Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

The ‘Magi’ come to worship.

Matthew 2v2 “We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.’” (NIV)

This Friday (tomorrow) is celebrated by much of the global church as “Epiphany”. It is the last of the 12 days of Christmas celebration. In everyday language, an epiphany is a moment of sudden realisation or revelation, a “eureka-moment” when something suddenly makes sense. ‘Epiphany’ is the name given to the day which recalls the visit of the “Magi”, “wise men” or “kings” to see Jesus.

While in Matthew most translations simply keep the Greek word ‘Magi’, elsewhere, the Greek word ‘magi’ is translated ‘magician’ or ‘sorcerer’ (e.g. Acts 8v9, 13v6). This is quite a revelation: the people who came were foreigners (not Jews), of a different religion (almost certainly Zoroastrian), of a different culture and language (Persian – probably from Babylon area); but, God had spoken to them by a star and their hearts’ desire was to worship Jesus.

These Magi persisted in their determination: they probably spent best part of two years in their journey (based on Matthew 2v16), and their search required the help of others – even those hostile to Jesus!

All in all, this is an extraordinary Epiphany moment in the Bible story. God is bringing into his worshipping community those who were by nature far away.

Are there people around you seem so far away from God? Maybe people who are searching, but in completely the wrong direction? If God can bring such as the Magi to worship him, he can bring those around you in too.

Never give up hope in the God who sent Jesus to be the Saviour of all kinds of people.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Mary willingly submits.

Luke 1v38 “I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’” (NIV)

There is little doubt that Luke spent some time with Mary the mother of Jesus to research his gospel account. Mary doubtless had much to excitedly report!

As Mary grew up, I wonder what Mary expected her life to be like? By the time the gospels start, she is engaged to a man named Joseph. She was probably busy preparing for a Jewish wedding with strong expectations for a delightful celebration and settling down to a family life. We can assume she sought to be upright and holy, conforming to the norms of her society.

But one day, the angel Gabriel appeared to her and announced that she was going to conceive by the Holy Spirit the Son of God. Suddenly her hopes, preparations, expectations and conformances were irrelevant. She was now faced with the socially awkward position of being pregnant before her wedding.

But she responds with a recognition of her identity, “I am the Lord’s servant”. This is unlikely to be just a spur of the moment attitude, but to be the general tenor of her life. Do we see ourselves as servants of the Lord or as servants of ourselves? Whatever her desires and expectations, Mary was willing to lay these down for God’s call on her life.

What is God’s call on your life? What has he said about you in his general Word in the Bible, and what has he said in his specific word in prophecy? Do I come to his word with a willingness not just to hear but to obey regardless of the cost?

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

John prepares the Way.

Luke 1v17 “[John will] make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (NIV)

Continuing our advent theme, this week we consider John the Baptist.

All four Gospels tell us that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit for ministry as John the Baptist baptised him. It is fascinating that John, a mere man, should be so instrumental in the empowerment of Jesus’ ministry. He was instrumental because he was “filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth” and was  obedient to God’s calling on his life.

Yet it is only Luke gives the story of John’s birth and God’s calling on him from before he was born (see Luke 1v5-25, 39-45, and 57-80).

John acted in obedience to the prophecies about him: prophecies which were handed to him second hand by his parents. In his ministry, John had no precedent to follow, but was tracking a new path. His message was blunt and his instructions were practical. He faced significant opposition. His message was also forward looking – even prophetic – as he announced about Jesus, “But one more powerful than I will come … He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”

Did John ever have doubts? I am sure he did (e.g. Luke 7v18-20), but he kept returning to the truth and carried on.

In what ways is God calling you to be like John the Baptist? A call to track new trails? A need to hold onto God’s prophetic promises whether in the Bible or spoken specifically over us? Sharing a simple but confrontational message and face opposition? Preparing the way for Jesus in people’s lives?

May God enable us to be “John the Baptists” to people this Christmas season – filled with the Holy Spirit and obediently preparing a people for the Lord.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Angels from the Realms of glory.

Luke 1v11 “Then an angel of the Lord appeared to [Zechariah]” (NIV)

As we approach Christmas, I intend to focus each week on key participants in the account of the birth of Jesus. First: the angels!

Angels are fascinating persons, and some have an unhealthy interest in them. God tells us in his word that they are spiritual beings, created by God to serve Him. They sometimes take on a physical resemblance to appear to or serve humans.

Angels appear to 4 different people during the birth of Jesus:

• Zechariah – Gabriel appears to him about 15 months before Jesus’ birth while he is in the “Holy Place” of the temple. He announces that Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, is about to bear a son “John”. He will be “filled with the Holy Spirit” and “prepare the way for the Lord”.
• Mary – Gabriel appears to her in Nazareth about 9 months before Jesus’ birth. He announces that the Holy Spirit will come upon her and she will conceive a son “Jesus” whose kingdom will never end.
• Joseph – An angel appears to him in a dream about 7-8 months before Jesus’ birth.  The angel tells Joseph to marry Mary as her baby is of “the Holy Spirit”, and to give the baby the name “Jesus,” because he will save his people from their sins.
• Shepherds – An angel appears to them in the fields on the night of Jesus’ birth. The angel tells them that “a Saviour has been born to you: he is Christ the Lord.” And then a whole host of angels sing praise to God.

We discussed about angels some months ago in our family time on a Sunday morning, and I recall there were at least a couple of us who seem to have encountered angels in some form. Notice how the intervention of the angels is precisely timed for the situation!

An angel’s fundamental calling and purpose is to serve the Lord God Almighty. This may involve being a messenger to humans, serving us humans (Hebrews 1v14), to protect God’s people (Psalm 91v11 and 34v7), worshipping God (Psalm 103v20) or even for us to serve (Hebrews 13v2) but not for us to worship (Revelation 19v10).

God’s angels always point to God and watch over his people. Opposed to them are the fallen angels of Satan (who is also an angel); they always work against God and his people. The presence of angels in the birth of Jesus reminds us of the spiritual battle that is going on that extends beyond the physical world – and God has plenty of resources to ensure the outcome of that battle. We may only know in eternity the role angels have played in our lives.

Let’s live with confidence in God and his resources to protect us and provide for us, and let’s worship our God with the angels.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Brotherly Love.

Hebrews 13v1 “Keep on loving each other as brothers.” (NIV)

While sin and other issues can get in the way, in most families there is an affinity between siblings that runs deep. There are the shared parents, a high level of commonality in genetic make up, common experiences, and a lot of time spent together. This means that there is a desire for the well-being of the other, a desire to help when issues arise, and a priority to continue to relate together.

“Love” in the New Testament, is most often a translation of the Greek word “agape” which means a sacrificial love. However, on five occasions in the New Testament, the Greek word “philadelphia” is used which is translated “love as brothers” or “brotherly kindness”. The word is applied to the love within the church family based on our common spiritual heritage, journey and destination. The love derives from our common parent in God the Father, our common rescuer in Jesus the Son, and our common enabler in the Holy Spirit.

This strong spiritual affinity in Christ naturally leads to a love, care and kindness for one another.

This applies not only within a particular church family, but also to those who are our brothers and sisters in Christ across the world. The writer expands on what this love means as he continues, “Do not forget to entertain strangers … Remember those in prison … and those who are ill -treated as if you yourselves were suffering.” Hebrews 13v2-3 This would most naturally relate to those who are brothers and sisters in Christ who are visiting or who are suffering.

Through BREADTrust, many of us are familiar with Igor, who leads churches and humanitarian effort in Ukraine. He send a message yesterday evening which summarises much of what we see in the news, but is fed to us personally as brothers and sisters. Let’s continue to remember, pray and support in practical ways those who are so suffering at this time.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

God the consuming fire.

Hebrews 12v28-29 “…  let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire.’ ” (NIV)

Often in Christian teaching there are things which appear on the surface to be contradictory, but in practice need to be held together. One example is here in Hebrews 12.

In verses 18-21, the writer compares our interaction with God with Israel’s experience at Sinai in the book of Exodus, saying, “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire … The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, ‘I am trembling with fear.’”

And then, in what seems to be a contrast, the writer continues v22-24, “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God .. to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant …”.

But we find that the writer does not bring out a contrast of opposites, but of degree, (v25) “See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape then they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?” If you thought God interacting through Moses at Sinai was awe-inspiring and needed to be obeyed, how much more awe-inspiring is God interacting through Jesus who came from heaven.

In the verse we started with, the writer considers that if there was reason for Moses-followers to worship God in an acceptable way, how much more reason is there for us as Jesus-followers to worship in a way of reverence and awe. Is this talking about the style of songs that we sing or the way that we pray? Well, Hebrews makes no reference to praying or singing at this point. Rather he continues with ‘love each other’ (13v1), ‘be hospitable’(13v2), ‘be sexually pure’ (13v4), and ‘be content’ (13v5). This is exactly in tune with Paul when he writes in Romans 12v1, “In view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – which is your reasonable act of worship.” Or take the prophet writing in Amos 5v23-24 “Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never failing stream.”

Is my life a reasonable act of worship to God given what he has done for me?

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

God our Father.

Hebrews 12v10 “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons.” (NIV)

I can’t imagine that many of us like discipline.

Discipline can take different forms:

Restriction of what is unhealthy. When parenting, discipline could be exercised in the restriction of what a child wants. For example, a parent may tell their child that they cannot have an icecream. Why not? Maybe because they have had enough unhealthy food today. Maybe because it is not a good time. Maybe so the child can learn patience and the practice of deferred gratification. Maybe so the child learns that they cannot have everything they want and resources are limited. Yet, however good the long term reasons for discipline, the child may still express frustration and unhappiness at not getting what they wanted.

Expansion of what is healthy. Discipline can also be positive such as, with children, an encouragement to eat vegetables or to do their homework! Of course the child can see it as negative despite the positive nature of the instruction.

Correction of error. Additionally, discipline could be exercised as a response to a child doing something wrong. Such discipline could be the withdrawal of a privilege, or the implementation of some form of punishment, or the direction into something positive. Either way, good discipline is exercised not so much as a retribution, but as a way to teach and encourage the child to not repeat the error and to choose to do what is right.

So it is with our God. He is our Father. As a father he wants what is best for you. You might disagree with him, but he is your dad. He is shaping you and changing your attitudes to be like those of Christ Jesus. Unfortunately, knocking off the rough edges is painful. And so Hebrews reflects our experience when it says, “No discipline is pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (12v11)

Our identity can easily be wrapped up in our own correctness; in that case we will struggle with discipline and correction, but again Hebrews says, “Do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves.” (12v5)  Here is the thing, a mark of our knowledge of God’s love towards us is our capacity to receive his rebuke positively. Over the page in James 1, he goes further, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

As an aside, there is of course a lesson for those of us who develop others through the exercise discipline – discipline is always best when exercised out of love.

But here is the main point: What are you struggling with right now? What is your loving heavenly Father training you in at the present time?

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

God the Architect.

Hebrews 11v10 “[Abraham] was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”  (NIV)

A few days ago, I was meditating on this verse, just thinking about what it meant for God to be the architect and builder …

If you want some building work, you appoint an architect who you expect to specify the design of the building so that it is optimised for your use. He considers:

• The aesthetics – how does it look from both inside and out.
• The layout – does it suit how you want to move around in and use the building
• The climate – what temperature and change of air best suits you
• The structure – ensuring it is strong enough for all circumstances and yet also adaptable as use may change.

God is the architect of the city Abraham was anticipating. It is the new city in the new creation and God the architect knows exactly what is needed. He has designed it perfectly for all of us to enjoy. He has taken into account every aspect of the resurrection life. It will look beautiful, be enduring, be comfortable and be perfect for what we need to do.

God is also the builder. Builders sometimes misunderstand instructions or simply do not do things perfectly. But, God is the builder and there is no misunderstanding between himself!

Knowing this, Abraham was prepared to live in tents as a “stranger in a foreign country” (11v9). So, our security is not in the things of this world, but in the solid foundation of the future city of God.

May you know that hope and security in the future city of God,

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Abraham’s Reasoning.

Hebrews 11v19 “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead.”  (NIV)

Abraham was a man of faith in God. His faith was not irrational, but reasoned. There are three things to note about the situation Abraham faced:

• Abraham’s purpose in life was God-given, but it depended on his son Isaac.
• If Abraham obeyed God, his son Isaac would die.
• No one had been raised from the dead before Abraham.

Thinking naturally, the conclusion of this would be that Abraham’s life would be hopeless going forward and so it must be best not to obey God.

But there was and is a higher logic. The logic based on God. I imagine that Abraham’s reasoning went something like this:

• I know God exists because of what I see around me, and also, I have met with God and interacted with him.
• For God to be God, he must have created life in the first place and have all power and authority
• Therefore, he must be able to bring the dead back to life.

This higher logic, this greater reasoning, gave Abraham the faith to obey God’s command even when, from a worldly point of view, it seemed ridiculous.

Does God’s command seem ridiculous to you? Is there something that seems dead in the water? Believer in God, focus on Him! What is God capable of doing?

May God enable us to live our lives on the basis of this higher reasoning “God can …”.

With love and blessing,

Roland