The Anchor Church

As I sit and write this, I am overwhelmed with the purpose that God has given our church. Through The Insider we have been challenged to be the people of God in our sphere of influence, being a light in a world full of confusion and hopelessness.  In the grand scheme of God’s purpose for humanity, we may be like a single glow worm in a dark cave, seemingly insignificant.
Yet that single light from a small creature has the capacity to draw the attention of those who seek it.

We are called to be light in this world, not so we might draw attention to ourselves, but to the one who illuminates our soul.  The Insider study has scratched the theological itch that as a body of believers we are called to magnify and multiply (Matt. 28:19 – 20). We are the voice and feet of the gospel— when we live right and speak right, enabled by the empowering of the Holy Spirit, we will be
moved to exemplify the name, Christian, and as such be the light proclaiming the light who is Christ.

Matthew 5:16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven”.

Darryl

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship.  Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will. – Roman 12:1-2

Recently some of the youth group went into Wellington to see Rapture Ruckus and P.O.D. Rapture Ruckus is a Wellington band that is very popular among our teenagers. P.O.D (Payable on Death) is an American band that is popular among the leaders, who were reliving their teen years that night. We were all very excited about going and of course we were going to be up the front in the mosh pit.

Have you ever been in a mosh pit? Do you know what a mosh pit is?

It is the area near the front of the stage at a rock concert where all the fans crowd in together, jump up and down, and go a little bit crazy.  “Why would anyone want to be in the mosh pit?” I hear you ask.  Well they go because it is exciting. There is an energy that you get from being so close to the stage, the music blaring, everyone else around you singing and shouting and all together moving in time with the music. In fact once you’ve been in the mosh pit, standing at the back or sitting in the stands can be very boring.

Faith is like this, it is best when you fully commit. It will never make sense viewed from afar. We need to be people that desire to be up front in all the action. We need to be living out a radical faith. People are desperate for meaning and purpose in their lives. Faith in Jesus gives us that. Is that what people see when they look at our lives?

I came to faith in Jesus at the age of 17 because I could see that in Jesus I would have the most extraordinary life. The alternatives just could not measure up. Jesus was calling me to a life of radical love, sacrificial serving and outrageous generosity. This was revealed to me as I started to read the Bible and also in the lives of the believers I met at church.  So even though I’m getting older, in age and in my faith, I don’t want to forget what I was called to at 17. I need to remind myself about what it actually means to follow Jesus and live out my faith. I want my faith in Jesus to be evident through my actions and interactions with others. I want others to see something remarkable, different and exciting. I want them to see Jesus.

Brad

Topical in the news at present is the subject of debt, whether it be national debt (e.g. Greece) or the collapse of financial institutions in our own country, or the indebtedness of our local authorities, or the personal debt of individuals.

In Luke’s gospel at 7:41, Jesus has something to say about two men who were in debt.

“There was certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred dollars and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing to pay, he freely forgave them both.”

When they could not repay what they owed, he let them both off! The person to whom the debt was due forgave the debt. What does this tell us about that person? He had the ability to forgive the debt – he possessed sufficient resources that the remittance of what was owed could easily be absorbed. Continue reading The Debt Crisis