A New Beginning

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

John 3:5 (NASB)

The preacher at Mustard Seed Christian Fellowship on Sunday was our dear brother Gordon Thompson from Glasgow. The full video of the sermon can be seen here. Let me present a brief summary from my notes taken while Gordon spoke.

Gordon delivered a challenging message for the last Sunday of 2024, with an appropriate challenge looking forward to 2025 just around the corner. Traditionally, a new year is a time of new beginnings; resolutions are made to lose weight, exercise, change career, or even write that long promised book. These are all personal and worldly plans for the better, but the best new beginnings are to be found in our spiritual welfare and with Jesus Christ our Lord.

The first and most important beginning is to be born again in the family of God; to be saved in and through the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, surrendering our life to Him. He is the only way to be saved; no church or ideology can save us.

The second stage of our new beginning is in building ourselves up. As believers, we can only build a sure foundation on the Word of God every day. It is only by His Word that the light of Christ will shine through us on those we meet; effectively sharing the Good News of Jesus our Lord and Saviour. Building ourselves in God’s Word makes us visually appealing; “why are you so happy?” which was a question I was asked once… an opener to share Good News.

Dear Reader, Gordon’s final point was on holy boldness – a result of being born again and built up in God’s Word. The Holy Spirit resides within us as children of God, encouraging us to step out boldly for the Gospel each day. There is no room for fear of rejection or shyness; the Holy Spirit working in us trumps these – God wants to use us to save souls. Who will we share the Good News of Jesus with today, and throughout 2026?

 Alan Kearns is a Christian father and grandfather from Scotland. He was raised in the mining villages of Fife and came to know Jesus as his Lord and Savior in 1984. A major influence that leads Alan to Jesus was his Christian mum, grandparents and an aunt. Alan writes regular devotionals in his blog Devotional Treasures

https://devotionaltreasure.wordpress.com/

 Image by DEEPAI