The Power of the Gospel

By Ps Dev Menon

John 6:68 … “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

Last month I attended my youngest son’s Primary One orientation. To my pleasant surprise, I met several of my own Primary School classmates there – all fathers by now – fiercely loyal to St. Andrew’s of course!

As I got talking, I arranged to meet with some of them 1-1 to catch up further. I found out that – as with many of us middle-aged men – life had not gone so well. Careers were starting to crumble; marriages were on the rocks; and mental and physical health issues were accumulating. The fantasies of life were beginning to fade away. 

As willing as I was, there was not a lot I could do in terms of ‘practical help’. But one thing I could offer was the gospel – the words of Jesus Christ. Now, to a lot of these situations, reading through John’s gospel or the Sermon on the Mount may seem rather irrelevant. And even I initially doubted if it would be helpful to them.

But once again, as I went through verse by verse, reading together and asking them what they thought – the Words of Jesus began to hit home. Now I have regular meet ups with two or three of them just to meditate on these powerful Words and pray… 

I think for a lot of us Christians, as we acclimatise to a Christian environment – with Christian routine, Christian habits and Christian friends surrounding us – we forget that Jesus Words bring life; and they are the only source of true life in a dark and broken world. They are powerful Words. 

Perhaps if we are in our Christian spheres long enough, we ourselves forget or doubt the impact of these Words and begin to look elsewhere for answers…  I suspect that’s why when Jesus asks us to evangelise or to go on mission, it’s not for His sake – or for the Kingdom’s sake – it’s really for our sakes. So that we don’t forget how powerful these Words really are. So that again and again we cherish what we have already been given – and even seek more of the same. There really is no life anywhere else. 

This Christmas, would you trust Jesus – that His Words are enough? Share them with a friend or relative in a dark situation, and watch them bring life!