Epaggelia

God says through the apostle Paul, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Eph. 4:3) This is an amazing verse. We are not responsible for creating unity, but we are responsible for maintaining unity that has been created by the Spirit. His unity is His work and exists only among those who are redeemed.  It is called “the unity of the Spirit” because He convicts us of our sin, enlightens our understanding and grows our faith in Christ. (Jn. 16:8; Ac. 2:37; Heb. 6:4; 1 Cor. 12:13) He joins us together in one body – the church of Christ – which embraces all the redeemed. And the total number of the redeemed is known only to God: “The Lord knows those who are his.” (2 Tim. 2:19) Therefore, we must not think that our church directory is a copy of the Lamb’s book of life. God’s people are all over the world, and we have this in common : we, “are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptised into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ… you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:26-28) How do you maintain unity?

The words of Paul to the Philippian saints are deserving of our attention. “For it is we… who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh.” (Philippians 3:3) The expression, “put no confidence in the flesh” shows us where some Christians are going wrong; true worship is not a performance, it is not an attempt to impress our visitors or give ourselves a sense of achievement. After all, worship is not completely for our benefit. When worship becomes a performance, we are putting “confidence in the flesh”. We are saying, “Look at what we are doing. Didn’t we sound great? Aren’t you impressed?” This “confidence in the flesh” has, unintentionally, distracted from the true worship of God. From a musical point of view the singing may have been wonderful and technically correct, but God was not worshiped.

As I write this article, I am listening to sacred music that touches my very soul. It’s moving. Inspiring. It’s beautifully sung. But I know on Sunday when I assemble with fellow believers to worship God in song and praise our singing will not resemble what I am now hearing. No, our singing will not be recorded for posterity. Is that because our congregation does not care about God, or that we are not sincere in our faith? No. It has nothing to do with either of these points. When we give to Almighty God all that is rightfully his, we are worshipping God “in spirit and in truth” and putting “no confidence in the flesh”. (John 4:24; Philippians 3:3) True worship can be offered to God by people whose musical skill is in short supply or even non-existent. (I’ve met some). But God is not impressed with how well we sing; it’s the worshipful, God-honouring heart, and the content of what we express to him that constitutes true and holy worship. A congregation singing Amazing Grace off-key but from the heart is worshiping God “in spirit and in truth”. This may not impress the visitors who are present, but that’s not why the church is singing. Almighty God, not people, is our audience. When finished, God is pleased that his children have paid him such glorious homage. And if we are concerned about the visitors, they will be more impressed by the sincere, genuine, authentic faith expressed by a community of Christians than by a service that resembles their secular culture.

Joh 4:20-24  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”  Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.   But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.  God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman knew God was to be loved because God loved her. The woman knew God was real and made her, because there was no other logical conclusion to come to. The woman learnt God was seeking her, IF, she would WORSHIP (adoring submission), not if she went to the right place.

We live in an entertainment culture, and that entertainment factor has made inroads into many churches bringing with it the attitude that says we must make people “feel good”. We must keep people awake and entertained. Our worship must be “upbeat”, so we must provide a worship service that impacts people so that they will come back again and again. Hence, worship becomes “show time” with an unhealthy focus upon the performance, which has been adapted from a world that does not know God. Some Christians feel too uncomfortable to invite their unsaved friends on Sunday lest the worship service extinguish, for all time, their interest in the Christian faith. How do we address a problem like this? If we are trying to make our worship service relevant to those outside the community of faith – and narrow the gap between the church and the world – by having a style of worship similar to their secular culture, are we not sounding very like apostate Israel who said, “We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.” (1 Samuel 8:19-20) But behind this seemingly good idea, a heart of rebellion was to be found. God told Samuel, “it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.” (1 Samuel 8:7)

Who do we want to worship?

Heb 12:21-26  Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.”  But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering,  and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,  and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.  See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven.  At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.

We need the Bible, not our culture, to define true worship for us. When we worship we are offering to God all that is rightfully his. Revelation (chapters 4 & 5) shows us what true worship entails. True worship is praising God for his infinite love and mercy, for his eternal purpose to save us through Christ Jesus his Son, for inscribing our name in the Lamb’s book of life and for having prepared a place for us in heaven. When we express these and other truths to God from the depth of our heart, we are engaging in worshipping him because our focus is on Almighty God. We are pouring out our heart in praise and adoration to a holy and righteous God.

Luke 15:11-32

This must be one of the most famous parables. What a parable is to you, may be different from what a parable is to God. God calls the actual old Tabernacle of Moses a type of “parable”, see Hebrews 9:8-9. The parable Luke gives us here in 15:11-32 is really a picture of God as a Father. The Father of spirits, Hebrews 12:9.

The Younger Child…
Asks, Travels, Enjoys, Wastes, Suffers, Despairs, Believes, Repents, and Confesses!

The Father…
Gives, Watches, Runs, Listens, Sacrifices, Kisses, Forgives and Celebrates!

The Older Child…
Works, Investigates, Rejects & Condemns!

The big difference between the two children, is that we see the reaction of the younger child to the Father, but not the reaction of the older child. The reason Jesus told it that way is because He knows every disciple must decide to react in faith, when he or she feels they are cheated of God’s blessings. Hebrews 11:6. God is a good giver even to the older child! See James 1:5-6.

What does this parable teach us about the consequence of sin, if we do nothing about it?  See verse 16.

I believe in the love Mary gave her Son,  that caused her to follow him in his ministry and stay by his cross as he died. I believe in the love of all mothers, and its importance in the lives of the children they bear. It is stronger than steel, softer than down, and more resilient than a green sapling on the hillside in a storm. It closes wounds, melts disappointments, and enables the weakest child to stand tall and straight in the adversity of adulthood. I believe that this love, even at its best, is the shadow of God’s love, or rather a reflection of all that we expect of God in this life and the next. And I believe that one of the most beautiful sights in the world is a mother who lets God’s greater love flow through her to her child, blessing the world with the tenderness of her touch and the tears of her joy. We must Thank God for our mothers, and thank our mothers for helping us understand God’s love!

Twice Luke tells us that Mary treasured memories in her heart, 2:19 & 2:51. Those memories were centered on the work of God in Jesus. Firstly bringing him into the world against all odds. At His birth, Mary was shown that she was at the center of God’s plan for saving the world. Secondly, Mary treasured the day she found Jesus astonishing the teachers of the Law of God. That was the day Mary was shown she was not at the center of God’s work to save the world, Jesus was and is to this day. Mary followed Jesus and stayed with him through the cross, resurrection and ascension. Mary never stopped being a mother, she cared for the cause of Christ beyond the birth of the church. The last picture we have of her is praying with His disciples in Jerusalem, Ac.1:14.  Prayer is a spiritual experience which Mary herself needs just as much as we do. We, like Mary are to remain devoted to prayer, Colossians 4:2.

Today, 7 crewmembers of the space shuttle Challenger exploded just after takeoff 23 years ago. Why? Because they had a job which demanded a risk filled adventure. A job which was glorious and beneficial for so many people in the future.  But at what price? The ultimate price was paid, they left their families and this earth forever, to help our education and field of science and to promote industry and our governments expectations. What kind of job do you have? If you are a Christian, you have a job with eternal consequences, a job full of adventure in the will and wisdom of God. From day to day, there are ways you can glorify Him and do His will. Those Christian tasks, attitudes and acts of service may seem menial to you, and no one may ever give you credit for them, but they are all known by Jesus and our Heavenly Father. Jesus said that if you give as much as a cup of cold water to one of His children in need, it is as if you gave it to The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, (Read Matthew 25:34-40). He knows the price you are paying for being a Christian. Is it a high price? Is the price you pay for being a Christian of great value? What price would you put on your discipleship? Jesus put the price of his own blood on your life, don’t waste it. Use everyday of your life as a way of serving Jesus Himself, even if the people closest to you couldn’t care less. Why? Because Jesus cares infintely. Christian’s are  going to be remembered in more glorious ways than NASA’s 7 crewmembers ever dreamed of being remembered. Then again, who knows? Were any of the crewmembers lost 23 years ago, actually Christians? How sure would your friends be of your discipleship to Christ, if you died tomorrow?

The answer is G (Grace), O (Omnipresence) and D (Discipline), God makes a Dad great. There is no such thing as a perfect Dad, except for our Father in Heaven which is Eternal. Omnipresence is a big word which just means, always everywhere.  Wouldn’t it be great to have a Dad who was always there when you needed him?  This is where human fathers fail.  We cannot always be there! Every good Dad wishes he could be there, but it’s physically impossible.  Most kids are thankful, thinking it would be just fine, if we didn’t have Dad around all the time, that way, we are free to do as we please. But good kids can usually look far enough ahead to understand that spells trouble.  Fact is, if Dad’s with you, he is there to help pick up the pieces, helping to correct our foolishness.  A good Dad will be there when you need him most to help you recover, not to give you recovery on a silver platter, but to assist you and build your confidence.  Confidence in God. Remember where the prodigal son’s Dad was, for his recovery.  Read Luke 15:11-32 and rejoice with Him.

The adoption of our flag in the USA, happened on the 14th of June  in 1777 by resolution of the Second Continental Congress. Later in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation that officially established  today as Flag Day and in August 1949, National Flag Day was established by an Act of Congress.  Our pledge of allegiance to the Flag maintains a faith in God. No citizen can pledge honestly without a faith in God. Never quit praying for our Nation to honor God and do not forget it’s words, “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”. God reminds us that “righteousness exalts a Nation, but sin is a reproach to any people” – Proverbs 14:34.  Have you ever asked yourself, “in what way is our Nation right?”  If you can’t answer that question then you need to pray for God to show you the answer. Our Nation does many things right and wrong, there is no such thing as a perfect Nation. But we CAN honor God and Country by praying for our Nation’s Politicians to be given God’s wisdom and strength to do what is right and less of what is wrong!