April/June 2013 1

Wheels p - 12

Celebrating the love of God p - 16

April/June 2013 Vol 11/2

The parable of the ugly cat p - 8

The logic of Grace p - 24

Life is precious p - 3

2 Living Light

Cover StoryLiving Light

A magazine with direction

Managing EditorJoe D’Costa

ContributorsJoe D’CostaTammy TkachJohn HalfordDr. Joseph TkachMohan JayasekeraDexter Faulkner

Editorial AdvisersJohn HalfordJohn StettafordLiving Light is sponsored by theWorldwide Church of God.For inquiries please contact the Editor,Living Light, c/o Worldwide Churchof God, P.O. Bag 3786, Bangalore560037. Ph: (080) 28532565, cell:09916308962.E-mail: wcgjdc@dataone.inDonations will be gratefully acceptedand may be sent by cheque, M.O. orbank transfer to ‘Worldwide Churchof God’ in Axis Bank, MarathahalliBranch account No.912020025712588. IFSC:UTIB0000300. For bank transfersend SMS of transfer to09916308962. You will receive aconfirmation. A receipt will follow.

8 The parable of the uglycatLiving on the edge

Articles12 Wheels

The co-operate world

15 Readers views

16 Celebrating the love ofGodThe death and resurrection ofJesus Christ

22 Do you believe? “I am the resurrection”

24 The logic of graceReceiving everything fornothing.

25 Grace rules!Unfair bargin

Editorial3 Life is precious

The missing dimension in sex

Cheques sent by speed post shouldbe addressed to Worldwide Churchof God, No. 54, III A Cross,Gururaja Layout, Doddanekkundi,Bangalore 560 037

April/June 2013 3

Life is precious

India woke up in shock and shame at the news of the gruesomeassault and gang rape of a young woman and assault on the youngman who accompanied her, in a bus while returning home from acinema theatre, on December 16, 2012, at 9:30 p.m. What wasmore shocking was that the crime was committed in the heart of thecity of New Delhi, the capital of India and that one of the six rapistwas a juvenile who turned out to be the most violent of the six menthat perpetrated the crime.

by Joe D’Costa

Was this incident a rarecase that needed specialattention? Not by a long

shot! All over India women are rapedand murdered daily. Many of theincidents do not come to light. Thisone did because it was highlightedby the media causing a groundswellof emotion and protests both in Indiaand abroad that forced the police andthe government to sit up and takenotice. The protests continueunabated as citizens wonder and fearthe trend in society that generateinsecurity among women and anxietyin the minds of their husbands,parents, grand-parents and lovedones.

With a speed rarely seen in theannals of Indian history, thegovernment set up fast-track courtsto deal with such crimes,promulgated stringent laws to dealwith rape and are toying with the ideaof reducing the age of accountabilityfrom 18 years to 16 years to ensurethat juveniles are not let off easily.More women are being recruited to

the police force and the police willbe made more accountable forcrimes of this nature in theirjurisdictions.

Will these measures ensure aviolence free society? Will the crimerate come down? Will women beable to move about freely at all timeswithout fear?

Something is missingEven though the various deterrentmeasures taken by the governmentwill produce some fruit, the evils ofviolence and rape that have plaguedmankind throughout history are notlikely to go away. There is somethingmissing in all this. Something basicthat needs to be dealt with if we wishto see a change for the better in oursociety.

A cursory walk through thestreets of any Indian city will throwup clues that are hard to ignore. Atmany street corners you will findyoung men ogling at women, passinglewd comments and making indecentgestures. The box office hits are

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usually movies that sensationalizesex and sex crimes. From wheredoes all this come from? Whatpleasure do human beings get frommaking others uncomfortable? Whatare the causes that lead to theseeffects?

Even though most people willagree that something has causedthese effects, few are ready to dealwith the causes. We prefer to dealwith the effects because it seemseasier to deal with and bringsdramatic short terms results. Thereare a number of causes; let us lookat just one of them.

Societal woesWe live in a society that placesgreater value on the male child. Thefemale child is often in danger ofbeing aborted before birth once theparents discover the foetus isfemale. Ultrasound scan and illegalabortion clinics have mushroomed in

cities and the countryside,most of them doing a roaringbusiness even though they facestringent criminal action, ifcaught. Once a female childis born, she is neglected anddeprived of the love and therespect she rightly deserves.

Indian society has changedfor the better with womentaking a more active role insociety, are better educatedand treated with greaterdignity and respect. Deep inthe psyche of this society

however, is the feeling that men aresuperior and women are acommodity to be used and abused.Some of the ranting and foot-in-mouth comments of a few leadersafter the gang rape of the womannamed Nirbhaya (not her real name),exposes this psyche that simplyrefuses to go away.

What’s missing?Our life and the lives of others areprecious. When God created a maleman he also created a femalecounterpart. The Bible tells us thathe put the first man into a deep sleep,took a rib from the man and made afemale counterpart. When Adamsaw Eve for the first time hedeclared, “This is now bone of mybones and flesh of my flesh; she shallbe called woman, for she was takenout of man” (Genesis 2:19-20). Sowoman came into being, a femalecounterpart of man, someone like

April/June 2013 5

him, made to compliment him,playing a unique role that no othercreature in all of God’s creation couldsubstitute.

God did more than just create aman and a woman. He made themin his image. Genesis 1:27 says,“God created man in his own image,in the image of God he created him;male and female he created them.”God added value and dignity to manand woman making them preciousin his sight. He gave them a worldespecially tailored to serve theirneeds and the ability to rule, dress,keep and preserve the earth in itspristine beauty and majesty.

Even in those early days,however, with the fall of man andhis refusal to obey his Creator andRedeemer, man lost his own dignityand failed to dignify and value whatGod created for him. The worldceased to be precious to man, and

man gradually forgot his responsibilitytowards God and to the things Hehad given him. This downward spiralhas led to faults and sins we see inthis world today, including ourtreatment of women.

The resultOur society is reeling with crimes ofhatred, neglect and violence becausewe have failed to keep the holythings created by God precious. Thetemples that are our bodies, thekingdoms that are our minds, thealters that are our hearts, the portalsthat are our mouths, the gates thatare our eyes have not been given thedignity and value due to it. As a result,our women are treated with the samelack of dignity and value that we lack.We have undervalued, misused andabused them. In many ways we havebecome the swine that tramples the

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pear ls, not realizing its value(Matthew 7:6).

The solutionWhen Jesus, God in the flesh cameto earth, he reinforced ourpreciousness to him. We are soprecious that it warranted him toleave his throne in heaven with allits beauty and majesty to spendthirty-three and a half years on thisearth filled with squalor, filth,violence, disease and crime of themost despicable kind.

This was not the earth he created,but what we recreated for ourselves.Yet he put all that he had aside so hecould enter this earth and sacrificehis life so that we could be saved.He showed us that our lives areprecious, as precious as his own, soprecious that he had to substitute hislife for ours.

Before Jesus came on this earthGod inspired Isaiah to write: Isaiah43:1-4: But now, God’s Message, theGod who made you in the first place,Jacob, the One who got you started,Israel:”Don’t be afraid, I’veredeemed you. I’ve called yourname. You’re mine. When you’re inover your head, I’ll be there withyou.”

“When you’re in rough waters,you will not go down. When you’rebetween a rock and a hard place, itwon’t be a dead end—Because I amGod, your personal God, The Holyof Israel, your Saviour. I paid a hugeprice for you: all of Egypt, with richCush and Seba thrown in! That’show much you mean to me!”

“That’s how much I love you! I’dsell off the whole world to get youback, trade the creation just for you.”Though these emotions expressed by

April/June 2013 7

God were addressed to thenation of Israel, they apply toall of mankind.

We need to focus ourminds and the minds of ourchildren on the spiritual, on ourGod-given preciousness anddestiny. We need to spendtime teaching our children torespect one another and carefor one another not just in ourfamilies but also ourcommunities. We must do ourbest to support the poor,destitute and marginalized inour society because they tooare beloved of God. It’s oftenfrom these people that violent rapistsare created, created in the hotbedof neglect, abuse and deprivation.

Let us take heed to the advice ofJames 1:25-27: “But whoevercatches a glimpse of the revealedcounsel of God—the free life!—evenout of the corner of his eye, andsticks with it, is no distractedscatterbrain but a man or woman ofaction. That person will find delightand affirmation in the action. Anyonewho sets himself up as ‘religious’ bytalking a good game is self-deceived.This kind of religion is hot air and

only hot air. Real religion, the kindthat passes muster before God theFather, it this: Reach out to thehomeless and loveless in their plight,and guard against corruption from thegodless world” (The Message).

Society of which we are a parthas an important role to play intraining and providing for ourchildren. The training of our childrenshould include spiritual and moraltraining with an emphasis on thepreciousness, value and dignity of alllife created by God on this earth.

Quotes 4 UPain nourishes courage. You can’t be brave if you’ve only had wonderfulthings happen to you. -Mary Tyler MooreIf you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one. -Mother TeresaThe reason so few people are successful is no one has yet found a wayfor someone to sit down and slide uphill. -W. Clement Stone (submittedby Bluejay916)

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The Parable of the Ugly Cat

Jesus drew lessons from lilies, trees, sparrows and fish and evenhas some complimentary things to say about dogs. I can seethat about dogs. They are loyal, unselfish and seem to be able toshow unconditional love. However, he did not say anything aboutcats. In fact, cats are the only domestic animals that are notmentioned in the Bible. Maybe it’s because the ancient Egyptiansworshipped them.

by John Halford

Unlike the ancient Egyptians,I am not particularly fondof cats. For one thing, I am

allergic to them. I also find themgreedy and self-centred comparedto the unquestioning devotion ofdogs. I am quite willing to share theplanet with them, providing it is notthe same part of the planet. I certainlydon’t want one as a pet. So I wasnot particularly happy when UglyCat limped into my life.

I first saw her on a dark, coldevening just after Christmas lastyear. It might even have been theFeast of Stephen, although the moonwasn’t shining brightly and the snowdidn’t lie round about deep and crispand even. But there was enoughsnow for me to clear it from thedriveway. That’s when I first metUgly Cat, standing at the edge of thepool of light from the open garagedoor. She meowed piteously but kepther distance. I saw that she had beenbadly wounded. She was dragging

her right back leg, and one eye wasjust a bloody pulp. She looked likeshe had been in a fight or perhapshit by a car. I didn’t want to leaveher to suffer, but she would not letme get close. After a minute or so,she stumbled off into the darkness,leaving a trail of blood in the snow.

“Poor critter,” I thought. “Shewon’t last long out there.” There

April/June 2013 9

was nothing I could do for her. Bymorning, the snow had covered hertracks, and after a day or two Iforgot about her. But she had notforgotten me.

One morning, several monthslater, we met again. She was standingby the edge of our garden pond,looking at me cautiously, wonderingwhether to take her eyes—er—eye—off me to risk a drink.

“It’s OK,” I said. “Helpyourself.” I noticed that herwounded eye had healed. The eyewas gone, but the socket lookedclean and not infected. I noticed alsothat, although she still limped, shewas moving better. “How on earthdid you survive the winter?” Iwondered. This little animal was asurvivor, and at least she deservedrespect. “You’re welcome to have adrink from the pond whenever youwant,” I told her. (You shouldn’t giveferal cats milk.) But Ireally didn’t want her tobecome too friendly.

That did not seem tobe a problem—the catwasn’t interested inbeing too friendly either.She could look afterherself. I left somescraps of food out forher, but she ignoredthem. She was not as

hungry as she looked.Later I found out why. When she

wasn’t drinking from my pond, shewould help herself to the local dogs’food while they watched infrustration. You didn’t mess with thiscat. Nobody owned her, and shedidn’t seem to want to belong.

More mouths to feedUgly Cat hung around theneighbourhood all through the spring.I began calling her “that Ugly Cat,”and the name stuck. She woulddisappear for days but would alwaysshow up again, looking for a handout.But she didn’t grovel—if nothingwas forthcoming she would, so tospeak, shrug her shoulders and limpaway. She obviously wasn’t starving.In fact, she seemed to be putting onweight.

One day in early summer, Inoticed a change. She came around

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meowing as usual. However, thistime there was a different tone toit—more insistent and demanding. Igot the impression that if a cat couldtug at your trouser leg, she wouldhave done it. It was if she wassaying, “I want some food, and Iwant it NOW!”

She also seemed to be stayingaround our house more. Onemorning I discovered why. Whilewatering the flowerbeds, I found twokittens under a bush. Ugly Cat soonran up and stood guard. One of thekittens looked like her. The other wasthe same colour as a local fat cat,who spends all day lying around thehouse but obviously gets out at night.I understood now why Ugly Catneeded food. She had extra mouthsto feed. I gave in and bought severalcans of cat food, much to theamusement of my wife, who toldeveryone, “He’s just a big softie.”

As is the way with cats, Ugly Cathad brought her kittens close to ourhouse because she thought theywould be safe. “You know,” I toldher, “this really isn’t such a goodplace to bring your children.” Theirshelter was only a few feet from thehighway. It normally isn’t too busy,but a bridge over the river was underrepair, and so a steady stream oftraffic went by our house. I thoughtit was only a matter of time before Iwould be scraping the kittens off the

road. However, they had inheritedtheir mother’s ability to survive.

My sister, who knows about cats,told us we shouldn’t leave the kittenswith their mother longer thannecessary. They learn fast, and ifyou leave them too long, they willnever become domesticated. Yeah,right, but what were we going to dowith them? I didn’t want one cat, letalone three.

My daughter thought she couldfind homes for the kittens but wasnot able to pick them up for a fewdays. She suggested I take themfrom their mother as soon as theycould feed themselves. When theycould, they were ready to leave thenest. But moving them was easiersaid than done. The two kittens werecute from a distance, but when I triedto pick them up they hissed, spat, andtried to scratch me with their tinyclaws. These were wild animals.Eventually I extracted them and putthem in a large box in the garage.Ugly Cat didn’t seem to care. Sheprobably wanted to be rid of themso she could resume her vagabondlifestyle.

My daughter and granddaughterseventually came to pick up thekittens. “Be careful,” I warnedthem. “They may look adorable, butthey are lethal.” Sure enough, thelitt le spitfires resisted mygranddaughters’ attentions at first.

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But within half an hour,both were purringcontentedly as theyrode off to their newhomes.

The catcomes back

Two down—one togo. Except Ugly Catwon’t go. Shedisappears for daysbut always comes back expecting ahandout. We now keep several cansof cat food on hand. Against mybetter judgment, I find myselfbecoming rather fond of Ugly Cat. Ihave a feeling that she may bearound for a while, never quitebelonging but knowing where tocome when she does need help. Ihave even given her a new name,because “Ugly Cat” began to soundunkind. It so happens that there is aJamaican fruit called an “Ugli.” It isa hybrid variety—a cross betweengrapefruit (which I am also allergicto) and oranges (her colour).Perfect—Ugli it is!

I have made an effort to reformUgli, but she only listens long enoughto eat. Then she is off on herwanderings. It looks like she ispregnant again (sigh!). I told hersternly not to expect us to findhomes for the kittens this time, but

we probably will. (Update: We did –five this time. If this goes on a visitto the vet is in Ugli’s future.)

This tough little cat reminds meof many people I have known in myyears as a minister. Wild,independent, tough survivors—livingon the edge of a church communitybut never joining. Life has not beenkind to them, and for all sorts ofreasons, they are reluctant to makea commitment. But they knowwhere to come when they need help.They can be annoying, and it istempting to want to push them away.But we must not do that. They maynot have accepted God’s grace, butthey have not rejected it either. Myfriend, Professor Eddie Gibbs, has asaying “Treat everyone as if theywere Christians until they find outthat they are not.”

Because you just never know.

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WheelsDid you ever stop to think what it would be like if no one had inventedthe wheel? How different our life would be!

by Dexter Faulkner

Modern civilization dependsupon the wheel. Imaginewhat would happen if all

wheels suddenly disappeared.Skateboards would come to ascreeching halt. So would rollerskates. And bikes, automobiles,trucks and trains. Motors could notfunction, and so planes would ceaseto fly and most ships would gonowhere.

God once stopped the Egyptianarmy from pursuing after the fleeingIsraelites back at the time of theExodus. How did He do it? He

caused their chariot wheels to comeoff (Exodus 14:24 25).

What a surprise that must havebeen to the Egyptian army! Onemoment they were going along at agood clip, gaining on the Israelites;the next moment the chariot bodieshit the ground with a scraping thudand had to be abandoned.

Many things we use every daybesides transportation vehicleswould have to be abandoned if therewere no wheels.

Hair dryers and electric shaverswouldn’t work. Nor would drills,

vacuum cleaners, blenders infact, nothing electric would workbecause there would be noelectricity.

Electrical power, you see, isproduced by turbines andgenerators that depend on theprinciple of the wheel. So outgo the lights, televisions, videogames, computers refrigeratorseverything using electricity.

Of course almost all industrywould stop, since machinerywouldn’t work. And present dayfarming and food distributionmethods depend so heavily onthe wheel that without it you

April/June 2013 13

would soon findyourself with verylittle to eat.

Yes, the wheelis vital to themodern world. Itmakes things goeasily andsmoothly.

S o m e t i m e speople arereferred to as“wheels.” “So-and-so is a bigwheel,” you’ve probably heardsomeone say. That means that theone in question makes things happensometimes for good, sometimes forbad, but there is nevertheless action,movement.

How about you? Are you a“wheel” in the right sense? Do youmake good things happen moreeasily? Do you cooperate withothers in achieving worthwhilegoals? Are you easy for others toturn to cause to function? Or areyou an obstacle like a flat wheel ora sticky wheel or a wheel that ismissing?

Wheels make it possible to lift andcarry heavy weights and burdens.They cause things to move smoothlyand quickly. They make life easierfor people. Do you?

The saying is true that the“squeaky wheel gets the grease.Are you always squeaking,demanding attention for yourself? Orcan you turn quietly most of the time,doing your part to facilitate things,to move them along in the rightdirection?

Next time you use something onwheels or with wheels, notice howthe wheels busily spin away, doingtheir part to make the wholemechanism work.

Ask yourself if you function likethat at home, in school, in groupactivities or wherever yourcooperation is needed. If not, isn’t ittime to become cooperative andhelpful like a well oiled, smoothlyrunning wheel?

One can acquire everything in solitude—except character. -HenriStendhalThe true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do himabsolutely no good. -Samuel Johnson (submitted by LiftHimUp)

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The Wilderness Miracle(In modern terms)

It is reported that Moses, to want to feed the Israelites in the wilderness,would have to have had 1500 tons of food each day. Do you know that tobring that much food each day, two freight trains, each a mile long, wouldbe required? Besides you must remember, they were out in the desert, sothey would have to have firewood to use in cooking the food.

This would take 4000 tons of wood and a few more freight trains, eacha mile long, just for one day. And just think, they were forty years in transit.And oh yes! They would have to have water. If they only had enough todrink and wash a few dishes, it would take 11,000,000 gallons each day, anda freight train with tank cars, 1800 miles long, just to bring water! And thenanother thing!

They had to get across the Red Sea at night. (They did?) Now, if theywent on a narrow path, double file, the line would be 800 miles long andwould require 35 days and nights to get through. So, There had to be aspace in the Red Sea, 3 miles wide so that they could walk 5000 abreast toget over in one night. But then, there is another problem. Each time theycamped at the end of the day, a campground two-thirds the size of the stateof Rhode Island was required, or a total of 750 square miles...think of it!

This space just for nightly camping. Do you think Moses figuredall this out before he left Egypt? I think not! You see, Moses believed inGod. God took care of these things for him. Now do you think God has anyproblem taking care of all your needs?

Mujibar was trying to get into Australia legally through Immigration.The Immigration Officer said, “Mujibar, you have passed all the tests,except there is one more test.Unless you pass it you cannot enter Australia.”Mujibar said, “I am ready.”The officer said, “Make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink andGreen.” Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said, “Mister Officer, I amready.”  The Officer said, “Go ahead.” Mujibar said, “The telephone goes green, green, green, and I pink it up,and say, ‘Yellow, this is Mujibar.’”Mujibar now works at Telstra, perhaps you have spoken to him?

April/June 2013 15

Readers ViewsJanuary 2013

I noticed you mentioned Deuteronomy 11:18-21 in your article ‘Honey,we’ve shrunk their childhood’. I read the article which was great. I wasin my local shopping mall today and every word you said applies to ouryoung people here in England too. It’s such a shame that so manyfamilies are failing the next generation. I looked up this scripture in acouple of Bible Commentaries and was interested to read what MathewHenry’s Commentary has to say about it. He writes about this passageof scripture: ‘Let us all be directed by the three rules here given: 1. Letour hearts be filled with the word of God. 2. Let our eyes be fixed uponthe word of God. 3. Let our tongues be employed about the word of God.Let it be the subject of our familiar discourse, wherever we are,especially with our children.’ (Matthew Henry was born on the 18th ofOctober 1662, he was the son of a clergyman and was himself ordainedin 1687. He began work on his commentary in 1704.)

G. Sole, U.K.

January 2013It continually astounds me that you can put out this interesting magazinewith so little resources.

J. Halford, U.S.A.

January 2013Thanks very much for the magazine. A good assortment of articles ondifferent issues. Enjoyed the topicality of your lead article, which willreally connect with readers living in modern India.

R. Morgan, N.Z.

January 2013I am a retired personnel very busy in village ministry. Please supply mewith the L.L. magazine regularly, as it is of immense help to me in myministry.

J. B. Naik, Odisha

January 2013The articles in the 10th anniversary issue are very good. Let the touch ofJesus continue to make the magazine Living Light a storehouse of divineblessing. Please continue to send me the magazine.

B.F. Saldenha, West Bengal

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Celebrating the love of God(Life Today Apr 05 Pg.8)

At this time of the year, Christians celebrate the love of God forhumanity, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

by Mohan Jayasekera

J ohn wrote: “for God so lovedthe world that he gave his oneand only son, that whoever be-

lieves in him shall not perish but haveeternal life. For God did not send hisSon into the world to condemn theworld, but to save the world throughhim.” (John 3:16-17)

The society in which we live canblind us to the incredible love Godhas for us humans what with all thebad news we hear about the war onterror and the horrible statistics ofthe AIDS tragedy, violence and rape.

Suffering in the face of love?Many have asked: “If God loves uswhy does He allow so much misery,injustice and suffering?” But inasking this, we are blinded to the factthat we humans have declared ourindependence from God and goneour own ways.

So let’s consider God’s response.A long time ago people were askingsimilar questions about God whenconditions were bad. He respondedthrough the words of a psalmist,“But to the wicked, God says: ‘Whatright have you to recite my laws ortake my covenant on your lips? Youhate my instruction and cast my

words behind you. When you see athief, you join with him; you throw inyour lot with adulterers. You use yourmouth for evil and harness yourtongue to deceit. You speakcontinually against your brother andslander your own mother’s son.These things you have done and Ikept silent; you thought I wasaltogether like you.’” (Psalm 50:16-21)

That’s strong language isn’t it?But generally speaking, haven’t wehumans disregarded God’s wordsand instructions? Could it be that weare guilty of what God says here byhaving our senses dulled intoaccepting, for example, whatHollywood entertains us with:robbery, hatred, murder, adultery andthe like?

Sin is not God’s wayCould it be that the conditions weexperience are as a consequence ofour own sinful ways? The Gospel,while showing us God’s great loveand power in bringing us salvationalso reveals that “the wrath of Godis being revealed from heavenagainst all the godlessness andwickedness of men who suppress the

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truth by their wickedness,”(Romans 1:18 see verses 16-17 as well)

The Apostle Peter wrote;“by the same word thepresent heavens and earthare reserved for fire, beingkept for the Day of Judgmentand destruction of ungodlymen. But do not forget thisone thing, dear friends: Withthe Lord a day is like athousand years, and athousand years are like a day.The Lord is not slow inkeeping his promise, as someunderstand slowness. He is patientwith you, not wanting anyone toperish but everyone to come torepentance.” (2 Peter 3:7-9)

Our hope in God aloneWithout God and the hope He offers,the human condition is indeed bleak.But even in the darkest of times, wecan be sure of what God’s thoughtsare. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For Iknow the plans I have for you,”declares the LORD, “plans toprosper you and not to harm you,plans to give you hope and a future.”Oh, if we could only believe that andturn to Him!

As I was thinking about this, Iremembered that in one of thedarkest periods in the history of Hispeople, God told one of His greatservants: “I have indeed seen themisery of my people in Egypt. I haveheard them crying out because of

their slave drivers, and I amconcerned about their suffering. SoI have come down to rescue themfrom the hand of the Egyptians andto bring them out of that land into agood land flowing with milk andhoney.” (Exodus 3:7-8)

And He did. Yet even after suchan amazing rescue from slavery, theresponse of the people was: “Theydid not believe in God or trust in hisdeliverance.” (Psalm 78:22)

Love for darknessThis reminded me of another story Ihad often heard. For many years Ihad worked for a French Airline, andmy work often took me to Paris. Youcan’t visit Paris in July withouthearing the story of the Bastille – amedieval fortress in Paris thatbecame a symbol of despotism.

In the 17-18th century, the Bastillewas used as a French state prison

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and a place of detention for importantpersons. On July 14, 1789, at thebeginning of the French Revolution,an armed mob of Parisians capturedthe fortress and released itsprisoners. In remembrance of this,Bastille Day has been a Frenchnational holiday since 1880.

One of the men who were freedthat day had been confined in one ofthe Bastille’s gloomiest cells formany years. But instead of joyfullywelcoming his liberty, he begged tobe taken back to the darkness of hiscell. It had been such a long timesince he had seen the sunshine thathis eyes could not endure itsbrightness. His only desire was todie in the murky dungeon of darknesswhere he had been a captive.

Could it be that in the same waywe disbelieve or are blasé to thegospel and the love of God? Are weunable to see our real needs oraccept the greatest gift ever madeavailable to humans through JesusChrist – because we have becomeused to the darkness and gloom ofour world?

Jesus said, “this isthe verdict: Light hascome into the world,but men loveddarkness instead oflight because theirdeeds were evil.”(John 3:19).

Reminder aboutthe Light

Even Christians need to be regularlyreminded of this wonderful news ofdeliverance and liberty that God hasprovided. Many years ago, I hearda message at a church I visited inthe USA that reminded me of thisfact. In reviewing notes I had taken,I’d like to share several stories toldthat day that illustrate this.

The first was about a man on abusiness trip to a mining town in theeastern part of the USA. Whiledriving through an area near themines he noticed a large number ofmules wandering about in an openfield, which was unusual to see insuch a setting. He asked about thisat the nearby pub when he stoppedfor lunch. The attendant there toldhim that these were work animalsfrom the mines, and that they hadbeen brought up from the darkpassages below to preserve theireyesight. He explained that unlessthey were regularly exposed to thesunlight, they would eventually goblind. The preacher pointed to thefact that Christians need similarexperiences to keep them from

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losing their spiritual sight and visionas they live in this dark world.

The next story in the sermon wasabout a man who found a beautifulrock in a north Carolina stream bed.Not knowing what it was, he used itas a doorstop for the front door ofhis cabin. Some years later a hikerin the area stopped at the cabin fora visit and was amazed to see thedoorstop. The hiker was a geologist,and immediately recognized the rockas a huge lump of gold. It proved tobe one of the largest gold nuggetsever found in that part of the world.

The preacher likened the manwho found the rock to Christians whofail to understand the true nature ofthe gospel and the love of God, evenafter many years in the Christianwalk.

Christian author Jerry Bridgeswrote: “The gospel tells us that JesusChrist paid our debt, but it tells usfar more. It tells us that we are nolonger enemies and objects of His

wrath. We are now His sons anddaughters, heirs with Jesus Christ ofall His unsearchable riches. This isthe good news of the gospel.” (page19, Unsearchable Riches, 2002, JerryBridges)

This is what we celebrate inremembering the death andresurrection of Jesus Christ. Muchof our world remains blinded to thiswonderful truth of the gospel.Another illustration in this sermonwas about a lady who had beenblinded for 50 years before her sightwas restored by surgery. Theoperation could have been done 25years earlier, but she was unawarethat surgical techniques had beendeveloped that could have restoredher vision. The doctor who hadperformed the operation said, “Shejust figured there was nothing thatcould be done about her condition.Much of her life could have beendifferent.”

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As the doctor lifted the bandagesfrom her eyes, she wept for joy. Forthe first time in her life she was ableto see a dazzling and beautiful worldof form and colour.

After telling this story the ministerasked, “How many millions of ourworld will go on living in spiritualblindness unless we bring them thegood news of salvation and bringthem to the Saviour?”

Our responsibility asChristians

The apostle Paul wrote, “How then,can they call on the one they havenot believed in? And how can theybelieve in the one of whom theyhave not heard? And how can theyhear without someone preaching tothem?” (Romans 10:4)

In his sermon the minister pointedout that Christians spend so much

of their time on various pursuits thatthey neglect the responsibility ofpreaching the gospel.

He then told a story that drovehome this point to me. It was abouta lighthouse keeper who worked ona rocky stretch of coastline. Hereceived a supply of oil needed forthe light house lamp each month.Being close to the village, he hadfrequent guests.

One night a woman from thevillage begged some oil to keep herfamily warm. Then a father askedfor some for use in his lamp.Another needed some to lubricatea wheel. Since all these requests

seemed legitimate, the lighthousekeeper, in trying to please, grantedthem all.

Toward the end of the month henoticed that the supply of oil was verylow. Soon it was gone, and thebeacon light went out. That nightseveral ships were wrecked and liveswere lost. When the authoritiesinvestigated, the man was repentant.Their response was, “You were giventhe oil for one purpose – to keep thatlight burning!”

These stories illustrate the realitywe experience in living and sharingthe gospel. The ancient prophet Isaiahwas inspired to write: “How beautifulon the mountains are the feet ofthose who bring good news, whoproclaim peace, who bring goodtidings, who proclaim salvation, whosay to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”(Isaiah 52:7)

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So in celebrating the good newsof the love of God expressed to usthrough the death and resurrectionof His Son, Jesus Christ, let me echothe words in Revelation 1:5-6; “Tohim who loves us and has freed us

from our sins by his blood, and hasmade us to be a kingdom and prieststo serve his God and Father, to Himbe glory and power forever andever! Amen.”

Catholic Horsescontributed by Kerry Gubb

One day while he was at the track betting on the ponies and nearly losinghis shirt, Mitch noticed a priest who stepped out onto the track andblessed the forehead of one of the horses lining up for the 4th race.Lo and behold, that horse - a very long shot - won the race.Mitch was most interested to see what the priest did the next race. Sureenough, the priest stepped out onto the track as the horses lined up forthe 5th race, and placed a blessing on the forehead of one of the horses.Mitch made a beeline for the window and placed a small bet on thehorse.Again, even though it was another long shot, the horse the priest hadblessed won the race.Mitch collected his winnings, and anxiously waited to see which horsethe priest would bless for the 6th race.The priest showed, blessed a horse, Mitch bet on it, and it won!Mitch was elated! As the day went on, the priest continued blessinghorses, and they always came in first.Mitch began to pull in some serious money, and by the last race, he knewhis wildest dreams were going to come true. He made a quick stop at theATM, withdrew his savings, and awaited the priest’s blessing that wouldtell him which horse to bet on.True to his pattern, the priest stepped out onto the track before the lastrace and blessed the forehead, eyes, ears, and hooves of one of thehorses.Mitch bet every cent and watched the horse come in dead last.Mitch was dumbfounded. He made his way to the track, and when hefound the priest, he demanded, “What happened, Father? All day longyou blessed horses and they won. The last race, you blessed a horse andhe lost. Now, thanks to you, I’ve lost all my savings!!”The priest nodded wisely and said, “That’s the problem with Protestants— you can’t tell the difference between a simple blessing and the LastRites.

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Do You Believe?by Tammy Tkach

M ary and Martha didn’tknow what to think theday Jesus came into town

four days after Lazarus was laid torest. When their brother became illand took a turn for the worse, theysent for Jesus, who they knew couldheal him. They thought becauseLazarus and Jesus were such goodfriends, Jesus would rush to his sideand make everything better. But hedidn’t. It seemed Jesus had moreimportant things to do, so he stayedright where he was, telling hisdisciples Lazarus was asleep. Theythought he didn’t understandLazarus was dead. As usual, theywere the ones who didn’tunderstand.

When Jesus and thedisciples finally arrived inBethany where the sisters andbrother lived, Martha toldJesus her brother’s body wasalready starting to stink. Theywere so disappointed, theyaccused Jesus of waiting toolong to come to the aid of hissick friend.

I would have beendisappointed too, wouldn’tyou? Perhaps better wordswould be distraught, at wits’end, frantic, hysterical! Whydid Jesus let their brother die?Why indeed? We often ask the

same question today – why did Godlet my loved one die? Why did heallow this or that disaster to happen?When no answer comes, people turnaway from God in anger.

But Mary and Martha, eventhough disappointed, hurt and a littleangry, didn’t turn away. His wordsin John 11 were enough to calmMartha. His tears in verse 35showed Mary how much he cared.

Those same words comfort andcalm me today, as I look forward toa milestone birthday and anotherEaster Sunday – two occasions inmy mind to celebrate theresurrection of Jesus. In John 11,

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verse 25, Jesus didn’t say: Don’tworry Martha, I’l l resurrectLazarus. He said: “I am theresurrection and the life. Those whobelieve in me, even though they dielike everyone else, will live again”(NLT).

I am the resurrection. Powerfulwords. How could he say that? Howdid he have the power to lay downhis life and take it up again (Matthew26:61)? We know what Mary,Martha, Lazarus and the disciplesdidn’t find out until later – Jesus wasand is and always will be God. Hedoesn’t simply have the power toresurrect dead people. He is theresurrection, which means he is life.Life is inherent and intrinsic to God,which is why he calls himself I AM.

My imminent birthday hasstarted me thinking about life anddeath and what happens after that.When I read Jesus’ words to Martha,I felt he was asking me the samequestion. Do you believe? Do Ibelieve he is the resurrection and thelife? Do I believe that even thoughI’m going to die like everyone else, Iwill live again because I believe inJesus? Yes I do. How could I enjoywhatever time I have left if I didn’t?Because Jesus laid down his life andtook it up again, because the tombwas empty and Christ is risen, I willlive again. Happy Easter and happybirthday to me!

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The Logic of Grace

The gospel declares that our sins have been forgiven and we havebeen made new in Christ without our lifting a finger to make ithappen. That isn’t logical, so we look for other explanations.

by Dr. Joseph Tkach (Speaking of Life)

As ra tional beings, wehumans don’t trust thingsthat don’t make sense.

When we come across somethingthat doesn’t seem to add up, wedon’t like it. We look for alternativeexplanations and possibilities. If weare going to believe something, wewant it to be logical and rational.

Maybe that’s why so manyhave a hard time with the gospel.When we take the gospel for whatthe Bible says it is, it doesn’t makesense. It doesn’t add up. Thegospel declares that our sins havebeen forgiven and we have beenmade new in Christ without ourlifting a finger to make it happen.

That isn’t logical, so we lookfor other explanations. We tellourselves that our sins will beforgiven only if we commitourselves not to sin any more. Weimagine a set of guidelines or rulesthat we must keep in order for Godto apply his forgiveness to us. Wetry to make sense out of somethingthat doesn’t make sense to us.

In Romans 5, verses 8 and 10,we read that God loves us so muchthat Jesus died for us while wewere still sinners. But that doesn’t

add up. Why would God forgive usbefore we even repent? So we lookfor other explanations. Romans 5,verse 6 says that Christ died for theungodly. But that doesn’t make sense.Why would God want to forgiveungodly people before they evenpromise to stop being ungodly? So welook for other explanations. We wantto see repentance come beforeforgiveness.

Ephesians 2, verses 1-10 says thatGod forgave us while we were stilldead in our sins. It even says he madeus alive with Christ and seated us withChrist in heavenly places while wewere still dead in our sins. Verse 9says, “It is by grace you have beensaved, through faith—and this not ofyourselves, it is the gift of God—notby works, so that no one can boast.”

That makes no sense at all to us.But we can begin to see a patternemerge. When it comes to God’sgrace, there is a new kind of logic.The logic of grace goes against thegrain of everything that makes senseto us. But it makes sense to God. ToGod, love is everything, and only hisgrace generates love in human beings.Only his unconditional forgivenessand healing can raise the dead to life.

April/June 2013 25

But that doesn’t make sense. We justcannot imagine how unconditionallove, unconditional forgiveness, andunconditional healing, can result inanything but more sin. Why shoulda person trust and follow Jesus ifthey’ve already been forgivenanyway?

Because that’s how the logic ofgrace works. Titus 2:11-14 tells us

that it is the grace of God thatteaches us to say no to ungodliness.Not punishment. Not force orpersuasion. But grace. Who wouldhave guessed such a thing?

So we can simply believe thegood news in faith that God loves usunconditionally and that he knowswhat he is doing even if it doesn’tmake sense to us.

Grace Rules!

Salvation comes only by grace and not by what we do. The onlything we can do with grace is trust the Giver and accept and embracethe gift.

by Dr. Joseph Tkach (Speaking of Life)

By the time we finishkindergarten, we have apretty good notion that life is

not fair. Even so, we want life to befair and we even expect it to be fair.When it isn’t some of us can getpretty upset.

Jesus gave us a parable aboutfairness in Matthew 20:1-16. He said:“For the kingdom of heaven is like alandowner who went out early in themorning to hire workers for hisvineyard. He agreed to pay them adenarius for the day and sent theminto his vineyard.”

“About nine in the morning hewent out and saw others standing inthe marketplace doing nothing. Hetold them, ‘You also go and work inmy vineyard, and I will pay youwhatever is right.’ So they went.”

     “He went  out  again  about  noonand about three in the afternoon anddid the same thing. About five in theafternoon he went out and found stillothers standing around. He askedthem, ‘Why have you been standinghere all day long doing nothing?’”     “‘Because no one has hired us,’they answered.”       “He said to them, ‘You also goand work in my vineyard.’”

“When evening came, the ownerof the vineyard said to his supervisor,‘Call the workers and pay them theirwages, beginning with the last oneshired and going on to the first.’”     “The workers who were hiredabout five in the afternoon came andeach received a denarius. So whenthose came who were hired first,they expected to receive more. But

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each one of them also received adenarius. When they received it, theybegan to grumble against thelandowner. ‘These men who werehired last worked only one hour,’ theysaid, ‘and you have made them equalto us who have borne the burden ofthe work and the heat of the day.’”     “But  he  answered  one  of  them,‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you.Didn’t you agree to work for adenarius? Take your pay and go. Iwant to give the one who was hiredlast the same as I gave you. Don’t Ihave the right to do what I want withmy own money? Or are you enviousbecause I am generous?’”    “So the last will be first, and thefirst will be last.”

A denarius was pretty goodmoney for a day’s work, about thesame as the pay of a Roman soldier.Being a Roman soldier was not themost prestigious job, but it was higher

up the social ladder than the commonvineyard worker. So the workerseagerly accepted the job. But theywere not happy that others got thesame pay for far less work.

Jesus wasn’t giving us a civicslesson. He was telling us about howgrace works in the kingdom of God.It doesn’t matter how good we’vebeen compared to how goodsomeone else has been. It doesn’tmatter how sinful we’ve beencompared to how sinful someoneelse has been. Salvation simply isn’ttied to anything but the riches ofGod’s love and grace.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9:“For it is by grace you have beensaved, through faith—and this is notfrom yourselves, it is the gift ofGod— not by works, so that no onecan boast.”

Regardless of the relative pain orease of our life’s journey, salvationcomes only by grace and not by whatwe do. Like any gift, the only thingwe can do with grace is have a littlefaith. In other words, trust the Giverand accept and embrace the gift.

With God, we don’t get what wedeserve. We get everything we don’tdeserve—his unfailing love and anew life in Jesus Christ.

Grand old jokescontributed by Kerry Gubb

o What a bargain grandchildren are! I give them my loose change, andthey give me a million dollars’ worth of pleasure. ~Gene Perret

o My grandkids believe I’m the oldest thing in the world. And after twoor three hours with them, I believe it, too.

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AdvertisementsAdvertisements are accepted for publication in thismagazine from individuals, Churches and businesshouses. Advertisement rates are as follows:Full page: Rs. 800/- plus four years FREEsubscription to the Living Light magazineHalf page: Rs. 400/- plus two years FREEsubscription to the Living Light magazineQuarter page: Rs. 250/- plus one year FREEsubscription to the Living Light magazine.Subscription rates for the magazine for one year:Rs.100/-. The subscription price only covers the cost of printing,postage and handling.The e copy of the magazine can also be received by email, free of cost on request sent along with e mailaddress.Send the printed matter for the advertisement, 6 weeks in advance alongwith a cheque or M.O. to ‘Worldwide Church of God’ No. 54, III ACross, Gururaja Layout, Doddanekkundi, Bangalore 560037. Please sendthe matter and cheque by speed post or courier. Alternately, the moneycan be sent by bank transfer to the account mentioned on the inside frontpage of this magazine.

o An hour with your grandchildren can make you feel young again. Anything longer than that, and you start to age quickly. - WelshProverb

o Perfect love sometimes does not come until the first grandchild. ~GoreVidal

o Never have children, only grandchildren. ~Ogden Nasho When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window.

~Marcy DeMareeo Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just you

all day and now the day was complete. ~Lois Wyseo If I had known how wonderful it would be to have grandchildren, I’d

have had them first. ~Henry Youngman

28 Living Light

Children of India Foundation

The Children of India Foundation, an organization for orphans, wasstarted by Dr. Piria Suntharam, a retired radiologist and professor ofradiology in Aurangabad. Dr. Suntharam was orphaned at the age of 2and was supported by the Dohnavur Fellowship through school, collegeand medical school. On May 25, 1995, soon after retirement he lost hiswife and daughter, his only child, in a road accident leaving him alone inhis sorrow.This sad loss was a turning point in Dr. Suntharam’s life. Instead ofwallowing in self pity, the doctor decided to acquire a new family throughthe Children of India Foundation. He now has around 35 children, mostlygirls from destitute families who are looked after by his staff of five.His orphanage is registered with the Tamil Nadu government andsupported by the Worldwide Church of God. Donations can be sent tothe address given on the front inside cover of the magazine, clearlystating that the donation is for the orphanage.