MAC KIRK

Laetare Sunday John 6:1-15     This is mid-Lent.  Time for a spiritual breather/ time to look at where we have come, what we have done through God’s strength, and how to ask ourselves how we can be better Christians through this Lenten season.  In England this Sunday is called “mothering Sunday”---this is the Sunday when everyone returns to their home Churches and bring gifts to mother.  Sons and daughters bring mother flowers, rich plum cake and do all the housework for her.     This Sunday’s gospel is an enduring one from my childhood.  Who does not fondly remember the “lad” who had five barley loaves and two small fish, and how Jesus mulitiplied them for the 5,000?  As we review this “sign”/ miracle of Jesus today in our own minds, I note two things: 1.      Jesus took what the lad had, and multiplied it. Vs. 11 “ and Jesus took the loaves..” These were the loaves of the lad.  Whatever problem we are facing today, God can use the smallest thing, person, or circumsta

“Love in Lent” Ephesians 5:1-14     “ the fruit of the Spirit is all righteousness, goodness and truth” “ Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us” “ For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord”     We would not think perhaps to list love as one of the things we should put on during Lent, but that is what the Epistle focuses in on for today.  What a place the world and the church would be if we applied this now.  We would want to be doing things that are” well pleasing to the Lord” 5:10a now so that our lives would reflect His light in the world.  “ Walk as children of light” and have “ no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness”     Be followers or the word in the original is imitators ( from the greek word where we get our word mimic)of God.  We mimic from an early age as young people we need an example to follow.  Here the idea is that we follow Christ in walking in love as Ch

Matthew 15:21-28       In Mark 7 where this account is too we have this, “ He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon .   And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hid.” Vs 24   .   Dr. Morgan said the “then” was important….” Perhaps we may summarize the whole matter by saying that He withdrew from the infidelity of traditional religion to the faith which lives outside the covenant”   The Pharisees and scribes were “hypocrites” according to Jesus because their “heart is far from me.” Matthew 15:8   “ And a woman of Canaan came out …crying,’ Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David: my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil” 15:21        Who was this woman?   She was not an Israelite. She was a Greek woman and a worshipper perhaps of her god Asherah or even nature itself.   She came to Jesus because she heard of His healing power.   1.      But the cry of this woman is not answered. “ But he answered her not a word”   H

Testing and Temptation   Matthew 4:1-11       “ There is no conquest without a combat”   Matthew Henry on this passage of Scripture.   As Christians we are tempted, but if we do not yield to the temptation we have conquered yielding to that temptation and do not sin.   Interesting how we rename things that are really sinful….get drunk=get bombed for example or a lie is a white lie and therefore not that bad.   Or here is one, “ an affair” = adultery.   Ok. You get my point. How should we approach temptation and testing? Jesus had to do that and we can learn something about how we should do it as well in this passage of Scripture.       Point 1.   The trick of the devil is to get us to doubt our identity as His Children , Christians.   “ If you are the Son of God….”   This is repeated by the devil again in vs 6 ( as well as vs 3).   Who are we really?   In times of self doubt we are attacked in this particular area.   Ephesians 2 says God in His mercy loved us even when