In the Present Tense

 

In Luke 19:1-10, we’re told of a guy named Zacchaeus who was the chief tax collector in Jericho. Keep in mind that tax collectors did not have a good reputation and were hated so, Zacchaeus, with oversight over other tax collectors, was even more hated (v 2 EXB).

The story goes…

Jesus was coming into town and Zacchaeus, unable to see above the crowd because he was short, climbed a sycamore tree. Jesus stops at the tree, looks up at Zacchaeus and says,

“Zacchaeus, hurry! Come down! I must stay at your house today.” (v 5 ERV)

Elated to have Jesus stay at his home, Zacchaeus hurried down from his lofty perch, much to the disdain of the townsfolk, who at that point grumbled and indignantly complained, He has gone in to be the guest of and lodge with a man who is devoted to sin and preeminently a sinner (v 7 AMPC).

Then verse 8 in the ESV recounts,

And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” 

In most other translations of the bible, this verse records Zacchaeus’ words in the future tense, as in “I will give” and “I will repay” or “I will give back” but here it’s in the present tense. How come, you may be wondering.

Well, I recently learnt that the original Greek text was written in the present tense. Zacchaeus was not telling Jesus what he will do, he was letting Jesus know what he already does; he already gives half of his goods to the poor and he already restores to anyone whom he may have over charged, four times the amount.

As far as first century Jews were concerned, tax collectors were corrupt agents for the enemy, Rome; they were seen solely as doing Rome’s bidding and therefore incapable of performing good deeds.

But Zacchaeus was different, yet, despite his righteousness, the people, so blinded by the stereotypical, were unable to see the good that he was doing. In their minds, a sinful tax collector could never be doing good works; the two just did not correlate.

Now, I must admit that for years I too saw Zacchaeus as a terrible person, a corrupt tax collector who cheated people out of their hard-earned money, the reason being, that has always been the picture of Zacchaeus that was painted by every Sunday school teacher, from every pulpit and in every bible study session.

It was Zacchaeus who had a lesson to learn, not so? Or maybe, just maybe, Zacchaeus has been the unwitting fall guy all this time and it’s us – the grumblers and complainers, the persons in the crowd, the townsfolk, the judgmental, the label stampers, the ones blinded by their own perceptions and misled by their own assumptions – for whom the lesson is meant.

Like the people in Jericho, we place labels on persons based on our own perceptions and assumptions. Sometimes we draw conclusions about others solely on hearsay and never take the time to see who the person really is for ourselves.

There was a gospel artiste with whom I was acquainted, she has a beautiful voice but because she did not dress in the way some Christians felt she should, throughout her performance, those persons became so fixated on what she was wearing, that their grumbling and indignant complaining caused them to not hear a word she sang.

I must add that she’s European and it was not anything indecent, some people simply had a problem with her style.

Even though the Word warns us about judging others (see Matthew 7:1-2), we all do it; we are no better than the people of Jericho.

Despised by the people of Jericho because of his profession, Zacchaeus must have felt compelled to confess to Jesus.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9 (ESV)

And Jesus’ response to him was so lovely.

“Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.” (v 9-10 NRSVUE)

Notice, Jesus was not speaking to Zacchaeus, He was talking to the crowd, the neighbours, the townsfolk, to you and to me. We are constantly looking at the speck of dust in others’ eyes and not seeing the lamppost in our own eyes.

We wrongfully judge others based on a variety of things including their profession. Oh, you don’t? You don’t believe that all politicians are corrupt? Moving right along…

Yes, Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector, but he was a tax collector whose heart was in the right place. He did not just repay for his wrongdoing, he repaid four times as much. Zacchaeus’ generosity and grace was not public knowledge before his encounter with Jesus. Jesus let the people know that Zacchaeus was not who they thought he was, for he, too, is a son of Abraham.

Beloved, the person you deem unworthy, he too is a son of Abraham; that girl you disapprove of, she too is a son of Abraham. Zacchaeus wasn’t going to give, he was already giving; he was not making a promise to repay, he was already giving back.

And, Jesus’ promise of salvation is not lying in wait for some time in the future, it’s for today. Salvation comes to you today, right now, it’s all in the present tense.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “In the Present Tense” © 2026 September 14, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

Ceaseless Praying

 

The Easy-to-Read Version (ERV) of 1 Thessalonians 5:17 simply says, Never stop praying.

Now, there are some religious orders that have taken up the mandate to never stop praying; they maintain their vow of ceaseless praying in various ways – some follow a 24-hour shift system where members are assigned to pray at different times throughout the day and night.

But what about the rest of us? Apostle Paul goes on to say that this is how God wants us to live in Christ Jesus. In other words, it is God’s will that believers engage in ceaseless praying.

Some of you, by now, must be wondering how to pray without ceasing with the busy schedule that you have; you want to do what God wants you to do but you just can’t see how you can fit it into the daily grind.

I faced the same “conundrum” years ago. Listen, I had my prayer-time all worked out until Paul messed it up in his letter to the Thessalonians. I just could not fathom how I could accomplish this task. And that was my problem right there – I was seeing Paul’s call for ceaseless praying as yet another task to slot into an already over-burdened to-do list.

Praying is not a task and should never be considered as such. Praying is an incredible privilege – we get to pray; we get to be in communication with God; we get to have conversations with God – it’s truly an honour to be in touch with God.

God has made Himself available to you and me all day, every day and that is the beauty involved in ceaseless praying. Ceaseless praying is not about squeezing prayer into your busy life. Ceaseless praying is about communing with God.

To never stop praying has everything to do with having a keen and constant awareness of God’s presence. It’s knowing that God is always present, it’s maintaining connectivity to Him and being thankful in all circumstances.

The truth is, most days life is demanding and can get difficult; challenges, more often than not, come in waves so, whose wave frequency are you going to tune into?

Remember, God is with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9) and the more you sensitize yourself to His presence, not just around you but inside you, the more you would become aware of the immutable undercurrent of connection that exists between you and your Creator.

Beloved, this is what authentic union with Jesus Christ “feels” like – living life ceaselessly praying even if no words are spoken, even when you’re still and knowing amid the noise of busyness, even if all you can murmur is “thank You” or whisper, “Praise God”.

To engage in ceaseless praying is not an unreasonable directive but a loving reminder to stay connected to God who is for you, with you and always present.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Ceaseless Praying” © 2026 September 13, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

What about the word “satan”?

We all know Satan as the adversary of God and the accuser of us humans, but did you know that the word “satan”, in Hebrew, is also a verb? Perhaps you already knew this, or you might only be familiar with the word “satan” as a noun.

You see, our English translation almost always loses the depth of meaning of the original text.  With the definite article prefixed, satan becomes the proper noun that we are accustomed using, however, without the article, the word is used in a general sense to denote someone who opposes or accuses or slanders.

When in Psalm 38:20 we read, Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good, here “accuse” is “satan” as a verb.

When in Numbers 22:22 we read, God's anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as his adversary, here, the angel who stood in Balaam’s way, “his adversary” is “satan” as a noun.

When in 1 Kings 5:4, Solomon told Hiram that he had no adversary who opposed him, it’s “satan” as a noun and a verb.

But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil confronting me. (AMPC)

The Satan is a council, title or office and not a name; it’s “hassatan” or “ha-satan” in Hebrew. It was “ha-satan”, the satan, that appeared before God to accuse Job

One day the angels [sons of God] came to show themselves [stand] before the Lord, and Satan [the Satan; means “the Accuser” or “the Adversary”; either the Devil or a member of God’s heavenly court] was with them. – Job 1:6 (EXB)

And, when Jesus, in Mark 8:33, rebuked Peter saying, “Get behind me, Satan!”, He was referring to Peter as one who was opposing Him and not as one possessed by Satan, who is identified with the devil.

He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years – Revelation 20:2 (NRSVUE)

Peter was attempting to stand in Jesus’ way and the prophecy of the cross. Jesus was in effect telling Peter to get out of His way. Too often, like Peter, we attempt to get in the way of what God is doing.

With our perpetual need to control and belief that we know what’s best, we assume the role of the satan, when we become obstacles in everyone’s way (2 Corinthians 6:3), when we are stumbling blocks or hindrances to our brothers' and sisters' progress (Romans 14:13) and when we attempt to obstruct God’s plan (Acts 5:38-39).

When we accuse the brethren, oppose for opposing sake, use our mouths to slander fellow believers and become their adversaries, we satan others.

Beloved, know that even though the word “satan” has long been attributed to the evil one, that was never the original intention. Know that a believer can be a satan, depending on his or her actions. Even David, in 1 Samuel 29:4-5 was feared to become an adversary.

There’s so much more that can be unpacked regarding the word “satan” so, I encourage you to dig deeper for yourself.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “What about the word “satan”?” © 2026 September 12, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

A word to the weary

[The Servant of God says] The Lord God has given Me the tongue of a disciple and of one who is taught, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary. He wakens Me morning by morning, He wakens My ear to hear as a disciple [as one who is taught]. – Isaiah 50:4 (AMPC)

Here, the prophet Isaiah recorded the words of Jesus as the Servant of God. As such, Jesus did not speak anything that did not come from God, the Father. In John’s Gospel, chapter twelve verse forty-nine, Jesus lets us know this when He said,

I have not spoken on My own. Instead, the Father who sent Me told Me what I should say and how I should say it. (GW)

What an example for us to follow if we are serious about our service to God and His children: allowing God to teach us what to say and when to say it; to put His words in our mouths so that we too may “speak a word in season” to those who are weary. Being in communion with God every morning, listening to His wise counsel and obeying it will afford us this privilege. No longer shall we stand by speechless, unable to offer not even one word as weary people cross our paths.

Speaking words in due season to each other keeps us from growing weary…

In this life, we’ll all be faced with problems and situations of one kind or another that can wear us out but today beloved, I want you to know that there is joy and comfort to be found, not in your circumstances or your position, but joy and comfort are found in Christ Jesus. His joy strengthens you (see Nehemiah 8:10), and only He can give you the rest you long for (see Matthew 11:28).

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “A word to the weary” © 2016 (18-Oct-2016) revisited September 11, 2026

Celebrating God’s Faithfulness; Claiming God’s Future

 

When you think of someone who is faithful, what kind of person do you imagine?

Well, I think of someone I can trust; rely on; depend on…someone who does what she says she’s going to do, a person who always keeps his promises.

We are to think the same of God when we read of His faithfulness, but, with God there is still so much more because being faithful is not something He does, it’s Who He is; it is His character, it is His nature.

Do you realize that Love is the driving force of faithfulness? If you think about it for just a moment, you’d see that without love no-one can be faithful. It is the great love that God has for you and me, and for His Son, Jesus Christ, that allows Him to remain faithful.

In Apostle Paul’s second letter to Timothy, he let him know that God remains faithful because He cannot disown Himself.

This means that God cannot deny Himself, is bound by who He is, cannot contradict Himself, and therefore must be true to every facet of His character. In other words, God, who is Love, is also abounding in Faithfulness.

Understand also, that contained within the very Fruit of God’s Spirit is the attribute of Faithfulness, therefore Faithfulness, like Love, is an inherent part of God, so, when it comes to God, you cannot divorce one from the other.

God doesn’t suddenly decide that He doesn’t love something or someone. He doesn’t change His mind about His faithfulness based on trends or fashions or how He may feel from one minute to the next. God is steady, steadfast and unchanging.

Unlike people who will disappoint you or change their minds, God will always be there for you. His love for you will always be constant and His faithfulness toward you is far reaching.

Psalm 57 tells us that God’s faithfulness reaches to the roof of heaven. That’s incredible! Too often, we only look for God’s demonstration of faithfulness in certain ways and don’t recognize that God’s faithfulness is all around us, after all, it is His faithfulness that’s holding all of creation together.

Now that’s cause for celebration!

Believe me when I tell you that the moment you begin to truly realize how trustworthy God is, your perspective of life will change.

As you realize that He will always be there for you, that He’ll never let you go or let you down, you’ll find comfort in even the worst situations because you’ll know for sure that God really loves you in an amazing way and that will never change.

God thinks you’re amazing and has planned out your destiny, and not any old destiny but God has taken His time to design a good plan; He hasn’t left it up to you since He wants to ensure that your future turns out great.

In Jeremiah 29, verse 11(MSG), God Himself says, “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.”

What’s the future you hope for? Nobody hopes for a lousy messed up future. I know I’m not and I’m quite sure you’re not.

Imagine you’re reading a book. Now, you don’t go helter skelter, from one page to another, you’d read one page then move on to the next. Not so? And when you’re on the page you’re reading, that’s the page you’re seeing, right?

Well, that’s how your life is; you can only see one page at a time, but God, the Author of your book, your life, knows every word He’s written on every page of your life, even those things that haven’t yet happened in your sight, He is fully aware of.

Everything that God has planned for your future is for your eternal benefit. He intends for you to have a flourishing finish. And the awesome thing about God is that He watches over His word to perform it, so that you can confidently claim it.

Yes, it is that simple…remember God’s faithfulness, He is not like man, He does not lie…He won’t say something and not follow through, He will never make a promise and not act on it…all you have to do is take God at His word, believe Him, trust that, even if it doesn’t seem that way right now, He has already designed a brilliant future for you, and all you have to do now is claim God’s future.

Beloved, today, I urge you to be authentic in your commitment to God. God loves you immeasurably more than you can ever think or imagine, and it is out of this unspeakable passion that God is faithful to you and has lovingly created you with a complete plan for your best life ever.

So, I encourage you to celebrate God’s faithfulness and boldly claim God’s future, for they are both yours, an inheritance through Jesus Christ, your Lord and your Saviour.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Celebrating God’s Faithfulness; Claiming God’s Future” © 2017 (27-May-2017) revisited September 10, 2017

Blessed Assurance

 

What is that state of being that endures beyond the trials of life? That state of being that eclipses the emotions? That state of being that allows us to know that everything is alright despite all appearances to the contrary?

It is that state of peace that transcends all understanding (Philippians 4:7) and is our inheritance from our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you.” – John 14:27 (AMPC)

The world can offer us nothing like this. This peace is not sentimental but is able to surpass the limitations of joy and sorrow, hope and despair. It has the capacity to garrison and mount guard over our hearts and minds.

Jesus, on the day of His resurrection, said to His disciples, “Peace to you!” – John 20:21 (AMPC), after which He breathed the Holy Spirit into them (v 22).

Peace is the Blessed Assurance of the Divine presence forever deep within us (1 John 4:13); the Divine indwelling that is active in our souls, always directing us to a unique place of calm in the midst of crises.

Beloved,

“Now may the Lord of peace Himself grant you His peace (the peace of His Kingdom) at all times and in all ways [under all circumstances and conditions, whatever comes]. The Lord [be] with you all.” – 2 Thessalonians 3:16 (AMPC)

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Blessed Assurance” © 2013 (7-Feb-13) revisited September 9, 2026

The Comforter

 

“and I will ask the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever…But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name…” – John 14:16…26 (JUB)

During His time on earth, Jesus was comforter to His disciples, but the time had come for Him to depart, to go back to the Father. At His announcement, the disciples were overcome by sadness as they contemplated what a future without Jesus would mean – loneliness, helplessness, desolation, victimization.

John 14:16 and 26 reveal to us that Jesus, very aware of the great sorrow that filled their hearts, promised them “another Comforter”, the Holy Spirit. Jesus assures them that He was not about to leave them comfortless; they would not be left alone, and Another, just as Divine as He is Divine, would take His place.

This promise of “another Comforter” was not for the disciples of that time only but is for every single believer, then, now, and in the time to come.

As Comforter, the Holy Spirit is not just called to our side, but when we receive Jesus Christ as our Saviour – born again from above – abides within us. Therefore, as believers in and followers of Jesus Christ, the Comforter is our constant companion, ever present, ready and prepared to stand by us and take our part in everything in which we require consolation and help.

Beloved, today, determine to remember that you have an ever-present Comforter with you when troubles arise, in times of sadness, dejection, despair, loneliness, helplessness, and fear.

 

Let us pray,

Father, I thank You for the indescribable gift of Your Holy Spirit, the Comforter, Who never leaves my side. 

I thank You for this divine Comforter, the promise of all promises, abiding within me to bring me comfort in every area of my life. 

Blessed Spirit, my Comforter, You are here and so I am never alone. Reveal to me this day, the deep and glorious things about my Lord Jesus, things that fill my heart with comfort, joy, peace, and rest. 

I thank You divine Comforter for Your presence abiding in me and Your manifesting power working in me, as I pray in the Name of my Lord Jesus, now and forever more.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “The Comforter” © 2013 (20-Sep-13) revisited September 8, 2026