Wednesday, August 1
Read: John 1:1-18
India in darkness. This was the news that caught not only my attention but international attention. For the last two consecutive days, more than 600 million people in India went without
power.
It is like the whole of United States and Canada going without power.
The states that were affected were Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh,
Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Jharkhand.
This loss of power turned the life of ordinary citizens into a
nightmare. People were caught unawares and suddenly all hell broke
loose. The metro services in Delhi got jammed leaving hundred of people
stuck inside the metro. Another 300 trains including trains like
Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto, got stuck at various places, leaving
people panting for both fresh air and water, not knowing what to do.
Traffic on the road turned to a total chaos as the traffic lights did
not work. Worse was the case of about 265 miners in the coal mines of
West Bengal, who got trapped in the coal mines and finally were rescued
after several agonizing hours. But there something more bizarre that
also happened. When India was groping for power and seeking answers as
to why such a huge power crisis occurred, you see bizarre incident of
shuffling of portfolios of cabinet ministers. The Minister in charge of
Power was shifted to more powerful ministry, made the Minister of
Defence and that too on the same day when 600 million Indians went
without power. Indians in the last two days realized the true value of
power and what it means to go without power. Is there a parallel between
Indians who went without power and also Christians who also do not have
power?
We are meditating on the theme “ Transformed Living”. The bible portion that we shall use for our meditation is from John 1: 1-18. In this portion we find what God offers to us through His Son Jesus Christ. We find in v: 12, 13 that everyone who received God’s son were made the children of God and were made the members of the family. What is imperative here that we become members of God’s family only if we have a relationship with Jesus Christ and we receive Jesus Christ in our life. It is only then that we are given the power to become God’s children. John states affirmatively that this position of being children of God is by adoption and not by natural descent. God adopts us to become the members of his family so that no one can claim to be His children. Thus when we become the members of God’s family and are called God’s children, He anoints us with His Holy Spirit, thus giving us power for living authentic Christian living. It is this power that transforms us. What does this power do to a Christian? In the letter to 2 Timothy 1: 7, Paul states that God has given us not the spirit of fear nor timidity, but He has given us the Spirit of power, of love and discipline. It is this power that empowers us all through our life. The power to love, the power to discipline ourselves and also the power to witness for Christ [ Acts1: 8]. When there was no electricity, I believe every Indian understood what is the value of power and how without power ones life become useless and chaotic. I think the life of a Christian could also be like this– chaotic and nightmarish. It is in such context, that God calls us to connect and relate to him so that our life is never powerless and always powerful, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Are you powerless or a powerful Christian?
We are meditating on the theme “ Transformed Living”. The bible portion that we shall use for our meditation is from John 1: 1-18. In this portion we find what God offers to us through His Son Jesus Christ. We find in v: 12, 13 that everyone who received God’s son were made the children of God and were made the members of the family. What is imperative here that we become members of God’s family only if we have a relationship with Jesus Christ and we receive Jesus Christ in our life. It is only then that we are given the power to become God’s children. John states affirmatively that this position of being children of God is by adoption and not by natural descent. God adopts us to become the members of his family so that no one can claim to be His children. Thus when we become the members of God’s family and are called God’s children, He anoints us with His Holy Spirit, thus giving us power for living authentic Christian living. It is this power that transforms us. What does this power do to a Christian? In the letter to 2 Timothy 1: 7, Paul states that God has given us not the spirit of fear nor timidity, but He has given us the Spirit of power, of love and discipline. It is this power that empowers us all through our life. The power to love, the power to discipline ourselves and also the power to witness for Christ [ Acts1: 8]. When there was no electricity, I believe every Indian understood what is the value of power and how without power ones life become useless and chaotic. I think the life of a Christian could also be like this– chaotic and nightmarish. It is in such context, that God calls us to connect and relate to him so that our life is never powerless and always powerful, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Are you powerless or a powerful Christian?
No comments:
Post a Comment