Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Joy to the World

Luke 2v10 “I bring you good news of great JOY that will be for all the people.”

What is the difference between happiness and joy? Some have suggested that happiness is about sensory pleasure while joy is derived from soul satisfying, emotional well-being. While happiness comes from outside things, joy is about the inner self.

In which case, it  would seem that Jesus didn’t come to make us happy because he promised, “In this world you will have trouble.” (John 16v33). But he did come to give that deep inner joy that bubbles up from within even in difficult circumstances. How is this possible?

Our joy is grounded in Jesus who is our Saviour and Lord. He is the one who has loved us and continues to love us. He is the one who brings us to our Father God and through whom we are now children of God. And we know that in Him is ultimate victory. Indeed, Jesus continues, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world,” (John 16v33). As we allow our souls to connect with God and these truths, He satisfies our soul, and our inner being is filled with joy.

I wish you a Happy Christmas, but even more, I wish you a JOYFUL Christmas.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Mary’s shock

Luke 1v29 “Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.”

Mary seems a remarkable young lady.

• First she has the shock of an angel appearing to her. The words of the angel are positive, “Greetings you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you.” But these positive words do not stop her being surprised and even troubled. It is outside the realm of her experience and she really does not know what the outcome is to be.
• Her second shock is to be told, “You will be with child … and you are to give him the name Jesus.” Afterall, she is only engaged, not married and she has had no sexual activity. There was of course a clue as to how in the description given of her child, “He will be called the Son of the Most High.” Today we look back and can see that this was prophesied in Isaiah 7v11 “The virgin will be with child, she will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means “God is with us”)”, but I doubt this was in the front of Mary’s mind. You can imagine her perplexity as she asks the question, “How will this be since I am a virgin?”
• It may not be so much of a shock, but the angel’s answer must have raised some questions in her mind too, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” I think I would still be in question mode. The angel continues to graciously tell her that her elderly relative Elizabeth is pregnant. Maybe this is meant as a sign for Mary that she is able to test by going to visit Elizabeth.

In all this, the angel’s conclusion, “For nothing is impossible with God”, is met by Mary with “I am the Lord’s servant, May it be to me as you have said.”

Let us give thanks to the Lord for Mary’s submissive heart. It also raises the question, “What is the Lord saying to me?” It is good to share our questions and concerns with the Lord, but it is also vital that we submit to his answers.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Jesus Promised

Matthew 1v22 “All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet.”

Do you get those moments of questioning “What if I have got this wrong?”. I love to ponder over the prophecies in the Old Testament and be amazed. What other explanation could there be of such accurate long-range foretelling except that the Bible is truly God speaking to us? That applies to both the prophetic words and prophetic actions of the Old Testament.

Just consider amongst many others:

• Abraham was told by God around 2000BC “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Gen 12v3): look at the global spread of God’s blessing now.
• Abraham was prepared to offer up his-only-promised-son, Isaac, as a sacrifice and spoke the words, “God himself will provide the lamb” (Gen 22v8): look at Jesus, the provision of “The Lamb of God”.
• David wrote Psalm 22 around 1000BC and included many pertinent lines such as, “They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing”: look at the direct correspondence with Christ’s crucifixion.
• Micah wrote about 700BC “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah … out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” (Micah 5v2): look at the birth of Jesus, the eternal Son, in Bethlehem.
• Isaiah also wrote about 700BC, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and you will call him Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7v14): look at Jesus who was born to the virgin Mary.

God’s Word is faithful and true. His promises are always sure.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Jesus Is Coming

Revelation 22v20 “Yes, I am coming soon.”

It is difficult to deny the historic Jesus of the 1st century. And the gospels which record what he did also point to the future. Jesus is going to come back. There’s a lot of uncertainty in our world today. But as a follower of Jesus, this I know, Jesus is Coming Back and he will set things straight!! We therefore do not need to fear.

As Advent begins, let’s look forward to the second coming. There is a lot of speculation about specific elements, but the following are the key things Jesus tells us to keep in mind:

•      He is definitely coming (Rev 22v20) – so be ready
•      We do not know the time, it will be a surprise (Matt 24v36-51) – so be ready
•      It will a definitive moment after which it will be too late to switch to Jesus (Matt 25v1-15) – so be ready
•      He will reward people for how they have used what he has given (Matt 25v14-30) – so be ready
•      He will bringing in a new era, where those who belong to Jesus will rise to be with him and those who are not will be cast out (Matt 25v31-46) – so be ready

The first big question of Advent is not “Am I ready for Christmas?”, but “Am I ready for Christ to come?”  In the parables referred to above, “being ready” means: watch in expectation, pray, be careful to follow Christ, keep being filled with the Holy Spirit, use all God has given you for Him, and serve others.

In God’s grace, may each of us be ready for his coming.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living in God’s Blessing

Genesis 39v20 “While Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him: he showed him kindness and granted him favour in the eyes of the prison warden.”

Joseph, the favoured son of Jacob (also called Israel) was envied and hated by his brothers, he was sold as a slave, and then in slavery, he was falsely accused and put in prison. Looking at the external circumstances, you’ve got to think God was not showing Joseph much kindness!

However, as always, God was working with the long-term in view. Even in all the frustrations of injustice and false accusation, of being put down and even imprisoned, God was with him. It is not our circumstances that define God’s favour, but knowing his presence. God’s favour was not to be seen in worldly success, but in the facts that Joseph could do a work reliably, he could resist temptation, and he could see God’s hand in what was going on.

We can look back today at the story of Joseph and say, “Ah, but it was all part of the journey of God’s plan and purpose”. But Joseph did not know the end game, he could only go on the relationship he had with God and the prophetic dreams he had as a teenager.

So for us today, our circumstances may not be great – whether in terms of health, finances, relationships or other issues – but that does not mean God has withdrawn his blessing. God is working long-term.

Also, it would seem that Joseph was one to look out for those little blessings – the favour of the prison warden – as signs of God’s kindness. You belong to God and are a worker for him in this world, what little blessings can you turn back in praise to God with a thankful heart. And the blessings that we have in Christ Jesus are not very little at all! (Ephesians 1v3-10)

Spend time today thinking on those “little” blessings.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living as a Friend of God

James 2v23 “Abraham … was called God’s friend.”

We can easily imagine God as distant and high above us. Well, he is above us, but the Scriptures also tell us that he has people as friends. James writes that Abraham “was called God’s friend”. James is referring to 2 Chronicles 20v7 where Jehoshaphat (one of the later Kings of Judah) prays to God and refers to Abraham with the words, “Abraham your friend.”

Why was Abraham called “God’s friend”? Was it because he was perfect? Certainly not! He made his fair share of mistakes whether telling half-truths about his wife or sleeping with Hagar. Rather, I think it must be firstly because God had chosen him and secondly because the overall direction of Abraham’s life was one of faith and obedience despite the shortcomings.

Friends share time, thoughts and experiences together. Each is evident in God’s friendship with Abraham. God often appeared to Abraham, he visited for food, and told Abraham what he was thinking and planning whether for blessing or judgment. From the other side, Abraham was available to God and shared frankly how he was feeling and his worries and concerns. God was not someone for him to be afraid of, but to share with.

So that brings me to the question, “Am I a friend of God?”. Well if I am a believer, I am chosen just like Abraham was (see for example Ephesians 1v4). If I am allowing time to spend with God and am seeking to obedient to his direction, then it seems reasonable to conclude that God considers me His friend.

Spend time today meditating on the thought that God considers you His friend.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living in Truth

John 8v32 “the truth will set you free.”

I like to make decisions based on the truth. But often establishing the facts is difficult: I struggle to get to the bottom of truth. A mix of lies, half-truths, gloss, spin and dubious opinions makes the true facts hard to establish.

In fact, establishing truth is a spiritual battle. Jesus says “I am the … Truth”, “I came into the world to testify to the truth”, and “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” (John 14v6, 18v37). On the other side, Satan is the one who “Deceives” (Revelation 20v8), is “the father of lies” and in whom there is “no truth” (John 8v44).

Jesus faced the reality that people did not believe him because he spoke the truth. “Yet because I tell the truth you do not believe me” (John 8v45), and after his death the Pharisees even called Jesus a deceiver as they said to Pilate, “We remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’” (Matthew 27v63). This again is the devil’s work as he “blinds the hearts of the unbeliever” (2 Cor 4v4), “accuses the brothers” (Revelation 12v10) and causes people to “falsely say all kinds of evil against you” (Matthew 5v11).

As Christians, we are called to the truth. But where and how do we find truth?

• In Jesus – his words are true, his actions are filled with integrity, his love if faithful. If you want the security of truth turn to Jesus. If you want the light of truth for direction, turn to Jesus.
• Hard work – Unfortunately in this world, there are what this world perceives as “many truths”. In reality these are mainly “half-truths” and outright lies. We have to discern what is right and what is wrong, and that is not always easy. There will be areas we will need to remain uncertain.
• Holy Spirit – Jesus describes the Holy Spirit as “the Spirit of Truth”, and “He will guide you into all truth” (John 16v13). Does that mean that as a Spirit-filled believer I am always right? Unfortunately, not. We need to bounce things off the community of faith, but ultimately, the Spirit will “remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14v26)

Let’s base our thinking and actions on the truth, for the “truth will set us free”.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living in Holiness

1 Peter 1v16 “Be holy because I am holy.”

Holiness is not a popular idea today. Many consider it antiquated, fit to be replaced by words such as freedom and love. The word may create images in our minds of a list of “Do not”s .

Did you know that “holy” and related words occur nearly twice as often in the New Testament as in the Old? Far from Jesus doing away with holiness, he brings it in! Hence, he says to his disciples “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees … you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 6v20) The Pharisees were seen as the super-holy people of the day: they had all sorts of rules about right behavior.

Jesus went on to give the “Sermon on the Mount” where Jesus typically takes an Old Testament saying about behavior and applies it to our whole way of thinking. So for example, “If you even lust, you have committed adultery in your heart.” (Matthew 6v28).

This is a disaster for us if we are looking to get into heaven by our own efforts. We cannot. But Jesus has brought us holiness by taking all our unholiness on the cross. He took it all so that we could be set free. And he did this because he loved us. So to receive holiness is to receive freedom from guilt and to receive the most amazing love. Yes, freedom, love and holiness are linked.

But the New Testament goes further, because it says we are now “saints” (literally, “Holy Ones”). Our new identity in Christ is “holy”, and God calls us to live according to that new identity. “Our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with. … count yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” Romans 6v6 & 11.

True holiness begins from within. It begins from a heart set free from sin and filled with God’s love instead. It means that true freedom and true love are not opposites of holiness, but actually lead to holiness. Just as “God is Love” and “God is Holy”, so we as his children are called to be full of both love and holiness.

May the Lord keep you in his paths of righteousness.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living with Mercy

1 Timothy 1v13 & 16 “I was shown mercy.”

This is Paul’s testimony, “I was shown mercy”. This experience is so central to his life-story that he repeats it twice in four verses!

Mercy is defined as “compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm” (Oxford Languages Dictionary).

Here is the reality: God offers us his compassion and forgiveness when he could have punished us. For those of us who are born again, we have received that compassion and forgiveness. As the Psalmist says, “He does not treat us as our sins deserve,” Psalm 103v10. God is able to justly do this because Jesus took all my sin on the cross. He bore the punishment in my place. Now, my heavenly Father turns to me and welcomes me with a smile and arms stretched out. Where Jesus said “My God, why have you forsaken me”, my Father says “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

This is not just good news, it is “unbelievably” good news. Maybe a better word is “ridiculously” good news! Where God could have punished me, he chose to rescue me. Why? Was it because I was great or able to achieve some great thing for him? No, it was simply because “The LORD loved you” (Deuteronomy 7v8). There is nothing that merited his favour, but he has shown it.

What does this mean for me today? Well, first of all there is every reason to rejoice, celebrate and be glad! But there is also a consequence in our daily lives: Paul says “In view of God’s mercy…” as he introduces how we should live in Romans 12v1, and Jesus tells us the same in a parable in Luke 18. In Jesus’ parable a person owes millions, yet the master forgives the debt; but afterwards the person goes away and demands payment from someone who owes them a few notes. Jesus outright condemns such lack of mercy when we have been shown such mercy.

In the natural, we want some justice, and we want it now. But in Christ, we have been shown mercy and we are called to follow in His way of showing mercy too. We “do not pay back evil with evil” (Romans 12v17), but rather return evil with good. Why can we do this? Because we now live in the kingdom of mercy and we can leave any avenging to God (Romans 12v19).

Lord, help me to understand and appreciate your mercy towards me, fill me with the joy of your salvation, and enable me to show mercy to all those around me.

With love and blessing,

Roland

Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

Living in Patience

2 Corinthians 6v6 “We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path … Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in … patience.”

God seems to me to be extraordinarily patient! As I have recently reflected on the accounts of Elijah and Ahab (1 Kings 16-22), following into the sequel accounts of Elisha and Ahab’s children (2 Kings 1-13), I am amazed at the patience of God. God delays reasonable retribution and repeatedly gives miraculous signs to provoke a change of heart and direction. The patience of God is shown as he does not give what is deserved, but shows grace instead.

This is precisely what is meant when we read the classic Old Testament description of God. It is repeated 9 times from Exodus 34 through to Nahum 1 “The LORD is slow to anger”.

So, when God calls us to be “slow to anger” (a mere 5 times from Proverbs to James), he is only calling us to model his patience.

I can testify that God has been patient with me. Unfortunately, I am slow to learn, slow to respond, slow to change. Must drive him nuts! But it doesn’t. He responds with grace, discipline, reminders, forgiveness and new chances.

So “living in patience” firstly means, living in the patience of God – wow, how blessed we are! Then, and only then, it also means showing patience to the people and situations around me. Afterall, if I do not appreciate the character of God, how am I supposed to copy it?

O Father God, cause us to appreciate your patience towards us, and so to model your patience with the people and situations we face.

With love and blessing,

Roland