Just as God created humans as male and female to form a divine community, Jesus calls His disciples with the purpose of establishing a beautiful, new human community within the history of new creation. Becoming a Christian means being called as a disciple into this new community established by Jesus.

God’s work does not hinge on our ability to resolve everything; it requires our faith in His sovereignty. God gave Elijah three new tasks, renewing his sense of purpose and showing him that God’s plan involved raising up new leaders and continuing His work through others. This demonstrated to Elijah that God's mission does not depend solely on him.

Jesus' ministry revealed God's grace, embracing and forgiving imperfect humanity—this is the essence of the Gospel. If we are beneficiaries of this Gospel, our lives should reflect its transformative power.

Daniel gained his favor by interpreting the king's dreams. Even as empires changed, Daniel retained his high position, which might seem like a result of his strategic use of opportunities to gain power. However, the Bible portrays Daniel as a faithful man who did not compromise with the world. For instance, despite the decree of King Darius, Daniel continued to pray to God, demonstrating his unwavering faith. He maintained his integrity and devotion to God in a foreign empire.

The prophecy of the Suffering Servant in Isaiah connects the Old and New Testaments, particularly in describing the nature of Christ's death as an atonement. In today's passage, the Servant is described as "growing up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground," and "He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him" (Isaiah 53:2).

Paul's letter to the Colossian church emphasizes three essential aspects of Christian faith: faith, hope, and love. These virtues are foundational to our spiritual life and are vital in our journey as a faith community.

Today's message centers on the church in Thessalonica, as described in 1 Thessalonians, one of the epistles written by the Apostle Paul. This letter is recognized as one of the earliest writings of Paul, who contributed significantly to the New Testament.

The church in Thessalonica was established during Paul's second missionary journey. Many people, including Jews and Greeks, came to believe in Jesus as the Messiah.

1 John Chapter 4 delivers a crucial message about God's love. John encourages believers to love one another, emphasizing that love originates from God. Since God is love, those who truly know God will naturally express love. Conversely, those who do not know God cannot understand true love.

Jeremiah 2 describes the beginning of Jeremiah's prophetic ministry, where he receives his calling from God. He faces the daunting task of delivering negative prophecies about the impending Babylonian invasion and judgment. Jeremiah laments the role he must play, warning the people of Israel that they have lost their first love and turned away from God to worship idols, making judgment unavoidable.

Hebrews 13 emphasizes Jesus' perfection and His role as our Savior, urging us to live faithfully while focusing on Him. The exhortations in this chapter, relevant to the historical context, play a vital role in maintaining faith amidst trials and persecution. The author encourages remembering that Jesus is the perfect Savior, who alone fulfills true salvation and promises.

Today's text, which speaks of "dwelling in the secret place of the Most High and abiding under the shadow of the Almighty," reflects a deep praise for God that can be experienced in the depths of life or in the midst of historical turmoil. While our faith is communal, each individual can also have personal and holy experiences with God. These personal experiences can then contribute to the collective experience of the community.

In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, we see the father's love and forgiveness, illustrating how God receives us. The focus of this parable should be on God's incredible forgiveness, which makes human decisions and new beginnings possible. We see in this story that God's grace exceeds our expectations.

Do you sometimes feel that your faith has weakened compared to the past, or feel anxious seeing the world's confusion and the church's seeming decline? Today’s message offers guidance on how to live in such times.

One of the recurring themes in the Book of Proverbs is wisdom. Proverbs personifies wisdom by depicting it as calling out in the streets and building a house. This personification underscores that wisdom is not just a skill or a strategy for living but a fundamental element that can transform one's life.

In James 2:26, it states, "Faith without deeds is dead." This means that faith must be demonstrated through actions. We are not saved by our works, but the salvation we receive through faith should be evident in our actions. Without this teaching, our faith could remain merely as a thought or intellectual acknowledgment. However, faith must be a holistic confession and state of being.

Isaiah 40, which marks the beginning of Second Isaiah, speaks of comfort and restoration. It opens with the words, "Comfort, comfort my people," and encourages the Israelites who will return from Babylonian captivity. The term "hope" in verse 31 signifies a longing for God, emphasizing God's promise to renew the strength and power of those who trust in Him.

Today's passage is about God's calling of Moses and Aaron. Despite their advanced ages, with Moses being 80 years old and Aaron 83, God called them to serve. This demonstrates that God's calling and use of individuals is not limited by age.

Philip, initially appointed for administrative purposes like distributing food, exemplifies a transition from serving internal church needs to engaging in missionary work. When the early church in Jerusalem faced persecution, Philip traveled to Samaria.

Today's message speaks about the era of Ezra. About 50 years after the fall of Judah, the Israelites were commanded to return and rebuild the temple. However, the restoration of the temple took a long time, and it was only completed about 70 years later.

This is the final message of Ecclesiastes. Without this concluding statement, readers of Ecclesiastes might easily fall into the vanity of life. This is because the theme of Ecclesiastes seems to be encapsulated in Ecclesiastes 1:2: "Meaningless! Meaningless!