Happenings 13 February 2020

Paul once wrote these words to a church: I thank my God every time I remember you.  In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy  because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now,  being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:3–6). Are those first Christians he wrote to still alive today? No. Does the church that he wrote this letter to still exist now? No. And yet, has ‘the day of Christ Jesus’ (meaning the day when the Lord comes in glory) arrived yet? Also no. So in what sense is God still working in the lives of people who are no longer alive? At the very least it means this: that death is not the end of life for those who are in Christ, and that the perfecting work of Christ in the lives of believers is not thwarted even by the death of those believers, but will be completed when he comes. God is both the consummate beginner and the ultimate completer. We are told that nothing in all creation can separate us from his love; equally, nothing (even death!) can derail his plans to complete all his purposes for us, because these too are an expression of his great love. We look at the world and at times look at ourselves and get a sense of unease because we know intuitively that things are not all they were supposed to be. Yet Paul calls us to confidence even in the face of imperfection; confidence that God is on the case, and he will perfect all that is still lacking. So let us be confident!

In Him,
Murray