This age of age

In this day and age where reason prevails
That is the reason of man and many many men
Are etched above the divine Word
A train of souls forsake their trust
And re-write genesis to suit their laws

Nature is loved but not its maker
Nature they adore but not its creator!

The enlighteners spoke of a new dawning light
Freeing the spark from the Word we have
Elevating utopia to a present time
Which will dawn as we progress unharmed!

Fools! They misjudged the human nature
Total depravity rejected but it was unaffected
This age of age is full of vice
Wickedness and wickedness evades its style.

 We speak of peace, peace and peace
While rejecting the Prince of peace.

Despite the lack
Of genuine believe
Yet the Maker operates his design
Man may shout and scream and bark
But never will avail the Creator’s grand design!

K.Oni

Can't trust myself but I'm trusting you Lord Jesus

Forgive me Lord for my secret sins
My heart breaks at my depravity
A terrible wretch and a helpless soul
Held by the sin I wish to flee


But it seems the devil got a hold on me


Locked in a cage with my sins and they haunt me
Can’t resist the pressure the temptation couldn’t pass me by


I’m trying to close my eyes but its in my heart


To stay my hand but resistance is futile
                                                                        Im burning up can’t control all my anger
                                                                  Frustrated by the lack of my discipline
                                                          It seems to be no rest for my weary soul


When I commence to rejoice then I fall down


Live my days with a sad frown
This aint the life; I’m just a girl trying to find my place


But it seems pride and feeling made much of is my secret aim


                                                        Deep  in my chest I want more but I can’t trust my self
                                               Unfaithful to the core Now I wonder if I’ll ever get to rest 


So I’m tempted to end it here


To set my spirit from this corrupt flesh
But that aint the problem its my mind and impure soul


They say I need Jesus because he can wash it all away
                                                                    How can I believe when there’s so much guilt
So much filth surely only hell can cleanse me
                                                                         But they say there’s a better way
The cross of Christ is enough to remove all my filthy stains.
                                                            
Trust him and all will be well.

K.Oni

Wedding Fever

I love a good wedding.

Recently it seems that as a nation we have had our fascination for something old, borrowed and blue spiked by the Bafta-nominated Channel 4 series My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. Millions have tuned in to see the outrageous lengths to which some teen girls in the travelling community go to when it comes to glitzy dresses and 10-tiered wedding cakes. Poor old Dad gets to foot the bill – bless him.

And the fun ain’t over yet, because bad weather forecast aside, this Friday’s Big Fat Royal Wedding (catch My Big Fat Royal Gypsy Wedding tonight on Channel 4) promises to top the charts. Grateful for the distraction from depressing headlines, theNew York Times exclaimed that: "Months of excited gossip over a possible royal wedding will now be replaced by months of excited gossip over wedding preparations...and general overuse of the description ’fairy tale’."

So Friday is going be good, but Saturday is coming and with it the great post-romance come down. The ‘fairy tale’ will be over and we will be left picking up the pieces, taking down the bunting and wondering where to store the complete set of Will & Kate crockery. But no matter what side of the M25 (or Atlantic ) you hail from, the hunger for stories of enduring love lies deep in us all. Can you remember a time when your interest in love was spiked, your hunger awakened, your pulse quickened? Love is powerful – and it is awe-inspiring.

Artists and wise sages constantly invite us to let love inspire, and strengthen us.


In the film The Village a brave blind girl decides to leave her community, trapped by fear to venture into the unknown, to get help for her dying fiance.  As Edward Walker says in the 2004 film: “She is led by love. The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.”

Love pursues, perseveres, pours itself out and doesn’t count the cost. Jesus told us that the evidence of our belonging to him would be seen in our love. Paul places love above all else as the sign of Christian maturity. Why? Because “love is properly the image of God in the soul; for God is love,” as Adam Clarke reflects in his commentary on Corinthians. Because love of God and love our neighbour transforms us and our world.

I recently met a couple who love like this. On hearing about a man with severe disabilities in their community who needed a home, they invited him to move in with them; to belong, become part of their family, their shared story, their shared lives. That was 30 years ago and he’s still with them. This is the true price of love: choosing to love without looking for anything in return, choosing to continue giving so that love will grow. This way of life produces the kind of rewards no money can buy.

A good wedding can happen on a shoe-string or a fortune, but a good marriage requires a totally different kind of wealth. It is built on the richness of faithfulness, perseverance and boundless generosity. All skills forged in the fires of practice! Fidelity isn’t simply about not committing adultery, but about fulfilling the marriage vows, day by day by day. Having just come through Easter, we have been reminded that the commitment of Christ to us his bride, is second to none. Whether married or not, this is our model for how we are to love.

So as you join me in raising your glass to Will and Kate, take a look at the people you are committed to loving in your home, work and community. Renew your vow to God to love them with the kind of reckless, courageous, selfless, inspiring love that will see them flourish.

Now, where did I put my flashing tiara?

Article by Rachel Gardner, Director Romance Academy

Evangelical Alliance

Buttering bread

Last night I was back at the wild goose café which is a charity that feeds the homeless daily. It was a joy to be back and to see familiar faces again and some of them were covered with great smiles and gratitude for the free meal they received. One of the guys said to me, ‘so you’re back’. I returned his comment with a smile and asked him whether he wanted a drink. Before the evening began, there are things to prepare like buttering the bread, slicing the cakes, preparing or heating up the food and etc. I took the task of buttering the bread as I was failing in slicing up bagels or something similar. Buttering the bread brought a moment of reflection although at the time it was a simple reflection about my day. Throughout the evening was a continual reflection upon this simple duty of buttering bread.


Buttering the bread may seem to be something simple but it is something which adds extra taste for the homeless when they pick up their bread. Sometimes if there is not enough butter on the bread some would ask for more. The reason for this is that bread by itself is dry but edible but with butter it comes alive and excites the taste buds. So upon this reflection I thought that Jesus is the butter of my life although He is also the bread, so work with me on this analogy. Without Jesus or when I feel distant from him, I am dry, I am an empty cup and a sad and miserable soul. Truly I am and I do not exaggerate. Jesus is to me the flavour of my life and if I loose my flavour then I am nothing and can only ask of him that by his grace he may butter me again. Perhaps this next few days will be opportunities for Christ to butter my life, for Him to come and fill my soul so that my heart and mind may be set on the things above and not on the things of earth. 


Also during the evening, I asked one gentlemen how his day was. He wasn’t to optimistic but wished that it rained more because rain makes him happy. I chuckled and said in my heart that each to his own cup which is one of my favourite sayings which simply means that each person has the right to like or do what they want and I will not judge them for it or impose on them my own taste although this is to be done in context. Nevertheless upon his comment I wondered what made me happy and the answer although is multiple is summed up in this one man Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. 


Looking at many who were homeless I tried to imagine their difficulties and problems and concluded that it must be higher than my own thus I reasoned with my soul that my problems are little and brings no reason for concern but rather entrust all of it to the Lord my God.


God is good and I’m a sinner but his love covers all of my sins and all of your sins if you choose to believe in him. He takes away all of the guilt although you may not feel it nevertheless it is objectively true. You are declared to be justified and counted righteous in His Holy sight.


My prayer for the homeless is that they may find a home in Jesus and in doing so they may progress heavenward. And if some of them are thieves that they would steal no longer but rather working hard so that they may bless others. If you are reading this I pray God may bless your soul and provide for your needs accordingly to His divine will and that Jesus may be the butter of your life.


Amen


K.Oni

Nero in Beijing — The Communist Party Declares War on Christians

The news out of China grows worse as reports of the arrest, detention, harassment, and beatings of Christians come from across China. The most publicized case thus far is the repeated oppression against a Beijing congregation that has led to numerous arrests and a crackdown within China’s capital.

In a very important editorial statement, The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board set the record straight. “Religious persecution is always abhorrent, but in this case it’s also a political blunder,” the paper stated.

Further: The incident is a microcosm of the wider problems caused by China’s crackdown. Beijing insists it wants to promote a harmonious and stable society. Yet by arresting prominent activists for no apparent reason, the security forces are doing the opposite: Those who were once content to live quietly with the Party’s restrictions on free expression are now compelled to speak out.

Observers warn that China is sending the signal that it will not allow the eruption of protests like those that have spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

There is more to it, of course. Central to this crackdown is the paranoia of the Communist Party. One of the hallmarks of democratic societies is the existence of thriving “mediating institutions” between the individual and the brute power of the state. In the United States, these mediating institutions include everything from the PTA to your local church and the neighborhood reading club.

One dimension of the Communist Party’s idolatry is that it allows no mediating institutions between its power and the individual. It greatly fears these organizations, especially the church.

One reason — Christians in China now outnumber members of the Community Party.

China’s strategy was detailed by the paper’s editorial:

This may come as a surprise to some in the West. Until recently, Beijing had played a skillful game of applying the screws just enough to keep everybody in line while easing state control over most aspects of people’s lives, including employment, choice of a spouse, housing, religion and even the ability to criticize the government in limited terms. International human rights advocates had to admit that most Chinese enjoyed greater freedom than ever before, and many foreigners downplayed arrests of dissidents as aberrations against a general trend of liberalization.

In other words, “those who doubted the Communist Party’s sincerity were right all along.”

Article by Albert Mohler - http://www.albertmohler.com/2011/04/28/nero-in-beijing-the-communist-party-declares-war-on-christians/

The Joy of Confession 11

I am once again moved with the fondness of prayer and an enjoyment of the Word for pleasure. Although I had such desires in me, I have found every reason or activity to deflect myself from such enjoyment. It is as our Lord said that the flesh is weak but the Spirit is willing. I am now a more amiable soul, lightened by the word of God and sensitive to my creatures ails. My revival was birthed about by the asking of a particular friend to pray and since I promised I neglected not this duty. Upon praying the Lord saw it fitting to bless me with his grace of joy and anoint my soul with oil. Although I have no theological reasons to feel myself unholy before My God yet my accuser finds it a pleasure to taunt me. But the Lord has deflected his burning arrows and covered me with his tender duvet of which no evil could penetrate. 

K.Oni

Miscellanies 4 - Unless the Lord builds the house

Oh my Lord, my sweet Jesus come and change us that our lives may reflect yours. Come and display the wonders of your kindness, come Lord and lead many here to repentance. We wait on you and we will continue to wait until you show. Is it not written that unless you build the house the labourers labour in vain. My Lord we do not want to express such folly by building without you being the master builder. We will not commence to lay a single brick a single stone unless you have shown us the blueprint of your designs. We have no interest in earthly copies but we entirely desire the real substance of the heavenly. It is of no attentiveness to us to engage in a work that our Lord has no interest in. we are as the watchmen who waits for you; we have upon our gates six watchmen with two at a time, waiting and looking out for the arrival of our master. Of course here we speak of prayer and how it is our great desire to engage in prayer for it is there that we see our Lord with our spiritual eyes and many times has he shown us his plans and all so far have proved successful not according to earthly standards which is but vain but according to the heavenly standard which never fails to do the Lord’s will as it is revealed. Unless you build the house, we will labour in vain so we shall endeavour and enjoy our rest until our Lord comes knocking and doubtless he will bring with him the helper for any work of his is hard and without the helper we shall soon fall. And when he comes, he brings with him party bags of which inside are different gifts and often it is related to the task at hand. Until he commences we shall wait and pray, rejoicing and singing hymns to our heavenly Father. 

K.Oni

Upward call to Heaven (4)

Last Sunday Mama was privileged to read out the scripture before the preacher came to preach. Mama wore her Dalmatian dress of which she looked very admirable and peaceful. She read the psalm as if she had wrote it herself and for the whole minute, the congregation were moved by her waves. A sweet angelic voice the preacher described her and joked that he would soon take her to his parish if we would let her. Of course I disdained his comment and took not lightly to his fluffy remark but I soon thought nothing of it.


The preachers sermon availed the whole congregation except I and upon reflection I thought that I must be the most ungodly soul that ever lived. This feeling impressed upon me for the whole week and Mama noticed my disposition. She would daily ask me of what ails my soul but I would tell her not of my true feelings and tell her a lie which deepened my guilt. I felt that all of my progress of striving heavenwards have suddenly been altered; for I thought that how can God be pleased with me when I am not so warm to his words. I feel it more of a strain to read it than a pleasure; prayer is more of a duty than it is a joy.


The preacher in His sermon spoke of a Loving shepherd who happily guides his sheep. He spoke of the Shepherds nature of how tender sweet and happy he is. He tells a story of the shepherds painful adventure to rescue one of his sheep and in doing so encountered many great obstacles of which he defeated great beasts but not without scratches wounds and hurt. The shepherd although sweet was also of a firm nature; he rightly disciplines his sheep and should any one of them stray from the flock, with his rod he would guide the wondering sheep back to the fold. Often, the shepherd would guide his sheep through lofty terrains but the end of their tour would always end by the green pasture for this was their dwelling place. A high gate secured the entering of any thieves and should any thieves enter the fold, the sheep are well learned in distinguishing their masters voice. The shepherd is known to have not lost a single sheep and should any go unaccounted for he would spend night and day in finding them. Such was his care and love for his sheep that although many felt it strange that he should possess such a love for low creatures yet it was his delight and pleasure to love and care for his sheep with all of his might.


The preacher of course spoke about Christ and his people and many hearts were melted because of Christ's love for them but I felt miserable for I knew that I wasn’t one of his own. I had a different master, a different shepherd for I could not belong to Christ because he never acted with me as the preacher described. I felt lonely among the congregation and I too wished I had such a great affection for Christ but non existed within me. I am an earthly child and must not be of the same flesh as Mama for she his heavenly. 


Today, my condition is still as I felt and Amelia has been no encouragement to me at all. She remains joyous and happy and reminds me very much of my mother. She constantly told me of her great affections for Christ after the sermon on Sunday and how warm her whole disposition is towards Christ. She would say often that after that sermon, my relationship with Christ is upon a whole higher mountain and each day surpasses the last and I feel heavenwards and wish to see him bodily and should I die today then it would be for all my joys fulfilled. But I often remained silent and smiled because for me I had no such affections and I wanted it but knew not how.

K.Oni

How Easter Killed My Faith in Atheism

Earlier this week, humorist Ricky Gervais presented his arguments for atheism and why he thought he was a better Christian than many Christians. In this follow-up essay, writer Lee Strobel offers his defense of Easter.

It was the worst news I could get as an atheist: my agnostic wife had decided to become a Christian. Two words shot through my mind. The first was an expletive; the second was “divorce.”

I thought she was going to turn into a self-righteous holy roller. But over the following months, I was intrigued by the positive changes in her character and values. Finally, I decided to take my journalism and legal training (I was legal editor of the Chicago Tribune) and systematically investigate whether there was any credibility to Christianity.

Maybe, I figured, I could extricate her from this cult.

I quickly determined that the alleged resurrection of Jesus was the key. Anyone can claim to be divine, but if Jesus backed up his claim by returning from the dead, then that was awfully good evidence he was telling the truth.

For nearly two years, I explored the minutia of the historical data on whether Easter was myth or reality. I didn’t merely accept the New Testament at face value; I was determined only to consider facts that were well-supported historically. As my investigation unfolded, my atheism began to buckle.

Was Jesus really executed? In my opinion, the evidence is so strong that even atheist historian Gerd Lüdemann said his death by crucifixion was “indisputable.”

Was Jesus’ tomb empty? Scholar William Lane Craig points out that its location was known to Christians and non-Christians alike. So if it hadn’t been empty, it would have been impossible for a movement founded on the resurrection to have exploded into existence in the same city where Jesus had been publicly executed just a few weeks before.

Besides, even Jesus’ opponents implicitly admitted the tomb was vacant by saying that his body had been stolen. But nobody had a motive for taking the body, especially the disciples. They wouldn’t have been willing to die brutal martyrs’ deaths if they knew this was all a lie.

Did anyone see Jesus alive again? I have identified at least eight ancient sources, both inside and outside the New Testament, that in my view confirm the apostles’ conviction that they encountered the resurrected Christ. Repeatedly, these sources stood strong when I tried to discredit them.

Could these encounters have been hallucinations? No way, experts told me. Hallucinations occur in individual brains, like dreams, yet, according to the Bible, Jesus appeared to groups of people on three different occasions – including 500 at once!

Was this some other sort of vision, perhaps prompted by the apostles’ grief over their leader’s execution? This wouldn’t explain the dramatic conversion of Saul, an opponent of Christians, or James, the once-skeptical half-brother of Jesus.

Neither was primed for a vision, yet each saw the risen Jesus and later died proclaiming he had appeared to him. Besides, if these were visions, the body would still have been in the tomb.

Was the resurrection simply the recasting of ancient mythology, akin to the fanciful tales of Osiris or Mithras? If you want to see a historian laugh out loud, bring up that kind of pop-culture nonsense.

One by one, my objections evaporated. I read books by skeptics, but their counter-arguments crumbled under the weight of the historical data. No wonder atheists so often come up short in scholarly debates over the resurrection.

In the end, after I had thoroughly investigated the matter, I reached an unexpected conclusion: it would actually take more faith to maintain my atheism than to become a follower of Jesus.

And that’s why I’m now celebrating my 30th Easter as a Christian. Not because of wishful thinking, the fear of death, or the need for a psychological crutch, but because of the facts.

Article by  Lee Strobel - taken from http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/04/16/how-easter-killed-my-faith-in-atheism/?mod=wsj_share_facebook   APRIL 16, 2011

Lee Strobel wrote “The Case for Easter: Journalist Investigates the Evidence for the Resurrection“; his first novel, “The Ambition,” releases May 17.

• Easter, 
• Ricky Gervais

Why is Good Friday good?

Many people in the West, especially those of my generation are indifferent to the event of what happened 2000 years ago to a Jewish man in Jerusalem who was crucified by the Romans because the Jewish people (some not all) thought that He was a blasphemer and thus had Him crucified. He died on a Roman cross, condemned as a criminal and buried in a tomb of which was later reported that it was empty. Millions of people have died and whenever a good person dies (as most would count Jesus), the day of their death is seen to be sad especially when they die so young but yet Christians rejoice and celebrate the death of Jesus even though he died at the age of 33. Are Christians deluded and strange or is there a good basis for their joy and perhaps for your joy as well.


Good Friday celebrates or rather reflects the day of when Jesus died.  This man had been in the public eye for three years preaching and teaching and performing miracles and healings of which all accepted because even his enemies could not deny the miracles and healings he performed. They could only slander him and try to murder him of which they succeeded when they had him crucified. Jesus died on that Friday and what should have been buried in the secret pages of History of an obscure Jewish death has centred history ever since. The question now is why?


When Jesus was alive on the earth, He often told his disciples that he was going to die. Jesus said to his disciples before his death, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of man (Jesus) will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles (Non Jews) to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day’, (Mathew 20:17-19). Also in Mark 8:31 ‘Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man (Jesus) must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priest and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again’.


Jesus knew that he was going to die and said that he must suffer these things.  The reason why Jesus must suffer these things is because just before he was born an angel appeared to Joseph saying ‘Joseph, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. Mary will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people  be from their sins’. Jesus himself made it obvious to his disciples when he said ‘I came not to be served, but to serve, and give my life as a ransom for many’, (Mark 10:45). The death of Jesus is wrapped up in saving people from their sins and also to serve people and give his life as a ransom.


A prophet who lived 700 years before Jesus also predicted how Jesus was going to die and explains the meaning of His death. The prophet remarkably said ‘He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief and as one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not….but he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed by our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace’ (Isaiah 53). So Jesus was born to die and we know that he was to die for sins and save people and the way he would accomplish this was by his death on the cross. But why is all this good news and why is good Friday good?


Before we can understand why good Friday is good it is crucial to understand the bad news. Because there is a living God who created everything out of Love and joy, He made the world colourful and beautiful and all lived in unison. God made man as the apex of creation to govern this world under him under his sovereign rule. God made us like himself, relational and intelligent and we were created to enjoy God and for God to enjoy us. But this is not the picture we see today; what we see today is that just as it was at the beginning, men and women everywhere rejected God. We don’t like someone telling us what to do, least of all God so we rebel against him by doing what we wanted to do. We rejected God and substitute ourselves or others as ruler of our lives. We ignore God and live our own lives and this is a tragic because now we pollute the world and turn our back against God. Are you turning your back on God and doing your own thing?  In rejecting God we make a mess of our lives because God knows what is best for us ultimately and by rebelling against God we make a mess out of this world and the question is what is God going to do about it?


Because God cares about humanity and about the world he created he cannot let this rebellion and your rebellion continue forever. God will ultimate judge all of our actions and because we decide to turn away from God, God’s judgement is to turn away from us and punish us for our rebellion, for our sins in this world (death) and in hell. For man is destined to die once and after that to face judgement. God is the source of all good and beauty and his final withdrawal will be darkness and bitterness and misery for your soul. This is the bad news that we are all guilty, you have turned your back against God and there is nothing you can do to redeem yourself because your offence is so great. There is no amount of good works that can take away your bad deeds towards God and men and God being just must act fairly. This is a horrible place to be in because you are cut off from God, your creator the very thing you were made for. Will you continue to rebel against this loving God or would you like to turn back to him and know him? If you would like to know him and turn back to him, the death of Jesus happened for this precise reason. God has made Jesus Christ to be sin for you so that you may be reconciled back to God. This is why Jesus said that ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, so that whoever believes will not perish (be forever separated from God) but have eternal life.


The bad news is really bad and the good news is really good because God has done what we cannot do for ourselves. This is what the early believers of Jesus recognized and the message of love and reconciliation which they believed turned the world upside down. Friday became good and their message and life has transformed the world for the better. Would you not want to live like this as Jesus said:


Blessed are the poor in spirit,
   for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
   for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
   for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
   for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
   for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
   for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
   for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
   for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mathew 5).


And also the apostle Paul writes ‘Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law… let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh’, (Romans 13)


Good Friday is good because now by the death of Jesus Christ we can be reconciled back to God. Will you not today be reconciled back to God by accepting the free gift of Love he has shown you through Jesus Christ?


K.Oni

The cheer of Spring

The Springly sound of buzzing bees
The flying squad of fleeing flies
Reminds me that the earth has awoke
After a winter at autumns place.
Her opened eyes alarms the birds
To find a tree for their nest.


Tis the season for love to grow
The paths which froze now the water flows
The chicks do chirps and the Deers appear
Life it seems has suddenly appeared


Wine and drink the Sun does toast
A party for all the heavenly host
Even Hades despite him a foe
Could not resist the cheer of Spring.
All this I see of nature's cheer
It brought me smiles and a heavenly reflect
Of my own darling Miss
A summer all season she is to me.


K.Oni

My Easter prayer

Oh My precious Lord, my sorrowful saviour
Tis the day of your death by wicked men
And the night before saw you with stones of tears
The magnitude, the weight of the hour began to dawn
The sin of the world will crush your precious frame.
I behold the garden of Gethsemane and wept
Your friend turned foe; your friends did repose  
The night did expose your enemies hate
Of which the psalmist once foretold your fate.
My sorrowful saviour, although you did plea
Yet resound your mission did keep
That I may be as strong as thee
Keep me Father to do thy will.
Trodden and trampled by the enemies fang
The screams did render the temple in part.
Oh let me be as thou art; to share the cross which nailed you down
Let me not pass thee by, but with mournful tears declare my cry.
Grant me the Spirit of love and grace
In my forsaken hour I too may say
Forgive them Father, they are blind and do not see
That this cross brings the mercy which I will receive.
Oh My King, My sorrowful Saviour
You did indeed taste a bitter end
Your blood did flow to wash the crimson stains
Your blood has washed away my sins.
Oh that all may behold, the crown bestowed upon my Risen Lord
For death he broke and tore apart.
My Easter prayer is this I ask
That I may live like you from now.

K.Oni

Rene and Poet - part 7

Poet: Oh, Rene, after a glass of wine, fanciful imaginations began to occupy my mind. They were sweeter than the wine I drunk and the imaginations did put a joyous expression upon my face.


Rene: Poet, I am yours for a time; indulge me with your intricate imaginations 


Poet: Sweet lover of mine, allow me a space upon your thigh for my head. Look how the heavens fade because its bridegroom has gone away - it is how I feel when my future bride is far from me.
My imagination was of her which is no surprise to you - it was like a sweet smelling aroma to my nose and there I beheld her breathtaking jovial face. She looked at me with the highest of love, her dovely eyes penetrated my chained soul. Yea I am chained to her love, happily imprisoned held by my devotion to her manner. She was altogether mine, her whole being and method were now one with mine and we possessed a divinely love of which death may scratch for infinity and never tear nor mark. 


Rene: I adore your feelings, I wish I had the capacity to cherish like you but I’m of a harder nature.


Poet: Oh Rene, love cannot be forced but when you behold a beauty of sublime attractiveness, the beauty itself will create love in your heart and melt you to a fountain of fluent chocolate. 


(Poet continued to tell Rene about his imagination and we shall hear more of it next time)


K.Oni

Oh! Let me not perish

It is of certainty that there is life after death because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. There are many sufficient evidences which points to his rising from the dead such as the empty tomb, the rise of Christianity and the miracles, and converts wrought for the past two thousand years. Because Christ has risen, every capable soul without Christ is in danger of perishing and entering unpon an eternity of hell. This is much to be concerned about for it will be a terrible thing for you to be found among the perishing. Ask yourself this solemn question, ‘Am I trusting entirely upon Christ for my salvation and am I sure of my eternal resting place?’ If you are found to be negative, I sincerely plea with you to turn today and call upon Christ for mercy.


It will be a terrible eternity if you are found among those who perish for it is Christ who said, ‘For God so loved the world, that He sent his only Son, so that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life’. Later on in the chapter, Christ warns that whoever does not believe in the Son is condemned already and the wrath of God remains upon him. I plea with you to flee to Christ because if you perish and are found to be in hell, there will be no comfort for your soul. There will be none to pity you; you will look to the left, to the right, in front and to your back, looking for a saviour but there will be none to take your case. No one will cry for you and God will hate you forever and for all eternity you must bear the flames day and night. 


The saints of God will look upon you not with pity but rejoicing, not at your misery but at the justice of God, being glad that God is vindicating his justice against the wicked souls who hated him here on earth. Although you may exalt yourself in this world and lift yourself against God and openly oppose the cause of Christ and his gospel, yet in the life after, God will unleash upon you the fierceness of his wrath. It is because I know of the holiness of God and I am sensible of his nature and the coming judgment that I plea with you to flee to Christ, for whilst in hell you may not raise your voice at me and ask me why I told you not of this hellish eternity. God’s infinite anger will burn against you, and there, you will desire his pity more than all the treasures of this earth. Jesus Christ, the Lamb, will also have no pity on you if you should perish - although he is called the friends of sinners, he is only called so in this world, and in the life after He shall trample upon the blood of his enemies.


My friend, now Christ is your friend; he endured the cross for your redemption and will you not have it today while there is life within you. Oh be a sensible soul and flee from the coming judgment. Christ is now your friend, He knocks but will you continue to resist him. For if you will resist now till your death, then he shall no more welcome you. Christ now is seeking your salvation, He came to warn you and will you not listen. Oh let not that day dawn upon you for your lament will be forever, it shall be worse than the grievous pains here and no doctor shall relieve your pains. Please do not be among the souls found to perish but one to have eternal life and be one of the saints who shall forever rejoice in the presence of God for all eternity. Oh my friend let not your soul perish! You may hate me for painting such a picture of your eternity while you are yet without Christ, but I can only speak of the truth and warn you of the gall and bitterness which awaits you. It is because I love you and that tenderly, and I have only opportunity in this world to warn you and to present you with salvation. Please my friend trust in Christ and let not your soul perish.


K.Oni

God's delight in Himself

God is His own object of infinite delight, in that since God is the source of all joy and joy itself, therefore, it stands to reason that the being which could give God the most Joy, is God himself. If there was another being in the universe which could excel God in happiness and pleasure, then God must by necessity turn to this being and admire the surpassing nature of the being’s happiness compared to His. Therefore, this being becomes the fountain and the source of superior pleasure and happiness. But it is impossible for a being to possess a higher degree of pleasure and happiness than God, because God is the creator of all things, therefore all beings must be inferior to him in all things pertaining to godliness and those things which are of God’s nature. 


Some may think that God’s ultimate delight is to be found in his creatures, that those things which he made delightfully by his hands are the end and beginnings of his pleasure and happiness. But this view itself is deceptive and erroneous, for it naturally maintains that God began to have the feeling of happiness and pleasure when He created; and thus for all eternity past He was a sad and miserable being. But scripture is wise to this error and thus takes us to the conversation of our Lord Jesus Christ just before his final hour when he prayed to his heavenly Father, ‘And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed’ (John 17:5). This text illuminates that before the World began Jesus had a glory with the Father before anything was created. Other passages illuminates that Jesus is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, (Hebrews 1). Thus John opens his gospel with the introduction of the Logos; 'In the beginning was the Word (Logos), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God’, (John 1:1-2). We hear more of Christ’s divine nature when Paul writes; ‘He is the image of the invisible God. For by him all things were created… and in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,' (Colossians 1). And agian Paul writes in Philippians, 'Though he was in the form of God, He did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing,' (Philippians 2:6). So we see from the preceding passages that before creation, there was in existence the Father and the Son which constituted the being of God, and to complete this representation is the eternal existence of the Holy Spirit who is described in the scriptures as being the Spirit of the Father and of the Son. Some theologians have ascribe Him to be the love which radiates between the Father and the Son. The Spirit is also a person and equal with the Father and the Son.


Before creation, there was the trinity, The Father, Son and Holy Spirit and what was the essence of their relationship? John tells us that God is love and we as humans (believers) know what love is because God first loved us. But what are the foundations of this love or whence did it first commence? Was it at the birth of creation or before creation? It was before creation for this love already existed among the trinity or else John could not say that God is Love. If then God is love and has for all eternity been a Loving God then we maintain that creation was birthed out of this love so that creation itself may behold this love and enjoy it by being drawn into it. This is why we read of the redeemed that they are in Christ and are to be like Him. Even more, the purpose of the revealing of the Son of God was so that the Love in which the Father has eternally loved the Son may be experienced by them and possess the glory in which the Father gave the Son. Man was made to be in communion with the Triune God and to spend all eternity searching and delighting in the Love of God. This is the portion of the redeemed, and what a joyous eternity it will be! Such enjoyment begining at the moment of conversion awaits the vessels of mercy.


The Psalmist can rightly say ‘delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart’ (Psalm 37:4) - now one cannot naturally delight in that which is not intrinsically lovely and one cannot truly delight in that which is not enjoyable or satisfying to the soul. God is all of these things, He is Lovely and enjoyable for He is the source of all pleasures just as the scattered beams all points back to the sun likewise pure pleasure are but beams of the true pleasure. God is the source of happiness and Joy, therefore he made the world that He might communicate this to his creatures and that they may receive it to enjoy and delight in it. God made us for himself in order that we may behold is glory, his loveliness and delight ourselves in his glory which is our chief happiness. 


This is why the gospel is the gospel of the glory of the blessed (happy) God and that all who believe and hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory (Ephesians 1). The gospel is foremost about God not his creatures, it is first about vindicating and promoting God’s glory rather than the gospel being about the felt needs of sinners. Because God is the chief of all things and all things exist because of Him and all things were made to worship him and be satisfied in Him; it stands to perfect reason that God should be the object of His own delight and happiness in which naturally overflow to the best of the creatures and leads to the fullness of their happiness and satisfaction. 


K.Oni

The past Month

So many things have occurred to me in the past month that here I will detail just a few experiences. I begin by telling of the greatness of God and how good and loving He is to me. That I a sinner should daily receive His mercies, allowing me to steadfastly grow in the faith and in His love. I am constantly in need of remembrance of the gospel of his Son by which he redeemed me and purchased me. He set me free from sin and made me an heir with His Son all to the praise of His glorious grace.


The closing of March witness the football varsity against Bristol and UWE won the match after a penalty shoot out. I was awarded with the man of the match for UWE although it was to my surprise but a fitting way to end my career as a UWE football player. The season has brought me much joy and although plagued with injury God granted me the grace to play through the pain and to glorify his name.


In March I also handed in my dissertation and now waiting for my results - I could have done better and what was weird was that I had a dream previously of the manner of which I would hand in my dissertation and Lo it came about to be true. I chuckled and rejoiced in the goodness of the Lord and commit all to him. I was glad that I had no more deadlines but all there is now is revision for my coming exam of which I aim to excel at.


Many other things happened in March of which one I am exceedingly joyful. Pip and Jay football club won the Gfa cup competition of which I played a part and received a medal. I was glad to be part of this great achievement as it is the first trophy in Pip and Jay’s history.


God provided for me financially and in His sovereignty enabled me to minister to others. The opening month of April bought with it the joy of spring as the Sun shined brightly. A week later I was at New word alive of which I learnt many things and God encouraged in the power of the gospel.


Now back at home in London, I aim to read many literature and prepare to revise for my exam. God is good and lovely and I pray that this month I may spend in increasing my joy in Him and excel in love towards his saints and all that dwell upon this fallen earth.


K.Oni

An unspoken struggle - Christian Women addicted to Pornography

Jesus says in Mathew 5:28, “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you loose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell”. 


Rob Weiss, the founder of the Sexual Recovery Institute in Los Angeles, says that porn addiction is becoming an epidemic and Oprah also states that “it has been reported that 1 in 3 consumers of online porn in America are now woman”. The Guardian reports that for more and more women, “the PC becomes an erogenous zone”.  Theresa Flynt, vice president for a pornographic video chain, comments that women account for over half of the business at their stores and according to the national campaign survey, over 1 in 5 teenage girls (age 13-19) have participated in sexting (the act of sending nude or partially nude media electronically, usually via mobile phones). This epidemic which has been mainly ascribed to being a male disease is now capturing and enslaving the lives of many women. As well as often affirmed that Christian men struggle with pornography, it is now becoming increasingly true of Christian women. According to a 2003 poll by Today’s Christian Woman, of their female readers, 34% admitted to intentionally accessing internet porn.  The same may be true in your church and Christian union, that perhaps 34% of the women are addicted and struggling with pornography. 


Pornography is an issue that is not often lingered upon as it breeds an air of discomfort, and even when touched upon its general focus is on men although women are alluded to as well. While many in the church may expect guys to struggle with this addiction, yet it is altogether strange and shameful when a woman is found with this infatuation.  Jessica Harris in her struggle with pornography tells of how people may view her addiction: “Our church was just beginning to mention men struggling with pornography as a side note from the pulpit. I could imagine my youth pastor and the rest of the church staff having a collective heart attack if I, a woman, came forward and said, "I need help. I am struggling with pornography….
I was called into the Dean's office and there it was suggested that someone might have somehow had access to my account. The female dean followed that suggestion by saying, "We just don't have this problem with women."


This problem may be an issue for any woman in your church and Christian union, even among those who appear to be the most godly may be secret watchers of pornography. No one is exempt and no one is beyond redemption. The grace of Jesus is enough to cover all of your sins and shame. Women who are addicted to pornography may feel themselves to be the only strugglers with porn and thus feel overwhelmed with shame and guilt especially in “the Christian Culture where women are supposed to be the nonsexual ones”. Perhaps in reading this you find yourself to be addicted to pornography or you know of someone who is addicted to pornography. I am not a counselor but I will suggest ways in which you can curb your addiction and free yourself from a life of guilt and shame. Also I will suggest useful websites that I found which are offering support for women addicted to pornography.


If you are a Christian woman and struggling with pornography, Satan will use this sin to kill your faith and joy in Christ. He will do all that he can to make you feel worthless and that God completely hates you and dislike you. Do not heed to his words but rather remind yourself of the gospel of grace and the Love of God. Jesus died specifically for sinners and are you a sinner (yes). Then Jesus died for you and has he atoned for all of your sins (yes), and are you justified by your works or by the works of Jesus? (by the works of Jesus). Does God love you any less when you watch pornography (no, although he wants you run from it), He loves you the same, yesterday, today and forever because He loves you not because of your works, for if that were the case he could never love you. But he loves you unconditionally. So fight the devil with the gospel of Christ. And if you find yourself not to be a Christian, you are not exempt from God’s grace. Jesus died for your sins even your porn addiction and he has the power to set you free only if you would come to him. God loves sinners and that’s why he send his only Son to die, Jesus died specifically for sinners to reconcile you back to God.


Another advice will be to tell somebody. Do not remain silent with your issue, but tell someone that you trust. Confess your addiction and seek help. Also pornography is a heart issue, it is seeking gratification and pleasure; and as you have probably noticed, it never satisfies. But God does satisfy, Jesus Christ is the beauty of creation and the source of infinite Joy. At God’s right hand is pleasures for ever more, so turn your affection upon Christ, fix your eyes upon Him and the lure of pornography will begin to fade - fight the good fight and walk in your calling. Fix all of your strength upon Jesus and be addicted to him, turn away from pornography by turning to something more delightful and sweet which is Jesus. Jesus said that He has come to give us life to the full; do you believe that? If you do, I beseech you to receive from him and let him fill your life with the radiance of his divine beauty. Fight this sin for it is better that you loose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. Jesus has overcome so you can too.


K.Oni


http://dirtygirlsministries.com/
http://beggarsdaughter.com/index.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/apr/07/women-addicted-internet-pornography
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2009/08/19/podcast-porn-addiction-among-women-part-2/

Psalm 10 - An exposition

Some have suggested that Psalm 10 is a run on from psalm 9 and that psalm 9 and 10 may have been a single acrostic poem, the stanzas of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Psalm 10 like Psalm 9 is a plea for Justice, for God to arise and help the afflicted. The Psalmist takes his case to the divine court where God administers Justice to the righteous but the Judge as well as being perfectly righteous administers punishment to the wicked in his own timing. He permit’s the righteous to suffer for a while, He permits their soul to witness injustice so that they may cry out to Him and He may take delight in vindicating them and His righteousness.

The psalmist being on earth and God being in Heaven although omniscient the Psalmist asks of God, vs. 1, Why, LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? The psalmist could not understand the absence of God in times of trouble for surely if God is ever to appear then it must be in times of trouble. But here we see that God is absent from his situation, God is occupied with another duty and surely the psalmist must feel himself to be forsaken and deserted by God. Have you felt thus that in times of your persecution, when you looked for God, you could not find him. Has this perplexed your soul that God should hide himself from you? In your most horrific situation where you have undergone a most terrible calamity and your soul being depressed wonders, where was God. God being who he is surely must know of your situation and if he does then why does he delay? Those who do not know the character of God are quick to leap to an erroneous conclusion that God must not love them or that He is not a kind God who delights to help the weak. They are quick to turn their faith into atheism being fools that therein is no comfort for their souls except in the steadfast abode of the Almighty. But those who have tasted the goodness and kindness of Jehovah are of better minds - although they feel the absence of his presence they know in their innermost being that all things work together for their good. That although God may be absent now due to his own divine reasons that yet he knows of their conditions and will come to deliver them. These are the ones found not to shrink back but to hold on steadfastly to their God like Christ who held fast to his cross because he knew that His resurrection was imminent.

The Psalmist now considers the heart of the wicked and of their consistent arrogance and continual boasting in the fruit of their devilish deeds. Vs. 2, In his arrogance the wicked man hunts the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises. The powerful men of this world, the powerful nations have been consistently found to exploit the weak - the whitemen of England with their powerful technology destroyed the land of Africa to their own gain; empires were founded upon the exploitations of slaves, upon the weakness of  ordinary citizens and economic sanctions have been found to favour the rich. The poor gets poorer while the rich get richer. Also to be found is the corruption of many African governments where the weak are ruled with an iron fist and all the benefits which should flow to them from the abundance of the land’s natural resources are found to be kept in the pocket of the few. This is injustice, a cry of brutality and if not for God's sovereign restraint upon the evilness of men then this earth should be a million times worse than it is found today.  The wicked man, vs. 3, boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD. Modern day songs are examples of this wickedness for we see the rappers and the singers to boast about the wickedness of their deeds, they boast about their ungodliness and everything contrary to God’s command. Naturally because of their corrupt heart they are found vile in God’s sight and instead of a hearty repentance, they continue to rebel and boast with a mighty cheer of their rebellion. Those who steal from the poor whether through corporate means or slavish labour are only to bless themselves and those who agree with their trade and practices. They despise the poor and bless those who which to exploit them. Governments are also found with the same wickedness for instead of dishing out the goodness of justice they are found to be bribe takers and seekers of lawless gains. In all their acts they revile the LORD for it was God who made the poor and whoever show contempt for the poor show contempt towards their Maker. The wicked are swelled up with pride and consider themselves to be the gravity of the entire universe, they seek to satisfy their own soul and thus it is not surprising vs.4 that the wicked man does not seek the LORD; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. For if there was room for God then the wicked would have forsaken his ways but he nullifies his conscience in order to chase God out so that freely he may commit his abominable practices. Is there room for God in your heart or have you chased him out so that you may satisfy your lust? Isit possible to meditate upon the sweetness of the Lord and yet practice evil? For those who meditate upon the beauty of the Lord will be like him but all those who replace the Lord with sin will become like sin, ugly, filthy and abominable to creation.

It is a strange thing to see and witness the prosperity of the wicked while the righteous man die of thirst. This is a solid example that mankind lives in a fallen world for we see of a wicked man that vs. 5 His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by him; he sneers at all of his enemies. Many wicked men have lived this life and many of them have been prosperous, they successfully exploited the weak and no one was found to bring them to justice. Gladly they lived their lives, walking in the freedom of the sunshine while the godly souls have been found chained in the dungeons. They prosper and the wicked flourish. They are against all of the Law of Yahweh for His ways is altogether different to theirs and they sneer at their victims. They delight in the death of the poor and thus they send their soldiers on a crusade to annihilate the opposing tribe, they do the deeds of darkness and slaughter the children. They have no mercy and they plunder the land to add to their own prosperity and take the milk from the babies mouth. The wicked man says to himself vs. 6 “Nothing will ever shake me”. He swears, “No one will ever do me harm”. 

The wicked in their prideful state are to be pitied for when they boast of their own security is when the Lord takes away their hope - he destroys them imminently through a disgraceful way and death takes away all of their pride. For foolish souls they are because nature should have taught them that as they entered the world so shall they exit it carrying non of their treasures with them but meeting with the fierce anger of a Holy God. But the wicked will not forsake his ways but carries on in his folly. vs. 7, His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. Wicked souls are the smoothest of talkers, openly they will draw you and sing your praise but secretly they are plotting your destruction. Their mouths drip like honey but their heart is as the vomit of a dog. Take heed what men speak well of you and heed not to man’s praise but seek the praise that comes from God. The wicked in their schemes aim on ruining life and although they have exploited the wealth of the towns they take their deeds to the villages. Vs. 8 He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent.  This is a most terrible act that the innocent should be destroyed, it is understandable when a man is punished for his crimes but when an innocent is killed for gain, it is most despicable and heinous; but such is the ways of the wicked that his eyes watch in secret for his victims. Vs. 9-11, like a lion in cover he lies in wait. He lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net. His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength. He says to himself, “God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees”.  But God does see, he sees all of their wicked ways and His heart is stirred with a holy anger; He is greatly angered by their evil and divine justice will have its day. But some of you may not consider yourself to be so wicked but is it not true of the same principle that when we commit our secret sins we say that God does not see us. But we fear the presence of man but disregard the presence of God. Is this not evil and are you not guilty that you have exulted man above God. For when you commit your sins you forget the ways of the Lord and feed your lust and wants; this is terrible my friend but forsake your unrighteous ways and live your life knowing that the eyes of the Lord is upon all of your ways.

The Psalmist feeling God to be afar off and tired of his condition and situation, hating the ways of the wicked and wanting justice calls to His creator to vs. 12 Arise, LORD! Although the Lord is everywhere and fills the whole universe yet it seems fitting that in any situation of injustice the righteous call upon the LORD to arise for as long as God is far off  it seems to them that God is sitting although He has his own purpose for such a delay yet they beseech His name. And when they do call upon His name, for their God to arise, they ask him to Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless. For God to lift up his hand is to come and strike a blow to the wicked, to give them their due and portion but His justice is two fold for as well as striking the wicked he uplifts the helpless; he lifts them out of the ashes and sits them with princes; he comforts their broken heart. Our Lord Jesus saith, that ‘blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted’. And who is their comforter, it is the whole God-head, for they find parental love from the Father, brotherly love from the Son and the Holy Spirit fills their soul with peace and Joy. God is the champion of the helpless and their comforter but the wicked have no such view of God so the psalmist asks the question, vs. 13 why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, “he won’t call me into account”? The wicked man reviles God because He doesn’t know God, he has no fear of God in his eyes; God is too holy and pure for his ways, God is the contradiction of his living and thus the wicked man walks in opposition to God’s ways like the devil who is their father. The wicked man also exercise a great folly of which the devil does not dare entertain that is that God won’t call him into account. This is foolish and fuels his wickedness for if the wicked man knows of his imminent judgment then he would soon turn and forsake his wicked ways and plea for righteousness of God through the gospel to fall on him. Will you not likewise forsake your ways and turn to Christ knowing that judgement is to come after you depart from this life. Death may come to you today or tomorrow or in the foreseeable future but it will come and you do not know when. While there is still breath in you today there is a window of mercy opened to you.

But God does see all of the ways of the wicked and will call all men into judgment. For as surely as man dies so shall he enter into the judgment of the Son of God where his imperial reign will allot to each soul divine justice according to their deeds. Those who are found to be in Christ for they are not justified according to their deeds but the merits of Christ will dwell and reign with him but all who are found according to their deeds entirely will be found in the eternal flames of hell. Vs. 14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. Our God is a kind and compassionate God, he is full of care and tenderness - are you a grieved soul and laden with difficulty? Know this my friend, that God knows your grief and considers it; soon he will come and release you from your grief only if you would turn your eyes to him and look to him as the remedy for your grief. God loves you dearly and has not forgetting your condition. The victims commit themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.  Commit yourself to the Lord and by commitment is meant in the same manner as devotion, that is continually looking steadfastly upon the Lord and knowing that he is your helper. Also consider this that has God not dealt entirely with your biggest problem? He has for He has reconciled you back to himself and made you an heir with His divine Son and how shall he not now relive you from your grieve only if you would trust him and commit your restoration entirely upon Him. God in restoring the helpless also strikes the wicked as the psalmist asks of God to vs. 15 break the arm of the wicked man; call the evil doer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out. This is the cry of tired sufferers, no longer can they endure the pain or the sight of the wicked's prosperity and the earthly court has failed them so they cry to God to deal justly with their evils. Although they may have hidden their crimes from human eyes, yet God you see them, so please put a stop to their advancement and injustice.

The Psalmist, hating the ways of the wicked and calling upon God to declare his anger against them and secure justice on them is confident of the nature of God’s character. He exalts that vs. 16 The LORD is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land. The psalmist speaks here of modern day Palestine, the land of the Israelites who are the descendant of Jacob. The promised land which the Lord had given them that is to the tribe of Israel is occupied by foreign men and because the LORD is king for ever and ever the nations will perish. God will not let his holy people suffer forever for vs. 17-18 he hears the desire of the afflicted; he encourages them and listens to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, so that mere earthly mortal will never again strike terror.
 Do not grow weary in your afflictions and tribulations but be of good cheer for Christ has overcome this world and he is your great encourager; he endured his cross so that you may endure yours and every tear dropped on the pilgrim journey he has kept them all in the jars of the tears of the saints wherein upon entering (heaven) and the whole fold counted for He shall turn the tears into wine where it shall be an occasion for joy for all tears shall be wiped away.

K.Oni