Welcome to the Finnish Lutheran Church of Melbourne
We offer a welcoming meeting place for all Finns in Melbourne, and provide spiritual care and a broad range of activities for all age groups.
On these pages you can find information on our background, services, usual activities, and calendar of activities.
In addition, you will find the latest Pastor's column below the news post hereunder.
On these pages you can find information on our background, services, usual activities, and calendar of activities.
In addition, you will find the latest Pastor's column below the news post hereunder.
NEWS: Changes to upcoming events
Due to the easing of some restrictions in the state of Victoria, we are able to resume worship services with certain restrictions in place to keep everyone safe during the continuing global pandemic. (Latest information will be updated here prior to the next event).
So, it is with great pleasure that we would like to invite you to our next event, which will be the KAUNEIMMAT JOULULAULUT - Christmas Carols Event - at the Finnish Hall,
119 Pier St, Altona.
Sunday the 6th of December (time to be advised).
Christmas Day service will be going ahead (JOY!)
Friday, 25 December -
Outdoors in the lush gardens of the Swedish Church in Toorak.
10am onwards (to be confirmed).
In the meantime....
In the event you are experiencing a crisis or emergency and seek church counsel, please contact Pastor Ian Vainikka on his mobile on 0422 292 372 or via email at ian.vainikka@gmail.com
***MORE DETAILS TO BE POSTED ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE AND IN THE SUOMI NEWSPAPER***
Pastor Ian's latest post (Column number 9 -20.11.2020)
Jesus said, "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And He will place the sheep on His right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed Me, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you visited Me, I was in prison and you came to Me.'" ... "Then He will say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matthew 25:31-36, 41)
In my years of pastoral ministry I have come across a lot of people who have a sneaking fear that they may wind up in what the Bible calls, ‘hell’— because of an old guilt they still carry, or because of a sense that they aren't good enough for God, or because of a worry that maybe God doesn't or couldn't really love them or want them to be his forever. And this worry poisons their lives and causes them to live without the joy Jesus wants them to have.
But in today's parable, Jesus says one thing which can comfort us: He calls hell "the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels." Pay attention to those words. Hell was not made for human beings; that was never its purpose. Hell was intended as a prison house for the devil. Any human being who winds up there is in the wrong place, is absolutely not where God wants him or her to be.
Where are human beings supposed to be, then? Jesus' own words give us the answer: "Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." God made us for heaven—for paradise—for his own kingdom. That is what he has been planning since the world began. All of our sin cannot change that fact. God planned this before Adam and Eve sinned, and certainly before you and I did. He intends to bring us home.
That is why Jesus came to us, became a human baby, and grew up to be our Saviour. That is why he suffered and died for us—only to rise from the dead three days later. He came to bring us home. Hell is not your destination. Jesus is calling us to himself—to belong to him forever. He has a place all ready for us. This the good news of a great promise for you and me.
Pastor Ian
ONLINE CHURCH SERVICES
If you would like to view services from St Paul's Lutheran Church in Box Hill, please go to their Youtube channel and select the services you would like to view:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjxCh_msqE8PDXBFkF1AGPA
Finnish services are broadcast on Yle Areena - to view the programs, follow the link here:
https://areena.yle.fi/1-3757226
You can also get a lot of information, devotionals etc, from Finland's church website, including English translations if needed. Visit:
www.evl.fi
Join the church
You can join the Mikael Agricola Finnish Lutheran Church by completing the attached membership form. Please print out, fill in, sign, and scan the form, and email it to ian.vainikka@gmail.com. You can also post the form to the church manse, 72 The Strand, Point Cook, 3030.
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