Reflections

  The God who is with us during the crisis  Mtt.28:16-20 VVs 20 “I will be with you always, till the end of the age.”   Jesus says:” I have been given all authority iThis text, popularly considered as the Great Commissioning, is a post-resurrection appearance of Jesus Christ. Resurrection has to do with the triumph of God over all forces of evil, sin and death in the world. The purpose of those appearances is to rejuvenate the disciples for the mission of the Kingdom of God. Rather than the so-called Christian triumphalism, what matters here is the mission motif behind such appearances. Let us highlight two thoughts from the text. One: A new vision of authority. Jesus says " I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.”(Vs.18)What kind of authority did Jesus manifest? In what way it is distinct form the worldly forms of authority? Unlike the socio-political notions of authority, the one manifested by Jesus is the authority to save, to heal, to transform and to ...

  God who is with us during Crisis Mark 4:35-41 In this passage, we see the disciples follow Jesus into a storm and in the storm we learn some things about Jesus, about ourselves, and about the storms we face in life.  Storms in life can bring us to the surface of what’s inside of us. The way we react to God during a storm reveals the truth about ourselves, whether we want it to or not. Storms are testing. It is during the storms of life we discover what we really believe. Storms have a way of revealing the truth about us. We must also be able to apply that lesson by faith, which is why God allows trials, difficulties, and storms to come into our lives. Storms are the tests and opportunities to demonstrate our trust in God. Here, an intense and violent storm happens suddenly. That’s the way life is. One moment we are doing fine and the next the fallout. God does not try to trick us with this. He is not trying to hide something. God is truthful and honest about the storms of li...

  The God who is with us during the crisis  2 Corinthians 12:1-10 V9a “But he said to me, '' My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”    Apostle Paul had received many visions in his life, but the vision he described in this passage was the most amazing and remarkable one. Among Churches of those days, it was from the Church at Corinth that Paul encountered most opposition with regard to his teaching. Since Paul himself was enduring bodily sufferings, his critics opposed his teachings about suffering, and challenged his apostleship. Based on this context, Paul precisely refers to his office as an Apostle of Christ and briefly mentions the revelation he received from the Lord. He humbly related it in the third person’s experience. Rather than deflecting his sufferings, Paul has magnified his sufferings and proclaimed, ”if I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness” (Vs11:30).  Trials Will Challenge Our Faith (...

  The God who is with us during the crisis  Acts 27:9-26 Vs.22: But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down.   In Acts chapter 27 St. Paul describes a hurricane crisis during his journey from Caesarea to Rome as a prisoner. To start with by divine inspiration St. Paul advice the authorities of the ship about the impending disaster, but in the beginning things were relatively calm so the authorities did not heed to the advice of St. Paul. Remember God is beyond time. In vs19 - 20 we see the authorities became completely helpless, they even throw out the ship gear into the ocean. At this time of great difficulty authorities listen to St. Paul. God almighty is present with us at every moment of our life not only in happy times but also in burning fiery furnace (Daniel  3:17-18 ), den of lion (Daniel  6:16-23 ), in the midst of hurricane, in every crisis. God created the world and He controls each element of it. In Mark 4:39...

     The God who is with us during the crisis  Exodus 14:10-25 Vs.14 “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Our God is faithful, he will never abandon us. He is with us in our adversities just as He was with Daniel’s friends in the fiery furnace and was with Joseph in the prison. He has a plan to prosper us and not to destroy us. Adversities and calamities are unavoidable; God does not prevent it, but builds our faith through it. He strengthens us to overcome the crisis in our life when we trust in him. Faith can move mountains.  In the given portion for today, we see that the Israelites were journeying to their Promised Land and on their way they are dismayed looking at their circumstances. They face the Red Sea ahead of them. On both sides are the mountains, and they cannot scale them. They are pursued by the Egyptian armies with horses and chariots. The Israelites cannot fight them nor can they swim across the sea. They felt trapped, with n...

  The God who is with us during the crisis  Isaiah: 41:8-20 Vs: 10: - “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Have you ever had a time in your life that you would call “a crisis”? When a crisis hits our life, we may feel fear, anxiety, confusion, and intense dread. We feel that no one understands what we are going through; We even feel that no one cares; There is no one to talk to; There is just no one to share our pain and help to carry the burden. Deeper crises raise the deeper question, “What should we do now?” Isaiah 41:10 is a powerful, deep, and very personal verse. Here we can see only the references “I” and “YOU”.  In this verse, God gave great promises to Isaiah for overcoming fear.  The same resources are available for you and me during our rough times.  1)The resource for God's presence: - “Fear not, for I am with you;”  We live...

  The God who is with us during the crisis  1 peter chapter 5:6-11 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.                                                                          1 Peter 5:7  The apostle Peter wrote this letter to offer encouragement to suffering Christians. In first Peter chapter 5, we see how Peter is encouraging the elders and the believers through a hard time. Especially in verses, 6-11we see how peter talks about how we should trust that he will help us through times of trouble. So one lesson I want us to take away is that God will help us through troubling times let it be anything he will help you through it. Finally, I would like to end off with a story about a guardian angel at the gas station."I was 40 miles from home in a high-crime area for a work...

  Christmas  Luke  2:10-12 Christmas Greetings to you all in the glorious name of Christ Jesus – Immanuel.  The read Bible portion for today’s meditation focuses on the Shepherds to whom the angel came and conveyed the news of Jesus’ birth. The Shepherds were one of the first people to hear the greatest news in history. Today as we commemorate the Birth of our Lord let me share two thoughts on the bases of the good news that the shepherds heard from the Angels and relate them to our life situation today to make Christmas meaningful.  1. Let the news of Hope replace your Anxious thoughts : The Shepherds were the least in the social strata. They lived in the margins. Though they are called shepherds, they were just the caretakers of the sheep. They worked all day long in the fields and at night took the sheep for grazing. At night they had no shelter to rest and be safe. They were always vulnerable to cold weather as well as wild animals. Their future was always d...

  Christmas – the Game Changer! Colossians  1:15-23 “19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” Can you think of someone who you have a hard time getting along with? Maybe someone at school, in your family, or at work.  Maybe someone who has really hurt you, or who you hurt in some way….   Imagine if that person called you on Christmas Day and said - “Let’s work this out.  I want to do everything I can to help our relationship be better.”    What would your reaction be?    Surprise?  Disbelief?  Excitement?  Contemplation?  Feeling a little bad that you didn’t make the first step?    Regardless of your reaction, if that person truly meant it and suddenly did something new and drastic to help mend your relationship - that would be a game chang...

  Feast of the Nativity Birth of the Savior: Joy to the World 1 Timothy  1:14-17 “and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are FOUND in Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy:15 One of the most difficult parts of losing something is the frustration of knowing something is supposed to be somewhere, but when you look it’s not there. In my house, we have a place to hang our car keys right by the front door, and there is an unwritten system, that once we come in we should hang the keys so if we need to leave with the car, the keys are right there in plain sight. The problem becomes when a person (usually ME) doesn’t follow the system.  There is a range of emotions that happen when you need to leave in a hurry and you can’t find the car keys. First, you stare at the key hooks for a while, expecting magically they would appear. Then you go on the search for the keys, thinking about what you last wore, and where you last sat, and you searc...

  Mar Thoma Church Day John 14: 1-7  “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” During this time period Jesus was hinting towards his disciples about his crucifixion and death. He was making sure that the disciples were ready in time to face this situation and promised them their own place in heaven. Despite all of this, the disciples were shook and nervous about where their master was going. Jesus said that he was getting a place ready for the disciples. However the disciples were skeptical and Thomas came forward to tell Jesus that he had no idea where he was going. This caused confusion because Thomas didn’t know where Jesus was going so how could he possibly know the way? However Jesus responded saying “I am the way and the truth and the life.”  “I am the way, the Truth…” Jesus right here is the one leading and guiding us through the way to God. He exemplifies himself as the way and the only way to reach G...

  Feast of Nativity Birth of the Savior: Joy to the World Micah 5:1-9 Verse 4 – He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.  The main focus of this passage is in the verse 4.  Joy to the World, the Lord is come! This is the first line of a very common Christmas song that we sing every year. But what is the promise that is being fulfilled through Christmas and what is the new promise we are receiving? Christmas is the fulfillment of the prophecy of the birth of a savior and it is a celebration of salvation. But when we looker deeper into Micah 5:1-9, we can see that there is a new promise being given to us. Micah 5:4 highlights this promise in an amazing way.  We are given a Savior, Jesus Christ, and through his birth we are promised a shepherd. In today’s world many of us forget that we are sheep. We tend to go...

  Feast of Nativity Birth of the Savior: Joy to the World ISAIAH CHAPTER 9, Verses (1-7)  Isaiah Chapter 9 verses 1-7 is all about how the Darkness turns to Light. The first section of the chapter describes the blessing of light appearing in a place of darkness. The second section verses 6-7 talks about where we can find this hope and light when we are in the dark. In the beginning, it says “Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress.“ This verse is trying to say that those who have suffered in the name of God will see a greater reward in the future. Verses 2-5 describe how God's people who suffered will grow in number, and their joy will increase. They will be joyful in God’s presence just as men are when they beat you in war, and because of this, those who trust will break free of the pain and their burden. Verses 6-7 are very familiar verses, and we often hear this during Christmas. “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us, a Son is given; And the...

  Messiah: Fulfillment of the promise.  Hebrew  1: 1-12 Verse: “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:3  In the first century, some Jews believed in Jesus as the Messiah and yet still wanted all the rituals of Judaism. The boundaries between Christianity and Judaism weren’t clear, and these people weren’t sure where their primary identity was. This letter, for the most part, is written to Jewish people who have heard the gospel, and believed in Jesus as the Messiah, but keep running back to the law for forgiveness. Some are trying to hold on to both the old and the new, but the author shows us we only get one covenant. It is Jesus who gives us access to God.   Here, in the first sentence of this portion, there is a contrast between old and new. God spoke to the patr...

  Messiah: Fulfillment of the promise. St. John. 1:1-14   This passage is Christological in nature, and unveils the mystery of the Godhead and affirms ‘Logos’ as the source of creation. (1:3) St. John reveals that Jesus the ‘Word Incarnate’ is fully God and fully human. Although Jesus took upon himself full humanity and lived as a man, he never ceased to be the eternal God who has always existed, the Creator and Sustainer of all things and the source of eternal life. Here, I would like to highlight two points about the nature of God.   1. God is a God of relationships . The Creator God is the God of relationships, who was active in His relationship with His people. Martin Buber remarked that “in the beginning is the relationship.” Biblical history is the history of the divine-human relationship. Divine love was the source of this unique connection. Incarnation is the ultimate celebration of this bond. The ‘salvation plan’ of God in Jesus is a clear evidence of the re...

  Messiah: Fulfillment of the promise.  Galatians 4: 1-7   In today’s devotion, we will turn to Galatians Chapter 4 verses 1-7. This bible portion  focuses on being God’s heir. We are free from slavery and under God’s care.  Through these verses, we can understand that although we were originally slaves, God  later sent His one and only Son to free us from slavery and took us under His wings. Verse six  states “Because you are His sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit who  calls out, “Abba, Father.” We are removed from the bondage, and we are called sons and  daughters of Christ and with that, we are considered heirs of God. It is our responsibility as  Christians, to live a life that is pleasing to God. God loves each one of His children, despite race,  ethnicity, or background. As heirs of Christ, we are to set good examples to future generations.  In today’s day, it is very easy to fall away f...

  Messiah: Fulfillment of the promise.  Deut: 18:15-22 V 17 The Lord said to me, What they say is good, I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth.   By Biblical definition, prophets are truth-tellers. The word prophet has been so redefined by modern society and even Christians have a hard time accepting the concept.  Many of us have a mental picture of a prophet as a man with straggling hair, with big eyes wide open with predictions of the future, however, the Biblical prophets are spokesmen for God, sent by God, speak in the Lord's name and what they say will come true. As we look at v.17, the prophet is more concerned with the delivery of God's instructions for now and then as God needs it than just predicting the future as he thinks. The predictions of prophets focus on the consequences of disobedience to God's law.        Prophet Jonah, for example, disobeyed ...