tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-101076792024-03-13T10:40:40.685+00:00The Reverend Garibaldi McFlurrySermons, book reviews and randomness from the Reverend Garibaldi McFlurry.Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.comBlogger2928125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-18364032011458584332020-12-31T12:30:00.145+00:002020-12-31T12:30:04.847+00:002020 Books<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wv--yEzFD3M/UZsggpSui8I/AAAAAAAABew/Yq6tablzuMEixqB1R1YtY2Hn-97wMNCTQCPcBGAYYCw/s800/4259596490_0306f9d2ba_o.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wv--yEzFD3M/UZsggpSui8I/AAAAAAAABew/Yq6tablzuMEixqB1R1YtY2Hn-97wMNCTQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/4259596490_0306f9d2ba_o.jpg"/></a></div><br />
It's the end of another year. I like to keep track of my reading each year, so here's this year's reading list.
<br />
1. From Weakness to Strength - Scott Sauls<br />
2. Unlimited Grace - Bryan Chapell<br />
3. Good Wives - Louisa May Alcott<br />
4. The Princess Diarist - Carrie Fisher<br />
5. The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank<br />
6. Secret Service - Tom Bradby<br />
7. Following Jesus in Turbulent Times - Hikmat Kashouh<br />
8. The Marshmallow Test - Walter Mischel<br />
9. Judges For You - Tim Keller<br />
10. Rooted - Edward Rhodes<br />
<br />
11. How to Pray - Pete Greig<br />
12. The Final Days of Jesus - Andreas J Köstenberger<br />
13. The Seven Sayings of the Saviour on the Cross - AW Pink<br />
14. I AM: Poetic Reflections through the Gospel of John - David Young<br />
15. A Shelter in the Time of Storm - Paul David Tripp<br />
16. Meddling Kids - Edgar Cantero<br />
17. Coronavirus and Christ - John Piper<br />
18. The King’s Justice - EM Powell<br />
19. Where is God in a Coronavirus World? John Lennox<br />
20. Preaching - Calvin Miller<br />
<br />
21. Freakonomics - Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubner<br />
22. The Monastery Murders - EM Powell<br />
23. In the Presence of my Enemies - Dale Ralph Davis<br />
24. Good Times Never Seemed So Good - Stephen Collins<br />
25. Letters to the Church - Francis Chan<br />
26. Unreliable Memoirs - Clive James<br />
27. The Confession - Jo Spain<br />
28. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry - John Mark Comer<br />
29. From Good News to Gospels - David Wenham<br />
30. Bookworm - Lucy Mangan<br />
<br />
31. Unfollow - Megan Phelps-Roper<br />
32. My Autobiography - Rory Best<br />
33. Humble Calvinism - JA Medders<br />
34. A Mind to Murder - PD James<br />
35. The Guest List - Lucy Foley<br />
36. The Burnings 1920 - Pearse Lawlor<br />
37. Thank You, Jeeves - PG Wodehouse<br />
38. Gentle and Lowly - Dane Ortlund<br />
39. And Then There Were None - Agatha Christie<br />
40. Confronting Christianity - Rebecca McLaughlin<br />
<br />
41. Sleep - CL Taylor<br />
42. Undivided - Vicky Beeching<br />
43. A War of Loves - David Bennett<br>
44. The Dilemma - BA Paris<br>
45. The Murder at the Vicarage - Agatha Christie<br>
46. Digital Minimalism - Cal Newport<br>
47. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis<br>
48. The Code of the Woosters - PG Wodehouse<br>
49. Hidden in Plain View - Lydia McGrew<br>
50. Prince Caspian - CS Lewis<br><br>
51. The Guardians - John Grisham<br>
52. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader - CS Lewis<br>
53. Let This Be Our Secret - Deric Henderson<br>
54. Recovering From Biblical Manhood and Womanhood - Aimee Byrd<br>
55. The Spy and the Traitor - Ben MacIntyre<br>
56. Knowing God - JI Packer<br>
57. The Twelve - Stuart Neville<br>
58. Remaking a Broken World - Christopher Ash<br>
59. A Word to Fellow Pastors - Horatius Bonar<br>
60. On Reading Well - Karen Swallow Prior<br>
<br>
61. Bring Them Home - DS Butler<br>
62. Augustine on the Christian Life - Gerald Bray<br>
63. The Silver Chair - CS Lewis<br>
64. Where Secrets Lie - DS Butler<br>
65. Money Counts - Graham Beynon<br>
66. Don't Turn Back - DS Butler<br>
67. The Horse and His Boy - CS Lewis<br>
68. Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race - Reni Eddo-Lodge<br>
69. The Magician's Nephew - CS Lewis<br>
70. The Clocks - Agatha Christie<br>
<br>
71. House of Lies - DS Butler<br>
72. The Last Battle - CS Lewis<br>
73. Between the Stops - Sandi Toksvig<br>
74. Out of the Silent Planet - CS Lewis<br>
75. The Inimitable Jeeves - PG Wodehouse<br>
76. Still, Silent, and Strong - Pierce Taylor Hibbs<br>
77. Voyage to Venus (Perelandra) - CS Lewis<br>
78. A Belfast Child - John Chambers<br>
79. Wby does God care who I sleep with? - Sam Allberry<br>
80. The Holiday - TM Logan<br><br>
81. That Hideous Strength - CS Lewis<br>
82. The Creaking on the Stairs - Mez McConnell<br>
83. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame<br>
84. The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories - PD James<br>
85. Hercule Poirot's Christmas - Agatha Christie<br>
86. The One True Light - Tim Chester<br>
87. Skipping Christmas - John Grisham<br>
88. Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari<br>
89. Hidden Christmas - Tim Keller<br><br>
My top five are:<br>
1. Gentle and Lowly - Dane Ortlund<br>
2. Confronting Christianity - Rebecca McLaughlin<br>
3. Skipping Christmas - John Grisham<br>
4. My Autobiography - Rory Best<br>
5. Good Times Never Seemed So Good - Stephen Collins<br>
Here are the links to previous years' book blogs: <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.com/2019/12/2019-books.html">2019</a> (62); <a href="https://garymcmurray.blogspot.com/2018/12/2018-books.html">2018</a> (50);
<a href="https://garymcmurray.blogspot.com/2017/12/2017-books.html">2017</a> (31); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/2016-books.html">2016</a> (23); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.com/2015/12/2015-books.html">2015</a> (21); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/2014-books.html">2014</a> (26); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.com/2013/12/2013-books.html">2013</a> (45); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/2012-books.html">2012</a> (49); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/2011-books.html">2011</a> (37); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/2010-books.html">2010 </a>(52); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2009/12/2009-books.html">2009</a> (41); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2009/01/books-read-2008.html">2008</a> (23); <a href="http://garymcmurray.blogspot.co.uk/2008/01/2007-reading.html">2007</a> (78).Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-73506802094151106052020-05-31T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T16:04:47.186+00:00Sermon: Philippians 2: 12-18 Rejoicing in our Salvation<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s1880/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1576" data-original-width="1880" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG"/></a></div>
Do you remember the excitement when you passed your driving test? The lessons and practices were over, the test was passed, and suddenly you had the freedom to drive anywhere you wanted, without your instructor or someone else telling you what to do. It’s over 20 years since I passed my test, and what I remember most vividly from those first days of driving was that I learnt more about driving after the test than before.<br><br>
There was the first time driving in the dark, and getting used to dipping my headlights. There was the time when the steering wheel had locked when parked and I couldn’t get the car started (until I realised I had to pull the wheel slightly). And there were the ever changing traffic conditions and weather conditions and everything else that the road throws at you. I thought I’d learned everything when preparing for the test, but I had to keep working out how to drive when the test was passed.<br><br>
As we continue in the letter to the Philippians today, we see that the Philippians were being urged to do something similar - not about learning how to drive, but in learning how to live the Christian life. Paul, who had planted the church in Philippi, isn’t there with them any more. In fact, he’s in prison in Rome. But he’s writing this letter, partly as a thank you note, and partly to encourage them to keep going in the Christian faith, as they stand firm together. <br><br>
That’s been the central theme of the letter, as we’ve been noticing over the past couple of weeks. Back in 1:27 Paul told them to ‘stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel...’ - the image of the soldiers with shields locked together, or the rugby scrum pushing together. Last week we saw how that could be achieved - rejoicing in unity through humility - not selfish ambition, but considering the interests and needs of others. And the prime example of that kind of living is our humble King Jesus. He came down from crown to crib to cross in order to save us - and so our attitude should be the same as his.<br><br>
We need that little recap because everything Paul says today builds on it. Verse 12 starts with a ‘Therefore’ - because of what we saw last week, then here’s what you need to do. And here’s what he says: ‘Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed - not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence - continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.’ (12-13)<br><br>
Notice that Paul doesn’t say ‘work for your salvation.’ He can’t, because salvation isn’t something we can work to achieve - it isn’t about earning our way. Salvation in Christ is a gift, it’s something we receive by grace. We can’t work for our salvation, but we do need to work out our salvation.<br><br>
It’s not that, once we’re saved, then we’re all right, we don’t need to grow in the faith any more. We can just let God do it all for us. Not at all! We’re to work out our salvation - with fear and trembling. It’s a bit like when you change cars, and things are slightly different to your old car. The wiper stalk goes down instead of up, or the volume control is in a different place. You have to work it all out, get used to it, and grow into it. We’re to work out our salvation as if it all depends on us. <br><br>
But thankfully, as we do that, we discover that it’s not all down to us. We work out our salvation, but at the same time, ‘for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.’ (13)<br><br>
It’s not one or the other - either only us or only God - it’s both and. God does this by his Holy Spirit dwelling in us, the Spirit given on the Day of Pentecost, God’s power to help us and grow us into the likeness of Christ. And that’s exactly what our passage says as well: ‘God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.’ God is at work in us to change us, and to change our will so that we want what God wants; and to change our actions so that we do what God wants us to do.<br><br>
If you’re a Christian, then is this what’s happening in your life, even in these lockdown days? Are you working out your salvation, as you seek to grow to be more like Jesus, as you pray and read the Bible and figure out what it means to be a Christian - knowing that as you work at it, God is also working in you?<br><br>
Perhaps as you look back over the past year, or five years, you can see how God has been at work in your life; the progress that you’ve made; the ways in which you have grown. Be encouraged - and keep going, because God hasn’t finished with us yet!<br><br>
We’re to work out our salvation as God is working in us. In verse 14, Paul tells us what it should look like: ‘Do everything without complaining or arguing.’ No complaining and no arguing. That sounds like a challenge, doesn’t it? We’re so used to complaining, and ready for a big argument, but there’s no wiggle room here, there are no exceptions in what Paul says. <br><br>
So why does he say that? ‘Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life...’<br><br>
Not complaining and arguing will make us blameless and pure, children of God without fault. Can you imagine how different things would be? How different we would be to everyone around us? Paul says that we would be ‘without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe...’<br><br>
When was the last time you looked up at the stars? They’re always up there, but when do you see them? You see them at night, when it’s dark, and they shine out against the darkness. And that’s how we’re to be as well - shining like stars in the universe, lights in a dark place, different to the rest of society.<br><br>
Between social media and everyday interaction, it seems that our culture’s native language is complaint and argument. But we can shine in the darkness if we’re different, if we don’t take part in it all. And what makes the difference?<br><br>
Listen to the verse again: ‘children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life...’<br><br>
Rather than putting out words of complaint or argument, we hold out different words - the word of life. What is the word of life? It’s the gospel, the good news about Jesus, in which we find life. Now, the footnote suggests that the phrase is either ‘hold out the word of life’ or ‘hold on to the word of life’ - but either way, it’s what sets us apart, and will affect all our other words.<br><br>
As we hold out the word of life, perhaps others will see and hear, and take hold of it themselves. Isn’t that our desire, that others would find the life and peace that we have found? <br><br>
That’s what drove Paul to go to Philippi in the first place; and it’s what continued to motivate him even in his prison cell. As the Philippians worked out their salvation, and lived it out in their words and ways, then Paul would know that he hadn’t run or laboured for nothing. He wanted to see more Christians live in this way, so that more people would become Christians, and would live in this way so that more people would become Christians.<br><br>
Will we give our lives to this? Will we commit to continue to work out our salvation, as we hold out the word of life, so that others will share in this great gift of salvation? It won’t be easy, it will be sacrificial, and yet it will all be worth it. However far along the path you are, there’s still more to work out, more ways to grow, but take heart - God hasn’t finished with you yet, so shine for him!<br><br>
Let’s pray: <br>Father,<br>
thank you that you’re at work in our lives.<br>
Help us to shine for you,<br>
as we hold out your word of life,<br>
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-57863814681805241822020-05-24T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T16:00:49.421+00:00Sermon: Philippians 2: 1-11 Rejoicing in Unity Through Humility<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s1880/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1576" data-original-width="1880" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG"/></a></div>
One of the key messages throughout this period of lockdown has been the reminder that ‘We’re in this together.’ It’s why we’ve been following the guidance as best we can - not only to protect ourselves, but also to protect other people. If we all started doing our own thing, then the risk would be greater for everyone. And so we play our part in order to help and protect everyone else. We act for the good of others.<br><br>
In our reading today, we discover that this attitude isn’t just for periods of pandemic though - this is the way Christians should always live. The life of a Christian will be a life of humility, as we follow the Lord Jesus together.<br><br>
We’re now in the main section of the letter, where - as we saw lat week - Paul is urging the Philippians to ‘stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel.’ It’s the image of Roman soldiers locking shields together; or the rugby scrum pushing together.<br><br>
But how do we actually do this, in the local church? How do we stand firm together? Perhaps you’ve heard the little saying:<br><br>
‘Living above with the saints we love,
Oh that will be glory.
Living below with the saints we know,
now that’s a different story.’<br><br>
So how do we live below with the saints we know, as we stand firm together? Well, first of all, Paul reminds us of all that we already have in common together. In verse 1, he makes four ‘if’ statements. He says: ‘If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then...’<br><br>
He invites them to work through this checklist. And I invite you to do the same! These are some of the benefits and blessings that come from being a Christian. If you’re not a Christian, we’re glad that you’re listening in - and these could be yours if you turn to Jesus and trust in him for yourself. So here’s the checklist:<br><br>
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ - yes; <br>if any comfort from his love - yes; <br>if any fellowship with the Spirit - yes; <br>if any tenderness and compassion - yes; <br>all the Christians say yes, yes, yes, yes - full house! These are the benefits and blessings we have - together - as Christians. Have you realised what all you have received as you’ve trusted in Jesus? So what now?<br><br>
If you have (all these, and you do) then... ‘make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.’ (2) Just as we share in all the blessings together, so we are to share in this unity of mind, of love, of spirit and purpose together.<br><br>
But how do we do that? Paul tells us in verses 3-4: ‘Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.’<br><br>
Not selfish ambition, but humility. Not your own interests only, but also the interests of others. In other words, we’re not to be about ‘me first’ but rather about ‘you first’. We’ve already seen an example of selfish ambition in Philippians - do you remember the people who were preaching Christ out of envy and rivalry, trying to stir up trouble for Paul? They were doing so, 1:17 ‘out of selfish ambition.’<br><br>
And I’m sure you can think of ways in which this type of behaviour can happen. But rather than climbing over other people, using them to further our own desires and interests, we’re to lift them up, and look out for their interests too.<br><br>
This was something that the Philippians had to work at, because they weren’t already doing it. This unity through humility doesn’t come naturally - it can only come supernaturally, as the Spirit is at work in our lives. But if the Philippians were to be united through their humility, then it would make Paul’s joy complete. And that word joy is a helpful reminder of our priorities when we live out this united through humility church life - J O Y - Jesus, Others, Yourself.<br><br>
Up to now, Paul has reminded the Philippians of all they have already received - the If; and urged them to live out this unity through humility - the Then. But now, in the closing verses of our reading, he gives us the supreme motivation and the perfect example of this life of humility. <br><br>
They are words that are familiar to us, because we’ve been using them as our creed in recent weeks. They would probably have been words that were familiar to the Philippians - it’s thought that verses 6-11 are an early Christian hymn which Paul quotes. They set out what Jesus has done for us in achieving our salvation, but they are also an example for us to follow.<br><br>
‘Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross!’<br><br>
When you think of all that Jesus did for us, it’s all down, down, down. Someone suggested that it can be summarised as the crown, the crib and the cross. First, the crown - The Son of God, fully God, didn’t consider his divinity as something to be grasped, or exploited. He who set the stars in place, who was used to the worship of angels, left his place in heaven, and came down to earth. Why did he do it? Not for his own benefit, but for ours.<br><br>
He laid aside his crown, to be born and laid in the crib - made himself nothing, taking the nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. The Son of God took on our flesh - God with skin on - to become one of us. Can you imagine the depth of descent he made to come to this world? A few years back there was an interview with Prince Charles on TV. And he recalled how, when he was small, the Royal family would be on holiday in Scotland, and anonymously, they’d get a boat across to Northern Ireland, and drive to visit their friends at Baronscourt outside Strabane. No guards, no fanfare, just Prince Philip and the Queen and the family driving along like normal people. But that’s small compared to how Jesus became one of us.<br><br>
And even that wasn’t enough. He deserved to be served, but he came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. And that was the final downward step - even death on a cross! Why did he do it all? In order to save us, in order to bring us back to himself by taking our sins and bearing the punishment we deserved. He was the humble king who went down, down, down from crown to crib to cross.<br><br>
Because Jesus did all this, and lived the perfect life of humility, ‘Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’<br><br>
Having descended to the very bottom, God raised him to the very top, to heaven’s throne. The name of Jesus is above every other name - in honour and value and worth. And while now, you might hear his name used as a swear word, it will not be like that forever. One day, at the name of Jesus, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.<br><br>
If you’re a Christian today, you might have some of your friends or family wondering why you’d still bother tuning in to church. Why would you bother with all that, and with Jesus? But here we see just how precious the name of Jesus is to us - he who gave up all for us, how could we not give our all to follow him? He who humbly served us in order to save us - who lavishes his blessings on us - how could we not gladly serve him and follow in his footsteps - as we seek to learn his humility and stand firm with our brothers and sisters in Christ.<br><br>
If you’re not a Christian, then please look again at the Lord Jesus. He did it all for you. Perhaps you’ve been hurt by others, even by the church, by people seeking to take advantage of you and exploit you and use you for their own gain. Jesus is not like that. He is the humble king who gave himself for you. One day, you will bow before him and confess that he is Lord - why not do it today, willingly, gladly, joyfully?<br><br>
Jesus our Saviour is also our example, as he calls us to rejoice in unity through humility. I’m going to read the prayer I’m going to pray, and if you want to pray this too, then say it outwardly or inwardly with me the second time through. <br><br>
Lord Jesus,<br>
you have given yourself for me. <br>
I give myself to you,<br>
as I bow my knee to you,<br>
and confess that you are my Lord.<br>
Help me to follow you,<br>
and by your Spirit change me,<br>
to be more like you, my humble King. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-33256672987022485232020-05-17T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:56:26.603+00:00Sermon: Philippians 1: 18b-30 Rejoicing Whatever Happens<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s1880/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1576" data-original-width="1880" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG"/></a></div>
What does the future hold? We’ve been realising more and more in recent months, that none of us really knows what will happen tomorrow, or next week, or next month. Who would have imagined as 2020 started, that we would now find ourselves in lockdown, facing a global pandemic? <br><br>
Over the past week, the UK government and the Northern Ireland assembly have been releasing their plans for emerging from lockdown. Over a number of steps and stages, some sort of normality will return - provided there isn’t another surge or a second wave. It’s all dependent on how things turn out. But the Prime Minister or the Northern Ireland Executive are unsure themselves as to what’s going to happen next. <br><br>
Last week, we saw how Paul was rejoicing even in his lockdown in prison, because what had happened to him had really served to advance the gospel. Looking back over recent events, he could see how God was at work. Now, as he looks to the future, he’s not sure what’s going to happen. But he is ready for whatever happens, and he wants the Philippians to be ready for whatever happens as well. <br><br>
First of all, he addresses his own situation. Remember that he’s locked up, in prison, and he doesn’t know what’s going to happen next. He’s waiting to go on trial, and the outcomes will either be release or execution; life or death. So how does he feel about that?<br><br>
At the end of verse 18, he says that he will continue to rejoice. ‘For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.’ He’s confident that he is going to be released - the Philippians have been praying for it, and the Spirit is at work to bring it about. He will be delivered. This is what he thinks the future will hold - but remember that we can’t know for sure what tomorrow will bring. And so Paul is realistic. <br><br>
His aim isn’t for his own personal comfort. His aim is to glorify Jesus whatever happens: ‘I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.’ (20). Exalting Christ is his aim - and so he’s content to do that in his life and in his death.<br><br>
He sums it up in one little phrase, found in verse 21. But before we look at it together, how would you fill in the blanks: ‘To live is ... and to die is ...’ To live is great, or good, and to die is a tragedy, a loss? Here’s how Paul puts it: ‘For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.’<br><br>
This is the Christian hope, summed up in one short sentence. To live as a Christian is to live for Christ, to follow Christ, to be united with Christ, to be filled with Christ, and satisfied with Christ. It will mean ‘fruitful labour for me.’<br><br>
And yet, this life is not all there is. Because Jesus died and rose again, he has assured us that death is not the end, and that one day he will bring in the new heavens and the new earth. But between now and then, when a Christian dies, they have gained. Why’s that? ‘I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.’ (23)<br><br>
We feel the pain when our loved one dies. We see the empty chair, the empty place at the table. We miss having them with us. But they are with Christ, which is better by far! This is what gives us comfort when a Christian dies. And this is our hope as well - that when we die (in the Lord’s timing), we will be with Christ. <br><br>
It’s as if Paul is weighing up the two possibilities - life or death - as he waits to see what the Roman Empire will decide to do with him. He would rejoice in either option, whatever happens, and yet he’s convinced that it’s more necessary for these young Christians in Philippi that he remains, in order to encourage them, for their progress and joy in the faith, so that they’ll overflow with joy when they see each other again after his release.<br><br>
In these days of lockdown, as we’ve been careful to isolate or social distance, and as we watch the rising death toll, it brings back to us a sense of our own mortality. And even when a vaccine is produced, one day we’ll come to the end of our life, be it soon or many years from now. Do you have that hope which means that you can face the future whatever happens? Can you say those words: ‘For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.’ In Christ, we have a sure hope, whatever happens.<br><br>
But then, in the closing verses of our passage, Paul turns to the Philippians, and wants them to be ready for whatever happens as well. Here’s what he says: ‘Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.’ (27) Do you remember when you were going off on a school trip, and before you left, one of the teachers gave you the talk - today you’re representing the school in uniform, so make sure you conduct yourselves properly. Paul is saying that we’re to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel. <br><br>
We belong to Christ, we’ve been saved by his gospel, and so we should live in line with that gospel. And what will that look like? ‘Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.’ (27-28)<br><br>
Whatever happens, they are to ‘stand firm’. Paul here is beginning the major section of the letter. Later on, in 4:1, he’ll say this: ‘Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!’ So everything from the end of chapter 1 to the start of chapter 4 is all about standing firm, being immovable, standing your ground, on the rock of Christ and his gospel.<br><br>
And did you notice how they’re to do this? So often, we read the letters in the New Testament and apply them individually - so here’s something for me to do myself. But this is a letter to the Philippians together. And how do they stand firm? ‘Stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel...’ (27)<br><br>
Did you catch it? In one spirit, as one man. The image is of a Roman army unit, standing firm together, shields linked together, providing protection for each other. If one soldier moves ahead on their own, or holds back on their own, then the unit is in danger. Or think of the rugby scrum. Eight individual players, but they have to work together, standing firm together, pushing together. If they all decided to go their own way, the scrum would be overrun.<br><br>
That’s how we’re to be as well. Standing firm, together, in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel. Why? Because there is always opposition. But we’re not to be frightened by opposition - we have the sure hope that Jesus brings. But being a Christian, having this sure hope doesn’t mean that everything will be easy and straightforward. Trials come. Hardships come.<br><br>
As Paul says: ‘For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.’ (29-30).<br><br>
God has granted us faith in Jesus, and also the privilege of suffering for Jesus. It’s all part of the package of the Christian life. But he has also given us each other - to encourage one another and to stand firm together, in the good times and the hard times. Perhaps we might summarise this passage in this way: ‘Because we have a sure hope, we can stand firm whatever happens.’<br><br>
We continue to face uncertain days. We just don’t know what will happen. But whatever happens, we have each other in the church family, and we have the promise of life with Christ, both now and forever.<br><br>
I’m going to pray the Methodist Covenant prayer, normally used each January, as they place themselves in God’s hands for the coming year. Perhaps this is your prayer today, whatever may happen:<br><br><i>
I am no longer my own but yours.<br>Put me to what you will,<br>rank me with whom you will;<br>put me to doing,<br>put me to suffering;<br>let me be employed for you<br>or laid aside for you,<br>exalted for you<br>or brought low for you;<br>let me be full,<br>let me be empty,<br>let me have all things,<br>let me have nothing;<br>I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things<br>to your pleasure and disposal.<br><br>
Glorious and blessed God,<br>Father, Son and Holy Spirit,<br>you are mine and I am yours.<br>So be it.<br>And this covenant now made on earth,<br>let it be ratified in heaven.Amen.</i>
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-48378441343996997062020-05-10T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:51:47.091+00:00Sermon: Philippians 1: 12-18a Rejoicing Even in Lockdown<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s1880/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1576" data-original-width="1880" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqQ/Q-nRtcf7NrwjNOsVA09wZouPZLP24pKsACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG"/></a></div>
Imagine for a moment that you’re a member of the church in Philippi. And one day, you hear word of the apostle Paul, the guy who planted your church. And the word is this: Paul is in prison in Rome.<br><br>
How would you react to that news? What would be your initial response? You would probably be concerned for him, sad that he has been locked up; and would want to help in some way. And that’s what the church in Philippi had done. They had gathered up some money and sent Epaphroditus to bring it to Paul to supply some of his needs while in prison. (And this letter is his letter of thanks in response to their generosity).<br><br>
I think we’d all conclude that Paul being locked up is a bad thing. We might question God’s goodness and protection, in allowing Paul to go through such hardship. We might be frustrated that he isn’t able to travel on more mission trips to plant more churches. We would definitely think that lockdown is entirely bad. Perhaps we’ve come to a similar conclusion about our own lockdown over these past seven weeks or so.<br><br>
And yet Paul sees things differently. Yes, he’s still in prison, and yes, he’s still enduring lockdown, but he himself isn’t down about it. Instead, he’s rejoicing even in lockdown. How could this be?<br><br>
Well, perhaps you’ve seen some of the posts going around on social media inviting us to think differently about our situation in these difficult days. So, rather than saying to yourself that you’re stuck at home, you should say to yourself that you are safe at home. Well, in a similar way, Paul invites us to view his lockdown from a different perspective.<br><br>
In another of his letters from lockdown, Paul writes this: ‘This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained.’ (2 Tim 2:8-9) And that’s what Paul was seeing from his prison cell.<br><br>
He writes in verse 12: ‘Now i want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.’<br><br>
Paul’s priority is the gospel - and advancing the good news of Jesus to people who need to hear it. But how could that be if he’s sitting in prison? If he can’t go anywhere, how can the gospel advance? As it turned out, Paul the captive had a captive audience.<br><br>
You see, a guard came on duty to watch over Paul, maybe even chained to him, and so Paul starts talking to him. The guard can’t go anywhere, so he might as well talk to pass the time. And what do you think Paul will talk to him about? You’ve guessed it - Jesus! And when that guard’s time has finished and a new one comes on duty, what do you think Paul will talk to him about? You’ve guessed it - Jesus! And so the guards start to talk, and word spreads about Paul, the prisoner in chains for Christ. Verse 13: ‘As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.’<br><br>
How else would these tough Roman soldiers have heard about Jesus? And yet Paul sees the possibilities and opportunities that arise because he is in that very situation. What has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. So what are the possibilities and opportunities that have opened up for us when so many things have closed down? Who are the people that you are coming in contact with these days? How might you share the gospel this week?<br><br>
Paul’s immediate circumstances have opened up a new mission field within the prison, and he was ready to take those opportunities. But the gospel was advancing outside the prison walls as well as inside. And Paul tells us about that in verse 14: ‘Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly.’ (14)<br><br>
Outside the prison, the Christians in Rome were now speaking the word of God. They were saying to themselves - if Paul’s in prison, then who’s going to share the gospel? If he can’t do it, then someone else is going to have to - so why not me? And sure, what’s the worst that could happen? You’d be arrested and end up in prison with Paul! <br><br>
And do you see how they were doing it? ‘More courageously and fearlessly.’ They were being bold in taking opportunities to speak up. Back in verse 13 it was clear to the whole palace guard and to everyone else why Paul was in prison. So perhaps in the city, people were talking about this prisoner. And a Christian is asked by his neighbour if he’s heard of this guy Paul. Why is he in prison? And the Christian begins to talk about Paul - and about Jesus, the reason he’s in prison. <br><br>
Now, Paul is realistic in verses 15-17. The brothers are speaking out, but sometimes their motives are suspect. He says: ‘It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.’ (15) So the second group - the goodwill motive people, they speak up out of love, wanting to share the gospel while Paul can’t; wanting to encourage him while he’s behind bars. <br><br>
But the first group - the envy and rivalry people - they ‘preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.’ (17) For whatever reason, they want to make life even more difficult for Paul. Maybe they see a vacancy in church leadership, and see themselves filling it - thinking themselves a better preacher than Paul. Maybe they don’t like Paul, and want him out of the way for a long time. They’re characterised by selfish ambition. <br><br>
With such motives, you would think that Paul would be against them, if they’re stirring up trouble for him. And yet, do you see how he responds? ‘But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.’<br><br>
Their behaviour and motives might hurt him, but he doesn’t dwell on that. His priority is the gospel, the good news of Jesus being shared. And so he focuses on that priority, and is glad that whatever the individual might be intending, Christ is being preached. In fact, he rejoices in this.<br><br>
Paul rejoices even in lockdown. His circumstances were most unpleasant; his freedoms were completely taken away; it sounds like a total disaster. And yet his perspective is focused on sharing the gospel. And so he says: ‘Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.’ (12)<br><br>
Can we echo those words, as we endure this lockdown in the middle of a pandemic? What is happening to us has really served to advance the gospel?<br><br>
Our church buildings have closed for services. Yet via Facebook and YouTube and DVD, God’s word is coming into your homes, and reaching more people than would fit into St Matthew’s for one service. And this week Tearfund published a poll which reported that 24% of UK adults have watched or listened to a religious service since lockdown; and 5% of them have never gone to church. <br><br>
Maybe you’ve found that you’ve got more time to read, and pray, and grow as a Christian. Time to send a text, or write a letter or email, or call someone. And maybe you’re finding that people are more open to thinking about life and death and everything in these days. Maybe you’ve been helping a neighbour to get groceries and prescriptions, and there are openings to chat about why you’re so friendly, and why you have hope in the midst of such despair.<br><br>
Let’s not miss the opportunities that God is providing in these days - so that we share in Paul’s priority of sharing the gospel with whoever he comes in contact, even in his prison cell. May it be that when this lockdown comes to an end, we can look back and say: ‘What has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.’<br><br>
Let’s pray:<br>
Father,<br>
we pray that your gospel would advance,<br>
and many will come to know you<br>
even in these lockdown days,<br>
for we ask it in Jesus’ precious name. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-76650648785671487272020-05-03T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:48:35.691+00:00Sermon: Philippians 1: 1-11 Rejoicing in Gospel Partnership<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqM/6V2Q3_ZEsE0NLBYDwpNN6zDKp1-htkCOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1880/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1576" data-original-width="1880" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xC6Lc1oGfbQ/X-tPTZNfTxI/AAAAAAAACqM/6V2Q3_ZEsE0NLBYDwpNN6zDKp1-htkCOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Philippians%2Bsermon%2Bseries%2Bimage.PNG"/></a></div>
So how are you coping with life in lockdown? Perhaps you’ve been able to find some positives in our current circumstances - more time at home with family; more time to get some things done that you’d been putting off; more time to read and pray. But for many of us, I suspect, this lockdown has been hard to bear - not being able to go the places you want; not being able to do the things you want; not being able to be with the people you want. <br><br>
The apostle Paul knew what it was to be in lockdown, quite literally. Paul’s movement is completely restricted, because he is writing from prison, probably in Rome. And yet, as you read this letter to the Philippians, you wouldn’t think that he was in prison. We’ll see over the coming weeks how this letter is bursting with joy and rejoicing - in the midst of lockdown. <br><br>
So how could this be? How is it that Paul is so full of joy and rejoicing when he’s locked up in a Roman prison cell? Could it be that we can also share in his joy, in the midst of our own lockdown? That’s hopefully what we’ll discover as we study this letter together.<br><br>
As we begin to dive into the letter, it might be helpful to know that this is a thank you letter. You know the way you might write a thank you note for your Christmas presents, or your wedding presents? Paul is writing to say thank you to the church in Philippi for a gift to supply his needs while in prison. He is using the technology at hand - paper and ink - to encourage and bless his fellow Christians. And he does this as he rejoices in gospel partnership.<br><br>
First of all, we see that there is thankfulness for gospel partnership. We come across that idea in verse 5, where Paul says that he prays with joy for them, ‘because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.’ It had been Paul who had arrived in the city of Philippi, bringing the good news of the gospel. You can read about it in Acts 16. And from that very first day, Lydia and the city jailer and his family, and the rest of the believers, had become partners in the gospel.<br><br>
They joined with Paul in the work of the gospel. The word partnership here is also translated ‘fellowship’. And if you’ve sat through the very long Lord of the Rings movies or read the book, then you’ll know that the first film is called ‘The Fellowship of the Ring.’ An assortment of men, dwarves, elves, and hobbits united in a common purpose.<br><br>
The Philippians were partners in the gospel - they were united with Paul and other believers in the common purpose of sharing the good news of the gospel. They were committed to the gospel, and for this Paul rejoices.<br><br>
Now, I’ve said that this is a thank you letter, but did you notice who Paul thanks in verse 3? He says this: ‘I thank my God every time I remember you...’ He’s thankful for the Philippians and their partnership, but he says thank you to God for them. <br><br>
He thanks God for them, but also lets them know. God is the giver of all good gifts, and so should be thanked - but how encouraging for the Philippians to know that Paul is thankful for them. Who is it that you’re thankful for? How might you let them know that you’re thanking God for them?<br><br>
Paul is thankful for gospel partnership. And he is thankful that God always finishes what he starts. Maybe you’re a bit like me - you enthusiastically start a project, and you get so far, but then you set it down and think ‘I’ll get back to that later’. And maybe you’ve been finding all sorts of half-finished projects as you potter about the house. God is not like that! <br><br>
Rather, God is like Magnus Magnusson or John Humphrys on Mastermind - God always says: ‘I’ve started, so I’ll finish.’<br><br>
You see, the Philippians’ partnership in the gospel shows that God is at work in their lives, because only God can turn us around through the gospel. And what God has started, from the first day until now, he will finish: ‘Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.’ (6)<br><br>
How encouraging to know that when God starts working in our lives he will complete it. It brought Paul joy and made him thankful. What about you?<br><br>
There is thankfulness for gospel partnership. But there is also a depth of feeling in gospel partnership. Paul was feeling it in his lockdown, and perhaps we’re feeling it more and more when we can’t meet together the way we would like.<br><br>
Paul speaks of having the Philippians in his heart, and how ‘God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.’ (8) There’s a special bond that we have in the church family. Sometimes you see partnerships that come together in business. But that’s all it is - a business working relationship. You come together with the team, you get the job done, and it doesn’t really matter if you like the other team members. It might be easier, but it doesn’t matter, so long as you deliver the end result and get the sales and make a profit.<br><br>
But it’s not like that in the church. Gospel partnership isn’t just about getting the gospel out - it’s personal; relational; affectionate. And we’ve been missing that as we’ve been moved online. It’s just not the same. I’m longing to see you all again, and to be together again - and I hope you feel the same way.<br><br>
And what is that special bond in the church family? Paul tells us in verse 7: ‘It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.’ We share in God’s grace together. The grace that gives us what we don’t deserve; the grace that sustains us; the grace that causes God’s love to overflow for one another. <br><br>
Could it be that God is reminding us of what we’ve maybe taken for granted? And even these online videos and zoom prayer meetings are growing in us a deeper affection for one another, and a greater desire to be together again in gospel partnership, and a greater appreciation of God’s grace to us and in us?<br><br>
Gospel partners give thanks to God for his work in their lives; and gospel partners care deeply for one another as they share in God’s grace. Finally, gospel partners pray for one another. <br><br>
Now, sometimes our prayers can remain in very general categories. Maybe you were taught to pray something like this: ‘God bless mummy and God bless daddy and God bless the cat.’ Those are good prayers, and God will answer them! But how about praying more specifically for people - into particular needs; or for particular and specific results.<br><br>
Here’s how Paul prays for the Philippians: ‘that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight...’ He prays that their love will grow - love for God, and love for one another; that their love will grow as they grow in knowledge and depth of insight - as they get to know God better and better understand God’s ways. Now, why does he pray this?<br><br>
‘...so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God.’ (10-11)<br><br>
The growth in knowledge isn’t so that the Philippians can apply to go on Mastermind with a particular specialist subject and a wide-ranging general knowledge. No, it’s a growth in knowledge so that they will know what is best, and then do it. As they grow in love for God and knowledge of God, they will know what he loves, and love what he loves, and do what he loves, because they want to become more like Jesus. And as we do that, Jesus grows the fruit of his righteousness in us - for God’s glory and praise.<br><br>
That’s what Paul was praying for his gospel partners, the people he was thankful for, the people he longed for with deep affection. Could it be that we need to be praying these same things, as we share in the gospel together?<br><br>
Can you imagine how things would change as our love abounds more and more, as we pray for one another, and long for one another, and thank God for one another as we share in his grace, and are united as partners in the gospel - and God brings to completion the good work he has begun in us, to his praise and glory. Amen!
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-4193089790737829822020-04-26T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:39:43.309+00:00Sermon: The Emmaus Road (Luke 24: 13-35)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqE/axNI-sFostIX36Ks15i9I00WerT_iJxzgCPcBGAYYCw/s1024/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqE/axNI-sFostIX36Ks15i9I00WerT_iJxzgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg"/></a></div>
This morning, I wonder if you’ll come for a walk with me. It’s maybe a road that you know well, one you’ve walked many’s a time before. It’s the road to Emmaus, a road paved with confusion and disappointment. It might be the road you walk every day on your one permitted exercise. But even if you’re staying inside, you can still be walking on this road.<br><br>
All those dashed hopes and disappointments piling up, overwhelming you - the plans you had made, whether it’s a mission trip, or a holiday, or your wedding, and the date comes and it’s not happening as you had hoped. You expected to be in one place, on top of the world, but instead you’re in the doldrums. And it’s confusing, and it’s hurtful.<br><br>
As you walk along the road to Emmaus, you’re in good company. You see, we imagine how great it would have been to be among the first of Jesus’ disciples. Imagine being there as he performed those miracles; and to hear his teaching; and to be there on that first Easter day. And yet here we find two of the disciples, who had been there in Jerusalem on that first Easter day, and they’re heading home, away from the action.<br><br>
They were in Jerusalem, they had heard the tomb was empty, they had heard that Jesus was alive, they had heard the good news, but you wouldn’t think it. They trudge home; hopes crushed; dreams fading; they’re confused, hurt, and lost. They talk it out, but they fail to understand.<br><br>
But as they walk, they’re joined by a stranger - or at least, they think he’s a stranger. They were kept from recognising him. They don’t know who he is. But he wants to know what they’re talking about.<br><br>
They stop, downcast, and can’t get over the fact that someone who had been in Jerusalem wouldn’t have heard about what had happened. Has he been living under a rock? Well, not quite - he’s been behind the rock, in the tomb, which is now empty, but he just asks, ‘What things?’<br><br>
Here’s what: They know the full facts - Jesus of Nazareth, a powerful prophet, who was crucified. And it’s there that their hope died with Jesus: ‘We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.’<br><br>
They expected Jesus to redeem Israel by being a kick out the Romans kind of conquering king Christ. Instead, he had been killed by the Romans and it seemed that the Jesus story was finished. Their hope certainly was.<br><br>
And now, they’re more confused. You see, they know about the empty tomb; they have heard the message of the angels; they’ve heard that the tomb is definitely empty, but that their friends haven’t seen Jesus. (And they say this to Jesus!)<br><br>
Have you been walking the Emmaus road? Dealing with disappointments? Any disappointment is hard to come to terms with, but it’s surely even more disappointing when it comes to God. You trust him, and then something happens you didn’t expect, and you wonder what’s going on. And so you set out for Emmaus, you decide to give up and go home. <br><br>
Now, if you were Jesus, what would you do at this point? If it was me, I would have said, look, it’s fine, it’s me, I’m here, it’s all ok. But God’s ways are not our ways. And Jesus meets them in their confusion and disappointment, and helps them to see him in two ways:<br><br>
First of all, they see Jesus in the Scriptures. Jesus says that they are foolish, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. He asks the question that we heard earlier: ‘Did not the Christ have to suffer all these things and then enter his glory?’<br><br>
Suffering and then glory. The path was laid out in advance. And so Jesus helps them to grasp it: ‘And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.’<br><br>
Can you imagine that? A Bible study led by Jesus?! As he talks about the promise of the serpent-crusher in Genesis 3, and the Passover Lamb in Exodus 12, and the Scapegoat in Leviticus 16, and the bronze serpent lifted up in the wilderness in Numbers 21, and the prophet like Moses in Deuteronomy 18, and the suffering servant of Isaiah 53, and the sign of Jonah, and the promise of resurrection in Psalm 16, and so much more!<br><br>
God had promised beforehand that it would be like this - so the wheels hadn’t come off the bus. They just had to see Jesus in the scriptures, all pointing to him and his mission to truly redeem Israel - not by military might, but as the crucified Christ. <br><br>
And as he did so, their hearts burned within them. It wasn’t that they were having heartburn, that they needed Gaviscon, because of something they ate. No, their hearts were burning within them, as they grasped God’s word and God’s purpose - as they heard God speaking to them through the Scriptures, and they saw Jesus in the scriptures.<br><br>
But then, they see Jesus with them. It’s getting late, and they’re coming into Emmaus, and home beckons. And they insist the stranger stops with them. <br><br>
And as they sit down to eat, suddenly the guest acts like he’s the host. ‘He took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.’ And suddenly, the stranger’s actions are very familiar. It’s what he had done at the feeding of the five thousand; and it’s what he had done at the Last Supper - took, gave thanks, broke, gave. And in that moment, they recognise him; they seem him; and he disappears from their sight.<br><br>
And suddenly, those downcast, disappointed, confused disciples are transformed! They quickly set out, back along the same road, but the road from Emmaus is one of joy, as they rush to share the good news that Jesus is alive!<br><br>
Are you walking on the Emmaus road today? In these days, when things don’t go the way we planned, when we fail to understand what God is doing, when we think all is a disaster, we need to see Jesus. To see Jesus in the scriptures - to see what God has promised (and what he hasn’t promised!); and to know that Jesus is with us, even if we can’t see him right now.<br><br>
As you walk the Emmaus road, look for Jesus - in his word, and in his presence with you. <br><br>
Lord Jesus, <br>may we know your presence with us, <br>today, and always. Amen.Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-25929282348128154362020-04-19T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:36:08.845+00:00Sermon: John 20: 19-31 Evidence for Easter<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqE/axNI-sFostIX36Ks15i9I00WerT_iJxzgCPcBGAYYCw/s1024/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqE/axNI-sFostIX36Ks15i9I00WerT_iJxzgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg"/></a></div>
What would it take to convince you that Jesus is alive? What sort of proof would you need? <br><br>
Perhaps you think that even that question is ridiculous. You’re not sure that Jesus even existed in the first place, and so to even try to prove that he is alive is beyond the bounds of possibility. Or perhaps you reckon that people who think Jesus is alive are like the people who try to claim that Elvis is alive. <br><br>
There couldn’t possibly be any evidence, any proof. To believe that Jesus is alive, and to believe in Christianity is to take a leap in the dark, to summon up some blind faith in order to believe no matter what the facts might say. As Richard Dawkins once said:<br><br>
‘Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence.’<br><br>
Is that true? As we normally gather here in this church building, and as we gather digitally this morning, have we turned our brains off? Are we believing in Jesus no matter what evidence may or may not exist? On first reading, it even appears as if that kind of ‘don’t think about it, just believe’ attitude is being endorsed and encouraged in John 20. Taken by itself, it might sound as if ignorance is bliss: ‘blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’<br><br>
Out of context, it sounds as if you have to just accept everything, no matter how strange it might appear, no questions asked. You haven’t seen it for yourself, but you’ll be blessed if you just believe it anyway. And maybe you’ve been accused of that kind of faith by a family member or a friend, or maybe someone in work. So they’ll say - you show me God, and I’ll believe. If I just see God, then I’ll believe.<br><br>
So have we turned our brains off? Are we naive? Gullible? Unthinking? Not at all! Christianity is based on the historical fact that Jesus, who was crucified, has been raised to life again, resurrected. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15, ‘If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins... we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead...’ (1 Cor 15:17,19,20)<br><br>
So how can we be sure that Jesus really is alive? Last week, we looked at the empty tomb. Today, we find even more evidence that Jesus really is alive. We see that evidence in the disciples of Jesus, and in particular one of the disciples, known by the name doubting Thomas. We’ll come to him in a second, but consider first the disciples generally.<br><br>
Look at how they were personally transformed. As our reading begins in verse 19, they are in lockdown. They’re together in one place, and the doors are locked for fear of the Jews. Perhaps they thought that they would be next, as the leaders moved against the followers of Jesus. And so they are fearful. <br><br>
By verse 20, they are overjoyed. So what brought about the transformation? It wasn’t that they were having what we would call a wake, and they were just sitting around, telling stories of Jesus, remembering what he was like, and then they had a fuzzy feeling of remembrance, and they felt that he was with them in spirit. No, they were transformed because Jesus himself was standing in the room with them - physically, bodily. <br><br>
It’s not that Jesus lives on in our memory, or lives on in our hearts. It’s that Jesus is alive, raised body and soul, in the room with them. He speaks the word of peace: ‘Peace be with you’ and shows them the price of that peace - showing them his hands and side - the wounds of love. The fearful disciples are now overjoyed.<br><br>
They are also now sent. As Jesus was sent by the Father, so he now sends the disciples out into the world with the news of God’s peace, the forgiveness brought about through the death and resurrection of Jesus.<br><br>
The resurrection changed the disciples from weak, fearful men into world-changers who gladly died for the truth that they staked their lives on - that Jesus was alive. As Charles Colson, who was imprisoned for his part in the Watergate scandal in American politics in 1972, said:<br><br>
‘I know the resurrection is a fact, and Watergate proved it to me. How? Because 12 men testified they had seen Jesus raised from the dead, then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Every one was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would not have endured that if it weren’t true. Watergate embroiled 12 of the most powerful men in the world - and they couldn’t keep a lie for three weeks. You’re telling me 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible.’<br><br>
Now, think about Thomas. He had missed that original meeting with Jesus. And he wouldn’t believe what the other disciples told him about seeing Jesus alive. He knew them, and yet he wanted proof; solid evidence for himself: ‘Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.’<br><br>
Can you imagine that whole week? The others trying to convince him: ‘We have seen the Lord!’ But it wasn’t enough for him, doubting Thomas.<br><br>
One week later, today, in fact, the disciples were together, and Thomas was there too. And once again, despite the locked doors, Jesus showed up. He greets them with the word of peace, but then turns directly to Thomas, and offers to him every one of his criteria for believing that Jesus was alive: ‘Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.’<br><br>
Now, we’re not told that Thomas did any of those things. He didn’t need to. Now he saw Jesus, face to face, resurrected, alive, and he exclaims. ‘My Lord and my God!’ His standard of evidence had been met, and he was sure, beyond all doubt, that Jesus is alive.<br><br>
And it’s here that Jesus says those words about seeing and believing. Do you see how they fit in context: ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’<br><br>
It took Thomas to see and then believe. But there is a blessing for those who haven’t seen and yet have believed. Now Jesus isn’t saying that you’re blessed if you turn off your brain and just accept it unthinkingly. He’s saying that we believe based on the evidence of the eyewitnesses - the testimony of the disciples who have seen and were sent. We can examine the evidence, and think hard about its reliability, and be sure that it is the truth. And as we do so, we are blessed.<br><br>
And what is the blessing? It’s having life in Jesus’ name. The risen Lord Jesus shares his risen life with us, and assures us of life with him for all eternity.<br><br>
It’s the reason that John wrote his gospel. He tells us at the end of our reading that he could have written about loads of other things that Jesus did. There was no shortage of source material. But he has written these signs down so that ‘you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.’<br><br>
The evidence is here, in John’s gospel. if you aren’t a Christian, then why not sit down and read through John’s gospel some time? Maybe you’re feeling bored during the lockdown, looking for something to do. Read through it in a couple of hours. Examine the evidence and see if you could be persuaded to believe in Jesus. <br><br>
If you are a Christian, then don’t stop thinking! Keep on reading, and examining the evidence, and rejoicing in the good news that Jesus is alive, that he can be trusted, that it is life-transforming. There is joy to be found, and peace, and blessing, as we believe in Jesus. And don’t be shy in sharing that good news with your friends and family.<br><br>
Let’s pray: <br>Father we thank you that Jesus is alive,<br>
and brings peace, and joy, and blessing.<br>
Help us to believe in him<br>
as we examine the evidence<br>
and listen to your word. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-26299806963987520892020-04-12T12:30:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:31:35.833+00:00Sermon: Matthew 28: 1-10 Come and See, Go and Tell<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqA/1KU3w1wtfBcBw-7hIpP2yqmgylePXNwTgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uazG--1YIAA/X-tLWYiJ36I/AAAAAAAACqA/1KU3w1wtfBcBw-7hIpP2yqmgylePXNwTgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/TOMB%2BAND%2BCROSSES.jpg"/></a></div>
Have you ever said something a bit like this: ‘Come here till you see this! Maybe something’s happening outside, and you want the other people in your house to see what’s happening. The other week, there were two people out for a dander round in Richhill in their inflatable fancy dress dinosaur suits - and someone took pictures to put it on Facebook, so everyone could see what was happening! <br><br>
Come and see. That’s what Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were told to do by the angel in our reading today. There was something special, something vitally important to look at and to take in, and so they had to come and see. Come here till you see this!<br><br>
And what was it they were to come and see? It was the empty tomb. This wasn’t what they were expecting to see as they made their way to the tomb at dawn that first Easter Day.<br><br>
You see, they had been there on Friday afternoon. They had watched as Jesus had died on the cross; they had seen where Joseph of Arimathea had placed Jesus’ body; they had seen where the stone was rolled in front of the entrance. They had seen all that happening on Friday. So now, after the Sabbath rest, they retrace their steps. ‘To look at the tomb’ as Matthew tells us.<br><br>
They just wanted to see where Jesus was laid to rest. Perhaps you’ve been feeling the pain of not being able to visit a loved one’s grave this Easter, due to the current restrictions. What the women saw that day at that tomb brings hope and comfort. So what did they see?<br><br>
‘There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. HIs appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.’ (2-4)<br><br>
What a lot to see, and to take in! They saw (and felt) the earth shake under their feet. They saw this angel of the Lord, all brightness and fearsome, rolling back the stone and using it as a seat. And they saw the guards lying on the ground in fear.<br><br>
The guards were there because the chief priests and Pharisees had remembered what Jesus had said - ‘After three days I will rise again.’ And so, to make sure that the disciples couldn’t steal the body and pretend that Jesus had risen, a guard was sent to the tomb, to seal it and guard it. But the guards proved useless against a risen Jesus and an angel of the Lord. They are afraid, and become like dead men; whereas the dead man they are guarding is alive!<br><br>
It turns out that religious leaders had listened more carefully to Jesus than the disciples. The religious leaders knew that Jesus had said something about rising on the third day. But the disciples hadn’t remembered that at all. And so the women weren’t there to witness the resurrection - they were there to see the tomb.<br><br>
While the guards are afraid, the angel speaks to the women and says this: ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.’<br><br>
Jesus who was crucified has now risen. And they are told to come and see the empty tomb, the place where he lay. This is the very heart of the Christian faith. It stands and falls on the empty tomb. And we can be sure and certain that this is historical fact. The two Marys came and saw where Jesus had lay, which was now empty.<br><br>
Come and see the place where he lay. The women provide the eyewitness testimony. They have seen that the tomb is empty. And that’s important. And it’s great. But it’s not enough.<br><br>
You see, the angel has something more for the women to do. Having came and seen, the women have to do something else as well: ‘Then go quickly and tell his disciples: “He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.” Now I have told you.’<br><br>
Having witnessed the fact of the empty tomb, they now have to go and tell. They are sent to tell the disciples - the followers of Jesus, who are now locked in their homes, afraid to leave the house. they have good news to share - the best news ever - that Jesus is alive.<br><br>
The disciples will in turn be sent to tell that news to the whole world, as they’re sent to preach the gospel in the Great Commission at the end of Matthew 28. And that news will turn the world upside down.<br><br>
Because Jesus is alive, death is not the end. All who trust in him will live with him in his new heavens and new earth. So while we mourn the loss of loved ones; and while we feel the pain of not being able to visit their graves, we have this assurance, that we will see them again, and live with them again. <br><br>
Because Jesus is alive, we have hope. Real hope. Not the wishful thinking kind of hope, but the rock solid absolutely certain hope that Jesus will raise us to live with him. It’s a message that the disciples needed to hear. It’s a message that we need to hear. It’s a message that the world needs to hear.<br><br>
While we’re social distancing this Easter, and maybe even self-isolating, we do not need to be afraid. We can come and see the empty tomb, and go and tell the news. So who could you tell? <br><br>
Let’s pray.<br>
Father,<br>
we thank you that the tomb is empty<br>
and Jesus is alive.<br>
Help us to come and see, and be sure of the message,<br>
and help us to go and tell, as we share this great good news.<br>
Show us who we can tell, and how we can tell them,<br>
for we ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-30957771515576787652020-04-10T20:00:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:25:58.147+00:00Cross Words 7 - Peace (Luke 23:46)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1128/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="1128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg"/></a></div>
My first year at secondary school was a shock to the system. You see, my school was known as a rugby playing school. For something like ten years in a row, Dromore High had won the High Schools’ Cup. So while I wanted to be playing football, we all had a crash course in the basics of rugby - drill after drill of throwing and catching the ball. <br><br>
Mr McAleese, our PE teacher would tell us why these drills were so important, even if we never played a minute of competitive rugby. “You’ll want to be able to catch whatever is thrown at you. You want to know that you have good hands.”<br><br>
I never became a rugby player, and I might not be great at throwing and catching, but I never forgot that line about having good hands. Others talk about a safe pair of hands.<br><br>
Just before Jesus died on the cross, he uttered one last word, which speaks of peace and safety and security, because he was placing his spirit in the best of all hands. Jesus said: ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’<br><br>
Jesus is quoting from another Psalm of David - this time from Psalm 31 verse 5. David was affirming his trust in the midst of trouble. And Jesus takes those words on his lips as he affirms his trust in his Father as he comes to the end of his life, and completes his saving work on the cross.<br><br>
Jesus is placing himself in his Father’s hands. For a while, he had been given over to the hands of wicked men, who pursued their evil plot to crucify him. As far back as Luke chapter 9, once the disciples have realised that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, God’s promised king - Jesus tells them ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.’ (Lk 9:44). And in Luke 24, as the angels explain to the women about the empty tomb, they remind them of what Jesus had told them: ‘Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and on the third day be raised again.’ (Lk 24:6-7)<br><br>
Jesus had been delivered into the hands of sinful men. Indeed, he had chosen to surrender himself into their hands, to do all they wanted to do, to beat, and flog, and mock, and crucify. In their wicked hands, he was mistreated, and killed. They had done all that they wanted, and got rid of Jesus.<br><br>
We would have done the same. How often we want to use Jesus for our own desires; to abuse him; and have him serve our plans. Our hands would have been just as ready to crucify the Lord of glory. Our hands are just as guilty, we are caught red-handed with Jesus’ blood on our hands.<br><br>
But, having suffered all that men desired to inflict on him, and fulfilled the rescue plan, Jesus commits himself into his Father’s hands. The safest pair of hands in the whole universe.<br><br>
Just after he says these words, he breathes his last, and dies. Yet Jesus shows us that, while his body is taken down from the cross, and buried in the tomb; his spirit is in God’s care and keeping. Now, it’s not that the body is worthless and it’s only our spirit or soul that really matters, and it’s just longing to get free of this bodily prison. No, far from it.<br><br>
Jesus’ spirit is in the Father’s hands, awaiting resurrection, when body and spirit and soul are reunited and raised. For Jesus, that will happen on the third day, early on Easter Sunday. But because Jesus has died on the cross, that’s also true of all who believe in him.<br><br>
So if you’re trusting in Jesus, when you breathe your last, your spirit is instantly with God, while you await the last day and the resurrection to the new heavens and the new earth. And that’s true of your loved one who believes in Christ. They are not lost - you know exactly where they are, through the death and resurrection of Jesus; they are in the safest place they can be - in the hands of God, in his care and keeping.
As Jesus says in John 10: ‘My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I am and the Father are one.’ (Jn 10:27-30)<br><br>
There is eternal safety and security for those held in the Father’s hands. Are you held in his hands today? Have you entrusted yourself into those good hands?<br><br>
Jesus dies, not in despair or distress, but in peace, fully trusting in the Father’s power and protection. And he gives us that same peace - for our loved ones and for ourselves - when we’re in the Father’s hands.<br><br>
The seventh cross word is a word of peace.<br><br>
Jesus says: Father, into your hands I commit my spirit..<br><br>
Let us pray.<br>
Heavenly Father,<br>
in your keeping are all those who have departed in Christ.<br>
We thank you that your hands are love and they are good.<br>
Help us to know the peace that only you provide,<br>
as we entrust ourselves into your hands,<br>
now, and in the hour of our death,<br>
through Jesus Christ, who died and rose again for us. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-9971088597742678662020-04-10T15:00:00.001+01:002020-12-29T15:21:07.090+00:00Cross Words 6 - Victory (John 19:30)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1128/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="1128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg"/></a></div>
Amidst the devastating news of the coronavirus pandemic, there are glimmers of hope, and stories of amazing dedication and sacrifice. Maybe you’ve seen some of the medical staff who have separated themselves from their families for several weeks in order to serve without risking their children’s health. Or the keyworkers who volunteer to do extra shifts and to cover for their colleagues. <br><br>
I wonder did you hear of Friar Don Giuseppe Berardelli? He was a parish priest in Casnigo near Milan. He contracted Covid-19 and his parish raised funds to buy a respiratory unit to help him. He refused to use it, though, allowing someone else to use it, and so he died. He gave his life so that a stranger would live.<br><br>
Today, as we focus on the cross, and listen in to the cross words, we hear how Jesus viewed his death on the cross. You see, for some people, the cross is just a tragic end to a promising life. They reckon that Jesus was an amazing man, able to do wonderful things, but what a pity that it all went wrong that week in Jerusalem and he ended up dead. And so they hear in his words ‘It is finished’ a cry of defeat. As if Jesus is merely saying, it’s all over - even, I’m finished.<br><br>
But that’s not how Jesus viewed his death. You see, Jesus hadn’t come to an unfortunate end, unexpectedly. Rather, Jesus was completing the plan of salvation, promised through the whole of the Old Testament. Just before our verse, we read these words: ‘knowing that all was now completed...’ And that led into Jesus saying that he was thirsty, to fulfil the scripture.<br><br>
So as Jesus says ‘It is finished’ he is referring to God’s salvation plan. All was now completed. Everything that needed to be done to rescue sinners had been done. And so this is not a cry of defeat - it’s a declaration of victory.<br><br>
Already in our reflections we’ve heard how Jesus prayed for forgiveness, how he gave assurance of salvation to the dying thief, how he paid the great cost as he was forsaken by God. Jesus is now saying that all has been completed - that the price of salvation has been paid in full. That’s the emphasis of the Greek word behind this saying. It’s a commercial word. It says that the bill has been paid, the demand has been satisfied, and nothing more is owed.<br><br>
So, when the restrictions are lifted and you’re able to go out for a meal somewhere nice, and the evening’s drawing to a close and you ask for the bill. Imagine if the waitress said to you, it’s already been settled. Someone else has paid your bill, and that means you can walk out without having to get your wallet out. Your debt has been settled, your bill has been paid.<br><br>
That’s what Jesus is saying here. And what is the bill that has been paid? He has paid the debt you owed because of your sins. Jesus gave up his place in glory, and died in our stead, so that we could be forgiven, and saved, and redeemed.<br><br>
Giuseppe gave his life for a stranger. Jesus gave his life for people he knows and loves - you and me - in all our sin, and shame, and guilt. He has paid our debt and gives us his life, his righteousness. There is nothing we can do to contribute to our salvation - it’s already been finished. <br><br>
We just have to receive it. To see in Jesus’ death our life and peace, our sins paid in full. As our Communion service puts it, ‘he made there the one complete and all-sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.’ (BCP p. 210)<br><br>
And he did it for you. <br><br>
The sixth cross word is a word of victory.<br><br>
Jesus says: It is finished.<br><br>
Let us pray.<br>
Heavenly Father,<br>
we thank you that Jesus has paid it all;<br>
that his sacrifice has been completed,<br>
and we are saved only through him.<br>
Help us Lord, to trust in him,<br>
and in his finished work on the cross,<br>
for we ask it in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-57164959321357395362020-04-10T12:00:00.003+01:002020-12-29T15:21:33.327+00:00Cross Words 5 - Suffering (John 19:18-19)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1128/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="1128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg"/></a></div>There’s something very natural in the fifth word spoken from the cross. On the night before the cross, Jesus had shared in the Last Supper with his friends. But since then, going out to Gethsemane, praying in earnest, being arrested, and tried, and led out to the place of the skull, he hasn’t had anything to drink. His fluid loss, as his blood flows out, must have been reducing. It’s entirely natural that Jesus would be thirsty as he undergoes the agony and suffering of the cross.<br><br>
As we confess in the Nicene Creed, the eternal Son of God was made man - as fully man as he is fully God. And as man, he has fully entered into our experience with one exception - though he was tempted, he did not sin. And so Jesus experiences life as we know it. He was hungry; he was tired; he wept; and here, on the cross, he was thirsty. One of our natural experiences.<br><br>
And yet, there is a profound mystery in these words of Jesus. It’s in John’s gospel that Jesus requests a drink of water at a well in Samaria. The question startles the Samaritan woman, because Jewish men and Samaritan women didn’t ever associate with each other. And at that well, Jesus says these famous words: ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him with never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’ (Jn 4:13-14)<br><br>
The woman had been trying to satisfy her thirst in all sorts of ways with all sorts of men - five husbands, and now another who hadn’t even committed to her. Jesus offers her living water to quench her thirst. And yet, on the cross, Jesus thirsts.<br><br>
Later in John’s gospel, Jesus stands up on the last and greatest day of the Feast, and with a loud voice says, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.’ Jesus is offering the Spirit to all who believe in him. <br><br>
But for Jesus to offer this living water which will quench our thirst, he had to thirst himself. We know this, because it’s what John tells us in the context of this saying of Jesus: ‘knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”’<br><br>
By this point, Jesus has endured the agony, the darkness, the weight of our sin. All is now completed - the price has been paid. And Jesus brings to mind all the Scriptures that prophesied his work on the cross. All of them had been fulfilled; we’ve seen some of them in our reflections this week. There was just one that remained unfulfilled. A verse in Psalm 69.<br><br>
Psalm 69 foreshadows the cross, just like Psalm 22. And the verse that was outstanding was verse 21. ‘They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.’ In order to fulfill the Scripture, and ensure that every part of the plan was completed, Jesus declares: ‘I am thirsty.’<br><br>
Now, if you’re thirsty, you need a good drink of water. But the cruelty of the cross meant that wine vinegar was offered. A bitter drink; not very thirst-quenching. And yet that was fulfilling the prophecy of David in Psalm 69. They gave me vinegar for my thirst. <br><br>
There are over 300 prophecies about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus in the Old Testament. And every single one of them was completed and fulfilled. To the last detail, God’s salvation plan has been accomplished.<br><br>
The man who thirsted on the cross offers you the living water so that you will never thirst again. Jesus offers refreshment and revival if you will but take and drink. Believe in him, trust in him, and that spring of water will well up to eternal life in you. Will you receive from him?<br><br>
The fifth cross word is a word of suffering.<br><br>
Jesus says: I am thirsty.<br><br>
Let us pray.<br>
Heavenly Father,<br>
we thank you that through Jesus’ thirst,<br>
he has opened the fountain of living water.<br>
We turn to you afresh;<br>
will you satisfy our thirst,<br>
and give us this spring of water<br>
welling up to eternal life.<br>
We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-16781347731274784272020-04-09T20:00:00.010+01:002020-12-29T15:22:11.782+00:00Cross Words 4 - Cost (Matthew 27: 45-49)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1128/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="1128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg"/></a></div>Tonight is the night that we normally share in the Lord’s Supper. After the meal, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane, where he prayed this prayer: ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’ Luke tells us that Jesus sweat drops of blood, so earnest was his prayer, so great his distress.<br><br>
Why was this so? It’s clear that Jesus knew what lay before him. Many times he had predicted that he would be handed over, be killed, and rise again on the third day. And yet, as the cross approaches, Jesus asks if there could be any other way.<br><br>
He knew that in a matter of minutes, his disciples would flee, abandoning him. He knew that in a matter of hours he would be beaten, flogged, and nailed to the cross. He knew the physical pain that lay before him, arms stretched out, struggling to breathe, his life blood being shed. And yet, above and beyond all those pains, he knew that there would be a deeper agony, as he bore the spiritual cost of salvation.<br><br>
That cost is expressed in the fourth cross word. ‘About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani,’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’’<br><br>
Jesus is quoting from the first verse of Psalm 22. That Psalm sounds like it is an eyewitness account of the sufferings of Jesus - the mocking, the piercing of hands and feet, the dividing of his garments and casting lots for his clothing. Yet the Psalm was written by David 1000 years before the cross. He foreshadows the experience of the suffering Saviour.<br><br>
Those opening words speak of the horror of the cross; the cost of our salvation. As Jesus takes our place, as he dies for us, he receives the wrath of God. In those three hours of darkness, Jesus was forsaken by God, bearing the weight of our sin. <br><br>
As Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:21: ‘God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’<br><br>
Jesus, who had no sin, who had always fully and perfectly obeyed God’s law. This Jesus, was made to be sin for us. He took our sin and our sins from us, and took the punishment that we deserved. As we sing in the song, ‘In Christ alone:’<br><br>
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live.<br><br>
It’s because Jesus was forsaken, that we will never be forsaken. Through his sacrifice we are welcomed, and accepted, and redeemed. Here again we see the reverse of the curse of Genesis 3.<br><br>
After Adam and Eve had sinned in the Garden of Eden, they were removed from the garden, and from God’s presence. Sin brings separation. That was emphasised again in the building of the tabernacle, and then the temple. You could only get so close, but no closer. Only the high priest on one day in the year could enter the most holy place, bearing blood for his sin and the people’s sin.<br><br>
But when Jesus died on the cross, having borne our sin, having been forsaken by God, what happened? The curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. We can now draw near to God - the way has been opened through the sacrifice of Jesus. <br><br>
Whatever it is that you have done. Whatever you are guilty of, or ashamed about. Every sin was laid on the Lord Jesus. He has endured the penalty, the punishment, the God-forsakenness - for you. You can come to God today; you can come back to God today. So won’t you come, and find that welcome, because Jesus has paid it all. Another song puts it so well:<br><br>
This, the power of the cross
Son of God slain for us
What a love! What a cost!
We stand forgiven at the cross.<br><br>
The fourth cross word is a word of cost.<br><br>
Jesus says: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?<br><br>
Let us pray.<br>
Heavenly Father,<br>
we thank you that we have confidence <br>
to enter the Most Holy Place<br>
by the blood of Jesus.<br>
Thank you that we can be welcomed and accepted<br>
because Jesus has died for us.<br>
We praise you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-14006195251095748772020-04-08T20:00:00.011+01:002020-12-29T15:22:27.163+00:00Cross Words 3 - Comfort (John 19: 25-27)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1128/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="1128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg"/></a></div>
As we’ve been adapting to the new normal of the current social distancing and self-isolation restrictions, perhaps one of the most difficult aspects has been in relation to death and bereavement. To deal with a relative’s death at any time is difficult, but even more so in these days. So at present, if a relative is nearing the end of their life in hospital, then visiting is either strictly limited or else prohibited. Wakes aren’t possible at present, nor funeral services in church, with just a very small, socially-distant graveside service. <br><br>
As the Lord Jesus hung on the cross, most of his closest followers had self-isolated. One of the twelve had betrayed him, and was no more. Another had denied knowing him. And the rest had abandoned him. All except one - the disciple whom Jesus loved - John.<br><br>
And in his gospel, John tells us who else was standing near the cross. Most of the men had gone, but it was the women who were still present, watching as Jesus suffered and died. Jesus’ mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene.<br><br>
The women who were last at the crucifixion and burial would be the first to witness the resurrection on the morning of the third day. But focus in on one of the women, the first mentioned, the mother of Jesus.<br><br>
Can you imagine the grief Mary is experiencing? In the gospels, the last we hear of Joseph is in Luke 2, on the visit to Jerusalem when Jesus was 12 years old. By the time of Jesus’ public ministry, we imagine Joseph had already died. And now, Mary stands at the foot of the cross, watching as her firstborn dies.<br><br>
To lose a child at any time is traumatic. To see him suffer in such a way, her precious, innocent son, in so great an injustice must have been devastating. As Mary stands near the cross, those words spoken to her by Simeon so many years before were now coming to pass:<br><br>
‘This child (Jesus) is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.’ (Lk 2:34-35)<br><br>
As Mary approaches the death of her son; as she plunges into the depths of grief and sorrow; as her soul is pierced it is Jesus who speaks this word of comfort from the cross. He says to her. ‘Dear woman, here is your son,’ and to John, ‘Here is your mother.’ <br><br>
Even in his final moments, Jesus is fulfilling God’s law, as he honours his mother and provides for her in so many ways. John takes her into his home, to provide for her material needs, the food that she needs to survive in the absence of any other means of income. But more than that, she is provided with fellowship, as she and John go through this time of darkness together.<br><br>
Jesus, who wept at the grave of Lazarus his friend (even though he was about to raise him to life) knows what we’re going through. He is able to sympathise with our experience of grief, and gives us his grace in our time of need. That grace comes through other believers, through practical helps, and through his own presence with us.<br><br>
How might the Lord be directing you to help others who are in need today? Could you be present in their grief through a phonecall, or a text, or by leaving something at the door in an appropriate and safe way? Could you be the means of providing the Lord’s comfort to those who mourn?<br><br>
Or perhaps today you are grieving. Look for the ways in which Christ is showing his kindness to you through his disciples. And remember, in the words of that most loved of the Psalms, ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.’ (Ps 23:4)<br><br>
The third cross word is a word of comfort.<br><br>
Jesus says: Dear woman, here is your son. Here is your mother.<br><br>
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father,
you are the Father of compassion,
and the God of all comfort;
May we know your comfort in these days,
and may we be the means of comforting others,
as your word takes root in our hearts
and bears fruit in our lives.
This we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-73498499449263802872020-04-07T19:30:00.000+01:002020-04-07T19:30:19.477+01:00Cross Words 2 - Assurance (Luke 23: 43)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfo/O4e3ShiBh2U56mI52qgCUpSq1JXDtcA3wCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" width="320" height="320" data-original-width="1128" data-original-height="1128" /></a></div><br />
On Sunday evening, Her Majesty the Queen addressed the nation and the Commonwealth. Speaking from Windsor Castle, she thanked everyone on the NHS front line, care workers and those in essential roles, as well as all who are staying at home to protect the vulnerable.<br />
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In the United Kingdom, we have a strong sense of what the monarchy looks like - castles and palaces; pomp and ceremony, guards and bands and parades, horses and carriages; and glittering crown jewels.<br />
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In our Bible reading tonight, we find a king, devoid of any appearance of royalty, looking unlike any king you’ve ever seen. A cruel crown of thorns adorns his brow. A scarlet robe adorns his body, as his blood flows, as he hangs on the cross, the symbol of shame and loss.<br />
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And almost everyone around the cross joins in the mockery of this supposed king. The people and rulers sneer at this ‘Christ of God, the Chosen One.’ The Christ being God’s long-promised, chosen king. But how could this man upon a cross be a king?<br />
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The soldiers join in, mocking him. If you’re the king of the Jews, save yourself! That same title hangs above his thorn-crowned head - This is the King of the Jews. This is what happens to people who think they’re the king.<br />
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And even one of the criminals, hanging on another cross, insulted him. ‘Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!’ <br />
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Those taunts were truer than they could have imagined. Yes, Jesus is the king, he is the Christ of God. And yes, he is bringing about the saving of many. But in order to save others, he cannot save himself. They just can’t see it, right before their eyes. And so they mock this monarch; they castigate this king.<br />
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Yet there is one person who recognises Jesus as the king he really is. The other criminal, hanging from the other cross, he entrusts himself to Jesus the king. <br />
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He rebukes the mocking criminal, by confessing that ‘this man has done nothing wrong.’ He knows that he himself is getting what his deed deserve, but Jesus is completely innocent. Jesus is dying the death of a sinner, even though he has done nothing wrong. This is how Jesus can save others, as he dies in their place.<br />
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And so the criminal makes a request of the Lord Jesus: ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ As unlikely as it appears, he puts his faith in Jesus the king, and his coming kingdom. He makes Jesus his king. And in that moment, he receives the most glorious promise from the lips of Jesus:<br />
<br />
‘I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.’ Just consider what Jesus was saying:<br />
<br />
Today - this very day, without delay, immediately on dying.<br />
<br />
You - this is a personal promise, to this dying thief who has believed in Jesus.<br />
<br />
Will be - it’s absolutely certain, it will happen, there’s no maybe about it.<br />
<br />
With me - he will be with Jesus, together again, in his presence and company.<br />
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In paradise - in the place of perfection, the place where there is no more pain, no more tears, no more suffering or sadness or sickness or sin.<br />
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Jesus the King is coming into his kingdom on that very day. And this crucified criminal will be with him in paradise. That’s the promise that Jesus gives to everyone who trusts in him, to everyone who recognises Jesus as their king. <br />
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Of the two criminals crucified with Jesus, only one of them received the promise. Even in the closing moments of life, whoever believes in Jesus will receive his promise - no matter who they are, no matter what they have done. But we can’t take it for granted that we can leave it until our dying moments - only one of the criminals called out to Jesus and received his promise. <br />
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As the Queen finished her address to the nation and commonwealth on Sunday night, she said this: ‘We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again.’<br />
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Isn’t that the promise of this crucified King, to all who trust in him, and say to him: ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ Jesus says: we will meet again. <br />
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The second cross word is a word of assurance.<br />
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Jesus says: I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on the Tuesday of Holy Week, 7th April 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-47461421167472794102020-04-06T19:30:00.000+01:002020-04-07T13:40:42.112+01:00Sermon: Cross Words 1 - Forgiveness (Luke 23: 34)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfk/3Cl9HsCEIVUB7ElKZe2BFAs9zhQ4jNdVACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-laVBhllMaDk/Xox0dQiSCGI/AAAAAAAACfk/3Cl9HsCEIVUB7ElKZe2BFAs9zhQ4jNdVACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cross%2BWords%2B2020%2Blogo.jpg" width="320" height="320" data-original-width="1128" data-original-height="1128" /></a></div><br />
Dr Catherine Calderwood had been regularly on the news in Scotland. As Chief Medical Officer, she had been front and centre of the campaign urging people to stay at home during the current Covid-19 pandemic. Yesterday, however, she was in the news for a different reason. Despite advising people to stay at home, it turned out that she had travelled to her holiday home, on two separate weekends. Under pressure, she apologised, and then last night resigned her position.<br />
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There was a disconnect between her words and her actions. She had told the public to do something, but had failed to do it herself. Today, as we come to the first of the cross words, we find that there is no inconsistency in the Lord Jesus. He practices what he preaches. <br />
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Back in Luke chapter 6, Jesus says this: ‘Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who ill-treat you.’ (Lk 6:27-28). <br />
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As we hear those words, who is it comes to mind? Your enemies; the people who hate you; the people who curse you; those who ill-treat you. And when you hear of how Jesus wants you to treat them - love, do good, bless, pray for - you think, surely not! That’s impossible! <br />
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And yet that’s exactly what Jesus goes on to do, having been arrested, and beaten, and flogged, and now nailed to the cruel cross. He doesn’t speak up to defend himself, or to plead for himself. He doesn’t open his mouth to threaten or curse or accuse. He opens his mouth to love his enemies; to bless them, and to pray for them.<br />
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Even in the midst of the terrible ordeal of crucifixion, Jesus loves his enemies. He prays for them. And he prays in this way: ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.’<br />
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Who are the people he’s praying for? Who are the ‘them, and they’ in his prayer? Most immediately, he was praying for those who nailed him to the cross - the Roman soldiers. They were just doing their job, following their orders. They had crucified many people, and this was just another working day. They didn’t know that this man on the middle cross was the Son of God. <br />
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Beyond that, Jesus was praying for all involved in the crucifixion. Several weeks later, Peter preaching in Jerusalem, would say to the crowd: ‘You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead... Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders.’ (Acts 3:14-15,17)<br />
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And ultimately, Jesus was praying for you. You see, we too have gone our own way. We too have rejected God, we too, by nature and by choice, are his enemies, and we have crucified the Lord of glory.<br />
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Yet see how precious the Lord’s prayer is. He loved his enemies, and prayed for them. And his prayer is for their forgiveness - for our forgiveness.<br />
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Isaiah chapter 53 is an amazing chapter of prophecy, speaking of the crucifixion seven hundred years before it happened. And the chapter closes with these words: ‘For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.’ (Is 53:12) On the cross, Jesus bore our sins. He took our burdens. But he also prayed for the sinners. <br />
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As you trust in Jesus, you find that his prayer is being answered, as you receive the forgiveness only he can provide. He who bore your sins has prayed that you would be forgiven. The sin that makes you his enemy can be forgiven, so that you become his friend.<br />
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Jesus demonstrates love for his enemies. He practices what he preaches. We can be forgiven. And that’s a glorious truth. <br />
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But the forgiven are also called to be forgiving. As we receive God’s forgiveness, we are to pass it on. In 1 Peter we read these words: ‘To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness, by his wounds you have been healed.’ (1 Pet 2:21-24)<br />
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As we receive the forgiveness Jesus provides, we also have his example to follow. Think back to the people who came to mind earlier. How might you treat them differently, in light of the forgiveness of Jesus? <br />
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The first cross word is a word of forgiveness.<br />
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Jesus says: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on the Monday of Holy Week, 6th April 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-50294800143042775702020-04-05T12:30:00.000+01:002020-04-07T13:36:28.360+01:00Sermon: Matthew 21: 1-17 The Palm Sunday Script<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0X4-YCUBGQ4/T1KLENBgSeI/AAAAAAAAAYk/USky-2t19FQdTr_0prTFq4hxprzzVytIQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0X4-YCUBGQ4/T1KLENBgSeI/AAAAAAAAAYk/USky-2t19FQdTr_0prTFq4hxprzzVytIQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
My acting career wasn’t very successful. I’ve no Oscars on the mantelpiece, but even I know the importance of getting your lines right. When I was in P6, our school put on a performance of Snow White. I was one of the seven dwarves - Drowsy. And there I was, with my rosy cheeks and my wee hat, doing the best sleep-acting you’ve ever seen. The whole night, I had two lines: ‘I’m tired,’ and ‘Is it time to go to sleep yet?’ Just two lines, but I got them right!<br />
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It was better than my other appearance. Our youth club put on A Christmas Carol one year. I was Tiny Tim (can you see a theme in my roles...) and the whole play led up to the moment when, with Scrooge a reformed character and celebrating Christmas with the Cratchet family, Tiny Tim would sing a solo. And, at that moment, I forgot the words. I thought I wouldn’t need them, and I got them all wrong. It didn’t work out too well.<br />
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I needed to get my lines right and follow the script, just as I had with my two lines in Snow White. As the events of Palm Sunday unfold, it’s clear that everyone is playing their part, and everything is following the script written beforehand. So whether it’s the donkeys, the palm branches, the turning of the tables or the children’s praises, none of it happens by accident; every part was written in advance. The script was there - in the scriptures.<br />
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So let’s have a look at the events of Palm Sunday, and see what they show us about Jesus.<br />
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In verses 1-3, we’re given the details of how two of the disciples go to get the donkey and colt. Jesus and his disciples are drawing near to Jerusalem, they’re almost there, and so the two disciples are sent ahead to get the donkeys. Now why did the Lord need them? It wasn’t just that he was tired, that this was like him hiring a taxi or a bike to get him into town.<br />
<br />
The Lord needs them because the donkeys are included in the script. Look at verse 4: ‘This took place to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet: “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”’ The script in the scripture is from the opening verse of our Old Testament reading - Zechariah 9:9.<br />
<br />
This pointed forward to the time when the humble king of Zion (Jerusalem) would come riding on a donkey. And now Jesus is fulfilling the scripture - he is filling it full of meaning by acting it out. The promised king is here.<br />
<br />
Jesus rides into town on the donkeys. And straight away, the crowd recognise who he is. A while back, when we could go out for a meal, we went out for tea, and as we came up to the front door of the hotel, there was the red carpet rolled out. Not for us, but because there was a wedding fair that evening. They were showing how the happy couple would have a red carpet welcome. Well here, the crowd spread their cloaks on the road; and some cut branches to lay them on the road.<br />
<br />
They recognise that Jesus is important, that Jesus is the king. And they join in with their lines, in words written down in advance - words from our Psalm (118). Look at verse 9 - ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ That’s Ps 118:26. And the bit about ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’? That Ps 118:25 - Hosanna means ‘Save, Lord’ - a cry of praise and prayer.<br />
<br />
The crowd recognise that Jesus is the coming King, so they shout out the script from the scriptures to welcome their king.<br />
<br />
So Jesus makes it into the city. And then he goes to the temple. But he isn’t there as a tourist, just to have a wee look around, take a few photos and maybe buy a postcard. Jesus is there to cause a fuss, to disrupt what has been going on.<br />
<br />
Can you picture the scene? ‘Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money-changers and the benches of those selling doves.’ Imagine the noise of the coins rattling on the ground, and the scramble to gather them up again. The hustle and bustle. Now why did Jesus do this? It’s not what we expect to hear Jesus doing!<br />
<br />
I’m here in St Matthew’s Church, Richhill. This building once served as the market house, until the market closed and the building was converted into a church. A place of trade became a place of prayer. Well, the temple authorities had managed to do the complete opposite. Look at what Jesus says in verse 13: ‘It is written, “My house will be called a house of prayer”, but you are making it a den of robbers.’ The temple authorities had made it a den of robbers - because you had to change your ordinary money to temple money (at a poor exchange rate) and you had to buy the pigeons and animals to sacrifice (at really high prices).<br />
<br />
So Jesus follows the script as he quotes from Isaiah 56 to make the temple a place of prayer once more. The scriptures become the script for Jesus. The coming king cleanses the temple.<br />
<br />
Now with space in the place, the blind and lame came to him, and he healed them. God is in his temple, and wonderful things are happening. The king has come, cleansed the temple, and is putting wrong things right. So how would you finish the sentence?<br />
<br />
‘When the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did, and the children shouting in the temple... they’ ... (did what)? They joined in the praising? They welcomed him with open arms? They were really happy?<br />
<br />
Well, no. ‘They were indignant.’ Everyone else is happy, praising, shouting out for joy, and they have poker faces. They say to Jesus in verse 16: ‘Do you hear what these children are saying?’ The children have been crying out the same words the crowd were shouting earlier: ‘Hosanna to the Son of David.’ The priests and scribes don’t like it.<br />
<br />
And Jesus says that they too are following the script. ‘Yes; have you never read, “From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise?”’ I can’t imagine that Jesus said this with a straight face. Do you see what he says to the top religious people in the land - ‘have you never read’ and then quotes a bit from the Bible!<br />
<br />
The children are just fulfilling their lines in the script of scripture, from Psalm 8:2. Written down long before, was this promise that children would sing praise to the Lord Jesus. And now they’re doing it. Singing praise to the promised, coming king.<br />
<br />
In this one scene, we have four Old Testament scriptures being fulfilled, as the script is followed. And, as we continue to read about Jesus, we discover that everything that happened in his life, his death, and his resurrection was promised in advance in the scriptures. <br />
<br />
The question is this: what will your response be? You see, Palm Sunday isn't just a drama we watch on stage. As Shakespeare wrote 'All the world's a stage.' We have to play our part, join in the drama.<br />
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In some ways, your only options are the same as my two stage performances. Your lines have already been written. Will you forget your lines, or deliberately move away from the script, and be indignant with the king, refusing to praise? Refusing to welcome him?<br />
<br />
Or will you join in the chorus line, the repeated joyful response of the crowd and the children - ‘Hosanna to the Son of David!’ It’s a cry of rejoicing, because it’s a cry asking him to save us. The king has come, humble, in the name of the Lord, to cleanse and heal, and accept our praise because he is our Saviour on his way to the cross. Will you join in that cry today: Hosanna to the Son of David!<br />
<br />
<i>This sermon was preached in the online service from St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday 5th April 2020 during the closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-52696298187412176422020-03-29T12:30:00.000+01:002020-03-30T11:45:48.928+01:00Sermon: Romans 8: 18-27 Groaning for Glory<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pR3n7NKL5fg/Tzf02ew3SiI/AAAAAAAAAW0/XhOXnK-GSJI3ylXVBCotlMdbCmcsMdpZgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pR3n7NKL5fg/Tzf02ew3SiI/AAAAAAAAAW0/XhOXnK-GSJI3ylXVBCotlMdbCmcsMdpZgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
May the words of my lips, and the thoughts of all our hearts, be now and always pleasing in your sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.<br />
<br />
We knew it was probably coming at some point, but when the Prime Minister announced the current lockdown on Monday evening, it seemed to take many of us by surprise. The clear command is to stay at home, except for very limited and specific purposes, such as getting basic necessities, daily exercise, seeking medical help, and travelling to and from work where absolutely necessary.<br />
<br />
In the same address, Boris Johnston made it very clear why these restrictions were being put in place. He said this: ‘From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction - you must stay at home. Because the critical thing we must do it stop the disease spreading between households.’ And near the end he said, ‘In this fight we can be in no doubt that each and every one of us is directly enlisted. Each and every one of us is now obliged to join together. To halt the spread of this disease. To protect our NHS and to save many many thousands of lives. And I know that as they have in the past so many times. The people of this country will rise to that challenge. And we will come through it stronger than ever. We will beat the coronavirus and we will beat it together.’<br />
<br />
Did you notice the reason why the restrictions have been put in place? To stop the spread, to protect the NHS and to save lives. For a time, we endure a period of hardship, because it will be worth it in the end. We may suffer for a while, but it will end, and we’ll be glad we did. And that’s what Paul tells us in our reading from Romans chapter 8 today.<br />
<br />
On Sunday evenings before the lockdown, we were in a short series in Romans 8. In Romans, Paul is writing to the Christians in Rome, setting out the gospel in its fullness. Chapter 8 is the summary of all that he’s already written, and draws out the implications of the good news of Jesus for the believer.<br />
<br />
In verse 1, we saw how ‘therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.’ We can already know God’s verdict on us here and now - as we trust in Jesus, the verdict is ‘not guilty.’ And as the chapter continues, we find that we’re not just forgiven, we are also given the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of adoption, who confirms that we are indeed God’s children - by him we call God, ‘Abba, Father.’ This is all amazingly wonderful news. And then in verse 17, just before our reading, Paul introduces the subject of suffering. He writes: ‘Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.’<br />
<br />
And something inside of us reacts to that. We think - yes, we’re on board for all of God’s blessings and benefits, bring them on! But suffering? Maybe not. And that reaction might be even stronger when we hear verse 18 in our reading today: ‘I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.’ Really?<br />
<br />
You might think that Paul doesn’t really understand suffering. Maybe he’s had a comfortable, easy life, hasn’t really undergone any suffering, and doesn’t really know what he’s talking about. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. In another part of the Bible, he shares some of his experiences: <br />
beatings, stonings, shipwrecks, constant danger, toil and hardship, hunger, thirst, in cold and exposure. (See 2 Cor 11:23-29) He knew what it was to suffer, so he’s not making light of suffering, rather, he makes much of the glory to be revealed.<br />
<br />
It’s as if Paul has a pair of balancing scales. He puts all of the suffering in one side, and on the other, the glory that will be revealed in us. It’s not that our sufferings are greater; and it’s not that the suffering and glory is about the same, perfectly balanced. No, there’s no comparison. The glory completely surpasses and totally outweighs the suffering. Anything we face or endure now will be more than worth it in the end.<br />
<br />
And the word that expresses our current experience is the word: groaning. Is that the word that summarises your current experience of this lockdown? Groaning with frustration, perhaps, as your regular routine has been restricted. Groaning with boredom as you wonder how you’re going to put in another long day. Groaning with loneliness. Well that word, groaning, is the word that characterises today’s passage. Paul uses it three times, as he speaks of the current suffering and the incomparable glory that is to come.<br />
<br />
First of all, the creation has been groaning. Verse 19: ‘The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.’ You know the way some people count down to their birthday, and know how many sleeps it is. Or you might wait for a delivery to arrive, and you’re watching out for it. Creation itself is on tip toes, watching and waiting, with eager longing, for the revealing of the sons of God. Why does the earth do that? Why are the animals and birds and trees and every blade of grass waiting in this way?<br />
<br />
‘For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.’ (20-21)<br />
<br />
At present, the creation is frustrated. It’s in bondage to decay. I don’t need to tell you that - you experience it every day. Things wear out and break down. The lovely banana you were going to eat has turned black and mouldy. Thorns and thistles and weeds spring up. ‘Change and decay in all around I see’ as the hymn puts it. It’s the world as we know it, but it’s not the way the world was originally made.<br />
<br />
In Genesis 3 we hear of the bondage of creation - not by creation’s choice, but as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s decision to rebel against God’s good and gracious rule. The world is under the curse, but it’s done in the hope that one day bondage will cease, and creation will share in the glorious freedom of God’s children.<br />
<br />
Paul describes creation’s groaning as in the pains of childbirth. The groans and pain are worth it, whenever the baby has been born. And that’s what is happening around us, as the creation groans, in anticipation of release and freedom. Can you imagine how glorious our world will be when decay has been stopped? When viruses are no more? When there’s no more sadness or sickness or suffering or sin?<br />
<br />
The gospel is more than just me and my ticket to heaven. The victory that Jesus has won is for the whole creation. The natural world will share in our redemption. And in the meantime, the creation groans.<br />
<br />
It’s not just the creation groaning, though. You see, we too share in that groaning. Believers are groaning too. ‘not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.’ (23)<br />
<br />
We are living in the now, and the not yet. Already we have the firstfruits, the presence of the Spirit, and the final verdict. We get to taste what eternal life will be like, but there’s more to come. And so we groan, as we wait. We’re still weighed down with sin, and sorrow, and suffering. We long for the day when we receive our new resurrection bodies, when we see God face to face, and live with him forever. And so we groan as we wait.<br />
<br />
But we wait in hope. Now, we use the word hope in lots of different ways. You might hope the weather will be good tomorrow; but it may not be. Often, our hopes are more like wishful thinking - wouldn’t it be nice if... But the Christian hope is not like those vague wishes. Our hope is sure and certain, as we trust God’s promises and wait for what he will give to us. ‘For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.’ (24-25)<br />
<br />
If our present Christian experience is all that there is, then there’s nothing to hope for. But hope looks to the future, to what God will do. And we wait patiently, because the glory to be revealed in us is worth far more than anything we endure here and now.<br />
<br />
The creation is groaning; and Christians are groaning. And, as Paul continues, we find that the Spirit is also groaning. Let’s read the last verses: ‘In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.’ (26-27)<br />
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All through this chapter, Paul has been reminding us about the power and presence of the Spirit in the life of the Christian. And the Spirit helps us in our weakness. Have you ever found yourself wanting to pray, but not knowing what to pray? You’ve promised that you’ll pray for a friend, but the words don’t come. Or you’re facing a situation in your own life, and you struggle to know what to pray for. You are not alone! When we struggle to find the words, the Spirit himself is praying for us, with groans that words cannot express. He takes our groaning, and groans our prayers for us, translating them into prayers in line with God’s will. He knows and understands our hearts, our sighs, our longings, and prays on our behalf. <br />
<br />
Perhaps you’re struggling under the current restrictions - remember what Boris has said - it’s just for a time, and it’ll be worth it. So how much more, what God has said here in Romans chapter 8. Our present sufferings, characterised by the groaning of creation, and our groaning, and the groaning of the Spirit - those sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. A short period of pain, leading to an infinitely greater pleasure. Suffering now, and glory after. That’s our story, here and now, because it is the story of the gospel; the pattern that Jesus himself followed - the cross before the crown.<br />
<br />
Jesus endured the cross, bearing our sin and shame; wearing the symbol of the curse, the crown of thorns; in order to enter his glory by overturning the curse, and ushering in life and peace; victory over death, and bringing his new heavens and new earth, where righteousness dwells. We are called to follow his pattern, as we wait for the glory to be revealed - his glory in us. <br />
<br />
So let’s pray. Lord God, whose blessed Son our Saviour<br />
gave his back to the smiters<br />
and did not hide his face from shame:<br />
Give us grace to endure the sufferings of this present time<br />
with sure confidence in the glory that shall be revealed,<br />
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.<br />
<br />
<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday morning 29th March 2020 for the broadcast service during the COVID-19 pandemic.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-24932844595620996352020-03-27T09:43:00.001+00:002020-03-27T09:43:48.473+00:00IsolationWe’re living in very strange circumstances. At present, our freedom of movement has been restricted, so that we can only head out of our homes if we’re working in essential jobs, seeking medical care, helping the vulnerable, and getting one form of exercise. We’re approaching the second Sunday of not meeting together in the church building. We’re not used to such restrictions, applied so widely and so stringently. And yet they are desperately needed, as we seek to slow the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19.<br />
<br />
When we consider the New Testament, we find lots of examples of physical distance and isolation. The early church, and especially the apostles, didn’t have the benefits of Facebook Live, or YouTube, or WhatsApp, Zoom and so many more technological solutions. Their technology was more basic, but was put to good use in combatting isolation.<br />
<br />
John, in two of his three letters, says something similar: ‘I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.’ (2 John 1:12 cf 3 John 1:13-14) He has much to say, but longs for the day when he’ll see his recipients face to face to talk with them.<br />
<br />
He was also familiar with imposed isolation, having been exiled on the island of Patmos ‘because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.’ (Rev 1:9). Even though he was exiled and far from his Christian brothers and sisters, he was ‘in the Spirit’ (Rev 1:10) and was joined by the Lord Jesus in all his glory. John’s isolation was used by God to produce the book of Revelation, a great encouragement to suffering Christians.<br />
<br />
Peter addresses his first letter to ‘God’s elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia.’ Yet these scattered strangers ‘have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood.’ (1 Peter 1:1-2) While they may seem small and insignificant in the world’s eyes, they are known and dearly loved by the Trinity. <br />
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The writer to the Hebrews encourages his readers to ‘Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching.’ (Heb 10:25) Some had obviously stopped coming together with other believers, not rating it high in their priorities. We’re looking forward to being able to meet together again when it’s safe to do so. Are there ways that we can encourage one another while we wait?<br />
<br />
The author then demonstrates his own commitment to meeting together in the closing verses: ‘I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you.’ (Heb 13:23) People in three distinct locations, all looking forward to the day when they can meet again in one place - Timothy, the author, and the Hebrew Christians.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the best examples of physical distance and isolation come from the pen of the apostle Paul. Having written so many letters to so many different churches and individuals, we get a glimpse of the experiences he endured as he served the Lord. <br />
<br />
One of his earliest letters was to the church in Thessalonica. He had been in the city, proclaiming the gospel, and had to make a quick exit when a riot began. From there, he had travelled on to Berea and then Athens, from where he wrote 1 Thessalonians. Here’s how he describes his isolation:<br />
<br />
‘But, brothers, when we were torn away from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you. For we wanted to come to you - certainly I, Paul, did, again and again - but Satan stopped us... So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens. We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow-worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials.’ (1 Thes 2:17-18, 3:1-3)<br />
<br />
Paul wrote to the Thessalonian Christians after planting the church there. His letter to the Roman Christians was different, in that he hadn’t been there before. And yet he couldn’t wait to come and see them. ‘I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong - that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.’ (Rom 1:11-12) It wasn’t that Paul, the apostle, would encourage these other believers. No, everyone would be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith as they met together. <br />
<br />
Paul spent some time in prison, cooped up in a cell. Compared to Her Majesty’s establishments, his prison would have been ghastly. His apostolic ministry of preaching and planting churches had been stopped. His friends may have despaired. And yet even that time of confinement was a time of flourishing, productive ministry. His prison epistles were written at that time - Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon - and they continue to speak of the encouragements Paul found even in prison.<br />
<br />
As he reminds the Christians in Colossae, ‘All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing.’ (Col 1:6) Paul is in chains, but the gospel isn’t bound! Even in confinement, the gospel is advancing: ‘Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.’ (Phil 1:12-13) That letter to Philippians, penned in prison, is the epistle of joy!<br />
<br />
Paul’s letters were written because he was at a distance from the Christians he was communicating with. In most of his letters we find lists of names of people he is greeting and others who are sending greetings. Without modern technology, Paul knew these people by name, and was aware of their situations and circumstances, maybe even better than we do today.<br />
<br />
In his second letter to Timothy, we hear of Paul’s most painful experience of isolation. ‘At my first defence, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.’ (2 Tim 4:16-18)<br />
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Facing the might of Rome, and the threat of the death sentence, Paul stood alone. Alienated and isolated, but not totally abandoned. The Lord stood at his side and gave him strength. In these days of isolation, we are never truly alone, even if there’s no one else in the house with us. The Lord is always with us, giving us his strength. But the Lord gives us much more - he also gives us hope. No matter what may happen to us, as we trust in Jesus, we have the promise of being brought safely into his heavenly kingdom. <br />
<br />
For Paul, that would involve an executioner’s block. Yet the moment the axe fell, the Lord ushered Paul into his heavenly kingdom. For all of eternity, we will not be isolated or alone, because we will be with the Lord and all his people. The good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is the answer to all our feelings of loneliness and isolation. <br />
<br />
These next weeks or months may be difficult. It might appear that there’s no end in sight, particularly if you’re on your own. But remember that you’re never alone - we have the fellowship of the church, and the Lord is with you, both now and for ever more.Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-65451245170304959352020-03-22T12:00:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:43:42.826+01:00Sermon: Psalms 42 & 43 Hoping in God<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pR3n7NKL5fg/Tzf02ew3SiI/AAAAAAAAAW0/XhOXnK-GSJI3ylXVBCotlMdbCmcsMdpZgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pR3n7NKL5fg/Tzf02ew3SiI/AAAAAAAAAW0/XhOXnK-GSJI3ylXVBCotlMdbCmcsMdpZgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
Father, we ask that your word would speak to us now, that it would bring hope to all who are downcast and disturbed, that it would lead us to praise you, our Saviour and our God. Amen.<br />
<br />
There are many parts of our service today that are strange - the fact that you’re watching at home being the major one. But another strangeness is the lack of singing. It seems so odd to not sing together. No doubt when we gather together again properly, we’ll be overjoyed to sing together!<br />
<br />
It’s from a song that you probably know the opening lines of Psalm 42: ‘As the deer pants for the water so my soul longs after you.’ Don’t worry, I’m not going to sing it for you. But that opening line expresses the sense of longing, the sense of desperation felt by the writer in verses 1-2:<br />
<br />
‘As the deer pants for streams of water,<br />
so my soul pants for you, O God.<br />
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.<br />
When can I go and meet with God?’<br />
<br />
I’m sure you’ve been thirsty as some point in your life. Maybe you’ve been playing games, running about, and then, you’re parched, desperate for water. Or you’ve been hard at work, and the thirst is on you. <br />
<br />
But have you been thirsty for God? Have you been so desperate to have him, to know him, to be with him, that it’s a thirst? That’s what Psalms 42&43 are all about. A deep longing for God.<br />
<br />
And it has come about because the writer of the Psalm finds himself far away from God. It’s not social distancing that he’s undergoing, but he feels himself to be in isolation, unable to come near to meet with God. Perhaps you’re experiencing something similar today. You would love to be here in church, with the rest of the church family, meeting with God together.<br />
<br />
We see how hard it is for him in verses 3-4:<br />
<br />
‘My tears have been my food day and night,<br />
while men say to me all day long,<br />
“Where is your God?”<br />
These things I remember as I pour out my soul:<br />
how I used to go with the multitude,<br />
leading the procession to the house of God,<br />
with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.’<br />
<br />
His tears have been his food, day and night - they trickle down his cheek and into his mouth. He’s sad, disappointed, distressed. And it’s made even worse by other people saying to him: ‘Where is your God?”<br />
<br />
Perhaps you’ve seen similar going round social media. People asking - where’s God in all this? Asking - if God is so good, then why did he let this happen? Asking - if God is so great, why doesn’t he stop it and cure everybody straight away? Where is your God?<br />
<br />
Now as if his tears and his tormentors aren’t bad enough, his distress is deepened as he remembers how things used to be. At the top of the Psalm we’re told it was written by ‘the Sons of Korah.’ They were worship leaders in the temple, and he remembers better times, going with the multitude, worshipping together; leading God’s people with shouts of joy and thanksgiving. He remembers, and it causes him pain, because he’s not there now. He’s cut off, isolated. Does it sound familiar?<br />
<br />
In verse 5, we get the first of a repeated refrain, which is found twice in Psalm 42 and again at the end of Psalm 43. In the refrain, the writer is talking to himself, encouraging himself in his distress:<br />
<br />
‘Why are you downcast, O my soul?<br />
Why so disturbed within me?<br />
Put your hope in God,<br />
for I will yet praise him,<br />
my Saviour and my God.’<br />
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He recognises that he is downcast and disturbed. In a recent phrase, it’s ok to not be ok. But then he reminds himself of where he can turn; he connects himself to the one who brings hope. Even in the midst of difficulties, he will put his hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God. It’s hard now, but hope looks to the future; and waits for our Saviour God.<br />
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Yet even as he puts his hope in God, he still finds himself downcast. In verse 6, he is still far away from God’s temple. He mentions the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon, Mount Mizar - the place where the river Jordan begins. It’s about 111 miles or so, but for this son of Korah, that’s a fair distance. <br />
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And with the image of waterfalls, waves and breakers, he feels overwhelmed, as they sweep over him. And yet he hears the call of God in the waterfalls - deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls. <br />
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And even though he is physically distant, he knows that God is with him in verse 8:<br />
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‘By day the LORD directs his love,<br />
at night his song is with me - <br />
a prayer to the God of my life.’<br />
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Even if you’re by yourself, or if you’re self-isolating as a family, the LORD is with you by day and night, directing his love to you, and singing over you as you sing to him. No matter where you find yourself, God is with you, and God hears your prayer.<br />
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And notice in verse 9, that God doesn’t just hear our easy prayers. He also hears when we challenge him, and complain to him. Lament is part of our language of prayer - and that’s what we find in verses 9 and 10:<br />
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‘I say to God my Rock,<br />
“Why have you forgotten me?<br />
Why must I go about mourning,<br />
oppressed by the enemy?”<br />
My bones suffer mortal agony<br />
as my foes taunt me,<br />
saying to me all day long,<br />
“Where is your God?”’<br />
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The men of verse 3 have become the foes of verse 10. And the question remains - where is your God? Has God forgotten him? Does God not care that he’s going through all this? Has God abandoned him?<br />
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By no means! The writer continues to talk to himself, as he resolves to put his hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Saviour and my God.<br />
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Now, we’ve come to the end of Psalm 42, but as you can see, Psalm 43 continues it and completes it, leading to the last repeated refrain in verse 5. <br />
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The writer pleads for vindication in God’s sight - and in the face of an ungodly nation, and deceitful and wicked men. He longs for rescue, yet still experiences rejection. And so he asks God to intervene, to launch a rescue mission:<br />
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‘Send forth your light and your truth,<br />
let them guide me;<br />
let them bring me to your holy mountain,<br />
to the place where you dwell.<br />
Then will I go to the altar of God,<br />
to God, my joy and delight.<br />
I will praise you with the harp,<br />
O God, my God.’<br />
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He recognises that God must act; that only God can bring him back and satisfy his thirst. He asks for God’s light for his path, and God’s truth, surrounded by the enemy’s lies. And he wants to be brought back, in order to praise God in his dwelling.<br />
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As we’ve heard these Psalms today, we’ve heard the voice of the sons of Korah. And perhaps we’ve heard our own voice, echoing this longing for God. But there’s another voice that we can hear as we listen in to these Psalms. We can be brought near to God, because God is our Saviour and our God.<br />
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And the Lord Jesus took these words upon his lips, and experienced this deep longing in order to be our Saviour. In the Garden of Gethsemane, as the shadow of the cross loomed large before him, he says to his disciples: ‘My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.’ (Matt 26:38).<br />
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He would be let down by his closest friends; betrayed and abandoned. His enemies would taunt him as he hung on the cross: ‘He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him...’ Where is your God? He was forgotten and rejected - truly isolated and let alone.<br />
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And yet Jesus fully trusted the Father’s plan. He endured the cross, because he knew that vindication would come. He endured the cross, because he knew that God would be glorified. He endured the cross, in order to be our Saviour and our God.<br />
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Are you thirsty today? The Lord Jesus has stood in our place. He has opened the way home; and comes to bring us to himself - the light of the world, the way the truth and the life. And he is with you today, and every day, as you put your hope in him.<br />
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Why are you downcast, O my soul?<br />
Why so disturbed within me?<br />
Put your hope in God,<br />
for I will yet praise him,<br />
my Saviour and my God.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church on Sunday morning 22nd March 2020 for the broadcast service during the COVID-19 pandemic.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-88191788521988243292020-03-15T19:30:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:41:14.103+01:00Sermon: Romans 8: 12-17 Children of God<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TjZ0BVUv-9s/TzJZ8Eqf4bI/AAAAAAAAAUs/i114cgdQsWk2SUQJrNOWpLlrxE9FSa6vwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TjZ0BVUv-9s/TzJZ8Eqf4bI/AAAAAAAAAUs/i114cgdQsWk2SUQJrNOWpLlrxE9FSa6vwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
This evening I want you to take a chance on me. I’ll need you to gimme gimme gimme your attention, because knowing me knowing you, this is something you need to hear today. In fact, it’s better than money, money, money, and if you get what this evening’s sermon is all about, then you’ll get on like a dancing queen.<br />
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This evening we’re thinking about Abba - but not the Swedish pop group. Instead, we’re thinking about our Abba, and being able to call God Abba, as Paul says in verse 15. ‘And by him we cry, Abba! Father!’ <br />
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We’re in a short series, as we work our way through Romans 8, and think about living by the Spirit. A fortnight ago, we heard about the wonderful good news that ‘therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.’ We already know the verdict on the last day; we’re already confident that nothing can condemn us because we are in Christ. Now that is good, and great, and wonderful, but there is even more to the Christian life than just knowing that truth.<br />
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Tonight, Paul opens up a bit more of what that means for us, as we are brought into God’s family and receive the inheritance. So let’s dive in at verse 12, as we unpack the glorious riches of Christ.<br />
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Verse 12: ‘Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation - but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.’ Paul says that we have an obligation, that we owe something to someone. He doesn’t spell it out here, we’ll work it out in a second, but notice that he tells us who we don’t owe anything to.<br />
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‘Not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.’ I wonder if you’ve ever changed jobs. You’ve worked hard for your previous employer, but now you work for your new boss. And then your old employer comes round, asking would you do a wee something for them. Could you help out? You would be able to say, I don’t owe you anything. I’ve finished working for you, you don’t control me any more!<br />
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That’s what’s going on here. Paul has showed how we have been rescued from living according to the sinful nature, our natural flesh, living according to our own desires. We don’t owe it anything - our time for living by the flesh is finished. But you might still be wondering, well, who do we owe something to, what is our obligation?<br />
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Look at the contrast Paul sets out in verse 13: ‘For if you live according to the sinful nature you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.’<br />
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These are the only two ways we can live - either by the sinful nature (the path that leads to death), or by the Spirit. So it must be to the Spirit, to God, that we owe everything. We’ve been ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven - everything we have is because of God. So how do we pay our debts? How do we respond to God’s good news?<br />
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It’s by the Spirit, as we put to death the misdeeds of the body. Do you see how strong this language is here? It’s not just ‘don’t do those things you used to do’, it’s ‘put to death the misdeeds of the body.’ We’re not to cuddle them, or pet them - we’re to put them to the sword.The Puritan writer John Owen urged his readers to ‘be killing sin or sin will be killing you.’<br />
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At the minute we’re seeing the danger of a contagious virus, spreading and causing illness and death, fear and uncertainty, and bare shelves in the supermarkets. And behind the scenes, in labs around the world, scientists and medics are trying to find ways to stop the virus; and hygiene standards have been raised to try to kill the virus. We need to be fighting the threat of sin much as we’re fighting the threat of coronavirus.<br />
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But notice that it’s not something we can do by ourselves - it’s ‘by the Spirit’ - we need his power to lead us and change us, to kill off our sins. And it’s an ongoing process, not just a once-for-all event. Sin will spring up again, and needs to be killed again, over and over again.<br />
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When you look at the two ways to live, which do you think is the easy one? Living by what pleases you, or killing off your sin and living to please the Spirit? It would be far easier to do what you want. The struggle is to put to death the deeds of the body, because, deep down, we might still want to do those things. But there is encouragement here. <br />
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You see, if you’re struggling, if you’re fighting against your sin, then that’s a good sign. As verse 14 continues: ‘because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.’ If you’re struggling with sin, if you’re (by the Spirit) putting it to death, then you’re being led by the Spirit. And if you’re led by the Spirit of God, you are a son of God. (Or a daughter! The language of sonship is because at this time only the sons inherited from their father).<br />
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What an encouragement! Perhaps this week you have been discouraged by your weakness; by how easily you’ve slipped again. You know better, you try harder, and still you fall. The fact that you’re frustrated is a good sign! It shows that you’re led by the Spirit, and that you are a child of God.<br />
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And it comes through the Holy Spirit, verse 15: ‘For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’<br />
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The Holy Spirit doesn’t come to bring fear and slavery. Rather, he is the Spirit of sonship, or adoption. He brings us into God’s family, he makes us into a child of God, and teaches us how to call God our Father. Abba (not the Swedish pop group), Abba is the word for dada, daddy, dad, in Aramaic. It’s by the Spirit that we can call the God of the universe our dad. We who were on the outside are brought in by the sacrifice of Jesus, and the work of the Spirit confirms what has happened in our hearts.<br />
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‘The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.’ (16-17)<br />
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The Spirit confirms that we really are God’s children, and he also confirms that we are God’s heirs. God’s inheritance is for us, for all who believe, for all who are his children, and the brothers and sisters of Jesus.<br />
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What a transformation in a few verses! From owing everything for our very lives in verse 12, to inheriting everything in verse 17. Everything the Father has is ours in Christ. The glory lies ahead, and in the meantime, as children of our Abba Father, we are called to live by the Spirit, and put to death the deeds of the body.<br />
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Perhaps as you hear of what the Christian life looks like, you think to yourself, that sounds great, but I’m not there. I just do what I please. I live according to the flesh. Turn around today! Don’t stand around on the outside any longer! Come in, come home, and know the God of the universe as your Abba, your dad.<br />
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But maybe you are a Christian. You’re finding things tough. Sin keeps popping up. You keep doing things you don’t want to do. You’re struggling. Be encouraged by the Spirit living in you, leading you to keep fighting as you put your sin to death. You don’t need to live in slavery and fear; you’re adopted as a son, a child of God. <br />
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God gives you what you need to live for him - the power of his Holy Spirit dwelling in you. Keep going! Keep fighting!<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday evening 15th March 2020.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-55357469169726919292020-03-15T12:30:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:39:52.898+01:00Sermon: Titus 2: 1-15 Fruitful - Self-Control<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5OCDOdrTchY/T2XtRUgCUbI/AAAAAAAAAaE/yp2jfSrHsSkdXiw4ErM7t7iehVyvVRuTACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Children%2527s%2BTalks%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5OCDOdrTchY/T2XtRUgCUbI/AAAAAAAAAaE/yp2jfSrHsSkdXiw4ErM7t7iehVyvVRuTACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Children%2527s%2BTalks%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
Which of the following would you prefer - you could have one marshmallow now, or, if you waited a wee while, you could have two? Here’s a video where young children were given that choice...<br />
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[Play video]<br />
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The marshmallow test was first conducted in the 1960s, to see if nursery age children had any self-control. And the idea is simple - you can either have a small reward now, or a greater reward after a bit of a wait. Some had no self-control, immediately grabbing whatever was on offer there and then. But others reckoned that the ‘later’ reward was better - delayed gratification to use big words - and used a variety of strategies to try to keep them from the temptation of the one marshmallow.<br />
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So how would you get on with the marshmallow test? And how is your self-control? When we think about our daily life, there are lots of opportunities to exercise self-control (or not). There’s the whole realm of money - when payday comes, do you splash out, treat yourself, not thinking that you’ve got a whole week or month for the money to last. I used to work in a corner shop when I was growing up, and one of our colleagues would nearly have blown his week’s wages on sweets and crisps before he’d even left the shop on payday!<br />
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Perhaps you struggle with self-control when it comes to food, or drink, or some other substance. And so, perhaps you’ve given up something for Lent, and now two and a half weeks in, you’re either managing fine without it, or else you’re having withdrawal struggles. I heard recently of the Catholic Bishop of Cork in the 1950s, Cornelius Lucey. He decreed that during Lent, his people should only eat one biscuit with a cup of tea. So fairly quickly afterwards, a bakery in Cork produced what they called ‘Connie Dodgers’ - enormous biscuits, so that you were still only eating one biscuit!<br />
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Perhaps your self-control is lacking in other ways, and there’s a particular temptation or two that you always fall for; a particular sin that you indulge in, and then feel awful about afterwards. Perhaps you think like Oscar Wilde, who famously said, ‘I can resist everything except temptation.’<br />
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This morning we’ve come to the last of the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit. We’ve covered love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and now we’re looking at self-control. <br />
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Like so many of the others, self-control is a quality that some people have, and that everyone can work on. The researcher from the Marshmallow Test tracked the lives of the original group of children, and could trace the patterns of their life based on how they reacted to one marshmallow or two. And it might be that in some areas of life, you’re very self-controlled and in other areas of your life you’re not as self-controlled. And you could, quite possible, try really, really hard to be more self-controlled, just by your own effort.<br />
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But that’s not what we’re thinking about, and it’s not what I’m recommending. You see, the self-control that we’re thinking about today is part of the fruit of the Spirit - it’s something that the Holy Spirit is growing in us as he helps us to live for Jesus and become more like Jesus.<br />
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We see this spiritual self-control as Jesus determined to live a perfect life of obedience to God’s law - Jesus was so self-controlled that he never did anything wrong in what he said, or thought, or did. Can you imagine that? But on top of that, Jesus determined to go to the cross. He controlled himself to fully obey. As Hebrews says: ‘Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God.’ (Heb 12:2)<br />
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You remember the one marshmallow or two? The great reward for Jesus was fulfilling the Father’s plan, and bringing us to share in his salvation. That’s why Jesus endured the pain and agony of the cross. That’s how self-controlled he was.<br />
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And that’s what the Holy Spirit wants to grow in us. It’s the image of the athletes who are currently preparing for the Olympics - if they go ahead this summer. As they get up at 5am and run or row or life weights; as they spend hours in the gym doing all their training; as they eat very carefully designed meals that will give them all the things they need to perform to the best of their abilities; they have their eyes on the end goal - standing on the podium and receiving the gold medal.<br />
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Imagine how much they might rather stay in bed when their alarm goes off. Or how much they might like to finish at the gym early and just watch a boxset on the sofa. Or how much they would want to have a big bar of chocolate or a big fry-up. But they control themselves, they discipline themselves, with an eye on the future glory.<br />
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And that’s what the Spirit is doing in us. It’s why, when Titus is on the island of Crete, helping to establish the new churches, he is to teach the people to live in the way that matches up to the gospel. Now, you can decide yourselves whether you’re in the older or younger categories, but older men, younger women and young men are all explicitly urged to be self-controlled. And (in case you think the older women don’t have to be), they are to do things that would be the same as self-controlled.<br />
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At another of these Family Services we looked at Titus 2:11-15, when we thought about goodness. But look again at verse 12 to see how self-control fits into God’s purposes. We all naturally live for ungodliness and worldly passions. But God’s grace helps us to say no to them, and instead to say yes to self-controlled, upright and godly lives. <br />
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Grace helps us in two ways - first, because our past has been dealt with. All those times when we didn’t have self-control, all those sins we’ve committed - Jesus gave himself to redeem us from all our wickedness. <br />
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But grace also helps us by pointing us forward. What is the reward that we’re looking forward to? What will be better than whatever we’re tempted to do here and now? we’re waiting for our ‘blessed hope - the glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.’<br />
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That’s what we’re looking forward to; that’s what drives us in our choices, and helps to keep us from temptations - one day I will see Jesus, face to face. And in the meantime, every day from this day until that day, we have the Holy Spirit living in us, producing his fruit in our lives as he takes control of us, and we gain control over ourselves.<br />
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Perhaps there are things you want to say to the Lord - things you want to say sorry for; struggles that you need his help with; so let’s take a moment or two to do that before I pray.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached at the Family Service in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday morning 15th March 2020.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-35672551280592202942020-03-08T19:30:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:37:47.609+01:00Sermon: Proverbs 31: 10-31 The Proverbs 31 Woman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TjZ0BVUv-9s/TzJZ8Eqf4bI/AAAAAAAAAUs/i114cgdQsWk2SUQJrNOWpLlrxE9FSa6vwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TjZ0BVUv-9s/TzJZ8Eqf4bI/AAAAAAAAAUs/i114cgdQsWk2SUQJrNOWpLlrxE9FSa6vwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
The quest to find a partner is becoming big business. From speed dating nights to ‘Take Me Out’ events where guys have to try to impress a group of girls, there’s money to be made in the hunt for a husband or wife. The rise of the dating website is evidence of this. When we were in America a few years ago we were surprised to find ChristianMingle.com even had TV adverts and billboard posters. But what are you looking for in a partner? Or what do you bring to a relationship?<br />
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Over This year at Cafe Church, we’ve been sampling some of the Proverbs. We looked at some of the major themes, all building on the basic building block of wisdom - the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge / wisdom. Tonight we come to the final chapter of Proverbs, to a passage which might be slightly better known. Whole ministries have been built on the basis of these verses, encouraging ladies to be a Proverbs 31 woman.<br />
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As the women get the last word in the book of Proverbs, let’s look at the Proverbs 31 woman, to see what she’s like, and how we can become more like her. The first thing to note (although it’s hard for us to see in the English) is that this is an acrostic. From verse 10, each verse begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It would be like a poem where each line starts with A, B, C and so on. It’s an A-Z of an excellent woman. So let’s dive in with the very first verse, verse 10.<br />
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‘A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.’ Another version asks, who can find an excellent wife? This isn’t because such an excellent wife is unattainable, but rather because Proverbs has already highlighted the fact that not all wives (and, I have to add, not all husbands) are excellent. In another part of Proverbs we find these words: ‘It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife’ (Prov 21:9). None of us have moved onto the roof, but perhaps some men (or women) do consider such a move.<br />
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To have a wife of noble character, then, is beyond value. ‘She is worth far more than rubies.’ As we would say, she is worth her weight in gold. The following verses show why she is so precious, but what I noticed was how this excellent wife is described in terms of the themes we’ve looked at over the past few cafe church nights. <br />
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We looked at relationships - drinking from your own cistern, keeping pure and faithful. We see that here in our chapter. Look at verses 11-12. ‘Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.’ Here we find that faithfulness, that trust that is the centre of any relationship. It’s a marriage that builds up, that brings good and not harm, leading to them flourishing together.<br />
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We also looked at work and thought about the sluggard. You remember the picture of the lazy lump lying on his bed, turning like a door on its hinges; too lazy to even lift the spoon to his mouth? The Proverbs 31 woman isn’t like that. It seems that she never stops, always at something. There’s mention of wool and flax, working with eager hands in verse 13. Bringing food, cooking breakfast while it is still dark in verse 14-15. She’s involved in property deals, buying fields and planting vineyards (16). Buying and selling, working into the evening by lamp light when the sun goes down. Using the distaff - what’s a distaff? It’s used for spinning wool or yarn, used with the spindle. Her family have scarlet clothing (which might be double thickness for the snow), and she makes her own bedclothes; linen garments and sashes... <br />
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Is anyone feeling tired listening to all that? By the time you say it all, it would be time for a tea break! She is certainly no sluggard. The picture is of someone who makes sure that her family is provided for, keeping busy, using the talents she has been given by God.<br />
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But she isn’t selfish, or greedy. In our series we also thought about good news for the poor, using our wealth not just for ourselves, and the importance of caring for and helping those less fortunate than yourself. The Proverbs 31 woman has that covered too. Look at the way verses 19-20 sit together. ‘In her hand she holds the distaff, and grasps the spindle with her fingers. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.’ <br />
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The hands busy in work at distaff and spindle as she makes yarn are also held out to the poor and needy. She opens her arms, she reaches out her hands. She models God’s concern for the poor, the ministry of mercy.<br />
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Through Proverbs we also looked at our words, and the tongue, which has the power of life and death. Here, we hear what comes out of her mouth: ‘She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.’ She has no fear of the future, she is able to laugh at whatever may come. Her hope is secure. And when she speaks, there are words of wisdom and kindness. Her speech is gracious. <br />
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In every way, in each of our key themes, she passes the test. She really is an excellent wife, worth far more than rubies. That’s the opinion of her children and her husband too. Do you see it in verse 28? ‘Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: ‘Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.’’<br />
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So how does hearing all that make you feel? Encouraged and proud, because your ears are burning, because we’ve been talking about you all night? Thankful and delighted because this is your wife that we’ve heard described? Perhaps. Another common reaction to hearing those verses is to feel deflated, aware of shortcomings, frustrated because you don’t think it would be possible to reach those unattainable heights. Convinced that this is just out of reach, like the airbrushed supermodel adverts; that you’d need to be Superwoman to do all this?<br />
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Remember where we started in Proverbs. The very first thing we learnt was that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And that’s where the book ends as well. We’ve come round in a circle. The first note is also the last one. Verse 30-31: ‘Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Honour her for all that her hands have done, and let her works praise her at the city gate.’ What a motto for a dating website in particular, and life in general.<br />
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You could be oh so charming, but it’s just a front, all a deception, just a tool to get what you want. Beauty might turn heads, but it is fleeting. The thing that counts is the fear of the Lord. A woman (or indeed a man) who fears the Lord is to be praised. This is the thing that matters. Everything else flows from this. <br />
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You may not be working morning noon and night to provide and clean and cook and do all else; but the fear of the Lord will lead you to live, in your situation, with your particular opportunities and challenges, for his glory.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached at the Cafe Church series 'Wisdom for Life' in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday evening 8th March 2020.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-79231008543231630322020-03-08T12:30:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:36:09.905+01:00Sermon: Mark 7: 24-37 Who is Jesus? Lord of all<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vlu-btbRNSI/T2xX2nQTmaI/AAAAAAAAAak/Fb1Gfl-2gqoLhoc_kKWfuO8s-_AQtJNTQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vlu-btbRNSI/T2xX2nQTmaI/AAAAAAAAAak/Fb1Gfl-2gqoLhoc_kKWfuO8s-_AQtJNTQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
When we were on holiday a few years back, part of the hotel we were staying in had been transformed into a movie set. There were all sorts of rumours going around about who was filming their movie, and we wondered if we’d see any celebrities. And then, one evening as we were eating our dinner, filming had just ended and Will Ferrell walked through, saying hello to everyone on the way past. <br />
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Contrast that to when we lived in east Belfast and had popped into the big Tesco near Ikea to get a few things on Saturday night. And there, wandering the aisles, with his coat up high and a baseball cap was none other than the comedian Peter Kay. (I resisted the urge to give him a packet of garlic bread). He had been appearing in the Odyssey, but it was clear that he didn’t want to be recognised or engage with anyone.<br />
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Now that’s my only two celebrity encounters - I’m not a stalker - but in our reading this morning, it seems that Jesus is slightly more like the second of the celebrities I spotted. When we get to verse 24 (p 1010), we find that Jesus has left Galilee and Israel behind, and has crossed the border into the vicinity of Tyre. And just like Mr Kay in Knocknagoney Tesco, he ‘entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret.’ (24) <br />
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It could be that the threat of Herod was still there while he was in Galilee; and he had just had another confrontation with the Pharisees, who were already plotting to kill him. And so Jesus is away from home, where maybe no one will know him. But he just can’t keep it secret that he is there. Someone has recognised him. someone knows him, and the word gets out. Jesus is here. His presence is never a secret. When he’s in your heart and in your life, then it’s obvious. And so here, the secret gets out. <br />
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And soon enough, as soon as she heard about him, a woman comes to see Jesus. She fell at his feet. She was desperate, begging Jesus to do something. You see, her little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit (25). She begs Jesus to ‘drive the demon out of her daughter.’ (26).<br />
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Now, I wonder were you surprised when you heard what happened next. You see, so far in Mark’s gospel we’ve seen how Jesus immediately helps people who are in need. He heals people, drives out demons, restores sight and even raised a little girl back to life. That’s what you expect to happen, because that’s what Jesus does. Isn’t it?<br />
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But here, rather than helping straight away, Jesus starts a discussion. It’s almost as if he’s objecting to being asked to do the miracle, to help this woman and her daughter. That seems strange, doesn’t it? And even stranger, is what Jesus then says to the distressed mother: ‘First let the children eat all they want, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.’ (27)<br />
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So what’s going on here? Is Jesus being cheeky? Rude? Racist? There’s the contrast that he brings in between the children and the dogs. Now, you know the way there are words used by one people group about another? So in Northern Ireland there are words used when describing someone from the other community - words not to be used in the pulpit. For the Jews, anyone who was a Gentile was seen as unclean, and one of the words used about them was ‘dog.’ <br />
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So it seems that Jesus is buying into this in some way, likening the Jews to the children, and the Gentiles to the dogs - not (as would normally have been thought) a wild dog, but (here) a pet dog. But he says it all the same. That it wouldn’t be fair to take what is for the Jews and to instead give it to the Gentiles. What we don’t have, and can’t immediately tell, is the way in which he said it. We just have the words on the page. We can’t tell if he said it in a harsh way, to shut down the conversation; or in a jokey way, to see if she would play along. <br />
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But perhaps her answer helps us to see how he said it and how it was taken. She grasps onto his first word - the word ‘first’. You see, Jesus wasn’t saying that he is only for the Jews. And he wasn’t saying that his grace was only for the Jews. But it was for the Jews first of all. And there she finds hope to continue; there she presses into the grace on offer:<br />
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‘Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ (28) Ok, she says, if you want to think we’re dogs, then even the dogs get the crumbs and scraps that fall from the table. So won’t you let a crumb of grace fall to me? She’s playing the game, and displaying her faith that Jesus can make a difference, and that he will make the difference for her daughter. Did you see what she called him? Lord! This Gentile woman recognises who Jesus is. She calls him Lord. <br />
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And he shows it by sending her home - saying the demon has left her daughter. And that’s exactly what she finds when she gets home. Jesus is Lord, not just in Israel, but even in Tyre. He is Lord, Lord of all.<br />
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We see that in another place that is outside of Israel’s borders. Jesus has travelled from Tyre, through Sidon to the region of the Decapolis. That’s where he had sent the man who was previously demon possessed that we met in chapter 5 back in January. Do you remember him? He had been possessed by many demons, Legion, and Jesus had driven out the demons into the pigs and restored the man. He had wanted to come too, but Jesus sent him home to tell of all that God had done. So they’ve heard of Jesus in the Decapolis (the ten cities).<br />
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And again, he’s quickly recognised. This time, some people bring to Jesus a man who is deaf and could hardly talk. They begged Jesus to place his hand on the man. And once again, we find that Jesus does something strange, something unusual. With the Syro-Phoenician woman’s daughter, Jesus healed her from a distance. With some of the other healings we’ve seen, Jesus healed with a word. But here, Jesus does much more.<br />
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Now, we’re still in the midst of the no-touching advice of the Coronavirus guidelines, but Jesus is really touchy-feely here. Look at verse 33. ‘Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spat and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”)<br />
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Now why did he do all that? He’s telling the man what’s about to happen. The man may be deaf and mute, but he’s not blind. And so Jesus is showing him what he’s going to do. He touches his ears. He spits to show the clearing of a blockage, then touches the man’s tongue. As he looks up to heaven, he’s showing the man how he’s going to be healed - from God, by God’s power - and then with the sigh says ‘Be opened!’<br />
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‘At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.’ (35) The blockage is removed, and the man can hear. The blockage is removed and the man can speak. And only by God’s power. In the Old Testament, in Exodus 4, at the burning bush, Moses is arguing against God’s call on his life to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. And God says this to him: ‘Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute?... Is it not I, the LORD?’ (Ex 4:11) God is the one who has the power over the ear and the tongue, making deaf or restoring hearing; making mute or restoring the power of speech. And that’s exactly what Jesus can do - even in this Gentile territory.<br />
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Now we’ve heard some strange things that Jesus said and did in our reading today. But there’s one more just before we finish. And it’s there in verse 36: ‘Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it.’ <br />
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Jesus didn’t want his picture in the local paper, or a post on Facebook about what he had done. Jesus didn’t want people to talk about what he had done. Doesn’t that seem strange? Why might that be so?<br />
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He’s already had crowds gathering to him in Galilee. And as we’ll see next time we’re in Mark’s gospel, crowds gather to him in these Gentile regions too. Isn’t that a good thing? Wouldn’t he want a bigger crowd? And especially when you read verse 37 - people are speaking of him so favourably, his approval rating is through the roof, they are overwhelmed with amazement as they say: ‘He has done everything well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.’<br />
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Those categories, making the deaf hear and the mute speak, they’re part of the checklist for the Messiah that we read earlier in Isaiah 35. They’re grasping who Jesus is, and seeing that he’s Lord of all, (which is more than the disciples have managed so far), but they would still get the wrong end of the stick. <br />
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It’s true that Jesus is Lord of all; that his church will continue his mission from Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria to the ends of the earth. It’s true that Jesus will bring healing and wholeness to all his people - some here and now, but for all in the fullness of his kingdom.<br />
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But as much as these Gentiles have grasped Jesus’ identity, they still can’t grasp the fullness of Jesus’ mission. And, as we’ll see, the disciples haven’t grasped it yet. No one else can see it yet, but for Jesus to be Lord of all, and for Jesus to bring healing and wholeness to all his people, he has to go the way of the cross. <br />
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And so, he wants them to keep it secret. To not tell anyone. For now. Who is Jesus? Lord of all, the Lord of healing and wholeness, the long-promised Messiah. <br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday morning 8th March 2020.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10107679.post-11112366269793207902020-03-01T19:30:00.000+00:002020-03-30T11:34:27.020+01:00Sermon: Romans 8: 1-11 No Condemnation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f2dCqFCrnno/URbHYo7LqJI/AAAAAAAABZY/GYgB3jBcWYkBhvIC6R8rtTnEZ8w9TwrPQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f2dCqFCrnno/URbHYo7LqJI/AAAAAAAABZY/GYgB3jBcWYkBhvIC6R8rtTnEZ8w9TwrPQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Sermons%2BImage.jpg" width="320" height="213" data-original-width="500" data-original-height="333" /></a></div><br />
I wonder if you can remember the feelings you had when you sat down in the exam hall at school. Maybe you were nervous, trying to remember everything you had learned on that particular subject. Maybe you felt sick, wanting to do well, or hoping you’d get through. How much better would you have felt, if you knew the end result before you sat down, or as you were furiously scribbling your answers down?<br />
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Or what about the moment when you drive up to the MOT test centre. How flustered you feel when they ask you to turn on your lights and you can’t think how to do it! How nervous you feel when they do the braking test, or when they lift your car up and give it a good shake. One time, the tester took ages with my car up on the lift, then he called over a colleague, then he disappeared into the office, and then came back, stood for ages before eventually letting me know the car had passed with flying colours! How much better, to already know the verdict before you drive the car in to the centre.<br />
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Or maybe Saturday night for you means sitting down to watch Match of the Day. You know your team’s result, and so even if they go down 2 goals in the first half, you know that they’re going to win 3-2. Knowing the end result changes how we feel about the experience. Knowing the final verdict can give us confidence, no matter what might be going on in the meantime.<br />
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Now if that would be true of exams, or MOTs, or Match of the Day; then how much more would it be true of life? How amazing to be able to know God’s verdict of our life here and now - without having to wait until we stand before his judgement seat. As we begin looking at Romans 8, this is what Paul tells us is possible, here and now.<br />
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Look at what he says in verse 1. ‘Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.’ No condemnation. A ‘not guilty’ verdict. A declaration of innocence is available for us - for those who are in Christ Jesus. Now this verse is the summary of everything Paul has said from chapters 1-7 (and it might be good for you to read them, to see how it has come about).<br />
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You see, people may say lots of things about us; they can have their opinion of the things we do or say. Or maybe you have your own opinion about yourself - the shame or guilt for something you have done; the thing you hope no one ever finds out about; you see yourself as sinful, as guilty, as condemned. But the only opinion that really matters is what God thinks of us. It’s his verdict that counts in the end. And his verdict can be known now - no condemnation for those in Christ.<br />
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It’s as if we have been set free. The law of sin and death holds each of us - our sin leads to death. But those in Christ are set free, the prison doors opened, the chains removed, as we are declared innocent. But how does this happen? How can we know the verdict in advance?<br />
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Verse 3 shows us what God has done for us. He sent his own Son, the Lord Jesus, ‘in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering’. Jesus came in our skin, sharing our human nature, to die for our sins. He condemned sin in our flesh, and has taken away our sins. It’s as if we had a huge debt, and Jesus has paid our debt. He has dealt with our sin. But Paul says Jesus has done even more for us than just paying our debts. Verse 4: ‘In order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.’<br />
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Jesus not only takes away our law-breaking. He also gives us the power to obey the law. He helps us to do the things we never could do before, when we walk according to the Spirit.<br />
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When you think of it, there are lots of ways we divide people. Men and women. Old and young. Rich and poor. Manchester United fans and ABUs (Anyone But United). But Paul says there are only two types of people - you’re either one, or the other, there is no middle ground, no sitting on the fence. So which are you - do you live according to the sinful nature, or according to the Spirit?<br />
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From verse 5, Paul helps us to see which group we’re in. ‘Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.’ The way to see which group you’re in is to see where you have set your mind. What is it you think about when you don’t think about anything? What is it that sets your goals, dreams and ambitions? Is it your sinful nature, your sinful desires? Or is it the Spirit - to want what he wants?<br />
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It’s one or the other. It’s as if you come to a fork in the road. Two roads lead to very different destinations. ‘The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.’ (6) It’s a matter of life and death, heaven and hell. And your thoughts are a diagnosis of your heart, your desires. To pursue sinful pleasure is to be hostile to God, to love the things God hates, and hate the things God loves, to be unable to please God.<br />
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Now, by nature, that’s all of us. We naturally are out for ourselves. It doesn’t take long for a baby to start to look out for themselves. And even if we’ve grown up, and know not to say it out loud, we can still think it, and work towards it: ‘Mine!’ <br />
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But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are two groups of people in the world - people who live by the sinful nature, but there are also those who live by the Spirit. Paul says that the Christians in Rome, the people who received the letter, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit. And how do you know? How can we tell if we’re in the Spirit? It’s ‘if the Spirit of God lives in you.’ (9)<br />
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If we belong to Christ, if we are in him, and he is in us, then he gives us the Holy Spirit, he gives us the power to change, and the guarantee of the final verdict. Do you see how Paul refers to the Holy Spirit here? He is the Spirit of God. The Spirit of Christ. (9) The Spirit of life. (2) The Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead. Each points us to the work of the Spirit, in bringing the power of God to live in us, and in giving us life.<br />
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Living as a Christian can be frustrating. You know what you should be doing, but you don’t always do it. You want to change, but you stumble and fall into sin. You feel the power of sin, the pull of death, as you do that thing you hate once again. But look at what God gives us. He gives us his Holy Spirit - the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead to dwell in us. He will do the very same in our lives.<br />
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He gives us life. Satan may try to condemn you. He might try to bring you down with the weight of guilt. How could God really love you after you did that? But the Holy Spirit whispers into our soul that we already know the verdict of the last day - not guilty. No condemnation. Life and peace, because we stand in Christ’s righteousness, as we live by the Spirit, and follow his leading. It’s as if we can open our exam results before we’ve sat the exam. We already know the final result, as we trust in Christ, and live by the power of his Holy Spirit.<br />
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<i>This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday evening 1st March 2020.</i>Garyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04452898471070875871noreply@blogger.com0