St Andrew's Church, Brunei

31 July 2020 - 1 Kings 1: 1-28 Sometimes life isn’t fair. “I have always wanted what any other girl wants – a husband and children.  I am in my teens and the most beautiful girl in Israel.  But they took me to be a concubine to an old and dying king.  We were never intimate, and I can never marry another man, so I will never have children.”  Life isn’t fair. “My dad, the king, is dying.  My only surviving older brother, Chileab, is incapable of reigning.  Following tradition, my dad should pass the crown onto me, but there is talk it will go to Solomon.  He is so much younger than me!  Why aren’t I good enough in my father’s eyes?  Why didn’t he pick me?  Doesn’t he love me?”  Life isn’t fair. “I have always been the commander of the army.  My decisions are sound and I have brought victory to Israel repeatedly.  I live for my job.  I am the best at it and I deserve the honour of leaving on my terms.”  Not long after, Joab is executed.  Life isn’t fair. Ecclesiastes 9:11 says the race i

30 th July 2020 - Isaiah 12 A SONG OF PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING This chapter in Isaiah is a triumphant celebration of God’s promise that he w ill save us and redeem us. The preceding chapters 7 to 11 have told us about the Immanuel prophecy and how God would send the people a Saviour who would save us from the judgment of our sins. Chapter 12 is the climax of these prophecies. It is a statement of faith that what God has promised will come true. Verse 1 thanks God for turning his anger away from the sinner. Instead God will bring us His comfort. God Himself is our strength and defense against sin and He has become our salvation (v2). This repeats the message of salvation in the form of Jesus Christ. He is the source of water, which is life-giving and life-sustaining, from the wells of salvation (v3). Jesus Himself said in John 7:38-39, “ Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them. ”

29 July 2020 Today’s reading is from 2 Samuel 24, the last chapter in the books of Samuel. 2 Samuel 24:1 "And again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel and Judah." There is the parallel justification (in 1 Chron. 21:1) that says: “Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David.” God never does evil or tempts people to do evil (James 1:13-15), but in this case, He allowed Satan to incite David to take the census. The inciting of David to conduct a census was a punishment on Israel from the Lord for some unspecified sins. Perhaps sins of pride and ambition had led David to increase the size of this army unnecessarily. Whatever the sin, it is clear God was dissatisfied with David’s motives and brought judgment. David either wanted to glory in the size of his fighting force or take more territory than what the Lord had granted him. In verses 3-4: Joab, the leader of David’s army could see

28 July 2020 Isaiah 10:13-34 THE REMNANT: MANY ARE INVITED BUT FEW ARE CHOSEN. Isaiah has a great deal of prophesy about the judgment of God against His people in Israel. However, the beginning of this chapter (v1-19) contains a judgment against the King of Assyria, whose empire extended to modern day Israel, Lebanon, Syria, eastern Turkey, Iraq and parts of western Iran. He had made unjust laws and oppressed the people of Israel, and God was not pleased with him. From verses 13-19, we learn that God sometimes uses bad people to judge and refine the people of God, in this case, the king of Assyria. Afterwards, He may bring judgment on these enemies of the people of God. Verse 20 tells us that when we have learned to rely on Him, He will fight for us against our enemies. Verses 20-25 describe how God allowed a small number of Israelites, which Isaiah calls the ‘remnant’, to survive this destruction. God would punish the people of Israel so severely, that only a small number of

Today’s devotion is taken from 2 Samuel 23:8-17 We have read and learnt so much about David these past few weeks. Today’s devotion focuses on the mighty men who helped and were around David in his battles. God used people in David’s life to accomplish his purpose. Here we read a summary of a band of mighty men who showed bravery and faith in the God who called David to lead Israel. What lessons can we draw from these men? They serve as an example to each of us when we serve the Lord. They were loyal to their King and they were also courageous. Courage and tenacity In v.8 to 12, we see a supernatural courage that defied the odds. Adino the Eznite was noted to have filled 800 men at one time. Eleazar the son of Dodo, though his hand was weary, his hand stuck to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. When we read stories of battles from the Bible, I would like us to imagine us in their position. How many of us would try overcome odds of defeating 800 sol