Volume 10 Issue 2

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Nov-Dec-2013

THEME : REASON WITH SEASON

Positive thoughtsare not enough.There have to bepositive feelings

andpositive actions.

CHRISTIAN THOUGHT SERIES - BI MONTHLY MAGAZINE

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TEACHING SESSION - MAHABALIPURAM

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

The Season of Christmas is no more considered to be a

sensible celebration. It has become a mockery of all sorts.

Fearing extremes, a certain Christian denomination had done

away with Christmas. They argue saying, “Christmas has no biblical

historicity”, calling it a heathen festival. For the rest of Christian

denominations, utter thoughtlessness and disregard for both God and

man mark the festivities. We must not be ashamed to acknowledge that

most of what we call as Celebrations of the Season are nothing but

abomination to God. Christmas is at most has become an event of

extravagance- both cultural and social which gives vent to man’s unbridled

lust for consumerism.

We have drifted far away from Biblical faith. If at all we celebrate

Christmas, two things must come to our minds. One, The Beloved Heavenly

Father – giving away His Son for the highest and greatest purpose of

redeeming mankind, and two, The Son of God leaving behind all His glory

and splendor to submit to the will of God to become one like us (John

3:16; Phil.2:5-17). This is, essentially what we call as the crux of the gospel.

All at the same time, God was preparing a vessel of honour through

the womb of a young virgin called Mary. When a man or woman aligns

himself/herself in accordance to the Father’s will, miracles happen. And

it was the miracle of the virgin birth – which we call the incarnation of

Jesus Christ. A young virgin submitted herself to God’s will saying, “May

it be to me as you have said.” (Lk 1:38). Mary took God’s word seriously

"All the unhappiness

of men arises from

one single fact, that

they cannot stay

quietly in their own

chamber."- Blaise Pascal

pledged to be married to Joseph “(Luke 2:27). The Bible is silent and had

not provided any information about Mary’s parents . We might assume

the incident of Mary found to be pregnant out of wedlock may have

rocked her family which had sparked a furore by her parents and other

relatives.

At most, when a news such as this breaks out, it would end up in

stoning her to death. No doubt, Mary would have been the object of

jealousy among her peers for she must have been pretty and good looking

teen-ager. Friends of her age might have begun a gossip campaign.

Jealousy would soon erupt in to a scandal too. Now we understand why

Mary was “greatly troubled at the angel’s words (v.29).

Nevertheless, Mary had cleared her preliminaries! How? Six months

before, a priest by the name Zechariah had encountered a similar angelic

visitation. To him, the meeting with the angel was at the temple’s inner

sanctum. In the midst of his priestly duties, the announcement of the

birth of a child to him was made by the angel. But to Zechariah, bearing

a child in the old age was just a dream. It may be that both Zechariah and

Elizabeth had prayed for a child for many years. Nothing happened. After

some years, they probably would have stopped praying. They might

have thought that the child bearing age itself was well past. “When the

womb itself is dried up, why at all pray?” was their reason. This event

is something similar to what happened to Abraham and Sarah. Abraham,

who is called the father of faith had his inner conflicts as to God’s promise

of a son. His doubtful act brought in to the world Ishmael before the

promised heir. Zechariah was no exception too. For doubting what God

was about to do, He was summarily admonished by the angel and

dumbstruck for a period of time. Unlike Mary, the godly priest failed in

his preliminaries. Back in the Old Testament again, God chose to call a

young lad called Samuel to the rejection of the temple priest – Eli.

u u u uu u u uu u u uu u

u u u uu u u uu u u uu u

"Everybody'salways talking

about people breaking into

houses… but there are more

people in the world who want

to break out of their houses"

- Thornton Wilder.

at its face-value. The greeting and announcement

by the angel Gabriel had serious implications for

Mary. To her, there was risk and danger to life

itself. Perhaps, life to her was at its peril. The

community’s disapproval of a young virgin, just

betrothed - found to be pregnant would have had

terrifying repercussions. Naturally, Mary was

perturbed. In the Bible, we have the genealogy

of Joseph-to be a descendant of Joseph. But

Mary was just addressed as a young “ virgin

This leads us to further understand to

some extent the ultimate sovereignty of God.

No one could ever tell why God had to choose

Mary. The doctrine of “Election.” and “

predestination” are far beyond human

comprehension. So it is with the Doctrine of

Trinity. That is why we must seriously take

God’s word at its face-value- nay, its faith-

1 2

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

The Season of Christmas is no more considered to be a

sensible celebration. It has become a mockery of all sorts.

Fearing extremes, a certain Christian denomination had done

away with Christmas. They argue saying, “Christmas has no biblical

historicity”, calling it a heathen festival. For the rest of Christian

denominations, utter thoughtlessness and disregard for both God and

man mark the festivities. We must not be ashamed to acknowledge that

most of what we call as Celebrations of the Season are nothing but

abomination to God. Christmas is at most has become an event of

extravagance- both cultural and social which gives vent to man’s unbridled

lust for consumerism.

We have drifted far away from Biblical faith. If at all we celebrate

Christmas, two things must come to our minds. One, The Beloved Heavenly

Father – giving away His Son for the highest and greatest purpose of

redeeming mankind, and two, The Son of God leaving behind all His glory

and splendor to submit to the will of God to become one like us (John

3:16; Phil.2:5-17). This is, essentially what we call as the crux of the gospel.

All at the same time, God was preparing a vessel of honour through

the womb of a young virgin called Mary. When a man or woman aligns

himself/herself in accordance to the Father’s will, miracles happen. And

it was the miracle of the virgin birth – which we call the incarnation of

Jesus Christ. A young virgin submitted herself to God’s will saying, “May

it be to me as you have said.” (Lk 1:38). Mary took God’s word seriously

"All the unhappiness

of men arises from

one single fact, that

they cannot stay

quietly in their own

chamber."- Blaise Pascal

pledged to be married to Joseph “(Luke 2:27). The Bible is silent and had

not provided any information about Mary’s parents . We might assume

the incident of Mary found to be pregnant out of wedlock may have

rocked her family which had sparked a furore by her parents and other

relatives.

At most, when a news such as this breaks out, it would end up in

stoning her to death. No doubt, Mary would have been the object of

jealousy among her peers for she must have been pretty and good looking

teen-ager. Friends of her age might have begun a gossip campaign.

Jealousy would soon erupt in to a scandal too. Now we understand why

Mary was “greatly troubled at the angel’s words (v.29).

Nevertheless, Mary had cleared her preliminaries! How? Six months

before, a priest by the name Zechariah had encountered a similar angelic

visitation. To him, the meeting with the angel was at the temple’s inner

sanctum. In the midst of his priestly duties, the announcement of the

birth of a child to him was made by the angel. But to Zechariah, bearing

a child in the old age was just a dream. It may be that both Zechariah and

Elizabeth had prayed for a child for many years. Nothing happened. After

some years, they probably would have stopped praying. They might

have thought that the child bearing age itself was well past. “When the

womb itself is dried up, why at all pray?” was their reason. This event

is something similar to what happened to Abraham and Sarah. Abraham,

who is called the father of faith had his inner conflicts as to God’s promise

of a son. His doubtful act brought in to the world Ishmael before the

promised heir. Zechariah was no exception too. For doubting what God

was about to do, He was summarily admonished by the angel and

dumbstruck for a period of time. Unlike Mary, the godly priest failed in

his preliminaries. Back in the Old Testament again, God chose to call a

young lad called Samuel to the rejection of the temple priest – Eli.

u u u uu u u uu u u uu u

u u u uu u u uu u u uu u

"Everybody'salways talking

about people breaking into

houses… but there are more

people in the world who want

to break out of their houses"

- Thornton Wilder.

at its face-value. The greeting and announcement

by the angel Gabriel had serious implications for

Mary. To her, there was risk and danger to life

itself. Perhaps, life to her was at its peril. The

community’s disapproval of a young virgin, just

betrothed - found to be pregnant would have had

terrifying repercussions. Naturally, Mary was

perturbed. In the Bible, we have the genealogy

of Joseph-to be a descendant of Joseph. But

Mary was just addressed as a young “ virgin

This leads us to further understand to

some extent the ultimate sovereignty of God.

No one could ever tell why God had to choose

Mary. The doctrine of “Election.” and “

predestination” are far beyond human

comprehension. So it is with the Doctrine of

Trinity. That is why we must seriously take

God’s word at its face-value- nay, its faith-

1 2

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

value! It is like saying: “I do not know how, but I simply trust in what God

says.” No human can possibly reason out why or what God does certain

things that are very contrary to human understanding. Zechariah applied

his logic and was dumbstruck. Mary trusted God against her own reasoning

and was complimented by her cousin as blessed among women!

But still, Mary was at the risk of becoming the target of people’s

anger and vilification. We live in a corrupt and wayward society. The Bible

phrases it as “perverse and crooked.” There is a general disregard for

moral and ethical uprightness among the majority of people in the modern

world. Lasciviousness in all its finer cultural forms is available aplenty

everywhere. People take no notice of it. In fact, they promote it. We are

part of a permissive society. But then, people express their outburst of

emotions when a particular case is hyped by the media. For example, in

recent months, the outcry of protestors against Delhi Gang Rape offenders

rent the heavens. “Hang them,” was their chorus. No doubt, what

happened in Delhi was a heinous crime of savagery – showing no or little

respect for an individual’s life. The barbaric act sent shock waves across

the country. I am raising a point here: “When there is a moral mess all

around, where does righteous indignation come from?” I might be

tempted to call this a selective, subjective indignation. When there is law

(moral law too), but no justice (where justice is perverted), justice is truly

blind-folded! Why did not the nation cry out against Dharasingh and his

men who torched Graham Staines and his two very young sons? In

Khandamal- Orissa (India), the news of widespread violence against

Christians was known throughout the world. A nun was mercilessly raped.

She was dragged on to the road. But there was no outcry like the one

that we witnessed in Delhi. No women groups went on a procession. In

Barakhuma village in Orissa, I met the villagers who told me that a girl

among them was raped and burned. She survived and later hospitalized.

Her parents were killed. The government was a silent spectator. No one

said then: “Hang the perpetrators!” The perpetrators were allowed to go

scot-free for a very long time.

Those Pharisees who brought the woman caught in the adultery

was not condemned by Jesus. Instead, the ‘holier-than-thou’ men were

told by Jesus: “He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone on her!”

It is always good for Christians not to be caught up with media hype. They

must be those who exercise their discernment with moderation and

sensibility. Whipping up people’s unbridled emotions by presenting

sensational stories and clippings must never be the sole motive of the

media. Often times, it is the inner story or the other side of the story

which goes uncovered either by the reporter or the lens-men.

In the case of Mary, we are not told in the Bible how many stories

were circulated about her in her locality. Obeying God has its consequences

too. Perhaps, some of us are going through a similar situation like that of

Mary. It is a case of the whole world turning against you! There is no way

to defend, respond or react. In unison, the voice of the people seem to

reach a crescendo. “Away with him! “ “Away with Him”. This is what

happened to the son of Mary thirty-three years later.

There is yet another character who often goes unnoticed in the

whole nativity scene. But he was introduced in the gospel as a ” righteous

man.” This was Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus. He began to sense

that something went wrong with Mary. Mary was “pledged to be married”

to Him. Unlike other men, Joseph acted with a certain amount of dignity.

His marriage was almost falling apart. He was determined to divorce Mary

quietly. (Matt.1:18-19). Think of many marriages ending up in divorces or

preparations for marriage after betrothal coming to a halt just because

there were some rumour-mongers who were spreading a rumour on the

conduct of the girl or the boy. What is being reported? What is the actual

case? Whenever we hear a startling report, these are points seriously to

be considered by sensible Christians before coming to premature

conclusions.

From our point of view, let’s think: What if

Joseph dubbed Mary as becoming unfaithful to him?

For a young man, his dreams and hopes of a bright

marriage had collapsed. But then, he too was

instructed by the angel in a dream. No sooner, we

find Joseph submitting himself to God’s direction.

Mary had a direct encounter with the angel. Joseph

simply had a dream. Both collided to form a big

12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012

"Freedom is not free. It is very costly. Illusion that money,independence and distance would provide freedom is a fallacy"

- Warren. W. Wiersbe.

3 4

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

value! It is like saying: “I do not know how, but I simply trust in what God

says.” No human can possibly reason out why or what God does certain

things that are very contrary to human understanding. Zechariah applied

his logic and was dumbstruck. Mary trusted God against her own reasoning

and was complimented by her cousin as blessed among women!

But still, Mary was at the risk of becoming the target of people’s

anger and vilification. We live in a corrupt and wayward society. The Bible

phrases it as “perverse and crooked.” There is a general disregard for

moral and ethical uprightness among the majority of people in the modern

world. Lasciviousness in all its finer cultural forms is available aplenty

everywhere. People take no notice of it. In fact, they promote it. We are

part of a permissive society. But then, people express their outburst of

emotions when a particular case is hyped by the media. For example, in

recent months, the outcry of protestors against Delhi Gang Rape offenders

rent the heavens. “Hang them,” was their chorus. No doubt, what

happened in Delhi was a heinous crime of savagery – showing no or little

respect for an individual’s life. The barbaric act sent shock waves across

the country. I am raising a point here: “When there is a moral mess all

around, where does righteous indignation come from?” I might be

tempted to call this a selective, subjective indignation. When there is law

(moral law too), but no justice (where justice is perverted), justice is truly

blind-folded! Why did not the nation cry out against Dharasingh and his

men who torched Graham Staines and his two very young sons? In

Khandamal- Orissa (India), the news of widespread violence against

Christians was known throughout the world. A nun was mercilessly raped.

She was dragged on to the road. But there was no outcry like the one

that we witnessed in Delhi. No women groups went on a procession. In

Barakhuma village in Orissa, I met the villagers who told me that a girl

among them was raped and burned. She survived and later hospitalized.

Her parents were killed. The government was a silent spectator. No one

said then: “Hang the perpetrators!” The perpetrators were allowed to go

scot-free for a very long time.

Those Pharisees who brought the woman caught in the adultery

was not condemned by Jesus. Instead, the ‘holier-than-thou’ men were

told by Jesus: “He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone on her!”

It is always good for Christians not to be caught up with media hype. They

must be those who exercise their discernment with moderation and

sensibility. Whipping up people’s unbridled emotions by presenting

sensational stories and clippings must never be the sole motive of the

media. Often times, it is the inner story or the other side of the story

which goes uncovered either by the reporter or the lens-men.

In the case of Mary, we are not told in the Bible how many stories

were circulated about her in her locality. Obeying God has its consequences

too. Perhaps, some of us are going through a similar situation like that of

Mary. It is a case of the whole world turning against you! There is no way

to defend, respond or react. In unison, the voice of the people seem to

reach a crescendo. “Away with him! “ “Away with Him”. This is what

happened to the son of Mary thirty-three years later.

There is yet another character who often goes unnoticed in the

whole nativity scene. But he was introduced in the gospel as a ” righteous

man.” This was Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus. He began to sense

that something went wrong with Mary. Mary was “pledged to be married”

to Him. Unlike other men, Joseph acted with a certain amount of dignity.

His marriage was almost falling apart. He was determined to divorce Mary

quietly. (Matt.1:18-19). Think of many marriages ending up in divorces or

preparations for marriage after betrothal coming to a halt just because

there were some rumour-mongers who were spreading a rumour on the

conduct of the girl or the boy. What is being reported? What is the actual

case? Whenever we hear a startling report, these are points seriously to

be considered by sensible Christians before coming to premature

conclusions.

From our point of view, let’s think: What if

Joseph dubbed Mary as becoming unfaithful to him?

For a young man, his dreams and hopes of a bright

marriage had collapsed. But then, he too was

instructed by the angel in a dream. No sooner, we

find Joseph submitting himself to God’s direction.

Mary had a direct encounter with the angel. Joseph

simply had a dream. Both collided to form a big

12345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012123456789012345678901234567890121234567890123456789012345678901212345678901234567890123456789012

"Freedom is not free. It is very costly. Illusion that money,independence and distance would provide freedom is a fallacy"

- Warren. W. Wiersbe.

3 4

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

picture of God’s plan. There was no more uncertainty of any kind. Both

were united. They had become man and wife. And they took a major

decision. The rest is history. We find that both of them acted with

tremendous unity of mind and purpose. Sadly though, something of this

sort is missing out from most of the Christian homes. Each one is

functioning independent of the other. Yet each one calls himself/herself

very spiritual. What purchases the wife makes, the husband is unaware.

Where or with whom the husband spends the evenings, the wife does not

know. Therefore, each of them makes convenient plans to suit one

another. We said earlier that when a family is united to carry out God’s

purposes, miracles would happen. But this is rarely the case in Christian

homes. Most homes worry about ”What shall we eat, what shall we

wear” kind of matters. During this season, this pang gets all the more

aggravated.

Touching upon the issue of the nature of Christian homes today,

one thing is evident. No doubt, there is ‘a form of godliness – without

the power of God (2 Tim. 3:5). They are those who take all pains to please

the world – friends, peers, colleagues etc., They work out their plans,

ignoring God’s counsel for their families. Like Lot in the Old Testament,

many of our homes are controlled by external impulse than by inner

prompting by the Spirit. Our thoughts vary to such a degree that many

homes end up in divorce or live under the same roof all through their life

with disagreement. When spouses begin to disagree just on the basics,

there is nothing God can do with him. They can just go to work to earn.

They return home like robots – conditioned by mundane commitments.

God does not have pre-eminence in their lives. There is no family altar.

This means that they have no time to study the Word of God and pray.

“Celebrations are alright”, they say. “What is there to life even without

these?” they might argue.

Many homes today present a picture of a “flickering torch” and

“bruised reed.” Life just goes on. There are many couples who are truly

gifted. Their children possess brilliant minds. The one thing they are

lacking is the unity of mind. Disagreement on trivial things is the cause

for division, bitterness and resentment. In most cases, the issues arise

on the basis of money and material things. Some issues spring out of ego

and of intellectual superiority. Who among us is greater? This question is

enough to spark a fight.

To cover up this, they dress up well and show up in public events and

gatherings! They might share each other a wedding or a birthday gift. Families

are just trying to be culturally refined before the watching world. Disagreement

is not a bad thing. For example, a statement such as “I disagree to all that is

ungodly in my house” is the basis for healthy disagreement. Just because I

love my wife does not mean I agree to all her whims and fancies. If both the

spouses are supposedly “godly” (I mean, not just a form of godliness), and are

able to “discern” what is the good and perfect will of God, much of chaos in

our homes can be resolved. The problem is compounded with the so-called

‘godly couple’ when each of them tends to claim their own “revelation” on a

particular issue. There may be a husband exercising “superiority” because he

earns the bread and possesses veto power on all matters. In a home such as

this, the wife turns out to be just a scum. In the case of a wife who married

off her husband by way of her wealth and education, “superiority” works in

her favour. She tries in every bit to make her husband dance to her tune!

What’s for cooking? She alone would decide! On issues of either freedom

or disciplining of children-she alone exercises her rod of power.

Let us look at Joseph and Mary. Consider the ordeals they endured

together. Think of their flight to Egypt to save their new born. How

desperately they kept searching for an inn, knocking from door-to-door

in that cold and wintry night. How much pain Joseph would have endured?

His own dream of marrying Mary had been collapsed. There is no other

word of commendation or his sacrifices lauded anywhere in the Bible. In

the case of Mary, she was called as Blessed. The Roman Catholic church

had gone to the extent of making her a deity and venerating her But

Joseph also took God at his face value. In essence, God chose this couple

on earth to fulfill His purpose. Both Mary and Joseph submitted to God’s

will. They obeyed God despite all the consequences.

What are some of your own consequences of obeying God?

Can God turn members of our family to be vessels of honour, this

Chrstmas?

Joshua Dhanabalan.

uuuuuu

"A man's worse difficulties begin whenhe is able to do as he likes."

-Thomas H. Huxley.

5 6

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

picture of God’s plan. There was no more uncertainty of any kind. Both

were united. They had become man and wife. And they took a major

decision. The rest is history. We find that both of them acted with

tremendous unity of mind and purpose. Sadly though, something of this

sort is missing out from most of the Christian homes. Each one is

functioning independent of the other. Yet each one calls himself/herself

very spiritual. What purchases the wife makes, the husband is unaware.

Where or with whom the husband spends the evenings, the wife does not

know. Therefore, each of them makes convenient plans to suit one

another. We said earlier that when a family is united to carry out God’s

purposes, miracles would happen. But this is rarely the case in Christian

homes. Most homes worry about ”What shall we eat, what shall we

wear” kind of matters. During this season, this pang gets all the more

aggravated.

Touching upon the issue of the nature of Christian homes today,

one thing is evident. No doubt, there is ‘a form of godliness – without

the power of God (2 Tim. 3:5). They are those who take all pains to please

the world – friends, peers, colleagues etc., They work out their plans,

ignoring God’s counsel for their families. Like Lot in the Old Testament,

many of our homes are controlled by external impulse than by inner

prompting by the Spirit. Our thoughts vary to such a degree that many

homes end up in divorce or live under the same roof all through their life

with disagreement. When spouses begin to disagree just on the basics,

there is nothing God can do with him. They can just go to work to earn.

They return home like robots – conditioned by mundane commitments.

God does not have pre-eminence in their lives. There is no family altar.

This means that they have no time to study the Word of God and pray.

“Celebrations are alright”, they say. “What is there to life even without

these?” they might argue.

Many homes today present a picture of a “flickering torch” and

“bruised reed.” Life just goes on. There are many couples who are truly

gifted. Their children possess brilliant minds. The one thing they are

lacking is the unity of mind. Disagreement on trivial things is the cause

for division, bitterness and resentment. In most cases, the issues arise

on the basis of money and material things. Some issues spring out of ego

and of intellectual superiority. Who among us is greater? This question is

enough to spark a fight.

To cover up this, they dress up well and show up in public events and

gatherings! They might share each other a wedding or a birthday gift. Families

are just trying to be culturally refined before the watching world. Disagreement

is not a bad thing. For example, a statement such as “I disagree to all that is

ungodly in my house” is the basis for healthy disagreement. Just because I

love my wife does not mean I agree to all her whims and fancies. If both the

spouses are supposedly “godly” (I mean, not just a form of godliness), and are

able to “discern” what is the good and perfect will of God, much of chaos in

our homes can be resolved. The problem is compounded with the so-called

‘godly couple’ when each of them tends to claim their own “revelation” on a

particular issue. There may be a husband exercising “superiority” because he

earns the bread and possesses veto power on all matters. In a home such as

this, the wife turns out to be just a scum. In the case of a wife who married

off her husband by way of her wealth and education, “superiority” works in

her favour. She tries in every bit to make her husband dance to her tune!

What’s for cooking? She alone would decide! On issues of either freedom

or disciplining of children-she alone exercises her rod of power.

Let us look at Joseph and Mary. Consider the ordeals they endured

together. Think of their flight to Egypt to save their new born. How

desperately they kept searching for an inn, knocking from door-to-door

in that cold and wintry night. How much pain Joseph would have endured?

His own dream of marrying Mary had been collapsed. There is no other

word of commendation or his sacrifices lauded anywhere in the Bible. In

the case of Mary, she was called as Blessed. The Roman Catholic church

had gone to the extent of making her a deity and venerating her But

Joseph also took God at his face value. In essence, God chose this couple

on earth to fulfill His purpose. Both Mary and Joseph submitted to God’s

will. They obeyed God despite all the consequences.

What are some of your own consequences of obeying God?

Can God turn members of our family to be vessels of honour, this

Chrstmas?

Joshua Dhanabalan.

uuuuuu

"A man's worse difficulties begin whenhe is able to do as he likes."

-Thomas H. Huxley.

5 6

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

It is an incredible thing to know that from time immemorial, people

took utmost care in naming their children. Even before a child

was born, parents had begun looking everywhere with a hope of

finding the best name which matched their child. The Book of Genesis

accounts for the details of the creation, but tells us how God meticulously

gave appropriate names to all the creatures.

Are you really happy the way you have been named by your parents?

Some names are hard to pronounce! Christians seem to be too biblical in

naming their children. Not many know that even some of those bible names

have negative connotation. Those people who disliked their names go through

the legal process of changing their names and get it published through an

offical gazette. And sadly, those who have become Christians have not effected

change in their documents as to their name or religion. They continue to be

called as a Hindu in their work place and Christian in a church group. Their old

official document has a name – say, Saravanan and the church calls him

Samuel! This also has deeper implications in India where people do not want

to change name/religion lest they lose the employment privileges provided

by the government based on a certain caste or community.

I can recall my school days when my classmate had a name called

Gnaneswari, which meant a person with wisdom but unfortunately she was a

slow learner and would fail in all the subjects and my teacher would call her

Agnaneshwari, meaning a person without knowledge. There are many people

whose names do not match up with their character. A girl with a name Sundari

may turn out to be an ugly duckling! (Sundari, by the way is beautiful). As we

meet people in our day to day walk of life we come across many who have

beautiful names but their character do not match with their names.

(By Rita Dhanabalan)

"There is a difference between "freedom to enjoy" and "the enjoyment

of freedom." In whatever man does without God, he must fail miser-

ably or succeed more miserably" - George Mc Donald.

As the season of Christmas ushers in, let us reflect on the names given

to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ before he was born.

Isaiah 9:6 reads: “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us:

authority rests upon his shoulders and he named Wonderful counselor, Mighty

God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. “

Not a church would miss out reading the above passage during this

season!

Wonderful counselor

Recently the people of Tamil Nadu were rudely shaken up when they

heard about the ghastly murder of a Principal of an engineering college in

Tuticorin in October 2013. There was lot of debate which had taken place in

many places and in the media to discuss what could have gone wrong with

those three young students from the same college who were involved in the

murder. Different social forums(fora) expressed their concern and urged the

colleges to consider recruiting counselors who will help students with right

direction. It is not just one incidence. It has become the order of the day.

What do we read in the news paper every day? We hear of murder, rape,

theft, trafficking, drug addiction, alcoholism, betrayal, rejection, divorce and

so on. If only the agitated minds of those young students had been provided

with good counsel, a precious life could have been saved and a number of

such recurrent problems averted in the society.

Often when we are faced with critical situations in life, as an immediate

remedy, we are tempted to run to a human counselor. Indeed we do need

them but as a followers of Jesus Christ do we go to our Lord Jesus who is our

Wonderful Counselor? Dear friend, who is your counselor at this moment? A

psychiatrist or a famous preacher? Some Christians even resort to go to a

fortune teller. There are Christians who still believe that God’s blessing can be

sought by undertaking pilgrimage to certain shrines and through the offering

of money or gifts. Many Christians still have a superstitious belief that in

some “Christian” centres miraculous powers exist which are able to bring

health and healing to its devotees.

In A NameWHAT’S ?

7 8

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

It is an incredible thing to know that from time immemorial, people

took utmost care in naming their children. Even before a child

was born, parents had begun looking everywhere with a hope of

finding the best name which matched their child. The Book of Genesis

accounts for the details of the creation, but tells us how God meticulously

gave appropriate names to all the creatures.

Are you really happy the way you have been named by your parents?

Some names are hard to pronounce! Christians seem to be too biblical in

naming their children. Not many know that even some of those bible names

have negative connotation. Those people who disliked their names go through

the legal process of changing their names and get it published through an

offical gazette. And sadly, those who have become Christians have not effected

change in their documents as to their name or religion. They continue to be

called as a Hindu in their work place and Christian in a church group. Their old

official document has a name – say, Saravanan and the church calls him

Samuel! This also has deeper implications in India where people do not want

to change name/religion lest they lose the employment privileges provided

by the government based on a certain caste or community.

I can recall my school days when my classmate had a name called

Gnaneswari, which meant a person with wisdom but unfortunately she was a

slow learner and would fail in all the subjects and my teacher would call her

Agnaneshwari, meaning a person without knowledge. There are many people

whose names do not match up with their character. A girl with a name Sundari

may turn out to be an ugly duckling! (Sundari, by the way is beautiful). As we

meet people in our day to day walk of life we come across many who have

beautiful names but their character do not match with their names.

(By Rita Dhanabalan)

"There is a difference between "freedom to enjoy" and "the enjoyment

of freedom." In whatever man does without God, he must fail miser-

ably or succeed more miserably" - George Mc Donald.

As the season of Christmas ushers in, let us reflect on the names given

to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ before he was born.

Isaiah 9:6 reads: “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us:

authority rests upon his shoulders and he named Wonderful counselor, Mighty

God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. “

Not a church would miss out reading the above passage during this

season!

Wonderful counselor

Recently the people of Tamil Nadu were rudely shaken up when they

heard about the ghastly murder of a Principal of an engineering college in

Tuticorin in October 2013. There was lot of debate which had taken place in

many places and in the media to discuss what could have gone wrong with

those three young students from the same college who were involved in the

murder. Different social forums(fora) expressed their concern and urged the

colleges to consider recruiting counselors who will help students with right

direction. It is not just one incidence. It has become the order of the day.

What do we read in the news paper every day? We hear of murder, rape,

theft, trafficking, drug addiction, alcoholism, betrayal, rejection, divorce and

so on. If only the agitated minds of those young students had been provided

with good counsel, a precious life could have been saved and a number of

such recurrent problems averted in the society.

Often when we are faced with critical situations in life, as an immediate

remedy, we are tempted to run to a human counselor. Indeed we do need

them but as a followers of Jesus Christ do we go to our Lord Jesus who is our

Wonderful Counselor? Dear friend, who is your counselor at this moment? A

psychiatrist or a famous preacher? Some Christians even resort to go to a

fortune teller. There are Christians who still believe that God’s blessing can be

sought by undertaking pilgrimage to certain shrines and through the offering

of money or gifts. Many Christians still have a superstitious belief that in

some “Christian” centres miraculous powers exist which are able to bring

health and healing to its devotees.

In A NameWHAT’S ?

7 8

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

God’s Word says: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you

should go, I will counsel you with my loving eye on you, says the Lord” ( Ps

32:8). God’s word is our instructor. It is always better to seek God’s counsel

through His Word than rushing to find the counsel of an elderly people of God

especially when we are at the cross roads and while making major decisions

and choices in life. The important decisions may involve finding a suitable

job, entering full-time ministry, finding a marriage partner, choosing a career

etc., Our God is a wonderful counselor. During this Season, many of us may be

going through tough situations of finding God’s guidance on important issues.

May this be a time of blessing when the Lord’s counsel prevail over human

guidance. By heeding to His counsel, we could avert chaos, conflicts and

catastrophic events.

Mighty God

When the news reached king Jehoshaphat that the Moabites and the

Ammonites were preparing to wage war against him, he was terribly upset

and perplexed (2 Chronicles 20 : 1-30). However, the first thing that he did

was to seek the help of the Lord. He called the whole nation for fasting and

prayer. A thorough reading of the entire chapter would tell us how wonderfully

the Lord saved the nation from their enemies. Our Lord led the Israelites

through the desert The Red-sea parted and they walked through dry land. He

provided them heavenly manna. He quenched their thirst when water gushed

out from the rock. Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead. Lazarus came

alive from the grave after four days. He turned water into wine. Our God is a

mighty God. “The Lord your God is with you and He is mighty to save”

(Zephaniah 3:17). Dear reader are you experiencing situations that seem like

mountains? What is the point in praying? Things seem just impossible. God is

not interested in my problem any more! Is this how you feel? By utter faith,

remember that we have a God who is mighty. He is mighty to save you and

me provided our lives are submitted to His will.

Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah

Pilgrim, through this barren land;

I am weak, but Thou art mighty;

Hold me with Thy powerful hand:

Bread of heaven,

Feed me till I want no more.

-Thomas Hastings

Everlasting Father

Fathers who belong to the contemporary world are generally considered

to be very caring, and responsible with regard to the well-being of their

children. There are, however, exceptions. Responsible fathers toil all their

lives to see that their children receive good education. On Sundays, sparing

no pains, they take them to the Sunday school. Besides providing them extra-

curricular activities, they are very particular that their children enjoy a

comfortable life. In most families, both the husband and wife shoulder

responsibilities so as to take care of their children.

A son or a daughter who reciprocated the love of the father, imagine

the sudden passing away of him from your life. It leaves a deep void which

seems difficult to be filled with any other thing. If the family was dependent

on him financially, then it may be probable that it would go through a sudden

crisis and become insecure in the absence of a breadwinner in the family. It is

during such times we recognize the significance of our dear one in our lives.

But the truth is that each of us have to leave this world and none of the

relationships that we cherish in this world are permanent. The one whom we

considered as the tower of strength and support were no longer with us. We

can always cherish the good memory of such fathers and praise God for their

lives and testimony. As believers, we need to remember that we have a

Heavenly Father who will never leave nor forsake us. That is why He is called

as the Everlasting Father. How comforting it is to know and experience the

Father’s presence at all times. When the disciples wanted Jesus to teach them

how to pray, He taught them to begin the prayer by saying - “Our Father in

heaven…. (Mathew 6: 9). He is our caring Father who provides all our needs.

“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,

how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who

ask him?” (Mathew 7:11). Can we imagine a father who is a drunkard

encourage his son to drink like him? That is what Jesus meant when he said-

“You are evil, but know how to give good gifts to your children”.

9 10

"Ignoring the "discipline of delay" and "postponing of pleasures"

will result in making us immature and impatient people"

- Warren W. Wiersbe.

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

God’s Word says: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you

should go, I will counsel you with my loving eye on you, says the Lord” ( Ps

32:8). God’s word is our instructor. It is always better to seek God’s counsel

through His Word than rushing to find the counsel of an elderly people of God

especially when we are at the cross roads and while making major decisions

and choices in life. The important decisions may involve finding a suitable

job, entering full-time ministry, finding a marriage partner, choosing a career

etc., Our God is a wonderful counselor. During this Season, many of us may be

going through tough situations of finding God’s guidance on important issues.

May this be a time of blessing when the Lord’s counsel prevail over human

guidance. By heeding to His counsel, we could avert chaos, conflicts and

catastrophic events.

Mighty God

When the news reached king Jehoshaphat that the Moabites and the

Ammonites were preparing to wage war against him, he was terribly upset

and perplexed (2 Chronicles 20 : 1-30). However, the first thing that he did

was to seek the help of the Lord. He called the whole nation for fasting and

prayer. A thorough reading of the entire chapter would tell us how wonderfully

the Lord saved the nation from their enemies. Our Lord led the Israelites

through the desert The Red-sea parted and they walked through dry land. He

provided them heavenly manna. He quenched their thirst when water gushed

out from the rock. Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead. Lazarus came

alive from the grave after four days. He turned water into wine. Our God is a

mighty God. “The Lord your God is with you and He is mighty to save”

(Zephaniah 3:17). Dear reader are you experiencing situations that seem like

mountains? What is the point in praying? Things seem just impossible. God is

not interested in my problem any more! Is this how you feel? By utter faith,

remember that we have a God who is mighty. He is mighty to save you and

me provided our lives are submitted to His will.

Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah

Pilgrim, through this barren land;

I am weak, but Thou art mighty;

Hold me with Thy powerful hand:

Bread of heaven,

Feed me till I want no more.

-Thomas Hastings

Everlasting Father

Fathers who belong to the contemporary world are generally considered

to be very caring, and responsible with regard to the well-being of their

children. There are, however, exceptions. Responsible fathers toil all their

lives to see that their children receive good education. On Sundays, sparing

no pains, they take them to the Sunday school. Besides providing them extra-

curricular activities, they are very particular that their children enjoy a

comfortable life. In most families, both the husband and wife shoulder

responsibilities so as to take care of their children.

A son or a daughter who reciprocated the love of the father, imagine

the sudden passing away of him from your life. It leaves a deep void which

seems difficult to be filled with any other thing. If the family was dependent

on him financially, then it may be probable that it would go through a sudden

crisis and become insecure in the absence of a breadwinner in the family. It is

during such times we recognize the significance of our dear one in our lives.

But the truth is that each of us have to leave this world and none of the

relationships that we cherish in this world are permanent. The one whom we

considered as the tower of strength and support were no longer with us. We

can always cherish the good memory of such fathers and praise God for their

lives and testimony. As believers, we need to remember that we have a

Heavenly Father who will never leave nor forsake us. That is why He is called

as the Everlasting Father. How comforting it is to know and experience the

Father’s presence at all times. When the disciples wanted Jesus to teach them

how to pray, He taught them to begin the prayer by saying - “Our Father in

heaven…. (Mathew 6: 9). He is our caring Father who provides all our needs.

“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,

how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who

ask him?” (Mathew 7:11). Can we imagine a father who is a drunkard

encourage his son to drink like him? That is what Jesus meant when he said-

“You are evil, but know how to give good gifts to your children”.

9 10

"Ignoring the "discipline of delay" and "postponing of pleasures"

will result in making us immature and impatient people"

- Warren W. Wiersbe.

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

** What do the names of Jesus mean to you this Christmas? Are they mere

names without any meaning?

** Is He the Wonderful counselor to whom we always go with all our

problems?

** Do we have the faith to believe that God the Almighty is able to save us

from every situation?

** Is God our Eternal Father – with whom we relate and enjoy communion at

all times?

** Amidst turbulence and storm, is Christ the giver of peace?

We shall do well during this Season if we ponder over these great truths.

(Rita Dhanabalan can be contacted at: rita.dhanabalan@gmail.com)

hhhhhh

Dr. Marin Lloyd Jones gave up a lucrative and prestigious medical

practice to preach the gospel. Here is his story: "People said to me, "Why give

up good work, a good profession- after all, the medical profession, why give

that up? If you had been a bookie, for instance, and wanted to give that up to

preach the gospel, we should understand and agree with you and say that you

were doing a grand thing. But medicine a good profession, healing the sick

and relieving pain!"

One man even said this, "If you were a solicitor and gave it up, I'd give

you a pat on the back, but to give up medicine!" "Ah well," I felt like saying

them, "If you knew more about the work of a doctor, you would understand.

We spend most of our time rendering people fit to go back to their sin!" I saw

men on their sick beds, I spoke to them of their immortal souls, they promised

grand things. Then they got better and back they went to their old sin! I saw

I was helping these men to sin and I decided I would do no more of it. I want

to heal souls. If a man has a diseased body and his soul is alright, he is all right

to the end; but a man with a healthy body and diseased soul is all right for

sixty years or so and then he has to face an eternity of hell. Ah yes! We have

sometimes to give up those things which are good for that which is best of all

the joy of salvation and newness of life."

Another doctor said he laid down his scalpel to concentrate full-time

on the instrument that is far more accurate, reliable, and sharper than the

latest laser knife, the Word of God.

- William MacDonald.

In John 14 : 5-8 we read about Thomas saying to Jesus “ Lord we do

not know where you are going? How can we know the way?” Jesus said to

him: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except

through me. If you know me, you know my Father also. Philip said: “Lord

show us the Father” Jesus said to him: “ Have I been with you all this time,

and you still do not know me? Who ever has seen me has seen the Father.

Believe me, I am in the Father and the Father is in me” (V10). Jesus is the

way to the Father. How many of us experience intimacy with our Heavenly

Father who is waiting every morning to talk to us and have fellowship with us?

Aren’t we privileged to call our God as Father? It is an abomination for a

Muslim to call God as a father. Bilquis Sheikh, a wealthy Pakistani muslim

lady in her book “I dared to call him Father” writes that it is her understanding

of the Fatherhood of God in the Bible which led her to Christ.

Prince of Peace

Peace is not the absence of problems, or oneself being in a quiet

surroundings. People of almost all religions have developed a wrong notion

that by going to pilgrimages or by doing good works and by offering sacrifices

or through yoga one will obtain peace. Nowadays, even Christians in thousands

are part of the organized tour to the Holy Land. They visit Jordan and Israel.

Many of them take a holy “dip” in the river Jordan and think their sins are

cleansed by this act! Not many of them know the real Prince of Peace!

Peace for a Christian is something unique. Peace is serenity – and a

state of being sober and self controlled even when one is going through painful

situations. It is not that we are care free but we are confident that the Lord is

with us and He will take us through. King David said “Even though I walk

through the valley of shadow of death I will fear no evil, for you are with

me” Psalm 23:4. David could experience God’s presence in times of trouble.

How many times do we question God when we are faced with trials? We ask:

“Where is God?” “Why is He silent?”, Why doesn’t He care?” There is no

inner peace in us at such times. The Bible says “And the peace of God, which

surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ

Jesus” Philippians 4:7. The disciples were travelling in a boat with Jesus when

they were caught up in the storm. But Jesus was fast asleep. The disciples

were greatly distressed and began to cry “Lord don’t you care we are dying?”

Jesus immediately calmed the storm. (Mark 4:35- 41). Many a times we would

have reacted in the same way as the disciples did. But let us remember that

we can get the inner peace only through our Lord Jesus Christ who is the

Prince of Peace. In Isaiah 26:3 we read “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace

whose mind is stayed on thee”.

11 12

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

** What do the names of Jesus mean to you this Christmas? Are they mere

names without any meaning?

** Is He the Wonderful counselor to whom we always go with all our

problems?

** Do we have the faith to believe that God the Almighty is able to save us

from every situation?

** Is God our Eternal Father – with whom we relate and enjoy communion at

all times?

** Amidst turbulence and storm, is Christ the giver of peace?

We shall do well during this Season if we ponder over these great truths.

(Rita Dhanabalan can be contacted at: rita.dhanabalan@gmail.com)

hhhhhh

Dr. Marin Lloyd Jones gave up a lucrative and prestigious medical

practice to preach the gospel. Here is his story: "People said to me, "Why give

up good work, a good profession- after all, the medical profession, why give

that up? If you had been a bookie, for instance, and wanted to give that up to

preach the gospel, we should understand and agree with you and say that you

were doing a grand thing. But medicine a good profession, healing the sick

and relieving pain!"

One man even said this, "If you were a solicitor and gave it up, I'd give

you a pat on the back, but to give up medicine!" "Ah well," I felt like saying

them, "If you knew more about the work of a doctor, you would understand.

We spend most of our time rendering people fit to go back to their sin!" I saw

men on their sick beds, I spoke to them of their immortal souls, they promised

grand things. Then they got better and back they went to their old sin! I saw

I was helping these men to sin and I decided I would do no more of it. I want

to heal souls. If a man has a diseased body and his soul is alright, he is all right

to the end; but a man with a healthy body and diseased soul is all right for

sixty years or so and then he has to face an eternity of hell. Ah yes! We have

sometimes to give up those things which are good for that which is best of all

the joy of salvation and newness of life."

Another doctor said he laid down his scalpel to concentrate full-time

on the instrument that is far more accurate, reliable, and sharper than the

latest laser knife, the Word of God.

- William MacDonald.

In John 14 : 5-8 we read about Thomas saying to Jesus “ Lord we do

not know where you are going? How can we know the way?” Jesus said to

him: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except

through me. If you know me, you know my Father also. Philip said: “Lord

show us the Father” Jesus said to him: “ Have I been with you all this time,

and you still do not know me? Who ever has seen me has seen the Father.

Believe me, I am in the Father and the Father is in me” (V10). Jesus is the

way to the Father. How many of us experience intimacy with our Heavenly

Father who is waiting every morning to talk to us and have fellowship with us?

Aren’t we privileged to call our God as Father? It is an abomination for a

Muslim to call God as a father. Bilquis Sheikh, a wealthy Pakistani muslim

lady in her book “I dared to call him Father” writes that it is her understanding

of the Fatherhood of God in the Bible which led her to Christ.

Prince of Peace

Peace is not the absence of problems, or oneself being in a quiet

surroundings. People of almost all religions have developed a wrong notion

that by going to pilgrimages or by doing good works and by offering sacrifices

or through yoga one will obtain peace. Nowadays, even Christians in thousands

are part of the organized tour to the Holy Land. They visit Jordan and Israel.

Many of them take a holy “dip” in the river Jordan and think their sins are

cleansed by this act! Not many of them know the real Prince of Peace!

Peace for a Christian is something unique. Peace is serenity – and a

state of being sober and self controlled even when one is going through painful

situations. It is not that we are care free but we are confident that the Lord is

with us and He will take us through. King David said “Even though I walk

through the valley of shadow of death I will fear no evil, for you are with

me” Psalm 23:4. David could experience God’s presence in times of trouble.

How many times do we question God when we are faced with trials? We ask:

“Where is God?” “Why is He silent?”, Why doesn’t He care?” There is no

inner peace in us at such times. The Bible says “And the peace of God, which

surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ

Jesus” Philippians 4:7. The disciples were travelling in a boat with Jesus when

they were caught up in the storm. But Jesus was fast asleep. The disciples

were greatly distressed and began to cry “Lord don’t you care we are dying?”

Jesus immediately calmed the storm. (Mark 4:35- 41). Many a times we would

have reacted in the same way as the disciples did. But let us remember that

we can get the inner peace only through our Lord Jesus Christ who is the

Prince of Peace. In Isaiah 26:3 we read “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace

whose mind is stayed on thee”.

11 12

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Christians, as never before have developed a vague mental

picture about the Person of Christ. In the case of real life’s

situation, we make sure about the kind of person with whom we

would like to relate. We check out for his or her credentials and study carefully

the antecedents. It somehow appears that Christians have given Christ a

decent burial – only to remove their thoughts away from Him. The more one

hides his thoughts, all the more the Real Christ confronts them.

David says this in effect: Where can I go from your Spirit (presence)? If

I go up to the heavens, you are there; if Imake my bed in the depths, you are

there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast

(Ps. 139:8-10).

Have we ever thought of this? How can the real Christ be pushed behind?

Can He occupy some corner of our mind and be quiet there? Try this! Be silent

and stop thinking about Christ. If you are successful, then we can do away

with Christ.

Do we recognize that He comes in to our lives as an intruder- interrupting

us, sometimes invalidating us! The more you and I rebel against his gentle

chiding, he keeps at it patiently. But there are times when his whip of

discipline comes to us. We lie in our bed for days and months. There Christ

confronts us – and our pride and arrogance is broken instantly. Someof us

run on a fast track. All is well – so we think. Our finances are stable. We enjoy

perfect health to move around. There is love and care available plentiful at

our disposal. Positional comfort affords us a status quo in the society, Church

or in the ministry. It is when a believer is subtly sunk into a state of self-

sufficiency. Such people are those who do not need Christ. It is to them the

Person of Christ becomes a Principle.

Isn’t it a fact that a lot many of our friends who began well their walk

with Christ are no longer in step with Jesus Christ? They are marching to a

different drummer. May be, the world order is directing them. It is not hard to

find such people in our churches. CEO’s, eminent surgeons, famous scientists,

successful businessmen may form the list. Forgive me, I had safely omitted a

long list of Bishops, clergymen, pastors and organization heads who call

themselves Christians. They may sing hymns that may sound highly

philosophical. Their prayers may be words of tribute to a dead Christ. They

might even part take at the communion. It may just be a symbol of

comradeship. The offering they provide to the church may only be considered

as a noble act of charity. Swineburn’s Tedium: “Glory to man in the highest”

echoes their life-style. Such people tend to follow Christ outwardly. They do

not reject him completely. They make a Principle out of the person of Christ.

Someone said: “They come to worship Christ with crowns on their head.

They bend before him, all the while conscious about their crowns that sit on

their hand. Each one’s hand reaches out to the crown, sets it again in order,

lest it slips and fall down to their utter shame!”

I am not talking about a church where simple people come together

with earnest heart. I am humbled by the fact that often in my ministry, the

Lord had taken me through people and churches that were diametrically

opposite to each other in every respect – be it socio- economic or spiritual.

Sometimes, on a Sunday morning I stood before a congregation ministering

the Word. They are the ones very simple and even poor in the sight of the

world. But they were those who were deeply hungry and thirsty- wanting

God’s Word to fill them. All around them, I found no basic support system or

comforts. The same evening I stood to minister before a congregation who by

their very looks show that they are smarter and wiser than God or His Word.

The Bible talks about“looks that are haughty. (Prov.6:16).” In some Churches,

the key member of the council, by the powers vested on him and by virtue of

him/her being democratically elected to the Church council sees to it

particularly that each and every worship service, he /she is seen by the

congregation as he ventures to the front line in order to make a quick speech

or shares a word of greeting. If the pastor is not a spiritually dynamic person,

he is quickly taken for granted.

If the Person of Jesus Christ is removed from our worship, Church or

assemblies, then we worship an ideal, a principle or a dogma. Some worship

a virtue called self-disciple. Discipline is good. But it can never be venerated.

In the so called ‘high’ churches of Christian denomination, carrying the cross

through the choir procession at the beginning of worship is intended to be a

deep symbolic act of being a disciple willing to be able to carry the cross and

at the same time honouring and remembering our Lord Jesus Christ and His

great work on the cross. I do not think that we neither think symbolically nor

spiritually as years had gone by. We carry the cross in the church service,

ever since it had become a mere principle to be followed in religion, let

alone a practice.

rinciple

PPPPPerson or

13 14

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Christians, as never before have developed a vague mental

picture about the Person of Christ. In the case of real life’s

situation, we make sure about the kind of person with whom we

would like to relate. We check out for his or her credentials and study carefully

the antecedents. It somehow appears that Christians have given Christ a

decent burial – only to remove their thoughts away from Him. The more one

hides his thoughts, all the more the Real Christ confronts them.

David says this in effect: Where can I go from your Spirit (presence)? If

I go up to the heavens, you are there; if Imake my bed in the depths, you are

there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast

(Ps. 139:8-10).

Have we ever thought of this? How can the real Christ be pushed behind?

Can He occupy some corner of our mind and be quiet there? Try this! Be silent

and stop thinking about Christ. If you are successful, then we can do away

with Christ.

Do we recognize that He comes in to our lives as an intruder- interrupting

us, sometimes invalidating us! The more you and I rebel against his gentle

chiding, he keeps at it patiently. But there are times when his whip of

discipline comes to us. We lie in our bed for days and months. There Christ

confronts us – and our pride and arrogance is broken instantly. Someof us

run on a fast track. All is well – so we think. Our finances are stable. We enjoy

perfect health to move around. There is love and care available plentiful at

our disposal. Positional comfort affords us a status quo in the society, Church

or in the ministry. It is when a believer is subtly sunk into a state of self-

sufficiency. Such people are those who do not need Christ. It is to them the

Person of Christ becomes a Principle.

Isn’t it a fact that a lot many of our friends who began well their walk

with Christ are no longer in step with Jesus Christ? They are marching to a

different drummer. May be, the world order is directing them. It is not hard to

find such people in our churches. CEO’s, eminent surgeons, famous scientists,

successful businessmen may form the list. Forgive me, I had safely omitted a

long list of Bishops, clergymen, pastors and organization heads who call

themselves Christians. They may sing hymns that may sound highly

philosophical. Their prayers may be words of tribute to a dead Christ. They

might even part take at the communion. It may just be a symbol of

comradeship. The offering they provide to the church may only be considered

as a noble act of charity. Swineburn’s Tedium: “Glory to man in the highest”

echoes their life-style. Such people tend to follow Christ outwardly. They do

not reject him completely. They make a Principle out of the person of Christ.

Someone said: “They come to worship Christ with crowns on their head.

They bend before him, all the while conscious about their crowns that sit on

their hand. Each one’s hand reaches out to the crown, sets it again in order,

lest it slips and fall down to their utter shame!”

I am not talking about a church where simple people come together

with earnest heart. I am humbled by the fact that often in my ministry, the

Lord had taken me through people and churches that were diametrically

opposite to each other in every respect – be it socio- economic or spiritual.

Sometimes, on a Sunday morning I stood before a congregation ministering

the Word. They are the ones very simple and even poor in the sight of the

world. But they were those who were deeply hungry and thirsty- wanting

God’s Word to fill them. All around them, I found no basic support system or

comforts. The same evening I stood to minister before a congregation who by

their very looks show that they are smarter and wiser than God or His Word.

The Bible talks about“looks that are haughty. (Prov.6:16).” In some Churches,

the key member of the council, by the powers vested on him and by virtue of

him/her being democratically elected to the Church council sees to it

particularly that each and every worship service, he /she is seen by the

congregation as he ventures to the front line in order to make a quick speech

or shares a word of greeting. If the pastor is not a spiritually dynamic person,

he is quickly taken for granted.

If the Person of Jesus Christ is removed from our worship, Church or

assemblies, then we worship an ideal, a principle or a dogma. Some worship

a virtue called self-disciple. Discipline is good. But it can never be venerated.

In the so called ‘high’ churches of Christian denomination, carrying the cross

through the choir procession at the beginning of worship is intended to be a

deep symbolic act of being a disciple willing to be able to carry the cross and

at the same time honouring and remembering our Lord Jesus Christ and His

great work on the cross. I do not think that we neither think symbolically nor

spiritually as years had gone by. We carry the cross in the church service,

ever since it had become a mere principle to be followed in religion, let

alone a practice.

rinciple

PPPPPerson or

13 14

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

“ “All Hail the Power of Jesus Name” is the church’s national anthem

and the cross is her official flag, but the week-by week services of the church

and the day-by-day conduct of her members, someone else, not Christ, makes

the decisions. Those in authority decide the moral standards of the church.

Today, in some churches the pastor has more authority than Jesus Christ has.

Not only so, His influence is becoming less and less. The Lordship of Jesus is

not quite forgotten among Christians, but it has been relegated to the hymnal

where all responsibility toward it may be comfortably discharged in a glow

pleasant religious emotion.” - A.W. Tozer.

Reading through the passage in the Book of Acts 11:21, it says: “The

hand of the Lord was with the church in Antioch, and a great number that

believed turned to the Lord.” Verse 23 says: When Barnabas was sent by the

Jerusalem council to Antioch to ascertain the work of God in the midst of

believers in Antioch, “he saw the grace of God”

How different it is from many of today’s Churches! Most of us work by

principles of a religion or a denomination than guided by the hand of the Lord.

God’s grace is not evident in most of our churches today. We tend to enforce

or impose something from without when something within is absent. Where

is the authority of Christ in our churches today? Enforcementof a principle

comes either from the authority of the Bishop or a Council.

We must humbly accept and confess the fact that Jesus Christ has no

authority at all today among most of the Churches and groups that call

themselves by His name.

“We must consider the effects and consequences of venerating a mere

principle than worshipping Christ. It may be that we may give up on some sins

and habits but still fail to live as Christians. For the giving up of sins is not an

end in itself; it is in order to get in saving touch with Christ. The WAY of Christ

is not negative. We are not Christians just because we don’t do this or that.

We are Christians when life is centred in Christ and not ourselves. We may

change, but change toward the wrong direction. Judas changed – he went to

the high priest, threw down the money, and said, “I have sinned in that I have

betrayed the innocent blood.” Don’t we see that he repented in the wrong

direction? Had he gone to Jesus, thrown down the money, and said, “I have

sinned,” we would seen the most remarkable reconciliation and restoration in

history. Some turn toward their sins and mourn in useless regret. No release

comes from that.” - Stanley Jones.

Again, we may connect with an institution and fail to get through to

Christ. The church itself is a wonderful place of worship- an institution where

we cultivate spiritual maturity. But we must move beyond Church and connect

ourselves withChrist. There is a difference between the Church and the

Kingdom of God. The Church is not the Kingdom, but part of the Kingdom.

Many of us stop with our Churches and our denominations. We think of them

as end in themselves. The Church in fact,leads us to the Kingdom of God where

Christ is our King.

“We may stop at Principles and miss the Person. We may well say: “We

live by Christian principles,” and yet may not get into a warm, living fellowship

with Him. In such cases, our lives will turn out to be a tense striving to live

principles instead of a trustful fellowship with a Person, living in relaxed

spontaneity.

Mahatma Gandhi took the principles of Christianity, but missed the

Person- Christ. Hence he sees “through a glass, darkly”

Go beyond your sins, beyond the

institution, beyond the principles to the

Person. Then religion will be to you a

long falling in love.”(Dr. Stanley Jones).

The Lord must protect us from

stumbling and falling into such a folly.

Why it that many devout Christians,

seriously disciplined are not living lives

that are vibrant and victorious? They do

not indulge in sinful pleasures. Their

moral and ethical standards are

commendable. Somewhere they have

made the mistake of following rules and

rituals,principles and practices as the

way to salvation. Christ is The Way and

not observances. They may be good as

long as they direct us to Christ.

During this Season of Christmas

let us turn our gaze from the Crib or a

cradle. It is not even the manger or the

enacted scene of Nativity. Jesus is not

just a Babe of Bethlehem. He is Christ

the King. We are called to bow and

worship before Him during this

Christmas.J.D.

Life thrives like a tree ingenerosity, but grasping greed isdeath to men (Prov.11:24). If wedo not take God into partnershipwith our material life, then a cursewill rest upon our riches. Butwhat he won he cannot keep, theharvest of his gain he cannot reap(Job 15:29). An oilman said to amissionary in Malaysia. Duringthe war, when the Japanese armymoved in and a quick evacuationmade both the missionary and theoilman move out."My life workhas gone into oil well, which I hadto blow up; your life has gone intopeople, in their character anddevelopment. My life work hasgone; yours will remain. I'vefailed; you've succeeded" The onlypermanent investment is aninvestment in people.

15 16

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

“ “All Hail the Power of Jesus Name” is the church’s national anthem

and the cross is her official flag, but the week-by week services of the church

and the day-by-day conduct of her members, someone else, not Christ, makes

the decisions. Those in authority decide the moral standards of the church.

Today, in some churches the pastor has more authority than Jesus Christ has.

Not only so, His influence is becoming less and less. The Lordship of Jesus is

not quite forgotten among Christians, but it has been relegated to the hymnal

where all responsibility toward it may be comfortably discharged in a glow

pleasant religious emotion.” - A.W. Tozer.

Reading through the passage in the Book of Acts 11:21, it says: “The

hand of the Lord was with the church in Antioch, and a great number that

believed turned to the Lord.” Verse 23 says: When Barnabas was sent by the

Jerusalem council to Antioch to ascertain the work of God in the midst of

believers in Antioch, “he saw the grace of God”

How different it is from many of today’s Churches! Most of us work by

principles of a religion or a denomination than guided by the hand of the Lord.

God’s grace is not evident in most of our churches today. We tend to enforce

or impose something from without when something within is absent. Where

is the authority of Christ in our churches today? Enforcementof a principle

comes either from the authority of the Bishop or a Council.

We must humbly accept and confess the fact that Jesus Christ has no

authority at all today among most of the Churches and groups that call

themselves by His name.

“We must consider the effects and consequences of venerating a mere

principle than worshipping Christ. It may be that we may give up on some sins

and habits but still fail to live as Christians. For the giving up of sins is not an

end in itself; it is in order to get in saving touch with Christ. The WAY of Christ

is not negative. We are not Christians just because we don’t do this or that.

We are Christians when life is centred in Christ and not ourselves. We may

change, but change toward the wrong direction. Judas changed – he went to

the high priest, threw down the money, and said, “I have sinned in that I have

betrayed the innocent blood.” Don’t we see that he repented in the wrong

direction? Had he gone to Jesus, thrown down the money, and said, “I have

sinned,” we would seen the most remarkable reconciliation and restoration in

history. Some turn toward their sins and mourn in useless regret. No release

comes from that.” - Stanley Jones.

Again, we may connect with an institution and fail to get through to

Christ. The church itself is a wonderful place of worship- an institution where

we cultivate spiritual maturity. But we must move beyond Church and connect

ourselves withChrist. There is a difference between the Church and the

Kingdom of God. The Church is not the Kingdom, but part of the Kingdom.

Many of us stop with our Churches and our denominations. We think of them

as end in themselves. The Church in fact,leads us to the Kingdom of God where

Christ is our King.

“We may stop at Principles and miss the Person. We may well say: “We

live by Christian principles,” and yet may not get into a warm, living fellowship

with Him. In such cases, our lives will turn out to be a tense striving to live

principles instead of a trustful fellowship with a Person, living in relaxed

spontaneity.

Mahatma Gandhi took the principles of Christianity, but missed the

Person- Christ. Hence he sees “through a glass, darkly”

Go beyond your sins, beyond the

institution, beyond the principles to the

Person. Then religion will be to you a

long falling in love.”(Dr. Stanley Jones).

The Lord must protect us from

stumbling and falling into such a folly.

Why it that many devout Christians,

seriously disciplined are not living lives

that are vibrant and victorious? They do

not indulge in sinful pleasures. Their

moral and ethical standards are

commendable. Somewhere they have

made the mistake of following rules and

rituals,principles and practices as the

way to salvation. Christ is The Way and

not observances. They may be good as

long as they direct us to Christ.

During this Season of Christmas

let us turn our gaze from the Crib or a

cradle. It is not even the manger or the

enacted scene of Nativity. Jesus is not

just a Babe of Bethlehem. He is Christ

the King. We are called to bow and

worship before Him during this

Christmas.J.D.

Life thrives like a tree ingenerosity, but grasping greed isdeath to men (Prov.11:24). If wedo not take God into partnershipwith our material life, then a cursewill rest upon our riches. Butwhat he won he cannot keep, theharvest of his gain he cannot reap(Job 15:29). An oilman said to amissionary in Malaysia. Duringthe war, when the Japanese armymoved in and a quick evacuationmade both the missionary and theoilman move out."My life workhas gone into oil well, which I hadto blow up; your life has gone intopeople, in their character anddevelopment. My life work hasgone; yours will remain. I'vefailed; you've succeeded" The onlypermanent investment is aninvestment in people.

15 16

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

• That we may express our love and concern to the poor and the needy

during this Christmas.

• God’s grace and anointing, travel mercies for my ministry in Malawi during

the early part of December.

• Please remember Dr. Thelma Majela whose vision and initiative resulted

in the ministry called “Ministers of Reconciliation International” in Malawi.

We are grateful to God for the blessings received in the following places of

ministry.

• CSI St. John’s Church, Egmore, Chennai

• CSI St. Thomas Church, San Thome, Chennai

• Wesley Churches – Broadway & Egmore.

• Pastor’s Training at Mahabalipuram through ‘PISGAH’

• Bible Teaching ministries extended to many through person and on-line in

and through the country.

• The publication of Tamil gospel tracts – received by many with enthusiasm.

• Requests from individuals, small-groups and book-shops are pouring in

for more gospel literature.

• A few HIV-AIDS patients are provided with regular care and compassion.

• A young single mother –(HIV -positive), provided with a small dwelling

place as her hutment collapsed.

• Tamil Bible-study materials through DVDs are being profitably used by

small groups and individual believers.

• Many new readers have shown interest in Christian Thought Series in recent

times.

Please Pray :

As the ministry extends, we need committed volunteers to share the burden

and blessings.

• Computer-related work, distribution/display of literature in the meetings,

share the work to like-minded people are some of the responsibilities ofthe volunteers . They will have time to study together the word of God

and visit different fields of the ministry.

• Need for God’s cleansing and renewal in the churches.

• That each believer exhibits the character of Christ in the society.

• There is a decline of moral values among Christians – we need to pray for

the restoration of moral uprightness.

• The concern of world-wide terrorism and attack on Christians – The West-End Mall in Nairobi and the Anglican Church bomb-blast in Peshawar in

Pakistan in recent times.

• Attack on Christians is mounting in some parts of South India. Tumkurand Belgaum in Karnataka where Christians and pastors are beingpersecuted. The state of Karnataka is being dubbed as the “graveyard of

missionaries!”

POINTS FOR PRAISE & PRAYER

DO YOU SUFFER FROM FAULTY SPIRITUAL REBIRTH?

As long as a man or woman remains "half-converted" either a bit

here intellectually or a bit there emotionally, there would remain

a "dark-domain" in the life of such a Christian which will go

unchecked or unchallenged. This force remains dormant - but lurks deep

within. The molten rock or the lava keeps churning inside, ready to burst

forth when there would occur an eruption. None can ever rule out sudden

eruptions in a Christian, even if it is a regenerated soul. This made the great

apostle to cry out: "What a wretched man that I am! Who can deliver me

from this body of death!" It is just a reminder that a believer cannot go easy

with his/her Christian life. The whole process of conversion, if not rightly

understood and applied in the scriptural sense - can terribly go wrong and

result In "Birth Defects." They will be those who will always be learning, but

not yet settled in their faith life. There is always some want or an unmet -

need in their lives. It may be that they do not experience the rule of God in

their lives. They are, by name, called as Christians. They are even said to be

"converted" from another faith. It largely depends on who and how the gospel

is shared to the seeker. Even when the gospel is shared rightly, it largely

depends on how the listener had made the decision - both intelligently and

emotionally.

To those who are said to be "born-again", two very important things

must be said in this effect. 1) Have they developed a healthy hunger pang

soon after conversion (I Pet.2:2)? What would you call a supposedly "newly

convert" who does not feel any spiritual hunger and thirst for God and His

Word? 2)The Verbal Witness of what or who they believe in is found in 1 Pet.

3:15 and in Col.4:5. There will be a deep urge whenever they utter what the

Lord had done for them - whatever one might call it - a personal testimony or

the sharing of the gospel and its effect. The outcome of this is joy unspeakable!

One can be easily checked with these spiritual parameters - as to the

question of where they stand in their faith life.

Following Christ is a combination of tough challenges to faith, hardships

and exciting experiences. If anyone says that following Christ is easy, such a

person has never attempted to follow Christ. J.D.

17 18

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

• That we may express our love and concern to the poor and the needy

during this Christmas.

• God’s grace and anointing, travel mercies for my ministry in Malawi during

the early part of December.

• Please remember Dr. Thelma Majela whose vision and initiative resulted

in the ministry called “Ministers of Reconciliation International” in Malawi.

We are grateful to God for the blessings received in the following places of

ministry.

• CSI St. John’s Church, Egmore, Chennai

• CSI St. Thomas Church, San Thome, Chennai

• Wesley Churches – Broadway & Egmore.

• Pastor’s Training at Mahabalipuram through ‘PISGAH’

• Bible Teaching ministries extended to many through person and on-line in

and through the country.

• The publication of Tamil gospel tracts – received by many with enthusiasm.

• Requests from individuals, small-groups and book-shops are pouring in

for more gospel literature.

• A few HIV-AIDS patients are provided with regular care and compassion.

• A young single mother –(HIV -positive), provided with a small dwelling

place as her hutment collapsed.

• Tamil Bible-study materials through DVDs are being profitably used by

small groups and individual believers.

• Many new readers have shown interest in Christian Thought Series in recent

times.

Please Pray :

As the ministry extends, we need committed volunteers to share the burden

and blessings.

• Computer-related work, distribution/display of literature in the meetings,

share the work to like-minded people are some of the responsibilities ofthe volunteers . They will have time to study together the word of God

and visit different fields of the ministry.

• Need for God’s cleansing and renewal in the churches.

• That each believer exhibits the character of Christ in the society.

• There is a decline of moral values among Christians – we need to pray for

the restoration of moral uprightness.

• The concern of world-wide terrorism and attack on Christians – The West-End Mall in Nairobi and the Anglican Church bomb-blast in Peshawar in

Pakistan in recent times.

• Attack on Christians is mounting in some parts of South India. Tumkurand Belgaum in Karnataka where Christians and pastors are beingpersecuted. The state of Karnataka is being dubbed as the “graveyard of

missionaries!”

POINTS FOR PRAISE & PRAYER

DO YOU SUFFER FROM FAULTY SPIRITUAL REBIRTH?

As long as a man or woman remains "half-converted" either a bit

here intellectually or a bit there emotionally, there would remain

a "dark-domain" in the life of such a Christian which will go

unchecked or unchallenged. This force remains dormant - but lurks deep

within. The molten rock or the lava keeps churning inside, ready to burst

forth when there would occur an eruption. None can ever rule out sudden

eruptions in a Christian, even if it is a regenerated soul. This made the great

apostle to cry out: "What a wretched man that I am! Who can deliver me

from this body of death!" It is just a reminder that a believer cannot go easy

with his/her Christian life. The whole process of conversion, if not rightly

understood and applied in the scriptural sense - can terribly go wrong and

result In "Birth Defects." They will be those who will always be learning, but

not yet settled in their faith life. There is always some want or an unmet -

need in their lives. It may be that they do not experience the rule of God in

their lives. They are, by name, called as Christians. They are even said to be

"converted" from another faith. It largely depends on who and how the gospel

is shared to the seeker. Even when the gospel is shared rightly, it largely

depends on how the listener had made the decision - both intelligently and

emotionally.

To those who are said to be "born-again", two very important things

must be said in this effect. 1) Have they developed a healthy hunger pang

soon after conversion (I Pet.2:2)? What would you call a supposedly "newly

convert" who does not feel any spiritual hunger and thirst for God and His

Word? 2)The Verbal Witness of what or who they believe in is found in 1 Pet.

3:15 and in Col.4:5. There will be a deep urge whenever they utter what the

Lord had done for them - whatever one might call it - a personal testimony or

the sharing of the gospel and its effect. The outcome of this is joy unspeakable!

One can be easily checked with these spiritual parameters - as to the

question of where they stand in their faith life.

Following Christ is a combination of tough challenges to faith, hardships

and exciting experiences. If anyone says that following Christ is easy, such a

person has never attempted to follow Christ. J.D.

17 18

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Human beings are destined not for the dust but for eternity.

Physical beings though we are, we still have the breath

of God in us. To explain it further, we are spiritual in the

sense that we are made in the image of God. This is the reason why we must

be wise enough to use rightly our senses that other wise tend to control us. A

spiritual person is one who has learnt the art of governing his own physical

impulses. As physical beings we cannot ignore our senses. But it is our renewed

spiritual state that endows us with sensibility.

Sense And Sensibility: Isn’t it true that we are controlled to a great

extent by our passions? More so, we are driven or activated by stimulants.

Think of a cup of coffee with a good aroma consumed early as the day breaks

forth! A time comes when we cannot go without a cup of coffee. Those many

of us who often travel outside know how true this is. When we are travelling

to new places and our regular dose of coffee with the caffeine does not go

into the blood stream to reach our CNS at the appointed time, we feel mad!

Let’s imagine how we would feel or react if we were deprived of this aroma

and the hot coffee for days? The result can be horrifying. There are countless

other stimulants that govern and control us. Moods control us. Psychologists

explain what mood swings are all about. A person has his/her low swing in

the morning. But the same person becomes hyper-active in the evening. There

are drugs administered by doctors to correct mood variations. In a sense,

they act as stimulants too. To study closely how a person acts or reacts, one

has to monitor the quantity of external stimuli. For example, a person cannot

be happy unless he/she is in the company of friends. Therefore, we have

parties on some pretext. Christmas celebration is no different. I am afraid,

the word I use here may offend some of us. Is it that “kick” we get out of our

Christmas parties create an urge to seek more of such occasions to stimulate

us? We must be aware that stimulants die down quickly. Therefore, we need

to develop nutrients that last longer than the stimulants.

What are some of the nutrients that can strengthen our system all round

the year?

How can we be engaged in some useful activity to build up our

metabolism than depending on steroids or stimulants?

Do’s & Don’t For Christmas: Let us avoid excessive stimulant in-take.

We should check those substances that increase our dependency. Money,

material goods, friends, cakes, puddings, spending and sending greeting cards,

throwing extravagant parties, swiping credit cards, buying expensive jewelry

and clothes are in a sense, very strong external stimulants. Their effects,

though, are not long lasting. At the most, if runs for a few days. We long for

such stimuli to stir us up – therefore find ways to indulge in them. If not

Christmas, we have birthday-bashes, wedding anniversaries and every slightest

cause to show that we must have some celebration.

Well, one might be quick to ask: “What is wrong with them, any way?”

There is nothing wrong at all as long as they do not make us utterly

dependable. Having a good food is not an evil thing. But money spent on

lavish parties can be a snare. Most of all, time spent on all those (mostly

unproductive)can become ungodly activities particularly during the season of

Christmas.

What Can be Done? More thought and gratitude must be blended

into all our actions. For example, the mind of Christ which Paul talks about in

Philippians 2:5 must show forth Christ’s example of humility and self-sacrifice.

Think Of Others: The following are a few thoughts which might help us

doing what is worthwhile during Christmas.

• Mothers with children – uncared for – they may have lost their loved ones

-say, father or husband.

• Elderly people left alone by children – ailing and weak.

• Someone whom you know, staying away from their homes with no one to

attend on them.

• People who have been hospitalized and requiring help.

• A friend of ours who may be undergoing the pain of rejection – say, due to

separation or divorce.

• Reaching out to those people or person(s) who are going through the

shame of wrongful vindiction.

• May be, it is one of our acquaintances whose hopes have been dashed

since his/her business collapsed.

• Young mothers infected with HIV +ve - left alone to fend for themselves.

The above mentioned category of people and many more cases we may

be aware of are those who needed to be brought to the news of hope and

love that they may find in the Saviour during this time of Christmas.

AGENDA FOR

C H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A S

19 20

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Human beings are destined not for the dust but for eternity.

Physical beings though we are, we still have the breath

of God in us. To explain it further, we are spiritual in the

sense that we are made in the image of God. This is the reason why we must

be wise enough to use rightly our senses that other wise tend to control us. A

spiritual person is one who has learnt the art of governing his own physical

impulses. As physical beings we cannot ignore our senses. But it is our renewed

spiritual state that endows us with sensibility.

Sense And Sensibility: Isn’t it true that we are controlled to a great

extent by our passions? More so, we are driven or activated by stimulants.

Think of a cup of coffee with a good aroma consumed early as the day breaks

forth! A time comes when we cannot go without a cup of coffee. Those many

of us who often travel outside know how true this is. When we are travelling

to new places and our regular dose of coffee with the caffeine does not go

into the blood stream to reach our CNS at the appointed time, we feel mad!

Let’s imagine how we would feel or react if we were deprived of this aroma

and the hot coffee for days? The result can be horrifying. There are countless

other stimulants that govern and control us. Moods control us. Psychologists

explain what mood swings are all about. A person has his/her low swing in

the morning. But the same person becomes hyper-active in the evening. There

are drugs administered by doctors to correct mood variations. In a sense,

they act as stimulants too. To study closely how a person acts or reacts, one

has to monitor the quantity of external stimuli. For example, a person cannot

be happy unless he/she is in the company of friends. Therefore, we have

parties on some pretext. Christmas celebration is no different. I am afraid,

the word I use here may offend some of us. Is it that “kick” we get out of our

Christmas parties create an urge to seek more of such occasions to stimulate

us? We must be aware that stimulants die down quickly. Therefore, we need

to develop nutrients that last longer than the stimulants.

What are some of the nutrients that can strengthen our system all round

the year?

How can we be engaged in some useful activity to build up our

metabolism than depending on steroids or stimulants?

Do’s & Don’t For Christmas: Let us avoid excessive stimulant in-take.

We should check those substances that increase our dependency. Money,

material goods, friends, cakes, puddings, spending and sending greeting cards,

throwing extravagant parties, swiping credit cards, buying expensive jewelry

and clothes are in a sense, very strong external stimulants. Their effects,

though, are not long lasting. At the most, if runs for a few days. We long for

such stimuli to stir us up – therefore find ways to indulge in them. If not

Christmas, we have birthday-bashes, wedding anniversaries and every slightest

cause to show that we must have some celebration.

Well, one might be quick to ask: “What is wrong with them, any way?”

There is nothing wrong at all as long as they do not make us utterly

dependable. Having a good food is not an evil thing. But money spent on

lavish parties can be a snare. Most of all, time spent on all those (mostly

unproductive)can become ungodly activities particularly during the season of

Christmas.

What Can be Done? More thought and gratitude must be blended

into all our actions. For example, the mind of Christ which Paul talks about in

Philippians 2:5 must show forth Christ’s example of humility and self-sacrifice.

Think Of Others: The following are a few thoughts which might help us

doing what is worthwhile during Christmas.

• Mothers with children – uncared for – they may have lost their loved ones

-say, father or husband.

• Elderly people left alone by children – ailing and weak.

• Someone whom you know, staying away from their homes with no one to

attend on them.

• People who have been hospitalized and requiring help.

• A friend of ours who may be undergoing the pain of rejection – say, due to

separation or divorce.

• Reaching out to those people or person(s) who are going through the

shame of wrongful vindiction.

• May be, it is one of our acquaintances whose hopes have been dashed

since his/her business collapsed.

• Young mothers infected with HIV +ve - left alone to fend for themselves.

The above mentioned category of people and many more cases we may

be aware of are those who needed to be brought to the news of hope and

love that they may find in the Saviour during this time of Christmas.

AGENDA FOR

C H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A SC H R I S T M A S

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Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

An agenda in the following pattern can be worked out which will prove

to be helpful :

1 Work out a budget to help any one in the above category and plan a budget

to carry out an effective project.

2 Focus on the target group (a target group may vary from a group or person

to person)

3 Plan Of Action (set date, programme, place, methodology etc.,) For

example, we may invite our Non-Christian neighbours, or our Brahmin

friends or colleagues into our homes for a vegetarian meal and present a

culturally relevant, biblically oriented dance or drama to present the

message of Christmas.

4 Pray particularly for the target group we plan to meet with.

5 Never end the programme as an even would finish.

6 The urgency and necessity of follow-up with our target all through the

year is a must.

This is just a way of celebrating Christmas with meaning and purpose.

Perhaps some of us are broken financially and not in a position to plan an

elaborate agenda for Christmas. Such persons may net-work with other

Christians, agencies or local church in providing time or talents. Look out for

those places/people and the area of your interest that matches well.

More than any other things, please make this season a time for personal

reflection with the thought of offering to God the deep gratitude for all that

He had done.

Christ came. He gave Himself. He gave all.

However insignificant and small, it will make a big difference, provided

we begin right away. There are a hundred ways of expressing our love to God

and our brethren. Christmas is not all that eating, drinking and merry-making

as some of our non-Christian friends and neighbours have thought it to be.

We have made Christmas very commercial. We must get back to the spirit of

the old time Christmas. At the birth of the Saviour, God chose to bring the

good news to the ordinary people. They were the target group chosen by

God.

v Who is going to be your target group for this Christmas?

v Have you worked out a Christmas agenda for them?

J.D.

Introduction

Let me invite you to think with me! What will be your answer if a

news reporter came up to you as you were walking along the

road side in your native place and asked you: “What do you

believe is the greatest single event that has occurred since the beginning of

the world?” How would you answer him? What incident is bigger than all

other events in human history? My answer would have to do with the Lord

Jesus’ coming into the world to be our Savior.

While the carnal world may summarily reject it, to us the most far-

reaching occurrence in the history of the world has to be the life—the

incarnation, the becoming flesh—of Jesus, God’s Son. Paul wrote that even

though Jesus existed in the form of God, He did not regard this equality with

God as something to be clung to at all costs. He “emptied Himself, taking the

form of a bond-servant,” and was “made in the likeness of men” (Philippians

2:7). According to John, “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and

we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of

grace and truth” (John 1:14).

We could say that Christ was just as much human as if He were not

divine at all, and He was just as much divine as if He were not human at all.

So completely did Jesus identify with the human race in His becoming man

that He was born as all humans are born (Luke 2:6), grew as all humans grow

(Luke 2:40), was subject to all the sufferings to which all humans are heirs

(Hebrews 5:8, 9), and lived in a body that could be affected by disease, decay,

and death—a body that humans could even kill on a cross (Philippians 2:8, 9).

He was thoroughly a man and was called the Son of Man, yet He was entirely

divine and must be acknowledged as the Son of God (Hebrews 2:14, 17, 18).

He was the perfect joining of humanity and deity into one personality. He

became man without sacrificing His deity; He remained divine even though

He became like us.

But the fundamental purpose of Jesus’ coming on the earth was to fulfill

and to do the will of the Father. It was the plan of the Father to send His only

begotten Son in the Earth The nature of Jesus’ coming to earth raises serious

(By Mr. LalitKumar Bardhan)

21 22

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

An agenda in the following pattern can be worked out which will prove

to be helpful :

1 Work out a budget to help any one in the above category and plan a budget

to carry out an effective project.

2 Focus on the target group (a target group may vary from a group or person

to person)

3 Plan Of Action (set date, programme, place, methodology etc.,) For

example, we may invite our Non-Christian neighbours, or our Brahmin

friends or colleagues into our homes for a vegetarian meal and present a

culturally relevant, biblically oriented dance or drama to present the

message of Christmas.

4 Pray particularly for the target group we plan to meet with.

5 Never end the programme as an even would finish.

6 The urgency and necessity of follow-up with our target all through the

year is a must.

This is just a way of celebrating Christmas with meaning and purpose.

Perhaps some of us are broken financially and not in a position to plan an

elaborate agenda for Christmas. Such persons may net-work with other

Christians, agencies or local church in providing time or talents. Look out for

those places/people and the area of your interest that matches well.

More than any other things, please make this season a time for personal

reflection with the thought of offering to God the deep gratitude for all that

He had done.

Christ came. He gave Himself. He gave all.

However insignificant and small, it will make a big difference, provided

we begin right away. There are a hundred ways of expressing our love to God

and our brethren. Christmas is not all that eating, drinking and merry-making

as some of our non-Christian friends and neighbours have thought it to be.

We have made Christmas very commercial. We must get back to the spirit of

the old time Christmas. At the birth of the Saviour, God chose to bring the

good news to the ordinary people. They were the target group chosen by

God.

v Who is going to be your target group for this Christmas?

v Have you worked out a Christmas agenda for them?

J.D.

Introduction

Let me invite you to think with me! What will be your answer if a

news reporter came up to you as you were walking along the

road side in your native place and asked you: “What do you

believe is the greatest single event that has occurred since the beginning of

the world?” How would you answer him? What incident is bigger than all

other events in human history? My answer would have to do with the Lord

Jesus’ coming into the world to be our Savior.

While the carnal world may summarily reject it, to us the most far-

reaching occurrence in the history of the world has to be the life—the

incarnation, the becoming flesh—of Jesus, God’s Son. Paul wrote that even

though Jesus existed in the form of God, He did not regard this equality with

God as something to be clung to at all costs. He “emptied Himself, taking the

form of a bond-servant,” and was “made in the likeness of men” (Philippians

2:7). According to John, “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and

we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of

grace and truth” (John 1:14).

We could say that Christ was just as much human as if He were not

divine at all, and He was just as much divine as if He were not human at all.

So completely did Jesus identify with the human race in His becoming man

that He was born as all humans are born (Luke 2:6), grew as all humans grow

(Luke 2:40), was subject to all the sufferings to which all humans are heirs

(Hebrews 5:8, 9), and lived in a body that could be affected by disease, decay,

and death—a body that humans could even kill on a cross (Philippians 2:8, 9).

He was thoroughly a man and was called the Son of Man, yet He was entirely

divine and must be acknowledged as the Son of God (Hebrews 2:14, 17, 18).

He was the perfect joining of humanity and deity into one personality. He

became man without sacrificing His deity; He remained divine even though

He became like us.

But the fundamental purpose of Jesus’ coming on the earth was to fulfill

and to do the will of the Father. It was the plan of the Father to send His only

begotten Son in the Earth The nature of Jesus’ coming to earth raises serious

(By Mr. LalitKumar Bardhan)

21 22

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

questions: Why did Jesus come to earth the way He did? What was the purpose

of His entering the human race, living among us, and dying upon a cross? Why

did the divine Son of God lower Himself to the extent of becoming wholly

man? The answers to these questions can be summarized in three following

points:

1. To Die on the Cross for Sinful Humanity: -

I believe the number one reason why Jesus came to the earth and was

born a human man, was so that he could die.   Did you know that it is impossible

to kill God?   God is a supreme spiritual power and it is impossible to eliminate

God from existence.   But, that does not mean that God as a man could not

die a normal physical death.  It is pretty obvious that Jesus proved that after

hanging on the cross.  When Jesus said it is finished, He fulfilled His number

one purpose for coming into the world.  His death accomplished more than

you can imagine right now, but read this verse:

Heb 2:9  But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels

for the suffering of Jesus, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the

grace of God should taste death for every man.

Jesus Christ was born a human male on the earth so that he could taste

death for all of us.  The Bible says that it is appointed unto every man, once to

die (Heb 9:27).   In becoming a man we can clearly see that God did not intend

for Jesus the man to live on the earth forever or to set up a natural kingdom or

rule in this dimension of time.   God specifically came to the earth in a very

temporary capacity, on purpose with the set goal to die after 33 years of being

present as a man.  Death is also a separating force that terminates covenants. 

You can learn this by reading the words of Ruth, when she says “Until death

separates me from thee”.   If God wants to die on the earth, you can conclude

that He wants to end whatever covenants that He was previously tied to.   I

know that is not a popular teaching, but it is a logical deduction based upon

the facts established in the Bible.  Do realize that the living mortal man Jesus

of Nazareth did not establish a New Covenant with anyone while He was here

in His mortal physical state?   You see the New Covenant was implemented by

the risen from the dead Jesus Christ.   The Risen Jesus is now an immortal and

omnipotent spiritual being and only He can implement a new eternal covenant

that never existed before.  This is a fact that you rarely hear taught in church.  

Jesus Christ is the first born from the dead and the heir of everything (Heb

1:2).   What is an heir?   An Heir is only someone who inherits what someone

who died has left.  Who died?  What was left?  Who are the heirs?  You see

why the Bible is so difficult to understand for most people?  The Bible is more

complex than most understood.

2. To Save Sinful Humanity from Their Sins: -

One of the reasons was to give mankind a chance to have their sins

forgiven. Why does mankind need a Savior? The reason man needs a Savior is

because of sin. The Bible clearly says, all have sinned, and fall short of the

glory of God (Romans 3:23). Every person who can tell right from wrong

commits sin. The apostle John also tells us this fact (1 John 1:6-10). What is

sin? Sin is missing the mark (Romans 3:23). It is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). John

added, all unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17). Also, the wages of sin is death

(Romans 6:23). Sin causes us to go away from God (Isaiah 59:1-2), and Christ

came to the earth to bring us back to God (2 Corinthians 5:20-21; Ephesians

2:16).

We have shown one of the reasons Jesus came to the earth was because

of sin. From where did sin come? The answer is given to us in the first book of

the Bible. After God created Adam and Eve, He put them in the Garden of

Eden, giving them everything they needed. He also gave them commands they

were to follow. And Jehovah God took the man, and put him into the Garden

of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And Jehovah God commanded the man,

saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of

the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that

thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Genesis 2:15-17).

God clearly told them what to do. They were not to eat of the fruit of

the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The third chapter of Genesis tells

us what happened. Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the

field which Jehovah God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath

God said, Ye shall not eat of any tree of the garden? And the woman said unto

the serpent, Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat: but of the fruit

of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat

of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman,

Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then

your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. And

when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight

to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of

the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her,

and he did eat. (Genesis 3:1-6).

23 24

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

questions: Why did Jesus come to earth the way He did? What was the purpose

of His entering the human race, living among us, and dying upon a cross? Why

did the divine Son of God lower Himself to the extent of becoming wholly

man? The answers to these questions can be summarized in three following

points:

1. To Die on the Cross for Sinful Humanity: -

I believe the number one reason why Jesus came to the earth and was

born a human man, was so that he could die.   Did you know that it is impossible

to kill God?   God is a supreme spiritual power and it is impossible to eliminate

God from existence.   But, that does not mean that God as a man could not

die a normal physical death.  It is pretty obvious that Jesus proved that after

hanging on the cross.  When Jesus said it is finished, He fulfilled His number

one purpose for coming into the world.  His death accomplished more than

you can imagine right now, but read this verse:

Heb 2:9  But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels

for the suffering of Jesus, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the

grace of God should taste death for every man.

Jesus Christ was born a human male on the earth so that he could taste

death for all of us.  The Bible says that it is appointed unto every man, once to

die (Heb 9:27).   In becoming a man we can clearly see that God did not intend

for Jesus the man to live on the earth forever or to set up a natural kingdom or

rule in this dimension of time.   God specifically came to the earth in a very

temporary capacity, on purpose with the set goal to die after 33 years of being

present as a man.  Death is also a separating force that terminates covenants. 

You can learn this by reading the words of Ruth, when she says “Until death

separates me from thee”.   If God wants to die on the earth, you can conclude

that He wants to end whatever covenants that He was previously tied to.   I

know that is not a popular teaching, but it is a logical deduction based upon

the facts established in the Bible.  Do realize that the living mortal man Jesus

of Nazareth did not establish a New Covenant with anyone while He was here

in His mortal physical state?   You see the New Covenant was implemented by

the risen from the dead Jesus Christ.   The Risen Jesus is now an immortal and

omnipotent spiritual being and only He can implement a new eternal covenant

that never existed before.  This is a fact that you rarely hear taught in church.  

Jesus Christ is the first born from the dead and the heir of everything (Heb

1:2).   What is an heir?   An Heir is only someone who inherits what someone

who died has left.  Who died?  What was left?  Who are the heirs?  You see

why the Bible is so difficult to understand for most people?  The Bible is more

complex than most understood.

2. To Save Sinful Humanity from Their Sins: -

One of the reasons was to give mankind a chance to have their sins

forgiven. Why does mankind need a Savior? The reason man needs a Savior is

because of sin. The Bible clearly says, all have sinned, and fall short of the

glory of God (Romans 3:23). Every person who can tell right from wrong

commits sin. The apostle John also tells us this fact (1 John 1:6-10). What is

sin? Sin is missing the mark (Romans 3:23). It is lawlessness (1 John 3:4). John

added, all unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17). Also, the wages of sin is death

(Romans 6:23). Sin causes us to go away from God (Isaiah 59:1-2), and Christ

came to the earth to bring us back to God (2 Corinthians 5:20-21; Ephesians

2:16).

We have shown one of the reasons Jesus came to the earth was because

of sin. From where did sin come? The answer is given to us in the first book of

the Bible. After God created Adam and Eve, He put them in the Garden of

Eden, giving them everything they needed. He also gave them commands they

were to follow. And Jehovah God took the man, and put him into the Garden

of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And Jehovah God commanded the man,

saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of

the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that

thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Genesis 2:15-17).

God clearly told them what to do. They were not to eat of the fruit of

the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The third chapter of Genesis tells

us what happened. Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the

field which Jehovah God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath

God said, Ye shall not eat of any tree of the garden? And the woman said unto

the serpent, Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat: but of the fruit

of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat

of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman,

Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then

your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. And

when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight

to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of

the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her,

and he did eat. (Genesis 3:1-6).

23 24

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, sin entered into the world (Romans

5:12). God already had the plan to send Christ to the earth to save man from

his sin. And she shall bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for

it is he that shall save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). For while we

were yet weak, in due season Christ died for the ungodly...But God

commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ

died for us (Romans 5:6, 8). Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation,

that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief (1

Timothy 1:15).

3. To Reconcile Sinful Humanity Back to God: -

This reason I will probably not be able to elaborate on fully in this lesson. 

Many will read this next verse that I give and think that it is talking about the

previous reason, but I do not personally think that is what Jesus was talking

about.  Jesus did tell us that He was sent to the lost sheep of the House of

Israel (Mat 15:24).  So we do understand that people are spoken of in the

Bible as being lost.  What I think is that it was more than that, which Jesus was

talking about in this next verse.

Luk 19:10  For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was

lost.

Did you notice that this verse does not say, “Those Who Were Lost”? 

Why is that important?  Why is that necessary to see?  What was lost?   What

must be saved?  Many just think we the people were what was lost and that is

the only thing that God came here to save.  That of course is a very narrow

minded focus on what God is capable of doing.  Let me answer these questions

by asking you a question.   Why is it necessary for God to create a new heaven

and a new earth?  You should really give that some serious thought before

you try to answer that question.  Could it be that is what was lost?   I only buy

a new car because something happened to my old car, either a wreck, or just

old age and it died.   Some people trade cars like they buy new underwear or

socks, but God is not this way.   You have to realize that there is a major problem

with the old, if God implements a new anything.  I mean think about it, can’t

God ever create anything that lasts?   Is He not God?   It would appear that

something happens to the old heaven and the old earth that causes God to

create a new physical and spiritual realm.  So I do not deny that people are

also lost.  In 2nd Corinthians 4:3 it says “If our gospel is hid, it is hid to them

that are lost”.  But, this word can mean “destroyed” or “perishing”.   So while

you could say people are lost, you actually find this statement:

Col 1:20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to

reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in

earth, or things in heaven.

You see you can find more scriptures about people having been

reconciled back to God in the New Testament than you can find scriptures

that speak about people being lost.

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the

death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

So the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ’s death is that we have

been reconciled back in right relationship with God. 

Conclusion: -

From all above mentioned we come to the conclusion that God Almighty

to communicate with us in the best way possible, “He “became flesh,” He

became one of the creatures he made, simply because our greatest need is an

eternal one. It’s not about what we can gain in this life, in profits or pleasure

or making a lasting imprint on this earth. None of these will satisfy our souls.

Our’s is a spiritual need, one that we were created for, to have fellowship with

God and do His will.

Jesus came to earth because he loves us; He came to deliver truth in a

world of false beliefs. But the main reason He came to earth was to be the

final sacrifice for our sins. The simple reason is because we are not good, none

of us are good when compared to God’s standard—Jesus Christ.

His love prompted him to become man to accomplish what only He

could, to rescue mankind.  Because we are sinful, in a spiritually wrecked

condition we are in need of redemption but could not redeem ourselves.

Nothing short than the eternal creator could accomplish this; no man with sin

could qualify to redeem us with his life. God would come to earth as man to

cleanse the affect of the disease of sin inherited to all humanity. That is what

is so amazing about the Bible stories [facts] of Jesus. The creator came to

earth; God who is perfect, righteous and holy lived among his creatures that

are unholy, unrighteous, even those who were enemies of him. (Mr. Lalit.K.

Bardhan can be contacted through e-mail:lkbardhan@gmail.com)

25 26

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, sin entered into the world (Romans

5:12). God already had the plan to send Christ to the earth to save man from

his sin. And she shall bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for

it is he that shall save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). For while we

were yet weak, in due season Christ died for the ungodly...But God

commendeth his own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ

died for us (Romans 5:6, 8). Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation,

that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief (1

Timothy 1:15).

3. To Reconcile Sinful Humanity Back to God: -

This reason I will probably not be able to elaborate on fully in this lesson. 

Many will read this next verse that I give and think that it is talking about the

previous reason, but I do not personally think that is what Jesus was talking

about.  Jesus did tell us that He was sent to the lost sheep of the House of

Israel (Mat 15:24).  So we do understand that people are spoken of in the

Bible as being lost.  What I think is that it was more than that, which Jesus was

talking about in this next verse.

Luk 19:10  For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was

lost.

Did you notice that this verse does not say, “Those Who Were Lost”? 

Why is that important?  Why is that necessary to see?  What was lost?   What

must be saved?  Many just think we the people were what was lost and that is

the only thing that God came here to save.  That of course is a very narrow

minded focus on what God is capable of doing.  Let me answer these questions

by asking you a question.   Why is it necessary for God to create a new heaven

and a new earth?  You should really give that some serious thought before

you try to answer that question.  Could it be that is what was lost?   I only buy

a new car because something happened to my old car, either a wreck, or just

old age and it died.   Some people trade cars like they buy new underwear or

socks, but God is not this way.   You have to realize that there is a major problem

with the old, if God implements a new anything.  I mean think about it, can’t

God ever create anything that lasts?   Is He not God?   It would appear that

something happens to the old heaven and the old earth that causes God to

create a new physical and spiritual realm.  So I do not deny that people are

also lost.  In 2nd Corinthians 4:3 it says “If our gospel is hid, it is hid to them

that are lost”.  But, this word can mean “destroyed” or “perishing”.   So while

you could say people are lost, you actually find this statement:

Col 1:20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to

reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in

earth, or things in heaven.

You see you can find more scriptures about people having been

reconciled back to God in the New Testament than you can find scriptures

that speak about people being lost.

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the

death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

So the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ’s death is that we have

been reconciled back in right relationship with God. 

Conclusion: -

From all above mentioned we come to the conclusion that God Almighty

to communicate with us in the best way possible, “He “became flesh,” He

became one of the creatures he made, simply because our greatest need is an

eternal one. It’s not about what we can gain in this life, in profits or pleasure

or making a lasting imprint on this earth. None of these will satisfy our souls.

Our’s is a spiritual need, one that we were created for, to have fellowship with

God and do His will.

Jesus came to earth because he loves us; He came to deliver truth in a

world of false beliefs. But the main reason He came to earth was to be the

final sacrifice for our sins. The simple reason is because we are not good, none

of us are good when compared to God’s standard—Jesus Christ.

His love prompted him to become man to accomplish what only He

could, to rescue mankind.  Because we are sinful, in a spiritually wrecked

condition we are in need of redemption but could not redeem ourselves.

Nothing short than the eternal creator could accomplish this; no man with sin

could qualify to redeem us with his life. God would come to earth as man to

cleanse the affect of the disease of sin inherited to all humanity. That is what

is so amazing about the Bible stories [facts] of Jesus. The creator came to

earth; God who is perfect, righteous and holy lived among his creatures that

are unholy, unrighteous, even those who were enemies of him. (Mr. Lalit.K.

Bardhan can be contacted through e-mail:lkbardhan@gmail.com)

25 26

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

The Word of God presented to us through the Bible is indeed very

fascinating. It unfolds the eternal plan of God for mankind. God’s

purpose in Christ is that the fallen man must be restored and reunited

to Him.

In order to accomplish this great task, God in Christ came down

to be one with us. He is God with us, Immanuel. The infallible Word of

God must touch our lives and turn us away from sin. The remedy for sin

is found in the Lamb of God – the sinless Christ who died on our behalf

to atone for our sins. It is through this act of faith and trust in the Saviour,

the sinner is forgiven and begins a new relationship with God.

Through the work of Christ, sin’s enslavement is done away with.

The guilt of sin and condemnation is removed. The conscience is revived.

Eternal life is offered as the free gift through Jesus Christ to those who

believe in Him. A new outlook begins in a man or woman who surrenders

his/her life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Perhaps, this message can make an impact in your life during this

Christmas. We may celebrate Christmas without really experiencing this

new life that Christ offers us. With Christ living in us and we in Him, it

would make a lot of difference. Why not make a new start this Christmas

by inviting Jesus into our lives? May He become our Saviour, Lord and

King.

It will be wonderful if we share this message with our non Christian

friends. What more can be said other than this when we boldly make a

declaration and share the gospel in this way!.

J.D.

WHAT IS GOOD ABOUT

GOOD NEWS?☺ ☺

Readers may listen to a recent message of

Rev. JOSHUA DHANABALANby visiting:https://soundcloud.com/radnus-inc/sermon-by-rev-joshua

27

To The Kind Attention of our Readers…….

It is with an endeavour to teach, admonish and edify Christian believers,

Christian Thought Series is published and had been sent free mostly across

the country. There is also an-email version available on-line.

Please provide your e-mail ID so you could receive it and pass it on

easily to friends and relatives staying far away from you .

With the rising costs in printing and related expenditure, we make an

earnest plea to our readers to considerer supporting this work through your

prayers and free-will offerings.

General Readers who receive regular issue of the magazine are

requested to renew their subscription of Rs.100/-

Please find details of the ministry of Disciples For Christ at the back

page. Your prayers and participation would encourage us.

Seminaries/ Book-stores may kindly renew their subscription for

uninterrupted supply.

Your contributions may be sent to: Disciples For Christ State Bank of India,

kellys Branch, Chennai 10.

Savings Bank A/c No.32694836912.

IFSC:SBINOO11736/ Branch Code 11736.

Ponder These Questions!

l Is it possible to serve God expecting no results or miracles?

l What does it mean to take God's Word at its face - value?

l Do you venerate Mary and make her a deity or consider her as a simple

yet special women God chose?

l Do you see Jesus Christ as a person or a principle?

l What is your agenda for this Christmas?

28

Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2 Christian Thought Series Vol 10 Issue 2

The Word of God presented to us through the Bible is indeed very

fascinating. It unfolds the eternal plan of God for mankind. God’s

purpose in Christ is that the fallen man must be restored and reunited

to Him.

In order to accomplish this great task, God in Christ came down

to be one with us. He is God with us, Immanuel. The infallible Word of

God must touch our lives and turn us away from sin. The remedy for sin

is found in the Lamb of God – the sinless Christ who died on our behalf

to atone for our sins. It is through this act of faith and trust in the Saviour,

the sinner is forgiven and begins a new relationship with God.

Through the work of Christ, sin’s enslavement is done away with.

The guilt of sin and condemnation is removed. The conscience is revived.

Eternal life is offered as the free gift through Jesus Christ to those who

believe in Him. A new outlook begins in a man or woman who surrenders

his/her life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Perhaps, this message can make an impact in your life during this

Christmas. We may celebrate Christmas without really experiencing this

new life that Christ offers us. With Christ living in us and we in Him, it

would make a lot of difference. Why not make a new start this Christmas

by inviting Jesus into our lives? May He become our Saviour, Lord and

King.

It will be wonderful if we share this message with our non Christian

friends. What more can be said other than this when we boldly make a

declaration and share the gospel in this way!.

J.D.

WHAT IS GOOD ABOUT

GOOD NEWS?☺ ☺

Readers may listen to a recent message of

Rev. JOSHUA DHANABALANby visiting:https://soundcloud.com/radnus-inc/sermon-by-rev-joshua

27

To The Kind Attention of our Readers…….

It is with an endeavour to teach, admonish and edify Christian believers,

Christian Thought Series is published and had been sent free mostly across

the country. There is also an-email version available on-line.

Please provide your e-mail ID so you could receive it and pass it on

easily to friends and relatives staying far away from you .

With the rising costs in printing and related expenditure, we make an

earnest plea to our readers to considerer supporting this work through your

prayers and free-will offerings.

General Readers who receive regular issue of the magazine are

requested to renew their subscription of Rs.100/-

Please find details of the ministry of Disciples For Christ at the back

page. Your prayers and participation would encourage us.

Seminaries/ Book-stores may kindly renew their subscription for

uninterrupted supply.

Your contributions may be sent to: Disciples For Christ State Bank of India,

kellys Branch, Chennai 10.

Savings Bank A/c No.32694836912.

IFSC:SBINOO11736/ Branch Code 11736.

Ponder These Questions!

l Is it possible to serve God expecting no results or miracles?

l What does it mean to take God's Word at its face - value?

l Do you venerate Mary and make her a deity or consider her as a simple

yet special women God chose?

l Do you see Jesus Christ as a person or a principle?

l What is your agenda for this Christmas?

28

CHURCH MEETING - NORTH INDIA

LAY LEADERS’ TRAINING RETREAT - CHENNAI

TEACHING SESSION - MAHABALIPURAM

Volume 10 Issue 2

Rs.12/-

Nov-Dec-2013

THEME : REASON WITH SEASON

Positive thoughtsare not enough.There have to bepositive feelings

andpositive actions.

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