This Week With Jesus

"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 qu

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. 

 

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

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

It is a faithful saying. — 2 Timothy 2:11 Paul has four of these “faithful sayings.” The first occurs in 1 Timothy 1:15, “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptations, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” This one lays the foundation of our eternal salvation in the free grace of God.  The next is in 1 Timothy 4:6, “Godliness is profitable unto all things, having the promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation.” Here it  affirms the double blessedness which we obtain through this salvation — of time and of eternity.  The third is in 2 Timothy 2:12, “It is a faithful saying—If we suffer with Him we shall also reign with Him”; this  shows one of the duties to which the chosen people are called; we are ordained to suffer for Christ with the promise that “if we suffer, we shall also reign with him.”  and the fourth is in Titus 3:3, “This is a faithful saying, that they which have beli

As Thanksgiving approaches, we may consider submitting a part of our blessing to God, which, in todays world which is tantamount to sharing His Blessings with others as well. Pastor Rajiv talks about the importance and more, of sharing God's Blessings with others who may need what we will share.  Lets us thank the Almighty for deliverance from a pandemic which hit the world after a century; for our deliverance from it and other evils which may have befallen. From hunger, as even today 345 Million People Are in Hunger Crisis while the haves waste food (40% of the food produced in America is never eaten and. if just half of the food waste worldwide were recovered, we could end World Hunger).  In this context and background, Pastor Rajiv's message is ever so important.