God loves unconditionally

December 27, 2005

Dear Sir,

Greetings! I pray you, and all yours will have a meaningful and joyous celebration of the birth of Jesus, and the gifts of any needed resources will be yours ?for the living of these days?. The phrase ?Thinking outside of the box? is widely used. The words reminded me of a sports arena in Bermuda that was called ?The Box?. Christmas is a reminder that God thought outside the box as seen in ?God so loved the world ....? John 3:16. The name Emmanuel, meaning ?God with us?, reminds us that God came to us in the sacrificial life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus brought with him the law of love. There are physical law such as gravity, which keeps us anchored to earth.

When we live within the confines of gravity, there is reasonable safety. Ignoring gravity can be dangerous. It is not suspended for our convenience. The law of love as taught by Jesus imposes obligations and responsibilities on us, and it is for our guidance. Accepting the law of love has positive consequences. Conversely, neglecting it results in or leads to dire consequences. There is the command to love. ?A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another...? (John 13:34).

You see God loves unconditionally, and we are to love God unconditionally. Moreover, God?s law of love includes everyone. God?s law of love mirrors Biblical principles, with God?s justice balanced by God?s righteousness. It is concerned about justice and mercy, but of primary importance is walking humbly with God. (see Micah 6:8). When the law of love is replaced by the belief one can do as he or she pleases, as happened long ago ?... all the people did what was right in their own eyes.? Judges 17:6, 21:25. How up to date this all sounds. This is not new. There are conflicting standards for conduct. ?Do your own thing!? ?Let it all hang out!?

Consequently, there is a great need for the ministry of reconciliation. St. Paul teaches, ?God was in Christ reconciling the world...? 2 Corinthians 5:19. Christ can transform the human condition. If you are distressed, hear again, ?Let not your heart be troubled.? God is still in control. Jesus has a great and comforting invitation: ?Come to me,... and I will give you rest.? Matthew 11:28. Peace! May God give us the light of Christ to guide us, courage to support us, and love to unite us. God Bless!

Nothing random about it

December 18, 2005

Dear Sir,

The Christmas season of our times represents such a mixed bag.

There are those who will soon celebrate God?s gift to mankind ? the first coming of the Messiah who arrived as the infant Jesus. We have His teaching and healing of the sick ? ultimately His conquering of our last enemy ? death ? with His substitutionary work on the cross where He paid for the sin of the world ? for those who would come to accept His payment of the consequences of their sin against God.

Another earthbound group of the mixed bag would be those who believe we humans just evolved ? there was a random back up and smack up of some gases whose origin we won?t belabour ourselves with that eventually ? after an excessive number of calendar years finds us forming highly developed societies. Tragically, in the eyes of some ? we seem to have fewer of our ducks in a row than perhaps the previous generation.

At any rate, I would like to drop a thought that could help the honest sceptic and seeker of truth to reflect afresh upon the feasibility of the ?random? explanation of the origins of life versus what Scripture tells us of the origin of man.

For an interesting perspective I refer to John Falconhorn, who, incidentally was a recent comer to Christianity. It is John Falconhorn of Cambridge University, one of the leading quantum physicists in the world, who tells us that the early balance needed in the early seconds of the universe between its expansion and contraction rate ? had to be so specific and so on target, he says ? with a margin of error so small that he says it would be the equivalent of taking aim of a target the other end of the universe 20 billion light years away ? aiming at a one square inch object 20 billion light years away and hitting it spot on!

Then this quantum physics professor said: ?Fellows, there is no free lunch. Somebody has to pay! In other words, there isn?t anything random about creation ? more like rather precise! So, yes, no free lunch, that payment was made by God. All the grand schemes ? all that God has done in His creation?s splendour ? we look at the beauty all around us ? ?but?, if we in our pride do not permit ourselves the learning of what He says of us and how we are to live, we will walk out our living as men drunk on the pride of their own intellect; that can and does result in a drunkenness that not even Bacardi rum could match!?

I close with reflecting: Light travelling at 186,000 miles per second for 20 billion years ? then hitting a one square inch object dead on ? are not the odds the average casino gambler aims for! I hope that thought creates some fresh vibes as to what to do in respect to the word ?prudent?!