Bible, The Word of God

Sometime back, I read an article about the gemstones used in the Book of Revelation, which was pretty educative.  Scientists have discovered that gems could be classified as anisotropic or isotropic in the past century.  Anisotropic means doubly refracting, and isotropic means it is single refracting.  But only recently have they discovered that cross-polarized light can be used to identify whether a gem is anisotropic or isotropic.  Anisotropic stones produce a colorful array when viewed in crossed polarized light, similar to pure light, reflecting all the colors of the rainbow.  In contrast, isotropic gems lose all of their colors and appear black!  It is interesting to note that gems menti...

Reading, Hearing, and Keeping

Twenty years ago, my second son was admitted to the hospital for a medical emergency.  And I sat beside him and read the book of Revelation aloud in one sitting, knowing it is one book that promises a blessing to the reader!  It does not stop there.  Rev 1:3 says, "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near."  Besides reading or hearing, we must also keep the things written there.  By doing all of these things, we receive the promised blessings!  Though the book of Revelation is rich with imagery and symbols that are not easy for us to understand, the message of Revelation is the same...

Learning from History

History was never my favorite subject in school, but I now find it immensely interesting.  History of the Ancient World, World History, and Bible History greatly fascinate me.  We should learn from history and our past mistakes, but history teaches us that we never learn anything from history!  After experiencing the horrors of the two World Wars, I never thought humans would ever start another war, but here we are in the midst of another great conflict!  Human beings never seem to learn anything from history!  The Bible is a book of history, the history of the people chosen by God and ordinary people like you and me.  The Bible is also 'His story' -God's story- because He is sovereignly work...

Ungratefulness

The expression, 'the glass is half-full, or half-empty, has existed in many European languages for centuries.  But it was popularized by some management gurus to distinguish between optimists and pessimists much later.  Pessimism is a character trait, and the Bible has a lot to say about the source of this negative trait.  Always focusing on the negatives and ignoring all the positives in life directly results from an ungrateful heart.  While Paul warned Timothy of the kind of people he should avoid in 2 Tim 3:1-5, he included ungrateful people also.  Ungratefulness is mentioned alongside other sins, like idolatry and sexual immorality, and is worthy of hell.  Ungratefulness is a deal breaker in relationships.  It is...

Thy Kingdom come…

Every time we say our Lord's prayer, we say the phrase 'Thy Kingdom Come' without batting an eyelid!  Somehow we feel it is a future event.  We think it points to the millennial rule of Christ at the end of times.  We have to look forward to the millennial reign, but it is not what Jesus meant when he taught us to pray using this phrase.  Jesus took great trouble to teach His disciples and us the fundamental nature of His Kingdom through many illustrations, parables, and allegories (Mt.13:31-33).  Unless we understand what 'His Kingdom' means, we cannot understand what Jesus was trying to teach us.

Then the Kingdom of God is nothing but the 'rule of...

Sustaining Grace!

We begin to read a book but do not finish it.  We start a needlework project but do not complete it.  We create a fitness regime but do not stick with it and finish.  We have all been there and we know how that feels!  Many will be at the starting point of a marathon, but at the finish line, only a few appear.  Many left the land of Egypt, but only two entered Canaan. Many will have similar experiences.  The Bible says, "… He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).  Whatever God starts, He finishes!  God began the creation work, and He finished.  God planned a way for our salvatio...

Resurrection of Jesus!

What does the resurrection day stand for?  It stands for an empty tomb that provides hope in a hopeless world.  It stands for a new life, eternal life.  Jesus Christ, through His resurrection, is referred to as the first fruit.  1 Cor 15:20 says, "But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep."  The resurrected Jesus appeared to Mary and many others.  And millions of people down the centuries have met Jesus firsthand, followed Him, and let Him transform their lives.  This resurrection day, the Lord who moved the stone that day is here with us, willing to move the stones in our life if we would only let Him be the...

If that isn't Love ...

Our choirmaster, Emmanuel Ponraj (The Redeemer's Church, Anna Nagar, Chennai), has selected an excellent song for our Passion song service.  The song 'If that isn't love' was composed and set to music by Dottie Rambo (1934-2008).  Every time I sing this song in our practice sessions, it tears my eyes; to think of the love Jesus had for me to endure the agony of the Cross is overwhelming!  This song talks about the love Jesus has for us, which made Him leave His place in heaven, to die on the Cross.  Jesus even remembered the thief hanging beside Him.  Jesus was obedient to the Father to the point of sacrificing His life.  Philippians 2:8 says, "He humbled himself by becoming obedient...

If that isn’t Love…

Our choirmaster, Emmanuel Ponraj (The Redeemer's Church, Anna Nagar, Chennai), has selected an excellent song for our Passion song service.  The song 'If that isn't love' was composed and set to music by Dottie Rambo (1934-2008).  Every time I sing this song in our practice sessions, it tears my eyes; to think of the love Jesus had for me to endure the agony of the Cross is overwhelming!  This song talks about the love Jesus has for us, which made Him leave His place in heaven, to die on the Cross.  Jesus even remembered the thief hanging beside Him.  Jesus was obedient to the Father to the point of sacrificing His life.  Philippians 2:8 says, "He humbled himself by becoming obedient...

Hosanna!

Some people say that the same crowd that shouted: "Hosanna" (Matthew 21:9) cried out, "Crucify Him!" (Mark 15:13) a week later.  But I think the crowds were majorly different.  The crowd that followed Jesus must have seen and experienced the miracles and messages of Jesus.  Those who wanted to crucify Jesus were the Jewish leaders who did not like the claims of Jesus.  As the reputation of Jesus as a healer and miracle worker spread, the crowds come to Him in more significant numbers, prompting the Jewish leaders to despise Him more.  Palm Sunday reminds us that the reign of Christ is far greater than any man's mind could ever imagine or think.