Harmony of Grace

Hebrews 5:5-10 Today's reading informs us that throughout his life, Jesus offered up prayers and petitions to God with fervent cries and tears. We also learn that Jesus' prayers were heard by God, not because he was God's Son, but because of his reverent submission and obedience to God. This realisation should be so encouraging to us as Christians today. Just as Jesus had a direct line to God, so do we also have direct access to God through the Spirit of the High Priest who lives within us, Jesus Christ. There is no greater honour and privilege that we have as Christians than to pray. Even when the world is falling apart around us and we don't know what to do, we can pray. Even when we do not have the words to say, the Spirit intercedes on our behalf. And yet prayer is still one of the most neglected spiritual practices in our world today. Perhaps it is because people have a false that they have to say the perfect words or set aside the same amount of time every day to ...

Christians often seem to focus solely on converting people to Christianity.  Churches host large events or camps, an emotional experience is created, an altar call is given, and people are encouraged to stick their hands in the air or walk to the front if they want to commit their lives to Christ. Someone then counts the number of hands and the church/pastor brags about how many people were "born again" because of their work.  I have been to so many youth camps and worship evenings where hundreds of people have declared their newfound commitment to Christ. I am sure that many of those people took their promise seriously (In fact, this was the way that I first came to faith in Christ), but too often I would see those same people walking away from the Church a week, month or year later. Before I sound like I am generalising, let me acknowledge that there are people doing the hard work of following up with these new converts in helpful ways after events such as these, but all t...