Tag: Church of God

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Anna

There was also a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old, having been married to her husband for seven years until his death. She had lived as a widow since then for eighty four years. She never left the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment, she came up to them and began to give thanks to God and to speak about the child to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
~Doctor Luke, Luke 2:36-38

God invites those who are hurting into His family. Anna had only been married for seven years when the unthinkable happened, she lost her husband. In Anna’s time that meant she lost her income, her home and her protection. She was devastated. But God has a heart for the devastated. For eighty-four years Anna came under the Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Anna” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Humility

And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there
was no place for them in the inn.
~Doctor Luke, Luke 2:7

The significant promise of God was about to be fulfilled in a very insignificant place through a very insignificant family. Bethlehem was not big. There was Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Humility” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Light

Then Jesus spoke out again, “I am the light of the world. The one who follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
~Jesus, John 8:12

The darkness of sin filled the world but God promised a light that would one day pierce the darkness. Throughout history it was known that a glimpse of Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Light” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Joseph And The Angel

Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way. While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph, her husband to be, was a righteous man, and because he did not want to disgrace her, he intended to send her away privately. When he had contemplated this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
~The Apostle Matthew 1:18-25

Life doesn’t always turn out the way you think it will. Sometimes our expectations are crushed by Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Joseph And The Angel” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Mary And The Holy Spirit

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. The angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled by his words and began to wonder about the meaning of this greeting. So the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God! Listen: You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.” Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I have not had relations with a man?” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the Son of God.
~Gabriel and Mary, Luke 1:26-35

The clearer the calling of God the more difficult the task. Mary was given a very clear mission. She would have a child without Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Mary And The Holy Spirit” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotion: Rahab’s Crimson Cord

 

Then Rahab let the spies down by a rope through the window. (Her house was built as part of the city wall; she lived in the wall.) She told them, “Head to the hill country, so the ones chasing you don’t find you. Hide from them there for three days, long enough for those chasing you to return. Then you can be on your way.” The men said to her, “We are not bound by this oath you made us swear unless the following conditions are met: When we invade the land, tie this red rope in the window through which you let us down, and gather together in your house your father, mother, brothers, and all who live in your father’s house. Anyone who leaves your house will be responsible for his own death – we are innocent in that case! But if anyone with you in the house is harmed, we will be responsible. If you should report what we’ve been up to, we are not bound by this oath you made us swear.” She said, “I agree to these conditions.” She sent them on their way and then tied the red rope in the window.
~Rahab and two spies, Joshua 2:15-21

Rahab did not live a life that was pleasing to God. She ran a business that exploited other people, but she did fear God. The story of this unlikely hero provides an excellent picture of our situation and God’s Christmas gift to Continue reading “Christmas Devotion: Rahab’s Crimson Cord” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Foreshadowing

 

After Moses the LORD’s servant died, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant: “Moses my servant is dead. Get ready! Cross the Jordan River! Lead these people into the land which I am ready to hand over to them.
~God, Joshua 1:1-4

The name Joshua is the Hebrew form of the name Jesus. These two men not only share the same name, but a Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Foreshadowing” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: The Promise

 

The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all the wild beasts and all the living creatures of the field! On your belly you will crawl and dust you will eat all the days of your life. And I will put hostility between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring; her offspring will crush your head, and you will attack her offspring’s heel.”
~God, Genesis 3:14-15

The very first Christmas promise in the Bible is found in the sober description of the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience. The promise is that Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: The Promise” →

Christmas Devotions, Thoughts along the way

Christmas Devotions: Before Time

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God. The Word was with God in the beginning. All things were created by him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. In him was life, and the life was the light of mankind. And the light shines on in the darkness, but the darkness has not mastered it.”
~The Apostle John, John 1:1-5

The family of God was lost and broken but God had a Continue reading “Christmas Devotions: Before Time” →

Thoughts along the way, Uncategorized

Episode 9: The Work of Mark 16

The lesson is obvious. True missionaries concentrate on doing the work of Mark 16:15 rather than operating social-welfare programs. True missionaries serve the message of Christ, not the institutions of the church.
-K.P. Yohannan, Come, Let’s Reach the World
There are two ways that I see the church’s influence fade in modern times. Both ways have shifted focus from our Savior and his mission of to lesser pursuits. Politicising and institutionalising the body of Christ are two dangers that always transform us from world changers to a collection of insignificante voices. People from all along the political spectrum try to usurp the mission of Christ as a weapon to be used in their own power struggles. Before we blindly condemn them let us remember the words of the Disciples as they were given the great commission in Acts 1:6. “Lord is it at this time you are going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” The best of us can fall into this trap.

Perhaps the more insidious trap is the institutionalising of the movement of God. We tend to forget that we are a people, a body with a Divine head. When we institutionalize what God has made we challenge the very nature of the church, we challenge the lordship of our creator. Is this not just a reenactment of the original sin? Does it come from a place of mistrust or of outright rebellion?
May we focus on the mission that Christ has given us, may we follow Him as our Lord!

Blessings, F8EAD028-6F13-41B2-9020-8D1078DDDFF3The Downings

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