The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity – 2023

Dear BLCF Friends,

Effective April 10, 2022, Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church will reopen by reservation only for Sunday worship under the limitations and guidelines set by Public Health and the Board of BLCF. In order to protect those who are vulnerable at Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship from COVID-19 Virus infection, the BLCF Board mandates that the church will be open by reservation, with the following rules:

attendees must wear a mask while on the premises
attendees give their contact information upon arrival
attendees observe two meters of social distance while seated
attendees use hand sanitizer as needed
attendees follow any additional directions given by members of the board, while inside the church

Please be advised that both the BLCF Café Community Dinner and the BLCF Wednesday Prayer Service will continue to remain closed effective March 16, 2020, and until further notice. We pray with the administration of sufficient COVID-19 vaccinations, and following the determination of Health Canada and other Health Authorities, that the danger of the Pandemic will have subsided sufficiently, to allow BLCF to reopen safely more of our worship and outreach activities without any concern of infection to the vulnerable within our community.

– Pastor Steve

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity

© January 22, 2023, by Steve Mickelson

Based on Messages Shared at BLCF on August 21, 2022, May 30, 2021, November 3, 2019, September 10, 2017, and September 15, 2013

BLCF Bulletin November 3, 2019

BLCF Bulletin September 10, 2017

BLCF Bulletin September 15, 2013

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

Prayer and Tithing Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Doxology (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow) Instrumental – https://youtu.be/Mk4p3rihONU

Responsive Reading #641 “Christian Assurance” (-from Romans 8)

Music Specials:

Be the Centre – Michael Frye – (lyrics) – https://youtu.be/MERQ0P6O0CE

Exalt The Lord – Cindy Reithmeir – (lyrics) – Vineyard Worship – https://youtu.be/0O83JgzzoL4

I Lift My Eyes Up – Brian Doerksen – (lyrics) – https://youtu.be/dwdi3pnQ4aQ

Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity’

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Let us pray…

Welcome to our Sunday Morning Praise and Worship Service, here at BLCF. We are pleased to have Terry Sywanyk of Coldwater Roots here at Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship here to lead us with Worship Music for today’s service. Terry was a stalwart musician, singing and playing for the dinner guests at our BLCF Cafe Community Dinner for over a decade, as well as performing two fundraiser concerts a year in support of the dinner.

BLCF: Terry Sywanyk

Our lesson for today is entitled The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity, where we examine the Trinity of God, and a similar trinity of humanity.

Several years ago, some of you may recall seeing the 2017 Stuart Hazeldine movie, The Shack, a Christian film, based on William P. Young’s 2007 novel of the same title. The Shack dealt primarily with the topics of how the Godhead or Trinity of God deals with pain and suffering among Christians, and the nature of the love that God has for us in times of darkness and tribulation.

For the lesson today, I would like to talk about similarities and differences between the Trinity of God, sometimes referred to as the Godhead, and another trinity, namely the trinity of the human race. Yes, there is a trinity aspect of people, though not quite the same as the trinity of God. While one trinity, (of humanity) is not widely known, or at the least spoken about, particularly in the context of the other. And the other Trinity, (of God), though spoken about frequently, is often misunderstood.

Hopefully, by the end of this lesson, we will have better knowledge and understanding of both trinities, particularly how the two relate to each other.

Let us begin with the one that is more frequently spoken about by Christians and frequently misunderstood, which is the Trinity of God. This Trinity is used to describe three Divine aspects or expressions of God: the Father/Creator, the Son/Word-made-flesh, and the Holy Spirit. It is here that we often encounter some controversy amongst various denominations of the Christian Church, as well as criticism from those who challenge the Christian faith as monotheistic.

When we read the King James Version of 1 John 5:7-8, we see a direct reference to the Trinity being three aspects of one God.

⁷For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.⁸And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

Recently, some Biblical scholars have questioned whether the disciple John authored this version of the Scripture as found in the King Kames Version translation, since there may be some evidence to indicate verse from the original, which many authorities agree should be read as found in the English Standard Version of 1 John 5:7-8 (ESV):

⁷For there are three that testify: ⁸the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.

At first blush, it appears that the mention of the Trinity, which is clearly described in the King James translation, seems to be omitted by the English Standard translation. However, if we examine the English Standard translation more closely, we see that the ESV implies the same message as the KJV, though more by inference than by words in the ESV, which is a more subtle expression of the same thought.

Godhead Trinity

If this verse were the only passage of Scripture that supports the Trinity of God, then we could say that the existence of the Holy Trinity is open to debate and possibly doubt. Fortunately, we have other verses that support the singularity of the Godhead.

At the beginning of the Bible, we read that God refers to Himself in the plural, using the personal pronouns: “us” and “our” rather than “me” and “my” as we read in Genesis 1:26:

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make man^[^a^] in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. – Genesis 1:26 (ESV)

But who is it comprised of the ”we” and ”us” mentioned in this passage, describing the beginning of the Bible:

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – John 1:1 (ESV)

So we know that God was the Word, but who is the Word? Those of you familiar with the scripture likely already have an idea, as we read from John 1:14:

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14 (ESV)

This passage refers to Jesus, also referred to in the Bible as the “Word made flesh”. But was Jesus there in the creation? From John 1:1 and John 1:14, we may conclude that Jesus or the Word was with God and the Word was God. To help us understand this relationship better, Jesus put it simply in John 10:30:

³⁰ I and the Father are one.” John 10:30 (ESV)

What about the Holy Spirit? Was the Spirit there at the beginning? The answer to this question is found in Genesis 1:2:

²The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. – Genesis 1:2 (ESV)

Let us recap. We have at the beginning God referring to himself as a plural Entity, using the personal pronouns we and ours. We are told that Jesus, the Word made flesh, was there at the beginning of creation, as was the Holy Spirit. Not three Gods, but three distinct aspects of the same God: a Trinity.

I wonder how many of you know the children’s story of Peter Pan, a free-spirited eternal youth who became separated from his shadow, which both confused and complicated his life until his friend Wendy took and thread in hand and sewed the shadow back to Peter, making him happy and whole again. This somewhat silly child’s tale makes for a good analogy to the human condition.

Adam and Eve, created in the image of God had a good relationship with the Creator. That was until Satan took the form of a serpent and beguiled Eve and Adam to partake of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden We read in Genesis 3, verses 1-6:

Temptation in the Garden

¹Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You^[^a^] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ²And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'” ⁴ But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” ⁶So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,^[^b^] she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. – Genesis 3:1-6 (ESV)

We see the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God, in verses 22-23 of the same third chapter of Genesis:

²²Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” ²³therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. – Genesis 3:22-23 (ESV)

Adam and Eve were told that they would surely die if they ate from the tree, commonly called the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil or the Tree of Life. Having done so, Adam and Eve were not only expelled from the Garden of Eden, they had brought the judgment of death upon themselves and their descendants. Once Adam and Eve broke God’s rule, all members of the human race became like the Peter Pan character. But not severed from their shadow, but severed from the Holy Spirit. While the Scriptures have no Wendy to sew things up, we do have a way to repair what has been broken. Jesus Christ came to the world to repair the tear in our spiritual fabric, restore our souls, and bring that joy again to those who have inherited the judgment of sin.

To better understand God’s solution to the problem of sin, let us now talk about the human trinity. Let us recall from Genesis 1, that we were made in God’s image, verse 26:

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, after our likeness” – Genesis 1:26 (ESV)

Let me clarify some misconceptions some Christians have regarding the verse Genesis 1:26, which are gender specific. That is to say, some believers think that mankind refers only to men, and women are secondary because God created Eve from Adam’s rib. To help us clear any misconceptions, let us go back to the Bible and read this verse in its context, as God intended, which we find in, Genesis 1:26-28 (ESV):

²⁷So God created man^[a] in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

²⁸And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

If we are made in God’s image, it is not hard to understand that God gave us three aspects of our character, a human trinity as described in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (ESV):

²³Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We see that the Human trinity consists of the body, soul, and spirit. Spirit exists like Peter Pan’s shadow, severed from us by the sin of Eden once the human race having eaten of the tree of knowledge became aware of good and evil and the consequences of choice. God provided us with a way to reconnect with the Holy Spirit, by confessing our sins and receiving the gift of salvation through Jesus and eternal life through the Holy Spirit. The proof and the promise may be found in John 20:20-23 (ESV):

²⁰When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. ²¹Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” ²²And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

Dr. Clarence Larkin in his book, Rightly Dividing the Word expands on the Human trinity mentioned in 1 Thessalonians, by describing the three as follows:

The human body touches the material world through the five senses of sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch.

And the gates to the soul are imagination, conscience, memory, reason and the affections.

The spirit receives impressions of outward and material things through the soul. The spiritual faculties of the spirit are faith, hope, reverence, prayer and worship.

To understand God, we must receive the Holy Spirit by faith and trust in God, as we see in 1Corinthians 2:9-11 (ESV):

⁹But, as it is written,

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him”—

¹⁰these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. ¹¹For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Let us, therefore, pray that we find the faith to trust God’s Plan for Salvation, Reconciliation, and Sanctification, through confession of sin, trust in our Lord Jesus Christ, and acceptance of the Holy Spirit.

Let us pray…

Closing Music Special: Who Is Like Our God – (lyrics) – Official Lyric Video – Vineyard Worship – https://youtu.be/xu0QLD1MtdE

Benediction (2 Corinthians 13:14): The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor 2022

Oct2

Dear BLCF Friends,

attendees must wear a mask while on the premises
attendees give their contact information upon arrival
attendees observe two meters social distance while seated
attendees use hand sanitizer as needed
attendees follow any additional directions given by members of the board, while inside the church

– Pastor Steve

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

‘The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor’

© October 2, 2022, by Steve Mickelson

Originally Shared with BLCF on February 28, 2021, March 26 17, 2017, and August 17, 2014

BLCF Bulletin March 26, 2017

BLCF Bulletin August 17, 2014

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

The Lord’s Prayer – (Lyrics) – Based on Matthew 6:9-13 (ESV) – Memorize Scripture through Song – Valleybrook Kids Choir – https://youtu.be/kP29O6rILWc

Prayer and Tithing; Prayer Requests

Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Doxology (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow) Instrumental – https://youtu.be/Mk4p3rihONU

Here I Am To Worship – Maranatha! Music (Lyric Video) – https://youtu.be/03G52K9X2hQ

In Christ Alone (My Hope Is Found) – Adrienne Liesching – LYRIC VIDEO – https://youtu.be/rn9-UNer6MQ

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus – Lyrics – Original words and music by Helen H. Lemmel – Additional music/lyrics by Kevin Winebarger, Nic Trout, George Romanacce, and Nathan Stiff – https://youtu.be/lzCZnyquNnk?t=16

Let us pray…

Good morning and welcome, to Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship’s Sunday Praise and Worship Service, here in the heart of Toronto, for the first Sunday of October 2022, a Communion Sunday at BLCF. An important part of a believer’s praise and worship is setting aside part of your day for prayer. In order to sense God’s presence, it is helpful to make that prayer time in the quiet of the day. Often that time is either early in the morning or late at night when it is quiet and free from distractions. At times of particular need or concern, for oneself or for others, is another good time to converse with the Lord through prayer. And of course, don’t forget to praise Him at times of victory and to thank Him for answered prayer.

For the Mickelson family, prayer time came at the end of the day, at the very least. Sophie and I started this tradition after we were married, and carried it on with our children. With the kids, the prayer would be a time to remember everyone in the family and to remember those in the extended family, as well as prayer concerns for our friends. Often, prayer time included reading from the Bible. I am happy to see that my eldest child, Athena, now married with three children of her own carries on the tradition of prayer before bed.

The Scriptures indicate that for Jesus, the preferred time for prayer was the evening, in a quiet place, such as a mountain top or in a garden. In this morning’s scripture, in Luke 9, we see that Jesus went up on a mountain to pray.

On one occasion, the Scriptures record that Jesus brought along three of his disciples, Peter, John, and James, to pray on a mountain. It was on this mountain, which many scholars believe to be Mount Tabor, an event described in Luke 9:27-36, that the three disciples bore witness to something more than just the Lord at prayer:

Luke 9:27-36 (ESV)

²⁷But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

²⁸Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. ²⁹And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. ³⁰And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, ³¹who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,^[^a^] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ³²Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. ³³And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. ³⁴As he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. ³⁵And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One;^[^b^] listen to him!” ³⁶And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and told no one in those days anything of what they had seen.

Footnotes: a. Luke 9:31 Greek exodus b. Luke 9:35 Some manuscripts my Beloved

Jesus brought along with him Peter, James, and John, where it is described in verse 32 that the three became “heavy with sleep”. The scriptures do not say why they started to become drowsy. You might speculate that it was from the exertion of climbing the mount. A similar thing happened to those who joined Jesus when he prayed in the garden of Gethsemane, just before his crucifixion. I believe part of it may be the effect of being in God’s presence. Needless to say, the three awoke to see that Jesus’ appearance had changed: both his face and clothing were transfigured, and he seemed to be floating among the clouds. And Jesus was observed talking with Moses and Elijah.

Transfigured is an interesting word. It is the English translation from the Greek Scriptures of “metamorpho” meaning to transform, literally or figuratively, to metamorphose, or to change. It is a verb and therefore means to change into another form. Christ’s death and resurrection are often symbolized by the butterfly, which changes or metamorphoses in a chrysalis from a larva, then to a pupa, and then ends as a butterfly. These changes are similar to Christ began in human form before the crucifixion, then as the Resurrected Christ, and finally, as the Ascended Christ.

What a sight that must have been to behold! And then to actually hear the voice of God stating: “This is my Son, my Chosen One, listen to him!”

It is interesting to note that God appears to make this statement as a response to Peter’s impulsive suggestion that the three disciples should build three tents in honour of Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. If you go back to verse 27, you will see that perhaps God’s words were spoken, not as a reaction to the comment by the disciple about building temples. More likely, God spoke in agreement with the statement made by Jesus, as we see recorded in John 9:27: “But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

This is not the first time that the disciples struggled to comprehend the meaning and significance of a miracle of Jesus that they had just witnessed. What they had observed was a glimpse of the glory of Heaven that Jesus alluded to in Luke 9, verse 27.

This miracle, like that where Jesus walked upon the waters of the Sea of Galilee, was another of the rare miracles in the Gospels, where Jesus was the object of the miracle.

Thomas Aquinas considered the Transfiguration to be “the greatest miracle” in that it complemented the baptism and showed the perfection of life in Heaven.

Another instance in the Scriptures of God speaking occurred just after Jesus was baptized when the Father spoke from Heaven saying: “This is my beloved Son, with who I am well pleased.” For Jesus, this was his own personal Pentecost, where the power of the Holy Spirit came upon him.

The Transfiguration of Jesus is significant in that we have an account of the promise of Heaven and the Resurrected Life. In contrast to Christ’s baptism, the Holy Spirit is observed afterward descending, “like a dove”, upon him. In this passage of Scripture recorded in Matthew 3:16-17, we have a presentation of the trinity of God, God’s voice in Heaven, Jesus the son’s baptism, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. All three are distinct, each being the presence of God.

There is a third account in the New Testament, where a voice speaks from Heaven, which occurs during the conversion of Paul, known formerly as Saul of Tarsus. That account is given in the Book of Acts, Chapter 9, verses 1-7, when Saul of Tarsus hears the Son of God ask “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And Saul, whose job was to arrest the followers of Christ, asks who is speaking? To which Jesus replies “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” indicating that an offense against a believer of Christ is considered to be an offense against Christ. Jesus then instructs him to “rise and enter the city” and that he would be told what to do.

The significance of this passage is how God convicts non-believers of faith, and how even the most stubborn of non-believers can be transformed by the Holy Spirit. Paul sometimes referred to as the thirteenth Apostle, had his conversion after Jesus’ earthly ministry. It is interesting that before his conversion, Saul of Tarsus was a member of the religious order which had Jesus put to death, and stoned Stephen, the first martyr of the followers of Christ.

Going back to Luke 9 and the Transfiguration, one may question why John, James, and Peter, were privy to this Heavenly vision of seeing Moses and Elijah conversing with Jesus regarding his impending departure in Jerusalem. By departure, we are talking about the crucifixion as the Chosen One.

Though Jesus died for our sins, to redeem believers, so that they may become righteous and be acceptable unto God. All of the disciples, save John, died violent deaths because of their beliefs and their sharing of the miracles that Jesus performed, the most important being his resurrection, his ascension, and his gifting of the Holy Spirit. James was put to death by a sword, by order of King Herod. Peter, being a Roman citizen was not crucified; instead, he was beheaded in Rome, at the order of Nero. John, the first of the twelve disciples to follow Jesus, and the last to die, did not die a violent death. The Apostle John did live long enough to see Jesus, as well as the eleven disciples, including his brother, James, die violently because of their beliefs.

The disciple’s individual faith may have wavered at one time or another, each disciple, save for Judas Iscariot, was put to death in a violent manner, because of the conviction of the faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus, which is Christ’s Gospel.

Further support for the notion is found in Luke 9 verse 27, “some standing here will not taste death until they see the Kingdom of God” referring to Peter, James, and John, the three who witnessed the Transfiguration, and who later acknowledged having seen the Kingdom of Heaven.

For Peter, we read in 2 Peter 1:16-18 (ESV):

¹⁶For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. ¹⁷For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” ¹⁸we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.

It seems quite clear that Peter refers to the Transfiguration on the mount as a view of the majesty of the risen Christ and the voice of God in Heaven.

With John, we read another acknowledgment of glory in the Transfiguration:

John 1:14 (ESV)

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Most scholars of the Bible agree that in the vision of the Transfiguration of Jesus, that Moses represents the Laws or the Sacred Scriptures of God, as Moses had authored five of the book of the Old Testament, and he delivered God’s Ten Commandments to the Hebrew people. Elijah represents the Prophets of God. Jesus represents both the authority of God, and the fulfillment of both the Word and the Prophets.

The account of Jesus’ baptism records the presence of the Trinity of God. The Trinity is observed again in the Transfiguration of Jesus. Jesus, the son, was observed with Moses and Elijah. God’s presence is found when His words were heard. And the cloud that appears represents the presence of the Holy Spirit.

You may ask: Why were Peter, James, and John selected to witness Jesus’ Transfiguration? Many scholars view that Moses and Elijah represent God’s Faith in the Prophets and the Laws that preceded Jesus. The three disciples represent aspects of God’s Faith after Jesus’ Resurrection and Ascension: Peter represents the Faith of the Church, James represents Hope of love (i.e. loving one’s neighbor as oneself), and John represents the application of Charity in the good works of man. Together, we have a symbolic representation of the Trinity the faith in the Holy Spirit, the Hope through the Salvation of Christ, and the Charity of God our Father in heaven who provided a means that we might be sanctified in spite of our sinful nature.

As often occurs in the Gospel accounts, the apostles while witnessing a miracle of Jesus, lose track of its significance. You may recall in a previous message about the miracle where Jesus walked across the Sea of Galilee, following the feeding of the multitude, also known as the “Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes”. The disciples had yet to conclude that this supernatural miracle not only proved that Jesus had the power of God, but that Christ was God.

Only after Jesus easily walked across a stormy sea, against which the disciples had struggled for hours, did he perform the miracle whereby Peter with Jesus trod water, so long as he had his eyes fixed on Jesus. When Peter does take his gaze from Jesus and looks upon the sea, he sinks. Jesus performs yet another miracle by raising Peter out of the water: “Oh ye of little faith!”

Eventually, Jesus boards the boat containing the disciples and calms the stormy weather, and transports the boat, according to John’s Gospel, instantaneously across the water. It takes a series of supernatural miracles before the twelve finally acknowledge that Jesus is truly the son of God.

Like the people of Israel who kept losing their faith, while being led from Pharaoh’s Egypt, through the desert, to the Promised Land, the disciples kept forgetting who they were following. Perhaps this was the real purpose of the excursion that Jesus made with Peter, John, and James on Mount Tabor: to remind the disciples that they were following the Son of God. In one account of the Transfiguration, Jesus instructed the three disciples not to tell anyone what they have seen until three days after His crucifixion.

As believers in the Gospel, what can you and I take home from the message of the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor? There are four key points to today’s lesson:

First, we have hope, through our faith, just as Jesus was transfigured into another form in Heaven, we, too, will be resurrected to heave, by faith in the resurrected Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Second, just like the disciples, in spite of lapses in judgment and though we may continue to sin, if we continue to confess our sins, God will forgive our sins and by His grace and the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf, God has a place for us in Heaven. “Though we were yet sinners, Christ died for our sin.”

And third, in spite of our inequities, Christ does not give up on us. As many times as it takes, he will patiently take us to the holy places, to remind us that “He will never leave or forsake us!”

Finally, as was observed earlier in today’s message, as Christ was baptized in water and the Holy Spirit, and then reborn, in spirit and transfigured into a new, that on this earth, as believers we may be transfigured through faith in the Word and the promise of the salvation of the lamb, Jesus. We, too, may have the same vision that what we do in this world in the name of Jesus has the promise and power to transfigure us into a creature that is Holy and Sanctified. However, since Jesus has already died and arisen on the third day, there is no expectation of death’s darkness and silence, but an expectation that we may share the promise of having a new body, transfigured by faith in the fulfillment of Word, now made flesh in Jesus our Savior.

The Scriptures, through the disciples’ accounts of their observation of the Transfiguration of Jesus, give believers a glimpse of the glorious afterlife we may expect to see when we are resurrected on the day Christ returns in his glory. This will be a day when we will sing, along with the angels of Heaven praises of hallelujah to the glory of the Lord.

The Day that Jesus returns in all of his glory will be a day of judgment; a day of deliverance; a day of our transfiguration.

Until that glorious day that we, as resurrected, transfigured believers are united with the Lord, we are commissioned by our faith to share the truth of the gospel of Jesus that he died to make us holy and to believe the truth of his message will set others free.

Let me finish today’s message by reading from Transfigured by Jay C. Treat, as a prayer (found on the back of today’s Bulletin):

(Dear God in Heaven)

We went up the mountain with Jesus,

but quite unprepared for a surprise.

We never expected to see him

transform right in front of our eyes!

His face was as bright as the sunlight;

his clothes were as bright as the skies.

He talked with Elijah and Moses,

who stood right in front of our eyes.

We thought we could build them three temples:

one shrine for the giver of laws,

and one for Elijah the prophet,

and one for this master of ours.

A bright cloud then covered the mountain.

A Voice echoed deep from within,

Said, “This is my son, my beloved one!

He pleases me! Listen to him!”

We came down the mountain with Jesus,

now ready for any surprise.

We’re ready to listen and follow

and change right in front of his eyes

(In name of Jesus we pray – AMEN)

Communion Special – Lauren Daigle – “We Will Not Forget” (Lyric Video) – https://youtu.be/izeZa9wx8wA

²²And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing, it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” ²³And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. ²⁴And he said to them, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many. ²⁵Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” Let us pray…

Closing Music Special: Phil Wickham – Living Hope (Lyrics)- https://youtu.be/9f2FXxDVO6w?t=4

Benediction -(Romans 15:13): May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity – 2022

Aug21

Dear BLCF Friends,

attendees must wear a mask while on the premises
attendees give their contact information upon arrival
attendees observe two meters of social distance while seated
attendees use hand sanitizer as needed
attendees follow any additional directions given by members of the board, while inside the church

– Pastor Steve

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity

© August 21, 2022, by Steve Mickelson

Based on Messages Shared at BLCF on May 30, 2021, November 3, 2019, September 10, 2017, and September 15, 2013

BLCF Bulletin November 3, 2019

BLCF Bulletin September 10, 2017

BLCF Bulletin September 15, 2013

Music Special – Lauren Daigle – You Say (Lyrics) – https://youtu.be/HqpNGYbcy3U

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

Opening Hymn #43: Praise to the Lord, the Almighty – (Nockels, Hymn with Lyrics, Contemporary) – http://www.celebratingholidays.com – https://youtu.be/BNq0WtMSmIY

Prayer and Tithing Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Doxology (Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow) Instrumental – https://youtu.be/Mk4p3rihONU

Responsive Reading #641 “Christian Assurance” (-from Romans 8)

This I Believe (The Creed) Lyric Video – Hillsong Kiev – https://youtu.be/uuDI-sk2nJU

Sandra McCracken – Trinity Song (feat. All Sons & Daughters) (Lyrics) – https://youtu.be/oaginDUwFO8

Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity’

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is holy-trinity-design.png

Let us pray…

Welcome to our Sunday Morning Praise and Worship Service, here at BLCF. Several years ago some of you may recall seeing the 2017 Stuart Hazeldine movie, The Shack, a Christian film, based on William P. Young’s 2007 novel of the same title. The Shack dealt primarily with the topics of how the Godhead or Trinity of God deals with pain and suffering among Christians, and the nature of the love that God has for us in times of darkness and tribulation.

Hopefully, by the end of this lesson, we will have better knowledge and understanding of both trinities, particularly how the two relate to each other.

When we read the King James Version of 1 John 5:7-8, we see a direct reference to the Trinity being three aspects of one God.

Recently, some Biblical scholars have questioned whether the disciple John authored this version of the Scripture as found in the King Lames Version translation, since there may be some evidence to indicate verse from the original, which many authorities agree should be read as found in the English Standard Version of 1John 5:7-8 (ESV):

⁷For there are three that testify: ⁸the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.

Godhead Trinity

But who is it comprised the ”we” and ”us” mentioned in this passage, describing the beginning of the Bible:

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – John 1:1 (ESV)

So we know that with God was the Word, but who is the Word? Those of you familiar with the scripture likely already have an idea, as we read from John 1:14:

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14 (ESV)

³⁰ I and the Father are one.” John 10:30 (ESV)

What about the Holy Spirit? Was the Spirit there at the beginning? The answer to this question is found in Genesis 1:2:

²The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. – Genesis 1:2 (ESV)

Temptation in the Garden

¹Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.

We see the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God, in verses 22-23 of the same third chapter of Genesis:

Adam and Eve were told that they would surely die if they ate from the tree, commonly called the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil or Tree of Life. Having done so, Adam and Eve were not only expelled from the Garden of Eden, they had brought the judgment of death upon themselves and their descendants. Once Adam and Eve broke God’s rule, all members of the human race became like the Peter Pan character. But not severed from their shadow, but severed from the Holy Spirit. While the Scriptures have no Wendy to sew things up, we do have a way to repair what has been broken. Jesus Christ came to the world to repair the tear in our spiritual fabric, to restore our souls, to bring that joy again to those who have inherited the judgment of sin.

To better understand God’s solution to the problem of sin, let us now talk about a human trinity. Let us recall from Genesis 1, that we were made in God’s image, verse 26:

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make man^[^a^] in our image, after our likeness” – Genesis 1:26 (ESV)

If we are made in God’s image, it is not hard to understand that God gave us three aspects of our character, a Human trinity as described in 1Thessalonians 5:23 (ESV):

²³Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dr. Clarence Larkin in his book, Rightly Dividing the Word expands on the Human trinity mentioned in 1Thessalonians, by describing the three as follows:

The human body touches the material world through the five senses of sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch.

And the gates to the soul are imagination, conscience, memory, reason and the affections.

The spirit receives impressions of outward and material things through the soul. The spiritual faculties of the spirit are faith, hope, reverence, prayer and worship.

To understand God, we must receive the Holy Spirit by faith and trust in God, as we see in 1Corinthians 2:9-11 (ESV):

⁹But, as it is written,

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him”—

Let us pray…

Music Special – Holy, Holy, Holy – Lyrics Mystery Island VBS – https://youtu.be/jYEiY9JfUR8

Benediction (2Corinthians 13:14): The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible

Sep25

Dear BLCF Friends,

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church and BLCF Café continue to remain closed effective March 16, 2020, until further notice. Today we would like to share with you a Lesson in a virtual format. We pray after the advent of a COVID-19 vaccine and following the determination of Health Canada and other Health Authorities the danger of a pandemic has subsided, the Board of BLCF will be able to reopen worship and outreach activities without concern of infection to the vulnerable within our community. In the meantime, please enjoy the following lessons stay safe, and keep the faith.

– Pastor Steve

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church, 1307 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON.

Message for Sunday:

‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’

© September 26, 2021, by Steve Mickelson

Based on Messages shared with BLCF Church, on October 28, 2018, and on June 12, 2016

BLCF Bulletin June 12, 2016

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

Opening Hymn #199: Brethren, We Have Met to Worship; Choruses

Prayer Requests and Tithing: Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings; Prayers

Responsive Reading #594: God’s Commandments (-from Exodus 20 and Matthew 22)

Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘

God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’

Let us pray…

Welcome to BLCF Church on this, the first Sunday of Fall, 2021. There is a challenge to the Christian Church today, especially in completing Christ’s Gospel, unto the ends of the earth. It can be a challenge to demonstrate to other people who dwell in a tangible world, the reality of a God who may seem to have an intangible existence.

But before we begin today’s lesson: ‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’, let us check a definition of terms used within today’s lesson. The first is from dictionary.com:

Tangible – 1580-90; < Late Latin tangibilis, equivalent to Latin tang (ere) to touch + -ibilis -ible

adjective

capable of being touched; discernible by the touch; material or substantial.
real or actual, rather than imaginary or visionary: the tangible benefits of sunshine.
definite; not vague or elusive: no tangible grounds for suspicion.
(of an asset) having actual physical existence, as real estate or chattels, and therefore capable of being assigned a value in monetary terms.

noun

something tangible, especially a tangible asset.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/tangible

intangible

adjective

not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable.
not definite or clear to the mind: intangible arguments.
(of an asset) existing only in connection with something else, as the goodwill of a business.

noun

something intangible, especially an intangible asset: Intangibles are hard to value.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/intangible

Bookkeepers and accountants, must balance ledgers and deal with assets that are either tangible or intangible. Sometimes the intangible assets are called goodwill assets. The interesting aspect of a tangible asset is that it depreciates each year so that after several years, the tangible asset no longer has any book value. By contrast, intangible assets hold their value and very often grow in value over time. Consider the trademark for McDonald’s Restaurants, the double arches. The value of this intangible asset is far more valuable today than when the trademark was first adopted:

Q: What is the difference between goodwill and tangible assets?

By Investopedia | January 8, 2015 — 2:11 AM EST

A: Companies can own two type of assets: tangible and intangible. Tangible assets are assets that take physical form. These are made up of fixed assets, such as buildings, vehicles and machinery. They are also composed of current assets, which include cash and inventory. Goodwill is a form of intangible asset, along with the likes of contracts and patents. Although an intangible asset does not have a physical form, it still provides value to the company. Tangible assets are far easier to liquidate than intangible assets; machinery and buildings have a secondary market.

Goodwill is created as the result of the purchase of one company by another at a premium. It represents the difference between the price paid by the purchaser and the target company’s book value. It reflects the premium paid for a company’s reputation, technology, brands and other less tangible attributes.

Given that goodwill arises as a residual portion of the purchase price, it cannot be measured directly. It can be independently appraised on assumptions based on the excess value of the business being purchased.

For tangible assets, if there is an anticipated useful life of more than one year, then there is a requirement for the assets’ worth to be depreciated over their useful lives. Prior to 2001, accounting rules required goodwill to be amortized over a period of up to 40 years. However, in 2001, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued an accounting pronouncement that ended automatic amortization of goodwill. As a result, goodwill is now measured annually to determine whether there has been an impairment loss. If there is no impairment, goodwill can remain on a company’s balance sheet indefinitely.

http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/010815/what-difference-between-goodwill-and-tangible-assets.asp

Thinking of the phrase “Peace on Earth to men of goodwill” makes me consider how the growth of believers or the faith of Christians, that is the growth of this goodwill or intangible aspect of Christ’s Gospel message, adopted by members of Christ’s Church, which continues to accumulate and grow over time, unaffected by the rules of depreciation that occur if these assets were tangible in nature.

We know that there is the promise, that where two or more are gathered in the Lord’s name, then He is there in Spirit. I believe this call indicates that two or more people are gathered together in His name, then He will be there in the Spirit, indicates how the Spirit rewards those believers who gather and call on the Lord, as we find in BLCF at each Sunday Morning Prayer and Worship Service, as well at Wednesday Prayer and Bible Study, and at other functions of BLCF Church. By definition, the Church is comprised of the believers who assemble together in this space. For the last 18 months, we see our faith in ourselves and each other challenged by a deadly COVID-19 Pandemic, which continues to test the bonds of our faith by the safety rules and restrictions necessary to protect others and ourselves from infection by a deadly virus that increases when people gather together in places of worship and while celebrating communion and dinner gatherings. We remain unified in the Holy Spirit of God, whether alone or assembled as a congregation.

Often non-believers, and some believers – remember Thomas, the disciple, seek tangible proof of the Gospel of Jesus, including Christ’s resurrection and the presence of the Holy Spirit. It is at times. because of health, travel, sickness, or a pandemic, Christians find that are not able to gather together physically in the same place as a congregation, that we are challenged to support each other and maintain ties that bind by way of phone, text, and email. While unable to pray for each other, we may support one another by prayer over the phone when we address our Father, in the name of His Son, by praying in the Spirit. We should consider that this Pandemic has placed the burden of physical isolation upon us all, but we remain united together in the Holy Spirit. Supporting others in the congregation who are unable to assemble in a tangible way, through the intangible means of prayer, by phone and message is a perfect example of expressions of the intangibles of love, faith, and prayer that are characteristics of the Holy Spirit!

Let us look at the first Scripture passage in today’s lesson, from Jeremiah 2:1-22, where the people of Israel forsake God, to worship tangible idols and non-existent gods such as Baal:

Jeremiah 2:1-22 (ESV): Israel Forsakes the Lord

2 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

²“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the Lord,

“I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown. ³Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest. All who ate of it incurred guilt; disaster came upon them, declares the Lord.”

⁴Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the clans of the house of Israel. ⁵Thus says the Lord:

“What wrong did your fathers find in me that they went far from me, and went after worthlessness, and became worthless? ⁶They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord who brought us up from the land of Egypt, who led us in the wilderness, in a land of deserts and pits, in a land of drought and deep darkness, in a land that none passes through, where no man dwells?’

⁷And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination.

⁸The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’ Those who handle the law did not know me; the shepherds^[^a^] transgressed against me; the prophets prophesied by Baal and went after things that do not profit.

⁹“Therefore I still contend with you, declares the Lord, and with your children’s children I will contend.¹⁰For cross to the coasts of Cyprus and see, or send to Kedar and examine with care; see if there has been such a thing. ¹¹Has a nation changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit.

¹²Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the Lord,¹³for my people have committed two evils:

they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

¹⁴“Is Israel a slave? Is he a homeborn servant? Why then has he become a prey? ¹⁵The lions have roared against him; they have roared loudly. They have made his land a waste; his cities are in ruins, without inhabitant.¹⁶Moreover, the men of Memphis and Tahpanhes have shaved^[^b^] the crown of your head. ¹⁷Have you not brought this upon yourself by forsaking the Lord your God, when he led you in the way?

¹⁸And now what do you gain by going to Egypt to drink the waters of the Nile? Or what do you gain by going to Assyria to drink the waters of the Euphrates?^[^c^] ¹⁹Your evil will chastise you, and your apostasy will reprove you. Know and see that it is evil and bitter for you to forsake the Lord your God; the fear of me is not in you, declares the Lord God of hosts.

²⁰“For long ago I broke your yoke and burst your bonds; but you said, ‘I will not serve.’ Yes, on every high hill and under every green tree you bowed down like a whore.

²¹Yet I planted you a choice vine, wholly of pure seed. How then have you turned degenerate and become a wild vine? ²²Though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me, declares the Lord God.

Footnotes: a. Jeremiah 2:8 Or rulers b. Jeremiah 2:16 Hebrew grazed c. Jeremiah 2:18 Hebrew the River

The Gospel of Christ is filled with intangibles such as love, faith, hope, sin, guilt, worship, prayer, forgiveness, sanctification, and God’s Covenants. Then there are some of the tangible aspects of Jesus which include: the crucifixion, the Scriptures, providing for the needs of the poor, and the partaking of the elements of communion.

Now there is a third category, which I would like to describe as physical or tangible expressions of our intangible God: the miracles, including the Word, Made Flesh, the Resurrection of Christ, the gift and presence of the Holy Spirit to every believer, as well our promised resurrection and eternal life with the Lord.

Hebrews 12:18-29 (ESV): A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

¹⁸For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest ¹⁹and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. ²⁰For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” ²¹Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” ²²But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, ²³and to the assembly^[^a^] of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

²⁵See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. ²⁶At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” ²⁷This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. ²⁸Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, ²⁹for our God is a consuming fire.

Footnotes: a. Hebrews 12:23 Or church

The Kingdom of God is not of this world and therefore not subject to the destruction that occurs to structures and other tangibles, today.

Matthew 22:34-40 (ESV): The Great Commandment

³⁴But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. ³⁵And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ³⁶“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Of all the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses for the People of Israel, the two that Jesus spoke about describe an intangible aspect of our relationship with God and our neighbor, which is love. Love is not subject to worldly influences. The other Eight Commandments deal with property, and physical tangible aspects of our relationships, which makes them of lesser importance than how we deal with our God and neighbor. If we apply love to any or all of the Ten Commandments, we would expect a positive outcome in our relationship with God, except for the issue of sin.

Sin inhibits our ability to successfully adhere to or follow the Ten Commandments. In this regard, all of us fail and fall short of God’s glory. However, God loved us so much, that He gave us His only Son, Jesus as a propitiation for sin. While Jesus’ sacrifice does not eliminate sin, it takes away the judgment of death for sin. In place of death of the death penalty, God makes provision for the final sacrifice by way of Jesus’ death on the cross. And the resurrected Christ, who ascended to heaven leads to the gifting of the companion of the Holy Spirit. We see that each stage of salvation and reconciliation has a tangible and intangible aspect. Christ was born, he ministers, then died, was resurrected from death, and ascended to heaven, all are tangibles. And all of these aspects of Christ’s Gospel are impossible without the intangible Godly attributes of love, compassion, faith, hope, and the Spirit’s influence.

John 1:14 (ESV): Word Made Flesh

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Let us pray…

BLCF: God is Love

Closing Hymn #374: Take Thou Our Minds, Dear Lord

Benediction – (Romans 12:2): Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor 2021

Feb28

Dear BLCF Friends,

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church and BLCF Café continue to remain closed effective March 16, 2020, and until further notice. Today we would like to share with you a Lesson in a virtual format. We pray after the advent of a COVID-19 vaccine and following the determination of Health Canada and other Health Authorities the danger of a pandemic has subsided, the Board of BLCF will be able to reopen worship and outreach activities without concern of infection to the vulnerable within our community. In the meantime, please enjoy the following lesson, stay safe, and keep the faith.

– Pastor Steve

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

‘The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor’

© February 28, 2021, by Steve Mickelson

Originally Shared with BLCF on August 17, 2014, and on March 26 17, 2017

BLCF Bulletin March 26, 2017

BLCF Bulletin August 17, 2014

Announcements and Call to Worship:

Opening Prayer: Matthew 6:9-14

⁹Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

¹⁰Your kingdom come, your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

¹¹Give us this day our daily bread,

¹²and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

¹³And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

¹⁴For if you forgive others their trespasses,

your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

Hymn #339: More About Jesus Would I Know; Choruses

Prayer and Tithing Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Prayer and Tithing – Hymn #572: Praise God; Prayer Requests

Let us pray…

Good morning and welcome, again, to Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship Sunday Praise and Worship service, in the heart of Toronto. An important part of a believer’s praise and worship is setting aside part of your day for prayer. In order to sense God’s presence, it is helpful to make that prayer time in the quiet of the day. Often that time is either early in the morning or late at night when it is quiet and free from distractions. At times of particular need or concern, for oneself or for others, is another good time to converse with the Lord through prayer. And of course, don’t forget to praise Him at times of victory and to thank Him for answered prayer.

Luke 9:27-36 (ESV)

²⁷But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

Footnotes: a. Luke 9:31 Greek exodus b. Luke 9:35 Some manuscripts my Beloved

Transfigured is an interesting word. It is the English translation from the Greek Scriptures of “metamorpho” meaning to transform, literally or figuratively, to metamorphose, or to change. It is a verb and therefore means to change into another form. Christ’s death and resurrection are often symbolized by the butterfly, which changes or metamorphoses in a chrysalis from a larva, then to a pupa, and then ending as a butterfly. These changes are similar to Christ began in human form before the crucifixion, then as the Resurrected Christ, and finally, as the Ascended Christ.

What a sight that must have been to behold! And then to actually hear the voice of God stating: “This is my Son, my Chosen One, listen to him!”

This is not the first time that the disciples struggled to comprehend the meaning and significance of a miracle of Jesus that they had just witnessed. For what they had observed was a glimpse of the glory of Heaven that Jesus alluded to in Luke 9, verse 27.

This miracle, like that where Jesus walked upon the waters of the Sea of Galilee, was another of the rare miracles in the Gospels, where Jesus was the object of the miracle.

Thomas Aquinas considered the Transfiguration to be “the greatest miracle” in that it complemented the baptism and showed the perfection of life in Heaven.

Another instance in the Scriptures of God speaking occurred just after Jesus was baptized, where the Father spoke from Heaven saying: “This is my beloved Son, with who I am well pleased.” For Jesus, this was his own personal Pentecost, where the power of the Holy Spirit came upon him.

The Transfiguration of Jesus is significant in that we have an account of the promise of Heaven and the Resurrected Life. By contrast Christ’s baptism, the Holy Spirit is observed afterward descending, “like a dove”, upon him. In this passage of Scripture recorded in Matthew 3:16-17, we have a presentation of the trinity of God, God’s voice in Heaven, Jesus the son’s baptism, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. All three are distinct, and each being the presence of God.

Further support to the notion is found in Luke 9 verse 27, “some standing here will not taste death until they see the Kingdom of God” referring to Peter, James, and John, the three who witnessed the Transfiguration, and who later acknowledged having seen the Kingdom of Heaven.

For Peter, we read in 2 Peter 1:16-18 (ESV):

It seems quite clear that Peter refers to the Transfiguration on the mount as a view of the majesty of the risen Christ and the voice of God in Heaven.

With John, we read another acknowledgment of glory in the Transfiguration:

John 1:14 (ESV)

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

You may ask: Why were Peter, James, and John were selected to witness Jesus’ Transfiguration? Many scholars view that while Moses and Elijah represent God’s Faith in the Prophets and the Laws that preceded Jesus. The three disciples represent aspects of God’s Faith after Jesus’ Resurrection and Ascension: Peter represents the Faith of the Church, James represents Hope of love (i.e. loving one’s neighbor as oneself), and John represents the application of Charity in the good works of man. Together, we have a symbolic representation of the Trinity the faith in the Holy Spirit, the Hope through the Salvation of Christ, and the Charity of God our Father in heaven who provided a means that we might be sanctified in spite of our sinful nature.

Like the people of Israel who kept losing the faith, while being led from Pharaoh’s Egypt, through the desert, to the Promised Land, the disciples kept forgetting who they were following. Perhaps this was the real purpose of the excursion that Jesus made with Peter, John, and James on Mount Tabor: to remind the disciples that they were following the Son of God. In one account of the Transfiguration, Jesus instructed the three disciples not to tell anyone what they have seen until three days after His crucifixion.

As believers in the Gospel, what can you and I take home from the message of the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor? There are four key points to today’s lesson:

Finally, as was observed earlier in today’s message, as Christ was baptized in water and the Holy Spirit, and then be reborn, in spirit and transfigured into a new, that on this earth, as believers we may be transfigured through faith in the Word and the promise of the salvation of the lamb, Jesus. We, too, may have the same vision that what we do on this world in the name of Jesus has the promise and power to transfigure us into a creature that is Holy and Sanctified. However, since Jesus has already died and arisen on the third day, there is no expectation of death’s darkness and silence, but an expectation that we may share the promise of having a new body, transfigured by faith in the fulfillment of Word, now made flesh in Jesus our Savior.

The Day that Jesus returns in all of his glory will be a day of judgment; a day of deliverance; a day of our transfiguration.

Until that glorious day that we, as resurrected, transfigured believers are united with the Lord, we ae commissioned by our faith to share the truth of the gospel of Jesus that he died to make us holy and believing the truth of his message will set others free.

Let me finish today’s message by reading from Transfigured by Jay C. Treat, as a prayer (found on the back of today’s Bulletin):

(Dear God in Heaven)

We went up the mountain with Jesus,

but quite unprepared for a surprise.

We never expected to see him

transform right in front of our eyes!

His face was as bright as the sunlight;

his clothes were as bright as the skies.

He talked with Elijah and Moses,

who stood right in front of our eyes.

We thought we could build them three temples:

one shrine for the giver of laws,

and one for Elijah the prophet,

and one for this master of ours.

A bright cloud then covered the mountain.

A Voice echoed deep from within,

Said, “This is my son, my beloved one!

He pleases me! Listen to him!”

We came down the mountain with Jesus,

now ready for any surprise.

We’re ready to listen and follow

and change right in front of his eyes

(In name of Jesus we pray – AMEN)

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn #522: Battle Hymn of The Republic

Benediction – (Romans 15:13) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible

Nov17

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’

© October 28, 2018, by Steve Mickelson

Based on a Message shared with BLCF Church, on June 12, 2016

BLCF Bulletin June 12, 2016

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

Opening Hymn #199: Brethren, We Have Met to Worship; Choruses

Prayer Requests and Tithing: Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings; Prayers

Responsive Reading #594: God’s Commandments (-from Exodus 20 and Matthew 22)

Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘

God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’

Let us pray…

There is a challenge to the Christian Church today, especially as completing Christ’s Gospel, unto the ends of the earth. It can be a challenge to demonstrate to other people who dwell in a tangible world, the reality of a God who may seem to have an intangible existence.

But before we begin today’s lesson: ‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’, let us check a definition of terms used within today’s lesson. The first is from dictionary.com:

Tangible – 1580-90; < Late Latin tangibilis, equivalent to Latin tang (ere) to touch + -ibilis -ible

adjective

capable of being touched; discernible by the touch; material or substantial.
real or actual, rather than imaginary or visionary: the tangible benefits of sunshine.
definite; not vague or elusive: no tangible grounds for suspicion.
(of an asset) having actual physical existence, as real estate or chattels, and therefore capable of being assigned a value in monetary terms.

noun

something tangible, especially a tangible asset.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/tangible

intangible

adjective

not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable.
not definite or clear to the mind: intangible arguments.
(of an asset) existing only in connection with something else, as the goodwill of a business.

noun

something intangible, especially an intangible asset: Intangibles are hard to value.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/intangible

For bookkeepers and accountants, who must balance ledgers and deal with assets that are either tangible or intangible. Sometimes the intangible assets are called goodwill assets. The interesting aspect of a tangible asset is that it depreciates each year so that after several years, the tangible asset no longer has any book value. By contrast, intangible assets hold their value and very often grow in value over time. Consider the trademark for McDonald’s Restaurants, the double arches. The value of this intangible asset is far more valuable today than when the trademark was first adopted:

Q: What is the difference between goodwill and tangible assets?

By Investopedia | January 8, 2015 — 2:11 AM EST

http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/010815/what-difference-between-goodwill-and-tangible-assets.asp

Often non-believers, and some believers – remember Thomas, the disciple, seek tangible proof of the Gospel of Jesus, including Christ’s resurrection and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

It could be argued that radio and television broadcasts, though enriching to the viewers, may find that the Spirit is not present to the viewers, as viewers are not gathered with each other physically in the virtual reality of a televised setting. What a televised or radio church service lacks is the interaction or dialog between the viewers and those gathered at the broadcast. The same issue occurs when one views a church service recorded on DVD, digital file, or streamed on the internet. While viewing a broadcast or recorded church gathering may be inspiring, the viewers are technically not assembled or gathered at the place where the broadcast originates.

Then there is the problem of the time delay of the broadcast. Even a so-called “live” telecast may be delayed some seconds or minutes to the viewers. Some broadcasts are recorded and broadcasted some hours, days, months or years later. It is possible that the minister and parts of the congregation may have passed away and have been called home to the Lord, which means that while the viewer may think that he or she is participating in a “live’ service with other living participants; the others only exist in image format.

Let us not get off on a tangent, which an expression that had its roots in mathematics, to describe a situation where we lose touch with the substance of our discussion. Let us look at our first Scripture passage, from Jeremiah 2:1-22, where the people of Israel forsake God, to worship tangible idols and non-existent gods such as Baal:

Jeremiah 2:1-22 (ESV): Israel Forsakes the Lord

2 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

²“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the Lord,

⁴Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the clans of the house of Israel. ⁵Thus says the Lord:

⁷And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination.

¹²Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the Lord,¹³for my people have committed two evils:

they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

²⁰“For long ago I broke your yoke and burst your bonds; but you said, ‘I will not serve.’ Yes, on every high hill and under every green tree you bowed down like a whore.

Footnotes: a. Jeremiah 2:8 Or rulers b. Jeremiah 2:16 Hebrew grazed c. Jeremiah 2:18 Hebrew the River

The Gospel of Christ is filled with intangibles such as love, faith, hope, sin, guilt, worship, prayer, forgiveness, sanctification and God’s Covenants. Then there are some of the tangible aspects of Jesus which include: the crucifixion, the Scriptures, providing for the needs of the poor, the partaking of the elements of communion.

Hebrews 12:18-29 (ESV): A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

Footnotes: a. Hebrews 12:23 Or church

The Kingdom of God is not of this world and therefore not subject to the destruction that occurs to structures and other tangibles, today.

Matthew 22:34-40 (ESV): The Great Commandment

Sin inhibits our ability to successfully adhere to or follow the Ten Commandments. In this regard, all of us fail and fall short of God’s glory. However, God loved us so much, that He gave us His only Son, Jesus as a propitiation for sin. While Jesus’ sacrifice does not eliminate sin, it takes away the judgment of death for sin. In place of death of the death penalty, God makes provision for the final sacrifice by way of Jesus’ death on the cross. And the resurrected Christ, who ascended to heaven leads to the gifting of the companion of the Holy Spirit. We see that each stage of salvation and reconciliation has a tangible and intangible aspect. Christ was born, he ministers, then died, was resurrected from death and ascended to heaven, all are tangibles. And all of these aspects of Christ’s Gospel are impossible without the intangible Godly attributes of love, compassion, faith, hope, and the Spirit’s influence.

John 1:14 (ESV): Word Made Flesh

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn #374: Take Thou Our Minds, Dear Lord

Rejoice and Be Renewed In HIS Image

Oct19

Message for Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church:

‘Rejoice and Be Renewed In HIS Image’

© September 23, 2018, by Steve Mickelson

Based on Message Shared with BLCF on August 9, 2015

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer Opening Hymn #25: Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee; Choruses Prayer and Tithing: Hymn #572: Praise God; Prayer Requests Responsive Reading #667: Humility and Exaltation (Philippians 2 and Matthew 23) Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘Rejoice and Be Renewed In HIS Image’

Let us pray…

Good morning and welcome to Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship’s Sunday Praise and Worship Service.

Our lesson this morning is entitled: ‘Rejoice and Be Renewed In HIS Image’, where we will have an opportunity for some self-reflection upon our personal walk with the Lord. We will look at the pitfalls of hypocrisy in our faith practices when we reflect upon God’s Word, primarily using today’s Scripture verses, .

It is through the Bible, along with the Spirit’s guidance, that we may understand not only the path God has set for us but examine our behavior as a true reflection of God’s grace. Let us first look at Psalm 119:57-64, which happens to take from not only the longest of the Psalms but also happens to be the longest chapter of Scripture found in the Bible, comprised of some 176 verses:

Psalm 119, verses 57 to 64 indicate the importance of attitude over actions as an expression of our faith which is pleasing to the Lord:

Psalm 119:57-64 (ESV)

Heth

⁵⁷The Lord is my portion;
I promise to keep your words.
⁵⁸I entreat your favor with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.
⁵⁹When I think on my ways,
I turn my feet to your testimonies;
⁶⁰I hasten and do not delay
to keep your commandments.
⁶¹Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me,
I do not forget your law.
⁶²At midnight I rise to praise you,
because of your righteous rules.
⁶³I am a companion of all who fear you,
of those who keep your precepts.
⁶⁴The earth, O Lord, is full of your steadfast love;
teach me your statutes!

Our second Scripture verse contrasts that from Psalm 119, where Jesus gives a litany of failings in the faith practices of the Scribes and the Pharisees, Matthew 23:1-36 (ESV):

Seven Woes to the Scribes and Pharisees

23 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, ²“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, ³so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. ⁴They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear,^[^a^] and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. ⁵They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, ⁶and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues ⁷and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi^[^b^] by others. ⁸But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.^[^c^] ⁹And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. ¹⁰Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. ¹¹The greatest among you shall be your servant. ¹²Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

¹³“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.^[^d^] ¹⁵Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell^[^e^] as yourselves.

¹⁶“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁷You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? ¹⁸And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁹You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. ²²And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.

²³“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. ²⁴You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!

²⁵“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. ²⁶You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

²⁷“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. ²⁸So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

²⁹“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, ³⁰saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ ³¹Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. ³²Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. ³³You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? ³⁴Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, ³⁵so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah,^[^f^] whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. ³⁶Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Footnotes: a. Matthew 23:4 Some manuscripts omit hard to bear b. Matthew 23:7 Rabbi means my teacher, or my master; also verse 8 c. Matthew 23:8 Or brothers and sisters d. Matthew 23:13 Some manuscripts add here (or after verse 12) verse 14: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation e. Matthew 23:15 Greek Gehenna; also verse 33 f. Matthew 23:35 Some manuscripts omit the son of Barachiah

Henry’s Concise Commentary helps us understand the Lord’s concerns found in today’s second Scripture verse, Matthew 23:

Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary: Matthew 23 Chapter Contents:

Jesus reproves the scribes and Pharisees (1-12); Crimes of the Pharisees (13-33); The guilt of Jerusalem. (34-39):

Commentary on Matthew 23:1-12

(Read Matthew 23:1-12)

The scribes and Pharisees explained the law of Moses, and enforced obedience to it. They are charged with hypocrisy in religion. We can only judge according to outward appearance; but God searches the heart. They made phylacteries. These were scrolls of paper or parchment, wherein were written four paragraphs of the law, to be worn on their foreheads and left arms, Exodus 13:2-10; 13:11-16; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21.

{The phylacteries are illustrated on the inside of today’s BLCF Bulletin.}

They made these phylacteries broad, that they might be thought more zealous for the law than others. God appointed the Jews to make fringes upon their garments, Numbers 15:38, to remind them of their being a peculiar people; but the Pharisees made them larger than common, as if they were thereby more religious than others. Pride was the darling, reigning sin of the Pharisees, the sin that most easily beset them, and which our Lord Jesus takes all occasions to speak against. For him that is taught in the word to give respect to him that teaches, is commendable; but for him that teaches, to demand it, to be puffed up with it, is sinful. How much is all this against the spirit of Christianity! The consistent disciple of Christ is pained by being put into chief places. But who that looks around on the visible church, would think this was the spirit required? It is plain that some measure of this antichristian spirit prevails in every religious society, and in every one of our hearts.

Commentary on Matthew 23:13-33(Read Matthew 23:13-33):

The scribes and Pharisees were enemies to the gospel of Christ, and therefore to the salvation of the souls of men. It is bad to keep away from Christ ourselves, but worse also to keep others from him…

The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was like the ornaments of a grave, or dressing up a dead body, only for show. The deceitfulness of sinners’ hearts appears in that they go down the streams of the sins of their own day, while they fancy that they should have opposed the sins of former days. We sometimes think, if we had lived when Christ was upon earth, that we should not have despised and rejected him, as men then did; yet Christ in his Spirit, in his word, in his ministers, is still no better treated. And it is just with God to give those up to their hearts’ lusts, who obstinately persist in gratifying them. Christ gives men their true characters.

Commentary on Matthew 23:34-39 (Read Matthew 23:34-39):

Our Lord declares the miseries the inhabitants of Jerusalem were about to bring upon themselves, but he does not notice the sufferings he was to undergo… There is nothing between sinners and eternal happiness, but their proud and unbelieving unwillingness.

http://www.christnotes.org/commentary.php?com=mhc&b=40&c=23

The Bible refers to Christ, Jesus as the “Word made flesh.” But what is meant by this description of our Lord?

Question: “What does it mean that the Word became flesh (John 1:14)?”

Answer: The term word is used in different ways in the Bible. In the New Testament, there are two Greek words translated “word”: rhema and logos. They have slightly different meanings. Rhema usually means “a spoken word.” For example, in Luke 1:38, when the angel told Mary that she would be the mother of God’s Son, Mary replied, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word [rhema].”

Logos, however, has a broader, more philosophical meaning. This is the term used in John 1. It usually implies a total message, and is used mostly in reference to God’s message to mankind. For example, Luke 4:32 says that, when Jesus taught the people, “they were amazed at his teaching, because his words [logos] had authority.” The people were amazed not merely by the particular words Jesus chose but by His total message.

“The Word” (Logos) in John 1 is referring to Jesus. Jesus is the total Message—everything that God wants to communicate to man. The first chapter of John gives us a glimpse inside the Father/Son relationship before Jesus came to earth in human form. He preexisted with the Father (verse 1), He was involved in the creation of everything (verse 3), and He is the “light of all mankind” (verse 4). The Word (Jesus) is the full embodiment of all that is God (Colossians 1:19; 2:9; John 14:9). But God the Father is Spirit. He is invisible to the human eye. The message of love and redemption that God spoke through the prophets had gone unheeded for centuries (Ezekiel 22:26; Matthew 23:37). People found it easy to disregard the message of an invisible God and continued in their sin and rebellion. So the Message became flesh, took on human form, and came to dwell among us (Matthew 1:23; Romans 8:3; Philippians 2: 5–11).

The Greeks used the word logos to refer to one’s “mind,” “reason,” or “wisdom.” John used this Greek concept to communicate the fact that Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, is the self-expression of God to the world. In the Old Testament, the word of God brought the universe into existence (Psalm 33:6) and saved the needy (Psalm 107:20). In chapter 1 of his Gospel, John is appealing to both Jew and Gentile to receive the eternal Christ.

Jesus told a parable in Luke 20:9–16 to explain why the Word had to become flesh. “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”

In this parable, Jesus was reminding the Jewish leaders that they had rejected the prophets and were now rejecting the Son. The Logos, the Word of God, was now going to be offered to everyone, not just the Jews (John 10:16; Galatians 2:28; Colossians 3:11). Because the Word became flesh, we have a high priest who is able to empathize with our weaknesses, one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin (Hebrews 4:15).

http://www.gotquestions.org/Word-became-flesh.html

The Bible reminds us that God created us in His image. And while the sin of Adam and Eve separated us from the image of God spiritually, which removed from us the immortality of this Godly image, Jesus, by way of his death on the cross to remove the death penalty, which is the expected judgment for sin and restores in us the promise of immortality to those who are not fettered by condemnation of sin.

Genesis 1:27 (ESV)

²⁷So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

Having been freed of the judgment of sin, we are baptized by the Holy Spirit and born again into a new self, redeemed and sanctified by Christ, Jesus, being a new creation through him. No longer are we judged by the Law, but redeemed by the one who has fulfilled that judgment, by his own sacrifice on the cross.

Colossians 3:9-11 (ESV): Put On the New Self

⁹Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self^[^a^] with its practices ¹⁰and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. ¹¹Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave,^[^b^] free; but Christ is all, and in all.

Footnotes: a. Colossians 3:9 Greek man; also as supplied in verse 10 b. Colossians 3:11 Greek bondservant

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn #177: Rejoice, the Lord is King

Benediction: – (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17): Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity

Sep13

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity

BLCF Bulletin September 10, 2017

Based on a Message Shared at BLCF on August 28, 2011

BLCF July-August-2011 Bulletin

Announcements and Call to Worship; Prayer

Next Sunday at 10:30AM The Shack, 1:00PM Pot Luck Lunch at BLCF

Opening Hymn #43: Praise to the Lord, the Almighty; Choruses

Prayer and Tithing Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Responsive Reading #641 “Christian Assurance” (-from Romans 8)

Message by Steve Mickelson: ‘The Holy Trinity and the Human Trinity’

Let us pray…

Welcome to our Sunday Morning Praise and Worship Service, here at BLCF. Several weeks ago, some of the congregation saw the movie The Shack, Christian film, based on the book of the same title, which dealt with the topics of Godhead or Trinity of God, pain and suffering among people, and the nature of the love that God has for us in times of darkness and tribulation.

For the lesson today, I would like to talk about similarities and differences between the Trinity of God, sometimes referred to as the Godhead and the trinity of the human race. Yes, there is a trinity aspect of people, though not quite the same as the trinity of God. While one trinity is not widely known, or at the least spoken about, particularly in the context of the other. And the other Trinity, (of God), though spoken about frequently, is often misunderstood.

Hopefully, by the end of this lesson, we will have better knowledge and understanding of both trinities, particularly how the two relate to each other.

Let us begin with the one that is more frequently spoken about by Christians and frequently misunderstood, which is the Trinity of God. This Trinity is used to describe three Divine aspects or expressions of God: the Father/Creator, the Son/Word-made-flesh and the Holy Spirit. It is here that we often encounter some controversy amongst various denominations of the Christian Church, as well as criticism from those who challenge the Christian faith as monotheistic.

When we read the King James Version of 1 John 5:7-8, we see a direct reference to the Trinity being three aspects of one God:

Recently, some Biblical scholars have questioned whether the disciple John authored this version of the Scripture as found in the King Lames Version translation, since there may be some evidence to indicate verse from the original, which many authorities agree should read as found in the English Standard Version of 1 John 5:7-8 (ESV):

Holy Trinity

⁷For there are three that testify: ⁸the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.

At first blush, it appears that mention of the Trinity, which is clearly described in the King James translation, seems to be omitted by the English Standard translation. However, if we examine the English Standard translation more closely, we see that the ESV implies the same message as the KJV, though more by inference than by words in the ESV, which is a more subtle expression of the same thought.

If this verse were the only passage of Scripture which supports the Trinity of God, then we could say that the existence of the Holy Trinity is open to debate and possibly doubt. Fortunately, we have other verses that support the singularity of the Godhead.

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make man^[^a^] in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. – Genesis 1:26 (ESV)

But who is it comprised the ”we” and ”us” mentioned this passage, describing the beginning of the Bible:

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. – John 1:1 (ESV)

So we know that with God was the Word, but who is the Word? Those of you familiar with the scripture likely already have an idea, as we read from John 1:14:

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14 (ESV)

This passage refers to Jesus, also referred to in the Bible as the “Word made flesh”. But was Jesus there in the creation? From John 1:1 and John 1:14, we may conclude that Jesus or the Word was with God and the Word was God. To help us understand this relationship better, Jesus put it simply in John 10:30:

³⁰ I and the Father are one.” John 10:30 (ESV)

What about the Holy Spirit? Was the Spirit there at the beginning? The answer to this question is found in Genesis 1:2:

²The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. – Genesis 1:2 (ESV)

Temptation in the Garden

¹Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You^[^a^] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ²And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'” ⁴ But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” ⁶So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,^[^b^] she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. – Genesis 3:1-6 (ESV)

We see the consequence of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God, in verses 22-23 of the same third chapter of Genesis:

Adam and Eve were told that they would surely die if they ate from the tree, commonly called the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil or Tree of Life? Having done so, Adam and Eve were not only expelled from the Garden of Eden, they had brought the judgment of death upon themselves and their descendants. Once Adam and Eve broke God’s rule, all members of the human race became like the Peter Pan character. But not severed from their shadow, but severed from the Holy Spirit. While the scriptures have no Wendy to sew things up, we do have a way to repair what has been broken. Jesus Christ came to the world to repair the tear in our spiritual fabric, to restore our souls, to bring that joy again to those who have inherited the judgment of sin.

To better understand God’s solution to the problem of sin, let us now talk about a Human trinity. Let us recall from Genesis 1, that we were made in God’s image, verse 26:

²⁶Then God said, “Let us make man^[^a^] in our image, after our likeness – Genesis 1:26 (ESV)

If we are made in God’s image, it is not hard to understand that God gave us three aspects of our character, a Human trinity as described in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (ESV):

²³Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dr. Clarence Larkin in his book, Rightly Dividing the Word expands on the Human trinity mentioned in 1 Thessalonians, by describing the three as follows:

The human body touches the material world through the five senses of sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch.

And the gates to the soul are imagination, conscience, memory, reason and the affections.

The spirit receives impressions of outward and material things through the soul. The spiritual faculties of the spirit are faith, hope, reverence, prayer and worship.

To understand God, we must receive the Holy Spirit by faith and trust in God, as we see in 1 Corinthians 2:9-11 (ESV):

⁹But, as it is written,

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him”—

Let us, therefore, pray that we find the faith to trust God’s Plan for Salvation, Reconciliation, and Sanctification, through confession of sin, trust in our Lord Jesus Christ and acceptance of the Holy Spirit.

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn: # 1 Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty

Benediction (2 Corinthians 13:14): The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor

May1

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

‘The Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor’

Based on Messages shared at BLCF on Sunday, August 17, 2014

BLCF Bulletin March 26, 2017

BLCF Bulletin August 17, 2014

Announcements and Call to Worship:

Opening Prayer: Matthew 6:9-14

⁹Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
¹⁰Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹Give us this day our daily bread, ¹²and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

¹⁴For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you

Hymn #339: More About Jesus Would I Know; Choruses

Prayer and Tithing Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings

Opening Hymn #339: More About Jesus Would I Know

Prayer and Tithing – Hymn #572: Praise God; Prayer Requests

Let us pray…

Luke 9:27-36 (ESV)

²⁷But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

The Transfiguration

Footnotes: a. Luke 9:31 Greek exodus b. Luke 9:35 Some manuscripts my Beloved

Transfigured is an interesting word. It is the English translation from the Greek Scriptures of “metamorpho” meaning to transform, literally or figuratively, to metamorphose, or to change. It is a verb and therefore means to change into another form. Christ’s death and resurrection are often symbolized by the butterfly, which changes or metamorphoses in a chrysalis from a larva, then to a pupa, and then ending as a butterfly. These changes are similar to Christ began in human form before the crucifixion, then as the Resurrected Christ, and finally, as the Ascended Christ.

What a sight that must have been to behold! And then to actually hear the voice of God stating: “This is my Son, my Chosen One, listen to him!”

This miracle, like that where Jesus walked upon the waters of the Sea of Galilee, was another of the rare miracles in the Gospels, where Jesus was the object of the miracle.

Thomas Aquinas considered the Transfiguration to be “the greatest miracle” in that it complemented the baptism and showed the perfection of life in Heaven.

For Peter, we read in 2 Peter 1:16-18 (ESV):

It seems quite clear that Peter refers to the Transfiguration on the mount as a view of the majesty of the risen Christ and the voice of God in Heaven.

With John, we read another acknowledgment of glory in the Transfiguration:

John 1:14 (ESV)

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

As believers in the Gospel, what can you and I take home from the message of the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor? There are four key points to today’s lesson:

The Day that Jesus returns in all of his glory will be a day of judgment; a day of deliverance; a day of our transfiguration.

Until that glorious day that we, as resurrected, transfigured believers are united with the Lord, we are commissioned by our faith to share the truth of the gospel of Jesus that he died to make us holy and believing the truth of his message will set others free.

Let me finish today’s message by reading from Transfigured by Jay C. Treat, as a prayer (found on the back of today’s Bulletin):

(Dear God in Heaven)

We went up the mountain with Jesus,

but quite unprepared for surprise.

We never expected to see him

transform right in front of our eyes!

His face was as bright as the sunlight;

his clothes were as bright as the skies.

He talked with Elijah and Moses,

who stood right in front of our eyes.

We thought we could build them three temples:

one shrine for the giver of laws,

and one for Elijah the prophet,

and one for this master of ours.

A bright cloud then covered the mountain.

A Voice echoed deep from within,

Said, “This is my son, my beloved one!

He pleases me! Listen to him!”

We came down the mountain with Jesus,

now ready for any surprise.

We’re ready to listen and follow

and change right in front of his eyes

(In name of Jesus we pray – AMEN)

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn #522: Battle Hymn of The Republic

Benediction – (Romans 15:13) May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible

Jun18

BLCF: God's Universe

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church Message for Sunday:

‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’

BLCF Bulletin June 12, 2016

BLCF: in-tangible

Announcements and Call to Worship: Responsive Reading #594: God’s Commandments (-from Exodus 20 and Matthew 22); Prayer

Opening Hymn #199: Brethren, We Have Met to Worship; Choruses

Prayer and Tithing: Hymn #572: Praise God from Whom All Blessings; Prayer Requests

Scriptures: Jeremiah 2:1-22, Hebrews 12:18-29, Matthew 22:34-40

Let us pray…

There is a challenge to the Christian church today, especially as completing the Lord’s Great Commission of sharing Christ’s Gospel, unto the ends of the earth. Demonstrating to people who dwell in a tangible world, the reality of a God who may seem to have an intangible existence.

But before we begin today’s lesson, ‘God’s Love: It Makes the Intangible, Tangible’, let us check our Wiki bit sources for a definition of terms used within today’s lesson:

Tangible – 1580-90; < Late Latin tangibilis, equivalent to Latin tang (ere) to touch + -ibilis -ible

adjective

capable of being touched; discernible by the touch; material or substantial.
real or actual, rather than imaginary or visionary: the tangible benefits of sunshine.
definite; not vague or elusive: no tangible grounds for suspicion.
(of an asset) having actual physical existence, as real estate or chattels, and therefore capable of being assigned a value in monetary terms.

noun

something tangible, especially a tangible asset.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/tangible

intangible

adjective

1. not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable.

2. not definite or clear to the mind: intangible arguments.

3. (of an asset) existing only in connection with something else, as the goodwill of a business.

noun

something intangible, especially an intangible asset: Intangibles are hard to value.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/intangible

Q: What is the difference between goodwill and tangible assets?

By Investopedia | January 8, 2015 — 2:11 AM EST

A: Companies can own two type of assets: tangible and intangible. Tangible assets are assets that take physical form. These are made up of fixed assets, such as buildings, vehicles and machinery. They are also composed of current assets, which include cash and inventory. Goodwill is a form of intangible asset, along with the likes of contracts and patents. Although an intangible asset does not have a physical form, it still provides value to the company. Tangible assets are far easier to liquidate than intangible assets; machinery and buildings have a secondary market.

http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/010815/what-difference-between-goodwill-and-tangible-assets.asp

Thinking of the phrase “Peace on Earth to men of goodwill” makes me consider how the growth of believers or the faith of Christians, that is the growth of this goodwill or intangible aspect of Christ’s Gospel message adopted by members of Christ’s Church continues to accumulate and grow over time, unaffected by the rules of depreciation that occur if these assets were tangible in nature.

BLCF: make-the-intangible-tangible

Often non-believers, and some believers – remember Thomas, the disciple, seek tangible proof of the Gospel of Jesus, including Christ’s resurrection and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Then there is the problem of the time delay of the broadcast. Even a so-called “live” telecast may be delayed some seconds or minutes to the viewers. Some broadcasts are recorded and broadcast some hours, days, months or years later. It is possible that the minister and parts of the congregation may have passed away and have been called home to the Lord, which means that while the viewer may think that he or she is participating in a “live’ service with other living participants; the others only exist in the image.

Let is not get off on a tangent, which an expression that had its roots in mathematics, to describe a situation where we lose touch with the substance of our discussion. Let us look at our first Scripture passage, from Jeremiah 2:1-22, where the people of Israel forsake God, to worship tangible idols and non-existent gods such as Baal:

Jeremiah 2:1-22 (ESV) Israel Forsakes the Lord

BLCF: Jeremiah2_13

2 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

²“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the Lord,

⁴Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the clans of the house of Israel. ⁵Thus says the Lord:

⁷And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination.

⁸The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’ Those who handle the law did not know me; the shepherds^[a] transgressed against me; the prophets prophesied by Baal and went after things that do not profit.

¹²Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the Lord,¹³for my people have committed two evils:

they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

¹⁴“Is Israel a slave? Is he a homeborn servant? Why then has he become a prey? ¹⁵The lions have roared against him; they have roared loudly. They have made his land a waste; his cities are in ruins, without inhabitant.¹⁶Moreover, the men of Memphis and Tahpanhes have shaved^[b] the crown of your head. ¹⁷Have you not brought this upon yourself by forsaking the Lord your God, when he led you in the way?

¹⁸And now what do you gain by going to Egypt to drink the waters of the Nile? Or what do you gain by going to Assyria to drink the waters of the Euphrates?^[c] ¹⁹Your evil will chastise you, and your apostasy will reprove you. Know and see that it is evil and bitter for you to forsake the Lord your God; the fear of me is not in you, declares the Lord God of hosts.

²⁰“For long ago I broke your yoke and burst your bonds; but you said, ‘I will not serve.’ Yes, on every high hill and under every green tree you bowed down like a whore.

Footnotes: a. Jeremiah 2:8 Or rulers b. Jeremiah 2:16 Hebrew grazed c. Jeremiah 2:18 Hebrew the River

BLCF: BelievingTheGospel_ChiselBlog

The Gospel of Christ is filled with intangibles such as love, faith, hope, sin, guilt, worship, prayer, forgiveness, sanctification and God’s Covenants. Then there are some of the tangible aspects of Jesus. which include: the crucifixion, the Scriptures, providing for the needs of the poor, partaking the elements of communion.

Now there is a third category, which I would like to describe as physical or tangible expressions of our intangible God: the miracles, including the Word, made flesh, the resurrection of Christ, the gift and presence of the Holy Spirit to every believer, as well our promised resurrection and eternal life with the Lord.

Hebrews 12:18-29 (ESV) A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

BLCF: Hebrews 12_29

¹⁸For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest ¹⁹and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. ²⁰For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” ²¹Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” ²²But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, ²³and to the assembly^[a] of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

Footnotes: a. Hebrews 12:23 Or church

The Kingdom of God is not of this world and therefore not subject to destruction that occurs to structures and other tangibles, today.

Matthew 22:34-40 (ESV) The Great Commandment

BLCF: 2_Commandments

³⁴But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. ³⁵And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ³⁶“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” ³⁷And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Of all the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses for the People of Israel, the two that Jesus spoke describe intangible aspects of our relationship with God and our neighbor, which is love. Love is not subject to worldly influences. The other Eight Commandments deal with property, and physical tangible aspects of our relationships, which makes them of lesser importance than how we deal with our God and neighbor. If we apply love to any or all of the Ten Commandments, we would expect a positive outcome in our relationship with God, except for the issue of sin.

Sin inhibits our ability to successfully adhere to or follow the Ten Commandments. In this regard, all of us fail and fall short of God’s glory. However, God loved us so much, that He gave us His only Son, Jesus as a propitiation for sin. While Jesus’ sacrifice does not eliminate sin, it takes away the judgment of death for sin. In place of death of the death penalty, God makes provision for the final sacrifice by way of Jesus’ death on the cross. And the resurrected Christ, who ascended to heaven leads to the gifting of the companion of the Holy Spirit. We see that each stage of salvation and reconciliation has a tangible and intangible aspect. Christ was born, ministers died, was resurrected from death and ascended to heaven, which is all tangibles. And all of these aspects of Christ’s Gospel are impossible without the intangible Godly attributes of love, compassion, faith, hope, and the Spirit’s influence.

John 1:14 (ESV) Word Made Flesh

BLCF: Word_made_flesh

¹⁴And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Let us pray…

Closing Hymn #374: Take Thou Our Minds, Dear Lord

Benediction – (Romans 12:2): Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship - BLCF Church, an Evangelical Christian Church, ministering the Gospel of Christ Jesus in the heart of Toronto since January, 1938. BLCF Church sponsors of BLCF Cafe Community Dinner, serving upwards of 150 homeless and marginalized guests, since January 2008. Volunteers welcome.

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship - BLCF Church

Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship - BLCF Church A Church with a Vision in the Heart of Toronto In 1938, a group of believers embarked on a mission to bring the message of the Gospel of Jesus to the Bloor Lansdowne area in a relevant and meaningful ways. The membership moved into a converted truck garage on Bloor Street near Lansdowne Avenue, establishing the Church of the Crusaders. Now over eight decades later the church, now known as Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship - BLCF Church, continues to meet the challenges of actively preaching and practicing the message of the gospel in relevant and meaningful ways to the local community, such as Bloor Lansdowne Community Dinner, renamed December 2009 as BLCF Cafe, a weekly Community Dinner feeding upwards of 150 homeless and marginalized guests weekly, over 7,500 annually. BLCF Cafe was established in January 2008 by and is run solely under the auspices of Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship - BLCF Church with the help of a dedicated core of volunteers. The Bible says that a church is not mortar, brick and wood, but the body of believers who gather together to worship, pray, sing, teach and celebrate God’s path of salvation, through accepting Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the cross at Calvary. Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship – BLCF Church, 1307 Bloor Street, Toronto, ON, M6H 1P1 or 416-535-9578. www.blcfchurch.ca - blcfchurch@yahoo.ca - blcfcafe@yahoo.ca - twitter: @blcfca

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Bloor Lansdowne Christian Fellowship BLCF Church

Ministering the Gospel of Jesus In The Heart of Toronto Since 1938

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