Romans 7:15-25

Bonhoeffer lived in a time when the law of the secular world demanded absolute allegiance to a regime. That regime was opposing to the justice of God’s kingdom.

When visiting America, his colleagues and friends in America strongly recommend that he should stay safely in America. But he chose to return to his home. He wrote, “If I don’t choose to go through these hard times with my people now, I won’t have the right to be their pastor when the war is over.” He was executed in prison, just a month before the war came to an end in May 1945.

According to Michael Sandel, a renowned political philosopher and Harvard professor, justice is simply ‘doing the right thing’. But the question is, “what is the right thing to do?” How do we know what the right thing to do is at home, work, in church, or even on streets? Most importantly, what is the right thing to do in our daily life as children of God?”

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Exodus 17:1-7

At the start of the Exodus, God empowered Moses to perform many miraculous signs before Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, to demonstrate that Israelites’ exodus project would be a divine will to secure freedom for His people.

For an example, Moses struck the river with his staff, turning the water into blood and leaving the Egyptians without anything to drink. And, perhaps most famously, God used Moses to part the waters of the Red Sea, creating a dry path for the Israelites to walk through to safety. And the waters of the Red Sea had closed behind them, leaving the Egyptian chariots’ drowning in the Red sea waters. hey were finally free for the first time in 400 years. They sang a song of triumph for hours and their hearts were full of praise for days.

Yet, only a few days later, the joy of that miracle began to fade. That song of praise turned into a chorus of complaints. The reality of the hot, harsh desert took its place.

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John 17:16-23; Revelation 21:3-5

Last Sunday, our worship looked a little different. We gathered “cafe-style,” sharing tables, morning tea, and conversation. As we sat together, we engaged in a creative exercise—thinking deeply about the logo and the meaning behind the name of our church. It was a fitting way to mark the 49th anniversary of the Uniting Church in Australia.

In our reflection, we were reminded of why we hold so firmly to our name. We are the Uniting Church, not the “United” Church. In history, the term “United” often refers to an event in the past—a contract signed, a merger finalized, a box checked. But we intentionally use the present participle, “Uniting.” We believe that the act of becoming one is not a historical milestone we reached in 1977; it is a living, breathing movement of the Holy Spirit that is happening right now, and will continue to happen for generations to come.

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Matthew 9:35-38; 10:1-8

To truly understand the depth of the meaning of the reading in Matthew this morning, I’d like you to pay a careful attention to these two words: ‘Compassion’ and ‘Shepherd’. While we often think of ‘Compassion’ as simply ‘feeling with’ someone, the roots of the word suggest something much deeper.

The English word ‘compassion’ comes from the Latin cum (with) and passi (to suffer). At its core, when you feel compassion toward someone, it literally means ‘you are suffering with them’. It isn’t just a passive emotion or a gentle feeling in the heart; it is a profound identification with the pain of someone else.

This is perfectly captured in today’s Matthew’s Gospel 9:36 by the Greek word used for ‘compassion’, “splanchnizomai”. This word refers to one’s inward parts—the viscera, the internal organs in your body. It describes a reaction so intense that it is felt in the gut. This word does not merely describe a mental decision to be kind or a third-party observation of someone’s pain. When Jesus saw the crowds, His compassion was much like an internal physical ache.

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Genesis 12:1-9

Today, we are looking at one of the most critical moments in human history—the day God called a man named Abram. Up until this point in Genesis, humanity had wandered far from God, culminating in the proud of Babel Tower. But in Genesis 12, God changes His strategy. Instead of addressing the whole world at once, He handpicks one man, and as the result, that one man’s life would never be the same.

If there is one thing the Bible teaches us, it is this: God rarely does His greatest work within our comfort zones. Because He is still deeply committed to working through us, He quite often begins by disrupting our comfort zones.

“If God is an all-powerful, all-knowing god, why couldn’t He accomplish His purposes in our lives anywhere—whether we are in a place of comfort or a place of challenge?” we might ask.

I believe God shakes up our comfort zones to pull us away from relying on familiar routines and move us toward total trust in His guidance and provision. Of course, we don’t like it—and frankly, neither did Abram. If we stay too long within our comfort zones, leaning entirely on our own resources, habits, and sense of security, we start to believe we are the ones calling the shots. We might think that we don’t need anyone’s help, and sadly, that often includes God.

Today’s story begins with a staggering command by God: “Abram! Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”

Think about what God was asking. Your country, your close relatives, your parents and siblings are your safety net, your financial security and identity. When God asked Abram to leave, he didn’t give him a destination! He just said, “Just go and I will show you later.”

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