20.12.09 - Unsuspecting Witness

Eli couldn’t quite explain what had caused him to keep coming back. And yet he had kept coming back. Here he was again, standing in a crowd, listening to men talking about Jesus.

A few weeks ago he had stood in another crowd – a very different crowd in very different circumstances. His mind surveyed the various previous occasions. Most involved crowds and he had always just been one of the crowd – anonymous. How many times had he had contact with Jesus? Five. He remembered each one clearly.

He remembered the first occasion as if it was yesterday, yet it had been 33 years ago and he had been but an eleven year old boy. The images came flooding back into his mind as they had many times over the years. He remembered the absolute terror when the night sky and the paddocks had lit up brilliantly. He was just a lad but even his father and the other men had been petrified. Rough, tough men shook and whimpered and tried to hide. Shepherds didn’t feel well equipped to handle the supernatural.

Then angels appeared. Clearly Judgement Day had arrived and they weren’t ready for it. In fact, they were far from ready. Shepherds were among the least devout of Jews. They were rough and tough and were known for their dishonesty and godless lifestyle. They had given little thought to God – weren’t at all ready to meet Him – hadn’t tidied up their act – thought they’d do that some other time and hadn’t done it.

Eli had felt very proud being asked to accompany the men and look after the sheep. He admired their roughness and toughness; was thrilled by their manliness and their bravado. He wanted to be one of them.

As he reflected now, there seemed to be a great irony in the fact that these “men’s men” had behaved like a pack of women, crying and screaming. Actually, he thought, maybe women wouldn’t have done that. Maybe women might have been less terrified when God appeared. His heroes of virility had behaved worse than a pack of women.

Then one angel had spoken, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” They had expected judgement. The message was exactly the opposite: good news of great joy. They had thought they were being targeted for their godlessness. And yet they were, apparently, being chosen for a privilege – to be among the first to see the Messiah.

Shepherds were not regular synagogue-goers. Others would leave them for dead in term of knowledge of the scriptures, but they knew enough to know that God had promised a Messiah who would be Israel’s Saviour. They knew enough to know that the Messiah would reign from His thrown eternally. They knew enough to expect a great conquering warrior.

Yet they were being told that they would find the Messiah as a new-born wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. And it was so. There He was, wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. That night they had spent a long time in silence, just staring. They were awestruck. The father and mother had said a few things but not much. There was just a great sense of being in the presence of God – and of it not being scary – although there was an overwhelming sense of majesty and silence seemed to be the right response.

After some time, one-by-one they had moved outside – and still remained silent. Then the mood slowly morphed to joy – overflowing and exhilarating joy. They couldn’t contain themselves. They had rushed through the streets of Bethlehem dancing and singing and crying with joy. That wasn’t altogether shepherd-like either! Eli smiled as he considered how thin had been the rough, tough facade. One little encounter with God and these men were clearly very different from what he had seen previously.

None of them had continued as shepherds. Somehow they couldn’t go back to that. Some had found Rabbis to teach them more of the scriptures. One or two had taken on more noble trades. Some had become sort-of mystics who always talked about that experience.

Eli’s father had sent him to live with an uncle so as to learn a new trade. Uncle Josiah bought cloth from travelling merchants and sold it in his little shop. It meant that Eli could often listen in on conversations. But for many years there was no news of the Messiah. It was strange really. The Messiah was to rule the whole world and yet, if that baby had really been the Messiah, he had disappeared. Thirty years passed. There was always the question in Eli’s mind. He had not been able to shake off the memory of that night and yet there was nothing more. He began to doubt if it had happened at all or had he just dreamt it. No, all of the shepherds had experienced it. So why had he heard nothing?

Then one day there were rumours about a baptism. John the Baptist had been preaching and baptising in the desert for some time but, apparently, one day a man had come to be baptised and John had refused; had said that this man should baptise him; had said he was not worthy to even tie this man’s sandals.

Eli’s interest was immediately aroused. It might not be the same person, of course, but then again it might be. By this time Uncle Josiah had died and the business had been left to Eli. He would lose income but that didn’t matter. He had to close the shop and try to find this man. He doubted he would recognise him from having seen Him as a baby but he was still driven by curiosity.

The name was the same. The parents had said his name was to be Jesus. And now people talked about a Jesus of Nazareth. The name was right but there were thousands of Jesuses. The location wasn’t right but who knows what had happened to that family. It could be.

It was a fruitless search. He went to the Jordan river. Plenty of people were talking about what had happened but, it seemed, Jesus had gone off into the wilderness.

Eli returned and re-opened his shop. All this time passing and the man seeming to want to hide. Could this really be the Messiah?

Over the next three years though, merchants and travellers frequently had stories about this Jesus. Eli did have a couple of opportunities to see Him. One time, he had again closed the shop and gone with throngs of others to a mountainside where Jesus had taught them. Eli kept looking at Him wondering if this was the same person. How could he know for sure? It seemed highly likely. The baby was to be the Messiah and this man was a sensation.

The teaching was like nothing Eli had heard before, and he had heard quite a lot. Since that night at Bethlehem he had gone to the synagogue regularly and had gone out of his way to listen to the rabbis. He had been hungry for more understanding. But this teaching was different. In fact, it contradicted some of what he had heard before. “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also... You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be children of your Father in heaven.’

How could Jesus speak against the ancient teachings? And yet it seemed as if He had the authority to do so and that He spoke of a higher law that other teachers knew nothing of. The crowd left amazed – shaking their heads in wonder. Eli wanted to go up to Him and say that he had visited Him soon after his birth. He actually wondered if Jesus would remember him. You wouldn’t expect a baby to remember, but he wondered if this baby might.

Hmmm, it all seemed a bit weird. Maybe Jesus would think he was stupid; just name dropping. Or what would Jesus say to him. After all the teaching, the last thing Jesus had said to the crowd was, “Now go and do it. Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon a rock.” Eli was fascinated by the teaching but he wasn’t sure about doing it. Turn the other cheek? Love his enemies? Store up treasure in heaven? He actually quite liked the more than comfortable income the shop produced. Treasure on earth sounded good. Seek first God’s kingdom? He suspected that if he actually spoke to Jesus he would feel an even greater obligation to do what he had heard. It was safer to maintain a little more distance. He would be a fascinated observer, but only an observer.

Some people were following Jesus – literally following Him, travelling around from town to town with Him. Twelve had been selected for special training. One time, two of his followers had come to Eli’s town and had healed the sick, raised the dead and cast out demons and then said, “The Kingdom of God is near.”

Again, it raised huge questions for Eli. This was staggering stuff. He had never seen anything like it. His life had been punctuated by incredible events that were beyond explanation. It was amazing that Jesus did these things. It was even more amazing that He could empower His followers to do them. If Eli became a follower maybe he too could heal the sick and raise the dead.

At the same time, he saw that not all of the townsfolk welcomed them. Some called them charlatans and accused them of being demon possessed. Some tried to drive them out of town. It would be great healing the sick and having everyone honour you, Eli thought, but he wasn’t so keen on having people hate him.

There were many reports of miracles. Actually, he did have one other opportunity to witness one himself. Once again he was an anonymous person in a crowd when he saw with his own eyes that whole crowd fed with just two fish and five loaves. Again he went back to his shop blown away and yet not sure. There were reports of Jesus walking on water and all sorts of things. Part of Eli wanted to say to everyone, “You know, I visited Him as a baby” but part of him was not sure what reaction he would get. Some loved Jesus. Some hated Him.

And in the end, those who hated Him won. It had not been by design that Eli had been in Jerusalem seven weeks earlier. He had gone up for the Passover not knowing that Jesus would be there or what would unfold. Was God putting him in all of these situations? Did God have some sort of plan that Eli should have been there at the beginning and there at the end?

Anonymous in the crowd, Eli had watched Jesus get nailed to the cross and had seen the cross elevated so that Jesus hung on those nails through His flesh. Some in the crowd mocked and cheered. Eli didn’t. He couldn’t. The angels had said He was the Messiah. At times, all the signs were that He was. Now it was clear that He wasn’t. Now he hung defeated. There was not even the slightest hint of majesty. And, if he wasn’t now, Eli supposed he never had been. It was all a very confusing deception.

Eli’s mind flicked back to the present. Jesus’ followers were preaching in many different languages. Eli had seen, or heard about, numerous miracles in the last three years but what Jesus’ followers were saying now trumped them all. They claimed Jesus had risen from the dead and that they had met Him. They boldly identified themselves with Jesus and accused the crowd of having killed the Messiah. They were either mad and likely to lose their own lives, or it was true.

All of these years, Eli had been part of the crowd – entertained, challenged, awestruck, but unwilling to make a decision. Always returning to his shop, intrigued, challenged even that God had, it seemed, chosen him to see these things, but never standing up and identifying with Jesus. Here he was again, just one of the crowd. And being accused of having killed the Messiah.

“Brothers, what must we do to be saved?” someone called out. The Jesus-follower called Peter replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.”

Be baptised in the name of this One called Jesus? Eli remembered that the parents had said, “His name is to be Jesus because He will save His people from their sins.”

Eli stepped forward. “I need to be baptised in His name,” he said, and 3000 others followed.

29.11.09 - You Turn

You Turn

The Prime Minister leaned against the window frame looking from his office out over the harbour sparkling under a sunny sky. It was a lovely blue and gold day but it all looked grey to him. Far below crowds of people swarmed like currents in a human ocean, each one going about his or her business.

It was those people, he thought, who would soon vote him out of office. There was little doubt about it. The polls were irreversibly bad and commentators were waiting for him to announce the date of the election. Talk-back radio revealed the discontent – even hatred – of the country.

Of course, there had to be an election but he had delayed naming a date. It felt like signing his own death warrant. And, as if it wasn’t bad enough that the country had turned against him, the knives were out in his own party. There was an inevitability about it but it still hurt. He would go the way of so many other past leaders – leaders who were now forgotten. How many could the crowds below name? Leaders come. Leaders go. The world moves on and forgets you.

He had poured his life into this career; worked long hours to get promotions; sacrificed his health and his family and his marriage – for what? What did it amount to in the end?

The party had been swept into power by a landslide – greater even than the polls had predicted. People wanted to help and wanted to be seen with him. They grinned widely when they met him, feeling hugely honoured just to be in his presence and they hurried to do anything they could for him.

The change of government would revitalise the country. There was hope and anticipation. They had embarked on bold new ventures and everyone applauded.

That was only nine years ago – less! How could it turn around so quickly? He knew how, really. The economy had grown but so had crime. And that frightened many. The shopping mall shooting had become an iconic event for a society that wanted deeper answers. Fourteen people had been killed by a gunman. The images were re-played endlessly on television and in the newspapers and magazines and web sites and they catalysed serious discontent. Cell phone video of a giggling gunman who finally turned the gun on himself, had received millions of hits on You Tube.

The public demanded answers. Why was it his fault? He hadn’t put the gunman up to it. He didn’t know the man. Blame his parents. Blame the educations system. Blame God, but why blame the government? Those people down below hated him. Why was it his fault?

The Prime Minister returned to his desk. This desk was meant to be the symbol of power but it only reminded him of his impotence. He had done everything he knew how, and now it was about to end in shame. There would be another landslide. The land would move back in the other direction and he would be exposed and left to take the blame. And then what? Of course he could get positions on boards or diplomatic placements. There would be plenty of openings and plenty of money, but when he looked in the mirror... Did he even want any of those positions knowing that he would always be branded a failure? Why not simply hide, out of the public eye?

There was no denying the facts. Unemployment and poverty were up and social action groups were increasingly outraged. The justice system had been undermined by three high-profile miscarriages of justice and at least one of those looked as if it resulted from corruption on a scale this country had never seen – corruption that spoke to the public of the country’s slide towards third world status. The Commission of Enquiry was still sitting – and mercifully wouldn’t report before the election – but it seemed his own Minister of Justice had known of problems and turned a blind eye. And again, of course, the public’s anger, and the media focus, turned on the Prime Minister and his management of the cabinet. How was he supposed to do something about it? He hadn’t even known about it.

To make matters worse, the All Blacks had, against all predictions, been eliminated in the early rounds of the world cup, and the polls revealed the people’s dissatisfaction with the government almost immediately.

There was a knock at the door. He didn’t respond but it opened anyway. His private secretary was well aware of the Prime Minister’s despondency. “Prime Minister...”

He hated being called “Prime Minister.” Once upon a time, it had seemed like the role was so important that the title showed more respect than using his name. Now he simply wanted someone to think of him as a person... someone to really care about him.

“Yes, Baxter,” he sighed.

Selwyn Baxter felt a surge of pity for this man. “Prime Minister, there will be a news story tonight saying that you have lost even the initiative to call an election; that you are simply ignoring it. I thought you should know. There will be opposition MPs interviewed on all of the major TV channels, all saying that you are refusing to talk even to your colleagues and are incapable of calling an election. Someone is going to have to front. Cooper, Howard and Fitzgerald are outside now. They want to know if it is going to be you or them. Prime Minister, they are all on your front bench but they say it is not going to look good if you don’t show up.”

The Prime Minister knew that a no-show would only confirm the rumours of his lack of leadership. But he also knew that his MPs had no confidence in him to pull it off anyway. Either way, he lost.

He had not yet lifted his eyes from his desk to look at Baxter.

From nowhere, some words entered his mind – word, he thought, from a song: All across the land dawns a brand new morn... This comes to pass when a child is born.

A brand new morn had some appeal. Imagine one child ushering in a new beginning. A rosy hue settles all around. How many millennia had there been people on this earth, the Prime Minister wondered. Throughout all of those centuries there had been leaders – many of them great leaders who names are now etched into stone and repeated time and time again in history books. And yet the world was not better; it was worse! Pollution; global warming; thousands of extinct species; crime; violence; poverty; domestic violence against women and children; unloved young people committing suicide; drug-taking; self-harm; sexual abuse of innocent children. No wonder there was a deep hunger for change. No wonder people were dissatisfied. No wonder people sang that song.

More words wandered through his mind:
And all of this happens, because the world is waiting.
Waiting for one child; Black-white-yellow, no one knows...
but a child that will grow up and turn tears to laughter,
hate to love, war to peace and everyone to everyone's neighbour,
and misery and suffering will be words to be forgotten forever.

It's all a dream and illusion now,
It must come true sometime soon somehow,
All across the land dawns a brand new morn,
This comes to pass when a child is born.

Was there such a child? He remembered hearing of some messianic character who was supposedly living in London, just waiting to be revealed. He hadn’t taken it seriously, but was this child somewhere – in Africa? In India? Must it come true sometime soon somehow?

When those swirling masses of people down below voted him out and the opposition in, weren’t they also hoping against hope for a leader who would prove to be different from all those who had preceded him? Wouldn’t they celebrate with such fervour because they too held a messianic hope that would maybe be fulfilled this time around – only to be disillusioned again a few years later?

He noticed he had used the word “messianic” twice in the last few thoughts. A Messiah. Huh! There were plenty of people ready to tell him that Jesus was the answer. Some of the rudest, most condemning letters he had received came from people who said Jesus was the answer. Cracked pots! As if, a guy from 2000 years ago could save the world. In fact, if He could, why hadn’t He already? He’d had 2000 years to do it.

All these thoughts didn’t answer Baxter’s question. He could hardly go on TV and sing “A ray of hope flickers in the sky.” He smiled. Imagine the Prime Minister singing, and claiming that a child was going to be born who would sort things out.

“Baxter, I’ll do it. Tell the guys to be ready for all media interviews. We’re going to have an election and we are expecting to win.” He felt that old rush of adrenalin that came with a challenge.

Baxter hadn’t moved. He obviously was not convinced. The Prime Minister knew that the country wouldn’t be either. Reality returned and he sighed deeply.

There was nothing he could do about the election. He could put on a brave face and look confident but that would only increase the ridicule he would receive when the inevitable results came in. The country did need a messiah. He didn’t believe the Leader of the Opposition would do any better than he had – worse, he suspected – but the country maybe saw him as a bit of a messiah.

The country needed a messiah. There were many deep-seated problems. But then so did he. His own life was a sham. His cause had not been helped by the revelations of his use of prostitutes. Tania had left him immediately. They had had years of virtual estrangement and that was the last straw. His own children had pulled even further away. Michael had been interviewed on TV and had obviously felt quite justified criticising him publicly. He wasn’t close to any of his colleagues. Some of them despised him.

The alcohol... He had persuaded himself that it was under control, but the tabloids carried stories of people seeing him drunk. He could deny it strenuously but only by lying. He had entered parliament determined have greater integrity than others but lying had become second nature to him now. When he admitted that to himself, he didn’t like it. He needed a messiah.

“Baxter, give me 30 minutes.” Selwyn Baxter withdrew.

Colin Fletcher, the Minister of Immigration, was a Christian. The Prime Minister phoned him and asked him to come up a.s.a.p.

That night the Prime Minister appeared on TV. He looked the camera straight in the eye and spoke from his heart. “Ladies and gentlemen, for me this is the end of the road. I will not contest the next election – not because we are behind in the polls. I believe we can turn those polls around and I will be campaigning with all my might. But I will not stand again. Serving this wonderful country as your Prime Minister has been a great privilege – a very great privilege. There is much for which I am grateful. But I also know that I have made many mistakes. Some of those mistakes have hurt you and I am sorry.”

“But many of my mistakes have hurt me and, more importantly, have hurt those I love most deeply. I am very proud of the electorate I represent but I am not very proud of myself. Today, I made a decision. I will not continue pretending that all is well when, in my own life, all is not well. I will not stand again because I need to repair, if I possibly can, the damage I have done to my family. My commitment now is to them.”

“But I now know that I cannot repair that damage. For all my pretence of confidence and skill, I do not know how. I need help and I would ask that you pray for me. I cannot be reconciled to my family without Jesus’ help. I never thought I’d hear myself saying that and I am sure you didn’t. You know that I have been openly sceptical about religion. Today, that has changed.”

“As a country, we face problems. Many of those problems will remain no matter who you elect, simply because we are not capable of solving them. We are not as wise, nor as powerful, as we make out.”

“Some cling to a hope that a child will be born who will “turn tears to laughter, hate to love, war to peace and everyone to everyone's neighbour.” Today, I met that child. He has already been born. It is my deep desire that, over these next years, indeed, for the rest of my life, Jesus will teach me, and help me, and heal me. If we, as a nation, also long for a Messiah, I say we turn to the Messiah who for 2000 years has been turning tears to laughter, hate to love, war to peace and everyone to his neighbour."

“I love this country. Indeed, I think I love it more now than even a few hours ago. I will fight for this country. But first I will fight for my own restoration and for my own family.”

“New Zealand, good night and may God bless you."

22.11.09 - Living God; Living Relationship

One of the reminders we got while Andrew was here was that God is the living God.

His theme on the last night was that God is real and something else which I can’t remember. In praying for healing there was the expectation that God is alive and able to heal. Each night he asked us to ask ourselves “Am I in relationship with God?’ That is a living thing - a living relationship with the living God.

Christianity is not a set of ideas and teachings. It is a living relationship with a living God.

Christianity is not about a relationship that I had once. It is about being in relationship now.

The Bible talks about “the living God”. Daniel was an Israelite taken into captivity in Babylon where he was put into the service of the king. Others became jealous of his success and the position he gained and so they set a trap. They persuaded the king to outlaw praying, knowing that Daniel would continue praying because he was a devout man. The penalty for praying was to be thrown into a lions’ den.

Sure enough, Daniel continued praying and his enemies saw him and reported it to the king. The king was distressed because Daniel was one of his best servants and, it would seem, someone the king liked. Nevertheless, the law was the law and couldn’t be changed, so Daniel was taken to the lions’ den and thrown in. The den was sealed so no one could rescue Daniel and the king went home to a sleepless night.

READ Daniel 6:19-28
Darius called out “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
 Darius was a pagan king in a very pagan culture. Yet he addressed Daniel as the servant of the living God. Daniel’s God wasn’t a living god but the living God. Amongst all the pagan gods that there were in Babylonian culture, the distinctive thing about Daniel’s God was that He was the living God.

What does that say about all of the others? They were dead! Daniel’s God was different - alive.

Of course, every culture believes that its gods are alive. The Romans believed their gods were alive. The Greeks believed their gods were alive. Of course they did. Every culture does. That is why they offered sacrifices and so on; to please their gods so that they might have plentiful crops or fertility or whatever. But the Bible simply points out how pathetic that is. None of these gods is alive. They are simply represented by worthless, powerless idols of wood or stone or silver.

There are many passages that contrast God with lifeless idols. For example Jeremiah 10:1-16 says pagan nations cut down a tree and shape it and chisel it and cover it with gold and silver. They make a god out of a tree! Then they have to nail it down so it doesn’t fall over. What sort of god is that? It cannot talk. They have to carry it around because it cannot walk. What sort of a god is that?

Jeremiah 10:10
But the Lord is the true God;
He is the living God; the eternal king.
When He is angry, the earth trembles;
The nations cannot endure His wrath.

You remember when Elijah had a competition with the prophets of Baal. They agreed that they would each build an altar and put a bull on it and then pray for their respective gods to send down fire to consume the sacrifice. The prophets of Baal spent most of the day dancing and cutting themselves and crying out to Baal. What happened? Nothing. Why? Because he is nothing more than an idol of stone. Stone cold dead. Can’t do a thing.

In contrast, when Elijah prayed to the living God, it was a different kettle of fish altogether. The living God is able to act. Fire descended and burnt up not only the bull but even the stones of the altar.

Back in the story of Daniel, King Darius called out “Has your God been able to save you?” That is the question, isn’t it? Daniel claimed to serve a living God who does things. Had that living God had the power to save Daniel? How powerful was He?
To the great relief of the king, Daniel called back, “My God has saved me.” He had spent a night with the lions and there wasn’t even a mark on him.

As a result, Darius, the pagan Babylonian king, wrote,
Daniel 6:26-27 26
"I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
"For he is the living God
and he endures forever;
his kingdom will not be destroyed,
his dominion will never end.
27 He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions."

“For He is the living God.” The indication is again that there is only one living God. And, as the living God, He is active. He rescues and He saves. He performs signs and wonders.

That is the God of Christianity – the living God; the God who rescues and saves and performs signs and wonders. That is the God many of us experienced this week – and the God many more of us can know. Who wants a cold, dead relationship when you can have a living relationship with the living God.

Psalm 42:1-2 1
As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?

The psalmist hungered for a real relationship with the living God. Stone idols just don’t do it. Lots of material possessions just don’t do it. There will still be that soul thirst for the living God. “When can I go to meet with God?” Maybe you have that same thirst. Doing what Christians are expected to do just isn’t doing it for you. Going through the motions isn’t doing it. You thirst for the reality of a living relationship with the living God.

Psalm 84:1-2
How lovely is your dwelling place,
LORD Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.

It is fantastic having a living relationship with the living God. It is a wonderful thing living with God.

2 Cor 6:16 16 What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
 In a living relationship with the living God, He is our God and we are His people and He lives with us and walks amongst us and talks with us. We can hear the voice of God. We can experience the power of God – answered prayers, miracles, being changed ourselves by the power of the Holy Spirit, using our spiritual gifts. It is all part of the fact that God is alive. We can live each day under His lordship. In other words, each day we receive instructions from God and we choose to serve Him and be in relationship with Him.

That is all fantastic, but note that there is another side. Darius wrote, “I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. For he is the living God and he endures forever.”
 Fear Him because He is alive.

Hebrews 10:31
It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

God is alive and we can know Him and experience His goodness. Or, we can defy Him and experience His judgement. It is a very foolish thing to assume God is dead and will not judge sin. He will. The fact that God is alive means we should fear and reverence Him.

Those who put their faith in Jesus earlier in the week have entered a living relationship with the living God. Now it is a case of developing that relationship and understanding more about it. We would love to give you some help but we actually don’t know everyone who became a Christian during the week. We would like to help you grow. You have been born again. It is like you are now a baby Christian and it would be quite wrong of us to abandon you as a baby. Can I ask that if you have recently become a Christian, you let us know at the table at the back? In fact, if you responded in any way while Andrew was here – a first time commitment or a rededication or asking for healing - we would like to know. There may be stories to tell or maybe we can give you more help. Please leave your name at the table at the back.

However, some people here might not yet be Christians. Maybe you should have responded while Andrew was here but you didn’t. The opportunity has not gone. You still can. Or if there are others who would like to receive more prayer for healing or for anything at all, the invitation is still there. Today can be the time you do respond to the living God.

Maybe your relationship with God is cold and stale; or you have wandered away from God. You thirst for some reality in your faith. You thirst for the living God. You thirst for forgiveness. Andrew has gone but the living God hasn’t and we are going to keep praying. When we sing our last songs today, there will be the opportunity for you to respond to the living God.

08.11.09 - The Christ-centred Life

Colossians is a letter and we should read it as a letter. When you receive a letter you don’t read a paragraph or two and then put it away for a week before reading a little more. You read it from beginning to end.

Likewise the Colossians, when they received this letter from Paul, would not have read only a little portion each week. They would have eagerly listened to the whole letter.

When we deal with it in sections, we possibly don’t get a feel for what the whole letter was about. What was Paul saying? What was the thrust of the letter? It is good to look at the detail but it is also good – maybe even more important – to get the overview.

I have tried to show the whole letter in a semi-graphical way. I would like to read the whole letter. You judge whether I have got it right or not.

READ Colossians

What was the letter about? My feeling is that the key word is the “or” between the Christ-centred life and the Christ-less life. Which way will the Colossians go? Paul’s main thrust is: you have been wonderfully reconciled and transformed by Christ. Now, live a Christ-centred life; not the Christ-less life. He is writing to people who have become Christians but it is now a question of how they will live.

The piece about the Christ-less life is under the heading of the Kingdom of Jesus. How can that be? Isn’t there a conflict there? Can you be in the Kingdom of Jesus but not live under the kingship of Jesus? Can you be in the Kingdom of Jesus and still be destined for God’s wrath?

That section is in the wrong place, isn’t it? Really, if we live a Christ-less life, then really we are back on the left hand side, alienated from God, aren’t we?

That is why, in 1:21-23, Paul says, “You were alienated from God... but now He has reconciled you... to present you holy in His sight – if you continue in your faith, established and firm and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. In other words, we are reconciled to God if, having been saved by Jesus, we continue to live by faith – to live the Christ-centred life.

Where are you on that piece of paper?

I’d like to read the book again. Can I ask that you put those pieces of paper away and just listen.

READ Colossians

01.11.09 - Talking To God And Others

READ Colossians 4:2-6

It seems Paul is wrapping things up. There’s a few final instructions and some greetings and that’s it.

So, devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. It might be brief but that doesn’t make it any less important or any less a command from God.

Mention prayer and some of us possibly feel virtuous and some of us maybe feel guilty. Prayer does seem to be something that many of us struggle with. Best intentions fizzle out quickly. Prayer meetings are often the worst attended meetings in a church, sometimes starting with enthusiasm but soon dwindle.

What is translated here as “devote yourselves” literally means “persevere”. Persevere in prayer. That is pertinent because we do tend to give up easily. Jesus talked about persevering in prayer. He told a story about a widow who kept pestering a judge until she got mercy – Luke 18:1-8. That story is introduced like this: “Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” Often with parables we have to figure out the meaning ourselves but here it is explicitly stated. It is clear that Jesus was concerned that His followers pray and not give up. Giving up is a perennial problem when it comes to prayer. I guess Jesus knew that that would be the case.

After the parable He said, “Will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.”

God will answer. It is not that God is reluctant. He isn’t, but sometimes we have to persevere in prayer. The exciting thing is that God does answer.

Sometimes I pray and God answers and I am surprised and delighted! Then I think, “Hey! I should pray more often! Look what happens when you do!” Or, “I should be specific in my prayers more often.”

I was really encouraged last Sunday night out at Camp Columba to hear the testimonies of some of the young people. Christine Harrington whose family is in Cromwell now but who grew up as a missionary kid in Africa told of an incident when she and her siblings had been sheltering under a tree during a storm when their mother called them inside. They were 3 or 4 metres from the tree when it was hit by lightning. They were all thrown to the ground but a cow, two donkeys and four sheep (or something. I can’t remember the details) were all killed just metres away from them.
Some considerable time later they were talking about this in Australia, I think, and a woman asked exactly when it had happened. She had her prayer journal with her and when they worked out the time differences and so on they discovered that God had prompted her to pray for the Harrington children at precisely that time.

Sometimes prayers are answered straight away. But sometimes it is those who persevere who see the answers. And those who give up too soon don’t see the results they otherwise would.

When Jesus said “Ask and you will receive” the grammar shows that it means “ask and keep on asking, knock and keep on knocking... and you will receive.” Devote yourselves to prayer or persevere in prayer.

“Be watchful and thankful.” “Watchful” means “stay awake”. Now some of us might know that problem with prayer too. We intend to pray but we find we’ve fallen asleep! Jesus said to the disciples, in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” (Mt 26:41) Remaining alert. It is as if Jesus says, “Pray with your eyes open. Be alert to what is happening. Be alert to Satan’s temptations. Be fully engaged when you pray, not half asleep.”

And pray with thanksgiving. We should pray, aware of God’s goodness in the past. Giving thanks for past answers encourages us to keep on praying.

Then Paul says, “Actually, could you please pray for us too?” Paul is in prison. He says he is in chains for the sake of Jesus. What does he ask them to pray for? Open doors!

But it is not open doors for himself but open doors for the message of the gospel. Paul doesn’t ask for prayers for himself – although he must have had many personal needs. He asks for prayer for his work: that he might have opportunities to proclaim Jesus; that he might be clear and that he might speak as he should. He wants God-given opportunities. He prays for skill: the ability to be clear. Many a great message has been lost because it was conveyed in a confusing way. Paul doesn’t want the gospel lost for lack of clarity. He prays for guidance that he might speak as he should – might say the right things at the right time for the right reasons. Holy Spirit guided proclamation of Jesus.

We have Andrew Kubala coming in a couple of weeks. Let’s pray for him just like that: for opportunities, for skill to be clear, for guidance in what he should say and how he should say it.

Should we all ask our friends to pray that we might have opportunities to speak about Jesus; that we might do it clearly; that we might be guided by the Holy Spirit so as to speak as we should?

Or maybe we find that quite intimidating and actually guilt-inducing because if prayer is an area of failure, so is evangelism. I want to offer maybe some relief for those of us who now feel inadequate.

Paul had been commissioned as a missionary. That prayer was for him. But then he moves from his own ministry to everybody’s. How should we act towards outsiders? Paul has talked about living a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him and what that means within the church, in our homes and work places. Here he turns to our relationships with those outside the church.

The overarching command is “be wise in the way you act towards outsiders”. Let’s pause there for a minute. Be wise. We will never be wise without doing all we can to learn: reading, thinking, observing others, learning from our own experiences – especially our own failures and doing all of that in the light of what the Bible says. In other words, our relationships with outsiders should be something we see as sufficiently important that we think it through carefully. You should be able to ask me my philosophy on how to act towards non-Christians and I should be able to tell you.

It wouldn’t be a bad thing for each of us to spend some time nutting out our own understanding of how Christians should interact with non-Christians. In fact, small groups could do that helping each other to know what wisdom the Bible does give.

Expanding on how to be wise, Paul says, “Make the most of every opportunity.” Literally it means “redeem, or buy, every opportunity.” Grab every opportunity. If there is an opportunity, don’t waste it; buy it; grab it. Make the most of it.”

Opportunities for what? We immediately think perhaps that these are opportunities to speak about Jesus but it might be opportunities to encourage; opportunities to meet a need; opportunities to listen; opportunities to build a friendship; to give some advice. Be wise with that one. Is advice wanted? If it is, then good advice might be powerful. It might be grabbing opportunities to pray with someone or to invite them for a meal or to make a phone call. It could be anything. There are endless opportunities.

Grabbing every opportunity means that we are intentional. We look for opportunities and we pray for opportunities and when they crop up, we notice them and grab them. God will provide opportunities. Maybe we should pray that our eyes will be open to them.

Halloween is an opportunity. It is an opportunity for us to provide an alternative that is much healthier. It is an opportunity to give something for nothing and blow people away with generosity. It is an opportunity to build into the lives of children and families. It is an opportunity to meet people and show some friendship.

And so we have Angels and Heroes. We have a team of people who are keen to grab the Halloween opportunity and they put in a power of work. We had hundreds of people in here yesterday enjoying the activities Calvin people organised. And we had about 94 Calvin people (including a few ring-ins) here serving and just mixing and making conversation.

But maybe we could have had more. If all of us were looking to make the most of every opportunity, here was an opportunity on a plate. In the next little while we will have Andrew Kubala, Exo Day (now called Elevate) and Christmas. Besides individually praying for, and looking for, opportunities each day, the church provides opportunities to interact with outsiders. God says, “Make the most of every opportunity.”

Note the balance there. God requires zeal (“make the most of every opportunity”) and tact (“be wise”).

Let your conversation be full of grace. In other words: be nice. Christians should be known as the most courteous and affirming of people. People should go away thinking what a pleasure it was to have had a conversation with us. Our conversations should be characterised by positivity and warmth. Some Christians seem to think that God wants them to attack people. No, God’s way is the way of gentleness and encouragement. In particular, we might think of graciousness as reflecting the grace of God – especially the willingness to forgive. Our attitude should be one of forgiveness not condemnation. We should be just thoroughly nice people – people with whom it is a blessing to chat.

But consistent niceness might also make us very bland and insipid, so again there is a right balance. We are to be full of grace that is seasoned with salt. FULL of grace but with a seasoning of salt. In Paul’s day, in a context like this, salt meant wit or humour. That is probably not what is intended here although humour is a great thing and might help overcome what William Barclay calls Christians’ “sanctimonious dullness”. Maybe the salt adds interest to what would otherwise be bland. How do we be interesting, not boring? How do we get people’s attention? How can we hold that attention? These are things we should all know. We should be expert communicators. Paul says here that we should know how to answer. Our conversations should be seasoned with salt.

But I think the passage is saying more than humour. I think it is saying that there should be a little bit of tang in what we say. There should be a little bit of wisdom or purpose or intentionality. Maybe just a little bit of truth or challenge. Not too much. Notice that our conversations should be full of grace but seasoned with salt; overwhelmingly gracious but with a tang of truth. We should want more than just small talk.

So that we may know how to answer everyone. Paul was a missionary. He was expected to go out and make opportunities. But maybe, for most of us, we are to be ready to take opportunities. Paul asked for prayer that he might proclaim Jesus as he should. Most of us are to know how to answer. In other words, maybe we shouldn’t panic too much about making opportunities. Many of us feel pressured to somehow bring Jesus into our conversations. And sometimes it does harm when sincere Christians feel compelled to preach or testify even when the moment is not right. It goes down like a lead balloon and sincere Christians become discouraged from any further witnessing.
Maybe the better approach is not to try too hard to create opportunities but to live a lifestyle that is attractive and then to be ready to answer when we are asked questions. Live in such a God-honouring, people-honouring way that it raises questions, then be ready to answer those questions in ways that are gracious but also seasoned with salt.
1 Peter 3:15 Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect

I want to release you from the expectation that you will somehow get Jesus into every conversation. But I want to charge you with devoting yourself to prayer; being wise in the way you act towards non-Christians which means making the most of every opportunity and speaking in a way that is full of grace but seasoned with salt so that, when opportunities do arise, you know how to answer and we are faithful witnesses to Jesus.

25.10.09 - Honouring Jesus In Our Homes

READ Colossians 3:18-4:1


In our day and age, we are not comfortable with the idea of wives submitting to their husbands. Was this a first century principle that no longer applies? Did it not even apply then? Or was Paul just anti-women?

And how come he tells slaves to obey their earthly masters in everything? Why didn’t he, as a Christian, oppose slavery?

I think we need to see this in terms of the principles involved and then the application of those principles. In these verses, the application is in the home. The previous passage was about relationships within the church – same principles but applied in the church. Today, how are these principles to be worked out in the home – although few of us have slaves in our homes these days. But we do have husbands and wives; we do have children or are children; and maybe instead of slaves and masters we should think in terms of employees or employers. In that case, the principles are to be applied in the home and the workplace.

What are the principles? Is one that there is a God-ordained hierarchy of husbands over wives, parents over children etc? I am very reluctant to say “Yes”. I am reluctant because of other verses such as:

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

In Christ those old distinctions don’t exist. We are all one.

I am reluctant too because Ephesians, which contains a passage very similar to this one, says, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Mutual submission. And actually, I think that is what we see in these instructions in Colossians too. The Bible teaches mutual responsibilities. Each party has certain obligations to the other. The fact that Paul gives instructions to wives, then to husbands, to children, then to fathers, to slaves, then to masters illustrates this mutuality of responsibilities.

Is there are hierarchy? Well, yes in the sense that children do have obligations to parents and so on. But it is a funny sort of hierarchy because parents also have obligations to children. Mutual submission – submitting to one another – means that no one ends up on top. That is the biblical sort of hierarchy.

And that was a radical message in the first century. Wives, children and slaves were all seen as things more than people. In the Jewish and Greek worlds, wives were seen as possessions and husbands could do what they liked with them. Jewish women had no legal rights. Greek women remained at home and catered for their husbands’ needs. The husband could go out and socialise and have other relationships. All of the privileges belonged to the husband and all of the duties to the wife.

Under Roman law fathers had the right to do whatever they liked with their children, including sell them into slavery or even condemn them to death and carry out the execution.

Slaves, of course, had no rights at all. They could be whipped or killed at their master’s whim. They had no right to marry or even to own possessions.

The mutual responsibilities that Paul spells out here were radical. That is the first principle: the principle of mutual responsibilities or mutual obligations.

The second is that every Christian lives under the lordship of Christ. In the nine verses we read, which were about wives, husbands, children, parents, slaves, master, how many times was Jesus mentioned? Seven, and implied one more time, so eight. Did you hear all of those references to Jesus? Did you recognise that He was so central? It all revolves around Jesus being our Lord. We are to act “as is fitting in the Lord”, doing what “pleases the Lord”, “with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord”, “as if we were working for the Lord” etc. If we look at the wider context, this is an ever-present theme. The preceding verse said, “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” That should always be in our minds. “Jesus, in this situation, how can I best serve you?”

So, when wives are told to submit to their husbands, it is “as is fitting in the Lord”. So what is fitting for followers of Jesus? Would Jesus ask women to be doormats or to be abused by their husbands? No, so that is not fitting. What is fitting in the Lord? It is certainly fitting that women should show proper respect for their husbands and should work cooperatively with them, not opposing their husbands or humiliating them. It is fitting that wives should try to meet their husband’s needs. In fact, I suppose that everything listed in the 1 Corinthians 13 passage about love is fitting in the Lord: patience, kindness, humility, no selfishness, no keeping of records of past wrongs, etc. Wives do have responsibilities to their husbands – very significant responsibilities. Every wife needs to carefully consider what it means to submit to her husband in the way that is fitting in the Lord. What does Jesus require?

But Paul applies 1 Corinthians 13 to husbands. This would have been the shocking thing for first century society. Husbands are to love their wives! Husbands also are to be patient, kind, humble, keeping no record of past wrongs, not being selfish, etc. No longer is the wife simple for the husband’s convenience. She is a person who is to be cherished. She doesn’t exist only to meet her husband’s needs. He is charged with meeting her needs. It is mutual.

Specifically, this passage says that the husband is not to be harsh. Harshness would include speaking in a way that is critical or demeaning or puts his wife down, or acting in a way that is demanding and sees her as someone who can be given commands. Any husband who thinks these verses give him the right to be overbearing or demanding has completely misunderstood them. What is the opposite of “harsh”? Gentle, maybe. That is the responsibility on the husband: to treat his wife gently; to lift her up (not drag her down) and to nurture and encourage her.

Is there a hierarchy? Wives do have obligations to their husbands but husbands have maybe even greater obligations to their wives. The biblical principle is mutual obligations.

Children clearly have obligations to their parents. One of God’s Ten Commandments is that children are to honour their parents. It is clear throughout the Bible that that honouring of parents is part of God’s order and necessary for stable family and social life. Where it doesn’t happen, things fall apart.

That is reiterated here. Children are to obey their parents in everything. Clearly that doesn’t extend to doing evil. To take “everything” to include evil is taking it too literally. But the command is that children are to obey their parents. Parents have a God-given responsibility to set boundaries and to discipline and to guide. There’s no doubt about this. Paul says the obedience of children pleases the Lord. And society at the time would have expected children to obey their parents.

But again, the radical new thing that Christianity brings to it is the responsibility that goes the other way: the responsibility that parents have to their children. Actually, it mentions only fathers. Is that because fathers in particular need to hear this because fathers are the more likely to be hard on their children? Fathers are not to embitter their children, or to discourage them. There are many ways that children can be crushed: constant rebuke or constant correction; always being on the child’s back; harsh punishments; criticism. No parent has the right to break a child’s spirit.

So, what are parents called to? Boundaries and discipline, yes, but in the context of genuine love, willingly expressed. Genuine love, willingly expressed. John Newton, the author of Amazing Grace, said, “I know that my father loved me – but he did not seem to wish me to see it.” A child should know. The parents’ love should be very apparent. Too many children grow up in contexts where they don’t know they are loved or where they are hurt by their parents. Well, in homes under the lordship of Jesus Christ, parents have a responsibility to their children – the responsibility to love and encourage.

Martin Luther, the great Reformer, all his life, had difficulty praying “Our Father” because his father had been so stern. Luther talked about the need to balance discipline with encouragement. He said, “Spare the rod and spoil the child. It is true. But beside the rod keep an apple to give him when he does well.”

The shocking thing about Paul’s commands to slaves and masters must have been the idea that masters had to treat slaves with any sort of respect. But slaves might also have been annoyed. Shouldn’t Paul have commanded they be set free rather than saying slaves had to obey their masters in everything? We don’t have slaves. I think it is appropriate for us to think in terms of employers and employees.

Slaves are to obey. Being a Christian should make a slave a better slave. He is not to work only when the master is looking, or only to catch the master’s eye. That suggests it is only about appearances; only about what the slaves gets out of it; doing what looks good but being slovenly other times. That is not genuine. The slave is to consistently conscientiously. He is to genuinely serve his master not do only the minimum required.

He is to work with sincerity of heart – not filled with grudges or bitterness but sincerely being willing to serve. The basic principle here is that the slave is to see himself as serving Jesus. In fact, Paul specifically says “as if you were working for the Lord not human masters”. This is a paradigm shift. It is no longer that I work for Joe Bloggs but that I work for Jesus but Jesus asks me to do that by serving Joe Bloggs. I work for Jesus. The context is this school or this shop or this factory or whatever our workplace is.

As a servant of Jesus, how does He want me to work in this context; in this workplace? Conscientiously, wholeheartedly, as I would for Jesus Himself. That is how we are to serve.

But then Paul says “Since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord.” Slaves had no right to own property at all, let alone receive an inheritance. But for the Christian slave, now working for Jesus, there will be an inheritance. Take the eternal view. Serve Jesus as you should and you will receive an inheritance. There is no sentimentality here. If they do wrong, they will be repaid for their wrongs. God won’t show them favouritism. So the incentive is to do what is right, even as slaves. Then they will receive an inheritance.

Masters, (employers), provide your slaves with what is right and fair. Masters were not obligated to provide anything. But Christian masters? The standards now are to be justice and equity. Since when did slaves receive justice and equity? Slaves were to be treated as people with rights now.

Why? Christian master, because you also have a Master in heaven. The master also has a Master to whom he is answerable - for how he conducts his business. The master also will receive an inheritance if he does right or be repaid for his wrongs. Under the lordship of Christ, he must run his household (or his business) as Jesus would. How would Jesus treat slaves or employees? That is the standard now.

Mutual obligation and living under the lordship of Jesus Christ mean that every Christian wife and every Christian husband, every Christian child and every Christian parent, every Christian employee and every Christian employer must ask, “What is my responsibility before God? How would Jesus act in my place?” God is a husband and a father and a master. He models what those roles mean. We can learn from God. Jesus was also a child and a servant. Whatever He asks of us, He has already demonstrated. He has already demonstrated how to be submissive and how to love and how to work with sincerity of heart. Jesus has already shown us the way.

What is my responsibility? Don’t worry about the other person’s responsibilities. You worry about yours. Yes, the other person will have responsibilities to you. That is the nature of it: mutual responsibilities. But the other person’s responsibilities are the other person’s responsibilities, not yours. We ought to focus on our responsibilities. We cannot make the other person act in a particular way but we can submit our own actions to the lordship of Jesus Christ. What does Jesus require of me? Wives, submit to your husbands. Husbands, love your wives. Children, fathers, slaves, masters, be like Jesus and be obedient to Jesus.

18.10.09 - Everyday Realities Of The New Life

I am sure we all remember the Elim Christian College’s tragedy in April last year when six pupils and one teacher were lost when the river rose suddenly. But what do we remember about it? We saw shots of the Mangatepopo Gorge and the river. Maybe those images are still in our minds but I suspect that the stronger memory is that of the response of the school and families. Often, when Christians appear on TV we cringe. It is embarrassing. That was an occasion when we could feel proud because of the way the parents, the students and the principle responded. There was no attempt to paper over the reality of their grief. It was raw grief but there was also peace. We saw gentleness and a lack of bitterness and recrimination. We saw profound caring for one another. North and South magazine named the principle, Murray Burton, New Zealander of the Year saying, “Mr Burton's compassion, grace and humanity through that time reached the entire country.”

"In the most challenging and heartbreaking of circumstances, he showed true leadership and, by his example, brought people together without anger or blame."

Gentleness, forgiveness, grace, humanity, without anger or blame. It seems to me that those are exactly the sort of words used in Colossians 3. Last week we looked at this same passage but we didn’t look at the details of what we are to do as Christians. We looked at the context which tell us why we should live in this way and how we can. Why? Because we have been raised to new life with Christ. In response to all that God has done for us, we should live a life worthy of Him. How can we? Because we have been raised to new life with Christ. We are new people, strengthened by God. This new life is now possible.

Today, let’s focus on what we are to do – the every day, rubber meets the road, realities of the new life.

It is fantastic to celebrate some baptisms and dedications today. Simon and Rachel have expressed their faith and promise to raise their children in godly homes. How can they show Christianity to their children? Hollie will do the same and will express her own faith in Jesus. Jesus is Saviour but these people are also saying that Jesus is Lord. They promise to live for Jesus. In this passage, Paul helps us know what that means. What are we to do? What does please God?

READ Colossians 3:1-17

There are two very distinct lists; two very distinct categories: things we are to do and things we are not to do. We should note how Paul describes each category. In vv.1, 2 he talks about “things above” as opposed to earthly things. v.5 lists some of the things that belong to our earthly nature and v.7 links those same things with the old life.

What I am saying is that earthly things are the things of the old life which are the things we to put to death and take off. That is one category. On the other hand, the things above are also the things of the new life which are also the things we are set our minds on and to clothe ourselves with. And these are the very things that are worthy of God and please Him and bring Him glory.

It is that list the Elim Christian College showed us. If we try to describe the characteristics listed, first and foremost, they are relational. It is about how we treat each other and how we get on, although “relational” doesn’t quite cover everything. In fact, the first things that Paul lists are sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed. They are about relationships but more they are about our own attitudes – the purity of our own thoughts and actions. Those first four are closely related. It is almost as if Paul says the same things four times although it moves from the specific to the general. Sexual immorality seems to speak of immoral actions. Impurity is more general in that there are more things than sexual acts that are impure and, in fact, our thoughts can be impure. “Lust” we often associate with sexuality but we can lust after all sorts of things including possessions. “Evil desires” are much more general. There are many evil desires but all of them, Paul is saying, are to be put to death. God is looking for a right heart – a pure heart. It is more demanding than actions. The new life makes requirements of our hearts and minds.

Jesus said that murder is not just a case of killing someone. Anger against another person is a form of murder. Adultery is not just the act. Looking on a woman lustfully is adulterous.

Then greed. Greed makes an idol of things. All of these attitudes, Paul says, bring the wrath of God.

Then the list moves to more specifically relational things, both positive and negative. Negative: anger – the slow, long, smouldering anger, rage – the fiery outburst of temper, malice – wanting to see someone hurt, slander – speaking negatively about someone, filthy language and lying. We are to rid ourselves of those things. Instead we are to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. All of these are about thinking of the other person. Patience is kind of repeated because Paul goes on to say, “Bear with one another and forgive if you have any grievance. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

That last sentence again gives the why and the how. Why should we forgive? Because we have been forgiven. How should we forgive? In the same way that Jesus has forgiven us.

Again, that was one of the impressive features of the Elim Christian College response, I believe. You do occasionally hear wonderful stories of people who have suffered great loss, forgiving those who have wronged them. Forgiveness is worthy of the God who has also forgiven.

Over all these virtues put on love. Paul has used the image of clothing: you have taken off your old self; clothe yourselves with... Then, as if it is the garment that goes on over the top of all of the others, Paul says to put on love. Love is the crowning virtue. Love is the central command of Christianity: Love God and love your neighbour. God is love, so loving is, again, an act worthy of God.

The last few things listed are relational but they are actually about relationships and ministry to one another within the church. They start with the necessity of the peace of Christ ruling in our hearts. The phrase “members of one body” tells us that it is about the church but it also tells us that this is not about individuals feeling peaceful but it is about being at peace with one another. It brings to mind Romans 12:18: If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

But then it talks about ministry to one another. Filled with the message of Christ, we are to teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns and songs of the Spirit. Love for one another means that we care about each other’s progress and growth. Paul had described his own ministry as proclaiming Christ, teaching and admonishing everyone with all wisdom, so that he might present everyone fully mature in Christ (1:28). Now it is clear that church members are to continue that same ministry to one another.

When we think about what God requires of us, we might think of great works we are called to perform, but that is not the focus of this passage. Instead, the new life in Christ is demonstrated by issues of the heart and by our relationships. Yes, that does require ministry –serving – love, of course, involves action. But the focus is on the heart and on relationships. That is where our obedience and our Christlikeness are seen first and foremost. It is a reminder that Jesus said, “A new commandment I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, you must love one another. By this, all people will know that you are my disciples.” Love is the telling thing. Love is a more powerful witness than the things we do. Remember Paul said “I might do all sorts of amazing things but if I don’t have love, I am nothing.” Of course, love must be expressed in action, but first there must be love.

If you were going to be on TV for something, wouldn’t you like people to talk about what a gracious, loving person you were? Wouldn’t you like them to think well of God because of the lack of bitterness and lack of anger and lack of recrimination that they had witnessed? Actually, we don’t have to be on TV. We just have to be visible to our families and friends and workmates. Do they see those qualities? We can set our hearts on noble things – good, godly, Christ-like things like compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness. These things can be our desire and aim. In this new life that Jesus gives us we can aim high – aim at noble things – and we can be noble – we can be like Jesus – because of the power of the Holy Spirit at work in us. Set your hearts and minds on things above.

11.10.09 - The Power To Live Right

Can you think of things you haven’t done? I can think back to my childhood and remember my parents asking me to do certain things and I didn’t do them. Much more recently, I have said to people that I will do things for them and I haven’t done them. I’ve made promises to myself that I will do some things and I haven’t done them. Why not?

It might have been that I was unclear what I was to do. That is one possibility but generally I’ve known what to do.

The other possibilities are that I wasn’t actually capable of it. If someone gave me a task that I wasn’t able to do, then obviously it is not going to get done. The problem then is “how”. I don’t have the means to do it. Or I have not been willing or I wasn’t sufficiently motivated. I could have done it but I chose not to. Maybe even at the time, in the back of my mind, I was saying, “I’m not going to do that” or maybe I intended to but as time passed I just simply failed to do it. Not being willing or motivated means I didn’t have a big enough “why”.

God wants His children to live a particular lifestyle. If we are not, is it the “what” that is missing? Is it the “how”? Or is it the “Why”? We have been looking at the apostle Paul’s letter to the Colossians. As we read chapter 3, verses 1 to 17 look for the what, the why and the how.

The most notable thing about this passage is that it contains a list of things not to do and a list of things to do. Verse 5 to 9 list eleven things not to do. Verses 12 to 17 list about 15 things to do. They are the “what” – what God wants us to do. We are not going to look at those today. God willing, we will do that next week – except just note one thing – how much the list is about relationships; about how we get on and how we treat each other. Yes there is work to be done as Christians but core to being Christians is how we relate. We will look at that more thoroughly next week.

Today I want to look at the other comments Paul makes – all the bits around those lists – because they give the why and the how.

By giving lists of things to do and things not to do, is Paul saying any more than, “Be good.” Is that the message of Christianity – “Be good”? If we say to someone, “Be good”, and even if we explain what that means, that person is still left with “why” and “how”. The Bible gives the why and the how.

Look at the first clause: Since, then, you have been raised with Christ... It is not just “Do this. Do that.” It is “Since you have been raised with Christ, do these things.” What difference does being raised with Christ make? In baptism, we are said to die with Jesus and to rise again with Him. Going under the water is like being buried. Coming up out of the water is like rising to new life. The old person has died. A new person has been raised. The person who comes out of the water is not the same person as went in.

2 Cor 5:17 ...if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

The new person is expected to live a new life – a life that was described in 1:10 as worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him in every way. It is just unthinkable that the new person, wonderfully saved by Jesus – rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the kingdom of Jesus Christ – will continue to live the old life that displeases Jesus. It is unthinkable that the person brought into the kingdom of Jesus will not obey Jesus, the king. The new person is expected to live a new life – compassionate, kind, humble, without anger or malice or greed.

Having received God’s grace; God’s goodness; God’s mercy; God’s forgiveness; God’s patience and gentleness, surely no one could think that he or she could continue living the old life. Having received so much from God, the only proper response must be to want to do everything I can to please Him. If not, we would have to ask if we really have experienced His saving goodness. As Jesus said, “those who have been forgiven much, love much.” If you don’t love much – if you don’t want to please Him in everything you do – if you don’t want to live the new life – have you actually been forgiven? Those who have been forgiven much, love much.
Suppose someone gave you a million dollars. If you then started bad-mouthing that person and being generally nasty towards him, people would see a glaring contradiction. They would say, “Didn’t he just give you a million dollars? I thought he had but you behaviour says that he didn’t.”

“Since you have been raised with Christ” gives us the why. That is the reason. God has done so much for you. That is the reason for living every minute of every day for Him.

But it also gives us the how. Having been raised with Christ, we are different people. It is not only that we owe it to God to now honour Him. We are now capable of honouring Him; we are capable of doing what is right. We are capable of turning our backs on sexual immorality and greed and anger. The old person wasn’t. The old person was a slave to sin and no matter how hard he or she tried, there was inevitable failure in one area or another. There was no escaping it.

But the new person is no longer a slave of sin. The new person can say ‘No” to what is wrong and can do what is right – can be compassionate and humble and forgiving. Before we were powerless. Now we have the power to do what is right.

Look back to chapter 1 verse 10. It talks about living a live worthy of the Lord and pleasing to Him in every way. Four things characterise that life. One of which is “being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that we might have endurance and patience”. The new life is about being strengthened by God so as to be able to keep on doing what is right. Unlimited power – all power according to His glorious might - available to enable us to live as we should.

Look at chapter 2 verse 6 and 7. This also is about how we should live. We are to be rooted and built up in Him and again it talks about being strengthened.

“Since then you have been raised with Christ” tells us why we should live a life worthy of Him but it also tells us how – by the power God gives.

Have you received new life in Jesus? Have you died with Him and been raised to new life? Then live a life worthy of Him. You have a responsibility to live in a way that glorifies and pleases Jesus. You have to make that decision. Don’t be half-hearted about that. If Jesus died for you, choose to live for Him. That is your responsibility but God will strengthen you to do that. As a new person, empowered by God, you can do it, therefore choose to do it. Choose to do it consistently.

What Paul says to do here is “Set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.” Where is your heart? Is your heart set on things of this world? Is your heart set on a new iPod or a new house or a new car? Is your heart set on pleasure or travel? Is your heart set on making a name for yourself?
Paul says that in this new life our hearts are to be set on heavenly things. We are to look at everything in the light of eternity. If you have an eternal view, your priorities change. How important are possessions in the light of eternity? We cannot take them with us. In fact, they are a powerful distraction always calling us away from Jesus. A lot of things are both useless and dangerous if you have an eternal view. With an eternal view you don’t have to seek after every pleasurable experience. You can forego many pleasures knowing that this life is short. It will soon be over and God has far greater pleasures waiting for you in heaven anyway. Better to deny ourselves now and have that expectation of the far greater pleasures than to have a few pleasures now and miss out on what God has planned.

An eternal view affects every decision we make. Giving becomes more important than getting. Forgiving becomes more important than revenge. Serving becomes more important than ruling.

Not only our hearts, but our minds too are to be set on things above (v.2). Our thinking and beliefs are to be shaped by eternity and by the things of God.

v.5 – Put to death therefore... When Paul gives instructions – set your heart on things above; set you mind on things above, not earthly things; put to death; rid yourself of, take off, put on – obviously we are being told to do something. We have to take the bull by the horns and determine where our heart will be; what we will think about; what we will and will not include in our lives. We are responsible for acting.

But always remember that God has already acted. God has already set us free; He has already given us new life; He continues to strengthen us. Without Him we couldn’t do it. It is only because He enables us that we can be asked to do it at all.

What Christ has done for us tells us why we should live for Him. Our motivation is to honour the One who died for us. But if anyone needs more motivation, Paul makes two more comments. V.6 says that because of the acts of the earthly nature, the wrath of God is coming.

On the other hand, v.4 said that those who died with Christ and whose life is hidden in Him, when He appears, will appears and share His glory.

Take your pick. We can live for Jesus and receive His glory or we can live the lifestyle our earthly nature craves and receive God’s wrath. Think in terms of eternity. Then take your pick.

In vv.9 and 10, (and also v.12) Paul uses the image of taking off one set of clothes and putting on another. But it is not clothes. It is the old self that we are to take off and the new self we are to put on. God has made this possible. We are to appropriate in our own lives what God has made possible. God has given us a gift. We are to open that gift and use it. If you are a Christian, God has raised you to a new life. Stop being the old person. Take that person off, Throw it away. Put on the new person God offers you.
The new self is still being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator (v.10). Being renewed is an ongoing, daily experience. I am not like Jesus yet. It is a process of renewal. Every day decisions have to be made and God will use those decisions to transform us a little more into the image of Jesus. Every day we need to choose to continue to be part of that renewal process so that we continue to grow. The new self is open to the work of God. The new self wants to be transformed by the Holy Spirit.

Skip over the list of things we are to do and drop down to v.17.
Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Whatever you do... That means absolutely everything. Whether in word or deed. Everything you say and everything you do is to be done in the name of Jesus. What are you going to do this afternoon? Even that is to be done in the name of Jesus. Every conversation. Every comment. Every decision. Every action is to be carried out in the name of Jesus.

What does that mean in practice? William Barclay says, “One of the best tests of any action is: “Can we do it calling on the name of Jesus? Can we do it asking for his help?” One of the best tests of any word is: “Can we speak it, and can we in the same breath name the name of Jesus? Can we speak it remembering that He will hear, and asking Him to hear?” If a [person] brings every word and deed to the test of the presence of Jesus Christ, he/she will not go wrong.”

Since you have been raised with Christ... If you are not yet a Christian, you don’t yet have new life. You are still trapped in the old life. The life this world offers might look attractive but look at it in the light of eternity. Unless we have, through faith in Jesus Christ, been forgiven and been given the new life, the ultimate outcome is God’s wrath. The alternative is to let that old life die with Jesus and to receive the new life that will result in appearing with Him in glory when He returns.

If you are a Christian, God has given you a new life. Live that new life. Put off the old life. Put on the new life. You have to choose it but then God will make it possible.

There are some other questions: When? Now. God is asking you to live this life now. Where? Wherever you are. Don’t be a Christian some places and not other places. Wherever you are. Who? You.

Is there anything missing for you? God tells us what. He tells us what He wants us to do. He tells us why. Since you have been raised with Christ. Because you have received God’s grace. He tells us how: as new people whom God empowers. If you are not living as God wants you to, why not? What is missing?

04.10.09 - Jesus Rules! Rules Don't!

Have you ever felt pressured because someone has told you that your faith is inadequate? Seventh day Adventists, for example, would tell us that we are wrong to worship on a Sunday and therefore outside God’s will. Or someone else might tell you that it is only by fasting that you can really get close to God. Others would claim that meditation is how you really become one with God.

When Paul wrote to the Colossians, he gave three warnings. We looked at one several weeks ago.

Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.

In 2:16 he says, “Do not let anyone condemn you, or judge you, because you are, or are not, doing certain things.” And in 2:18, “Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you.”

We can be offered superior knowledge (hollow and deceptive philosophy). Or a superior lifestyle (judged by what you eat and drink). Or superior spiritual experience (false humility and the worship of angels). And those things can look very spiritual – very Christian. Presumably they appeared sufficiently spiritual to confuse the Colossians. But they are a trap. READ Colossians 2:16-23.

There are always people keen to tell Christians that their faith is not all it could be and that they have the key to a fuller experience of God. That seems to have been happening in Colossae. People were saying, “We have some extra knowledge. There are secrets that are revealed to only a few. Ordinary Christians are living a very limited faith. We can give you the secret to a fuller faith.”

It might be extra knowledge. It might be rules to live by and you will experience more of God. Or it might be that they talk about superior spiritual experiences they have had and that you can share.

But Paul’s answer is that Jesus is sufficient.

Col 2:6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him...

If the fullness of God dwells in Jesus and Jesus dwells in the Christian, how can you have a fuller experience of God than that? If Jesus has given us new life and has cancelled sin and defeated sin, then all we need in Jesus. We don’t need to go beyond Jesus to something else – no extra knowledge; no observance of rules; no superior spiritual experiences.

Everybody who is truly a Christian has Jesus. Yes, we need to deepen our relationship with Jesus and grow in our knowledge of Him. But, if we have Jesus, we have everything. We don’t need to add to Jesus.

Paul says, “Once you go beyond Jesus, you don’t actually find greater freedom. You become slaves. You don’t find even more knowledge. You become deceived. You don’t get closer to God, as these people might claim. You get further from God.”

What would be some examples? What about those who claim to have superior knowledge?

Mormonism is supposedly an improvement on Christianity based on further revelation – the secrets revealed by the angel Moroni to Joseph Smith. Islam is similar. Mohammed’s also claimed to have visions and revelations from God that add to Christianity.

But there are many examples closer to home. There are plenty of books in our bookshops which tell the secrets to spirituality that have been revealed to the authors through angels or whatever. Some of those books might be in Christian bookshops. I am pretty sceptical of books written by people claiming some new revelation.

Whenever anybody does claim some special revelation, or has spotted some new secret in the Bible, it immediately makes that person look superior and we all feel confused and condemning thinking that maybe we haven’t got it right – that our understanding, or our experience, must be inadequate.

What about examples of people who teach a superior lifestyle? Paul refers here to people who judge you by what you eat or drink or whether or not you observe certain festivals and occasions. Christians are pretty good at making up rules. In his day that might have included whether or not you ate meat that had been offered to idols and whether or not you drank alcohol. Christians in our own day have had pretty strict rules about alcohol – to the point of saying “Christians do not drink alcohol” and making the judgement that anyone who does is not a real Christian. Does the Bible say that? No. That is going beyond the Bible.

Some Christian groups have had strict rules about dancing and playing cards and going to movies and all manner of things. And they have judged other Christians on the basis of those rules.

Some Christians are very definite that all Christians should speak in tongues. Others are equally definite that tongues is of the devil. Some Christians are very definite that there is only one way to be baptised. We can easily think of religious sects that have rules about hairstyle and dress.

There are rules about what we can do and what we can’t. You can’t eat this, you can’t drink that; you must observe this ritual or that practice. Rules, rules, rules. You know, Christianity isn’t about rules. It is about doing the right thing. It is about living a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing to him, as we saw in 1:10. But we do those things because we love Jesus and want to please him, not because doing this or that will make us more spiritual.

Then Paul talks about false humility and the worship of angels and people who boast about what they have seen. There are people who claim superior spiritual experiences. They worship angels or maybe it means they worship like the angels. Again, I am pretty sceptical about books written by people who claim to have been taken into heaven or hell. Maybe they have but the danger is that they seem to have this superior spirituality and superior knowledge and who can argue with them? There would be people who claim dramatic experiences of the Holy Spirit and that everyone should have the same experiences.

But Paul talks about these kinds of things taking us captive, condemning us and disqualifying us. It can be that serious. We can be disqualified from the race. We can lose our salvation.

In v.17, Paul describes these rules as “a shadow of the things that were to come”. That probably is a reference to Old Testament religion. The Old Testament was the shadow of what was to come. He contrasts that with “the reality is found in Christ.” The Old Testament system of laws and sacrifices etc. is not wrong in itself but it is only the shadow. The substance – the reality – is Jesus.

Notice in v.18 too that Paul says that people who claim superior spiritual experiences actually are not spiritual. Often it is very human – a desire to impress or to gain control over people. And he says that they are proud - puffed up with these useless ideas. He says that they have lost contact with the head - Jesus, the head of the body. They claim superior spirituality but actually by going beyond Jesus they have lost contact with Jesus. And, Paul says how divisive this can all be. The body is held together by its ligament and sinews. But if some Christians have lost contact with the head then they are no longer serving the body as they should be and helping hold it together. It is through contact with Jesus that the body grows. If some have lost contact with Jesus we cannot expect the body to grow.

In vv.20-23, Paul says all these rules are worldly. They are all to do with things that will perish and they are simply human rules. They don’t come from God. So why would the Colossians – or why would we – submit to all this stuff that has nothing to do with Jesus? Well, maybe because it is so deceptive. Paul says it appears to be wise. It looks like real humility and self-denial and therefore deeply spiritual. If someone lives under severe self-discipline it looks noble and very spiritual. But if it is just human rules, it isn’t noble. It is folly. It isn’t humble. As Paul says, it can actually be pride. It isn’t spiritual. It is human.

And, Paul says, these rules lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. Living by strict rules can seem to be a holier life – a life lived for God rather than just to satisfy the senses. Sensual indulgence means living to satisfy the senses – the flesh. It can seem that harsh, disciplined, ascetic living leads to victory over our appetites. But Paul says that these rules lack any value in doing that. Victory over living for the flesh is found in Jesus, not in discipline and rules. As an example perhaps, people who live disciplined lives as part of a sect in a commune somewhere can appear to have denied themselves and conquered their human appetites but often is it in precisely those settings that there is sexual abuse. Or that the leaders are accumulating great wealth?

Discipline and rules won’t change our hearts. Only Jesus can. That is why Paul, in this letter, keeps talking about the centrality, the supremacy and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ. We don’t need to go beyond Jesus. We need to know Jesus better. Forget the pressure other people put on you; just get to know Jesus better.

But isn’t there value in discipline? Shouldn’t Christians be disciplined? Of course. Paul knew all about the value of discipline.

1 Cor 9:24-27 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Clearly, if we are going to grow in our faith or be of any use to God, we are going to have to be disciplined. We are going to have to be disciplined in giving time to reading our Bibles and to prayer. Being selfish is often easy. Being obedient takes discipline.

But that discipline is about knowing Jesus more clearly, loving Him more dearly and following Him more nearly. It is not a set of rules, or special knowledge or superior spiritual experiences that become a substitute for Jesus, as if we can achieve because of these things when actually success comes only from Jesus. Nor is it a set of rules or special revelation or superior spiritual experiences that claims to go beyond Jesus – to add to what Jesus can do for us. Ideas and practices that are ultimately human and worldly – no matter how spiritual they appear – have no value in helping us be God’s holy people.

Time and time again, in this book, Paul says that Jesus is what we need and all that we need. He is sufficient. He is everything. The fullness of God dwells in Him. In today’s passage, all these other things are a shadow. Jesus is the reality. People can have great ideas but they might also have lost contact with the head and it is the head who gives the body unity and growth. Behind many of these philosophies and lists of rules are demonic forces who long to keep us from God. Jesus has defeated those forces and set us free from them. Why would we go back and submit to those forces?

Be alert to people telling you that what you really need to be close to God is some superior knowledge, superior lifestyle or superior spirituality. Jesus is the ultimate. You cannot go beyond Jesus. If you go beyond Jesus, you actually go away from Jesus.

If you are a Christian, then Jesus dwells in you. You don’t need anything else. If you are hungry and thirsty for more of God, then get to know Jesus better. Don’t go beyond Jesus. Go to Jesus. Last week we saw that Paul’s goal was that people would know Jesus. It is not about rules. It is about knowing Jesus. Make that your goal: to know Jesus and to help others know Him better. That is the ultimate.