By Rev. Lilian Karinga, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi, Kenya Apostle Peter: A Father of Faith 1 Peter 1:1-2 I want to believe that we all get excited every time we receive a letter or a message from someone we care about or look up to. Can you imagine what it meant for the early Christians to receive a letter from the Apostle Peter? It must have been comforting! A letter in my view represents much more than words; it represents the person of the writer. In the next few days, we hope to reflect o...
Jun 15, 2021•7 min•Season 1Ep. 109
By Paul Machira, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi One lesson I have loved teaching over the years in Sunday school classes for children is the parable of talents as recorded in Mathew 25:14-30 and Luke 19:11-27. There is always something new in this text that makes me keep going back to it for more. Recently, as I meditated on the text, my eyes were opened to how much the parable bears a lot of similarities with the Bible account in Genesis 1:28. In both texts, the master (God) entrusts His resourc...
Jun 14, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 106
By Paul Machira, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi 1 Kings chapter 2 narrates how when the great King David was nearing the time of his death, he summoned his son Solomon to whom he was to bequeath the responsibility of becoming the next King of Israel. “I am about to go the way of all the earth,” he said. “So be strong, act like a man, and observe what the LORD your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. D...
Jun 11, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 107
By Paul Machira, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi Who would your son or daughter find at church if he strayed there on a random weekday looking for answers? Would they find people there to guide them or discourse their latest scriptural findings? What would they find at your local church compared with what they would find at your bank? How much information would your daughter or son get on financial services the bank offers if they randomly walked into the bank vis-à-vis what they would get at chur...
Jun 10, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 106
By Paul Machira, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi Luke 2:41-52. Notably, the command to increase and multiply was first given to the family unit after the Lord had instituted one at the Garden of Eden. Families are at the center of God’s plan to increase and fill the earth. The Gospel of Luke Chapter 2 sheds light into a family tradition of a young Nazarene family seeking to fulfill the command from whom we can draw a few lessons.
Jun 09, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 105
By Paul Machira, All Saints Cathedral, Nairobi God blessed them and said to them “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the face of the earth. Gen. 1:28 The first instruction given to Adam and Eve at creation after being blessed by the creator, was for them to increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Interestingly, there is no mention of Adam and Eve being give...
Jun 08, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 104
Minister: Rev. Evans Omollo - Assistant Provost at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi In this last reflection, we look at our spiritual responsibility to walk in purity as an integral part of our witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul in Ephesians 4:17-5:17 challenges believers not to live as they lived before, with darkened understanding and a life separated from God (Eph 4:18) as well as indulging in every form of impurity (4:19). We pick two lessons from this passage: Firstly, that believers...
Jun 07, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 103
Minister: Rev. Evans Omollo - Assistant Provost at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi Over the last three days, we have reflected on discovering our spiritual possessions and spiritual position in Christ. We note that discovering our spiritual position in Christ endows us with some enormous spiritual responsibilities as believers. In today's devotion, we reflect on our spiritual responsibility to walk in unity as Paul teaches in Ephesians 4: 1-16. The following are some key lessons from this passage...
Jun 04, 2021•4 min•Season 4Ep. 107
Minister: Rev. Evans Omollo - Assistant Provost at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi Yesterday, we reflected on our spiritual position as believers and learned that we are seated with Christ. This means that as children of God, we are not citizens of this world; rather, we belong to heaven and are challenged to live everyday in light of this reality. Today, we look at what Paul teaches on our spiritual position as that of being reconciled with Jesus. Paul reminds the Ephesians that as Gentiles, the...
Jun 03, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 106
Minister: Rev. Evans Omollo - Assistant Provost at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi Yesterday, we reflected on our spiritual possessions in Christ where we discovered that our spiritual riches as believers are incomparable to nothing in this world. We learned that we belong to God and that our salvation is priceless. Today, we reflect on our spiritual position in Jesus. Paul reminds the believers in the church in Ephesus of their previous condition of sin (1-3). He tells them that they were dead i...
Jun 02, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 105
Minister: Rev. Evans Omollo - Assistant Provost at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi It is our great pleasure at All Saints' Cathedral, Nairobi team to be part of those sharing reflections this month in the run up to the celebration of Gafcon Sunday on 27th June 2021. In our series this week, I intend to take us through a journey of the book of Ephesians with a view of helping us discover three things; namely, our rich possessions in Jesus Christ, our unique positioning as believers in Jesus Christ...
Jun 01, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 104
Today we conclude our walk with Cranmer through Ascensiontide with the last two verses from the Comfortable Words. Having laid out the two sides—the longing of humanity for relief and the longing of God to rescue—Cranmer’s third Comfortable Word circles back like a hawk to the human condition, but now at a higher level. Hear also what Saint Paul says. This is a true saying, and worthy of all men to be received, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Copyright 2021 John Ashley Nul...
May 21, 2021•7 min•Season 1Ep. 98
We have seen that Cranmer’s new collect for the Sunday after the Ascension goes to great lengths to emphasize that the Holy Spirit brings comfort to God’s people, including the ultimate comfort, the assurance of eternal salvation because of God’s promise in Jesus. Associating comfort with Christ’s saving work was so important to Cranmer that he embedded four scriptures at the heart of his 1552 service of Holy Communion to make this point crystal clear. Collectively, these biblical passages are c...
May 20, 2021•8 min•Season 1Ep. 97
In his Collect for the Sunday after the Ascension, Cranmer doubled down on emphasizing the power of the Holy Spirit to bring comfort. The text of the ancient antiphon reads: Do not leave us orphans, but send upon us the promise of the Father, even the Spirit of Truth. But Cranmer’s new collect has the people prayer: We beseech thee, leave us not comfortless; but send to us thine holy ghost to comfort us, and exalt us unto the same place whither our saviour Christ is gone before: We noted yesterd...
May 19, 2021•7 min•Season 1Ep. 96
The Sarum Rite, the principal Latin liturgy in medieval England, did not refer to the Ascension in the collect for the following Sunday. Cranmer and his fellow compilers decided to go in a different direction. Because of their emphasis on our need for the Holy Spirit in the Christian life, they repurposed an antiphon from Vespers for Ascension Day instead. The ancient text read: O Lord, King of glory, Lord of virtues, who today didst ascend in triumph above all heavens, do not leave us orphans, ...
May 18, 2021•7 min•Season 1Ep. 95
Is Jesus first and foremost a teacher or a savior? Did he come to tell us a better way to live, or did he come to give us a new life? Do we train our wills to do good like Jesus did, or do we need Jesus to move our wills to want to do good? These are some of the most fundamental questions of the Christian life. Copyright 2021 John Ashley Null; all rights reserved; used by permission for educational purposes
May 17, 2021•6 min•Season 1Ep. 94
One of the most fiercely contested issues in the history of Anglicanism is the nature of Cranmer’s mature view of Holy Communion. As the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury, he was the architect of the first two Church of England prayer books, and these liturgies, in one form or another, shaped Anglican worship well into the twentieth century. Although everyone must agree that ultimately the remembrance of our Lord’s death with bread and wine is a mystery, Western Christendom has divided i...
May 14, 2021•7 min•Season 1Ep. 93
For the followers of Jesus, his Ascension, which we celebrate today, was a turning point. From then on, they would live in the in-between time, between Jesus leaving this earth and his promised return. For Christians, that means we are part of this world, but not of it. We are born here, live here, work here, love and are loved here. We even eventually die here. But here is not our home. Here is not the source of our power. Here is not the focus of our hope. Copyright 2021 John Ashley Null; all ...
May 13, 2021•6 min•Season 1Ep. 92
As a teenager, I read the testimony of a woman who came to Christ after living a sordid, sexual existence. Although she did not go into detail, I was shocked that she wasn’t keeping it a secret. People, including her parents, would find out what she got up to; I was horrified! What I had yet to comprehend at that point in my life was the reality of Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life ...
May 12, 2021•6 min•Season 1Ep. 91
For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:14-15 “How can I forgive someone if they won’t even accept that they have done anything wrong?” How can I forgive someone if they don’t even think they’ve done anything wrong – or refuse to acknowledge it? The short answer is you don’t. Going back to the framework, you hold forgiveness in your ‘hand’ ...
May 11, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 90
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23-24 What is our role when we have wronged someone? What does forgiveness look like then? As mentioned earlier our biggest battle in seeking forgiveness is our pride. But as Christians, we have a responsibility to make things right. To humble ourse...
May 10, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 89
20 He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.” 21 In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. 22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. As Christians, we have been shown how forgiveness works. It is a framework that we know very well – we are well taught and for the most part, are able to explain it clearly...
May 07, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 88
As Christians we do not believe in universalism. In other words, we do not believe in the universal application of the forgiveness of sin, through the blood of Jesus Christ, to every single human being on the earth whether they believe it or not. There is a choice to make. That is why Billy Graham held evangelistic crusades, why I help to run Christianity Explored courses, why we pray for friends and relatives who are agnostic or atheist. We long for people to know for themselves, the greatest g...
May 06, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 87
Because the gift of forgiveness from God to a rebellious people was always part of his plan, he is the one who takes the initiative and makes it possible for us to have a relationship with him. As promised in Genesis 3, the head of the serpent will be crushed and there was victory over Satan. In the meantime, animals were sacrificed and skins provided to cover up our nakedness and shame.
May 05, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 86
Do we have a flawed understanding of forgiveness? Imagine the scenario where little ‘Jenny’ hits little ‘Mary’ when playing together. Upset, Mary tells their mother what has happened. Trying to rectify the situation, the mother marches Jenny over to Mary and says, “That’s not very nice. What do you say to Mary?” The well-rehearsed words “I’m sorry” come sputtering out. Mother then turns to Mary with expectation, “Well Mary, what do you say?” Knowing what is expected of her, she replies, “That’s ...
May 04, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 81
A few years ago, I was approached by someone who had been deeply hurt by the actions of their father. The very person they rightly assumed to be their advocate and defender had abdicated that responsibility and privilege, leaving a gaping hole in the lives of those around him. What made the situation worse was a refusal to recognise that any wrong had been committed. The question put to me in the middle of this pain was, “How can I forgive someone if they won’t even accept that they have done an...
May 03, 2021•4 min•Season 1Ep. 84
What makes heaven, heaven? What makes the new creation really new? Is it that there is no pain? Or that it is a place where we will be reunited with those we love who have died in the faith, such that all will be well in ‘the sweet by and by’? Whilst not denying any of those things, surely what makes heaven, heaven, and the new creation new, is that God is there and we have unlimited access to him. At the present time we walk by faith, loving Jesus whom we can’t see (1 Peter 1:8-9), but there we...
Apr 28, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 83
If asked to describe their idea of heaven, the word many people would use would be, ‘boring’. George Bernard Shaw, in his typically pugnacious way, captured what most people think when he said: ‘Heaven as conventionally conceived as a place so inane, so dull, so useless, so miserable that nobody would venture to describe a whole day in heaven, though plenty of people have described a day at the seaside.’ Sadly Christians can all too easily feel brow beaten by such taunts. The Book of Revelation,...
Apr 27, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 82
‘Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, an...
Apr 26, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 81
‘Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.’ (21:1-2) In the final book of his classic, ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ entitled, The Last Battle , C.S. Lewis has the Pevensie children, together with their cousin Eustice, trying to take in the new creation. As they do so they find themselves discussing...
Apr 23, 2021•5 min•Season 1Ep. 80
