Reflections

Christ, Lord and God to us Isaiah 43:10-11                Beji Joseph St. John’s MTC, NY 10 “’You are my witness,’ declares the Lord, ‘and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be on after me. I, even I, am the Lord and apart from me there is no savior” Many times we have heard that we are to worship no other God, and that God should be our number one priority. However, how many of us can truthfully say that this is 100% true in our lives? Often times we seem to have other priorities, whether it be our school, work, families or other activities. This isn’t to say that there is anything wrong with prioritizing these factors in our lives, but have we been able to notice how these things may be consuming our lives? One minute spent doing something personal is one minute spent away from praising God. When this happens, who is God to us?     There are countless times in the Bible where we w

Christ Lord and God to us Revelation 1:1-8 Santhosh George St. Johns MTC, NY. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” v.8 Early Christians faced persecution and needed assurance that God was in control. The book of Revelation is a warning, circulated to seven cities in the Roman province of Asia Minor. The purpose of the book is to challenge and encourage the believers in the midst of their opposition and persecution. It reminds them to lead holy lives as they await their final participation in God’s kingdom. We may not experience a similar physical persecution in our times, but, alienation and ridicule exists today for Christian beliefs.   Worship leads to revelation: Early Christians had already changed their day of rest and worship from Saturday (the Sabbath) to Sunday. The revelation began “On the Lord’s Day” (v.10) while he was in the “Spirit”. Worship that John is experiencing here is not merely reciting anci

Christ Lord and God to us Colossians 1:15-23   Suby Mathew, St. Johns MTC, NY "He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.” In the book of Colossians, Paul takes us back to the basics focusing on the pre-eminence of Christ. He refers to Jesus with words such as “supreme” indicating that He is “above” all others.” Paul proceeds with Jesus being one with God making Him the ultimate. Paul also states Jesus is the firstborn of all creation. It is important to note that “firstborn” is not in the sense of being born, but in having the claim of authority over all things. The claims of the Father are also the claims of the Son as they are one. Chances are that if you are reading this, Jesus being Supreme is a pretty obvious notion. However, knowing that Christ is supreme, how should we live? Very simply, we need to trust Him as our Savior. As God, He paid the price for our sins through His sacrifice and resurrection. We ought to worship Him

Christ Lord and God to us Colossians 3:1-11                  Christine Thomas St. John’s MTC, NY “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." We live in a world where we face trials, temptations, and tribulations on a daily basis. At times, these obstacles don’t even feel as though they are overbearing because they are habits we have picked up from a young age, it is part of our daily routine, it has become part of our lifestyle. Christians as well as Non-Christians face the same obstacles but the only difference is that as followers of Christ, we have been given specific instructions to live a holy life.  Since Christ died for us, our former selves have died. In other words, Christ died so that the sins we have committed could be erased. Through His resurrection we have been reborn. His resurrection means that as children of God we h

Christ : Lord and God to Us Genesis 3:13-17 Jessica Ann George St John’s MTC, Queens, NY 14 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you among all animals and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. Only God can take the hopeless circumstances we get ourselves into and use them to show us He is Lord and God over those situations as well. Today’s passage focuses on the fall of man, and more specifically on God’s response to Adam, Eve, and the serpent after Adam and Eve chose to eat the fruit from the tree. After Adam and Eve saw how God reduced the serpent to a cursed creature that accepts the defeat of eating dust day after day, they were probably sure they had an equivalent punishment coming their way because God hates sin and God is displeased with anyone who causes others to sin.     Little did they know, through the serpent’s punishment, God was setting the precedent for years in h

CHRIST, LORD AND GOD TO US PSALM 40 Mrs. Lincy Issac W/O of Rev. Issac Kurien St. John’s MTC, NY “He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire”     Psalm 40 is a celebration of God’s great goodness to David and all his people. He praises God for delivering him out of deep distress. David here mentions that  to receive answer for ones prayers, we need to wait patiently. Through this Psalm, David recollects his experiences and witnesses that God was with him in all the dangers. He affirms that God, who was with him, will be with all who patiently wait for God’s intervention. From this Psalm, I would like to share three points that David experienced in his life from God. He introduces a God who Lifted Him, Located Him and Lead Him.     David was in deep distress and could not live without the help of someone else. In v.2 he explains that he was in a slimy pit condition. Being in the slimy pit is dangerous. If someone who is trapped in it and tries t

Resurrection: Celebration of New Life in Christ Psalm 108: 1-4 Gracious John St. Andrews MTC, NY "For your steadfast love is higher than the heavens, and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds." Praise the Lord! The theme of Praise comes from David in this Psalm. It is written both as instruction and expression. The passage gives us a chronologic order of how praise is to be.   David begins with his Soul. This is the foundation of praise. We must train and dedicate our inner being or praise to focus on the Lord always. The Psalm calls for our hearts to be steadfast. What an intimate and fierce calling! David is resolving to be unwavering in the Lord. We must share this fervent desire in order to fuel the next step of praise.   Next, David brings praise with his harp and lyre. This can represent our talents that God has given to us. In our grandparents generation, we all have heard stories of prayer very early in the morning, the prayers and p

Resurrection: Celebration of New Life in Christ 1 Corinthians 15:42-58 Sherin K. Abraham St. Andrews MTC, Yonkers, NY “ Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” – 1 Corinthians 15:58   When we attend a funeral service, Achen prays a specific prayer before the deceased is interred. He says, “O God who has said of our race, “You are dust and to dust you shall return.” We commit the body of this Your servant to the earth, with the hope that You will raise it up for eternal life in the last day.” As a man or woman living in this world, we all know that one day we are going to die. As we are made of dust, one day we will return to it. In the church of Corinth, the congregation and the church leaders were wondering what would happen after the death of a person. From Paul’s response in his epistle, he talks about the power

Resurrection: Celebration of New Life in Christ Isaiah 60:1-22 Jesse Samuel St. Andrews MTC, NY “The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory” Verse 19     In the earlier chapters of Isaiah, God would act to rescue the nation from enemy armies and to punish wicked Israelites as well. He would also rescue His  people from sin. Since this task is impossible for any human to complete, God himself, as the Messiah, would personally step in to help. You see, whether we sin once or many times, our sin separates us from God and will continue to separate us until God forgives us.     This current passage is full of promises. My favorite verse in the entire passage, as highlighted in the beginning of this devotion, is the reality of those promises. The places mentioned in this passage belonged to obscure tribes in the Arabian desert hundreds of miles fro

Resurrection: Celebration of New Life in Christ 1 Corinthians 15: 20-28 Gracious John St. Andrews MTC 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. “He is Risen.” This was the front page of every major news outlet on Easter Sunday.  Our Savior has overcome the grave in a mighty fashion. While we are celebrating Easter, we must also remember to celebrate and take hope in this resurrection when Christ returns. The passage refers to Christ as the first fruit. This refers to the Old Testament practice of sacrificing the first fruit of the harvest to the Lord. Only the best of the harvest was presented to God.  Jesus was the best and only sacrifice that could atone for our sins and provide freedom for our souls. Christ’s resurrection is also our proof of the resurrection to come. This gives us hope and those who have passed on before us that we will be raised in His Glory. While this is all great news, we must remember t

Happy and Blessed Easter to ALL Luke 24:1-11 Rt. Rev. Dr. Isaac Mar Philoxenos,  Diocesan Bishop Diocese of North America and Europe “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen”. (Luke: 24. 5)                                                                          The church all over the world is celebrating Easter, rejoicing in the 'New life' that the Risen Lord brought to the world through overcoming death. This reminds the faithful ‘to live in the light of the resurrection – that is the meaning of Easter’, the words written in a German Jail cell in 1944 by Dietrich Bonheoffer.  While we celebrate new life, we recognize God’s faithfulness to us.  God’s faithfulness meant that God took the form of a human being to be with us; God was and continues to be Immanuel, ‘God with us’. God in Jesus has to face ‘death’, and it is that faithfulness unto death and bringing new life, that we celebrate. Human search for the Divine s

Resurrection: Celebration of New Life in Christ  Luke 24:1-12  Rev. Christopher Phil Daniel Youth Chaplain - Midwest Region  “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.” (St. Luke 24:5b) The women who went to the tomb on the first day of the week to embalm the body of Jesus with their spices probably never expected to see the risen Lord. These women, along with the other disciples of Jesus, were so overwhelmed with despair, confusion, and fear that they really did not know what to expect on the third day after Jesus’ death. So, when the women find the tomb to be empty and vacant, they are utterly perplexed. The emptiness, the void, and the nothingness of the tomb is not expected. Not only was the empty tomb unexpected, but even the death of Jesus on a cross was quite unexpected; it was something that they could not comprehend or even come to accept. In the midst of these unforeseen and unanticipated circumstances, these women are left w

Hosanna – A Journey of Humility, Fulfilment & Obedience Matthew 21:1-11  Rev. Manoj Idiculla  Vicar Carmel MTC, Boston ‘This took place to fulfil what was spoken through the prophets…..’ Vs. 4 Tomorrow is Palm Sunday, the day we remember Jesus’ Triumphal entry into Jerusalem a few days before He was crucified for our sins. The Biblical account of Christ’s “Triumphal Entry,” into Jerusalem is one of the few events all four gospels record for us. Five days before the Passover, Jesus came from Bethany to Jerusalem. Having sent two of His disciples to bring Him a colt of a donkey, Jesus sat upon it and entered the city. Prophets had spoken of such a day, the Psalmist sang of it, and the Messiah was to fulfill it. No greater day could be anticipated. Some celebrated it as a triumphal entry, others mourned it as the tragic end of the great promise. The excitement of the scene is tempered by the fact that very soon, the same crowds that hailed Jesus as King would be c

Redeeming Christ  Luke 13:10-17 Atty. Lal Varghese,   Church of Dallas, FB Luke: 13: 12 – 13 “When Jesus saw her, he called her, and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” He laid his hands on her, and immediately she stood up straight, and glorified God.” The word “redemption” is often mentioned in the Old and the New Testament books which means "a purchase" or "a ransom." In the Old Testament and historically, the word ‘redemption’ was used in respect to the purchase of a slave's freedom from bondage. The word 'redemption' in the New Testament means and includes this same idea, but focuses more on the fact that every person is a slave to sin; only through the price Jesus paid on the cross, a sinful person is redeemed from sin and death. The New Testament has several passages about Christ’s eternal redemption from sin and death for the faithful believers. Christ’s redemption has freed us from guilt, being “justified fr

The Restoring Christ Philippians 2: 5-11 Sonia Joseph St. James MTC, NY "In your relationship with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.." In the letter to Philippians, Apostle Paul encourages us to be Christ like in our relationship. It further discusses the humble nature of Jesus and how Father God exalts Him at the end. 1. Humility of Jesus Apostle Paul points out that even though Jesus was fully God in nature, He did not regard equality with God. Being equal to God did have its own privileges like power, glory, riches etc. But Jesus humbled Himself and took the nature of a servant, being obedient to the Father even in death. We live in a society which is obsessed with social status. We try to achieve importance by having material possessions. We are constantly in a fight to come up a step higher than a friend, relative or neighbor etc. Apostle Paul asks us to be Christ like in our relationships. Jesus Christ asks us to value the other p

The Restoring Christ Jeremiah 17:14 Shaimi Jacob  St. James MTC, NY 14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved; for you are my praise. Restoration means the act of returning something to a former owner, place or condition. God is our creator and owner. Christ is our restorer to assist us to be returned to our owner (God), to our place (heaven), and to our true condition (sinless). John 14:6 states, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  Christ restores our relationship with God. During the Old Testament, the restoration of an individual occurred by repenting one’s sins to God and sacrificing an unblemished animal to God. However this practice is no more necessary as the sacrificial lamb(Jesus Christ) paid the price for all our sins. Jeremiah 17:14 is the prophet’s prayer for deliverance pleading to God for his healing and restoration. Prophet Jeremiah is seeking a restoration in his relati

THE RESTORING  CHRIST Ephesians 2:1-10 Rev. B. Mathew St. James MTC NY V.10.  '  We are called by God for good workers. We are saved for good works and never by good works'.                          The first three chapters of Ephesians can be titled as 'the calling and design of the church. In chapter 2 Paul describes the Church is likened to a building, it's cornerstone  is Jesus Christ Himself  and believers are fitly framed together  to form a holy temple in the Lord.                          Paul explains the fact how God creates a new man that He created originally in His own image and likeness but who through disobedience falls from his lofty position. In the fullness of time God sent His son. Through His virtue,  life, victorious death and victorious  resurrection He is restoring to the Father His fallen creatures. Here Paul emphasis the need for being made a new creation by reviewing the believer's past history before they became saved.