Alessandra

Registration Check in – Check out

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Could you imagine that you would be part of a family and that you would leave your family without saying goodbye? Or could you imagine that you would be part of a family and on a certain day there is someone at the table you have never seen – and that you would just eat together, without introducing yourself to one another? I couldn’t. In a family, you know each other’s names. Normally you know the names of your brothers and your sisters. Now the church is not just like a family – it IS a family. The church is not a grocery. In the grocery there is no need to introduce yourself to one another. But since the church is a family, there is this need.

As ICF, we want to keep the record of those who want to be part of the fellowship. And of the way you are connected. You can be part of it as a member. But also as a guest-member. You can even just connect without membership, even when you do not yet see yourself as a Christian at all. On our website we have a helpful tool for this registration:  https://icfdelft.nl/about/#check-in-check-out. This is not just about formality. It is about being a family. I am aware that being a family can feel threatening as well. Sometimes anonymity has advantages. And of course, if you want to get to know ICF firstly a bit anonymously, you are welcome. But making yourself known has many more advantages. So we encourage you not to wait, but to register and to check in and, when you leave, to check out. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask these!

WELCOMING SERVICES

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Many newcomers have arrived at Delft. Let’s be a hospitable, warmly welcoming and inviting fellowship! We have prepared some welcoming church services, which are accessible for anyone. If you are new: we are so glad that you are there! We hope to get to know you better soon. Be sure that we are willing to help you find your way at ICF Delft and that we are committed to serve each other with the gifts we have received. Feel free to let us know how we might help you. You can always do this by sending an email to info@icfdelft.nl Also feel free to approach your pastor, Jos Slager (ds.josslager@gmail.com / 06-40178243)

Lift-Off 2021 for students

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Are you a student and do you long for some inspiration and equipment how to communicate the good news about Jesus? Then Lift-Off 2021 might be something for you! Solomon Dimitriadis, the organiser of this conference also preaches from time to time at ICF and is a very experienced student-worker. Take a look and register! Recommended! Read more…

New website for new Chinese students in the Netherlands

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Francina de Pater, director of IFES-NEDERLAND-INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS, shared a new website has been made as a tool to make contact with new Chinese students. This website will be used to make contact with and to serve new Chinese students and help them find their way in the Netherlands. Maybe this website is interesting for you yourself. Or maybe it can be helpful to share it with others. Take a look and make it known! https://haijiao.nl/

Resuming worship services with people physically present

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From Wednesday the 28th of April, the Dutch government is relaxing the corona measures, for example by stopping the curfew, by allowing more people to meet and by making it possible for students to go to university. 

As ICF council, we decided to resume worship services with people physically present from the moment the Dutch government would relax the corona measures. Therefore, from Sunday, the 2nd of May, we will invite up to 30 people + “personnel” in church. On the one hand, we are very happy to see that the government is relaxing the rules and we can come to the church. On the other hand, we are concerned about the numbers of people infected and in hospital. Therefore, we want to be very careful and ask you to join online when you have complaints that could be related to corona.

The room available for the children ministry is not very suitable. Therefore, we propose to postpone resuming in-person Treasure Seekers sessions. Of course, children are welcome to sit in the church services. Parents will continue to receive Treasure Seekers materials by email.

If you want to come to the church, you can express your interest by filling out the google form before Friday midnight. On Saturday you will then get a personal invitation to join. If more than 30 people express interest to join, we will ask the last people who registered late to come next week and we will then give them priority.

CHALLENGE AND COMFORT FOR CONFRONTING TIMES

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We live in confronting times. Things don’t go as they used to, nor as we would like them to go. How could Christian faith be relevant for us, in such times? Perhaps sometimes it feels irrelevant. You wonder: what
difference does it make, whether I join the online service, or not? Whether I join my online Life Group, or not? Whether I pray and read my Bible, or not? Let’s be honest: sometimes we just don’t feel like it.

Upcoming Sunday we start reading from the Bible the first letter of Peter. By experience Peter knows that it is sometimes easier to let go your identity as a follower of Jesus. Peter wrote a challenging and comforting letter. The letter equips Christians to live wisely in a society that does not share their values. Pastor Hans-Jan Roosenbrand, Solomon Dimitriadis and Jos Slager look forward to preach through this letter the upcoming time. Don’t miss it!

THE GOSPEL OF THE CROSS

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Weekly we preach the crucified Christ, at ICF-Delft. And now especially, on our way to Easter, we focus on the cross. Why? What joy could there be in looking at a cross – which was a horrible means of torture? Two things we must keep in mind.

First: if we look at Jesus, we should be aware that the coming of Jesus was the climax, the climactic moment in the history of the world. God had chosen one man – Abraham – and made promises to him. In him all the families of the earth would be blessed. This man would become a family, a people and through this people blessing would come to the whole earth. The whole earth, suffering from so much misery. When we look at the history of this family, we see however that within this family, within this people the same problems occurred as in all mankind. When Jesus came, the One came who would deal with the problem his people and all peoples deal with. Namely: sin. Which is a deep, inward unbelieving rebellion against and mistrust of our good and holy Creator God. Sin is that we are not willing to will what we should. And sin is that we are continually willing to do what is against his commandments.

The second thing we must keep in mind is that in Jesus’ life, the climax is his way to the cross. The cross was a horrible means of torture for those who rebelled, used by the Romans in those days wherein Jesus
lived. The cross did not occur to Jesus accidentally. Jesus went to the cross by purpose. He went to the cross to undergo what we deserved from God. Our sin was and is greater and more serious than we shall ever be able to realise. Now the Father sent his Son to take upon Him what we deserved. And the Son – unlike us – was willing to do anything the Father commanded him – since he loved his Father and knew the will of his Father was and is always the best. So the Son agreed with the Father in his plan for our salvation.

Now if God was willing to provide for us such great love – that he was even willing to go the cross for us – then we should radically and completely change our minds about God. The problem of sin is that we
often think, speak and act as if God were no powerful, loving, caring God. What a terrible insult are our sins to a good, holy, almighty Creator! However, in stead of giving us what we deserved, he gave us
what we did not deserve. He gave his only Son. He offers us grace. Before he comes to judge the world and all mankind – the living and the dead, he now provides in a way to be saved from his own judgement. On that day, he will be completely righteous, when he judges sinners and sends them to their deserved punishment. But now he continuous to offer us grace. To show us the depths of his love and mercy. We may come to him and he wants to own us, so that we can own what is his. We can be part of his bride-like people. Then, when we look at the cross, we see the great Bridegroom giving everything for his bride. And our hearts are filled with comfort, joy and wonder. So: look at Christ. Look at the cross. And be saved. Change the way you think about God. And find joy. Whereas the cross is foolishness to the world, for those who have come to see and believe, it is the source of eternal life.

Pastor Jos Slager

UML COURSE

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Humans have unlocked great mysteries. We know more than ever about the universe. About cell biology. About DNA. But what about the meaning of life? The `why’-questions? Are these pointless questions? Intuitively we assume they are not.

Most people believe that we must give meaning to life ourselves. But what if some greater unlocking is possible here as well? Throughout centuries Christians have claimed that the Bible unlocks the meaning of life. Can science replace religion? Today, there are many good scientist who also admit they read and believe the Bible to find the meaning of life. But how does that work? Perhaps you’ve once tried to read the Bible, but you got frustrated, since it is not a very easy (nor attractive) book to read. Or you’ve never read it. Or you use to read it, but find it often dull and do not see how it makes sense. Then you are invited to the brand-new UML course, starting 8 February 8 p.m. online.

UML: Unlock the Meaning of Life. During eight evenings you get the big picture of the first half of the Bible: the Old Testament. A second UML course will be given on the New Testament later on. You are so welcome to join! If you want to join, please register by sending an email to ds.josslager@gmail.com.

We can also use a few more people to join the team – if you are interested, let us know!

Online church services because of Covid-19

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As ICF council, we got questions and remarks about the way we follow the regulations of the government during this time with Covid-19. It looks like some people prefer to stay at home because they have hardly been in church since March 2020. Others think we are far too strict in following the regulations, and we should organise church services in such a way that many people can be present physically. By means of this message, we want to explain better which choices we have made and why.  

As ICF council, we decided to follow the regulations of our government. The same is true for our “mother” churches, the protestant church of the Netherlands (PKN) and the Reformed Church (GKv). During the periods of lockdown (from the 15th of March to June and since the 19th of December), that means that our services are online and only roughly 10 people who have a role in the service are physically in church. In between (from June to 12 December) that meant we organised services allowing up to 30 visitors plus children and roughly 10 people who had a role in the service.  

The reason we follow these regulations is that we think as a church we should contribute to “flattening the curve”, reducing the risk of infections. We see that Covid-19 is a very serious additional burden to our health system. This overload results in other essential health care (for example, operations for cancer) being scaled down. A further increase of Covid-19 infections will at some point lead to situations where the necessary health care cannot be given because too many people need and death rates will increase. 

Furthermore, we are convinced that worshipping our God is more than physically attending church services. We can join our church services online and worship our God. We can have our life group meetings online and worship God. As families or in very small groups we can still meet physically and worship God. At the same time, every time we meet online, we feel the pain of not being able to meet physically and long and pray for healing. 

Henk Polinder, chair ICF council 

Disconnected

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It can happen to you that you feel disconnected to our fellowship in these times. Someone did or said something to you that hurt you. Someone paid no attention to you, whereas you would have expected he or she would. The fellowship runs into a different direction than, to your opinion, is good. What will you do in such cases?

In these times, wherein we see each other less (and when we see one another it is most of the times online), it is not surprising that we can easier feel disconnected. Such tensions are not new. They were already there when the church started. With very different people, with very different backgrounds.

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is dealing with this theme. Paul knows that it at times requires hard working to maintain the unity in the Spirit in the bond of peace. Do you struggle with this? Do not hesitate to let me, or other council members know about it! And let us realise that we never have to wrestle against `flesh and blood’ (that is: against people), but against the `rulers, authorities and cosmic powers – in other words, with the spiritual forces that are at work in the air. They always try to separate us, but especially now they will try harder.

However, when we keep doing what Paul said to the Ephesians, they will not be able to separate us from one another. Paul says that we must speak the truth with one another, because we are members of one
another (strange thing if a hand decides to leave the arm, or if a foot decides to leave the legs). This sometimes involves some anger (be angry), but we must understand that this anger is given to us, not to
separate from one another, but to be used before the sun goes down to speak with the ones responsible for that which you feel angry or sad about. Otherwise we will give the evil one opportunity to let the
disconnect grow and result into separations within the body of Christ, which weakens the case of Christ’s kingdom. Again: do not hesitate to let me or the council know wherein you have your struggles in these times!

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Jos Slager | Pastor of the ICF-Delft (International Christian Fellowship)