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post Christmas reflection

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Fellowship with God in Christ John 5:24 cf. Acts 4:12 If you believed in me, you also believed in the one who sent me. There is no other name under heaven that any man should be save except through Christ Jesus. Sin separate us from God, it is not God who distance Himself away from us, it is always us who try to our best to run away from God. Starting with first creation, we try to run from Him but in the coldness of the evening God came to them to have fellowship but they hide themselves in shame. Men always try to cover their mistakes over and over again. Adam first thought they can cover their shame by the leaves of trees (that is what we are doing today) and it wither as sun goes up! And still men try to cover by blaming on others for their mistake. It was in fact half-truth – indeed Eve deceived him but let us be reminded that God will deal according to what we do. God did deal with Eve in His way, so also Adam has to be deal according to what he did. We always ten...
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KERYGMA model for Zeliangrong people

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Chapter 1 Zeliangrong culture and primal religious beliefs 1.     The origin of Zeliangrong people The rich cultural heritage of the Zeliangrong is reflected in their varieties of arts. This project will not be able to contain the whole cultural practices and beliefs of the Zeliangrong people. However, it will highlight few vital aspects of the people. Racially, physically and linguistically, Zeliangrong are Tibeto-Burman (Indo-Mongoloid) of Sino-Tibetan family of the Mongolian race. Culture is a social setting in which, a certain reference framework has taken a concrete form, or has been institutionalized. It is a storehouse of knowledge, experiences, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, timing, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and the objects and possessions acquired by a large group of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving (Samova and Porter). [1] The study attempts to defin...
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Description of the Zeliangrong community then. Every village was like an independent state politically, economically, and geographically. There was constant fear and anticipation of invasion by neighboring village or tribes. Therefore, alertness and preparedness for any eventuality was a normal response by all villagers especially all the male who could fight in the battle. This might have been one of the reasons, men were considered as head of the village and family or authoritative figure. Distinction has to be made pertaining to the concept of male dominant among the Zeliangrong as compare to the western concept of dominance. Zeliangrong male dominant concept was solely base on ability to protect women and children from the enemy. It is another kind of patriarchal system devoid of discrimination of gender. In Zeliangrong belief, creation especially the earth (or land) is considered as mother. Everything we do and our lives are because we have land. The picture of mother is cen...
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Language: the most powerful

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There are something in our life that caught us unaware. Sometime, we jumped in fully aware of the consequences but could not resist it. It gives solution to our craving momentarily. We realized when it was too late that it is not easy as it get us into the habit. There are things that appear essential and could not resist it or something we ought to have if we are to get along with the time and generation. After considering some of the things that inhibits our lives without fully realizing its consequences is the 'language' - foreign language to be precise.  We tend to immerse into the idea that the language of the powerful makes us powerful! Academically, I might sound rather odd and out of place. True! Since most of the academic works are in foreign language, it is essential for us to learn their language to read them and understand them. As far as in academic world is concern, no one is to be blame. They pass on the idea for the generation to come. We shall forever grate...
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Is it a triumphal entry or something else? Our Lord Jesus, knowing that His time was about to come, a time to fulfilled the ultimate sacrifice to save the whole world, not just Israel. He must be quite tense by this time. We read in the gospel that He indeed asked the Father to take 'the cup' from Him - BUT, not His will but THINE! Humbling Himself to be like one of His creations, and suffered at the hands of those people created by Him! If you and I were there, our anger might already blinded us. But Jesus has to fulfill the mission He had obeyed to do. His mission, in no way shall be compromise! Who among us will be happy, knowing your execution is just few days left? The publishers of the Bible (translators may be) put the title of the passage as 'triumphal entry' and for quite sometime, I have been following that tradition. But, let us consider one more time before accepting that title of the passage. I firmly believed that Jesus has been a King and will be ...
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What is King and Kingdom

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When we look at the story of the Israel of Abraham and Moses, we did not see them as kings but leaders or managers. The concept of kingdom came to them later and I think God was not very happy about it. However, as it was their wish to have a king, God gave them one and it follows. If there were no kings but leaders and managers, would their be a concept of Kingdom or Messiah King? We don't have much kings and kingdoms today and we really don't what is like to be under king or to be subjects of the kingdom! I think the word kingdom is used in the first testament just to contextualized but not in literal sense of the word. I would rather imagine 'government' than 'kingdom' and in fact Jesus was saying that the kingdom of God is not something like we see in His days! It is something new, where everyone is equal! I know, I might sound little radical but this is what I observe
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Is it rediscovering a worth trying/attempting?

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I was talking to my congregation last Sunday about the need to rediscover ourselves. Once I came across a sermon by Martin Luther King Jr. about Joseph and Mary forgetting Jesus at Jerusalem during their visit when Jesus was just 12. King Jr. was talking about Jesus' parent forgetting him, thinking that he was with friends or relatives along. many times in our lives to, we thought Jesus is with us or at least with our people or congregation. But He wasn't really there. We are comfortably moving along with our lives since we the situations or circumstance is not that challenging. Otherwise we'll start looking for Him. We are slowly or steadily drifting away along with our own wimps and fancy. But have we really look for Him before its too late. Somewhere down our life journey, we might have taken a wrong turn, knowingly or unknowingly. God said something to the Church of Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7 that they have left something very important, important enough to God to say ...
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