Dear Friends,
Yes, that is the title of an article I read on the BBC News website this week! To whet your appetite, let me give you the first three facts: 1. Without sloths there would be no avocados. 2. Sloths are three times stronger than us. 3. They poo a third of their body weight in one go. Doesn’t that make you want to read the whole article? I personally have no way of verifying these things, but nor do I have any reason to doubt them.
It made me reflect on the things that fascinate people: from the true to the untrue, from the important to the trivial. (Incidentally, I am in no way criticising research into sloths when I say that! Such scientific research has brought humanity enormous benefits).
I wonder, though, in which category you would place the second coming of Jesus? True or untrue? Important or trivial? I hope you would place it firmly in the ‘true and important’ category. The apostle Peter felt it necessary to remind his readers that “we did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power” (2 Peter 1:16). Apparently there were people, even in the first century, saying it was a cleverly invented story –invented to ensure certain conduct. And how important to you is his coming, or is it just an ‘incredible fact’ – interesting and diverting, but hardly something to live your life by?
Yours warmly, in Christ,
Chris Hobbs (Senior Minister)
27 October 2019