Can’t find the time?

“YOU ARE NOT YOUR OWN, FOR YOU WERE BOUGHT WITH A PRICE…” _{1 Corinthians 6:20}

   
    There comes a point in every person’s life when the future appears to them as if it were a vast open road, or to be more precise, a vast network of open roads, paths, streets, rivers and canals. Clutching a set of car keys in one hand, a credit card  in the other, and a holdall of clothing and essentials seated between his (or her) feet, our hypothetical person has the narcotic of independence in abundance.

    After a childhood of dependence, the stimulating rush of freedom can be capable of greatness or, indeed, not-so  greatness. When each of us reach adulthood, complete with fresh driving licenses, new (albeit second-hand) cars, house keys and (…what appears, at first, to be…) an endless supply of cash we have the freedom to live our lives how we want to.

   Actually, this independence can start years earlier than our 18th birthdays. Remember that first day when you took a biscuit out of the barrel at 5.45pm (15 minutes before dinner) without asking permission?! You were 12  or 13 years old: fully capable of judging your own stomachs ability to digest a biscuit and a whole meal shortly after. You had finally claimed nutritional independence!

   Its funny how highly our society marks “independence”. Broadly speaking, parental authority and even marital responsibility are regarded on an equal par to the dictatorial leadership of certain tyrants from Northern Africa or the Middle East.
  Of course I exaggerate slightly!

    That said, even Christians can be easily taken in by the supreme role of Independence/Democracy in our Western lives. It is strange when we consider how, as we get older and ‘more mature’, we start to label ‘time’ as ‘our time’ (you’ve all heard the phrase “he doesn’t have the time of day for me.”) and we degrade ‘responsibilities’ or even ‘chores’ to ‘something we used to waste time on’.


    Every year since 2004 I have gone on a Christian Camp, starting with 2 Summer Camps for younger folks, and culminating with 5 Easter Camps for the “more mature” teenagers/young adults. It was on the second of the Summer Camps that I first gave my life over to the Lord. Come 2012 I will finally have reached the ‘too-old’ bracket (albeit an extremely flexible bracket, open to interpretation!).

    Thinking back over 7 week-long camps, I find, curiously, that the greatest blessing I have gained (in the later years at least) was that which I have labelled as “loss of independence”.  You see, it is quite humbling to discover that (for one week) your time is no longer ‘your own’. Early morning breakfast duties, coupled with washing up sessions, cleaning rotas and military-precision bible study times rapidly force you to work on someone-else’s schedule. At home, school, or even to a certain extent in the workplace, you can choose who you spend time with. At a camp, however, teams are formed by leaders in charge. While not suggesting that there are people on the camps I have attended who I wouldn’t want to spend time with- which, quite honestly, is not true- it is still a ‘step down’ to be told who to associate with! 

   ‘Camp’ has been a dramatic reminder to me, especially in my adult years, that my time and preferences are subservient to a ‘higher authority’- ultimately the Lord God, but also- to a certain degree- to his representatives as well: leaders, parents, bosses, teachers etc.

   As normal, C.S. Lewis has something useful to say on the subject! In The Screwtape Letters, a senior devil is writing to a junior tempter and advising him how to tempt a Christian man:

“You must therefore zealously guard in his mind the curious assumption “My time is my own.” Let him have the feeling that he starts  each day as the lawful possessor of twenty-four hours…..The assumption which you want him to go on making is so absurd that, if once it is questioned, even we cannot find a shred of argument in its defence. The man can neither make, nor retain, one moment of time; it all comes to him by pure gift; he might as well regard the sun and moon as his chattels.”

   It is easy to fall into the ‘independence trap’ of thinking that you have total control over 24 hours a day. In the Bible, James warns us about trusting our own plans for the future. He reminds us that we don’t even know “what tomorrow will bring”. James even goes so far as to describe humans as “a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” When we view our lives with the Biblical perspective, we rapidly realise that we owe all of our time to the Lord God. We simply cannot make our daily decisions without seeking the wisdom and insight which God graciously gives us in the Bible.

    The most amazing incentive for us to live as if each minute belongs to the Lord is given to us in the example of Jesus Christ. Although he was fully God, he “humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Do you remember how the night before his arrest Jesus prayed to his Father “not my will, but yours, be done.”  If the King and Author of Life became the sacrificial lamb for his people, should we not then be prepared to live each day for the God who has granted us each tick-tick-tick of the clock?

      “YOU ARE NOT YOUR OWN, FOR YOU WERE BOUGHT WITH A PRICE…
… SO GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR BODY.”

Toying with Temptation

“TO  VENTURE  UPON  THE  OCCASION  OF  SIN,  AND  THEN  TO  PRAY, 
LEAD  US  NOT  INTO  TEMPTATION, 
IS  THE  SAME  AS  TO  THRUST   THY  FINGER  INTO  THE  FIRE,  AND  THEN  PRAY  THAT  IT  MAY  NOT  BE   BURNT.”
  _{THOMAS BROOKS, PURITAN WRITER}

abk4u: The Screwtape Letters

 

“I HAVE NO INTENTION OF EXPLAINING HOW THE CORRESPONDENCE WHICH I NOW OFFER TO THE PUBLIC FELL INTO MY HANDS…..”

 

Thus begins C.S.Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters.

   Perhaps, having read through the entirety of my previous post, you have heard more than enough for several lifetimes about the 20th Century writer and speaker, C.S. Lewis! I beg of you, humour me one more time and you will be excited and not a little curious to read the mysteriously titled The Screwtape Letters.

“I do not think you will have much difficulty in keeping the patient in the dark. The fact that ‘devils’ are predominately comic figures in the modern imagination will help you. If any faint suggestion of your existence begins to arise in his mind, suggest to him a picture of something in red tights, and persuade him that since he cannot believe in that (it is an old textbook method of confusing the) he therefore cannot believe in you.”

  It is with this “wise” advice that His Abysmal Sublimity Under Secretary Screwtape, TE, BS, etc. writes to his nephew and Junior Tempter, Wormwood. 

   The Screwtape Letters are simply that: the fictitious letters of the fictitious senior(ish)  devil, Screwtape. The evil creature is full of “tips” and “hints” for tempting humans away from God.

    At this point you may be asking (and justifiably) ‘Why would any Christian actually want to read this?’ The answer is simple: It reveals many of the strategies of the Devil, most of which are also described in the Scriptures. It can help a Christian be armed and watchful against the oncoming attacks. Lewis himself was aware of the dangers; he said that when he sat down to write he was entering a world that was ‘all dust, grit, thirst and itch. Every trace of beauty, freshness and geniality had to be excluded. It almost smothered me before I was done.’  Despite this, the book is a challenging and ‘hard-hitting’ read, which, at times, includes humour and irony to reinforce the lessons learnt.

    Having served most of his front-line duty “in the English Sector” Screwtape is well placed to advise his nephew who has been assigned (as tempter) to a young British man during the outbreak of the second World War. 

“As regards his more general attitude to the war, you must not rely too much on those feelings of hatred which the humans are so fond of discussing… it is usually a sort of melodramatic or mythical hatred directed against imaginary scapegoats…The results of such fanciful hatred are often most disappointing, and of all humans the English are in this respect the most deplorable milksops. They are creatures of that miserable sort who loudly proclaim that torture is too good for their enemies and then give tea and cigarettes to the first wounded German pilot who turns up at the back door.”

   Of course, as Lewis warns us in the Introduction, nothing Screwtape says can be relied on, and, reading between the lines, there is no love lost between Screwtape and Wormwood. Yet despite this, we do learn some interesting secrets from Screwtape’s pen….

“We have trained them to think of the Future as a promised land which favoured heroes attain- not as something which everyone reaches at the rate of sixty minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is.”

“One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not meant the Church as we see her spread out through all time and space and rooted in eternity, terrible as an army with banners. That, I confess, is a spectacle which makes our boldest tempters uneasy. But fortunately it is quite invisible to these humans. All your patient sees is the half-finished, sham Gothic erection on the new building estate.”

One of the most startling and thought-provoking lessons we learn in the book is that of Worldliness. It seems that Screwtape treats the issue a lot more seriously than many Christians.  After his ‘patient’ is converted, Wormwood manages to dull his spirituality and relationship with God down through what they describe as ‘the gradual road to Hell.’

“…You will say that these are very small sins; and doubtless, like all young tempters, you are anxious to be able to report spectacular wickedness. But do remember, the only thing that matters is the extent to which you separate the man from the Enemy*. It does not matter how small the sins are provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into nothing…..

Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one- the gentle slop, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”

(*Of course, in Screwtape’s wretched mind the Lord God is “the Enemy.”)

    It is tempting (excuse the pun) to inundate you with quotes from the book, funny and yet challenging at the same time. However I must not give away all of the best parts, rather I would encourage you to read it yourselves. Few Christian books manage to highlight sin and temptation and to suggest defence against attack in such a witty, relevant and eye opening way. Having read Screwtape’s letters one cannot help but seek a different, alternative way to live than that which the devil advocates.

   I will leave you with one last, funny, quote, given to Wormwood by his uncle:

 

“MEN  OR  NATIONS  WHO  THINK  THEY  CAN  REVIVE  THE  FAITH  IN  ORDER  TO  MAKE  A  GOOD SOCEITY  MIGHT  JUST  AS  WELL  THINK  THEY  CAN  USE  THE  STAIRS  OF  HEAVEN  AS  A  SHORT CUT  TO  THE  NEAREST  CHEMIST’S  SHOP.”

abk4u: a Jack of all trades

              “Lessons from an Inconsolable soul”

 

    He wasn’t reformed. He wasn’t really evangelical either. He couldn’t decide whether penal substitution was the reason Christ hung on a cross, preferring simply to accept the benefits without understanding the method. He believed that reason and logic were the greatest tools in mankind’s collective toolbox, perhaps leading to the neglecting of scripture. He didn’t think it beyond reason that non-Christians, sincere in their beliefs, might end up in Heaven. He has even been accused of universalism (everyone will be in Heaven). One blogger has compared him with Rob Bell- who’s teaching is regarded by many as heretical.

   When I tell people that  I am reading C.S. Lewis the normal response is one of surprise: “You are reading children’s books about magical worlds?!” And to be totally transparent, when I re-read The Chronicles of Narnia a few years ago, I knew little else about Clive Stapleton Lewis (known to his friends as Jack) other than his renown as a children's’ author and his use of novels to illustrate biblical themes. However, when one starts to read deeper into the Lewis collection, one can quickly understand why people like John Piper describe him thus:

“[The reason I like Lewis is] in the way that the experience of Joy and the defense of Truth come together in Lewis’s life and writings. The way Lewis deals with these two things—Joy and Truth—is so radically different from Liberal theology and emergent postmodern slipperiness that he is simply in another world—a world where I am totally at home, and where I find both my heart and my mind awakened and made more alive and perceptive and responsive and earnest and hopeful and amazed and passionate for the glory of God every time I turn to C. S. Lewis.”

    Tim Keller also has high praise for the 20th Century professor and author:

“When I first became a Christian believer, his writings spoke to my questions and concerns more than any other. So I have continually, repeatedly, read his writings until I can recite dozens of passages by heart.”

   My own journey through C.S. Lewis’s writings began with Narnia and moved onto his Space Trilogy. It is a well hidden secret that Lewis wrote a science-fiction trilogy! In the first two of the three books (Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra), Lewis tries to show how the gospel may have panned out on a different planet. Ransom, a human man from earth, travels to Mars and Venus. There, with his own personal knowledge of sin, he discovers races that never fell to sin or Satan, and learns a great deal about God’s rescue plan for mankind. The final book (That Hideous Strength) takes place on a post-WWII earth. It contains a number of principles which Lewis deals with in other books and, I must confess, I cannot understand everything he tries to symbolise through the novel.

    By reading his trilogy, I discovered that Lewis was a much deeper and more perceptive man than I had originally given him credit for. He was much much more than a simple fairy tale novelist (difficult though that may be) and I endeavoured to find more of his books and essays.

   Mere Christianity, famous amongst Christian circles, was next read. I followed the first 2/3s of the book with wrapt attention- his reason and logic seemed to beat the normal scientific arguments against God. His “Bad, Mad or Son of God” theory regarding the Lord Jesus is regularly quoted by many of my friends and I was interested to see its context in Mere Christianity. The last 1/3 of the book dealt with organised religion, and it was here that I thought Lewis failed to properly apply the scriptures. When his search for reason and logic finally ran its course- ending with the existence of a personal and almighty God, and our need to do something about it- rather than turning to the scriptures, he appeared to simply jump on board the Church of England’s teachings. This was a major oversight, and, arguably, his worst.

   With mixed feelings about Mere Christianity, I read The Screwtape Letters and The Great Divide. The Screwtape Letters were superb, and I shall  be blogging about them in the near future. The Great Divide was also a fascinating book, but one to be read with great caution. C.S. Lewis himself put large WARNING signs over this book:

“I beg readers to remember that this is a fantasy. It has of course- or I have intended it to have- a moral. But the transmortal conditions are solely an imaginative supposal: they are not even a guess or a speculation at what may actually await us. The last thing I wish is to arouse factual curiosity about the details of the after-world.” 

“Ye are only dreaming. And if ye come to tell of what ye have seen, make it plain that it was but a dream. Se ye make it very plain. Give no poor fool the pretext to think ye are claiming knowledge of what no mortal knows.”

   Lewis’s books all bear the mark of a 20th Century author, scarred by the events of 2 world wars, and by his defense of reason and logic against the rise of modernism thinking. These ideas and also everyday events form the backdrop to his works. It came as a shock to me to read about a bus in the afterlife!

   A lecture given by Lewis, who was a professor at both Oxford and Cambridge, to a number of students, called ‘The Inner Ring’ has given me great pause for thought over the years. To read more about the subject you can visit my earlier blog An Outsiders Obituary- alternatively (and perhaps preferably) find his original lecture and have a look for yourself. 

   It was with a good understanding- or so I thought- of Lewis that I eventually read Surprised by Joy and A Pilgrims Regress. These two books open up an entirely new side to Lewis, and one that influenced him greater than anything else for his whole life.

   In Surprised by Joy, Lewis’s autobiography, he explains how he experienced throughout his life something which he describes as ‘Joy’:

“Joy is distinct not only from pleasure in general but even from aesthetic pleasure. It must have the stab, the pang, the inconsolable longing.”

“All joy reminds. It is never a possession, always a desire for something longer ago or further away or still ‘about to be’.”

  I, and others I have talked to, can sympathise with Lewis. Who hasn’t felt that pang of longing? The intense feeling of homesickness, even when seated in one’s own house? That feeling of eternality and majesty when standing in the midst of a storm, or on a mountain edge? Even the nostalgic joy when you remember a far distant day or experience from your childhood?

   Lewis said that the pang itself was part of the Joy. Understandably these feelings are hard to describe, however Lewis did a good job of trying:

“…the very nature of Joy makes nonsense of our common distinction between having and wanting. There [in Heaven], to have is to want and to want is to have. Thus, the very moment when I longed to be so stabbed again, was itself again such a stabbing.”

   The purpose of this longing, or joy, is to draw us to the greatest Joy and Joy-giver, the Lord Jesus Christ. Lewis uses a humorous quote to make this point:

“There are traps everywhere-‘Bibles laid open, millions of surprises,’ as Herbert says, ‘fine nets and stratagems.’ God is, if I may say it, very unscrupulous.”

   The Lord uses stabs of longing, an inconsolable joy to show us a small picture of how wonderful Jesus is. Lewis’s autobiography ends rather suddenly with Lewis’s conversion:

“But what, in conclusion, of joy? for that, after all, is what the story has been mainly about. To tell you the truth, the subject has lost nearly all interest to me since I became a Christian. I cannot, indeed, complain…that the visionary gleam has passed away. I believe (if the thing were at all worth recording) that the old stab, the old bitter-sweet, has come to me as often and as sharply since my conversion as at any time of my life whatever. But I now know that the experience…had never the kind of importance I once gave it. It was valuable only as a pointer to something other and outer….When we are lost in the woods the sight of a signpost is a great matter. He who first sees it cries “Look!” The whole party gathers round and stares. But when we have found the road and are passing signposts every few miles, we shall not stop and stare….Not of course, that I don’t often catch myself stopping to stare at roadside objects of less importance.”

 

    In conclusion for myself then, C.S. Lewis has a manner which brings the reality of life and death and eternity to the forefront of a situation. His vivid illustrations and pictures can be a great aid in better understanding and knowing the Lord. His journey with ‘Joy’ helps me to better appreciate similar stabs of longing I feel and have felt. His reason and logic help me to defend the gospel and its claims. His understanding of  myths and fairy tales as shadows of the real thing (a matter I have totally skipped over in my brief review of Lewis) encourage believers to appreciate literature and culture, and to use them as springboards to Christ. His insights into friendship (another issue which I have failed to write about) help us to live with love towards our fellow Christians.

   C.S. Lewis is one of the most influential writers of the past 100 years. His books continue to encourage and exhort. His doctrinal failings, although seemingly very substantial  and dangerous, should not stop a Christian from reading and discussing his books.

 

 

A few of C.S. Lewis’s quotes and sayings:

 

A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.

 

Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.

 

Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.

There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, 'Thy will be done.'

 

If we discover a desire within us that nothing in this world can satisfy, also we should begin to wonder if perhaps we were created for another world

 

The Moral Law tells us the tune we have to play: our instincts are merely the keys.

 

Human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and can't really get rid of it

A Quote Cubed

        A quote of a quote, quoted by me:

 

WHEN A NEWSPAPER POSED THE QUESTION,

“WHAT’S WRONG WITH THE WORLD?”

THE CATHOLIC THINKER G.K. CHESTERTON REPUTEDLY WROTE A BRIEF LETTER IN RESPONSE:

“DEAR SIRS; I AM. YOURS SINCERELY, G.K. CHESTERTON.”

 

                                                                                                         The Prodigal God, Timothy Keller

abk4u: Reckless Grace

    A series examining Christian authors who have shaped lives; trying to find ‘a book for you’

 

“GODS RECKLESS GRACE IS OUR GREATEST HOPE”

    prod-i-gal –adjective
1. recklessly extravagant
2. having spent everything

 

   Thus starts Timothy Keller’s book “The Prodigal God”.

   Its an upside down, topsey turvey, title if there ever was one! Obviously referring to Jesus’ parable about the prodigal son, Keller, right from the word go, is doing a total U-turn on the conventional understanding of the story.

   The parable of the prodigal son is a story in which a wayward young brother takes his inheritance and wastes it all on foolishness and excitement. Eventually, penniless and sorrowful, he returns to his father’s house, where his father runs to meet him, showering him with gifts and love. It is from here that we have the saying “kill the fatted calf.”  The older brother, who had stayed and served his father all those years, is upset to see to how his brother is treated upon his return.

   Traditionally the focus is placed on the younger wayward brother and his return to his father. Jesus attracted followers who were ‘younger brother types’- tax collectors and sinners. Surely, Keller asks, this story would bring the crowd to tears as they realise that they too can be forgiven by God? But then he answers his own question.

“No, the original listeners were not melted into tears by this story but rather they were thunderstruck, offended, and infuriated. Jesus’ purpose is not to warm our hearts but to shatter our categories… His story reveals the destructive self-centeredness of the younger brother, but it also condemns the elder brother’s moralistic life in the strongest terms. Jesus is saying that both the irreligious and the religious are spiritually lost.”

    The book highlights the 2 pathways which, perhaps, the human race falls into: that of the older brother, and that of the younger brother.

   Interestingly it is to the religious “older brothers” that Jesus directs this parable. The Pharisees and scribes are the ones who need this parable most of all. Having studied scripture all their lives and having kept thousands of self-imposed laws and regulations they regarded themselves as superior “holy” people. They were the bees-knees (or so they thought).

  In the parable, the Father goes out to both of the brothers. He runs out to welcome back the younger brother. And during the celebrations, he goes out to find his older son and invite him in too. Whether we have lived as rebels from God, or if we have strived to be perfect without God’s help, either way we need God’s grace to bring us back home. The basic thesis of Keller’s book is that God is a prodigal God. Prodigal means to be recklessly extravagant, to give until you have nothing left.  Essentially, he argues, God is a prodigal God. He gives us his grace and mercy and forgiveness in a manner which could be termed reckless and extravagant, but equally termed wonderful and glorious!

    One point made in The Prodigal God, was one that surprised me. It had never really crossed my mind before.

    The parable was the third of three to be told. In the first 2 someone loses something (a sheep, and a coin) and then, throwing all other cares aside, goes out searching for it. They refuse to give up until it has been found. We are soon surprised though,

“By the time we get to the third story, and we hear the plight of the lost son, we are fully prepared to expect that someone will set out to search for him. No one does. It is startling, and Jesus meant it to be so.”

   Who, we are asked, should have gone out searching for the younger brother?

   Any true elder brother would have given everything to find his lost, wayward sibling.

   Imagine how this accusation would have hit the Pharisees listening. They were being accused of failing their brothers. They had not fulfilled their duty towards God. Jesus’ parable, which had looked all set to condemn the tax-collectors and sinners, had in fact turned 180 degrees and was now pointing both barrels at themselves.

   Thankfully, this failure on the part of the older brother, points us to the brother who has completed his task. The Lord Jesus Christ came to ‘seek and to save that which is lost.’ As Keller says,

“Our true elder brother paid our debt, on the cross, in our place.”

   The Prodigal God goes on to talk much more about the sins of both the younger and elder brothers, the reckless grace of the father and the feast of celebration. Of course, the book must end with the startling end of the parable. Jesus used a really shocking cliff hanger:

    The father finds his eldest son skulking outside the great hall, in the dark, he invites him to come back inside and to join in the celebrations.

    And that’s it.

    The story ends.

    We get no answer, either positive or negative.

    Jesus leaves the Pharisees with the question for themselves: Are you going to stay in the dark? Or will you share in the reckless extravagant grace of God?

    We need to ask ourselves the same.

 

 

• The Prodigal God, Timothy Keller, Hodder & Stoughton

Evacuate an Embassy

   No-one ever said that being an Ambassador was going to be easy. Living in a foreign land, surrounded by an alien culture and a semi-hostile- or at the very least, semi-suspicious- people. 
   That is why, in international relations, Ambassadors and Embassies are regarded as sacrosanct. Nations may well despise their enemies, and even their allies, but they must treat foreign representatives with all honour and pomp.
   That is also why the  events of yesterday (Tuesday 29th November 2011) have caused such a stir across the UN and EU. Any situation which causes the USA, Germany, France, Russia, the UK and the UN Security Council to agree must be serious indeed.
   A few days ago the UK, along with Canada and America, imposed new sanctions on Iran. The Iranian Parliament responded with a vote to downgrade diplomatic relations with Britain. Yesterday, coinciding with the anniversary of the assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist (blamed on Britain), a mob of Iranian students stormed the British Embassy compound (known as one of the strongest ‘fortresses’ in Tehran). Offices were ransacked, papers burnt and general chaos ensued. Thankfully all the staff have been accounted for and, as we speak, many are being evacuated.
   Step back and consider for a moment.
   Christians are all Ambassadors in an alien land. We are men (and women) on a mission of utmost importance.

    “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

   Moses, Noah, Enoch and many others all lived as strangers and exiles on the earth. They knew that they were foreigners, waiting for the call home.
   However, our mission, our message, is going to cause much more havoc and disturbance than sanctions on Iranian banks ever could. Jesus said:

    “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”

     The message of the Gospel is one which causes divisions and anger: All have sinned, all are condemned by “international” law, all will receive the judgement they deserve; but God sent his son to die for the sins of his people, through faith in Jesus Christ and repentance comes eternal life. Before one can realise the wonder of God’s grace they must first be faced with, and acknowledge, the depravity and helplessness of their own soul.
    This message has caused the torture and death of many ambassadors. Before his execution, Paul described himself as an ‘ambassador in chains.’
    What hope can a Christian have then when he is stuck behind enemy lines and facing an angry mob?   
    When I quoted Matthew chapter 28 earlier, I missed the end of the quote off. Read it again and see why a Christian should be encouraged:

    “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

    I don’t want to push the analogy too far, but the hope a Christian bears is this: He is not alone, his Prince and Commander-in-Chief is with him. Our Lord does not leave us unaided to proclaim his Gospel, we have a mighty compound (unimaginably more mighty than an embassy’s walls) encompassing us and keeping us safe.
   Dwell on that for a while.
   Remember this: despite the attacks against our walls, our God cannot be breached, he is our shield and our defender. We may be Ambassadors in an alien land, but we are not alone!

We rest on Thee, our shield and our defender!
We go not forth alone against the foe
Strong in Thy strength, safe in Thy keeping tender
We rest on Thee and in Thy name we go

Oxygen:2012

Young Life (NYLC), a national youth organisation aimed at ‘reaching the lost and discipling the found’, has recently bought out the Oxygen booklet, ready for 2012.
The book is designed for use during morning or evening devotions. Near the front is a day-by-day prayer diary with suggested topics for supplicationary prayer, along with adequate room to add in people and needs as they arise.
A reading scheme- covering the whole Bible in 1 year- is also included. Each of the 365 days comes with space for notes and thoughts alongside the applicable Old and New Testament passages for that day.
The introduction also includes references and tips relating to having a daily quiet time with God.
Last year, along with a number of others, I undertook the UGS: 2010 reading Scheme (Unashamed Gospel Studiers!). I found it a great encouragement and blessing (please excuse my excessive use of clichés!). In the upcoming 12 months, many people at my YL group and church will be using the Oxygen quiet time diary and reading scheme. I look forward to the opportunities to discuss and share with others what we have been reading during the week.
As a tool to assist in regular Bible reading and study Oxygen looks like it will be worth its weight in Gold (Gold prices are currently fairly high too!). Why not join in the scheme and see how it can help you for 2012?
http://www.younglife.org.uk/younglife/resources.html
1 for £1.95,   6 for £10,   20 for £30

A good selection of other Bible reading schemes can be found at http://psalm121.ca/brindex.html

“Tea and cake, please.”

“THE MERE CHINK OF CUPS AND SAUCERS TUNES THE MIND TO HAPPY REPOSE.”    _{George Gissing}
                                                                                                                      

  I am English therefore I adore tea. Be it the PG Tips basic or the refined Twinings Breakfast variety, I could drink a teapot full!

  Watching the BBC Drama, Death in Paradise- the oh-so-very-British Detective Inspector Richard Poole dropped onto a 100 degrees Caribbean Island and in desperate need of a good old cup of finest- I am reminded of myself in India 4 years ago!

   After 3 weeks of drinking the local ‘cup of char’ using, at best, powdered milk and, at worst, no milk at all, I was craving tea of any reasonable sort!

   It was therefore with jubilation and celebration that my peers and I discovered a delightful continental tea shop in the city of Shimla! Shimla was used by the British Raj to administrate India during the winter months, due to its warm climate. It was built in a much more English manner than most of the other northern Indian cities, boasting- I kid you not-  a range of mock Tudor houses!

   The picture on the right shows me joyously holding the first packet of English Breakfast Tea I had tasted in weeks! I rather like the image- it symbolises the happiness and refreshment that I had been missing and yet earnestly seeking! As you can see, my fingers were cracked and dirty after 2 weeks of hiking in the Himalayas and a week of DIY at a local school! The tea was definitely needed!

    The Bible uses thirst and the quenching (quenchatition?!) of thirst as a vivid illustration of both our need for righteousness and also our need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. But the Bible also talks about how God’s Word, the scriptures, should excel the greatest earthly delights and pleasures, aka English Breakfast Tea. 

    The Psalmists regularly described God’s Word as honey:

    “How sweet are your words to my taste,
        sweeter than honey to my mouth!”
   “More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.”

   God himself describes his desire to bless the Israelites with abundant fruitfulness in terms of wild honey:

    “But he would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
        and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

   Honey, in the Bible, was something which was basically a luxurious food- something to be desired after. Personally I don’t like honey much. So I tend to substitute ‘tea’ of even ‘fudge cake’ instead of ‘honey’ in these passages. It helps me to appreciate the magnitude or personal nature of the Psalms. Essentially the Psalmist, if in my position, would be saying a prayer of praise, roughly along these lines, “How refreshing are your words to my taste, more refreshing than tea to my lips!” “More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than a  sticky toffee pudding and dripping melted fudge.”
   I love the language of scripture, and certainly would not advocate adopting the paraphrases above! However it does give one pause for thought. The Psalmist was comparing God’s Word to a delicious delicacy. And honey’s consistency is not really much different to that of a sticky toffee pudding!
   The Lord’s desire is to feed us spiritually with the choicest portions, with the finest servings of the Kingdom’s kitchens.
  One of Solomon’s proverbs underpins this point well. Solomon wanted nothing but the best spiritual food from God:

   “Two things I ask of you;
        deny them not to me before I die:
    Remove far from me falsehood and lying…
     …feed me with the food that is needful for me…”

   Solomon appreciated the need to both turn from bad, unwholesome, food which would clog the arteries, dull the brain and lead to death; and to also turn to the food fresh from God’s table, food which sustains, invigorates and energises.
   Perhaps you have realised that I am not talking about physical food any more!
   The illustration of food is helpful. It shows us the main purpose of God’s Word: to sustain the Christian, to fill him with the energy needed for the day/week/year and, perhaps chiefly, to remind us of our utter dependence on the Lord God each and every minute of our existence.
   But this duty of spiritual dining should not be burdensome. Quite the reverse. We are not dining as servants (in the kitchens) but as sons and daughters of the King, in the Great Hall of God. As we delve into scriptures, we are not doing so alone, but in the presence of our Saviour and  High Priest, Jesus Christ; and with the Father, who graciously gives us every starter, side plate, sorbet and mint; and with the Holy Spirit who points us toward the Father and the Son.

•    Jesus said this,  “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me…” It is in the Bible that we learn about God- Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
• It is in those pages that we discover God’s purpose for our lives “For this is the will of God, your sanctification…”.
• It is in scripture that we have the tools of worship and praise, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”.
• In fact, we are told, the Bible is good for everything we can possibly need! “ …you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

   Certainly, when I sit down to read my Bible I don’t always get the same joy as I do when eating a sticky toffee pudding, or even drinking a cup of English Breakfast tea, for that matter. Perhaps, before opening up my Bible (and during, and after as well) I should be praying that the Lord would open my heart to his words. That scripture would invigorate and sustain me. That it would both teach and admonish me. And that, when I read His words, I will be delighted, and also filled with a joy that is vastly superior to that of drinking my first proper cup of tea in 3 weeks!
  If we are praying that we would savour every last morsel of the Bible, that we would praise and love the author, then the Lord certainly won’t refuse our prayers; indeed, we have this great promise to lay claim of:

“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are open to their prayer.”1 Peter chapter 3  verse 12

abk4u: Biblical Theology

“…Vaughan Roberts and Graeme Goldsworthy explained the plotline of the Bible to me.”

      With a title such as “Biblical Theology” I am actually surprised that you have read this post as far as you have! It certainly doesn’t catch the imagination and fan the metaphorical flames of excitement. Christians tend to hear the words Biblical and Theology and either think  “Organised Religion: eugh!” or “Good stuff… better left to the academics and uber-christians though!”

     If I was to say words to the effect of ‘Biblical Theology is for normal Christians too!’ then I might just be driving the final nail into the coffin of the contemporary and  relevant ethos which this blog has rather failed to achieve!

    Well….I never was particularly contemporary or relevant anyway- so here it goes:

    Biblical Theology is for normal Christians too!

   The 2 books (and authors) which have most succinctly pointed me towards Biblical Theology and its relevance are:

• God’s Big Picture, Vaughan Roberts 
• Gospel and Kingdom (The Goldsworthy Trilogy), Graeme Goldsworthy

   I read the first book about 4/5 years ago. As a relatively young Christian I was delighted to discover that the Bible actually had a pattern- a beginning, a middle and an end. The Bible is essentially one big story, woven throughout human history. This revelation dramatically influenced my understanding of a) how the New and Old Testaments fit together; b) the sheer paradoxical (by human standards) nature of the Gospel; c) how the Creation and the New Creation are the perfect bookends of time, and the gatehouse to a glorious future.

   During 2011, I read Gospel and Kingdom by Graeme Goldsworthy, having found it on a recommendation list. I quickly recognised the themes and basic principle behind the book. Turning back to the foreword in God’s Big Picture, I realised that Vaughan Roberts had actually written his own book as a layman’s version of Gospel and Kingdom. Reading the later (and more complex) of the two books, I better cemented my understanding of how the Gospel has affected the whole of history. Goldsworthy helped me to better understand how to interpret Old Testament stories in the light of the New Testament.

   Essentially Biblical Theology- as opposed to Systematic Theology- is the study of the main themes of the Bible as the Bible presents them, in their own place and context.  I hate to quote wikiwedia, but in this instance it actually explains the idea pretty succinctly:

Biblical theology seeks to understand a certain passage in the Bible in light of all of the biblical history leading up to it and later biblical references to that passage.

   On the other side of the Theological coin is Systematic Theology, which attempts to study and summarise Biblical topics in an ordered manner, outside of their immediate context. Both systems have merit and an all-rounded Christian should make use of both. Probably most human beings are drawn to the Systematic course of action. It seems simpler, more practical and better at producing rock solid results. But I highly doubt that God meant to write us a ‘Christian Textbook’ where we can flick to page 42 to read about “Marriage” and page 133 for “Redemption”! I made this comment in an earlier blog post:

In[his book] Goldworthy helps us to understand why finding answers in the Bible can seem like such hard work. The Bible, he says, is not a text book with an easy-use index. If we found a simple answer to 'How much money should I tithe?' under 'T' for tithe, then we wouldn't need to prayerfully search through God's word, trying to learn from Jesus' example or by understanding the role of grace in a believer. The Bible wasn't written as a glorified dictionary of Christianity, rather its fundamental aim is to make us grow.        Forming a Theology of Work, Wonders and Wigwams

   Spoiler Alert: The following paragraphs will reveal some of the thoughts and illustration used in God’s Big Picture and Gospel and Kingdom


     So, what is the Bible all about?

     The main definition, argued by the authors, is a great one. They define the ‘unifying theme’ of the Bible as…

The Kingdom of God:
God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule and blessing.

    Perhaps you disagree? Well, read the book then!

    The books both track God’s People, God’s Place and God’s Rule and Blessing throughout scripture, culminating with the promises of Heaven.

    Viewing all of scripture as a part of the greatest story of all-time is certainly an eye opener. Goldsworthy gives a number of examples as to how this theology should shape our interpretation of Old Testament passages. The first one- one which I have heard elsewhere- is that of David and Goliath.

  Now who has heard a sermon, talk or discussion which places us in the metaphorical shoes of David? We must  fight the giants in our lives, using the stones of prayer, faith, love etc. etc.?

  Perhaps David and Goliath could be used as an illustration for Christian warfare, but that certainly isn’t the main thrust of the story:

     David was the anointed King of Israel, God’s chosen one. While the powerless Israelites watched on, David went forth as the representative and champion of Israel, and killed the enemy of God’s people…. Do you see now how the Gospel of Jesus Christ is in fact the primary purpose of this story?  We should not associate ourselves with David, instead we should think of ourselves as the scared and powerless Israelites, watching while Jesus- our champion- defeats the powers of death and sin on our behalf!

    I could continue, but I must wrap this abk4u post up!

   Biblical Theology is vital for Christian living. A Gospel-centred understanding of scripture is vital for Christian living. Jesus is all throughout the Bible, these books can be a valuable resource in opening our eyes to his presence.

    And [Jesus] said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.    (Luke 24:25-27 ESV)

• God’s Big Picture, Vaughan Roberts, IVP
  http://www.thegoodbook.co.uk/god-s-big-picture?ref=1296817608
• The Goldsworthy Trilogy, Graeme Goldsworthy, Paternoster Press
  Including Gospel and Kingdom, Gospel and Wisdom and The Gospel in Revelation
  http://www.thegoodbook.co.uk/the-goldsworthy-trilogy?ref=1296817608

abk4u: Bunyan, the Bedfordian

         

“…Bunyan taught me that Christians are living in a war zone.”
“…Bunyan taught me that man is created by and for the Lord God, and that he delights in his work.”

   I am starting the ‘a book for you’ series, perhaps unsurprisingly, with someone who is held in high esteem- both in his home  town of Bedford, but also in the bigger wider world. John Bunyan was, undeniably, one of the greatest Puritan writers England has ever seen.
   The Pilgrim’s Progress (…From this World  to that Which is to Come) has been translated into over 200 languages. Some claim that it ranks second only to the Bible in terms of all-time sales (although others place Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book in that position!).
   Although I could talk about Bunyan’s most famous allegorical work for many an hour, I want to focus on one of his other bestsellers: The Holy War.

As I travelled through many regions, I came upon that famous land called Universe. This spacious country lies between the two poles and amid the four points of the heavens. Adorned with hills and valleys, it is abundantly fruitful, well-populated, and splendidly situated……

…..In this gallant country of Universe, there lies a pleasant and peaceful municipality called Mansoul. The picturesque architecture of this town, its convenient location, and its superior advantages cannot be equalled under heaven.

  
   It would be embarrassing to admit how long it took me to connect the town’s name Mansoul with its obvious meaning! Putting that to one side, Bunyan’s allegorical descriptions of each individual Soul has shaped my understanding of the Lord’s delight in his people, and the lengths he has gone to in order to secure our eternal safety.

According to the most authentic records, Mansoul’s first founder and builder was one called Shaddai. He built it for his own delight, making it the masterpiece of all that he did in that country. When first built, it was said by some that the angels came down to see it and sung for joy.

   In The Holy War, Bunyan tells the tale of Mansoul, a city which is infiltrated by Diabolus (an old English/Latin word meaning Devil) and his consorts. The simple Laws and Statutes of the previous King are destroyed, and the city descends into lasciviousness and ungodly living. The new tyrant places his own people into exalted positions: Lord Lustings becomes Mayor and Mr Forget-Good is appointed City Recorder. New Magistrates, Aldermen and Constables included Mr Unbelief, Mr Haughty, Mr Swearing, Mr No-Truth and Mr False-Peace. Having gained control of the city and garrisoned it against attack, Diabolus continues to enjoy Mansoul’s flagrant rebellion against King Shaddai.
   The story tells us of the King’s Generals who come and besiege the rebellious town. We learn about the belittlement and imprisonment of Mr Conscience. The defences of the site are expounded; we learn that the most succesful attacks are those made against Eye Gate or Ear Gate. And then, wonderfully, we hear about the King’s Son who bravely comes to capture the rebellious city.
   As a young boy, it was this book which, perhaps, gave me my earliest grasp of man’s sin and of God’s Grace. Mansoul was conquered, the evil mongers fled, the inhabitants left at the mercy of the King’s forces. But Prince Emmanuel (God with us) graciously offers forgiveness and mercy to the stricken, repentant and miserable town.
   The Prince’s claim, made to Diabolus, of ownership over Mansoul, is a beautiful thing. Remember, this is Christ’s claim over the believer’s heart:

This town of Mansoul is mine by an undoubted right, as all can see who diligently search the most ancient and authentic records… In the first place my father formed Mansoul with his own hands. The palace which stands in the middle of the town was formed by him for his own delight. This town of Mansoul is my Father’s by the best title possible, and those who deny this lie against their own souls. Secondly, you master of lies, this town of Mansoul is mine.
(1) I am my Father’s heir, his firstborn, and the delight of his heart. I have, therefore, come against you in my own right to recover my own inheritance from your slavery.
(2) Not only do I have a right to Mansoul because I am my Father’s heir, but because he has given it to me. It belonged to him, and he gave it to me…
(3) Mansoul is also mine by right of purchase. I have bought it, Diabolus, I have bought it for myself…. I purchased Mansoul because it had trespassed against my Father….When the appointed time had come, I gave my body, soul, life and blood for Mansoul, and so redeemed my beloved Mansoul.
(4) This is not a half-way measure. My Father’s law and justice, which were both transgressed, are now completely satisfied and reconciled that Mansoul should be delivered.
(5) Now I have come against you, this day, by commandment from my Father…Therefore, by assured, you fountain of deceit, and also, let Mansoul be assured, that I have not come against you without my Father. 

   
   Having freed Mansoul from its deceptive and manipulative tyrant, the Prince extends mercy to the repentant town folk, who cry out to him for forgiveness.   
The Prince commands the citizens of the City to keep alert for infiltrators and enemy agents living amongst them. The city walls are full of holes where men can conceal themselves and wreak havoc on Mansoul.
   At first the town rejoices at their King and his son. Emmanuel lives amongst them, in the citadel of Mansoul. The King’s Lord Secretary joins them and preaches and exhorts them. The Prince gives every man, woman and child new robes, pure, white and clean. They rejoice with feasting and happiness.    
  Sadly however, over time, the Mansoulians start to slip downwards in their zeal against Diabolus’ infiltrators and agents. They get forgetful, and start to ignore the great Prince living in their palace. They drag their white robes in the dust and dirt, not bothering to wash them clean.
   Eventually, and quietly, the Prince leaves the city, leaving the Lord Secretary (symbolising the Holy Spirit) behind to watch over the citizens.
   Mansoul comes under new and horrifying attacks, each more deadly and fearsome than the last.  Mansoul, time and again, is sent back to the Court of King Shaddai and Prince Emmanuel, in supplication for aid and support.
   Ultimately, the King’s city cannot fall to the assaults of Diabolus. The citizens, through adversity and trial, learn to return to the arms of their Prince. Mansoul, Emmanuel says, will be taken into a new land….

After a little while, I will take this famous town of Mansoul down to the ground. But do not be troubled by what I am saying. I will carry the stones, the timber, the walls, the dust and the inhabitants into my own country, the Kingdom of my Father. There, I will set up the town in such strength and glory, as it never had in the Kingdom where it is now situated.

       Bunyan has taught me well. Each soul is precious in God’s sight because he created us- he is the author of creation- and breathes life into us. We are his delight and joy. He has bought us at a terrible cost. The Christian lives in a battlefield. There is no time to let down one’s guard. The devil will assault us continually, but the war has been already won and the victory is secure. One day, Christ Jesus will take us home to be with the Father in glory.

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.   John 16 v33

A Book 4 U

 
   My Church runs a program at a local school called “A Book for you”. I’m not actually involved with the work itself, but I understand that the particular book in question is the Bible (please correct me if I have misunderstood!).
  The Bible should be our favourite book, because it contains the words of eternal life. It is none other than the Word of God. The Lord speaks to us through the Bible. That is awesome, amazing, wonderful and stupefying!
   Graciously God also uses the written work of other- fallible- authors to instruct and teach us as well.
   When I examine my bookcase, I am thankful to all the people who have taught me real Biblical truth. I have been shaped by many Christian writers.
   If you visit the ‘Readings and Revolutions’ page of Wonders and Wigwams then you will find an extensive (and ever updating) list of many of my favourite and most useful books, with short synopsises. But over the next few weeks and months I want to share with you, in a bit more detail than previously, some of the authors, teachers and books which have shaped me and taught me. I hope you will find some of them useful for yourselves.
   Keep your eyes peeled for “abk4u” posts!

   Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.(1 Thessalonians 5:11 ESV)

Mice and Custard

     -an epic tale of a mouse and a (relatively speaking) oversized biscuit

 

   Its one of those family stories which, over the many retellings and spin-offs, has achieved legendary status amongst your relatives- up there with King Arthur and the Knights of the round table, Robin Hood, Big Foot and Thor.

    Its a story which only gets better with the retelling- somehow becoming more epic, more gripping, more dramatic and more real with each rendition.

   To an uninitiated outsider it is meaningless, un-epic, and frankly, a tad boring. However to my clan it is the bread and butter (so to speak) of dinner-time conversation.  

   I’d better tell you.

 

  Mice and Custard, and Epic tale of a mouse and a (relatively speaking) oversized biscuit-

     I was still in nappies and sleeping in a cot when this epic tale begins. We were living in a temporary abode - more of a shack, to be honest- and the conditions were basic. The small bungalow, number 64, had seen much, much better days. The current owners have refurbished the building and little remains of the shell we occupied those 20 years ago.

    On good days, the roof leaked. On bad days…… well, you get the idea. If any unwanted visitors were to ‘visit’ then we would graciously give them the most comfortable armchair (directly beneath the leak!)

    Wherever you went in the house you could expect company. Mice would play beneath the dining table, dance in the bath and work in the bedrooms. An entire battalion of the beasts were there with us. And the audacity  of them too! They knew that we were powerless to prevent their frolics! They flaunted their freedom in front of us, without any shame!  One morning my mother awoke to discover half of her supper, on the bedside cabinet, had been whisked away during the night!

   It was with great joy and delight, therefore, that my parents awoke one morning to discover the plight of the audacious and greedy mice! A semi-circular hole, or door, was situated in the skirting board in one room. It was from here that  the mice would rally forth to intimidate and pillage. However this particular night’s raid had ended badly! The mice, after an especially good haul had returned to their hole dragging their loot behind them. Unfortunately one mouse – with eyes bigger than his belly- had failed  to judge  the exact size of the door. He had, to our amusement, attempted to drag an entire custard cream into his storehouse. In his haste, he had succeeded in jamming the  confectionary right across the doorway leaving him and his mates stuck inside their own hole!

    It was some days before we eventually saw our mice reappear- this time looking a bit greener and sickly. They never touched custard creams again after that!**

 

     Can we learn anything from this epic tale? Probably. I firmly believe, as did Jonathan Edwards, C.S. Lewis and many others, that nature around us is wired so as to teach us as much as possible. Of course, we must take these lessons with a pinch of salt; after all, nature has suffered from the fall, just as mankind has.

    The obvious lesson to draw from our mice is the one which mothers are teaching their children at this very moment: if your eyes are bigger than your belly then you will get a stomach ache. Or, as the bible puts it, ‘be sure your sin will find you out.’

   Greed- the desire for more, more, more- is a sin which can creep up on us unexpected. It is essentially covetousness and idolatry, faithlessness and adultery all rolled into one. We pin our expectations or desires onto something other than God, we yearn for something God has not given us. Therefore we place that object above God, we reject what God has given us for that which he, in his infinite wisdom, hasn’t given us. 

   But perhaps you think I am exaggerating.

  Stop and consider.

   Is it really an overreaction to describe ‘a little greed’ as adultery towards God?

   It isn’t, is it? Greed is trusting our own fickle fancies over God’s eternal and omnipotent wisdom. That is sin. That is idolatry.

   Sure, a mouse probably cannot be blamed for its greedy theft of a custard cream; but that doesn’t excuse the sin which it highlights in you and me.

   Proverbs says:

   A greedy man stirs up strife,
        but the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched.
(Proverbs 28:25 ESV)

   1 Timothy says:

    But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.
(1 Timothy 6:6-10 ESV)

    That is something which we need to remember daily- hourly even.

   But how do you actually stay content when surrounded with all the temptations and goodies which are thrown our way?

   But the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched. That is the answer. Only the Lord brings true contentedness. We are complete in Jesus Christ. Because he has died for us, we can live for him! All the ‘acceptance’ or ‘fulfilment’ we yearn for, and all the possessions we may need have been achieved in Jesus Christ! It  may take time to accept that truth, and it would take more than a lifetime to understand it. But it is true. Tullian Tchividjian, an American pastor explains it better than I could:

 

“Because Jesus was strong for me, I am free to be weak;

Because Jesus won for me, I am free to lose;

Because Jesus was Someone, I am free to be no one;

Because Jesus was extraordinary, I am free to be ordinary;

Because Jesus succeeded for me, I am free to fail.

This is beginning to define my life in brand new, bright, and liberating ways. I believe God wants this liberating truth to define your life as well…and the life of the church corporately. Because I’m telling you right now, when you begin to understand that everything you need and long for, in Christ you already possess—it enables you to live a life of scandalous freedom, unrestrained fearlessness, and unbounded courage. When you don’t have anything to lose, you discover something wonderful: you’re free! Nothing in this broken world can beat a man who isn’t afraid to lose! And when you’re not afraid to lose you can say crazy, counterintuitive stuff like, “To live is Christ and to die is gain!” That’s pure, unadulterated freedom.”

 

     A mouse eating a custard cream.

    Amazing how God can use a simple illustration in nature to remind us of our desperate need of the Lord Jesus.

 

 

** You probably had to be there!

Sunday’s Specials List

     If each week was a meal then Sundays would be the main course. And I’m not talking about fast food or buffet snacks. No, this is the real deal, packed full of gourmet cooking, honest wholesome food, colour, spices and freshness!
  But I mustn’t get bogged down discussing food! (Although I would love nothing more!)
  The Sabbath day- one day in seven reserved for rest, fellowship and worship. A day given over to God. It is no wonder therefore that a Christian can feel refreshed and healed, full of peace and purpose by the end of the 24 hours.
  That’s normally when the  Monday-morning feeling hits in!
  To help you with the ‘new week blues’ I would like to share a few of the scrumptious treats I enjoyed this Sabbath.

Triumphant     

Last week, like many others, our Church ran a Holiday Bible Club. We had good numbers, enjoyed good weather, preached the gospel to children and parents alike and generally had an enjoyable week. After such a week however, as our visiting speaker pointed out, it can be tempting to want some overt signs of success, some cold hard results; and in the absence of any apparent conversions it is easy to see the time spent as wasted.
    It was a sweet encouragement, therefore, to hear the words of 2 Corinthians 2:14.

    But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.(2 Corinthians 2:14 ESV)

    The scene pictured is that of a conquering army returning home in glorious array, flags and banners flying high over the heads of the King and his mighty lords, while the sound of trumpets and minstrels swells in a majestic chorus across the cheering and adoring crowds.
    It is simultaneously inspiring and humbling to think that through Christ, God will always lead his Church victorious. Despite our failures and stumblings, the gospel of our God will be successful!

 

Thankfulness in Adversity

    Matthew Henry, the famous bible commentator, wrote an interesting piece in his journal shortly after finding himself robbed:

• I am thankful that he has never robbed me before.
• I am thankful that, though he took my purse, he didn’t take my life.
• I am thankful that, although he took all I had, that wasn’t very much.
• I am thankful that, although I was robbed, I wasn’t the robber.

 

God’s Witnesses

  “Isn’t it getting dark early.”
   If you haven’t heard that rhetorical question at least 10 times in the last two days then you obviously are in a different time zone than the rest of the United Kingdom! Although it happens every year, although we have had ample warning, we can never fail to be surprised that, after turning the clocks back an hour, the afternoons are so dark!
   Driving home  I couldn’t help but notice how I was drawn towards every speck of light amidst the gloom- houses, street lamps, other drivers- they all seemed to be something I could associate with to find protection against the overpowering darkness.
  That is the exact principle in play in a Christian’s life! We are to be beacons of hope, lamps of purpose and burning torches for the glory of God. When a non-Christian sees our lives he or she should be drawn to the image of Christ showing from us. That is quite a responsibility!

Ozymandias:

                 the Self-proclaimed “King of Kings”

“Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”

  My favourite poem (excluding hymns, psalms and biblical wisdom literature) is probably Ozymandias.
  Ozymandias…..
   ….. say the name slowly and roll it over your tongue.
   It is a name filled with ancient dread and power (If you have a healthy and vibrant imagination like me that is!).
  In 1818 two friends wrote competing sonnets with the same name: (you’ve guessed it) Ozymandias. The more famous of the two final articles, written by Percy Shelley, is the most ironic and poignant of the pair. They tell of the fall of nations, and the unequivocal fate of emperors and tyrants. Have a read and see what you think.

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: `Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert... Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear --
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.’

     The poem has a ring of Isaiah 39-40 about it. The prophet Isaiah writes an account set in the days of King Hezekiah of Judah. Hezekiah, on the whole, was a good godly King. However we learn that after God had blessed his reign with peace, stability and wealth, a number of envoys (or ambassadors) arrived from the local superpower: Babylon. The King seized the opportunity to show off his wealth and power; he showed the men every storeroom, every treasury and every armoury in his capital. Through his prophet, God rebuked Hezekiah for his pride. Isaiah chapter 40 is a stinging reminder that all of the might and power of men ultimately is worthless. God describes the nations as ‘a drop in a bucket’ and as ‘dust on a set of scales’.  God doesn’t stop there; we are reminded that, just like grass withers and flowers fade, all men will die eventually. To God, Isaiah writes, mankind is like a colony of grasshoppers running and jumping around on the surface of planet earth.

   Horace Smith’s version of Ozymandias helps us to remember that, like the Egyptian super-state before us, the British and American civilisations will eventually crumble (some would say it has already began!).

In Egypt's sandy silence, all alone,
Stands a gigantic Leg, which far off throws
The only shadow that the Desert knows:
"I am great OZYMANDIAS," saith the stone,
"The King of Kings; this mighty City shows
"The wonders of my hand." The City's gone,
Nought but the Leg remaining to disclose
The site of this forgotten Babylon.
We wonder, and some Hunter may express
Wonder like ours, when thro' the wilderness
Where London stood, holding the Wolf in chace,
He meets some fragments huge, and stops to guess
What powerful but unrecorded race
Once dwelt in that annihilated place.

  Thankfully Isaiah chapter 40 tells us of someone whom we can trust, someone who will never crumble or be forgotten, someone who’s name is mightier than any Empire or civilisation. The Bible tells us that there is one with whom we can entrust our hopes, dreams and even our eternal souls.

    Have you not known? Have you not heard?   The LORD is the everlasting God,        the Creator of the ends of the earth.
    He does not faint or grow weary;
        his understanding is unsearchable.
    He gives power to the faint,
        and to him who has no might he increases strength.
    Even youths shall faint and be weary,
        and young men shall fall exhausted;
    but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
        they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
    they shall run and not be weary;
        they shall walk and not faint.(Isaiah 40:28-31 ESV)

Worship Who?

    Everyone worships something. What do you worship?

Living in the mirror of eternity

    8ft below me, in a spare room, a number of new born chicks are huddled beneath the EcoGlow ‘Chick-heater-system’. One slightly younger chick is inside a small incubator along with 3 pre-hatched eggs. If all other noise can be ignored then their little squeaks can just about be heard.
   My sister and her husband accidentally booked their holiday to coincide with the hatching of their new chicks.  It fell, therefore, to us to care for the new born chicks.
   Although they are quite adorable and cannot be seen without an ‘awwww’ escaping the lips, there is also a sense of sadness surrounding their arrival into the world. No mother hen stands over them, no loving wing surrounds and protects them. Rather it falls to man-made incubators and heaters to bring them into their new homes.

O Jerusalem, Jeruslaem the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!

    Jesus had a similar, but much greater, grief when he saw how his home city rejected the Lord God. They refused his love and spurned his protection. They would rather ‘make it on their own’ than trust in the true and living God of Heaven and earth. Our Heavenly Father wants to gather his chicks under his wing, but we all have fled from his love and protection. We’ve all wanted our own independence and rules, rather than his love and guidance.
    As the ‘Heavenly…..’ series draws to an end, I hope that you want to rest under God’s wing. There is no greater catastrophe on this planet than when someone rejects God’s mercy and grace. Heaven, as I love to say, is a Gospel place! It will be crammed with wicked, cruel and horrible people. But they will all have been forgiven and transformed through the grace and power of the Lord Jesus Christ!
    Perhaps it might be profitable if I recap some of what we have learnt over the past 5 posts.

• The inhabitants of Heaven have been bought there by and through the Lord Jesus Christ- it is his property and there is no back entrance.
• They will be with Jesus, who will reign, and will enjoy the presence and blessings of God. Heaven- whether paradise, city, house or throne room- is God’s own land which he has prepared for his own people. The citizens of Heaven will have literal and physical bodies, which will no longer hunger, thirst or feel pain.
• Jesus is the Messiah, the Warrior King who became the slain lamb, sacrificing himself for his people. He will one day return to claim his Kingdom. He only waits so that more people may be saved from the fruits of their rebellion.
• Heaven, either symbolically or literally, is pictured as a city. It will be the ‘New Jerusalem’. It will be permanent and no evil will exist within. God will dwell in the city with his citizens who will worship him.
• This ‘New Jerusalem’ will come after the destruction of the earth. This physical world will be replaced with a new physical world. 
• The Citizens of this city will build houses, grow gardens and crops, and will enjoy their work. They will praise and glorify their King, who has bought them to the city of Heaven.

 
    So, where does  that leave us now?
   Earthbound, I suppose.
   But don’t let your Heavenly bubble deflate! The scriptures urge us to live each day looking forward to Heaven! Not as the reward we expect, but as the gift we don't deserve. I have a handy note written and pinned up on my bookcase, it says this:

“May I view all things in the mirror of eternity,
waiting for the coming of my Lord.
May I speak each word as if my last word,
and walk each step as my final one.
If my life should end today,
may this be my best day.”

   When you start to study the bible you discover that a Heavenly outlook was vital to the heroes of the Faith who lived before us. Its an important mentality to have. But it is impossible to keep unless you have been given a new life, a new affection, a new desire and a new purpose through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; I may have mentioned this before: Heaven is a Gospel place!
   Please read Hebrews 11 and 12. Find out how important the promise of Heaven is for you! A Christian must  be living for that day, that day when he or she will finally meet Jesus face to face. As one hymn beautifully puts it:

Lord Jesus, when Thee face to face I see,
When on Thy lofty throne I sit with Thee,
Then of Thy love, in all its breadth and length,
Its height and depth, its everlasting strength,
    My soul shall sing.

   I will leave you with the words with which I first began this series:
‘Stop moaning about petrol prices, VAT and the income tax and start groaning for Heaven!’

Heavenly Habits (a reminder)

 

     I appear to have been thwarted by my own blog!

    Due to certain technical difficulties Heavenly Habits- The occupation of Heaven was not published correctly. It is now up and running again. Please have a browse at the ‘Heavenly-‘ series and “Habits”, which is the latest post.

     Ta.

Redeeming Love

         A Novel by Francine Rivers

   When I first started writing a blog, I vowed that I would never ever write a book review! And especially not a review about a book with the word love in the title!
    2 years down the line….. and now I am writing a book review!
    Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers is a very hard book to put down!
  Which bible story, in your opinion, is the most shocking? Maybe  Joseph being dumped in a pit by his brothers? Maybe Samson pulling down a building around himself (not to mention the 3,000 Philistines also at the party!) Maybe a shepherd boy becoming a King? Well, I would suggest that God taking on flesh and being crucified for his people is, undoubtedly, the most shocking story known to man…
   …Second to that is the story of Hosea.
   Hosea? I hear you ask. That ‘minor’ prophet? The Israelite farmer? Yes, him.
      
     Redeeming Love is a dramatised retelling of Hosea (vaguely) set in California in the 1800s- gold rush time! One of the main characters, Michael Hosea, is based (not surprisingly) on Hosea! The other, Sarah/Angel, is based on Gomar (Hosea’s wife).  All sounds fairly simple so far?
   Thats all about to change.
  

     Why is the biblical (and historical) story of Hosea so shocking?
     Because Gomar, his wife, was a prostitute.
      Hosea was instructed to take a wife of whoredom. He married Gomar and loved her; and even when she ran back to her prostitution, he found her and bought her back for a large sum. Hosea’s marriage is used by God as a picture of Israel (and therefore the Church as well). Israel were the chosen people of God, blessed greatly by him, however they chased after other Gods and sold themselves to the Baals and Asherahs; the Lord sent his own son to bring them back- at the cost of his own blood.
   Redeeming Love tells the stories of a man who really understands and lives his wedding vows and a woman who has lost the power to trust. It is a hard book to put down! Its not a small book, but the story and the message upon which it was based kept me reading and reading and reading.  As the publisher explains, Rivers had to make some tough decisions regarding exactly how much detail to use. At times, especially near the start, the book can seem graphic (not so much in what it says, but in what it leaves unsaid) however as you read on, the reasons for the detail becomes apparent.
   Read the book of Hosea, be astounded by God’s redeeming love for his People and Church, and then, if you feel so inclined, read Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. It isn’t infallible, it isn’t perfect, but it is an honest, brilliantly-written story which can teach us something about the love of God.

Heavenly Habits-

               The Occupation of Heaven

       Jesus, unlike the founder of any other major faith, holds out hope for ordinary human life. Our future is not an ethereal, impersonal form of consciousness. We will not float through the air, but rather will eat, embrace, sing, laugh, and dance in the kingdom of God, in degrees of power, glory, and joy that we can’t at present imagine.
        Tim Keller, Prodigal God

   One rather outspoken American Pastor makes the point that if in Heaven we spend our time with chubby cherubs flying around and plucking harps then Heaven is not to be particularly desired at all! Thankfully Heaven isn’t quite like that.

  What do we know about the activities (or Habits- if you like alliteration) of Heaven? Well, as we discussed in an earlier post, we will no longer hunger or thirst. Does that mean that food is off the menu (excuse the pun) in Heaven? Surprisingly, no.

   Isaiah has this to say about day-to-day life in Heaven:

    They shall build houses and inhabit them;
        they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
    They shall not build and another inhabit;
        they shall not plant and another eat;
    for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
        and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.(Isaiah 65:21-22 ESV)

    I remember in my early school days learning that verbs are ‘doing words’. To help us understand exactly what we shall be ‘doing’ in heaven I have highlighted the verbs above. 

    We won’t hunger but we will eat! That’s good news. Food purely for pleasure. Heaven will be a community of farmers growing delicious delicacies!

   As the passage mentions, construction work will be needed in Heaven! We will build homes to inhabit. How then does that fit in with Jesus’ own words, “In my Father's house are many mansions” . Why do we need to build homes if God has many mansions already prepared for us?! (The ESV and NIV translations talk of rooms instead of mansions. ) Speaking frankly, I don’t know the answer- something for you to ponder in your own time!

    Many contemporary preachers and writers talk about The Cultural Mandate. You will remember that after God created Adam and Eve he commanded them to ‘subdue’ and to ‘fill’ and to ‘have dominion’ over the earth. He also commanded them to ‘work’ and to ‘keep’ the garden of Eden. Many people take these commands and apply them to us today. Julian Hardyman (author of ‘Glory Days’) says this:

God didn’t just want everything to stay the same. He wanted humanity to apply itself to a massive development project. Life wasn’t to be static….. At first sight it sounds as though we should all become horticulturalists or foresters. Now its great to be a gardener, but God is interested in more than gardens.

    He goes on to describe ‘The Human Cultural Project’ and how art, poetry, science, cities, technology, sport and agriculture can be used to glorify God by growing and developing the potential of planet earth.

     How is this relevant to life in Heaven?- I hear you ask.

    Well, if this was God’s initial desire for humanity in Eden, then would he not wish a similar thing for redeemed humanity in Heaven?  We have already learnt that Heaven will involve work. Perhaps now we can see, somewhat more clearly, the form this work will take. Music, dance, building, writing, growing: all of it will be harnessed to the glory of God.

    The acute reader will have realised that I haven’t yet mentioned the main activity of the Heavenly citizens: worship. I will leave you with this passage from scripture to read through. Rejoice in the future you have in store if you are redeemed through the Lord Jesus Christ! Remember: The Church is the bride and our bridegroom is Jesus himself.

    Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,


    “Hallelujah!
    For the Lord our God
        the Almighty reigns.
    Let us rejoice and exult
        and give him the glory,
    for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
        and his Bride has made herself ready;
    it was granted her to clothe herself
        with fine linen, bright and pure”—

    for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.


    And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”   
(Revelation 19:6-9 ESV)

     

Previously in the ‘Heavenly-’ series…..

• Living in a Wigwam- waiting for the wonders of Heaven
• Heavenly Citizenship- The Inhabits of Heaven
• Heavenly Throne- The King of Heaven
• Heavenly Home- Citizens of where exactly?