There are shocking atrocities happening to Christians in Orissa, India. Please remember them in your prayers. There is a fast taking place on Tuesday for the same cause. Below is a copy of an email from a man called Yohannan, the founder and president of Gospel for Asia:
“Imagine how you would feel if a mob broke into your home, raped your wife and daughters, tried to kill you and then burned your house down—all because you are a Christian. That’s exactly what is happening to our brothers and sisters in Orissa, India, right now. Read the latest update on the continuing volatile situation here.
Dear friend, I have seen a lot of violence against Christians in my more than 30 years of sharing the Gospel with the people of Asia. I have even been on the receiving end of some of those attacks. But the events in Orissa are by far the most orchestrated and horrifying atrocities I have ever witnessed. Please join me in praying for these persecuted brothers and sisters in their time of great suffering.
Yours for the unreached,
K.P. Yohannan
Founder & President”
My heart is saddened as I compose this email, I will be praying, I hope you will too.
Matt continued our study on 2 Corinthians this morning from Chapter 6.
Graham continued the study of 2 Corinthians this morning, from 2 Cor 5:11.
Notes are below. As usual the material is made available so that any may use it, adapt it and preach it.
Sermon 2 Corinthians 5:11-21
Reconciliation
Intro
To be reconciled to God is to be at peace with Him. See the following scriptures regarding this peace:
Romans 1:7
To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Ephesians 2:14-15
For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace,
Ephesians 2:17
He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.
Ephesians 6:15
and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
Colossians 1:20
and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 3:15
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
1 Thessalonians 5:13
Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.
Hebrews 12:14
Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no-one will see the Lord.
Hebrews 13:20, 21
May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
1) The Ministry of Reconciliation
A stranger can not perform the introductions for two people he/she does not know. I need to know the God I am introducing people to.
I need my own experience of God. See Matthew 6:6ff. Here we have two types of people compared, the one who connects with God, and the other who connects with his audience. There does seem to be some satisfaction from the hypocritical person connecting with others instead of God, “praise” and the feel-good that comes from that. However, it should not be compared with what is received from the authentic encounter with God.
The ministry of reconciliation is more than introducing two people. It is bringing together two parties that are in a broken relationship. Had I not claimed for myself the finished work of Jesus I would be separated from God.
The ministry of reconciliation is about bringing together, through proclaiming the good news, the one who has reached out on love to the one hasn’t can not reach. See Ephesians 2:1-12.
A reconciler takes seriously the challenge when breaking bread with another believer, to be reconciled with those in the “body of Christ”
2) The Love of the Reconciler v14
“Implore” v20
“Persuade” v11
Paul knows he speaks to a community of faith, some having been born again, some not, though all still part of a group that will hear his message.
Unless reconciled, one group will remain lost, not having peace with God.
Unless reconciled, the other group (though “saved”) will squander their years of opportunity. Years that were meant for relationship and years that were meant for service.
3) The Wonder of Being Reconciled
A believer can say, “I AM reconciled!” See Ephesians 2:13-22
It does not involve travel or expense on my part. Jesus made the journey and Jesus paid the price.
As someone with the ministry of reconciliation I have to realise it does not depend upon me. I must not give the impression it depends upon me. You do not need to buy my book or buy a DVD of me or give a donation to “my” ministry.
Reconciliation is all about Jesus and His finished work on the cross.
A believer has his/her part but only as one who has this treasure in jars of clay (see 4:7).
Conclusion
Do you need to be reconciled again to God by repentance and be restored to service and relationship?
Do you need to be reconciled again to God by repentance and meet with Him for the first time?
Should you take up your ministry again, as a reconciler? Pray for the opportunities. Pray for those that God has given you a sense of responsibility for.
Start in your secret place and get alone with God.
Graham continued the 2 Corinthian series this morning from 2 Cor 5:6
Sermon 2 Corinthians 5:6-10
1) Confidence (verse 6 & 8)
(a) In what?
Verse 6, “Therefore we are always confident..”
Verse 8, “We are confident, I say..”
The intermediate state, the place we go to until we receive our resurrection body, is preferable to our present state.
(b) Why so confident?
If we track back through the letter we see: forgiveness 2:5ff, the New Covenant 2:12ff (esp 2:14), the work of God’s Spirit 3:3 & 5:5, treasures in jars of clay 4:1ff, the real verses the shadow of what is to come 5:1-6.
(c) How to increase our confidence
Know the scriptures! I see no other substitute as a means of receiving sound revelation concerning the truth.
2) Pleasing the Lord (judgement seat)
“Appear.” Or “be manifest” as we really are. Salvation is not of works (Ephesians 2:3-9) but works should follow.
See Eph 2:10, James 2:14-24.
See Philippians 3:7-14
But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.
What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ— the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever.
Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
3) New Creation 5 (verses 14-17)
Back to my first point again, “confidence.” I see the expression of the invisible realm in the fact of my new creation.
Out of the Silent Planet
Synopsis
While walking in the English countryside, Professor Ransom loses his way and stumbles across two scientists attempting to force a small boy into a space craft. Ransom tries to intervene and finds himself being apprehended in the boy’s place. While in the spaceship, Ransom overhears that he is to be offered to something or someone as a kind of sacrifice. When the two scientists (Weston and Devine) and Ransom land on their destination (the planet Mars) Ransom makes his escape. Ransom is left to run through the strange wildernesses of Mars while the two scientists hunt him, prepared to kill anyone or anything that gets in their way.
Comment
I was delighted to learn that Lewis had written a science fiction trilogy and wasted no time in tracking them down since I’m such a fan of a lot of his other books: The Narnia series, The Screwtape Letters, Mere Christianity and The Great Divorce. Out of the Silent Planet is the first in his Cosmic Trilogy being followed by Perelandra and That Hideous Strength (reveiws on both to follow soon). I will start by saying that this was an enjoyable book to read. Particularly Lewis’ descriptions of space travel being written 20 years before man had even walked on the moon! His descriptions of Mars are ill informed, by today’s standards, but this just makes it more fun to read. In those days, OST was published in 1938, it must have been wonderful to speculate about the nature of the planets in our solar system.
However, I did find that Lewis’ descriptions of Mars a little tricky to follow. This was surprising because Narnia comes so easily to the imagination. I also found it difficult to visualise and empathise with the Hross (one of the alien races of Mars). But perhaps there is an inherent difficulty in describing something which is so completely unearthly or something not remotely humanoid, no doubt this is the case. There is a spiritual being of earth described as a ‘bent’ Oyarsa (every planet has an Oyarsa) who is very similar to Satan but I think the ideas presented in OSP should be seen as a pale reflection of christian philosophy and not taken too seriously. Given all this, you do feel like you are on an exciting journey with Professor Ransom.
Worth it?
If you’re a big C. S. Lewis fan then you’ll enjoy this.
What others say:
Amazon: 4.5/5 (22 customer reviews)
Christianity Today: “Traveling to Mars via spaceship, Lewis’s hero Ransom finds….a warm place full of life.”
Philip Yancy: “I first encountered C. S. Lewis through his space trilogy. Though perhaps not his best work, it had an undermining effect on me. He made the supernatural so believable that I could not help wondering, What if it’s really true? What if there is a God and an afterlife and what if supernatural forces really are operating behind the scenes on this planet and in my life?”
Sorry folks, no recording this week due to post-fraisthorpe-camp-disorganisation. It’s a common affliction at York Elim.
On Saturday, we witnessed the union of Paul Kevin Donovan and Gemma Louise Whittaker in marriage before God. Two individuals who love Jesus and have regularly attended York Elim for some time now. We pray every blessing on their marriage.
Today Matt looked at 2 Corinthians 4:13-17.
