one single “scheme” (wiles KJV), but of his many “schemes” (plural), likewise, there are different parts of God’s armour that we must put on to counteract each scheme of attack.  Satan’s opposition against the church is not a frontal attack, but a sneaky attack through intrigue, deception, and trickery, so we must remain prayerful and alert (Eph 6:18, 1 Peter 5:8). Ephesians 6:13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Because of verse 12, which is Satan’s kingdom in the heavenlies, we need take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all, to stand. Paul says there is going to come an evil day, an evil day comes in the life of every one of us. Whether we stand or not depends on whether we have the defensive equipment (armour) we need. And then Paul lists the armour, and it is taken from the battle armour of a Roman soldier of his day. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints. The believer’s armour has 6 main parts. Girdle of Truth Breastplate of Righteousness Gospel of Peace (Shoes) Shield of Faith Helmet of Salvation Sword of the Spirit The armour of God is an illustration in the Bible that reminds Christians about the reality of spiritual battle and describes the protection available to them. Each piece of armour has a distinct purpose and is a means of defence against temptation and evil. Jesus Christ has provided each piece of armour to protect Christians. But we still need to put the armour on!  Paul having been chained to Roman soldiers for several hours every day whilst in prison would have had lots of time to draw the analogy from the soldiers’ armour. There are six parts of armour which we will look at in order and some detail armour as we proceed. Please note that all these 6 pieces are defensive although the sword of the Spirit can be used to some extent (arm’s length) to attack the enemy. Amen Prayer In Part 2 We begin to consider each piece of our armour in order and in detail.

The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone Most of us at some time in life will experience some form of rejection. Family or so-called friends might decide to terminate their relationship with us under various circumstances. We might feel let-down, bewildered and angry that people can be as unkind, but it is a lesson unfortunately we need to learn in this world. Even when we go for a job interview or some selection process for sports or team ventures, we might be rejected. In all these forms of rejection we must be humble, forgiving and fight any tendency towards bitterness. This what Jesus Christ himself experienced. The one people in the world who should have known who and what the Son of God would be like, were the Jews. But when He came to them, most of them including their secular and religious leaders rejected and dismissed Him as an impostor. He was the precious stone which the builders rejected yet he was and still is the most important stone in the building known as the church, that is the cornerstone! The corner or cap stone is usually laid at a ceremony in honour of a new building. All the other stones fit in around the cornerstone. So, is there someone whose judgement that we can trust? When we look at people we can be so influenced by external things, such as their appearance, demeanour, dress sense, personality etc. But when God considers a person, He looks right into their heart. A clear example of this was when the Lord sent Samuel the prophet to anoint one of the sons of Jesse as King over Israel. Read Mark 11:25 John 1:11 1 Peter 2:6-8 1 Samuel 16:6-11 Samuel considered each one of them from the natural point of view, how tall or handsome that they were. But God makes it quite clear in 1 Samuel 6:7 that He is interested in a person’s heart. The inner qualities not the external are much more important. So, what does this mean in practice for us in our day to day lives? Firstly, when we are rejected and put down, our loving heavenly Abba Father is always there to remind us of our true value, which is that you are valuable and precious to Him. So much so that He gave His only begotten Son… John 3:16. The world’s value system is superficial and dangerous. Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light! Do not trust outward appearances, Jesus told the Pharisees that they were white-washed tombstones, white on the inside but inside dark and horrible, full of dead men’s bones! Secondly, we must ask the Lord for discernment in all the appropriate areas of life . The wrong choice of a marriage or business partner can easily ruin someone’s life. Running with the wrong crowd of friends has also caused much unnecessary suffering and grief in some lives. We can take a good example from the disciples after the resurrection when they gathered to choose a replacement for the traitor Judas Iscariot . They prayed indicating that only God Himself truly knows what is in a man’s heart and therefore they asked the Lord to show who His choice for the vacant position was. The Lord then spoke to the hearts of the disciples and they chose whom they believed that the Lord had already chosen . In conclusion, no matter what people say or do to you, God will always love you and never let you down. Since only God truly knows a person’s heart , we must ask Him to guide us in all our decisions involving people. We might not always get the answer we want or like, but we can console ourselves by the knowledge that the Lord’s choice will always be the right one ! Amen Personal Prayer

What quality should our care be? All our care/ministry for others should be excellent! Question: Why should our ministry both to and for God be excellent? Answer-The first and foremost reason is that our God is the most excellent God. Psalm 8:1 O LORD our Lord, how excellent [is] your name in all the earth! who has set your glory above the heavens. The Lord our God has an excellent name and He is worthy of our very best. Question: why does it matter what we offer to God in terms of our ministry. Answer: All through the Old Testament God made it clear that whatever was offered to him in sacrifice should be without spot or blemish. The book of Leviticus has dozens of sacrifices specified but all without blemish. Lev 19:2 This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD has commanded, saying: ‘Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring you a red heifer without blemish, in which there is no defect and on which a yoke has never come. In the New Testament, Ephesians 2:5 Jesus will present his Father God with a glorious church not having spot , or wrinkle or any such thing ; but that it should be holy and without blemish . Jesus offers only excellent ministry to his father . We should copy Jesus. In other words anything that we give to God whether spiritual, material or service it should be excellent in every way. We should never offer anything that is a reject or substandard or second quality nor damaged in any way, Everything we offer to God should be excellent in nature, not defective in any way, not sloppy, ill prepared or executed. For example, if you have three weeks, three days or just three hours to prepare a bible study, God will give you the grace to make up the difference in what you can achieve. However if you have plenty of time we honour God by making excellent preparations. This applies at work too! Obstacles to caring ; sometimes the people we care for look terrible or they have an unpleasant smell, they may be aggressive, unhelpful, unwilling to share and often ungrateful. There but for the grace of God go I. Prayer: Lord, help us to offer excellent care to our fellow human beings which is pleasing to you. Help us to see the poor through your eyes. Amen. In Part 5 we consider the cost of caring

Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood... Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood In various places in the Bible we catch glimpses of the unseen spiritual realm. A good example of this is found in 2 Kings 6 when the King of Syria send soldiers to capture Elisha and his servant. 2 Kings 6:14-17 There is also a fascinating story over in Daniel 10 in which Daniel has been praying and fasting for three weeks or so.  Daniel 10:12-14 In this chapter we find angels battling through with the answer to a man`s prayer. In the New Testament a passage which gives us great insight into the spiritual realm is found in Ephesians 6:10-18. 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; The bad news is that the heavenlies [1]  are teeming with a huge host of organized malignant spirits who hate God and his people. The good news is that Jesus Christ has completely defeated them with his victory on the cross, and by his resurrection and ascension. Colossians 2:9-15 Verse 15 ; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.  By His victory [2] , Jesus has made it obvious that these evil spirits were powerless to prevent his resurrection, and because of this, this verse shows us that we should not fear death as he is able to resurrect each believer in turn. He has also given us a full suit of amour [3]  to stand against the devil, which in essence is just living a deliberate holy lifestyle. So, as we are in a battle with these wicked spirits (they are the ones who stir up persecution and write the scripts that set the standard for what goes in society), we must continue to struggle against them and their influence on individuals and groups. But let us not forget that Jesus disarmed them by taking away their ability to put the fear of death into God`s people and hence we can stand against them and bring in God`s will into any particular situation. Amen Personal Prayer Explanatory footnotes [1]  The church is engaged in a spiritual war, and its enemy is Satan and a host of unseen angelic and celestial enemies whose power vastly exceeds our own. With a few exceptions, our enemies remain invisible to our eyes, but they nevertheless are real, and so is their opposition. These celestial enemies come in various forms, as is suggested by the variety of terms used by Paul to identify them: “rulers ” these are the 5 star generals , “powers,” “world forces of this darkness,” “spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places”.  In this war Satan employs a variety of strategies to oppose and to defeat the Christian. Paul does not speak of one single “scheme”, but of his many “schemes” (plural), likewise, there are different parts of God’s armour that we must put on to counteract each of them. Satan’s opposition against the church is not a frontal attack, but a subversive attack through intrigue, deception, and trickery, so we must remain prayerful and alert ( Eph 6:18, 1 Peter 5:8) . [2]   Victory with the devil under our feet Psalm 110:1The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool  for your feet.” Victory over demons Colossians 1: 15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. Victory over sin and the ability to pull down strongholds 2 Corinthians 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. [3]  When we put on the armour, we are putting on Christ. Of course, the whole armour of God is describing a day-to-day lifestyle lived in the knowledge of all that God has provided to protect us. Please note we should always be praying. Sometimes we can extend the shield of our faith over others, what do you think?It is imp ortant to remember that when we put on the “full armour of God” we are putting on Christ (Rom. 13:14 ) Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. ( Eph 4:23 ) to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Our protection against Satan’s attacks is assured only when we take up the full  armour of God. Satan’s schemes are many, and he attacks us at any point where we are weak. Our armour must be complete. We cannot pick and choose what parts of the armour we prefer, but rather we must put all of it on. We must be completely equipped, or we will be vulnerable to his attacks. Amen Personal Prayer

How do we express our care and to whom? This scripture tells us what is important to Jesus and those situations where we ought show his love and his care. Matthew 25: 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘ Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. ’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Ask yourself if you are a sheep or a goat. It is interesting that neither the sheep nor goats were aware of doing good or evil in the context of showing care . Also please note just how much Jesus identifies with the poor and vulnerable. Who do the sheep target? They feed the hungry, clothe the naked, help the foreigner or outsider, visit the sick and those in jail . How can we do this today in our times and context? Philip’s story - out on the street a beggar (homeless person) asks Philip for money- Philip thinks that he sees something familiar about the tramp. Suddenly recognises him as a former rugby player and police sergeant! What happened to this man? Well it was a tragic story, his wife died, he hit the bottle, lost his job, lost his house – now living on the street and begging! Always remember this, that there but for the grace of God go I ! What resources may be required in caring for the poor? Time, material resources, sympathy, empathy and counsel-Practical help-Sharing faith-Mindful of them in prayer. Prayer: Lord, show me how I can let your love flow through me expressing care to my fellow human beings. Amen In Part 4 we consider the question of what quality should our care be?