UBC Wed For Life

Winter has long been associated with death. There are likely a number of reasons for that. It could be due to the fact that we see plants fade away and animals disappear during the season. The increased length of the night and the early fading of day during the season could also be reasons, especially considering how much uncertainty and fear the night brought to people in the past. Maybe the answer is something as simple as the cold that the winter brings, which is also something associated with death. Whatever the reason, Winter is often seen as the season where life slows down and waits until Spring comes along to bring a rebirth. Many scholars actually believe that Jesus was born during the Spring. Luke 2:8 says about the time of Jesus’ birth: And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. The verse refers to an activity that typically happened in the springtime. So where did December 25th come from?  Some scholars belie

“Only God Can Judge Me” - That’s a phrase that we hear thrown around a lot, usually after someone has done something unseemly or wrong. The invoking of God means that people who say this believe to some extent that the sentiment is Biblical. They are not wrong. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor? - James 4:12 The Bible is clear that we should leave judgement to God. The problem (as is often the case when people try to turn God’s Word into trendy sayings) is that the way this saying is used is often out of place. Yes, it is true that only God can pass judgement on anyone, but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t to be held accountable for our actions by those around us. It doesn’t mean that we can do whatever we want with the expectation that no one has the right to say anything to us about our actions. In fact, the Bible makes it clear that helping people move away from their sin isn’t just the

Most people have heard the term “Karma” before. It’s a concept taken from Buddhism and refers to the belief that karma is something we all amass as a result of our actions in life. Eventually, everyone will have that karma come back to them, and the nature of that karma will be a reflection of how we live our lives. If we live righteously, we will receive good karma. If we live evil lives, our karma will be bad. Most people understand this concept, and even if they don’t really believe in karma itself, many probably believe or want to believe that our actions have corresponding consequences. As Pastor Pope pointed out in his latest series, that concept is part of Christianity too. Do not be deceived:  God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.  For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. - Galatians 6:7-8 Here we see Paul using the process of planting and harvesting crops as a me

The Bible is full of important people who did significant things in service to God. Many of the people mentioned in the Bible are well known both by those who believe in God and those who don’t. Moses is one such character. He is likely one of the most prominent figures out of everyone in the Bible, potentially second only to Jesus himself. Like Jesus, Moses’ story is told through multiple books. However, the most well known portion of his story is probably the part that takes place in the book of Exodus. Due to multiple movies and other cultural references, the story of Moses leading the Israelites away from bondage in Egypt has transcended the pages of the Bible and become part of the greater culture of the world at large. In some ways, it is good that a Biblical story has become so famous. Through the telling of the story, people who may not otherwise be exposed to the Faith can come to learn something about God. However, a drawback is that sometimes God’s place in the sto

This month we celebrated Veteran’s Day. The day is meant to celebrate the work and lives of those that have served in the U.S. military. The need for a military in this world is unfortunate and undeniable. Conflict and violence have been a part of the human experience for nearly as long as humanity has existed. In the Bible, it goes as far back as the story of Cain and Abel, where Cain slew his brother out of jealousy and envy. While wars may be fought between nations and not individuals, the truth is they often begin because of the same things that cause petty fights between people. Greed, jealousy, hatred or to put it all more simply, sin. Our sinful nature doesn't just put us at odds with God. A lot of the time, it puts us at odds with each other, and all too often we allow our conflicts to devolve into the worse actions and people die as a result.  God hates violence. The violent nature of people was what angered God enough to want to destroy most of humanity.  God

God is a loving creator and ruler. As Believers, that is central to our desire to follow him. It’s something the Bible tells us pretty specifically. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. - 1 John 4:16-18 God is the source of love and we are instructed to follow his example and also be loving. That being the case, the idea that God can hate may seem like a contradiction. However, under careful consideration, most Believers should find that there is no conflict in this revelation. After all, we all understand that God hates sin. We’ve all heard the saying “God hates the sin not the sinner.” That sounds nice, but is it really true? Does God really not hate sinners? Like most popular sayings attributed to the Bible, that saying is not a

Joseph was the son of Jacob, and like his father, he had an interesting life. However, unlike his father, Joseph did not get put on a strange path because of the wrong that he had done. Joseph was portrayed as being good from the start. Maybe he was a little too good, at least, that’s how those around him might have thought. The first thing we learn about Joseph is that he was known to snitch on his brothers. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. - Genesis 37:2 Maybe telling on his brothers the way he did was the right thing to do, but right away we see that Joseph had to learn a lesson that many of us have also learned. When you do the right thing, it might gain you some allies, but it can most certainly also gain you some enemies. The story goes on to tell us that Jacob (now known as Israel) loved Joseph more than his oth

In his last series (Empty Your Cup), Pastor Pope spoke about unburdening ourselves of many of the things we cling to and carry in order to gain a greater relationship with God. This series, Make Room, is a natural progression from the last series. In general, when we get rid of clutter, it frees up space that can be filled with things with more value and purpose. Pastor Pope used an example found in Luke 12:13-21 to set the stage for the discussion. In those verses, Jesus tells a parable about a man who had a great harvest and was about to tear down his barn and build something larger so he could hold onto his bounty. God told the man that he was foolish for putting so much into caring for possessions that will not serve him once he was dead. The point of Jesus’ story was that we shouldn’t fill our lives with things that don’t matter. Instead, we should focus on the things of God. Sometimes it seems hard to get rid of the things taking up the space in our lives that should be

   Normally, we wouldn’t really go back to a topic so soon after covering it, but an interesting case study in forgiveness took place recently and has stirred up quite a bit of controversy. Last year, a white off-duty police officer named Amber Guyger entered the home of Botham Jean, a black man, and killed him. According to Guyger, she had mistaken Jean’s apartment for her own, and upon entering and finding him there, she pulled her gun and killed him in what she claimed to be self-defense. Her account of the incident didn’t hold water for many who took this incident to be just another example of police officers killing black men unjustly. This incident was particularly egregious because the victim in this case was completely innocent of any wrongdoing and was, by all accounts, a very good person. Guyger was found guilty of murder, which surprised those who had come to expect the police to always get away with killing blacks. However, her sentencing of only 10 years for t

Culture is defined as the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social group . Cuisine, language, literary works, style of dress – these all act as elements of a culture and, in many cases, are clear indicators of a particular culture. If you see a person Hula dancing, you’d probably immediately think of Hawaii and the natives of that island. That’s just how strong the influence of cultural elements can be. Everyone who sees or partakes in them knows exactly which culture they represent. Christians as a group have an associated culture too. Does the culture that is associated with Christianity fairly represent Christ? That’s an important question because if the answer to that question is anything less affirmative than “absolutely,” we are doing something wrong. For example, music is arguably one of the most important elements of any culture. Music is universal and almost every culture has its own style of music, which is

As we know, Abraham’s son Isaac survived God’s test of Abraham. He grew up and, just as God promised, Isaac became Abraham’s heir. He inherited Abraham’s power and estate and carried on Abraham’s legacy. God promised Abraham that he would be the father of a nation. Of course, that is a promise that would take generations to come to fruition. Isaac represented the first generation in the growth of Abraham’s nation, and he in turn contributed to the fulfillment of God’s promise by having children of his own. One of his children was named Jacob. Jacob had an interesting and, what some might consider, bizarre life. Jacob knowingly lied to his father and stole his brother, Esau’s, birthright (Genesis 26:34 -28:9). That was one of the first notable things that happened in his life. Right away, we see that Jacob isn’t one of the blameless characters like Noah or Abraham who had been instrumental in the Bible’s story up to this point. From the very beginning of his story, we know he’s

What does it mean to live a Christian lifestyle? That’s a topic that’s been broached many times on this blog. It’s unfortunate but true that many people who call themselves Christians believe that living a Christian life means cherry picking commands from the Bible to live by and then chastising others for not living in the same way. That’s not a Christian lifestyle. Yes, as Christians, we acknowledge that God gives us commands in the Bible that we are supposed to follow. However, we can’t just pick and choose the commands we want to follow. In fact, it does not benefit us at all to overemphasize the importance of adhering to the Law as written in the Old Testament. Paul addresses this: For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” The law is not bas

Sometimes, it is easy to get a false impression of how Believers should conduct themselves in this world. The Bible is a big book and packs a lot of information. It offers instruction for virtually every aspect of our lives. At times, it can even seem like the instructions contradict each other, but usually those contradictions come from a misunderstanding of what the Bible is actually saying or a lack of context with regards to what one passage may be saying versus another. A lot of times scripture is presented in one or two verse segments to highlight a point someone wants to make. While using scripture in that way isn’t necessarily wrong, sometimes such usage can work against true understanding of what God is trying to present to us. When focusing on those one or two verses, we may miss the greater point made by all the surrounding verses. For example, let’s look at 2 Thessalonians 3:10: For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to wo