Christ Church Jerusalem

Family stability was important and essential to the Israelite community that was about to establish itself in the Land of Canaan. The sustainability of a society both economically and politically is dependent on the strength of the family unit and the institution of marriage. We only have to look around at today's world and humbly acknowledge that one of the reasons for our failing societies is the breakdown of the family unit. Human relationships do not always succeed, and divorce was...

17 January 2020 - Second Sunday of Epiphany - Our identity is formed by our loyalties and by the company we keep. We are natural mimics and are ever searching for someone to imitate. Rev. David Pileggi says that the guard against a culture that wishes to assimilate everyone is to have a firm, well established identity. Following Jesus, learning to be like him, teaches us we belong in God's family and leads us away from this corrupt world to eternal life. Readings: 1 Samuel 3; John 1:43-51...

One of the first commands that the Lord gave Israel following the Exodus from Egypt was to construct a Tabernacle. God had also come out of Egypt with His people and now desired to dwell amongst them. Many times a year the people were to assemble before the Lord. However, Moses reminds the people that actually not everyone is permitted in the presence of God. God is life, and death may never enter His presence. God is perfect, and the blemished may also not enter His presence. What do we...

10 January 2020 - First Sunday of Epiphany - The road that Jesus traveled from his immersion in the Jordan to Golgotha was fraught with opposition. He was hindered by Satan, by the religious and political authorities, and even by his own disciples, who were blinded and motivated by self-interest. Jesus overcame these trials, in part, due to his unshakable identity as the Beloved with whom the Father was well pleased. Knowing our identity as Beloved in the Messiah gives us the same resources...

Virginity was highly valued in the ancient world, and women were not to be poorly treated as sex objects. The courts of Israel, run by the priesthood, stood to defend the honour of the woman. The Israelite value that protected women stood in contrast to the culture of the ancient world. Moses is communicating an ideal society. Perhaps this society was never going to be realised, but that actually is not the point. The point is the laws reflect the characteristics of God and His desire for...

3 January 2020 - On the Second Sunday of Christmas, Rev. David Pileggi says the voice of the Word made flesh that “in the beginning” commanded light to shine in the darkness and created life now calls each one of us into the ultimate reality of a God who wants to dwell with us and to live in us. Sadly, many who affirm the Incarnation, the divinity of Jesus and more have allowed these theological truths to become a substitute for the presence of the living God in our lives. Readings:...

27 December 2020 - Rev. David Pileggi, on the first Sunday of Christmas, reminds us that Jesus comes into this world fragile and susceptible to political, religious, and economic powers. Jesus identifies with most of the human family because we all live in similarly fragile situations. The one whose name is Salvation came to save us from sin and so much more. To be saved, to walk in the light and to know the glory of God, means we are freed from fear of death and from death itself. However,...

Chapter 22 covers a range of issues and commandments for the emerging Israelite society focusing on laws of kindness and community responsibility. Several of the laws also deal with various issues of separation. These rules were for the people of Israel in Canaan, so how would any of this have any bearing on Gentiles living in foreign lands today? Jewish exegesis of the Bible rests on the principle that all interpretations and use of the text are valid as long they do not break the is the...

20 December 2020 - When the angel Gabriel appeared with a shocking message, Miriam -- that is Mary in Hebrew -- humbly accepted the LORD's assignment. On the fourth Sunday of Advent, Canon Daryl Fenton says that a disciple's spiritual maturity is proportional to the disciple's capacity for obedience. In Mary the mother of Jesus, we have a model of faithfulness, obedience, and humility that all disciples of Jesus can learn from, so that our souls will magnify the Lord. Readings: 2 Sam 7:1-11;...

How much did the Maccabean revolt and the Hasmonean period influence the setting of the New Testament? In this lecture, Deacon Aaron Eime looks at the issues of martyrdom and messianism and how they created the backdrop for many of the themes we see in the New Testament. If we look at the text closely, we can see the themes of Hanukkah permeating the thinking of the Second Temple Period. Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation....

Once again we encounter the troubling practice in the ancient world of multiple wives. Let us not superimpose present-day morality on the past. The Bible is not presenting multiple wives as the ideal (neither do we advocate polygamy). The issue being addressed by Moses is the concern for an unloved wife and the right of the firstborn. The firstborn held special honour in Biblical tradition. Exodus describes the firstborn males belonging to God and male children required redemption from the...

13 December 2020 - John came as the Voice. And now we are the voice, says Deacon Aaron Eime, pointing to the Light, to the Messiah. We are the voices that bring hope, faith, and goodness to a world that needs it. In a world in darkness and despair during this pandemic, the world truly needs the light of Christmas Readings: Isaiah 61:1-4,8-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; Psalms 126; John 1:6-8,19-28 Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation....

The final two verses of Chapter 20 describe the rules of engagement in war regarding proper treatment of the Creation. Nature is not to become a victim in human warfare. Then in Chapter 21, having noted that blood pollutes the earth and has consequences, Moses introduces legislation for atonement for an unsolved murder. The ceremony includes the washing of hands, reflecting innocence of the crime, which we see again in the actions of Pilate during the trial of Jesus. Prayer also seems to...

6 December 2020 - As it is written in the Prophets, a voice cries out in the wilderness for us to repent in preparation for the coming of God into our midst, the God who restores and immerses us into fellowship with Himself. God’s heart speaks tenderly to our heart to repent and to walk faithfully with Him, to boldly lift our voice to declare his Name. The Rev. John Howanstine, on the second Sunday of Advent, reminds us that the time between the first advent of Jesus and his second advent is...

Warrior gods were certainly not uncommon in the ancient world. Battle between nations held both theological and political implications for the peoples that adhered to those gods. Success or failure could induce a religious crisis and faithlessness in a particular deity. God had already fought for Israel during and after the Exodus. Israel was no stranger to the rigours of battle, having defeated the giant kings Og and Sihon and capturing the territory east of the Jordan. Moses now sets out...

29 November 2020 - A troubled world searches for the reasons why trouble has come. Scripture regularly explains why troubles came in the past, are with us in the present, and will be with us in the future. The Rev. Canon Daryl Fenton, on the first Sunday of Advent, says today's scriptures give us answers to the questions of the minute. Readings: Isaiah 64:1-9; Psalm 80:1-2,17-19; Mark 13:14-37 Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation....

The Israelites will ultimately triumph in conquest over the peoples of Canaan. In establishing a society that will reflect the character of God to the nations, Moses instructs the Hebrews to allocate three cities as cities of refuge. The chapter begins with Moses declaring they should do this, ‘after the Lord your God has destroyed the nations of Canaan’. God is acknowledged as the victorious one, however this does not absolve Israel from engaging in the fight. Aside from Jericho, the...

22 November 2020 - On Christ the King Sunday, Deacon Aaron Eime tells us that the good shepherd is both king and judge. Judgment is a part of the messianic age in which all things that are wrong will be made right, and we are not excluded from that process. Our obligation to God is be holy like him, to imitate His character and behavior. We are not excluded from the coming judgment. The good news, however, is that we have a good judge. The Good Shepherd is also the Good Judge. Readings:...

Moses has been the teacher, guider and lawgiver of Israel since the Exodus from Egypt. The Israelites have known no other leader. Moses however, will not be joining Israel as they cross the Jordan, and the people of Israel may have expressed anxiety as to their future rulers. God has indicated that He will chose future kings over Israel, and He has already chosen priests. Now Moses says that the Lord will also chose prophets for the people. God will raise up a prophet like Moses. This verse...

Friends. Our Psalm 122 T-shirts are back and we have a NEW design for Christmas: Glory to the newborn King! Visit http://tshirt.christchurchjerusalem.org/ for details. Music credit: Whispering winter by chilledmusic Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/6987-whispering-winter License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/