- Care of the chronically ill, frail and destitute
- Empowering of families in distress
- Engaging the socially isolated
- Rehabilitating at risk youth
- Advancing disadvantaged children
Sunday 25 April 2021
I Love You With The Love Of The Lord
Sunday 18 April 2021
The Truth Will Set Your Free
At the time of Jesus the Jews came under the influence of false teachers whose teaching made the Mosaic Laws very oppressive. The Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus were feeding the people with these false teachings so much so that the Jews were held captive to very repressive beliefs.
It was not meant to be. God in Deuteronomy 30:11-14 actually made it very clear that His commandments and laws are not meant to be crippling
'Now what I have commanded you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven so that you have to ask, "Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?" Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, "Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us that we may obey it?" No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.'
Jesus refuted such oppressive and repressive teachings. He said that the truth of His teaching will be truly liberating, "Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free."
Have you ever wondered why some people are captive to lies and false information? Why do they not want to know the truth? Perhaps they are too scared to know the reality. Perhaps they are too proud to admit that they are wrong. Perhaps their beliefs restrict them from exploring the truth about themselves nor to discover their reasons for living. Perhaps they are misled.
In this information-manipulative world, much of truth have been mixed with half-truths, half-lies and lies. So much misinformation has been spread online; sensational news, overblown claims, misinterpreted facts. For example, many listening to exaggerated news of side effects refused to take the Covid vaccines and prefered to remain unprotected. In a way the misinformation we consume from cyber communications manipulate us, control our thoughts and emotions. Many are ever willing to allow these lies influence our choices and lifestyles.
In 1969, Billy Graham in a classic sermon on Truth and Freedom spoke prophetically about this modern communication age and our attitudes towards truth. It may be worth our while to listen to this great preacher, it is liberating!
There is an information overload in this modern world. It is folly to listen to the many voices around us if we fail to listen to the one voice that really matters. Jesus is the voice of truth - Truth of God. Jesus is voice of authority - Breath of God. Jesus is the voice of solidarity - God with Us.
Lionel
Saturday 10 April 2021
Eleanor Rigby - All The Lonely People
Statue of Eleanor Rigby, Liverpool |
Sunday 4 April 2021
Jesus Is Alive!
The Double Rainbow-A symbol of Transformation |
Hallelujah! Jesus is Alive. Today is Easter 2021 and we are all celebrating the Miracle of the Resurrection. Mary Magdalene had gone to the tomb of Jesus only to find it empty. The empty tomb and the appearances of the resurrected Christ fired up, encouraged the early believers and started a movement that has not ended since - the growth of Christianity.
What does the resurrection of Jesus Christ mean to us?
The resurrection validates our faith. Consistently and unabashedly the early Christians cited the resurrection of Jesus Christ as proof of their claims and beliefs. It confirmed all that Jesus taught and sealed His work in the redemption and salvation of all believers.
'With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of of the Lord Jesus. And God's grace was so powerfully at work in them all.' Acts 4:33
The resurrection signifies victory over death. We now preach that Christ has triumphed over death, good over evil and hope over despair. Death is not something to be feared and the grave lost its power over us.
'Just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life....Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over Him.' Romans 6:4,8,9
The resurrection releases the stranglehold of Satan and sin in our lives; ushers in a new life in Jesus. We have just enacted the events of a holy weekend, contemplating through Christ's agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, His torture and crucifixion on the cross, His lying in state in the garden tomb and finally His glorious resurrection on Easter morning. Paul in the book of Romans posited that this is the symbolism in every baptism of Christians. As a consequence, sin should have no influence in our new lives and Satan loses his hold over us.
'Shall we go on sinning?..... By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? For if we are united with Him in a death like His, we will certainly be united in a resurrection like His....we should no longer be slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.' Romans 6:2,5,7
The resurrection provides the certainty of eternal life for all of God's people. It gives Christians an entirely new perspective; no longer of time and space, no longer of the temporal nature of our existence but of everlasting life and eternal values.
'But now you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.' Romans 6:22-33
This eternity perspective is a very special gift for Christians. We focus not on the temporary but the long lasting and eternal. We see the world less selfishly and more patiently when we no longer have to measure our lives and achievements in time and the immediate circumstances.
'For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal.' 2 Cor 4:8,9
Sunday 28 March 2021
This is the Lord's doing and it is marvellous in our eyes!
Dubrovnik In The Morning |
On the 20 Sep 2005, I was sitting on a balcony overlooking this morning sunrise in Dubronik. I was reading from “Make Me a Instrument of Your Peace” (Ref 1) by Kent Nerburn. It is a simple commentary on the prayer of St Francis of Assisi. The book was described as ennobling by a reviewer. I knew what this meant at once. Mr Nerburn has a gift of commenting on life in a most endearing manner, linking profound truths to ordinary encounters and even the mundane events of daily living. He draws soul-deep lessons in a simple, easy to read, manner. I like his writing. It has encouraging perspectives and insights.
The Kent Nerburn style is the way we ought to read the Bible. We could annotate each reading with a life-event commentary, drawing soul-teaching and spirit-enriching lessons. Can we learn to experience life and interpret the truths that each ordinary event is teaching us? Can we draw insights from the unfolding scenes life presents to us whether mundane or significant? What is the Bible teaching us? Can we “see” God?
I was reading from Isaiah's commentary on King Hezekiah's near death experience. On the same date in 2003, Pat was reading from the same passage a passage of Scripture in Isaiah 38:1 to 40: 31 in Grenoble, France sitting on steps of the cathedral. This was another beautiful city set near the French Alpine region.
The Lord spared Hezekiah and added another 15 years to his life. In a subsequent prayer, Hezekiah recalled his petition in his dying moments. Isaiah 38:15 noted that it dawned upon the king that sparing his life was entirely God's doing, only by God's grace. Hezekiah wrote "What can I say? He has spoken to me, and he himself has done this. I will walk humbly all my years because of this anguish of my soul. Lord by such things men live; and my spirit finds life in them too".
I understand that these were the same words Queen Elizabeth I of Great Britain uttered when on 17 Nov 1558, a messenger arrived from London with the long awaited news that she is to be crowned Queen. "A domino factum est mirabile in oculis nostris – This is the Lord’s doing and it is marvellous in our eyes."
There is an Christian song I learned in the 1970s written by Jimmy Owens, 'Illusive Dream' which always reminds that we live in reality by the grace of God and not in illusion. It is only by God's grace could we have enjoyed the lives we live and experience.