By John Thiel, mp3, pdf

Scripture reading: James 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, [and] easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. 18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.

As a church we want to have the religion of Christ; we want that religion of compassion that is to be embraced in our relationship with one another in Jesus Christ. The words of this hymn are expressive of this ideal: The church has one foundation, ‘tis Jesus Christ her Lord. It is where we are all in unity together because we are all looking at the same Jesus and opening our hearts to that same Jesus. And that produces a blessed tie that binds, the Christian love that is generated in the heart of Jesus and is to be extended to each other and through each other. Read the rest of this entry →