Today is Ash Wednesday!

Today is Ash Wednesday!
A Christian Holy Day, although not a traditional “holiday”.

For at least 1 300 years Christians gather on this otherwise unremarkable Wednesday, to remember that:

· They are mortal and therefore have to contemplate eternity.

· If we are Christians, we also remember that we have “died for sin”, meaning that we died with Christ in order to become new people that follow Jesus and seek God’s will.

· And when we ponder all of this, we know that we are guilty of allowing the old, disobedient person to surface much too often and therefore we wish to repent, longing for forgiveness.

It all started with a tradition that developed during the 2nd century to baptize new converts to Christianity on Easter Sunday.
Christians then, as we should still do, took Paul’s teaching very seriously, that a new “me” is “resurrected” when through baptism I am ordained into Christ’s priesthood, to become a praying, serving child of God, sacrificing my whole life to his service.

Converts were prepared for the new baptized life for 40 days (excluding Sunday’s). During this time spiritual discipline was, with teaching, an important ingredient of this preparation, that started on a Wednesday. This 40 days became known as “Lent”. And so our Christian fathers thought that if we on Easter Sunday will celebrate that we rose with Christ into a new life, we should also be reminded that the old sinful “me” has died with Christ. Remembering all of this culminates on Good Friday, when we remember that Jesus died – and even Still Saturday, that Jesus was dead, in the tomb. But it starts on Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, the season to remember Christ’s suffering and death, contemplating our death, our sins, our need to repent and our expectation to be raised to a new Easter Life in Jesus our Saviour!

On Ash Wednesday baptized Christians remember that we died with Christ. We remember that the old, lost, impure and ungodly person has died. And in faith, through prayer, fasting, contemplation and learning, seek the new life in Christ more fervently and focused than before. This is why Ash Wednesday prepares us for a time of humble repentance for our own sins, and for that of our congregation, our leaders, our denomination, our country.... As such it becomes a time of reconciliation – with God, our neighbour, our family, friends, children... It is a time to make peace with God, man, ourselves and our environment. We receive this peace in Christ Jesus, who suffered and died to set us free.

It is a season to listen carefully to what God says to us about our lives and to look carefully to the needs of those to whom we should be a neighbour!

On Ash Wednesday we get into the frame of mind, into the right attitude, to desire the death of sinful life and the resurrection of God glorifying life! On Ash Wednesday, at the Table of our Lord, we see and taste that God is good in that One died for all, that we may live for Him! On Ash Wednesday many Christians will also wish to “give up something for Lent”, in order to encourage the discipline that will lead to a closer walk with Christ, repentance and to desire the fullness of Christ’s resurrected life!

Join us tonight at Centurion West Presbyterian Church at 19:00 (7pm) for our annual Ash Wednesday Communion Service. We put more emphasis on music this year – worshipful, repenting songs and hymns, than in the past. It is music to touch the soul, that encourages the desire to know with certainty that it is well, truly well, with my soul!!

2 Cor 7:10: Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Ash Wednesday starts the “fasting” of Lent on the right foot: we realise how badly we need God, yes, how hungry and thirsty we are for Jesus, our Saviour!

O SACRED HEAD... (Paul Gerhardt, 1607 – 1676.)
O sacred head, sore wounded, defiled and put to scorn;
O kingly head, surrounded, with mocking crown of thorn:
What sorrow ruins your grandeur? Can death thy bloom deflower?
O countenance whose splendour, the hosts of heaven adore!

In thy most bitter passion my heart to share does cry,
With thee for my salvation upon a cross to die.
Ah, keep my heart thus moved to stand thy cross beneath,
To mourn thee, well beloved, yet thank thee for thy death.

What language shall I borrow to thank thee, dearest friend,
For this thy dying sorrow, thy pity without end?
Oh, make me thine forever! And should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never, outlive my love for thee!

Nothing is more important than my relationship with Jesus!

Nothing, absolutely nothing, is more important than knowing Jesus, listening to him and submitting to his will for my life.
There is only one important thing in life, and that is having a personal love relationship with Jesus, our Lord and Saviour.

Absolutely nothing else can even be compared to this. A productive career or booming business, a new car, an immaculate house, happy guests after a brilliant dinner party, a relaxing vacation, invigorating exercise, a winning cricket season, a handsome boyfriend or beautiful girlfriend, high marks – or even a fulfilling vocation in church life – all of these are not even comparable to and are much less important than Christ himself.

Remember what Jesus said? "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?" (Mt 16:26). Only Jesus is the pure and sinless, both human and divine, Mediator between me and God. Only Jesus can save me!

Therefore, be blessed when you spend enough time getting to know Jesus better and to listen to his voice. If we do, we have chosen what is better. If we do, we have chosen the best!

At our Ash Wednesday Service, this week at 19:00 on Wednesday, we will listen to a song that says:
I cannot save myself o God,
- no one can, my Lord!
There is no one, to take away
all my guilt, unrighteousness!
Just Jesus can,
can achieve God’s gospel plan.
Yes, Jesus can,
o holy God,
only Jesus can!

O Glorious Father - a song!

O Glorious Father!

O glorious Father, O glorious Son,
you gave us your Spirit, and he made us one!
Creator and Ruler, who wants us to be
in Jesus one body, your own family!
Chorus:
Jesus reigns, we are one,
we are one in the Lord!
And redeemed, yes we’re saved,
and we trust in God’s Word!
We worship and praise the Almighty today,
who made us his people to serve and to pray.

O glorious Saviour, O glorious Lord,
break down ev’ry barrier, destroy ev’ry sword.
Make all of Gods children one body to be,
that all through our loving your mercy may see.
Chorus:
Jesus reigns, we are one,
we are one in the Lord!
And redeemed, yes we’re saved,
and we trust in God’s Word!
We worship and praise the Almighty today,
who made us his people to serve and to pray.

O glorious Ruler, o glorious God,
Lord, summon your justice, make valid your Word.
In Jesus we hear and obey what God said:
Preach freedom for all, as my Spirit has led!
Chorus:
Jesus reigns, we are one,
we are one in the Lord!
And redeemed, yes we’re saved,
and we trust in God’s Word!
We worship and praise the Almighty today,
who made us his people to serve and to pray.

Sung to the music of: To God be the glory, great things he has done… (SOF 559)

Jesus: Cosmic King and Head of the Church

From the very beginning of his ministry on earth, Jesus preached (Matt 4: 17) "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." After Jesus conquered death, sin, the grave, our weak nature and our fierce enemy, Jesus was given all authority in heaven and on earth, both as our cosmic King and as the Head of the Church. And he remains with us, always.

The command of King Jesus is that we should (Matt 6:33) “first seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness” and all the things that we worry about and need, will be given to us in his grace, under his authority and through his power.

Seeking, proclaiming - and submitting to - the Kingship of Jesus refer, amongst other things, to:

A change in one’s allegiance. If Christ is the King, he deserves our honour, loyalty, and obedience. We submit to his authority and power.

A change in one’s expectations. Jesus made extraordinary promises with regard to his kingdom. The kingdom may not yet be fulfilled completely, but it has been established and will last forever.

A change in one’s values. The values of Christ’s kingdom reflect what matters to the King.

A change in one’s priorities. Jesus challenged his followers to bring the values of his kingdom into their day-to-day lives. “Seeking first the kingdom” puts Christ’s perspective on all one’s works and its outcomes.

A change in one’s lifelong mission. Jesus affects the outlook of a person’s life. He gives us purpose and a mission, promoting kingdom values in every aspect of life, extending his message to the ends of the earth, providing to all the opportunity to give their allegiance to Jesus as their Saviour and King.

Be blessed when you, as the highest priority in your life, seek the Kingdom of God, submitting to King Jesus, and when everything you need is given to you by our gracious Sovereign, our eternal Saviour.

God's choices are the best for you

Do you ever wish you were somebody else? Have you ever wished to handle a ball like a Protea or a Springbok, or make a speech in the way a professional does, or play the organ and piano as well as René (our organist / pianist) does? (I know I would love to be able to play that well!) Do you feel as if you received the short end of the stick when it comes to gifts and talents? If so, take heart - God has good news for you.

The Corinthian church was made up of various peoples. In addition to that, God gave each of the Christians in this church a variety of special gifts – Spiritual gifts. The purpose of the gifts was to help others in the church develop to full maturity in Christ and to grow the congregation to its full potential. But instead of using the various gifts as God intended them to be used, the Corinthians argued about who’s Spiritual gift was the most important or gave the person who received the gift, the highest status in the congregation. This is why Paul wrote to them in 1 Corinthians 12:18: But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be.

God gave each church member in Corinth exactly what he wanted them to have, but some failed to use the gift given to them, while they were envious of the role someone else had in God's work.

It still happens in the church today. We seem to forget that if God called and equipped us to serve him in a certain way or capacity, that task is the most important that we can ever do. If we try to fulfil someone else’s role in the church and neglect our own, we are bound to fail twice – firstly in our own calling and secondly in the calling we are not called to do and therefore cannot expect the Lord’s blessing on that work or the gifts of the Spirit to do it.

Has God gifted you in a certain manner? The only way that you can have true joy in the Lord’s work, is to allow God to get from you, what he had placed in you. The Lord has tailor made a gift and role for you in his work. It is his choice for you, and God's choices are always the right choices. Do not fail twice by desiring someone else's gifts and role; take pleasure in your own, fulfil your commission and serve the Master in the way and for the purpose he called you. Your work for the Lord will be blessed and you will be fulfilled as you live and work according to his divine will.

Prayer: Help me, Father, to recognize the gifts and calling you gave me in order to serve other Christians and your church well. Do not allow me to desire what others are called to do for you, but instead make me diligent in serving your Kingdom faithfully according to your will for my life.

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord

Ps 103:2-3: Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases ...

I am afraid that we, Christians, can get so used to the treasures of forgiveness and healing that we forget to give thanks. We become so accustomed to redemption, salvation, renewal, forgiveness, healing and miracles, that it no longer stirs us, moves us, or excites us. We become able to express a firm belief that we have been forgiven, and healed, without being in awe of Gods grace.

God wants praise and thanksgiving from us who have been given salvation, the greatest of all possible gifts. In fact, to neglect the response of thanksgiving, is to steal from God of the glory due to him for his healing, deliverance and saving mercies.

It is true that God does not need our praise and thanksgiving - but he does want it.

May you be blessed when you in song, prayer and worship, and more importantly through a life committed to Gods service, only seek the glory of God. When you truthfully with the Psalmist say to the Lord :

Praise the LORD who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. (Ps 103: 4,5)

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Amen.

A Creed that rhymes

O Father, God, Creator!




O Father, God, Creator, Provider and our trust!
You gave your Son, Lord Jesus, your Christ who made us just.
He is our dear Redeemer, who gave his life, his blood:
Magnificently Conqueror, our Saviour from the flood!

O Jesus, Lord, who loves us, and teaches us each day,
who graciously redeemed us, and in who’s Name we pray.
Send us your Holy Spirit, and bless us with his power,
to unify - and help us - in ev’ry testing hour.

O Spirit, great and holy, conform us to God’s will,
Yes, sanctify and seal us, to feast with you until
our glorious LORD is honoured by every friend and foe,
and we, believing, worship: God’s ceaseless splendour know!

Lyrics by Andries
To the music of "The Church's one Foundation"

The Lord's Table for Sinners

Christians should regularly celebrate the Lord's Supper. We must always prepare ourselves for the Lord's Table. Before we go to the Lord's Table, we must come to the point where we say, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

In Luke 18, when Christ looked at some worshippers in the temple, he saw that some relied for their salvation on their own righteousness, on their own works and on their moral purity, rather than on the mercy of God. (Luke 18:9) To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable.

To destroy this wicked self-confidence, Jesus told them the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. (Luke 18: 10 – 13): "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'”

They are part of a crowd of worshippers. But before they or any of the worshippers can pray, a lamb is first offered on the altar as an atoning sacrifice for sins and incense is sent up to heaven.

Jesus draws our attention to a Pharisee. The Pharisee not only acts like he is better than all other men, but he also says he is better than all other men. Here is a man who prides himself on his more than perfect life. He congratulates himself. He also condemns a nearby tax collector. This man is convinced he is a notch above all other men. He believes he has made himself right in God's eyes. This Pharisee has no awareness of sin; he sees no need for repentance; he doesn't think he needs grace. The Pharisee says and does all of this right after a lamb has been slaughtered, cut up, and sacrificed on the altar in order to atone for the sins of the people. He is saying, then, that the atoning sacrifice is not for him because he doesn't need it.

In Jesus' parable a tax collector also went into the temple to pray. Scripture tells us he stands "at a distance." He stands apart, because he does not think he is worthy to stand before God or with God's people.

The words of his prayer indicate his sorrow. The man prayed, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." A lamb had just been slaughtered, cut up, and sacrificed to make atonement for the sins of the people. Incense is burning and prayers are being offered up to God. "I am a sinner," says the tax collector, "and I need this lamb's atoning sacrifice."
He prays this not because he is a law-abiding man, but because a lamb has been sacrificed for his sins and he therefore begs forgiveness.

Jesus has a hard-hitting conclusion. "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God." The Pharisee was wasting his time and breath in the temple. This good man with nothing to confess returned home unjustified in God's sight. Ironic that his trip to the temple made him more in need of the atoning sacrifice than ever before.

The tax collector went home right with God and justified in God's sight. He approached God with a broken heart. He approached God as an unworthy sinner. He approached God not trusting in himself but in the grace of God, because he saw the atoning sacrifice of a lamb. And he went home justified.

When we receive the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper in church, we will see represented before us, in the bread and the wine, the atoning sacrifice of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

Will we go dressed up with our own righteousness, or will we be clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ? Will we go because we think we are good enough, or will we come because we need forgiveness?

If you come to the Lord's Table with even a hint of the Pharisee’s self earned goodness, you will leave the Table empty and will go home unjustified.

No, come to God realizing and confessing your sin. Come to God confessing your need for the Saviour. Come to God confessing your need for the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, and, by the grace of God and through the work of his Holy Spirit, you will leave loved, forgiven, cleansed – yes even justified before God.

Christian fellowship is important

During winter heavy snow falls hit groves of tall, young trees along a high way. The branches were bowed down with the heavy snow - so low that branches from one tree were often leaning against the trunk or branches of another.
Where trees stood alone, however, the effect of the snow was different. The branches had become heavier and heavier, and since there were no other trees to lean against, the branches snapped. They lay on the ground, dead and alone in the cold snow.

Remember Paul. He never travelled alone. He had problems with John Mark. He had an argument with Barnabas. He could have said, "Forget this community stuff. From now on I'm travelling alone. It is easier that way."
But no! He always took someone with him. He needed Christian community to be faithful to his calling. If anyone could have been working in isolation from other Christians, it was Paul. But he knew better.

And in every town and city in which Paul gained converts for the Lord, he established a community of believers.

In John 17: 20 - 23 Jesus prayed for all the believers of all ages. He prayed that we will always remain safe, and efficient in our calling, because we experience community with Jesus and his followers. Jesus said: “I pray for those who will believe in me through the message of my disciples, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

May you be blessed as you serve God in fellowship with Jesus and his friends. May the branches of your “minis-tree” lean against the branches of another’s, that they may never snap - and die alone…