31st May 2026

Paul’s closing blessing of his second letter to the Corinthians is more than a final farewell, it is a window into the very life of God and our participation in it. Each phrase draws us into a relationship already established for us in Jesus Christ.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ reminds us that everything begins with what Christ has done, not what we achieve. Grace is not merely a gift God gives: it is God giving himself to us in the Son. As Jesus has already included humanity in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension, we don’t need to strive to get in, but we are invited to live in what is already true.

The love of God points to the Father as the source of all. This is not distant or conditional love, but is the eternal love shared within the Trinity, now extended to us. The Father is not reluctant to receive us as he has always been for us, and in Christ, has drawn near to us.

The fellowship of the Holy Spirit speaks of participation and experience. The Spirit is not just present with us, but actively uniting us to Christ and to one another. Fellowship here is sharing in the Son’s relationship with the Father, and it’s the Spirit who makes this real in our daily lives, transforming us from the inside out.

The header scripture shows that the Christian life is not about climbing up to God but living in, and out of, the relationship God has brought us into. The Trinity is not a distant, abstract doctrine, but an understanding that Father, Son, and Spirit are actively including us in their life of grace, love, and fellowship.

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church