Reflections

   The Passover Meal of Deliverence Bible Reading:    Exodus 12:21-28 Key verse :  “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants.” (Exodus 12:24) DEVOTION The last plague in Egypt resulted in Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. God sent death to the firstborn of Egypt, but the Israelites were saved because they obeyed God’s instructions. Moses told the elders to take a lamb, kill it, and put its blood on the doorposts. This act showed their faith and obedience. That night, God protected the houses marked by blood. Later, this act became a yearly ritual called Passover. Historians explain that Passover started in a farming and shepherd culture. The lamb and the unleavened bread were part of ancient spring festivals. When God delivered Israel, these foods were given new meaning as they became signs of redemption and covenant. The lamb’s blood was a sign of protection. “Pass over” does not mean God ignored the houses but that God gu...

  Saved by Grace, Not by Law Bible Reading:    Acts 15:1-11 Key verse:   “…we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.” (Acts  15: 11 ) DEVOTION Among the Biblical narrations, Acts 15 is noted as the record of the earliest Christian council, widely recognized as the Jerusalem Council. It records a conflict that included both theological and identity concerns in the early Church:  Must Gentile believers follow the Law of Moses to be saved? . Some insisted on circumcision which is a covenant marker of Jewish identity. Historically, circumcision symbolized belonging to God’s people since Abraham (Genesis 17:10). For Jewish Christians, abandoning this sign could mean discarding holiness as circumcision was a non-negotiable sign of covenant identity for them. For Gentiles, adopting it meant erasing their cultural identity. The debate in Acts 15 includes Peter’s declaration, “We believe it is throug...

  Renewal by God’s Grace  Bible Reading:  Titus 3:2-9 Key verse: Vs 5 He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy spirit. DEVOTION  In Titus 3:2-9, Paul tells us to live with kindness, humility, and peace toward everyone. He also reminds us that we weren’t always this way. At one time, we were lost making bad choices, following our own desires, and trapped in sin. It’s humbling to admit, but it makes God’s grace even more amazing.  Our salvation didn’t happen because we were “good enough” or because we earned it. It happened because God, in His mercy, stepped in. Through Jesus, He poured out His Holy Spirit on us, washing us clean and giving us new life. This renewal isn’t just a one-time event when we first believed it’s something God keeps doing in us every day. His Spirit keeps shaping us, softening our hearts, and helping us grow.  When God renews us, it changes how we live. We’re no longer defined by our past mistakes we’re heirs...

  Church that needs to be cleansed everyday  Bible Reading:  Mark  11:15-18 Key verse: Vs 17 "My house will be called  a house of prayer for all nations. But you have made it a den of robbers ." DEVOTION AN UNHOLY ALLIANCE  Have you found yourselves in a spiritual environment which has a stench of unholiness all around it?  Have you found yourselves in the most holy places which exploited the less fortunate and made a profit out of it? This was the very situation that Jesus found himself at the temple courts in Jerusalem as the Passover was nearing in Mark 11.  In the book of John there is a cleansing of the temple in John 2.  In John 2: 16 we read Jesus saying “Get these out of here !  Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” In both the narratives Jesus is cleansing the temple. There is a big possibility that at a time of festival or feast or any spiritual observance or even at the everyday affairs of a spiritual institution you ...

  Independence and Responsibility Bible Reading: Exodus 23: 1 – 9 ‘Love the foreigner amongst you as yourself...I am the Lord your God” Leviticus 19:34 Key verse: Vs    “So, in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.” DEVOTION In Exodus 23:9, God commanded, “You must not oppress a foreigner; you know the heart of a foreigner, because you yourselves were foreigners...”  We were once strangers in this country. But we quickly adapted, worked hard and soon realized the American Dream. God has been most gracious to us.  It is important to note that when we first reached these shores, we were treated humanely by the people who were already living here. Our families did not get split. Our children did not get separated from us.  We were not put in concentration camps. Our migrant experience has been most humane.   Unfortunately, this is not true for all migrants to this land.  Most migrants leave their countries due to war, pove...

  STAY ROOTED IN GOD’S WORD Bible Reading:  2 Timothy  3:10-17 Key verse: Vs    Vs 16 - All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness DEVOTION It takes real courage for a person to stand for Christ in the present world we live in today. To practice a godly life in a godless society and to be rooted in God’s word is gained only from the Word of God.  Everything around us is changing - society, education, morality, values, culture and even the interpretation of the Scripture have changed drastically.       Apostle Paul’s 2 letter to Timothy was written when Paul was awaiting execution in Rome. These are the final words of Paul at the end of his ministry and his life. Paul has only hours left but Timothy has years left to minister. Sitting in a dark dungeon awaiting death, loneliness crept in and Paul took his pen and wrote to his friend Timothy. Paul’s chief concern is for...