This photograph is of THE WELL AT SAMARIA from a photograph in my grandfather's bible presented to him in 1933.
JOHN 4:
5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.
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GOD SHALL BRING THEM INTO THE LAND
Proverbs 25:
2 ¶ It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
3 The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable. {is…: Heb. there is no searching}:
4 ¶ Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer.
5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.
God is concealing His handiwork because it is an internal work, and it is the glory of us as kings to search out what He is doing – to get understanding of His ways – so that we can walk in them and allow Him, in turn, to foster and grow His seed in us. In this way, we can become the revelation of His Holy Spirit and His power in the earth. And He will be revealed in a people at a time of His choosing, if we will only seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
He will bring us into His Promised Land, for that is His plan and purpose for those who have not only accepted the call – but are determined to diligently aim for The Higher Calling in Christ Jesus. But He has work to do in us – and we must be open to letting the Holy Spirit do that work. But if we are not open to it, He will move on to people who are. There will be no condemnation – indeed there will be a blessing still – but He will have His plan and purpose fulfilled. There is no doubt – God shall bring thee [or some ones of His choosing] into the land.
READ MORE ...
2 ¶ It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
3 The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable. {is…: Heb. there is no searching}:
4 ¶ Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer.
5 Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.
God is concealing His handiwork because it is an internal work, and it is the glory of us as kings to search out what He is doing – to get understanding of His ways – so that we can walk in them and allow Him, in turn, to foster and grow His seed in us. In this way, we can become the revelation of His Holy Spirit and His power in the earth. And He will be revealed in a people at a time of His choosing, if we will only seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
He will bring us into His Promised Land, for that is His plan and purpose for those who have not only accepted the call – but are determined to diligently aim for The Higher Calling in Christ Jesus. But He has work to do in us – and we must be open to letting the Holy Spirit do that work. But if we are not open to it, He will move on to people who are. There will be no condemnation – indeed there will be a blessing still – but He will have His plan and purpose fulfilled. There is no doubt – God shall bring thee [or some ones of His choosing] into the land.
READ MORE ...
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1 CORINTHIANS 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. We talk blithely about the Holy Ghost in power, about His mighty power, God is my strength and power, mighty men of power ...
... In Hebrew (a 'word poor' language by some standards), there is no word for 'very', so to emphasise something, the word is repeated, which does not read well in translation. By saying God is my strength and strength, the intention is to stress that our God is truly mighty. But I venture to suggest that spiritually there is an additional quality here. It is one of transcendence, of awe... and energy. READ MORE |
At the beginning of Isaiah Chapter 51, the prophet calls three times Hearken to me. The threefold repetition reveals that he brings a word from on high. These are not my thoughts, my instructions, but those of Almighty God, he is saying.
1 ¶ Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. READ MORE |
Visiting my Mother recently, she showed me my Grandmother's Bible. Written in the frontispiece was: "All things point to Christ's Resurrection - All things depend upon it."
We have special cause to reflect on this statement – for if we each have answered the call to live the life of Christ [Colossians 1:27 'Christ in you the hope of glory {in: or, among}'], then indeed 'all things depend on [the Resurrection]'. and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. Sometimes our meetings with Christ can be restricted to formal occasions - church on Sunday; funerals; weddings (although this seems to be more and more a very secular event) - but every day and every moment of every day... READ MORE |
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The Lord speaks to believers; He speaks here in Jeremiah's short prophecy to Baruch the son of Neriah, which interpreted means that this prophecy is addressed to the Blessed, who are born from the light of God; for that is what those names mean.
It comes from the prophet Jeremiah, who can be trusted to speak the words of The Lord, because his name – and thus his nature; his whole purpose – tells us that he is 'appointed by God'. There is a time frame involved here too; the prophecy is for a specific time; the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah. This is the time [year] when the Lord raises up [Jehoikim = Jehovah raises up] His people [fourth = foursquare = creation = the world], whose hearts are full of praise and thanksgiving [who dwell in Judah, the land of praise] because they have been redeemed and restored [son of Josiah = whom Jehovah heals]. READ MORE... |
This post considers a painting of mine, currently (June, July and August 2013) on exhibition in Argyll as part of the Iona 2013 celebrations. The exhibition is named IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF COLUMBA.
The painting exhibited is the middle segment of an illustrative triptych (as yet incomplete), taking as its inspiration the idea of Pilgrimage. Although often taken to be merely a journey to a shrine or holy place, the scriptural idea is one of 'walking with Jesus' - in reality, allowing the Holy Spirit to govern one's life so completely that the spirit of those faithful and that of God are inextricably joined. John 17:23 "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." READ MORE |
I am a great admirer of the writing of Alexander McCall Smith, the author of many books including the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency and 44 Scotland Street. I subscribe to his Facebook messages and some little time ago, I found this little essay:
"Last weekend I travelled to Wigtown, a small town in the south west of Scotland that is famous for its many bookshops and now for its literary festival. It is a bit like Hay-on-Wye, that extraordinary book town, but considerably smaller. READ MORE |
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