Happy New Year
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It is with the joy of the Lord yet upon my heart that I offer this final Pastoral greeting for the year 2015. This has been another year of much violence, pain and suffering all over the world. Wickedness is prevalent amidst the human family. The words of prophesy of "the prince of peace," Jesus, echoes continually in my mind: "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold (Mt. 24:12b).
When love is the only common sense answer, our Lord foresees and tells that the love of most of the world's people will grow cold [perhaps numbed by so much wickedness and violence]. Yet, that still small voice within me keeps telling me that we who claim Jesus as Lord, "are called for such a time as this." The words of the prophet Isaiah seem to cry out to today's Christians: "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness (hatred and injustice) is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears upon you." (Is 60:1-2)
Jesus, in John 13:34, says "A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all people will know you are my disciples, if you love one another." He further says in Matthew 5:14b: "You are the light of the world...Let your light so shine before people that they may see your good works and praise your Father in heaven." "THE ONLY THING THAT COUNTS IS FAITH EXPRESSING ITSELF THROUGH LOVE." (Galatians 5:6b)
Over 2000 years ago the light of love was born into this world in the person of the Christ child, who came to pay a debt he did not owe and humanity could not pay. God so loved the world that he gave his best, JESUS (cf. Jn 3:16). LOVE IS STILL THE ANSWER. LOVE IS THE WAY. LOVE IS THE TRUTH. LOVE IS THE LIFE, GOD IS LOVE. SO TOO IS JESUS, WHO IS ONE WITH THE FATHER.
MAY THE LOVE AND MERCY OF CHRIST JESUS RULE IN YOUR HEART.
Rev. Roland Gordon
Pastor