Gordon Christian Fellowship

Daily Devotion - 02/27/2008

The Lord is with us!

We are a society of many, many words. We have a lot to say these days. Turn on the TV or radio and there’s talk about everything all hours of the day. News channels to talk about the news, sports channels to talk about sports, entertainment channels to tell us about what’s going on in the world of entertainment, fashion channels to tell us what to wear and what not to, educational channels to teach us about our world and ourselves and even channels that will tell us what to believe about God and our relationship to Him.

Daily Devotion - 02/26/2008

Christ is in our Midst!

Lectio divina is a wonderful method for “praying” the Scriptures. It is a very ancient way of prayer that has become a key aspect of Benedictine spirituality---the way of St. Benedict of Nursia, the founder of western monasticism, but is practiced by people of all walks of life and of every creed. We shouldn’t shy away from it because of its Latin words or because we wrongly thing it belongs to this or that denomination of our often squabbling Christian family.

Daily Devotion - 02/25/2008

The Lord is with us!

We live in busy times.

One might argue that this has been the case for much of recorded history but there seems to be something different about the accelerating pace of our culture with its emphasis on overtime at work, a 24/7 news and sports cycle, an emphasis on cramming as many experiences into one’s life as possible and, for many young people, a sense that a moment not filled with something is a moment wasted, a moment that isn’t “awesome”.

Daily Devotion - 02/21/2008

Christ is in our Midst!

The widely-read commentator Frederica Mathews-Greene writes wryly that too many Christians seem to think that the early Church worshipped by sitting around in blue jeans, strumming guitars and singing about Jesus.

Daily Devotion - 02/20/2008

The Lord is with us!

Many writers, when discussing the Biblical model of what the church should look like, refer to Luke’s description of the early congregation that meet on Solomon’s Porch at the Temple in Jerusalem. Looking at Luke’s words in Acts we have:

Daily Devotion - 02/19/2008

Christ is in our Midst!

The antiquity and continuity of Christian worship is a matter of historical record. Rather than offering you some of my own thoughts on this vital topic, let me instead offer one of the most famous accounts of early Christian worship that comes down to us. Its author is Justin Martyr, who “witnessed” to his faith with his own blood in Rome in AD 165.

Daily Devotion - 02/18/2008

The Lord is with us!

Last week, Gary and I wrote extensively on the idea of prayer in the New Testament with the focus on the Lord’s Prayer. In the broader context of the Sermon on the Mount, we find a compelling picture of what personal or private prayer might look like. This week, we wish to write about the idea of corporate prayer or public prayer.

Daily Devotion - 02/15/2008

The Lord is with us!

As we close this week’s devotionals, I would like to start at the beginning. The Lord’s Prayer begins with a statement that is starling in both its intimacy and power.

Our Father, who is in heaven;
Hallowed be Your name.

Let’s look at this bit-by-bit to pull out the meaning in each phrase.

Daily Devotion - 02/14/2008

Christ is in our Midst!

Just a glance at the scribblings Chad and I have put forth over the last three days gives a sense of how rich and powerful and challenging to each of us the Lord’s Prayer actually is. Take yet another line---“Thy will be done”---and consider how deep and powerful and unsettling that idea actually is.

Daily Devotion - 02/13/2008

The Lord is with us!

As Gary has just written about the phrase just preceding the central petition of the Lord’s Prayer: Give us this day our daily bread, I would like to focus this devotional on the verse immediately following it.