ICF Delft

We know that Easter is about the resurrection of Jesus. But read the accounts about the resurrection and you will see that it is also about the resurrection of Jesus’ disciples. The resurrection account forms the end of the Gospel-record. But the account is not just a happy end to the story. The account forms the start of something new. Something that is still going on. People who rise up through the risen one.

Inclusion is one of the main cultural themes today. How terrible is exclusion! Almost at the start of the Bible we read a story about exclusion. Because of their sin, Adam and Eve were excluded from that wonderful garden, called paradise. Not only Adam and Eve experienced exclusion from God and in the end also from life, but the whole of humanity.

Even God’s own people, while they were in Egypt were outside God’s promised land. How could they, how could we ever, ever get back to the lost paradise, the promised land that we all long for? In the midst of the five books of Moses we find a book that deals with that problem: Leviticus. In the midst of that book, we find the high priest, reconciling men with God on the day of atonement. In the midst of the first five books of the New Testament we find a book where many outsiders, people who were excluded, come into the picture: Luke’ Gospel. And surprisingly enough, through faith in Jesus they find inclusion! In the end of the Gospel we see amazing things. We see that Jesus, as the great High Priest, offers his life and is excluded to bring the ultimate day of atonement. And as a result, we see that even a great criminal, just before he would die, is welcomed by Jesus in paradise.

Put to the test, things become visible that were invisible before. In the harbour two ships may look alike. But in the storm the one turns out to be seaworthy, whereas the other isn’t - and perishes. Are you ready to be put to the test by your Maker? If all men were like you, would the world become a better place? Upcoming Sunday we will see that when Jesus had arrived at Jerusalem and when the Passover feast began, everyone would be put to the test. It turned out that the only one with no guilt was Jesus. We will learn how through Jesus we can be redeemed of guilt and can get ready for God’s ultimate test.

Someone said that the conversations Jesus had in the gospels were average less than a minute. But they had a huge impact! How can we have short encounters with greater impact? We will look at three things that can help us increase our impact with short encounters we have with people in our daily lives.

How precious is peace. And how sad is war. You don't want to see your city, your country ruined by war and violence. If it happens to your own country, you cry. When Jesus came into the world, he was announced by the angels as the bringer of peace on earth. But when he finally arrived at Jerusalem, also called `the city of peace', he foresaw Jerusalem's grim future. And he wept. Jerusalem needed Jesus to have peace. And so do we. Reject Jesus and all the things you expect peace from will finally fail. Receive and hold fast to Jesus and although all things may seem to fail you, you will see you have lasting peace.

'Mind the gap'. When you enter the London tube, you hear these words everywhere. The Bible also contains a message to mind a certain gap. A gap that can be bridged, but also a gap that makes people stumble and fall. A gap that has to do with the way we do, or do not, spend our money.

`Human kind, a hopeful history' - is the title of a bestselling book by a Dutch author. According to this author, most people are okay. The book aims to give reasons to feel better about the human race. However, even if most people would be okay, then what about the rotten apple that spoils the barrel? Upcoming Sunday, we read the story from Luke's Gospel about a man named Zacchaeus. His name means righteous, but according to the people in Jericho, he was the rotten apple. When Jesus visited Jericho, Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus. And Jesus saw, stayed overnight with and saved Zacchaeus.

What do you do when someone falsely accuses you? Or when someone asks you for help for the umpteenth time? Jesus’ lessons are often demanding, but the reward is great. If you do as Jesus says, you will be children of the Most High

Many of us have things we want to grow in. For instance in knowledge, abilities and skills. Without these we might not be able to acquire the future we dreamed of. Have you ever thought of the necessity of becoming kind and growing in kindness? Upcoming Sunday we read a famous story, told by Jesus – about the good Samaritan. And we will learn more about the necessity of and the way to grow in kindness.

We live in a polarised world. People differ largely from each other in many ways. Often people who differ so largely hardly meet each other in person. Jesus sent his disciples not only to people who were like them, but also to people who were unlike them. For instance to Samaritans. And that would not always be easy. Neither is it today. 

We live in a very visual time in history. While there are still some areas of the world relatively unaffected by internet images, the vast majority of the world population lives in a society or culture deeply influenced by video and images. The almost instantaneous spread of images around the world and from pole to pole is characteristic of contemporary society. A photograph or video can be posted on the internet, and within hours or even minutes be viewed by millions of people.

Rapid visual communication is not necessarily a bad thing, but increasingly images are not serving the truth. Well before television, computers and the internet the American writer Mark Twain said, “a lie can travel halfway round the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” He might have rephrased that had he lived with the nanosecond speed of the internet. It was a ridiculous exaggeration in his day. Now not so much. In the time it takes me to tie my shoes an image can probably fly around the world dozens of times.

Images have the power to bypass reason, logic and thoughtful reflection and directly touch emotions. An entire image can be taken into our brains instantaneously, and immediately impact feelings. The old expression, “seeing is believing” often comes into play with catastrophic effects. If an image is not placed in context by truthful words or is distorted by subtle manipulative techniques it becomes far too easy for people to believe lies. Often words are not even needed; an image is enough to trigger the belief in a lie.

Audibly hearing words is fundamentally different. Of course, lies are expressed in words and words are routinely manipulative, but audible words are taken in one at a time, in a series and gives more time for reflection and discernment.

In our current sermon series from the Gospel of Luke I hope you have heard the repeated call to listen, to hear, and to believe. The good doctor Luke has emphasized hearing the words of truth throughout his gospel. We have been challenged to listen for the voice of God as we “rewire” our brains to better hear, more keenly understand, and ever deeper believe His voice in order to respond in genuine faith in Christ.

How are you doing? How have you answered this question recently?  Maybe with a quick "OK" or "Het gaat goed" where we essentially avoid the question?  If we think back, I suspect that many of us have answered with either: "Tired", "Busy" or "Stressed" at some point in the last couple of months.  This is life in the 21st century in the middle of a pandemic, right?  Relentless.  We have been formed by our culture to live 24/7 lifestyles where being busy and available has become not only a badge of honour and respect, but a moral expectation.  Let's face it, deep down most of us do not want to live this way.  We want another way to live.  The good news is that Jesus invites us into a new way of life, a new lifestyle where he promises not only to give us this rest we crave, but to be our rest.

We all want to live a life worth living. But what is a life worth living? And which choices should we make to gain such a life? Many times when I felt the Lord was calling me to do something and to obey, I got thoughts like: am I not a fool to do these things? Perhaps you have also experienced that.

God speaks. That is how God makes Himself known: as a speaking God. One of the reasons we listen to the Bible reading and to preaching, is that we long to hear God speaking to us. Somehow we know that there is nothing more satisfying than to hear God speak to us through His Word. However, often we are disappointed. What we heard did not affect us. We felt bored. It seemed not to contain what we needed. Often we see how the preacher should change his preaching and improve. And indeed, preachers should continually focus on improving their preaching skills! However, did you know that even if the preaching was not so good, you could still profit from it? And even if the preaching would be the best preaching ever, it is not sure that you would like or even observe it.

The message of the Bible is an evidence based message of extraordinary hope for the whole world. The Bible tells us that the world will not continue as we see it now. Finally good will triumph over evil, light over darkness, justice over wickedness, joy over sorrow, life over death. This is good news. The evidence we have in the historic life, words and works of Jesus Christ. Especially in his well attested death and resurrection. Look at Him, study His life and you will get confidence. In and through Him the victory has begun and ever since this hope has begun to infect the world. Extraordinary hope. Very good news. And yes, of course, also bad news: for evil, darkness, wickedness, sorrow, disease and death; but why bother about that? Who cares if these will be cast into the dumping ground of hell, the everlasting fire? We won't miss these, will we? Definitely true! However, if God's people were tasked to be the agents of this hope (and so they are!) then there are two problems that need to be addressed. Firstly: that God's people shouldn't think too high and good of themselves. The evil and wickedness they see around them, is also found in our own hearts and must be dealt with. Secondly: that God's people shouldn't think too low and bad of people around them. The problem is not so much that God doesn't want to include them into the good news, but that God's people - like Jonah - don't want to address them with God's mercy.

We do not know what this new year will bring us. However, we know that we need Gods guidance to make wise decisions. How do we receive Gods guidance? The sermon will answer this question based on a number of verses from the book of Proverbs, mainly from Proverbs 16.

In some countries it is forbidden to celebrate Christmas. Any references to Christmas are taboo. This might surprise us. Isn't Christmas a very innocent feast? Maybe not! These governments may have understood well that there is something very challenging in the birth of Jesus. Not only for them, but for us all.

When a friend disappoints you once or twice (and then apologises) you probably can handle that. But what if he or she repeatedly, continually disappoints you? Even without making excuses? Initially you might get angry. But gradually you might become cynical. And we all understand that cynicism is deadly for a warm and tender relationship. What about your trust in God? Your relationship with God?

We all look and long for joy. We want a joyful Christmas. We want joy in our studies and work. Joyful relationships. A joyful church. Joyful leisure time. What can provide us with joy? Where should we look? For Theophilus, the first reader, it seemed there were two ways to strive for joy and gain joy. There was the way he was familiar with, the normal way of getting joy. And there was a completely new way. Namely: to pay attention to God's Word, God's ancient promises, the Gospel message. It may have been hard for him to really believe that herein he could find greater joy than in the ways he was familiar with.

The times we live in are not encouraging. Another lockdown. Another variant of the virus. Even the Dutch weather may not have felt very encouraging. We all know we need something to hope for. To rejoice in. But what if hope seems so far away? What if we lack joy? Upcoming Sunday we will again turn to the Gospel according to Luke. We will see how Mary receives a message of great hope and joy. Not only is the content of that message offering hope for us too. We can also learn from Mary how to receive good news in such a way that it transforms us.

Have you ever known a true genius? Perhaps at some time in your life you lived or worked with a genius. An academic city like Delft has a large number of extremely smart and creative people, and it is likely you know quite a few that are brilliant and mentally gifted. But true genius is a rarity.

Psalm 23 might be the most famous passage of the whole Bible. After great crises, at funerals and in distress it is often read, sung and listened to. It addresses our deepest longings. We all long to be satisfied, to be safe, to shine - we want to be that sheep carried by the good Shepherd. But to see the picture and to like it, is not the same as to have and experience what it shows.

Prayer does not begin with us, but with the awareness of God. Throughout history we see many times that the church fell asleep and lost its awareness of God. There were still sermons, songs and prayers. But the awareness of God seemed almost to be gone. But when God sent times of revival, people again became aware of God. The holy and living God. The coming Lord. His holiness and his mercy, his power and his preciousness. You could hear it and taste it, in the sermons, the singing and the prayers.

Those who are regenerate have a place to stay that is more real than any visible place. In it they enjoy complete safety. From it they receive protection against any threat. Under frightening circumstances their fear is taken away from them. In answer to their prayer, angels come to protect them. Their future is great and good. Is that really possible?

Upcoming Sunday, 31 October, is `Reformation day'. We will read, sing and listen to Psalm 46. It was Martin Luther's favourite Psalm. His time was a time of great anxiety. Thousands died because of the plague. Wars broke out. Luther was declared an outlaw. He found a hiding place in a fortress: the Wartburg. Based on Psalm 46, he wrote his famous song `a mighty fortress is our God'. But how could he sing, feel safe, keep joy and peace, while so much was going on? This had everything to do with his rediscovery of the biblical good news - the Gospel. Luther's discovery is still as powerful as it was in his time.

Many of us have probably verified our identity on an internet website. Typically, we sign up as “users” and give answers to standard questions from our personal past. Where did we meet our spouse? What was the name of our first pet? What was the name of our first childhood school? Later, when we give the right answers to these personal questions our identity can be determined. What about the identity of the people of God? It has been said “the great questions — ‘Who are we?’ ‘Why are we here?’ ‘What is our task?’ — are best answered by telling a story.” Or perhaps still more important, what is the deepest, greatest longing of our hearts?

We live in a demanding world. Nearly all of us experience life stressful and fragmented, because of different roles and duties. We have to face growing responsibilities and often we cannot escape hurry. Besides to that we have to deal with a demanding ‘self’. We want to perform; we have to be in the picture, we are afraid to fail...

Who is imposing these hidden laws on us? They stir up productivity but they make us tired and even may cause a burnout. Not easy to admit that we are fallible people, that we live in a broken world? Shouldn’t we confess our selfishness and pride and accept our need for forgiveness and regeneration?

In the letter to the Galatians the apostle Paul explains why the law (even God’s good law) cannot give us life. - It rather stirs up our desire to perform and our fear to fail.-  There is only One who is able to realise this: Jesus Christ changing our heart by His Spirit, giving us joy and a new life, not by the works of law, but by sincere faith in Him.

How do you start your day? What are the first things you do after you wake up? Wouldn't it be good to start your day with prayer? Perhaps you agree. But you may also feel (sometimes) that you lack discipline. Even if you want to start your day with prayer, what and how could you pray best? The book of Psalms is a school for our prayers. In Psalm 5 we hear David pray in the morning. It is a shocking prayer. Probably you would not have thought of praying such a prayer. Upcoming Sunday we listen to this prayer. We will learn why the church today desperately needs this prayer.

Sometimes it is not hard to fall asleep. After a wonderful, satisfying day, when you are tired, you may fall asleep easily. But what if you had a sad day. Many things did not go as you would have liked. You are worried. You feel angry. There is so much unrest. Upcoming Sunday we will read a prayer that king David made for the end of a very sad day. A prayer that would help God's people of all ages to find joy, peace and safety amidst of unrest through prayer. You are so welcome to join and learn more!

Last week we learnt that obedience comes with objections. If you really want to do what God tells you to do, you will soon find out that there there comes a lot of unrest - from without and from within. Therefore we are easily inclined to give up. Jesus didn't give up. He knew that God would support Him. He went on, in his obedience, until the cross and the grave. But have you ever wondered how Jesus was able to continue? We know that prayer helped Jesus. But what kind of prayer would have helped Jesus? Maybe such prayer might also help us.

Spend ten minutes on Twitter and probably you will have found some things that make you angry. Regardless from which bubble you read the tweets. How can people say and do such foolish things? Incredible! Someone should do something about it! We really wonder: why? Why are people like this? This is not only the world we live in. We are part of that world. Whereas the world can have questions for God: God, why? - we should be aware that God has his' why? - for us, also for me. We live in a restless world and we are part of that world.

Lord willing, this Sunday, we will start our journey from Mathew 27 and go through Psalm 22, to stand closer to the cross and hear the psalm our King and Savior cried by quoting "Eli Eli lema sabachthani?" which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me". Some bystanders heard Him and thought he had called on Elijah and therefore missed the window Jesus opened to see that He is the promised King who was fulfilling Psalm 22. This Sunday we will stand closer to the cross and hear His full cry "Eli Eli lema sabachathani?" by going through the psalm to see the intensity of the pain He has gone through in his obedience, the imminent victory, and the hope He secured for us. I pray that we see and be transformed as God opens our eyes through the Holy Spirit to see the unspeakable price His Son (the King) paid on the cross and the ultimate revelation of His Glory. "

The Bible shows us another way to go in life. Not the common way. Not the easy way. Not the attractive way. But the way that God calls us to go. The way of listening to and of obedience to Gods' Word. We might know we should go this way. But how attractive is it? It feels as if you are almost alone, if you would go this way. As if you will end up unhappy, lonely and laughed at. Now listen at this song: Psalm 1. Hear how a choir sings that those who go this way, are blessed. Psalm 1 and Psalm 2 invite us to join a people and a King who go this way. The book of Psalms is a songs- and prayerbook to be heard and sung, making you aware that you are not at all alone when you go this way. You are very welcome to come to church upcoming Sunday (Psalm 1)

At the beginning of a new season we may feel some anxiety about all things upcoming. Is it possible to experience real rest through prayer? Sure and even more. In the Bible we find a perfect prayer, taught by Jesus, helping us to pray for our daily concerns.

Have you ever had the rather odd and uncanny sensation that what you are experiencing at the moment you have experienced before? The French expression, “déjà vu” is used to describe it. It literally means something like “already seen.” It is a sort of warped memory moment.

According to researchers perhaps as many as 70 or 80% of healthy adults have had the experience, thus there is a good chance that many who are reading this know the odd sensation. Although déjà vu can be linked to health problems, most who experience the phenomenon have no underlying health issues and quickly shake off the oddness of the moment and move on. Researchers also have several theories about what causes déjà vu, hence nobody but God himself knows for sure why it happens. 

This week’s message is from Genesis 40 where there are thematic threads of remembrance and providence. In this episode Joseph is confronted with the dreams of two court officials. The experience surely kindled deep and painful memories of his own life story. The Bible text does not make it clear whether Joseph thought he knew for sure why he was confronted with these two dreams, but he was very certain that the interpretation of them belonged to God alone.

Come, join our worship service this Sunday as we explore the wonder of God’s grace, His lovingkindness, His providence.

In our short series from the story of the family of Jacob we have seen the intense conflict between Joseph and the rest of his brothers, conflict that came to the point of wishing him dead.

Last week the we saw the life of Judah turned around under remarkable circumstances. But what about Joseph? He was a seventeen-year-old boy sold into slavery. His dreams of ruling, reigning and blessing are shattered. Could his fortunes get even worse? That is certainly what seems to happen in the next chapter. Others are getting the blessing but Joseph is going even further into trouble.

Can we even begin to think about what must have gone through Joseph’s mind? This was not just a few months or a couple of years. It would be about thirteen years before his fortunes would begin to change. How might we understand this suffering?

The seventeen-year-old boy of Genesis chapter 37 is a changed man. This week we will look further at how God was at work in Joseph’s life, not just for his sake, but for the sake of his fractured family and for all the families of the earth.

In our short summer series in the Old Testament we are focusing on God’s plan to fill all creation with His glory. He is accomplishing this goal through a chosen covenant family destined to be bearers of the divine image and to reflect, resemble, and represent their Heavenly Father to all the families on earth.

God had called out Abraham to go from his country, from his kindred, and from his father’s house, with the promise that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed. Now Abraham’s grandson Jacob and his scandalous fractured family seem to be making an unholy mess of it all.

Last Sunday we saw God’s plan complicated by jealousy and sibling rivalry that came within a hair’s breadth of murder – fratricide! This week we will see that plan further complicated by selfishness, lust and incest.

It seems like a turn for the worse – or is it? Is there a glimmer of grace? Is there a glimpse of the gospel here? Is this really a turn for the better, a watershed moment in salvation history?

Join us for worship this week as we unwrap the awkward story of Judah and Tamar and look there for the gospel gift of grace.

If the Lord is willing, this coming Sunday we will begin a short series of sermons from the last major section of Genesis, from chapter 37 to the end of the book, often called “The Joseph Story.” There will not be time to finish the entire story, but what we do cover we will look at in some depth.

This narrative is a masterpiece of writing. It is a fascinating, thrilling, surprising even shocking account of the chosen, premier, covenant family of God. As one commentator has written, members of this family are destined to be “divine image bearers of God, reflecting, resembling, and representing their Heavenly Father to His glory.” (DeRouchie)

But there is a major problem. Just look at this family! There is cheating, lying, jealousy, hatred, incest and even murder emanating from this pack of rogues.

Divine image bearers of God? Reflecting, resembling and representing God’s glory?

Come and listen to the first part of this narrative as the Lord begins to implement His magnificent plan. There is perhaps a surprise ending in store as well!