Some years ago, Lee Strobel wrote a chapter entitled—
-What Would Jesus Say to Madonna?
-if Jesus met this Pop Mom after a London concert—
-would He ignore or condemn her?
If there is a text that tells us—it would have to be John 4
-the story of a woman with her own list of failed relationships
-her own list of outrageous behaviors (read 4-26)
What would Jesus say?
1-I’M INTERESTED IN YOU
-what Samaritan means today--listeners
-John seems to underscore this from the start-by using the word “had”-4:4
- obligation, direct route—a shorter way to Galilee, most Jews took the longer journey, for Samaria was the other side of the tracks-the part of town you avoided
racial half breeds-religious mixed breeds-it was the area where immigrants from pagan cultures of the past—Assyria, Babylon, Persia came, settled, mixed with the Jews that were there
-the place where religion got screwed up—Torah, paganism, and alternative
temples all mixed into a strange brew of beliefs
-the Jews occasionally sought to take care of the problem—like burning down
their temple in the second century BC
Hence-there was no love lost between these two groups
-these were the Sunnis living next to Shi’ites, Hamas next to Jewish settlers
-Samaria was the epitome of ritual impurity
Nonetheless, Jesus had to go through Samaria
-not because He was in a hurry
-Jesus never seemed to have a list of “Things to Do Today”
-He attended wedding feasts that lasted for days-allowed Himself to get
distracted by “nobodies”
-would accept almost anyone’s invitation to dinner
-He was always on divine standard time
“Had” can only mean one thing—He had to go through Samaria because Jesus
was interested in someone
-interested because He was in the business of reclamation—not condemnation
-and there was someone He had to reclaim
-something His compassion, His divine will, His eternal purpose required Him to
do-so He came-
And a conversation began with a woman on the fringe of the fringe-
-that it was noon and she was isolated suggests she was socially isolated, living
on the periphery-detached from the lifeblood of the community
What John is painting here is the ultimate picture of disconnect
-if John 3 was a story of the ultimate INSIDER -the learned, powerful respected, orthodox—a man, a Jew, a ruler named
Nicodemus
-John 4 is the story of the ultimate OUTSIDER -an unschooled, without influence, despised, unorthodox, Samaritan, woman, sinner—with no name
And both needed Jesus
-but unlike the insider—who sought after Jesus
-Jesus went to the woman at the well—because He had to
-because HE WAS INTERESTED-particularly in those marginalized by others
-making the first move—He always does—it’s never us who find God—He finds
us
Here’s the second thing Jesus would say—
2-I’M INTERESTED—NOT SO MUCH IN WHAT YOU CAN GIVE ME—BUT
WHAT I CAN GIVE YOU
-it doesn’t begin this way
-Jesus-it appears-was wanting something from her (read 7b)
-but then-she was used to someone wanting something from her-particularly if it
was a man
-but this conversation was still a surprise
-Jesus’ request brought suspicion, maybe even animosity to the surface-read vs
9
-these were people they did not associate—lit “use together with”
-touch one another’s dishes, touch one another’s lives
Common was the saying—to eat the bread of Samaritans was to eat the bread of
swine
And then—Jesus, as He is prone to do—turned the conversation on its head—
reversed all of the assumptions-read vs 10
-it turns out—He was less interested in what she could offer
-far more interested in what He could give her
-it wasn’t about what He wanted at all
Here’s a third thing Jesus might say—
3-I’M INTERESTED-NOT SO MUCH IN MEETING YOUR TEMPORAL
WANTS—BUT IN MEETING THE DEEPEST NEED OF YOUR SOUL
-living water is language that seems cryptic—not because Jesus is intentionally
unclear
-He is describing something that cannot be easily explained
-Jesus is speaking in metaphor—there are no literal words to describe what He
offers
-it is far too profound
-our language falls short
-like born again, bread of life
At best—all it can do is serve as a pointer to the thirst quenching life mediated by
the Spirit
But this woman remains on the earthly-read vss 11-12
-vss 13-14-she can’t get past H2O-vs 15
She has failed to grasp the true dimension of her need
-that even if Jesus brought physical water to her every day
-she would still be thirsty
In an interview in Vogue some years ago, Madonna acknowledged her own thirst
for something that satisfies—
“I’m always struggling with fear. I push past one spell of it, thinking I’m special,
then find myself thinking I am mediocre. That’s always been pushing me,
pushing me. Because even though I’ve become somebody, I still have to prove
I’m SOMEBODY”
-so she keeps reinventing herself, developing a more daring version—a treadmill
of doing something more outrageous to keep her fans
-a treadmill that leaves her more and more thirsty
In the story of John 4—this woman kept pursuing relationships
-a treadmill that left her in the desert of relational thirst
-Jesus pointed this out (read vss 16-18)
Jesus started rummaging around in her injured spaces
-and touched her pain
-her guilt, despair, need
-He understood the failing cycle she had experienced
-multiple relationships, serial failures
-year by year accumulating wounds and scars—the kind that come from being
the source of someone else’s gratification—leaving her dry
But it is much more preferable to switch the conversation-read vss 19-20
-talk about another subject—safe things—like religion-
-get Him off on some controversy
-pre-trib/post trib?
-once-saved-always saved?
-cessationist/non-cessationist?
-it was much safer to keep the walls up
-but it only opened a door for Jesus to talk about an even deeper thirst
-if relationships left her dry—religion left her dehydrated
-so He moved her past form to function
-past the place of worship to the nature of worship
-past law and confusion
-to spirit and truth
-from ritual to relationship with Him
APPLICATION
So what is Jesus saying to us in this conversation?
1-God is very interested in you--compelled
-His passion for our lives, His commitment to justice, demanded that He leave
His neighborhood and enter into ours
-we are that valuable-are you convinced?
2-God is not so interested in what we can give Him
-our tendency is to assume that a relationship with Jesus is largely about what
He wants, what He expects, what He needs from us
-lots of us live with this notion it’s largely about what Jesus needs from us
-our money, our service
-when if we really -it’s actually about what He wants to give us—are we asking?
3-God is interested in satisfying our lives at the deepest level
-will we settle for less?
-let sin and religion get in the way?

music I have been listening too....books I have been reading

sun kil moon- april
iron and wine- our endless numbered days
death cab for cutie- plans
Dave crowder band- remedy

heavenly man- brother yun
irresistible revolution- shane claiborne
the shack- William P Young
long way down- Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman

conversations with Jesus

“The Jesus You Never Knew”
John is a book of conversations between Jesus and people, which if we are listening, is a conversation He ultimately has with us the unexpected, the unpredictable, and often THE UNCOMFORTABLE
- We think we know who He is, we realize we don’t know Him very well at all
Philip Yancey, in his book The Jesus I Never Knew writes, “Two words would never apply to Jesus—boring and predictable. And yet, we do all we can to tame Him, pare the claws of the Lion of Judah, certify Him as a fitting household pet for pale curates and pious old ladies.”
Not John, - This holy wonder has gone on a holy terror (chapter 2)
- Jesus has just cleaned house at the temple, alienated religious establishment
- And while most were ready to kill Jesus, there was one who remained curious (read verses 1-2a)
John wants us to know Nicodemus was important

But Nicodemus is curious, things are not adding up (read verse 2)

A) Maybe Jesus was a prophet, maybe the messiah
B) Maybe Nicodemus saw in Jesus something he wasn’t and wanted to be
- Someone willing to buck the establishment, “I wish I had the guts to do that.”
C) Maybe he wanted to keep up with the trends- Attracting crowds “What’s His angle? His secret? HOW DOES HE DO IT?”
D) Maybe he thought he could help Jesus, work on the rough edges, make
Jesus like him
But Jesus was not interested in courteous exchanges that go nowhere
- Religious talk - Nor was He impressed with position nor pedigree
- Nor conforming, only one thing: Nicodemus’ relationship with God (verse 3)
- Jesus did to religious people what He did with religious buildings
- He drove out things, and overturned things that get in the way,
Nicodemus had been brought up to measure everything by performance
- 613 rules, with 1521 emendations - 39 activities

- it all revealed a blindness - Like the rest of the religious establishment,
- And until he could see, he would not understand Jesus, nor the miracles, nor
anything else that had to do with the kingdom of God
- “Nicodemus, you must start over.”
- You must be REMADE, be born from above
- We’re not talking modification or alteration to the soul, but a radical
renewal
- Unfortunately, “born again” has lost its shock value
- But for Nicodemus, disoriented (verse 4) struck by the absurdity of it all
- “You’re telling me that to be in God’s kingdom, I have to turn the clock
back? I have to enter my mother’s uterus, climb up the birth canal?”
- So Jesus clarified (verses 5-8)
- The birth was spiritual, rather than physical birth that Jews placed their faith upon, but not simply birth, but growing from there. God starting a new family open to all………………
- It all served to further confound, unsettle Nicodemus (verse 9)
- HE WAS NOT GETTING IT!
- What about rituals, cleansings, commitment to the Torah? all of this was being challenged, maybe even dismissed - How? (verse 10)
- You are the teacher of Israel. and you do not get it?
- Jesus expected this religious official to know what he was talking about the prophets of a day God would bring a radical transformation, a circumcision, not of the flesh, but of the heart?
- “The day will come the law will be placed in their hearts”
(Jeremiah 31:33-34)
- “A day will come when I will put a new spirit in them, and I will be their
God.” (Ezekiel 11:19-20)
- “I will sprinkle water on you and cleanse you, and I will put My Spirit in you and I will be your God.” (Ezekiel 36:25-27)
- what matters are not these artificial boundary markers
- What matters is the CENTRE- The work of the Spirit, the interior, the heart
- not what restrains actions from the outside in, but on God’s intention to work from the inside out
- Verses 11-12 suggest the conversation came to a close (read)
Nicodemus didn’t get it, he did not buy it- Jesus couldn’t tell him anything more
- Truth goes nowhere when people want to stay in control, are unwilling to become as a child
So where is all of this going?
- What does this conversation have to do with most of us?
- After all, I know who Jesus is- I’ve been born again but God might be saying “LISTEN IN!”
- Those of us, anyway, who are religious,
A) Of all the people Jesus said “You must be born again” it was to Nicodemus?
- A church official, a LEADER, respected of community- Not to the woman caught in adultery, the woman at the well, the paralytic, the blind man, the crowd, or anyone else… only Nicodemus? - Why didn’t he use this language with them?
B) That of all the people He would talk about the unpredictable wind of the
Spirit, it was with Nicodemus, a religious leader
- Could it be that religious types are often in need of more radical change than harlots and traitors?
- Could it be that Jesus might be saying something like this?
- It is generally those who are most religious are those who most need the reminder that they are helpless
- We can become impressed with our holiness, with the things we do, and lose sight of our place- Lose sight of the wonder and fear of God and assume we know His ways, even become bored with what we assume!
- Even assume we can manipulate the movement of the Spirit
- That God is actually who we think He is, all figured out sitting on a shelf?
- When what we need to know more than anything else is that this daily work of God is not what we do, so much as it is what God does in us?
- If Nicodemus really got it, maybe the conversation would have turned and
he would have said something like this…
-“You mean there is nothing I can do?”
- “Then all I can do, MUST DO, is lay myself before God’s mercy
and hope His grace falls on me, the wind of His Spirit blows my
direction today?”
- “Exactly.”
how often do we, do I do that?
- How often do I wake up with the notion I have this terrifying wonder who could go any direction with my life
- The Spirit will blow where He wills
- Who might ask me to do things I never dreamed of?
- Such that I better get on my knees and plead for grace
- Or how often do I wake up with an assumed predictability of how life will go, what God will do?
- Use my prayers, even to keep Him from doing some wild thing he might want to
do with me?
BE OPEN TO THE SPIRIT AND WHERE HE LEADS, opportunity means, sailors wait for the time of the tide turning… will we seize the opportunities God sends us? Look to the cross, like the bronze snake, see the ultimate sign, believe and live, as God intends, him leading each one of us following!

jesus and his mother

Do our requests influence Jesus?
INTRODUCTION
First miracle (SIGN) performed by Jesus in his ministry. Now if you were here last week, we spoke about Nathanael and how he would see heaven open up on Jesus, as Jacob’s ladder foretold and now we see the transforming power of God’s love bursting upon the present world
Water…lots of water, 150 gallons possibly, are turned into a wine that is exclaimed to be the best ever. Around this miracle is weaved a conversation between Jesus and his mother Mary as he is making the shift from a son of a Jew to the savior of the world. What is the message to us from the text? God is saying to these people and through the centuries to us the following:
• “I am interested not so much in your requests as in your faith.” God is not with us to meet our needs and we he wants us to make the shift to believe whatever He says for us.
• “I am ready to do not so much what you expected but far more than you imagined.” This
is an assurance to us that He is interested but also will respond greater than expected.
• “I am committed to break into your world not so much for your happiness but far more for my glory.” He is not here to fulfill our agenda

Imagine and out of them Tap comes beer. That’s what happened to Haldis Gundersen Western Norway. She told reporters she thought it was a
"Water to beer miracle." mistake in the plumbing—someone downstairs at the Bar hooked the beer hoses to the water pipes to Gundersen’s apartment.
And while Haldis was getting beer from her tap those at the bar were not so thrilled, as they were getting water from their beer taps. Asked if the turning water-to-beer was a blessing, she responded—not much— the beer was flat.
IN JOHN 2, however, we find a water to wine incident that turned out to be a real miracle (read 2:1-11)
The story turns sideways in places--prompting a host of questions
-why did Mary feel responsible for the lack of wine—was she the caterer?
-why was Jesus so abrupt in His response? Was He being a party pooper?
-why did He reject His mother’s request—than proceed to do it? Did she give Him that look?
-why did Jesus use ceremonial cleansing jars rather than just fill up the wine containers?
The reader is left with a simple story that has a deeper meaning and significance -above all else--what is God saying to us in this story, in this conversation between Him and His mother, that just might change our lives?
Right away we notice this exchange took place in the context of a wedding
The wedding took place in Nathanael’s home town, Cana,
-and while weddings are nice
-weddings were like our weddings, baptisms, 21st, 5Oths, golden weddings all rolled into one in ANE culture, all the village would be invited, all the neighbouring villages too, which is why Mary and Jesus are there,
-Weddings brought celebration and joy to a rather mundane existence
-There would be a public procession and merriment that often stretched out a week or more lots of free food and wine—time off from work
In this case--the appearance of servants suggests it might have been a high-class ceremony
-Only the bridegroom might have been cheap--they were running out of wine
-Which—in a culture where hospitality is everything—would have been a huge embarrassment -a major social faux pas, the family would have to live with the shame of it for a long time, the bride and groom might regard it as being bad luck for their married life, even a possible lawsuit
-w/o wine—the wedding falls flat—the joy vaporizes—the party ends
It all prompted a conversation between Jesus and His mother-read John 2:3
When the wine had given out, Jesus' mother said to him, "They are out of wine."(GNT)
It’s not clear what she expected did this represent a mother waiting for her resourceful son to do something? Was it a woman who perceived in her son divinity—time to do your God thing Jesus?
APP-All of us find ourselves in this conversation—we’ve had it often with Jesus
-we are the worried Mary—things are not going right here—and Jesus needs to fix it –our world is like this dried up party—fill the emptiness
And Jesus’ response is not what we anticipate
-but then His response to our requests can be perplexing as well
-there is an obtuseness—yet a directness 2:4
"You must not tell me what to do," Jesus replied. "My time has not yet come."(GNT) -Jesus lit says-What is it to Me? What is it to you woman?
There is a seeming callousness and coldness in these terms
-“Woman, what does their problem have to do with me or you?”
But when we dig for clarity-we discover that Jesus is not speaking about their relationship to this wedding crisis—so much as their relationship with each other!!
“What is it to me, to you” was an idiom of the day that communicated this idea—
-What it is to you and what it is to me are two different things Let me illustrate with shopping what it is to me and what it is to my wife are two different things
-the other day- Donna and I were at tesco—we rarely go together—for the sake of our marriage -for me—it is a list, sales, speed (I actually time it) -for her-it is meander, talk, experience, try something new, time to enjoy
Here--Mary and Jesus saw the situation differently -she takes-“since we’re neighbours let’s be friends” seriously
For Mary—it was social crisis, a potential embarrassment, someone’s miscalculation- and Jesus needed to be informed -for Jesus-He understood the need
For Mary-it was about family responsibility, for Jesus-family definitions had changed
The language of “WOMAN” was intentional, things are changing Mary can no longer presume on the family tie
-for “family” has been redefined—His family is His disciples those who are His mother and brothers are now those who do His will- Mk 4:34
For Mary-it was doing her will—meeting her expectation—that her subordinate son—the oldest—will be resourceful -will find a way—and in the end—make her happy
for Jesus-the governing will of His life has changed from her to His Father in heaven -He is here to act on the authority of His Father-fulfill His purpose -He will not do ministry on other people’s terms
for Mary—it is time, for Jesus—it is not the time
-His ministry will have its moment in Jn 13:1-the hour has come—the Cross, the resurrection, the glory -the wedding in heaven-the consummation of the Bridegroom and His people, the church- the day will come when the symbol of blessing—wine--will drip from the mountains and flow from the hills-Amos 9:13 but not yet—not today
It was a critical moment in the conversation and you wonder where things will go from here how would Mary respond to these perplexing--even painful words?
-vs 5 tells us "Do whatever he tells you."(GNT)
On the surface—they could be understood as a mother who will nonetheless
have her way -but could it be these words declared just the opposite?
-this is Mary--pausing-reflecting—shifting -something had changed in their relationship
Illus-dad and me
Here-it was more than a shift in this parent-son relationship
-Mary was moving from an expectant petitioner to submissive believer -from seeing Jesus as subordinate to Jesus as Master No longer her will—but His will
-From “what I would like” to “whatever He says” -she will trust everything now to Him and Mary will now fade out of the story
But while the conversation ended—the story did not faith has been expressed—Mary has placed her trust now in His will -and Jesus always responds to these things
One can hear Him say--come on Nathanael—let’s see heaven open up
-let’s see something of the reality of GOD’S PRESENCE—something of the glory of God
-LET’S MAKE UP THERE COME DOWN HERE!
-for he is God who responds to faith
1-SO Jesus BLEW APART THEIR TRADITIONS-vss 6-7
-Jesus will not refill wine containers-John wants us to see this-vs 6
-He used the jars—those used for ceremonial washing -for the washing of utensils—the fulfilling of ritual washing regulations -symbols of Jewish law, custom, purification And Jesus did the unthinkable -He transformed these vessels of purity into containers of wine, God was doing a new thing in the old system, bringing purification, but in a new way, for Israel for the world
2-Jesus BLEW AWAY THEIR EXPECTATIONS
-150 gallons of wine—that should be enough—like about 900 bottles of wine -and not just any wine -not some cheap wine-but the best—wine served at the beginning-when palates are most discriminating and guests most impressionable—this wine that was anything but flat
No wonder-vs. 11 declares—it all amounted to a sign—all amounted to His glory
-Something of the kingdom of God was manifested-that broke all the categories
of possible and impossible - the kingdom of grace had begun
-The astonishing thing is that most were looking straight at the glory—and didn’t see it
-The servants missed it, the wedding party missed it -the master of the banquet was oblivious -and the bridegroom apparently was so distracted he could only but take the credit for whatever happened
So what is God saying to us in this conversation?
1-I AM INTERESTED—NOT SO MUCH IN YOUR REQUESTS—AS IN YOUR
FAITH
-it’s trust I respond to
-it wasn’t until Mary moved from her will to God’s will that something happened
-it’s the same with us
-like Mary-we usually tell God what is needed -but He will not conform to our will— or BE GOVERNED BY OUR DESIRES
-He is not here to meet our needs, fit our time frame -He is here to do the will of the Father—and respond to a faith that says—“whatever you say”
He is also saying 2-I AM READY TO DO—NOT SO MUCH WHAT YOU EXPECTED--BUT SO MUCH MORE THAN YOU IMAGINED
-when we have the faith to make the same shift Mary made -to lay our needs before Him and say—whatever you want -to avoid our attempts to tame Him (Aslan)
-we find not only that He is interested in the ordinary —the simple conundrums of life -interested in our dilemmas -He will do far and away more than we could have expected -blowing away our traditions, outstretching our imagination
And God is saying today to us 3-I AM COMMITTED TO BREAK INTO YOUR WORLD—NOT SO MUCH FOR YOUR HAPPINESS BUT GIVE YOU LIFE IN ALL IT’S FULLNESS—BUT EVEN MORE FOR HIS GLORY
-He is breaking in—do we notice? -His kingdom will not only come—it has come
-but when it breaks in—it is all about Him—not us-it is for His glory--this is why we exist—the universe exists -Christ does not exist to make much of us—we exist to make much of Him
CONCLUSION The transformation from water to wine shows the effect Jesus can still have today on people’s lives today, He came to give life and LIFE TO THE FULL, transformation only came when Mary said “do whatever he tells you” will you do whatever he tells you? Despite the failures and the disappointments of the past, will you do whatever he tells you?
REALISE HE WILL NOT DO WHAT YOU EXPECT BUT MORE THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE
RECOGNISE THAT NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS HE IS IN CONTROL AND HE HAS A PURPOSE TO TRANSFORM YOU AND GIVE YOU LIFE TO THE FULL
REMEMBER WE EXIST FOR HIM, NOT HIM FOR US
RESPOND IN FAITH, DO WHATEVER HE TELLS YOU TO DO AND EXPERIENCE HIS TRANSFORMING POWER

sermon this week and holiday club!

Series: Conversations with Jesus
“How Wide are Your Horizons?”

Conversations, Sandy and Angus, identical flats 7 rolls of wallpaper, 2 and half left over, so did I!
This first conversation with Jesus takes place with Nathanael
- A man we know little about, Early tradition says he went on to minister in Armenia, Persia, India flayed and beheaded or tied up in a sack and cast into the sea But all we really know about him is what John tells us here in
John 1:43-51
- On the surface, lots of things turn on their head in this story
1) Nathanael’s skepticism turned to sudden affirmation of Jesus
2) Jesus’ strange response
- Which makes us feel He is speaking in code, seems to be
concealing something, That John chooses to not explain Which is typical John Who is unwilling to accommodate to those who want fast, painless, effortless passages Quick and easy blessings
There is a hidden-ness here that invites us to dig deeper That at the end might hopefully lead to a rush of insight like the kind that comes to you at the end of a really good movie; The Sixth Sense, A Beautiful Mind You’ve been confused about something since the first scene, but suddenly it all comes together
In this case, it won’t come together until we work through a couple of layers
1) One of them is THE CULTURAL LAYER
In order for parts of the story to make sense, one must grasp the setting
Israel during the time of Jesus was under an oppressive regime, a pagan empire called Rome
And people coped with one of three responses:
A) Some chose to withdraw, like the Essenes, who inhabited the Jordan valley towards Masada, separatists who formed communities, believing their proper response was to separate from the wicked world and hope their righteousness would encourage the advent of Messiah
B) Closer to Jerusalem, others chose to be compromisers, collaborators, get along with the powers, get what you can out of them, hope that all of this is okay with God
The Pharisees sort of rode the fence between these first two groups
C) Finally, there were the zealots, who sort of went by the philosophy of “say your prayers, sharpen your swords, fight a holy war, and God will give the victory, God over the monsters” (NT Wright).
It’s within this third setting Jesus came (verse 43) “Jesus came to galilee”
Galilee was the site of numerous fishing villages (Bethsaida, Cana)
But you would be wrong to assume these were sleepy, peaceful, cozy towns
They may have looked more like modern day Iraq, Gaza near Israel breeding grounds for insurgents Who wanted no outside interference, no occupation, no domination Especially by pagans but What they did want was a deliverer
And so, Galilee, in particular, produced pseudo-Messiahs who periodically led rebellions, only to be crushed in ruthless crackdowns by the Romans Luke 13 describes one of the encounters in which Pilate was nothing short of cruel and cold-blooded
So Jesus came preaching kingdom language that resonated “Blessed are the poor, they shall inherit the earth” “Blessed are the oppressed, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”
And men responded Like Andrew who invited Simon, like Philip who found Nathanael
Men who were inclined to follow anyone brave enough to go public, speak out, and offer hope
Men desperate for a Messiah, But Nathanael was not so inclined to sign on Nathanael was a skeptic, like lots of people today He had his reasons, as verse 46 makes clear, It was inconceivable the messiah would come from a tacky place like Nazareth. Nazareth was a no-name town of about 300; so obscure it was not mentioned in a list of 63 Galilean towns in the Talmud
Whose inhabitants were largely unrefined, and uneducated
Like saying… We’ve found Him, Jesus of Bonnyrigg, Jesus of Penicuik
We’ve found the One we have waited for, Jesus of Dalkeith
The messiah, from boring
Judeans hated Galileans but Galileans hated people from Nazareth
- Philip did not debate, rather he responded, as we must to those who are skeptical
- “Come and see. Look into my life.”
- “Look into my Church.”
- “Look into Jesus.”
- “Meet Him for yourself and tell me what you think.”
- So Nathanael did, and here’s what he discovered
- It’s what we find when we come and see…
1) THIS IS THE ONE WHO KNOWS WHO WE ARE
- Jesus spoke to Nathanael as if He had met him, knew his heart, his choices
- And of course, He did (verse 47)” here comes one with no deceit in him, a true son of Israel” The opposite of Jacob, heHe knew what Nathanael was like, what his heart’s desire was. For Jesus knows everyone, and as the words suggest here, Jesus knows us inside out
- More than this, He knew Nathanael’s ways His going and sitting, just as He knows our movements (verse 48) “under the fig tree” the fig tree was the place of meditation, was Nathanael reading the account of Jacob? Was it his daily reading? If so this passage makes sense to us, Jacob means “he deceives, Nathanael is referred to as true, Jesus is showing him how well he knew him already!
- Jesus Knows our day to day lives as well with all it’s business Knows our needs, knows our tears, hears us even before we call Here is Someone who never discovers, is never surprised, never amazed, never needs to be informed
- There was something in His manner, His ways, His words that unnerved, convinced Nathanael
- That there is more than clairvoyance at work that this Jesus could see into his heart Such that in the span of a moment he moved from skeptic to follower
- But as the conversation continued, Nathanael came and saw, and discovered something even scarier (verse 51) “he will see heaven open………..”
- At first, I am not ready for the words I am expecting Jesus to say something like
this:
- “Nathanael, I like your immediate response, but whoa, whoa. I haven’t even explained the gospel. God loves you and has a plan for your life, but sin has separated you from God. God has provided a Saviour; His name is Jesus, that’s me Nathanael.” “Would you like to receive me into your heart?”
But Jesus in effect declares, “Nathanael, there’s something else you have to see, something God intends for all who come and see. But it will require working through another layer.
- The second layer - THE OT LAYER these words will make no sense until
we go back to the OT, Where Jesus was pushing Nathanael
And maybe it went something like this for him…
- “Wait a minute… I recognize these words. These were the same words Jacob heard. He too was linked to Israel; only he was a man with guile who cheated his brother out of his blessing. Not to mention his dealings with his uncle Laban, who one night fell asleep only to have a rather weird dream of angels ascending and descending on a ladder, standing on earth, leaning against heaven.”
- This was God breaking into Jacob’s small world Informing him life is a lot more than daddy’s blessing, Heaven is breaking into your world Jacob
- The reality of My presence and power is entering into your world
- “I will go with you” (Gen 28:15) “My angels will enter this world and surround you and guard you.”
- No, this was more. This was God breaking Nathanael’s world. I think Jesus knew that Nathanael was thinking and reading about Jacob, and this is why Nathanael is so convinced that not only Jesus is a rabbi, king of Israel but the son of God
2) JESUS IS THE ONE WHO BRINGS THE REALITY OF GOD’S PRESENCE AND POWER INTO OUR LIVES
A) God is once again revealing Himself, Jesus is saying to Nathanael
- I am that revelation Nathanael
- I am the one, God has done this, I am the culmination of God’s plan
- The Son of Man predicted in the OT is here
B) I am the promised Messiah, but not the One you are probably looking to sign up For I am bringing a kingdom far different than you have in mind
- A kingdom of justice and mercy a revolution far more radical than you imagined
- A revolution that goes neither with violence nor bloodshed, hatred nor revenge a revolution that is driven by a love that is stronger than death
A messiah who is not only for the nation of Israel but the whole world as well, and Jesus is the one who brings God’s presence for us today, his presence and his power, when Jesus speaks to Nathanael he is speaking of how the presence of God met with Jacob, how the presence of God is meeting with Nathanael, but also how his presence can meet with us today
V 51 is the key to this conversation, Jesus seems to be saying that you will see more than an act of insight into your life, before I even met you, what you will see from now on is the reality of Jacob’s ladder, if you follow me, you will see what it is like when heaven and earth are open to each other, you will have your life changed in amazing ways, Jesus is still saying that to us today.
The promise that God’s presence and God’s power is beside us is as true today as it was for Nathanael, when we let go of our skepticism, our hang ups and let God in, he will complete us in the most amazing ways that we can never expect. Nathanael had an open honest heart, that is all Jesus asks of you, to believe the truth not what you have always thought, or what you feel but the thing is we have to be open to Jesus, he always stands at the door and knocks, he awaits invitation and when he comes in he will make our lives so much sweeter than we have ever have thought, and when the power, the peace, the purpose, the presence of Jesus gets into us, not only are our lives changed, but the lives of others are changed too. Let him in, let him reveal his truth for you in your life, let God work in you, and know wherever you are he is with you, going ahead of you, and even when we fail, fall down make a mess of things, he is there to speak words of hope to you, to give you purpose and joy in this world and great expectation for the world to come..

sermon for the week

Sermon notes
Where you going to be in 1 year? How would you like to grow in your faith? What goals do you have for the year to come? How will you judge you Christian walk between now and the?
What will need to happen to give you sense of satisfaction? What will need to happen to say “it’s been a good year?”
What we believe? Will it give a sense of satisfaction, will we deliver the goods, or are the goals we have misguided, or faulty in some way?
Our goals in life, spring from what we believe, if what you do no longer bears fruit, then you have to review your beliefs, if your behaviour is out of order, it is a result of what you have chosen to believe.
Walking by faith in the nitty gritty of daily life is a lot like golf, 10 – year old boy, 15 degrees off, but he doesn’t hit it far enough to end up in trouble, but as he grows he ends up in the rough all the time, accuracy is very important when he can drive 300 yards he ends up in the lake in every shot.
As a new Christian your accuracy will be off for a while, but it is not disastrous at that stage, but if you continue in that way, thinking that success is like a big house and a good job, rather than what God wants for you, if you carry on in your own way, slightly off centre, you may find yourself in a lake, crisis hits, when you discover that what you have believed isn’t quite true, the longer you walk in false beliefs the more pronounced your limp will become, and sometimes you can see it in the way people live.
To walk by faith means to live life on the basis of what you believe, we already walk by faith, even atheists do, the real question is whether you are putting your faith in the truth.
Feelings are God’s red flag of warning from the moment we are born, all of us try to work out what will make us happy, find fulfilment, achieve satisfaction, have fun, live in peace and so on. Whether we know it or nor, we continue to make and adjust plans to achieve these goals
Who knows best to how to make us fulfilled, happy and peaceful? God! Believe it or not, sometimes our best laid plans are not in harmony with God’s will for us. How can you know what is right or wrong? Well pretty obvious, if it is in line with God’s truth as revealed in the bible, God has shown us the way to go, but he has also blessed us with feeling, when an experience or relationship leaves us angry, depressed, anxious, this should ring bells within ourselves. When we feel depressed (not clinical) angry, anxious, it should prompt us to go back to God’s word and discover why we feel this way.
Teenager rock concert, not sure if allowed (anxious), told no angry, when she realises that she will not go, no matter the bargaining and pleading she tries she is depressed because her goal is impossible. You get angry when you don’t get what you want! How mad do you get when you are stuck in traffic and you know you are going to be late for that vital meeting? How mad do you get when you go to the checkout and you find you are in the shortest lane, but it takes the longest?
When you have a goal that is dependent upon others then your goal is misguided, your goal could be to have a loving harmonious Christian family, but anyone in that family will could and probably block that goal, a minister could have the goal of reaching the community for Christ, but it is dependent on others, anyone could block that goal, if your goal is dependent upon others then it will be blocked no doubt, which will lead to anger, depression anxiety, you can’t control others, all you can do is control yourself.
Anger highlights blocked goals, anxiety signals an uncertain goal, even when you find success you are still anxious, this probably means you don’t find peace even though you have achieved all you thought you needed, depression signals an impossible goal, hopelessness and helplessness come when the thing you desire most is never going to happen.
It is of course right to want your loved ones to come to Christ, for the community to be reached for Christ, and we are to pray and work to that end, but when your sense of worth is based upon someone else you set yourself up for problems, why? Because their responses are beyond your ability or right to control. Be a witness of Christ, share faith in the power of the Holy Spirit and leave the results to God, we can’t save anyone, if you are feeling low or desperate or helpless, it may be because you have not got your goals in line with what God has in mind. The thing to remember is this, with God all things are possible, he is the God of all hope, turn to him no matter how you feel and put your trust in him.
Wrong responses when our goals are frustrated. If our goals can be blocked what is our reaction to those people or things that threaten our plans? We can try to manipulate or control or we can bring our goals in line with God’s goals. Minister youth ministry, parent, perfect Christian family. People who try to control and manipulate are easily understood they want happiness, but when frustrated they get bitter, angry, resentful or they develop a martyr’s complex thinking they live in defeat for a reason, they struggle through thinking God has given this burden to live with, rather than seeking what God really wants in their life.
Turning bad goals into good goals ask yourself this question; if God wants it done can it be done? Or if God has a goal for your life, can it be blocked, unfulfilled or impossible? Course not!
Or to put it another way would God ever say to you, “I’ve called you into being, I have made you my child, I have a job for you to do, but I know you won’t be able to do it, but give it your best shot!” crazy, it is like saying to your child, “mow the lawn, but the mower has no petrol, the lawn is full of stones and the mower doesn’t work anyway, try your best though!”
No God given goal can ever be impossible, uncertain or blocked, God would not do that to you.
Look at Mary, young girl, virgin; having a kid, what is her response? Nothing is impossible for God, God doesn’t give you goals you can’t achieve, his goals are possible, certain and achievable, we need to understand what his goal for our life is and then say with Mary “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said”
The point is, no God-given goal can be dependent on people or circumstances that we have no right or ability to control.
Difference between goal and a desire semantics, but there is a difference between a god given goal and a godly desire, it is a difference that change failure to success and pain to peace.
A godly goal is this, that which reflects God’s purpose for your life and doesn’t depend on circumstances or people beyond your control, only you can block a godly goal.
A godly desire is a result that depends on the help of others, the success of events or favourable circumstances beyond your control
There is a crucial difference, you can’t base your sense of worth on your desires, because you cannot guarantee success, we all know that life doesn’t always go our way. When a desire is not met, we face only disappointment, not anger, anxiety or depression, dealing with disappointment is a lot easier, that that comes from getting your goals from God.
For the parent who wants her children to come to Christ, how about being the mother God wants her to be, for the minister whose success and sense of worth is based upon winning the community for Christ, or having the best youth group in the area, worthwhile desires, but as a goal he is doomed to failure, a good goal? To be the minister God has called him to be, no one can block that goal except himself!
The goal is to become the person God called you to be God wants us to become like Jesus “it is God’s will that we should be sanctified” 1 Thess 4:3, sanctification means becoming like Jesus, that is God’s Goal for our lives, nothing can keep you from becoming the person God wants you to be, but there are loads of distractions, disappointments, trials, temptations traumas that can disrupt this process, everyday you will struggle against the flesh, the devil the world which are opposed to you becoming like more like Jesus.
Nobody and nothing can stop you getting there present circumstances blocking the way? but Paul tells that difficulties actually are a stepping stone to become more like Jesus. Rom 5v 3-5 we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
James offers similar advice Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4
Perseverance results in proven character, which is God’s goal for us, who we are, rather than what we do
Difficulties help us towards God’s goal when people are in dire straits never offer false hope, if a husband leaves a wife, if a prodigal son never returns, we can encourage them to grow nearer to God, to leave situations out of our control to him, and to become more like Jesus, difficulties can show if our goals are off kilter, it can be the catalyst for sanctification, to be more like Jesus
Defeated spouses say “my marriage is hopeless” so they change partners, others feel their job or their church is just as hopeless so they change them too, in most cases they should hang in there and grow up. There are legitimate times to change jobs or churches, but if we are just running from our immaturity, it will follow us wherever we go
Christian car salesman, anger, be the one God called him to be, is there an easier way to become more like Jesus without difficulties and trials? We as believers have probably looked everywhere for one, but it is usually the times of testing that have brought about maturity that makes life meaningful. We need the joy of mountain top experiences, but the fertile soil for growth is always on the valley floor, not the mountain summit.
When our goal is love 1 tim 1:5 “The goal of our instruction is love” love (agape) is the character of God, because God is love. If you make godly character your goal, then the fruit of the Spirit that will be produced in your life will be love, joy (instead of depression0, peace (instead of anxiety) and patience (instead of anger).
So how would you answer the question I asked at the beginning, one year on how will you judge how your Christian walk has been? What will make you say it has been a good year? What will give you satisfaction? Are your goals in line with God’s goals? Have the fruit of the Spirit been seen in your life? So where are you heading in life? It is never too late to let God change you, I hope you can respond by becoming the person God wants you to be and no one and nothing can stop you!
Interestingly when you follow what God wants you may find your family coming to Jesus, you may find the community turning to Christ, you may discover the youth of Dalkeith finding Jesus, why? Because when you co-operate with God, you can expect your life to bear good fruit.
In finishing here is a story that illustrates how often we misunderstand God’s goals in our livesA man was sleeping one night in his cabin, when suddenly his room filled with light, and God appeared. The Lord told the man he had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might. So, this the man did, day after day. For many years he toiled from sun up to sun down; his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all of his might. Each night, the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain. Since the man was showing discouragement, the Adversary (Satan) decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into the weary mind: "You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn't moved." Thus, giving the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man. "Why kill myself over this?" he thought. "I'll just put in my time, giving just the minimum effort; and that will be good enough."And that is what he planned to do, until one day he decided to make it a matter of prayer and take his troubled thoughts to the Lord. "Lord", he said, "I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?" The Lord responded compassionately, "My friend, when I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewy and brown, your hands are calloused from constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. Yet you haven't moved the rock. Now I, my friend, will move the rock." But, your calling was to be obedient and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. This you have done.

from 1993, we could have been a contender!

Reviewed by Tony Cummings cross rhythms
An EP from an Aberdeen team who toured with Eden Burning on about half of their Vinegar And Brown Paper tour and despite the relative production crudity of this 4-song EP a band definitely to tip for the top. They possess in Kathy Gorden a distinctive lead vocalist while the band show a nice line in ringing some changes out of all those recycled indie riffs. Not sure if the band have truly settled on a distinctive style yet both "Home", a song about Kathy's homeland of Orkney, and "The Search", a song of righteous anger and conviction would be great with a big studio production. So the grassroots scene is still throwing up bags of talent. Encouraging, isn't it?

sermon for the week

Sermon notes
Prayers
Sentence
The grass may wither, the flower fade,
but the word of our God will endure for ever.
Isaiah 40 : 8 Collect (Common Order, page 678)
Almighty God, you have made us for yourself,
and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you. Give us peace in your service, and in the world to come the joy of seeing you face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Call to Worship
Come – you are invited to listen to God’s word that it may be a light on your path. Come – you are invited to bring your praises to God that you may acknowledge his greatness. Come – for this invitation is for you, however you may feel life is treating you. Come – because God created you, God loves you and God welcomes you.
we have come together to worship you, a mixed bunch of people, each with our own problems, concerns and joys, but all knowing that you are here with us, waiting to speak your word, ready to listen, to bless, to lead us. For our part, we bring you our hymns and our reading of your word, our thinking and our listening, our praying and our doubts.
We bring the fellowship we share, the discipleship we offer, the world of which we are part, and the lives you have given us. Receive all that we bring, Father, that we might receive all that you have for us.
And as part of what we bring, we bring you our confession of failings and failures: the times when our discipleship has been half-hearted; the times when we’ve sung Jesus’ praise but failed to follow in his footsteps;
the times when we’ve expected others to serve us but we’ve failed to serve them. And so, Lord, for all such times and for anything else that weighs heavily on our hearts and which we now confess to you in the silence we ask that you will forgive us. (silence)
In gratitude for your many gifts, we lay this offering before you, a token of our offering of our very selves, asking that we may serve you and others to the glory of your name.
Lord, hear our prayer and change our lives that we might be better disciples of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, in whose name we ask it. Amen
Relating to others, Understanding grace Matt 22 :37-40 Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbour as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
We are to love others as we love ourselves, how can we love the seemingly unlovable? Left to ourselves we can’t do it! But God would never ask us to do the impossible. In Christ we have the freedom to relate to others as God intended.
Just knowing who we are in Christ is the foundation for our Christian life and growth in maturity, it also forms the basis for the way we relate to others “we love because he first loved us” 1 John 4:19. We give freely because we have received freely (Matthew 10:8), We are merciful because he has been merciful to us, Luke 6:36, and we forgive in the same way that Jesus has forgiven us, Ephesians 4:32.
We cannot do this if we haven’t got a handle on what grace means for us. “Grace is giving people what they don’t deserve”, undeserved favour, it cannot be earned. Salvation is a free gift and we owe God nothing for it, but when we receive his grace, a strange thing happens. We discover that it really is more blessed to give than to receive (acts 20:35) We find we want to give it away to others
We are responsible for our own character and Other’s needs What are our responsibilities to others? And what rights do we have regarding others?
You ever listen to another couple’s argument? You know that they eventually start attacking people’s character, while looking out for their own needs, you’re selfish, you never help me, never and always! If there is a relationship with that orientation then there is trouble, because it is the exact opposite of how God says our relationships should be. Consider these two passages
Romans 14:4 Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. Someone else’s character is not your concern! It is for that person and God, we are not to judge, each person is responsible before God for their character
Phil 2:3-5 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus
Where we do have a responsibility towards others before God, it is to meet their needs. So we can clearly see that we are responsible for 2 things out own character and meeting the needs of others.
Imagine what life would be like if everyone assumed their responsibility to become like Christ in their character and committed themselves to meet the needs of everyone! That would be heaven on earth!
Being aware of our own sins no one would disagree with that. The big question is why we fail to live it out, too often we are very aware of the failures in other people’s characters, while being blind to our own. Much of this is to do with the condition of our relationship with God.
We look forward to seeing Jesus in his fullness some day, the bible teaches that after the fall no one has fully seen God, some have seen the back of God, or a vision of God, Isaiah ch 6 shows the prophets vision of God on his throne, with his robe filling the temple, and as he saw God, not even fully, he cries out woe is me, I am unclean with unclean lips, when confronted with God does he care what someone else is up to? No it is only his own sin he is worried about, same with us, when we meet with God it is our sin that is our concern not anybody else’s!
Luke ch 5, Jesus uses Peter’s boat to speak to the crowd, Peter had been fishing all night and got nothing, Jesus says to him, go out into the deep water, let your nets down for a catch, he then catches fish after fish, his response is not go away from me I am married to a sinful woman, no what he says is go away from me I am a sinful man.
When we see who God is we don’t care about the sins of others but of our own sin. However, when we are lukewarm in our relationship with God, we tend to overlook our sin and see the sins of others. When they don’t match up to our expectations, we have a tendency to say they are doing wrong and to want to point it out. Our responsibility however is not for their character but for our own character.
Focus on responsibilities rather than rights What right do we have to expect anything from anyone else? Or do we have a responsibility to love one another, care for one another, In every relationship we have both rights and responsibilities- but where should we put the emphasis? Satan will tempt us to focus on our rights rather our responsibilities.
A husband could get angry with his wife because he thinks he has a right to expect her to be submissive. A wife may nag her husband because she expects him to be the spiritual head of the household. Do husbands have a right to expect their wives to be submissive? Or do they have a responsibility to love their wives as Christ loved the Church. Do wives have a right to expect their husbands to love them? Or do they have a responsibility to love and respect their husbands who in turn have the responsibility of being the head of the home?
Husbands, having a submissive wife is not your right, but being a loving, caring husband is your responsibility, being head of the house is not a right to be demanded but an awesome responsibility to be fulfilled. Wife having a spiritual husband is not your right, but being a submissive and supportive wife is your responsibility, focus on your responsibilities, when we stand before Christ, he will not ask us whether we received everything we had coming to us, he will reward us for how well we fulfilled our responsibilities.
Do parents have a right to expect their children to be obedient? Or do they have a responsibility to bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord and discipline them when they are disobedient?
Does being a member of a local church give you the right to criticise others? Or does it give you a responsibility to submit to those in authority over you and relate to one another with the same love and acceptance we have received from Christ? Being a member of the church is an incredible privilege, this privilege comes with the awesome responsibility to behave as God’s children and love God and others.
Of course we all have rights, everybody has a right to be loved, accepted, no matter colour, creed, but we must not hold on to our rights and sacrifice our responsibilities, that is what the world wants, you to demand your rights, forget your responsibilities and sow the seeds of destruction.
What about when others do wrong well all well and good Keith, but what happens when they make a huge mistake? Can we not be their conscience? Can we not tell them exactly where they have gone wrong? All of us find it difficult to won up and say “yes I did it”, too often we see the issues in someone else’s life much more clearly than in our own! Should we try to be the conscience of another person and show them their sin? Nope that is the job of the Holy Spirit, playing the role of God in someone else’s oddly enough will not work! The moment we try and we do try, we take their struggle with God upon ourselves and we are not up to the task. The holy Spirit is the one who convicts us of our sins. The critic is tempted to protest “But I have the gift of condemnation!” actually God has given us the gift of reconciliation, but the critical spirit says, but doesn’t love expose a multitude of sins, no Peter tells us love covers a multitude of sins! (1 peter 4:8)
Discipline yes, judgement no! Well if I can’t condemn, what should I do to keep someone from sinning? Christians do sin, and this affects our relationship with God and others, should you just ignore it, are there ever occasions where I should confront another Christian? How do these verses go together? “do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others you will be judged” Matt 7:1 and “if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore them gently” Gal 6:1
How can we reconcile the fact that we are not to judge, but we are to carry out discipline? Judgment is not the same as discipline; judgement is related to character, whereas discipline is always related to behaviour, discipline is based on something we have seen or heard, if we see someone sinning against us we are to confront them alone, so we can win them back to God, if they don’t repent then we are to take along tow or three who have seen it too, if they still wont, listen then we bring it to the Church (matt 18) the purpose of this process is not to condemn, but to restore. If there are no witnesses, your word against theirs, leave it alone, God knows, he will deal with it in his wisdom.
We are so often tempted to judge character, however if you catch someone telling a lie and you confront them saying “you have told a lie” Have you judged them? They may think so, but you have simply called attention to sinful behaviour that you have seen.
However if you shout “you are a liar!” that is judgement! Because you have attacked his character, what you think is discipline is in fact character assassination, he is not a liar, he is a child of God who has told a lie, when you call someone stupid, clumsy, proud, evil, you attack their character and it leaves them nowhere to turn because you can’t change character instantly.
If on the other hand you point out their behaviour to them you are giving them something to work with, “ you are right what I said wasn’t true, I am sorry will you forgive me” Saying something like that puts an end to the matter and leaves no scars
If we could memorise and never go against Ephesians 4:29 most of the problems in our homes and churches would disappear! “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful and verse 30, do not grieve the holy spirit. It grieves God when we use words that tear another down instead of using words to build each other up. If you have taken hold of your freedom in Christ, you are free to make the right choice in any situation
Discipline and punishment are not the same punishment is related to the OT concept of an eye for an eye, punishment looks back to the past, whereas discipline looks to the future, Hebrews 12 tells us discipline is a sign of God’s love, if we are not being discipline by God then we are illegitimate children of God. In the same way if we feel we have to approach someone we do it with love, in order to equip them for the future! God does not punish us for our mistakes, our punishment has fallen on Christ, he disciplines us so we will not make the same mistakes again “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful, later on however it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” Hebrews 12:11 The point of discipline it to help someone become more like Jesus, not to punish them for behaving badly!
When we are attacked Ok what happens when the boot is on the other foot? When someone attacks our character? Should we be defensive? We are certainly tempted to, how did Jesus react? When insulted he did not retaliate, when he suffered he made not threats, instead he trusted himself to him who judges justly 1 peter 2:23. Now we are alive in Christ and forgiven, we do not need to defend ourselves, if you are wrong you don’t have a defence if you are right you don’t need one, Christ is our defence.
Woman/pastor/ good points/bad points about him 2 good ones, page of bad ones, he was tempted to defend himself, but said nothing, “it must have taken a lot of courage to share that with me, what do you suggest I do?” She then burst into tears, saying “not you it’s me” and a discussion ensued so she discovered her own ministry suited to her gifts. If the minister had defended himself, what then? The lady would have been convinced her calling was to convince him he was not yet qualified to be a member of the trinity!
If you can learn not to be defensive when someone attacks your character or performance, you may have a real opportunity to turn it around and minister to that person.
Student heard that story, he was doing supply work, got a call from an irate mother, tore him apart, worst teacher my daughter has ever had, he was desperate to get off the phone, but remembering the story kept quiet, then responded “took courage, what would you have me do?”, guess what, tears flowed, relationship restored. Mum was single mum, rebellious daughter had been saying all sorts about the teacher, they were both Christians, they committed themselves to pray for the daughter.
Nobody tears down another person from a position of strength, those who are critical of others are either hurting or immature, if we learn not to be defensive when they attack us, it can lead to an opportunity to minister to them.
Authority and accountability God has given us lines of authority to avoid anarchy in our society, we also have a great need for accountability, think of these 4 words and ask yourself in what way did God first come to you? Authority, accountability, affirmation, acceptance. How you answer this question reveals a lot about you, and how you understand ministry marriage and parenting Paul wrote while we were still sinners Christ died for us, acceptance came firstly, then affirmation “the spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children”
The world the devil are desperate to distort our image of God, to get things back to front, if you see God as a consuming fire first and foremost, as a holy God and you a sinner, you will never get close, but first of all if you see him as a loving father who loves and accepts you as you are, you can get close to him and grow in him.
If authority figures demand accountability, without affirmation and acceptance they will never get it, people may comply on the outside, but they will never share anything intimately, but people will submit to authority when it is first of all accepting and affirming.
Teenager home late, parent reads riot act, where have you been? Out! What were you doing? Nothing!
In the gospels Jesus never says anything like this “I am the Son of God get your act together! He is God but he came as the gentle shepherd, but they were amazed at his teaching as he taught with authority, it came not from a position but from his character, when we see people struggling with sin, we need to learn to be like God, come alongside with an attitude of acceptance rather than rejection without a shred of condemnation but filled with love.
Should we express our needs? Should we suffer in silence then? Or is it ok to express our needs? We all have needs and we are allowed to tell others if they are not meeting our needs, but we have to be careful how we express them, state it as a need not a judgement, “you don’t love me do you?” course I do” case closed, but if she says “I don’t feel loved just now” the husband now has a chance to meet that need, husband could also say “you make me feel useless” he could say “ I feel unimportant”, there is no accusation or blame and there is opportunity to help meet that need.
One of life’s little secrets everyone of us needs to be loved, accepted and affirmed, today after church go home and phone someone who wasn’t here, tell them they are a real encouragement to you, that they build you up and you love having their company. Maybe you are waiting for someone to do that to you, it may never happen, but that is one of life’s secrets, not very secret, “you reap what you sow”
Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive, when you help someone else you are helped too, if you want someone to love you, love them, if you want a friend be a friend, you get out of life what you put into it Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Luke 6:38, if we do enough to get by, we rob ourselves. Jesus talking about a bushel of wheat, you fill the basket, then you scrape off the top with a board, fair measure, Lord is saying we fill it until it over flows, and shake it so it settles done and what we measure out to others will come back to us. Meant to start work at 9? start at 8:45 do that with everything and you will be amazed what life has to offer.
Farmer baker, butter, bread, weigh it to the bread scales
"People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centred. Love them anyway. If you do good, people may accuse you of selfish motives. Do good anyway. If you are successful, you may win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable. Be honest and transparent anyway. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway. People who really want help may attack you if you help them. Help them anyway. Give the world the best you have and you may get hurt. Give the world your best anyway."
Be the person God created you to be, no matter what the world says
Prayers of dedication, thanksgiving and intercession Father, we have so much to thank you for: our lives, our talents, our families and friends; but especially your coming to us in Jesus Christ. As we bring you our thanks, we recall the wonders of this world of your creation, and your making us, male and female, in your image. We thank you, too, that through the centuries you have not only been patient with us, but even sent your Son to bring us back to you. In his living and dying, he showed us the greatness of service, the strength of weakness and the power of love. Even then, Lord, you have not left us alone for you have sent us your Holy Spirit to strengthen and inspire us to service. For all these acts of grace and love we offer you our heartfelt thanks.
Loving God, as we pray for your world, we thank you that you value all people, that all are important in your eyes, with none more or less so. And so we pray for all who have lost that sense of perspective. We think of those who have fallen into the error of pride, and ask that you will help them to recognize their weaknesses as well as their strengths. We think of those who feel themselves to be worthless, unimportant, unvalued, or unloved – victims of broken homes and broken relationships, the powerless and the poor, the homeless and refugees, the shy and depressed, the lonely and rejected. Grant them the assurance that, whatever their circumstances, they are precious to you. Give them all a proper sense of their own value, a true appreciation of the worth of others, and, above all, an understanding of your greatness, beside which we are nothing, and yet through which you count us as your children. Lord, we ask that you will hear this our prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Benediction Go back out into God’s world strengthened by God’s word - that that word might be a light to your feet and a lamp to your path. And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be with you this day and always. Amen

my ramblings for this week

Walking in freedom everyday, Hebrew 5 v 14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant us have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. Talking about maturity, so here is a couple of terribly immature jokes!
The Lone Ranger and Tonto walked into a bar and sat down to drink a beer. After a few minutes, a big tall cowboy walked in and said "Who owns the big white horse outside?" The Lone Ranger stood up, hitched his gun belt, and said, "I do...Why?" The cowboy looked at the Lone Ranger and said, "I just thought you'd like to know that your horse is about dead outside!" The Lone Ranger and Tonto rushed outside and sure enough Silver was ready to die from heat exhaustion. The Lone Ranger got the horse water and soon Silver was starting to feel a little better. The Lone Ranger turned to Tonto and said, "Tonto, I want you to run around Silver and see if you can create enough of a breeze to make him start to feel better." Tonto said, "Sure, Kemosabe" and took off running circles around Silver.Not able to do anything else but wait, the Lone Ranger returned to the bar to finish his drink.A few minutes later, another cowboy struts into the bar and asks, "Who owns that big white horse outside?"The Lone Ranger stands again, and claims, "I do, what's wrong with him this time?" The cowboy looks him in the eye and says, "Nothing, but you left your Injun runnin'."
A mechanic who worked out of his home had a dog named Mace. Mace had a bad habit of eating all the grass on the mechanic's lawn, so the mechanic had to keep Mace inside. The grass eventually became overgrown. One day the mechanic was working on a car in the backyard and dropped his wrench, losing it in the tall grass. He couldn't find it for the life of him, so he decided to call it a day.That night, Mace escaped from the house and ate all the grass in the backyard. The next morning the mechanic went outside and saw his wrench glinting in the sunlight. Realizing what had happened he looked toward the heavens and proclaimed, "A grazing Mace, how sweet the hound, that saved a wrench for me

Growing to maturity Growth should be our natural state, should never stop growing! we are not expected to be instantly mature, many do not progress beyond the baby state, a church of mature Christians is an asset to any town, but a church full of old Christians without maturing has trouble on his hands! 1 cor 3 :1-3 Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarrelling among you, are you not worldly? Still had a pattern of sin in their lives, jealousy and quarrelling, they still had a long way to go. New Christians are not expected to be instantly mature, just not able, the flesh is still at work in them, conflicts are still at work in them. These boys are not new Christians though, after a good length of time, still not ready for solid food, Paul is saying this is abnormal, at least it is supposed to be, in our churches today in the west it has become the norm.
Any Christian can become an old Christian it just takes time! Any Christian can become a mature Christian, but many do not! Babies are cute, but if they continue to act like babies as they grow up they become a lot less attractive! Wanting maturity is not enough, even if a wee one wants solid food, if the stomach is not ready, the swallowed food will come right back up! Today’s sermon is to help us understand what makes us unable to digest solid spiritual food so we can remove these barriers and actively grow with God in maturity.
Barriers to maturity not taking hold of our spiritual freedom, need to accept Christ! His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3, you have all you need! When you confess, repent, walk with God, you are taking hold of the life and the Godliness God has give to you! As you grow you give those things in your life that hold you back to God, you give them to God and you are released from the slavery/bondage you find yourself in as you give your life to God! Freedom in Christ is not maturity, freedom can occur in a very short time, maturity takes a lifetime!
Maturity a process of growth that continues throughout our lives as we apply ourselves to knowing God and his word. However freedom is a position we take in response to Christ’s victory over sin and satan. We are either free or bound in any area of our lives; we grow in freedom when we take the authority we have in Christ and we realise where we have been deceived and bound.
Yet freedom and maturity are linked, if we don’t accept freedom we cannot mature, this is the Corinthian Church’s problem, they had not dealt with their jealousy and fighting, so they are unable to move on. No amount of wanting to mature or trying to mature could help with the footholds that the enemy had in their lives.
Not taking personal responsibility if you had to help a friend with a problem like the Corinthian church, you may say “I’ll pray for you in your problems” Paul didn’t, in fact he didn’t do anything directly, Why not? Because he couldn’t! What was required was confession, repentance, submission to Christ and resisting the devil, they had to do it themselves, all he could do was help them see the truth and it was up to them whether they chose to act or not. It would be lovely if all we had to do was ask for someone to pray for us and all our problems would be fixed. But faith and repentance are needed and no one else can repent and believe for you, no one can forgive for you, no one else can submit to God for you. Other people are great, they can encourage, love support us, but we are responsible for our relationship with God, no one else. Throughout NT, it is the individual who has to take action when there is a problem in their walk with God we have to choose for ourselves to take God at his word and stand firm It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Gal 5v 1 you have to decide to stand firm, no one else can do it for you, then you can grow in maturity. You have all you need to grow with God, half the battle is understanding that, we have everything we need in Christ. the only thing that can prevent you from growing in your faith is you! Ultimate question is, will you believe what God tells us is true or will you trust your own feelings? We won’t grow until we take God at his word, even when our feelings scream at us that it’s not true, it takes effort and commitment.
Not knowing the basic truths you are righteous! Writer to the Hebrews, another block in growing In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil., the result is the same, immaturity, they are not stuck in sin, they don’t seem to get the truth, that they are righteous, they are still going in the circles over old issues and never making progress. They needed to hear what we need to hear and believe, that in Christ we are completely righteous, we are saints, there is nothing more to do. “on what basis can you stand before God?” maybe give a good head answer…..but do you believe in your heart or do you think you need to do a good job before god accepts you, do you still feel dirty, useless? Do your own thoughts condemn you even though the truth is that God never condemns the believer? Romans 8:1 believe the truth!
Faulty thinking Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. How do we leave elementary teaching behind? By realising what makes us pleasing to God, you know what that is? Not what you do, not what you say, but what Jesus has done on the cross, that is it, God sees you as acceptable, more as a saint, because of what Jesus did for you on the cross. Nevertheless there are still barriers in us, strongholds we need to break down! We have weapons though
2 Cor 10:4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We have to fight, we are to wield the weapons God gives us, which takes application and effort, our main weapon is the truth, which is the bible, you are significant, accepted and restored, Your father God loves you, and in him we are saints.
Breaking faulty thinking takes time and effort, replace lies with the truth, let the word of God seep into you, the only way you do that is by regular watering with the word, think of that plant that you need to water everyday, when you don’t it shrivels and dies………………..
Not training ourselves to distinguish good and evil Heb 5:14 we grow in spiritual discernment by becoming intimately acquainted with the truth, we have to train ourselves to discern good from evil, so we sense when something is not right, identifying forged notes, the are not shown forgeries, they get to know the genuine ones so much better, they know the true notes so well they can spot a fake in a heartbeat, same for us, we become so familiar with the truth of God, we recognise the lies of the world and the enemy straight away.
How do we grow then? Uncovering lies this series of sermons or the house groups have shown the lies you have held to, when you forgive you find not defeat as the devil would try to tell you, but release, we fear that if the things we have held onto for so long are let go of, we will crumble, we need to banish those fears, we will be free to grow and mature as Christians. When you uncover the lies you have to deal with them
Stronghold busting determine the lie, seek out bible verses, write the truth down, write a prayer declaration “ I renounce the lie that……………, I announce the truth that…………………..” read the verses, say the prayer/declaration everyday for 40 days, coffee pot, next to water jug, word of God
Wrecking ball- 37, 38, 39, 40, but all the rest made a difference too!
A long term view Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Phil 3 v 13-14, take baby steps, then before you know it you will be walking your walk with God, you will be running with God! Have a long term plan! Deal with one area at a time, think about where you could be in a years time!
Practical steps read devotional, be accountable to someone.
Boy lifting stones, couldn’t manage the big one, Dad comes over did you use all your strength? Yes, no you didn’t you didn’t ask me! You are a product of Christ on the cross, use your father’s strength, find freedom, grow and mature in Jesus

and some more

Sermon notes
The need to forgive, why? Hurt ourselves, give the devil a foothold, if you forgive you will not give the enemy a chance to outwits us, for we are not unaware of his schemes,2cor2
-mental torment
-nothing keeps you in chains more than unwillingness to forgive
Nothing stops a church growing more, than bitterness, unforgiveness, pride


Think of the worst thing anybody ever did to you, why should you forgive that? Required by God (Matt 6 v 9-15) This,then, is how you should pray:Our Father in heaven,hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts,as we forgive our debtors. Your relationship with God is bound to others
If you can’t forgive, you can’t have true freedom in Christ. relate to others as God relates to us. For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. God is judge and Father destiny secure, your daily victory is at stake


Essential for freedom (Matt 18 v 21-35) Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. Pocket calculator, 78, blow brains out. Rather continue to forgive for your own sake, God doesn’t want you in bondage and bitterness because of your past
The extent of our own debt (Luke 7:47)
Pharisee Simon, woman washes feet with tears, £500, £50, who would love more? Those who have been forgiven much love much, those forgiven little love little. Our best is like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) forgiven much affects our capacity to love others.repayment is impossible Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
Ten thousand talents, millions, Jesus saying repayment is not an option, another way has to be found. Your debt to God was far to large 2 repay
-Mercy is required The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.'
Understanding concepts
Justice- giving people what they deserve
Mercy- not giving people what they deserve, we are to be merciful, as God is merciful, in other words we are not to give others what they deserve
Grace- Giving people what they don’t deserve, we have to go further, begins with us and God
Freely you have received free you must give, we relate to others in the same way God relates to us.
So lets see what the servant does v 28 "But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded. 3 months wages, not trivial debt, but much less than his!
The need to forgive
His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.' But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?‘ In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. TORTURE, spiritual torment
"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."
So that no advantage be taken of us
(2 Cor 2 v 10-11) I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. Do not let him get a foothold
What does it mean to forgive from the heart? Not being British, not quick and forgotten
I choose to forgive……………
For (what they specifically did to me) which made me feel……………
The crisis of forgiveness
-Forgiveness must be extended to others, Jesus said if we come to church, and remember, we need to leave our offering and be reconciled, by confessing we are in the wrong, asking forgiveness and making it right
If we have offended we go to make amends, but if someone offends us we go to God.
-the crisis of forgiveness is actually between God and us
-Why forgive? To stop the pain. You may say “you don’t know how much hurt has been caused” they are still hurting you!
_woman who has been left by her husband for another woman “I will never forgive” who does it hurt? Not him. Fisherman. Hook, leave it in?
When we forgive we may think we are letting them off the hook, but by not forgiving we are the ones on the hook in pain, never getting free!
What is forgiveness?
-Not forgetting, God forgets? No he says I will remember no more, I will put it far away, I will not dredge up the past against you! Husband/wife argument, I am not forgiving you, you can’t forgive simply by forgiving
-Not tolerating sin, wife/children suffering abuse, be submissive? Nope! Woman and abusive mother
Not seeking revenge, I want to have the satisfaction of hating that so and so, you lose, on the same level as the abuser. You say “I want revenge” what does God say Rom 12:19, “leave it to me”, let them off your hook, but they are not off God’s hook -Where is the justice? The cross, for all sins, either Christ will pay, or they will
God will settle all accounts, when you forgive you give it all to God to take it
What is forgiveness -Resolving to live with the consequences of another’s sin.
If you are to forgive like Christ how did he forgive? He took our sins upon himself, in a sense we have to do the same, forgiveness is to live with someone else’s sin “not fair” nope but we are to do it anyway, (Adam), our choice is to do it with bondage of bitterness or freedom of forgiveness
Forgiveness is to set a captive free, and then you realise that you are the captive!
-forgiveness is between you and God, he commands you to love because he has forgiven you! He knows bitterness ruins you and others, and miss out on the 10:10 life. Not about right and wrong, rather clearing the rubbish and walking away, for your sake, not the person who hurt you.
We can only do it with the power of God by the holy Spirit, can we just ask him to show us who we need to forgive and let him work through us to do so?
“Lord will you please show us if there is someone we need to forgive in order to walk in the freedom you have won for us, Lord in your power help us forgive and go before us in our walk with you, thank you Lord, Amen.

been a wee while!

Sermon notes
One of my favourite programmes is grand designs, Kevin, started going back to houses they have visited, reminded me of ground force they started going back to the gardens after a year, to see how well the gardens which they transformed have fared after a year. This garden was in Milton Keynes, personally I thought the woman didn't deserve to have her garden done up in the first place, she was so ungrateful. Anyway Charlie Dimmock goes back after a year with the cameras and they look to see how everything is growing. They knock on the door and the woman comes
'O it's a bad time, she say's, you've caught me out, I haven't been doing the gardening.' 'We have come to see how you have been looking after that beautiful garden which we entrusted to you'
Inside the lovely gazebo that the Groundforce Team had built is a pile of sand dumped in a corner. The borders haven't been cultivated since the previous autumn and everywhere is a mess. Unlike the feigned surprise on the faces of people when they come home to discover their new garden, these return visits really are a surprise. We know this because if she had known that they were coming, she would surely have done her hair, let alone cut the grass in the garden which looked equally a mess. Caught out she was, surprised!
The resurrection of Jesus, we are told, was equally a surprise for his disciples. They were not expecting him to return. They were caught off their guard and instead of being prepared and ready for Jesus they had let everything go. Even worse when Thomas got the tip off to say that Jesus had risen and was alive, he still refused to believe. The reaction of Thomas when he was told about Jesus was not one of, 'Hang on, I had better get ready to meet him' Rather he is sceptical and unbelieving, an attitude characteristic of many people today. We could say that in many ways Thomas was born 2000 ahead of his time.
Doubting Thomas reflects a pervasive 21st century hesitation when it comes to matters of faith. Sometimes there is not a flat denial of truth but a mentality that is sceptical, suspicious, and demanding of hard evidence. This is not a closed mind really, but one open to the truth only after it has been fully proved and makes human sense. We might sympathise with Thomas and his demand for physical proof before he accepted anything of what had been said to him. Human report was not enough, he had to see it for himself. However for those who are sceptical, no amount of proof will ever be enough.
But Jesus had faith in his disciples, he didn’t have any other plan, but he left them with the Holy Spirit, not to be part of a holier than thou club, or enjoy lots of spiritual experiences, but rather that they can do in and for the world what Jesus did in Israel, show them who the messiah is, he has faith in us too.
Faith is undoubtedly a risk, a gamble. Yet in refusing to believe what was said about Jesus by those who had met him, to refuse to believe without the possibility of placing his fingers in the holes in Christ's body, Thomas was of course taking a risk. To believe or not to believe, both are risks and require faith.
· 1. To believe in Jesus as God incarnate, dead and then risen requires faith.
· 2. But equally, to say that Christ is dead, to dispute the personal testimony of history and the church and millions of believers, also requires faith.
As an example—Stephen Hawking, the Cambridge scientist, claims there is no God, but make no mistake, this is not an objective scientific assessment. He has so many unanswered questions himself, the most important questions he fails to even try to answer. He is not able to suggest where the carbons and gases and basic building blocks of life came from. Rather it is his statement of his personal belief when he says that there is no God. He is saying
'I believe that the creative processes of the world were accidental, that the world was made through cosmic accident, but whereas I don't know where the basic components came from I am sure it was not from a power bigger than I can understand. '
Important ! In actual fact this position runs contrary to the weight of evidence. The precise nature of the universe, the witness and testimony of Christians throughout the ages and across the world.
Our message is simple, it is this, Jesus is the messiah, the Son of God, everyone who believes in him will have eternal life, that was Jesus’ message, believe in him and have life, we need to accept that, we need to tell others too. It is not rocket science
Stephen Hawkings eminent scientist, did an advert for SpecSavers, Hawking takes a ride around the planets. He sees the wonder of the universe the colours of the galaxy and the size and beauty of it all and he expresses his delight at creation. And yet this is a man who claims that there is no God. Confronted by the most wonderful aspects of nature, Hawking speaks about how nice his new glasses are from SpecSavers—and yet he has no spiritual vision whatsoever. Sadly, you cannot go down to the local opticians and buy a pair of specs, which will open the spiritual blindness of those without faith. This is one of the mysteries of the universe. How can people look at the wonder of the world and attribute it all to accident? Even the chaotic parts of the world, the sickness, the times when nature goes out of control, even these bits seem to confirm the concept of a benevolent creator, because they seem to run contrary to the natural and expected pattern which is so full of the order designed and intrinsic to all that we see.
Faith cannot be bought. In one sense it is a great leveller even before death. If you haven't got it then nobody can give it to you. Your parents can't leave it in a will, you can't inherit or bequeath it. You can't buy it or give it away. Its not for the rich or the poor, you may have all the wealth in the world and yet still be unable to have the vision granted by faith. How sad, for it is this one thing—faith—and faith alone which transforms the created order in which we live from a giant cosmic meaningless accident, and makes sense of it all. Like Thomas we may be unprepared for the knock on the door. We may be unprepared to consider the existence of that which we cannot see or touch. Yet we know in our hearts that there is so much more to life than can be seen with the eye or proven with mathematical equations. Love for example cannot be weighed or measured, but it is the most powerful force in the universe and likely the most important need in our lives. Without faith we are restricted in what we can see, it is only with the vision of faith that all things are revealed.
Jesus praises those who see with faith and called them blessed.
So is faith something over which we have no control? Are we damned at birth never to be able to believe? No, the requirement for faith is a willingness to trust, Jesus said that we must become like children, children will trust. And if we are prepared to take that risk and open ourselves to the possibility of being surprised by God, then that faith will expand our vision. I remember wearing glasses for the first time, they weren't SpecSavers, but I walked out of the opticians and could see individual leaves on trees and the lines of mortar in brick walls. Faith is like putting on spectacles and seeing things clearly for the first time. Faith can open our live and allow Gods miracles to come true.
Conclusion
Thomas is the only one to declare that Jesus is God, he is the one, he is the messiah, there is no one after him he is it, so we have to make a choice, to trust no matter what, and enjoy what God has in store, or coast along, with our doubts gnawing our faith away to nothing, we shrivel and die and the hundreds and thousands that we could influence with the gospel go to hell happily not knowing what they have missed.
So today ask yourself if your vision is limited by the 'show me' culture of Thomas. We may have doubts, even Calvin allowed that Christians will have questions and doubts as a normal part of their belief, there is lots which we do not know or understand. But are we prepared to be surprised by God? And those of us who have accepted the presence of the risen Christ, then have we still the capacity to believe in miracles for others and ourselves. Are we prepared to trust in him who loves us? To trust and love no matter what?
There is the very real possibility that the risen Christ might turn up unexpectedly like a member of the Groundforce Team, even this day, asks to see how well we are tending to that which has been entrusted to us.