Friday August 27, 2010

Read Hebrews 1

Jesus is Lord! “Amen”,  you say. Jesus is Lord! “Hallelujah”, you cry. Jesus is Lord! “Maranatha”, your heart sings.

What seems obvious to you and I as believers is far from obvious to a non believers in a broken world.  A mother watches helplessly as her baby dies from surgery complications. A young man is mugged and beaten senseless down town while picking up milk from the local corner shop. A struggling family has their life savings stolen one night as they are out visiting friends. A young teenager watches a video of strange lights in the sky, allegedly from extra terrestrial beings. An older gentleman watches the nightly news lamenting the worsening status of the world since his youth. Where is God? Is Jesus really Lord? Why is there so much evil and suffering?

As believers who know the truth of Jesus’ lordship we cannot afford to dismiss these difficult issues and questions. We need to have answers for the world. We need to be able to engage the world and to loving show them the Lordship of Christ even in a broken world. But be warned! This is not just a verbal exercise. We may need to weep with those who weep, mourn with those who mourn. We may need to get deep into the pit with the lost and helpless. We may need to give until it hurts. We may need to make huge sacrifices so that the world

sees the Lordship of Christ through us.

So where do I start finding answers? Start reading the Bible systematically, seeking to find the origin of sin and how the Bible deals with sin and corruption, even in the face of the Lordship of Christ.   Read what others have said about the problem of evil and suffering. Practice answering such questions with a trusted friend so that when crunch time comes, you are not caught short.

Prayer:-

ü Ask God to equip every person in your congregation with the ability to engage the world and to deal with the road blocks to the faith. Pray that God’s Word would be the source of authority and foundation of all that we believe and teach the world.

ü Pray for the missions coming up in September (College Mission and Kids Games Week). Pray that we would have adequate labourers for the harvest field. Pray for adequate finances. Pray for the people who’ll be speaking and giving talks. Pray that every member of the congregation would be involved and able to lead someone to Christ.

MEAT 4  THE MATURE

How would you answer someone who says, ‘Why is there so much suffering and evil in the world?’