Sept

Human beings sinful nature is the reason Jesus chose the cross - God knew we could not do it alone - that our sinful desires keep us from him and so he chose to be born and he chose the cross as a way to pay our debt - a debt we cannot pay ourselves - so my sin and the sin of all humanity is responsible, and I'm thankful for Jesus' love and generosity, his grace and his mercy to come and die for me and for the sins of the whole world - no greater love - and as I enter into Holy Week and journey the way of the cross, I am humbled by his love that even on the cross, his prayer was for us because we do not know what we do - his prayer was to ask the Father to forgive us. The cross may be a stumbling block for some, but the truth is that it is a cross of love, - Jesus' love surrendered for us, so that through faith in him we could have life and have it abundantly - now and forever.

All Christians ought to exemplified the characteristics of Christ and yes a leader needs to be spiritually filled with the Holy Spirit. Compassion, openness, and a willingness to love others is essential, but a leader needs to be able to recognize their own shortcomings and pray and ask God to help. Leaders do not lead without God's help and seeking his wisdom in all things. Paul gave us these guidelines to assist the body in choosing those leaders that God calls. A leader is called by God for this area. In Corinthians, we are told some are called to be apostles, others prophets, others pastors etc. All Christians need to pray and listen to God and follow the direction of his calling, loving each other, and when a leader is set apart for ministry, then the body needs to pray and uplift that person daily, trusting in Jesus to empower the leader to step out in faith and to lead with the same qualities that Jesus leads with - love, compassion, honesty, kindness, truth, generosity, and open and willing spirit to follow where God leads. We say the Lord's Prayer and not only is it the prayer Jesus gave us - it is the perfect pray - Thy will be done. One we all need to remember - God's will be done. If it is of God, it will come to pass.

I like that Paul is giving the glory to Our Lord and Saviour. Usually Paul places this in the very beginning of his letters, but this time he placed it after he cites part of the law stating that the law is not made for a righteous man but for lawless or unrighteous man (v9). He is telling Timothy and us that God's grace surpasses all when we seek his forgiveness - why - because as Paul stated, he was one of the unrighteous and he did things that where not godly. Yet God's grace came upon him and he was redeemed by that grace. And not only redemmed, but used by God for a purpose that tells others of God's glory and grace. God's uconditional love made known in the sharing of the Gospel of Christ. Jesus came to save that which was lost - those who were not righteous in God's sight - which is all of us. Romans tells us"that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (3:23). God's grace is poured out for all, but Paul is reminded us that God's grace is to us as we realize our sins, our disobedience and our need for his saving grace. The passage tells us who God is, why he cares so deeply for us, and why we too can live in his grace - because of Christ Jesus our Lord. This is a tribute to our God who extends his mercy and grace to us, and Paul's disclosure of his past only ignites the fire that shows us the grace of God to forgive us our sins.

Never could it become mundane. Every time we partake of the bread and/or wine we come into communion with Christ. A sacrament by definition is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace given to us by Christ. In this sacrament, which Jesus instituted, we come into unity with him and with all other believers. We share in the life, death and resurrection of Christ and we come to experience his presence working in us. Being in love and fellowship with Jesus and with each other is essential, celebrating the Eucharist and being nourished by Chirst empowers us to step out in faith and do the work that God has called us to do. As his servant, fed and nourished by him and empowered by his Holy Spirit, I can live my life with confidence knowing that my sins are forgiven, I am the righteouness of Christ and in him, I live and have life forever. Truly I am blessed and I pray that others may come to know this blessing given to us by Jesus because he loves us and died for us. What a joy and a blessing to be loved so much by God that he would die for us and provide for us forever.

For me, it is all the words of the Eucharistic Prayer. Jesus was handed over, but he chose to offer himself - he freely gave himself as an atonement for our sins. Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it, then after supper he took the wine, blessed it and gave it and after both the bread and the wine, he commanded us to do this in remembrance of him. It is a sacrament, a very sacred time given to us by Christ himself, therefore at all times we need to be mindful of his sacrifice of love given for us. His words took, bless, broke and given are very significant - his body and blood were broken and shed for the forgiveness of our sins - that means he paid the price for us by offering his all for our payment - how can we not think of the whole institution of the Lord's Supper as one, which brings us into communion with him and with each other and reminds us of his self-sacrificing love.

For me, the coming into Christ's presence is important - not whether one takes the elements literally or figuratively. Knowing that Christ is present with us and that we are in a living relationship with him and are fed and nourished by his grace and love; and that his Holy Spirit brings us into communion with him and with each other where we can come to know and understand his love. When I partake of his communion, I come into being with Christ where I know my sins have been forgiven and that his grace is sufficient for me. Love flows from him and in the communion, I come to experience and renew my belief in Jesus as my Risen Lord and Saviour and I remember that he chose to die for my sins because he loves me and what he does for me, he does for everyone - he offered himself as a ransome for all - so in the communion, I remember his sacrifice given in love for all of humanity and I thank God for his love.