Posted by Rob Borley | Posted on 21-11-2005
Category : Bible, Religion, Society
Wondering around the web I recently stumbled upon a blog post about how the early Christians viewed the Sabbath. After I left a brief comment I thought it worth noting here.
As the debate continues about Sunday trading and the continuing calls to relax the Sunday trading laws even further should we, as Christians be bothered? Well I’m not entirely sure we should.
I do of course understand why parts of the Church is bothered. Societyââ?¬â?¢s move away from traditional Christian views on such things is a sign of societyââ?¬â?¢s ever increasing move away from the church however this is one battle that I’m not sure it’s worth fighting.
For the early Christians it is uncertain as to when they celebrated the Sabbath. Some were obviously converts from Judaism so may well have still used Saturday. While the Greeks may have used Sunday or some other day. Today the tradition of using Sunday comes from the fact that our Lord Jesus rose from the dead on a Sunday. The precise day we should use is not recorded, nor do I believe is that the point.
In Mark 2, after Jesus is challenged about picking grain on the Sabbath he replies with a great line.
“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”
The Sabbath was put in place by God because it’s good to have a day where we rest from our day to day work and our main focus is God. For our physical and spiritual well being it is important for us to have a day of rest in the Lord. God designed us after all, He should know.
In today�s world it does not seem feasible that everything should shut down for a day. (Maybe this is a sad thing.) And quite apart from the supermarkets being open there are obviously others that must work on a Sunday. Doctors, Police, Vicars etc.
The point of the Sabbath was not a legalism for us to follow. Simple it was God telling us that we need a day in the week to recharge our spiritual and physical batteries. And besides, sometimes I need to pop out for a loaf of bread on a Sunday *smile*
Posted by Rob Borley | Posted on 13-11-2005
Category : Bible, Information
Today on this remembrance Sunday it seems fitting to leave a simple tribute here.
“They shall not grow old as we who are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.”
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down oneââ?¬â?¢s life for his friends”
John 15:13And finally these fitting words of hope:
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, [a]
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.
Psalm 23
We will remember them.
Posted by Gareth Matthews | Posted on 31-10-2005
Category : Bible
I was at a prayer meeting this week and the person leading this came out with a comment which blew me away just a little bit. The comment was nothing new, but was expressed in such a way as to make me marvel a little bit more at how amazing God works things out. The comment was simply that, “God took away the sins of the cosmos, by placing some cells into the womb of a virgin”.
Isn’t it just incredible how God uses the smallest possible way to do the hugest possible things? We see also in Genesis 2 where God made the first human being by taking a bit of dirt and breathing on it! You would think that the all powerful God would have started off His cherished human race in a more spectacular fashion wouldn’t you.
The truth is I love it – I love the way that God does things in ways that seem absolute madness to the so called intelligent ones among us. I love the way God says (in 1 Corinthians 1):
“Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised thingsââ?¬â?and the things that are notââ?¬â?to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”
These verses are of great comfort to me – because they speak of a power that is part of the very core of who God is – and that power can be worked out in our lives through the simplest, most minute thing. In an age where every person, every business, every politician, every television programme is fighting to be the best, to be the biggest, I take heart in knowing that it is God who makes something great, it is God who makes things happen – and He could do any of those things with a bit of dirt that He picked up off the floor.
