Every now and again something happens in our lives that can be described as a 'defining moment'. Something that happens that changes everything. An event that changes how we see ourselves; changes how others view us. Changes how we view the world. Maybe a series illness or accident leaves us unable to do some of the things we once took for granted. Maybe after years of being told we're no good we gain a diploma or a degree - and we start to believe in ourselves for the first time. Maybe we get married or have our first child.
For the people of Israel in the Old Testament a key defining moment in their history was the Exodus - the day that God brought them out of Egypt, out of slavery. God and Pharaoh had been in a battle over these people, and finally God had won, and Pharaoh let the people go, in order that they might go into the desert to worship God.
The story of the rescue is told in Exodus 12, and the people are instructed in Leviticus 23:4-8 to remember the story every year. The Israelites were to kill a lamb at twilight on a specific day, and paint the blood on the door frame of their houses. Then when God passed through the land he would pass-over any house where the blood was on the door post - but any house where there was no blood the first born in that house would die - people and animals. This final act of judgement was too much for Pharaoh and he allowed the people to leave.
In the previous nine plagues God had no trouble distinguishing between Israelite and Egyptian - so why the need for the blood on the door frames now?
In 1 Corinthians 5:7 Paul refers to Jesus as our Passover lamb who has been sacrificed. Only the blood of this sacrifice is able to save us from the judgement of God. Nothing else will do it.
But the Passover and the Exodus was not simply about being saved from something - it was about being saved from slavery in order to worship God. And for the Christian we are saved to worship God. To do what God wants us to be doing. To be serving God.
Just as Israel looked back to the Passover every year, to remember where they'd come from and who had rescued them; so as Christians we look back to the cross where Jesus died and we understand ourselves, we define ourselves in the light of the events of the cross. Everything changes when a person decides to follow Jesus.
Monday, 26 November 2012
Saturday, 24 November 2012
Blowing your own Trumpet
There is one remaining festival that we have not looked at over the last few weeks. If you read back you'll see that at church we're currently looking at the Old Testament book of Leviticus and a few weeks ago we looked at the Feasts of Israel listed in Leviticus 23.
The Feast of Trumpets takes place on the first day of the seventh month with the Day of Atonement occurring on the tenth day. This ten day period is a time of preparation and repentance and may involve fasting and study of the Torah. This year Rosh Hashanah was celebrated on 17 September and Yom Kippur on 26 September.
If you read this blog on a regular basis you might have picked up that I occasionally run. On one of my September runs, back from a local park, I noticed a group of people gathered beside a lake reading from a book. Given their location and their dress it was obvious that they were Jewish.
It was not until a few weeks later when I was preparing for Leviticus that I came across a paragraph that explained that on or around Rosh Hashanah it is customary to visit a body of water containing fish and recite a specific prayer - in which the people symbolically cast away their sins in order to start the new year anew (Rosh Hashanah is Jewish New Year). This recalls God's promise in Micah 7:9 that God will cast all our sins into the depth of the sea.
In preparing for this talk I began to think about Lent - which is for Christians traditionally a time of reflection and preparation in the run up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday - remembering the death of Jesus and celebrating the resurrection. But it is a tradition that is more evident in some parts of the church. The Bible does not talk about Lent and therefore it has no place in some church traditions. But in doing away with Lent I wonder if we've not thrown the baby out with the bath water. Anyway - that's something I'm thinking about at the moment. What do you do for Lent?
The Feast of Trumpets takes place on the first day of the seventh month with the Day of Atonement occurring on the tenth day. This ten day period is a time of preparation and repentance and may involve fasting and study of the Torah. This year Rosh Hashanah was celebrated on 17 September and Yom Kippur on 26 September.
If you read this blog on a regular basis you might have picked up that I occasionally run. On one of my September runs, back from a local park, I noticed a group of people gathered beside a lake reading from a book. Given their location and their dress it was obvious that they were Jewish.
It was not until a few weeks later when I was preparing for Leviticus that I came across a paragraph that explained that on or around Rosh Hashanah it is customary to visit a body of water containing fish and recite a specific prayer - in which the people symbolically cast away their sins in order to start the new year anew (Rosh Hashanah is Jewish New Year). This recalls God's promise in Micah 7:9 that God will cast all our sins into the depth of the sea.
In preparing for this talk I began to think about Lent - which is for Christians traditionally a time of reflection and preparation in the run up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday - remembering the death of Jesus and celebrating the resurrection. But it is a tradition that is more evident in some parts of the church. The Bible does not talk about Lent and therefore it has no place in some church traditions. But in doing away with Lent I wonder if we've not thrown the baby out with the bath water. Anyway - that's something I'm thinking about at the moment. What do you do for Lent?
Thursday, 22 November 2012
It's the Cycling Santa
Today we had a visit from Mark, the cycling Santa - travelling around visiting all of the various centres helping out with Operation Christmas Child. Yesterday was a bit wet; today was a bit windy.
Then this afternoon it was off to the local Warehouse to help packing the container which is now on its way to Swaziland with nearly 8000 shoeboxes on board.
Then this afternoon it was off to the local Warehouse to help packing the container which is now on its way to Swaziland with nearly 8000 shoeboxes on board.
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
150 days to go
My countdown calendar tells me that it is only 150 days until the London Marathon 2013.
The trouble with big problems is that they often seem so big that we can't imagine how we can possibly make any difference. As a result we often end up feeling powerless and doing nothing. The statistics relating to world poverty can be totally overwhelming. And yet in the light of this situation Christian Aid has a vision - to end poverty.
Rather than being overwhelmed by the situation Christian Aid looks to work with its partners across the world to help people out of poverty, with long term solutions. These solutions are often creative and imaginative. They provide people with the resources they need to help themselves. They are often quite simple - but have an incredible impact. It's about breaking the problem down into manageable bits. About taking a global problem and looking to tackle it at not just the global - but also the individual level. Making a difference one person and one community at a time.
On 21 April I am going to be running the London Marathon for Christian Aid and I would love your support. Together we can make a difference. Whether you give £10, £25 or a £100 your kindness and support will allow Christian Aid to make a difference in the lives of some of the poorest people on the planet.
The easiest way to sponsor me is to head over to my Virgin Money Giving page by clicking here.
Otherwise you can simply get in touch by leaving a message below.
There are 150 days to go until the marathon so I will keep you posted each week - I'll let you know how my training is going, as well as post news and videos from Christian Aid
The trouble with big problems is that they often seem so big that we can't imagine how we can possibly make any difference. As a result we often end up feeling powerless and doing nothing. The statistics relating to world poverty can be totally overwhelming. And yet in the light of this situation Christian Aid has a vision - to end poverty.
Rather than being overwhelmed by the situation Christian Aid looks to work with its partners across the world to help people out of poverty, with long term solutions. These solutions are often creative and imaginative. They provide people with the resources they need to help themselves. They are often quite simple - but have an incredible impact. It's about breaking the problem down into manageable bits. About taking a global problem and looking to tackle it at not just the global - but also the individual level. Making a difference one person and one community at a time.
On 21 April I am going to be running the London Marathon for Christian Aid and I would love your support. Together we can make a difference. Whether you give £10, £25 or a £100 your kindness and support will allow Christian Aid to make a difference in the lives of some of the poorest people on the planet.
The easiest way to sponsor me is to head over to my Virgin Money Giving page by clicking here.
Otherwise you can simply get in touch by leaving a message below.
There are 150 days to go until the marathon so I will keep you posted each week - I'll let you know how my training is going, as well as post news and videos from Christian Aid
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