The 4th Wise Man: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Long ago in the late 1800s a man named Eric Van Dyke wrote a short story about a "fourth" wise man (accepting the tradition that the Magi numbered three), a priest of the Magi named Artaban, one of the Medes from Persia.

Like the other Magi, he sees signs in the heavens proclaiming that a King has been born among the Jews. Like them, he sets out to see the newborn ruler, carrying treasures to give as gifts to the child - a sapphire, a ruby, and a "pearl of great price".

However, he stops along the way to help a dying man, which makes him late to meet with the caravan of the other three wise men. Because he missed the caravan, and he can't cross the desert with only a horse, he is forced to sell one of his treasures in order to buy the camels and supplies necessary for the trip. He then commences his journey but arrives in Bethlehem too late to see the child, whose parents have fled to Egypt. He saves the life of another child at the price of another one of his treasures.

He then travels to Egypt and to many other countries, searching for Jesus for many years and performing acts of charity along the way. After 33 years, Artaban is still a pilgrim, and a seeker after light. Artaban arrives in Jerusalem just in time for the crucifixion of Jesus. He spends his last treasure, the pearl, to ransom a young woman from being sold into slavery. He is then struck in the head by a falling roof tile and is about to die, having failed in his quest to find Jesus, but having done much good through charitable works. A voice tells him "Verily I say unto thee, Inasmuch as thou hast done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, thou hast done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)[4] He dies in a calm radiance of wonder and joy. His treasures were accepted, and the Other Wise Man found his King.

This is a story but isn't the fourth wise man like us? We want to worship Jesus in spirit and in truth but miss the bus so many times. However, as the wise man did, we can still use our time to be of service to our Lord, using the gifts we have, to lay at His feet, in His service.

Give Peace a chance: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflections

Yesterday we lit the 2nd candle of advent, the candle of peace, reminding us that with the birth of Jesus Christ, God gave us the road to peace.

One of the central themes of the Sermon on the Mount is Christ's expectation that His followers be characterized by peace—not violence or war. In the famous opening to this great sermon known as the Beatitudes, Jesus taught, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9).

One can't think of a better practical demonstration of peace than of a time in the darkest moments of modern history: I am talking of World War I.

World War I, also known as the Great War, began in 1914 after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. His murder catapulted into a war across Europe that lasted until 1918. During the conflict, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire (the Central Powers) fought against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Canada, Japan and the United States (the Allied Powers). Thanks to new military technologies and the horrors of trench warfare, World War I saw unprecedented levels of carnage and destruction. By the time the war was over and the Allied Powers claimed victory, more than 16 million people—soldiers and civilians alike—were dead.

Yet in these four years, we demonstrated commitment to peace on Christmas of 1914, when a truce was called from Christmas Eve through Christmas, recognizing the fact that what we were doing was not Gods will. Imagine, one day in 1465 days ! 

Stephen Nichols describes that day so vividly-

"As darkness settled over the front like a blanket, the sound of exploding shells and the rat-tat-tat of gunfire faded. Faint carols, in French or English voices on one side and in German voices on the other, rose to fill the silence of the night.

By morning, soldiers, at first hesitantly, began filing out of the maze of trenches into the dreaded and parched soil of No Man's Land. There was more singing. Gifts of rations and cigarettes were exchanged. Family photos were passed around. Soccer balls appeared. Up and down the Western Front, soldiers, who only hours before had been locked in deathly combat, now faced off in soccer games.

For one brief but entirely remarkable day, there was truly peace on earth. Some have called the Christmas Truce of 1914 “the Miracle on the Western Front.”

Anxious to print some good news, The Times of London reported on the events of the Christmas Truce. Here’s a line from the diary of a German infantryman: “The English brought a soccer ball from the trenches, and pretty soon a lively game ensued. How marvelously wonderful, yet how strange it was. The English officers felt the same way about it." Thus Christmas, the celebration of Love, managed to bring mortal enemies together as friends for a time.

Today, we are in an era where countries are constantly at war with each other, whether economic or military. People hating other people, religious antagonism, race, color, nationality and so on.

In the words of John Lennon, we need to give peace a chance. And the decision to do that is not a country's or a nation but all the people, like you and me. We need to demonstrate peace to everyone around us. Slandering, backbiting, fighting, complaining, jealousy needs to stop. Peace will grow upwards, not downwards. 

Just lighting a candle won't make the cut for sure. We light the candle in faith. But faith without action is dead. Heed the words of James

If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus, also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:14–17).

Today let us do our bit: Rise above our unpeaceful human traits and adopt the peace of Christ which He left us.

I am Hungry : Our Daily Reflections

"Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others". Mark 12:43

We have just about finished Thanksgiving with the Turkey et all. And have entered into Dec to prepare for the 24th Dinner/supper. 

While we get into the festive spirit, what about all those people who don't know where their next meal is coming from? 

As followers of The Christ, it is our bounden duty to help those who need our strength. Why?

Because every man and woman is a creation and extension of God. So do we respond when someone reaches out or do we ignore the cry for help. 

Some days ago, I wondered as to what our reaction is going to be when a poor hungry man comes to our door asking for food. 

In our refrigerator there is a fresh chicken roast, vegetables as well as some left-over food from three days ago. Will we offer that person the chicken roast or will we dump the 3 days old left overs on him? Let's answer this question in all honesty!

If Jesus had come home that day would we not have offered the chicken roast and much more? The question is did we see Jesus in him that day? Did we see Jesus in him or did we see someone who had to be fed with just about anything, but definitely not roast chicken.

It's not really about chicken, it's about anything we are called upon to give. Our time, knowledge, money, food etc. If we truly believe this verse from Matthew chapter 25 - verses 35 and  36, we would have treated that hungry man with equality and sat him down with us and offered him the best we have. 

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,(A) 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me,(B) I was sick and you looked after me,(C) I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

These verses not only tell us our duty, but something much beyond that. We have a two dimensional relationship with God, vertical (man to God) and horizontal (man to man),  because in the next verse Jesus says in verse 40-

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

We should consider it our bounden duty to God, to care for our fellow men with a open heart, not grudging, nor boasting but in humility, treating each one as an extension of God Himself,  because in any case what we have is God given which we are called upon to share, not to  hoard. 

God Bless all this Christmas season. 

5 Loaves & 2 Fish: Our Daily Reflection

John 6 verses 1-15: The feeding of the multitude

We are all familiar with the story of the 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, which fed 5000 hungry people. It's a wonderful story and a fantastic miracle. 

Yet, have we ever wondered about the boy who gave his up lunch of the loaves and the fish? What must he be thinking when he did? He obviously realized his resources were not enough to feed 5000 so, what made him do it? 

On the other hand, Jesus knew exactly what He was doing and how He would feed these people, though the disciples expressed doubts. But Jesus was only testing them as we learn in ver 6.

But what about the boy?

A. He was ready to share what God had provided

B. He had confidence in Jesus

C. Deep in his heart he probably knew Jesus would do something to multiply the food. And He did.

So many times, in our lives we come across someone who needs our help but what we can do is too little. So, we stop short and give up, thinking, what I have is too small to help this person. 

But with the confidence of the little boy with the 5 loaves and 2 fish, and prayer, we can make that little bit we have, to multiply through God and make a difference. We must realize though that it is not we who multiply blessings but God, so we need to have the confidence in Him. 

Today, can we learn a lesson form that little boy and be ready to share a little, with prayer, depending on God to multiply it and make a big difference.

Hope: Pastor John Muhamad's Mid-Week Message

 

PROVISION, PROTECTION AND PARTICIPATION.: Our Daily Reflection

Why is it important to give thanks? 

Human beings are prone to covetousness, and we tend to focus on what we don’t have. By giving thanks continually we are reminded of how much we do have. When we focus on blessings rather than wants, we are happier. When we start thanking God for the things, we usually take for granted, our perspective changes. We realize that we could not even exist without the merciful blessings of God. We can have thankful hearts toward God even when we do not feel thankful for the circumstance because there is a lot to be thankful for. 

When we make thanksgiving a lifestyle, we don't have to wait for the third Thursday of November but make it daily, hourly or transactional. It creates confidence in the future, strength to face challenges and overall happiness.

The Bible clearly instructs Christians to fix our eyes on the Heavenly Father, the true source of every good thing in our lives. He is the One who graciously gives us “good things” of all kinds, and our natural response should be thank Him specifically.

An interesting aspect is - should we thank God for failure? Yes. Even failure, because out of failure emerges learning and out of learning comes a solution and strength the next time we face it. More importantly, the failure we see maybe part of Gods plan to give us some much more than we expected.

The best part is we don't need to reserve a time or place. We can do it as we sit in the train or bus, or when we wake up and spend some blissful moments in a cozy bed or anytime and anywhere.

I like to call this a triple P approach - PROVISION, PROTECTION AND PARTICIPATION.

Thank Him for 

Provision for our or someone else's daily needs or special needs.

Protection - from evil, like disease, accidents, enemies, etc.

Participation by the Father in our lives. He loves us and wants to be part of His children's lives (just as we do with our children), wants to talk to us, hear us, commune with us. If we let Him.

After all, if a lifestyle of thanksgiving was good enough for a King, it is good enough for us.

Psalm 103

2 Praise the Lord, my soul,

and forget not all his benefits—

3 who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion,

5 who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s...

Therefore ...

Psalm 50:14-15

14 “Sacrifice thank offerings to God,

fulfill your vows to the Most High,

15 and call on me in the day of trouble;

I will deliver you, and you will honor me."

Hope: Pastor Rajiv's Daily Reflection

Today is the first Sunday of the advent and which is dedicated to hope.

Our religion is based on faith and hope. Hebrews 11:1 says Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen". So faith is pretty much clear but what is hope?

Hope is always in the future tense. It could be immediate, intermediate or long term. "Give us this day our daily bread", a hope in the immediate future of fulfilment of our immediate needs, our wellness and health and the wellbeing of family and friends. 

But we must keep in mind that the destination of a follower is beyond this world and hence that hope we have extends into a life beyond what we have, to a New World, established by the Son, described so vividly in Revelations. The “city of the living God,” will be a spectacular place according to God’s perfect design. And, as one writer put it, "the heavenly Jerusalem will be “a place of unimagined blessing.” 

Where All Nations and People Will Worship Jesus - Revelation 7:9-10, and where Heaven Will Be Filled with Peace, Joy, and Praise - Revelation 7:15-17. Where we will be united with loved ones, where no disease or sadness will exist and "The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain,” says the LORD. Isaiah 65:25 (NASB). 

Therefore, our hope is that after our physical death, we will experience all of this.

Today our hope may be for a job, children or a life partner or wellness; but the larger picture is beyond the apparent; my hope is that one day I will be reunited with my wife, my children, my brother and sisters, my parents, my grandparents and all those whom I have loved and known; my hope is the peace and rest I will experience in my Fathers mansion with Jesus Christ. 

All this I can hope for because of a Jesus Christ, who is the bridge to my relationship with God and citizenship in Heaven. 

I therefore, hope and believe that the Biblical prophecies will become a reality and that we will prevail with Jesus. With this hope we look forward to the birth of Jesus Christ, who made it all possible.