The symbolism of the Advent wreath (on the Table) is beautiful.
The wreath is made of various evergreens, signifying continuous life.
It signifies victory over persecution and suffering. The prickly leaves remind us of the crown of thorns.
Any pine cones or seeds symbolize life and resurrection.
The circle of the wreath, which has no beginning or end, symbolizes the eternity of God, the immortality of the soul, and the everlasting life found in Christ.
All together, the wreath of evergreens depicts our immortality and the new, everlasting life promised to us through Christ, the eternal Word of the Father, who entered our world becoming true man and who was victorious over sin and death through His own passion, death, and resurrection.
The four candles represent the four Sundays of Advent. The progressive lighting of the candles every Advent Sunday symbolizes the expectation and hope surrounding our Lord’s first coming into the world and the short time we have left to prepare for his second coming to judge the living and the dead.
The light of the candles signifies Christ, the Light of the world.
In family practice, the Advent wreath is most appropriately lit at dinner time on the four Sundays, after the blessing of the food.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Advent 2011 - part 2: HOPE
Mark 13: 26 27 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens"..
We live in the in-between times, between the first and second coming of Jesus. We are waiting upon the Lord in hope of his great power and glory that will completely change our existence. Christ will and can establish his Kingdom. We are the agents of change to bring about faith in the truth that Jesus reigns and will come to effect, in the smallest detail, the wonders of his merciful and loving reign.
This hope should transform our lives!
1. We have the privilege of Christ’s presence through the Holy Spirit living and working in us. He is Emmanuel, that is, God with us. As we prepare to remember the first coming of Jesus at his birth, advent brings us hope. Through the work of the Spirit this hope should transform our lives, even though we are often confronted by hopelessness.
2. We can look at life in a new way: We need to see the real world with its pain and shocking sadness, and choose to be messengers of hope for those in need. We can help them to expect more of Jesus and his love.
3. We wait upon the Lord, serving him.. While we wait for Jesus to return, we serve him as we worship him in all we do, and we serve in his Name in serving those who need the good news of his glorious coming into our lives, our church and our society.
The Lord is coming and it is a message of hope!
We live in the in-between times, between the first and second coming of Jesus. We are waiting upon the Lord in hope of his great power and glory that will completely change our existence. Christ will and can establish his Kingdom. We are the agents of change to bring about faith in the truth that Jesus reigns and will come to effect, in the smallest detail, the wonders of his merciful and loving reign.
This hope should transform our lives!
1. We have the privilege of Christ’s presence through the Holy Spirit living and working in us. He is Emmanuel, that is, God with us. As we prepare to remember the first coming of Jesus at his birth, advent brings us hope. Through the work of the Spirit this hope should transform our lives, even though we are often confronted by hopelessness.
2. We can look at life in a new way: We need to see the real world with its pain and shocking sadness, and choose to be messengers of hope for those in need. We can help them to expect more of Jesus and his love.
3. We wait upon the Lord, serving him.. While we wait for Jesus to return, we serve him as we worship him in all we do, and we serve in his Name in serving those who need the good news of his glorious coming into our lives, our church and our society.
The Lord is coming and it is a message of hope!
Friday, November 25, 2011
Advent 2011 – Part 1
The Season of Advent – the four Sundays before Christmas, starts on 27 November 2011. The word “advent” basically means “coming”.
o It is a time to be filled with joy, because God became a man and was born as a baby to become our Redeemer and King!
o During this season we also remember that Jesus wants to enter our lives today, here and now, and through his Spirit’s work in us become part of our reaching out to a lost world in pain.
o We also remember that Jesus Christ promised to physically come again, to create a new heaven and earth in which we will live for all eternity!
The 4 Advent candles in church represent a “countdown” of the Sundays before Christmas - but it also reminds us that we have but a short time to prepare, before Jesus returns!
Advent reminds us that God gave his Son
During this Advent Season we will once again remember that Christ took on our weak, human nature and became one of us. We prepare for a “Merry Christmas”. To believers this has nothing to do with a politically correct “Happy Holiday”. Our cheer comes from the “mass”, or celebration, of Christ who came to save his people and will come again to make their salvation complete! He wants to change our lives into Christ’s mass: Christmas!!
The Apostle Paul explains it in 2 Cor 5: 21: God made him who had no sin, to be sin for us so that in him, we might become the righteousness of God.
This is what Christ came to do when taking on our “weak human flesh”. He showed his compassion with our dilemma which is the result of our imperfections, mistakes, disobedience and sin. He came to live the life that God requires and we cannot accomplish, and to live it perfectly, holy and without sin, in our place! The Son of God became our brother and he never leaves nor forsakes us.
During this Season of Advent we want to celebrate that when God gave the gift of salvation, he did not send a handbook with complicated instructions to figure out how to be saved. He did not send us laws and procedures that are beyond us and which will lead to even more failure to please our holy God. Instead, he sent his Son to save us.
Jesus came to show us how salvation works. Jesus came to become our salvation, our joy and our security. Jesus came to give us everlasting life. Jesus came to live a life that pleases God in our place. He came to pay the penalty for what we cannot and did not do.
Even today Jesus wants to come into your life through the work of his Spirit, to through faith in him, ensure that we work out his salvation in our day to day lives and challenges and in our work for the Lord.
And one day he will come again on the clouds to make our salvation complete.
The Advent message always remains that (John 3:16) God so much loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
Let’s trust in the directions of the Son. Let’s rejoice because he did everything we could not do, to save us! Lets pray that he will come again soon to dry all our tears.
May you experience a blessed and a merry Advent Season.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
There is no laity!
At the planning meeting of our congregation it was decided to develop our Sunday Worship services in order to more often include the participation of members, other than the minister or duty elder of the month.
The elements that the preaching minister of the day will sometimes ask members to do, will include:
o Call to worship
o Various prayers
o Receiving and blessing the offerings
o Readings
This decision was not taken lightly, but biblical principles were considered.
The purpose of this process is to ensure that Sunday Worship is not seen as “the minister’s territory only” but to adapt to the approach widely practiced, where both elders and other members lead some of the elements of the Order for Sunday Worship. It enforces the principle that in Sunday worship members are not mere bystanders and that not only the minister, but the congregation is filled with the Holy Spirit and may therefore lead the congregation in worship.
It reiterates the emancipation of members within the Reformed tradition as all belonging to the priesthood of the believers, instead of being spectators only. This is an age old principle within Protestant worship, that we lost when a popular view developed in the mid 20th century that Sunday Worship is the territory of the “professional prayers” and the members are “only laity” and therefore not worthy to take a leading role. This is not the view of most Protestants and it is particularly not a Reformed / Presbyterian view and we wish to correct it.
The resistance we see to implementing this principle, is the result of a misunderstanding that differentiates strictly between “ordained ministers” and “”laity”, a view which we do not find in the New Testament. In the Church in the New Testament believers are not only called priests, but even “royal priests” and “prophets”.
The Minister of Word and Sacrament is usually responsible for preaching and always for dispensing the sacraments, as this is what he has been set apart / ordained for.
But any other element could frequently be led by other members too.
Asking members to participate / lead liturgical elements is at the discretion of the preaching minister on the day, who probably will invite members on a week to week basis to do this most Sundays.
The elements that the preaching minister of the day will sometimes ask members to do, will include:
o Call to worship
o Various prayers
o Receiving and blessing the offerings
o Readings
This decision was not taken lightly, but biblical principles were considered.
The purpose of this process is to ensure that Sunday Worship is not seen as “the minister’s territory only” but to adapt to the approach widely practiced, where both elders and other members lead some of the elements of the Order for Sunday Worship. It enforces the principle that in Sunday worship members are not mere bystanders and that not only the minister, but the congregation is filled with the Holy Spirit and may therefore lead the congregation in worship.
It reiterates the emancipation of members within the Reformed tradition as all belonging to the priesthood of the believers, instead of being spectators only. This is an age old principle within Protestant worship, that we lost when a popular view developed in the mid 20th century that Sunday Worship is the territory of the “professional prayers” and the members are “only laity” and therefore not worthy to take a leading role. This is not the view of most Protestants and it is particularly not a Reformed / Presbyterian view and we wish to correct it.
The resistance we see to implementing this principle, is the result of a misunderstanding that differentiates strictly between “ordained ministers” and “”laity”, a view which we do not find in the New Testament. In the Church in the New Testament believers are not only called priests, but even “royal priests” and “prophets”.
The Minister of Word and Sacrament is usually responsible for preaching and always for dispensing the sacraments, as this is what he has been set apart / ordained for.
But any other element could frequently be led by other members too.
Asking members to participate / lead liturgical elements is at the discretion of the preaching minister on the day, who probably will invite members on a week to week basis to do this most Sundays.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Christ the King separates the sheep and the goats!
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Matt. 25:31 - 32
People ask, if Jesus is the King on the glorious throne of God, why are so many things wrong, impure and painful in this world? If the promised Messianic Kingdom of the Prince of Peace came when Jesus went to heaven to be crowned King of all, how must we understand that so much of our experience in life is still about injustice, sadness, sin and death?
The answer simply is: Until Jesus comes again there are both goats and sheep in the world. He reigns and cares for his sheep amidst the reality that the sheep and goats have not yet been separated. Jesus tends his sheep and leads them to his new heaven and earth and glorious dominion, in spite of the fact that his sheep follow him while goats are all around, often being influential and seemingly winning most the time.
The truth about sheep and goats is that one day judgment will be handed down on the basis of whether we are sheep or goats. The King will say, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink.” And on the other hand he will say, “I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,” It will be our living or not living according to the standard of love and mercy of the Kingdom of Christ the King that will be the standard for judgment.
Yet everyone knows that it is faith that saves by grace. Following Christ the King and accepting him as Lord of our lives, turns our lives around and the evidence about our lives is that we have been turned around form being goats to being sheep. And this miracle of our metamorphosis from goats to sheep, is a free gift! It is pure grace!
And this all happens because your Judge is also your Saviour!
This is how we glorify Christ the King! We live for him. We live out his heart within the needs around us. Jesus said, whatever you did for the least of his brothers and sisters, you did for him! We make his will visible, we show his heart and we allow the light of his dominion to become visible in this dark world. Then more people can believe that Christ the King, the Messiah, indeed reigns and that they too may believe in him and be saved through faith in him. People will begin to believe in Christ the King, when we act out our status as the sheep in the flock of Jesus
People ask, if Jesus is the King on the glorious throne of God, why are so many things wrong, impure and painful in this world? If the promised Messianic Kingdom of the Prince of Peace came when Jesus went to heaven to be crowned King of all, how must we understand that so much of our experience in life is still about injustice, sadness, sin and death?
The answer simply is: Until Jesus comes again there are both goats and sheep in the world. He reigns and cares for his sheep amidst the reality that the sheep and goats have not yet been separated. Jesus tends his sheep and leads them to his new heaven and earth and glorious dominion, in spite of the fact that his sheep follow him while goats are all around, often being influential and seemingly winning most the time.
The truth about sheep and goats is that one day judgment will be handed down on the basis of whether we are sheep or goats. The King will say, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink.” And on the other hand he will say, “I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,” It will be our living or not living according to the standard of love and mercy of the Kingdom of Christ the King that will be the standard for judgment.
Yet everyone knows that it is faith that saves by grace. Following Christ the King and accepting him as Lord of our lives, turns our lives around and the evidence about our lives is that we have been turned around form being goats to being sheep. And this miracle of our metamorphosis from goats to sheep, is a free gift! It is pure grace!
And this all happens because your Judge is also your Saviour!
This is how we glorify Christ the King! We live for him. We live out his heart within the needs around us. Jesus said, whatever you did for the least of his brothers and sisters, you did for him! We make his will visible, we show his heart and we allow the light of his dominion to become visible in this dark world. Then more people can believe that Christ the King, the Messiah, indeed reigns and that they too may believe in him and be saved through faith in him. People will begin to believe in Christ the King, when we act out our status as the sheep in the flock of Jesus
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Prayer on the Feast of Christ the King!
Almighty Christ, King of all!
Today, Lord, we celebrate your glorious victory. We gladly bring honour to you, Lord Jesus who has not only saved us from our sins by your cross and resurrection, but also ascended to the right hand of God. We rejoice that your Kingdom has come on earth, just as it is in heaven.
We bring honour to you, our Redeemer, whom we call Christ the King, who victoriously reigns now, and reigns forever. You, Lord, dealt with our every need, delivered us from every enemy, healed us from all sin, harm and injury and you are worshipped when heaven and earth bow down before you as Lord of all.
Yet, Lord everything promised has not happened on our earth yet! You are the King, and yet, your dominion is also still coming to us and to the world. We live in hope, and in faith that we truly heard the Word of God, that testifies that you will come again in glory to effect in the smallest detail, your glorious reign.
King Jesus, thank you that you not only bring salvation to us, but through your work through the ministry of your Church, also to the whole world, yes, to the ends of the earth. Your people accept the grace that you brings, and commit their lives to the power of the Holy Spirit who empowers your children and your Church to fulfil your commission to preach the gospel to everyone, now bring justice wherever we serve you and bring hope and light where darkness still hides your glorious reign and redemption.
Help us to live only for your honour, glory and reign. Help us to be obedient, by the power of your resurrection and of your Spirit. We know that nothing will separate us from the love of God that we received in Christ the King, our Lord and our Saviour!
We pray for all your servants, glorious Lord! For those who preach your word and for those who listen. Protect and guide all the missionaries sent to the ends of the earth to proclaim salvation in you. Guide them and bless their work for you. Call many more to do your work and make us obedient to your call.
In your mercy, heal the sick and comfort those who are weeping because they are sad. Set the captives free and grant relief to the poor. Sanctify those who are powerful and influential and humble those who are proud.
Bring to an end the kingdom of darkness and let your majesty shine as the light of the world. Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us your peace.
And now, great King of kings and Lord of lords –
have mercy on us, and on all your people.
In your Name, Lord Jesus, we pray!
Amen.
Today, Lord, we celebrate your glorious victory. We gladly bring honour to you, Lord Jesus who has not only saved us from our sins by your cross and resurrection, but also ascended to the right hand of God. We rejoice that your Kingdom has come on earth, just as it is in heaven.
We bring honour to you, our Redeemer, whom we call Christ the King, who victoriously reigns now, and reigns forever. You, Lord, dealt with our every need, delivered us from every enemy, healed us from all sin, harm and injury and you are worshipped when heaven and earth bow down before you as Lord of all.
Yet, Lord everything promised has not happened on our earth yet! You are the King, and yet, your dominion is also still coming to us and to the world. We live in hope, and in faith that we truly heard the Word of God, that testifies that you will come again in glory to effect in the smallest detail, your glorious reign.
King Jesus, thank you that you not only bring salvation to us, but through your work through the ministry of your Church, also to the whole world, yes, to the ends of the earth. Your people accept the grace that you brings, and commit their lives to the power of the Holy Spirit who empowers your children and your Church to fulfil your commission to preach the gospel to everyone, now bring justice wherever we serve you and bring hope and light where darkness still hides your glorious reign and redemption.
Help us to live only for your honour, glory and reign. Help us to be obedient, by the power of your resurrection and of your Spirit. We know that nothing will separate us from the love of God that we received in Christ the King, our Lord and our Saviour!
We pray for all your servants, glorious Lord! For those who preach your word and for those who listen. Protect and guide all the missionaries sent to the ends of the earth to proclaim salvation in you. Guide them and bless their work for you. Call many more to do your work and make us obedient to your call.
In your mercy, heal the sick and comfort those who are weeping because they are sad. Set the captives free and grant relief to the poor. Sanctify those who are powerful and influential and humble those who are proud.
Bring to an end the kingdom of darkness and let your majesty shine as the light of the world. Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us your peace.
And now, great King of kings and Lord of lords –
have mercy on us, and on all your people.
In your Name, Lord Jesus, we pray!
Amen.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Feast of Christ the King
Feast of Christ the King
On Sunday 20 November 2011 the universal Church once again celebrates the Feast of Christ the King. It is the last Sunday of the Christian calendar or Christian year, as Sunday, 27 November 2011, marks the first Sunday of the new Christian year, when we observe First Advent Sunday, when amongst other things, we start the countdown to Christmas, then only 4 weeks away.
The Christian year ends celebrating Christ the King, in victory. We gladly bring honour to Jesus who has not only saved us from our sins by his cross and resurrection, but also ascended to the right hand of God. Our celebration of the glorious work of Jesus culminates in the great finale of the Celebration of Christ the King. We rejoice that his Kingdom has come on earth, just as it is in heaven.
Yes, we know that everything promised about the Kingdom of the Messiah has not yet happened on our earth. Yes, his Kingdom has come and, yes, he is the King and Head of the Church and, yes, he reigns in glory.
And yet, his dominion is also still coming to us and to the world. We still live in hope, and in faith that we truly heard the Word of God that testifies that he will also come again in glory to effect in the smallest detail, his glorious reign. But until he comes again, we celebrate his heavenly rule, and the coming of his dominion over everything and everyone and everywhere with great expectation, in faith and in the certain knowledge that even now he is the King of our hearts, of his Church and of every aspect of our lives.
On Sunday, 20 November 2011, this coming Sunday, we celebrate that Jesus of Nazareth, the eternal Son of God, has taken his place as King of kings and Lord of lords in our lives, our faith and our certain knowledge that he will bring justice and righteousness to us, to his people and to the whole world.
Christ’s people accept the grace that he brings, and commit their lives to the power of the Holy Spirit who empowers his children, and his Church, to fulfil the commission of Christ the King to preach the gospel to everyone, bring justice wherever we serve him and bring hope and light where darkness still hides the glorious reign and redemption of our Lord.
On Sunday 20 November 2011 the universal Church once again celebrates the Feast of Christ the King. It is the last Sunday of the Christian calendar or Christian year, as Sunday, 27 November 2011, marks the first Sunday of the new Christian year, when we observe First Advent Sunday, when amongst other things, we start the countdown to Christmas, then only 4 weeks away.
The Christian year ends celebrating Christ the King, in victory. We gladly bring honour to Jesus who has not only saved us from our sins by his cross and resurrection, but also ascended to the right hand of God. Our celebration of the glorious work of Jesus culminates in the great finale of the Celebration of Christ the King. We rejoice that his Kingdom has come on earth, just as it is in heaven.
Yes, we know that everything promised about the Kingdom of the Messiah has not yet happened on our earth. Yes, his Kingdom has come and, yes, he is the King and Head of the Church and, yes, he reigns in glory.
And yet, his dominion is also still coming to us and to the world. We still live in hope, and in faith that we truly heard the Word of God that testifies that he will also come again in glory to effect in the smallest detail, his glorious reign. But until he comes again, we celebrate his heavenly rule, and the coming of his dominion over everything and everyone and everywhere with great expectation, in faith and in the certain knowledge that even now he is the King of our hearts, of his Church and of every aspect of our lives.
On Sunday, 20 November 2011, this coming Sunday, we celebrate that Jesus of Nazareth, the eternal Son of God, has taken his place as King of kings and Lord of lords in our lives, our faith and our certain knowledge that he will bring justice and righteousness to us, to his people and to the whole world.
Christ’s people accept the grace that he brings, and commit their lives to the power of the Holy Spirit who empowers his children, and his Church, to fulfil the commission of Christ the King to preach the gospel to everyone, bring justice wherever we serve him and bring hope and light where darkness still hides the glorious reign and redemption of our Lord.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Doxology Hymn
Doxology Hymn: Romans 11: 33 - 36
Oh depth of the riches - the wisdom of God;
How unsearchable is Gods judgments and paths.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, Amen.
Oh who has known the mind of our glorious God?
Or who has been his counsellor, yes, who is that wise?
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, Amen.
Does God owe anyone that it should be repaid?
For from Him and through Him, and to Him all things!
To Him be the glory for ever! Amen.
Oh depth of the riches - the wisdom of God;
How unsearchable is Gods judgments and paths.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, Amen.
Oh who has known the mind of our glorious God?
Or who has been his counsellor, yes, who is that wise?
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, Amen.
Does God owe anyone that it should be repaid?
For from Him and through Him, and to Him all things!
To Him be the glory for ever! Amen.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Celebrate Jesus – part 2 - final
We believe that the Lord Jesus, anointed as God’s Messiah, came to us to set up, proclaim and make us one with the Kingdom of God. He is the Son of God, born as a man and now exalted in heaven as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world! Jesus is worth celebrating, simply because of who he is.
But we also celebrate Jesus for what he does for us and in our lives. What does he do?
1) Jesus loves us just as we are. “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his son, his one and only son. And this is why: So that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.” John 3:16(The Message) Jesus loved us even before we loved him. Paul writes in Rom 5: 8:“But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful.” (CEV)
2) Jesus forgives the wickedness of our past.
We read about a woman caught in adultery in John 8:1-11: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ … When they kept on questioning him, he said to them, ‘If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ … Jesus asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one, sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.” While others condemned the guilty woman, Jesus restored her. What Jesus does is to restore condemned sinners and give them the right to be called children of God.
3) Jesus also makes our lives new.
We believe that Jesus Christ, being for our offences crucified, dead, and buried, his body never saw corruption, but he was raised again on the third day. In his risen life, we live anew, and receive the fruit of his resurrection. In heaven he continually intercedes for us as the Head of the Church, where he is honoured as Lord over all.
Paul writes: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) Jesus makes us new, even if we broke and destroyed ourselves.
It is time to celebrate Jesus for what he does for us! And the best way to celebrate him is to turn from our world conforming lives and embrace the new life he gives as a result of his cross and his victory.
Our transformation into his image celebrates Jesus for what he does and for who he is!
But we also celebrate Jesus for what he does for us and in our lives. What does he do?
1) Jesus loves us just as we are. “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his son, his one and only son. And this is why: So that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.” John 3:16(The Message) Jesus loved us even before we loved him. Paul writes in Rom 5: 8:“But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful.” (CEV)
2) Jesus forgives the wickedness of our past.
We read about a woman caught in adultery in John 8:1-11: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ … When they kept on questioning him, he said to them, ‘If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ … Jesus asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one, sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.” While others condemned the guilty woman, Jesus restored her. What Jesus does is to restore condemned sinners and give them the right to be called children of God.
3) Jesus also makes our lives new.
We believe that Jesus Christ, being for our offences crucified, dead, and buried, his body never saw corruption, but he was raised again on the third day. In his risen life, we live anew, and receive the fruit of his resurrection. In heaven he continually intercedes for us as the Head of the Church, where he is honoured as Lord over all.
Paul writes: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) Jesus makes us new, even if we broke and destroyed ourselves.
It is time to celebrate Jesus for what he does for us! And the best way to celebrate him is to turn from our world conforming lives and embrace the new life he gives as a result of his cross and his victory.
Our transformation into his image celebrates Jesus for what he does and for who he is!
Monday, November 7, 2011
How can we honour one another?
Romans 12: 10: “Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves.”
How to honour one another.
Firstly we must honour God. He is worthy of our highest praise and deserves all honour. Listen to what the angels of heaven say and sing:
(Rev 5:12) "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!"
When we honour God in the way we speak to him and about him, we will find it easier to honour one another, made in the image of God.
How can we honour one another? First of all by recognising and encouraging one another for efforts or achievements. This means we are to give personal compliments face-to-face. This means we are to go out of our way to thank and praise each other.
Secondly we also honour others by associating with them, by spending time with them. Paul writes:
(Rom 12:16) Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
It is important that the church stands in sharp contrast to the world's values that usually honour the rich, the successful, the famous, and the beautiful.
Jesus showed this kind of honour to those of low position, even outcasts. Whom did Jesus spend time with while on this earth? Yes, he did eat fancy dinners at the homes of the rich and the powerful. But he also associated with tax collectors and sinners. He wasn't ashamed to be seen talking with a Samaritan woman. He allowed a prostitute to anoint his feet with perfume and to dry them with her hair. He honoured these people with his presence and company.
At stake here is spiritual maturity. At stake here is the depth of our conformity to Christ. At stake here is whether or not we live as one of God's children.
How to honour one another.
Firstly we must honour God. He is worthy of our highest praise and deserves all honour. Listen to what the angels of heaven say and sing:
(Rev 5:12) "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!"
When we honour God in the way we speak to him and about him, we will find it easier to honour one another, made in the image of God.
How can we honour one another? First of all by recognising and encouraging one another for efforts or achievements. This means we are to give personal compliments face-to-face. This means we are to go out of our way to thank and praise each other.
Secondly we also honour others by associating with them, by spending time with them. Paul writes:
(Rom 12:16) Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
It is important that the church stands in sharp contrast to the world's values that usually honour the rich, the successful, the famous, and the beautiful.
Jesus showed this kind of honour to those of low position, even outcasts. Whom did Jesus spend time with while on this earth? Yes, he did eat fancy dinners at the homes of the rich and the powerful. But he also associated with tax collectors and sinners. He wasn't ashamed to be seen talking with a Samaritan woman. He allowed a prostitute to anoint his feet with perfume and to dry them with her hair. He honoured these people with his presence and company.
At stake here is spiritual maturity. At stake here is the depth of our conformity to Christ. At stake here is whether or not we live as one of God's children.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
What is true worship?
Worship in Truth and Spirit.
John 4:24: God is spirit; and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24)
What is true worship? The many churches around us do many different things, and they all are calling it worship.
Some churches observe a great deal of formality and ritual. Things are always done exactly the same way without any deviation.
Other churches have no printed order, although everyone has unwritten orders or practices. When informal and unexpected things happen, they are not considered disruptions in “informal” churches.
There are many styles and customs. Are some right and others wrong? The truth is that any style or tradition or custom or order can be done rightly or wrongly, because the customs we observe are but outwardly practices that either help us to worship God, or distract our minds from God. To worship God in truth and Sprit has nothing to do with style, yet it has everything to do with the worshipper.
Because praise, worship and the communion of believers are all God’s idea and should not in the first place be about our preferences. We need to seek what the Lord says about worship and seek to understand what God expects.
When reading the Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments, we see that God commands praise and worship, created us to worship him and that praise and worship are not two separate acts, but one act that brings praise to the Lord as grateful believers who worship because we received God’s grace and mercy. For example, in Psalm 150 we hear over and over the command to "praise the Lord!"
Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.
Praise the Lord!
As God did since the beginning of mankind, he still commands us to praise him. God is saying to us as his Church today: Honour and praise me, by worshipping me!
And Gods does not command this because of himself or any need he may have for our worship. He commands it, because we need to worship him. We cannot be changed, restored, equipped or empowered without worshipping our Maker, our Saviour, our Redeemer!
God commands us to worship, because our worship does something for us.
Without fellowship with God we are on our own – and we need God to have a life filled with meaning, purpose and joy.
Through worship we are healed and encouraged to live for the Lord.
Worship turns our hearts of stone into hearts filled with love and compassion for our neighbour.
Worship binds us with our Church family and turns a lonely journey into a life supported by love, empathy and recognition as someone who lives in God’s community.
Style, custom and tradition has very little to do with worshipping in truth and in Spirit. These may sometimes even distract us from focusing on God, if it becomes self-gratifying and people pleasing instead of focused on our God whom we worship. But if we come as needy people to be received by the King of all, and as we worship him, our broken relationships with the Lord, his community and our friends in Christ are reinstated. This glorifies God and testifies about our complete dependence on him. And it keeps us in the fold, and responds to our need for God and his church!
This we will get right when we remember that all the cultural, material actions we use to accomplish it, are mere aids to do the right thing. We will really only get it right when we worship in Spirit and truth, because God is Spirit! And we need God, who comes to us in Christ Jesus, to live and to die comforted and with true joy.
John 4:24: God is spirit; and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24)
What is true worship? The many churches around us do many different things, and they all are calling it worship.
Some churches observe a great deal of formality and ritual. Things are always done exactly the same way without any deviation.
Other churches have no printed order, although everyone has unwritten orders or practices. When informal and unexpected things happen, they are not considered disruptions in “informal” churches.
There are many styles and customs. Are some right and others wrong? The truth is that any style or tradition or custom or order can be done rightly or wrongly, because the customs we observe are but outwardly practices that either help us to worship God, or distract our minds from God. To worship God in truth and Sprit has nothing to do with style, yet it has everything to do with the worshipper.
Because praise, worship and the communion of believers are all God’s idea and should not in the first place be about our preferences. We need to seek what the Lord says about worship and seek to understand what God expects.
When reading the Scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments, we see that God commands praise and worship, created us to worship him and that praise and worship are not two separate acts, but one act that brings praise to the Lord as grateful believers who worship because we received God’s grace and mercy. For example, in Psalm 150 we hear over and over the command to "praise the Lord!"
Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty expanse.
Praise Him for His mighty deeds;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.
Praise the Lord!
As God did since the beginning of mankind, he still commands us to praise him. God is saying to us as his Church today: Honour and praise me, by worshipping me!
And Gods does not command this because of himself or any need he may have for our worship. He commands it, because we need to worship him. We cannot be changed, restored, equipped or empowered without worshipping our Maker, our Saviour, our Redeemer!
God commands us to worship, because our worship does something for us.
Without fellowship with God we are on our own – and we need God to have a life filled with meaning, purpose and joy.
Through worship we are healed and encouraged to live for the Lord.
Worship turns our hearts of stone into hearts filled with love and compassion for our neighbour.
Worship binds us with our Church family and turns a lonely journey into a life supported by love, empathy and recognition as someone who lives in God’s community.
Style, custom and tradition has very little to do with worshipping in truth and in Spirit. These may sometimes even distract us from focusing on God, if it becomes self-gratifying and people pleasing instead of focused on our God whom we worship. But if we come as needy people to be received by the King of all, and as we worship him, our broken relationships with the Lord, his community and our friends in Christ are reinstated. This glorifies God and testifies about our complete dependence on him. And it keeps us in the fold, and responds to our need for God and his church!
This we will get right when we remember that all the cultural, material actions we use to accomplish it, are mere aids to do the right thing. We will really only get it right when we worship in Spirit and truth, because God is Spirit! And we need God, who comes to us in Christ Jesus, to live and to die comforted and with true joy.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Celebrate Jesus – part 1
Celebrate Jesus simply for who he is.
During this short series of Midweek Devotions we will also learn to celebrate Jesus for what he does, for changing our lives, and for his exaltation at God’s right hand.
But, let’s start at the beginning. We first of all should celebrate Jesus just because of who he is. Do we really realise who Jesus is? And if we do, is it not enough reason to spend all of our days celebrating him? Jesus is God, and we should celebrate that.
1) He is an earthly picture of our heavenly Father.
“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.”Colossians 1:15 (New Living Translation)
Jesus came to show us what God is like, to learn about the love, grace, mercy, kindness, holiness, justice and many other attributes of God. Jesus said “To see me is to see the Father.” John 14:9 (The Message). Jesus acted out, as a human being, who God truly is, that we may know, enjoy and glorify God always.
2)Jesus is the path to God.
Jesus is the only way for human beings to connect with God. “Jesus said, ‘I am the road, also the truth, also the life. No one gets to the Father apart from me.” John 14:6 (The Message) When we get lost, Jesus is the road to the Father, when we are confused, Jesus is the truth that shows us what really makes sense in life. He shows us how to get a life. The unbelieving world has a completely different way of understanding how to get a life.
Yet, when we come to Jesus we are set free from our wickedness and we can get a life, and one that never ends, not even after we died!
3) Jesus is the friend of those who follow him.
“Greater love has no one that this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves…… But I have called you friends.” John 15:13-15
We believe that the Lord, anointed as God’s Messiah because he is one with the Father and with the Holy Spirit, came to us to set up and proclaim the Kingdom of God amongst us. He did this by his perfect life, through words and deeds of grace, and ultimately by his death on the cross. He rose triumphantly in order to save us. He sacrificed himself, perfect and unblemished, to be our Saviour, Redeemer and Mediator!
Jesus is worth celebrating, simply because of who he is.
During this short series of Midweek Devotions we will also learn to celebrate Jesus for what he does, for changing our lives, and for his exaltation at God’s right hand.
But, let’s start at the beginning. We first of all should celebrate Jesus just because of who he is. Do we really realise who Jesus is? And if we do, is it not enough reason to spend all of our days celebrating him? Jesus is God, and we should celebrate that.
1) He is an earthly picture of our heavenly Father.
“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.”Colossians 1:15 (New Living Translation)
Jesus came to show us what God is like, to learn about the love, grace, mercy, kindness, holiness, justice and many other attributes of God. Jesus said “To see me is to see the Father.” John 14:9 (The Message). Jesus acted out, as a human being, who God truly is, that we may know, enjoy and glorify God always.
2)Jesus is the path to God.
Jesus is the only way for human beings to connect with God. “Jesus said, ‘I am the road, also the truth, also the life. No one gets to the Father apart from me.” John 14:6 (The Message) When we get lost, Jesus is the road to the Father, when we are confused, Jesus is the truth that shows us what really makes sense in life. He shows us how to get a life. The unbelieving world has a completely different way of understanding how to get a life.
Yet, when we come to Jesus we are set free from our wickedness and we can get a life, and one that never ends, not even after we died!
3) Jesus is the friend of those who follow him.
“Greater love has no one that this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves…… But I have called you friends.” John 15:13-15
We believe that the Lord, anointed as God’s Messiah because he is one with the Father and with the Holy Spirit, came to us to set up and proclaim the Kingdom of God amongst us. He did this by his perfect life, through words and deeds of grace, and ultimately by his death on the cross. He rose triumphantly in order to save us. He sacrificed himself, perfect and unblemished, to be our Saviour, Redeemer and Mediator!
Jesus is worth celebrating, simply because of who he is.
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