Last week's Gospel reading was the story of Thomas seeing and touching the resurrected Christ. This week we heard the story of Saul's road to Damascus blinding experience, and the restoration of his sight by Ananias under the direction of the Lord (Acts 9:1-20). We also heard the post resurrection experience of Peter and the disciples by the Sea of Tiberius in John 21:1-19. Today's sermon tied these events together and highlighted our hope for forgiveness and eternal life in a way that gave me hope for the future both here and beyond.
The fact that Christ defeated death is proof that God really, really does forgive, and really really does want us to be with him on the beach, beside the charcoal fire, listening, learning, and sharing breakfast with Him.
The frightening bit is that we, like Peter, have a certain responsibility. We must feed the Lord's lambs, tend His sheep, and feed His sheep, and we don't always do such a bang up job with the task.
I wonder if we sheep have been eating too much processed food? By that I mean a Gospel that has been dissembled and recombined to please our tastes. The results of feeding on heavily processed, sweetened foods is currently considered one of the causes for the increase in obesity and adult onset diabetes in the U.S. Just think what effects a steady consumption of condensed, artificially sweetened, and reconstituted Gospels might have on our spiritual health?
I see more clearly now than I did 10 years ago thanks to some changes in my spiritual diet. I thank the Lord for giving me strength to keep up with His meal plan which involves daily scripture reading and sharing the message with others in words and in song. His diet keeps changing me in strange and unexpected ways.
As I head into another year, join with me in remembering His defeat of Death for us as found in the words of the Bach Cantata No. 4, "Christ Lag in Todesbanden" BWV 4.
My favorite way to celebrate a birthday is to spend the day singing His praises, Hallelujah!
The fact that Christ defeated death is proof that God really, really does forgive, and really really does want us to be with him on the beach, beside the charcoal fire, listening, learning, and sharing breakfast with Him.
The frightening bit is that we, like Peter, have a certain responsibility. We must feed the Lord's lambs, tend His sheep, and feed His sheep, and we don't always do such a bang up job with the task.
I wonder if we sheep have been eating too much processed food? By that I mean a Gospel that has been dissembled and recombined to please our tastes. The results of feeding on heavily processed, sweetened foods is currently considered one of the causes for the increase in obesity and adult onset diabetes in the U.S. Just think what effects a steady consumption of condensed, artificially sweetened, and reconstituted Gospels might have on our spiritual health?
I see more clearly now than I did 10 years ago thanks to some changes in my spiritual diet. I thank the Lord for giving me strength to keep up with His meal plan which involves daily scripture reading and sharing the message with others in words and in song. His diet keeps changing me in strange and unexpected ways.
As I head into another year, join with me in remembering His defeat of Death for us as found in the words of the Bach Cantata No. 4, "Christ Lag in Todesbanden" BWV 4.
My favorite way to celebrate a birthday is to spend the day singing His praises, Hallelujah!
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Pewster,
ReplyDeleteI was at a concert yesterday by the Fresno Community Chorus. All of the music in the performance was written for the church. The vast majority of the best music ever written was written for the church, period.
Indeed. The great composers were great because of the One for whom they were composing.
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