The Kingdom is Like.....

If someone asked you to describe what the Kingdom of Heaven (or of God) was like, what would you say? Would the question set you back a bit on your heels? Would you actually be able to come up with some concrete ways to describe this kingdom, ways that your neighbour might be able to relate to?

Someone must have asked Jesus the question. In Matthew 13 we read a whole bunch of short parables that try to get at the answer. We seem to find out that the kingdom is hidden, but invasive; it's very valuable but also all encompassing; it's not easy to see, but once you do see it, you have to have it.

Jesus' examples may have worked for the people of his time, at least they used everyday pictures, but I suspect they still came away puzzled, and maybe that was Jesus point.

This Sunday, join us as we struggle with what the kingdom looks like in our world. Is it still hidden, still of great value, still all encompassing?

Koinonia

Koinonia is not a word that most of us would use every day. There's good reason for that. The word is Greek, not a language most of us use very often. It first appears in the New Testament in the book of Acts to describe the fellowship of Christians, the way they gathered together, took care of each other, loved each other, shared what they had as brothers and sisters in Christ. Its a word that says a lot about relationship and community, authentic community. 

This coming week, the Fruitland CRC, with assistance from neigbouring congregations, will be hosting a Special Needs SERVE. Young people from across the country will be coming to Fruitland to share the love of Christ by being his hands and feet in the community around us.  Participants and mentors  will work together, play together, laugh together and cry together. They will become a community together, a community that worships God together, and also supports each other in very intimate and special ways. 

Sunday morning we will look at how Jesus begins to form this sort of authentic community, the people he calls into it and the bond that hold it together. 

Come and join us as we celebrate the beginning of a week of SERVE and as we grow deeper as an authentic community. 

A Light Burden

We all try to find ways around hard work, don't we?Our homes are filled with labour saving devices, we travel with ease and in comfort, and many of the most labour intensive jobs have been automated to the point that they are not really hard work anymore. We sometimes find ourselves being more physically active on holiday than we are in our regular day to day lives.

When Jesus promises an easy yoke and a light burden, I don't think he is talking about the physical work. He is talking about the burden of being right with God, the burden of being good enough, checking off enough of the boxes, to be able to be in relationship with God.

The religious leaders of Jesus time made getting close to God difficult. Being good enough was hard work.

This Sunday we will discuss the ways that Jesus lifts the burden, gives us an easy load in our quest to be right with God.