Sermons

Devoted to The Apostles' Teaching

2011-09-05T10:02:00.002+01:00

‘They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.’ Acts 2:42

I will begin this week with The Apostles’ Teaching.

Before I focus on The Apostles’ Teaching, why this verse?

Two things:

Firstly…. we read also…. ‘The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved’. This was a growing community of Christians. If we wish to see our numbers grow, there are lessons to be learned here.

Secondly, there is a vital word in this verse that we are studying; if we are not careful we can miss it and it is absolutely key to all that we will be speaking about and studying, it is central to our worship and witness. Without it we become what John Wesley most feared the Methodist People might turn into…. ‘a dead sect, having the form of godliness but without the power’. The word is ‘devoted’.

‘They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.’

The word is devoted, not committed. What is the difference? Think about it.

Do you get the impression that these four things were something they had to do, or something they wanted to do, because there is a difference. When Jesus said ‘Where your heart is, there will be your treasure also,’ he wasn’t just talking about money!
I tell you this;
when our hearts… yours and mine… can say with the Psalmist, ‘As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs for you, O Lord.’,
when it is our deepest desire
to know God’s word so we can obey it,
to share in fellowship with complete love for one another,
to break bread with broken and contrite hearts,
to pray as 19th century preacher William Arthur calls us to, for the power of the Holy Spirit; ‘Prayer, prayer, all prayer – mighty, importunate, repeated united prayer’…. If we can reach this devotion to the things of God, we won’t need to worry about Church growth because we will become as a powerful magnet is to steel.

The apostles’ teaching, then.

What is this teaching to which the early Christians devoted themselves?

Well, it includes the teaching of Jesus himself. In the great commission Jesus calls his apostles to make disciples, baptise and ‘teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Matt 28:20.
The teaching of the apostles is primarily the gospel or Good News, which was centred around his death, burial and resurrection.
vv 23-24 of Acts 2:
This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
Acts 3:15 : You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.
Acts 4:10 : then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4 :. Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
The apostles’ teaching was a unique teaching in that it came from God and was clothed with the authority conferred on the apostles
2 Cor 13:10 —the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.

1 Thess 4:2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
Today, the apostles’ teaching is of course available to us in the books of the New Testament.
We do well to study them.
In recent weeks at the Mens’ Meetings we have grappled with The Sermon on the Mount, so very important, crucial to our Christian living !

What are the ways in which we can devote ourselves to The Apostles’ Teaching? How can we read, mark, learn and inwardly digest God’s word. Well I’ve been doing it for 40+ years, and I can tell you there is no easy way.
It takes time.

1. Try and follow a Bible Reading programme to read the Bible in a year.
2. Read a whole chapter or read the whole book of Ephesians for example.
3. Meditate on one verse, take it into the day with you. One verse I worked through by learning it before breakfast and thinking about it all day was this: ‘Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever ask or imagine according to His power that is at work in us, to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations for ever and ever. Amen.’ Eph 3:20-21, and the same night when I was on Crossline duty I was able to help a struggling Christian over the phone.
Abbreviate it to learn the central phrase: He is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever ask or imagine according to His power that is at work in us. Eph 3:20

Meditating on God’s word is never a waste of time.
When the devil came to tempt Jesus he resisted him using the words of Scripture (see Matt 4) So must we.
4. Another way we can learn theology is through hymns and songs. This is what the early Methodists did. Many couldn’t read or write, but they could learn hymns easily, so they knew the gospel in its simplest form. This is a good tradition (not all hymns are good….not all traditions are good!) which has been handed down to us. Though we can all read and write, we still love to sing and it is a way of memorising the truths to be found in Scripture.
Look at the words of some of the songs* I have chosen for today.
Let’s page through them:
My God full of mercy
Only by grace
To God be the glory *
I’m special *
You’re the Word
Praise to the Holiest *
In Christ Alone *
Lord I’m grateful *
Use songs and hymns then to learn the truths to be found in Scripture.

5. Most of all, let the Holy Spirit speak to you. Always ask his help as you open the word.
Joyce Hugget uses 5 ‘R’s to help us.
This links beautifully with the word devotion, doesn’t it:? How might we read the Bible ‘God’s love letter’?
READ
RECEIVE/REPEAT
RESPOND
REST
REFLECT

May we devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching, the precious word of God.

….and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever Ps23:6b

2011-08-05T09:17:00.004+01:00

One of the reasons Ps 23 is so popular at funerals is the twofold promise in the Psalm regarding the valley of the shadow of death… that God is right with us there….. but also in this last sentence ‘I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever’. Psalmist David writes of both death and life here.

So what have we to look forward to? There are many clues in Scripture, but as I wrote this sermon one came to mind, the promise of Jesus to the dying criminal nailed to a cross beside Him, ‘Today you will be with me in paradise’. Paradise in scripture is a garden, a place of bliss and tranquillity and rest.

Whatever picture we may try to paint,however, our language falls short.
C.S.Lewis concludes his famous Narnia Chronicles suggesting that the things which happened to his characters after the books ended were so great and beautiful that he could not write them. He writes, ‘All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia (and what adventures.. have you read them?) had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no-one on Earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.’Elsewhere Lewis described earthly life as being the Shadowlands. This life, the colours we see, the good we experience, the joy we have, the pleasures we know… these are as minor shadows compared to the extraordinary colour, beauty, joy and delight of heaven.

You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!

In the book of Revelation, too, every chapter is more thrilling than the chapter before.
Joyce Huggett writes:
Reading Revelation at one sitting (I don’t think I ever did that) is as tantalising as hearing the sound of running water when climbing a mountain on a hot summer’s day, and as thirst quenching as drinking long draughts from such clear crystal streams. Each promise is precious; the promise of a new Heaven and a new Earth, the promise that God will wipe every tear from our eyes, that death shall be know more, and never again will there be sorrow or crying or pain. (21:1-4). But the greatest thrill of all is that we shall see the beloved face to face. He will make his home with us and we with Him. For the first time in our lives we shall be set free to truly worship,

Listen to this: Rev 7:9-17

9 After this I looked, and there in front of me was a huge crowd of people. They stood in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb. There were so many that no one could count them. They came from every nation, tribe, people and language. They were wearing white robes. In their hands they were holding palm branches. 10 They cried out in a loud voice,
"Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne.
Salvation also belongs to the Lamb."
11 All the angels were standing around the throne. They were standing around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces in front of the throne and worshiped God. 12 They said,
"Amen!
May praise and glory
and wisdom be given to our God for ever and ever.
Give him thanks and honor and power and strength.
Amen!"
13 Then one of the elders spoke to me. "Who are these people dressed in white robes?" he asked. "Where did they come from?"
14 I answered, "Sir, you know."
He said, "They are the ones who have come out of the time of terrible suffering. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 So
"they are in front of the throne of God.
They serve him day and night in his temple.
The One who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.
16 Never again will they be hungry.
Never again will they be thirsty.
The sun will not beat down on them.
The heat of the desert will not harm them.
17 The Lamb, who is at the center of the area around the throne, will be their shepherd.
He will lead them to springs of living water.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

In this life God’s felt presence is, at best, fleeting, intermittent, transitory. Not so in heaven: there we shall enjoy a permanent intimacy with God…. Beyond the bounds of time and space into regions of eternal light, far removed from any evil or imperfection.
Words fail us as we try to express the inexpressible.

Paul tried to deal with a question from the Corinthians as to what our bodies will be like in heaven. Even the great apostle struggles with this. He describes our life like a seed which when we die flourishes like a plant into new life.

One caterpillar said to another as they gazed at a butterfly, ‘You’ll never get me up in one of those!’

That's a good illustration of the contrast between the earthly bodies we occupy for a time and the new body we will occupy forever in heaven. Hard to get your head around isn’t it? That’s why the stories of Jesus after He rose from the dead are so important. Because they tell us that He ate and drank. He walked and talked. He could be touched and hugged. This is the pattern for what life in heaven is. Heaven will be physical.
We won’t be disembodied ghouls drifting around unable to communicate or recognise each other. Far from it. We will immediately recognise each other and enjoy each others company.
One of the main pictures Jesus uses of heaven is of a banquet. Jesus characterises heaven as a place of celebration, parties, dances and feasts, a beautiful garden, everlasting bliss. Wow! We certainly aren’t going to be bored or unfulfilled.

Just one thing I want to mention here.
It always bothers me when we talk about having lost someone.
I was reminded of a joke, hardly fitting, but I’ll risk it:
‘My grandma took up running when she was 65. She’s 90 now and we have no idea where on earth she is.’ (Grandma’s lost in other words).
The point I want to make is… it is all too easy to allow our thinking, when we talk about having lost someone, to drift to some kind of concept that they are ‘lost’. Ours is the loss, not theirs.
An old hymn goes:
‘Rejoice for a brother deceased, our loss is his infinite gain’
Wesley in trying to compare Earth to heaven uses the best word he can find, ‘infinite’.
How much better is it to be with the Lord?… infinitely.Far from being ‘lost’ we are truly found when we’re in heaven.

The lost are those who reject Christ…. When we believe, and accept Christ as Lord and Saviour, we have eternal life. John 3;16.
In 1Peter1,Peter states that thanks to Christ’s resurrection we have an inheritance that can never perish spoil or fade… kept in heaven for us.
Wow.
‘I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.’
‘One thing I have asked of the Lord, and this is what I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord forever, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.’

The fear of the process of dying is humanly perfectly understandable. But we should never fear what lies beyond if we trust in Christ.
Rather we should look forward with eager anticipation.
Paul… ‘for me… to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labour for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know. I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far….’

The good old Spirituals were all about the heavenly hope. Life on earth for the African slaves was miserable, but the way they kept going was by singing about the life to come. ‘Deep river…, ‘Steal away…’

And so, in anticipation of living in the house of the Lord forever, how should we live in the here and now?

The first and most important reply to that is to put your trust in Christ. He has died to pay the price of sin and open the door to life eternal for all who believe in Him.

How then should we live?
Selwyn Hughes says we should live each day as though it’s is our last on earth, and work for God as though we’ve got another hundred years.
Jesus encourages us not to live as if this life were everything. While this present life is important, it’s not all important. We don’t need to store up stuff in the here and now, He tells us, but we can be free to be generous, realising that to give money and share possessions is laying up special rewards in heaven.
Jesus is in heaven, where He reigns, where He prays for each of us, and also where He has a place ready for us. There He waits to welcome us with joy.

So are we, like David, looking forward to living in the House of the Lord forever?
Whatever the world may throw at you, it cannot affect the certainty of future reality in Christ’s presence for all who believe in Him. And so, in anticipation of living in the house of the Lord forever, live in the light of eternity.

‘This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through.’

Temptation Lent 1

2011-03-17T15:06:00.003Z

The subject on the first Sunday of Lent is Christ’s temptation in the wilderness.
We’re going to look at that, and then consider how we may resist and overcome temptation.
I have had a DVD of the Last Temptation of Christ (1988) for a couple of years. I don’t know where it came from, but I had not watched it. As I was destined to preach to you on the subject of Christ’s temptations I decided to watch it. I recall the controversy surrounding the film back in 1988, which may have put me off…. but now it was time to find out what it was about. Directed by Martin Scorsese the film is based upon the novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, whose written introduction, given to us at the beginning, indicates his own struggle in his life between the flesh and the Spirit. So, a very human Jesus is portrayed. Far from the Jesus I read about in the Gospels, he confesses his sins, he is driven almost to insanity, he wonders if he is no more than a man, and with each healing he anguishes over those whom he has not healed. He seems to vacillate between demanding love for all people, and joining Judas (who is portrayed as a Zealot) in encouraging armed rebellion against the Romans. In his final temptation, the subject of the film, as he hangs on the cross, Jesus apparently latches onto the taunts, ‘If you are the Christ come down from the cross.’ and what appears to him and us as an angel calls him to come down and live. Up to this point the film is rather rambling, but now it begins to reach its climax. Jesus imagines what his life might have been like as an ordinary man. He pictures himself marrying Mary Magdalene, having kids and growing old. But remembering that all this is a temptation he is experiencing as he hangs on the cross the dream takes him to where he is dying an old man in his bed. Judas turns up to reproach him for abandoning his special mission, shows him that the so-called angel that persuaded him to come down from the cross is in fact Satan, and he snaps out of it to his final suffering on the cross, crying ‘It is accomplished’. So, although Kazantzakis takes Christ’s humanity too far, making him fall into sin and fail, he does seem to get the story right at the end.

Many Christians were outraged by the film and considered it blasphemous, which it was if you judge it by the standards of Christian orthodoxy. Blockbuster refused to carry it. But what clearly outraged and threatened many Christians was the notion of a fully human Jesus who experienced bitter trials and temptations just like you and I do---torment, doubt, loneliness, nagging questions, fantasies, confusion, despair, and even sexual struggles. The last temptation includes making love to Mary Magdalene. For many believers that sort of temptation was, well, way too tempting, which is to say, way too human and hence the backlash to the film. For me, however, that was not the problem with the film …as he is seen to resist the temptation in the final analysis.

In the Gospel reading from Matthew this week we read that Jesus was tempted or tried: (read Matthew 4:1) The Spirit of God descended upon Jesus in baptism, and then the Spirit of God cast him into the desert for trial and temptation.

Trying to decipher the psychology of Jesus is risky business, but we should not miss the point that Jesus was tempted and tried by Satan. Matthew and Luke specify three temptations: turning stones to bread, throwing himself down from the temple, and accepting the glories of earthly kingdoms. Interpreters have variously categorized these three temptations…. but does that matter so much because we know these were not Jesus’s only temptations. Luke writes that at the end of the forty day trial Satan left Jesus only “until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). The EvilOne came back, again and again, those next three years. Jesus’s ultimate temptation, and the ultimate despair anyone can experience, was the sense of feeling forsaken by God in Gethsemane.

We can safely say that Jesus was tempted not only in the desert but throughout his entire earthly life. The writer to the Hebrews says as much, but he makes a very important statement in it.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are---yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16, NIV).
1. yet was without sin….. ‘there was no other good enough to pay the price of sin’. A fallen Christ could not have been a sufficient sacrifice.
2. Let’s just look at that again, thinking about temptation….I find it hard to take on board that Jesus was truly tempted and tried like I am.. But this is what the writer to the Hebrews tells us; Jesus was tried “in every way,” it says, “just as we are.”
3. It is because of these two things put together…. that he is able to help us. He could not have helped us had he sinned. But he has experienced that temptation AND was without sin.

What this means is that the God who loves us is fully aware of and empathises with all the ambiguities, complexities, trials and temptations of our lives. He is not a distant disinterested god. Quite the opposite. If you have felt weak, then remember that Jesus is not condemning you but sympathizing with you. If you experience trials and temptations, then don’t forget that he has too, perhaps far more than we ever will. When you feel forgotten and forsaken by God, Jesus knew what that was like. If your trials tempt you to despair and turn away from God, Jesus encourages us to do the opposite, “take confidence, come to me for grace and help because I have experienced what you are enduring.”

Having been tempted and tried himself, Jesus is the friend of sinners, not their enemy. One of the more remarkable characterizations of Jesus in the Gospels is that he was “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34). We read that social and moral outcasts flocked around Jesus, attracting the fury of the religiously righteous. They clearly felt safe with Jesus, accepted, embraced, and welcomed by Him.
As the friend of sinners who suffered trials and temptations, “he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). He is for us, not against us.
…and as we read 1 Cor 1013 the temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

To conclude then:

No matter how desirable, alluring, appealing, tantalizing, or inviting the sin may be, we must not commit it. We cannot get sucked into Satan’s web of deceit. Nothing in this world is worth ruining our reputations, and far worse ruining our fellowship with our Lord.

We must say "no" to temptation; we must say “no” to sin!

…and to enable us to resist, we are to rely on the strength of God:

 (Eph. 6:10-11) “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”
That verse from Hebrews again:
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are---yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16, NIV).
So, this morning we come again to that throne of grace.

Christ the King!

2010-11-22T12:45:00.002Z

Christ’s Kingship…. In what respect was He and is He the king? How was this understood and misunderstood when He was on Earth and do we belong to His Kingdom today?
As there are many republics across the world, and today Kings and Queens have reduced political clout, the concepts of ‘kingship’ and ‘kingdom’ are increasingly lost on us.
The earliest followers of Jesus used the language of kingship to describe who he was, what he said, and what he did. Every king enjoys a reign, a rule, and a kingdom. Jesus’s very first words of public ministry proclaimed that in him "the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1:15). But as we shall see, his ideas about kingship radically subvert our normal definitions of political power.

At the birth of Jesus pagan magi inquired, "where is he who has been born king of the Jews?" (Matthew 2:2). Their worship of Jesus with extravagant gifts reminds us that Jesus is not only the king of the Jews; he's the king of all nations and peoples. In contrast to our propensity to privilege one ethnicity or people over another, to view one's own people as exceptional to God, and to exclude other people who are different, the pagans from Persia show how king Jesus welcomes all people everywhere.
Whereas the magi worshipped king Jesus, king Herod tried to kill him.
We don't normally associate the birth of a baby with the demise of political power, but Matthew does. His political parody is writ large. Matthew contrasts two rival kings who rule not only over one people (the Jews) but over all the world. This is a baby, says Luke, who would "bring down rulers from their thrones" (Luke 1:52). No wonder that in the 1980s the government of Guatemala prohibited the public reading of Mary's subversive Magnificat — if Jesus is king and lord, then Caesar, Herod, Pharaoh, Pilate, are not lords. Nor are Mammon, materialism, and other 'isms' which try to replace Christ as No.1 in our lives. They are posers to be deposed.

The language of kingship also characterises the accounts of Jesus's death. His "triumphal entry" into the streets of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday was a highly symbolic, and deliberately provocative act. It was an enacted parable or street theatre that dramatized his subversive mission and message. He didn't ride a donkey because he was too tired to walk or because he wanted a good view of the crowds. Jesus's triumphal entry was more like a "planned political demonstration" than the religious celebration that we sentimentalise today.
In a bold parody of imperial politics, king Jesus descends the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem from the east in fulfillment of Zechariah's ancient prophecy: "Look, your king is coming to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey" (Matthew 21:5 = Zechariah 9:9).

Jesus was later dragged to the Roman governor's palace for three reasons, all political: "We found this fellow subverting the nation, opposing payment of taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King" (Luke 23:1–2). In short, Jesus died as a politically subversive criminal.
Pilate met the angry mob outside the praetorium, then grilled Jesus alone back inside. "Are you the king of the Jews?"
"My kingdom is not of this world," Jesus replied. "My kingdom is from another place."
"You are a king, then!" mocked Pilate.
"Yes, you are right in saying that I am a king."
Back outside, Pilate then declared that Jesus was innocent. However, the mob hounded Pilate: "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar." Pilate thus found himself sandwiched between angering the mob and betraying his emperor.
He caved in: "Here is your king. Shall I crucify your king?"
"We have no king but Caesar!"
And so human identity is reduced to politics …how like our own age.
Pilate then handed Jesus over and had his soldiers beat, flog, and humiliate him with purple robes and a crown of thorns befitting a man whom he miscalculated was a political failure: "Hail, O king of the Jews!" they mocked.

When Pilate crucified Jesus, he insulted the Jews one last time by fastening a notice to the cross, written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek, that he knew would offend them: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." They objected, of course: "Don't write 'The king of the Jews,' but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews."
It was too late: "What I have written, I have written," said Pilate. To be sure, with his mockery of the Jews he wrote much more than he ever could have known or imagined (John 18:28–19:22), for later believers would worship this Jesus not only as king of the Jews, but also as "the king of kings" (1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 19:16), the "king of the ages" (Revelation 19:3), and "ruler of the kings of the earth" (Revelation 1:5).

When Jesus insisted that his kingdom was "not of this world" he didn't mean that it was merely spiritual, or relegated to a future age beyond history or in heaven. Far from it, as his detractors rightly surmised. In its simplest terms, the kingship that Jesus announced and embodied is not of this world in the sense that it is not established here. Imagine what life would be like on earth, here and now, if God were king and not Obama, Medvedev, Kim Jong-il, Mugabe, or Ahmadinejad.
Every aspect of personal and communal life would experience a radical reversal in such a kingdom. The political, economic, and social subversions would be almost endless — peace-making instead of war mongering, liberation not exploitation, sacrifice rather than subjugation, mercy not vengeance, care for the vulnerable instead of privileges for the powerful, generosity instead of greed, humility rather than highness, and inclusion rather than exclusion. The ancient Hebrews had a marvelous word for all this, shalom, or human well-being.

And so in the readings for this week we discover how Jesus is a king who instead of waging war, "he makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire." (Psalm 46:9). Jesus the king welcomes criminals (Luke 23:43). In the mission and message of Jesus, says Paul, God intends to "reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood" (Colossians 1:20). Peace and reconciliation for all of creation are thus signs of the kingdom of God in Jesus.

And where do you and I fit? Are we subjects of this Kingdom?

The Lord's Prayer just might be the most subversive of all political acts: "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." If we choose to live and pray this way we have a very different agenda than the world’s agenda… whatever our party political persuasion. Nothing will ever be the same. We have nailed our colours, entered a kingdom, pledged our allegiance to a ruler, and submitted to the reign of Christ the King.

(thanks to Journey with Jesus www.journeywithjesus.net)

pray always without losing heart

2010-11-22T12:44:00.000Z

According to the Gospel of Luke, Jesus told his disciples a parable because they were having problems with prayer. We all have problems with prayer. Jesus disciples were having problems with prayer. That's why Jesus told them this parable.
We have many questions and issues and problems about prayer. Mainly we wonder if prayer is really heard by God. So many of our prayers seem unanswered: We pray for health, but there is still a spot on the X-ray. We pray for peace, but the troops aren't home and the war rages. We pray for doors to open, but they seem to be bolted against us.
We have problems with prayer, but when we look closely, our deepest problem with prayer is that we lose heart. We just lose heart. We lose confidence and trust and hope that our prayers will be heard and answered. We lose heart.
'And Jesus told them a parable that they might pray always without losing heart'. Say it with me...

John Wesley encountered many times of rejection and denial. I picked up a few of these instances from his Journal … paraphrased:
Sunday A.M., May 5:Preached in St. Anne’s. Asked not to come back.
Sunday P.M., May 5:Preached in St. John’s. Deacons said, "Get out, and stay out!"
Sunday A.M., May 12:Preached in St. Jude’s. Can’t go back there either.
Sunday P.M., May 19:Preached in St. Somebody Else’s. Deacons called special meeting, and said I couldn’t return.
Sunday A.M., May 26:Preached on street. Kicked off street.
Sunday A.M., June 2:Preached at the edge of town. Kicked off highway.
Sunday P.M., June 2:Preached in a pasture. Ten thousand came.
If you and I are to get an answer, it may take some action. Consistent, and persistent action! George Mueller, the great prayer warrior, said, "The great fault of the children of God is, they do not continue in prayer; they do not go on praying; they do not persevere!" So..pray always without losing heart'

The story that Jesus told his disciples was about a corrupt and selfish judge. This judge hated people and he hated God.
Unfortunately, appearing in his courtroom was a poor widow who needed justice but had nothing. She had absolutely nothing. She had no money, she had no husband, she had no standing, she had no power, she had no resources, she had nothing. She was so insignificant, she probably couldn't have got justice in a good courtroom with a good judge, but here she was in the courtroom of the worst judge in the land.
Now, did I say that she had nothing? That's not quite true. She did have one thing... note. She had the capacity to be a pest, to annoy. And, when you only have one weapon, you use it. So she annoyed this judge constantly. She shouted aloud for justice in his courtroom: “Give me justice! Give me justice! Give me justice!” She knocked on his chamber doors, left messages on his ansaphone. She probably even put him off his stroke at the Golf Club shouting, “Give me justice! Give me justice! Give me justice!”
Finally, she wore the old judge down. The judge said to himself, “You know, I don't care about justice. I don't care about this widow, I don't like people, I don't like God and I don't care about anybody. But this woman is about to drive me crazy! I'm going to give her what she wants just to get her off my back.”

And that's the story that Jesus told us that we should pray always without losing heart. It's easy to misunderstand this parable, or to fail to see the full picture.

Some may say Jesus wants us to keep our eyes focused on the bad judge. He does tell the disciples, “Pay attention to what this unjust judge says.” And if we pay attention to the judge, well, what do we see? What we see is that, even though he was a corrupt man, at the end of the day he did give the woman the justice that she demanded and needed. So maybe what Jesus is teaching us is that, even though the headlines in the newspaper often show a world of corruption and evil, this is, you know, God's world, this is a world ruled and overruled by a loving and just God, and at the end of the day, there is justice after all. Maybe that's what Jesus wants us to see.
Well, I believe that and I think that's part of it, but I don't think that's not the heart of Jesus' story, because if that's all Jesus wanted us to see, the moral of this story would be, “Take heart. Things are not as bad as they seem.” But the message of this story is “pray always without losing heart.”

OK, maybe Jesus wants us to focus our attention on the poor widow. Did you notice how she went after what she needed? It was, after all, her persistence—“Give me justice! Give me justice!”—that managed to wrangle justice from the unjust judge.

I read a delightful story about Mother Teresa. She went to visit Edward Bennett Williams, a legendary Washington criminal lawyer. He was a powerful lawyer. .. he was the lawyer for Frank Sinatra and Richard Nixon, among others. Williams' biography tells the story of when Mother Teresa visited him because she was raising money for an AIDS hospice. Williams was in charge of a small charitable foundation that she hoped would help. Before she arrived for the appointment, Williams said to his partner, “You know, Paul, AIDS is not my favorite disease. I don't really want to make a contribution, but I've got this Catholic saint coming to see me, and I don't know what to do.” Well, they agreed that they would be polite, hear her out, but then say no.
Well, Mother Teresa arrived.....a little sparrow sitting on the other side of the big mahogany lawyer's desk. She made her appeal for the hospice, and Williams said, “We're touched by your appeal, but no.” Mother Teresa said simply, “Let us pray.” Williams looked at his partner; they bowed their heads and after the prayer, Mother Teresa made the same request, word for word, for the hospice. Again Williams politely said no. Mother Teresa said, “Let us pray.” Williams, exasperated, looked up at the ceiling, “All right, all right, get me my cheque book!”

Maybe that's what Jesus wants: pray like that, pray like Mother Teresa, pray like the widow, cry out, bang on the doors of heaven with insistence.
Well, that's part of it, to be sure. But that's not all of it. If that were the whole meaning of Jesus' story, then the moral of the story would be “Be feisty. Pray always.”

But the message of this story is more...., “pray always without losing heart.”

No, Jesus' story is not finally about the bad judge and it's not finally about the insistent widow. It's finally a story about God and about you and me. This story says, if a poor widow with no standing can finally wrangle justice out of an evil judge, how much more will you—God's own child, the one God formed in the womb, the God who has loved you from the very beginning— how much more will you and I find and know our God who will hear and answer prayer. He says to us, pray always without losing heart, for I will answer.

There's a famous story about a young boy named Frank who was walking along the bank of the Mississippi River and he noticed in the river another boy about his age wrestling with a homemade raft. He said to him, “What are you doing?” He said, “I'm going to take this raft out to that island in the middle of the river. I dare you to go with me!” Well, Frank couldn't resist the dare so he scrambled down the bank and got on the raft. The two boys headed out to the middle of the river but the current was swift and strong. As they approached the island, the raft broke up and sank and they had to swim to the island. And there they were, abandoned on an island, late in the afternoon. Nobody knew where they were. What would they do?
Right at that moment a Mississippi paddle steamer started coming down the river and Frank ran to the edge of the island and began screaming and waving his hands, “Help! Help!” The other boy said, “Don't waste your breath. They can't hear you and even if they could they wouldn't pay any attention to boys like us.” But just at that moment the paddle steamer turned toward the island. The boy said to Frank, “How did you do that?” And Frank said, “Well, there's something you don't know. The captain of that boat is my father!”

Well, the captain of the universe is our father and how much more will He, who has loved us since before we began...how much more will He hear our cry. So pray always without losing heart.

Paul, In that amazing bit of the letter to the Roman Christians (8:31-32) cries out; 'If God Is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own son but gave him up for us all... how will He not also along with Christ, graciously give us all things?
So, people... pray always without losing heart

Surely Goodness and Mercy Shall Follow Me

2010-01-15T16:26:00.003Z

Sorry if this one's a bit disjointed!! Stick with it...

Psalm 23 has been all about the care a good shepherd gives his sheep.The health and vitality of the sheep has been the shepherd's number 1 priority. In this last verse the care given the sheep is summed up.
I want to introduce you to two sheep dogs……God's two sheep dogs.
Remember, the shepherd is leading the flock…. I want you to imagine two dogs as rearguard.
God has two sheep dogs that always follow us and their names are goodness and mercy.
They are there not to scare us or hurt us, but to keep us in the fold and guide us to the next pastures.

1. Goodness.
God's goodness means we get things we don't deserve. If we believe in the goodness of God we can look to the future with hope.
Psalm 100:5
For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

A good parent does not fulfil every wish and whim a child has. Why? Because not everything will benefit the child. Sometimes a parent will need to say, ’No I don’t think you two should play with the carving knives’!! God knows what is good for us far better than we know ourselves. God's goodness is great…

It’s most important that we understand that the promise of God's goodness does not mean a problem - free life. In Psalm 23 David has needed his soul restored, direction, help with fear and assurance of God's presence.
Not everything in life is good but God works in all things.
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
When my wife makes a cake she mixes together ingredients that by themselves don't taste good but all are needed to make a delicious cake. Raw eggs, Flour. Baking powder etc are not palatable. So many things that happen in our lives are unpalatable, but God works them in to make something good out of it all. Even in our toughest times God moulds us into the people He wants us to be.
Those things which would prove to be detrimental to our good have been kept from us. Those things which will work together for the “good” God has planned for us, God arranges and controls in such a way as to produce that good. Everything in the life of the Christian is designed for accomplishing the “good” God has planned for us.

The “good” which God purposes for us is of course in the future and which we cannot presently see. That “good” includes our salvation, sanctification, and our future full adoption as sons of God. It will involve being tested perhaps by suffering, as the “good” which is spoken of here is not so much happiness as holiness.
So the “all things” which God causes to work together for our ultimate good includes hardship, includes our failures and our sins, our innocent suffering, for the cause of Christ, and that suffering which results from our sin and stupidity.
“All things” includes the malicious things others do to us. It includes, at times, Satan’s attacks by which he hopes to destroy us, but which God allows for our own growth.
The “all things” includes events which took place before we were even born. “All things” includes those things which happened before we were saved. It surely includes the things which have come about after our conversion and also those events yet to come. The “all things” over which God has control and which He is causing to work together for our good includes the minute details of our lives and not just major decisions and actions.

God causes all things to work together for our good.
Joseph is a very positive illustration of God working for our good. Joseph was cruelly sold into slavery by his brothers. They acted sinfully out of jealousy. Joseph was treated badly by others. He was not kindly treated by his father (his favoritism was no favour to Joseph). He was not treated fairly by Potiphar, and especially by Mrs. Potiphar! He was not treated kindly by the king’s wine taster. He could have wallowed in the suffering which he experienced. And yet Joseph seemed to understand God’s goodness better than anyone. He could tell his brothers, “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good” (see Genesis 45:5; 50:20). Belief in the sovereignty of God, at work for his good in the midst of his suffering, encouraged Joseph to be faithful, to look to God and to the future for his final “good.” It enabled him to forgive his brothers, knowing that God’s gracious hand was behind their sinful actions.

And there are numerous other examples in scripture and in history.

When our life is not going well we begin to question God's care. . Our natural reaction to trials is fear, worry and to ask "why?" We begin to think He really doesn't know what He is doing with me. We get tempted to panic and want to run from His care. We get the idea we can survive better on our own.
When our health breaks down, someone is taken from us in death, our job folds, we cannot meet our bills or our kids are going in the wrong direction we can wonder where God is…. But His goodness is not far behind!

2. Mercy /lovingkindness.
God's mercy means He bases His actions in our life on His lovingkindness. He has made an unconditional commitment to us to be merciful, because He's chosen to commit Himself to us.
On your best day and on your worst day God's commitment is the same.
God loves you just as you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay as you are. He wants to change some actions and thoughts in your life, but when you make those changes He won't love you more than He has already committed to love you, the fellowship will just be sweeter.
Mercy is not getting what we deserve.
If Romans 8:28 is one of the Bible’s great verses, so is Romans 5:8...
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
We are sinners deserving the penalty of everlasting separation from God… but He takes the initiative…. sending His Son to die for us… while we are still in sin. This is love, this is mercy beyond words.

I Timothy 1:15-16
15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.
16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

Mercy, grace and love are here. We are saved by the blood of Christ on the cross. We do nothing. All is of grace… the only thing I can offer is the sin from which I need to be saved. All is of grace…undeserved mercy.
Romans 5:1
Standing then acquitted as the result of faith, let us enjoy peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 8:1
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
What mercy, what love…. We are saved from sin and death.
But His mercy does not end there…. This sheepdog called mercy also follows us all the days of our lives, so when we mess up as surely we will, mercy pursues us again.
1 John 1:8-9
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
He is a merciful God.

3.All my life.
God's two faithful sheep dogs follow me all the days of my life. They will be with me as long as I am on this earth…. What a promise.
Heb 13:5
Be content with what you have; for God Himself has said, "I will never, never let go your hand: I will never never forsake you."
They follow me no matter the kind of day I am having. Discouraging days, distressing days, dangerous days, delightful days….days of sweet fellowship with the Lord.
David is pointing to the future. No matter what problems I may face, I am sure my shepherd will be there for me. Whatever David faced he chose to have complete confidence in God.He was confident that goodness and mercy followed him even when he could not see them.

4. Surely
What a great word. Not maybe, perhaps, possibly or hopefully. It is a certainty. No guess work, no doubts, no wondering, no hesitation, no question marks - absolutely without a doubt. When we go through times of confusion, discouragement and depression we can be sure that means we can be secure. We only become insecure when we forget how much God loves us. When the Lord is your shepherd He is for you.
Psalm 56:9
When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; This I know, because God is for me.

David said surely - God's goodness and mercy are following us.
God is always at work but with our limited understanding as finite human beings we cannot always comprehend His infinite wisdom.
God does not give up on us. He does follow us with His goodness and mercy because He loves us and despite our doubts and misgivings about His management of our life, He picks us up and brings us back to Himself.
It is so often in hindsight that we realise we were never out of His care. No difficulty can arise, no dilemma can emerge, or no seeming disaster can descend on our life without God eventually bringing good out of the chaos.
Heb 5:13 again “God Himself has said, "I will never, never let go your hand: I will never never forsake you."

The valley of deepest darkness

2010-01-15T16:12:00.002Z

Thankyou to Kate for reminding me to keep my sermons blog up to date!
Not doing a lot of preaching at the moment...

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
This verse is probably most often used at funerals to remind us of the triumph of resurrection over death and that we no longer have to fear its dark shadow. We often think how this dark valley relates to the final journey in life. David was stating in Psalm23:4 his complete and utter trust in God's ability to lead and guide him through the actual valley of death as well as the dark valleys of daily life. From the perspective of the ending of our earthly life, the emphasis on this verse is found in the comforting words that "God is with us" and there is no need to "fear any evil" for God will lead us home.
God does not want His children cowering in fear of what lies on the "other side". As much as we fight to live.... and that's a natural instinct God placed within us, there comes a time in every person's life when the hope of what is to come overrides and replaces the pain of what has been. Fear of the pain of dying is understandably human... let's be honest.... but God wants us to know that when that moment comes when we literally find ourselves walking the valley of death, that He will be right there with us holding our hand and leading us to glory where there is no more pain, sorrow or death. There are many promises in the Bible which give us firm ground as Christians to be sure of eternal life. We hear them at every funeral service.
We will look again at this subject when, on another occasion, we examine the last phrase of Ps23; 'I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever'.

But what I want to focus on is not so much our last days, but on life's struggles.
The question really isn't whether we'll have a handful or a cartload of valleys to go through in our lives but, 'how?'; "how do we get through them." The key is in this verse because we don't go through life alone. The Good Shepherd is our constant companion.

There is a road that goes between Jericho and Jerusalem known as the "shadow of death" due to its narrow way and steep sides. David may well have known it. As a shepherd, he was very much aware of the dangers of these narrow trails that could result in the death of a sheep sliding down into the ravine.
When the shepherd of Bible times led his flock into the mountains to graze during the summer, there were valleys marked by cliffs and cold winds that must be crossed. The sheep had to go further and further up the mountains to graze, then later in the year go through it all again on the way home.
The comfort given in these dark, treacherous valleys was the presence of the shepherd, his rod, and his staff. The sheep had learned to depend on the shepherd for shelter, guidance, and safety. In these dark, shadowy valleys where there were life-threatening obstacles, a good shepherd protected of his sheep with his own life.
The word "shadow" implies it is late in the day when the sun has already gone behind the rocks and thus the ravine or valley would be darkened by late day shadows. The darker it would get, the more treacherous the attempt to navigate the trail. As it would get darker, the temperature would drop, and the vicious wild animals would appear looking for their evening meal.

David's soothing voice of confidence in this verse is that even if he must walk through the darkest valley late in the day with shadows abounding and potential for disaster with every step; he would fear no evil. In other words, he was able to walk through this valley with a deep assurance that God was with him and that God would guide him and bring him comfort.

Phillip Keller, once a shepherd himself, describes the closeness between the shepherd and the sheep.
Sometimes, I have been fascinated to see how a shepherd
will actually hold his staff against the side of some sheep
that is a special pet or a favorite, simply so that they are "in touch". They will walk along this way almost as though it were "hand-in-hand". The sheep obviously enjoys this special attention from the shepherd and revels in the close, personal, intimate contact between them...It is a delightful and moving picture.

The shepherd's rod and staff were not instruments of fear used to beat sense into the sheep or punish them for straying. These tools were simply used to keep the sheep on the "straight and narrow". When wild animals threatened, the shepherd would be ready with his rod. When the sheep would veer off course, the shepherd would gently nudge the sheep to the right or left to keep them on the trail instead of falling into the valley of death. The staff is the familiar crook which would be used to lift up and pull the sheep up out of danger.

As the Shepherd is with us we don't have to be afraid of the shadows. Do you know what a shadow is,? ... it's the outline of something blocking the light. The shadow is harmless except for the fear we let it generate in our hearts because of the unknown 'whatever' which it hides.
Would you rather be run over by a bus or the shadow of a bus? The shadow has no substance, you see. And also the shadow implies the light.....the Light of Christ reminding us there is nothing to fear for He is with us.

Donald English writes:
"We are no nearer to explaining why suffering is allowed as an element in our daily lives. Nor are we ever likely to be much nearer to that. We have seen how much of it we bring upon ourselves, either individually or corporately. But much more important is the assurance we have that however deep our sense of dereliction may be, God is actually in it with us....'

I was reflecting on the 62 mile walk we did for Christian Aid. The first bit from Melrose was going to be in the dark, so I walked it in daylight a few weeks before when Cindy and I were up there on holiday. So on the actual weekend of the walk I was able to lead and guide the other three easily in the dark since I'd been there.
The next morning, however, as we crossed the moor to Wooler in the dark, it was much harder, and we got lost. I hadn't done that bit in daylight.

Donald English continues; 'There is no place where we can go on earth's surface where the footsteps of God in Jesus have not preceded us. There is no deep place of suffering where God will not be with us. And God's presence is to redeem.... The God whom we worship is the one who, as Rabbi Hugo Gryn put it about his reaction to losing family in the concentration camps of WW2, 'wept with me'.
He's been there. He understands, and He's right beside you..... with His rod to protect and correct, and His staff to rescue and guide.

The valley of deep darkness will be ours sooner or later..
In more than 40 communications, published since her death, Mother Teresa bemoans the 'dryness,' 'darkness,' 'loneliness' and 'torture' she is undergoing.
Churchill spoke frequently to his family and friends about his 'Black Dog' which was a euphemism for depression.
He suffered with depression for most of his life and at times struggled to hide the extent of his black moods from his political colleagues. Interestingly he used to lay bricks as a means of distracting himself when depressed and felt that this kept the 'Black Dog' at bay.
. John of the Cross writes of 'the dark night of the soul', and two chapters of his book extol the benefits... not least that we learn to trust and depend on God more.
He leads us through these shadowy valleys, teaching us to trust and obey......"You are with me": The good Shepherd is with us even in what can seem the most troubling situations in our lives....working things out for our good.
And the Good Shepherd guards us with His life. 'He lays down His life for the sheep', says Jesus of himself.....the heart of the gospel is here, friends. Jesus died for me!

If I were to ask you now if you have known dark valleys, I don't think that one of you would say 'no', if you're honest. The trouble so often is we look at each other across the room and say to ourselves, 'He doesn't understand what I'm going through. She can't know the pain I feel.' Well, actually, he probably can. She probably does. Part of our commitment to love one another involves being authentic... honest with each other, being vulnerable, being available for each other...

As Jesus prepares to leave His disciples, as His time on earth is over, whilst assuring them of His presence always, He commands them to 'Love one another as I have loved you.'
That's perhaps a step beyond David's experience.
We must support and help one another. This love is the mark of the Christian and, reaching out, to come along side those outside these walls who suffer, not only to share the suffering, but to rescue and redeem ......that they may come to know the Good Shepherd as we do.

More of ‘my cup overflows’.

2009-10-02T10:02:00.006+01:00

(sometimes I feel like Jeremiah. Everyone around is saying nice things. And here I am the only prophet banging away with the bad news. How can I expect people to like me? And like Jeremiah, I argue with God about it …. And God replies, ‘Michael, if you don’t say it, who will?’ Here goes again, then….)

"My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns-broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jeremiah 2:12-13

This verse has come back to me recently. I said some months ago that I should preach on it. Then this old mug of coffee (the mug was old, not the coffee!!) began to leak. I emptied the coffee into another mug and examined the leaky one. You couldn't see the crack at all, yet it was clear when tapping the mug with a spoon that it was unsound...

We tend to think of fountains like the one at Chatsworth, and that’s not wrong because it gives you the sense of the analogy.
Fountains in Jeremiah’s time would not be man-made but would be powerful springs welling up from the ground, pure, clean, fresh, powerful, thirst-quenching, refreshing, cooling, watering, restoring, reinvigorating, saving, cleansing, soaking, scouring, eroding, flooding,...
And as Jeremiah looks on in wonder…. After all it’s possible that the spring could have welled up suddenly from rain which had fallen many miles away…. Suddenly water bursts out into the desert. Can you imagine it? Living water… it is alive, and…. it brings life. The desert comes alive.
And the word of the Lord comes to Jeremiah:
'Which sort of water supply would you rather have, J, this…. Or a hole in the ground with mud at the bottom?'
'Would you rather have this pure, clean, fresh, powerful, thirst-quenching, refreshing, cooling, watering, restoring, reinvigorating, saving, cleansing, soaking, scouring, eroding, flooding,...…… which sprang up out of nowhere, for which you did no work, or here’s a spade…. Dig until you find some water…. And when you find it, for how long will it keep you supplied before it dries up?'
'It’s obvious what you would choose, isn’t it? So why have my people chosen the latter.'

Does your cup overflow, people of God?

I have coined the phrase ‘a club of like-minded people’ as referring to a church which is apparently no different from the local working men’s club (except there might be a bit less drinking), or the disabled club. Oh, plenty of activity, friendly, come-and-join-us atmosphere. There’s a lot of work going on…. Fellowship groups, young peoples’ groups, Sunday gatherings, and so on. It’s hard work….it really is! And you can see the difference for it.
And God says… 'it’s not that I am unimpressed by your hard work and dedication. My Spirit is around, but more is leaking out than is going in! Why? Because you have been doing it the wrong way. You have come up with wonderful ideas, you have worked so hard to find water, but you have been working to your agendas, not mine.'

'This is my agenda… go and be baptised in the Spirit…' That phrase used to be contentious… but I want you to understand that baptism simply means soaking. You might describe a sunken ship as baptised…. Water has got into every part where it wasn’t before.
And so at our baptism, the water symbolises the washing through, purifying, cleansing of our whole selves from sin… and we rise to new life.
Likewise, the Holy Spirit floods us reaching the parts that even a certain lager can’t get to.

‘My people have committed two evils.’ One evil is turning away from doing it God’s way. And the other is doing it the hard… not particularly successful… my own way, thankyou.

On the first leg of our 62 mile walk recently we came across a public watering place (at St Boswell's...) which had the impressive inscription:
Jesus said, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.". John 4:13-14 (King James Version)

When we turned the tap on however... nothing came out.

That reminded me of this Jeremiah verse.
Both refer to ‘Living water’.
In both instances there is a better way.
What, never thirst again?

Why would you settle for anything less than Living Water?
Rivers flowing out from you and me.

Go and look for the fountain of Living Water if you really want to do it my way, says the Lord.

I remember Rev John Wilson coming to Bible Study at Fred & Mary’s years ago.
He said something like this:
'You know your old granny used to use a dolly tub and a posh, and a mangle… it was such hard work. Washing the clothes was an all day job on Monday. Now you stick your clothes in the machine any time of the day and it does it all for you.
It’s like that with The Holy Spirit.'
You can graft away… like digging a cistern…. What a struggle! Or you can do it the easy way! God’s way.

How many times have I talked about getting serious with God… remember all that stuff last year about ‘If My people…. Humble themselves….Pray… seek My face…. Turn from doin it their way’. Get it?

Ron Dunn once described the spiritual life as like a boxing match. 2 boxers in the ring. Who are they? Is it you versus the devil? Is it you versus God? No the truth is the spiritual life is God versus the devil. They are the 2 adversaries. You keep out of the ring. The trouble is you want to do God’s job for Him… so you get up there in the ring… 'get out of the way God, I’m here, and I’m going to shine.' No wonder we fall and get hurt! No wonder we make no progress.
It’s about letting God be God.

It sounds too easy doesn’t it, but that is precisely what we actually have to do.
That is why prayer is of paramount importance. Jesus is knocking on the door. Prayer is to let Him in.
Remember what I said a few Sundays ago on the subject of Rev 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me …See below for the full text*… This is part of a letter to Christians. This is Jesus knocking on the door of the believer. You’re a Christian, but you left Jesus outside in the cold!! You thought He was inside, didn’t you? When the cup stops overflowing, and even dries up, we must ask why? …And the reason is really quite simple, we have made room for sin… and Jesus won’t share the house with sin. It really is that simple.

"My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns-broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jer 2:12-13

“But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.” John 4:14

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Rev 3:19

Let those who have ears hear!
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WITHIN A WEEK OF PREACHING THIS SERMON, I RECEIVED BY E-MAIL 2 MESSAGES BY WAY OF CONFIRMATION OF WHAT I HAVE SPOKEN... THESE ARE PUBLISHED ON MY REGULAR BLOG...SEE LINK ABOVE .... 6th Oct 2009
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*Rev 3:14-22"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. cc 20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. 21To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."h

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies

2009-08-09T13:23:00.002+01:00

Ps 23v5a

Here’s the shepherd at work again for the benefit of the sheep.

The word table refers to tableland or mesa. It was a flat-topped plateau high in the mountains.
This high plateau land was sought after by the shepherds because it was the best grazing place for the sheep.
Phillip Keller in his book "A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23" shows how middle-eastern Shepherds prepare the tableland for the sheep.
Tablelands are remote and hard to reach, but energetic and enthusiastic shepherds take the time to get the land ready for the arrival of their flock.
As soon as the snow has melted the shepherd makes a trip up the mountain to see where the flock's summer grazing land will be. He will decide where the camps will be so that the sheep have the best grounds to bed down and the best places to graze. On one of his trips up the mountain a shepherd will take salt and minerals and distributes them over the grazing area. I was up on the North York Moors preparing for our Sept 60 mile hike for Christain Aid, and noticed little heaps of white minerals in amongst the sparse grass and heather placed there by the farmer for the sheep. The tableland doesn't have everything a sheep needs so the shepherd brings what the tableland lacks.
On the later trips just before the sheep arrive a shepherd will remove the poisonous weeds that have grown. Sometimes a shepherd will spend days removing these weeds.
The shepherd will also clear waterholes, springs and other drinking places as during the fall rains, winter snow and spring run off leaves, twigs, rocks and dirt will be washed into a water source. All this must be cleaned out.
A shepherd will also have to spend time repairing dams he has made in previous years so they will hold water for the sheep once again.

How has the Good Shepherd prepared the tableland for us?

1. He became one of us. He knows what we go through so He knows how to prepare the way for us. He has been there.
For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted. Hebrews 2:18
For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathise with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Hebrews 4:15

2. He gave us the Bible as our instruction book, our map and compass… paths to follow and pitfalls to avoid.

3. He prays for us.
And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail. Luke 22:31-32
Jesus warned Peter that Satan was after him and that He was praying for Him that his faith would not fail. The Good Shepherd knows what we are going to go through, what danger lays ahead and prays for us.
Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25

4. Not only does He pray, He also makes an escape route for us.
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. I Corinthians 10:13

5. In Christ we have everything we need
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Romans 8:32

6. His provision is daily. Give us this day our daily bread. The fact that God is providing for you today should give you confidence He will provide tomorrow.

7. He provides abundantly. Life in all its fullness John 10:10
This is one of the loveliest stories in the Old Testament:
1 Now David said, "Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?"
2 And there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba. So when they had called him to David, the king said to him, "Are you Ziba?" And he said, "At your service!"
3 Then the king said, "Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show the kindness of God?" And Ziba said to the king, "There is still a son of Jonathan who is lame in his feet."
4 So the king said to him, "Where is he?" And Ziba said to the king, "Indeed he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo Debar."
5 Then King David sent and brought him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo Debar.
6 Now when Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and prostrated himself. Then David said, "Mephibosheth?" And he answered, "Here is your servant!"
7 So David said to him, "Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father's sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually." 2 Sam 9:1-7
…And likewise we share at the table of the King, at Communion, the Eucharist. His table, His invitation, and we find sustenance here.
Jesus said to them, "Come and eat …." Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, "Who are You?" -knowing that it was the Lord. John 21:12

8. And we are protected too… in the culture of Jesus’s day whenever a host had a feast it became his responsibility to protect the people under his roof …. The Shepherd knows how frail we are…even the hairs of your head are numbered….there is not one second of the day or night that He is not watching over us.
How precious are your thoughts toward me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you. Ps 139: 17-18
It is great to know that He who created us, saved us in Christ, gave us Eternal Life and peace with God, never lets go of us, never.
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence,
"The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?" Heb 13:5-6

God provides a table for me then, even in the presence of my enemies. This I find intriguing.
Why did David mention enemies? He could have left us with the first phrase on its own… You prepare a table before me…It is enough is it not to know that He does for us all that we have mentioned above…..but David deliberately takes it further.
The shepherd is pictured providing for the sheep whilst looking out for the lion, bear or wolf he knows are there, and will never abandon the sheep, but will stand between them and the enemy .. he is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep.

Now Satan is our enemy.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 1Pet 5:8
..and Paul makes it clear… For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armour of God… Eph 6:12-13
People are not our enemies….powers at work in them may well be, for God hates the sin but loves the sinner.

People have put various interpretations on this business of ‘in the presence of my enemies’, but for what its worth, here’s my take on it:
Do you ever suffer from indigestion? Why?
One of the reasons is that you do not stop, relax, take time to eat and enjoy. If you are tense and wound-up about something it can be difficult to eat at all! If you do eat, when your stomach is churning, I do not need to tell you what may happen next!
I think that David is showing that our trust in the Good Shepherd needs to be like this:
I can sit down and relax and enjoy right in the face of all that might disturb and upset me.
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18
Can you see it? We are loved! There is no fear… you prepare a table before me and invite me to come and sit down and eat and enjoy with the full assurance that my enemy is watching. Satan is not a respecter of persons. He hates everyone including me with a passion and is out to destroy my life. But I am to trust in you, and not be even the slightest bit anxious because you are watching over me with love, and you lay down your life for the sheep.
In this context of love…there is no fear. That is how I see it. That I reckon is why David put that phrase in. It is about God’s love and care for us. Yes. But it is also about our trust in Him. Trust like this. Faith like this… that we can sit and eat where we should be trembling or running away. I want that sort of faith.
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you.
8 Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place Ps 91: 1-9
Staying close to the Shepherd does not guarantee a problem free life, but when problems come He is with us protecting and encouraging us. Remember always Romans 8v28… he is always at work for our good you see.

I hope when you read Psalm 23 again you will read it slowly one word at a time and allow yourself to feel its impact.
A. God prepares; He is the source of everything.
B. God prepares a table; He prepares a bountiful table.
C. God prepares a table for me ; I am welcome.
D. God prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies; Satan is out to get me but I will simply trust my Shepherd absolutely.
Today, thank Him for all He is doing as your source of everything, for the table He has prepared, for the fact you are welcome to sit at the table and for the fact that God is your protection from the enemy.
And for the faith you need to move forward fearlessly in your witness and service for Him.

My cup overflows.......

2009-06-17T12:41:00.011+01:00

I want to visit again ‘my cup runneth over'. (click the title above to link you to a 'further study' on my regular blog)

At Pentecost, in my sermon, I said this:

We live through the most challenging of times. I don’t need to tell you that. It is a fresh outpouring, overflowing to the broken and lost, that we need today.
Peter said, ‘The promise is for you, right down the generations and right across the world.’
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows.’
And Jesus said to his disciples, this: ‘If you, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.’
This, friends is the key…. Asking.
Jesus makes it clear that God does not act if we are half-hearted in our asking. If however, we really mean it, we really want to serve and follow him, and we get down to serious persistent prayer asking God to act, He will.
A fresh out pouring of the Spirit is always preceded by persistent believing prayer.

I sensed after I said that, and I have now preached the sermon 3 times, that I needed to look at my own life (do I ‘really mean it’?) and whether the flow of the Spirit is uninterrupted, whether indeed my cup is overflowing, whether I am aware of God at work in and through me in answer to my prayers.
And as I meditated on this (this usually happens between 6 and 7 in a morning when having fed the dog and the cat I can be reasonably sure there will be no interruptions) I realised that although I was very much aware of God meeting my needs in response to prayer, there were blocks in my own life, unconfessed sin.
We all know Revelation 3:20 ‘Behold I stand at the door and knock etc.’ But what about the verse before it. Listen to this:
‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’ Rev 3:19 This and the verse following are addressed to believers, believers belonging to a church described as ‘lukewarm’. Believers who say ‘I am rich. I don’t need anything.’ … but whom Jesus describes as ‘wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.’ ..see Rev chapter 3.
The picture painted for us therefore when we come to read Rev 3:20 is of Jesus knocking on the door of the believer. Do you see what I’m saying? You’re a Christian, but you left Jesus outside!! You thought He was inside, didn’t you? When the cup stops overflowing, and even dries up, we must ask why? …And the reason may really be quite simple, we have made room for sin… and Jesus won’t share the house with sin. It really may be that simple.

‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’
What is it then that has blocked the flow and needs dealing with?
If we take time out and pray, God will reveal these things to us clearly. It is important at this point to say that if you are always feeling guilty that is unhealthy. The Evil One is constantly trying to drag us down with the discouragement that arises from our sense of unworthiness, and this develops into false guilt. Listen carefully: It is the work of the Holy Spirit when we pray to reveal the specific sins of which we need to repent. It is this sin of which you need to repent. There will be no nebulous sense of guilt.

Let me tell you of one of the specific sins the Holy Spirit showed me I needed to repent of: (at this point the congregation looks startled)
I have trouble with inanimate objects. Murphy’s law dictates that if it’s going to go wrong it will. That cable or string will always mysteriously tie itself into a knot. The bike chain will come off when you’re changing down 2 yards from the top of Leek Hill.
The computer will crash at the critical moment. You know what I mean.
And when that happens, irritation, anger if you like, so easily gets the better of me.
( here I tell the story of a typical wheel change after a flat tyre ... need I say more!!)

Underlying the symptom is the cause, and it is found in Galatians 5. Pretty well all the bad stuff is here on this list, and following it is the list of the fruit of the Spirit which is able to overcome it all.
19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Gal 5 v19-25.

Reading the bad list, we might say…oh’ I never do that!’ But how do we measure up to the good list. You see sin is best defined as ‘missing the mark’ (the picture is of the archer failing to get the bullseye). I missed the mark when it came to it. I lacked patience and self control, and could hardly say peace was at work in my life.
And so the Holy Spirit’s work in this context, is firstly to reveal your sin and mine specifically… so that we can see it clearly and repent of it. This is the rebuke. This is the dicipline.
‘Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be zealous (earnest) and repent.’
See also Heb 12 v5-6….
5And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son
A word of encouragement? !

So, people of God, if your cup isn’t overflowing, why not?
If you want to be a disciple, discipline is needed. And that means allowing God to reveal our sins and weaknesses to us that we may repent, and determine not to fail God again.

7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.
8If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1John 1v7-9.
Walking ‘in the light’ is a key theme of John.
See also John 3 v 19-21:
19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.
The light reveals the imperfections.
Walking in the light all day and every day…. In the power of the Spirit.
When we sin we grieve the Spirit, we quench the Spirit. How can we expect His streams of living water to flow in us and through us when we harbour unconfessed sin?
James 1v5-7 makes it clear that we have to be wholehearted in our asking:
5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
This should go without saying.
4The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love[b] is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2v4-6.

Here is how the Spirit is going to flow in you says Jesus….
12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John 14v 12-14.
This is staggering, but we will only fully realise this, church, when we understand what ‘in my name’ means. The name of a person in Jesus’s day embodied the whole of that person’s character and purpose. ‘In my name’ means that we must wholeheartedly align ourselves to the will and purpose of Christ.
Then, and only then will the wells be unblocked and the rivers flow.

13 "My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water Jer 2v13

What an indictment!
What a contrast painted in this prophetic picture of Jeremiah!
Where do you and I fit on the scale?….
At one end…...Fount of living waters, freely available, fresh and powerful.
At the other end..Stagnant, leaky, requiring-hard-labour-to-achieve-nothing.

My cup overflows.
Does it?

Come Holy Spirit. Reveal our emptiness and therefore the sins of which we need to repent.
May we confess, and know our sins forgiven.
Make us wholehearted servants, ready and willing to endure discipline; to be your disciples. Let our cups overflow. Allow your Spirit to do His work in and through us.
Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me,
all his woundrous compassion and purity.
Holy Spirit divine, all my nature refine
so the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.
And so Lord, we come and we ask, in the name of Jesus, for your Holy Spirit.

You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows

2009-05-31T09:12:00.000+01:00

You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows

Welcome to Pentecost and our Church Anniversary. It’s 3 years since the improvements to the building were completed. It’s 4 years since we had our first 24 hour prayer vigil… and we just did it again.
What do we expect to happen?
Someone once said, ‘What we receive from God is always limited by our expectations.’ William Carey, the father of foreign missions, said, ‘Expect great things from God, Attempt great things for God.’
And today we have come for another routine Sunday service?
I wonder if David expected the anointing? Samuel had seen all his handsome brothers, and there was still David the youngest to fetch in from the field. When he arrived, God told Samuel to anoint him king. God sees not the outward appearance, but the heart. How is your heart this morning? Do you have a heart for the lost, like the Good Shepherd?
The practice of anointing in the OT was reserved mainly for kings and also for priests. Anointing was often connected with the impartation of the Holy Spirit.
In the passage from Isaiah; ‘The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for He has anointed me…’ we see 3 results of the anointing of the HS which will help us understand why we need such an anointing today.
John Wimber said ‘It’s about meeting the needs of others with the resources of God’.
1. We go out and the good news is preached to the poor and downtrodden, hope and forgiveness is available for the marginalised.
2. The broken-hearted may be healed. We have a clear calling to rescue those around us with broken hearts and lives and relationships
3. Captives and those in darkness are set free. We know lots of people like that. Slaves to addictions, in deep depression, on drugs. Held captive by the Evil One and unable to help themselves.
This is our calling, Church. How is your heart this morning? Do you have a heart for the lost, like the Good Shepherd? Do you long for the anointing of the Holy Spirit on your life? Do you long for revival and for the Spirit to move again as he did at Pentecost and numerous occasions since. Who can say that the time is not right. We live in desperate times, and God is calling us back to Him to be instruments of His peace and purpose.
Feel inadequate?
Well here’s the promise:
‘You anoint my head with oil’, and that’s not all……
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows’.
No half measures.
Watch: (pour ‘wine’ into pyramid of glasses)
Listen to this:
John 7…. Rivers of living water.
God is a god of mega-generosity. There are no half measures. Your cup is filled and running over.
Look at the disciples on the day of Pentecost. The neighbours thought they were drunk. It was an outpouring which touched 3000 lives.
George Whitfield along with Wesley was greatly used of God in the 18th Century ‘Great Awakening’. It is thanks to that awakening that we are here.
Whitfield wrote in his journal, how he was filled with the Holy Spirit. ‘Oh that all who deny the promise of the Father, might thus receive it themselves! Oh, that all were partakers of my joy!’
He also describes on one occasion he began to pray a brief prayer before addressing the assembly but to his own astonishment could not stop. Petitions, praises, raptures poured forth from his lips.’ A wonderful power was in that room’ Whitfields prayer was drowned by cries which, he was sure, could be heard a great way off…. Cries and groans and quaking had sometimes accompanied the preaching…. ‘thousands cried out so that they almost drowned my voice’. Whitfield did not doubt that the Spirit of God was flowing…
It is well documented that the revival of Wesley and Whitfield probably saved England from a bloody revolution like that in France at the time.

Charles Finney described his experience of the Holy Spirit which occurred in the early 19th Century:
The Holy Spirit descended upon me in a manner that seemed to go through me, body and soul. I could feel the impression, like a wave of electricity, going through and through me. Indeed it seemed to come in waves of liquid love, for I could not express it in any other way. It seemed the very breath of God. I can remember distinctly that it seemed to fan me, like immense wings.
No words can express the wonderful love that was shed abroad in my heart. I wept aloud with joy and love, I literally bellowed out the unspeakable overflow of my heart. These waves came over me, and over me, and over me, one after the other……’
Finney went on to spearhead a revival in America which his biographer claimed ‘literally altered the course of history’. Over half a million people were converted under his ministry in an age when there was no PA or mass media. Billy Graham says ‘Through his Spirit-filled ministry thousand upon thousand came to know Christ, resulting in one of the greatest periods of revival in the history of America. In communities where he preached bars and saloons closed for lack of business and the crime rate dropped. Countless lives changed through the ministry of a man who let the Spirit flow in him, and out from within him, to the lost.
We live through the most challenging of times. I don’t need to tell you that. It is a fresh outpouring, overflowing to the broken and lost, that we need today.
Peter said, ‘The promise is for you, right down the generations and right across the world.’
‘You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows.’
And Jesus said to his disciples, this: ‘If you, being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.’
This, friends is the key…. Asking.
Jesus makes it clear that God does not act if we are half-hearted in our asking. If however, we really mean it, we really want to serve and follow him, and we get down to serious persistent prayer asking God to act, He will. So we have been praying this last 24 hours. So we need to be praying now.
A fresh out pouring of the Spirit is always preceded by persistent believing prayer.
Spurgeon, that great preacher recognised that.
So does John Kilpatrick, a pentecostal pastor in Pensacola, Florida, who in recent years has seen vast numbers of people come to faith. Prayer is the key.
Fred would tell you that the subject of our prayer time each Wednesday at 7am always comes round to young people and to revival.
‘Ask anything in my name and it’s yours’ says Jesus.
Let us get serious and ask God for revival.
We may be few, but remember the church began with a dozen unlikely characters whose lives were transformed by God’s Spirit at Pentecost.
We celebrate that today, and we look ahead as God’s people on this our Anniversary, and we say, ‘Lord, we want to see this church really grow. Come, revive us today. Pour out your Spirit. Send the fire!’
I’ve mentioned Count Zinzendorf and the 100 years prayer before. Here’s an excerpt from the revival amongst the Moravians:
Throughout the summer, the community interceded, Zinzendorf often leading the way with tears and loud cries. Groups met in homes to pray and confess their sins. Spontaneous nights of prayer were a regular occurrence.
Throughout July, the sense of urgency grew. A visiting preacher fell to the ground during the service, crying out to God for a new move of His power. In the prayer meetings, many would kneel or lie prostrate, weeping before the Lord. Zinzendorf recorded later:
"Everyone desired above everything else that the Holy Spirit might have full control. Self-love, self-will, and all disobedience were removed under the blood of the Lamb, and an overwhelming flood of grace swept us all into a great ocean of Divine Love."
A Holy Communion service was planned for the middle of August at the church in nearby Berthelsdorf. Everyone came with a deep sense of personal unworthiness and a dependence on God's mercy. During the service, the Holy Spirit descended in power, filling the whole company. Tears, shouts of joy, hugs and loud praise filled the air.
"Great signs took place in our midst", the count recalled. "From that time, scarcely a day went by where we did not behold His mighty workings among us. We returned home from this meeting with peace and joy and love in our hearts"
The anointing…the overflowing. It’s for us, here, today

'He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul?' (Ps 23:2,3).

2009-03-08T17:08:00.002Z

Did you know that the only creature that has more trouble sleeping than we do is a sheep? Everything must be just right: no wolves, no insect pests, and no hunger. Since sheep can?t find pasture, spray insecticide, or protect themselves, they need a shepherd. So do we! Listen: ?He makes me lie down in green pastures.? (Psalm 23:2 NIV). Note: our Shepherd chooses the path, prepares the pasture, and protects the sheep. What?s our part? Just follow, eat, rest, and stay close! David said, 'He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul?' (Ps 23:2,3). Those things only happen in His presence. Ponder these three scriptures:
(1) 'Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God' (Dan 6:10 NIV)
(2) 'in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait in expectation' (Ps 5:3 NIV)
(3) 'Very early in the morning, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where He prayed' (Mk 1:35 NIV).
Jesus understood that solitude was necessary for intimacy with God, and intimacy with God was necessary for giving out to others. Job said, 'the breath of the Almighty hath given me life' (Job 33:4). Until God breathes His thoughts into you, you’re just recycling the ideas of others. In Genesis God said, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish?' (Gen 9:1). Have you learned yet how to 'replenish' your flagging emotions and drained energies? The message is clear you need more time alone with God!
Friends, the Shepherd is here today for you…and you and you….and me.

Most of what I want to say is about Sunday, the Sabbath Day…Sabbath means rest.…The fourth commandment: REMEMBER THE SABBATH. KEEP IT HOLY. EXODUS 20:8 Discussing his coming vacation to The Holy Land, a Scotsman told his pastor, ‘When I get to read the ten commandments on Mt. Sinai, I’ll feel close to God.’ His pastor replied, ‘Jock, if you want to feel close, just stay home and keep them!’

‘REMEMBER THE SABBATH and KEEP IT HOLY’. shouldn’t be interpreted:
1) In a legalistic way! Because God said, ‘Keep the Sabbath holy,’ people have made it heavy. In fact, by Jesus’s time there were over 1,500 things you couldn’t do, like bathing, walking too far or scratching a flea bite! The Sabbath’s for rest and celebration; a time to recharge your spiritual battery, not drain it. It should be the milestone, not the millstone of your week!
2) In a loose way! This is our problem The pendulum has swung so far the other way that now anything goes. People go everywhere on the Sabbath except to God’s house, and excuse it by saying, ‘I’ll be there in spirit,’ . Last time I was preaching at Scotter, there was me going South along Scotter bottom, and streams of cars going North, where to? St Tesco.
3) In a limited way! Do you attend church on Sunday, then ignore God the rest of the week? Is your Christianity so irrelevant to daily life that it’s just a one-day-a-week affair? Remember, He’s not just the Lord of the Sabbath, He’s the Lord of life. So stop confining Him to a church and start taking Him to a world that needs hope and salvation.

We’ve considered what the Sabbath isn’t; now let’s look at what it should be.
1) A day of rest! A man who went to his doctor suffering from burnout, was told he’d have to slow down. ‘Doctor,’ he replied, ‘I didn’t come for a lecture on burning the candle at both ends, I came for more wax!’ God meant life to have a definite rhythm, like work, worship, labour, rest. Why? Because the bow that’s always bent will eventually break! A group of African explorers hired some native guides. For six days they were up at dawn and ready to go. So on the seventh morning when the guides didn’t rise the explorers asked why. In broken English the head guide replied, ‘We not go today. We rest. Let souls catch up with bodies’. That says it all! The Sabbath was designed to let your soul catch up with your body. Of the ten commandments God gave to Moses, which one do you think required the most words? Adultery? Five words. Murder? Four words. Taking a day off - 94 words! (Exodus 20:8-11). God knows us so well: He knew the workshop proprietor would say, ‘Somebody’s got to work that day; if I can’t, my son will.’ So God says, ‘Nor thy son.’ ‘Then my daughter will.’ ‘Nor thy daughter.’ ‘Then an employee.’ ‘Nor thy manservant.’ God says, ‘One day a week you’ll say ‘no’ to work and ‘yes’ to worship. You’ll slow down, sit down, lie down and rest. After all, I rested on the seventh day and the world didn’t crash. So, my child, repeat after Me, ‘It’s not my job to run the world.’ Spurgeon said, ‘Even the sea pauses at ebb and flood; earth keeps the Sabbath of the wintry months and man must rest or faint, trim his lamp or let it burn low, burnout. In the long term, we shall do more by sometimes doing less.’ Today, if you allow Him, God will bring rest to your mind, your body and most of all your soul. With some airlines, before an aeroplane takes off the attendant tells you that if the plane gets into trouble, secure your own oxygen mask before attempting to help others with theirs. That's wise! Unless you get enough oxygen, how can you help anybody else? To use a timely illustration, ultimately you have to make deposits where the world you live in seems to make endless withdrawals, or else face insufficient funds. Pretty soon those cheques are bouncing everywhere: morally, emotionally, and spiritually. In His presence God will supply everything we need to thrive, to experience abundant life. He is utterly devoted to our good !!
2) A day of remembering! Toward the end of his life William Barclay said, ‘I’m old, and I’ve learned that there are very few things in life that really matter, but those few things matter intensely!’ Worshipping with other believers matters because we are bringing to remembrance all God has done for us in Christ. ‘Do this in remembrance of me’, we here at each Communion. We are reminded as we gather of His grace and mercy, His constant care and provision for us, His wonderful promises in His Word, His call upon our lives and last but by no means least, that we are members of a family.
3) A day of resurrection! For Christians every Sunday is a mini-Easter, a time to celebrate new beginnings. It’s the beginning of the week… we are launched into the challenges of the week with resurrection power!
4) It is the day the Spirit came…..’Come, Holy Spirit, revive and renew us today. Fill us, empower us with your love’.

He makes me to lie down… in this Psalm words like leads and restores are used but here the word is makes.
Does that mean we have no choice in the matter? I don’t think so. We can fight back if we so wish. But who would want to do so?
The Good Shepherd is giving His total attention to me, little me, why would I want to run away. ‘I have come that you may have life, and life in all its fullness.’
Matthew 28:20-and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen
His presence will dispel the fear, the panic and the terror of the unknown.
Jesus is here. The outlook changes and suddenly there is hope.

So here we are. It’s the Sabbath. Rest, the best of food, refreshment, restoration. He restores my soul.
Do you want some of that? Then you have to let go, and let Him make you to lie down and enjoy the immense blessings He has for you.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul

Where are you just now in relation to the Shepherd?
You have heard me preach on worry and contentment. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
Some of you have been online for another look at those messages.

What is God saying to you through these messages? Why are you here? God said that to Elijah. What are you doing here Elijah? He didn’t know… he’d ran away. Hope was thin. Desperation had set in.
Who here today is worried, lonely, depressed, uncertain, empty, weak, troubled, overwhelmed, lost, etc etc. ?
If any of these caps fit, you’re in the right place today.
Maybe you heard the message, believed the Good News, lived and worked for Jesus, but you have come to a place where you are now self reliant and you’re not sure how you got here. The ground is hard and dry and you are tired. You don’t know what to do next, how to find the way again, how to recover the strength you once had.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul

Whatever you need God for today, He is here.
I’m tired
He restores my soul
I’m lonely
He restores my soul
I’m hurting
He restores my soul
I need healing
He restores my soul
I need replenishing
He restores my soul
I’m frightened
He restores my soul
I’m uncertain
He restores my soul
HELP !@*$”#?%
He restores my soul

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
he rises to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!
O people …. you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. ISAIAH 30: 18&19

Some content from The daily devotional Word For Today... available free of charge for the UK and Republic of Ireland from UCB, Broadcast Centre, Hanchurch Lane, Stoke on Trent, ST4 8RY. Tel: 01782 642000. Email: ucb@ucb.co.uk www.ucb.co.uk

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want...CONTENTMENT

2009-02-02T14:40:00.005Z

(L-R) Henry Allingham, Harry Patch and Bill Stone pictured last year.

Recently we learned of the death of Bill Stone,the last British serviceman to have seen active duty in both world wars. He was a man of great faith and his recipe for long life was: clean living, a contented mind and trust in God. What a great motto to live by!

Last time we talked about worry, and how to rid ourselves of it, declaring that as the Lord is my Shepherd, then I shall not want. I will seek first His kingdom, pray to Him in faith about issues that arise in my life and trust Him with all my heart.
Worry is about our lack of trust in the Shepherd.
Contentment is the opposite…it’s about trusting the Shepherd for everything.

I shall not want…therefore I am content?
Am I?
A hundred years ago the average Westerner wanted 27 different things, and considered 18 of them essential to happiness. Today the average Westerner wants 500 different things, and considers 100 of them essential to happiness. And our obsession with stuff carries a price tag. The average family now devotes a full 25% of its spendable income to outstanding debts. Over half of us spend 110% of our disposable income trying to manage debt. And who can keep up? We no longer measure ourselves against the Joneses next door, but against the star on the screen or the model on the magazine cover.
The average person is bombarded with about 300 advertisements a day, promising everything from whiter teeth to faster cars. It's a mega-billion-pound industry designed to make us want what they're selling. But there's a subtle message being conveyed. In a word, it's discontent, and it eats away at us by creating a desire for bigger, better, more.
Do you feel better when you’ve more and worse when you’ve less? Are you always wanting something bigger? Nicer? Faster? Newer? Is joy always one delivery away, one promotion away, one makeover away? Does happiness come from something you deposit, drive, drink, or dwell in? Even if you can honestly answer ‘No’ you surely know plenty of people who are always wanting more.

Epicurus said, 'Don't spoil what you have, by desiring what you don't have. Remember that what you now have was the thing you once hoped for.'

‘If we have enough, let us be content. But people who long to be rich are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is at the root of all kinds of evil. And some craving money, have wandered from the faith. Pursue a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Tell those who are rich not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone. But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future.’ (1 Timothy 6:8-19 NLT).

Three things constantly feed our discontentment:
1) Greed. When you dwell on what you don't have, you're not enjoying what God's already given you. God says, ‘Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have’ (Hebrews 13:5 NIV).
2) Fear. It wants you to run from something that's not chasing you. The Psalmist said, 'In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?' (Psalm 56:4 NIV)
3) Seeking satisfaction in the wrong places. God said, 'My people have...forsaken...the fountain of living water, and...dug...broken cisterns that cannot hold water.' (Jer 2:13)

When David said: ‘The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want,’ he found lasting pleasure where discontent goes to die. He understood that what we have in God is greater than whatever we don’t have in life.
He’d figured out two things:
(1) Your stuff isn’t yours! When John D. Rockefeller died, someone asked, ‘How much did he leave?’ His accountant replied, ‘Everything!‘
(2) Your stuff isn’t you! Jesus said, ‘Life is not defined by what you have’ (Luke 12:15 TM). When God looks at you He sees your devotion and your faith, not your image or possessions.

David's contentment was based on his relationship with his Shepherd. David is saying his Shepherd completely satisfied him and he would never want at any time for anything he really needed. He was contented in the Shepherd's care and consequently not caring or feeling he deserved anything more.

In a magazine article quoted in The Word for Today* a wife and mother tells how her family moved into a sparsely furnished rental house while their home was being renovated. Instead of missing what they'd left behind, surprisingly, they were liberated! Upon returning home they were overwhelmed by the utter excess of stuff, and gave much of it away. She concludes, 'When enough's always just a little more...you don't have room for the truly great things in life.' The message isn't new; Solomon said, '...the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep.' But freedom from anxiety is more than just uncluttered closets. It's a firm conviction that what you do have is a gift from God (see Ecclesiastes 5:19), and that it's meant to be shared with others. Contentment simply frees you to enjoy what He's provided.

Did you hear about the farmer who grew discontented with his farm so he decided to sell it? A few days later his estate agent phoned wanting approval for an advertisement she intended to place in the local newspaper. She read it to the farmer. It described a lovely farm in an ideal location - quiet and peaceful, contoured with rolling hills, nourished by a fresh lake and blessed with well-bred livestock. The farmer said, 'Read that to me again.' After hearing it a second time he said, 'I've changed my mind. I'm not selling. I've been looking for a place like that all my life.' Paul would have applauded that farmer. He learned the same lesson:
Philippians 4:11-12Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

To understand how Paul and David felt we need to go beyond physical and material needs. They both knew deep personal poverty, acute hardness and anguish of spirit. The Bible never promised a problem free life when it commanded contentment:
John 16:33 "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

From complaining to contentment:

1.Admit your need of a Shepherd. We do mess up our life.. God's goal for us is life to the fullest.
John 10:10The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
If we mess up our life and He wants to give us life to the fullest only pride will keep us from admitting our need for Him.

2.Submit to the Shepherd. The shepherd has a plan that the sheep must submit to. Our shepherd has planned out our life down to the little details.
Everything that happens in our life, even the parts we don't like is part of His plan for us. (See my sermon on ‘I know the plans’).
James 1:2-4
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
I first read that verse when at the age of 19 on my first visit to London, my car's clutch failed outside the Albert Hall, so I remember it well !
When He leads us into difficult times it is never to hurt us or desert us but to help us grow. Our Shepherd always has our best interest at heart. With this knowledge and assurance, we can accept any personal slights,ridicule, unpleasant tasks or frustrations and still be at peace without complaining.
When we submit to our Shepherd we entrust our life to Him, we place our well being in His hands and accept His direction. We know that each difficulty is an opportunity to see Him at work in our lives.
Hebrews 13:5-6
Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
So we may boldly say: "The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"

3. Practice being content …
1) Don’ts….(be alert).
Don't be lured by advertising and glitz.
Beware of anything that produces an addiction in you.
Buy things for their usefulness, not their status.
Be wary of 'Buy now, pay later' schemes.
Learn to enjoy things without having to own them, or be owned by them. David writes, ‘If riches increase, do not set your heart upon them’ (Psalm 62:10 NAS).
Do not let your income dictate your lifestyle. Choose a realistic level of living and do not compromise by spending more just because more arrives. Let enough be enough. If you do not choose your lifestyle the world will choose it for you, and it will probably be one beyond your means. Steer clear of anything that prevents you from putting God first in your life. He says He'll 'give you all you need...if you live for Him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern' (Matthew 6:33 NLT).
2) Dos..
Make contentment a daily choice.
Come to the place where you really believe that more does not equal happier. To find contentment, simplify! Cultivate the ability to say, ‘I have enough.’
Make a habit of giving things away.
Let your lifestyle be biblically based.
Let your whole life be eternally focused! Look up, people, we are on Earth now, but we are preparing for eternity. Get your focus upward as Jesus did. Hold the things of this world loosely.
When your contentment is based on status or possessions, it can be taken away in an instant. But when it's based on your eternal relationship with Jesus, nothing, absolutely nothing can rob you of it!

An American by the name of Doug McKnight was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at 32. Over the next 16 years, it would cost him his career, his mobility and eventually his life. But he never lost his sense of gratitude. When his church friends asked him to compile a list of prayer requests, he responded by sending them 18 blessings for which to be grateful, and 6 concerns for which to be prayerful. His blessings were three times greater than his needs. Doug discovered that what he had in God was greater than whatever he didn’t have in life. Have you?

Conclusion:

When you understand what the Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want means you can stop complaining and coveting and start living a life of contentment.
Contentment is something you learn; you have to work at it daily! The hymn writer wrote, 'Now none but Christ can satisfy; no other name for me. There's love, life, and lasting joy, Lord Jesus found in Thee!' Are you searching for contentment? Try Jesus!

I Timothy 6:8
And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
Hebrews 13:5
Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

Since the Lord is my Shepherd I will be content.

Finally, here’s a hymn I learned years ago when Sister Eileen Beckett, the Wesley Deaconness who taught me to preach was leaving the area. I hadn’t known it before and it has disappeared from a number of hymn/songbooks. The hymnwriter has an eternal focus. Things are never going to be perfect in this world. It is a paradox that, alongside our complete contentment here, we yearn for the life to come. See what you think of this:

My God, I thank Thee, who hast made
The earth so bright,
So full of splendor and of joy,
Beauty and light;
So many glorious things are here,
Noble and right.

I thank Thee, too, that Thou hast made
Joy to abound;
So many gentle thoughts and deeds
Circling us round,
That in the darkest spot of earth
Some love is found.

I thank Thee more that all our joy
Is touched with pain,
That shadows fall on brightest hours,
That thorns remain;
So that earth’s bliss may be our guide,
And not our chain.

For thou who knowest, Lord, how soon
Our weak heart clings,
Hast given us joys, tender and true,
Yet all with wings;
So that we see gleaming on high
Diviner things.

I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
The best in store;
We have enough, yet not too much
To long for more:
A yearning for a deeper peace
Not known before.

I thank Thee, Lord, that here our souls
Though amply blessed,
Can never find, although they seek
A perfect rest;
Nor ever shall, until they lean
On Jesus’ breast.

*The daily devotional Word For Today is available free of charge for the UK and Republic of Ireland from UCB, Broadcast Centre, Hanchurch Lane, Stoke on Trent, ST4 8RY. Tel: 01782 642000. Email: ucb@ucb.co.uk www.ucb.co.uk

Psalm 23 (2) The Lord is my Shepherd, I SHALL NOT WANT

2008-11-17T12:08:00.013Z

I Shall Not Want (Psalm 23:1) ‘I shall not lack’ ‘ I have everything I need’
Do you feel that this morning?
God has promised we would not lack anything, so if we feel we are lacking something then there are issues we need to face:

This week we’re going to consider ‘worry’.
Next time we’ll think about ‘complaining v contentment’

Worry then. ‘Why pray when you can worry and take tranquilisers’, says the Wayside Pulpit.
Sometimes we think worry is not a problem for us, or we may think it's just part of our personality.
In truth, worry has devastating effects on us physically, emotionally and spiritually.
We’re going to look at what worry is.. define it, see how it differs from ‘concern’, and look at reasons not to worry.
Then we’re going to think about what we need to do about it. To decide NOT to worry and to let the Shepherd have control.

What worry is.

A. Definition of worry.
Worry is a troubled state of mind that includes anxiety, distress and unease.
Being 'uptight', stressed or impatient (why is that driver in front so slow!!) are symptoms of worry.
The Greek word for worry means to engage in a care worn, anxious fear which robs your life of joy.

B. Worry verses concern.
1. Worry focuses on uncontrollable conditions that cannot be acted on, or is a non-specific nebulous treadmill of false guilt and discouragement leading to depression.
It is usually about issues that affect me, not others.
2. Concern focuses on issues before us which we can usually take action on....specific things.
It is usually about issues that affect others, not me.
There are lots of things we need to be concerned about all day long. We are concerned about our families, about making right decisions, about injustice in the world, to name but a few.

C. Worry is a sin (and Jesus died to save us from our sins).
Matthew 6:25-34:
25 "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
26 "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
27 "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
28 "So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;
29 "and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 "Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
32 "For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
34 "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Worry is mentioned 5 times in these verses. Jesus specifically says not to worry in verses 25, 31 and 34.
Luke 12:29:
"And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.
When we worry we are not trusting the Shepherd.

D. Four reasons not to worry.
1. Worry is unhelpful. It does nothing - it never accomplishes anything or solves anything.
Worry cannot change the past or control the future; it only messes up the present.
2. Worry is unreasonable. It exaggerates your problems, making mountains out of molehills.
…every time you think about an issue it gets bigger and bigger…. and that makes worry a waste of time and energy.
3. Worry is unhealthy.
Here’s a medical view:
Worry causes a person to be "keyed up with nothing to fight or flee and no way to turn off the stress chemicals. You become a ticking bomb that is not allowed to explode - consequently, you may implode. Every system in your body is affected by worry. In addition to raising blood pressure and increasing blood clotting, worry can prompt your liver to produce more cholesterol, all of which can raise your risk of heart attack and stroke. Muscle tension can give rise to headaches, back pain and other body aches. Worry can also trigger an increase in stomach acid and either slow down or speed up muscle contractions in your intestines, which can lead to stomach aches, constipation, diarrhea, gas or heartburn. Worry can affect your skin (rash or itch). It can impact your respiratory system and aggravate asthma. Growing evidence even suggests that chronic worry can compromise your immune system, making you more vulnerable to bacteria, viruses and perhaps even cancer."
The bottom line is our body was not made to worry.
The Old English word for worry is the word "to strangle" or "to choke". That's what worry does - it strangles the life out of you.
None of us were born to worry. The worriers have learned to worry.

4. Worry is unbelief.
Matthew 6:30 says people who worry have little faith.
Worry is a lack of trust in the Shepherd. "I'm not sure God will do His part."
Anytime we worry we are acting like someone who doesn't believe in God. (Vs.32)
We need to understand clearly, and the 23rd Psalm alongside John 10 shows us this….that the Lord who is ‘my Shepherd’ provides for us, protects us, guides us and corrects us.

What we need to do about worry.

A. Confess our sin of worry. Ask God's forgiveness for the times you have worried. Remember you are acting like an atheist if you worry.

B. Decide not to worry. Worry is a choice.
Philippians 4:6-7
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Choose to depend on your Shepherd and not worry about things you cannot control. Since the Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want.

Remember the definition of worry and concern?
Ask yourself - "Is there anything I can do?"
If there is, do it, if there isn't don't worry about it.

C. Let God be in control. This is the essence of Ps 23
1. Worry is a control issue.
The root behind worry is the fear that you are not in control and it is an attempt to control the uncontrollable, and that is a responsibility God never meant for you to have.
2. Who is in control of your life?
God gives you the choice of who controls your life. You can be in control or God can be in control but God doesn't co-pilot. ….as J.John puts it: let God into the driving seat (rather than the back seat or the passenger seat!).
If you are in control you will worry (and you ought to worry!), but when God is in control you can rest.
3. God has proved He is qualified to be in control. He is the great and good Shepherd.
God ran everything before you were born. He has fed you and clothed you so far. Since God has taken care of me in the past I can trust Him for the future.
He takes good care of the birds and flowers and you are more important to God than they are.
"Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
…..Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
"Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

There is no spiritual pill that you can take, no spiritual experience you can have and no seminar that you can attend that will instantly cause you to stop worrying. To stop worrying you must make a daily, sometimes at first an hourly or even a moment by moment choice to let God be in control.

D. Live one day at a time
Matthew 6:34
34 "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
1. Today is the tomorrow that you worried about yesterday....and all is well !
2. You can't change the past, you can't control the future so all worry does is mess up today. ‘Tomorrow never dies!’ in your stomach.
3. The future can seem overwhelming. Jesus taught His disciples to pray for enough bread for today. God wants us to break down our time into bite-sized pieces that are called days.
4. Overcoming worry is a daily decision to focus on today. That is so important! It’s about dealing with today, not worrying about tomorrow.

E. Lay it down at the Lord’s feet.
The issue that is before you this morning….lay it down before Him, and leave it there. If it hasn’t resolved, then pray again tomorrow morning. Leave it there again. That’s persistence in prayer. But don’t forget that bit which says ‘with thanks giving’(Phil 4v6). It’s when we learn to be thankful, to praise God, and bless Him for all His love and goodness.. as David does implicitly in Ps 23… that we can move forward.

F. Refocus
As we give thanks we heed the words of Jesus to ‘But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,...and ALL THESE THINGS (the things you fret about) will be sorted for you.
In early 2003, we did ‘City of Gold’ with Winterton Comprehensive School.
It was well rehearsed and when the day of the performance came we had a further afternoon rehearsal before everyone went home for tea except me. I stayed over at the school and had a quiet spell. I had a couple of sandwiches…and wished I hadn’t…because as the time drew nearer I felt really ill! I was bent double with butterflies/stomach cramp. I was worried! Yet there was nothing I could do to change anything, so why worry? It was irrational.
I prayed to God for help. I have prayed similarly on a number of occasions when key events were approaching (such as Circuit Youth Weekends or funerals) when I was showing symptoms of a severe cold during the days before… ‘Lord. You know I can’t do what I must do like this. Please take it away.’ …and He has, thankfully, every time. But this time it was not an illness, it was worry. I was praying for the wrong thing!
‘But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you’.What I simply needed to do was get the focus off myself….and instead, onto the Kingdom ie onto others. To pray for others.
As I did so, praying for the cast, the helpers, those behind the scenes, and the audience (even as they came in), the stomach cramps ceased immediately. Then I looked back for a moment, (as Jesus told us not to do!). And as I focused on myself again the butterflies came back with a vengeance. So I didn’t look back again, and all was well after that, and the performance was a success. (here I say a ‘thankyou’ to those who were praying for me!)
…And as I reflect, I recall a number of occasions in my life where I worried, or allowed myself to become depressed, and wondered why God didn’t answer my prayers to ‘take it away’. He has of course given us the answer:
"Therefore do not worry….But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
“O you of little faith…” !!!

Conclusion:
What are you worrying about right now?
What is keeping you up at night?
When you think about it, what gives you that awful feeling in the pit of your stomach?
Isn’t it time to let God into the driving seat?

Say it over and over until you believe it..
‘The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want’.

(Thankyou Lord that as I have set out to teach others about you, you have taught me so much… I repent of the sin of worry, and I pray that everyone who reads this message above will understand clearly their own failings in this area, and be led to repentance and forgiveness in Christ, and may the Holy Spirit fill us and give us discernment every day to see this temptation coming at us and the power to resist. Praise your name!)

Psalm 23 (1)

2008-11-03T17:21:00.004Z

Psalm 23
Introduction (Part One)

Has the 23rd Psalm been a great help to you through the years? Many would say that it has. It is consistently used in funeral services of believers and unbelievers alike, usually in the form of the famous hymn to the tune Crimond.
Years ago many people could recite it from memory. Can you find anyone today?
Just the thought that the Lord is our Shepherd is mind-boggling. It is no wonder Ps 23 is so popular.
I want to link the Psalm to John Chapter 10:

John 10:11&14
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
I know My sheep, and am known by My own.”

Perhaps one of the reasons Psalm 23 is so powerful is because David was a man filled with the same kind of conflicting passions and bewildering problems that all of us face.
He had many great victories in life:
His defeat of Goliath.
He was clearly a very talented musician and poet.
He became a very good king. The name David was ever remembered by the Israelites.
But he had many tough times too:
He was for many years a fugitive from King Saul, who was so jealous of him he sought to kill him.
His adultery with Bathsheba and subsequent murder of Uriah greatly displeased the Lord. David was then to experience the death of their baby.
All of his reign as king enemies were ready to attack, particularly the Philistines.
From the beginning of his reign to his death he had constant critics amongst his own people.
His own children raped and killed each other, and his own son turned against him wanting to kill him for the throne.
Great victories, great joys, a man after God’s own heart…yet experiencing tough times, times of darkness, tragedy and deep failure.
In the 23rd psalm we get a glimpse of David's view of God that sustained him in the tough times of life.
The Lord is my Shepherd…..look at the promises in Psalm 23. We have a Shepherd that wants to meet every need of our life. Psalm 23 tells us to go to the Shepherd instead of to this world:
In life God provides for our every need.
In death God provides His comforting presence.
In eternity God provides a place to dwell together.

Psalm 23 is such a blessing to us because it gives hope. Real hope.
Our life is full of difficulties that can lead to a life of bitterness and resentment. All of us experience difficulties caused by broken relationships, broken promises and broken expectations.
Knowing the Shepherd is the key to surviving life's hurts. David saw that so clearly.
The psalm was written in a different time and place than we live in (thousands of years ago) but it is still so up to date and so relevant.

Part Two

We will look at Ps 23 over a number of sermons. Today I want us to focus on those 5 words. The Lord is my shepherd.

First:
To what extent are we like sheep? OK so David was a shepherd and he knew everything there was to know about sheep. So lets think about how sheep for a moment.
If someone asked you what kind of an animal you wanted to be I doubt many of us would choose to be a sheep.
What’s that kid’s song? ‘I just want to be a sheep.’ ???? No I don’t! A lion, a wolf, an eagle maybe. But a sheep….no thanks!

Sheep are smelly. Sheep do nothing to cleanse themselves. They do not get into water, roll, scrape or lick. They remain filthy until the shepherd finds a way to clean them. …And we can’t rid ourselves of sin, we remain filthy, until we have come to know the Saviour.

Sheep are stupid.
Have you ever asked yourself, "How could I have been so stupid?"
We must realise and admit how limited our intelligence and our wisdom really is. We only do what makes sense to us or that we know we can do in our own power. Sheep need to be taken to food and water. They will eat anything so they must be protected from poisonous plants.
Have you ever seen a trained sheep?
Even Jesus’s disciples, who had been with Him for 3 years, did some remarkably stupid things. And are we any different? I suggest not. In this age when we’re supposed to be self confident and assertive, it does not come easy to recognise the truth about ourselves, does it?

Sheep are defenseless.
Their arsenal is very limited. They have no fangs, stingers, claws and they cannot run fast, fly or swim.
No professional sports teams are called ‘sheep’.
Sheep are not used for protection. There are no guard sheep.

Sheep are stubborn and go astray. Sheep can easily get lost because they tend to go their own way. Sheep regularly wander and stray because, as many mistakes as they have already made they still think they know what is best. Like sheep, we have a tendency to go our own direction rather than follow the Good Shepherd.

All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.Isaiah 53:6
That takes our focus back to the Shepherd:

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.John 10:11

Someone once suggested that our view of who God is in relation to us affects our Christian walk more than anything else. Is God a cosmic administrator that has no clue who you are? Is He the Gestapo commandant, waiting for you to step out of line, or sadistically making you suffer anyway? Is He apt to be impatient, even vindictive? Does He ignore you? When things go wrong does He refuse to get involved? Or what sort of a God is He?
This is really important, more important than you may realise.
How does God view you when you mess up? When you’re down, going through what John of the Cross calls ‘the dark night of the soul’? When you’re lost and so alone? When your life is in utter turmoil? When you are suffering loss, whether bereavement or other painful sense of loss?
You know, David had been there and his answer is:
The Lord is my shepherd.

Note: The hired hand cares nothing for the sheep.
The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy.
The hired hand stands for a counterfeit Christianity. Leaders who appear fine, but actually are serving their own agenda.
The thief is the devil.
Satan is powerful and clever, you see, and would lead us away from the shepherd. But the Good Shepherd is always looking out for us, and He is more powerful!

We have a God who loves us, gives us abundant life, and lays down Hs life for us.
He not only takes care of us in the valley, but even prepares a feast for us right in front of our enemies. Have you ever tried to eat when you’re nervous… you can’t do it ! But we are called to exercise the kind of trust in God that would enable us to sit down and eat when someone is pointing a gun at us!

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
Here at the cross, the weak, stupid, stubborn, filthy, and defenceless find real hope… ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven. Only sinners may apply. Some of you need to hear that this morning, and come home to the Shepherd.
You may or may not feel as though you’re lost. But the Bible says ‘All have sinned and fall short’. ‘All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.’ There is a Shepherd who puts everything on hold to focus on one thing……to find you ! And when He finds you, what joy!(Then he goes home, calls his friends and neighbors together, and says to them, 'Rejoice with me, because I've found my lost sheep!'Luke 15:6)

We all need to hear this: The Lord is my shepherd

Next: I shall not be in want

Signs and wonders?

2008-08-14T10:43:00.001+01:00

I was looking back over these past months and noting God’s hand at work in so many ways in my life and in my family.
There are so many, many instances, especially from Easter Sunday through Cindy’s dad’s precious final days and death, the joyful celebration of his life at his funeral, the birth of our grandaughter, Jessica…and the next day praying with Ian’s mum as she made her last journey, taking her funeral, my first. Numerous other joys and challenges…not least that Sunday morning a few weeks ago when I was called upon to preach unexpectedly. Many ups and downs along the way. Still learning, often the hard way.
We have had some real answers to prayer… Cindy called them ‘signs and wonders’ which in a way they are. That phrase ‘signs and wonders’ also popped up at the course JeongSook and I are currently on at Lincoln and again in my daily readings in 2 different places, and again the other day when I opened a book about Holy Spirit Ministry, so I’m going with what God is saying, I believe.

Signs and wonders. Wherever God is at work, there are signs and wonders. They may be simple, everyday answers to our prayers as we offer matters to God where we need His specific intervention. They may be really big things like people being healed of their illnesses. Hallelujah!
These are evidences of God’s favour and we must be ready not only to thank Him but to trust and obey Him for the days ahead.
At the same time as we observe these signs and wonders, there are a number of instances of the devil at work, and we must be alert, watchful and put on God’s armour.

Friends, we have a huge responsibility in these dark and difficult days.
It has often been said that we are God’s hands on Earth, that He has no plan B; it is down to us Christians to do the work of the Kingdom, or rather to permit God to do it in and through us.
This is a challenge none of us can shirk. I have previously spoken about revival… If My people(2Chron 7v14)…the healing of the land can only happen through us you see. Knife crime is going to get worse, drugs, abortion and wholesale rejection of Christian standards, unless we get before God in prayer, humility and sincere repentance it’s going to get worse.
Can you see it? Can you understand? It’s down to you and me in the time we have left on Earth to be about Kingdom business. And we can’t do it while our own lives are in a mess.
I have been saying this stuff for years…. Check out my sermon blog and you’ll see…. And I know that I too need sorting constantly, I have to say that to you, or I would be a hypocrite. Daily I need to come before the throne of grace. Paul said he was the chief of sinners. How can he be worse than me? And yet at the same time somehow God in Christ is moving me forward to become more like Jesus.

The enemy is out to get you the moment you start to disturb him. And nothing disturbs him more than the prayers of believers. Satan trembles when a Christian prays, you know, because prayer is a bridge over which the powers of the Kingdom, powers of the age to come, reach into the here and now, and bring The Light of the World into the dominion of darkness., bring healing and wholeness where there was previously sickness and depression.
You want to suffer….then pray. You want to follow Jesus, then take up the cross.
On that Sunday four weeks ago I said that we are called to be witnesses… people who ‘know’ the saviour…really know him in our hearts. People whose words and deeds witness to those around us. And as witnesses we are martyrs (the Greek word for witness and martyr is the same). No messing. No nominal Christianity. It’s all or nothing.
Wesley was diametrically opposite to most Western Christians today.
We talked about Wesley a few weeks ago at the men’s cell group. He was not self satisfied. Seeing the state of the world around him he committed himself to be different. He was determined he was going to live a holy life, following Christ. He would pray, fast and discipline himself and demand that of others. He was a tough cookie. It was an uphill struggle and he made no converts.
His determination was admirable, and puts most of us to shame. But he didn’t know the Jesus he sought to serve. Every ounce of his energy went into doing what he thought was God’s will. But he had not experienced the love of Jesus. Each day he rose early and set out to live simply so he could devote himself to God’s work. But he did not have the power of the Spirit.
Until Aldersgate Street, when someone was reading Luther’s dry and academic preface to the book of Romans. God’s timing is wonderful. Imagine the dryest and most boring sermon you have ever sat through! Might be one of mine. Imagine feeling utterly miserable and worthless. And then God intervenes. Whoomph! And takes you to a new place within. Peace, joy, love, power.

We on the other hand want the blessing without the discipline. Disciple means discipline.
When Wesley got the blessing, he already had the discipline.
And the rest is history as they say.

This, I fear, is where the Church is today for the most part. The reverse of Wesley.
Desiring the blessing, but unwilling to count the cost, in terms of true discipleship.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote about ‘costly grace’ and ‘cheap grace’ in his book ‘The Cost of Discipleship’.. Keith Norton has preached on that. So ask him about it. I have yet to read the book.
A book I have read however is Arnold Bittlinger’s ‘Gifts and ministries’. In it he says this:

'Frequently the real enemies of the gospel are not heathens or atheists: rather, they are those who know about Jesus but refuse to bow to His sovereign claim.........those for whom Christianity merely constitutes one sector of life, the centre of which is their personal ego, who are not prepared to let another have dominion over them. Such people have always been ready to cry ‘Lord, Lord’ and to take an active part in worship--but they have not been ready to change their lives and do the will of Jesus. Bearing the semblance of a godly life they lack its power. Jesus imparts no power for the execution of personal desires and representations. Power is only available to the Christian in order that he may place his life into the hands of Jesus and permit the Holy Spirit to be active through him. Jesus does not grant power that is independent of Himself. He either bestows himself or he bestows nothing at all. Jesus himself is the power.’

This paragraph spoke to me a number of years ago, and I keep reading it to remind me that I need always to place my life into the hands of Jesus and let the Holy Spirit be active in me., it is a matter of the will. If the Holy Spirit is not working in me and through me, what’s the point?
Bittlinger suggests that I might even be an enemy of the gospel… God forbid!

There is always a cost. Read the gospels! As I have said, the Greek for ‘witness’ is martys which is precisely the same word used by the NT writers for martyr. So where Jesus says,’ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ read: ‘you will be my martyrs in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
Does that encourage you?
You and I can choose one way or the other.
But we may not expect the real blessings, the signs and wonders, the necessary power, the going with the Spirit’s flow, unless we are prepared to count the cost.
It will impact on our time, money and relationships, but I can tell you, it’s worth it…He is worth it. !!
Will you choose to take up the cross and follow the Master? Be a true disciple? Make a difference?

I know the plans I have for you says the Lord

2008-06-29T18:26:00.007+01:00

Some of the content of this sermon is from 'Word for Today' http://www.ucb.co.uk/index.cfm?itemid=88&sectionid=3
For other bits I am grateful to Martyn Atkins the retiring President of the Methodist Conference. This sermon desperately needs refining, but as I am not likely to have opportunity to do that soon, and as some of you have asked to read it, here it is warts 'n all with my prayers that God will speak to you through it....

I know the plans I have for you says the Lord…..Jeremiah 29v11

This is a favourite Bible Verse of mine, simple and to the point.
How was it received by those who heard it from the lips of the dreaded prophet, I wonder?
No-one wanted to hear what Jeremiah had to say. That the plan of God was exile for 70 years and that they should not resist. There was no point in trying to fight, despite the lies of the false prophets. And Jeremiah writes a letter from God to the exiles telling them to settle down and marry and work for the peace and prosperity of Babylon, even to pray for its peace.
..and I will choose the time when you will return. I know the plans…

well, here’s some thoughts:
1. I know the plans
Isn’t it good that God knows the plans he has for us. Sometimes we would wish that we also might be allowed to know. But whether we know or not, God knows.
It is more important that God knows than that we know.

When it comes to finding out what God knows, people use different methods.
There are those who say their prayers and ‘If the door opens I’ll walk through it’. The opening is God’s answer to prayer and I need to get on and follow his call. I have used this method on several occasions. It is in theological terms known as the VIA POSITIVA. (the way of the positive) and was promulgated by St Aquinas… though people had been doing it for years before him.
On the other hand there are those who say ‘When things go wrong, when doors have to be pushed at, when everything stacks up against a particular route, that shows me it is the way God wants me to go. The evil one is blocking the way and I need to put on God’s armour and stand, and take hold of God’s word and move forward.’ That’s called the VIA NEGATIVA (the negative way), promulgated by St Augustine. Or as Martyn says, if you’re from Yorkshire 'the bloody-minded never say nay route'.
I think I’ve been into both at some times in my Christian life !

The message in all of this is that there are plenty of times in our lives when we simply do not know what God has planned for us.
It is the acid test of faithfulness that I accept that for a time I will not know and must wait for the Lord, and must simply accept that He knows the plans He has for me even though I do not. I rest in this promise until he chooses to reveal His plans.

If you are there just now, in that waiting time, you’re in good company. God will be God, and making us wait, whilst watching and praying and living by His rules, is the way He works. Complete trust, not resignation, is the way we handle it.
Here we can help our brothers and sisters by praying for them and supporting them while they wait.

I know the plans I have for you…says the Lord. Thankyou Lord that you do, even though I don’t.

2. I know the plans
I know the plan s I have for you. Plural….’s’.
This a wonderfully gracious and liberating word is it not?
I have come across people, I could name one or two that you know, who blew it spectacularly at the age of 18, 34, 41, whatever…. they believed God had a plan for them, whether it was to go here, do this or that, marry this person, go to train for Christian work, or whatever. they were certain of God’s plan for their lives and for some reason it didn’t work out and they left it behind and now they are convinced they have blown it for ever.
Listen, God has plan s.
There is no evidence in the Christian gospel that there is just one plan, and that if we miss it we’re disqualified forever from serving God. No, on the contrary.
Martyn Atkins uses the marvellous illustration of SatNav.
‘When I first came across a SatNav it was in my friend’s Lexus. It had a beautiful, sexy voice like Joanna Lumley telling you where to go. Amazing!
Well me being a sinner, I said, ‘What happens when you don’t do as it says?’ ‘Watch’ said my friend, with an evil glint in his eye. He is after all an accountant. ‘I’ll show you.’
‘turn left in 100 yards’ said Ms Lumley. So he went straight on. Now if I had had my son’s SatNav and done that it would have uttered expletives from Dr evil telling me what a stupid bleep I was. But this was a Christian SatNav…and uttered a complete word of grace, ‘I have worked out a new route for you.’ That says Martyn is pure gospel.

You see there is not one immutable plan for your life and mine. We all mess up from time to time. Do not think that what you did back then has blown out of the water any possibility of God leading you forward into His plans.
Guidance and grace work together.
Whenever we go our own way instead of God’s, whenever we disobey, there is, as the SatNav, a pause, and then a word of grace, ‘I’ve worked out a new route for you.’…because ‘I know the plan sss I have for you’, says the Lord.
Friends, we never exhaust all the permutations of the plans. God sees the big picture. There is always another route, even when we look back and can see that what we were sure of then and now we’re not so sure of may seek to drag us down into discouragement. Discouragement is the enemy’s work.
God is a God who invites us to Renewal, redirection and fresh opportunities to serve in obedience to his will. He never gives up on us…I am a work in progress and so are you.
Hear this. You will never exhaust all the possibilities of God using little clay pots, some cracked pots, like you and me, to contain the treasure which is His good news. He has plan s

3. For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
I’m reminded here, as I’m sure you are of Romans 8v28…… ‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’

God exercises His sovereignty toward the Christian in such a way that everything that touches our lives has been allowed or brought about by Him. Those things which would prove to be detrimental to our good have been kept from us. Those things which will work together for the “good” God has planned for us, God arranges and controls in such a way as to produce that good. Everything in the life of the Christian is designed for accomplishing the positive plans God has for us.
The “prosperity” for the Israelites was the restoration of their nation, beginning with their return from exile. So that which God purposes for us is of course in the future and which we cannot presently see. For us as New Covenanters that hope and a future includes our salvation, sanctification, and our future full adoption as sons of God…to put that another way.. All can be saved to the uttermost, as we shall discover at the Men’s meeting on Tues. We will be tested as God’s purpose is not so much our happiness as our holiness.

4. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD

As we think about this business of God having a perfect plan for our lives, we need to be about using the gifts and talents He has already given us, with all our hearts.
Ask yourself this: 'What are my strengths?' Do you enjoy working with computers or cars or animals? Maybe you're an adept people-manager or you like fixing things or you're good with finances. Are there certain jobs that come easily to you and you wonder why others can't do them? If so, that says something about your particular strengths and your God-given assignment in life. What kind of working environment brings out the best in you? Do you thrive on routine? Are you motivated by other people's needs? Do you enjoy tackling challenges that discourage others? And how about your relationships? Do you enjoy being part of a team, or do you function better alone? If you only come to life around people, you'll probably be miserable sitting in front of a computer all day. What lights your fire? In the movie Chariots of Fire, Eric Liddell described his zeal for running in these words: 'God made me to be fast, and when I run I feel His pleasure.' What makes you feel like that?
As we seek to serve Him and to know the plans He has for us these are things we can discover about ourselves.
Then we take what we have and offer them to God, seeking Him with all our hearts in daily living.
‘I will be found by you’ declares the Lord. ..And so His plans and purposes will come to fruition in and through us.

Conclusion
I find it really exciting that God has plans for me, don’t you? I remember when I was 50 and thinking that I was heading over the hill, getting a picture from God of the time I climbed The Cheviot. I remembered it well. Every time you thought you’d got to the top there was another hill to climb!
You see, as I have said before, Christians never retire, they only get promoted. So young people, old people, and those in the middle…God’s got plans for YOU !

Time to GET SERIOUS

2008-06-18T14:36:00.005+01:00

OK. This isn't a recent sermon. It's a compilation of four sermons from 2006 (headed PRAYER, SMALL GROUPS, WORSHIP and EVANGELISM). You need TIME for this!

Where is the Methodist Church going?

As part of my Foundation Training for Ministry in the Methodist Church I prepared four talks on the Future of Methodism. Having concluded the assignment I developed and delivered these talks at my own church, Trinity Methodist, Winterton.

What do I see as the future of the Methodist Church in the UK?
Meteoric Church growth is being experienced in many countries, with Methodists at the forefront. That’s good news. However, here in the UK we are seeing a disastrous decline. And it’s not just traditional Methodists who are leaving our churches. Young people, and many older, are also leaving.
Josh Hale, a Minister in the UK on a year’s placement, asked his congregation ‘Who thinks the Methodist Church is in crisis?’ I said ‘It is!’, but although I was one of the first to make a statement, most people in the room (including Josh) held the view that it is not in crisis. Perhaps the cultural differences between North America and the UK influenced his comments. However, statistical returns from his native land also point to decline.
As I have said, on a world-wide scale it’s good news, but I couldn’t help feeling after that service that far too many of us in the UK are burying our heads in the sand. We have got into a deep rut where hope is thin, and power scarce. Where is the vision without which ‘the people perish’ ?
It’s time to look to the future, face realities and get serious with our discipleship. If we do, that is if we are prepared to work at this, I do believe the decline can be reversed.

1. Prayer
At Peniel (Genesis 32) Jacob had reached crisis point in his life. He had, for all of his life, got away with doing things his way at the expense of others, including his brother Esau who he was about to encounter 20 years after Jacob had stolen his birthright. All the signs showed Esau set for revenge the following day. Faced with this danger, Jacob does what he can to protect his family and then goes down to the brook alone. Here he meets with the God of his forefathers in human form (a Christophany…early manifestation of the second person of the Trinity), and there follows a unique occurrence, a wrestling match. Jacob knows who he is wrestling with and is singularly determined to keep a hold. It is his only hope. If he loses or allows the man to escape all is lost. It’s the last chance saloon. Perhaps from God’s point of view it was time to bring Jacob to his knees. This schemer needed to change his life and his name (Jacob means ‘deceiver’), and obey God as Abraham had.
Wesley, prophetically, feared for the future of the people called Methodists, that they might deteriorate into a ‘dead sect’ having the form of godliness but not the power. This is the key issue. Like many Methodists today, Jacob had a form of godliness inherited from his forbears, but no power.
There is much in Christian teaching and modern hymnody about ‘surrendering to God’ and the inherent danger of passivity and even ‘Quietism’ (a heresy of the early 18th Century). But Jacob is not surrendering here, rather he is ‘laying hold’ on God and he is permitted to do so…the GodMan he wrestles with does not destroy him, but sees in Jacob a deep desire to be changed and allows him to fight for what he most wants. Jacob demands to be blessed. ‘I won’t let you go unless you bless me’, he cries out. Many of our Methodist forbears knew what it meant to wrestle with God in prayer. Often 19th century chapels and those of the early 20th century Welsh revival are named ‘Peniel’.
Oh for the blessing! That we might have today that which they wrestled for and gained in large measure.
In his book, The Power Of Crying Out, Bill Gothard writes: 'The most significant difference between the prayers of God's people in Scripture (so powerfully effective) and our prayers today (so seemingly ineffective) is this: there was a fervency in the prayers of biblical saints - a fervency that is inherent in crying out. When we grasp this fact, the pages of Scripture come alive with sound!'
David said: 'In my distress I...cried unto my God: He heard my voice...' (Psalm 18:6 KJV). The Hebrew word that describes David's outcry is shava, a higher pitched cry for help.
Again the Psalmist says: '...I called to You for help and You healed me' (Psalm 30:2 NIV). We know from our own families that a true father's or mother’s heart hears their children's cries, and that their children naturally cry to them. In the same way, crying out to God is our child-to-father impulse, planted within us by the Holy Spirit. '[Because we are His children],' Paul says, '[We] have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, "Abba, Father"' (Romans 8:15 KJV). The Greek verb here for crying out is a strong word usually translated as 'shouting.'
Forget dignity and decorum! Desperate situations call for desperate measures. We must allow the Holy Spirit to cry out from within us. We must wrestle in prayer for when we are really serious, we may be sure God will intervene and will undoubtedly bless us.
Someone once said ‘God has no grandchildren’, and we must understand that clearly. Each of us is responsible for our own relationship with God. Our Methodist heritage will not get us to heaven. Passivity, complacency, will not get us anywhere in the Christian life. We need to repent, return, receive. All of these are active, I suggest; even receiving, for we must reach out to receive a gift. It is not ours until we make it ours.
Therefore it is time to pray, and I mean active, Spirit-filled prayer. Of course there is a time for stillness and meditation, and surely this is part of our daily prayers. But as we come together to seek first the Kingdom, there is a deep longing, ‘as pants the deer for water, so my soul longs after you’.
William Arthur, a leading Methodist of the 1850s. Arthur argued that the primary need (of the ministry) is the power of the Holy Spirit; he believed that it’s absence is our corporate responsibility. ‘Prayer is the condition of obtaining this power. Prayer, prayer, all prayer – mighty, importunate, repeated united prayer’. He goes on to insist that a Church’s members must be ‘mighty in prayer’.
So we need to pray, to cry out to God, to wrestle in prayer, to pray all night if necessary as many have been doing this year. To refuse to ‘let go’ until the blessing is ours.
Let’s get serious about prayer. Methodism has a future if we can get this right.

2. Small Groups
In this context we may include fellowship, teaching and discipleship, support and accountability.
Let’s look at Small Groups, their value, and how they can be instrumental in growing the Church.
Most of us having been brought up through the church, have come to believe that the strength of the Church is primarily in its Sunday worship. That is the mindset we need to change. The numbers games…bums on pews. The real strength of the church is in relationships, vertical and horizontal. Again this is how the early Methodists began. They were to attend the parish church on Sundays…..but the dynamic, the spiritual powerhouse was not there but in the weeknight Class Meeting. A small group for each member, where each member would undergo a spiritual check-up, give testimony, confess his struggles and hurts and receive valuable loving support . This has been lost to Methodism. I have never attended a Class Meeting in my church. And if we trace the history of Methodism we may conclude that the decline of meaningful Class meetings was the start of the decline of Methodism.

But things are changing.
Graham Carter President of the Conference 2006-7, says:
'In order to achieve the discipleship we are called to, we need each other. And we need each other in a special way. The Church Life survey of a few years ago showed that Methodists were good at what we call "fellowship", but not good at experiencing God’s presence. It’s clear that for many ‘fellowship’ equates with friendliness, and this is not enough.
What has been lacking in the Church for some time is the element of accountability for our discipleship. How often are we accountable to each other for what we do as we try to keep following the way of Christ? Does anyone ever ask you how your discipleship is going? We’re afraid of that because it sounds too much like facing judgement – measure up or you’re out. But that isn’t how Jesus treated his disciples. He once told Peter to "Get behind me Satan" and warned him that he would deny that he knew Jesus, but the risen Christ still challenged him to "Feed my sheep." Peter had to be accountable, but accountable in love and trust.
We need to develop the practice of meeting in small discipleship groups where a high level of love and trust can grow and we can watch over each other in love. In such groups admitting our failure becomes not a fearful thing, but a way of building a firm platform for encouragement and growth. The Time to Talk of God report and study guide has been helping us to take the risk of speaking about our faith and understanding to one another. We all have to start from where we are and not where we’re told we should be. Only starting honestly from where we are, with all our doubts and uncertainties and journeying with each other, will faith grow.'

One of the really useful things we have discovered here about Alpha Course is the ‘Small Groups’ after the talk. As the weeks go by each group member begins to realise how valuable the group is….starts to let go of the masks and dares even to ask for prayer. As I have already suggested, in a small group you can relate at a much deeper level than you could ever achieve in a Sunday morning worship, not denying for a moment the value of this hour But if we are serious about loving one another then we need to get into real fellowship.

Three pastors went to the pastor's convention and were all sharing one room.The first pastor said, "Let's confess our secret vices one to another. I'll start - my secret vice is I just love to gamble. When I go out of town, it's cha-ching cha-ching, let the machines ring."The second pastor said, "My secret vice is that I just love to drink. When I go out of town, I like to take a little nip of something."The third pastor said, "My secret vice is gossiping and I can't wait to get out of this room!"
The lesson to learn from that one is obvious enough.
Across the world churches are rediscovering the immense value of small groups, for support and accountability. A group of people who can be trusted to bear one anothers burdens and humbly pray for each other in absolute confidentiality. These groups are often called cells. The idea is that a living cell will not only grow but multiply. So will the small group as other people want to become part of them. But these ‘Cells’ are just an updated version of the earliest New testament home groups we encounter in Acts, and Mr Wesley’s classes. Here we discover Methodism’s heritage.
So it’s time to get serious….with small groups for fellowship. The Greek word for fellowship is Koinonia, and the best way to describe it is in the words of Jesus Himself: ‘Love one another as I have loved you’. The Greek word is ‘agape’…utterly self sacrificial love.
‘Love one another’. ‘How?’ ‘As I have loved you’….a love which is utterly selfless and sacrifices all for the loved one. Risks all…and as Paul says ‘always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres, love never fails. That’s what you call real love.
Now people of God…..’by this (agape) love all will know that you are my disciples’, says Jesus, ‘because you have this love one for another’. Young/old, black/white, native/foreigner, educated/uneducated, intelligent/with learning difficulties, rich/poor, Anglican/Methodist, employed/unemployed, student/retired, trendy/old fashioned, musical/tone deaf…(I could go on)…love one another as I have loved you.
It is within this context of deepening fellowship in small groups that we develop a shared ministry as each member discovers their gifts and uses them for the upbuilding of the whole. It is in this context that mutual support develops mutual accountability and even discipline. ‘You are my brother (sister) in Christ, therefore I love you unconditionally, therefore I can help you live as Christ commands, pray for you, share your struggles, and you can do the same for me. Let’s open our Bibles and learn together, grow together, journey together’.
Let’s get serious about small groups. You and I all need to be members of a small group for support and accountability. Let us begin to develop these groups now.

3. Worship
It’s time to get serious about Worship. I have read twenty or so books about worship. I have done a college course on worship. I have led worship for 35 years….and still a full understanding of what worship really is about eludes me. I do not get the chance often enough to simply ‘be’ in worship, I am often leading. Nevertheless, I want to share with you today my thinking on the future of the Methodist Church in the context of worship.
In many chapels up and down the land people meet on Sunday to go through the motions. It isn’t worship, that’s why it never attracts.
Revival when it comes will change everything. There will be a rediscovery of worship as God desires it.
The outcome will be that the hymns we know and love will mostly vanish…perhaps only 30 or so will carry forward. The next generation of Christians will sideline much of what we are used to now, (even so-called ‘Contemporary Worship Songs’, which almost always lead me into God’s presence, will decrease in importance). People will come and go at a time that suits them. The how and the when and the where and the what will change. The future will be completely different. There will be a rediscovery of worship with links to ancient forms and styles. The packaging will be different but it will still be Trinitarian Christian Worship. Scary? Maybe.
How can we in the Methodist Church worship effectively in the days ahead? How can we be sure we are worshipping at all when we meet, rather than just filling time with what we think is good stuff?
We need to ask the question: What is worship? Why do we do it?
Well,...praising God for who he is, thanking Him for what He’s done, allowing Him to mould our lives, cleanse, heal and make us holy.... comes into it.
Most important, we need to consider that in the life to come we will be worshipping God all the time. So how can we prepare for that? How can we make our worship on earth reflect the worship of heaven? Can we reach the dizzy heights in worship where we say we don’t want to stop?…..on earth as it is in heaven? Can we not at least make this our aim….worship permeated with the presence of God?
John Henry Howard in his book ‘Transformed Church’ 1910 writes:
"We leave our places of worship and no deep and inexpressible wonder sits upon our faces. When we get out on the streets our faces are one with those of the people coming out of the theatres and music halls. There is nothing about us to suggest that we’ve been looking at anything stupendous or overwhelming.
I remember an old saint telling me that after some services he liked to make his way home alone by quiet paths so that the ‘hush of the Almighty’ might remain on his awed and prostrate soul. This is the element we are losing."
And if this sense of awe was declining then, a hundred years ago, how much more now. How we need to rediscover this. The Bible tells us Moses face shone from being in God’s presence. Does yours or mine? I long for the time when the worshipping people go out of the church doors and passers by ask,
‘Where have you been.?’
‘What’s happened to you?’
We are driven by the clock…by time. Where does it say in the Bible we start worshipping at 10.30 and finish by 11.30 please tell me. The worship I read about in the Bible is 24/7.
Getting serious is about coming into God’s presence and waiting on Him. ‘Sorry God, can’t wait any longer, unless you want me to come back with a chicken as a burnt offering.’ People, God doesn’t work by our timetable. I’m sorry, but He doesn’t. It’s no wonder our worship isn’t worship. If this gathering makes no difference to you today then you haven’t met with God, you haven’t worshipped. You might feel a kind of warm feeling because you’re with the friendliest group of people in the community !!But you haven’t worshipped.
So how can we get worship right?
First, by saying to God, ‘You are Lord of my time. You have given me a certain time on Earth to prepare me for Heaven. Lord, you decide how much time you want me to wait for you. Forgive me for my shallow worship and self-serving. Help me to worship you and serve you alone.’
Most of our morning services are now 90 minutes. Good. We’re doing 24/7 prayer. Good. We’re moving forward. Don’t let us look back. Time in God’s presence can never be wasting time, but gaining time, always gaining time.
Let’s go to the words of Jesus: ‘in Spirit and in Truth’.
‘in Spirit’….worship must be Spirit led. In all our preparations and prayers we are invoking the Holy Spirit. The expectation of all worshippers must as we have said be an encounter with God in worship. If He is pre-eminent style, time, liturgy, music, environment, being secondary to this, will serve rather than be themselves the focus. The Spirit will bring to bear the deep awe and reverence, the ‘stupendous and overwhelming’ John Henry Howard was convinced had been lost.
I reckon that is what I have come back with from many hours alone with God on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. A sense of awe. Walking or standing many many times on the edge of immense cliffs, aware of my own mortality, where a gust of wind or a false step might end my life. You know. That’s sobering. The God who holds my fragile life in His hands showing to me, little me, His awesome creation…the immense cliffs, the roaring sea… the tiny flower, the butterfly. The whole world of wonder. Stupendous, overwhelming, deep awe.
Listen. The same awesome God is here by His Spirit…..can you sense that. You want to stay?
Worship must be ‘in Spirit and in truth’.
'In truth' ...means a number of things. Here are some: From our side; Honesty and Openness. I come ‘just as I am’. No pretence, nothing hidden, nothing held back. There is conviction of sin whenever we are this open. Repentance is needed, opportunity must be given. Broken relationships restored and healed. With open hearts and minds. With sincere faith. (David Perry ‘s HOT is all here…Honest, Open, Trusting). From God’s side, ‘in truth’ means; the Word comes to us.…we are led 'into all truth’ by the Holy Spirit. Proclamation of and hearing the Word takes place. Our understanding of Biblical Truth is deepened. His truth ‘sets us free’ to be truly and fully the People of God.
Getting serious about worship means to ‘let go and let God’ as we come before him.
Let’s discover real worship and make it relevant, and allow God to meet us.
In His presence ..may He renew, restore, refresh, equip, encourage and enable you to be the gift He intended you to be.
Response: Imagine Jesus standing before you. What is He saying to you? What do you want to do about it? I set the Communion rail for you to kneel at. Come and kneel before Him. Don’t be afraid. Today, maybe for the first time you will leave here and someone will say, ‘What’s different about you?’ ‘I’ve been to Church, Jesus was there.’

4. Evangelism
The Methodist Church needs to rediscover how to do Evangelism in the 21st Century.
How many short-term missions have come and gone with little evident impact?
The old style Cliff College Hit & Run evangelism doesn’t really work very well today, does it?
What does work, then? That’s what we need to discover. It’s the question every church leader worth their salt wants to know the answer to.
This morning can we spend a little time looking at Evangelism in 2008 and how we can all be a part of it. Yes, all of us.

i. If necessary use……
Francis of Assisi is credited with the phrase "Preach the gospel and, if necessary, use …..what?." A group of trainee evangelists was once asked to fill in the blank in the sentence. A large number of them replaced the blank with the word "force" - not quite what St. Francis had in mind. Words ! "Preach the gospel and, if necessary, use words."
This is an important issue. Not all of us are good with words. It’s not failure to admit to people that we’re not very good at explaining the faith. We might be petrified at the thought of trying to convert people. However, the implication of this phrase of Francis of Assisi is of course that we can be preachers without words. I want to say to you this morning that each of you can be a powerful influence to those around you, you may be unaware of it, but by simply following Christ in daily living, your life and mine can be a compelling witness to our Faith. In this sense you, too can be an Evangelist.
In that famous jungle encounter, Stanley said of Livingstone ‘If I had spent another day with him I would have been compelled to become a Christian, and he never spoke to me about it at all.’
What sort of a challenge do you and I present to unbelievers? Let’s turn to scripture: "When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus" (Acts 4:13). The world’s looking for people who look and act as though they’ve been with Him. They’ll be convinced only by the God we know; the One Who’s met all our needs. So today we need to pray, "Lord, others are watching; help them to see You in me!"
A number of years ago, I went to a posh Insurance dinner some distance away. Great meal, I love my food, and I love humour, but some of the jokes going round were not ones I would wish to add to my Cybersmile list. I guess I must have shown that in my body language, or in some other way have shown that I was a Christian, because one guy there, who I didn’t know, found out my phone number and gave me a call. He said, ‘You’re a Christian, aren’t you?’ I said, ‘Yes’. He had a particular serious problem which was affecting his business and asked if he could come over from Sheffield to see me. I was able to listen to him and talk through some issues with him and he went away much happier. I haven’t seen him from that day to this, but I always remembered the importance of being an evangelist even without words.
The subject of ‘Influence’ could keep me going for several sermons. But let’s move on…

ii The Journey of Faith
It’s important to remember that God is already at work in people’s lives. Wesley called it ‘prevenient grace’. When we come onto the scene we need to be aware of that and not think this person or that person’s a hopeless case. God’s doing his work before we arrive on the scene.
We need to remember, too, that the process of bringing another to faith requires a series of people and events usually over quite a long time. All Christians have a part to play. It does not rest upon one person having all the right words to say at a specific time that will instantly convert the unbeliever .
At Alpha we were talking about our ‘journey of faith’ whereby each person may move step by step towards conversion and beyond to growing discipleship. This view is positive in that it shows that just as I am on a journey so are you, and so is everyone. We need to journey alongside people where they are, so they can get to know us. You and I can help people move on another step. It may be that you will be the one who will hear them say; ‘Now I know I’m a Christian’, but up to that point many believers may have done their bit too, through influence and prayer and maybe even words.

iii Invitation
We don’t read much about Andrew in the gospels, but where we do come across him he is always bringing people to Jesus. ‘Come and you will see…’ Andrew is credited with bringing Simon Peter his brother to meet Jesus. How important that encounter was!
The teenage Billy Graham was not interested in spiritual matters. When an evangelist visited his local town – he rejected invitations to attend, even his good friend Albert McMakin couldn’t persuade Billy to come along. However Albert owned a truck and offered 16-year-old Billy the powerful incentive of driving to the meeting – that swung it. Billy drove a truck full of young people to the revival meeting and was captivated by the message, triggering the 180 degree turn that his life took. Every Christian knows the name Billy Graham, while Albert McMakin is virtually unknown. We can’t all be Billy Graham, but we can all be an Albert McMakin and engineer an invitation.
Simple, isn’t it, an invitation. I am an unashamed Alphaholic. Debbie thought I said alcoholic the other day and nearly fell off her chair. A simple invitation is all it needs…you might have to come too….with the person you invited. That’s ok. Please don’t knock Alpha. If you do knock it you’ll have to answer to big blokes like Ian or Steve, and an even bigger bloke called Bob. Men are coming to faith, women too, through Alpha. We praise God!
This is an invitation which works. Why does it work? Because doing Alpha people discover Christ for themselves…no pressure. An easy, relaxed voyage of discovery.
Well, maybe even words, too…
Explaining the faith can be a difficult thing to do. Whatever words we use, we can never fully explain the mystery of salvation and God’s love. He doesn’t expect us to be brilliant at articulating the faith, just to share what we’ve experienced as a result of being a Christian and knowing God’s love and forgiveness in our own lives.

Conclusion: Not so much our ability, but our availability…
How many times have I said this ! ?
Here at the end we draw together the four aspects of the Future of Methodism we have been examining. For if we are to pray, be involved in small groups, worship effectively, and witness to those we meet we must find time to do so. We may feel totally inadequate, that God passed us by when it came to talents, gifts, skills and abilities. It’s not true, but whatever, we have time. We can make ourselves available for the Kingdom of God. If we do not, Methodism will go down the pan. God will raise up another people to do what we have failed to do.
If however we choose to make ourselves available for Him…He will do in us and through us 'far more than we can ever ask or imagine'. Let me encourage you to open the door to Jesus and let him in.
The future of the Church depends on this. Many people, especially the young, are seeking spiritual things. They need to see Christ is alive, that the Holy Spirit makes a difference …before they choose dark spirits instead. You and I can show this ‘difference’ in the home, the workplace, wherever we may be as we make ourselves available to God.

Encourage One Another

2008-06-16T12:16:00.004+01:00

Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behaviour. Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.
Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
Ephesians 4 v29b to 5 v2 (New Living Translation)

How can we encourage one another?
First, words.
Hello, how are you?
Fine thankyou. And you.
Not so bad.
A bit nippy.
Feels like snow.
That is a typical winter conversation I have with certain people on my way from the office to home and back somewhere on King St or Low St. The summer conversation might not mention snow. Recognise anything there? You’re right, I do superficial conversation like most of us. Could have been me opening the conversation. Could just as easily be me replying.
And we do it in church too, don’t we?
Now I don’t want you to be embarrassed at the end, and think you must immediately either engage the first person you talk to in deep and meaningful conversation or make a beeline for the door. Most of our daily conversations will still take place at the top of the layer. By layer I mean that we all have different layers at which we relate to people. I might say ‘not so bad’ when the truth is I’m seriously depressed. I might say ‘fine thankyou’ even though my closest friend has just died or I’ve been diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, or my life is in such a mess I don’t know where to turn.
Still, I don’t really want to talk about it anyway.
Thus there is a mutually acceptable surface layer interaction.
Don’t knock it. It has to be better than going around grumping and glaring at one another. Even a friendly smile works wonders, doesn’t it.
Smile at your neighbour.
’There is a measure of encouragement we can give even at surface level isn’t there. A warning from the book of proverbs however……’if a man loudly blesses his neighbour early in the morning it will be taken as a curse’. I've done that! A measure of sensitivity is needed even at this level, especially early in the morning!
We can go that little bit further, however:
Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. Eph. 4v29b
When Sigmund Freud discovered that symptoms of emotional distress could sometimes be relieved simply by talking in certain ways to his patients he was puzzled and intrigued. Years of medical training had conditioned him to think of people as merely biological and chemical entities. Had Freud looked into the book of Proverbs he would have been less surprised to discover that mere words can have such strong impact:
Death and life are in the power of the tongue 18:21
Good words can make an anxious heart glad 12:25
A soothing tongue is a tree of life 15:4
Pleasant words are…..sweet to the soul and healing to the bones 16:24
Like apples of gold in settings of silver
Is a word spoken in right circumstances 25:11
Words are important. They have real power. James warns that although the tongue is a small part of the body, it has the power to determine the whole course of human existence. A chance, thoughtless word can be terribly destructive. Equally a timely word can be tremendously helpful.
I remember going into the Headmaster’s study after my A-level results came through and he tersely summarised how badly I’d done, which left me feeling that after 7 years at the school I was a waste of space as far as he was concerned.
On the other hand I still remember Rev Laurence Morley whose words often encouraged me in my 20s. I can’t remember a thing he said but I can remember how good it felt to be on the receiving end of his timely word. He died almost 30 years ago, but I remember him with a smile because of his humour and gentleness.
A breathing space here because I know you can remember such people too. Pause for a few seconds bringing to mind the people of encouragement you remember.
Now ask yourself this question: ‘Who can I speak an encouraging word to today’?
‘Let everything you say be good and helpful…’Eph 4v29b

Taking encouragement to the next stage:
It has to go deeper than words ….we can all do ‘lip service’, but more is needed:
…. be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. ’Eph 4v32
Larry Crabb writes ‘Christians committed to serving others (and the key word here is committed), will amid the routine of life maintain a conscious commitment to promote others welfare.’ He suggests we choose our words carefully and examine what our motivations are in relation to the other person. If our motivation is so people will like us, then it needs sorting.
I continue to quote from Crabb’s book, ‘Encouragement’; ‘When I contemplate the meaning of proper motivation and God’s demands on my life, I throw up my hands in defeat and admit I simply cannot measure up……Yet I am somehow to develop the strength of character that enables me to be committed to ministry even though it appears that no-one is ministering to me. Where does this strength of character come from?'
'I once talked with a man who spent 3 years in a concentration camp for prisoners of war. During his confinement he resolved to learn the meaning of Jesus’ words " love your enemies and pray for those who despitefully use you". His time in prison provided him with a unique opportunity to test whether the Holy Spirit could forge character of that quality in the hot fires of persecution. And he did. My friend reported that he learned to care genuinely for the welfare of his persecutors.'
How can we develop character like that? Most of us cannot manage to love a Christian sister who talks too much, let alone an enemy captor who beats us mercilessly.’ Well, LOVE is the fruit of the SPIRIT. Filled with the Spirit and trusting in Christ anything's possible.
David Perry reminded us last year of the words of Jeremy Bentham written way back in 1830; ‘Create all the happiness you are able to create: remove all the misery you are able to remove.’
If we are to become real encouragers in the body of Christ, we must if necessary at our own expense and with the purest of motives, ‘Be kind to each other…….’Eph 4v32.

Encouragement then is ultimately an outcome of sincere love for one another. And here I need to narrow down the definition (as we often have to) for this misused word ‘love’. This is much more than we usually understand when we use the word love. This is self-sacrificial love…Greek AGAPE. ‘Greater love has no man than this; that he lay down his life for his friends….’. Love shown supremely in the life and death of Jesus. ‘Father, forgive the for they don’t know what they are doing….’ It is a super-human love, that is to say we don't possess it of ourselves, it is, as we have said, God's gift through His Spirit.
Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. Eph 5v2
Only love can deal with fear. People are hurting; fear is lodged in deep places. We pretend, we hide, we wear masks, and in protecting ourselves in this way we sacrifice vitality in fellowship, blocking encouragement.
Only this AGAPE love can deal with fear.
This is the 'perfect love' that 'casts out fear' 1John4v18.
Only love can break through so we realise the unconditional acceptance we have through the blood of Christ.
And so we are to accept others as God in Christ has accepted us. That is the ministry of encouragement, a good place to begin if our church is to be instrumental in transforming lives beyond these doors.
Finally a word from scripture:, ‘Consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds; not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together…but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.’ That’s Heb 10.

http://www.davecheong.com/2006/07/12/8-simple-things-you-can-do-to-encourage-others/

If My People....4

2008-05-10T21:22:00.004+01:00

SORRY IF THIS IS CONFUSING, BUT BLOGGER DOES THINGS THIS WAY.
IF YOU WANT TO FOLLOW THIS SERIES OF SERMONS GO DOWN TO If My People....1 WHICH IS BELOW (MAYBE EVEN IN 'Older Posts'). THEN WORK YOUR WAY UP TO THIS ONE WHICH IS NUMBER 4

2Chron 7v14 ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’

PENTECOST 2008

This is the day of Pentecost, the time Peter and the 11 had been waiting for.
Jesus had ascended to the Father, after promising the Holy Spirit to the disciples. ‘Wait’, he said.
Waiting is not something we are particularly good at is it?:
…. not something many of us do well. Our culture engenders a sort of vending machine mentality in us. We want things instantly.
Waiting in the Bible is not killing time, however.
‘I waited patiently for the Lord’, says the Psalmist (Ps 40)
‘They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength’ (Is 40)
Far from killing time it is an active waiting. Not trying to engineer for ourselves what God has promised he will do. But using the waiting time effectively.
I believe that God longs to visit His people again in power, indeed we are in a waiting time just now.

Those words read to us from Leviticus 26 are to me such a clear statement by God of His love for His covenant people. If we translate it into the New Testament, since Jesus we Christians are His covenant people. Look at the opening of Ephesians and 1 Peter and the language. He has shown his love for us in Christ, ‘while we were yet sinners.’(Romans).
He longs to lavish His gifts of love on us.
But we have rejected His offer and closed the door.
We are afraid of where He might take us if we let Him have free reign in our lives.
If the first third of Lev 26 is about the overflowing blessing God gives if we obey Him, the other two-thirds is about what happens if we disobey, and it makes grim reading.

Friends, we live in times when God is not getting through to us, not because of anything He has done, but because we have moved away from Him.
Our society, with a reducing Christian influence to keep it going in the right direction, is sinking into an abyss of crime, drugs, broken lives, selfishness, perversion and murder of unborn children.
It’s a mess, isn’t it?
God told Solomon what to do when things get in a mess.

There’s only one answer, God said, it’s this….
‘If my people….’ 2 Chron 7v14

In this time of waiting therefore, His people, that’s us, we need to do four things.
I have talked about these previously.
We need to
humble ourselves
and pray
and seek His face
and turn from our wicked ways.
These things I have outlined in previous sermons.

Let’s get rid of the pride which says ‘I’m alright’, or ‘I’m better than them.’ Humble ourselves. Pray and seek God’s face. We can’t do that without a significant commitment of time, personally and corporately. ‘What do you want to say to us, Lord?’ ‘What do you want us to do, Lord.?’
…and then to get rid of everything that stands in the way of our relationship with God…our wicked ways. ‘Wicked’ you say … ‘Not me!’
So every part of your life, your money and time is surrendered to God??
He is first in your life??
I wish I could stand up and say ‘Yes’ to that, but I know there is still some unfinished business. But I want more than all else to be His true servant.

Let us take hold of this Berlin Wall that we have erected against God, and through these four steps demolish it once and for all.

For then the promise will come to fulfilment.
I WILL hear. Hallelujah !
I WILL forgive their sin. Amen.
I WILL heal their land. Amen and hallelujah!
What a promise!

The Spirit will come again as on the first day of Pentecost. Are we ready for this?

Selwyn Hughes writes:
In a conference some years ago I met a missionary who told me his story. ‘I came back from the Mission a broken and dispirited man and was given up to die. My doctor said he could do nothing for me. A friend visited me one night and said, "I know what’s wrong with you… you have hatred and bitterness buried so deeply in your heart that you can’t see it. I’m going to lay hands on you and pray for God’s help." Before he could do so I broke down and wept. "Yes". I cried, "I know, I’m a bitter and angry man. O God forgive me".’
‘Suddenly, the Holy Spirit fell on me. I felt Him burn up the anger that was deep within me; I got up and have never had a day’s sickness since.’

One of my heroes is Count Ludwig Von Zinzendorf.
Yes, I know, trust me to choose someone with a name like that for a hero!

Let me tell you the story of the man and the people whose lives touched John Wesley and were instrumental in his conversion:

An amazing transformation came to the Moravians gathered in Herrnhut in Germany on August 13, 1727. The Christian History Institute has the following recorded: "On August 5, Zinzendorf and fourteen of the brethren spent the entire night in conversation and prayer. On August 10th, a pastor by the name of Rothe was so overcome by God’s nearness during an afternoon service that he threw himself down on the ground during prayer and called to God with words of repentance as he had never done before. The congregation was moved to tears and continued until midnight, praising God and singing." The next morning a communion service was planned for Wednesday, August 13th. The institute continues: "Count Zinzendorf visited every house in Herrnhut in preparation for the Lord’s Supper. Everyone had come to a conviction of their sinfulness, need, and helplessness. During the service, they made many painful prayers for themselves, for fellow Christians still under persecution, and for their continued unity. At that time Count Zinzendorf made a penitential confession in the name of the entire congregation."

"Then prayers of great unction arose from the brethren as they interceded for each other and those who were still living under persecution in Moravia." Suddenly with the sound of a mighty rushing wind, the power of the Holy Spirit swept across the congregation in waves. The noise was loud enough that many in the church looked toward the windows expecting to see a gale raging outside. The manifestation of the Spirit was not relegated within the four walls of the church, but fell throughout the whole community. Men, women, and children were touched as a passion for God and His purpose swept through their hearts.

Zinzendorf gives us an account of this wonderful occurrence: "August 13th was a day of the outpourings of the Holy Spirit upon the congregation; it was it’s Pentecost!"...It was such a sense of the nearness of Christ bestowed in a single moment upon all members of the community at once; it was so unanimous that two members, at work twenty miles away, unaware that the meeting was being held, became at the same moment smitten with the same blessing and anointing."

One Moravian remembers: "We had stopped judging each other because we had become convinced, each one, of his lack of worth in the sight of God. On that day of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we saw the hand of God and His wonders. We were all under the cloud of the Father baptised with His Spirit. As the Holy Ghost came upon us, great signs and wonders took place in our midst. From that time, scarcely a day passed but what we beheld His almighty workings amongst us. A great hunger after the word of God took possession of us, so that we had to have three services every day. Everyone desired above everything else that the Holy Spirit might have full control. Self-love and self-will as well as all disobedience disappeared and an overwhelming flood of grace swept us all out into the great ocean of Divine Love." What happened that August day at Herrnhut left the participants with a wonderful faith for Jesus Christ. They left the house of God that noon "hardly knowing whether they belonged to earth or had already gone to Heaven".

Again Zinzendorf explains: "The Saviour permitted to come upon us a Spirit of whom we had hitherto not had any experience or knowledge. Hitherto WE had been the leaders and helpers. Now the Holy Spirit Himself took full control of everything and everybody."

I’ll tell you what…
I want that.
Do you?

If my people....3

2008-05-10T15:32:00.001+01:00

2Chron 7v14 ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’

What are our wicked ways?
My wicked ways. Your wicked ways.
If this condition for God to come and forgive and heal, even to hear from heaven in the first place, includes repentance, what do we need to repent of?

Let’s just examine the basics of the gospel and consider where we as believers have come to in our journey of faith..
God is a holy, loving God and will have no truck with sin.
The Bible says ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’. This we know. We may not have murdered anybody, but we know if we’re honest that we’re sinners and we’ll never measure up.
That’s our position….and like the monkey in the Jungle Doctor story, we can pull and pull upwards by our bootstraps but the quicksand will still take us down. We have no hope…unless someone throws us a lifeline. God came in Jesus to do just that.
Jesus bore in his own body on the cross the full weight of the world’s sin…including mine and yours. The price was paid in blood. His blood avails for me…is available, works for me here, 2000 years later.

The Bible says that if we repent, that is turn from our sin, and believe in Jesus, we will be saved. Turn, take, trust is one of the simplest ways of describing what we must do to avail ourselves of the finished work of Christ for us:
Turn from sin
Take the free gift of forgiveness, and eternal life
Trust in God and follow Jesus for the rest of your life.
If we do this in sincerity of heart, we are saved, and Jesus by his Holy Spirit comes to live in us. We know for ourselves that we are on a journey to heaven, and set out with joy and determination.

But the devil, having lost someone from his dominion to the Kingdom of God, is equally determined to try and get us back. So he appeals to our human nature, what the King James Version of the Bible calls ‘the flesh’, and subtly over time leads us to displace Christ from the number one place in our lives. In the old days it was called backsliding. The early joy we experience slowly disperses and we look around and observe that other Christians are also like this, become highly suspicious of people who never lose their joy, stop talking with each other about what God is doing, and in due course He doesn’t appear to be active in our lives any more.
When our consciences were sharp we used to know right from wrong, and avoid evil, and confess and receive forgiveness whenever we sinned. Now, we may feel guilty from time to time, but we gloss over our sins, declare that we are after all better than ‘him’ or ‘her’, and wonder what went wrong.

Every Sunday morning, backsliders gather as they have always done….and they go home unchanged and unchallenged. They are gospel hardened. They have become convinced that this is all there is….but there must be more than this!

There is!

But let us look at the consequences of all of this nominal Christianity. The salt has lost its savour. The light has grown dim. No longer to people look at Christians and want what they’ve got, because they don’t look any different.

Here’s a quote from John Henry Howard writing in 1910:
"We leave our places of worship and no deep and inexpressible wonder sits upon our faces. When we get out on the streets our faces are as one with those of the people coming out of the theatres and music halls. There is nothing about us to suggest that we have been looking at anything stupendous or overwhelming. I remember an old saint telling me that after some services he liked to make his way home alone by quiet paths so that the hush of the Almighty might remain on his awed and prostrate soul. This is the element we are losing."

A hundred years ago... What has changed?
Well. we have become even more 'worldy'.
Slowly but surely society has changed for the worse. Abortion, drugs, broken families, increased crime, overcrowded prisons, laws passed which are anti-Christian, selfishness is rife, bitterness, cynicism and hatred, while the church declines and fails to make any impact.
Two of our churches have recently closed. A number of the others are going nowhere and will soon no longer be viable.
Are we going to sit on our hands and let this happen?
How can we recover our Christian heritage?
How can we make this land a Christian country once again?

Well, God’s got plans. And they involve you and me. Revival will come. Instead of a handful of people as we are, there will not be enough room here for everyone to get in, there will be such a hunger for God’s word.

It’s Pentecost next Sunday. The first Pentecost 3000 people were converted through one sermon. Nowadays (as someone said)it takes 3000 sermons to convert one person.
I have done a few less than that:
In the last couple of years, however, I preached five sermons on Cell values...
Jesus at the Centre,
Every Member Ministry,
Every Member Witnessing,
Every Member Growing,
a Community of Love.
And then I began to preach four sermons on the Future of Methodism, and how we are going down the tube unless we rediscover Prayer, Worship, Evangelism and Small Groups. I called them 'Getting Serious'.
Then I preached on encouragement, remember? Part of the verse from Eph 4 reads: "Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behaviour. Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you."
Then I began a series on the key verse we visit today.
I have been honestly telling you what I believe God is saying.

All of this is preparation for what God is about to do. But He is waiting for us to really get serious, to humble ourselves, pray, seek His face, turn from our wicked ways…repent. That’s the theme tonight. Then the answer will come. When there is the deep and sincere desire to get rid of our 'idols', get self off the throne and serve God alone. Then He will hear from heaven, forgive, heal the land…Hallelujah!

So I’m calling you, and calling me too, to prepare for this Pentecost by prayer and repentance. Saturday is a special prayer day. But let’s do something now. We’re going to make it personal.
Write down your sins. No-one is going to see what you’ve written, only God. Go to be alone in different parts of this sanctuary. Be alone with God. Will you get serious with God? Say to God ….I turn from my sin. I want to be free again. I repent of all my wicked ways.

Then we’ll proclaim together that our sins are forgiven and put the bits of paper through this shredder.

Prayer:
Thankyou Lord that you died and bore all my sins and you are here to forgive and give me a fresh start. Cleanse me deep within and fill me with your Spirit. Go with me every moment of every day. …Make me a bright light in the darkness, help me to be unselfish, loving, and determined to stand up for truth and against injustice. To give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to labour and not to seek for any reward save that we know we are doing your will.
Holy Spirit we wait for you.

If my people.....2

2008-05-10T15:26:00.001+01:00

2Chron 7v14 ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’

If my people…will pray, and seek my face
We return to this most important verse of Scripture.
There must be more than this
Is there more to life than this?
We have got so used to doing church in the way we do it, and have become so resigned to the church’s decline in size and influence in our society that we think nothing is ever going to change.

Well, I want to say something and I want to nail this down.
Nothing will change unless we do something. Evil triumphs when good men do nothing.
But if we get serious about our Christian Faith, and start to prioritise God’s Kingdom in our lives, then we will be opening the door to the love and power of God. And.. I am going to say to you with all boldness this morning… ‘Glory belongs to God, whose power is at work in us. By this power he can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine’. Eph 3v20
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him” (I Corinthians 2:9).
You ain’t seen nothing yet!

When things are in a mess…
This is the context of our verse.
When things are in a mess… ‘ If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.’
Do you need convincing that things are in a mess? Let me assure you that things are going to get a lot lot worse unless we, God’s people act.
It’s not up to ‘them’ to act, whoever ‘they’ are.
It’s up to us, the people called by His name, to act.
How?
By humbling ourselves. We talked about humility last morning service I was here,

By prayer,
We looked at that last Sunday night.
We pray to the Father,
through the Son,
by the Spirit,
against the devil,
with the saints,
in faith,
nothing wavering,
with persistence,
without ceasing,
using the Lord’s prayer,…

The third phrase is for today:
And seek my face. This is closely linked with prayer.
Let’s explore together some verses in the Bible.
First of all FACE. Seek my FACE.

In the Old Testament, Israel believed that to look upon God’s face meant instant death.
However, here’s a couple of verses:
Numbers 6:25
The Lord bless you and keep you: The Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you: The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.
Psalms 119:135
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes.

Do we want to seek His face?
How do you see God’s face when He looks upon you?
Oh that we would seek His wonderful, loving face. What blessing would be ours.

Let’s explore ‘SEEK’ in the Bible.
SEEK my face,….
Deuteronomy 4:29
But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
Ezra 8:21
Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones...
Psalms 63:1
O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
Psalms 70:4
Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say continually, Let God be magnified.
Isaiah 55:6
Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Jeremiah 29:13
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Hosea 10:12
break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
Matt.6.33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Heb.11.6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Seek my face.
Believers must make time and space to fully and effectively encounter the God who is ‘more ready to hear than we to pray’.
Prayer at its highest is a two-way conversation.

Richard Foster says:
Prayer catapults us on to the frontier of the Christian life. Of all the Spiritual disciplines prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father.

Jean de Chantal says:
…..spend the appointed time of prayer quietly and peacefully, doing nothing in God’s presence, content simply to be there.

O. Hallesby , in his great classic ‘Prayer’, begins the book by quoting Rev. 3:20, ‘Listen, I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me’. (NRSV)
To pray is to let Jesus come into our hearts…..
It is well known that it is more difficult to hold one’s breath than it is to breathe….The air which our souls need also envelops us at all times and on all sides. God is round about us in Christ on every hand, with His many-sided and all-sufficient grace. All we need to do is open our hearts.
All he needs is access. He enters in of His own accord, because He desires to come in. And He enters in wherever He is not denied admittance. As air enters in quietly when we breathe….so Jesus enters quietly into our hearts and does His blessed work there.

A modern contemplative uses the same metaphor:
….. words from a Lenten Hymn ‘while I breathe I pray’…….made this clear. I saw my life, looking back, as having a single common thread – the prayer that God has been praying in me even when I have not been praying. I cannot exist without prayer as the breath of my life.

The art of praying resides in slowing up sufficiently to be able to bathe in God’s warmth and light. Sunbathing…….And the central problem with that in our restless culture is the difficulty of turning up and staying there, in the sun.

So we see the need to discover this important area of prayer and in quiet contemplation experience the living Christ at work in our lives, making us more like Him. This is the filling, joy-imparting, sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit within.

Joyce Huggett describes her own experience of the work of the Holy Spirit, and her prayer life is transformed from incessant petition to a discovery of God’s inner presence:
…'.
I could no longer fight off the new surge of life with which He filled me. I have no words to describe what happened. I simply remember that I tingled with joy. The next day I was buoyant with this joy……I no longer felt hungry in prayer. I could not stop myself praying……But the nature of the prayer had changed. It ceased to be a string of requests, a tirade of questionings, beseeching and plaguings. Instead, the sense of the presence of God’s life within stunned me into silence. This awed silence gave birth to wordless praise. wordless adoration and wordless consecration of my life to Him. Silence. Wordlessness. This was what the monk had been describing to me. A fresh touch from God.
I believe this is the place to begin with our prayers.'

We cannot ‘live’ spiritually without prayer and worship. If we neglect these disciplines we shrivel up and die in spirit, we become worldly in outlook and self-centred, and our relationships suffer.

Serving Christ in the world and evangelism are essential but they are no substitute for prayer and worship, and we will achieve little if we do not begin with God.
On the other hand if we take time to pray we will grow and flourish spiritually, God will indwell us by His Holy Spirit, we will know for certain our sins are forgiven and no guilt will remain, we will cease to be anxious, we will long for others to experience for themselves the ‘abundant life’ we have discovered, we will have our eyes opened to see through God’s eyes and to feel some of His pain which will lead us to into compassionate living and self-sacrifice.
We will have seen the face of God, and know His will.

If my people will pray, and seek my face, and turn.. then will I hear, will forgive, will heal

Can we do that now? Really seek His face...

If my people....1

2008-05-10T15:23:00.001+01:00
This is the first of the series based on 2Chron 7v14 ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’ delivered on Remembrance Sunday 2007:

I think the last time I was here to preach (apart from Church on the Move) was exactly 9 months ago. Had you noticed? I had an inkling then that it would be a big gap and carefully chose my subject. Who can remember what it was? Encourage one another. I have seen some of that going on, good, but there is still much more needed.
Encourage one another, people.
What’s the message today then?
Well, our focus in worship revolves around the question: As we remember those who fought for our freedom, what are we doing with it? Free for what? Are we making real progress in our church, our community, our nation and our world? After the Queen’s Speech this week, how many Government reforms will really be progress, and how many cut across our core beliefs as Christians?
Tough questions. Politically charged I know. But if Methodism, and indeed the other churches in this country are not to go down the tube, we have to stop pussyfooting around and stand up against the wholesale abandonment of Christian values which is going on around us. It has often been said that God has no hands on earth but those of His people. Then it is time to stop sitting on our hands or wringing our hands and start using our hands for God.
We thank and thank God for the freedom we have in this country obtained for us at immense cost, firstly freedom from tyranny, and secondly freedom to practice our faith openly without persecution. But we are on the edge of seeing the second of those change for the worse. Changes in charity law, the religious hatred bandwagon, and the sexual orientation regulations, amongst others, are not in our favour, rather the opposite. Some Christians have already found themselves in trouble with the law for speaking out.
With rising violence and deteriorating morality, how we need God to heal our nation. This text has been pursuing me for some time:

2Chron 7v14 ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’
If our goal is the healing of the land, then what are the prerequisites?
We can no longer remain a club of people with the same interests meeting on a Sunday. Methodists began not as a church but as a movement…a movement which transformed 18th century society…how can we get moving again?

Later we will begin to try and answer this. It may take us months, or even a year to get through this, but if we are serious change will happen.
I have come to realise how important was the message God gave me in February. It is so, so, so important that we encourage one another in the days ahead, for if we do not we by default become discouraged, and that is a slippery slope.

‘If my people…’
The context of this message to Solomon was God’s filling of the newly built Temple with His glory to such so powerfully that the priests could not do their work. It was a wonderful occasion, such as we experienced to some extent at the rededication of this sanctuary. God promised to stick around as long as His people obeyed Him, but when the people went astray He warned of disaster. But with that warning God graciously provided a way back. Hope. Judgement would be averted if…

Who are ‘my people who are called by my name’? Under the Old Covenant, Israel. Under the New Covenant of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who are ‘my people’ now? Us. The Christians.

What more important message could there be today for God’s people in this country? On the downward slope to disaster. Can the tide be turned? Can we get back to Christian values? Can disaster be averted? The message is for us, for us….not for non-Christians. God is saying to US, get your act together, my people. ‘If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and heal their land.’
‘If my people will….then I will’. It’s a powerful promise, and if we truly believe, He will do it. The transformation of our lives and those around us. He will do it.

The four prerequisites then.
1 Humility
2 Prayer
3 Seeking the face of God
4 Turning from our wicked ways.

Today we will look at the first of these:
Humility
My people must humble themselves.
James 4v10: Humble yourselves before the Lord and God will lift you up.
Humility is not natural. It is not high on our "felt need" list. In fact, it is not something we realise we need to deal with. I realise you need to deal with it. But we don't tend to realise it about ourselves. However, it tops God's priority list. In the sixth verse it says: "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." When we fail to deal with humility, we sabotage God's purpose and the well-being of those around us.

In ancient Egypt Pharaoh had all the Jewish people in captivity, building the pyramids. This is what God's message was to Pharaoh: Exodus 10:3
3: So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me.
How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me, Pharaoh? Not only did Pharaoh mess up the lives of the Jewish people as slaves, but because of his own lack of humility, Pharaoh caused the plagues to come upon his own people, and ultimately caused the death of his own son. When we don't deal with humility, we sabotage God's purpose and the well- being of everyone around us. Contrast Pharaoh with Moses. Why did God choose Moses?
This is what Numbers 12:3 says: "The man, Moses, was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth." Humble people are the only people God can use.

Look at Luke 14:7-11
‘Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he marked how they chose the places of honour, saying to them, "When you are invited by any one to a marriage feast, do not sit down in a place of honour, lest a more eminent man than you be invited by him; and he who invited you both will come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you .For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
Jesus noticed that at parties people always scramble for the best seat at the table. They always want the place of honour and recognition.
Listen to what Jesus said: "For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.".
I am working on that. What does it mean to take the servant's seat? I don't know, but I am working at it. You see, there is something in me that always wants the best seat, the first plateful.

If I could just daily pray the prayer of John the Baptist - "I must decrease and Christ must increase." Every day there has to be less of Mike and more of Jesus Christ. It’s about identifying myself with Jesus' interests; rather than identifying Jesus with my interests.

God says, "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves" the first thing to revival is to humble yourself. God says, "If you want to avert disaster, humble yourself."
But aren’t we good at exalting ourselves rather than humbling ourselves?
Pride permeates us, and we begin to look around and say, "Well, I am driving a Jag, Lexus, Mercedes and that makes me better than the guy that's got the Vauxhall. "

Somebody has got white skin, and she's better than somebody that has dark skin. Somebody came from the UK, so he's better than somebody that came from Poland. Somebody makes £30,000 a year, so he's better than somebody that makes £20,000.

Somebody is an executive, so he's better than somebody who is a labourer. Somebody is better educated. Somebody has an MA, so she's better than somebody else.
He's a professional person, he's a doctor or lawyer, so he's superior to somebody who doesn't have those skills.

And you feel proud. And I've got more money in the bank, therefore, I'm better than he is, or she is. And it's like the pharisee and the tax collector. The pharisee said "God, I thank you because I'm not like these other people. I fast, and I give a tithe, and I do these religious things, and I thank you that I'm not like this dodgee tax man." And the tax collector said, "Be merciful to me a sinner." Jesus said he went home justified.

But the pharisee prayed with himself. He wasn't even talking to God. God isn't interested in hearing how great you are. What God is interested in is having somebody who is humble and of a contrite spirit .
Someone who says "God, start with me. I deserve hell."

You go back over your life, and you start thinking of the things that you've done, and there is no way that you're entitled to heaven. None of us are!
We need to come before God and say, "I need a Saviour." If righteousness came from the law, then the cross is of no effect. And that would nullify the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.

That's what pride does. Pride says, "I don't need a saviour. I’m Ok. I don’t need to repent." But humility says, "I must have a Saviour." Humility says, "Without the cross, I am lost."

And that's where you come to the point where God can begin to do something for you and with you.
‘If my people will humble themselves…..’
That’s where we begin to turn the corner in our lives and in the life of our nation.

Please bow your head and pray with me. Silently pray for the person on your right. Pray that God will strengthen them and strengthen their intention to grow today, to say yes to God, to remove any of the obstacles that would cause that person to be less than who God is calling them to be today. Now pray for the person on your left. Pray the same, that God will strengthen their will to be fully obedient and committed to Christ's call upon their life today. Remove any obstacles or barriers, physical, spiritual, relational, that keeps them from being totally humble before you Lord. It is in Your name, Lord, that we pray. Amen

…and we pray as we sing, ‘Lord have your way with us…’
Stay seated, sing if you like or bow your head and listen to the words and pray them in your heart.
Light a candle or write a post it note as an offering to God if you wish.
Ask for prayer. Surrender to Jesus, for the first time, or come back again to Him.