I recently heard an analogy about the Trinitarian God (God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit):
Imagine your life is you sailing thru an ocean, and your goal (God) is an island in the centre of the ocean. Now you may be far from the island, and you may be near it. But the distance doesn't matter; just because you're near it doesn't mean you're gonna get there. Which reminds me of the parable of the Prodigal Son: the younger son would be sailing quite far away from the island, while the elder son would be quite near it. How then can you land on the island? By making sure you're always heading towards the island. So if you're far away but you faithfully steer towards it, you'll get there. If you're near it but you're not heading towards it, obviously you're not going to get there. So no matter what you do or experience, as long as you keep your sight focussed on Jesus (ask Him to guide you in your daily decisions and forgive you if you sin, among others) you'll get to Him eventually. And that means Heaven.
Sunday 28 October 2007
Today's Reading
Here's some more readings, this time for Sun 28 Oct (Luke 18: 9-14):
The Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector
Jesus also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down on everyone else. “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed about himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: extortionists, unrighteous people, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’ The tax collector, however, stood far off and would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, sinner that I am!’ I tell you that this man went down to his home justified rather than the Pharisee. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
I guess the message of this parable is if you think all you need is God's laws to enter heaven (live a good life, don't sin, obey all the laws of the church and the Old Testament), you are in for a rude awakening. You need Jesus and His guidance to enter heaven. And a prideful attitude is hardly gonna allow you to humbly ask Him 4 guidance.
The Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector
Jesus also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down on everyone else. “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed about himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: extortionists, unrighteous people, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’ The tax collector, however, stood far off and would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, sinner that I am!’ I tell you that this man went down to his home justified rather than the Pharisee. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
I guess the message of this parable is if you think all you need is God's laws to enter heaven (live a good life, don't sin, obey all the laws of the church and the Old Testament), you are in for a rude awakening. You need Jesus and His guidance to enter heaven. And a prideful attitude is hardly gonna allow you to humbly ask Him 4 guidance.
Saturday's Readings
Sorry 4 posting so late- here's the readings for 27 Oct (Luke 13: 1-9):
A Call to Repent
Now there were some present on that occasion who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. He answered them, “Do you think these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered these things? No, I tell you! But unless you repent, you will all perish as well! Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower in Siloam fell on them, do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who live in Jerusalem? No, I tell you! But unless you repent you will all perish as well!”
These verses should strike a chord with those who had lost friends/family recently...
A Call to Repent
Now there were some present on that occasion who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. He answered them, “Do you think these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered these things? No, I tell you! But unless you repent, you will all perish as well! Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower in Siloam fell on them, do you think they were worse offenders than all the others who live in Jerusalem? No, I tell you! But unless you repent you will all perish as well!”
These verses should strike a chord with those who had lost friends/family recently...
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