@FirstChurchofJerusalem
Today's Early Church Wisdom
"“To those who ask us whence we have come or whom we have for a leader, we say that
we have come in accordance with the counsels of Jesus to cut down our warlike and
arrogant swords of argument into ploughshares, and we convert into sickles the spears
we formerly used in fighting. For we no longer take ‘sword against a nation,’ nor do we
learn ‘any more to make war,’ having become sons of peace for the sake of Jesus, who is
our leader, instead of following the ancestral customs in which we were strangers to the
covenants.”
~ Origen (185AD – 254AD)
This week's Psalm is Psalm 30 'Joy Comes With The Morning'

Choosing The Kingdom

In Jesus’ first recorded sermon, He directed His listeners to “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). This message was both a warning and a radiant invitation, a divine summons that still echoes with urgency in these present end times, calling every soul to awaken to the nearness of God. The Greek word translated “repent” is metanoeite  (μετανοεῖτε), which means far more than sorrow for sin. It literally signifies a transformative “change of mind,” a reorientation of the entire heart and life toward God. Changes of mind shape lives and destinies. We might call such a change a fundamental paradigm shift. The most significant paradigm shift anyone may ever make is to choose the Kingdom of God. If we are wise, we will not be content to have only once made this vital choice, but we will orientate our heart and life to God at the start of each new day. 