13 Sep Happy Tuesday!
Blessings at the end of this magnificent sunny day!
Let’s get our week set up straight away
- Bible Study Catch-Up – Friday – 16th September 2022 – 1:00 PM
Join Zoom Meeting — https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88022194499
Meeting ID: 880 2219 4499
- This coming Sunday – 18th September – Morning Tea after worship! Bring a friend to enjoy the festivities & food.
- THEN – Sunday 25th September – Wagga Run & Ride – We’ll have our regular water station set up from about 9:00 or so and worship will begin around 12:00 noon with a shared lunch. Bring something to feed a few & we’ll all eat & worship around tables. We haven’t had the chance to do this in a few years (Covid & all that) so this should be awesome! This is another one of those opportunities to grab a friend who wouldn’t normally join you for worship in a typical Sunday setting & bring ‘em along either to hand out cups of water OR to have lunch & experience a different sort of church gathering.
I have shared before that one of the blessings of reading & re-reading the Bible is that over time the Holy Spirit highlights different parts for your attention. The same verse may hit you differently at different times in your life. This past week I was re-reading the crucifixion narrative in Matthew. How many times have I read that or heard it read? Hundreds? But this time…Bam! Like getting hit on the head…
Mt 26:63-64 – “The high priest said to Jesus, ‘I demand in the name of the living God—tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.’ Jesus replied, ‘You have said it.’”
Mt 27:11 – “Now Jesus was standing before Pilate, the Roman governor. ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ the governor asked him. Jesus replied, ‘You have said it.’”
Jesus gives the exact same answer to both the Roman Governor AND to the Jewish leadership. What is the significance of that?
The Old Testament prophecies all pointed to the suffering of God’s Anointed One as part of God’s plan of redemption. Jesus had declared his life would be forfeit to the powers of his day so that all power on earth arrayed against God’s redeeming plan would be defeated. By acting in fulfilment of those prophetic words, the Romans & Jewish leaders were in effect announcing that Jesus was in fact the Messiah.
We do the same by our lives. Our lives, attitudes, values, dreams, aspirations, hopes, behaviour, devotion, and affection all give evidence to whom we believe is Messiah, Saviour, Lord & King. Do our lives declare that Jesus is Lord & Saviour, or do we betray a faith, trust & hope in something else as ultimate lord for us? Like those on the night of crucifixion, we “have said it” by the manner of our lives.
I asked in worship a few weeks back, “If you were arrested & put on trial for being a follower of Jesus, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” Would your life point to Jesus in such a way that it is obvious you are one of his disciples? Great question for this week I reckon…and what an opportunity to intentionally live your trust in Christ wherever your life takes you in our town over the next week.
I’ll be praying for you!
See you Sunday
John
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