Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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Leading others to Christ
Pradeep John
Connecticut Mar Thoma Congregation

14 Yet more than ever believers were added to the Lord, great numbers of both men and women,

Today in the Christian world the major issue facing the church is people moving away from the church. Young people feel disconnected when they come to church. Many church buildings are abandoned and for sale. Skepticism about religion is especially evident among young people. Others are questioning the very reason why the churches exist.
The Church during Apostolic time: The book of Acts was written by Luke after his Gospel as the second part. After the ascension of Jesus, all the people magnified the Apostles, and had them in great veneration and spoke of them with respect. They represented them as the favorites of Heaven, and unspeakable blessings to this earth.  The apostles were far from magnifying themselves; they transmitted the glory of all they did very carefully and faithfully to Christ, and the people magnified them for their works in Christ; for those that humble themselves shall be exalted, and those that honor God only will be honored. Though the people knew it was a serious thing to be a Christian, the church kept growing and the spirit of God kept moving with power.
The Church in current times: As Christians today we are  followers of Christ and are called to be the light of the world. Wherever Christianity comes, it should bring purification to that place. When evangelist Billy Graham preached in Shreveport, LS, liquor sales dropped by 40% and sale of Bibles increased by 300%. Like the apostles, do we transmit the glory and love of Christ when we interact with our neighbors? One of our major concerns is that families are passing down their beliefs and religious practices less and less. As a consequence, most people are not familiar with what kinds of sacraments / practices there are in the church and what is said during Holy Qurbana. And this means, people are less involved in the church, and our youths are more skeptical of the Church. As Christians we should conform to the image of Christ so that Christ can use us as His instruments to spread the message of salvation to all humankind.

PRAYER

Gracious and loving Father, grant that we may conform to the image of Christ and show the love of Christ to our neighbors and to the future generations as the Apostles did.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
"In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:16                          

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