PAstoral Letter 264
Dear Members of St. Andrew’s Uniting Church, Friends and Adherents,
Grace, peace and love in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ
This will be my last pastoral letter, as we come closer to my retirement and closure. My Service of Closure and Retirement will be held next Sunday 25 May 2025, 11:30 am, followed by refreshments. I look forward to seeing you all and your family members at the service, so we can give thanks to God together and pray seeking His blessing upon us all. We are expecting to have a full house in the church and may be more. I have organised to stream the service on the screen in the hall for overflow of the attenders.
Possibly St. Aidan’s folk will join us on Sunday 8 June for Pentecost Combined Service. I am waiting confirmation from the rector. There is the possibility that we join them on the day. We will let you know.
Last Sunday we celebrated Mother’s Day during the Worship Service and Morning Tea. We gave thanks to God for all the mothers and asked for His blessing. After the service we had a big Morning Tea, a Munch, enjoyed the fellowship and all the ladies received their Mother’s Day gift, which was a small flower vase filled with different of goodies and a Mother’s Day Prayer attached to it.
Last Saturday was a day of great surprise for Dee and me. For our surprise a special day was organised for us in Darling Harbour, near the Maritime Museum, where we found our names added on the Migration Monument, as migrants who have made certain achievements and faithful service in the community. The following is the thank you note that we wrote to Penny and you all:
Dear Penny and St. Andrew’s Church,
We just wanted to take a moment to extend my and Dee’s heartfelt thanks for the incredible job you did organizing the surprise gathering in honouring us. It was truly beautiful and memorable event, and it was clear how much time, care, and love went into every detail.
Your efforts not only celebrated my achievements and years of faithful service but also brought together a group of loving and caring friends and family members, including my dear colleague and brother in Christ’s Ministry Rev. Dr. Gaby Kobrossi. The atmosphere was warm, joyful, and full of the spirit that reflects the love of our church family¾thanks to you.
Thank you again for making it such a special occasion. It meant the world to us and a great joy seeing our names on the National Monument stands in the Sydney Harbour engraved in bronze. We owe all this to the grace of God, as we are just His humble servants.
With deep appreciation and gratitude.
Krikor and Dee
If you are not able to join us tomorrow for worship, please light a candle and join us for worship following the Order of the Service.
Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.
Here are some prayer points for this week:
- Pray for the newly elected federal governmentmembers.
- Pray for peace in war-torn countries and support to the affected.
- Pray for trusting God and asking that He protect those who need protection.
- Pray for the poor, the sick, the hungry, the struggling and those who are not feeling well.
- Continue to pray for Virginia, Frank, Ned and Adrienne as they face medical issues and challenges.
- Pray for the visiting preachers in the next seven months, June to December 2025.
- Pray for me as I conclude my placement here and go into retirement, but continue my volunteer work with the AMAA, plan mission trips overseas and spend time with the family and the grandkids.
In Christ
Krikor
MESSAGE
A Faithful and Loving Church
Rev. 3:7-13 and John 13:31-38
We begin by reviewing the seven churches addressed in the Book of Revelation: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. Each of the first five churches received both praise and correction from Christ, except for Smyrna, which was only commended. The Church in Ephesus was recognized for its good deeds but rebuked for losing its first love. Smyrna remained faithful through persecution and was promised the crown of life. Pergamum was criticized for tolerating false teachings and called to repent. Thyatira had compromised the gospel by following corrupt influences, notably symbolized by “Jezebel“, and was urged to hold fast to what was right. Sardis had a reputation for being alive but was spiritually dead; only a few had remained pure.
These examples set the stage for examining the Church in Philadelphia, which stands out as a model of faithfulness and obedience without any rebuke from Christ. An almost perfect church. Christ had no condemnation for this small church. This church was small, but it had obeyed the teachings of Christ. So, Christ commended them.
Philadelphia means “brotherly love” and the church reflected this spirit.
Christ commends their faithfulness and urges them to persevere, promising great reward: they will be pillars in God’s temple and bear His name forever.
The seventh, the Church of Laodicea, who was lukewarm and despised by Christ, was poor though it had so much wealth. It is clear that Christ’s standard is so different from our standards. Therefore because of His love Jesus recommends them to buy gold tested in fire to be rich, white cloths to cover their shameful sin and to buy medication to put in their eyes and see the truth. In other words, Christ gives a call for REPENTENCE. For Him it is never acceptable to be lukewarm. He seeks to have a perfect church as He was perfect.
Revelation chapter three concludes with a warning to all churches to heed Christ’s words, emphasizing that the love, unity, and obedience of the Philadelphian church serve as a model for the Church today.
In our Gospel reading in John, we see the disciples were gathered in that upper room, where Jesus washed feet, broke bread, and opened his heart.
It was a time of transition, a moment full of meaning, sorrow, and hope. Jesus knew His time was short. Judas had just left to betray Him. The cross was looming. And yet, in that vulnerable, sacred space, Jesus chose to speak not of endings but of love. Not of fear, but of glory. “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him” (John 13:31).
Isn’t that a strange thing to say, right in the midst of betrayal and coming suffering? But that is the mystery of our faith. In Jesus, glory is found not in triumph but in servanthood. God is glorified not through dominance but through sacrificial love.
And it is from this place – not of power, but of tenderness – that Jesus offers His disciples something new: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (v. 34).
1. A New Commandment in a Familiar Faith
At first glance, this “new commandment” might not seem all that new. After all, Scripture already teaches us to love – to love God with all our heart, soul, and strength, and to love our neighbour as ourselves.
But Jesus isn’t simply repeating old wisdom. He is transforming it. He says: “Just as I have loved you.”
This isn’t love as sentiment or duty. This is love with skin on. Love that washes dusty feet. Love that welcomes the outcast. Love that listens. Love that forgives, even from a cross. Love that lays down its life.
This is the love Jesus commands us to show to one another. This is the love that forms the foundation of the Christian community, and it is at the heart of the Uniting Church in Australia.
2. Love as Our Witness
Jesus says something striking next: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (v. 35).
What marks us as Christ’s disciples isn’t how much we know, or how beautiful our buildings are, or how well we organise our programs – though all those things can be good.
What sets us apart is love.
The church is meant to be a community so grounded in the love of Christ that people can see it, feel it, and be drawn into it. A community where those who are hurting find comfort. Where those who are searching find belonging. Where no one is invisible.
This is not always easy. Love asks much of us. It asks us to stretch beyond our preferences. It asks us to forgive. To listen. To serve. To include. To bear with one another in weakness and rejoice with one another in joy.
But this is the heart of the Christian life – and the church at its best.
3. A Uniting Love: Our Common Calling
As members of the Uniting Church, we have always been a people shaped by the Spirit’s call into community. We are, as our Basis of Union declares, a pilgrim people, always on the way toward a promised goal.
Our church was born out of a desire for unity, not uniformity – a hope that different traditions could come together, not erasing difference, but celebrating our shared faith in Christ.
And this unity is held not by structure or institution, but by love. The love of Christ, moving among us, calling us to justice, reconciliation, and faithful service.
In our worship and witness, in our shared meals and mission work, in our First Peoples and Second Peoples walking together in covenant, in our passion for justice and care for creation – in all this, the love of Christ is made visible.
4. When We Fall Short – and Still Belong
And yet – the gospel is honest. It knows our limits.
Peter, ever loyal, says: “Lord, I will lay down my life for you”.
But Jesus sees what Peter cannot yet admit. “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will have denied me three times.”
Even Peter, the rock, stumbles. And still Jesus loves him. Still Jesus goes to the cross. Still Jesus restores him, after the resurrection, not with condemnation but with the same question he asks us all: “Do you love me?”
Friends, we will all fall short of perfect love. We will all, at times, miss the mark. But the grace of Christ does not falter. And the commandment to love is not a burden – it is an invitation to share in the life of God.
Today, as I share this message, it is not just the Word I am leaving with you – it is also my heartfelt thanks and farewell.
Like Jesus in the upper room, this moment is filled with mixed emotions – love, gratitude, sadness, hope.
Serving among you has been a privilege and joy. We have laughed and cried, prayed and worshipped, served and struggled, hoped and persevered together. In all this, I have seen the love of Christ in you beautifully and believing in the living presence of God in this community.
So, I leave you with this, as Jesus did: “Love one another.” Continue to love each other across generations, cultures, and convictions. Love boldly, love gently, love persistently.
You are the Body of Christ. Keep being the church that welcomes the stranger, that cares for the lonely, that seeks justice and walks humbly with God. Keep listening to the Spirit and following where Christ leads you next.
And though our paths will now diverge, we remain one in Christ – held in the same love that binds the whole church together across time and space.
So how do we live this commandment?
We love as Jesus loved:
By serving rather than seeking status.
By including those the world forgets.
By listening deeply and forgiving freely.
By speaking the truth in love, even when it is costly.
By welcoming the stranger, honouring the First Peoples of this land, and working toward reconciliation.
In our congregations, we love one another when we show up for one another, when we pray, when we share joys and sorrows, and when we commit to walking together – even when it’s hard.
Conclusion: Love Without End – A Church of Love
Sisters and brothers, friends in Christ – the new commandment is simple, but not easy. Love one another. It is a commandment for every time and every place, but especially for our time – a time when love can seem in short supply, when the world is hungry for belonging, justice, and hope.
So, may we continue to be a people of love.
May our congregations be places where love is lived and known – across generations, cultures, and communities.
May we love as Jesus loved, and in doing so, show the world who He is.
And may the Spirit give us grace to love one another, just as Christ has loved us.
So let me end where Jesus did – not with a strategy, but a commandment. Not with fear, but with faith.
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another”.
May this love be your witness. May it be your strength. And may it be your joy.
In the name of Christ – who has loved us to the end – and beyond.
Amen!