Light in a dark world

We live in very challenging times. No doubt every generation has said that, and certainly every generation has it's own challenges to deal with. My parents' childhood was in the midst of the great depression and as young adults they lived with the reality of a world at war. In my generation it was the Vietnam war, race riots, collapse of moral standards and the explosion of the drug culture.  

None of those things have ended, and today's teens live in a world where war and racism and drugs persist. But they have added pressures previous generations didn't worry about. Things like terrorism, and the pressures brought about by social media. (not the least of which is cyber bullying sometimes extreme enough to lead to suicide)

Humankind would like to think we are "evolving" into a better society, and progressing to a higher level of morality and social responsibility. The evidence, however, is that hatred and violence and all kinds of evil are undiminished. Alcohol abuse, drug addictions, family violence, and immorality continue to be rampant. As a Christian I often feel I don't belong in the world I was born into.

If you and I are dismayed by what we see, how much more is God's heart broken? It occurs to me sometimes that if we could really see everything, as God sees it, we couldn't cope. If we could really see the extent of depravity in the world it would be too much for us to handle.

That makes me wonder sometimes why God allows it to continue. Why hasn't He put an end to it, as He did in the days of Noah, or in the time of Sodom and Gomorrah? While I ask that question at times, and even wish God would just finally put things right, I trust that He knows what He is doing. He will work out His plan on His timetable. Some day He will say "enough", but He'll do it when He's ready.

In the meantime we continue to live on in a world where evil abounds. How are we supposed to respond to that? I believe Jesus gave the answer in what we call the sermon on the mount. In Matthew 5: 13 - 16 Jesus said this.

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."

In a nutshell, Jesus said we are to be different from society's norm. Our very presence should make things taste better. Our lives should be like a warm light shining in darkness. 

In a world of violence Jesus said to be peacemakers. In a world of hate Jesus said love your enemies. In a world of immorality Jesus taught righteousness. In a world of greed Jesus said store up your treasures in heaven. In a world of darkness Jesus said "be light".

I realize I started this topic with some serious doom and gloom, but I have an important point to make. The point is that we have a vital role in a world where evil seems to have free reign. It is not to write letters or hold placards or sign petitions, though all of those things can be good at times. But our primary calling is to be like Jesus, a living demonstration of an alternative that is good and positive and attractive.

When the street lights come on at dusk, they are not particularly noticeable. As it gets darker and darker the light appears to be brighter and brighter. If the light becomes dim it has no value, but when it shines brightly in the dark of night it brings clarity and safety. I don't think there is any question that our world is becoming darker, but that means our light as Christians ought to be more and more obvious. The contrast of God's people to those who are without God should be the beacon that is impossible to miss. We should be attractive. We should be the warm light that promises a place of welcome and refuge to those who are wandering in the dark. 

Yes, the world is a dark place, and I fear for my grandchildren growing up in this darkness. Sometimes I get discouraged and just want God to wrap it all up. Well, one day He will do that, but until then we have a job to do. Our job is to be the salt that makes things taste better. Our job is to be the light that brings clarity to those in darkness. 

(Salt and light is one of the topics we will be looking at in our Grounded & Growing classes focusing on the sermon on the mount, beginning Feb 5)

Could I be a man after God's own heart?

This week as I was preparing for a new series of Bible studies in our small group I found myself confronted with an interesting question. I was considering the life of David, and found myself contemplating what it really meant when God referred to David as "a man after my own heart".

You are probably familiar with this statement about David, as I was, but I wonder if you have really considered what a truly incredible thing it was for God to say. God pointed at a human being and commented that that person had a heart just like His own. That's nothing short of amazing. 

Abraham was called a friend of God. Moses was permitted to see God and may have had a closer relationship with Him than just about anyone who ever lived. Other famous Bible characters trusted and were used by God, and became renowned as special men and women, but I know of no other person who was described as a man after God's own heart. 

The point of our study will be to try to figure out just what that meant. How could a man with so many flaws (murder and adultery to name a couple of biggies) earn such a title? What would my life have to look like to be described as having God's heart?

The fact that someone as imperfect as David could be awarded such praise from God is really a source of hope for all of us. You know better than anyone what your flaws are. I know better than anyone the sins that plague me, and the areas of my life where I fall short of God's standards. And though I am painfully aware of my many shortcomings, I've never murdered anyone and I've never committed adultery. If a man like David, who fell into this depth of sin, can still find God's approval there is hope for me - and for you.

What an amazing thing that would be, for God to say "Rob is a man after my own heart". What greater thing could I aspire to? What could God say about me that would be more gratifying?  

I wonder, do you have goals for your spiritual growth? Is there something you want to attain with respect to your spiritual maturity and your personal growth as a child of God? I've concluded there are few goals, if any, that would be greater than being a person God would look at and say "here's a man after my own heart".

In our class we are going to try to figure out what it was about David's life that brought about this high praise. Obviously it wasn't his sinless perfection, since he was far from that. It wasn't that he always had a perfect relationship with God. In fact on one occasion he got so angry with God that he refused to take the Ark back home and abandoned it for three months at the home of a man in another community. That is all good news for us, since perfect behaviour and a perfect relationship with God are things we are not likely to attain while living in this world. There must have been other things about David that brought God's approval. Maybe things like his trust in God, his mercy toward others, his love for God's word, his great desire to please God, and the way he responded when he committed some truly terrible sins. 

In recent years I've understood more clearly than ever before that the things that please God are the things in my heart. Things like love and mercy and kindness and generosity and forgiveness. These, and other things that spring from my heart, are the qualities God is looking for. These are what we see in God's heart, and the more they become reality for me the closer I will come to being a man after God's own heart. 

HOW THIRSTY ARE YOU?

RESURGENCE.  This is the theme Paul Penelton (Lead Pastor at The Mission) has chosen for our church for 2017. The word invokes different images for different people, but the idea behind this word as our theme is one of bringing new life where things have been dry and dusty and lifeless. Picture a spring coming forth out of the dessert, leading inevitably to green shoots and flowers and a general feeling of life and health. 

Our hope is that a spiritual resurgence, fresh waters and new life springing up in dry ground, will be the reality for individuals across our congregation. If that happens in individual lives it will build and accumulate until the church as a whole begins to experience the impact.

In John 7: 37 - 38 Jesus said, "Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the scripture declare 'Rivers of living water will flow from his heart'". Verse 39 goes on to explain that this living water is really the Holy Spirit.

A similar message is found in Isaiah 43: 18 - 19. It's a message that is easy to understand. Speaking through the Old Testament prophets, and then through Jesus in the New Testament, God is clearly inviting us to experience an abundant spiritual life, one where the Spirit of God is moving in and through us. The primary requirement is... that we want it. Jesus said "If anyone is thirsty..."

The problem for most of us is that we so easily become complacent about our spiritual life and our spiritual health. It's so easy for us to just be satisfied with whatever level of spiritual fervour (or lack of) we've been accustomed to. Far too often we could be described as dry, desert-like, where there is little evidence of real life. God says if you're not happy with that, if you want more, if you are thirsty, come. That's the invitation God has set before us, and the emphasis we want to bring to the people of The Mission in 2017.

Are we simply inviting you to make another new year's resolution that you can be excited about for a couple weeks, and then lose interest? This is not about a new year's resolution. It's not about resolving to do better. That's because it's not really something you can do by simply being determined or more disciplined. In fact it's not really something you can do at all, other than to say "I want it" and mean it from your heart. We don't manufacture God's living water by being resolved. God pours it out when we come to the place of acknowledging our need and our desire for the Spirit of God to be in control and active in our lives.

Back in December we had the congregation complete a survey. The purpose was to help us better understand how interested people are in their spiritual growth, and how we could provide help and support. In answer to the question "Rate your desire to grow spiritually" 93% answered with a 7 or higher, indicating a pretty high interest. Of that number half answered with a 10, suggesting this was the most important thing in their lives.

It is fantastic that people want to place such a priority on their spiritual health! Unfortunately it can be like saying "yes, it would be nice if I could lose 20 pounds". The desire may be there but is it the kind of desire that is truly motivating? 

The word thirsty implies a powerful desire. When someone is really thirsty, desperately thirsty, everything else takes second place. Quenching that thirst becomes the all consuming priority. That's the kind of thirst God wants us to have. It's why the greatest commandment is that we love God with all of our heart, all of our soul, and all of our mind. That speaks of a powerful thirst for God.

The reward for being spiritually thirsty is overwhelming. The reward is the Spirit of God bringing new life into our dry experience, moving in our lives in ways perhaps we have never experienced or imagined. Not a glass full. Not a pitcher full, but rivers of living water.

That's our challenge in 2017. Are you thirsty? Do you want to know the Spirit of God in your life like rivers of living water? Jesus gave the invitation. It's up to you.

The Spirit of Christmas

Almost everyone I know has some special feelings surrounding the Christmas season that don’t exist at other times of the year.  Those feelings are often described as “the spirit of Christmas” or “Christmas spirit”.  It might be that for some the phrase brings to mind Scrooge’s visits from mythical spirits in Dickens’ well worn story “A Christmas Carol”, but generally when people refer to the “spirit of Christmas” they mean something altogether different from that.  I’ve been thinking about just what it means. 

Even though for most Canadians the focus of Christmas has become trees and lights and gifts, certainly more so than Christ, it seems to me there is still a special feeling about the season that goes beyond those trappings.  Underlying all the commercialism and festivities is a feeling of warmth and goodwill that finds its way into almost every aspect of our lives.  It’s a feeling that can’t be explained by Santa and music and bustling malls. 

It may be short lived, just a few days perhaps, but Christmas brings displays of kindness and friendliness and cheerfulness that may not be expressed the same way at any other time of year.  Generosity abounds, as people who might not be prone to charitable giving at any other time of the year find a way to support toy drives, food banks, and other worthy causes.  People who may not always make time for family go to extraordinary lengths and travel great distances to be with family and good friends during the holidays.  Businesses shut down.  Commerce goes quiet.  Even battle fields traditionally go silent for a brief time, though the participants may not know the Prince of Peace or fully appreciate the true meaning behind the celebrations. 

This transformation that comes over much of the world every December 25^th is what people call the “spirit of Christmas”.  For those who don’t really believe in the Christ of Christmas, I’m not sure how they explain this annual change of feelings and attitudes.  I suppose they would attribute the warm feelings to fond memories of family traditions around the season, but that explanation doesn’t seem adequate to me.  Could it be more than that?  What is it about Christmas that makes hard hearts soften and bad attitudes mellow?

I believe in the “spirit of Christmas”, for lack of a better term, and I believe it does have a spiritual basis.  It’s not the lessons from the ghostly spirits of Dickens’ imagination, or even warm fuzzy feelings that are a byproduct of feel-good traditions.  It’s something more – something of profound spiritual significance that began with the proclamation of an angel 2000 years ago.  Remember the message of the angel who appeared to the shepherds on the night of Jesus birth.  “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”  As the night sky was suddenly filled with a great host of angels they further proclaimed “on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests”. 

When Jesus left behind the glories of heaven and came to be born in a Bethlehem stable it was the most important happening of all time.  This was a monumental event, and although it created a stir among a relatively few people on our world at the time, all of heaven was totally captivated and rejoicing with the birth of Jesus.  The gift of God’s own son to the world was such an amazing act, such a magnificent event that even the world’s calendar pivots around that time.  Augustus and Herod, great leaders by human standards, were manipulated by God like pawns on a chessboard so that every circumstance of Jesus’ birth would be according to His perfect plan.  The stars in the sky changed from their normal patterns to obey God’s will.  Heavenly beings appeared in all their glory to make the greatest announcement of all eternity. Nothing could or would ever be the same.

One of the greatest testimonies to the power and grace of God is that 2000 years later the proclamation of the angels still holds true.  In spite of a world that has largely turned its back on God and His amazing gift, even for those who do not acknowledge the deity of Christ and the true meaning of Christmas, the reality of Christmas still has the power to encourage goodwill and soften hearts.  Each year, at the time we have set aside to remember the birth of Jesus, there is an unexplainable sense joy and peace.  Just as the angels promised.  I believe that when God gave the gift of His Son, He also left a few other little gifts under the tree, as it were.  The angels told us about them ; gifts of joy for all the people, and peace for mankind.  I’m convinced that is the “spirit of Christmas” unbelievers often experience but are at a loss to explain.

Of course Christmas can be a time of sadness for some - those who are alone, or those who are reminded of joyful Christmas times past that can never be repeated.  But even for those whose feelings of sadness or loss are magnified by the festivities of Christmas, Jesus can still be the source of joy.  He’s still the Prince of Peace who said “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

If you observe again this Christmas season that attitudes are just a bit brighter and the hearts of people are a bit softer, give thanks.  The gifts of joy and peace God gave on that night so long ago are still being felt even in the midst of spiritual darkness.  And if the joy and peace of Christmas don’t well up in your heart as perhaps they once did, I encourage you to look anew to Jesus, the ultimate gift of love who brings peace and joy to the hearts of those who seek him.


May you sense the presence and reality of Jesus in your life in a very special way this Christmas season.

God's priorities - different from ours?

Jesus was a radical. He was a non-conformist who challenged the views of just about everyone He came into contact with. His life and teaching was different from most people. As God, He was showing us God's way. He said crazy things like "love your enemies", and "store up your treasures in heaven". 

I don't know if it's entirely legitimate to try and sum up all of Jesus' teachings about life in one word, but if I could I might choose the word "priorities". I think Jesus taught us that the priorities we humans generally accept and live by are considerably different from what God says should be important to us.

Every Christmas it seems there is a "must have" toy. Are you old enough to remember parents frantically searching and willing to pay any price to get their hands on a Cabbage Patch Doll? Maybe you are more from the Tickle Me Elmo generation. Every year it's something, and I learned this week that the toy every good parent just has to buy for their children this year is the "Hatchimal". It's a giant egg that, as the child plays with it, decides to "hatch". It lights up and the shell opens and inside is a furry little creature that does wonderful things.

The only reason I know this is that I saw a news report the other day where parents lined up from 4:00 am for a chance to buy one of the last Hatchimals expected in the toy store before Christmas. A few people were there looking for an opportunity to re-sell the $70 toy, currently available on Ebay for $250 and more. Most were parents willing to go to extraordinary lengths to make sure their child would be one of the privileged few to open a Hatchimal on Christmas morning. One parent with tears in her eyes shared how important it was that her daughter be happy, and apparently a self hatching stuffed bird is the key to that happiness.

This would all be really absurd if it weren't simply an example of a problem most of us have. We have lost our sense of what's important. Our priorities and God's priorities for us are way out of line. Here's what James had to say about that.

"You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures."

You might assume I am talking about the human tendency to want more and more money and bigger and better stuff. That's part of it of course, but it goes way beyond that. Why do so many married people have affairs? Because their selfish desire for something they don't have is more important than the people who will be hurt. Why do people lie and cheat and treat other people badly in the workplace? Because they want more power or prestige and that's worth more than whatever collateral damage they cause to themselves and others. 

Do Christians have priority problems? 

Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. He said the second is to love our neighbour as ourselves. If these were really the guiding principles of our lives, think how they would affect our priorities. 

• we would spend time praying, and reading the Bible, and really getting to know God
• we would want God's will for our lives, ahead of our own plans
• we would act in ways we know please God instead of doing what feeds our selfish desires
• we would put the needs of others at least on a par with our own
• we would give God his rightful place in our families, instead of a token acknowledgement 
• we would teach our children what's really importatant, instead of teaching them that happiness comes from opening a Hatchimal at Christmas
• we would give God his rightful place in our schedules instead of being so busy with our own priorities that there is no time left for God
• we would invest our time and resources in things that are eternal instead of the stuff we will leave behind
• we would treat others the way we want to be treated instead of always wanting to get our own way

Since I've used the "must have" toy as an illustration, I want to tell you a story. When we lived in Edmonton we were good friends with a couple that earned more money than just about anyone else in our church. The dad grew up as a missionary kid in Africa, and both he and his wife had inherited a healthy set of Godly priorities. The time of my story was during the Cabbage Patch craze and they had a daughter exactly in the age group that was crazy over the dolls. We went to their house at Christmas and were surprised to be joined by two homeless men Brian encountered and invited for Christmas dinner. During our visit the daughter was very pleased to show us her "Cabbage Patch" doll, which wasn't a Cabbage Patch at all, but a cheaper copy she was just as happy with. These are just examples of how they lived every day.

It's been a long time and we haven't been in touch with that family for many years, but I will always remember and respect them as a couple who had their priorities right, and consciously built those priorities into their children. 

We have a culture that promotes selfishness, and a God who promotes selflessness. I'm faced with a choice, and so are you. Which one are you buying into? Which one are you teaching your children? Are God's priorities reflected in your life and family?

  

AT THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL

The Gospel message is simple, right? Yes... and no. What we need to understand about the Gospel to come to faith in Christ is straightforward, to the point that many children have clearly understood and accepted this truth. Yet when we look beyond the simplicity and explore in depth what the Bible teaches us about God's plan of salvation there is so much more. Our appreciation for God and what He has done grows and grows as we discover the heart of God and the richness of this plan we call The Gospel. That's what we've been trying to do this fall in our "Grounded & Growing" classes, and once again no one has been more impacted by these discoveries than I.

We have been working to uncover God's plan from where it began, with creation, and follow it through to the amazing sacrifice Jesus made so we can be restored into relationship with God. One thing shouts out to me in every step of God's plan. GOD LOVES US!!!

I have been a follower of Jesus for more than 50 years, and I have to confess its really only been in the last couple of years that I have really come to understand and appreciate how much God loves us. I didn't really get what John meant when he wrote the words "God is love." I didn't really understand the fact that since the beginning of time as we know it God has been a loving Father reaching out to us, longing to bring us into a perfect relationship with Him, like Adam had on the day he was created in the garden. 

One of the things that has most helped me see this truth is the story Jesus told of the prodigal son. Jesus, who knows and understands the character of God in a way that by far exceeds anything we could imagine, described the Father's reaction when his wayward son came home. The love and compassion is overwhelming.

We can easily infer from Jesus words the Father watching the road in hope and anticipation of the day when his son would return. Not so he could scold or berate or punish, but so he could wrap his arms around his son and welcome him back into the family. Restoring that relationship with his son was uppermost in the heart of this loving compassionate Dad.

God has often been seen by those who don't know better as a stern and vengeful tyrant waiting to pour fire and brimstone on those who don't follow His every whim. That's not the God of the Gospel. That's not the God I know.

I know a God who created mankind so He would have someone to share His immense love with. I know a God who for thousands of years has used every means to draw His wayward children back to Himself. I know a God who allowed His own perfect Son to suffer and die and take on the sin of world because He loved us so much He just had to make a way for us to come back home. I know a God who has patiently endured mankind's sin and rebellion for millenia while extending His grace and invitation to return to Him. I know a God who is lovingly preparing a home for us where we can live for eternity.

People find it easier to see what they want to see in the life of Jesus. In Jesus we see love, compassion, grace, and mercy. They somehow have the impression that Jesus is the nice part of the trinity,  and that He holds God the Father back from pouring out His wrath on us. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Jesus said in John 14: 9 "anyone who has seen me has seen the Father". One of the things Jesus did was to demonstrate to us the character of God. He personified the love of God. 

Isn't God also a holy God who can't tolerate sin? Absolutely! He said the wages of sin is death. But he didn't make this pronouncement from a heart of anger and vengeance, but from a broken heart. That's why the verse in Romans goes on to say "but the gift of God is eternal life". 

God hates sin. In fact He can't stand it. What He hates even more is the fact that His people are captive and under the sentence of death that sin brings. Because He loves us. So much so that at a tremendous cost to Himself He made a way. That's the Gospel. That's why John says "God is love".

WILL I EVER LEARN TO LET GOD BE IN CONTROL?

I wish I could learn a lesson once, and then just follow it. Instead I seem to have to make the same mistake over and over, until I realize "oh yeah, I went through this before". 

I feel like that right now, and it relates to my Spiritual Formation ministry at The Mission. 

There have been occasions in the past when I have worked and worked on something in ministry and wondered why I wasn't seeing the results I expected. I was working hard and had the best of intentions but the breakthrough I was looking for wasn't happening. God had to bring me to the point of understanding that my best efforts weren't what counted. Ministry can only succeed when God is at work. When realized that and gave it over to God amazing things happened. This is a very important principle, and because of my experiences I have taught it to people far and wide.

Apparently that doesn't prevent me from falling into the same trap again and again.

My job at The Mission is to encourage and help people to grow spiritually. It's a really important job and I take it seriously. Over the past year I have worked diligently to teach and preach and write and organize all kinds of things to help that to happen. I've pursued what I thought were some pretty good ideas, and the response to many of these has been positive. Still, I can't escape feeling a bit of futility, asking myself "is the spiritual growth happening?" There are some positive signs, but I'm not a patient person and nothing ever seems to happen fast enough for me. Of course in my head I realize things like this take time and I will have to exercise some patience. Still, I have to ask, "Does God have more that He wants to do?" My answer is "absolutely!" The hard lesson is that it's not going to happen by me working harder or smarter.

I would love to see every single person at The Mission reaching their full potential in their relationship with God, but my best efforts aren't going to make that happen. It will happen when God is at work. That doesn't mean I should sit back and do nothing. It means I must allow God to be in control. It means I must faithfully follow His leading rather than simply pursuing my own "good ideas". And I must daily commit to Him the things that I can't accomplish.

Classes, sermons, conferences, and whatever other programs we can come up with won't create in people a desire to grow, and without that desire the best programs in the world will have little impact. Only the Holy Spirit can encourage in someone a desire to grow in their relationship with God. 

The things we want to see will only happen when God is at work. Here's something we must understand. God is not a follower. He insists on being the leader. He will step back and leave it to us if we insist on pushing Him out of the way or fail to let Him be in control. So how do we see God at work? We pray. 

I don't mean to say there has been no prayer. I pray about this fairly often. Others in the congregation pray regularly for the church and it's people. What I am saying is that it's time for us to go beyond a kind of token acknowledgement of God. It's time to take prayer from somewhere down the list of things we do, and put it at the top of that list.

Do we want spiritual growth? Let's pray.

Do we want to impact our community? Let's pray.

Do we want Godly leaders led by God?  Let's pray.

Do we need more workers? Let's pray.

Do we need resources? Let's pray.

Aside from a few people who are called specifically to a ministry of prayer, most of us have to actively do things in addition to our prayers. So I'm not suggesting we sit back and wait for God to wave His hand. He could do that, but for some reason He wants us to be part of the process. So we serve to the best of our ability, but only while constantly acknowledging God's leadership, our dependence, and our willingness to place Him and His plans above our own. I am recommitting to that personally, and in response to how I feel God is leading, I am calling on the people of the Mission to make that commitment as well. 

The essence of my prayer is something like this. Maybe you would adopt this kind of prayer as well.

"God, I thank you for calling me to serve you and for entrusting me with the responsibilities that come with that calling. It is a privilege to be your servant. The job you have called me to is a great challenge. In fact it is impossible for me to accomplish without you. So please forgive me for rushing ahead and trying to do your work on my own. I acknowledge once again that this is your ministry. The control is rightfully yours, and my role is to serve however you may lead. I want to see your will accomplished, and I want to do my part in the process, but I am totally dependent on you. I need your guidance, I need your enabling, and I for sure need you to do the spiritual work I am not capable of doing. So Lord, please take control of my ministry at The Mission. Help me to not run ahead of you, but give me patience to to await for what you will accomplish in your time. I am expecting great things at your hand."