Note: Due to a technical glitch, the audio for yesterday’s devotion was not published. I am resending it to fix that, but the text hasn’t changed - you don’t need to read it again :-) But the podcast should be available shortly.
– Stephen

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

“You always say be true to yourself, but you never say which part of yourself to be true to.”

So says Buddy (a.k.a. IncrediBoy) in the 2004 animated movie The Incredibles. I love that line, because it neatly undercuts the message of so many Disney movies: “Be true to yourself.” (Ironically, the movie was produced by Pixar shortly before the studio was acquired by Disney.)

Be true to yourself: that’s the message preached by so much of contemporary popular culture. Discover the real “you” on the inside, and live out your authentic self. But that Disney life philosophy stifles questions that are crucial for human flourishing: What if there is something defective or deficient or destructive about my true self – what if there is a part of me that I shouldn’t be true to? And what if we were made for more? The problem is—as Buddy hints at—we are complex paradoxes. In our natural state, each of us is both precious and rebellious, beautiful and corrupted, free and enslaved. Trying to find and live out your “authentic self” simply won’t deliver the satisfaction and liberation it promises.

The Bible has a far more profound, provocative, and transformative message: We were made to be holy.

It’s time to define what it means for a person to be holy. I think Sinclair Ferguson’s definition is the most helpful:

To be holy, to be sanctified, therefore, to be a ‘saint’, is in simple terms to be devoted to God.

To be holy is to be wholly devoted to God – to belong completely to him, and to exist for him. And just as God’s holiness is expressed in his glory and goodness, for us to be holy means to glorify God in all we are and all we do, and to reflect his goodness.

According to the Bible, we were made to be sanctified. “Sanctified” just means “be made holy.” Given that in our natural state, without Christ, we are entirely unholy, we need some way of being sanctified, a way to become holy. We’ll come to how that is possible tomorrow. For now, know that God’s purpose in making you is … himself! It’s that you would glorify him and reflect his goodness. Here are some biblical descriptions of that purpose:

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. (Ephesians 1:3-4)

A few verses later, Paul says that God’s purpose in Christ is

…to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. (Ephesians 1:10)

He then says about the first Jewish believers in Christ:

11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:11-12)

In verse 14, Paul applies that same, beautiful phrase to God’s purpose for all Christian believers: “to the praise of his glory.”

As a massive added bonus, it turns out that being wholly devoted to God is what will most fill us with joy—because God’s holiness is beautiful beyond description. King David wrote:

One thing I ask from the LORD,
          this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
          all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the LORD
          and to seek him in his temple. (Psalm 27:4)

“Be true to yourself”?

In the 17th century, a group of English and Scottish Christians wrote a far deeper and more satisfying description of the purpose of life. The Westminster Shorter Catechism (in modern English) begins:

Question 1: What is the main purpose of mankind?
Answer: The main purpose of mankind is to glorify God and to enjoy him for ever.

That’s another way of saying: We were made to be holy. We were made to glorify God – which will inevitably mean enjoying him forever. When we reach that purpose for life, we will discover the only joy that has no upper limit, the One to whom all other joys point and in whom they find their true home. Being perfectly devoted to God and his glory will ultimately mean knowing the love of Christ that “surpasses knowledge” and being “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

So far, we have seen that God’s holiness is his God-ness, in particular, his glory and his goodness. And yesterday, we learned that for us, to be holy is to be devoted to God, which means glorifying God and reflecting his goodness.

But how can sinful people possibly become holy? Only saints – only those who are wholly devoted to God – can dwell in his presence and not be consumed by his holy judgment. But how can sinners be sanctified? From the moment Adam and Eve rebel against God and are cast out of the garden of his presence in Genesis 3, that is perhaps the most pressing question in the Bible. We heard Isaiah’s despair at his own uncleanness when he glimpsed God’s holiness. When Simon Peter first got a hunch about Jesus’ holiness, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8).

But Jesus himself, the Holy One of God (John 6:69), is also the answer – God’s decisive, glorious answer to the question of how we sinners can become holy. The answer is: By his grace in Jesus Christ. That is, God makes us holy as a gift which is given through Jesus and which we receive by faith alone, not by our own effort or doing or deserving.

But that takes a stunning act of power, a dramatic rescue. By nature, we are dead in our sin and destined for God’s wrath (Ephesians 1:1-3). The Bible doesn’t just describe us as “basically good but occasionally a bit thoughtless.” It says we are slaves to sin (John 8:34; Romans 7:14).

That’s what makes Jesus’ death and resurrection so dramatic. It’s not just a self-sacrifice, the death of the Holy One in place of sinners – although it is that. It’s also a powerful rescue and liberation of slaves.

In the Old Testament, the Exodus from Egypt was the great event of deliverance from physical slavery. God rescued his people from slavery for a purpose – so that they would be his “treasured possession, … a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:5-6). God delivered them from slavery and devoted them to himself.

In the New Testament, it turns out that the Exodus was a picture of the real act of divine deliverance in Jesus. Paul uses the language of deliverance or redemption to explain what God has done for us through Jesus’ death and resurrection:

13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14)

All the puzzle pieces are now in place. We’re ready for a final summary of how sinners can become saints, and what holiness means for us: To be holy means to be delivered from sin and devoted to God, by his grace in Christ Jesus, through faith in him alone.

All of that is why Paul can say:

It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. (1 Corinthians 1:30)

Jesus IS our holiness, from start to finish. We’ll dig deeper into that later on. But to finish for today, meditate on Paul’s words in Ephesians 1. Listen to how overwhelmed Paul is at the kindness and love and grace of God – and how every good gift from God, including redemption and forgiveness and holiness, comes to us entirely in Christ. As you read, marvel at God’s grace, and tell him how much you love him for it.

4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. (Ephesians 1:4-10)

Verses for further reflection: Titus 3:3-8.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

One common misunderstanding people have about holiness is that “be holy” means “be good.” Or worse, that it means avoiding bad things – and we sometimes we have a nagging feeling that avoiding them means somehow missing out on “fun.”

But at its heart, holiness is about much more than goodness. It’s about God-ness. Holiness in the Bible is always connected to God – which means, before we ask what it might mean for a person to be holy, we need to grapple with the holiness of God.

The late theologian J. I. Packer described God’s holiness as:

… everything about God that sets him apart from us and makes him an object of awe, adoration, and dread to us. (J. I. Packer, Concise Theology)

In particular, God’s holiness relates to his glory and his goodness. In the 6th century BC, the prophet Isaiah had an experience of the holy God, a glimpse of a vision of God’s holiness, that marked and transformed him for the rest of his life. This is how he described it:

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.

3 And they were calling to one another:

          “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
                      the whole earth is full of his glory.”

4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.

5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” (Isaiah 6:1-5)

Isaiah is left floored first of all by God’s glory – his magnificence, his brightness, his unimaginable hugeness, his beauty and terrifying kingly power. The entire universe is “full of his glory”—which means its glory is a reflection of his. If you put together the beauty and splendour of all the world’s oceans and forests and mountain ranges and creatures – and all the planets and stars and distant galaxies – you would still only have a pale projection of God’s own glory.

But Isaiah is also left floored by God’s goodness, especially compared to his own small, sinful self. The prophet Habakkuk said about God:

Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrongdoing. (Habakkuk 1:13)

God’s goodness is much more than his aversion to evil. God’s goodness is expressed in his justice, love, grace, faithfulness, and truth.

Sometimes the word “holy” is defined as meaning set apart or separated from what is common or unholy. It’s true that God, because he is holy, is set apart from everything else. He is infinitely more glorious than all of creation, which sets him apart – he is in a category on his own. And his goodness is so absolute and that nothing impure can survive in his presence.

But being set apart is not what defines God’s holiness. It simply describes the way God’s holiness determines his relationship to creation. But God’s holiness is an eternal attribute of his being. In fact, this is the only characteristic of God that the Bible uses triple repetition to emphasise (“holy, holy, holy”). God’s holiness is his God-ness, especially his terrifyingly beautiful glory and his goodness.

For today, spend time directing your mind and heart towards the Holy One – the God who has revealed himself in the Bible and in Jesus his Son. Reflect on the words of those mysterious heavenly creatures, the seraphim; allow your mind to focus undistracted on God and his glory and goodness. Speak these words to God; and as you do, remember that Jesus’ death has cleansed you so completely from sin that your lips are completely pure and untainted! You can speak these words to God with peace, assurance and love:

“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
                      the whole earth is full of his glory.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Stephen Shead

For our devotions this month, we are going to return to our focus area as a church this year: Growing in Holiness. These will be a bit different to our normal devotions. Instead of starting with a Bible passage or working through a book, there will be Bible verses sprinkled through the devotions. Sometimes there will be suggestions for other passages you could read and pray through at the end.

In the first part of the month, we’ll be recapping a lot of concepts from our Term 2 sermon series on holiness (I hope that makes you think, “Oh good – there was so much to take in!”). But we will also think about the many practical areas of life as a Christian, and how we can grow in submitting and consecrating each of them to God, by his grace and for his glory.

Let's begin.

~~~

Think about this sentence from the Apostle Paul:

He (God) has saved us and called us to a holy life… (2 Timothy 1:9)

That’s an ultra-brief summary of the two great things God has done for believers in the Lord Jesus: Saved us, and called us to a holy life. Let those two things sit in your mind for a moment. Think about how you feel about each one.

Do those two great gifts of God stir different reactions in you? Does one of them trigger a greater thrill and relief and thankfulness than the other? If so, why? Is it – and I’m only guessing, I might be way off the mark – that God’s call to holiness feels just a bit like a burden? A little dry, or perhaps too much effort? At least compared to the first one: he saved us – yes! What relief! And called us to holiness. Oh, yes, that too.

If that’s you, then you and I both have so much more growing to do. It’s an indication that we haven’t yet grasped either holiness or God himself as fully as he wants us to.

Many years ago, when our children were small, we were looking to rent an apartment. We looked at one that we loved: it felt light and fresh and cheerful. We asked our kids about it, hoping they would be keen to live there too. But one of them seemed strangely reluctant. Eventually he said to us, “But I don’t like the dark.” We figured out the problem: we had been through when dusk was starting to fall, and there were no light bulbs in any of the rooms. He thought it wouldn’t have any lights!

The Bible’s message about holiness is full of light. God’s call to holiness is not a tiresome, grit-your-teeth burden. After all, for Christian believers, God also calls us to freedom (Galatians 5:13), peace (1 Corinthians 7:15), hope (Ephesians 4:4) and eternal life (1 Timothy 6:12) – and all of those are features of the life of holiness.

As a taster for where we’re heading, look at how the verse we started with continues:

9 He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. (2 Timothy 1:9-10)

Everything Paul says after the first part applies not just to salvation and forgiveness, but also to God’s call to holiness. The holy life we are called to is not our own doing, it’s God’s purpose and gift to us. It’s a gift given to us in Christ Jesus, revealed in the glorious, saving events of the gospel. Because as we’ll see, Christ is our holiness, from start to finish.

Here’s a different way of expressing God’s call to holiness:

And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. (Romans 1:6)

One way of describing what holiness means is: Belonging to Jesus. Does that trigger a slightly different reaction in you? If so, you’re going to love where we’re heading!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen is our senior minister.

20 Now at one point the Pharisees asked Jesus when the kingdom of God was coming, so he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Paul Bogg

I had a chat recently with my sister, who isn’t a believer, about her choice to send her daughter to a Christian school.  One of the reasons was that the school had a reputation for being really nice, and that the teachers were really supportive and caring.  The message that I was hearing from her was that there’s something different about the people in this school, something that she really liked and wanted her daughter to be a part of. But she went on to tell me some of her concerns about the Bible and some things she didn’t like.  

There are things my sister has in common with the Pharisees in Jesus’ day. Both of them want to live in a “kingdom of God” of sorts – a kingdom that’s better than the one they’re living in right now. And both of them refuse to acknowledge the King of that kingdom.

In the passage today, Jesus makes a bold statement about the kingdom of God. He says to the Pharisees: You won’t see the kingdom arrive, and you can’t point somewhere else and say “there it is”, because the kingdom of God has already arrived and is now among you. Why? Because its King has arrived! But, he tells the Pharisees, even though this kingdom is among you, you haven’t entered it yet.

How close the Pharisees were to becoming a part of the kingdom of God! The King himself was walking among them, but they refused to acknowledge him as such. And yet – they longed for the better life of this new kingdom.

I hope and pray that when my niece starts going to this Christian school and is in the midst of little followers of Jesus, she will come to recognise the King. It would be a great shame to rub shoulders with citizens of the kingdom, to see the difference the King makes in them, but never recognise Jesus as her personal King. Then again … this is exactly how Jesus so often brings people to trust in him and enter the kingdom that is in their midst – by placing those who belong to him in their lives.

Think about your life or family or circumstances. Who can you pray for today, that God would open their hearts to recognising Jesus as their personal king? Pray, and then remember that you may be the one glimpse that they see today of “the kingdom of God in their midst.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.

11 Now on the way to Jerusalem, Jesus was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was entering a village, ten men with leprosy met him. They stood at a distance, 13 raised their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” 14 When he saw them he said, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went along, they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. 16 He fell with his face to the ground at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. (Now he was a Samaritan.) 17 Then Jesus said, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Was no one found to turn back and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to the man, “Get up and go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Sarah Cameron

There are two things that stood out to me in our passage today. In this little snapshot we see who mattered to Jesus, and the right way to respond to him.

We saw back in chapter 9:51 that Jesus has now set his face for Jerusalem. He is on the way to die for his people. Along the way, he has been meeting many different people. The men he meets in this passage would have been the lowest of the low in social terms as we are told they had leprosy. That would have forced them to be completely isolated from other people. They had to stay away from the city, and were not allowed to participate in religious or social gatherings. We see this ostracization in how they stay at a distance from Jesus in verse 12. But they believe Jesus can help them as they call out to him for mercy. And he heals them! Imagine how life-changing that would have been. We see that Jesus cares for the marginalized and the outcast – his good news is for them.

The second thing that stood out to me from this passage was that we see the right way to respond to Jesus. The men who have been healed go off to see the priests, but then only one comes back to thank Jesus. He praises God for his healing. What’s even more surprising is that he’s a Samaritan – normally the Samaritans were enemies of the Judeans! Yet he has recognised who Jesus truly is. What happened to the others? Maybe they were so distracted by their new healthy bodies that they forgot the one who healed them. Jesus says to the one man who returns that his faith has made him well.

We’re given an encouragement here, from the Samaritan man, that the right way to respond to Jesus is with faith and thankfulness. How much more can we respond that way too now we know that Jesus died on the cross and rose again to give us eternal life! Let’s stop now and pray, giving thanks to God for all of his good gifts, most of all for new life in Jesus.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.

5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 So the Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this black mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled out by the roots and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

7 “Would any one of you say to your slave who comes in from the field after plowing or shepherding sheep, ‘Come at once and sit down for a meal’? 8 Won’t the master instead say to him, ‘Get my dinner ready, and make yourself ready to serve me while I eat and drink. Then you may eat and drink’? 9 He won’t thank the slave because he did what he was told, will he? 10 So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Tina Bogg

When the apostles ask the Lord to increase their faith, it’s closely related to what we read yesterday. Jesus has just taught them to forgive their brother or sister over and over again, whether it’s once a day or seven times a day. This does sound very hard. If someone was doing wrong against you – saying unkind words, cheating you of something you deserve, lying to your face, or hurting you physically – Jesus is saying that if they repent and say sorry, you must forgive them. As we saw, you would wonder how sorry they really are if they keep doing it on repeat – but Jesus doesn’t worry about that, he just says to forgive.

No wonder the apostles are asking for help and for Jesus to increase their faith! I love how Jesus initially reassures them that they don’t need to have a lot of faith, only faith as small as a mustard seed. Even tiny faith can do the seemingly impossible. I guess it’s because it’s not our faith that works, it’s who we have faith in – our sovereign, mighty and merciful God.

Jesus then tells a short story about a servant and his master. The point of the story is to help us see that the issue isn’t really about growing our faith, it’s about our posture towards our brothers and sisters. Jesus asks us to see ourselves as the ‘unworthy servant’ in the story, humbling ourselves in obedience to our heavenly Father, just as Jesus humbled himself. As Paul says in Philippians 2:6-7, Jesus, “… being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”

When we see ourselves as servants of one another with our Creator in charge, this helps us to see why forgiving one another over and over again is what we should do, not just when we want to or if it suits us. Pray with me that we can humble ourselves and keep following our servant King, forgiving each other for harsh words, selfish intentions and all the big and small offenses we do to one another daily.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tina is a member of our Bossley Park Morning congregation.

1 Jesus said to his disciples, “Stumbling blocks are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him to have a millstone tied around his neck and be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Watch yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to you saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Judy Lai

In this passage, Jesus addresses two aspects of the Christian walk.

The first is the ripple effect of our sin (v1-2). The reality is that we are all sinners – none of us make godly decisions in everything that we do, and I find it comforting that the Bible is realistic about that. But Jesus gives us a warning here, because my struggle with sin can affect other brothers and sisters in Christ. Jesus’ strongest words are for those who don’t care about their sin, and who revel in their sinful desires in a way that leads others to deny God. “Woe to that person”, says Jesus – causing others to stumble is a grave mistake in God’s eyes.

What a powerful reminder to care about not just my own life and faith, but God’s community. Our actions can have a far greater effect on others than I often realise. When we hide our sin and revel in it in secret, we can end up leading others to do the same and turn away from God. But joy in Christ’s community comes from sharing our struggles, confessing our sin, and constantly helping one another to repent and live God’s way.

The second area of Christian living is sin and forgiveness (v3-4). We all know how much it can hurt when others sin against us. So I love how direct and straight to the point Jesus is in verse 3: When someone sins against you, first rebuke, and second, if there is repentance, forgive. That seems like the ideal scenario – where one party takes the initiative to have the hard conversation (rebuke) and the other has the heart to listen (repent).

But often relationships and conflict are much messier. What if someone says they repent, but they keep doing the same thing over and over? What if you doubt they are genuine? Jesus doesn’t waver, in verse 4: Keep forgiving. Every time.

As a cynic, I find it extremely hard to look past someone else’s unrepentant heart or their hypocrisy. My natural tendency is to hold a grudge. Verse 4 is a strong and clear call to faith in Jesus – because the only way you can keep forgiving over and over is to trust what he says, that forgiveness is best. We need to learn to leave our grievances in God’s hands, and to remember that he continues to forgive us over and over. When we remember that, we can let go and forgive too.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Judy is a member of our Fairfield Evening congregation.

19 “There was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 But at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus whose body was covered with sores, 21 who longed to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. In addition, the dogs came and licked his sores.

22 “Now the poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And in Hades, as he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus at his side. 24 So he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue because I am in anguish in this fire.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things and Lazarus likewise bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish. 26 Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us, so that those who want to cross over from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ 27 So the rich man said, ‘Then I beg you, father—send Lazarus to my father’s house 28 (for I have five brothers) to warn them so that they don’t come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they must respond to them.’ 30 Then the rich man said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 He replied to him, ‘If they do not respond to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

REFLECTIONS

Written by Val Dewan

During a weekend away, after a few months of not doing much physical activity, I went hiking. The hike was not very difficult, but climbing back up to the start was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do physically. I was sweating and cramping up, but most of all my mouth was extremely dry. I was so thirsty. There is no describing the relief I felt at savouring the first gulp of cold water!

This parable Jesus told about a rich man and a beggar reminded me that even though we think of death as the great equaliser, after death in the age to come there will be a great divide between those who inherit eternal life in heaven and those who suffer God’s eternal punishment. There is nothing comforting about the picture of being forever thirsty. Separation from the eternal warmth and joy of our Lord is the reality for those who do not have faith in Jesus.

I am struck by how many people I know and love have heard the gospel, but did not repent and turn to Jesus. In Jesus’ story, the wealthy man wishes to go back and warn his family. However, the character of Abraham in this parable tells him that the way to eternal life is already declared, in the words of the prophets and apostles in the Bible. He also hints at God’s most amazing and climactic act of salvation, in verse 31: ‘If they do not respond to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ In Jesus, God himself came down as the Saviour of all humanity, lived a perfect human life, died for all sinners, and rose from the dead.

But this parable is a sober reminder that not even Jesus’ resurrection will be enough for some people to believe and trust in Him. This is such a sad reality. I can only fall to my knees and give thanks to God for the grace He has shown me, and then continue to look for opportunities to tell my friends and family of the gospel. Even if they don’t listen to me then and there, I will continue to pray with hope, because the ‘chasm’ between God and sinners has been bridged through the Cross of Jesus.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Val is a member of our Fairfield Evening congregation.

16 “The law and the prophets were in force until John; since then, the good news of the kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everyone is urged to enter it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tiny stroke of a letter in the law to become void.

18 “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery, and the one who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Mei Chan

I’ve heard the different books of the Bible described as different kinds of food. Some books are like a decadent chocolate brownie – rich, delicious, something you want to savour and come back to again and again. Other books seem more like asparagus (my son’s least favourite vegetable). You know it’s probably good for you, but it’s not as easy to stomach and it takes a lot more persuasion to get you to take a bite.

Sometimes, I find the Old Testament a bit like asparagus :) it’s much easier to get stuck into the glorious first chapter of Ephesians than it is to read all 48 chapters of Ezekiel! But Jesus’ words in today’s passage remind me of the goodness of God’s Old Testament Law, proclaimed from the beginning until John. Yes, the good news in the gospel of Jesus is being preached, and many are turning to him in repentance. But not a single pen stroke will disappear from the Law, because it is still God’s good word to his people, and Jesus gives the example about divorce and remarriage to show this. 

The Old Testament is not out of date or irrelevant, but it reveals to us God’s character and his story for human history. And when we read it through the lens of Christ Jesus, it deepens our wonder that the love God showed the family of Abraham has been extended to all people everywhere. Even the confusing parts are still God’s revelation of himself and his plans! My prayer for us all is that we will grow to treasure all of God’s word, not just the bits that we find chocolatey, and that as we chew and mull over the parts of the Bible that we find more difficult, God would grow us to know him better and love him more.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mei is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.