Do you like a good mystery? Whether it is an Agatha Christie, CSI or an old fashioned jigsaw puzzle - many people like solving puzzles. Our trip through Ephesians brings us this week to 3:1-13, in which Paul talks about a mystery. In the New Testament a mystery is not something we struggle to work out or find out or solve. A mystery is something that is only known because it has been revealed by God.
If we were left to our own devices to come up with our own religion, without any previous knowledge of the Bible, how many people would come up with the concept of grace? I would hazard a guess at none. The idea that there is nothing we can do to make God love us more and there is nothing we can do to make God love us less... The idea that God would give all He had because of His love for us - even when we were His enemies... And here in Ephesians one of the consequences of that grace is that previous enemies - Jew and Gentile - are now heirs together, members together and sharers together - they are 'one in Christ'. In Galatians Paul tells us that existing hierarchies no longer apply: Jew/Gentile, male/female, slave/free.
But this is an understanding that we come to through the revelation of God. God's Word is the Bible, and therefore if we are seeking to live as a disciple of Jesus we need to be reading the Bible because God's ways are so different to the world's ways. You won't pick up God's values on Eastenders or in The Sun. You'll find them in the Bible.
Monday, 19 May 2008
Thursday, 1 May 2008
Why do teenage girls spend forever on the phone?
Have you ever wondered why teenage girls spend so long on the phone—even to friends that they last saw at school only 5 minutes ago? Or why when they get in from school they need to get on to Facebook or MSN in order to ‘chat’ to the friends that they’re talking to on their mobiles, even though they last saw them 5 minutes ago at school.? Have you ever watched an episode of Big Brother and wondered why on earth any sensible person would watch a bunch of people living in a house, night after night after night?
The answer, I think, is the Trinity.
God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God is love. And by understanding God as three in one we can understand that within God there is relationship. We have been created in the image of God and therefore we are created for relationship. There is a sense in which we crave relationships—because we have been made that way. But the society in which we live, here in London in 2008, seems to be pulling us away from meaningful relationships.
Families spend less and less time together as parents are forced into a situation where both parents work shifts in order to pay the bills as the cost of living continues to rise. Others choose to work long hours in pursuit of the ideal job, car, house... We live next to people who we don't know. We don't get involved with them and they don't get involved with us - and they'll have moved on within a few months anyway. It is a sad reflection on our society that we have to teach our children not to talk to strangers. We have created a society in which people are too afraid to care: last week a young child was seen crawling out of a Mothercare store and towards their car park - this was seen by a passerby whose response was not to pick up the child but to alert a member of staff - to pick up the child could have led to all kinds of repercussions - we conclude that it's best just not to get involved.
And yet we are created to be in relationships, to have friends, to be part of a community. What is our culture's answer? Not to reflect critically on itself but to create virtual friends and communities. To give us reality TV so each summer we can spend weeks 'getting to know' and sharing a house with a bunch of Big Brother hopefuls.
But are virtual relationships and communities a bad thing? Does it matter whether I talk to someone face to face or over the Internet? What do you think?
The answer, I think, is the Trinity.
God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God is love. And by understanding God as three in one we can understand that within God there is relationship. We have been created in the image of God and therefore we are created for relationship. There is a sense in which we crave relationships—because we have been made that way. But the society in which we live, here in London in 2008, seems to be pulling us away from meaningful relationships.
Families spend less and less time together as parents are forced into a situation where both parents work shifts in order to pay the bills as the cost of living continues to rise. Others choose to work long hours in pursuit of the ideal job, car, house... We live next to people who we don't know. We don't get involved with them and they don't get involved with us - and they'll have moved on within a few months anyway. It is a sad reflection on our society that we have to teach our children not to talk to strangers. We have created a society in which people are too afraid to care: last week a young child was seen crawling out of a Mothercare store and towards their car park - this was seen by a passerby whose response was not to pick up the child but to alert a member of staff - to pick up the child could have led to all kinds of repercussions - we conclude that it's best just not to get involved.
And yet we are created to be in relationships, to have friends, to be part of a community. What is our culture's answer? Not to reflect critically on itself but to create virtual friends and communities. To give us reality TV so each summer we can spend weeks 'getting to know' and sharing a house with a bunch of Big Brother hopefuls.
But are virtual relationships and communities a bad thing? Does it matter whether I talk to someone face to face or over the Internet? What do you think?
Monday, 28 April 2008
Do you want the Good News or Bad News First?
Given the option of good news or bad news I would always go for the bad news first - get that over and done with, and then end up with the good news. In Ephesians 2:1-10 Paul starts with the bad news and then moves on to the good news. Paul is writing to encourage Christians who were living at a time when declaring allegiance to Jesus was considered treason against Caesar (who at the time was Nero). Being a Christian was enough to potentially bring all the power of the Empire against you and lead to your death, maybe even by crucifixion.
The contrast between the bad news and the good news is dramatic. The bad news is a description of where they were spiritually before the became followers of Jesus. The good news is a description of where they are now spiritually, now that they are following Jesus. Before they became followers of Jesus they followed the ways of this world - they fitted in with how things were, they kept their heads down, they did what they wanted - they certainly did little that would have resulted in execution or prison at the hands of the Roman authorities (remember that Paul is writing from prison in Rome in about AD 60). I imagine that life was certainly less of a struggle before. So why on earth would people decide to follow Jesus in that particular context?
It is because of the reality of what Paul refers to in Ephesians as the 'heavenly realms'. The spiritual dimension that exists. The fact that this life is not just about what you can see, touch, measure, buy, sell... And so whilst what goes on in this world is important we must not lose sight of what goes on in the spiritual dimension. And so from prison, Paul is able to encourage these people who believe in Jesus. And he encourages them that the God they are following is love. That this God won't treat them like they deserve to be treated, but rather has made them spiritually alive, where once they were spiritually dead.
And this amazing contrast is only possible because of God. There is nothing we can do that will make God love us more and there is nothing we can do that will make God love us less. This transformation from death to life is a gift from God, paid for by Jesus' death on the cross. Whatever we are facing this week let us be encouraged by this wonderful truth.
To listen to this message click here.
The contrast between the bad news and the good news is dramatic. The bad news is a description of where they were spiritually before the became followers of Jesus. The good news is a description of where they are now spiritually, now that they are following Jesus. Before they became followers of Jesus they followed the ways of this world - they fitted in with how things were, they kept their heads down, they did what they wanted - they certainly did little that would have resulted in execution or prison at the hands of the Roman authorities (remember that Paul is writing from prison in Rome in about AD 60). I imagine that life was certainly less of a struggle before. So why on earth would people decide to follow Jesus in that particular context?
It is because of the reality of what Paul refers to in Ephesians as the 'heavenly realms'. The spiritual dimension that exists. The fact that this life is not just about what you can see, touch, measure, buy, sell... And so whilst what goes on in this world is important we must not lose sight of what goes on in the spiritual dimension. And so from prison, Paul is able to encourage these people who believe in Jesus. And he encourages them that the God they are following is love. That this God won't treat them like they deserve to be treated, but rather has made them spiritually alive, where once they were spiritually dead.
And this amazing contrast is only possible because of God. There is nothing we can do that will make God love us more and there is nothing we can do that will make God love us less. This transformation from death to life is a gift from God, paid for by Jesus' death on the cross. Whatever we are facing this week let us be encouraged by this wonderful truth.
To listen to this message click here.
Tuesday, 22 April 2008
Have Your Say
One of the ways to wind me up - and some of you are coming to realise that there are actually a number of ways you can do that - is to tell me that Christians shouldn't be involved in politics. In the first century claiming 'Jesus is Lord' was a political statement because you were simultaneously stating that 'Caesar is not Lord'. And such a political statement could very easily get you executed.
On Thursday, 1 May, those of us who live in London have the chance to make our Christian voice heard as we vote for a Mayor and the 25 member Greater London Assembly.
But listening to the media you may not be aware that there are more people standing than Ken and Boris. In fact there are a number of candidates and parties who are standing. One of these parties is specifically Christian and looking to see gospel values implemented across our city.
Because of the system of proportional representation being used there is a very real chance that whilst Alan Craig may not be successful in his bid to become Mayor, he could well be elected to the 25 member Greater London Assembly.
So don’t stay at home—make your voice heard.
To find out more about the ballot papers you will receive, the different candidates and parties visit http://www.ibfchurch.org.uk/londonelections.htm
On Thursday, 1 May, those of us who live in London have the chance to make our Christian voice heard as we vote for a Mayor and the 25 member Greater London Assembly.
But listening to the media you may not be aware that there are more people standing than Ken and Boris. In fact there are a number of candidates and parties who are standing. One of these parties is specifically Christian and looking to see gospel values implemented across our city.
Because of the system of proportional representation being used there is a very real chance that whilst Alan Craig may not be successful in his bid to become Mayor, he could well be elected to the 25 member Greater London Assembly.
So don’t stay at home—make your voice heard.
To find out more about the ballot papers you will receive, the different candidates and parties visit http://www.ibfchurch.org.uk/londonelections.htm
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