New Year
365 New and Unique Days
Traditionally, on the New Year’s holiday, everyone wishes new things to happen to one another. And here comes the New Year! You observe and see that life is just like it was before. Oh, and there was so much hope! And there were so many dreams about the new changes to come.I will start, I will be serious about this, and stop doing bad things…You live and see that years before were better than now.
Who can guarantee us all new things? I have just one answer: it is God.Jesus said in the book of Revelation (chapter 21), “I am making everything new!” It seems to us that we observe new things, new changes and new times. I especially want to emphasize the word seems.King Solomon said in Ecclesiastes, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”
Only in God we can find all things new—literally. And even have a new life. God can make us new people and change our minds and change our character.
People observe this perfect world that God created and try to imitate what has already been created. For example, let’s take the technology of the computer. People make small flash memory and put in a lot of information. In it one small portion can keep thousands of high-quality pictures. However, it is not even close to what God can do with information and his own technology. If you think about the human DNA and double helix, we can only see it with high-tech microscopes. It keeps much more information than a computer does. Therefore, if we talk about the new, we need to talk about God.
If you sincerely wish to make new changes in your life, only God can help you. Only God can guarantee you these changes. The changing of dates on a calendar doesn’t depend on us and doesn’t change anything in our own lives. God gives us new days and they aren’t repetitive; they are unique days. But what we fill these days with depends on us.
It might be right to begin doing things we have never done before.
Start New Year from new actions and new goals! Maybe all this time you have lived without Jesus Christ. He is not only our savoir and the Son of God. The Apostle John told us that Jesus created this world. “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” He was in the beginning—Jesus is the creator!
Just imagine if you had an opportunity to have a conversation with a person who really knows how this world was put together in detail—someone who knows how to create what never was before. Jesus created all things and he later came to the earth as a human.
It is amazing how Jesus made his way into this world. God did not send him to this earth on clouds or in some outstanding, attention-grabbing way but rather born naturally, though to a virgin woman—Mary. “While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son…” Luke 2:6. An angel said, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” From this period of Jesus’ birth, God started a new time for people. But just a new time without our strength and our energy brings nothing new.I can give my son money and ask him to buy a new suit for himself.
But he will have this only if in addition he takes the time to go shopping and pick one out. He would have to make several trips to fitting rooms and perhaps various stores, etc…
God gives us a NEW YEAR, 365 new and unique days! He will be very happy if we, with wisdom, use this time we have been given in the right way. Each day filled with love and joy.
I invite you to pray and talk about your wishes and desires to start your new life. Say: Dear God, help me live in a new way; help me to not repeat my old mistakes, and help me have a new life in Jesus Christ.
Church of Christ
Jesus replied: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
Matthew 16:17-18
Jesus told: “I will build my church…”
When we hear “church”, most people associate this word with religion. But if we would be able to get back 2000 years ago to the times of Jesus and hear this word from Him, then our understanding of “church ” changed completely. Maybe you’ll be surprised when you get to know that “church” (in Greek “ecclesia” ) was used for the community and political life of Greek cities. For example, when we study the history of ancient Greek community Khersones, that is on the territory of modern Sevastopol (Ukraine), we find out that from time to time town authorities called people to get together to discuss some questions. This meeting was called “ecclesia”. Jesus was the first who used this word, earlier it was never used in Old Testament. People who listened to Jesus understood that He builds fellowship of people who will be interested in Christ teaching and who want to be His followers and disciples.
God’s goal was for Christ to join in His church people who are thirsty for Truth and reunion with the Creator.
Today people often ask: “To which church do you belong?”
So it would be a strange question indeed to ask any of those first Christians, they understood there was only one church. It was the one Jesus promised to build.
First, the word church is used to refer to all Christians throughout the world, the whole Family of God, composed of those living and those who have died in the faith.
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect. (Hebrews 12:23)
He that overcomes, the same will be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. (Revelation 3:5)
Second, the bible uses the word church to refer to the local body of Christians meeting in a given city or village.
Our church is one of many local congregations of Churches of Christ, where brothers and sisters get together in the name of Jesus to follow Him and to be His disciples.
What should be our mission as Christians when we organize the local congregation of the church of Christ? If Jesus is our Teacher and Pastor, then his mission must become the mission of our local congregation as well. Shouldn’t our mission be same mission He announced 2000 years ago?
Our primary goal should be the same as His – to preach the gospel. So telling others about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is the primary mission of the local church fellowship. (Matthew 28:18-20) But Jesus also said His mission was to heal the brokenhearted, deliver the captives and set at liberty those who are bruised. (Luke 4:18) That is why the local church is often active in helping orphans, widows and even those in prison. These are the truly brokenhearted in Ukraine today. These people should be the recipients of the local congregations love and attention as much as possible. Jesus’ mission must become our mission as well.
