To enjoy any of the 25 series we’ve produced over the last five years, please check out our back catalogue. There are series from all across the bible, and you can either view the PDF files online or download at your leisure.
Easter Week
- Thursday 9th April – John 14:1-6,27 ‘Jesus Our Way and Peace’
Receiving peace is one of the foundational themes of the New Testament. St Paul introduced all of his letters with the greeting: ‘Grace and Peace’. Grace is what enables us to know salvation and the zoe life of God within us; peace is the first and greatest outcome of this new life.
Peace is designed to be the hallmark of every dimension of our relationships. Peace with God, peace with others, peace with ourselves. We are called to peace. In Colossians 3:15, Paul writes: ‘Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.’ Peace is not merely the absence of strife; it is the presence of harmony.
And peace is not merely a concept, such as not harming someone. Notice what Paul wrote: ‘Let the peace of Christ rule…’ The idea of peace is not what solves conflict; it is the peace of Jesus that provides the power to live and work in harmony.
So what is the peace of Jesus? It is “the peace that belongs to his kingdom by virtue of his sovereignty.” Jesus rules and reigns over everything: all creation, all humanity and all history. When we step into his reign (in other words, when we step into the kingdom of God), we step into his peace. We can now live in constant interaction with Jesus, and because of his protection, guidance and provision, we have nothing to fear; we can live with real confidence. In the kingdom of God we are safe, secure, valued and assured that God is with us.
And this assurance enables us to receive the peace of Christ, a peace that, as Jesus says the world cannot give; or as St Paul puts it elsewhere, a peace that surpasses all understanding.
It’s why Jesus is so emphatic when it comes to issues of worry, fear or anxiety. Have you noticed that Jesus never talks about these things in terms of advice or encouragement, but instead as a command? He doesn’t say: try not to worry, try not to fear, try not to be troubled… He commands it: ‘Do not worry, do not fear, do not be troubled.’
Of course we all face temptations to worry and fear, to un-peace as you might say. And Jesus knows that. But he also knows that the solution is not human effort or technique. The key to peace is found in him, and through him. He is the Way. Our peace is found in a person, one who has all the power and resources of the universe at his disposal. His perfect love casts out our fear.
And so he says to his disciples: Do not be troubled, because I am the way. All other worldviews, all other religious teachers, say: this is the way. Only Jesus says: ‘I am the way.’ The key to life is not a set of moral values or guidelines or principles, it’s a relationship. It’s a deep union of love with Jesus.
‘…and when you know that, you’ll know the right way to live, because I am the Truth. And you’ll have abundant life, because I am the Life.’
And so we can affirm these great words again today, and claim the peace that Jesus promises his followers. In these troubled times, we are surrounded by the shadow of death. And yet, we can also affirm, with hope and even joy, that peace is possible, a real peace, a peace that only Jesus can give, because he is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Amen.
- Monday 23rd March – Psalm 96 ‘A new song’Read more...
To begin our week, a reflection from the Psalms:
Some years ago we took out a subscription to Amazon Prime’s ‘Music Unlimited’. Generally our family are always late to any technological party – I still mourn the demise of beacons on hillsides as the primary means of communicating news. Admittedly, many of my peers had already been users ...
- Saturday 21st March – Ephesians 1:4 ‘Chosen – for what?’Read more...
In 2017, the then little-known producer Dallas Jenkins released a film called ‘The Resurrection of Gavin Stone.’ It got mediocre reviews and largely flopped. Working out what to do next, Dallas started binge-watching other dramas and gradually realised there was something that had never been done before: no-one had ever filmed a multi-season series of Jesus’ life. There were many big-budget ...
- Friday 20th March – Ephesians 1:3 ‘Every spiritual blessing’Read more...
Having quoted this verse yesterday, we conclude our week with two further reflections from Ephesians 1:3-4:
‘It’s the hope that kills you.’ You’ll hear this phrase often on the lips of a sports fan. The great joy – and curse – of following a team is that success is only ever temporary. It makes the wins all the ...
- Thursday 19th March – John 17:6-10 ‘Yours’Read more...
Letter writing is increasingly a lost art. In our modern world of phones and computers, we use texts and emails, or don’t use words at all, substituting them for pictures and emojis. Those of us old enough to remember the days when the letter formed a major part of our communication would have learned a set of protocols, particularly with regard ...
- Wednesday 18th March – John 17:1-5 ‘Glorify your Son’Read more...
To read John 17 is to stand on holy ground. All scripture is God-breathed, of course, but when we read this chapter, we get a glimpse into the heavenly throne room, as the divine Son shares intimately with the heavenly Father. Imagine being John, listening to Jesus offering this remarkable prayer. No wonders he remembers it word-for-word decades later. It’s not ...