BH Bulletin - Thursday 11 March 2021

Thought for the Day by Alex Forrest
​(Voluntary Staff Worker)

HEBREWS 2:10 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. 11 Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.[g] 
12 He says, “I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters;
    in the assembly I will sing your praises.”[h]
13 And again, “I will put my trust in him.”[i]
And again he says,
“Here am I, and the children God has given me.”[j]
14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. 16 For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. 17 For this reason he had to be made like them,[k] fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
 
I never had a brother. In a strange way I’ve always kind of wanted one, someone my age to share a facile and boyish sense of humour with in my childhood, (don’t get me wrong, my sister is great too!). When I read this passage in Hebrews, I’m reminded of the outrageously incredible truth that, not only do I have a brother, he happens to be God Almighty, the creator of the universe and the greatest human being who ever lived.

If I claimed I was related to the Queen, or Joe Biden, or anyone rich, powerful and important I would be laughed out of town as a madman if I didn’t have any reasonable evidence to back up my claims. How dare I, a random bloke from Hove, claim to be related to someone of their power? I’m of no standing to claim to share anything with them. So how dare we as Christians say that Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, is our brother?

Only through God’s perfecting power which redeems us and cleanses us of sin, making us sharers in Christ’s inheritance, do we become worthy to be deemed his siblings. Through his incarnation in Christ Jesus, becoming of one flesh and likeness with us, making himself nothing, so that we might share a family likeness with our (much) older brother, do we have a right to be in his family. Through his death on a cross, showing himself to be one who was tempted and suffered in the same ways we have been, embodying our human nature, sharing with us in those moments where we are at our most human, our sufferings, are we shown to be brothers and sisters of Christ. I can’t wait to meet my brother!
Alex

---

---

​For the next couple of months, at least, Cameo won’t be meeting in the Church buildings so we would love to invite anyone who is able to access Zoom on a Thursday morning, between 11:00 and 12:00 approximately, to join us for refreshments & chat, topics of interest, quizzes, discussions and more...please come along using the link in MyChurchSuite and we look forward to meeting you there.

---

---

NOTICIAS! An Update from Graham & Debbie Frith

Please click on the link below for Graham and Debbie's latest news letter
​https://mailchi.mp/f051b8900e0e/noticias-3938214?e=abc240d331

---