Thursday Reflection, December 9, 2021

Patiently wait for the Lord’s return

Be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Luke 12:36

Greeting friends,

Not many of us like waiting in long lines in the bank or waiting over an hour for our food to arrive at a restaurant. Not many of us like waiting for people that we expect, but there is no sign of them arriving. Waiting sometimes is not our best quality, but here in our text it is a feature we must develop and work on.

Jesus speaking to His disciples encouraged them to be as watchful servants waiting for their master’s return. When their master returns from the wedding banquet they will be there to open the door. Then the master will reward them. Jesus went on further to say, “Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives.”

Friends as we look at the text there are two point I want to make:

1) Patiently wait on the Lord’s return

Jesus is coming back and when He does it will be to separate the sheep from the goat, the wheat from the tares or simply put the good from the bad or those who have been faithful to him from those who haven’t. As stated earlier, sometimes patience is not our strongest feature, but here we are called to wait. We do not know when the Lord will return, but we must wait for it.

Now waiting doesn’t entail doing nothing. For if we are expecting someone to visit us we make preparations for that visit. If the house is to be cleaned, or sheets changed or food purchased we do so in preparation for that visitor. This brings me to my second point.

2) Work until Jesus’s return

Because we know Christ is coming back, we must make preparations for His return and that entails doing His work. As servants we do not do as we like. Instead we do what has been assigned to us by the master, in this case, Jesus. We prepare for His return by doing the work that has been assigned to us. So that when he returns unexpectedly He will find us doing the work that He gave us to do.

Friends, Jesus will return. I am confident of this. But when He will return, I have no clue. However, until He returns let us be patient and not get complacent. Let us prepare for His return by doing the work that has been assigned to us. So that when He return He will find us faithful and reward us accordingly.

Let us wait patiently for His return

Shalom

Christopher Euphfa

Wednesday Reflection, December 8, 2021

Greetings, brothers and sisters! The story is told of a man who was told to take a particular set of people to a particular place. He was responsible for all their needs and wants (and boy did these people ask for alot) but this man, although he first doubted his capabilities, grew into his role and relied on God to lead him in order for him to be able to lead these people.

If you guessed correctly, then yes, the man was Moses. And so, we also now have no doubt who said people were. We know the children of Israel to be a stubborn and rebellious lot. God Himself referred to them as ‘stiff-necked’ and over and over their attitude led them to disobey Moses, God’s representative and also their own advocate which led them to sin against God.

In one particular instance, Moses went up to Mount Sinai to meet with the Lord on the people’s behalf but the people thought he took too long to return, they became impatient and craved a ‘quick fix’. They asked Aaron to make them gods. Aaron instructed them to bring all their golden jewellery to him, he took them and made a golden calf. The calf was then presented to Israel as the new god and the people quickly took their offerings, made sacrifices and worshipped the image.

God was angry, but Moses pleaded with Him. Reminded him of His enemies and the purpose for delivering them from pharoah’s enslavement and the promise God made to Abraham, Isaac and to Israel to multiply their descendants. The Lord relented. Moses went back to the people and was enraged by what he saw. He chastised both Aaron and the people but still wanting to advocate on their behalf, Moses went back to the Lord.

In today’s watchword, Exodus 32:31,32, “then Moses returned to the Lord and said, they have made themselves gods of gold. But now, please forgive their sin.”

Throughout scripture, it is clear that consequences for sin comes in stages and varies in degrees of severity, providing opportunity for repentance. Moses knew that although the nation on Israel was not destroyed, the matter of consequences from their sin with the golden calf was not yet settled. His showed intent to offer himself as a sacrifice for the people.

Friends, Hebrews 3:12-13 reminds us to ‘take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But exhort one another everyday. I want to encourage someone today, that although the answer/directive you await may seem to be delayed, believe God, trust God, serve God as you await the response.

In the same way Moses advocated for the people, Jesus Christ advocates for us even now. Wait on the Lord and trust in the power of His might.

Amen

God is alive and active in the world

God issued a warning to Israel. They were to remember that they were called to be separate from the other nations around them. The practice of sacrificing to idols and following horoscope was not their custom or way. Those customs followed by other nations of the world were false. God called Israel to understand that the gods of the other nations were made by human hands and were therefore susceptible to being destroyed by the same human action that made them. If they were man-made, then they are powerless, unable to do anything supernatural like Israel’s God, like our God. Today’s watchword is a call to recognition of the power of God to create and sustain life. The Lord made the earth by his power, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens. Jeremiah 10: 12

Unlike the gods of the Babylonians, Israel’s God was alive and active in the world. This movement of God began with the creation of the world. The text is a reminder that the world did not just appear out of nowhere. Genesis tells us that God spoke and it came to be. The world was intricately designed by God and has been kept by God’s grace and power throughout the years. This speaks of God being alive and active in the world. The continuous action of procreation, growth and development in the world is evidence of God’s presence. The intricacy of the earth’s and indeed the universe’s design speaks of divine intelligence at work and not a random coming together.

To say that God is alive and active is to know that God is with us in the world today. This is seen in the prophetic voice of Isaiah 7: 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will name Him Immanuel. Matthew 1: 23 translates Immanuel to mean ‘God with us’. If God is with us in the world, his presence is not an unconcerned or impassive one, but a living, active presence. What does that presence mean for us? In Hebrews 4: 15 Paul speaks of Jesus: For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Through Jesus, God has showed us how to be true to Him. Let us trust that the God who creates, who sustains and who came in Jesus Christ bringing redemption to humanity, knows what we are experiencing and is alive and active in His continued work to sustain His creation. He will do what none other can for He alone is God. Amen.

Monday Reflection – December 06, 2021
Meeting with God

God called to Moses, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” Exodus 3:5

God sometimes meet us in the obvious and exhilarating experiences of life. Isaiah can testify to this, for it was while in the temple, in the presence of the holy angels singing of God’s holiness, that God meets him. Yet, God sometimes meet us in the ordinary events of our lives, but calls us into His extraordinary plan for our lives. God meets Moses in something as mundane as a bush, but quickly reveals to him that God Himself is not mundane. God is holy, and so is His presence.

Dennis Olson notes that, after being chased out of Egypt and away from his Hebrew people, Moses is out shepherding sheep for his Midianite father-in-law. Out in the wilderness, Moses stumbles upon “the mountain of God” known as Mount Horeb. In the ancient world, mountaintops were the traditional dwelling places for the divine. There, at the mountain, Moses encounters an unquenchable burning bush. Fire is a common biblical symbol of God’s presence. The fiery bush is an icon of the divine, a window into God’s presence that both reveals and hides. In part, the ever-burning shrub out in the wilderness signals God’s merciful accommodation. God comes down from the mountain of God to meet Moses in the bush. At the same time, the inextinguishable flame is a sign of God’s awesome and powerful holiness, a fiery holiness that is both dangerous and attractive, frightening and comforting, untamed but reassuring.

God instructs Moses to remove the sandals from his feet. The gesture is an ancient practice when entering a holy place of8 divine presence. It is a gesture that honors the holiness of this ground, this mountain and this God. However, removing his sandals has a second significance in light of Moses’ status as an alien residing in a foreign land. The Hebrews had rejected Moses as one of their own, and the Egyptian Pharaoh sought to kill him. The Midianites see Moses as a foreigner. Taking off one’s sandals is a gesture in many traditional cultures that is associated with entering a home. Thus, here at the foot of the mountain of God, Moses the “alien,” has at last found a true “home.” Moses finds his true home not with humans but with God, the God of his ancestors.

God’s warning to Moses to not come closer served to indicate to him that he was standing on holy ground. Later, God’s people could not come near God’s presence on the mountain; likewise, only priests could enter the sanctuary, and almost no one could enter the holiest place in the tabernacle. Yet, we should remind ourselves that at Christ’s crucifixion the curtain of the temple was torn from top to bottom, signaling that we have free, equal and unlimited access to the presence of God. We remind ourselves too that God desires to make His home among us.

God is holy and must be approached with reverence. God is holy, and must be approached with our best signs of respect. God meets with us to reveal some measure of Himself, and His divine plan and purposes for our lives. God meets with us to burn away the dross that threaten to destroy us and prevent His perfect will for our lives to be fulfilled. God meets with us so we can find our true home with Him. God’s meets with us through His Son Jesus Christ, whose first Advent we reflect on in this Season. Let’s favorably receive God’s invitation and meet with Him.  

Jermaine Gibson

Saturday Reflection – 04 December 2021

“Israel will be saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting.” Isaiah 45:17 NIV

As we continue on our journey through the Advent season, preparing ourselves to celebrate the Nativity of our Lord, and prepare ourselves for His second coming, we cannot overlook the state of the world, in which we find ourselves, for it is when we pause for a moment, and reflect on this world, that we will recognize even more, the need of our Messiah, a need which will stir us to action to ensure that as His ambassadors, we are actively and enthusiastically spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. The prophets echoed the message of the coming Messiah to bring light and hope to all God’s people, in a time when they felt desolate, disgraced, and distanced from God. This message of redemption is meant to remind the people that all is not lost, and though we may not see God’s hand in all the circumstances, the master potter continues to fashion us, even as His hands remain on the steering wheel.

And so, the prophet in his announcement declares that their salvation would come from the Lord, whose salvation would be effective and lasting. That the Messiah who would come into the world, who show us the way to life everlasting, would lead us in that way, and who by His eventual sacrifice, would be able to conquer the effects and consequences of sin, death, and the grave. Christ would save all God’s people from their sin, and lead us to newness of life, and in the way everlasting.

It is interesting then, that we find ourselves in similar circumstances like the society when the prophet proclaimed today’s watchword. Many find themselves similarly desolate, disgraced, and distanced from God. And we can clearly observe the immorality and wickedness in the world. It is in this context today, that the prophetic message proclaimed by Isaiah holds true. For Christ can save us with an effective and lasting salvation, powerful enough to cleanse the vilest sinner, to conquer the strongest temptation and sin, will give us peace and set us free. We, who are God’s people, are reminded in this season of preparation, that Christ came to reclaim us from darkness and to restore us to light. We remember the proclamation made by Christ that He came to seek and save the lost.

We prepare then, for His coming, by igniting hope in the hearts and minds of people everywhere, that our Saviour is able to reclaim and restore us. That hope even reminds us how lost and condemned we were, and places and newfound or greater sense of gratitude in our hearts as believers, and reinforces the need for evangelism, bearing the message that even “the vilest offender who truly believes that moment from Jesus, a pardon receives.” We prepare for his coming by tuning our hearts and minds on the Saviour who has come to save the world, on the first from sin, and on the second, to take His beloved, that where He is, we are forever. Too often, the distractions surrounding Christmastime, block our vision, and consume our minds, that we fail to see the Christ, the reason for the season. We are too busy buying and packaging gifts, baking, and preparing food, and planning festivities, that we often forget to take time to worship our Incarnate Lord, who reclaimed and restored us, too busy to actively and enthusiastically spread the good news in this season of cheer and goodwill. And these are important and beneficial to our holiday, but without Christ as the center, in the place of prominence both by our words and actions, then we will never really understand and appreciate the true meaning of the season, and experience the depth of peace given to us by the Saviour. May our minds instead be turned to Christ, who will freely save, transform, and set free.

Until next week, let us take the time this Christmas, to reflect on the true reason for the season, and may be stirred to worship and service to the Saviour who called us out of darkness into His marvellous light. Amen.

Dominic J. Blair

Friday Reflection December 3, 2021

Show Mercy

Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? Do you not realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?
Romans 2:4 NRSV
https://bible.com/bible/2016/rom.2.4.NRSV

Background
In the previous verse, Paul declared firmly that as people we all deserve God’s wrath for our sins.This verse then draws our attention to an important message regarding God’s mercy. Paul speaks to anyone and everyone who does not believe they are guilty of the types of sins mentioned in Romans 1, which might lead to a judgmental attitude.

Discussion
There are some Christians who feel as though their relationship with God exempts them from His judgment for sins they would have committed. In light of that, they become so judgmental about the sinfulness of others forgetting their own!

Paul carefully points out in verse 4 of chapter 2 that self-righteous people take for granted the richness of God’s mercy, patience, and forbearance. They fail to understand God’s immense goodness by assuming He will never judge their sin, even though He may judge the faults of others.

Paul went on in the next few verses to explain the danger that is associated with this kind of thinking. However, that is not where our focus is for this discussion. For now our focus should be on the latter part of verse 4. God’s love is intended to bring sinners to repentance. The question is asked “Do you not realize that God’s kindness is meant to bring us to repentance?” God is giving us time, He’s not pouring out His wrath immediately because He is a merciful God and it is not His will that any one of us should perish. If each of us were to receive God’s wrath the moment we sin, Oh my goodness! What a world it would be! We must always consider what our lives would be like if we didn’t have God’s Grace and mercy. Take a few minutes today and think about what your life would be like without God’s mercy.

Application

If we judge others, we are showing contempt for God’s mercy. Not only his mercy towards them, but also his mercy and patience towards us. God’s patience towards sinners should make us have a change of mind and be patient toward sinners, too.

Blessing and peace be with all those who read and listen to today’s reflection. Remember, show mercy to those who sin! Let me just say though, showing mercy does not mean we are to condone sinfulness.We must always be ready to speak up against sin without passing judgment. Know the difference and act accordingly. God bless you!

Shaneka Raymore Euphfa

Thursday Reflection December 2, 2021

Love dispels darkness

Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.1 John 2:8

Greeting friends,

Today our text teaches us one of the oldest yet newest commandments- to LOVE. From the creation story, to the giving of the Ten Commandments, to the coming of Jesus and until his coming again, this has always been the message of God – to LOVE.

Regrettably this is something that as a people we have failed to grasp. From Adam and Eve until the coming of Jesus the message of love wasn’t truly understood, but since the coming of Jesus, we have a clearer understanding of Love, for those who choose to abide by the teachings of Jesus.

John is clear though about this concept of love as depicted by Jesus. If you say you love God but hate your brother or sister then the truth of love and Jesus is not within you. Instead you continue to live in darkness. What is this darkness? It is the absence of love. It is hate, jealousy, and everything that is in contrast to who God is and what God stands for – otherwise known as sin.

Jesus teaches us how to come from this darkness and that is by showing love to God and people. When we do this we become like light dispelling darkness. The more we show love is the more the darkness will pass away and the true light -Jesus who is Love- will be seen.

Make no mistake if we say we love God, but hate others or mistreat them or speak ill of them or malice them or fail to help them when we can then we are still in darkness.

Love dispels darkness and show we belong to the light. Friends let us love as we ought.

Shalom

Christopher Euphfa

Journeying Mercies

Wednesday Reflection, December 1, 2021

Greetings friends. Todays reflection bids us look at a time in Israel’s history and Moses life where they realized and recognized that going anywhere or doing anything without the Lord God being with them would be futile.

We are reminded of the genesis of Moses’ call to serve he was timid and full of excuses yet in Exodus 33 we note a difference in his attitude abd manner, the way in which he approaches God and speaks to him in that way we do with the people with whom we are familiar. In addition to that, ln the watchword for today, Exodus 33:15, Moses said to the Lord, ‘if your presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.’

God instructed the people to leave Sinai but we see where Moses was now at a place where he now trusted and appreciated the Lord’s power and presence. Moses , in reasoning with the Lord, reminded God of His promises to the people and pleaded with Him to let them remain at Sinai if His presence would not journey with them.

Brothers and sisters, has God called you to do anything? Has He instructed you to leave a place, person or state? What was or has your reaction been? Has God not delivered and brought you hitherto?

Perhaps your tongue is lined with excuses and your heart be full of fear but know this,as you repent and as you bow your heart in reverence and totally submit your will to the Lord, remind Him of His promises, reason with the Lord and await the revelation. John 10:4 the new testament text for today reminds us thus, ‘the good shepherd goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because
they know his voice.

Until next week, let us pray…
Grant us Lord, the ability to hear you, to listen to you and to follow you in the cocophony of sounds that surround us.
Amen

Kerone Lamoth

My Times are In God’s Hands.

In times of distress, it is good to know that we can call on the Lord for help and have the confidence that God will orchestrate events to make things better for us. Such was the confidence of David having been pursued by King Saul and seeing God’s hand at work in his deliverance, and later ascension to the throne of Israel. Psalm 31 is a Psalm of David, believed to have been written as his response to God’s saving him from Saul. Today’s Watchword is verse 15: My times are in your hand.

David was in a desperate situation. Hunted by Saul and his army, abandoned by his friends, desperate, hungry, and out in the cold. From David we learn that when the ones you love and depend on forget, fail, and forsake you, the Lord will remain faithful. David committed his life to God’s hands in verse 5 of the Psalm. Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, Lord, my faithful God. Having done that he settled his mind to the fact that nothing that took place in his life would be outside of God’s will and way. When we commit our spirit to God’s care, then nothing that comes at us will be able to destroy our faith. Rather we will see all the troubles and trials that come our way as having already been taken care of by God.

When out times are in God’s hands, it means we have relinquished control of our lives and given it over to God. This gives us the confidence to face anything that comes our way for we know that Jesus to whom we have given charge of our lives will be able to guard and protect us. He will protect us from famine, from danger, from disease and from death. Such was the confidence of David and it was also the confidence of Paul in 2 Tim 1: 12 for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day. I pray that we too may exercise that same confidence in God’s promises and ability to care for those who have committed themselves to Him. In the face of adverse situations let us remember whose we are. Indeed, out times are in God’s hands. Amen.

Monday Reflection – November 29, 2021
God’s Conditionality

If you will only obey the Lord your God: Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. Deuteronomy 28:1,6

Life is generally conditional. In whatever sphere of life we find ourselves, conditions exist. So we tell our children that if they study hard and do what is required, they will excel in their studies and ultimately be successful in life. Many companies tell workers that if they do their job and meet or exceed expectations, they will be rewarded, whether by keeping their job, get bonuses and/or get a promotion. Admittedly, we also know that in many parts of society, including politics and business, many times if persons know some important person or rather they know them or they have some connections, then such persons get benefits and priviledges that are not accorded to the regular person. The conditionality of life is a living reality.

Such conditionality of life is also relevant in our walk with the Lord. While God graciously dispenses His grace, mercy and love to us, evident in His provisions, protection etc., there are some blessings reserved for those who follow God. In the context of today’s Watchword, Moses continues to provide guidance to the Israelites as they prepare to enter the long-awaited Promised Land. Moses begins chapter 28 with the conditional word ‘if’ that looms large. Moses exhorts the nation regarding the matter of choice. The idea behind the choice is that God was determined to reveal Himself to the world through Israel. He would do this either by making them so blessed that the world would know only God could have blessed them so; or by making them so cursed that only God could have cursed them and cause them to still survive. The choice was up to Israel.

In our own lives, God desires to reveal Himself to and through us. We experience times and seasons of apparent fullness and lack, opportunity and trial. Somehow, there seems to be a choice that is up to us, something or someone is beckoning to us with a message and a reason for our survival. Our Creator wishes to make Himself known to us, and then through us to the world. Note that this message from Moses is similar to ancient treaties between a king and his people; this is God the King, making a covenant with His people, Israel. 

All of God’s promises, which were a covenant with His people, ended with a blessing. So, if God’s people obeyed him, they would be set high above all the nations of the earth. Blessings shall come upon them and overtake them, they couldn’t escape it. They would be blessed in the city and in the field; the fruit of their womb, the fruit of their ground, the fruit of their livestock would be blessed; their basket and their kneading bowl would be blessed; and they would be blessed when they come in, and when they they out (vss. 1-6). Oh what blessings await us when we obey God and diligently do His will!

In the midst of human nature where we want to do our own thing, we must always be prepared to deal with the inevitable disaster. Yet, we have a God who desires only what is best for us and promises sweet blessings when we do His will. God also promises a beautiful relationship that produces growth and ultimate actualization for us. We remember that Jesus said: ‘Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.’ Matthew 12:50. Let’s do God’s will and enjoy the benefits.

Jermaine Gibson